Mary Had A Little Boy

The other evening my wife was going through some things that she had been given by a family member.  It was a lot of great treasure that had been passed down to her.  In this treasure chest she found the following:

Mary Had A Little Boy

Mary had a little boy,
His soul seemed white as snow.
He never went to Sunday School
‘Cause Mary wouldn’t go.

He missed the Bible stories
That thrill the childish mind;
While other children went to class
This boy was left behind.

And as he grew from babe to youth,
Mary — to her dismay —
Saw the soul that once seemed white
Was turning dingy gray.
Knowing now that he was lost,
She tried to win him back.
Alas! the soul of the boy she loved
Had turned an ugly black.

Now Mary goes to Sunday School
And stays for preaching too;
She begs the preacher, “Isn’t there
A thing that you can do?”
He tries and fails and then he says,
“We’re just too far behind.”
“You warned me years ago,” she cries,
“But I would pay no mind.”

And so another soul is lost
That once seemed white as snow.
He would have gone to Sunday School
But Mary wouldn’t go.

 

I pray that this is not my testimony. Look at Proverbs 22:6, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it. ”

How about you my dear reader?  Are you one who does not go to Church?  Maybe you don’t feel like it is right for you.  Maybe you have a long list of objections to Church.  If we are not careful one day we will stand before God with a heart that was once white that has gone black as night.

So, how are you doing?

Impact, Influence

Do you ever wonder what kind of impact you are having on people?  In the ministry I know that I do.  You go along like the prophet Jeremiah sowing seeds and watering them with your tears.  The results are up to God and I understand that.

I was thinking about the song “Thank You” by Ray Boltz.  Sadly, he no longer walks with the LORD; but, this song is still has a deep impact on God’s people.  I remember a line of the song that says, “… as far as the eye can see.  Each life somehow touched by your generosity.”  We never know what kind of impact or influence we are going to have on someone.

The other evening we went out to eat because we had a gift card.  While we were sitting at the table a young lady came to our table and inquired if our son was Jonathan.  We said yes.  This young heart had tears rolling down her face.  She was a peer for Jonathan when he was in school.  From our conversation he had quite an impact on this young girl.

The tears ran down her cheeks as she told us about her activities with Jonathan.  you can imagine how we felt.  I was fighting back tears and I believe that my wife was also.  She shared with us how because of her work with Jonathan that she had decided to be a special education teacher.  Wow!  She said that her work with Jonathan confirmed in her  that she wanted to do that.  She will start college for that next fall.

This proves to me that anyone can have impact and influence on someone or even multiple people.  I was thinking about the Apostle Paul and his interaction with king Agrippa in Acts 26:27, “Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.”  We have to be people that make an eternal impact and have eternal influence on others.

So, how are you doing?

 

Who Runs Your Life?

Today we will look at Isaiah 14:14, “I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;”  We learn in Sunday School that Heaven is where God lives.  Where is Heaven?  If you ask most Sunday School children they would tell you that Heaven is above the clouds somewhere and that is where God lives.

So, not only would satan knock God off His rightful throne, steal the rule of His blood-bought Church; but, he would also go right into Heaven where our Father lives and dwells and remove Him from there too.  Lucifer had quite a plan.  Pride had taken to the pinnacle of sin.

You and I must be careful not to allow ourselves to be in this same place.  Remember, when you trusted Christ as your Saviour He came to live and dwell in your in the person of the Holy Spirit.  Our enemy seeks to remove God from His Church, His home and also His children.

I am thankful that God the Holy Spirit is given to me and all believers and He cannot be taken away from us who are God’s children.  He is the earnest or the down payment of our Salvation.  God gives us this assurance so that we do not have to drown in doubt.

So, how are you doing?

Influenced By Whom

Today we will look at Isaiah 14:13, “For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:”

Notice another statement of Lucifer in Isaiah 14:13, “… I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation; in the sides of the north:”  Not only does he want to knock God off His very throne; but, he wants to rule in the lives of God’s people too.  He tries all kinds of trickery to get us to follow him.  This is why decision making is so important.  You could be doing the will of satan and not the will of God.  We must be people of the Word and know the Scriptures well so that when things arise that we can test them through the filter of God’s Word and know if they come from our Father or from our enemy.  This is important if we are going to accomplish things for God and if we are going to live pleasing to Him.  You do want to live a life that pleases our Heavenly Father, right?

If we are not careful we can be influenced by satan and then that influence can work into God’s Church.  This is a big reason for receiving members who are born-again.  These are the only people in the body of Christ so they are the one’s that should populate His Church.  Let God influence you with His Word, His Spirit, His people.

So, how are you doing?

 

How’s My Driving?

I was thinking about a friend the other day.  He and I shared stories of being complained on for our superior driving habits.  Maybe not.  This caused me to think about II Kings 9:20, “And the watchman told, saying, He came even unto them, and cometh not again: and the driving is like the driving of Jehu the son of Nimshi; for he driveth furiously.”

As you and I travel down the road of life we form certain habits.  These habits can influence our driving.  I am not talking about literal driving.  I am talking about how we live our life.  As I travel this road of life does my driving influence people to follow me which should ultimately lead them to follow Jesus?  I hope it does.  If it does not then I have a bigger problem.

What is we had on the back of our “gospel vehicle” we had one of those stickers that said, “How’s my driving?  Call 1-800-Heaven”.  I am afraid that some of us would be called into the office so to speak and counseled about our driving habits.

So, how are you doing?