David Shelton Online

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - TUESDAY, JANUARY 31

1 Timothy 2:8 I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting. (NKJV)

Parents desire to see their children do the things that are good for them. But the desire goes beyond just seeing them do what is good. They also desire to see their children do these things in the right way and for the right reasons.

Our Heavenly Father desires that His children spend time praying. He invites us to pray. He calls us to pray. He urges us to pray. He pleads with us to pray. He also wants us to pray in the right way. He wants us to pray in a right relationship with Him. This is what today’s verse implies with the phrase “holy hands.” We need to make sure we are approaching the throne of God with a clean spirit and a pure heart. He wants us to pray with a sense of grace and faith as well. The main thing is that He wants us to pray.

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - FRIDAY, JANUARY 27

1 Timothy 2:1 Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men. (NKJV)

We birth them. We rear them. We nurture them. We correct them. We educate them. We support them. We encourage them. We worry about them.

We nominate them. We support them. We vote them in. We vote them out. We compliment them. We complain about them. We blame them.

We interview with them. We work for them. We report to them. We appreciate them. We despise them. We seek to replace them.

We spend a great deal of time dealing with people from children to politicians to employers. The question is how much time we spend in the most important way of dealing with them. Do we pray for them?

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - THURSDAY, JANUARY 26

1 Timothy 1:20 Of whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I delivered to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme. (NKJV)

Flip Wilson was a comedian who made famous the phrase, “The Devil made me do it.” It sounds good, but it is not exactly accurate. The devil might throw out the temptation, but we decide what to do. He might suggest it, but we are responsible. We do it. Today’s verse sounds pretty harsh. Paul says he has delivered these men to Satan. The line is hyperbole or an exaggeration. He is saying that he has left them to the consequences of their actions. They were being evil while trying to appear righteous. He is willing to let them bear the results of their choices. The devil did not make them do it and he did not decide the consequences, but they were going to feel like Satan was making their lives miserable. We must be careful about our choices. They are our responsibility as are the consequences.

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 25

1 Timothy 1:16 However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life.  (NKJV)

When I was a young boy, my grandfather would take me fishing. Looking back, he must have had incredible patience. We fished for bass which meant we had to constantly and reel. More than a few times I managed to catch him on the back swing. We did our fishing on Lake Bistineau which is mostly a watered filled forest. My line was always getting tangled in limbs and on stumps. I am sure all the time he spent freeing my line kept him from catching a lot of fish. Still, he kept taking me. He was really longsuffering, but eventually I learned the skills to catch more fish than branches.

As a child of God, I am a work in progress. He is continually shaping and teaching me. Sometimes I am a slow learner. I can really get things messed up. Fortunately, God is patient. He does not throw in the towel. He does not walk away. He stays with me. He works and reworks when it is needed.

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - TUESDAY, JANUARY 24

1 Timothy 1:3 As I urged you when I went into Macedonia — remain in Ephesus that you may charge some that they teach no other doctrine. (NKJV)

“If we are good, when we die we become angels.”

“Hell is the devil’s base of operations.”

“The Gospel’s goal is our physical health and our material success.”

“God helps those who help themselves.”

In today’s verse, Paul wrote to Timothy. He encouraged the young pastor to pay attention to what we being taught in the church. Paul warned him to be on guard for teachings that sounded good but were not truth. He warned about doctrines that come from the human mind rather than God’s Word. We should continue to follow Paul’s advice today. Why? Because teachings, like opening statements above may sound good, but they are not biblical.

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - MONDAY, JANUARY 23

1 Timothy 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior and the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope. (NKJV)

Sports fans are always filled with hope – at least when the season begins. We are sure this year is going to be the year. We will win every big game and make it to the championship. The coach is going to be great. The team is going to perform at its highest level at all times. More often than not, reality comes calling and our hopes are dashed. We are left disappointed – until the next year.

We all want to find hope. We want to believe that good things will happen in the future – that everything is going to be okay. What we recognize is that hope is not found in our circumstances. Hope is a person. It is Jesus. He gives hope, because He hold the future in His hands. We can count on Him.

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - SATURDAY, JANUARY 21

Luke 6:35 But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men. (NASB)

Think about all the people Jesus helped during His earthly ministry. Over and over again the crowds gathered as He touched and healed. Many of those people never listened to His teachings or accepted what He was saying. Many never bothered to express appreciation. Some of those same people were in the crowd that called for His crucifixion. Some were family members of those who were opposed to Him – His enemies. Still, Jesus touched them. He showed love even to those who showed none in return.

We are to love as Jesus loved. It is easy to love those who love us. Loving our enemies or those who fail to treat us to respect and dignity can be a lot more difficult. We need to help others and not worry about their response. It is not about being appreciated. It is not about being recognized. It is not about being rewarded or received. It is about loving like Jesus.

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - FRIDAY, JANUARY 20

Hebrews 6:1 Therefore leaving the elementary teaching about the Christ, let us press on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God. (NASB)

Grow up! Most of us have said those words to someone at some time. We wanted them to quit acting immature. Perhaps we wanted them to quit being annoying them. Perhaps we wanted them to saying silly things and say something intelligent. So, we may have added, “Act your age.”

I wonder if there are times when God says to us – or at least to me, “Grow up.” The Bible says when we invite Jesus into our lives that we are “born again.” We are spiritual babies. We are not supposed to stay that way. We are supposed to grow up. We are supposed to become spiritually mature. We need to grow up into the deeper things of God.

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - THURSDAY, JANUARY 19

Isaiah 26:3 The steadfast of mind Thou wilt keep in perfect peace, because he trusts in Thee. (NASB)

The mind is an amazing thing. It can store a vast amount of information. It can recall that information when needed. It can analyze situations and offer a variety of solutions. Of course, the mind can also be dangerous. In times of stress, it can kick into high gear. It can begin to imagine all kinds of scenarios no matter how unrealistic they might be. It can start seeing conspiracies. In short, the mind can rob us of our peace and add to our anxiety.

There is a solution for the troubled and over-zealous mind. It is a matter of simplification. We need to reduce our focus to one thing – God. This does not mean that we forget our problems our struggles. It means that we see them in light of God’s character and actions.  When we focus on God’s greatness and mercy, our issues seem manageable. They do not overwhelm us.

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18

1 John 3:18 Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth. (NASB)

There is an old expression that says, “Don’t let your mouth write a check bigger than you can cash.” It is a good warning because it is quite easy to do. We can make claims without thinking we will ever have to do them. I have seen men being trained in CPR and proudly boasting they would be able to perform it whenever required. I have seen those same men manage to “fumble around” until someone else was performing CPR because they could not bring themselves to do it.

Saying, “I love you,” is easy to do. It is three simple words. Here’s the catch, for those words to be true, there must be action. Love must be seen by the things we do and in the way we do them. We can say we love God, but it means we must love His Word. So how much time do we spend with the Scripture and do we obey its teachings? We can say we love God, but it means we love the Church. So how is our support of the Church? We can say we love God, but it means we love people – even our enemies. So what will we do today to show people that we love them?