The Gathering Place Where Family Matters

From now through Thanksgiving Day, each day, Lord willing, we will look at a verse that deals with being thankful.

The Lord has delivered David from all of his enemies. Now he lifts his voice of praise and says,

“Therefore I will give thanks unto Thee, O LORD, among the heathen, and I will sing praises unto Thy name” (2 Samuel 22:50).

In this season of Thanksgiving, it is a great idea to think of the many things the Lord has done for us. Maybe it would even be a good idea to use a little imagination and think about potential things from which the Lord delivered us. For instance, did you drive a car today? Imagine how many potential crashes from which the Lord delivered you. Did you walk into a grocery store today? Imagine how the Lord protected you from falling. How many times did you walk up and down your steps today? On and on it goes. We often do things with little or no thought as to how the Lord has protected us.

When we really stop and think about it, we join King David by giving thanks unto the Lord and praising His name.

You may not have thought much about him.

Most folks don’t even know he existed.

His name is Epaphras (ep-af-RAS) and he was a dear brother in the Lord and faithful partner to the Apostle Paul. He’s mentioned in Colossians 1:7-8, “As you also learned of Epaphras our dear fellowservant, who is for you a faithful minister of Christ; Who also declared unto us your love in the Spirit.”

Again Paul shares the outstanding work of this dear brother in Colossians 4:12-13, “Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ, salutes you, always laboring fervently for you in prayer, that ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God. For I bear him record, that he hath a great zeal for you, and them that are in Laodicea, and them in Hierapolis.”

He was faithful in his partnership.
He was faithful in his prayer life.
He was faithful in his purpose.

He didn’t care about the spotlight. He didn’t promote himself. He only desired to serve and to help others to grow and mature. Oh that there were an additional 10,000 men and women just like Epaphras today. Think of what our churches, homes, schools, and neighborhoods would be like if that were the case. We might not have 10,000 additional folks right at the moment, but we do have you and me. That is at least a starting point. Bless you, dear friend. Thanks for making Dr. Mike’s Daily Prescriptions part of your routine.

Think of the number 5,073 and silly excuses!

You realize that an excuse is the attempt to assemble reasons why I should be released from this proposed or present situation. We offer reasons why this won’t work. We explain why we are not the person to do this thing. We even present a list of obvious conclusions as to why someone else should do this, but not me.

I take you back thirteen years to a staff meeting at Baptist Church Planters. The dear folks in our IT ministry and administration were encouraging me to launch my own website as part of the websites of Baptist Church Planters. One of the men was “crazy” (or so I thought!) enough that he even suggested I write a daily devotional. This wouldn’t be designed to replace believer’s reading of the Bible. Rather, it would serve as an encouragement or spiritual vitamin in addition to reading the Scriptures.

Oh, the excuses I made. No one would read it. Only my mother would read it. Come to think of it, my mother didn’t have a computer so even she would never read it. I would run out of things to write about. This would never work.

Today you are reading post number 5,073 and no one is as amazed as I am. I honestly thought that I would run out of things to write about by the end of the first month. Wrong! Daily I still have the privilege of coming to dear people throughout the United States and the far reaches of the world, including restricted access countries. What a great blessing I would have missed these years if I had kept on making excuses.

“Ah Lord GOD! Behold, Thou hast made the heaven and the earth by Thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for Thee” (Jeremiah 32:17).

Oh friends, if the Lord is bringing an opportunity to you, certainly pray much about it, discuss it with others, think it through carefully, BUT….don’t make excuses and disobey! I’m glad the staff laughed at my excuses and assured me they knew it would work!

I have a great couple of verses and then a smile or two as I send you on your way today. Think of what the Psalmist of old said, “The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bring forth fruit in old age…(Psalm 92:12-14).

Be assured that these verses are not the false prosperity gospel of name it and claim it. Rather, this speaks of the work of the Lord in the life of every follower of the Lord. Despite the wicked circumstances of the culture around him (Psalm 92:7), the Psalmist grew stronger in his spiritual life and walk with the Lord. In fact, even in old age he still had purpose, meaning, and service.

Speaking of old age!

Some younger folks think that older folks are a nuisance or an inconvenience. That’s not true.
Some older folks grow cranky and ornery and say they can’t help it. That’s not true either.
Some younger folks say that older folks don’t understand what it is like for them. That’s not true.
Some older folks think that they have to express their opinions on every matter. That is not true either.

Oh, may the Lord help each of us as older we grow! May He help us to be righteous (Psalm 92:12). May He help us to be planted in the ways of the Lord but not stubborn in our opinions in matters that don’t really matter! May we older folks grow more gracious, loving, and kind. That’s the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) that we can bring forth even in old age (Psalm 92:14).

“He that handles a matter wisely shall find good: and whoso trusts in the LORD, happy is he” (Proverbs 16:20).

The seller of fine china would have at least three things that could take place in her shop that would cause her blood pressure to fly off the charts. The first would be an earthquake. The second would be careless parents not keeping track of their children who were acting wildly. The third would be a bull on the loose! You’ve heard the phrase, “A bull in a china shop.” This has to do with a person who is a walking, talking, living and breathing disaster waiting to happen because of the way that person lives and speaks.

The writer of Proverbs offers the opposite of that bull in the china shop. Those who handle situations wisely and conduct themselves as those who trust the Lord will be a blessing indeed.

For today: Ask the Lord for wisdom (James 1:5). Handle situations wisely. Don’t be a bull in a china shop today. That’s just how I want to live today. How about you?