The Gathering Place Where Family Matters

“I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness” (John 12:46).

Vern worked from 3:00 in the afternoon to well past midnight every day. One day Shirley, his wife, decided it would be fun to rearrange the living room and bedroom in their small home. With no forewarning, Vern returned home in the middle of the night. You guessed it! Vern didn’t turn the lights on because he was familiar with his little living and bedroom. That didn’t go so well. Stumbling along in the dark, Vern stubbed his toe on the furniture, fell over the back of the couch, and knocked a lamp over as he made his way along in the darkness. Shirley was hysterical by the time he made it to their bedroom. “What in the world were you doing out there in the dark?” was her question asked in between the laughter. “What a great illustration of the dangers of walking in darkness,” Vern said. “I’m glad the Lord is our Light, but next time, please warn me when you rearrange the living room.”

For today: You don’t have to stumble around in the darkness of doubt and disbelief. The Lord Jesus is the Light of the world. Read His Word to find direction to make your way in life.

“For the LORD taketh pleasure in His people” (Psalm 148:4).

Many of the Friendly Restaurants have closed in our area of Ohio. That’s sad. I always thought the food was good, the prices were reasonable, and of course, the ice cream was wonderful. One time as I was traveling to one of my Family Conferences, I stopped at a Friendly’s for my lunch. As I was eating my tuna sandwich, a family was seated nearby me. They were celebrating an event that brought them great happiness. The young daughter was told, “Today you may order anything that sounds good to you.” Before my very eyes, this little girl ordered the Jim Dandy, which was one of the largest sundaes on the menu. I slowed down eating my tuna sandwich. I had to see this little girl eat her Jim Dandy. When the server set the sundae down in front of her, she couldn’t see over it. But from where I was seated, I could see the expression of sheer pleasure coming over her little face. It hit me. This was a visual of the Biblical word “pleasure.” Still today I remember that look of sheer pleasure, and now I think of the Lord taking pleasure in His people. If you know the Lord as your Savior, isn’t it absolutely amazing to know that the Lord takes pleasure in you?

For today: I need to be careful how I live. I want to enjoy bringing pleasure to the Lord.

“The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in Whom I will trust” (Psalm 18:2).

I was a young boy who loved playing outside everyday regardless of the weather. I distinctly remember my mom telling me that I was to be home at a particular time. It seems that I had gotten in trouble just a few days before this because I hadn’t obeyed my mom. I disregarded the time she had said to be home. Now after being firmly reminded of this, I set out to play with friends. I headed east on Bloomingdale, south on Allegheny, and then east on Judge Road in my hometown. Did you get the zig-zag directions? It was straight, then left, then straight, and then right. It was a great time playing ball with lots of the guys. Suddenly it hit me! The time had flown by, and I could not make it home in time if I stayed on the roads. I had a great (?) idea! If I cut through the fields, I might make it. You are smiling, I can tell! The fields were muddy, very muddy. They became muddier as I got about halfway into them. I learned the vivid lesson of the blessing that results from staying on firm pavement. The harder I tried running, the more I sank in. The object lesson is vivid. The Lord is our Rock. He is firm and stable. You can trust Him. You can have confidence in Him.

For today: How thankful I am for the Savior Who is the Rock. How wonderful to belong to Him. Yes, if you are wondering, I got in trouble for being late and trouble for being a muddy mess!

“The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in Whom I will trust” (Psalm 18:2).

King David’s description of the Lord is powerful and practical. As a warrior, King David realized that all these things described in verse two are advantageous to everyone, especially the soldier in battle. During military campaigns King David and his men were in a better situation if he were on a higher level and standing on a more firm footing than the enemy. He speaks of the Lord being his Rock. I would suppose that the footing of a soldier could not be any more firm than walking on a rocky surface. I distinctly remember a situation from my childhood that brings out the powerful truth of this statement. Oh did I ever get in trouble as a young boy! I’ll tell you more about it tomorrow. For today, rejoice in the sure footing that the Lord brings to you as you heed His Word and believe what you read.

For today: How wonderful that the Lord pictures Himself as being our Rock. I need that today. How about you? By the way, when you get a chance please check out my new very brief E-Book, “Protector’s Thoughts” at www.michaelpeck.org.

“The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times” (Psalm 12:6).

How different words can be depending on the source! Joe often was very sarcastic in the way he spoke. His speech seldom was encouraging and often ranged from annoying to downright hurtful. Julie hated speaking in public. She often became almost physically ill when she would have to speak in a small group. The day came when she had to make the presentation to the departmental managers. She did a fine job, and many complimented her on the hard work, good preparation, and really fine presentation. Many, except–you guessed it, didn’t you? Good old sarcastic Joe. Walking up to her right after the presentation, he said with an arrogant tone, “Great job, coward. Man, I got to thinking that you were going to shake so hard the papers were going to fly all over the room. You gotta’ work on the shakes, lady. You’ve got more shakes than McDonalds! I started getting dizzy watching you.” With that Joe walked away. Later that night, Julie arrived at Psalm 12 in her Bible reading. Softly she said to the Lord, “I am grateful that your words are so different from the hurtful, sarcastic, proud and arrogant words of today.” Isn’t it wonderful that our awesome God is so perfect that even His words are pure! I need to work on my words. How about you?

For today: Be on guard to never become a Sarcastic Joe. Rejoice in the Lord’s pure Word.