The Plumbline

How little do they see what really is, who frame their hasty judgment upon that which seems.  (Daniel Webster) Gold can be proved to be pure by fire, but gold will ruin. When your faith is proven to be pure, the result will be praise and glory and honor when Jesus Christ comes. You have not seen Christ, but still you love him. You can’t see him now, but you believe in him. You are filled with a wonderful and heavenly joy that cannot be explained. Your faith has a goal, and you are reaching that goal—your salvation. (I Peter 1:7-9) Your faith has a goal - one you may not fully understand, but one you will 'grow into' as you spend time with Jesus. We don't see what we will become, but God has ordained (purposed ahead of time) for all that we will do, experience, and become in Christ Jesus. Faith must be proven - probably something you didn't want to hear, right? Without the 'proving' of our faith, it is kind of mushy, wishy-washy, and 'limp'. We need a ...

People who try hard to do good and be faithful will find life, goodness, and honor.  A wise person can defeat a city full of warriors and tear down the defenses they trust in. (Proverbs 21:21-22) Harry S. Truman reminds us, "It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit." When we live by the standards God lays out for us in scripture, we aren't doing it to 'get credit' for doing good, but we can be assured God takes notice of our obedience. We may not feel the effects of our obedience immediately, but others may see it, finding themselves facing challenges similar to those we are going through, and take heart that they also can make wise choices. While it is undeniably hard to 'do right' or 'good' all of the time, the more we choose to respond to life's challenges in a wise manner, the more it brings honor to God; and when we bring honor to God, it is always a good thing! Tearing down a city's defenses may see...

Building upon a strong foundation is important. The materials we acquire for the building must be put to use. I have a home improvement store (one of those huge ones) about one mile from the house. I love to take time to go up and down the aisles exploring the various things they have there. If I could have my "run of the store" without worrying about paying for the stuff, it would be like "heaven on earth"! From the little fasteners which seemingly disappear as they are put into the wood, or the drill bit adapter which creates that perfect angle by which you get that screw in at a perfect 45-degree angle, I could create and create and create! As long as those tools and materials remain at the local home improvement store, they are just materials. Unless we actually take into our possession what God gives us for building up our lives and put them to use in our lives, they are simply dreams we hold. We have been given great resources, but if we don't put into pra...

Everybody who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise builder who built a house on bedrock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the wind blew and beat against that house. It didn’t fall because it was firmly set on bedrock. But everybody who hears these words of mine and doesn’t put them into practice will be like a fool who built a house on sand. The rain fell, the floods came, and the wind blew and beat against that house. It fell and was completely destroyed. (Matthew 7:24-27) We hear of natural disasters all the time with nature's full force overwhelming the land. In those places where such devastation occurs, we often see structures that appear okay on the outside but are totally destroyed by the floods or the winds that blew with gale force. What gave the appearance of being "built well" may not have been "planned" well, nor "maintained" well! There is a difference between erecting a structure and then erecting ...

Come, let us bow down and worship him! Let us kneel before the Lord who made us. He is our God, and we are the people he cares for, his sheep that walk by his side. Listen to his voice today... (Psalm 95:6-7) We are to approach, not with pride, but in humility. Not with the list of good deeds we have managed to accomplish, but with the trust that our lack of goodness will be met with the fullness of his grace. If we are to come - to approach or move toward - we have to a set course of purpose. Let us bow - we are to incline ourselves so as to be in the position of reverence; to yield ourselves to God alone. Let us worship him - honor and adore him because none other should be our focus. Take a knee in submission so as to no longer be in a position to run. Before him, we are waiting on him. Quite a beginning to our study today, isn't it? There is no longer any running - but yielded spirit, open heart, and focused attention. This is how we approach the throne of God. He is our Go...

Be wise in the way you act with those who are not believers. Use your time in the best way you can. When you talk, you should always be kind and wise. Then you will be able to answer everyone in the way you should. (Colossians 4:5-6) Always be kind and wise. Does that describe your responses to other people you relate to on a frequent basis, much less others who might not know you that well? We have all probably seen those funny memes that depict someone getting on your last nerve, or that one that asks 'did I just say that out loud' kind of humor. The truth of the matter is that we frequently run into situations where we could say something that would not be all the kind or wise, but we 'hold back'. Sometimes it takes more than a little conscious effort to 'hold back', especially when tempers are running high, disappointment abounds, or the 'last nerve' type of stress kicks in. Be wise in the way you act. I know the passages references the way we should...

Always be full of joy. Never stop praying. Whatever happens, always be thankful. This is how God wants you to live in Christ Jesus. (I Thessalonians 5:16-18) Regretfully, there are just some moments in life when joy is the furthest thing from the emotions we are feeling at that moment. The world seems to equate joy with happiness, though, so when anything disturbs our happiness, we might say that our joy has been stolen by the event or memory. Joy is a much deeper feeling and is not based in circumstance - it is based on the relationship we have with Jesus. Happiness is elation over something that happened - it is fleeting and isn't guaranteed to be 'evoked' all that often. Joy is the emotion that emerges when we remember we have been placed securely in the arms of Jesus, that nothing and no one can rock our world so badly as to remove us from that safe place. Some will understand it best when we say that joy is internally based, while happiness is externally stimulated. If...

My brothers and sisters, if anyone wanders away from the truth and someone helps that person come back,   remember this: Anyone who brings a sinner back from the wrong way will save that person from eternal death and cause many sins to be forgiven. (James 5:19-20) Most of us don't run away from truth - we let little things come into our lives that 'add distance' between us and God. It isn't really all that recognizable at first. The little things come in, crowding out time with Jesus, refocusing our attention away from truth, and silently bringing death where life once dwelt. Compromise isn't always a conscious choice - sometimes it is accomplished without us even noticing. It is always important to have at least one person in your life that is able to spot the little things that might lead to even bigger things. We call that an 'accountability partner' - someone who is willing to 'take notice' and then isn't timid about letting us know they have...

Don’t worry about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need, always giving thanks for what you have. And because you belong to Christ Jesus, God’s peace will stand guard over all your thoughts and feelings. His peace can do this far better than our human minds. (Philippians 4:6-7) If you struggle with what to say when you stop long enough to talk with God about things you are experiencing anxiety about, you are probably among a huge group of others who experience similar anxious thoughts. Anxiety has become one of the biggest issues today simply because of all the uncertainty in the world around us. Supply chain issues, rising interest rates, difficulty finding jobs that pay enough to make ends meet, unrest over one's beliefs, and the list goes on. For some, these things can become overwhelmingly difficult to deal with. The desire is to have God take it all away, but the reality is that God primarily helps us walk through those difficulties rather than removing them co...

...if my people who are called by my name become humble and pray, and look for me, and turn away from their evil ways, then I will hear them from heaven. I will forgive their sin and heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:14) If my people - notice that God doesn't say 'when', but 'if'. There is a condition - we must make the first move when it comes to repentance. This message isn't written to those who don't already have a relationship with him - it is written to those 'called by his name'. These are believers who obviously have grown cold, a little too apathetic and indifferent. This is where we find ourselves whenever we allow our focus to become clouded by the things of this world - coldness drifts in, hunger begins to be fulfilled by something other than his presence. If we want to 'come back' from wherever it is we have drifted, it begins by humbling ourselves and asking for his help to return! Humble yourself, pray, and look for him - these ...

As you serve the Lord, work hard and don’t be lazy. Be excited about serving him! Be happy because of the hope you have. Be patient when you have troubles. Pray all the time. Share with God’s people who need help. Look for people who need help and welcome them into your homes. (Romans 12:11-13) Is it possible to be a little 'lazy' in our service to the Lord and his people? Of course it is! We aren't going to be 'on cue' 100% of the time, no matter how hard we try to be consistent. The heart is what matters - are we intentional in our service, focused on what God desires for us to be doing, and looking for ways to help others? Look for people who need help and then do what you can to be of help to them. This is God's plan. Our plan may not always be the same as God's, but as long as we are making ourselves available for his use, he will reveal his plan to us. If you have ever been prompted to do something 'out of the blue' that met the need of someon...

I’m overjoyed at your word, like someone who finds great treasure. (Psalm 119:162) We all have those things in life that just bring us joy. I love petting a sweet kitten, or fluffy puppy. I get all giddy when I reel in the catch of the day. My heart swells when I see something one of my grandboys has made. What brings you joy in life? How is it that you experience joy? There are many today who equate happiness with joy - if I am happy, then I will be joyful. Joy comes when you have experienced a "deep delight" in something which you have found pleasurable. Something exceptionally good or satisfying has been experienced and we find extreme pleasure in it - lasting, deep, and meaningful pleasure. A silly joke makes us happy, while the experience of the birth of our firstborn may make us joyful. One carries the idea of the emotional "response" to the situation, while the other describes the condition of the heart and soul as a result of what one has experienced. Happin...

The Scriptures say, ‘I don’t want animal sacrifices; I want you to show kindness to people.’ You don’t really know what that means. If you understood it, you would not judge those who have done nothing wrong. (Matthew 12:7) Picture Jesus out with his followers, walking through the fields, probably on their way from one spot to another. It was the Sabbath - a day which carried very strict rules the religious of the day had to follow if they were to be even remotely close to being acknowledged by God. One such rule was that of not "working" on that holy day - so all manner of normal "housework" or "house care" was to have been pre-planned on the day prior to the Sabbath. This meant they prepared enough bread for two days instead of their normal one, laid aside a portion of the meat they had cooked on the day prior to the Sabbath for the partaking on the Sabbath, and ensured enough water was drawn from the well to make it through. It was like work shut do...

Everything good comes from God. Every perfect gift is from him. These good gifts come down from the Father who made all the lights in the sky. But God never changes like the shadows from those lights. He is always the same. God decided to give us life through the true message he sent to us. He wanted us to be the most important of all that he created. (James 1:17-18) Whenever we are faced with something that is less than good, honorable, or pure, we can know for sure that it is not from God. It is something of this 'earthly realm' that really isn't meant as 'the best' for us. When we settle for what isn't the best, we actually are rejecting what God has prepared for us that is meant for our good. We should never think God is tempting us with the 'less than' stuff in life - it is either our own fleshly desires having their way, or the enemy of our soul purposing to redirect our attention away from God.  We are important to him, so he prepared in advance...

If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do. (James 1:5-8) We are reminded in Proverbs 3:5-7 to "Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take." As we all have varying backgrounds, we likely approach life's challenges in various ways. We might just find ourselves turning to this world's wisdom first, then when it doesn't do what we hoped it would do, we turn to God. As long as we rely upon the wisdom the world offers, we will be limited in our perception of th...

God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else. Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death. (James 1:12-15) It should not catch any of us by surprise that God doesn't say "IF" testing or temptation comes your way, but rather that if "WILL" come your way. The 'patient endurance' thing may have more than a few of us concerned because we are less than patient when crazy stuff messes with our life! If we ALL face trials and temptations, testing our faith and bringing freshness into our walk with Jesus, maybe we'd do well to learn how to deal with them BEFORE we need to face them. W...

Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. (James 1:2-4) I bet there aren't too many of us that actually think trials are good for us, much less that God could actually allow more than a few of them to come our way. Trials are meant to test our faith - period. Within the trial comes the chance to really show who it is we serve and what it is we believe. In other words, we are showing God we put him first and rely upon him for all we have need of in our lives. It is in the midst of the trial that our 'true self' emerges. It is within the trial that we see how much we rely upon ourselves through the knowledge we have amassed, or our ability to 'reason it out' on our own. These trials may not be easy, but they act...

I always remember that the Lord is with me. He is here, close by my side, so nothing can defeat me. (Psalm 16:8) If anyone sees my BFF and I walking together, it is me on the right and my BFF on the left. Why? She hears me better on the right! So, I have learned to position myself on her right because that is her "better ear". Now, to the "unknowing" this may seem like a little oddity they might notice about the two of us, but to those who have come to know us well, they understand perfectly why we "position" ourselves this way. One thing remains true no matter whether we are at work around the house or on vacation together - closeness matters! We want to spend time together because we learn from each other, are encouraged by the strength the other possesses, and just plain enjoy the company of one another. I think our heavenly Father might just want us to come to this same realization about what life is like when we have Christ as our "nearest...

This message was kept secret for centuries and generations past, but now it has been revealed to God’s people. For God wanted them to know that the riches and glory of Christ are for you... Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory. So we tell others about Christ, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all the wisdom God has given us. We want to present them to God, perfect (mature) in their relationship to Christ. (Colossians 1:26-28) The message is clear - God wants us in his family. There are unrealized riches awaiting all those who say yes to Jesus. Because Christ lives in us, all that Christ possesses - his riches and glory - are shared by those who enter into this relationship. The more we hear this message, the more it should strike a chord within our hearts that reminds us just how much we are loved. We could have been abandoned to our sin, but God chose to give us the very thing that would cause sin to relinquish its control over our lives - Chris...

Some people like to do things their own way, and they get upset when people give them advice. Fools don’t want to learn from others. They only want to tell their own ideas. (Proverbs 18:1-2) Some people just cannot see any other solution to their issue than what they can manage to come up with in their own minds or through their own power. To suggest something outside of that imagined solution somehow makes you the "crazy one" in the equation! There is much danger in being so determined to just do things our own way, though. In many circumstances, the way we determine to be the "best" or "right" may just be the easiest and present the least resistance. I know I have chosen this option more than a few times, only to find out that the easiest "up front" isn't always the easiest on the "back end". My pride kept me from finding out if there was an "easier" or "better" way other than what my mind could muster on it...

People think that whatever they do is right, but the Lord judges their reason for doing it. (Proverbs 16:2) "Either I will find a way, or I will make one." (Philip Sidney) We all have those moments when we just "feel" like doing something is the right thing to do, so we just go ahead with our plans. There are even times when we kind of suspect there might be a little "issue" with what we are doing, but then we go ahead anyway. Whenever we just move without fully thinking it through, or getting God's perspective on the matter, we are usually pretty disappointed with the results! There are times when we have duped ourselves into believing our actions are fully "justified" by the actions of another. It is like we are saying, "Well, he did this, so I did that" - thinking our actions are "made all right" because of the actions of another. If they don't think about the outcome of their actions that is one thing, but we have ...

 For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God. (Romans 1:20) When you consider all the wonders in nature and the beauty all around us, it is almost impossible to deny the existence of God, but some still do. Why? There is this innate desire to 'explain away' the things we don't understand - the things that are very hard to wrap our heads around. So, we deny the existence of a higher power and say all that is around us is the result of some big bang - it just evolved that way. I have t ask - if it just 'evolved', who put it there in the first place with the capability to 'evolve'? Like it or not, the 'invisible qualities' of God are all around us. We cannot escape the fact that heaven and earth exists and there must be a way it all came together. The more we consider the ...

O Lord, I give my life to you. I trust in you, my God! Do not let me be disgraced, or let my enemies rejoice in my defeat. No one who trusts in you will ever be disgraced, but disgrace comes to those who try to deceive others. (Psalm 25:1-3) If you have ever approached God with a bit of 'hey, God, I need your help' prayers, then you know how it is to feel a bit useless, helpless, and at risk for some reason. There is absolutely no better place to take your 'hey, God, I need your help' issues, for he is the only one capable to meet those needs. No one who trusts in God to help will ever be disappointed, or stand in the midst of the battle disgraced or defeated. Disgrace might be the loss of respect for some, but it can also be the feeling of shame that comes from doing something we might now find ourselves regretting painfully. God's answer to that feeling of shame is repentance - to turn away from whatever brought those feelings and embrace his grace. There is absol...

The Lord hears his people when they call to him for help. He rescues them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed. The righteous person faces many troubles, but the Lord comes to the rescue each time. For the Lord protects the bones of the righteous; not one of them is broken! (Psalm 34:18-20) Truth, spoken in love, mends the broken heart by setting the person who bears those wounds free from their emotional bonds tying them to those wounds. I believe in trusting that modeling love in our lives will go further than any words we can speak to bind up the wounds of another. I think this is why Jesus didn't just open heaven's expanse one day, speak down the words "Come to me all you who are heavy laden and I will give you rest". He didn't just expect us to understand this - he needed to come down to this earth and model the release of those burdens for us. He had to model how much his lo...

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he saves those whose spirits are crushed. (Psalm 34:18) We live in a world where there are many 'broken' people. To be broken means one's life has been reduced to fragments; ruptured, torn, fractured; is not functioning properly; is somehow incomplete; or that it has been infringed upon or violated. This is exactly how each and every one of us arrives at the feet of Jesus. Somehow, whether through our own choices, or the impressions others leave in our lives, we arrive reduced to fragments, not functioning as we should, and sometimes just plain violated by another. It isn't that our lives are perfect, and we finally come to the feet of Jesus - we bring him the messiness of our lives and he welcomes them with open arms.  One of the songs which really ministers to my spirit is the one by Casting Crowns that expresses this thought of being "Broken Together". If you haven't heard it, there is a part of the song which...

Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? “And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. (Matthew 6:27-33) Changes come and changes go. We cannot control them, nor can we escape them. To worry over them is simply not productive. Jesus says this type of "worrying" or "creation of emotional chaos" in our lives because of the freque...

Don’t worry and say, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ That’s what those people who don’t know God are always thinking about. Don’t worry, because your Father in heaven knows that you need all these things. What you should want most is God’s kingdom and doing what he wants you to do. Then he will give you all these other things you need. So don’t worry about tomorrow. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Tomorrow will have its own worries. (Matthew 6:32-34) Stop for just a moment - get quiet and focus with me for just a second or two. What were you just worrying about - that thing you just kept mulling over and over in your mind that you just cannot seem to put out of it? To worry means you pass over something with repeated focus, almost as though you were wearing a "rut" into it just by the frequency of thought or attention you are giving it. In some respects, worry is understandable and kind of productive. When you cannot figure ou...

The Lord is your Protector. The Lord stands by your side, shading and protecting you. The sun cannot harm you during the day, and the moon cannot harm you at night. The Lord will protect you from every danger. He will protect your soul. The Lord will protect you as you come and go, both now and forever! (Psalm 121:5-8) When someone has a "bodyguard" they have someone standing watch over your life. I have never been famous enough to need a bodyguard, nor have I had enough wealth to support such an expensive "personal protection" service for my life and I honestly don't believe I need one. I have gone into some pretty scary places, unarmed with natural weapon, nor supported by any burly dude big enough to stand up to any attacker who might come my way. I have been awakened to some "creepy" noises and wondered if someone was about to pounce on me in the dark of the night. I haven't felt the need for another protector in my life because I have the p...

Partiality is not going to serve anyone well. In the time of Christ, there were "systems" of people - some might call them "castes" - some more affluent and "honored" than others, while others were looked down on because of disease, poverty, mental state, or even what they did for a living. The idea of God allowing the sun to shine on the rich and the poor, the diseased and the well, the farmer and the tax collector, is Jesus' way of reminding us that no one sticks out as the "shining star" in God's eyes. All are equal - all receive the same attention, privilege, and honor in his eyes.  You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies. Pray for those who treat you badly. If you do this, you will be children who are truly like your Father in heaven. He lets the sun rise for all people, whether they are good or bad. He sends rain to those who do right and to those who do wrong. If ...

You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I tell you, don’t fight back against someone who wants to do harm to you. If they hit you on the right cheek, let them hit the other cheek too. If anyone wants to sue you in court and take your shirt, let them have your coat too. If a soldier forces you to walk with him one mile, go with him two. Give to anyone who asks you for something. Don’t refuse to give to anyone who wants to borrow from you. You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies. Pray for those who treat you badly. (Matthew 5:38-44) There aren't too many of us who haven't heard the teaching of "turning the other cheek" whenever someone wrongs you - like we  needed  to actually be hit twice! Yet, in the breadth of this teaching, Jesus is really laying out the path he will walk during the next several years of his teaching ministry - continually allowing the cri...

The Lord is my shepherd. I will always have everything I need. He gives me green pastures to lie in. He leads me by calm pools of water. He restores my strength. He leads me on right paths to show that he is good. (Psalm 23:1-3) No matter how much food or 'things' we have, if we aren't washed, refreshed, and made new by the waters of God's grace, we are just not going to be going very far in this life! One of the things a survival expert will do when he is in a new place is find an appropriate place to shelter. He must decide, based on his surroundings, whether he wants a shelter off the ground, within a cave, in the tree line, or on some flat space. He sets out gathering wood, leaves, branches, and vines with which to construct his shelter. He finds water, looks for things in the area he can use for fire building, and might even scout out a few things he may eat from the land. What do survival skills have to do with our walk with Christ? We are kind of "dropped in...