Lyle's Blog

We’re attracted to pretty things and people, at least most of us are.  Pretty girls give men a reason to act stupid.  Whether it’s a girl or car, men forget about the high maintenance of going after and getting what the eyes desire.  Women are not exempt from this foolishness but men like to take it to ridiculous levels.  Everything is packaged to make us want it; so much is sought after because of what the eyes see.

Our desire should spring from the heart.  Isn’t that what the Bible says?  God wants to give us the desires of our heart.  Of course, we’ve got to have a right heart.  Hearts of stone have no desires.  Hard people have nothing to offer the world.

So what should we look for in life?  Picking a wife or husband is of paramount importance.  If we get unequally yoked, we’ll never achieve much for the kingdom of God.  A contrite heart is hard to find, but that’s what we have to seek.  Contrite means being sorrowful and repentant about our sin, in other words, someone who knows that they are a sinner.  Someone who is humble and ashamed of their sin, that’s what we’re after whether it’s a spouse, friend, employee, or a politician.  We first must sorrow for our own sin before we can become attractive to the right person.

That is precisely the question we must ask ourselves.  Who do we think we are?  Do we have some inherent ability that sets us above everyone else?  Or do we realize that everything is given to us by our Creator.  Our talent is not our own, but a gift.  Some of us have only one talent and others have many.  It’s up to us to decide what to do with what we’ve been given.  Remembering that to whom much is given much is required tends to make us feel good about our own lack of accomplishment.  I hear many times people saying they don’t have much and therefore they can’t give or do much.  Most of the time that’s hogwash.

Even if we don’t have much we are required to do something.  If we have no money, we can still give the sacrifice of praise.  We can still give words of encouragement.  We can testify of the goodness of God if we have a contrite heart.  When we stand before Him, will we hear those words we long for, well done thou good and faithful servant?  The question we have to ask ourselves is simply this.  Have we been faithful?  Are we doing well or are we well-doing?  Are we accruing pretty packages or are we seeking what Christ was looking for?  A contrite heart He will not turn away.  He’s looking for people that need a savior.  We all need one but it’s just hard for us to believe that we don’t have something to offer Him.  He wants our contrite heart.  That’s all we have to give in exchange for our soul.

What don’t we know?  God.  We really don’t know who we’re dealing with.  He knows how many hairs are on our heads.  He sees each sparrow that falls.  He’s given every star a name, billions of stars in billions of galaxies.  He is a million times more than our minds can imagine.  His power usurps our strength.  We can’t stand before Him.  Every head will bow, every knee will bend, and we all will confess that He is Lord.

If we could only grasp this truth then we wouldn’t be so cavalier about how we spend our time.  We’d be searching for souls and winning as many as we could because we realize that what the Bible says is true.  There is a heaven to hope for and a hell to shun.

All the day long we rub shoulders with people who are lost and face eternity without Christ.  Opportunity is everywhere.  The fields are ripe for harvest; they have always been.  There have never been enough laborers.  We devote a lot of time and energy to succeeding in this life and build up as much treasure here as possible.  The hurricanes, earthquakes, fires, and whatever else can take it all away in a moment.  Our lives are just a vapor.  How much can a vapor keep?  We stand before Christ with just our soul.  What can a man give in exchange for his soul?  That’s all he has and all he is.  Everything else was just a vapor that appeared for a moment.

We work out our salvation.  We’re not saved; we are being saved.  King David said he buried the Word within his heart so he wouldn’t sin against God.  That’s how we have to live our lives.  The bride should love the groom, be in continual preparation for his appearing.  She can’t wait to be in his presence because she knows he loves her and cares for her.  She is everything to him.  We are everything to Christ.  We are why He came to earth.  We were helpless, without anything to offer but our heart.  That was all He wanted.  That’s all Christ wants; a bride that loves Him with all her heart, soul, and mind.

Mother of mine, does it hurt to see me die, mother of mine, you will never hear me cry, there was love in my heart but I guess you never felt it, and now I am gone and I guess you couldn’t help it, mother of mine

Father of mine, did you tell another lie, father of mine, no one questions why, your son has been slain on the altar of pleasure, tell me what kind of man doesn’t understand his treasure, father of mine

Nation of mine, you who say we have no worth, nation of mine, you would slay us before our birth, there’s no love in your mind, you have hardened up your heart, there is no fear of God or the judgment He imparts, nation of mine

Lord of mine, won’t you hold me to your heart, Lord of mine, as they’re ripping me apart, did you see this day coming like a blot upon the son, we realize too late the evil we have done, Lord of mine

Mother of mine, does it hurt to see me die, mother of mine, you will never hear me cry, there was love in my heart but I know you never felt it, and now I am gone and you’re the only one who can help me, mother of mine, won’t you help me mother of mine, won’t you help me mother of mine

The Bernstein family and the Weiss family were killed in a plane crash in Costa Rica.  Kids in the best colleges, lucrative careers with great retirements, respected, having it all going for you; isn’t that the fairytale dream life?  Hedgefund manager, physician, loved by many, missed by many, but what did it really matter?  The only thing that matters whether rich, poor or anything in between is this; is your name written in the Lamb’s Book of Life?  I don’t know these people.  I just know that we admire people who do well or are envious of what they have.  But none of it is of importance except for a few short years on earth.  Only one life will soon be past, only what’s done for Christ will last.  Only one life.

Mark 4: 36 to 41 gives the account of the disciples and Jesus boarding a boat and while Jesus napped, a terrible storm came up.  The disciples naturally were fearful of perishing and woke Jesus to accuse Him of not caring about them perishing.  Jesus rebuked the wind and the waves and there was total calm.  Then they question what kind of man Jesus was.  I assume they woke Him and expected Jesus to do something.  Maybe they wanted help bailing out the boat.  Jesus was annoyed by their lack of faith and rebuked them.  Suddenly they pondered who He was and were fearful of His power.  He rebuked the wind and the waves and then them.  They should have known; they’d witnessed miracles before but not of this magnitude.  Jesus expects us to pay attention to what He does to build our faith.

It’s interesting to note what Jesus was doing during the storm, sleeping.  If we are to be like Christ then I guess we are to behave in the same way.  The storms of life are all around us.  Do we worry and fret like the disciples or do we take a rest and ignore the chaos of the world?

Many times I forget who Jesus is and therefore, who I am.  He said if I obey His commandments, if the Holy Spirit enters my life, then I and others who do the same would do greater things than He did.  After deciding to follow Christ we must decide to pray and expect results.  It’s not a matter if God is willing to heal someone or draw someone to Him; what matters are we willing to pray and have the audacity to believe.

Faith starts out as a little thing.  By stepping out on faith, one step at a time, our faith grows into a huge tree where others of less faith can be encouraged.  God is a rewarder of those that have faith; it is impossible to please God if we have no faith.