The Treasure of A Friend

"The glory of friendship is not the outstretched hand, not the kindly smile, nor the joy of companionship; it is the spiritual inspiration that comes to one when he discovers that someone else believes in him and is willing to trust him with friendship."  Ralph Waldo Emerson

Greetings my friends,

Last week I wrote my blog entry and called it "The Brevity of Life", I was considering the death of a family member and the hope that comes from knowing Jesus.  In it I described the uncertainties of this life, and mentioned the importance of expressing your love to those you care about, those who are important to you.  I also mentioned taking the time to visit and spend time with them, not merely having the intentions of doing so.

"Go often to the house of thy friend, for weeds choke the unused path."  Ralph Waldo Emerson

Friendship is something to be treasured and a good friend found is a treasure.

Treasure: 
1. wealth or riches stored or accumulated, 
2. valuable things 
3. any thing or person greatly valued or highly prized, 
4. to regard or treat as precious: cherish.

I decided my writing this week would be short.  To use it as a reminder of the precious people in our lives and how significant they are.  Treasure each day and the good people the Lord has blessed you with along the way.

"A faithful friend is a sturdy shelter; he who finds one finds a treasure."  Sirach 6:14

On Monday evening upon returning home from my Men's Bible Study I received some heart breaking news.  A very dear friend of mine had passed away that morning at his home in Santee, California.  Pastor Jay was a tremendous friend and mentor to me and my family.  Yet, it had been a good while since we last spoke.  My own words from last week's blog came back to mind and my heart ached for the loss.  The loss of the opportunity to express my appreciation for his friendship.  The loss of the opportunity to express my love for this brother in Christ and the example of his witness.
  

"A man who has friends must himself be friendly, but

There is a friend who sticks closer than a brother."  Proverbs 18:24

For years now I've told my children to treasure their friendships, not to take them for granted and not to take advantage of them.  When you're young you tend to have a lot of people coming in and out of your life.  Some of these people become good friends, but if you don't pay attention to them and cultivate the relationship you lose touch too soon and the true friendships that might have been are never realized.  

"Sometimes people come into your life and you know right away that they are meant to be there; 
they serve some sort of purpose, 
teach you a lesson, 

or help you figure out who you are" 

As for me, there are a few men in my life that I consider true life-long friends.  Guys who accept me for who I am and never place any undue expectations on the relationship.  Although we may not see each other for weeks at a time, we seem to pick up right where we left off without missing a beat.  These are the men I know I can turn to for advice, prayer and fellowship, whose company I enjoy and whose loyalty I can count on.  These are brothers who, although they accept me for me, can, if they felt the need, speak into my life or rebuke me and I  would accept it because I know their intentions are righteous.

 "A friend is one to whom one may pour out all the contents of one's heart, chaff and grain together, knowing that the gentlest of hands will take and sift it, keep what is worth keeping and with a breath of kindness blow the rest away."   Arabian Proverb 

I just want to encourage you again to pray for those most dear to you, for their health, safety and spiritual well being.  And, I want to challenge you also, to spend some time in the next day or two and make some sort of contact with those that you love but you haven't told in a while.  Tell them how important they are to you  and what kind of influence they have had in your life.

"A friend is one who strengthens you with prayers,

blesses you with love and encourages you with hope." 

Finally, I want to say this; Brother Jay I truly love you as a friend and a brother and I'm sorry I hadn't told you recently, you will be greatly missed.  For the rest of you reading this; Those I know, thanks for your friendship and know that you are appreciated and loved.  Those of you I don't yet know, thank you for considering what is on my heart today and my prayer is to one day get to know you, if not here then in heaven.

I want to leave you with some quotes from various sources about the importance of friends in our lives.  If you have some thoughts or quotes to add feel free to put them in the "comments" box below.

"Friends always show their love.  What is a brother for if not to share trouble?"  Proverbs 17:17

"Faithful friends are beyond price: No amount can balance their worth."  Sirach 6:15

"Those who live in the Lord never see each other for the last time"  Unknown

"Iron sharpens Iron; so a man sharpens his friend's countenance."  Proverbs 27:17

"Treat your friends as you do your pictures and put them in the best light."  Unknown

"Fate chooses your relations, you choose your friends."  Jacques Delille

"The only reward of virtue is virtue; the only way to have a friend is to be one."  Ralph Waldo Emerson

"It is one of the blessings of old friends that you can afford to be stupid with them."  Ralph Waldo Emerson

"One loyal friend is worth ten thousand relatives."  Euripides

"Grief can take care of itself, but to get the full value of joy  you must have somebody to divide it with."    Mark Twain

"Thus nature has no love for solitude, and always leans, as it were, on some support; and the sweetest support is found in the most intimate friendship."  Cicero

"Too late we learn, a man must hold his friend unjudged, accepted, 
trusted to the end."  John Boyle O'Reilly

"Do not save your loving speeches for your friends till they are dead; 
Do not write them on their tombstones, speak them rather now instead."  Anna Cummins 

God Bless and Press On

Larry  

The Brevity of Life

"We say the hour of death cannot be forecast, but when we say this we imagine that hour as placed in an obscure and distant future.  It never occurs to us that it has any connection with the day already begun or that death could arrive this afternoon, this afternoon which is so certain and which has every hour filled in advance."     Marcel Proust

Too often we take life for granted.  We get so caught up in our everyday busy-ness that we fail to say and do the things that are most important.  There are phone calls we intend to make and people we intend to visit, to let these most important people in our lives know how much we love and care about them.  But, things come up and we put it off saying to ourselves "I'll take care of it tomorrow", never really stopping to think that tomorrow may never come.  How many things have been left unsaid over the years?  How many times, after the loss of a loved one have we said "I wish I had __?  Or, I should have ___?  You fill in the blank.  Contrary the lyrics of a once popular song by the Rolling Stones, time really is not on our side.

"Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow.  You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away."   James 4:14
 
I spent three days this week out of state at a conference for my job.  A co-worker and myself drove to Nevada and spent the time getting acquainted.  We discussed our jobs, personal backgrounds, and families.  I was already aware of his recent battle and apparent victory over cancer.  What I hadn't known was the current ordeal he has been dealing with concerning his wife's health.

Sometime in the middle of last year it was discovered that she had a very serious heart ailment, which was only revealed after a number of fainting episodes.  Her heart would begin to flutter and get out of rhythm and stop momentarily, she would then faint and go into convulsions.  After the third incident she was admitted to the hospital for observation and hooked up to various heart monitors.  During the observation period she had another episode that allowed the doctors to observe and identify the cause.  It was determined that a portion of her heart was dead or dormant, it just wasn't doing it's job.  They immediately inserted a pacemaker and put her on the national heart transplant list.

"Man who is born of woman is of a few days... He comes forth like a flower and fades away; He flees like a shadow and does not continue."  Job 14:1-2


First his cancer and now her heart problems, talk about facing head-on the brevity of life.  We spoke of death's inevitability and how quickly things can and do change.  Most of the time, when you least expect them too.  This couple's life has been turned upside down in the last two years and it would be easy for anyone in this situation to become negative, beaten down and angry.  But, he wasn't, he said he knew first hand of God's miracles and credited God for his intervention.  He finished this conversation by telling me the good news they had received just last week; his wife's doctors had removed her name from the transplant list, not because they had given up hope for her, but because her heart had started working normally again.  That part of her heart that was believed to be dead came back to life - now that's a miracle!

"There is nothing certain in a man's life except this: that he must lose it."  Aeschylus Agamemnon

God's Word has much to say about the death of both the true believer and non-believer.  The Bible speaks of salvation or judgment, of reconciliation or condemnation, simply speaking, heaven or hell.  I know this is a subject that we usually shy away from, not a real popular topic of conversation, but what on earth is more important than the condition of our heart in relation to eternity.  Have you got your salvation worked out?  Great, what about the people you love and care about most?  What about the lost souls that God puts in your path daily?  Are you saying the things that need to be said?

"We understand death for the first time when he (death) puts his hand upon someone we love."
                                                                                                                       Madame De Stael

I received a phone call from my mother on Monday afternoon, she wanted to let me know that one of my cousins had passed away that morning.  I started thinking about my conversations over the past few days, the death of my cousin, as well as some recent deaths within my family and my church family.  I thought about the unpredictability of this life and of the comfort of God's Word for the believer.

"Then I heard a voice from heaven say, write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on."
                                                                                                                                 Revelation 14:13

Death is not something to be feared, not for the believer anyway.  We are promised a place in the presence of our Heavenly Father, a place of rejoicing and peace.  Paul the apostle actually looked forward to dying, speaking of it as a far better condition to be in.

"For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.  But if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor; yet what shall I choose I cannot tell.  For I am hard-pressed between the two, having a desire to depart to be with Christ, which is far better."       Philippians 1:21-23

Yes we mourn for them.  Why?  Because God made us that way.  We are emotional beings made to feel pain and sorrow, made to get excited and to love.  It's our love for that person that causes us to think about our life without them and we mourn because of the missing.

Our faith doesn't prevent the mourning but it comforts us to know where our loved ones will be until we see them again.  They are at rest, if they are a true believer.

So if you are sick or someone you love is, don't be discouraged or lose hope, God is still in the miracle business.  If you have recently or maybe not so recently lost a loved one, I pray you find peace.  You need to know and believe that he or she is precious in God's sight and that they are in His presence - a far better condition.

"Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His godly ones."     Psalm 116:15

To sum it all up: life is too short and unpredictable, live well, love well and dedicate your time here to doing God's will, for you were made for this.

"For we are His workmanship (poem, masterpiece) created in Christ Jesus for good works, Which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them."   Ephesians 2:10 

God Bless and Press On
Larry 

Are You Still Running?

Anytime that we choose to disobey the Lord's specific instructions to us, we are running from Him. The story of Jonah illustrates what can happen when a person rebels against the Almighty.

The Lord tells Jonah to go to the gentiles of Nineveh and call the people to repent. But because of his dislike for them, an enemy of Israel, he refused and got in a ship headed in the opposite direction. The narrative teaches us a powerful lesson about the foolishness of resisting God's will.

The Lord does not withdraw His command simply because we are unwilling to obey it.

Although Jonah ran from God's will, the divine command remained unchanged and the Lord was about to get Jonah's attention. If you don't hear the Lord's voice, ask Him to communicate in a way that you can understand. The Father speaks to us through His Word, through our conscience, and through the Holy Spirit.

It is impossible to run from God successfully.

Jonah took a ship "to flee to Tarshish and from the presence of the LORD" (Jonah 1:3).

When God sent a fierce storm that threatened to capsize the boat, the prophet told the sailors to cast him overboard if they wanted to survive. Apparently, he was willing to die rather than obey God (v.12). Only after Jonah found himself in the belly of "a great fish" was he willing to obey the Lord (2:1-9). Why are we so stubborn?

How do people today attempt to run from God?

They act to please themselves rather than do what the Lord desires of them. For example, they ignore wise counsel regarding a potential marriage partner or refuse to discipline their children. Instead of serving God with their talents they seek out fame and fortune in this world and turn their backs on Him. You cannot disobey God without it costing you in some way.

Running from the Lord results in painful circumstances.

The greater the call on your life, the more guilt you will feel when you choose to rebel. Jonah felt so uncomfortable that he was willing to die. He told the sailors, "Throw me into the sea" (1:12). Sin always results in loss of some kind. We may lose abilities, time, money, opportunities, or relationships.

When you run from God, your disobedience will often bring pain and loss to others.

Jonah's rebellion cost the sailors their cargo and, therefore, their profit from the voyage. He also endangered their lives. We like to think that sin is a private matter and no one will be hurt by our disobedience. But when we rebel against the Lord, there is always a price to be paid, by ourselves and the people that love us.

The Good News: The Father's grace frequently provides a second chance.

Many times the Lord gives us another opportunity to obey Him.

After the sea creature deposited Jonah on land, the prophet traveled to Nineveh and preached to the people. They responded to the divine warning and turned from their evil ways (3:1-5).

The Lord isn't looking for perfect men and women; rather, He seeks those who are available to serve Him.

Jonah was angry that God would have compassion on an enemy of Israel. He wanted God's goodness to be shown only to Israel not the gentiles. When judgment didn't fall on the wicked city, the prophet was so angry and depressed that he asked the Lord to take his life (4:1-8). But God used Jonah despite his attitude.

Running from God can be eternally disastrous.

Scripture says that we reap what we sow (Gal. 6:7-8). Those who run from the Lord by Choosing not to believe in His Son will reap eternal separation from Him.

Conclusion: When believers rebel against God's will, they bring pain and loss upon themselves as well as other people. The good news is that the Lord often gives second chance to obey Him. Have you been running from your Creator in some area of your life? If so, return to the Father and give Him complete control. He delights to work through available, obedient servants.

God Bless and Press On

Larry

*from sermon notes by Charles Stanley

"The Costly Decision to Run From God"

He Is Faithful!

“Any Promise given is only as sure as the character of the one giving it.”

The character of the promiser is what gives the promise it’s value.

“Character is like a tree and reputation like it’s shadow, the shadow is what we think of it, and the tree is the real thing…” Abraham Lincoln

I recently had a conversation with my eldest grandson about his latest report card. He was telling me how well he did in each of his classes, the grades he received and how happy he was. When he finished I told him that I was happy with him also, and how proud I was of him, which gave him a huge smile. Then I asked him about the grades he was given in citizenship for his behavior and he told me those marks as well. Then he asked me, “Grandpa why do you want to know that?” I told him that those grades were just as important to me. I said, “It’s a reflection of your character, what type of a person you are.” “The class grades tell me what’s going on in your head, and the citizenship grades tell me what’s going on in your heart.”

“The measure of a man’s character is what he would do if he knew he never would be found out.” Thomas Babington Macauley

How we act when people aren’t looking (in his case when his parent’s aren’t looking), is a good gauge of where a person’s heart is. Building character in an individual’s life is a life long process. It must begin when they are very young, it’s not something that just happens it’s something that’s taught and modeled. It’s something that is encouraged and reinforced through parental expectations and discipline.

“But man is born to trouble, as surely as sparks fly upward.”

Job 5:7

As naturally and as generally as sparks from a fire go up into the air, the heart of mankind is drawn to or even seeks out trouble (sin). And it doesn’t stop with the very young.

With my youngest son’s permission I want to share some of his story. He was raised in the church, went to Christian school from K through 12^th grade, and was a quiet, mellow and God loving young man. He graduated from high school in the spring of 2005 and in the fall of that year went away to school at a university in Missouri on a wrestling scholarship.

Sometime during that first year away from home he started partying – drinking, smoking pot, hanging out with his teammates and the girls. Not real conducive to an athletes training. He was a “Red Shirt” that first year, and wrestled at a few independent tournaments but only did “so-so”. This, from an outstanding high school wrestler who placed 5^th in the nation at the High School National Championships, which earned him All American status.

He came home that first summer a different young man. Distant and elusive, always out with friends, “just hangin out” was his explanation. Doing just enough of what was required to stay in my house, just enough to appease me.

I found out some time after his return home that first summer that he did not intend to return to school in Missouri, but in fact had been offered and accepted another scholarship to a college in northern California. The biggest reason, I realized later was to be closer to his girlfriend (my take on it, not his).

“Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.” Psalm 9:10

My wife Patsy and I pray for our children every day, we always have. Even more so when they left home and went away to college. This was our fourth child to make this transition into the world. We knew full well the temptations they would each have to face and the percentages were not in our favor that their faith would remain intact, for three of them it didn’t.

Within the first month of my son’s sophomore year, his first at the new school, he was arrested for DUI, went to jail, and was expelled from school (this is the abridged version). He had gotten into some pretty serious trouble.

“O LORD, hear my prayer, listen to my cry for mercy; in your faithfulness and righteousness.” Psalm 143:1

When I eventually found out about it I, along with my two older sons drove the 6½ hours north to be present at the final Disciplinary Committee hearing, where his expulsion would be finalized. I prayed all the way for God’s favor to be with my son and for an opportunity to address the committee. My prayers were answered.

“I entreated Your favor with my whole heart; be merciful to me according to Your word.” Psalm 119:58

I was given an opportunity to address the committee, and made an appeal to allow my son to remain in school. It was granted. He was put on probation and had many other restrictions placed upon him, but he was in school. With court proceedings, First Offender classes, AA classes, community service, a job, school, and trying to wrestle, he was overwhelmed. He struggled but made it through the school year.

He came home for the summer broken and angry. He continued with his AA classes and got a job in a warehouse to pay all the bills he had accumulated from his troubles, court fees, lawyer fees, class fees etc. He expressed to me many times feeling like the weight of world was on his shoulders. He felt like he was always being treated unfairly. Life wasn’t so easy anymore, not like it was when he was a kid under dad and mom’s watchful eye and protection. Not like it was when he was living right and following the Lord.

Patsy and I have spent a lot of time on our knees over the years. All of our sons have struggled and gone through there own personal issues. As parents you hurt when your children are hurting. You cry with them and for them. Our faith provided for us an outlet, a place to find peace. God became our refuge and our strength; we purposed to put our trust in Him.

“Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.”

Hebrews 10:23

My son decided not to return to school for his junior year, to walk away from his scholarship, to continue working and eventually he moved into an apartment with his girlfriend. Six months later he was out of a job, moving back home and his girlfriend was pregnant. Talk about a tailspin! I believe God was trying to get his attention in answer to our prayers.

His son, our latest grandson was born in March of last year, eight weeks early. He weighed 3 lbs. 5 oz. and remained in the NIC-U for nearly a month. When he got out of the hospital he came home to our house. And what a blessing he has been to us. My son’s relationship with his girlfriend soon dissolved and custody of the baby became an issue of contention. With police and courts and lawyers involved he felt like his life was literally falling apart. Me and Patsy felt overwhelmed as well.

What did we do wrong? What could we have done differently? Is this our fault? God where are you? These are just some of the questions a parent in my position would naturally ask himself or herself. We had to stand on God’s promise to bring our son back.

“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6

This verse provides a ray of hope to those who, having reared their child in the best way they knew, have had their hearts broken as their child rebels and goes astray. They agonize under the pain that God recognized to be one of the deepest sorrows of human existence (Proverbs 10:1; 15:20; 17:21,25). To those parents this verse gives hope that when he is old the prodigal will return.

A PROMISE is only as good as the person who makes it.

The essence of God’s character is in itself a promise. Who He is determines what He will do and how He will act. Through the Scripture, each time God reveals something of His nature, He is promising us that He will be true to that nature in any circumstance.

“God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill? Numbers 23:19

God has always dealt with His people by communicating promises to them. By promising first, then performing what He has promised, He awakens in us the desire and expectation that find their outlet in the prayer of faith. His promises prompt prayer.

We prayed for our son to return to us, the quiet spirited, joyful, happy, God loving son that had left our home years earlier and we did believe God for no less.

God makes promises to us for the reason of letting us know what He has available to us, if only we would ask. His promises are meant to ignite faith and expectation and desire, and then to point us to Him. His promises act to bind our hearts to His. His promises turn our eyes toward Him.

It’s been a few months now since our sons return, Hallelujah! I see him getting stronger each day in his walk with the Lord. I have also noticed a smile on his face more often, something I hadn’t seen in a long time. In talking to him recently, I heard him articulate clearly his thoughts about the valley of darkness he has just recently immerged from, and his understanding of how he got there. This is the beginning point of a full restoration. Thank you Lord!

I was truly blessed this past Sunday to stand beside him and my oldest son as part of the Easter choir at church, singing praises to our God. It brought tears to my eyes as I praised the Lord for His faithfulness to His promises. God is so good.

God wants to fulfill the desire of your heart. A person who is seasoned in praying the promises knows to let God fulfill the desire of your heart in His way at His time. If we are focused on God, then we will never be disappointed.

“God who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord is faithful.”

1 Corinthians 1:9

God Bless and Press On

Larry