Archive for June, 2018

25 Jun

Random Thoughts and Quotes

Posted by sandhillspastor in Bible, Culture, Faith, God's Word, Repentance, Salvation, Truth, Uncategorized.

It is once again time for our weekly visit. After being home for a week, we are contemplating another camping adventure. I don’t suppose we’ll go any great distance from home, since any trip that takes much over an hour seems to turn into an unforgettable experience. Maybe it is our age?

We were blessed with more rain in the past week. This is good for the flowers and lawn, and my wife’s little garden is doing great. We have been almost overrun with green onions, and beans and cucumbers are showing signs of a bumper crop. The tomatoes are blooming, and I suspect there will soon be BLT sandwiches, although we usually forego the lettuce and have just B&T sandwiches.

I will share some thoughts this week that I have had filed away for later use. Some are observations I have made; others will be from outside sources. My hope is that we will seriously consider some of the questions raised, and seek answers in God’s word.

Here we go: If I feel like doing something God does not approve, does that mean he made a mistake? His truth is not based on my feelings or preferences. To those who feel they want to be something other than the way he created them, God does not make mistakes!

God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening and morning—the sixth day (Genesis 1:31).

Seen on Facebook: Worship is not a twenty-minute period during a church service, it is a lifestyle!

“Millions of Americans see no need to reject Christianity. They simply have no experience of it. (Dr. Albert Mohler).

Ephesians 2:8-10 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Think about this: We cannot earn our salvation, but we should be able to prove it.

Are we placing limits on God’s power if we insist He needed more than 6 literal 24 hour days to complete creation?

One more thought: “It is a sad contentment to be content without Jesus” (Pastor Mark Dever).

Have a blessed week,
Pastor Jerry

18 Jun

Friends

Posted by sandhillspastor in Best Life, Blessings, Family of God, Fellowship, Humor, Laughter, Rest, Uncategorized, Wisdom.

Last week we took a little trip. This was the first we’ve had the camper out this year, and it was the first we have tried out the remodeling that was done earlier in the year. The twin bed set-up is way better than the old queen size, and we now have a shower curtain in place of the glass wall and door, allowing a little more room in the shower. The only real trial came when we found out the shower head wasn’t properly drained last fall and its handle had split from freezing. A little black electricians tape made it work until we got a replacement.

Our trip took us first to Mitchell, SD, where Alex is working, and will be attending school this fall. He is living in an apartment in the country south of Alexandria, SD. We spent two nights in Mitchell at the local KOA.

After leaving there, we took the “scenic route” to Wagner, SD. This was caused by poking the screen on my phone without looking, and changing our route on Google Maps. We found some roads that were somewhat less than the road less traveled. After a late lunch in Wagner, our next stop was in Atkinson, NE. Atkinson was our town for several years right after we were married, so it is familiar territory. We overnighted there in a really nice little out of the way park.

The next leg of the journey took us to the ranch home of our very long time friends. I hesitate to use the phrase “old friends.” We spent the evening, and into the early morning hours reminiscing about old times, and catching up with them and another couple with whom we’ve spent countless hours. After leaving there, we headed home, reaching Lake Ericson and home in the early evening on Thursday.

If I came away with a thought for the week, it would be this: We should relish those friendships that God has allowed us to develop over the years. There is something special about friends that know us as well as we know ourselves.

“Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another (1 John 4:11).

And, one more thing, your wife’s advice is more to be heeded, than any direction finding app on your smart phone!

Have a blessed week,
Pastor Jerry

11 Jun

On Anger

Posted by sandhillspastor in Anger, Bible, Christian Living, Freedom, God's Word, Peace, Sin, Truth, Uncategorized, Wisdom.

This past Thursday, we celebrated our 54th wedding anniversary. There was a time, based on family history, when I didn’t think I would live 54 years, now we’ve been married that long! In other news, our community was blessed with another 1.30 inches of rain Wednesday night, into Thursday morning. Some lawns will wait awhile before being mowed again. It is easy to see that school is out and summer is upon us, as many individuals and families are coming to the lake. I’m sure it will be this way until after Labor Day, and it is great to see people enjoying Lake Ericson.

If you ever feel the need to be really frustrated, may I recommend trying to change a lawn mower tire. I mean, take the old one off the rim and put a new tire on. I will never understand why tire manufacturers wrap them up with the sidewalls touching, so that there is no way to get them to inflate! It just seems wrong to put an inner tube in a tubeless tire, but that is what I’m going to do.

After that little rant, I need to pause and reflect on God’s teaching about anger. Let’s take a look at some scripture that will do just that.

Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him… Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret—it leads only to evil (Psalm 37:7-8).
Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth (Psalm 46:10).
In your anger do not sin; when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent (Psalm 4:4).
A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control (Proverbs 29:11).
Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools (Ecclesiastes 7:9).

Now some New Testament verses dealing with the topic of anger: In your anger do not sin: Do not let the sun go down while you are angry (Ephesians 4:26). Paul goes on: Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice (Ephesians 4:31).

Finally, “for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires” (James 1:20). Good words from God’s Word.

In Him,
Pastor Jerry

4 Jun

Weather Watcher

Posted by sandhillspastor in Blessings, Christian Living, Faith, Freedom, God's Word, Peace, Planning, Truth, Uncategorized, Work.

Here we are in the sixth month of 2018, already. Can you believe the year is almost half over? The Lord has provided more rain this week, meaning we will have lawns to mow later. There were some weather advisories up for a time Friday evening, prompting the placing of some hail screen over Mama’s tomato plants and cucumbers, and some potted posies were put indoors. I have heard reports, or at least rumors of some severe weather in the area, but none here. The plants are safe, at least for the time being.

While thinking about weather related subjects, I’m reminded of that period in time, when I was starting out running the ranch on my own. In haying season, I was forever trying to outguess the weather. Was it going to rain, or would it be dry for a few days, so we could mow and bale the hay? What did the forecast say? Could I depend on those meteorologists to know what would happen? It seemed I was always on the fence about what to do.

This was about the time I started paying more attention to the Lord, and what he had to say about living life. Once, during my Bible reading time, I came across a few verses that changed my whole outlook on this matter of weather, and it affected what I was doing. Let me share those words with you.

“Whoever watches the wind will not plant; whoever looks at the clouds will not reap.
As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things.
Sow your seed in the morning, and at evening let not your hands be idle, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or whether both will do equally well” (Ecclesiastes 11:4-6).

What a wakeup call! Instead of worrying about the weather, I was to plant the seed, mow the hay, put the bulls with the cows on schedule, and trust God with the results. Suddenly, I was free from worrying about things over which I had no control.

I will leave you with this: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5).

Blessings,
Pastor Jerry