From wyatt at clanwebb.com Thu Sep 1 23:52:49 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Thu Sep 1 23:58:24 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Disaster Message-ID: <2D36BFE7-1B7E-11DA-AF5D-000A9599B718@clanwebb.com> Hosea. This book stands first in order among the Minor Prophets. "The probable cause of the location of Hosea may be the thoroughly national character of his oracles, their length, their earnest tone, and vivid representations. This was the longest of the prophetic books written before the Captivity. Hosea prophesied in a dark and melancholy period of Israel's history, the period of Israel's decline and fall. Their sins had brought upon them great national disasters."their homicides and fornication, their perjury and theft, their idolatry and impiety, are censured and satirized with a faithful severity." Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary. Be honest, now. When you think of New Orleans, what do you think about? - I love the music. - I love the food. - The history there is colorful and important in the American story. - There must be a lot of Christian brothers and sisters there? What do you think of when you think of New Orleans? I don't know the mind of God at any given modern moment, but I can look to the past and see what makes Him happy and what doesn't. "If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, he will turn and bring disaster on you and make an end of you, after he has been good to you." Joshua 24:20 "People will answer, 'Because they have forsaken the Lord their God, who brought their fathers out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshipping and serving them - that is why the Lord brought all this disaster on them' " 1 Kings 9:9 "He who mocks the poor shows contempt for their Maker; whoever gloats over disaster will not go unpunished" Proverbs 17:5 "The look on their faces testifies against them; they parade their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it. Woe to them! They have brought disaster upon themselves." Isaiah 3:9 "Hear, O earth: I am bringing disaster on this people, the fruit of their schemes, because they have not listened to my words and have rejected my law." Jeremiah 6:19 "This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: 'Listen! I am going to bring on this city and villages around it every disaster pronounced against them, because they were stiff-necked and would not listen to my words.'" Jeremiah 19:15 Like a father to his children... "and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned." Jeremiah 18:8 "Perhaps when the people of Judah hear about every disaster I plan to inflict on them, each of them will turn from his wicked way; then I will forgive their wickedness and their sin." Jeremiah 36:3 I don't know if that's what's going on today, but it's good for us to remember that He's done it before. Pray for our country, because when God decides to clean up the mess we could all be under water. Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sat Sep 3 00:33:54 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sat Sep 3 00:34:43 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Hearing the Word Message-ID: <14AF631C-1C4D-11DA-BD8D-000A9599B718@clanwebb.com> While in college, I took a course simply called "The Bible". It was taught by a non-Christian who was presenting the Bible as a piece of important literature along with other apocryphal works in related areas. It always struck me as odd that anyone could read the Bible, know so much about it, and then decide that it was no different than reading Plato or the studying the art of Michelangelo. The Bible is powerful and piercing to me, but it clearly was not that to her. I am now learning how the Bible can't hold power in your life unless you do something with it. Hearing the Word is only the first step. Knowing the Word intellectually is great, but it's not the whole package. You need to know the Word with your heart and then use it to live. It's not a short process and it doesn't happen overnight. Living by the Word is something you have to work at every day. Furthermore, you can't just work on it when you have time. You need to be able to depend on that power when you're in a tight spot or under pressure. Don't shortchange yourself by limiting your time in the Word to when it's easy. Love Him enough to do it even when it's hard. Develop a need for it so you can't afford to miss it. Jesus told a parable about how people receive the Word. He compared it to the spreading of seed on different surfaces. In one place, the seed never has a chance. In another, it grows, but is easily blown away. In another, it can't grow because there are too many other things in the way. But... "But the seed on the good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop." Luke 8:15 Notice that just hearing the Word isn't enough. The people God wants are those who do the following three things. First, hear the Word. If you're on this list, you don't need someone to point it out to you. Get into it. Let yourself hear it each day. Second, retain the Word. Memorization is the first thing that came to mind when I read this. However, I think there's something deeper. God wants you to take the Word and make it part of who you are and how you live. Retain it such that it cannot be separated from you. It becomes the set of guidelines that you naturally live by. Lastly, persevere. This is what jumped out at me the most. I always forget how these things have to be done constantly. We have to constantly pursue the goals that the Word has laid out. We need to depend on Him for the strength, but we cannot give up. We have to keep going, keep working, never stop. And the first step in persevering is to go back to the first step and start over. When you're doing these things, you will produce a great crop. This is your spiritual fruit. Those are the things that God will use to further His will. Whether you spread the Gospel, serve at church, or just show love to the unloveable, you are producing your crop of spiritual fruit. Just like the classic, "Lather. Rinse. Repeat." Your relationship with the Word should be, "Hear it. Retain it. Persevere. Repeat." Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sun Sep 4 00:06:00 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sun Sep 4 00:06:57 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Fools Message-ID: <597BE122-1D12-11DA-86EB-000A9599B718@clanwebb.com> "God sure must like fools, 'cause he made so many of them." I heard that little phrase many times growing up from old cowboys, farmers, and other relatives. Most of the people they were referring to, I thought, were pretty much like the rest of us. I was always perplexed about just what a fool was, exactly. I remember seeing movies and other depictions of a guy with a funny hat that had little bells on the ends being called a fool. Sometimes he was elevated, I guess, to court jester. I thought his purpose was to make people laugh. Later on, my mother would tell me not to be foolish or that something I did was foolish. This kind of changed my view of a fool to being more like someone who didn't always make the right decisions. Anyway, the definition of a fool got really gray there for a while and it seemed to describe a part-time affliction. Now, after several years under my hat, I believe there are some people that are full-time fools. In fact, I dare say they do their best to elevate the term to an art form. I know some people that, if being a fool were an Olympic event, would have a great shot at a medal. Like all things, fools are not a new phenomenon. The Bible mentions them several times. "But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, 'You good-for-nothing,' shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, 'You fool,' shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell." Matthew 5:22 Obviously, it isn't a term to be cast about lightly. "The wisdom of the sensible is to understand the way, But the foolishness of fools is deceit." Proverbs 14:8 Fools seem to be at odds with God and they are not to be trusted. "And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry."" But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?'" Luke 12:19-20 It seems that having a big bank account doesn't exempt you from being a fool. "Fools mock at sin, But among the upright there is good will." Proverbs 14:9 They seem to let sin slide, kind of a "Boys will be boys!" or "Just sowing their wild oats!" attitude. "He who conceals hatred has lying lips, And he who spreads slander is a fool." Proverbs 10:18 Not very nice people, these fools. "For the dream comes through much effort and the voice of a fool through many words." Ecclesiastes 5:3 They seem to talk... a lot. "How long, O naive ones, will you love being simple-minded? And scoffers delight themselves in scoffing And fools hate knowledge?" Proverbs 1:22 They don't want to listen or learn anything, but they do like to put people down. Spotting a fool is rather like the man said about great art: "I'll know it when I see it." Blessings, Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Mon Sep 5 00:21:19 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Mon Sep 5 00:22:11 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Targeted Message-ID: <006159e19d012fcf8b383ce647ef8c3a@clanwebb.com> Sometimes, when we're chugging through life, we aren't sure how we're doing. We may feel like we're being effective, doing good works, but we just aren't sure where we are on the scale. A+? C-? We just aren't sure. Well, one way to gauge your effectiveness is to watch how the opposition treats you. This can be really obvious in sports. If you're hanging out by the three point line and the defense sags and ignores you, you probably aren't being very effective from there. If you are getting double teams or the opponent sends their best defender at you, you're doing well. In football, the defense might be keyed on stopping the running back or a particularly effective receiver. In baseball, they'll walk you rather than give you a chance to hit. These are signs that you've been effective recently and the opposition is beginning to focus on you. If you aren't getting that kind of attention, though, you have to start figuring out what you're doing wrong. The same rules apply in our walk with Christ. Being a Christian is not all rainbows and rose gardens. Being a Christian can mean persecution. "What?" you ask, "Doesn't Jesus protect us from that?" He is always with you, but sometimes you will have to ride through the storm together. The Word is pretty clear that if you are a Christian, you will be persecuted for your faith. Depend on it. "Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No servant is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. [...]" John 15:20 We are certainly not as good as Jesus. If people who met and learned about Jesus decided to persecute Him, there will be no shortage of folks who will want to persecute us. Now, those people, driven by Satan, have the same battle tendencies as I've described above. They will tend to focus on the most effective disciples. If you aren't a threat to Satan, he won't bother with you. If you aren't producing spiritual fruit and doing good works, then you're not a threat to him. You may be saved and he can't change that. But, if you aren't helping to advance the Kingdom of God, then he's not worried. He has bigger fish to fry. If your life seems to be cruising along without any persecution or attempts at disruption, maybe you better check your compass. Make sure you're on the right trail. "In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted," 2 Timothy 3:12 If life has been uneventful or comfortable for some time, then Satan may not be worried about you. If he's not worried about you, maybe you should be worried about yourself. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Tue Sep 6 01:21:00 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Tue Sep 6 01:24:12 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Get Going Message-ID: <6ad788c433c45a881b7af8d223e91ac2@clanwebb.com> "You will tread upon the lion and cobra, The young lion and the serpent you will trample down." Psalm 91:13 Here's a question. To whom does this verse refer? Some great old testament warrior? Perhaps one of King David's chosen men? You are pretty sure you know, don't you? You think it's Jesus. Wrong. Give up? Well, if you have made a confession of faith and turned your life over to Christ, this verse is about you. Many Christians see themselves as one of the huddled masses under the protection of God. "For you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the foe." Psalm 61:3 He is our strong tower and, as the hymn says, "we should rush in." But, God has also given us all of the ingredients for a backbone. All we have to do is activate it. "The Lord is my light and my salvation - whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life - of whom shall I be afraid? When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh, when my enemies and my foes attack me, they will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then will I be confident." Psalm 27:1-3 How do you see yourself? Are you a confident, mighty warrior? Or, are you what is called, in football, an end and a guard - meaning you sit at the end of the bench and guard the Gatorade? What good is it to be armed to the teeth and never pull the trigger? Read the words of the commentator: " Whatever happens, nothing shall hurt the believer; though trouble and affliction befall, it shall come, not for his hurt, but for good, though for the present it be not joyous but grievous. Those who rightly know God, will set their love upon him. They by prayer constantly call upon him. His promise is, that he will in due time deliver the believer out of trouble, and in the mean time be with him in trouble. The Lord will manage all his worldly concerns, and preserve his life on earth, so long as it shall be good for him. For encouragement in this he looks unto Jesus. He shall live long enough; till he has done the work he was sent into this world for, and is ready for heaven. Who would wish to live a day longer than God has some work to do, either by him or upon him? A man may die young, yet be satisfied with living. But a wicked man is not satisfied even with long life. At length the believer's conflict ends; he has done for ever with trouble, sin, and temptation." Matthew Henry Concise Commentary Get off the sidelines and get into the fight. Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Wed Sep 7 00:03:05 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Wed Sep 7 00:03:57 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Anger Message-ID: <82efd97dc3b6dcdaca681042419edbc6@clanwebb.com> I have a special talent. This is not to be confused with a spiritual gift. You see, sometimes I can get angry. I don't mean a righteous indignation. I'm talking about low blood sugar hacked off. It doesn't happen too often anymore, but in the past this talent could result in holes in the wall, reducing my wife and children to tears, clearing the house of pets, and broken inanimate objects all over the place. I have long since given over my talent to the Lord and the waters have calmed considerable over the years. My anger has become less about my own low self-image and selfishness. Now, the odd outburst is about opportunity. I am not referring to an opportunity to learn something - as I have learned enough about my own anger to publish - but an opportunity for Satan to gain hold on me by exploiting my inability to completely jettison this talent. Like many attributes of the male make-up, anger can be a fine line. The idea is to understand God's anger and have our lives reflect our understanding about what makes Him angry. The down side is that the same trigger can cause us to open the door to Satan and then we can do some serious damage. We must always see Satan as the prowling predator. He will use any chance we present to him to get us to lose our temper. Learn to see it coming and swallow your pride. Then, as you turn and walk away, smile and look skyward and say, "Not this time, loser!" It is not necessarily a sin to be angry, and it certainly does not mean that you are not a Christian. A further helpful word is given to us in James: "But let everyone be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God." James 1:19-20 In His name, Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Wed Sep 7 23:02:25 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Wed Sep 7 23:41:41 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Responsibility Message-ID: <527a43258cff20d814c82d544d9c21e8@clanwebb.com> I've been a professional software engineer for thirteen years. In that time, I've acted in various capacities and seen the manager-employee relationship from all sides. I have been the lowest man on the org chart that gets the tasks and projects that nobody else wants. I have managed project teams of five to ten people. I have managed as many as forty other engineers at a time. During all that time, I've figured out how to work your way up the responsibility ladder. I've also seen many examples of how to work yourself into anonymity and, eventually, out of a job. Promotions and responsibility will depend on ability and experience. However, when those things were close, the deciding factor would be attitude. In fact, the right attitude would often propel the less experienced or less capable candidate above the others. Looking back, I think that was the case for me. You see, I never wanted to promote (or work for) someone who demanded more responsibility as a right. You know, I'm talking about those folks who complain about how their abilities are being wasted in their current position and management is stupid for not using them fully. I found those types to have poisonous attitudes and I avoided giving them more responsibility or working around them. I liked the ones that did the best they could with any task given to them. Whether it was a two day, one person project or an eighteen month, 30 person project, they just performed. They would take the task and treat it with the same kind of dedication and effort as any other. That was their assignment and they simply did what was expected of them or more. At the age of 30, I was directly managing twenty full time engineers and twenty contractors. A vast majority of those folks were older than me and had more experience in the industry. Some did not seek to manage, so they didn't care. Some had the same attitude I did and simply did the work they were assigned. A couple, though, were distinctly unhappy with my promotion. Either they wanted the job or simply felt I wasn't ready for it. They became less productive and frustrating to work with. They were more worried about the perceived lack of respect and neglected their assigned tasks. I was shocked and humbled when I was offered that position. I had no idea that I was a candidate until a few days before. I had simply done each thing assigned to me with my utmost effort and without any resentment. Looking back, I realize that I thought that it was just simply the way it ought to be done. I never thought of anything else. I credit that to a solid upbringing and Christ in my life. Jesus told a parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-28). Three men are given three different amounts of money by their master before he leaves. When the master returns, they are asked what they did with what they were given. We all know that the man with one talent simply buried it and did nothing. He thought he was playing it safe, but he really just did nothing. The master was not pleased. We are to learn to take what Christ has given us and go out and invest it in the world. Be a good servant. However, there's another subtle message here. The two servants who did earn a return on the master's money offer an interesting comparison. Notice that one was given five talents and one was given two talents. The one with five did not lord it over the one with two. The one with two did not complain about fairness or how he should have the five. They both simply did what was expected of them and more. What was the master's response to each? "His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!" Matthew 25:21 Did you catch that? Entrusting each servant with talents had been a test of their ability to be a steward of the master's property. The two that showed an ability to be good stewards were given more responsibility. It didn't matter what the assignment was, they simply did it and did it well. The result was being given more responsibility and more opportunity. Don't complain about your current station in life. God is giving you an opportunity to show Him what you can do for Him. If you do well, He'll promote you and give you more responsibility. You don't have to think about the timing or how it works. Just focus on the tasks in front of you. Do them with your best effort. He'll do the rest. Be faithful with the few things. Then, and only then, He will put you in charge of many things. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Fri Sep 9 00:21:32 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Fri Sep 9 00:22:25 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] More Data Message-ID: <8a9db39027005e2c05bdc40c4ed86a06@clanwebb.com> I've had the opportunity to work with some cool computer hardware and powerful software. One of my favorites was a software program that helped preschoolers learn how to read. The cool part of this program was that we used speech recognition software to teach kids how to read words aloud and pronounce them correctly. By getting the child to say the words back to the computer, we could verify that they had learned the word correctly. It was something that nobody else in the market had done. The problem with using new technologies, though, is that you're the trailblazer. Speech recognition had never been used with children before. The problem is that children don't enunciate words well and the range of voice patterns is much harder to define. It's tougher for the software to recognize words correctly when there are so many ways that a word might be said by a five-year-old. Speech recognition software needs many, many samples of correct speech as a reference to help it recognize your words correctly. In this case, we fed the engine a much larger number of samples of children's voices so it would work better with them. Along with some other tweaks, we were able to recognize most children's voices quite well and the product was a hit. As we fed more and more samples to the speech engine, it got better and better at distinguishing words and correct answers. We could have continued to give it even more samples, but we were limited by the speed of the program and the amount of space we would use on the CD-ROM when it shipped. Nonetheless, the principle held: more data meant better understanding. Guess what? The same holds true for your Bible study time. I know many folks who have read the entire Bible. That's great, but it's not like a novel. You don't read it once and put it on the shelf. You should be reading it every day and constantly studying to learn something new. You know why? Because when you give yourself more time and more insight into the Word, you'll have better insight into what God's plan is for you. You will better understand His will. You will better understand how to be a Christian. You have to keep adding more data points to your brain though, or you'll stagnate. The Bible does not speak about reading Scripture and then going on your way. It reminds us that we need to be constantly studying it. "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness." 2 Timothy 3:16 "Listen, my sons, to a father's instruction; pay attention and gain understanding." Proverbs 4:1 "Lay hold of my words with all your heart; keep my commands and you will live." Proverbs 4:4 "Hold on to instruction, do not let it go; guard it well, for it is your life." Proverbs 4:13 "My son, pay attention to what I say; listen closely to my words. Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart; " Proverbs 4:20-21 Read your Bible. Repeat until you go home to heaven or Jesus comes back. The more time you spend with it, the more valuable it becomes, the more influence it will have on your life, and the more powerful a tool it will be for you. In my experience, whenever you think you've extracted all there is to know from a verse, there will be something more. The Word is living and will continue to provide all that you need if you go back to it. More data means better understanding. Keep feeding yourself more data. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sat Sep 10 00:39:02 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sat Sep 10 00:40:27 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Perfect Sacrifice Message-ID: <88db4d86b7b34420142a218933bfb218@clanwebb.com> Word comparisons can be an interesting exercise. Take, for example, the word "law". The first thing that may come to mind are all those rules man has contrived and written down with the goal of maintaining order in a particular society. If you cross a border, you will find that the rules are different. One society has decided to make a rule for behavior that contradicts another society. By the very nature of the world, any single human must remain flexible about the law in order to stay within its boundaries depending upon where one finds oneself. There is also the concept of circumstances that a judge can take into account in order to determine whether you have violated a law or to what extent you may have violated a law. All of this confusion, of course, can be traced to the concept that not all of humankind has the same source from which we create rules. The standard we are supposedly trying to maintain moves from flagpole to flagpole depending upon the human endeavor. Purity of the law is always an argument because there isn't a gold standard for ideas. God's law, of course, doesn't suffer from these encumbrances. He has the advantage of knowing everything. He is also the sole judge. There are no circumstances He has to take into account. In short, there is no confusion about His law, the consequences, or the punishment. "For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it" James 2:10 This is an important idea to understand. Either you're perfect or you have broken the rule. Oh, by the way, nobody is perfect. All fall short. There are no plea bargains. The penalty must be paid. The penalty is death. In the Old Testament, God set up a series of sacrifices in order for man to atone, or cover up, his sin, which is the breaking of the law. The world still operates the same way. Pay a fine or serve some time. "For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer continually year by year, make perfect those who draw near." Hebrews 10:1 The New Testament is all about the change from the old way of doing things to the new way. No more skirting the issues. Break the law and you die. Unless... you can find someone to take your place, a volunteer that is acceptable to God as a substitute for you. Good luck with that one! "Hey, pal, if you aren't busy on Saturday, would you mind dying for me? I kinda screwed up and apparently I have to die unless I can find someone else to do it. Whaddya say? Can I count on you?" Perfection demands that the only way an acceptable sacrifice can be presented is that the author of perfection must make it. However, since the creator is always greater than that which it creates, anything created would not be perfect. The only way the perfect sacrifice can be presented is for the sacrifice to be the source of perfection. The creator must be the sacrifice. That is why only Jesus could be that sacrifice. "For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I may take it again. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again This commandment I received from My Father." John 10:17-18 Nothing we can do as man can be enough. Ever. Our only option is to take the sacrifice as it is offered and be eternally grateful. Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sun Sep 11 00:31:18 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sun Sep 11 00:32:20 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Storing Manna Message-ID: It is time for kids everywhere to be heading back to school. I have fond memories of heading back to school (I'm weird that way). I liked meeting new teachers and starting new classes. There was always that sense that all my classes could be great. It only took a few months to find out what I did every year: some classes were good, some weren't, and I was going to have to work hard in all of them. I do remember going through the same mental process at the beginning of each school year. I would dedicate myself to coming home and doing the homework that had been assigned that day right away. I didn't want to procrastinate. I wanted to do a good job and stay ahead of the game all year. Again, that only took a few weeks before I went from doing homework the day it was assigned to a day or two later to 11pm the night before it was due. I always hated that feeling of having something due the next day, though. I kept trying to find ways to keep ahead of things so I could have days where I had nothing to work on. It never quite worked out. When Dad asked me to join him in writing these Daily Push-Ups, he and I were on the same wavelength. We talked about how great it would be if we could just sit down and pump out a half dozen each and then we'd be set for almost two weeks! Needless to say, it hasn't worked that way. None of the ones I've written are more than a few hours old when I send them out. The first couple of weeks, I kept trying to write two or three at a time. I could get one and an idea for a second and then I'd get writer's block. A couple days later, I could get another one and start a second, but that was it. I could never come up with several in a sitting. After a while, I realized that this wasn't just my brain short-circuiting. This was a lesson. I find that I am in the Word more, I'm thinking about my spiritual relationship more, and I'm generally on better terms with God when I'm writing these. I realized that if I were able to write several at a sitting, I'd be short-changing my relationship with God. I'd be cramming a week's worth of God time into a day and then neglecting Him the rest of the time. He knew that wasn't good for me, so He didn't let it happen. He wants to spend more time with me and all He was asking was that I trust Him to provide ideas for these devotionals at the necessary time. You see, the whole reason for doing several at a time was to avoid the anxiety of worrying about what would happen tomorrow. God was training me to depend on Him. God had to train the Israelites to trust Him when it came to providing food in the desert (Exodus 16:11-35). God sent manna to feed them in the morning, but this food would rot the next day. They had to depend on God to provide them with food each day. This was a lesson on how we should depend on God each and every day. Not just once a week. It seems that I was trying to store up manna. I was taking what God had given me and I was trying to store it up so I wouldn't have to worry about tomorrow. But then, we're depending on our own understanding and that takes the focus off of God. We need to depend on God each day to provide us with what we need for that day. This is not to say that you shouldn't be a good steward with what He's given you, but you should not spend your entire life planning for tomorrow. "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:33-34 Depend on Him to provide. Build your relationship with Him and let Him take care of the rest. Don't spend your time trying to store manna. I'm learning to look forward to each day to see what God will provide for me. Are you? Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sun Sep 11 23:58:06 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sun Sep 11 23:59:00 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Worried About Anxiety Message-ID: <24efaf6ba40b3a2066c61c194e8121ea@clanwebb.com> My gosh, I am able to worry. No kidding. I can waste a lot of time thinking about every conceivable possibility that could have a negative impact on any given situation on any given day, hour, or minute. When I was on the management team at a foundry, I was given an edict: "We don't want to produce any parts that could carry liability for the company." Talk about worry! When I took over the job, we were making over 1200 different parts for hundreds of different industries. Every time I went out and hustled up a new piece of business, the question was always the same, "What does this part do? Could it ever fail and hurt someone? What is the company's liability?" I remember going over the customer list and trying to decipher what each one manufactured and, thus, make at least a wild stab as to the potential liability for our company. One day, an order came in from a company called Irerly Aircraft. "Holy cats!" I thought, "Something we are making in our operation could end up in an airplane?" My worry meter pegged. "Airplanes with failed parts fall out of the sky," I thought. I immediately called a meeting with production. "What parts are we making for this outfit?" I asked. Now, the thing you must understand about pouring castings is that most of the time you don't have any idea where the part actually goes. So, something called a Dog Ear or a Slide or a Wing Clip could be as harmless as an ice cream cone or it might end up under critical service. Our crack production staff looked at one another, cleared their collective throats, and gave the usual, "I'm not sure," answer. I was sweating bullets. What did these parts do? How many were in service? Why did they want more? I called the company and asked where the parts were used. They wondered why I wanted to know. After all, my company had been producing these parts for over ten years. Why were we asking now? I explained that we were just reviewing all of our production with an eye toward company liability and aircraft parts had us a bit concerned, especially after-market aircraft parts. "Oh," I was told, "don't worry." Irerly Aircraft was just the original company name and they had stopped making anything to do with airplanes fifteen years before. I was assured nothing they manufactured went into airplanes. Wow, that was a relief. "Just for the record," I asked, "what do you manufacture?" Now, they strictly made replacement parts for carnival rides. Eek! "Please tell me these parts aren't for a ferris wheel or anything like that." Nope. Nothing like that. The only did roller coasters. Okay, sorry I asked. "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Philippians 4:6 This is a tough verse to get your arms around when your paycheck depends upon when to worry and when not to worry. Of course, this scripture teaches us not to be anxious, but it is not saying to never worry. In the Greek, when the verb is in the present tense, the connotation is continuous action. In other words, it's okay to worry, but not okay to be in a constant state of anxiety. Worry can be the beginning of a solution, or a warning. God may very well allow worry to get your attention. Think it out. Take it to Him in prayer. Give it your best thoughts and make a decision. Then, just turn it over to Him. "What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?" Romans 8:31 Our God is capable. Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Tue Sep 13 00:15:38 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Tue Sep 13 00:16:29 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Falling Trees Message-ID: One summer, during my youth, I was part of a gang of guys that was hired to cut down trees for a right-of-way for the local electric company. God had in mind for me to remember this experience, so He gave me a couple of memory pegs. First, He apparently wanted to capture the time, so He partnered me up with a guy that was rough around the edges, but had one shining attribute: common sense. Unfortunately for me, He also chose to bless this guy with the worst taste in music on the planet. Every day at noon, we would shut off our saws and eat lunch. Instead of sitting under an aspen tree and taking in God's beauty that is the Rocky Mountains, this guy would pull out a portable radio and we would be treated to the twang of country music. Let me tell you, brother, that year was not a banner year for country music. We could never seem to get through lunch without hearing (I hate to even type the name as the melody will haunt me for days) "Mister, if you you're gonna play the juke box, don't play A-11..." Whomever wrote this song missed God's message that he should have become a fly swatter salesman instead of a songwriter. Although, now that I think of it, every time that song came on, not even the deer flies hung around. One mid-morning, just before the dreaded concert, he shut off his saw and motioned the rest of us to do the same. He was standing next to a huge Jack pine tree. Running past this tree was a new barbed wire fence. He spit, looked at the rest of us, and said, "Boys, I don't think so. If this old critter falls the wrong way, it is going to take out about 100 yards of this new fence and I don't want to end up paying for it out of my wages. I'm gonna call in an expert." Well, we got off early that day and we were spared "A-11". We were told to come back the following day and, after the expert had felled the pine, we would saw it up. I showed up the next morning to see all the boys standing around the big pine shaking their heads. The expert had come and gone. Also gone was about 150 yards of fence. Our mentor had just one thing to say. "I reckon that old pine was just meant to take out that fence." The pine tree had performed a little maneuver known as "the barber chair". Just before crashing to the ground, it swung in a twisting motion abruptly just before reaching the ground. The fence was right in it's path. Now, this incident saved my bacon one day, many years later. I was helping a friend to clear some property in the West Hills of Portland. He wanted to improve his view. We were working on a big Alder, straight as a ship's mast, when "A-11" began ringing in my ears. As the tree fell downhill as we had predicted, my friend began to step sideways. However, the Alder barber-chaired and caught the saw as he was backing away. I motioned to him to let go of the saw and move uphill. The saw was still running and I had visions of the thing becoming a lethal projectile as the tree fell. I was safe as I was on the uphill side by now. So, I simply stepped up to the uphill side of the stump and, as the tree finished crashing down, I put my finger right on the chainsaw bar and held it in place. The saw was still running, but harmless. God had put that lesson in my memory banks for all those years and held it there with that awful song for just that moment. A lesson from before I was saved to be used after I had accepted him. I also learned that some trees are just destined to fall that way. That friend and I don't speak anymore. His life went one way and mine another. I pray for him to turn around and see the tree that will barber-chair and take his life, but so far he is persisting in his blindness. "But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said." Exodus 8:15 "But this time also Pharaoh hardened his heart and he would not let the people go." Exodus 8:32 "Then the Lord said to Moses, "Go to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his officials so that I may perform these miraculous signs of mine among them"" Exodus 10:1 "But the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he would not let the Israelites go." Exodus 10:20 "But the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he was not willing to let them go." Exodus 10:27 "Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh, but the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he would not let the Israelites go out of his country." Exodus 11:10 "The Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out boldly." Exodus 14:8 "For it was the Lord himself who hardened their hearts to wage war against Israel, so that he might destroy them totally, exterminating them without mercy, as the Lord had commanded Moses." Joshua 11:20 "He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him take an oath in God's name. He became stiff-necked and hardened his heart and would not turn to the Lord, the God of Israel." 2 Chronicles 36:13 "But when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory." Daniel 5:20 Sometimes in life, the people we want to come to the Lord are just like those trees. They are just bound to fall the wrong way. God may have planned it that way. Our duty is to pray for them and be ready if they turn for help. But, in the end, it is between them and God and God will have His way. Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Wed Sep 14 00:24:28 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Wed Sep 14 00:25:19 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Rewards Message-ID: <607b70e7d4bda59cf4a7af34eec48a1c@clanwebb.com> Not being an extraordinary athlete, I had a difficult time legitimizing my letterman's jacket in high school. My school also issued an academic letter that you wore on the opposite breast of the jacket from the regular letter. I was proud of mine. I also got pins recognizing my achievement in different subjects at the end of my junior year. I wore those on that jacket, too. I even competed in a mathematic olympics and placed second which garnered me a medal with a ribbon. I pinned that to my jacket, too. By the time I graduated, my letterman's jacket weighed an extra ten pounds and wherever I walked I sounded like a souvenir cart being pushed down the street. My jacket was unique. I wanted it that way. I wanted it to stand out. I wanted the other students to know how hard I had worked and what I had done. And, sure enough, I got a few glances from folks and my friends would ask me what the pins were for. But, in retrospect, I realize that I was just being a glory hound. I was trying to get some mileage out of what I'd done in impressing my peers. I also think I probably just looked goofy with all of that stuff hanging off my jacket. It was fleeting, but I got what I wanted by wearing that stuff. I got that extra ounce of respect for a few weeks. That was it. It wasn't much and it wasn't worth it. The work I put in to earn those pins and medals served me much better at home while I was doing homework and in later years while I was working through college. There was a much bigger and more valuable reward in that work and it had nothing to do with getting noticed or moving up the social ladder. That value is also more permanent. I'm probably the only person in my class who remembers those pins. So, the recognition didn't stick. However, I'm still earning a living based on the work behind them. That part did stick. Sometimes seeking the short-term reward is more damaging than that. You can end up forfeiting your long-term rewards to get a few minutes of fame or a little bit of money. This certainly applies to your service to God and to other people. Anyone who serves at church, takes care of the elderly, stops to help change a flat, or gives five bucks to the guy on the corner should be rewarded. If that person, however, seeks the reward then they have forfeit the heavenly reward that God has prepared for them. It's an either-or deal. Jesus was clear: "So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full." Matthew 6:2 "And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full." Matthew 6:5 "When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. " Matthew 6:16 He clearly points out that if you seek out recognition or rewards on earth, then that's the sum total of your reward. There will be nothing else. However... "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Matthew 6:19-21 Praise may come your way. Rewards may come your way. They are a pittance compared to the reward God has prepared for you, though. Do not announce your acts of obedience. Do not demand returns on your service. If you do, then you have given up the greater reward. Serve out of obedience and love. Don't serve to get praise or rewards here on Earth. Are you serving? If so, why do you do it? Make sure you aren't settling for the earthly rewards. They aren't worth it. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Wed Sep 14 23:54:39 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Wed Sep 14 23:55:32 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] God Has No Favorites Message-ID: <0a340021b5a7e2c0d7ed0b95fd4f6d28@clanwebb.com> We prayed for and commissioned a young man that was heading off for New Zealand for training and then on to Asia. One thing he said struck me, "I understand that New Zealand is like America in the fifties." I often think of parts of Canada being the same way. While traveling there I was amazed how I felt I had been transported back in time to my younger days. It is hard to explain, but it was just a general feeling I guess. It brought to mind how different my prejudices were formed because of where I was raised. I think there was only one black family within a hundred miles, but there were quite a few Hispanic families. We were sharecroppers ourselves so, on the socioeconomic scale, we were probably poor white trash in someone's eyes. Jewish people never entered my life growing up, so I never had a clue until much later why anyone would look down on them. One thing was for sure. Putting someone down always seemed to have the same goal: to raise ourselves up. I remember a lot of ethnic jokes that were aimed at Mexicans, blacks, Jews, Poles, Slavs, Irish, Scots, and so on. I remember the joke that was going around when Kennedy was elected president. "Now, there will be three faucets in the White House: hot, cold, and holy water." During the early years of the civil rights movement - George Wallace, Governor Maddox, Martin Luther King, and the like - I heard, "Old King is mad because all washing machines are white. Some ole boy told him not to worry but to just life the lid and he would find a black agitator in each one." Silly, hateful stuff passed down from generation to generation. The great irony is that, all along, those generations had the answers for prejudice. "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes; first for the Jew, then for the Gentile" Romans 1:16 "There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus" Galatians 3:28 "For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility" Ephesians 2:14 "For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus" 1 Timothy 2:5 To follow Christ is a conversion that doesn't threaten your heritage. It enhances your life by dealing with your sin. Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Thu Sep 15 23:56:25 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Thu Sep 15 23:57:21 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Confession Message-ID: Because we are men with inherited sin and we live in a fallen world, we are in a constant battle to keep our walk above the high water mark. It is inevitable that we will slip and sink under the water from time to time. This backsliding happens to all of us. this inevitability should cause us to examine our hearts. We should never use this inevitability to justify our behavior. Although this might be a lame example, I think it still applies. If I am preparing to go hunting, fishing, rafting, climbing, or some other outdoor sport, I know in the back of my mind that I will hurt myself at some point. I'll be sore or I will bend, break, scrap, or puncture some part of my body. It doesn't keep me from going, because the reward is greater than the anticipated pain. I will see country, catch or kill game, get an adrenaline rush, or just relax. I can always pack Advil, a first aid kit, and other stuff I know I will probably have to use before the trip is over. When the inevitable happens, the worst thing I can do is not to treat it ASAP. Infection or other damage can exacerbate the wound and, left untreated, it can become a serious problem. One of the worst things I can do is act like nothing happened. My ego can get in the way and I will actually lie to those that are concerned for me. "Nah, it isn't bad. I can go on." Or, I can use my favorite, "It looks a lot worse than it is..." We often do the same thing with sin. We know the treatment and the cure, but the first thing we do is try to cover it up. We must establish a habit in our lives. Calling a spade a spade. We need to go to those that care for us and admit, confess, cough up, or simply expose the wound. "Buddy, I'm hurting and I need prayer." Prayer is the Advil in the first aid kit for sin. Go to a brother and give it up. A brother can't help you recover from a wound if he doesn't know about it. And if you wait until it is obvious, then the recovery is longer and more painful. Above all, if a brother says, "What's wrong? You're limping," don't do the stupid thing and say, "Nothing. It looks a lot worse than it is." "We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do?this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God?through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin." Romans 7:14-25 If we don't gain a real understand of this cycle in our lives, we cannot prepare for it. Sin is rot and it will eat away at you until there is nothing left. "Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit. When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Selah Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the Lord "? and you forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah Therefore let everyone who is godly pray to you while you may be found; surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach him." Psalm 32:1-6 Don't fight the confession. Embrace it. Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sat Sep 17 00:22:36 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sat Sep 17 00:23:26 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Heads Up Message-ID: He's always there. Sometimes it's obvious that he's hanging around. Other times you completely forget he's there until he attacks. He can come at you from all angles with with a million faces. I can be working along happily and get an email out of the blue with some scantily dressed girl encouraging me to visit her website. He starts to whisper in my ear, "It'll just take a second. It can't hurt. You need a break, anyway." Or, I might come home from work a little tired from a long day. The first conversation I have at home turns into an argument. Again, with the suggestions, "Are you going to take that? Let her have it! You're the head of the household, right? Show her what that means!" Or, the attacks might be more literal. I'm so busy being worried about work or worried about something at home that I don't notice that the car in front of me isn't taking advantage of the green light and I hit him. One more time, he lays in to me, "See? You're a loser! You can't take care of yourself. How can you expect to take care of anyone else! Where's your God, now? Why did He let this happen?" I felt that God was leading me to pray more directly for the protection of my family this week. So I have been. During that time, I witnessed a pretty serious car accident that nearly pushed one of the cars into mine. I was also slightly rear-ended after leaving my weekly Bible study. My wife commented that my truck seemed to have a target painted on it. I think she's right. He's looking for an angle. He's trying to get under my skin. Americans have this image of him sitting on some kind of flaming throne overseeing those he has successfully taken to hell with him. I'm slowly discovering that's not true. He's not that passive. He's actively working on each one of us. "The Lord said to Satan, "Where have you come from?" Satan answered the Lord, "From roaming through the earth and going back and forth in it."" Job 1:7 His normal state of being is to be roaming around the earth. Yes, the very earth on which we live. Believe me, he's not in it for the sightseeing. He's looking for a chink in the armor, a crack in the wall, any place to put in a wedge and start driving it. "Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of suffering." 1 Peter 5:8-9 He's looking for that opening so he can take you out. He wants you down for the count. Even if you're saved, he wants you to be ineffective or off the game board altogether. You have to act like the night guard at a camp in Iraq. You have to be always aware that you're in someone's sights. You have to stay in control and stay alert. This sounds impossible to do. It is... if you try it alone. But, you don't have to be. Submit to God. Pray for protection, self-control, and discernment. He'll have your back. You can run to Him and be safe. Even so, you have to keep your wits about you. The other one's still prowling. Looking for an opportunity. Don't give it to him. Heads up. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sun Sep 18 00:32:51 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sun Sep 18 00:33:46 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Time Message-ID: <9c7afe22f25353c069d9183b1f5b3b84@clanwebb.com> There's something called Segal's Law that I find myself quoting frequently: "A man with a watch knows what time it is. A man with two watches is never sure." This refers to the fact that if you have two places to look for the same information and they don't agree, you can't be sure which one is right. I'm usually quoting this at work as storing the same information in more than one place is bad programming practice. It can easily make your program confused and cause problems. And, yet, even the most experienced of us still fall into this trap. Think about how this problem affects you at home. I count over twenty different clocks around my house. They're on the stove, the TV, the alarm system, my wristwatch, my digital camera, my answering machine, my car stereo, my cell phone, and several other places. Few of them match and they have a spread of almost fifteen minutes. How does anyone know which one to depend on? How can you know what time it is, really? Well, I know that when I need to know the precise time, there's only one place to check: my computer. Huh? Not everyone understands that. "Wouldn't you have the clock on your wall or next to your bed be the most accurate?" I'd like that, but most clocks are not very good at keeping time over long periods. They drift. Some more than others. Why do I use my computer? Simple; my computer syncs it's internal clock with a national time server on the Internet every day. That time server is synced to an atomic clock managed by the US government. It doesn't get any more accurate than that. So, if I look at the clock on my computer I know it's right. Any other clocks in the house that are reading the same are equally dependable. Those clocks that are off, though, just become less reliable out of habit. I don't check them as much. I found the clock I could trust and I stuck with that one and the ones that stay synced with it. This is an apt analogy for how Americans deal with values, morality, and truth. When you have dozens of value systems and morality judgments available to you, how do you know which one to choose? How can you know if what you are doing is right or wrong? This guy says it's bad. That one says it's okay. Who to believe? Well, that's easy. You have to find the one source you can trust unconditionally. You have to find your atomic clock. I found mine. It's God's Word. It's always accurate. It's never wrong. "The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes." Psalm 19:7-8 Perfect, trustworthy, right, and radiant. Sounds like a good place to start. You should sync your clock to this one. It doesn't drift. It's always perfectly aligned. If you want to listen to any other sources, make sure they are synced with this one. Find sources that stay synced up that you can trust. Ignore the rest. They aren't doing you any good. Discovering the ones that are synced with God's Word is valuable. That'll allow you to make his Word more accessible in your life. More available day to day. But, you still have a responsibility to verify that those sources stay synced. You can't listen to them only and forget about the gold standard. "Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth." John 17:17 That would be absolute, no-questions-asked truth. Not the stuff most folks are peddling on TV and in the newspapers. When you have more than two watches to check your life with, go back to the original. Find the best source around. Sync yourself with it. Then you'll always be sure. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Mon Sep 19 00:07:38 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Mon Sep 19 00:08:36 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] I Want That, Daddy Message-ID: God works a lot like a parent. Consider this: A young child is walking with their parent through the store. As they begin to pass those things that will catch a child's eye, the inevitable question is, "Can I have this, Daddy?" followed quickly by, "Buy me this, Daddy. I want it, Daddy." It is at these times as a parent that we have to make decisions about what our children need and what we can provide. Also, we have to make decisions about what we want to give them that will bless their lives. And then, there are those special times when we provide them something just to see and feel the pure joy of giving and getting. These are also the times when the children are not sure about our answers. "You don't need that." "That has no value for you." "That has a danger in it that you can't see, but I can." "Maybe later." "I'll think about it." Perhaps we are testing our child to see if they are just asking to see if we are in the mood to give. Or, perhaps we are just testing to see how serious they are about what they are asking to get. It is, of course, easy for God because He knows everything and gets it right every time. But, that doesn't keep us as children from asking and nagging, because, in the end, it is the only way we find out if He wants us to have it. Here is the answer. Keep asking until we get the question right and then He will give it to us. "I have posted watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the Lord, give yourselves no rest, and give him no rest till he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth." Isaiah 62:6-7 You know what happens when you keep asking and seeking? You begin to learn what He wants for you and it becomes more obvious what to ask for in your life. It also allows you to become more tuned into what you should be praying for in other people's lives as the experience in your own life lends itself for you to pray for them. Live and learn, but always learn. God doesn't mind the attention any more than we mind the attention required to see our children grow. Blessings Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Tue Sep 20 00:25:27 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Tue Sep 20 00:26:17 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Word For the Day Message-ID: Shame (noun): 1. A painful emotion caused by a strong sense of guilt, embarrassment, unworthiness, or disgrace 2. One that brings dishonor, disgrace, or condemnation 3. A condition of disgrace or dishonor; ignominy 4. A great disappointment I felt the need to find the dictionary definition for this word as it seems to carry little or no weight in modern society. If you just take a step back and look at what we have been conditioned to accept as normal, you'll realize that what we've done is simply sweep away any sense of shame. Everything is relative, now. If you feel compelled to declare that Christianity is an institution of racism or bigotry, that's just your opinion. If you want to smoke a little pot on the side, that's not hurting anybody, so don't sweat it. If you see nothing wrong with getting blind drunk on a weekly basis and waking up with women you don't recognize, that's your choice. And, in all of these cases, nobody can judge you. To heck with that! Shame has a useful purpose in life. When wielded properly, it discourages folks from behavior that is unhealthy. Shame is simply the state of mind that causes someone to be regretful of their actions. It makes them desire to make things right. It drives them to avoid the situation again. This is the power behind most childhood discipline. The child is ashamed to be in the corner or sent to his room, so he doesn't want to do it again. This is not a declaration of open season on your friends and neighbors. You don't get to go out and point the accusing finger of judgment. If you do that, you'd better be ready to hear a list of your offenses, too. However, we aren't doing anyone any favors by acting as if there are not consequences to their actions. When someone steals a car, we don't take them under our wing, ask what the "root causes" are, and then send them home with a check. No, we send those folks to jail. Shame is the sentence for moral misbehavior. We should love and care for those dealing with the consequences of their actions, but we should not tell them that they've done nothing wrong. Actually, we should be reinforcing their feelings of wanting to repair the damage and their desire to turn around. If they don't get the message, they will likely end up in the same situation again in the future. "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim to have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives." 1 John 1:8-10 A feeling of shame tells you that you truly believe you screwed up. Only then can you humbly ask for forgiveness. If you wave it off and convince yourself that you didn't really do anything wrong, you're calling God a liar. You're not just sweeping it under the rug, you're arguing with God about the truth. That's not an argument you're likely to win. Don't be afraid of shame. Call it for what it is and help people to escape it by repenting and repairing. Don't tell yourself you're being loving and thoughtful by telling someone that they didn't do anything wrong when they have. That's just lying. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Wed Sep 21 00:18:22 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Wed Sep 21 00:19:21 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] The Cycle Message-ID: I have a friend I met in college who has a pretty different background than I do. I grew up as a classic middle-class kid, went to public school, and was going to college via financial aid and a job. Mike's father was a successful doctor and his grandparents were quite wealthy. Mike had attended a private boarding school before attending college with me. His parents paid for college and all of his expenses. A couple of trust funds paid for his toys. I mean no disrespect as Mike had to study just as hard as I did to get in and to graduate. He's a good guy. But, he's lost. However, Mike was (and probably still is) a victim of the endless cycle of materialism this world offers. He couldn't resist the newest computer or latest stereo component. After becoming enamored with playing music, he bought himself an expensive electric bass and keyboard. He found a way to fund any new hobby he had. He had grown up that way and saw no problem with that style of living. It became a running joke between my wife and I to guess how long it would be before Mike bought a new toy. It was never more than a couple of months. All the time we were attending school together, we had to remind Mike that his possessions were nice, but we just liked hanging out with him. It was an unusual concept for him. He was used to being liked for his toys. That's another step in the cycle. Get the toys. Be admired. Get bored. Repeat. You have to pay attention because this cycle can strike anywhere and it's a bear to get out of. My son has fallen victim to this cycle in relation to video games. Every three months, he announces that there's a game coming out that is the ultimate game and he'll surely be satisfied for years if he can just buy it. A few months later, he's back at it. Each time we have to remind him about the cycle and to not get lost in it. There's nothing wrong with being excited about a favorite pastime and spending a little money on it. But, these things can never take the place of God in your life. Right now, we're training our son to see that, but there are far too many adults who still don't see it and wonder why they're so unhappy. The fact is that nothing this world has to offer can ever satisfy forever. It's just not built that way. "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal." Matthew 6:19 "...For this world in its present form is passing away." 1 Corinthians 7:31 "The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever." 1 John 2:17 There is only one who can satisfy once and for all: "Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:13-14 We should desire that which Jesus offers. That will satisfy forever and there isn't an endless, losing cycle involved. If you receive Him, you're done. There is no greater possession than the salvation He offers. It will never lose it's luster and nothing can outshine it. Make sure you're investing for the long term. The really long term. You know, eternity. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Wed Sep 21 23:50:51 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Wed Sep 21 23:51:44 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Muffling God Message-ID: <7d1cd78e46777e0b9bb26290c5ee182d@clanwebb.com> Okay, I had another one of those moments today. I read an article that made me shake my head and laugh. There are some times that people just miss the point altogether. Here's the short version of what I'm talking about: From the BBC: 100-minute Bible designed for time-starved Christians An 'abridged' version of the Bible is being released in Britain today. Publishers say the 100-minute Bible is ideal for those who do not have time to read the original. In the beginning there was the Bible and to read it chapter and verse would take months. Now it has been turned into a slimmed down page turner in an effort to get more people to read it. The 100-minute Bible contains just 20,000 words and it is aimed at those who do not have the time to go through the whole book. Uh, okay. Maybe I'm missing something, but doesn't that kind of defeat the intention? If you don't have time for the whole God, they've created God lite! God should be the number one priority in your life, not the one you squeeze in while riding a bus or waiting in line. As Christians we should want to spend more time in the Word and to get more and more out of it. When I'm not spending enough time in the Word, God reminds me. He tells me to set aside more time for Him. I don't think He wants me to try to condense that time into a sound bite. How do we expect the Word to speak if we chop it up and only give it folks in pieces? This reminds me of the old notion of quality time. Busy parents would try to plan quality time moments with their children and just skip all of the seemingly boring and uneventful time parents spend with their kids. They lost the whole point because quality time only occurs on the foundation of quantity time. You get those moments only when you're regularly spending time with your kids. Same thing here. You get the deep, life-changing moments with God only when it's happening during a long-standing relationship. You can't build a deep relationship on five minutes a week. He can't speak to you if you don't open the Word and it's tougher to hear Him when you've muffled the message. It's true that we are time-starved. We do allow our days to fill up with a bunch of stuff that keeps us from Him. Don't try to solve it by changing the time required to build a relationship. Solve it by simply spending more time with Him than you do now. It works every time. "I have not departed from the commands of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread." Job 23:12 "...man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord." Deuteronomy 8:3 Sounds a little too important to be just reading the executive summary. "The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes." Psalm 19:7-8 Yeah, I think I'll stick with the unabridged version. It sounds like I could use as much of God's Word as I can get. It's powerful stuff. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Fri Sep 23 00:27:14 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Fri Sep 23 00:28:06 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] The Cost of Peace Message-ID: Peace at any cost is bad policy. Whether you are discussing war, politics, or relationships. Peace is a much desired trait in all of these situations. Peace is a personality trait that we would love to have. The absence of rough waters is always something we're glad to have or long to see when we don't. However, peace is not worth any price. The easiest way to achieve immediate peace in war is to simply surrender unconditionally. I guarantee the shooting will stop and things will be peaceful. Your life may not be comfortable. You may not happy in your situation. But, peace can be achieved. That's the wrong way to seek peace. People do it in relationships every day. They simply give in and give up to achieve peace. But, it's a false peace. It's built on the denial of one party's rights and opinions. That's peace via bullying. The wrong kind of peace. God wants us to seek real peace. "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God." Matthew 5:9 Seeking peace is a clear sign that you are on the right path. Peace is a fruit of the spirit and... "because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God." Romans 8:14 But, sometimes, the price is too high. When the situation involves more than one person, then peace may either be impossible or only available for a sacrifice of your convictions or freedoms. If a person simply does not want to reconcile, then there isn't anything the other person can do to create peace. Or, if peace comes at the cost of things like physical abuse, restriction of freedoms, or repudiation of God's law, it is not really peace. In these cases, God asks us to do as much as we can. Peace may not be achieved, but it should not be for lack of trying on our part. Don't allow yourself to be willing to aggravate the situation out of vengeance or spite. "Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everybody." Romans 12:17-18 Now, the Word does not use phrases randomly or carelessly. Paul wrote "If it is possible." He's clearly describing situations where it might not be possible. In those cases, you cannot be expected to achieve peace. God does not demand the impossible from you. Paul also writes, "as far as it depends on you." This is just common sense. You cannot control the actions of others. You cannot force someone else to be peaceful. Simply focus on what you can do to achieve peace while still being led by the Spirit. Don't accept the outrageous trades for peace that simply cost too much. For the part for which you are responsible, do what you can. Leave the rest to God. Jesus gave us the ultimate model of what to do when confronted by those who do not want to make peace. On the day He was crucified, he displayed compassion and patience with those who attacked Him, insulted Him, and injured Him. "When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly." 1 Peter 2:23 Let us be seekers of peace. Let us be aware of the kind of peace we're being offered, though. Don't be fooled by a false peace. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sat Sep 24 00:12:19 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sat Sep 24 00:13:16 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Stay in the Zone Message-ID: <6a186a447c163e82859540e45a32711d@clanwebb.com> There is a lot of talk about athletes that can get into the "zone". It appears that once you are in the zone, you are so focused on what you are doing that the things which will distract you and cause you to fail simply cannot penetrate your consciousness. I know in my own case, I can imagine such a place with God here on Earth. A focus so good, so concentrated that nothing Satan can do would distract me from keeping my eyes set on Jesus and how He wants to direct my life. The reality, of course, is that we do become distracted and like athletes that miss the basket, goal, or strike zone, we pay a variety of consequences. These distractions affect our thoughts and then our concentration. It doesn't mean we have to maintain an exclusionary thought path, though. For example, I have driven from Portland to Seattle so many times that I often snap to attention and realize that I don't remember how I got to Olympia or Longview because I was multitasking, as they say. It is okay to be on mental cruise control sometimes, but other times we must make a concentrated effort to rein in our thoughts and make them obey our will. "We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. " 2 Corinthians 10:5 Like an athlete, we must practice to become proficient. Stop and engage in a little self-talk, if it helps. Many is the time I must say out loud, "Stop! These thoughts are not the desire of my heart. Lord, I give them over to you to dispose of them as you will." Now, I don't advocate doing that in the middle of a sales meeting when your eyes have settled on someone who is not your wife and you've started drifting mentally to places you should only go with your wife. That's a good way to end up in a counselors office with someone looking over their glasses, taking notes, and asking how often the voices speak to you. However, I do advise that you divert your eyes, imagine yourself looking at Satan and saying, "Nice try, sulfur breath. Not this time." The mind can be trained. There is a place, guys, I know in my heart there is a place where our minds can rest at peace with Jesus. "For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God." Colossians 3:3 Don't forget to sign up for the "charge up". Jesus will be there. His name was first on the list. YBIC, Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sun Sep 25 00:19:23 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sun Sep 25 00:20:17 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] The Catch Message-ID: There's always a catch. At least, there always seems to be a catch. You can get a free cell phone, if you make a two year commitment. You can get cheap cable TV, for the first three months of a one year contract. You don't have to pay until next year, with twenty percent interest. There always seems to be something. If you haven't learned to cast a critical eye on these apparently good deals, then you're still getting fooled. Everyone wants you to think you're getting a better deal than it seems. When you press them on it, they don't like to tell you the real story. During the height of the dotcom boom, I went interviewing. I got a taste of what it's like to be a celebrity. Everyone promises you the moon and kisses your feet. If you were the right fit for their new company, they would have offered their firstborn. At this time, the baseline work environment was a fancy new office, $500 chair, the latest computer hardware, free sodas and juice all day, stock options, and other benefits you wouldn't believe. One place in Seattle had their own gourmet chef on site. There was a company in California that gave BMWs to new hires for critical jobs. I had one recruiter send me a very large fruit basket the day after I interviewed. It was a little surreal. I never took any of those jobs, though. I stayed at the company I had been with for a few years. They didn't offer those perks, but I knew the whole deal. All of those other places had a catch. You saw it in subtle ways, but it was there with all of them. The place with the chef bragged about how he was available for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Why would you need to be regularly eating dinner at work? During one interview, I noticed the manager had a pillow and blanket folded nicely next to his filing cabinet. I asked him why. "Oh, that's just for those crunch periods when we have to put some extra time in." Those crunch periods were not rare. They were the norm. The fact was that all of those startups paid through the nose for talent and then had to run them into the ground to try to recoup the investors' money in time. The catch was that I would have had to work 80 hour weeks and missed watching my son grow up. It wasn't that great of a deal. Sin works the same way. Satan offers you deals that seem too good to be true. You know what? They are. Sin is a credit card. The payment always comes due and it's always more than what you got in the first place. Sin always has a catch. There is one deal without a catch, though. At least not a hidden one. Accepting Christ is the simplest thing in the world, but it'll cost you your life. However, once accepted, that love is indestructible. It cannot be shaken or loosened. That's something to have confidence in. There's no hidden catch with this deal. "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:37-39 Take that deal. Lock that in now. It's tested and proven. There's nothing better. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Mon Sep 26 00:20:30 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Mon Sep 26 00:21:26 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Joy Message-ID: Isn't it funny how a little thing can taint, or even ruin, something much larger? In the software world, it shows up as that bug that got through the system. We can build a new product over the course of a year. It will spend three or four months in Quality Assurance being tested and re-tested. It will then be shipped to customers who are excited to use it for the promises it offers. All of that work, though, can be brought to its knees if the user finds a bug that prevents them from working. As far as they're concerned, it's junk. That's the nightmare scenario for a software company. These things happen in life, too. A day of basketball is a blast until you jam a finger or twist an ankle. A weekend of camping is great until you get a flat on the way home. Nothing serious, but it can taint your memory of that day. And, like all things that might take the fun out of life, Satan uses these opportunities. He tries to find the one little pressure point that he can push to suck the joy out of entire days or weeks. Beware, he's always looking for that point. You can't prevent it, but you can prepare for when it comes. It almost happened to me Sunday night. I felt like I had a great weekend. I cleaned out the garage. I made a trip to the dump. I fixed a toilet with a persistent problem in less than five minutes. I had a great morning at church. I got to watch the Seahawks win big. I got to spend time playing games with my son. I had a great walk with my wife. It was a great weekend. Then, late Sunday night, I was preparing some homeschool assignments for our son and the printer decided to freak out. I didn't have time to diagnose it. I couldn't get it to work. I could feel the frustration building. Stupid little problems that I don't have time to fix are an easy button for Satan to push with me. He nailed it tonight. I started huffing and getting exasperated. I could feel the joy of the entire weekend slipping away. Then, I realized what was happening. So, I took a deep breath. I wrote down what they would need for school tomorrow and called it good. Then, I told Satan to get lost. I regained that joy. I had a great weekend and I want to ride that wave all week long. He can't take that from me. "...for the joy of the Lord is your strength." Nehemiah 8:10 That joy makes me strong. It helps me through the week. It helps me do His will. Do you see why Satan wants to suck the joy out of your life? Because, then he will have also drained your strength. It's the little annoying things that can do that and he knows it. If losing your keys or spilling your coffee can make you a less effective Christian because it steals your joy, then he's all over that. Don't let it be effective. Let him send these little gnats at you. Hang on to your joy. Keep the strength God has given you. He wants you on the field. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Mon Sep 26 23:59:52 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Tue Sep 27 00:00:49 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Successful Life Message-ID: <2ad1238f91937df81706104acac9fc5e@clanwebb.com> When I was a young man, I saw the successful life in terms of money, houses, cars, and lots of toys. I saw celebrities living large and thought that I wanted that life. The more I know Christ, the more I realize that those things have nothing to do with a successful life. As a matter of fact, they can be distractions if you're not careful. No, a successful Christian life doesn't look like that. It's more like that feeling I get when I'm hiking through the forest, I step into a stream to cool my feet and a meadow opens up across the water. That soothing feeling of a soft path and a cooling breeze on your journey to the top of the mountain. That's more like it. I was going to quote the opening verses of the 23rd Psalm here, but I realize that the entire Psalm is really a praise to God about the life that He has given us. David praises Him for the things that are important. 1 "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want." He will take care of you. Depend on Him to provide everything and follow His guidance. 2 "He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters," That's the soothing comfort of a grassy field or a cool lake. God will lead you to more than one oasis in your life. 3 "he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake." Your soul was battered and lost before He came. He put you back together and set you back on the path. Follow His direction and stay on those paths. If you do so, you will glorify Him by that very act. 4 "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me." God does not remove the need to walk through dark places in life, but He will be beside you. When He's with you, His authority and His power are comforting because they are absolute. You have nothing to fear. 5 "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows." God will provide for you even when surrounded by forces arrayed against you. He blesses you more than you can imagine. He is with you at the darkest hour and, so, you can rest assured in Him. 6 "Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." God has promised you that He will bless you with goodness and love. You will be in house for eternity. That's a fact. I know I'm doing it right when these things happen to me. This is the successful life I seek now. I want the green pastures and the quiet waters. I want to eat at the table He has prepared. I want to be anointed. I want my cup to overflow. That's a successful life. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Wed Sep 28 00:24:34 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Wed Sep 28 00:25:26 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Keep it Straight Message-ID: <62197f24ccc5b25e6ce24c647b84bb65@clanwebb.com> My priorities can get messed up very easily. I can be running so fast that I don't even notice that I'm spending my time on item number six when items one through five are being neglected. And, of course, it's worse when the people around you have different priorities. To them, their top priority should take precedence. But if it's number three on your list, it's hard to get your attention. They'll lean on you to bump it up. That doesn't work because you have three different people all telling you to change your priorities and they don't even agree. The key here is to not listen to the world at all. Develop your priorities based on God's plan. Read the Word and He makes it clear. Your first priority is God. Jesus tells us that the greatest commandment is: "Jesus replied: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind."" Matthew 22:36 Jesus goes on to tell us that the second greatest is to love your neighbor as yourself. Well, that pretty much covers everyone on Earth, so let's break it down a little. How do we prioritize our fellow humans? Well, the next closest people to you are your family. You do have a responsibility to your family. The Word slices it a little thinner than that though. "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh." Genesis 2:24 "If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever." 1 Timothy 5:8 We can assume some things by reading these passages. We are to be part of our parents lives and to keep them high on our list. However, at the point of marriage, the list changes. The spouses leave their parents and create a new family. Now your new immediate family is higher priority. Paul is explicit in his letter to Timothy that we are to help provide for our relatives, but that we have a higher expectation on us for our immediate family. Since marriage comes before children (or it should), the relationships are falling into place. 1. God 2. Spouse 3. Children 4. Parents 5. Extended family 6. Fellow man 7. Yourself If you find a conflict between any two items on this list, it's pretty easy to see who should win. If you have to choose, stand with your children against your extended family. If you have to choose, stand with your spouse against your parents. And sometimes, you will have to defend your relationship with God against anyone else in your life trying to draw you away. It's not fun, but it shouldn't be terribly confusing. Keep it straight. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Wed Sep 28 23:54:19 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Wed Sep 28 23:55:10 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Investment Message-ID: Before leaving for college, I lived well with my family. However, I was never rolling in cash. I had a part-time job during my senior year that allowed me just enough to pay for gas for the '67 Chevy pickup I drove and a little extra for fun money. Even that had to be budgeted, though. I wasn't very good at budgeting back then. My wife loves to tell the story of a night while we were dating. We were driving around basically looking for a reason to hang out. Trying not to sound too cheap, I asked if she wanted to hit a drive-thru just to get some fries to munch on. I didn't suggest much more, because I figured I only had enough change in my pocket for an order of fries. After I ordered, I started fishing my change out and I realized that I should have done that sooner. I think I dug out about 37 cents. Even in the mid-80s that didn't buy much. So, I had to turn to my lovely girlfriend and ask if she had any money. Not exactly a smooth move. I still hear about it. Now, I tell you that story to make this point: At that point in my life, I didn't have a lot of financial treasure. So, you couldn't measure my interests and focus based on my investments. However, what I did have was time. How I spent my time would tell anyone quite a bit about what was important to me. I spent time doing schoolwork (my education was important). I spent time hanging out with friends (my relationships were important). And, I spent time with my wife-to-be (my significant other was VERY important). We were a church-going family, but I only put in the minimum requirements. I did Sundays and youth group on Wednesdays. Those were okay, because my friends were there, too. However, I wasn't spending a lot of time on my faith outside of that. One thing I did decide to spend more time on after my junior year was basketball. I really wanted to play varsity basketball my senior year. There were many guys more talented than me, so I knew I wouldn't make the team on my natural ability. I did know, though, how much the coach respected dedication and hard work. I figured I had a chance if I could raise my stock in his eyes. I went to every summer camp he put on. I went to the optional workouts and played in pick-up games every chance I got. By the end of the summer, he was giving me compliments on my effort and desire. With any luck and a good tryout, I might just squeak on the team. When school started that fall, the principal announced that our head basketball coach had taken a job elsewhere and we had hired a new one. Suddenly, in just few seconds, all of that hard work felt worthless. This new coach had no idea who I was. There was no value in showing hard work over the summer. It just didn't matter. I tried out anyway, but didn't make the team. There was a lesson there waiting to be learned. I didn't finally grasp it until years later. I had invested my most valuable resource in something that just vanished. Are you investing your resources wisely? Is your money or your time being spent on something that could simply go away? If it's not God, the answer is yes because everything we have here will go away when we join Jesus. Your portfolio won't matter. Your two handicap won't matter. Your photo albums of hunting trophies or vast travels won't matter. What matters is what's permanent. "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Matthew 6:21 If your heart is on the transient things, it will be hurt and weakened when those things fall away. If your heart is on God, you will not be disappointed because He is forever and He lives up to His promises. How are you invested? Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Fri Sep 30 00:06:19 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Fri Sep 30 00:07:11 2005 Subject: [Daily Push Up] No Need to Speculate Message-ID: <5e0b7099073ff36d7ec58384bf783e39@clanwebb.com> Whoppers! I think we all understand when something we have imparted to someone is termed a whopper. Here is my favorite. This was told to me by an old boy, and the more you get to know me the more you will understand that I have run across many old boys in my life. He told me about the time he caught a bobcat in a trap. When he found it, he was with a couple of other old boys and they hatched an idea to have a little fun. They took an old suitcase and maneuvered it around this fairly hacked off cat. With the help of a shovel, they got it inside the case and shut the lid. The only thing outside the satchel was the leg and the trap. With one foot on the lid of the bag, the boys opened the trap at which point the cat snapped his sore leg inside the bag. With the lid secured by a couple of rope ties, they proceeded to poke a few air holes in the bag. With nothing but pure mischief in mind, they hotfooted into town where they parked across the street from their favorite watering hole. They left the bag in the back of the pickup truck in plain sight of the public. The plan, because of the neighborhood, was that sooner or later temptation would overcome someone of dubious morals and that person would snatch the parcel. In due course, that's just what happened. A carload of misfits pulled up to the light, one of them popped out just long enough to grab the bag and make a hasty departure. Here comes the best part of the yarn: the speculation. Not knowing the final outcome adds to the flavor. Speculating is where the fun is. Just sitting around with a bunch of old boys and talking about how it was when those fellows finally stopped long enough to open the bag to reveal a hungry, thirsty, wild cat with a sore foot all in the confines of a car. Conjures up quite an image, doesn't it? There are a lot of folks that think Hell is a whopper. There is a lot of speculation as to what it would be like if it did exist. A lot of jokes start with, "An old boy ends up in Hell face to face with the devil himself..." When you get this kind of talk, I hope you take a couple of seconds to imagine what that old boy is going to find there. "and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destructions and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power." 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9 "Then the king told the attendants, 'Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'" Matthew 22:13 "he, too, will drink of the wine of God's fury., which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb." Revelation 14:10 "And the smoke of their torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name." Revelation 14:11 I don't know about you guys, but I don't want to be anywhere near those old boys. Next time you are sitting around the campfire, toss this one out: "So, what do you guys think it will be like in Hell?" When someone says, "I might as well go to Hell. All my friends will be there." Don't laugh. Just say, "No, really, what do you think Hell is like?" YBIC, Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Thu Sep 1 23:52:49 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Thu, 1 Sep 2005 23:52:49 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Disaster Message-ID: <2D36BFE7-1B7E-11DA-AF5D-000A9599B718@clanwebb.com> Hosea. This book stands first in order among the Minor Prophets. "The probable cause of the location of Hosea may be the thoroughly national character of his oracles, their length, their earnest tone, and vivid representations. This was the longest of the prophetic books written before the Captivity. Hosea prophesied in a dark and melancholy period of Israel's history, the period of Israel's decline and fall. Their sins had brought upon them great national disasters."their homicides and fornication, their perjury and theft, their idolatry and impiety, are censured and satirized with a faithful severity." Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary. Be honest, now. When you think of New Orleans, what do you think about? - I love the music. - I love the food. - The history there is colorful and important in the American story. - There must be a lot of Christian brothers and sisters there? What do you think of when you think of New Orleans? I don't know the mind of God at any given modern moment, but I can look to the past and see what makes Him happy and what doesn't. "If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, he will turn and bring disaster on you and make an end of you, after he has been good to you." Joshua 24:20 "People will answer, 'Because they have forsaken the Lord their God, who brought their fathers out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshipping and serving them - that is why the Lord brought all this disaster on them' " 1 Kings 9:9 "He who mocks the poor shows contempt for their Maker; whoever gloats over disaster will not go unpunished" Proverbs 17:5 "The look on their faces testifies against them; they parade their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it. Woe to them! They have brought disaster upon themselves." Isaiah 3:9 "Hear, O earth: I am bringing disaster on this people, the fruit of their schemes, because they have not listened to my words and have rejected my law." Jeremiah 6:19 "This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: 'Listen! I am going to bring on this city and villages around it every disaster pronounced against them, because they were stiff-necked and would not listen to my words.'" Jeremiah 19:15 Like a father to his children... "and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned." Jeremiah 18:8 "Perhaps when the people of Judah hear about every disaster I plan to inflict on them, each of them will turn from his wicked way; then I will forgive their wickedness and their sin." Jeremiah 36:3 I don't know if that's what's going on today, but it's good for us to remember that He's done it before. Pray for our country, because when God decides to clean up the mess we could all be under water. Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sat Sep 3 00:33:54 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sat, 3 Sep 2005 00:33:54 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Hearing the Word Message-ID: <14AF631C-1C4D-11DA-BD8D-000A9599B718@clanwebb.com> While in college, I took a course simply called "The Bible". It was taught by a non-Christian who was presenting the Bible as a piece of important literature along with other apocryphal works in related areas. It always struck me as odd that anyone could read the Bible, know so much about it, and then decide that it was no different than reading Plato or the studying the art of Michelangelo. The Bible is powerful and piercing to me, but it clearly was not that to her. I am now learning how the Bible can't hold power in your life unless you do something with it. Hearing the Word is only the first step. Knowing the Word intellectually is great, but it's not the whole package. You need to know the Word with your heart and then use it to live. It's not a short process and it doesn't happen overnight. Living by the Word is something you have to work at every day. Furthermore, you can't just work on it when you have time. You need to be able to depend on that power when you're in a tight spot or under pressure. Don't shortchange yourself by limiting your time in the Word to when it's easy. Love Him enough to do it even when it's hard. Develop a need for it so you can't afford to miss it. Jesus told a parable about how people receive the Word. He compared it to the spreading of seed on different surfaces. In one place, the seed never has a chance. In another, it grows, but is easily blown away. In another, it can't grow because there are too many other things in the way. But... "But the seed on the good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop." Luke 8:15 Notice that just hearing the Word isn't enough. The people God wants are those who do the following three things. First, hear the Word. If you're on this list, you don't need someone to point it out to you. Get into it. Let yourself hear it each day. Second, retain the Word. Memorization is the first thing that came to mind when I read this. However, I think there's something deeper. God wants you to take the Word and make it part of who you are and how you live. Retain it such that it cannot be separated from you. It becomes the set of guidelines that you naturally live by. Lastly, persevere. This is what jumped out at me the most. I always forget how these things have to be done constantly. We have to constantly pursue the goals that the Word has laid out. We need to depend on Him for the strength, but we cannot give up. We have to keep going, keep working, never stop. And the first step in persevering is to go back to the first step and start over. When you're doing these things, you will produce a great crop. This is your spiritual fruit. Those are the things that God will use to further His will. Whether you spread the Gospel, serve at church, or just show love to the unloveable, you are producing your crop of spiritual fruit. Just like the classic, "Lather. Rinse. Repeat." Your relationship with the Word should be, "Hear it. Retain it. Persevere. Repeat." Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sun Sep 4 00:06:00 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sun, 4 Sep 2005 00:06:00 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Fools Message-ID: <597BE122-1D12-11DA-86EB-000A9599B718@clanwebb.com> "God sure must like fools, 'cause he made so many of them." I heard that little phrase many times growing up from old cowboys, farmers, and other relatives. Most of the people they were referring to, I thought, were pretty much like the rest of us. I was always perplexed about just what a fool was, exactly. I remember seeing movies and other depictions of a guy with a funny hat that had little bells on the ends being called a fool. Sometimes he was elevated, I guess, to court jester. I thought his purpose was to make people laugh. Later on, my mother would tell me not to be foolish or that something I did was foolish. This kind of changed my view of a fool to being more like someone who didn't always make the right decisions. Anyway, the definition of a fool got really gray there for a while and it seemed to describe a part-time affliction. Now, after several years under my hat, I believe there are some people that are full-time fools. In fact, I dare say they do their best to elevate the term to an art form. I know some people that, if being a fool were an Olympic event, would have a great shot at a medal. Like all things, fools are not a new phenomenon. The Bible mentions them several times. "But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, 'You good-for-nothing,' shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, 'You fool,' shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell." Matthew 5:22 Obviously, it isn't a term to be cast about lightly. "The wisdom of the sensible is to understand the way, But the foolishness of fools is deceit." Proverbs 14:8 Fools seem to be at odds with God and they are not to be trusted. "And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry."" But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?'" Luke 12:19-20 It seems that having a big bank account doesn't exempt you from being a fool. "Fools mock at sin, But among the upright there is good will." Proverbs 14:9 They seem to let sin slide, kind of a "Boys will be boys!" or "Just sowing their wild oats!" attitude. "He who conceals hatred has lying lips, And he who spreads slander is a fool." Proverbs 10:18 Not very nice people, these fools. "For the dream comes through much effort and the voice of a fool through many words." Ecclesiastes 5:3 They seem to talk... a lot. "How long, O naive ones, will you love being simple-minded? And scoffers delight themselves in scoffing And fools hate knowledge?" Proverbs 1:22 They don't want to listen or learn anything, but they do like to put people down. Spotting a fool is rather like the man said about great art: "I'll know it when I see it." Blessings, Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Mon Sep 5 00:21:19 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2005 00:21:19 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Targeted Message-ID: <006159e19d012fcf8b383ce647ef8c3a@clanwebb.com> Sometimes, when we're chugging through life, we aren't sure how we're doing. We may feel like we're being effective, doing good works, but we just aren't sure where we are on the scale. A+? C-? We just aren't sure. Well, one way to gauge your effectiveness is to watch how the opposition treats you. This can be really obvious in sports. If you're hanging out by the three point line and the defense sags and ignores you, you probably aren't being very effective from there. If you are getting double teams or the opponent sends their best defender at you, you're doing well. In football, the defense might be keyed on stopping the running back or a particularly effective receiver. In baseball, they'll walk you rather than give you a chance to hit. These are signs that you've been effective recently and the opposition is beginning to focus on you. If you aren't getting that kind of attention, though, you have to start figuring out what you're doing wrong. The same rules apply in our walk with Christ. Being a Christian is not all rainbows and rose gardens. Being a Christian can mean persecution. "What?" you ask, "Doesn't Jesus protect us from that?" He is always with you, but sometimes you will have to ride through the storm together. The Word is pretty clear that if you are a Christian, you will be persecuted for your faith. Depend on it. "Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No servant is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. [...]" John 15:20 We are certainly not as good as Jesus. If people who met and learned about Jesus decided to persecute Him, there will be no shortage of folks who will want to persecute us. Now, those people, driven by Satan, have the same battle tendencies as I've described above. They will tend to focus on the most effective disciples. If you aren't a threat to Satan, he won't bother with you. If you aren't producing spiritual fruit and doing good works, then you're not a threat to him. You may be saved and he can't change that. But, if you aren't helping to advance the Kingdom of God, then he's not worried. He has bigger fish to fry. If your life seems to be cruising along without any persecution or attempts at disruption, maybe you better check your compass. Make sure you're on the right trail. "In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted," 2 Timothy 3:12 If life has been uneventful or comfortable for some time, then Satan may not be worried about you. If he's not worried about you, maybe you should be worried about yourself. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Tue Sep 6 01:21:00 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Tue, 6 Sep 2005 01:21:00 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Get Going Message-ID: <6ad788c433c45a881b7af8d223e91ac2@clanwebb.com> "You will tread upon the lion and cobra, The young lion and the serpent you will trample down." Psalm 91:13 Here's a question. To whom does this verse refer? Some great old testament warrior? Perhaps one of King David's chosen men? You are pretty sure you know, don't you? You think it's Jesus. Wrong. Give up? Well, if you have made a confession of faith and turned your life over to Christ, this verse is about you. Many Christians see themselves as one of the huddled masses under the protection of God. "For you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the foe." Psalm 61:3 He is our strong tower and, as the hymn says, "we should rush in." But, God has also given us all of the ingredients for a backbone. All we have to do is activate it. "The Lord is my light and my salvation - whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life - of whom shall I be afraid? When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh, when my enemies and my foes attack me, they will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then will I be confident." Psalm 27:1-3 How do you see yourself? Are you a confident, mighty warrior? Or, are you what is called, in football, an end and a guard - meaning you sit at the end of the bench and guard the Gatorade? What good is it to be armed to the teeth and never pull the trigger? Read the words of the commentator: " Whatever happens, nothing shall hurt the believer; though trouble and affliction befall, it shall come, not for his hurt, but for good, though for the present it be not joyous but grievous. Those who rightly know God, will set their love upon him. They by prayer constantly call upon him. His promise is, that he will in due time deliver the believer out of trouble, and in the mean time be with him in trouble. The Lord will manage all his worldly concerns, and preserve his life on earth, so long as it shall be good for him. For encouragement in this he looks unto Jesus. He shall live long enough; till he has done the work he was sent into this world for, and is ready for heaven. Who would wish to live a day longer than God has some work to do, either by him or upon him? A man may die young, yet be satisfied with living. But a wicked man is not satisfied even with long life. At length the believer's conflict ends; he has done for ever with trouble, sin, and temptation." Matthew Henry Concise Commentary Get off the sidelines and get into the fight. Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Wed Sep 7 00:03:05 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Wed, 7 Sep 2005 00:03:05 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Anger Message-ID: <82efd97dc3b6dcdaca681042419edbc6@clanwebb.com> I have a special talent. This is not to be confused with a spiritual gift. You see, sometimes I can get angry. I don't mean a righteous indignation. I'm talking about low blood sugar hacked off. It doesn't happen too often anymore, but in the past this talent could result in holes in the wall, reducing my wife and children to tears, clearing the house of pets, and broken inanimate objects all over the place. I have long since given over my talent to the Lord and the waters have calmed considerable over the years. My anger has become less about my own low self-image and selfishness. Now, the odd outburst is about opportunity. I am not referring to an opportunity to learn something - as I have learned enough about my own anger to publish - but an opportunity for Satan to gain hold on me by exploiting my inability to completely jettison this talent. Like many attributes of the male make-up, anger can be a fine line. The idea is to understand God's anger and have our lives reflect our understanding about what makes Him angry. The down side is that the same trigger can cause us to open the door to Satan and then we can do some serious damage. We must always see Satan as the prowling predator. He will use any chance we present to him to get us to lose our temper. Learn to see it coming and swallow your pride. Then, as you turn and walk away, smile and look skyward and say, "Not this time, loser!" It is not necessarily a sin to be angry, and it certainly does not mean that you are not a Christian. A further helpful word is given to us in James: "But let everyone be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God." James 1:19-20 In His name, Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Wed Sep 7 23:02:25 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Wed, 7 Sep 2005 23:02:25 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Responsibility Message-ID: <527a43258cff20d814c82d544d9c21e8@clanwebb.com> I've been a professional software engineer for thirteen years. In that time, I've acted in various capacities and seen the manager-employee relationship from all sides. I have been the lowest man on the org chart that gets the tasks and projects that nobody else wants. I have managed project teams of five to ten people. I have managed as many as forty other engineers at a time. During all that time, I've figured out how to work your way up the responsibility ladder. I've also seen many examples of how to work yourself into anonymity and, eventually, out of a job. Promotions and responsibility will depend on ability and experience. However, when those things were close, the deciding factor would be attitude. In fact, the right attitude would often propel the less experienced or less capable candidate above the others. Looking back, I think that was the case for me. You see, I never wanted to promote (or work for) someone who demanded more responsibility as a right. You know, I'm talking about those folks who complain about how their abilities are being wasted in their current position and management is stupid for not using them fully. I found those types to have poisonous attitudes and I avoided giving them more responsibility or working around them. I liked the ones that did the best they could with any task given to them. Whether it was a two day, one person project or an eighteen month, 30 person project, they just performed. They would take the task and treat it with the same kind of dedication and effort as any other. That was their assignment and they simply did what was expected of them or more. At the age of 30, I was directly managing twenty full time engineers and twenty contractors. A vast majority of those folks were older than me and had more experience in the industry. Some did not seek to manage, so they didn't care. Some had the same attitude I did and simply did the work they were assigned. A couple, though, were distinctly unhappy with my promotion. Either they wanted the job or simply felt I wasn't ready for it. They became less productive and frustrating to work with. They were more worried about the perceived lack of respect and neglected their assigned tasks. I was shocked and humbled when I was offered that position. I had no idea that I was a candidate until a few days before. I had simply done each thing assigned to me with my utmost effort and without any resentment. Looking back, I realize that I thought that it was just simply the way it ought to be done. I never thought of anything else. I credit that to a solid upbringing and Christ in my life. Jesus told a parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-28). Three men are given three different amounts of money by their master before he leaves. When the master returns, they are asked what they did with what they were given. We all know that the man with one talent simply buried it and did nothing. He thought he was playing it safe, but he really just did nothing. The master was not pleased. We are to learn to take what Christ has given us and go out and invest it in the world. Be a good servant. However, there's another subtle message here. The two servants who did earn a return on the master's money offer an interesting comparison. Notice that one was given five talents and one was given two talents. The one with five did not lord it over the one with two. The one with two did not complain about fairness or how he should have the five. They both simply did what was expected of them and more. What was the master's response to each? "His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!" Matthew 25:21 Did you catch that? Entrusting each servant with talents had been a test of their ability to be a steward of the master's property. The two that showed an ability to be good stewards were given more responsibility. It didn't matter what the assignment was, they simply did it and did it well. The result was being given more responsibility and more opportunity. Don't complain about your current station in life. God is giving you an opportunity to show Him what you can do for Him. If you do well, He'll promote you and give you more responsibility. You don't have to think about the timing or how it works. Just focus on the tasks in front of you. Do them with your best effort. He'll do the rest. Be faithful with the few things. Then, and only then, He will put you in charge of many things. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Fri Sep 9 00:21:32 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Fri, 9 Sep 2005 00:21:32 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] More Data Message-ID: <8a9db39027005e2c05bdc40c4ed86a06@clanwebb.com> I've had the opportunity to work with some cool computer hardware and powerful software. One of my favorites was a software program that helped preschoolers learn how to read. The cool part of this program was that we used speech recognition software to teach kids how to read words aloud and pronounce them correctly. By getting the child to say the words back to the computer, we could verify that they had learned the word correctly. It was something that nobody else in the market had done. The problem with using new technologies, though, is that you're the trailblazer. Speech recognition had never been used with children before. The problem is that children don't enunciate words well and the range of voice patterns is much harder to define. It's tougher for the software to recognize words correctly when there are so many ways that a word might be said by a five-year-old. Speech recognition software needs many, many samples of correct speech as a reference to help it recognize your words correctly. In this case, we fed the engine a much larger number of samples of children's voices so it would work better with them. Along with some other tweaks, we were able to recognize most children's voices quite well and the product was a hit. As we fed more and more samples to the speech engine, it got better and better at distinguishing words and correct answers. We could have continued to give it even more samples, but we were limited by the speed of the program and the amount of space we would use on the CD-ROM when it shipped. Nonetheless, the principle held: more data meant better understanding. Guess what? The same holds true for your Bible study time. I know many folks who have read the entire Bible. That's great, but it's not like a novel. You don't read it once and put it on the shelf. You should be reading it every day and constantly studying to learn something new. You know why? Because when you give yourself more time and more insight into the Word, you'll have better insight into what God's plan is for you. You will better understand His will. You will better understand how to be a Christian. You have to keep adding more data points to your brain though, or you'll stagnate. The Bible does not speak about reading Scripture and then going on your way. It reminds us that we need to be constantly studying it. "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness." 2 Timothy 3:16 "Listen, my sons, to a father's instruction; pay attention and gain understanding." Proverbs 4:1 "Lay hold of my words with all your heart; keep my commands and you will live." Proverbs 4:4 "Hold on to instruction, do not let it go; guard it well, for it is your life." Proverbs 4:13 "My son, pay attention to what I say; listen closely to my words. Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart; " Proverbs 4:20-21 Read your Bible. Repeat until you go home to heaven or Jesus comes back. The more time you spend with it, the more valuable it becomes, the more influence it will have on your life, and the more powerful a tool it will be for you. In my experience, whenever you think you've extracted all there is to know from a verse, there will be something more. The Word is living and will continue to provide all that you need if you go back to it. More data means better understanding. Keep feeding yourself more data. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sat Sep 10 00:39:02 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sat, 10 Sep 2005 00:39:02 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Perfect Sacrifice Message-ID: <88db4d86b7b34420142a218933bfb218@clanwebb.com> Word comparisons can be an interesting exercise. Take, for example, the word "law". The first thing that may come to mind are all those rules man has contrived and written down with the goal of maintaining order in a particular society. If you cross a border, you will find that the rules are different. One society has decided to make a rule for behavior that contradicts another society. By the very nature of the world, any single human must remain flexible about the law in order to stay within its boundaries depending upon where one finds oneself. There is also the concept of circumstances that a judge can take into account in order to determine whether you have violated a law or to what extent you may have violated a law. All of this confusion, of course, can be traced to the concept that not all of humankind has the same source from which we create rules. The standard we are supposedly trying to maintain moves from flagpole to flagpole depending upon the human endeavor. Purity of the law is always an argument because there isn't a gold standard for ideas. God's law, of course, doesn't suffer from these encumbrances. He has the advantage of knowing everything. He is also the sole judge. There are no circumstances He has to take into account. In short, there is no confusion about His law, the consequences, or the punishment. "For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it" James 2:10 This is an important idea to understand. Either you're perfect or you have broken the rule. Oh, by the way, nobody is perfect. All fall short. There are no plea bargains. The penalty must be paid. The penalty is death. In the Old Testament, God set up a series of sacrifices in order for man to atone, or cover up, his sin, which is the breaking of the law. The world still operates the same way. Pay a fine or serve some time. "For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer continually year by year, make perfect those who draw near." Hebrews 10:1 The New Testament is all about the change from the old way of doing things to the new way. No more skirting the issues. Break the law and you die. Unless... you can find someone to take your place, a volunteer that is acceptable to God as a substitute for you. Good luck with that one! "Hey, pal, if you aren't busy on Saturday, would you mind dying for me? I kinda screwed up and apparently I have to die unless I can find someone else to do it. Whaddya say? Can I count on you?" Perfection demands that the only way an acceptable sacrifice can be presented is that the author of perfection must make it. However, since the creator is always greater than that which it creates, anything created would not be perfect. The only way the perfect sacrifice can be presented is for the sacrifice to be the source of perfection. The creator must be the sacrifice. That is why only Jesus could be that sacrifice. "For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I may take it again. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again This commandment I received from My Father." John 10:17-18 Nothing we can do as man can be enough. Ever. Our only option is to take the sacrifice as it is offered and be eternally grateful. Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sun Sep 11 00:31:18 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sun, 11 Sep 2005 00:31:18 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Storing Manna Message-ID: It is time for kids everywhere to be heading back to school. I have fond memories of heading back to school (I'm weird that way). I liked meeting new teachers and starting new classes. There was always that sense that all my classes could be great. It only took a few months to find out what I did every year: some classes were good, some weren't, and I was going to have to work hard in all of them. I do remember going through the same mental process at the beginning of each school year. I would dedicate myself to coming home and doing the homework that had been assigned that day right away. I didn't want to procrastinate. I wanted to do a good job and stay ahead of the game all year. Again, that only took a few weeks before I went from doing homework the day it was assigned to a day or two later to 11pm the night before it was due. I always hated that feeling of having something due the next day, though. I kept trying to find ways to keep ahead of things so I could have days where I had nothing to work on. It never quite worked out. When Dad asked me to join him in writing these Daily Push-Ups, he and I were on the same wavelength. We talked about how great it would be if we could just sit down and pump out a half dozen each and then we'd be set for almost two weeks! Needless to say, it hasn't worked that way. None of the ones I've written are more than a few hours old when I send them out. The first couple of weeks, I kept trying to write two or three at a time. I could get one and an idea for a second and then I'd get writer's block. A couple days later, I could get another one and start a second, but that was it. I could never come up with several in a sitting. After a while, I realized that this wasn't just my brain short-circuiting. This was a lesson. I find that I am in the Word more, I'm thinking about my spiritual relationship more, and I'm generally on better terms with God when I'm writing these. I realized that if I were able to write several at a sitting, I'd be short-changing my relationship with God. I'd be cramming a week's worth of God time into a day and then neglecting Him the rest of the time. He knew that wasn't good for me, so He didn't let it happen. He wants to spend more time with me and all He was asking was that I trust Him to provide ideas for these devotionals at the necessary time. You see, the whole reason for doing several at a time was to avoid the anxiety of worrying about what would happen tomorrow. God was training me to depend on Him. God had to train the Israelites to trust Him when it came to providing food in the desert (Exodus 16:11-35). God sent manna to feed them in the morning, but this food would rot the next day. They had to depend on God to provide them with food each day. This was a lesson on how we should depend on God each and every day. Not just once a week. It seems that I was trying to store up manna. I was taking what God had given me and I was trying to store it up so I wouldn't have to worry about tomorrow. But then, we're depending on our own understanding and that takes the focus off of God. We need to depend on God each day to provide us with what we need for that day. This is not to say that you shouldn't be a good steward with what He's given you, but you should not spend your entire life planning for tomorrow. "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:33-34 Depend on Him to provide. Build your relationship with Him and let Him take care of the rest. Don't spend your time trying to store manna. I'm learning to look forward to each day to see what God will provide for me. Are you? Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sun Sep 11 23:58:06 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sun, 11 Sep 2005 23:58:06 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Worried About Anxiety Message-ID: <24efaf6ba40b3a2066c61c194e8121ea@clanwebb.com> My gosh, I am able to worry. No kidding. I can waste a lot of time thinking about every conceivable possibility that could have a negative impact on any given situation on any given day, hour, or minute. When I was on the management team at a foundry, I was given an edict: "We don't want to produce any parts that could carry liability for the company." Talk about worry! When I took over the job, we were making over 1200 different parts for hundreds of different industries. Every time I went out and hustled up a new piece of business, the question was always the same, "What does this part do? Could it ever fail and hurt someone? What is the company's liability?" I remember going over the customer list and trying to decipher what each one manufactured and, thus, make at least a wild stab as to the potential liability for our company. One day, an order came in from a company called Irerly Aircraft. "Holy cats!" I thought, "Something we are making in our operation could end up in an airplane?" My worry meter pegged. "Airplanes with failed parts fall out of the sky," I thought. I immediately called a meeting with production. "What parts are we making for this outfit?" I asked. Now, the thing you must understand about pouring castings is that most of the time you don't have any idea where the part actually goes. So, something called a Dog Ear or a Slide or a Wing Clip could be as harmless as an ice cream cone or it might end up under critical service. Our crack production staff looked at one another, cleared their collective throats, and gave the usual, "I'm not sure," answer. I was sweating bullets. What did these parts do? How many were in service? Why did they want more? I called the company and asked where the parts were used. They wondered why I wanted to know. After all, my company had been producing these parts for over ten years. Why were we asking now? I explained that we were just reviewing all of our production with an eye toward company liability and aircraft parts had us a bit concerned, especially after-market aircraft parts. "Oh," I was told, "don't worry." Irerly Aircraft was just the original company name and they had stopped making anything to do with airplanes fifteen years before. I was assured nothing they manufactured went into airplanes. Wow, that was a relief. "Just for the record," I asked, "what do you manufacture?" Now, they strictly made replacement parts for carnival rides. Eek! "Please tell me these parts aren't for a ferris wheel or anything like that." Nope. Nothing like that. The only did roller coasters. Okay, sorry I asked. "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Philippians 4:6 This is a tough verse to get your arms around when your paycheck depends upon when to worry and when not to worry. Of course, this scripture teaches us not to be anxious, but it is not saying to never worry. In the Greek, when the verb is in the present tense, the connotation is continuous action. In other words, it's okay to worry, but not okay to be in a constant state of anxiety. Worry can be the beginning of a solution, or a warning. God may very well allow worry to get your attention. Think it out. Take it to Him in prayer. Give it your best thoughts and make a decision. Then, just turn it over to Him. "What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?" Romans 8:31 Our God is capable. Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Tue Sep 13 00:15:38 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Tue, 13 Sep 2005 00:15:38 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Falling Trees Message-ID: One summer, during my youth, I was part of a gang of guys that was hired to cut down trees for a right-of-way for the local electric company. God had in mind for me to remember this experience, so He gave me a couple of memory pegs. First, He apparently wanted to capture the time, so He partnered me up with a guy that was rough around the edges, but had one shining attribute: common sense. Unfortunately for me, He also chose to bless this guy with the worst taste in music on the planet. Every day at noon, we would shut off our saws and eat lunch. Instead of sitting under an aspen tree and taking in God's beauty that is the Rocky Mountains, this guy would pull out a portable radio and we would be treated to the twang of country music. Let me tell you, brother, that year was not a banner year for country music. We could never seem to get through lunch without hearing (I hate to even type the name as the melody will haunt me for days) "Mister, if you you're gonna play the juke box, don't play A-11..." Whomever wrote this song missed God's message that he should have become a fly swatter salesman instead of a songwriter. Although, now that I think of it, every time that song came on, not even the deer flies hung around. One mid-morning, just before the dreaded concert, he shut off his saw and motioned the rest of us to do the same. He was standing next to a huge Jack pine tree. Running past this tree was a new barbed wire fence. He spit, looked at the rest of us, and said, "Boys, I don't think so. If this old critter falls the wrong way, it is going to take out about 100 yards of this new fence and I don't want to end up paying for it out of my wages. I'm gonna call in an expert." Well, we got off early that day and we were spared "A-11". We were told to come back the following day and, after the expert had felled the pine, we would saw it up. I showed up the next morning to see all the boys standing around the big pine shaking their heads. The expert had come and gone. Also gone was about 150 yards of fence. Our mentor had just one thing to say. "I reckon that old pine was just meant to take out that fence." The pine tree had performed a little maneuver known as "the barber chair". Just before crashing to the ground, it swung in a twisting motion abruptly just before reaching the ground. The fence was right in it's path. Now, this incident saved my bacon one day, many years later. I was helping a friend to clear some property in the West Hills of Portland. He wanted to improve his view. We were working on a big Alder, straight as a ship's mast, when "A-11" began ringing in my ears. As the tree fell downhill as we had predicted, my friend began to step sideways. However, the Alder barber-chaired and caught the saw as he was backing away. I motioned to him to let go of the saw and move uphill. The saw was still running and I had visions of the thing becoming a lethal projectile as the tree fell. I was safe as I was on the uphill side by now. So, I simply stepped up to the uphill side of the stump and, as the tree finished crashing down, I put my finger right on the chainsaw bar and held it in place. The saw was still running, but harmless. God had put that lesson in my memory banks for all those years and held it there with that awful song for just that moment. A lesson from before I was saved to be used after I had accepted him. I also learned that some trees are just destined to fall that way. That friend and I don't speak anymore. His life went one way and mine another. I pray for him to turn around and see the tree that will barber-chair and take his life, but so far he is persisting in his blindness. "But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said." Exodus 8:15 "But this time also Pharaoh hardened his heart and he would not let the people go." Exodus 8:32 "Then the Lord said to Moses, "Go to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his officials so that I may perform these miraculous signs of mine among them"" Exodus 10:1 "But the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he would not let the Israelites go." Exodus 10:20 "But the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he was not willing to let them go." Exodus 10:27 "Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh, but the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he would not let the Israelites go out of his country." Exodus 11:10 "The Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out boldly." Exodus 14:8 "For it was the Lord himself who hardened their hearts to wage war against Israel, so that he might destroy them totally, exterminating them without mercy, as the Lord had commanded Moses." Joshua 11:20 "He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him take an oath in God's name. He became stiff-necked and hardened his heart and would not turn to the Lord, the God of Israel." 2 Chronicles 36:13 "But when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory." Daniel 5:20 Sometimes in life, the people we want to come to the Lord are just like those trees. They are just bound to fall the wrong way. God may have planned it that way. Our duty is to pray for them and be ready if they turn for help. But, in the end, it is between them and God and God will have His way. Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Wed Sep 14 00:24:28 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Wed, 14 Sep 2005 00:24:28 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Rewards Message-ID: <607b70e7d4bda59cf4a7af34eec48a1c@clanwebb.com> Not being an extraordinary athlete, I had a difficult time legitimizing my letterman's jacket in high school. My school also issued an academic letter that you wore on the opposite breast of the jacket from the regular letter. I was proud of mine. I also got pins recognizing my achievement in different subjects at the end of my junior year. I wore those on that jacket, too. I even competed in a mathematic olympics and placed second which garnered me a medal with a ribbon. I pinned that to my jacket, too. By the time I graduated, my letterman's jacket weighed an extra ten pounds and wherever I walked I sounded like a souvenir cart being pushed down the street. My jacket was unique. I wanted it that way. I wanted it to stand out. I wanted the other students to know how hard I had worked and what I had done. And, sure enough, I got a few glances from folks and my friends would ask me what the pins were for. But, in retrospect, I realize that I was just being a glory hound. I was trying to get some mileage out of what I'd done in impressing my peers. I also think I probably just looked goofy with all of that stuff hanging off my jacket. It was fleeting, but I got what I wanted by wearing that stuff. I got that extra ounce of respect for a few weeks. That was it. It wasn't much and it wasn't worth it. The work I put in to earn those pins and medals served me much better at home while I was doing homework and in later years while I was working through college. There was a much bigger and more valuable reward in that work and it had nothing to do with getting noticed or moving up the social ladder. That value is also more permanent. I'm probably the only person in my class who remembers those pins. So, the recognition didn't stick. However, I'm still earning a living based on the work behind them. That part did stick. Sometimes seeking the short-term reward is more damaging than that. You can end up forfeiting your long-term rewards to get a few minutes of fame or a little bit of money. This certainly applies to your service to God and to other people. Anyone who serves at church, takes care of the elderly, stops to help change a flat, or gives five bucks to the guy on the corner should be rewarded. If that person, however, seeks the reward then they have forfeit the heavenly reward that God has prepared for them. It's an either-or deal. Jesus was clear: "So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full." Matthew 6:2 "And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full." Matthew 6:5 "When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. " Matthew 6:16 He clearly points out that if you seek out recognition or rewards on earth, then that's the sum total of your reward. There will be nothing else. However... "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Matthew 6:19-21 Praise may come your way. Rewards may come your way. They are a pittance compared to the reward God has prepared for you, though. Do not announce your acts of obedience. Do not demand returns on your service. If you do, then you have given up the greater reward. Serve out of obedience and love. Don't serve to get praise or rewards here on Earth. Are you serving? If so, why do you do it? Make sure you aren't settling for the earthly rewards. They aren't worth it. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Wed Sep 14 23:54:39 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Wed, 14 Sep 2005 23:54:39 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] God Has No Favorites Message-ID: <0a340021b5a7e2c0d7ed0b95fd4f6d28@clanwebb.com> We prayed for and commissioned a young man that was heading off for New Zealand for training and then on to Asia. One thing he said struck me, "I understand that New Zealand is like America in the fifties." I often think of parts of Canada being the same way. While traveling there I was amazed how I felt I had been transported back in time to my younger days. It is hard to explain, but it was just a general feeling I guess. It brought to mind how different my prejudices were formed because of where I was raised. I think there was only one black family within a hundred miles, but there were quite a few Hispanic families. We were sharecroppers ourselves so, on the socioeconomic scale, we were probably poor white trash in someone's eyes. Jewish people never entered my life growing up, so I never had a clue until much later why anyone would look down on them. One thing was for sure. Putting someone down always seemed to have the same goal: to raise ourselves up. I remember a lot of ethnic jokes that were aimed at Mexicans, blacks, Jews, Poles, Slavs, Irish, Scots, and so on. I remember the joke that was going around when Kennedy was elected president. "Now, there will be three faucets in the White House: hot, cold, and holy water." During the early years of the civil rights movement - George Wallace, Governor Maddox, Martin Luther King, and the like - I heard, "Old King is mad because all washing machines are white. Some ole boy told him not to worry but to just life the lid and he would find a black agitator in each one." Silly, hateful stuff passed down from generation to generation. The great irony is that, all along, those generations had the answers for prejudice. "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes; first for the Jew, then for the Gentile" Romans 1:16 "There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus" Galatians 3:28 "For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility" Ephesians 2:14 "For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus" 1 Timothy 2:5 To follow Christ is a conversion that doesn't threaten your heritage. It enhances your life by dealing with your sin. Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Thu Sep 15 23:56:25 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Thu, 15 Sep 2005 23:56:25 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Confession Message-ID: Because we are men with inherited sin and we live in a fallen world, we are in a constant battle to keep our walk above the high water mark. It is inevitable that we will slip and sink under the water from time to time. This backsliding happens to all of us. this inevitability should cause us to examine our hearts. We should never use this inevitability to justify our behavior. Although this might be a lame example, I think it still applies. If I am preparing to go hunting, fishing, rafting, climbing, or some other outdoor sport, I know in the back of my mind that I will hurt myself at some point. I'll be sore or I will bend, break, scrap, or puncture some part of my body. It doesn't keep me from going, because the reward is greater than the anticipated pain. I will see country, catch or kill game, get an adrenaline rush, or just relax. I can always pack Advil, a first aid kit, and other stuff I know I will probably have to use before the trip is over. When the inevitable happens, the worst thing I can do is not to treat it ASAP. Infection or other damage can exacerbate the wound and, left untreated, it can become a serious problem. One of the worst things I can do is act like nothing happened. My ego can get in the way and I will actually lie to those that are concerned for me. "Nah, it isn't bad. I can go on." Or, I can use my favorite, "It looks a lot worse than it is..." We often do the same thing with sin. We know the treatment and the cure, but the first thing we do is try to cover it up. We must establish a habit in our lives. Calling a spade a spade. We need to go to those that care for us and admit, confess, cough up, or simply expose the wound. "Buddy, I'm hurting and I need prayer." Prayer is the Advil in the first aid kit for sin. Go to a brother and give it up. A brother can't help you recover from a wound if he doesn't know about it. And if you wait until it is obvious, then the recovery is longer and more painful. Above all, if a brother says, "What's wrong? You're limping," don't do the stupid thing and say, "Nothing. It looks a lot worse than it is." "We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do?this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God?through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin." Romans 7:14-25 If we don't gain a real understand of this cycle in our lives, we cannot prepare for it. Sin is rot and it will eat away at you until there is nothing left. "Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit. When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Selah Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the Lord "? and you forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah Therefore let everyone who is godly pray to you while you may be found; surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach him." Psalm 32:1-6 Don't fight the confession. Embrace it. Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sat Sep 17 00:22:36 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sat, 17 Sep 2005 00:22:36 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Heads Up Message-ID: He's always there. Sometimes it's obvious that he's hanging around. Other times you completely forget he's there until he attacks. He can come at you from all angles with with a million faces. I can be working along happily and get an email out of the blue with some scantily dressed girl encouraging me to visit her website. He starts to whisper in my ear, "It'll just take a second. It can't hurt. You need a break, anyway." Or, I might come home from work a little tired from a long day. The first conversation I have at home turns into an argument. Again, with the suggestions, "Are you going to take that? Let her have it! You're the head of the household, right? Show her what that means!" Or, the attacks might be more literal. I'm so busy being worried about work or worried about something at home that I don't notice that the car in front of me isn't taking advantage of the green light and I hit him. One more time, he lays in to me, "See? You're a loser! You can't take care of yourself. How can you expect to take care of anyone else! Where's your God, now? Why did He let this happen?" I felt that God was leading me to pray more directly for the protection of my family this week. So I have been. During that time, I witnessed a pretty serious car accident that nearly pushed one of the cars into mine. I was also slightly rear-ended after leaving my weekly Bible study. My wife commented that my truck seemed to have a target painted on it. I think she's right. He's looking for an angle. He's trying to get under my skin. Americans have this image of him sitting on some kind of flaming throne overseeing those he has successfully taken to hell with him. I'm slowly discovering that's not true. He's not that passive. He's actively working on each one of us. "The Lord said to Satan, "Where have you come from?" Satan answered the Lord, "From roaming through the earth and going back and forth in it."" Job 1:7 His normal state of being is to be roaming around the earth. Yes, the very earth on which we live. Believe me, he's not in it for the sightseeing. He's looking for a chink in the armor, a crack in the wall, any place to put in a wedge and start driving it. "Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of suffering." 1 Peter 5:8-9 He's looking for that opening so he can take you out. He wants you down for the count. Even if you're saved, he wants you to be ineffective or off the game board altogether. You have to act like the night guard at a camp in Iraq. You have to be always aware that you're in someone's sights. You have to stay in control and stay alert. This sounds impossible to do. It is... if you try it alone. But, you don't have to be. Submit to God. Pray for protection, self-control, and discernment. He'll have your back. You can run to Him and be safe. Even so, you have to keep your wits about you. The other one's still prowling. Looking for an opportunity. Don't give it to him. Heads up. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sun Sep 18 00:32:51 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sun, 18 Sep 2005 00:32:51 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Time Message-ID: <9c7afe22f25353c069d9183b1f5b3b84@clanwebb.com> There's something called Segal's Law that I find myself quoting frequently: "A man with a watch knows what time it is. A man with two watches is never sure." This refers to the fact that if you have two places to look for the same information and they don't agree, you can't be sure which one is right. I'm usually quoting this at work as storing the same information in more than one place is bad programming practice. It can easily make your program confused and cause problems. And, yet, even the most experienced of us still fall into this trap. Think about how this problem affects you at home. I count over twenty different clocks around my house. They're on the stove, the TV, the alarm system, my wristwatch, my digital camera, my answering machine, my car stereo, my cell phone, and several other places. Few of them match and they have a spread of almost fifteen minutes. How does anyone know which one to depend on? How can you know what time it is, really? Well, I know that when I need to know the precise time, there's only one place to check: my computer. Huh? Not everyone understands that. "Wouldn't you have the clock on your wall or next to your bed be the most accurate?" I'd like that, but most clocks are not very good at keeping time over long periods. They drift. Some more than others. Why do I use my computer? Simple; my computer syncs it's internal clock with a national time server on the Internet every day. That time server is synced to an atomic clock managed by the US government. It doesn't get any more accurate than that. So, if I look at the clock on my computer I know it's right. Any other clocks in the house that are reading the same are equally dependable. Those clocks that are off, though, just become less reliable out of habit. I don't check them as much. I found the clock I could trust and I stuck with that one and the ones that stay synced with it. This is an apt analogy for how Americans deal with values, morality, and truth. When you have dozens of value systems and morality judgments available to you, how do you know which one to choose? How can you know if what you are doing is right or wrong? This guy says it's bad. That one says it's okay. Who to believe? Well, that's easy. You have to find the one source you can trust unconditionally. You have to find your atomic clock. I found mine. It's God's Word. It's always accurate. It's never wrong. "The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes." Psalm 19:7-8 Perfect, trustworthy, right, and radiant. Sounds like a good place to start. You should sync your clock to this one. It doesn't drift. It's always perfectly aligned. If you want to listen to any other sources, make sure they are synced with this one. Find sources that stay synced up that you can trust. Ignore the rest. They aren't doing you any good. Discovering the ones that are synced with God's Word is valuable. That'll allow you to make his Word more accessible in your life. More available day to day. But, you still have a responsibility to verify that those sources stay synced. You can't listen to them only and forget about the gold standard. "Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth." John 17:17 That would be absolute, no-questions-asked truth. Not the stuff most folks are peddling on TV and in the newspapers. When you have more than two watches to check your life with, go back to the original. Find the best source around. Sync yourself with it. Then you'll always be sure. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Mon Sep 19 00:07:38 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Mon, 19 Sep 2005 00:07:38 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] I Want That, Daddy Message-ID: God works a lot like a parent. Consider this: A young child is walking with their parent through the store. As they begin to pass those things that will catch a child's eye, the inevitable question is, "Can I have this, Daddy?" followed quickly by, "Buy me this, Daddy. I want it, Daddy." It is at these times as a parent that we have to make decisions about what our children need and what we can provide. Also, we have to make decisions about what we want to give them that will bless their lives. And then, there are those special times when we provide them something just to see and feel the pure joy of giving and getting. These are also the times when the children are not sure about our answers. "You don't need that." "That has no value for you." "That has a danger in it that you can't see, but I can." "Maybe later." "I'll think about it." Perhaps we are testing our child to see if they are just asking to see if we are in the mood to give. Or, perhaps we are just testing to see how serious they are about what they are asking to get. It is, of course, easy for God because He knows everything and gets it right every time. But, that doesn't keep us as children from asking and nagging, because, in the end, it is the only way we find out if He wants us to have it. Here is the answer. Keep asking until we get the question right and then He will give it to us. "I have posted watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the Lord, give yourselves no rest, and give him no rest till he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth." Isaiah 62:6-7 You know what happens when you keep asking and seeking? You begin to learn what He wants for you and it becomes more obvious what to ask for in your life. It also allows you to become more tuned into what you should be praying for in other people's lives as the experience in your own life lends itself for you to pray for them. Live and learn, but always learn. God doesn't mind the attention any more than we mind the attention required to see our children grow. Blessings Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Tue Sep 20 00:25:27 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Tue, 20 Sep 2005 00:25:27 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Word For the Day Message-ID: Shame (noun): 1. A painful emotion caused by a strong sense of guilt, embarrassment, unworthiness, or disgrace 2. One that brings dishonor, disgrace, or condemnation 3. A condition of disgrace or dishonor; ignominy 4. A great disappointment I felt the need to find the dictionary definition for this word as it seems to carry little or no weight in modern society. If you just take a step back and look at what we have been conditioned to accept as normal, you'll realize that what we've done is simply sweep away any sense of shame. Everything is relative, now. If you feel compelled to declare that Christianity is an institution of racism or bigotry, that's just your opinion. If you want to smoke a little pot on the side, that's not hurting anybody, so don't sweat it. If you see nothing wrong with getting blind drunk on a weekly basis and waking up with women you don't recognize, that's your choice. And, in all of these cases, nobody can judge you. To heck with that! Shame has a useful purpose in life. When wielded properly, it discourages folks from behavior that is unhealthy. Shame is simply the state of mind that causes someone to be regretful of their actions. It makes them desire to make things right. It drives them to avoid the situation again. This is the power behind most childhood discipline. The child is ashamed to be in the corner or sent to his room, so he doesn't want to do it again. This is not a declaration of open season on your friends and neighbors. You don't get to go out and point the accusing finger of judgment. If you do that, you'd better be ready to hear a list of your offenses, too. However, we aren't doing anyone any favors by acting as if there are not consequences to their actions. When someone steals a car, we don't take them under our wing, ask what the "root causes" are, and then send them home with a check. No, we send those folks to jail. Shame is the sentence for moral misbehavior. We should love and care for those dealing with the consequences of their actions, but we should not tell them that they've done nothing wrong. Actually, we should be reinforcing their feelings of wanting to repair the damage and their desire to turn around. If they don't get the message, they will likely end up in the same situation again in the future. "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim to have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives." 1 John 1:8-10 A feeling of shame tells you that you truly believe you screwed up. Only then can you humbly ask for forgiveness. If you wave it off and convince yourself that you didn't really do anything wrong, you're calling God a liar. You're not just sweeping it under the rug, you're arguing with God about the truth. That's not an argument you're likely to win. Don't be afraid of shame. Call it for what it is and help people to escape it by repenting and repairing. Don't tell yourself you're being loving and thoughtful by telling someone that they didn't do anything wrong when they have. That's just lying. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Wed Sep 21 00:18:22 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Wed, 21 Sep 2005 00:18:22 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] The Cycle Message-ID: I have a friend I met in college who has a pretty different background than I do. I grew up as a classic middle-class kid, went to public school, and was going to college via financial aid and a job. Mike's father was a successful doctor and his grandparents were quite wealthy. Mike had attended a private boarding school before attending college with me. His parents paid for college and all of his expenses. A couple of trust funds paid for his toys. I mean no disrespect as Mike had to study just as hard as I did to get in and to graduate. He's a good guy. But, he's lost. However, Mike was (and probably still is) a victim of the endless cycle of materialism this world offers. He couldn't resist the newest computer or latest stereo component. After becoming enamored with playing music, he bought himself an expensive electric bass and keyboard. He found a way to fund any new hobby he had. He had grown up that way and saw no problem with that style of living. It became a running joke between my wife and I to guess how long it would be before Mike bought a new toy. It was never more than a couple of months. All the time we were attending school together, we had to remind Mike that his possessions were nice, but we just liked hanging out with him. It was an unusual concept for him. He was used to being liked for his toys. That's another step in the cycle. Get the toys. Be admired. Get bored. Repeat. You have to pay attention because this cycle can strike anywhere and it's a bear to get out of. My son has fallen victim to this cycle in relation to video games. Every three months, he announces that there's a game coming out that is the ultimate game and he'll surely be satisfied for years if he can just buy it. A few months later, he's back at it. Each time we have to remind him about the cycle and to not get lost in it. There's nothing wrong with being excited about a favorite pastime and spending a little money on it. But, these things can never take the place of God in your life. Right now, we're training our son to see that, but there are far too many adults who still don't see it and wonder why they're so unhappy. The fact is that nothing this world has to offer can ever satisfy forever. It's just not built that way. "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal." Matthew 6:19 "...For this world in its present form is passing away." 1 Corinthians 7:31 "The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever." 1 John 2:17 There is only one who can satisfy once and for all: "Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:13-14 We should desire that which Jesus offers. That will satisfy forever and there isn't an endless, losing cycle involved. If you receive Him, you're done. There is no greater possession than the salvation He offers. It will never lose it's luster and nothing can outshine it. Make sure you're investing for the long term. The really long term. You know, eternity. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Wed Sep 21 23:50:51 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Wed, 21 Sep 2005 23:50:51 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Muffling God Message-ID: <7d1cd78e46777e0b9bb26290c5ee182d@clanwebb.com> Okay, I had another one of those moments today. I read an article that made me shake my head and laugh. There are some times that people just miss the point altogether. Here's the short version of what I'm talking about: From the BBC: 100-minute Bible designed for time-starved Christians An 'abridged' version of the Bible is being released in Britain today. Publishers say the 100-minute Bible is ideal for those who do not have time to read the original. In the beginning there was the Bible and to read it chapter and verse would take months. Now it has been turned into a slimmed down page turner in an effort to get more people to read it. The 100-minute Bible contains just 20,000 words and it is aimed at those who do not have the time to go through the whole book. Uh, okay. Maybe I'm missing something, but doesn't that kind of defeat the intention? If you don't have time for the whole God, they've created God lite! God should be the number one priority in your life, not the one you squeeze in while riding a bus or waiting in line. As Christians we should want to spend more time in the Word and to get more and more out of it. When I'm not spending enough time in the Word, God reminds me. He tells me to set aside more time for Him. I don't think He wants me to try to condense that time into a sound bite. How do we expect the Word to speak if we chop it up and only give it folks in pieces? This reminds me of the old notion of quality time. Busy parents would try to plan quality time moments with their children and just skip all of the seemingly boring and uneventful time parents spend with their kids. They lost the whole point because quality time only occurs on the foundation of quantity time. You get those moments only when you're regularly spending time with your kids. Same thing here. You get the deep, life-changing moments with God only when it's happening during a long-standing relationship. You can't build a deep relationship on five minutes a week. He can't speak to you if you don't open the Word and it's tougher to hear Him when you've muffled the message. It's true that we are time-starved. We do allow our days to fill up with a bunch of stuff that keeps us from Him. Don't try to solve it by changing the time required to build a relationship. Solve it by simply spending more time with Him than you do now. It works every time. "I have not departed from the commands of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread." Job 23:12 "...man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord." Deuteronomy 8:3 Sounds a little too important to be just reading the executive summary. "The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes." Psalm 19:7-8 Yeah, I think I'll stick with the unabridged version. It sounds like I could use as much of God's Word as I can get. It's powerful stuff. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Fri Sep 23 00:27:14 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Fri, 23 Sep 2005 00:27:14 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] The Cost of Peace Message-ID: Peace at any cost is bad policy. Whether you are discussing war, politics, or relationships. Peace is a much desired trait in all of these situations. Peace is a personality trait that we would love to have. The absence of rough waters is always something we're glad to have or long to see when we don't. However, peace is not worth any price. The easiest way to achieve immediate peace in war is to simply surrender unconditionally. I guarantee the shooting will stop and things will be peaceful. Your life may not be comfortable. You may not happy in your situation. But, peace can be achieved. That's the wrong way to seek peace. People do it in relationships every day. They simply give in and give up to achieve peace. But, it's a false peace. It's built on the denial of one party's rights and opinions. That's peace via bullying. The wrong kind of peace. God wants us to seek real peace. "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God." Matthew 5:9 Seeking peace is a clear sign that you are on the right path. Peace is a fruit of the spirit and... "because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God." Romans 8:14 But, sometimes, the price is too high. When the situation involves more than one person, then peace may either be impossible or only available for a sacrifice of your convictions or freedoms. If a person simply does not want to reconcile, then there isn't anything the other person can do to create peace. Or, if peace comes at the cost of things like physical abuse, restriction of freedoms, or repudiation of God's law, it is not really peace. In these cases, God asks us to do as much as we can. Peace may not be achieved, but it should not be for lack of trying on our part. Don't allow yourself to be willing to aggravate the situation out of vengeance or spite. "Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everybody." Romans 12:17-18 Now, the Word does not use phrases randomly or carelessly. Paul wrote "If it is possible." He's clearly describing situations where it might not be possible. In those cases, you cannot be expected to achieve peace. God does not demand the impossible from you. Paul also writes, "as far as it depends on you." This is just common sense. You cannot control the actions of others. You cannot force someone else to be peaceful. Simply focus on what you can do to achieve peace while still being led by the Spirit. Don't accept the outrageous trades for peace that simply cost too much. For the part for which you are responsible, do what you can. Leave the rest to God. Jesus gave us the ultimate model of what to do when confronted by those who do not want to make peace. On the day He was crucified, he displayed compassion and patience with those who attacked Him, insulted Him, and injured Him. "When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly." 1 Peter 2:23 Let us be seekers of peace. Let us be aware of the kind of peace we're being offered, though. Don't be fooled by a false peace. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sat Sep 24 00:12:19 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sat, 24 Sep 2005 00:12:19 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Stay in the Zone Message-ID: <6a186a447c163e82859540e45a32711d@clanwebb.com> There is a lot of talk about athletes that can get into the "zone". It appears that once you are in the zone, you are so focused on what you are doing that the things which will distract you and cause you to fail simply cannot penetrate your consciousness. I know in my own case, I can imagine such a place with God here on Earth. A focus so good, so concentrated that nothing Satan can do would distract me from keeping my eyes set on Jesus and how He wants to direct my life. The reality, of course, is that we do become distracted and like athletes that miss the basket, goal, or strike zone, we pay a variety of consequences. These distractions affect our thoughts and then our concentration. It doesn't mean we have to maintain an exclusionary thought path, though. For example, I have driven from Portland to Seattle so many times that I often snap to attention and realize that I don't remember how I got to Olympia or Longview because I was multitasking, as they say. It is okay to be on mental cruise control sometimes, but other times we must make a concentrated effort to rein in our thoughts and make them obey our will. "We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. " 2 Corinthians 10:5 Like an athlete, we must practice to become proficient. Stop and engage in a little self-talk, if it helps. Many is the time I must say out loud, "Stop! These thoughts are not the desire of my heart. Lord, I give them over to you to dispose of them as you will." Now, I don't advocate doing that in the middle of a sales meeting when your eyes have settled on someone who is not your wife and you've started drifting mentally to places you should only go with your wife. That's a good way to end up in a counselors office with someone looking over their glasses, taking notes, and asking how often the voices speak to you. However, I do advise that you divert your eyes, imagine yourself looking at Satan and saying, "Nice try, sulfur breath. Not this time." The mind can be trained. There is a place, guys, I know in my heart there is a place where our minds can rest at peace with Jesus. "For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God." Colossians 3:3 Don't forget to sign up for the "charge up". Jesus will be there. His name was first on the list. YBIC, Allen From wyatt at clanwebb.com Sun Sep 25 00:19:23 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Sun, 25 Sep 2005 00:19:23 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] The Catch Message-ID: There's always a catch. At least, there always seems to be a catch. You can get a free cell phone, if you make a two year commitment. You can get cheap cable TV, for the first three months of a one year contract. You don't have to pay until next year, with twenty percent interest. There always seems to be something. If you haven't learned to cast a critical eye on these apparently good deals, then you're still getting fooled. Everyone wants you to think you're getting a better deal than it seems. When you press them on it, they don't like to tell you the real story. During the height of the dotcom boom, I went interviewing. I got a taste of what it's like to be a celebrity. Everyone promises you the moon and kisses your feet. If you were the right fit for their new company, they would have offered their firstborn. At this time, the baseline work environment was a fancy new office, $500 chair, the latest computer hardware, free sodas and juice all day, stock options, and other benefits you wouldn't believe. One place in Seattle had their own gourmet chef on site. There was a company in California that gave BMWs to new hires for critical jobs. I had one recruiter send me a very large fruit basket the day after I interviewed. It was a little surreal. I never took any of those jobs, though. I stayed at the company I had been with for a few years. They didn't offer those perks, but I knew the whole deal. All of those other places had a catch. You saw it in subtle ways, but it was there with all of them. The place with the chef bragged about how he was available for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Why would you need to be regularly eating dinner at work? During one interview, I noticed the manager had a pillow and blanket folded nicely next to his filing cabinet. I asked him why. "Oh, that's just for those crunch periods when we have to put some extra time in." Those crunch periods were not rare. They were the norm. The fact was that all of those startups paid through the nose for talent and then had to run them into the ground to try to recoup the investors' money in time. The catch was that I would have had to work 80 hour weeks and missed watching my son grow up. It wasn't that great of a deal. Sin works the same way. Satan offers you deals that seem too good to be true. You know what? They are. Sin is a credit card. The payment always comes due and it's always more than what you got in the first place. Sin always has a catch. There is one deal without a catch, though. At least not a hidden one. Accepting Christ is the simplest thing in the world, but it'll cost you your life. However, once accepted, that love is indestructible. It cannot be shaken or loosened. That's something to have confidence in. There's no hidden catch with this deal. "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:37-39 Take that deal. Lock that in now. It's tested and proven. There's nothing better. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Mon Sep 26 00:20:30 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Mon, 26 Sep 2005 00:20:30 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Joy Message-ID: Isn't it funny how a little thing can taint, or even ruin, something much larger? In the software world, it shows up as that bug that got through the system. We can build a new product over the course of a year. It will spend three or four months in Quality Assurance being tested and re-tested. It will then be shipped to customers who are excited to use it for the promises it offers. All of that work, though, can be brought to its knees if the user finds a bug that prevents them from working. As far as they're concerned, it's junk. That's the nightmare scenario for a software company. These things happen in life, too. A day of basketball is a blast until you jam a finger or twist an ankle. A weekend of camping is great until you get a flat on the way home. Nothing serious, but it can taint your memory of that day. And, like all things that might take the fun out of life, Satan uses these opportunities. He tries to find the one little pressure point that he can push to suck the joy out of entire days or weeks. Beware, he's always looking for that point. You can't prevent it, but you can prepare for when it comes. It almost happened to me Sunday night. I felt like I had a great weekend. I cleaned out the garage. I made a trip to the dump. I fixed a toilet with a persistent problem in less than five minutes. I had a great morning at church. I got to watch the Seahawks win big. I got to spend time playing games with my son. I had a great walk with my wife. It was a great weekend. Then, late Sunday night, I was preparing some homeschool assignments for our son and the printer decided to freak out. I didn't have time to diagnose it. I couldn't get it to work. I could feel the frustration building. Stupid little problems that I don't have time to fix are an easy button for Satan to push with me. He nailed it tonight. I started huffing and getting exasperated. I could feel the joy of the entire weekend slipping away. Then, I realized what was happening. So, I took a deep breath. I wrote down what they would need for school tomorrow and called it good. Then, I told Satan to get lost. I regained that joy. I had a great weekend and I want to ride that wave all week long. He can't take that from me. "...for the joy of the Lord is your strength." Nehemiah 8:10 That joy makes me strong. It helps me through the week. It helps me do His will. Do you see why Satan wants to suck the joy out of your life? Because, then he will have also drained your strength. It's the little annoying things that can do that and he knows it. If losing your keys or spilling your coffee can make you a less effective Christian because it steals your joy, then he's all over that. Don't let it be effective. Let him send these little gnats at you. Hang on to your joy. Keep the strength God has given you. He wants you on the field. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Mon Sep 26 23:59:52 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Mon, 26 Sep 2005 23:59:52 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Successful Life Message-ID: <2ad1238f91937df81706104acac9fc5e@clanwebb.com> When I was a young man, I saw the successful life in terms of money, houses, cars, and lots of toys. I saw celebrities living large and thought that I wanted that life. The more I know Christ, the more I realize that those things have nothing to do with a successful life. As a matter of fact, they can be distractions if you're not careful. No, a successful Christian life doesn't look like that. It's more like that feeling I get when I'm hiking through the forest, I step into a stream to cool my feet and a meadow opens up across the water. That soothing feeling of a soft path and a cooling breeze on your journey to the top of the mountain. That's more like it. I was going to quote the opening verses of the 23rd Psalm here, but I realize that the entire Psalm is really a praise to God about the life that He has given us. David praises Him for the things that are important. 1 "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want." He will take care of you. Depend on Him to provide everything and follow His guidance. 2 "He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters," That's the soothing comfort of a grassy field or a cool lake. God will lead you to more than one oasis in your life. 3 "he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake." Your soul was battered and lost before He came. He put you back together and set you back on the path. Follow His direction and stay on those paths. If you do so, you will glorify Him by that very act. 4 "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me." God does not remove the need to walk through dark places in life, but He will be beside you. When He's with you, His authority and His power are comforting because they are absolute. You have nothing to fear. 5 "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows." God will provide for you even when surrounded by forces arrayed against you. He blesses you more than you can imagine. He is with you at the darkest hour and, so, you can rest assured in Him. 6 "Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." God has promised you that He will bless you with goodness and love. You will be in house for eternity. That's a fact. I know I'm doing it right when these things happen to me. This is the successful life I seek now. I want the green pastures and the quiet waters. I want to eat at the table He has prepared. I want to be anointed. I want my cup to overflow. That's a successful life. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Wed Sep 28 00:24:34 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2005 00:24:34 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Keep it Straight Message-ID: <62197f24ccc5b25e6ce24c647b84bb65@clanwebb.com> My priorities can get messed up very easily. I can be running so fast that I don't even notice that I'm spending my time on item number six when items one through five are being neglected. And, of course, it's worse when the people around you have different priorities. To them, their top priority should take precedence. But if it's number three on your list, it's hard to get your attention. They'll lean on you to bump it up. That doesn't work because you have three different people all telling you to change your priorities and they don't even agree. The key here is to not listen to the world at all. Develop your priorities based on God's plan. Read the Word and He makes it clear. Your first priority is God. Jesus tells us that the greatest commandment is: "Jesus replied: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind."" Matthew 22:36 Jesus goes on to tell us that the second greatest is to love your neighbor as yourself. Well, that pretty much covers everyone on Earth, so let's break it down a little. How do we prioritize our fellow humans? Well, the next closest people to you are your family. You do have a responsibility to your family. The Word slices it a little thinner than that though. "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh." Genesis 2:24 "If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever." 1 Timothy 5:8 We can assume some things by reading these passages. We are to be part of our parents lives and to keep them high on our list. However, at the point of marriage, the list changes. The spouses leave their parents and create a new family. Now your new immediate family is higher priority. Paul is explicit in his letter to Timothy that we are to help provide for our relatives, but that we have a higher expectation on us for our immediate family. Since marriage comes before children (or it should), the relationships are falling into place. 1. God 2. Spouse 3. Children 4. Parents 5. Extended family 6. Fellow man 7. Yourself If you find a conflict between any two items on this list, it's pretty easy to see who should win. If you have to choose, stand with your children against your extended family. If you have to choose, stand with your spouse against your parents. And sometimes, you will have to defend your relationship with God against anyone else in your life trying to draw you away. It's not fun, but it shouldn't be terribly confusing. Keep it straight. Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Wed Sep 28 23:54:19 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2005 23:54:19 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] Investment Message-ID: Before leaving for college, I lived well with my family. However, I was never rolling in cash. I had a part-time job during my senior year that allowed me just enough to pay for gas for the '67 Chevy pickup I drove and a little extra for fun money. Even that had to be budgeted, though. I wasn't very good at budgeting back then. My wife loves to tell the story of a night while we were dating. We were driving around basically looking for a reason to hang out. Trying not to sound too cheap, I asked if she wanted to hit a drive-thru just to get some fries to munch on. I didn't suggest much more, because I figured I only had enough change in my pocket for an order of fries. After I ordered, I started fishing my change out and I realized that I should have done that sooner. I think I dug out about 37 cents. Even in the mid-80s that didn't buy much. So, I had to turn to my lovely girlfriend and ask if she had any money. Not exactly a smooth move. I still hear about it. Now, I tell you that story to make this point: At that point in my life, I didn't have a lot of financial treasure. So, you couldn't measure my interests and focus based on my investments. However, what I did have was time. How I spent my time would tell anyone quite a bit about what was important to me. I spent time doing schoolwork (my education was important). I spent time hanging out with friends (my relationships were important). And, I spent time with my wife-to-be (my significant other was VERY important). We were a church-going family, but I only put in the minimum requirements. I did Sundays and youth group on Wednesdays. Those were okay, because my friends were there, too. However, I wasn't spending a lot of time on my faith outside of that. One thing I did decide to spend more time on after my junior year was basketball. I really wanted to play varsity basketball my senior year. There were many guys more talented than me, so I knew I wouldn't make the team on my natural ability. I did know, though, how much the coach respected dedication and hard work. I figured I had a chance if I could raise my stock in his eyes. I went to every summer camp he put on. I went to the optional workouts and played in pick-up games every chance I got. By the end of the summer, he was giving me compliments on my effort and desire. With any luck and a good tryout, I might just squeak on the team. When school started that fall, the principal announced that our head basketball coach had taken a job elsewhere and we had hired a new one. Suddenly, in just few seconds, all of that hard work felt worthless. This new coach had no idea who I was. There was no value in showing hard work over the summer. It just didn't matter. I tried out anyway, but didn't make the team. There was a lesson there waiting to be learned. I didn't finally grasp it until years later. I had invested my most valuable resource in something that just vanished. Are you investing your resources wisely? Is your money or your time being spent on something that could simply go away? If it's not God, the answer is yes because everything we have here will go away when we join Jesus. Your portfolio won't matter. Your two handicap won't matter. Your photo albums of hunting trophies or vast travels won't matter. What matters is what's permanent. "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Matthew 6:21 If your heart is on the transient things, it will be hurt and weakened when those things fall away. If your heart is on God, you will not be disappointed because He is forever and He lives up to His promises. How are you invested? Wyatt From wyatt at clanwebb.com Fri Sep 30 00:06:19 2005 From: wyatt at clanwebb.com (Wyatt Webb) Date: Fri, 30 Sep 2005 00:06:19 -0700 Subject: [Daily Push Up] No Need to Speculate Message-ID: <5e0b7099073ff36d7ec58384bf783e39@clanwebb.com> Whoppers! I think we all understand when something we have imparted to someone is termed a whopper. Here is my favorite. This was told to me by an old boy, and the more you get to know me the more you will understand that I have run across many old boys in my life. He told me about the time he caught a bobcat in a trap. When he found it, he was with a couple of other old boys and they hatched an idea to have a little fun. They took an old suitcase and maneuvered it around this fairly hacked off cat. With the help of a shovel, they got it inside the case and shut the lid. The only thing outside the satchel was the leg and the trap. With one foot on the lid of the bag, the boys opened the trap at which point the cat snapped his sore leg inside the bag. With the lid secured by a couple of rope ties, they proceeded to poke a few air holes in the bag. With nothing but pure mischief in mind, they hotfooted into town where they parked across the street from their favorite watering hole. They left the bag in the back of the pickup truck in plain sight of the public. The plan, because of the neighborhood, was that sooner or later temptation would overcome someone of dubious morals and that person would snatch the parcel. In due course, that's just what happened. A carload of misfits pulled up to the light, one of them popped out just long enough to grab the bag and make a hasty departure. Here comes the best part of the yarn: the speculation. Not knowing the final outcome adds to the flavor. Speculating is where the fun is. Just sitting around with a bunch of old boys and talking about how it was when those fellows finally stopped long enough to open the bag to reveal a hungry, thirsty, wild cat with a sore foot all in the confines of a car. Conjures up quite an image, doesn't it? There are a lot of folks that think Hell is a whopper. There is a lot of speculation as to what it would be like if it did exist. A lot of jokes start with, "An old boy ends up in Hell face to face with the devil himself..." When you get this kind of talk, I hope you take a couple of seconds to imagine what that old boy is going to find there. "and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destructions and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power." 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9 "Then the king told the attendants, 'Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'" Matthew 22:13 "he, too, will drink of the wine of God's fury., which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb." Revelation 14:10 "And the smoke of their torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name." Revelation 14:11 I don't know about you guys, but I don't want to be anywhere near those old boys. Next time you are sitting around the campfire, toss this one out: "So, what do you guys think it will be like in Hell?" When someone says, "I might as well go to Hell. All my friends will be there." Don't laugh. Just say, "No, really, what do you think Hell is like?" YBIC, Allen