Got Blog?

“Why do you not post more blogs or write for the paper any longer?” This is a question I seem to hear often these days. The answer is simple, “time”. I thought about this for several days, as well as pondering my schedule, and then the obvious occurred to me, “Jeff, blog your Sunday School lesson (1st through 5th grades), Wednesday Night study in Ecclesiastes, and post the manuscripts to Sunday services”. “Brilliant”, like the two guys on a TV commercial might say.

So that is the goal or focus of http://www.simpleservant.blogspot.com/. Please check back weekly for new posts and updates… During the week of March 15th through 21st, I will be posting random thoughts and updates on Blackfoot SBC’s Revival.

The Office

It is here, an historic day to be sure. Does it matter if he is black, brown, or white? Does it matter if he is a Democrat, Republican, or even from some obscure third party? Yes and No. For our purposes here the answer is No. Those other decisions where made back on Election Day, November 4, 2008. Today, January 20, 2009, our forty-fourth president was installed and assumed the responsibilities of the President of The United States. How then should we respond?

1. Respect—Despite your ethnic, socio-economic, political alignment or religious affiliation the Office of the President of the United States deserves our respect. The duty of the office demands it.


2. Prayer—Is essential
   a. We need to be bathing our New President in prayer. Prayer concerning his health, stress, decisions, leadership, salvation, obedience to God, his ability to listen “to the people”, and the list may continue on. We need to bathe our president’s family in prayer, the scrutiny and stress they to will bear will be great and the Lord needs to be forefront in their lives as well.
   b. The President’s cabinet and advisors need our prayers - that they will give advice for the benefit and protection of our country and in accordance with the will of God, Biblical Law and standards.
   c. Our country continually needs prayer as the moral fiber of this great nation disintegrates and true faith falls by the wayside. This in turn will bring about the disapproval of God and the removal of His blessing. Pray that a great revival motivates the church to fulfill the Great Commission and that we, Christians, stand firm and bold for the things of God.

The state of our country has always been and will always be in the hands of the Sovereign One. For those in the grip of God we should not be shaken for the good or for the bad by the coming and going of presidents. However, we should pray. The state of our country is inversely proportionate to the time we spend wearing the knees out of our jeans. In closing, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.” (James 5:16). So let the real change begin with us. Lord forgive me of my faults, my sins. Make me useful and righteous under the blood of Christ. Then Lord, teach me to pray… Amen.

Articular: Watch The Words

For my first blog, expecting spelling and grammar train wrecks, I believe it is fitting to write concerning words. Words have such power; power to destroy, power to build, power to enlighten, and power to turn away. It is apparent that appropriate word choice to convey a message is extremely important, knowing your audience is important, and knowing the same word has different meanings to different cultures or world views is very important—a painful lesson I have learned time and time again in the inter-mountain west. What a waste, to have a pointed and even heated conversation to only in frustration learn that you were never conversing about the same thing because the words used held different definitions. Or to find your mouth agape words spilling out in a tumbled mess and in a crime of passion brutally say the right thing in the wrong manner, to the wrong person, and in the wrong context. So how do we deal with watching the words we use? Simple—Don’t Speak, listen. We see this in Proverbs; “Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue”. But I jest. We are called to speak and teach but it must be done in godly love, bathed in biblical knowledge so that the tongue will commend knowledge and understanding building up those we mince words with.