Cute Little Sayings

As I sit in my chair and look out the window this morning, in the early morning of the rising sun, the skies are a red and orange hue.  I'm reminded of an old saying that went something like this:  "Red at night, Sailor's delight, red in the morning, Sailor's warning."

Then I began to think of other cute little sayings that I have heard from time to time, either by sound bites on TV, or in everyday conversations, and realized that these sayings are in reality, shortcuts and simplified statements from verses in the word of God.

Let me give you some other examples.

The cute little saying, "A little bird told me "Actually, is found in Ecclesiastes 10:20; "Curse not the king, no not in thy thought; and curse not the rich in thy bedchamber: for a bird of the air shall carry the voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter."

"Look before you leap." is found in Proverbs 14:15.  "The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going."

How about, "When you pay it forward, it will come back to you."  It's not 'Karma' my friend, it's the promise of God.  You can find this in Galatians 6:7, "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap."

What about when you find yourself "between a rock and a hard place?"  That's found in 1 Samuel 14:4a.

"And between the passages, by which Jonathan sought to go over unto the Philistines' garrison, there was a sharp rock on the one side, and a sharp rock on the other side:"

It's actually been fun to ponder what cute little sayings I have heard and compare them with Scripture to see where this thought actually originated.

There's a lot more out there, can you find them yourself?

The next time I hear a cute little saying...

    I will search God's Word...

        to see what He has to say about it...

            But that's just me!

Oh-the cute little saying about the red sky in the morning and the red sky at night, you can find in Matthew 16:2,3 from the words of Jesus Himself.  He says, "He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red.  And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowring. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?"

Comfort and Edify

"Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do."

1 Thessalonians 5:11

Such a short verse but packed with so much!

This tiny verse exhorts us to be mindful of what others are going through.

We are to:

    Give strength, hope and cheer to others-

    We are to ease the grief or trouble of others-

    We are to console others-

    We are to assist, support, give aid to in time of worry or trouble-

    We are to be dependable-

And those are all just definitions for the word 'comfort.'

We are also called to edify one another, which means:

    To instruct and improve in moral and religious knowledge-

    We are to uplift, inform and enlighten-

    Build up-

    Establish-

    Nurture.

I had to ask myself, "Am I too busy with 'self' and my own life that I don't see what others are going through around me?"

"Do I even care?"

"Am I too tired to make the effort to comfort and edify someone else?"

There is a right way and a wrong way to comfort and edify others:

    Not everyone needs to hear platitudes-

    Not everyone needs to be reminded to pick themselves back up by their bootstraps-

No, sometimes they just need someone to pray with them.  They need someone to sit silently by their side.  Sometimes things aren't going to work out the way we thought they would, but it's nice to know that someone cares enough to be there with you.

God help us to be discerning enough...

        care enough...

             love enough...

                 to know HOW to help those in need...

                        But that's just me!

    

Keys

 "I am he that liveth, and was dead; and behold, I am alive forevermore, Amen; and I have the keys of hell and of death."  The words of Jesus, Revelation 1:18

This afternoon, I put my dog on a leash, put keys in my pocket and headed out the door for our afternoon walk.  Halfway through our walk, a sense of foreboding entered my mind.

"I think I grabbed the wrong keys."

When I got home, I realized that, yes, I had grabbed the wrong keys.

Locked out!  

I had to call my husband at work to tell him that I was locked out, and could he please come home to let me back into the house.  "On my way."  he said.

I was no longer worried about being locked out, because I knew that my husband carried in his pocket the right set of keys to let me back into the house.

It brought to mind another set of keys, the keys to death and hell.

And it brought to mind Who holds the keys:  Our Lord Jesus Christ.

According to Webster, one definition of Key, is: "A means of gaining or preventing entrance, possession, or control."

A Key will lock or unlock, it will secure.  A key is access, admission, admittance, a doorway, entry, gateway or ticket.

Only One Person holds the keys.

This Person is also the Door.  

"I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture."

The words of Jesus, John 10:9

How will you enter eternity?  Through The Door?  Or will you be locked out?

    Make sure you know the One Who holds the Keys...

        But that's just me!

9/11

"This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope.

It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.

They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him."

Lamentations 3:21-24

On this date, since 2001, we witness tributes, read memorials, and remember the greatest tragedy to literally hit American soil in our Nation's history.  We remember lost family, friends, and first-responders.  We remember who we were with, where we were, and what we were doing when the Twin Towers began to crumble after the first attack at 7:14 AM CDT.  We recall choices made in split-seconds of time that forever altered our daily lives and continue to haunt our memories to this day.  We wonder, "What if..."

Those left behind must continue in the footsteps of the fallen, and remember where our Hope comes from.

Our hope comes from the Lord.

Jeremiah penned these verses, moved by the Holy Spirit of God, when he was pressed to the point of despair.  Have you been there?

I have.

At that time, I never thought I would recover.

BUT GOD.

There are times in our past, there are times in our present and there will be times in the future when we will feel as if we are consumed.  Take heart!  We are promised to never be completely destroyed.

We are promised to be enveloped in the Divine Mercies of God Himself.

As we remember our history on this day...

    may we always be ready to recall...

        The blessings, mercies and faithfulness of God.

            But that's just me!

"When you come to the end of your rope, reach for the hem of His garment."  Anonymous

Peace, Sleep & Safety

"Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep.

If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.  Amen"

When I was a little girl, I used to pray this prayer each night before falling asleep, and if I was scared of the shadows that formed on my wall by the light of the moon making its way through my bedroom window, I would sing, "Jesus Loves Me" until I drifted off to sleep.

Psalm 4:8 says, "I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety."

I can't help but think of the life of David when I read this verse today.  (After all, he wrote it!)

But to think, first, of how he was a shepherd boy.  Many nights he was out in a cold, dark field among animals and beasts who wanted to steal his lambs for a midnight snack!  And yet, he knew the Lord would allow him peace, rest and safety.

Then, as an anointed King, who was not yet on the throne, running from Saul.  The caves, rocks and hills where he spent many nights on the run, hiding from his enemies.

And then in Psalm 23:2a where David writes, "He maketh me to lie down in green pastures...."

Our 'beds' may be made up of many things-

But God promises that when we lay down our heads at the end of the day, He will give us peace, sleep and safety!

What a Mighty God we serve!

We can let go of all the anxiety and stress of the day, knowing that we are in the hand of God, under His care and protection.

And when we wake, we can praise Him for keeping His promise!

I think sometimes, we forget some of the promises of God, and by doing so, we take for granted all that our Saviour gives us on a day-to-day basis.

Without peace, rest and safety, we would not be able to function during the day.

Our God supplies all our needs...

    Even the ones we don't think of...

        But that's just me!

"Every hour of every day, God is richly blessing us; both when we sleep and when we wake His mercy waits upon us."  Charles Spurgeon