Big Daddy's blog: "Light For Your Path"

1 Peter 1:24-25 “The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: But the word of the Lord endureth for ever.” Many centuries ago there was a Roman emperor named Diocletian who was known for his hatred of Christianity. He hated the Bible so much that he took a Bible and burned it, and then on top of that burned Bible he erected a monument. Chiseled on that monument were these words: Extincto nomini christianorum - “The name of Christian is extinct.” Over the years many like Diocletian have sought to eradicate the Bible and Christianity, but for naught. The Bible is the incorruptible Word of God, and the foul breath of time and the gnawing tooth of decay cannot destroy the Word of God! Purchase a Bible this week for the sole purpose of giving it away. Then ask God to show you that special someone to give it to.

Matthew 16:25 “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.” When I was a little boy and I found something that didn’t belong to me, I’d say, “Finders keepers, losers weepers!” But do you know what approach the apostle Paul took? It was one of 'keepers weepers, losers finders.' He said, “But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ” Religion does not save us. Jesus saves us, and He is calling us to, not only turn from our sins, but to turn from our righteousness. What are you holding onto in your life that brings you security? Let it go to the glory of God! You can trust Him to provide for all your needs. LFYP NEWS Radio program #3 should be ready by Monday. Plus we have another special announcement. GET READY!

Genesis 18:20-26 So the Lord told Abraham, “I have heard a great outcry from Sodom and Gomorrah, because their sin is so flagrant. I am going down to see if their actions are as wicked as I have heard. If not, I want to know.” The other men turned and headed toward Sodom, but the Lord remained with Abraham. Abraham approached him and said, “Will you sweep away both the righteous and the wicked? Suppose you find fifty righteous people living there in the city—will you still sweep it away and not spare it for their sakes Surely you wouldn’t do such a thing, destroying the righteous along with the wicked. Why, you would be treating the righteous and the wicked exactly the same! Surely you wouldn’t do that! Should not the Judge of all the earth do what is right?” And the Lord replied, “If I find fifty righteous people in Sodom, I will spare the entire city for their sake.” When a nation loses its ability to discern morality, it embarks on a slippery slope toward self-destruction. Especially when it comes to basic sexual morality. When a nation turns its back on the commands of God, He will say, “That’s the last step. I wash My hands. You asked for it. You got it.” America is in a crisis and unless we have a moral rebirth, we will join the graveyard of the nations. It’s time to wake up. Time is passing. It’s time to look up. Jesus is coming. It’s time to sober up. Satan is working. It’s time to pray up. Mountains need moving. Ask the Lord to heal our land, forgiving the iniquities of the wicked by bringing salvation to their souls. Matthew 21:21 “Jesus answered and said...if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.”

Luke 16:10 “He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much.” What would you do if you had a million dollars? Well, let me tell you a good test of what you would do, it’s what you’re doing with that hundred dollars you have right now. Are you saving it? Spending it? Sharing it? The test of what you would do in the spiritual realm is seen by what you do in the physical realm. Many of us do not have spiritual blessings because we simply haven’t been faithful with the small things in our lives. Are you hoping for something in your life? How could you be faithful in something little so that you’ll be faithful when the other comes along?

Deuteronomy 8:1-3 Be careful to follow every command I am giving you TODAY, (listen) so that you may live and INCREASE (mature in me) and may enter and possess the land (follow my plan for your life) that the LORD promised on oath to your forefathers. (Trust Me) Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, (not to hurt you, but to help you) to HUMBLE you and to TEST you (To make you better) in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.(make you believe, according to His plan) He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, (tested you) which neither you nor your fathers had known, (between you and God) to teach you that man does not live on bread alone (Read His Word) but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. (Learn God's thoughts). Listen, mature in Me, follow My plan for your life, trust me. I won't hurt you, I am her to help you, I want to make you better I want you to believe in me, so that you will follow My plan, I am testing you. Between you and Me, Read My Word, learn My thoughts.

Malachi 3:3 "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver." This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God. One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible Study. That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver. As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities. The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot; then she thought again about the verse that says: "He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver." She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined. The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed. The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?" He smiled at her and answered, "Oh, that's easy, when I see my image in it." If today you are feeling the heat of the fire , remember that God has his eye on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you.

Ephesians 4:32 "And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." I read something that deeply touched my heart about a PGA golfer named DiVensenzo. As he was leaving a golf course with his winnings, a woman approached him and said, "I have a baby who is dying." Moved with compassion, he endorsed the check and gave it to her saying, "Take this, and try to buy some happiness for yourself and your child." A week later, he was in the clubhouse having lunch, and one of the PGA officials came up to him and said, "Did you know that the woman who approached you last week didn't have a baby dying of an incurable disease!" And DiVensenzo said, "There's no baby dying? That's the best news I've heard all week!" What an attitude! Do you ever feel like people are going to take advantage of you? Be thankful today that God keeps the score.

Luke 24:48-49 You are witnesses of these things. I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high." ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Wouldn’t it have been exciting to eavesdrop on Jesus as He called these rugged fishermen? We would observe them immediately dropping their nets, giving up everything—leaving family and livelihood, ALL—to follow the One Who is the ultimate Fisher of men. My mind is drawn to a probing question— would I have gone? Would I have been willing to sacrifice all? But what an honor to be called by the Son of God and Son of man. Well, He’s still calling people today to do the very same thing. You and I have been called to be fishers of men, but we have the opportunity to do that in a very distinctive way! Today we are casting nets around the globe to draw people to Jesus. It’s hard to imagine we have a net that big, but through your willingness God has provided all the tools we need to help. ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS SAY "YES" LFYP NEWS Radio Program #3 is under way.....Be Ready!

Psalm 139:23 “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts.” A little boy had a jigsaw puzzle that on one side had a map of the world and on the other side had a picture of a man. His mother asked him to try and work it and before long the little fellow had put the puzzle together. The mother was surprised to find that the little fellow knew so much about geography. She asked him, “How on earth did you do that?” “Oh,” he said, “I worked the other side first. When I got the man right, the world was right.” How true that is and how false that is too! We will never fix this world. Until we get the man right — the Man, Jesus Christ, we will never be right either. Greater is He that is in me, then he that is in the world. Are things in your world confusing you these days? Of course they are, this is what the Bible says our world will be like. Don't be surprised, simply turn to Jesus and trust Him to make sense of what you don’t understand.

Romans 10:9 “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Have you ever thought that salvation was like a cafeteria where you can pick and choose the aspects of Jesus you want. “I’ll have a little Saviorhood, please, but no Lordship.” If Jesus is not your Lord, Jesus is not your Savior. What’s the difference? Well, suppose we perform a wedding ceremony and say to the young man, “Would you take Mary to be your lawfully wedded wife?” and he responds, “Well, I’ll take Mary as house-keeper.” Then I say to her, “Would you take John to be your lawfully wedded husband?” and she says, “Well, I’ll take him as provider.” Friend, we can’t pick and choose what we want from Jesus. We simply take Jesus as Lord over ALL! Is Jesus Christ Lord of every area of your life? Take time to today to examine your life — your finances, your relationships, your hopes and dreams.