It is the funniest thing that people are taught to strive to better than anyone else. We are schooled with this mantra all of our lives. And that if you can’t win honestly, do it any way you can. This has led to many hurt feelings and hatred, not only from others but of ourselves. Well I can’t say that I didn’t do that because I did. And it led to hatred of myself and others. It took a long time for me to get to the place where I would even consider living another way. I had to come to the end of myself. And realize that there is more to life than what I have. I was glad to see another way and hoping that I could live this way. Do you know what happens to a person who doesn’t like or hates themselves? They don’t care what happens to themselves or others. This is where criminal activity comes in. You wonder why they won’t stop. Because they have no hope that anything will change for the better. They are the trash and will do whatever to prove it. And all they needed was someone to tell and show them that they are worth something. I have seen it many times how a kind word or gesture struck with the person all of their life. I couldn’t do this before I met God. He showed me I was worth something. And hope came into my life. I began changing into the person God saw in me. The bible says it this way. “Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.”

“Do all things without murmurings and disputings:” (Philippians 2:3&14, KJV).

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What do you do when no one is looking? We were all raised with families and taught values. Some were good and some were not. But our mothers and fathers tried to show us what was right and real. They wanted our lives to be as good as possible. There is a story I learned of just recently. A 15 year old boy who was taking care of his mother who was disabled. He approached a person in the grocery store and asked them if he could help them in exchange for food. His mother couldn’t work and they didn’t have food in the house. The young boy would work for food to feed themselves. He was a straight A student in school. People responded to the need of this family. This boy on his own went out and did this for his mother and himself. What would you do if no one was looking? What do you believe and does it show in your life? The US Army began teaching values, loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity and personal courage. They did this because they found that these values weren’t being taught at home. And as a whole our society was moving away from these values. The need in our lives has always been for living a purpose driven life with values. We all want our lives to mean something. We want our life to have value. The bible says it this way. “Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;” Philippians 1:27, KJV. So what do you do when no one is looking?

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It means you pay your money and you take your chances. It is the way of doing business today. Nothing is sacrosanct. Everything is open to everyone’s interpretation. There are no more hard and fast rules that govern people’s behavior. It is also called Situational Ethics. People change jobs at least 7 times in their lives. The stability and security of life styles are no longer there. Everything is changing and shifting sideways. The most immediate effect is to destabilize the vast majority of people’s lives. What is being played on TV and at the movies? TV has more food, sports and horror shows. Nothing on family values. If it shows anything, it shows that no one is staying true to their mates. And the sad part of it is that fornication and adultery are being promoted as it is ok. There has never been more lies portrayed as the true. It is nothing but lies. And unfortunately it is being believe. Do you know why great civilizations fell? It was because of immorality. Civilization has always been based upon the family. When the family is torn down, then the civilization follows. This country isn’t immune to this tragedy. This country if it doesn’t correct itself will fall into the history books as a sad footnote. You need to take all that is being said on TV, radio, newspapers or the internet with a grain of salt. Only believe what you can prove and throw the rest away. You need to remember that it is buyer beware.

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I have seen many people do good works. People give from their hearts to people less fortunate. I know of one man who was very wealthy and gave half of his income to charity. I have seen my parents reach out to needy people with money or food or clothes. It is heartwarming to see people help other people. I have seen it in the strangest places with a person who wouldn’t be caught dead helping another person. There is something about seeing a need in other people. You see the need because you have been there and understand what is going on. A friend of mine picked up 2 hitchhikers and gave them a ride to Baton Rouge. They were going to rob her, when she offered them a coke and some food. The 2 hitchhikers had a change of heart and told her that she shouldn’t pick up hitchhikers. It was resolved because she reached out to them with her heart. But what comes first, the chicken or the egg? Does the compassion to help people come first or does faith or belief in God that you can make a difference? God is love and has compassion for man. He sent His only Son to die for our sins. So we could come back to God. Good works don’t get you into heaven. And just being a good person doesn’t make it either. God is very specific about how we can enter in. He says, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph.2:8,9 KJV).

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Freedom is the cornerstone of our life in America. We will fuss and fight if we don’t have it. People from all over the world come to America just to have freedom. But it seems that most people just don’t want it. It seems strange to say that but it is the truth of the matter. People trade freedom for security or health or for money. And all those things can’t give you the contentment of freedom. It was written into our constitution so that no one could change it. But our government has been changing our freedom to what they can control. So what is freedom? And why is it so precious to us? Our founding fathers began to define it. They wrote down what they thought was good for all the people. Lincoln said it this way, it is for the people, by the people and of the people. So what has changed? What I see is that people aren’t willing to live the life of freedom. I’ll tell you what it isn’t. It isn’t people rioting in the streets. It isn’t the killing of people to get what we want. It isn’t living a life of fear behind our doors. People came to this country and journeyed into the wilderness to secure a life for themselves and their families. They knew that they would probably be killed by whatever. But they went anyway. People who went to live their lives in a way of their choosing. They came to worship God in their own way. They saw an opportunity to live in the freedom that this country offered. So people came to this country with nothing. They didn’t care. They knew that hard work and faith would build a life. Freedom always has responsibilities. Responsibilities toward each other and this country. No one said that this country would be perfect. But with faith in God and hope for the future, you too can build a life of freedom.

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I have 4 sons. My wife and I have raised them to be good men. We have gone through many things with these boys, some good, and some bad. I love them and wouldn’t trade them for anything. Sometimes I wish them were little boys again. I look back at their lives and see that a most precious time was when they were little. When they were dependent upon my wife and I. And I could still shape their destiny. But I have to say they still come to me to talk about important events in their lives. I can remember when I thought my parents were clueless. It took time and hard knocks to convince me that they were really smart. The longer I live the more I believe that one of most grievous things in a parent’s life is bury one of their children. I buried my parents and my younger brother. That was hard enough to go through. All I want for my children is a good life. I don’t care what they do for a living, mostly. I want them to happy with their life. And not to get into trouble of their own making. It is my responsible for the lives of my children. They were given to me to raise and care for. I am accountable to God for my children. They are part of my inheritance from God. Did you know that children are given to you to teach you about life? You don’t become a whole person until you have children. That is why God says, train up a child in the way they should go and when they are older they will not depart from it.

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I have 2 dogs, Olivia and Marley. Olivia is Yorkshire mix. She is about 5 lbs. Marley is a Golden Retriever mix. She is about 50 lbs. And I have a cat named Calli. They all live in the house. Olivia is the mother of this crew. Whatever she says Marley and Calli do. I take the dogs outside between 5am and 6am. I do it just before I go to work. When I go outside it is absolutely silent. All that actually can be heard are the crickets. Olivia and Marley can hear better than I can. So when we are outside I watch them as they go about their business. They will stop and listen and look in the direction of the sound. But I can’t hear a thing. But if they start barking, I have to bring them inside. At that time of day, most people are asleep. It is still dark. But I walk outside and I can hear my own heartbeat. I usually don’t say anything. I can feel the darkness. It wraps me like a blanket. It is just me out there. I always can feel that I am not alone. There is no one out there that I can see. But there is an ever present being walking with me. The silence is so loud that everything is blocked out. I can think clearly. There is nothing to distract me. It is there that I come to myself and understand who I am. As my dogs go about their business, I cry out saying, O Lord, it is I standing here in need of prayer.

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Food, clothing and shelter, we strive all our lives to obtain these things. But is it enough? We would not survive very long if we didn’t have these things. But is it all there is? We know that there is more to life than this. But why do we settled for just this part of life. We are a materialistic society. We have more things than anyone else in the world. And the world wants what we have. This is strange and somehow wrong. The wealth of this nation is funding the rest of the world. After Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans was a ghost town. A million and a half people had lived there. It was strange to drive through there. Everything had collapsed. All the money that had flowed through that town was gone. It was the largest migration since the 19^th century. It has been 10 years since that hurricane and New Orleans is still not the same. More money has poured into the city than you would think. But it still hasn’t made the difference. But we are not just materialistic people. There is more too us than that. We are spiritual as well as physical. The life of people is translated into a city. And New Orleans has lost its heart. And no amount of money will bring it back. We need money but not at the expense of our lives. If you keep scratching for money and don’t see the other side of life, you have missed what life is about. All those intangible things that we ignore are the important things in life. They are love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance. By the way these are the fruit or manifestation of the Spirit of God. And everyone can have them for the asking.

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If you look around at man you will wonder why we were created. The world is such a jumbled mess and all thanks to man. If there isn’t a war, there is a famine and if not a famine, a disaster. And it is all due to man’s efforts. This imperfect species that has control of this earth, I wonder why the earth hasn’t burn down yet. I look around at the fear and hopelessness people are suffering through. And wonder why man hasn’t given up yet. I do understand it and know why it is like it is. Man wants to god over his own destiny. Man sees himself as the supreme leader of his life. He is large and in charge. This is the biggest lie in the world today. Man doesn’t have the power to change a thing. Man can’t even get out the mess he makes. So why would he believe that he can rule the world. It is more of a hope than a belief. But it is false hope. But we all know that there is no higher power than man who he will submit himself to. I not know whether to laugh or cry at that this megalomania. I thought this way for a long time. But when I came to myself I discovered that there was someone who was looking out for me. And He had to power to change my life. What was so surprising to me was that He loved me the way I was. For God so loved the world. This is the reason why we were made because of God’s love. Everyone knows this scripture which is man’s shame. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16). It is time to believe what it says. There isn’t much time left to this world, so use your time wisely.

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There are so many versions of Jesus in this world. I have seen just recently that people tried to show Him as just human and not divine. Many other religions recognize Him as great man. Some even says He was a prophet. All of this is to discredit Him as the son of God. The bible says that there is no other name under heaven by which we can be saved. It also says that in the name of Jesus every knee shall bow and tongue confess that Jesus is the Lord of all. Why do you think that people wince at the name of Jesus? They get angry and curse when his name is said. Have you noticed all the TV programs that proclaim the devil is all powerful? It is an effort to replace Jesus. When I first became saved, I was angry at the devil for leading me around by the nose. So I went on seek and destroy missions. After a month, God stopped me and asked what I was doing. I said I was getting rid of the devil. God said no, I was still following the devil. He said follow me and when you encounter the devil, cast him out in my name. God knows what He is talking about. Follow Jesus and everything else will fall into place.

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