I Thessalonians 5:17 Pray without ceasing. While there are no hard and fast rules on prayer in the New Testament a look into the book of Psalms can give us an idea of what will give us a better fellowship with God. Psalm 55:17 says Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud, and he shall hear my voice. So a good start is 3 times a day. But then look at Pslam 119:164 Seven times a day do I praise thee because of thy righteous judgements. So now we are up to ten. But David goes even farther, which shows why he was the great man of God that he was. Psalms 119:62 At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee because of thy righteous judgements. Now we are up to 11 and losing sleep in the process. Look at verses 147-148 of the same Psalm – I prevented the dawning of the morning, and cried: I hoped in thy word. Mine eyes prevent the night watches that I might meditate in thy word. Now we are up to 13! Now look at verse 97-O how I love thy law! it is my meditation all the day. So the cares and distraction of the day are interrupted by prayer. If David a King and general, a husband and father could make such commitment surely even the busiest of us can. First a commitment, next a step, then practice, then a part of your life. Remember that the most important thing in the world is your personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. And nowhere is fellowship sweeter than the Bible and prayers.

II Timothy 2:19 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord know them that are his. And, let everyone that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

  I recently spoke to some young people concerning the things of God and found they had been taught that a person could basically live as they pleased because the law was eliminated by the cross. The Sunday following I spoke with a traveling preacher who told me that this teaching is gaining much growth all through this country. I would like to briefly address this and will willingly discuss this issue with any who contact me. First note the text. God knows who you are even if mankind cannot recognize you as a child of God. But your Heavenly Father commands you to depart from iniquity. Yes Christ died for your sins. Yes the ceremonial part of the law is done away. Yes you are sealed til the day of redemption. But God expects better behavior of His own. Read Titus 1:16 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and to every good work reprobate. This is very strong language. Also note Romans 6:1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? Please read the rest of Romans chapter 6 for God’s demands for clean living. Also read I Corinthians 3:13 Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.

  In summary: God saved you to deliver you from the power of sin as well as the penalty of sin. He gives great detail as to how the New Testament Christian is to live. He will punish you in this life for disobedience, and will judge, not you, but your work in the life to come. I want you to have a good life,a good resurrection, and a good judgement at the Judgement Seat of Christ. Please consider this matter carefully.

On two different occasions all mankind knew who God was, in the Garden of Eden and on Noah’s ark. Since that time the Devil has confused man with his many idols and inventions.  So permit me with the Scripture to introduce you to my Saviour.

   God reveals Himself by two main means, the Bible and the creation. When He makes Himself known He usually first lets you know that He is the Creator, then the Judge then the Saviour. One example is Genesis- “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” God then finds the sinful man, wife and serpent and passes judgement. Next he slays animals to give them skins to wear thus providing redemption through the shed blood.

   Another example is found in Romans One in reverse order as Paul is speaking to the redeemed. Verse 16 “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For therein is the rightousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, the just shall live by faith.” Next He shows Himself the Judge in verse 18 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness”. Lastly he shows Himself as the Creator in verses 19 and 20 “Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.”.

What does this mean to you? There is one and only one God, the Creator of all mankind and your Creator especially. You have sinned against your Creator and deserve His punishment, which is Hell. Read the rest of Romans chapter One for a comprehensive list of sins. Next he sent his son Jesus Christ to die upon the cross for your sins and rose up from the Dead and is in Heaven, ready, willing and able to save your soul. I ask you will you repent and admit you deserve God’s wrath for your sins and call on The Lord Jesus Christ to save your soul? For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

I have recently had conversations with some men as I was street preaching concerning Bible doctrine. As I began quoting Scripture they asked what about the Greek? As I explained that the King James Authorized Version of 1611 is a perfect and inerrant translation both these men went to the Hebrew on something they said was different from the English. I looked these words up in a lexicon and found that these young men had been sold a bill of goods and that the King James was right. So it occurred to me that if the Greek and Hebrew are so important to understanding the Bible then why do most native Greek speakers reject the Scriptural salvation of faith and follow a religion of works and rituals? Why do most native Hebrew speakers reject Jesus as the Christ? Why do sinners hid behind these languages to justify their sin? If I take a King James and show it to a child and explain that it is the very word of God and show him the verses on salvation they almost always will believe and receive Christ as their Saviour. Let me show an adult who believes that the Bible I have in my hands is God’s Word and he will forsake sin. Confuse a person with the Greek and Hebrew and he will remain in darkness. Remember that God is not the author of confusion, and where the word of a King is there is power. My final authority is the simple English found in the King James Authorized Version of 1611. I can hold it in my hands I can read it with my eyes and can go to it’s author Almighty God for understanding. Where is your final authority?

On the 17th many people were celebrating St. Patrick’s Day. Of course the Patrick they were thinking of was a recreation of a true saint reinvented in Roman Catholic clothing. In Patrick’s writings he makes no mention of the pope or snakes or lighting a Paschal fire. He does mention the Gospel, frequently quotes Scripture, baptising adult believers and fighting sin. So why do people want to celebrate his life by drinking green (and regular) beer or drowning the shamrock in a glass of whiskey? In an earlier post I proved from the Scripture that Jesus never drank booze and no one has tried to refute it. I will now stand up for the true Patrick who would have preached against all the boozing and debachary that goes on in his name.

  If you want to know the true Patrick it can only be found in his writings, the Confession and Letter to Coroticus. The later writings were an attempt to bring the Celtic church under the sway of the Roman church, accomplished by the Norman English invasion. So put down the bottle and pick up the Bible, push away tradition and do some research, pray and seek God’s face, and oh what a difference it will make!

Recently I went to a dentist after many years of avoiding it. My wife and young sons had already seen him a couple of weeks before. The receptionist noticed that I was the father and first off told me what wonderful children and how well behaved they were. Then when I saw the hygienist she told me how pleasant my children were. Then the dentist also told me how much they enjoyed my children.

Now my children are far from perfect and I make plenty of mistakes but I would like to offer some insight into training up children. First notice the Scripture says train up not bring up. Training is supervised repetition. My children say Yes sir yes ma’am as natural as most say yeah, because of constant repetition and correction. Next remember that the end goal is to produce children that will please God, for all things were created for his pleasure.

With these two things in mind how do you achieve the goal? First read the Bible and pray to see what kind of person pleases God. Then live it. Children learn more in an hour of watching than a life time of listening. Next be sure you and your spouse are in total agreement. If children see division they will divide and conquer. Next limit outside influence such as T. V., Internet, friends and most importantly public school. The ideal is home schooling with the wife at home. If you want the children to have your values and beliefs and manners you must be the main influence in their lives. And Dad sit down and talk to them talk to them talk to them. Listen to them and give them guidance. And make it a point to correct behavior not merely punish it. Most parents only punish children because they have either lost their temper or been embarrassed. Correct them at home in love, patience and firmness  then you won’t be embarrassed much in public. Don’t allow your children to watch shows where children are ill mannered or the hero children save the day by disobeying parents. Remember that each child is an individual and treat him as such. Make home joyful. While you are the parents and not their buddies you are also not their enemies. God wants the home to be Heaven on Earth. This doesn’t happen by provoking them to wrath and mistreating your spouse. Make them read so they can engage in intelligent conversation. This coupled with manners will make your child a delight to speak to. Finally eat at least one meal together at the table with no electronic distraction. Companion comes from Latin and means with bread. You learn manners at the table. You become friends at the table. You get to understand each other at the table. You thank God for providing at the table.

Of course if you need advice ask. Look for some one with good children and see how he does it and get a few pointers. Then see if it works for you, if it doesn’t try some thing else. But start young! A teenager who is not connected and trained is a tough row to hoe. God bless.

In the Amarillo Globe News January 21, 2018 page A6 an article gives the recommendations of National Academy of Sciences Engineering and Medicine to help reduce drunk driving fatalities. Among these are lowering the blood alcohol limit, increasing the alcohol tax, and making alcohol less convenient by limiting hours days it can be sold. As I have stated before the CDC also recommend limiting outlets where booze can be obtained. Any honest person knows that there is no such thing as responsible drinking for, as the Bible says, wine deceives. So Texas is behind the times because the voters of this state are increasing access to this form of legal dope yet not increasing the tax to cover the cost of its damage to our communities which far exceeds tax revenue. And now Canyon has changed zoning so that tattoo parlors and smoke lounges can come in. Of course soon marijuana will be legalized and who knows what next from a generation of mind numbed voters.

   Also the news reported a record long drought of 107 days and counting. At Anchor of Hope we have always said When the County Votes Wet God Votes Dry. Look at the history and learn. Right before the local option elections there is an abundance of rain to show God’s blessings and then the rain is restrained to show His displeasure. In conclusion- repent. Avoid as much as possible places that sell booze and work to give booze the boot!