Job’s children?

Everything that Job lost was doubled by the end of the book except for his children. Why?

In Job 1:3, he had 7,000 sheep and in Job 42:12 he had been restored double that with 14,000 sheep. Camels, oxen, and donkeys were doubled, too.

Job was given twice as much in physical possessions, but not physical children. He was given 10 more children but not 20. Why?

I believe the implication is that all 10 of his first set of children will be in heaven so the next set of 10 were given as twice as much SPIRITUALLY speaking though not physically. I think the promise of God was to save Job’s 2nd set of children so Job did have 20 souls saved. It was a spiritual doubling not a physical doubling.

Don’t you want your children in heaven? I know I do. It’s a main concern and prayer of my heart!

I want to be like Job in Job 42:16 who saw his children and grandchildren for 4 generations.

-Mark (God is the God of redemption and His blessings in His economy are phenomenal because He can bless us spiritually as well as physically)

P.S. I love Job 42:10 tells us that Job prayed for his friends! Wouldn’t we all love to have  a friend like Job?

Ink and Blood

In downtown Gadsden at the Mary G. Hardin Museum for Cultural Arts, there is a great display about the Gutenberg press and how Bibles were printed (ink). Also, the display teaches about how our Bible has been preserved over the years and the men who gave their lives for the Word of God (blood). Oh, and you can see actual pieces of the Dead Sea Scrolls, too!

Ink and blood is a powerful display. I was deeply moved by William Tyndale’s sacrifice. What a servant of the Lord! Tragically, he was wrongly deemed a heretic for translating the Bible from Greek to English. English was considered a “vile language” for commoners and the “religious” leaders of the day did NOT want him to help regular people to have access to the Bible; therefore, he was strangled and then burned at the stake. Very sad. Remember that the “religious” leaders of the day were against Jesus , too, when He was in ministry!

If you speak English, then William Tyndale impacted your life. Think about that for a moment. Here’s a scholarly man who spoke 8 languages and was imprisoned and violently put to death. Yet because of his work on the New and Old Testaments (only finished half of OT before he was murdered), he has greatly impacted millions of English-speaking people since 83% of his work was utilized in the King James Version of the Bible. And none of us really know much about him!

I was greatly impacted by this display. Cost is $6.00 for adults to go through and it takes 2-3 hours. I was changed and will never be the same.

The display will only be there through Oct. 31st so hurry and go see it. OR buy the DVD’s they have on it.

Two websites to look at for more information before you go are www.culturalarts.org and www.inkandblood.com !!!

-Mark  (incredibly touched by the sacrifice of William Tyndale and the sovereignty of God in preserving His Word)

Where’s the Bible say “trust your SPOUSE”? (part 2)

Remember Prov. 3:5-8 tells us NOT to trust ourselves but only to trust in the Lord with all of our hearts.

So where does the Bible say that you must trust your spouse?

Someone who had been cheated on by a spouse committing adultery asked me once, “How will I ever be able to trust ANYONE again?”

To which I replied with the question, “where in the Bible does God tell you to trust your spouse?” The person responded “no where” and then with “I am called to trust in the Lord.”

Now, in marriage, trust does build. As two persons are faithful, they learn to trust each other more but ultimately, they must be trusting in Christ alone. He will reveal to them what is going on in His timing, for His glory, and for their own good!

God is love and can be trusted completely. Anyone else falls short.

Jeremiah 32:17 (KJV): “Ah Lord GOD! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee.”

Jeremiah 32:26-27: “Then came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah, saying, Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me?”

By God’s own Word, He tells us to trust Him since He can do anything He wants and He loves you and I! Think about the implications of this for biblical counseling!

-Mark (basking in the glow of God’s glory in my life as I trust Him alone for eternity)

Where’s the Bible say “trust yourself”? (part 1)

Where in the Bible does it say to trust yourself?

Prov. 3:5 tells us: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding.”

The Bible teaches us to trust in the Lord completely and fully.

Proverbs 3:6 goes further: “In all your ways, acknowledge Him and He will make straight your paths.” This tells us to acknowlege God in ALL areas of our lives, not just “spiritual” ones.

Proverbs 3:7 warns us: “Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD, and turn away from evil.”

We are warned NOT to be wise in our own eyes!

So, is the phrase, “Trust your heart” biblical or unbiblical?

Jeremiah the prophet had a better heart than any of us and he said this about his own heart in Jeremiah 17:9: “The heart is deceitful above all things, and it is exceedingly corrupt: who can know it?”

If Jeremiah considered his own heart to be deceitful, how much more should we NOT trust ourselves!?!

Trust the Lord. Doubt yourself.

-Mark (trusting God at His Word)

New Math? 20 = 40

I left home to go to work at CHC this morning and I left 20 minutes earlier than usual today.

The result is that I arrived 40 minutes earlier!

Then, I thought about how if we’ll give God the first 20 minutes of our day, then it’s like He slows down our day and gives us more time to accomplish what is needful!

Only God is capable of making time stand still! God made the sun stand still for Joshua!

-Mark (thankful for a God who redeems my time!)

A god of lightning bolts! Ouch!

Some people, even Christians, understand that God is sovereign, all-powerful, and strong but that’s all they understand about God. They miss that He is a God of love (I John 4:8) to us as revealed in the Bible.

These people mistakenly believe God to be a god of lightning bolts – ready to strike them down whenever they do something wrong. It’s a half-truth because God is just and there ARE consequences to sinful choices! For those who are NOT in Christ, they will experience the wrath of God at the Judgment Day. In the meantime, it is the goodness of God that leads to repentance according to Romans 2:4 - therefore, He is even being good to those who are not yet saved by the blood of Christ.

However, not so for us who are committed followers of Christ, trusting in Him alone for eternal life! We will NEVER see the wrath of God! That wrath was poured out on Jesus on the cross! He bore our wrath so that we might bear His righteousness!

What a gift!

So, do I see a god of lightning bolts anymore? No, not now that I am saved by His grace through faith in Jesus Christ!

Now, through biblical counseling, I can share this GOOD news with others every day!

-Mark (thankful for our God of love Who IS LOVE)

Wrong Question

People ask: “Why does a good God allow suffering, pain, sorrow, and death?”

Voddie Baucum says that’s a wrong question and he’s right! Man’s sin brought all of these consequences upon mankind – it’s a result of man’s disobedience. It’s wrong because it starts with man and not our Holy God. Man is not the source or starting point for truth! God is.

The correct question starts with a Holy God and asks: “Why didn’t a Holy, Righteous God kill me in my sleep last night due to all of my sinful, disobedient thoughts, words, and actions yesterday, the day before, and for all of the years of my life before now?”

God is holy. We are to be holy like Him by the power of the Holy Spirit and the blood of Christ that redeems us (Lev. 17:11). But we still struggle with the presence of sin.

God is good. God is gracious. God is patient. God is long-suffering with us who continue to choose sin and self over our Holy King. God is love (I John 4:8).

Ask Him the right questions so you can get the right answers!

-Mark (thankful the right answer is always “Jesus!”)