David Shelton Online

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 15

1 Timothy 5:24 Some men's sins are clearly evident, preceding them to judgment, but those of some men follow later. (NKJV)

The following are the confessions of a math class despiser. I have never liked math. Whenever the possibility arose in high school, I would find a way to do a little as possible. So, when our Algebra class was taught by our coach, I was glad to spend most of class time breaking down games and discussing future strategies. It was the most enjoyable year of math I have ever spent. Of course, I paid for it when I arrived at college and did not have the right foundations. My sins caught up with me.

That is the way sins work. We enjoy them or they would not be tempting. We may not see immediate consequences. We might be tempted to believe that we got away with it. Even worse, we may start believing that no consequences means what we did was not really wrong. Today’s verse puts things back in perspective. All our choices have consequences. Some consequences occur immediately, but some await us in the future.

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10

1 Timothy 5:8  But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.  (NKJV)

Did you ever have one of those puzzle games with the numbers 1 through 9? You had to move them around until they were in the proper order. Or perhaps you did connect the dot pictures. The key to seeing the pictures is keeping the numbers in order. Order is important.

God is a God of order. He establishes things with order. He has priorities for our lives. The first priority is my walk with God. The second priority is my family. Everything else falls after these two. If I neglect my family because of work or recreation or even church, then I am revealing something about my walk with God. It is not what it should be. If I am walking God, I will keep things in proper order. I will take care of my family.

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9

1 Timothy 4:16 Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.  (NKJV)

If you have flown on a commercial airline, you have heard the safety speech. Remember what is supposed to happen in case of sudden loss of pressure in the cabin? The masks will fall. You are to take one and put it over your face. If you are traveling with someone who needs assistance, you are supposed to put your mask on and then help them. This always sounds wrong to me, but it is actually the right way to do it.

Christians must be aware that people are always watching us. They are waiting to see if our faith is real – if we live the life that we talk about. Of course, we should want to see our friends and family came to believe in Jesus. If so, we need to be aware of our witness. They need to see Jesus in us. If not, they may turn away from faith.

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8

1 Timothy 4:7 But reject profane and old wives' fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness. (NKJV)

I grew up a six point Baptist. I am not talking about a unique brand of Calvinism. I am talking offering envelopes. Each week we turned in our offering envelope when we entered our Sunday School class. Along with our name and the amount of our offering, there were other places to mark on the envelope. You had to mark if we were staying for the worship service. You had to mark if you had read your Bible daily. You had to mark if you had pray daily. You had to mark if you had made any contacts visits. Of course you were attending Sunday School and giving a tithe. That brings the total to six things. I was lead to believe that if you marked all six items, you were approaching Christlikeness.

Time and experience has shown me the error being a six point Baptist. Becoming godly has little to do with checks on an envelope. It has everything to do with allowing the Holy Spirit to change us from the inside out. Worship, prayer, and Bible study gives the Spirit things to use, but they are not an end to themselves. In short, becoming godly by way of marks on an envelope is a fable.

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 6

1 Timothy 3:15 But if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.  (NKJV)

We go to someone’s house. Perhaps it is our first visit. When we arrive, we look at the house and start making assumptions and evaluations of the people who live there. We may decide if they are organized or disorganized. We may decide if they are clean or messy. We may decide if they are family or individually oriented. We may these determinations simply by our observations – even before we get to know the people.

The church is the people of God. Outsiders look at us and make some determinations. They may decide the church is for dedicated followers or pretenders. They may decide the church is for the self-righteous or forgiven sinners. They may decide the church is place to be served or a place to serve. They make all these determinations simply by what they observe. So what will they see in us today?

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2

1 Timothy 3:10  But let these also first be tested; then let them serve as deacons, being found blameless.  (NKJV)

Little league baseball season is about to get started. In the new few weeks there will tryouts and drafts all around the world. In many of those tryouts, certain players will be told they do not have to show up. They have been all-stars in the past so everyone knows what they can do. Sadly, many of those all-stars have not continued to develop and improve. They are drafted without being seen and it turns out they are not on the elite players everyone assumed them to be. Other players have caught up with them. Things change from year to year.

Churches are bad about drafting workers and leaders without checking them out first. We often employ the strategy that giving people responsibilities will cause them to become more responsible. This sets us up for disappointment. For example, we should not choose deacons because they will serve, but because they are already serving. We should expect and demand that our leaders are living a committed Christian life, before we ask them to lead. If one aspires to be a leader, he or she should find ways to lead where they are and wait for God to open new doors.

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 1

1 Timothy 3:7 Moreover he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.  (NKJV)

It might be a good advertising slogan, but it not realistic. What happens in Vegas does not stay in Vegas. It goes with whoever is involved. Of course, this slogan just reflects a mindset that is readily accepted today. We think that we can segregate all the different parts of our lives. This means whatever happens at home stays at home. Whatever happens at work stays at work. And of course, whatever happens at church stays at home.

These things may sound appealing. They are not realistic. In truth, if we have a bad morning at home, it is going to affect our day at work. If we have a bad day at work it will affect our evening at home. Certainly, what happens at church is supposed to impact what happens in our homes and workplaces. After all, Jesus is a part of our total lives. It is easy to have a good testimony at church. The issue is, “What is my testimony or reputation away from church?” Does what happen at church stay at church or does it influence the rest of my life?

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - TUESDAY, JANUARY 31

1 Timothy 2:8 I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting. (NKJV)

Parents desire to see their children do the things that are good for them. But the desire goes beyond just seeing them do what is good. They also desire to see their children do these things in the right way and for the right reasons.

Our Heavenly Father desires that His children spend time praying. He invites us to pray. He calls us to pray. He urges us to pray. He pleads with us to pray. He also wants us to pray in the right way. He wants us to pray in a right relationship with Him. This is what today’s verse implies with the phrase “holy hands.” We need to make sure we are approaching the throne of God with a clean spirit and a pure heart. He wants us to pray with a sense of grace and faith as well. The main thing is that He wants us to pray.

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - FRIDAY, JANUARY 27

1 Timothy 2:1 Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men. (NKJV)

We birth them. We rear them. We nurture them. We correct them. We educate them. We support them. We encourage them. We worry about them.

We nominate them. We support them. We vote them in. We vote them out. We compliment them. We complain about them. We blame them.

We interview with them. We work for them. We report to them. We appreciate them. We despise them. We seek to replace them.

We spend a great deal of time dealing with people from children to politicians to employers. The question is how much time we spend in the most important way of dealing with them. Do we pray for them?

DAILY PONDERINGS 2012 - THURSDAY, JANUARY 26

1 Timothy 1:20 Of whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I delivered to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme. (NKJV)

Flip Wilson was a comedian who made famous the phrase, “The Devil made me do it.” It sounds good, but it is not exactly accurate. The devil might throw out the temptation, but we decide what to do. He might suggest it, but we are responsible. We do it. Today’s verse sounds pretty harsh. Paul says he has delivered these men to Satan. The line is hyperbole or an exaggeration. He is saying that he has left them to the consequences of their actions. They were being evil while trying to appear righteous. He is willing to let them bear the results of their choices. The devil did not make them do it and he did not decide the consequences, but they were going to feel like Satan was making their lives miserable. We must be careful about our choices. They are our responsibility as are the consequences.