July 21 do you tip?

Do you tip? Recently when my wife and I were paying at a restaurant we overheard our waitress talking to her coworkers speaking of another table. “They were hard to please. There were 8 of them and several were children who cut up and were rude. Their bill came to $150 and they left nothing for a tip.” This waitress had been pleasant and accommodating to us. We saw how she was treated at the other table. Sometimes life is not fair. I heard of one person who put a stack of money on the table and told the waitress, “This is your tip. Every time I have to get your attention, I am taking back some of it. You can have all of it or part of it or none of it depending on your service.” What does “tip” stand for? There are several definitions for the word “tip.” One definition is, “give someone a sum of money as a way of rewarding them for their service.” Someone else has said it stands for “To Improve Service.” Apparently putting money on the table before ordering has been around for a while. I think fair is fair. If you “punish” a servant for poor service be careful because what you sow so shall you reap. Galatians 6:7  Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. How you treat others greatly influences how you are treated. Luke 6:31  And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise. Even if the service is less than great if the mission was accomplished you should appreciate the service. Waiters and waitresses earn $2.13 an hour in most states. Could you live on $2.13 an hour? They stand of their feet. They smile when they are hurting. They put up with abuse. They depend on their tips to make a decent check. I usually tip 20%. Even if the service is not the greatest, I try to show mercy. Many people tip 15%. An easy way to determine the amount of a tip is figure 10% of it. Then if you give 15% half that amount and add it to it. Example. Total meal $20. 10% is $2. Half of that is $1. Add 2 and 1 to get $3 for 15%. If you give 20% find 10%. ($2.) Add another 10% ($2) for a total of $4. Jesus expects us to show mercy. In doing so He shows mercy to us. Matthew 5:7  Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. A workman is worthy of his hire. Luke 10:7 …for the labourer is worthy of his hire... Matthew 7:2 … with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. We could never repay Jesus for what He has done for us. When you can be generous. 

IFR Instrument Flight Rules. Airplane pilots have flight rules they must follow. One set is called Instrument flight rules. These pilots plot their course and file their flight plan with Air Traffic Control. They rely completely on their instruments. They must have faith that their instruments are accurate. Training for IFR certification requires many hours of flying with an instructor while wearing a hood. The student can only see the instruments and must rely on them with no visual contact with the world below. The other set of flight rules is called VFR. Visual flight rules. This means the pilot relies on ground reference points to fly where he desires. He may follow roads. He may follow familiar ground points. He is free within certain altitudes to circle, dive climb, or fly as he pleases under VFR. He is responsible to be sure to watch for other plane traffic. In the Christian walk, we have similar “flight rules” We can follow Jesus by faith, or we can try to follow Jesus by sight. It is best to close our eyes and follow Him by faith. 2 Corinthians 5:7 (For we walk by faith, not by sight:) When we walk by sight we see the storm. Matthew 14:30   But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. Peter was walking on the water. Impossible some would say. But the Bible clearly states that Jesus permitted Peter to walk on the water. (Our God is an awesome God.) Peter was fine as long as he was walking by faith looking at Jesus. But when he saw the wind boisterous, he took his eyes off of Jesus and began to sink. You and I are to walk by faith. There are many unseen forces that surround us. Some good. Some bad. Usually, we don’t see them but on special occasions Jesus allows some to see what the normal eye does not see. 2 Kings 6:17 And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha. What the enemy wants us to see will cause fear, confusion, lack of faith and agony. We must keep our eyes on Jesus. Bad things can still happen to us, but we must focus on Jesus. Stephen had his eyes on Jesus as he was being stoned to death. Acts 7:54-56  But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, 56  And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.  Will you keep your eyes on Jesus even if it kills you? Try to not let the problems of life cause you to take your eyes off Jesus. 

Enjoy your wealth. Poor people greatly outnumber those who are well off financially. To that minority who are blessed with great wealth the Bible speaks a word. Ecclesiastes 6:2 A man to whom God hath given riches, wealth, and honour, so that he wanteth nothing for his soul of all that he desireth, yet God giveth him not power to eat thereof, but a stranger eateth it: this is vanity, and it is an evil disease. King Solomon was the wealthiest of the wealthiest. He was much more than comfortable. He literally could buy anything money could buy. Yet with all his getting he was a discontented man. He ended up turning away from Jehovah and worshiping false gods. He kept searching for something he had to begin with, communion with God. Along the way he lost that personal connection. Are you living in constant sweet communion with Jesus? Maybe there was a time in you past when you were closer to Jesus than you are now. Jesus has not moved. You have. If you come back to your first love you can have that sweet communion again. Revelation 2:4  Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. You can have revival and joy again if you want it. Now back to what God said through Solomon. Ecclesiastes 6:2 A man to whom God hath given riches, wealth, and honour, so that he wanteth nothing for his soul of all that he desireth, yet God giveth him not power to eat thereof, but a stranger eateth it: this is vanity, and it is an evil disease. God gives riches, wealth and honour. If you enjoy these they are a gift from God. Yes, you earn your living. Buy and sell. Invest. Rocket science. Brain surgeon. Plumber. But it is God who gave you the mind and ability to reason and act. God gave you a body that breaths, pumps blood, sees, hears etc. on its own. Thank God for your wealth.  yet God giveth him not power to eat thereof. You will eat your last meal someday. Who will get your wealth? Your family? Hopefully it will do more good than harm. What about the Lord’s work? Ask the Lord where He wants your wealth to go. Perhaps your church. Perhaps an organization such as Samaritans’ Purse. If led to leave some of your wealth to a Christian purpose, please do your homework to be sure you are not lining the CEOs pocket. An organization of well-being for others does not necessarily wisely use your donation. Let the money you donate be used to bring others to Christ. Then the fruit of some of your riches will follow you to Heaven. 

One Time. I normally wear a coat and tie for the Sunday morning service. I do not criticize those who don’t dress up. What they wear is between them and Jesus. Usually, I am the only one wearing a coat and tie and that is fine too. However. One Sunday morning Southern Baptists called attention to Baptist Disaster Relief. Trained volunteers work after a disaster such as a hurricane, mass flooding or a devasting fire where many people are displaced and some lose their home. Disaster relief teams bring in a kitchen that can feed up to 5,000 meals a day. A shower trailer. A laundry trailer. Chain saw teams. Mud out teams. Chaplains and more. Those trained in disaster relieve are called “yellow hat” because upon completion of the training they are given a yellow cap and yellow tee shirt. This shirt and cap are to be worn only when the volunteer is working on a disaster. On the Sunday we recognized the ministry of Baptist Relief those trained could wear their yellow shirts and caps. Three people in our church wore the shirts. I was one of them. I am trained as a chaplain. So here is the preacher on Sunday morning greeting everyone wearing a yellow tee shirt with a Baptist Relief logo on it. Wouldn’t you know we had a first-time visitor? Said she upon learning I was the pastor, “Well years ago the Baptist preacher always wore a coat and tie. Things have certainly changed.” She was not pleased. I explained to her the reason why but that made no difference. She has not worshiped with us again. One time in preaching in churches 58 years I wear a tee shirt. One time. Many things can happen one time. Believe it or not a woman can become pregnant with just one sexual encounter. We even see that in the Bible. Judah, one of the 12 sons of Jacob did not keep a Biblical command and his widowed daughter-in-law sat beside the road in a veil and pretended to be a harlot. Genesis 38:15  When Judah saw her, he thought her to be an harlot; because she had covered her face. He propositioned her. They had sex. She got pregnant. One encounter. Changed both of their lives. Now let’s consider a one-time event. Being born again. John 3:3  Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Born again. You were born once physically. Jesus commands us to be born again. This is a spiritual birth when we repent from our sins and ask Jesus to save us. One time is all it takes. A child can’t be born physically time after time. Praise God when we are born again spiritually it takes. Jesus holds in His hand eternally. John 3:15  That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. Do you have eternal life?

Twenty-one days. Three weeks can take forever or can pass in a breeze. If you are planning a vacation it seems like it takes forever for the vacation to start. Once on the vacation the time passes rapidly. It seemed like I would never graduate from high school. It seemed like we would never get out of Army boot camp. As a child it seemed like Christmas would never get here. Does it ever seem like your prayers are stuck somewhere in time? Like maybe the orderly room forgot to pass it on to the Lord?  Of course, Jesus hears our prayers instantly. Sometimes He is quick to answer. Sometimes He says, “Okay” Sometimes He says, “Not right now.” Sometimes He says “No!” Daniel prayed. It took 21 days for his prayer for understanding to be answered. Spiritual warfare which we are unaware of is taking place everyday all around us. These spiritual forces are real and powerful. Ephesians 6:12  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Daniel prayed for understanding. God heard his prayer. God dispatched an angel to aid Daniel. A demonic power referred to as the Prince of the kingdom of Persia intercepted the angel and they fought for 3 weeks. Daniel 10:11-14   And he said unto me, O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak unto thee, and stand upright: for unto thee am I now sent. And when he had spoken this word unto me, I stood trembling. 12  Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words. 13  But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia. 14  Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days: for yet the vision is for many days. Be patient when you pray. Some demonic powers are more powerful than others. Michael was dispatched to help the angel sent to Daniel. Michael also wrestled Satan over the body of Moses. Jude 1:9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee. These demonic powers are more powerful than most angels. They certainly are more powerful than you and me. Resist them and make them flee. James 4:7  Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.  The answer to your prayer is on the way. You may have received your answer, and you won’t accept it. Or there may be warfare going on you are unaware of. Be patient. Be faithful.

July 26.   Fun and tragedy. Excitement. Adventure. The rush of adrenaline. Some of us enjoy life. As long as we put Jesus first, I think He approves of us having adventure and fun. Jumping out of an airplane? Does He approve? I can’t answer for Him, but personally if you have the desire to jump, get the training and have a competent instructor, (and the money), I think He is good with it. I imagine most of us standing in the open door looking down at the ground would do a lot of praying. Rafting. Twisting the throttle. Making a hole in one. There can be much fun and thrills to help us through this journey. But remember there is risk. The plane may crash. Someone may run a red light and hit the motorcycle. Parachutes have been known to not open. In reality death could take place at any time. Even the person who is scared to leave their house may die from a natural gas leak. Underground pipelines have been known to explode. We need to prepare to die. Unless you are caught up in the rapture the day will come when your body dies.  Fun and adventure. Sorrow and death. I heard of a mother who bought her daughter a four-wheeler for her birthday. What a thrill! She was so excited. She started it and took off straight into a tree. The crash killed her. Great joy one minute, deep unbelief and sorrow the next. How horrible. Life can be cruel. Since life is so uncertain there is one thing we need to be certain of. A right relationship with Jesus. Are you saved? If you dropped dead right now, would you go to Heaven? If there is any doubt and you want to know the truth, I suggest you do this. Be aware that you are a sinner. God is holy. To approach Him you must believe he exists. Believe that He rose from the grave. Be sorry for your sins. Tell Jesus that you want to know the truth. Ask Him to guide you. Read the Gospel of John. You will come across verses stating you must be born again. Ask Jesus how you can be born again. Continue reading John until God opens your mind to the fact that you must repent and ask Him for forgiveness. Then talk to Him. Confess you are sinner. Confess you need Him to save you. Ask Him to save you and He will.  Romans 6:23  For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 5:6  For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. 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. Romans 10:13   For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

July 27  Don’t laugh. Laughter is good for the heart. Proverbs 17:22  A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones. However, there is a time to not laugh. For example, in the Army I occasionally had KP. Kitchen Police. EARLY in the morning I was awaken and told to report to the mess hall. ALL day I was stuck in the kitchen. Being a newcomer, I was given one of the least liked job, pots and pans. Sweat and wet. Water splashed all over the place as I wrestled with pot and pan after pot and pan. Very little rest once the pots and pans started coming. But I noticed something I liked. I was working by myself. I wasn’t sitting around listening to the other guys. They always liked to cuss, take the Lord’s name in vain, talk about sexual encounters, complain and tell jokes. Now here I am washing pots and pans and I can’t help but here their jokes. Let’s be honest. Satan’s children can tell some funny jokes. Now as a Christian I was trying to let my light shine for Jesus, so I did not get involved with their profanity. But when they told a funny joke I had to bite my lip to not laugh. Do you know what I mean? If I laughed that would signal that I enjoyed the world and its pleasures. I wasn’t a prude or a preacher, but I quietly did my work and tried to be a witness. “Don’t laugh.” Years later I was asked to preach a funeral. Several people from our church rode in the van with us to the funeral home 70 miles away. It was raining when we arrived, so I parked under the awning to let everyone out. Then I parked our van. I was in one of the side rooms with the casket talking with his widow when I heard laughter out in the hall. I was offended that someone would have such loud gayety in the funeral home. How disrespectable. Then I overheard what they were laughing about. Naomi, our 3-month-old child had been left in the van. She was sleeping in her carrier and my wife forgot to get her. Inside it dawned on her the baby was still in the van. I don’t really understand why it was funny, but they laughed loudly I’m sorry to say I thought it was funny too. Laughter can be contagious.  I had to literally bite my tongue to keep from laughing as I was standing face to face ministering to his widow. Ecclesiastes 3:2  A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to laugh, and a time to not laugh. We are in the world. We are human. Lord please help us to control our emotions and be a witness for you. 

July 28  Don’t speak. Should you be quiet in church? People visiting our church will find people who are laughing, hugging, talking, shaking hands and in general having a good time. I am thankful to be pastor of such a friendly church. Visitors are welcome and sometimes surprised that we love them so much. I think that is the way church should be. But. Some churches are more reverent. People quietly enter the sanctuary and sit down with very little or no conversation. Of course, it is ok to reverently and respectably come into the house of the Lord. Those used to laughter and hugging feel uncomfortable in a formal reverent church. Those used to quiet reverence are astonished to visit our church. What does the Bible say? Ecclesiastes 5:1  Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil. Please permit me to share that same verse from the New Living Translation 2. Ecclesiastes 5:1 As you enter the house of God, keep your ears open and your mouth shut. It is evil to make mindless offerings to God. Keep your ears open and your mouth shut. We come to church to worship the King of Kings. With respect and reverence, we enter His sanctuary. Psalm 100:4  Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. We are family. It is a mini family reunion when we gather to worship Him. Are you happy at a family reunion? Don’t answer that. Family reunions are happy when the family is in one accord with no descension or differing views. Those who quietly enter and worship are right. Those who rejoice and praise God are right. Neither is wrong. When the Bible is taught, we need to stop talking and pay strict attention to the Word of God. At that time keep your ears open and your mouth shut. (Unless you say AMEN!) Amen? What a joy it is to be in the family of God. Are you enjoying your adventure? 

July 29  Say what? Communication. So very important. We have a responsibility to speak in a way others understand. Those hard of hearing often have to have things repeated. Sometimes we don’t express in words the things that are in our mind. It is embarrassing to express an idea and the person listening completely misunderstands what we mean. Sometimes the emphasis we put on certain words makes a difference. Take for example “I did not say he stole the money.” This sentence changes meaning with emphasis on different words. “I” did not say he stole the money. If it wasn’t you then who did say it. I “did not” say he stole the money. Okay then what did you say? I did not “say” he stole the money. You didn’t say it? Did you imply it? I did not say “he” stole the money. Ok if it wasn’t him then who was it you said stole the money? I did not say he “stole” the money. If he didn’t steal it, then what did he do with it? Borrow it? I did not say he stole the “money.” Ok. If he didn’t steal the money, what did he steal?  I talked with the man who invented Doppler radar. I asked him if he could in simple terms explain to me how it worked. My wife, his wife and I listened to his answer. Say what? None of the three of us understood what he said. His vocabulary was so far above my understanding that I understood nothing. I am so happy God gives us people with brilliant minds to think and explore, experiment and research and come up with wonderful things beneficial to our lifestyle. I don’t need to understand all there is to know. I just thank God for the benefit and enjoy it. Now let’s talk about the most important topic of all. Salvation. That may not interest you now, but I promise you 100 years from now it will mean something to you. You only go around once. Make sure you don’t miss salvation. If you miss this train, you can never catch it again. Salvation is so simple it seems hardly real. God, the Creator allowed our sins to nail Him to a cross and kill Him. Then He came back to life. He paid our debt. We must repent and ask Him to forgive us. That doesn’t make sense. But He clearly speaks to our heart and His Word and Holy Spirit guide us to the truth. John 16:13   Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: Listen to the still quiet voice within your heart and He will show you how to repent and call on Jesus and be saved eternally. Are you listening?

July 30  Tender heart. Guys aren’t supposed to cry. Says who? Society. Only a sissy cries. You don’t want to look like a sissy, do you? I wonder why Jesus gave us tear ducts if He doesn’t want us to weep. Big tough guys will do anything to stop others from seeing tears in our eyes. Sometimes things creep up behind us and bite us emotionally. Sometimes we cannot control our emotions. Have sympathy for those who weep. Romans 12:15  Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. Comfort (come along side to aid) those who need comforting. We are here to minister to each other. Lost or saved we all need understanding and comfort. We need to see how wicked we are before God. He is holy. We are the opposite. How can He stand to be around us? Yet He wishes to live within us. Before we can ask Him to save us, we must be sorry we are sorry. Are you sorry you are sorry? I am.  Does it break your heart to remember the ugly things you have said and done? If you are truly sorry for your sins you will mourn over your unholiness. It is good to regret our sins so much that we break down and openly weep. Grief brings us close to God. If we repent and weep before God we will rejoice in the morning. Psalm 30:5 For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. There is a time to weep for our sins and there is a time to laugh after we are forgiven. We mourn, get it right with God and then rejoice. Ecclesiastes 3:4  A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;(Unless you are a Baptist and then you don’t dance. Oh wait. That was the old time Bible rejoicing and sin hating Baptists of yesteryear. Shame on us.) Those who laugh at their sin shall mourn and weep someday.  Luke 6:25 Woe unto you that are full! for ye shall hunger. Woe unto you that laugh now! for ye shall mourn and weep. James 4:9   Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Do we weep for the lost as we should? Psalm 126:6  He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him. We should weep for the lost that we are praying for. Revelation 3:18  anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. Perhaps the eyesalve we need is tears for the lost. Tears for those who have gone astray. Tears for our own sins so that we may be revived and live in God’s Spirit. Will you weep now? Or will you weep when it’s too late?