A note on " Love" for Valentines Day...

Contrary to popular belief, "manliness" is not defined by how big his truck is ,how big its pipes are, how loud its pipes are,how many cars are in his garage or how much money is in his bank account.
Anybody can play follow the leader. Real "men" are not afraid to go against the current, ( "He who wants to lead the orchestra must turn his back on the crowd"). It takes guts and courage to do the right thing as opposed to the popular thing. Over 2000 years ago a man gave His life showing us the ultimate example of "manliness". He sacrificed his time for His neighbors. He helped the outcasts and diseased. He loved and cherished children, as opposed to abusing or neglecting them. He humbled himslf instead of exalting himself ("A man all wrapped up in himself makes a very small package.") He was'nt afraid to cry and ultimately He gave His life for others out of love.Yea, the definition of a man has kind of gotten distorted over the years but on this day, lets not forget the example of He who for the love of His Neighbors stretched out His arms to show us how much He loved us and was nailed to a tree: 1 John 3:16

This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters

Where is the victory?

As a teen I used to enjoy watching a popular tv show at the time, called "Unsolved Mysteries" I remember in one episode a young boy who was unusually smart for his age , and he said something that I still remember. "The death of our nation will be like that of the Roman empire...the worship of sports and entertainment." I could relate to that some then but I certianly understand now. I enjoy watching a good game of football just like the next guy; and yes, I have been guilty in the past of making football an "Idol". Something really sat uneasy with me today when I heard a local minister say that " We will not be having services tonight due to the super bowl." It's a sad thing when the Christian community, who is supposed to be "seperate" from the world embraces it!

   I have always harped on the fact that our priorities in general, have greatly  hampered the growth of our personal relationship with God and the success of the effectiveness of the church in society. As I have said in previous posts ,what we do with our time proves what or who we serve, whether it be TV, sports, material things of the world, popularity, or God. Someone recently said " If God doesn't destroy America, He certianly owes Sodom and Gomorah an apology." Strong words, but a lot of truth in that statement. What does this say for you church?, hundreds of thousands meet every weekend in their massive "sanctuaries" to worship their idol (sports) and every week in our much smaller sanctuaries there are plenty of empty seats and a lot less enthusiasm over the topic at hand. To sum it up church, I think we have "dropped the ball ". Read your bible, pray...no, really...pray, set aside time to get to know God and you will find that you REALLY do have something to cheer about.This world is very temporary, the next life never ends, where will you spend it...your actions will tell!