Although he had no children of his own, whenever he saw a neighbor scolding a child for some wrongdoing, he would say, “You should love your boy, not punish him.”

One hot summer afternoon the professor was doing some repair work on a concrete driveway leading to his garage. Tired out after several hours of work, he laid down the towel, wiped the perspiration from his forehead, and started toward the house. Just then out of the corner of his eye he saw a mischievous little boy putting his foot into the fresh cement. He rushed over, grabbed him, and was about to spank him severely when a neighbor leaned from a window and said, “Watch it, Professor! Don’t you remember? You must ‘love’ the child!”

At this, he yelled back furiously, “I do love him in the abstract, but not in the concrete!”

That’s so true. It’s easy to love people “in the abstract”. It’s easy to talk about love and the importance of love. What’s much more difficult is to love people in “concrete” ways, especially when we’re dealing with people are very unlovable, who have been unkind and irritating to us.

But love is not something for us to talk about — it is something for us to demonstrate in some very practical ways, as John makes clear in this familiar passage:

“By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him? My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.” (1 John 3:16-18)

How about it — are you loving in the abstract, or in the concrete?

Alan Smith

Parents must be a present force for good in their children’s lives! They must seriously and joyfully undertake the privilege parenting presents. Adults should regularly have a physical to ascertain their fitness. In the same way, parents should have a regular spiritual to ascertain their fitness as parents.

Upon examination, some parents find their:

HEAD in the clouds! Some children could never be guilty of any wrongdoing under any circumstances. The teachers and others children with whom the child has problems are always to blame. Really?!

MIND in the gutter. Where will many children view their first pornography or nudity on the screen? Yes, in the home. Mom? Dad? Are we guarding our lips (Titus 2:8) and hearts (Proverbs 4:23)?

NOSE to the grindstone! Sixty-hour workweeks, ten hours in commute, forty-two hours for sleep, and parents have left, at most, eight hours per day for their children. If one bathes and dresses for work, chews his meals with care, buys groceries, pays bills, and watches the average daily dose of TV, how much time do the kids get?

Down in the MOUTH! It is true, children imitate the behavior modeled before them. In an age of grumbling and complaining, parents must teach by example that such is not the way God wants to act (cf. Acts 2:14).

EYES on the prize! Spiritual focus is vital for successful parenting to occur (2 Corinthians 5:7). When parents emphasize Christ above all, emulate Christ rather than any other, and esteem heaven rather than earth, children being to see things more clearly, too.

The Great Physician says it all (parents should pay extra special attention) when he says, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind” (Matthew 22:37). Parents, let’s always work on “shaping up” for our children’s sakes!

–Neal Pollard

Several years ago two brothers didn’t come home for dinner and their bikes were found outside the fence where the dredging had taken place. The brothers’ family and other rescue workers began to search frantically for the two brothers. They finally found one of them. He was buried up to his chin in the sand. Because of the pressure of the wet sand and muck around him, he was not breathing; so they began to dig frantically. When they uncovered him down to his waist he regained consciousness and the family, in hysterics, began to say, “Where’s your brother? Where’s your brother? Where’s your brother?”

The boy replied, “I’m standing on his shoulders.” *

The one brother had given his life so that the other might be saved! 
Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends” (John 15:13).

Jesus demonstrated this “greater love” by giving His life for you and for me.  When we were sinking into the depths of sin, Jesus bore the weight of our sins on the cross (1 Peter 2:24) providing the means of our salvation.  He invites each of us to “stand on His shoulders” so that you and I can be saved.

We can be saved by the merits of Christ’s death on the cross if we believe in Him (Acts 16:30-31), turn from our sins in repentance (Acts 17:30-31), confess Him before men (Romans 10:9-10), and are baptized (immersed) in His name for the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38).  And, if we will continue to follow Him faithfully, He will receive us into an eternal home (1 John 1:7; John 14:1-6).

“I Was Sinking Deep In Sin, Far From The Peaceful Shore,
Very Deeply Stained Within, Sinking To Rise No More;
But The Master Of The Sea, Heard My Despairing Cry,
From The Waters Lifted Me, Now Safe Am I”
“Love lifted me….”  *

Won’t you allow the love of Jesus to lift YOU from the deadly depths of sin?

– David A. Sargent, Minister

A survey on child safety – do you think children are more or less safe than when you were growing up?

You’re lazily flipping through the channels on your new
flat screen TV. Despite the vast array of viewing
options, there’s nothing worth watching, at least for
the moment. Your thumb stops on a random station. It’s
a half-hour long commercial for “Feed the Children.”

The broadcast depicts a hungry African child. His arms
and legs exhibit no muscle at all. He’s a veritable
skeleton with dark brown skin stretched over the bones.
Green bottle flies encircle his eyes and ears. His
belly is unnaturally distended and swollen. He’s weak,
pale, sickly, and frail. He’s had one “meal” in the
past seven days. A small cup of rice.

A phone number flashes at the bottom of the television.
You’re being asked to donate. Just the change out of
your pocket. For the price of a cheap cup of coffee you
could support this poor, starving child. You could put
food in his growling belly. Your heart and emotions are
aroused by this under-nourished youth. “How in the
world does he make it?” you ask yourself. “He can’t
live on one meal a week.” Determined to help, you pick
up the phone and punch in the 800 number.

Stay with me for just a moment.

We all recognize that to be healthy, we must maintain a
steady, balanced diet. We can’t skip meals for days on
end. We certainly can’t live off of a single meal once
a week.

And yet, isn’t that exactly what we’re doing when our
only source of spiritual nourishment comes from the
Sunday morning sermon?

When we habitually skip Sunday morning Bible class,
aren’t we saying that we can be healthy and strong by
eating just one meal a week?

When we miss the Sunday evening and Wednesday night
assemblies at church, and the only time we take in
real, biblical sustenance is the 11 o’clock Lord’s Day
message, aren’t we saying — at least by our actions –
that a child of God only has to eat one meal every
seven days?

When we fail to open our Bibles at home and pour
through the sacred Word each day, but then manage to
“squeak in” at the last minute for that one hour
worship assembly on the first day of the week, aren’t
we communicating that a Christian requires little food
for the soul?

A small cup of rice, indeed. What we acknowledge in the
physical realm, we tend to forget in the spiritual.
Some of us are starving ourselves to death (Hosea 4:6)
and we don’t even realize it!

When we go to the New Testament book of Acts, we find a
group of folks who understood the correlation between
regular Scripture “meals” and a strong, maturing faith.
The text says, “Now the Bereans were of more noble
character than the Thessalonians, for they received the
message with great eagerness and examined the
Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true”
(Acts 17:11 NIV).

Did you catch that? The Bereans were more nobly
disposed than the Thessalonians because (1) they
received the spoken Word with great eagerness (A. T.
Robertson says “eagerness” carries the idea of rushing
forward/1), and because (2) they “examined the
Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was
true.”

Watch it! The Berean Jews were commended because they
personally investigated the Old Testament prophecies to
which Paul appealed on a DAILY basis. You might say the
Thessalonians had a cup of rice once a week, while the
Bereans ate “three squares” a day.

Dear Christian, if the Word is food (Matthew 4:4; cf.
Psalm 19:9,10; Jeremiah 15:16; John 6:26,63), and it
is, shouldn’t we “pull up to the table” and fill our
plates every day? If we can make time for television,
sports, shopping at the mall, going to the movies and a
myriad of other fleshly pursuits, we certainly can make
time to read and study God’s Word.

When would be the best time for you to delve into your
Bible? At the breakfast table? During break at work?
Before you go to bed after the kids are asleep? Pick a
time that’s best for you and then enjoy the meal!
_______
1/ Word Pictures in the New Testament, p. 274.

            You are tending your family tree, too.  How are you caring for it?  That’s what makes your legacy.  It will affect those who live after you are gone.  Consider some things every family tree has and ask yourself what kind of tree you are growing.

            Your family tree has roots.  Something  is central to your home, that drives and motivates you.  It’s where you have your primary interest and investment, measured in dollars, energy, and time.  For your family tree to thrive and survive, it must be firmly rooted in Christ (Col. 2:7).

            Your family tree has branches.  Your home is an influence on the larger community around you.  Every facet of your life is impressed, negatively and positively, by your home.  You have a reputation.  You are seen.  As your family branches out into the world, what impact is it making for Christ?  Remember, “If the root be holy, the branches are too” (Rom. 11:16).

            Your family tree has nutrients.  God made the tree to eat and drink, and by such it lives.  If the nutrients are cut off (by drought, disease, or damage), the tree dies.  Likewise, our family tree must be nourished properly (cf. 1 Tim. 4:6).

            Your family tree has fruit.  It may be acorns, cones, blossoms, or edible fruit, but trees bear fruit.  When a fruit-bearing tree ceases production, it’s a sign of trouble.  At best, such a tree loses its value.  Our family tree will be known by their fruits (cf. Matt. 7:16ff).  Failing to bear good fruit (cf. Gal. 5:22-23) or bearing bad fruit (Lk. 6:43) is unacceptable to God.

            Your family tree has predators.  “Dutch Elm Disease,” beetles, ants, and termites can all prematurely end a tree’s life.  Sometimes, what kills the tree can be readily seen.  Trees can be eaten from the inside out, and by the time the damage is visible it can be too late.  There are so many predators of our homes.  Tragically, the damage can come from within—what we allow to happen in our homes.  Satan is the predator of the home, but he works through human agency.

            Your family tree has leaves.  There are evergreens, conifers, pines, and hardwoods.  The hardwoods annual cycle fascinate me.  In spring, they bloom and put on their leaves.  They flourish in summer.  In autumn, they are vibrant in color and beautiful.  In winter, they die and leave the tree.  Parents, think of your children as those “leaves.”  From birth, they bud and grow.  Hopefully, in the teen years after trial and tribulation, they begin to absorb and emulate the good principles you taught.  It can be a beautiful time.  Then, the time comes for them to leave.  Make sure they leave spiritually and eternally prepared. 

            No doubt there are other comparisons that can be made.  Take care of your family tree.  If you do, it will blossom and grow for the good of the Kingdom!

–Neal Pollard