I’m the last of 8 kids born to Ruby and Walter Walker, so I have quite a large family in today’s standards.  You’re probably wondering how large our house would to have been to hold all these people.  By the time I was born, my three oldest siblings had already left home, and by the time I was a teenager, I was the only kid at home.  My parents were Godly parents who raised us right; going to church, obeying rules at home and school and respecting authority.

Now this doesn’t mean that there wasn’t some sibling rivalry every now and then.  I can remember two of my sisters arguing often, even throwing each other’s clothes out the window, but they always made up.

I love all my siblings, but I also know that my fellow believers are my brothers and sisters too.

In Matthew 12:46-50, Jesus’ mother and his brothers were asking to speak to Him, but He told the man, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?”  Now, He wasn’t saying this out of disrespect, but just to say that everyone who believes in Him, is His brothers and sisters.

I love my local church family and my brothers and sisters in Peru, as much as my own family.  There’s a special bond when you’re doing life side by side with fellow believers.  We’re all reaching for the same goals; we know our final destination.  I don’t know about you, but this is what life is all about.  Relationships are key to surviving this dark world.

Now there was conflict among siblings in the Bible. The first murder mentioned in the Bible was when Cain killed his brother Abel, out of jealousy. Conflict in any family is not a part of God’s plan for the family. He wants us to love our brothers and sisters, just as He loves everyone who believes in Him.

Support your brothers and sisters in Christ; love them as Jesus does and enjoy the blessings that come along with the family of God.

If you’re foreign to what I’m talking about, or if you haven’t found your church home yet, don’t put it off.  I invite you to visit my church, Church of the Savior; it’s on Brannon Crossing, at the south end of town.

Matthew 12:46-50 - “While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him. Someone told him, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you.” He replied to him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?”  Pointing to his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”

What would happen to the world if all the cell phones stopped working today? I have a feeling that we would have civil wars breaking out all around us.

I see it every day, and it used to only be seen outside the workplace. People checking their phones, chatting back and forth to others, as if it’s ok to be doing it and working on the job.

Now, I’m not that old, but I do remember the days when you go to work and do your job and didn’t call home or anyone else until you got home.

Our culture is messed up. Families used to eat at home and actually talk to each other around the dinner table. These days, you’ll see families at restaurants, and no one is talking to each other; they’re all looking down at their cell phones. Ugh.

I know this is not everyone, but it’s almost getting to be the norm.

Addiction to cell phones is just as harmful as addiction to drugs. Both give attention to a substance that’s controlling their lives.

Put your phone down. If you’re bored at work, then find something you can do to help out. If you’re retired, go visit a nursing home. These people need you, if only for an hour.

Get socially addicted to serving others.

Hebrews 10:25 - “not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

Do you ever feel like you’re a stranger in a foreign land; those around you seem to be living a different way of life?

As Christians, we are to obey God. If you are in an environment where everyone around you seems to be living their own life, ungodly and sinking in sin, don’t ignore these people. Love them, just as God loves them.

People who don’t know God need to see the light in you. They may see anger, sorrow or depression all day long. Ask God to help you show love to them. Once they see you’re different than most, they’ll want to know why.

1 Peter 2:12 - “Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.”

Take the opportunity to reach out to those in your path. Listen to their story.

There’s one thing I learned on the mission field. Even though you may not know the language, you can still show you care, with a smile or a hug.

If you find yourself a foreigner today, show others the love that God shows you every day.

Be bold and reach out to a stranger today.

I have great respect for the farmers. Day in and day out, they rise early, work in the hot sun until the evening approaches, and get up the next day and do it all over again.

After they plant their seeds each year, they wait. They are expecting to see the crop come to life and thrive. Once in the ground, the seed starts growing, but the farmer can’t actually see it growing. The farmer has faith that his crop will start to grow. The farmer plants by faith, not by feeling.

If the farmer relied on his feelings for the seeds to start growing, he might get too anxious or worried that it’s not coming up soon enough.

As a Christian, we should be following in the footsteps of the farmer.

But, our seeds that we sow aren’t tiny seeds that are planted in the ground, but seeds of hope to the lost.

Once we tell someone the good news of Jesus, we let go and have faith that God will take over.

We may never see the crop that we sow, but we can have faith that the seed was sowed, and God can bring the seeds to life.

2 Corinthians 9:6 - “Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.”

Where are you most tempted?

Proverbs 14:16 - “The wise fear the Lord and shun evil, but a fool is hotheaded and yet feels secure.”

Temptation is the desire to do something, especially something wrong or unwise.

Temptation comes in all different forms and not everyone is tempted from the same things. For example, if you put a piece of dark chocolate in front of me, I will be tempted to eat it, but if instead it was a plate of french fries, I could probably turn it away.

Most times when temptation comes, we think we can argue with the devil. Don’t try it friends. You’ll never win. Temptation will never come from God.

Temptation started in the Garden, and it’s still going on today.

Satan can make the most detestable act look like a walk in the park. Beware of the devil’s lies and detours he can throw in your path.

Your help when temptation comes, is from God, alone.

I’m no foreigner to sleepless nights. You’ve been there. You get something on your mind and you can’t turn off the mindless thoughts.

It’s human nature to think if we dwell on something and busy ourselves telling others our problems, that somehow, miraculously they’ll disappear, or at best get easier to deal with.

It’s like we have double vision. In one light, we see God near and in control. But, when things don’t happen on our time clock, we get tunnel vision. We tend to look at things from a very narrow perspective, and can’t really see the big picture or the detailed facts that are right in front of us.

You don’t see what God’s doing in the background, because you’re too focused on how you think you can fix the situation.

Hindsight, now there’s a perspective of seeing clearly, after the facts, or after the event has happened. Ah, it is so much more clearer now….

Are there things unclear in your life? Is your focus on the wrong goals?

Get in line with God. He can set your vision to 20/20. He can declutter the distortion of the world’s views and deceptions.

Proverbs 20:23 - “The Lord detests differing weights, and dishonest scales do not please him.”

Job 42:2 - “I know you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted.”

Encouragement to others is lacking in our society. When my kids were little, I encouraged them in everything they tried to do. What this did to their spirit and determination made me smile.

Discouragement is the opposite end of that. Many are discouraged because of their circumstances and I get that. I’ve been there. Some circumstances won’t feel peaceful.

But, if you know the peace maker, the comforter, you can experience peace during uncertain times.

I’ve spent many sleepless nights in my early years as a Christian, because I failed to acknowledge that God existed, or cared.

God doesn’t promise a Christian that after they give their life to Him that they will live in peace for the rest of their life.

But, He does promise that He’ll always be right beside us.

Just as I comforted my kids when they fell down and scraped their knees, or had a bad dream, God can hold us close and give us peace when the circumstances seem dire, or out of control.

Look to the goodness of God in every day, in every circumstance.

Some may perceive contentment as a lack of ambition. Contentment in God shows the world that no matter what comes your way, you are at peace. It’s a peace that if you don’t know God, you can’t understand.

Philippians 4:12 - “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.”

If you’re not there now, you can learn how to get there. God promises to meet all our needs, no matter what. If we believe that, we can have the peace that passes all human understanding.

We don’t bring anything into this world and we will not be taking anything out of this world when we leave.

We, who are Christians, are recipients of God’s blessings. How we manage those blessings is up to us.

Don’t rely on material possessions, as they will all be destroyed some day.

God’s not interested in our comfort, but in how we react in our circumstances. Does it change our character or do we remain steady in the storms of life?