Luke 19:40

²⁷And Gideon made an ephod of it and put it in his city, in Ophrah. And all Israel whored after it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and to his family. Judges 8:27

After God had accomplished much for Israel through Gideon, he set up an ephod as an outward sign of all that God had done. The people "whored after it" similarly to what happened with the galden calf in the wilderness. The difference here is that Gideon was well intentioned. He built the ephod so that people would remember what God had done for them. The problem is that God didn't tell him too

⁷ So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. ⁸ Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. ⁹ But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. ¹⁰ For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 1 Corinthians 12:7-10

I will probably share this from time to time. I think it is important for us to occasionally stop and think back to the times when God directed you to His purpose.

³Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ⁴to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, ⁵who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. ⁶In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, ⁷so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 1:3-7 ESV)

We all know what it means to place someone on a pedestal. We see it quite often in churches. Inevitably those who are lifted high fall. Many times this causes a rift that keeps people from growing in Christ. Sometimes they abandon their faith altogether. But, there is another dangerous pedestal. The non-particular pedestal.

²⁵Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, ²⁶that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, ²⁷so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. (Ephesians 5:25-27 ESV)

There are many aspects to being a good husband that are addressed directly in scripture. But to truly understand the responsibility of a husband, you have to understand the role Christ chose to play in the redemption of His bride.

¹⁴But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you. (1 Chronicles 29:14 ESV)

I have never had a problem parting with money. I just don't have an attachment to it. Tithing has never been an issue. I know that many do. The most likely reason is that they are under the mistaken impression that they earn the money they have. Everything we have is God's. He gives to us as He wills. When we tithe, God isn't taking money from us, rather we are returning it to Him.

⁴But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, ⁵he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, ⁶whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, ⁷so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3, ESV)

When I surrendered to full time ministry, it was under the conviction that a media ministry is no longer just using I-Mag so that people can slip in late and sit in the back row. A true media ministry should transcend the sanctuary.

Although my calling is the Media Ministry, my ultimate calling is to be a disciple of Christ. Often my blog entries will be media related, but not always. I love to share nuggets of Truth that have been revealed to me. For some, the following may just be a "duh" moment. For me, it was not.

Do you consider yourself to be a good person? Most people do. However, most of us differ on the definition of good.The Bible says that God is good, and the Ten Commandments are His standard of goodness. So, we will look at God’s Law . . . With a tender conscience, ask yourself if you have obeyed the following: