The Woman

Still thinking of the wonderful time enjoyed by the Ladies on Saturday evening, I added another verse to the poem I wrote for the occasion and thought I would give it to you in written form . - TL

The Woman

God saw that Adam was not good alone
So the woman He made to stand by his side.
Flesh of his flesh and bone of his bone,
Presented to him to become his bride.

The woman, not perfect, but neither was he.
God knew that and already had a plan
To help them become all they could be,
Adam and Eve, the woman and man.

The woman became his helper through life
To stand there beside him through thick and thin,
When God gave her to man to be his wife.
But much more than this, also his friend.

The woman God made is far above price,
For her worth is not measured in jewel or gem.
No amount of money would ever suffice.
Her worth is measured by her value to him.

The woman; mother, wife, sister, or friend,
Knowing God made you for us to adore,
And knowing you’ll be there right to the end
Makes us appreciate you even more.

Yes, the woman was made to fill an empty place,
To let us men know God’s wonderful care
He gave by sharing with us your grace.
It makes us complete knowing you’re there.

T Lalli – 2/16/08

See you when the saints meet, Lord willing.

Love, Tony

The Heart

There’s a lot of talk about hearts this week. That special day to give heart-decorated cards and gifts to people who mean so much to us. It is a romantic time ... and it doesn’t hurt the candy and card industries either. The heart has become the symbol for Valentine’s Day. We talk of love that comes from the heart and we talk about hearts being broken because of lost love.

The heart has long been used in the Bible to refer to the seat of emotion and reasoning. The heart is referred to as being pure or evil, obedient or impenitent, full of love or hardened with hatred. It is no wonder that David, recognizing his own weaknesses cries out to God, “Create in me a new heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.” (Psalm 51:10) In Hebrews 10:22, after speaking of Jesus as our high priest, the writer says, “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.”

Isn’t it amazing what modern medicine can do for the human heart? Doctors can prescribe medicine to help the heart pump the blood better and they can perform surgeries to open arteries and repair the heart in many ways. They can implant a pacemaker to keep it pumping and even give some people a new heart.

Physical heart disease comes in many forms. Sometimes it is such that doctors can’t do much about it. My mother had some blocked arteries that caused permanent damage to her heart. Because of her physical condition and age, doctors could not do by-pass surgery that might help some. She had to rely on medicine to help keep the blood flowing. Her heart finally gave out. It was frustrating that we couldn’t help more. I knew another person years ago who was told by his doctor that if he didn’t quit smoking his heart was going to give out. He didn’t stop. His heart did.

Even worse, though, is someone with spiritual heart disease that can be healed by the Great Physician but they won’t allow Him to help. David said in Psalm 139:23, “Search me, O God, and know my heart…” Have you allowed God to examine your heart lately?

See you when the saints meet, Lord willing.

Love, Tony

Cornelius - A God-fearing Man

Cornelius has always been of special interest to me. Not just because he was Italian but because he was a sincere man trying his best to be acceptable to God. He is described in Acts 10:1, 2, “...a centurion in what was known as the Italian Regiment. He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly.” God gives His estimation of Cornelius in the words of the angel who appears to him, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God.” Two of Cornelius’ servants and one of his devoted soldiers add their testimony in verse 22, “He is a righteous and Godfearing man, who is respected by all the Jewish people.”

There’s something very important about Cornelius, though. He was lost. His desire to worship God was sincere and showed in his devotion and goodness. Hebrews 11:6 says that God is “...a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” Jesus says, “Seek and you shall find.” Cornelius was a seeker and God helped him find. He sent an angel to tell Cornelius to send for Peter. Peter tells his Jewish Christian brethren later that the angel told Cornelius, “Send to Joppa, and have Simon, who is also called Peter, brought here; and he shall speak words to you by which you will be saved, you and all your household.”

When Peter got to Caesarea, Cornelius told him all that had happened and added, “Now then, we are all here present before God to hear all that you have been commanded by the Lord.” Peter told them the glorious story of Jesus. They accepted it. Peter, accepting God’s will to allow uncircumcised Gentiles into the church, responded, “‘Surely no one can refuse the water for these who have received the Holy Spirit just as we did, can he?’ And he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.”

Cornelius was a man with a clear conscience. A good man doing what he knew to do to please the God of heaven. People who knew him praised him. But God said, “You need to hear words by
which you can be saved.” Think about Saul. He said his conscience was clear in all that he had been doing while persecuting Christians. The Ethiopian whom Philip taught was doing all he knew to do. Apollos was preaching Jesus but was not complete in his teaching. The disciples in Acts 19 had not been baptized according to God’s will. Along with Cornelius, these all had to respond to God’s will in obedience to the gospel of Christ to be saved.

The wonderful thing about Cornelius and all these others is that when they knew the will of God, they gladly accepted and obeyed it. What about today? Does God expect anything less?

See you when the saints meet, Lord willing.

Love, Tony

Practice Makes Perfect - Or Does it?

We have all probably heard the old saying “practice makes perfect.” This is probably true, for without practice we could do nothing well. The continual repetition of something makes it easier and easier. The pianist must play every day, the athlete must practice to keep fit, and the teacher must continually study to be able to teach. It has been impressed upon us from childhood that to do anything well, we must practice.

There is no difference between the way to be able to perform well in our job or profession and to be a Christian. It takes practice. Paul tells Timothy to be diligent so as not to be ashamed (2 Timothy 2:15.) It causes great embarrassment for a person not to be able to perform well at his job because he does not know enough about it. This embarrassment will be greatly magnified if we stand ashamed before God (2 Timothy 3:16,17.) But we must practice that word.

If we become more proficient in what we do by repetition, it can work for the bad as well as the good. That is, the more often we do something that is displeasing to God, the easier it becomes for us to do it. God’s word says in 1 John 3:9, 10, “No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God. This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother.” This tells us that if we are “born of God” we will not practice sin. If we have been born again, we have put off our old nature and will not want to make sin a part of our life. John says if we “do not do what is right” we are not of God. Then if we repeat that which is not righteous, we practice that which makes us imperfect!

What is righteousness? Psalm 119:172 says, “My tongue will speak of your word: for all your commandments are righteousness.” Are we practicing righteousness before God? Each time we repeat something it becomes easier to do next time. Practice does not always make one perfect. Be careful what you practice. It becomes your life. Make it positive.

See you when the saints meet, Lord willing.

Love, Tony