First Baptist Church of St. George Island

“What is a year?  A group of days – That may be used in many ways.

A year may be a priceless boon – Alas, that it is gone so soon!

And, yet, we need not feel forlorn – For now another year is born.

Our days and years are wisely planned – They live within the Master’s hand.

So, with glad hope and right good cheer,

We welcome this, another year!”

 A new year is another God given opportunity for release of the burdens and anxieties of human existence.  To know Christ, personally is to approach the new beginning, in the assurance and confidence of the hope, that only He can provide.  Confidence, in hope, breeds power in the dependent reality that to be “in the Master’s hand” is to be in the protective and provisional safety and concern of a loving God that loves us to the extent of Calvary.  What an awesome knowledge, when appropriated as truth.

May this be a year of total submission that will result in untold blessings.

                                                                                                         In Christ,  Mike Whaley

Christmas is the occasion by which God intervened in history to provide a savior to prevent the destruction of mankind, in his own sin.  He who was welcomed in praise, by the angels, is to be received and honored, in praise for the Savior/Lord is worthy of praise.  Its eternal affect was, and is, worthy of recognizing, and declaring, the “glory of God in the highest.”

Luke 2:13-14

As the bear grew, the keepers moved the bear into a 36’x36’ cage to allow it more room and comfort.  However, the bear would continue to, only, go twelve weeks before turning around to travel in the opposite direction.  Even though the bear had moved to a new cage, he had brought his old cage with him.  Despite the promotion, the old habits remained.

Many people have been so accustomed to living under the law so long, and under the limitations of a performance – based approach to Christian living, that they do not know how to handle the freedom, called grace, made possible by Christmas.  But, in Christ, one has been promoted to a new spiritual environment that allows for the abandoning of old habits, in order to claim their new status and abode.  Christ set one free to a lot more room in a new status.

Romans 7:24-25; Eph. 5:8-10; Titus 3:3-7

God’s goal is Christ-likeness.  That is, being conformed to the character of Christ.  Christ-likeness, simply, means emulating the “who” of Christ, not because one is stressing or straining, but because, Christ is “in” you.  We can become “red hot” in our commitment and evangelism, by increasing our relationship with Christ, in prayer, study, and attention.  Then, we will affect all of those with whom we make contact.

 Phil 2:13; Rom 8:13

And when one discovers this truth, then, as the years go by, one, always, comes to understand the brevity of the gift of life; it is like a vapor.  Therefore, thanksgiving should be a daily activity in recognition of God’s sovereignty and mercy.  And, when it comes to freedom and material possessions, surely, we Americans are blessed more than anyone else upon the face of the earth.  Praise be to God!

Given the shortness of the physical life, we, the redeemed, who know that eternity awaits every soul upon departing their life, must live in thanksgiving to the God of our salvation.  Through His mercy and grace, and the willing sacrifice of Jesus, we can be thankful of the assurance of an eternity in the present of a holy and righteous God, rather than suffering the consequence of our sins.

May this Thanksgiving Day begin a practice of, daily, “thanksgiving;” a practice of living each day as a tribute to the Savior God, as a form of thanksgiving.  May we live each day, in the confidence of our future, for Jesus paid the price that guarantees that assurance.  For the saved in Christ, each moment is entitled to thanksgiving, that we can “be anxious for nothing in prayer and supplication with thanksgiving.”

Luke 11:11-13; Phil. 4:6,19; I Chron. 16:8

                                                                                                                                         In Christ, Mike Whaley

Regrettable, many Christians are living in perpetual defeat, because their expectations are locked into time.  They have lost their sight of eternity.

To recognize, and claim, the reality of one’s eternity, the Christian’s time in the present is, dramatically, affected.  With eternity in sight, the circumstances of the present become less important or traumatic.  The present is recognized as fleeting, and it necessitates an urgency within that time frame.

The psalmist, and the very teachings of Jesus, repeatedly, emphasized that the promise, and affect, of eternity, gives victory to the time of the present.

Psalm 39:5

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          In Christ, Mike Whaley

A lot of us wish to shake hands with God, while continuing to carry our swords.  Carrying the sword of our “personal will” makes us an adversary of God, because God’s way, is the only way, and not subject to diversion or alteration.  We must, like the Japanese general, surrender this sword in submission to “the Master”, totally, completely, and without conditions.  Jesus made this, imminently, clear when He said that to be my disciple you “must deny yourself and come (follow) after me,” in action and teachings.

Have you still got your sword?

Matt. 6:9-10

Yesterday is like a rearview mirror. When you go somewhere in the car, you use a rearview mirror.  A rearview mirror shows you what is behind you.  You need a rearview mirror, but you only need a rearview mirror to glance in, not to live in.  You do not, and cannot, move forward by focusing on the rearview mirror.  Forward motion requires focusing upon the windshield. To live in a rearview mirror, will hurt someone.  The windshield is a much larger piece of glass.  It reveals that, where you are going is much bigger than where you have been.  If yesterday is allowed to mess up today, it will ruin tomorrow.

While driving forward in the Christian life, every now and then, do look in the rearview mirror.  Take a peek but do not dwell there.  The look behind is for the purpose of assuring that, while moving forward, we will not make a wrong turn, or allow something from the past to overtake us.

Phil. 3:13-14

Many of us have experienced this phenomenon.  Everywhere we turn in life, seems to be painful; to hurt.  The cause, however, may be due to one specific area of hurt that is radiating into every other area of our life.  That hurt may be an active and unconfessed sin, a harbored guilt, or an unreleased grudge.

Like a cancer, that hurt will contaminate the whole of the life, unless it is, completely, removed.      The Spirit of God is the “great physician” that uses the scalpel of love and grace, to remove such a hurt.

Ps. 9:13; 25:19; 43:1

                                                                                                                        In Christ, Mike Whaley

One can be duped by something that is legitimate, when it is used to entice or lure them into a trap for the destruction of the prey that has been fooled.  Such techniques are, frequently, used to convince people to purchase merchandise that they either do not need or cannot afford, using persuasive arguments that sound attractive.  Most advertising, today, is designed with this concept of drawing in a potential buyer, at its core.

Satan was the first to use, and perfect, the “cheese and trap” technique of trapping prey.  He pointed out to Eve how tantalizing and alluring the fruit on that tree appeared.  He played upon the “bait” of doubt and ego by saying, “surely, you shall not die,” implying that God just did not want Eve to have knowledge.  And, yes, she “took the cheese,” and the trap “was sprung.”  Eve was aught, for she had surrendered to the temptation to rebel against God’s instruction.

Temptations to oppose God, are presented by Satan, with various forms of attractive, or “cheese,” to entice one to indulge in conduct, and activities, forbidden by God’s law.  A believer must resist the attractiveness, false logic, or rationalization to engage in God prohibited activities.  Peter writes (II Peter 2:9) that the “Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation.  “We must claim His power, and submit to it, to overcome temptation.  In Him, is victory over temptation and sin.

Duet. 4:19; James 1:13-16; 4:1-3

                                                                                                                                  In Christ, Mike Whaley