–Lou Bradshaw  (Abe)

       “Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content.”

                         –Philippians 4:11(NKJV)
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                         “What ho!  what ho!
                         this fellow is dancing mad!
                                He hath been bitten by the Tarantula.”
                                     –Edgar Allen Poe

What is it that has bitten you?  For instance, man has often been allured by gold.  Some would say they have been bitten by the “Gold Bug” and they can’t stop searching for the substance and the way to wealth and riches.  Have to make a dollar, then a dollar more, then more than a dollar.  It goes on and on and on.  But wealth is always seeming to elude them.  
       Whatever a person searches for and if they get it, they always want more, or the new model.  A new phone comes out, a body already has a good one, yet they cannot withstand the wanting of a new one, with better features.  But a sound system (remember those?) and a person wants a better one.  It doesn’t matter what, man is never satisfied with what he has–or to be honest, few men are.
       Are you telling me that you don’t want more?  Have you ever played the lottery?  Why, doesn’t God satisfy your need?  Are you telling the truth about possessions?  In my ethics class I would ask students to write down what they would save if they were in a burning house and only had the time to save three items.  What would they be?  What comes to your mind?  However, that is not a real good question anymore, because most Americans can go out and buy whatever is destroyed, unless…
       Remember the story Jesus told of the rich man (Luke 12:12-21):

               “But God said to him, ‘Fool!  This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?  So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.  But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.”
                            –Luke 12:20-21; Matthew 6:33 (NKJV)

Are you hearing God’s warnings about priorities?  What is important to you and then what are you doing about it?  Let’s take a closer look at the rich man–see if you fit into any of these categories.

               “What does the rich man do, surrounded by a great supply of many blessings beyond all numbering?  In distress and anxiety, he speaks the words of poverty.  He says, ‘What should I do?’  He does not raise his eyes to God.  He does not count it worth his while to gain for the mind those treasures that are above in heaven.  He does not cherish love for the poor or desire the esteem it gains.  He does not sympathize with suffering.  It gives him no pain nor awakens his pity.  Still more irrational, he settles for himself the length of his life, as if he would also reap from the ground.  He says, ‘I will say to myself, “Self, you have goods laid up for many years.  Eat, drink, and enjoy yourself.”‘  ‘O rich man,’ one may say, ‘You have storehouses for your fruits, but where will you receive your many years?  By the decree of God, your life is shortened.'”
                                 –Cyril of Alexandria

       I also recall the words of James, “Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit’; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow.  For what is your life?  It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.”  (4:13-14, NKJV)
      So what Tarantula has bitten you?  What do you seek out of life?  A person may be rich in gold and silver, rich in goods and homes, but poor in life.  Some are too busy scratching their itch for wealth and then more that they forget to look at the blessings that God has already bestowed.  What is the old saying, “As you go along the path of life don’t forget to take time to smell the roses”?  
       Regarding the rich and their wealth I would ask, are you really living life?  Or are you like the miner, constantly looking for that strike, always wanting a little more?  Our mission in life is to worship God.  To recognize His character and seek to be more like Him.  To love Him with our complete being (which is worship) and to love our neighbors.  Don’t miss out of the little blessings of life in seeking something that is perishable.

               “But they’ve never seen the northern lights,
               They never seen a hawk on the wing,
               They never seen spring on the great divide,
               And they never heard ol’ camp cookie sing.”  
                         –Michael Burton

And they’ve never seen ol’ Ira clog in the kitchen.  Look for God’s blessings–enjoy them, now!

                         –Zechariah 13:9 (NLT)
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               “Sin is deadly.  It is the one thing God won’t tolerate.  The war between good and evil is to the death.  And you lend yourself to it without knowing to what dirty enterprise you have sold yourself…until you see that cross…  So it is with sin.  You can discuss it academically.  You can even argue whether there is such a thing or not, or whether it is all the imagination of the moralists.  But then go and look at the cross.  It does that.  It is the most deadly thing known to God and man.  It would slay the body and damn the soul.  It is hell’s worst.  You can see it when you gaze upon the cross.”
                          –William E. Sangster

       A few years back as I walked the rim of the Grand Canyon, I pondered what those that first saw it might have thought and experienced.  Those men of Coronado’s were most likely tired, weary, and thirsty for they had been traveling through the desert for weeks.  Frustration marked their steps as the thing–gold–which they were seeking continually eluded them.  Hope was dwindling; perhaps they thought they might die.  Then the earth dropped off in front of them.  Stopped in their tracks they could go no further.  The way was barred by the Grand Canyon.
       Despite their condition, no doubt they marveled at what lay before them–one of the greatest wonders of nature.  Mouths must have dropped open in amazement and awe; weariness forgotten for the moment as they were lost in the spectacular sight.  They saw the different shades of color as the sun shone down upon the canyon walls.  They could not begin to grasp the enormity of the sight before them.
       Then reality hit them–there was no way across.  At one point, it is twenty-three miles across and a mile deep.  Now the wonder turned to despair, depression and loss of hope.  Their elusive dream may lie on the other side but there was not away to cross.  Some may have cried, some may have expressed anger, some may have suggested they return, failing in their quest.  These explorers, conquistadors who were men of arms, excited with the prospect of finding riches were now thwarted on their journey.
       Perhaps now is a good time to sit and look at your situation.  You have come a great way in this journey of life, but now there is a great chasm that may be in front and hindering your progress.  It could be real or illusionary, but you must deal with it.  What is it that stands between you and the other side?  What is it that you cannot seem to overcome?
       Have you sought the elusive wonder of wealth, fame, prosperity, or glory?  Now you are confronted with reality; there is something between you and God.  At least you have made it to this realization.  Others, when searching, see the great distance and cry, “Woe is me!”, and die chasing their fantasy into the wilderness.  Others will look in despair for there is no way to make it to the other side.  Hope may die within them.
       There is a great chasm that all men need to cross; the canyon of sin.  There was no way that man could get across, but then God provided a way in Jesus.  The cross of Christ is the means across the canyon.  Perhaps you have forgotten the day you ventured to cross in another trek; a way that proved fruitless and wasteful.  Sit and look out; realize that God provides the way.
       Perhaps the canyon in front of you is a circumstance, obstacle, or situation in life that seems insurmountable.  There is no way to cross or overcome the trouble and problems that confront you.  Sit back, renew your commitment to the Lord.  When there seems to be a great barrier in front of you remember what Christ did for you on the cross and look to your heavenly Father for guidance.  He will show you the pathway through your trials and troubles.
                         
–Taken from “Trails in the Wilderness” published by D.C. Adkisson, 2017.

                    –Luke Short  (Desert Crossing)

       “And I will wait on the LORD, who hides His face from the house of Jacob; and I will hope in Him.”
                    –Isaiah 8:17 (NKJV)
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Look around you–tell me where is God?  In these troublesome times doesn’t God care, doesn’t He know how serious the situation is?  This is what Asaph is writing about in Psalm 83.  “He was perplexed, Israel was in danger, but God was silent and inactive” (Wiersbe).  He seemed to be doing nothing, and there was an enemy ready to destroy.  God!  “We need you!” becomes the cry.

          1 — Do not keep silent, O God!  Do not hold Your peace, and do not be still, O God!
          2 — For behold, Your enemies make a tumult; and those who hate You have lifted up their head.
          3 — They have taken crafty counsel against Your people, and consulted together against Your sheltered ones.
          4 — They have said, “Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation, that the name of Israel may be remembered no more.”
          5 — For they have consulted together with one consent; they form a confederacy against You:
          6 — The tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites; Moab and the Hagrites;
          7 — Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek; Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;
          8 — Assyria also has joined with them; they have helped the children of Lot.             Selah (NKJV)

The NLT translates verse 1 like this, “O God, don’t sit idly by, silent and inactive!”  God are you sleeping?  I’m in despair, where are You?  Asaph is making a prayer of despair.  Help was desperately needed.  He sent his pleas out for God to intervene.  It reminds me of the story of Jesus sleeping in the boat.  The storm rose and the disciples were scared to death.  How could He be sleeping, doesn’t He care for us?  Doesn’t He know there is a storm raging?
       There are a few things I have learned through life and one of them is that God doesn’t always intervene.  There are times when He allows us to go through the storm.  There are times when we have to climb over the obstacles ourselves.  When it seems that all is lost and God seems to have forsaken us, take heart–He is there.   Who were the three young men who went through the fiery furnace?  Why do you remember their names?  If they had not gone into the heat of the furnace they would have been forgotten, lost to history.  Because they faced the ordeal, Shadrack, Meshack, and Abednego are names familiar to us.  Daniel went into the lions’ den.  The Israelites crossed through the Red Sea.
       Notice the “Selah.”  We are to think on this.  We are to contemplate and relate to what is being said.  God has not left us.  He is there with us through whatever trial or trouble or tribulation we may be facing.  Yes, we may have to take a step of faith–but He is with us.  Yes, we may have to struggle to climb–but He is with us.  Yes, the storms may bear down upon us and while we hunker down–He is with us.

               “Fear Him, ye saints, and you will then
               Have nothing else to fear;
               Make you His service your delight,
               Your wants shall be His care.”
                         –Nahum Tate