Author: Ira Paine

Coffee Percs

by Ira Paine, Posted on

He sniffed his cup and didn’t recognize anything different about it and slowly brought the tin cup to his lips and took a sip. He immediately spat it out…”

                    –Grady Bryant  (Preacher and the Bounty Hunter)
 
Come on in Pard, yuh do realize that this is the last Saturday in April.  My mercy, one third of the year has already gone past.  Whoopee, and what is there to show for it?  That’s why I like readin’ Ecclesiastes for it tells the truth ’bout life.  Pard, I was thinkin’ some, not much, the ol’ graymatter don’t work in deep thoughts much any more, but here’s what I had on my mind.  Yuh know how I always teasin’ly remind you to check yur cinch.  Well, it’s in fun, but there is some truth there.  We just don’t know what might be come our way or what might be on the trail a-waitin’ for us.  Pard, yuh come be drivin’ along one of these asphalt roads and from four lanes away some fool takes off and runs right into yuh.  Why it almost happened to me the other night.  The missus and I were drivin’ home from the daughter’s and this truck came from nowhere, in the midst of traffic, goin’ close to a hundred and almost clipped me.  I had to haul up on the ol’ steel mount or he most likely would have got me.
     I tell yuh straight out, Pard, the wife and I sure were thankin’ the Lord.  Whooeee, it was a close one.  Gave me somethin’ to chew on for the rest of the way home.  What if the Lord hadn’t sent an angel to help me gather in the ol’ steel strawberry roan?  What if’n He decided it was time to go on up to that heavenly ranch in the sky?  Pard, we just don’t be a-knowin’, we do our best, and that’s all we can be doin’.  Why, I’ve come to realize that not all days are sunshine and waterin’ holes; Pard, let me tell yuh, there are those days that are mud, sweat, and blood.  The broncs yuh ride, well, Pard, some of them have a mind of their own, an’ yuh can get left high in the saddle and plunk down on the earth.  Why I heard one ol’ boy a tellin’ someone that he’d never been throw’d, but had himself some fanciful dismounts in his time.
     Now let me tell yuh one more thing whilst yur sippin’ on that coffee.  Good, some of that Black Gold.  Yuh do know that Folgers was the first major coffee company out in California to take care of those Forty-Niners?  But that’s another story for another Saturday.  Pard, the truth of the matter is like that ol’ bronc-buster who had the delightful dismounts; it’s all in the way yuh look at things.  Why that ol’ boy who wrote that the coffee was so bad he had to spit it out had an issue.  Was it bad coffee ’cause it was too weak, or too strong?  Maybe it was a cino, or full of cow juice, or bee’s fixin’s.  See Pard, I’ve learnt up to a point, still workin’ on it, that God is in control and He has everythin’ under control, even when yuh don’t check yur cinch.  So much of what we do, how we feel, and how we go about the day depends on how we deal with the obstacles or the wrecks or the hostiles that may come our way durin’ the day.  One thing we must never forget Pard, God don’t make no weak coffee; He’s there to make all things possible if’n we keep trustin’ in Him.
     Yuh needs to be on yur way, I know.  I notice yuh didn’t spit out none of my coffee.  Ahhhh, smile, drink it with the right attitude, and just because the good Lord is lookin’ out for yuh is not reason not to be a-checkin’ yur cinch.
      Vaya con Dios.

 

Echoes From the Campfire

by Ira Paine, Posted on
The laws of nature only apply to God’s creation; they do not apply to the Creator.”
                    –Ken Pratt  (Legacies of Spring) 

       “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.”

                    –Philippians 4:6 (NKJV)
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     Where are you God?  Why don’t you answer me?  Oh, then we give the trite answer, “He does.  He’s just saying, ‘No’.”  But wait…hold on, God does not always speak.
 
               “O LORD, how long shall I cry, and You will not hear?  Even cry out to You, ‘Violence!’  And You will not save.”   –Habakkuk 1:2, NKJV
 
The prophet cries, “why are You not hearing me?”  The CEV translates it this way, “Our Lord, how long must I beg for your help before you listen?”  Why is God not doing something?  Why is He not listening?  Ah, but He is.
     First of all, this is not a treatise on prayer.  There are so many of them out there:  how to pray, what method to use, what type of prayer, specialty prayers (i.e., Jabez).  This is just a simple comment regarding the prayer of Habakkuk the prophet.  It seems that he must have been praying in anguish for some time.  Nothing from God.  Listen!  God does not always answer our prayers.  I will not go into detail at this time on that but one example is when Peter states that a husband’s prayer for his wife may be hindered if they are not considerate and do not respect them.  Prayers are hindered because of inconsistency, a lack of faith, bad relationships, sin, and James reminds us that we do not receive because we “pray amiss,” or as the NIV translates it, “When you ask you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.” (James 4:3)  On the cross, Jesus cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34, NIV).  God did not answer His Son.  So pause for a moment when you think that God is not hearing or answering.
     However, know this–God is active!  God is there!  Nothing is done by chance in this world, or in your life without His approval and knowledge.  Oh, we may sin, fall short of His glory, but He allows it, oh, and that may be a reason we don’t have an answer to our prayers, we have to get back in the right relationship with Him.  Understand this, “Prayer is not bending God’s will to ours, but surrendering to His will.” (Christopher P. David)  Look at verse 5:  “Look among the nations and watch–be utterly astounded!  For I will work a work in your days which you would not believe, though it were told you.” (Habakkuk 1:5, NKJV)  Hmmm, in other words, if God would have told him, he wouldn’t have believed it anyway.
     Following verse 5, God reveals to Habakkuk what is going to take place.  He doesn’t explain, but He does reveal.  Note that God’s response to Habakkuk’s prayer was totally different than what he expected or wanted.  I would assume that Habakkuk would want a revival, would want God to continue to protect the people, but it turned out quite differently.  See, when we pray, we know the kind of answer we want.  Habakkuk, the prophet, was no different.   Many times when a prayer is answered, not in the way we want, we will say that God did not answer our prayer, but in reality He did not answer it the way we wanted it answered.  Peter C. Craigie gives a little light on this, “We perceive the problem in a limited way and so we also presuppose the answer in a limited way.”  Remember, our ways and thoughts are not His!
     One more nugget before leaving for today.  Even though God was silent, Habakkuk still prayed.  Even though God seemed to not be answering, the prophet still entreated Him.  Prayer is not something we go to God for Him to pull out something from His goody-bag.  Prayer, (without ceasing) is communication with a Friend, with our Savior, with the Almighty God!   As Christopher David puts it, “The silence of God did not shake Habakkuk’s faith.”  And it should not shake ours.

 

Echoes From the Campfire

by Ira Paine, Posted on

He knew it would take some time and considerable experience before his confidence would become competence.”
                    –B.N. Rundell  (Journey to Jeopardy)

       “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, and whose hope is the LORD.”
                    –Jeremiah 17:7 (NKJV)
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     We turn our attention again this morning to Proverbs 3:21-26.  Our attention, our focus, our minds must continually be on the Word of God.  I like the words of J. Vernon McGee, “How wonderful it is to discover that the truth of God will hold us–it is not that you and I hold the truth, but the truth will hold us.”  No matter what life throws at us, no matter the darts the devil hurls our way, we can be confident that we are in God’s hands and we live in confidence and assurance of His truth.  F.B. Meyer wrote, “Learn the security of life which is built on the eternal principles of this book.”  The Word of God–the Bible–shows us the way to live and gives us the hope of His keeping power.  God is there, with us, never fear or dread the walk the path of faith.  Life can be a burden, especially without the Lord.  However, “Life is less of a burden when we realize that God will be there.” (Dan Dick)
     When we walk in the way that the Lord has for us we can be assured that He is there with us.  In fact, we have the assurance that He is also walking in front of us.  His Word lights our path, and His wisdom takes away our blindness.  We can see the way to go, the obstacles on the path, the problems that may come our way and then meet them in confidence.  Bob Beasley says, “Our confidence in God’s providence should take away our sleepless nights of worry anxiety because during waking hours we are confident of His tender care.”  Michael Jermin gives us some light on this assurance, “Surely the way to sleep quietly in this world is to be asleep to the world.”  I recall the following story of Peter:

            And when Herod was about to bring him [Peter] out, that night Peter was sleeping, bound with two chains between two soldiers; and the guards before the door were keeping the prison.  Now behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him and a light shone in the prison; and he struck Peter on the side and raised him up, saying, “Arise quickly!”
                     –Acts 12:6-7 (NKJV)

Look at this.  Peter is sound asleep.  Perhaps he remembered how Jesus slept in the boat when the storm was raging on the Sea of Galilee.  He may have learned that lesson well.  He was sleeping so soundly that the angel had to strike him on the side.  “Get up!”
     Verse 25 tells us not to be afraid of any sudden disaster or terror that may arise.  In other words, don’t be afraid of the next minute.  God is there.  God is there to see us through any and all crises.  I can remember several times when sudden disaster was averted by the Lord.  He, whether by angels or His outstretched arm, kept us many times when there seemed to be no way out.  F.B. Meyer wrote, “Life has no fear.  Its repose is unbroken by alarm.  It is at peace with itself, with man, and with God.”
     A ship, when it enters a harbor, must have a pilot to guide it.  The captain of the vessel does not know all the dangers that lie in the harbor.  A pilot must take over the ship to steer it through the channel.  Along with that, there are the additional tugboats to make sure the large vessel does not vary its course.  It is not “full speed ahead” but a slow maneuvering through the channel.  When we find ourselves along the way and it seems that we can no longer trust ourselves to guide us through, we have the confidence of the great Pilot standing at the helm, taking over in our lack of knowledge, and we trust Him to guide us through.  We have the general knowledge of navigating the ship, but we need the wisdom of the Spirit, the Pilot, to guide us through the narrow channel to safely dock.
     Friend in all of this, have confidence and hope in the Lord.  Listen!  None of our actions go unnoticed by God.  He is there to see us through to safety.  On this way that we travel there are all kinds of snares and traps laid by the enemy, there are the forces of nature to tend, and yet, we can go through life with the assurance and peace that God is there–always there–to guide us.  Therefore, I say again–Trust Him!

 

Echoes From the Campfire

by Ira Paine, Posted on

They found that they were able to trust the promise of the future.”
                    –Zachary McCrae  (Christmas Under Siege)

       “We are confident of all this because of our great trust in God through Christ.  It is not that we think we can do anything of lasting value by ourselves.  Our only power and success come from God.”
                    –2 Corinthians 3:4-5 (NLT)
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     God takes care of us in the ordinary events of life, as well as when adversity enters the picture.  He not only directs our path, He protects our path.  We see this as we continue studying Proverbs 3.

          21 — My son, let them not depart from your eyes–keep sound wisdom and discretion;
          22 — So they will be life to your soul and grace to your neck.
          23 — Then you will walk safely in your way, and your foot will not stumble.
          24 — When you lie down, you will not be afraid; yes, you will lie down and your sleep will be sweet.
          25 — Do not be afraid of sudden terror, nor of trouble from the wicked when it comes;
          26 — For the LORD will be your confidence, and will keep your foot from being caught.  (NKJV)
(ESV)
          21 — My son, do not lose sight of these–keep sound wisdom and discretion,
          22 — and they will be life for your soul and adornment for your neck.
          23 — Then you will walk on your way securely, and your foot will not stumble.
          24 — If you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.

     Sound wisdom, something that is greatly lacking in our world today.  It conveys the idea of “something stable,” something that will stand the storms of adversity.  Going our own way is dangerous; to do our own thing is actually tempting God.  It implies that we are greater, wiser, smarter, and more knowledgeable than He is.  Rejecting God’s wisdom is perilous; therefore, we must not let selfish plans impede our progress.  Yet at the same time, when we are directed by God we should be thinking His thoughts.  F.B. Meyer said, “We are made in the image of God, our minds are able to appreciate His mind, and we think over again the thoughts of God.”  We are to think His thoughts, remind ourselves of them, focus on them, and then think them again.
     To think the thoughts of God we must know them.  Life and grace come through studying the Word of God.  We are to cleave unto the Lord–hang on to the promises of God; live in obedience to His Word.  Again, to do this we must know His Word.  We are reminded of this in the Book of Revelation, where John writes, “But hold fast what you have till I come.” (2:25, NKJV)  Hold fast–to the truth of God’s Word; do not give in to any and every whim of doctrine that floats your way–and there are many.
     I am reminded of a ship’s captain out on the open sea.  He does not go by his feelings or by what he thinks is the right way.  No, he consults a compass to keep him on course.  His travel must always align with the compass with no deviation.  He doesn’t consult it just once on the voyage, but is continually looking at it to make sure that he is on course.  My uncle used to fly for a weather company, and they would fly into hurricanes to record data.  He told me that when in the midst of the storm, the only thing they could trust was their instruments–the compass.  Without that they would get lost in the swirling, howling winds.
     This goes back to trust.  I am so thankful that I was taught to simply trust in the Lord.  It was something we did, not something we had to stop and think about.  I often think that perhaps I take the protection and guidance of the Lord for granted, then I have to remind myself–no, that’s the way of life.  We are to trust that God is with us, always and everywhere, then we trust that He will help us make good choices that are according to His will; and finally, we trust that even if we make a mistake, He will bring good from it.
     Tomorrow, we will finish looking at this portion of Proverbs–hang on, and Trust in the Lord!