But unless you’ve fought the battle and unless you’ve won the war
    The taste of victory sometimes ain’t so sweet.”
                –Red Steagall  (“Paw-Paw”)

    “When war broke out again, David went out and fought against the Philistines. He defeated them with such a great force that they fled from him.”
                –1 Samuel 19:8 (HCSB)
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It was custom, it was expected, that whenever we came off a long trip and went to Granny’s house that she would always have the soup on.  She knew that we would be tired and would be needing something to eat.  The same was true if we visited Grandma.  She might not have soup on but there was always something to eat.  Most always, at both places, there was some kind of dessert.  The weary travelers not only needed nourishment, but they needed to be given a treat.  Since that time I have tried to keep up the tradition.  I usually don’t put soup on, usually it’s chili, but those coming know that there will be something waiting for them.  Of course, the coffee pot is always on.
    Reading the first twenty-one verses of Psalm 22, David is in the doldrums.  Enemies are after him, depression is upon him, the journey has become extremely wearisome.  However, he knows, there is an assurance within him, that soon there will be relief.  Soon he will arrive at home and be greeted with food that will satisfy.  Let’s finish Psalm 22 (HCSB).

         22 – I will proclaim Your name to my brothers; I will praise You in the congregation.
         23 – You who fear Yahweh, praise Him! All you descendants of Jacob, honor Him! All you descendants of Israel, revere Him!
         24 – For He has not despised or detested the torment of the afflicted. He did not hide His face from him but listened when he cried to Him for help.
         25 – I will give praise in the great congregation because of You; I will fulfill my vows before those who fear You.
         26 – The humble will eat and be satisfied; those who seek the Lord will praise Him. May your hearts live forever!
         27 – All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord. All the families of the nations will bow down before You,
         28 – for kingship belongs to the Lord; He rules over the nations.
         29 – All who prosper on earth will eat and bow down; all those who go down to the dust will kneel before Him—even the one who cannot preserve his life.
         30 – Their descendants will serve Him; the next generation will be told about the Lord.
         31 – They will come and tell a people yet to be born about His righteousness—what He has done.

David finds that not only is his hunger satisfied, but his soul has also been renewed.  He gains strength, rises again, and states that he will fulfill his vows.  

         “From earth’s wide bounds, from ocean’s farthest coast,
          Through gates of pearl stream in countless host,
          Singing to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
          Alleluia!  Alleluia!”
                    –William H. How

    No matter how far we travel.  No matter how arduous the journey may be, the obstacles thrown at us, the enemies faced, there is hope and there is victory.  This is assured if we do not quit.  Look at these verses compared to the previous ones in the Psalm.  Someone has written that these are the resurrection; the aftermath of the previous verses.
    However, though food is provided, we must eat.  There will be a feast, it is up to us to complete the journey so that we can make it to our seat at the table.  When you eat of the Lord’s Supper, are you satisfied?  Take inventory, my fellow traveler.  Never lose heart; never quit.  There is a table spread waiting for you when you get to the end of your journey; when you get home.

         “It is possible to die of starvation at the door of a granary.  By the act of faith in Jesus Christ, partake of the food.  See that it becomes yours by your own taking of it into the very depths of your heart.”
                     –Alexander Maclaren

No matter how bad times got or how busy we were, Pa was always shaved, his hair was always trimmed.  And I do not recall ever seeing Pa lean on anything—he always stood on his own two feet.”
              –Louis L’Amour  (Killoe)

    “Hear, my children, the instruction of a father, And give attention to know understanding.”
              –Proverbs 4:1 (NKJV)
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I had a good relationship with my Dad, despite his faults.  He had trouble with the booze, and I wish I could have done more for him.  He died in his mid-50s from a drowning accident.  Dad knew how to work and he knew baseball.  I have know only few who knew much about baseball as he did.  He was a generous man; would give you the shirt off his back.  There are times when I miss him, and would like to talk to him.
    I came across this hidden passage in my notebook.  It is simply titled, “Dad,” and it has no author.

         “He is the creator.  He is the builder, the teacher, the comedian, the repairman, the disciplinarian, and the chairman of the sounding board.  He is the grouch, the warm, the cold, the soft, the hard, the gentle, the rough, the kind, the cruel, the man, the father…in his children’s lives.
         He has calloused hands and balding head.  He has wrinkles that show when he smiles.  He receives no anesthetic and when everyone cries, he dies inside because he is not supposed to show tears.  He has a smell that only his children love.  He goes someplace everyday called work.  He comes home with a sack of doughnuts and feels he is carrying a bag of gold.
         He is grouchy when he is tired and happy when he is rested.  He smiles when he is scared.  He frowns when he is joking.  He hurts when his kids ache.  He is never quite the man his son thinks he is and he is never quite the hero his daughter knows he is.
         He listens to fears, doubts, joys and sorrows.  He repairs broken dolls and flat bicycle tires.  He mends crushed hopes and broken hearts.  He rules in joy and empathizes in sorrow.
         He creates dreams, plans and goals.  He builds direction that evolves into purpose.  He teaches senses of responsibility and he teaches honesty.  This structure is his Michelangelo, his masterpiece.  This masterpiece is what he lives for.  He believes in it.  He lives in this belief.  He would die in this belief.  This believe is the future for his gang.  His gang is his life.  His life is his gang.”

    One of the greatest pleasures I have had in life is that of being a “Dad”.  I wrote, on a band-aid box for Shauna, and a roll of athletic tape for Kim, that I had one wish–that I could be their Dad all over again.
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    I saw that a woman athlete representing the United States abroad said that she would not stand during the National Anthem.  She said that she did not agree with many things in our country.  My reply to her was that she should not be representing the country on a team that has given her the privilege of being on.
    One more thought, since today is Flag Day.  I came across this is my files as well.  It is my editing of an article written by Robert C. Winthrop, “The Flag of Our Country.”

         “There is the national flag.  He must be cold indeed who can look upon its folds, rippling in the breeze, without pride of country.  If he be in a foreign land, the flag is companionship and country itself, with all its endearments…  Its highest beauty is in what it symbolizes.  It is because it represents all, that all gaze at it with delight and reverence…  The very colors have a language which was officially recognized by our fathers.  White is for purity, red for valor, blue for justice; and all together–bunting, stripes, stars, and colors, blazing in the sky–make the flag of our country to be cherished by all our hearts, to be upheld by all our hands…
          Behold it!  Listen to it!  Every star has a tongue; every stripe is articulate.  There is no speech nor language where their voices are not heard.  There is magic in the web of it.  It has an answer for every question of duty.  It has a word of good cheer for every hour of gloom or of despondency.
          Behold it!  Listen to it!  It speaks of earlier and of later struggles.  It speaks of victories and sometimes of reverses, on the sea and on the land.  It speaks of patriots and heroes among the living and among the dead…”

Yes, seeing the flag wave in the breeze still stirs me.  I had the privilege of serving this country under that flag from 1972-1977 in the military of our country.  I still have the privilege of serving under that flag as a patriot and citizen of this great country.  Some may ask in scorn and mockery, “when was America great?”, I see the greatness of America everytime I see the flag–God Bless America!

It’s home.  When you’ve wandered most of your life, it means something to stand on a piece of ground and call it your own.  It gives you a feeling…  I couldn’t tell you what it’s like…to look across that valley yonder and know it’s yours…to know that come tomorrow you’ll still be here…and next month…and next year.”
              –Elmer Kelton (Llano River)

    “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.”
              –Acts 17:11 (NKJV)
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The Scripture declares in Matthew 16:18, “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” (NKJV)  Nothing will prevail against the Church.  It will stand the onslaughts of the world.  Evil made come against it, but the Church will still stand.
    I have always said that the devil knows he cannot destroy or defeat the Church.  Christ will not allow anything to blemish His bride.  However, that being said, the devil will attack those within the Church, and his main target is the family.  Destroy the family and the Church will go with it, therefore, it is all the more imperative that the family and home remain strong and steadfast in the faith.
    Christ must always be first and foremost in the home.  There is no other alternative.  Here are a few suggestions I found that make for the foundation of a solid home.  Some of it is borrowed from Carlos Murphy.

         First — it is a home where the Lord Jesus is welcomed.  Is Jesus welcome in your home?  Would He be embarrassed to enter the entrance to your house?  Martha often gets a bad rap, but we read in Luke 10:38, “A certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home.” (NKJV)  She became excited when she heard that Jesus was coming to visit.
         Second — it is a home where the Lord is honored.  The home should be such that He does feel welcome.  It should be altered to accommodate His needs.  There must be time allowed to sit with Him and fellowship.  Would you hide anything from Him, or welcome Him to gaze throughout your house?
         Third — it is a home where His word is obeyed.  We may sit around the table and commune with Him, have fellowship, but what good does it do if we then do not obey?  It is said that righteousness is “right orderliness”–this is accomplished when His commands are followed.  When events of daily life line up to His divine wisdom and standards, peace prevails.  This is true even in the midst of storms.
         Fourth — is it a home of prayer.  Trouble, perplexities, and unsettling events are taken to Him.  When you do not know what to do, that is a time for prayer.  The prayer of praise should be prevalent.  Happiness and joy should abound and glorify Him.  Prayer calms volatile emotions and changes perspectives.
         Fifth — it is a sanctified place.  The home is the temple of the family.  It has been given a sacred trust.  It is not to be desecrated.  If the Lord is in the house, worldliness and wickedness will be kept outside.  The home will be set apart for His habitation and dedicated to His service.

There is a real need in our country to welcome Christ back in the home.  But when does He eat and fellowship when there is not sitting down at the table with the family?  How can He talk with us when we glance at Him then go back to our phones?  Has the cell phone taken priority over the Bible?  Reap the benefits of Jesus in your home; welcome Him in with no distractions.
    One word about dads since Father’s Day is coming up.  Far too many children are born today with no father in the home.  In one segment of our society 76% of children born do not have a father in the home.  Add to that the “dead-beat” dads.  They may be around, but they are not really a part of the home.  They try to make up for their mental, emotional, and spiritual absence by special events or buying special gifts.  Sorry, that doesn’t cut it!  The father, despite the feminist movement, is responsible for the home!

A change in a man is never so evident to himself, but of course, I had experienced new things…  Even as a man shapes a timber for a house or a bridge, he is also shaping himself.  He has in himself a material that can be shaped to anything he wishes it to be.  The trouble is the shaping never ceases, and sometimes it has gone far along one line before a man realizes it.”
              –Louis L’Amour  (Bendigo Shafter)

    “And not only that, but we also rejoice in our afflictions, because we know that affliction produces endurance, endurance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope.”
              –Romans 5:3-4 (HCSB)
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I have heard it said that character is what you do when no one else is around.  This is only partially true, for character is who you are all the time.  A person with good character can make a bad mistake–that should not define who they are.  Also true is that people with bad character may at times do good things.  Character is not based on a one time action, nor is it based on only part of you.
    Jack Hyles has said that, “habits make character.”  If through one’s life their form good habits then they will have good character, and thus the opposite is true as well.  Something to ponder is the definition of character; it means “to engrave.”  In that regard habits will form the type of character a person becomes.  Keep practicing a habit and it will “engrave” itself on your life and actually become part of you.  Practice lying and it will “engrave” itself and you will be known as a liar.  The more something is practices the deeper it becomes engraved in your life; the more it becomes “you.”
    Character then is formed and continues to be formed throughout one’s life.  Many things are part of us that we do not even think about.  Habits are formed and we can do them without thinking about how to do it.  They become automatic in a person’s life with no thought behind the actions.  “Tasks are not performed by present effort but by past preparation.” (Hyles)  I remember inspections in my time in the military.  The sergeant would walk slowly, stopping at an individual looking them down and up then back down.  If the shoes would not polished to a spit-shine, well, the sergeant knew that the “character” of the man denoted sloppiness, lack of discipline and attentiveness to detail.
    I believe there is more to character than just the formation of habits, but there is much truth in that statement.  Hyles goes on to say, “The more we live by doing right automatically and the more our good habits save us the making of excessive choices, the better we will be and the more we will do.  Precarious is the life of a person whose daily actions have not become habitual and who must exercise his will every time he does something.  He will become tired in his work, more laborious in his deliberations, and less effective in all he does.”
    Hmmm, perhaps the develop of habits, good habits, thus good character is part of worshiping with the will.  Jesus said if you love Me, keep My commandments (John 14:15).  I love God with all of my will is then the development of good habits, the development of  good character.  We should not have to think, “should I do this?”  No, it should come automatically, it should be engraved in us to do the will of the Father.