Are You Willing to Be the Patient?

A surgeon named Dr. Evan O. Kane searched for a candidate to undergo surgery so he could prove that appendectomies could be done under local anesthetic. At last a patient was found, who was prepared for surgery and wheeled into the operating room. A local anesthetic was applied, leaving the patient able to talk and respond as the surgery progressed.

As he had done hundreds of times, Dr. Kane skillfully removed the appendix and finished the surgery. During the surgery, the patient complained only of minor discomfort. The volunteer was taken to a hospital room, recovered quickly, and was dismissed two days later. Dr. Kane had demonstrated that local anesthesia was a viable and sometimes preferable alternative—thanks to the willingness of a brave volunteer.

What I didn't tell you was that the courageous volunteer for surgery by Dr. Kane—was Dr. Kane. Dr. Kane performed surgery on himself and removed his own appendix!

Sometimes the surgery we need most can only be performed by ourselves, on ourselves. The surgery I’m talking about is the operation to remove your anger. “All bitterness, anger and wrath, shouting and slander must be removed from you, along with all malice” (Eph. 4:31). But that might not be the only attitude that needs to go.

What other attitudes do you need to remove? Is it greed? Is it jealousy? No one else can perform the operation. You must be the surgeon. You must volunteer to be the patient. The instrument to be used is the scalpel of repentance. It might be painful at first, but you’ll quickly recover. And then you’ll be free from the attitude that used to control you.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTION: Is the 1611 King James Version the only perfect translation?

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God Will Show You What to Do Next

After Elijah stopped the rain in Israel, God told him to go to the brook Cherith, where He commanded the ravens to bring him food in the mornings and evenings (1 Kings 17:1-6). God told the birds where to find food, and then He showed them exactly where to find Elijah.

After a while, when the brook dried up, God told Elijah what to do next. “Go to Zarephath…I have commanded a widow there to provide for you" (1 Kings 17:9). The Lord didn’t speak to him about moving to another place until after the water quit flowing. When the brook dries up and the ravens stop delivering meals, it’s time to move on. It doesn’t take a prophet to figure this out.

Do you understand the lesson here? God knows exactly where you are and how to deliver His provision to you. If you will learn to follow God’s leading, it will keep you from worrying because He can show you what to do next in every situation, just like He showed Elijah where to go and what to do.

Even though Elijah was living through 3 ½ years of drought, he didn’t worry about starving to death or dying of thirst. He simply followed God’s instructions about what to do next and trusted Him to provide what he needed. www.kentcrockett.blogspot.com

CREATION VS EVOLUTION: Multiple Designs of Animal Eyes Disproves Evolution

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Why Did He Raise the Wrong Hand?

In 1962, a newspaper showed a picture of new United States senators taking the oath of office. One of the senators raised his left hand instead of his right hand at the swearing-in. 

Someone wrote a letter to the editor criticizing the senator for being unpatriotic. “He’s not qualified to be in office. He doesn’t even know his right hand from his left.”

The critical person must have been embarrassed and ashamed after he found out the real reason why the man raised his left hand. The senator was WWII war hero, Daniel Inouye, who was awarded the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart, the Distinguished Service Cross, and the Medal of Honor. He lost his right arm in battle while fighting the Germans. He raised his left hand for the swearing-in because he didn’t have a right hand.

Critical people usually make judgments based on misleading or incomplete information. Have you ever judged someone only to find out later there was a lot more to the story? Jesus said, “Do not judge lest you be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged . . . And why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own?” (Matt. 7:1-2). The “speck” is only a small piece of information but not the entire story.

Before you criticize someone, make sure you know all the facts. It might change your mind—and it will keep you from looking like a fool.  www.kentcrockett.blogspot.com

BIBLE PROPHECY:  What is the Beast with 7 heads and 10 horns in the Book of Revelation?

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Follow the Leader

The following comes from my book, MORE Amazing Stories & Daily Devotionals. In 2005 in the town of Gavas in eastern Turkey, a sheep from a large flock walked to the edge of a cliff and jumped to its death. A second sheep imitated the first and leaped off the cliff. Then a third sheep followed. Then a fourth. Then a fifth. And they kept following until the entire flock was gone.

The Associated Press reported the Turkish shepherds had left the flock so they could go eat breakfast. Nearly 1,500 sheep followed their woolly leader over the same cliff, one at a time. In the end, 450 sheep died and 1,050 survived, but only because the survivors were saved as the pile of sheep kept getting higher. Like a big fluffy pillow, the mountain of fleeces cushioned the late-jumpers fall. They didn’t know any better because they were sheep without a shepherd.

That’s what happens when shepherds are more interested in taking care of their stomachs than taking care of their sheep. When Jesus saw the multitudes of people, He had compassion for them because they were “like sheep without a shepherd” (Matt. 9:36).

It’s no accident Jesus compared people with sheep. Sheep will blindly follow other sheep, even if it kills them. Isaiah said, “All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way” (Isa. 53:6). That’s why we need to follow a wise shepherd who will lead us through the difficulties of life. We need to follow a good shepherd who knows what’s best for us.

Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep . . . My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me, and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish” (John 10: 11, 27-28). The Good Shepherd will lead you to green pastures. Following wayward sheep will lead you over a cliff.

Jesus is our spiritual Leader, but we also have government leaders. PLEASE VOTE THIS TUESDAY!  This election will determine which LEADER will make crucial decisions that will affect your life for the next 4 years and beyond. Examine the past POLICIES of each candidate. Which of the policies (national & local candidates) align with biblical principles? Elections are usually very close, and your vote may make the difference on who will be the next LEADER.

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