The Comparison Trap

Before heavyweight boxer George Foreman became famous, a friend told him, “George, one day you’re going to have it all. You’ll have money, a mansion, fleets of cars …”  George replied, “Wow, I’m going to feel good when that happens.” After George became the heavyweight champion of the world, it seemed as though his friend’s prophecy came true. He had everything he wanted, but still didn’t feel good.

One day his childhood hero, NFL football sensation Jim Brown, came to his ranch to do a television interview. George said, “I always wanted to be just like Jim Brown.” Now the person he had idolized since his youth was coming to see him.

George toured him around his estate, showing him his beautiful home, his collection of cars, and the manicured lawn. Jim Brown was impressed. He said, “George, you’ve got it made! I just hope one day I can get it together like you.” George thought, Get it together like me? I’m trying to get it together like him! (MORE Amazing Stories & Daily Devotionals, Day 331). Even though they were arguably the best athletes in their sports, neither of them were satisfied with their lives because they were measuring themselves with each other.

The Comparison Trap is when we measure our self-worth by comparing ourselves with others. 2 Corinthians 10:12 says, “When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are without understanding.” When we compare with others, we will either feel superior or inferior, and neither attitude is from God.

Comparing ourselves with others is like ants comparing themselves. Imagine the ants in an ant pile arguing which of them was the greatest. One claims to be the smartest ant; another the most beautiful ant, and another the most athletic ant. Then a giant foot smashes the ant pile to remind them they weren’t so great after all.

The fact is, we are all ants living on this giant ant pile called Earth. It’s time to stop comparing yourself with others. There comes a time when each one of us must pray, “God I accept the way I look. I accept the intelligence that You gave me. I accept the abilities You gave me. I accept the personality that You gave me. And I won’t blame You or myself for not having what You didn’t give me. Amen.” www.makinglifecount.net

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Trapped in a Cage of Tigers

A circus act with Bengal tigers was performed before a live television audience one evening. The tiger trainer went into the cage with several tigers to do the usual performance. The audience watched in suspense as the trainer took the tigers through their routine.

In the middle of the performance, something happened they hadn’t planned for. The power went out! In total darkness, the trainer was locked in with the tigers. Bengal tigers have nocturnal vision, which means they could see him, but he could not see them. A whip and a small kitchen chair offered little protection under those circumstances. Thirty seconds later, the lights came on and he calmly finished the performance.

In an interview afterward, the trainer was asked if he was afraid knowing the tigers could see him when he couldn’t see them. He admitted to being afraid, but then realized the tigers didn’t know that he couldn’t see them. He said, “I just kept cracking my whip and talking to them until the lights came on. They never knew that I couldn’t see them.” (Amazing Stories & Daily Devotionals, Day 6)

When Daniel was thrown into the lions’ den he knew the lions could see him, and he didn’t have a chair and a whip to protect him. Even so, he wasn’t afraid because he knew God was with him and trusted Him to protect him. He said, “My God sent His angel and shut the lions’ mouths and they have not harmed me” (Dan. 6:22).

What is it that you fear the most? Is it danger? The future? The fear of change? All throughout Scripture we see that knowing God is with us makes fear leave. God told Joshua, “Do not tremble of be afraid, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Josh. 1:9). David said, “even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil for You are with me” (Ps. 23:4). Moses told Israel, “The Lord is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed” (Dt. 31:8). Psalm 118:6 says, “The Lord is with me. I will not be afraid.”

How many times do we need to read this before it finally sinks in? You can get rid of your fear by saying out loud, “Lord, I believe that you are with me, so I will NOT be afraid.” Repeat it as many times you need to, but get it in your heart. Oswald Chambers said, “When you fear God, you fear nothing else. If you don’t fear God, you fear everything else.” That includes being in den of lions, or whatever threat you are facing.  www.makinglifecount.net

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The Million Dollar Mattress

 An Israeli woman mistakenly threw away a mattress that had almost $1 million inside, setting off a frantic search through tons of garbage at a number of landfill sites. The woman threw out her elderly mother’s old mattress because she bought her a new mattress as a surprise. Her “surprise” quickly turned into a nightmare.

The next day, her elderly mother remembered she had hidden her life savings inside the old mattress. “I woke up in the morning screaming when it hit me what happened.” She went to look for the mattress, but it had already been hauled away by garbage collectors. The money was in U.S. dollars and Israeli shekels and “it was all my money in the world.”

Searches at three different landfill sites turned up nothing. Yitzhak Borba, the dump manager, said the mattress would be nearly impossible to find among the 2,500 tons of garbage that arrives at the site every day. The woman stashed the money in a mattress because of her “traumatic experiences with banks.” (Amazing Stories & Daily Devotionals, Day 42).

During the Great Depression, many people stuffed money in their mattresses because they didn’t trust banks. Don’t put your trust in riches, whether it’s in banks, stocks, gold, or mattresses. “Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God” (1 Tim. 6:17). 

Although IT IS wise to save money for the future, we should never put our trust in it because it can instantly disappear due to unforeseen circumstances. Stock markets crash. Banks fail. Thieves steal. You might even forget where you hid your money, like inside a mattress. Psalm 52:7-8 says, “Behold the man who did not depend on God for safety but trusted in the abundance of his riches…but as for me…I trust in the lovingkindness of God forever and ever.”  The Lord is the only security that you can trust.  www.makinglifecount.net

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The Photographer's One Fatal Mistake

In spring 1981, a young man flew to Alaska to photograph the scenery and wildlife in the wilderness. He carefully planned for everything he would need to make his adventure a success; photo equipment, 500 rolls of film, several firearms, and 1,400 pounds of provisions.

Every day he journaled in his diary about the scenery and wildlife he saw. What was his fatal mistake? No, he wasn’t eaten by a bear. It was something else. As the months passed, he realized he planned well to live in Alaska for a few months, but he had forgotten to make plans how to get out!

In August he wrote in his diary, “I think I should have used more foresight about arranging my departure. I’ll find out soon.” In November, his body was found in a valley over 200 miles from Fairbanks. An investigation revealed he failed to make plans to exit Alaska.

Jesus told a parable about a rich man who was so successful that he didn’t have room to store his abundant crops. He decided to tear down his barns and build bigger ones. He told himself, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry” (Luke 12:19). He wrongly assumed he would have many years to live.

“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?’” (Luke 12:20). God called him a fool because he thought he would live a long time, but he died that night and left everything behind for someone else. You can’t take it with you.

Many people are like that photographer—making many plans for this world but never preparing for their eternal destination in the next world. Have you used some foresight in arranging your departure? Here is how to do it.   www.makinglifecount.net

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The Story of Three Sponges

 Three sponges lay on the counter top. Although they all look the same, they aren’t. You can’t notice the difference between them until you squeeze them and see what comes out. You pick up the first sponge and squeeze it. Out comes dirty oil from the car. It’s been used to clean up a spot on the garage floor.

You pick up the second sponge and squeeze it. Out comes chocolate milk. It was used to clean up the mess from what the glass spilled on the dining room table.

You pick up the third sponge and squeeze it. Out comes clean water. It was used to clean up the water from the leaky faucet under the kitchen sink. All the sponges absorbed something different, and what came out told a story about where they had been.

Our minds are like those sponges. Whatever we put into our minds will come out once it is squeezed. What we dwell on in our minds, and what we watch with our eyes, is absorbed into the sponge. Jesus said, “Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is clear, your whole body is also filled with light, but when your eye is bad, your whole body also is filled with darkness” (Luke 11:34).

When life squeezes us, whatever we soaked up comes out. For some people, the squeeze releases outbursts of anger (Gal. 5:20). For others, the squeezing brings out tears. But for those who have been spending time with God, the love of Jesus pours out. What comes out depends on what your mind has been soaking up.

What have you been absorbing into your sponge? We should pray, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer” (Ps. 19:14) www.makinglifecount.net

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The Cussin' Parrot

A cussing parrot named Flounder was adopted by the Humane Society of Charlotte. Flounder had been taught profanity by his former owners, who were college students. “The bird makes us laugh, and we don’t get many laughs, so we’re keeping him,” said Patti Lewis, president of the society. “We don’t want anyone to think the humane society taught him those filthy words.”

 

Have you noticed that the President, Vice-President, and other politicians are frequently using filthy words, even when they’re on TV? What used to be taboo is now acceptable. It has even become acceptable among Christians to use cuss words. I would never tell non-Christians to stop talking filth because they don’t have a relationship with God, but I will tell believers to clean up their mouths. Why? Because you are a representative of Jesus Christ.

 

Christians are called to a higher standard (1 Cor. 5:12), and non-believers form their beliefs about the truth of Christianity from the way we act and what we say. What would Jesus do? Did Jesus ever say filthy cuss words? David Jeremiah said, “The only Jesus that unbelievers ever see is in people who already know Him.”

When the prophet Isaiah saw God on His throne (Isaiah 6:1,5), he said, “Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, for my eyes have seen the King.” When he stood before God, the FIRST thing that convicted him was the words he had spoken. What did he say that was so bad? It probably wasn’t filthy words, but maybe he called someone an idiot, or he might have slandered someone.

I learned to cuss on the golf course whenever I hit a bad shot. But after I gave my heart to Jesus, I quit saying all those filthy words. A change of heart changes the way we speak (Luke 6:45). “You must also put away all for the following: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, and filthy language out of your mouth” (Col. 3:8). “But sexual immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be mentioned among you, as is proper among saints; and there must be no filthiness or foolish talk, or vulgar joking, which are not fitting.” (Eph.5:3-4)

Instead of using crude language, you can learn to say clean words (crap, butt, darn, etc.) that mean the same things as the cuss words, but aren’t offensive. Flounder the foul-mouthed parrot was taught how to cuss, and you can teach yourself how to not cuss. “The heart of the wise teaches his mouth” (Prov. 16:23).  www.makinglifecount.net 

BIBLE STUDY: If Jesus knew all things, why did He ask questions?

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Homeless vs Famous

A little girl was asked what she wanted to be when she grew up. She screamed, “Famous!” 

Fame is nothing more than name recognition. You’re famous if everyone knows your name and takes pictures of you.

Which person in the picture is more valuable? The unknown homeless man pictured on the left, or Taylor Swift, one of the most famous people in the world, who is pictured on the right. 99.99% of people would say Taylor Swift is more valuable. But does fame really make her more valuable? 

What if they switched places? The homeless man would become a world-famous singer, and Taylor Swift would be an unknown homeless person living in a cardboard house. Everyone would be begging for his autograph, and everyone would be looking down on her. Same people. Different status. 

But God sees people differently than we do. In God’s eyes, the homeless person sleeping in a cardboard box is just as valuable as the most admired movie star sleeping in a mansion. Proverbs 22:2 says, “The rich and the poor have a common bond; the Lord is the maker of them all.” The fact that God created every person makes everyone valuable. Only by looking through God’s eyes will you understand that everyone is valuable, but no one is more valuable than anyone else. 

How much is a person worth? Jesus said, “What do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?” (Matt. 16:26). It doesn’t matter whether you’re famous or homeless, your soul is with worth MORE THAN all the gold, silver, cryptocurrency, money, and property in the entire world! The one thing you DON’T want to do is “lose your soul.” Jesus came to earth to save your soul (Luke 19:10), which keeps you from losing it. 

What’s my point? Stop looking at people through the lens of fame or the lens of shame. Remember that no one is better than anyone else, and everyone has an eternal soul that needs to be saved.  www.makinglifecount.net

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Knowing Where to Tinker

Years ago, auto maker Henry Ford built his River Rouge automobile plant in Dearborn, Michigan. Charlie Steinmetz, who worked for General Electric, helped install the generators. One day something went wrong at the plant and a gigantic generator shut down.

The electrical engineers couldn’t fix the problem, so Ford called Steinmetz to see if he could find out what was wrong. Charlie tinkered with the machine for a few hours and then flipped the switch. The generator whirred to life and everything worked perfectly.

Three days later, Ford received invoice from Steinmetz for $10,000. Henry wrote Charlie a letter thanking him for fixing the problem, but balked at the $10,000 charge just for “tinkering.” He asked for an itemized bill. A few days later, Ford received this reply: “For tinkering on generator $1. For knowing where to tinker $9,999.” Ford paid the bill.  (MORE Amazing Stories & Daily Devotionals, Day 137)

In our journey through this life, many things will quit working and need to be fixed. It may be a financial problem, or a relationship that needs repairing. We serve an omniscient God who knows where to tinker. How much does He know? Jesus told us the hairs on our heads are all numbered (Luke 12:7). Before we even speak a word, the Lord knows what we will say (Psalm 139:4). God has even named every star in the universe (Ps. 147:4, Isa. 40:26).

God knows what you’re going through and wants to show you what to do. He says, “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know” (Jer. 33:3). We must be willing to obey whatever He says to us. Let Him tinker wherever He wants and whatever needs fixing will start working again. www.makinglifecount.net

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Have You Robbed Anyone Lately?

In the late 1870s, four men rode up to a farmhouse in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains. A poor widow answered their knock at the door. They told her they had been traveling and were hungry, and asked if she would prepare them a hot meal. She agreed to do it and invited them in.

The men realized she was extremely poor because her cupboards were nearly bare. As they were eating, she mentioned she was going to be evicted from her home that afternoon. The man who held the mortgage was coming at four o’clock to collect $800, which she was unable to pay.

Before leaving, they thanked her for the meal, and as an act of appreciation, one of them gave her the $800 she needed. He told her to make sure to get a written receipt from him after she paid off her mortgage. The woman broke down in tears, thanking him for his generous gift.

That afternoon, she paid the mortgage holder the $800 and received a receipt from him. However, the mortgage holder didn’t keep the money very long. On his way back to town, he was robbed by the same man who gave the widow the $800—the infamous bank robber Jesse James. (MORE Amazing Stories, Day 13)

You’d never rob someone, would you? The Lord says, “Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you say, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In tithes and offerings” (Malachi 3:10). When we withhold our offerings from God, isn’t that the same as Jesse James robbing the mortgage holder to keep his $800?

Ornan offered to donate the land for the Temple, but David told him, “No, but I will surely buy it for the full price; for I will not take what is yours for the Lord, or offer a burnt offering which costs me nothing.” (1 Chron. 21:24). An offering that pleases the Lord will cost us something. The offerings we give tells God what we think of Him. If our offering means nothing to us, it means nothing to God. So the next time you give an offering, make sure you say, “This is how much I love You.”  www.makinglifecount.net

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90 Year-Old Gives Birth to Baby Boy

Glenda frequently visited her 89-year-old mother-in-law Polly in the nursing home in Georgia. Sadly, Polly can remember what happened 50 years ago, but can’t remember 50 minutes ago. One day Glenda went to see her. When she entered the room, Polly excitedly said, “Did you see my baby in the other room? I had a baby yesterday!” Glenda knew she was remembering the birth of her son, which happened 55 years earlier. She wasn’t sure what to say, so she told her, “Congratulations!” (MORE Amazing Stories, Day 10)

Polly didn’t have a baby at age 89, but Abraham’s wife Sarah actually did give birth at age 90 (Gen 17:17, 21:5)). God promised Abraham when he was 75 years old that he would have a child. Sarah was 65 at this time. They didn’t realize they would have to wait 25 years before the promise would be fulfilled.

Why would God make them wait that long? To prove to them, and to everyone who reads the Bible, that God will always fulfill His promises no matter how much time passes, or how impossible the situation looks. “It is impossible for God to lie” (Heb. 6:18).

How long have YOU been waiting for God to answer your prayer? Let Abraham and Sarah be an example for you. Abraham “did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform” (Rom 4:20-21). Sarah, who had gone through menopause, never doubted God’s promise. “By faith even Sarah herself received ability to conceive, even beyond the proper time of life, since she considered Him faithful who had promised” (Heb. 11:11).

No one on earth, except for Abraham and Sarah, believed God would fulfill His promise to them. But just as He said, Sarah gave birth at age 90, and she could honestly tell people, “I had a baby yesterday!” 

I wonder if anyone told her, “Congratulations!"  Not for her baby, but for trusting God to come through. www.makinglifecount.net

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The Silver Trailer House

Tony Campolo was invited to speak at a college chapel service in Pennsylvania. Before the service began, eight men escorted Tony into a back room to pray. One of the men prayed, “Lord, you know Charlie Stoltzfus. He lives in that silver trailer a mile down the road on the right-hand side.” 

As the man continued to pray, he kept repeating the same thing about the man living in a silver trailer a mile down the road. Tony was tempted to say, Knock it off, Fella. Do you think God is asking, “What’s that address again?”

The man continued, “Lord, Charlie told me this morning he’s going to leave his wife and three kids. Step in and do something, God. Bring that family back together.”

After the service was over, Tony got in his car and pulled onto the Pennsylvania Turnpike to return home. He saw a hitchhiker on the turnpike and felt prompted by God to pull over and offer him a ride. He introduced himself, “My name’s Tony Campolo. What’s yours?” The hitchhiker said, “I’m Charlie Stoltzfus.” Tony was stunned. It was the man for whom they had been praying for earlier!

Tony pulled off at the next exit. The hitchhiker asked, “Hey, where are you taking me?” Tony said, “Home. You just left your wife and three kids, right?” The bewildered hitchhiker said, “Uh, yeah, that’s right.” The man stared in amazement as Tony drove right up to the young man’s silver trailer! That afternoon Charlie and his wife surrendered their lives to Jesus Christ. (MORE Amazing Stories, Day 14).

When you pray, let God decide the best way to answer your prayers. He might surprise you in an unusual way. “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord (Isa. 55:8). Just ask Charlie, who lives in the silver trailer a mile down the road. www.makinglifecount.net

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Does God speak in an audible voice or some other way?

Can God guide my steps without me knowing that I’m being led?

How can rejection be God’s direction?

Can God put the desires in my heart to want what He wants?

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How will I find the right person to marry?

If I’ve been away from God, will He still lead me from where I am now? 

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Operation Mincemeat

 One of the cleverest secret plans during WWII was Operation Mincemeat. In 1943, Great Britain planned to invade Sicily, but they had to convince the Germans and Italians the attack would happen elsewhere. They obtained a body of a tramp who had died of eating rat poison and dressed the corpse in a Royal Marines uniform, naming him Major William Martin.

 They planted on him a cryptic letter detailing an impending invasion of Greece and Sardinia. The fake military document was supposedly intended for the British commander-in-chief in North Africa. 

The corpse was transported by submarine and released off the coast of Spain near the shore, making it appear that he died in a plane crash. As expected, the body washed up on a beach, which the Spanish government believed was a secret courier. They carefully opened the sealed envelopes and photographed the “Top Secret” documents. Then they turned them over to German military intelligence, which convinced them the Allies would invade Greece and Sardinia, but Sicily wasn’t going to be invaded. The Nazis reacted to the ruse and moved their troops to Greece and Sardinia.

The plan worked. British troops landed in Sicily, helping to end the war in Europe and paving the way for the June 6 D-Day invasion. Major William Martin, a man who never existed, played a significant role in winning WWII.

As brilliant as that plan was, God’s plan to win the war for your soul, Operation Save the World, was even more ingenious. “This Man (Jesus) delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross…to put Him to death, and God raised Him up” (Acts 2:23-24). Satan thought if he could stir up people to kill Jesus, that would be end of Him, and the devil would rule the world forever.

But God outsmarted him. He allowed Jesus to be crucified, so that He became the sacrifice for the sins of the world (John 1:29). Then God resurrected Him from the dead to win the war for souls, and now He lives forever as King of kings and Lord of lords.

Only one thing is left to complete the plan of salvation for you. You must receive Jesus as your Lord, and then you will be on the winning side for all eternity.

Over 300 printable Bible studies are at www.makinglifecount.net

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God Does Speak to People Today

When Peter Lord was the pastor of Park Avenue Baptist Church in Titusville, Florida, he was praying on December 4th. God spoke these words to him: "I want you to construct a building where people can pray. As proof that this is My idea and not yours, I will send someone to the church that you don’t know who will give five hundred dollars toward the building. This will happen before Christmas."

It wasn’t an audible voice, but it came to him as clear thoughts. Peter wrote in his prayer journal what the Lord had said, but he didn’t tell anyone. He didn’t want some well-meaning person to try to make it come to pass.

A week passed. No one brought him any money. Two weeks went by, but still no answer. He started to doubt what he had heard. Then, on December 24, a married couple from another city came to the church and asked to speak to the pastor.

They said, “Pastor, you don’t know us, but when we were praying God told us to come here and give you some money. We don’t really understand why we needed to drive here to give this to you, but we’re just being obedient.” The couple handed him a check for $500! (Peter Lord, Hearing God, Chosen Books, 2011, p.73)

This couldn’t be a mere “coincidence.” Notice that God not only spoke to Peter, but He also spoke to the couple in another city to bring the exact amount of money to him. This not only confirmed to Peter that he had heard from God, but it also confirmed to the couple they had also heard Him speak to them.

The prayer building was constructed and used for many years as a place for people to intercede for thousands of people. (See picture of the chapel) When God tells you do to something, He will make it happen. “Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass” (1 Thess. 5:24). www.kentcrockett.blogspot.com   www.makinglifecount.net

BIBLE STUDY: Does God Speak to People Today? 

A Scrapbook of Dead Enemies

A number of years ago, after an elderly woman passed away, family members were cleaning out her house and found a scrapbook filled with obituaries from the local newspaper. The death notices all pertained to people she had hated. As bizarre as it may sound, she kept a scrapbook of her dead enemies! She had five different clippings of her most despised dead foe in her morbid memory book.

Instead of having an “In Loving Memory” book, hers was a book of hateful memories. Apparently she gained some kind of weird satisfaction by thinking they could no longer torment her. Or could they? If you don’t forgive your deceased enemies, they’ll continue to haunt you through your hateful memories of them.

Maybe you don’t have a scrapbook of your dead enemies, but do you keep a scrapbook in your mind of your living enemies? When you go to bed at night, your enemies climb in the bed with you to keep you awake. When you go on vacation, your enemies travel with you to ruin your trip. Is it worth it?

 

First Corinthians 13:5 says love “does not take into account a wrong suffered.” That means you must tear up your hurt list and remove the enemies from your scrapbook. We forgive our enemies because God has forgiven us FAR MORE than what others have done to us. “Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you” (Eph. 4:32).

 

When you forgive, your enemies will stop haunting you, and the root of bitterness will shrivel up and die. How to do you know when you’ve forgiven someone? You aren’t being tormented anymore. www.makinglifecount.net  

Removing the Curse

There’s a story about a man who had been under a curse for 20 years. He walked for miles and climbed a mountain to find a guru who could free him. When he reached the top, the guru asked, “Why have you come?” He said, “I need for you to remove a curse that was placed on me.”

The guru said, “I can remove the curse, but I must know the exact words that were used to put the curse on you. What were they?” The man answered, “The words were, ‘I now pronounce you husband and wife.’”

Every couple at their own wedding believed they would have a wonderful marriage when they stood at the altar. Otherwise, they would have never married. No one plans to have a miserable marriage, but it can turn that way if you don’t work at it. Ask yourself, “What is it like being married to me?” 

Your marriage doesn’t have to be cursed. In fact, God wants to put His blessing on it. Unfortunately, many marriages are experiencing more cursing than blessing because two bosses are married to each other. They keep trying to change the mind of their spouse, telling each other what to do.

Marriage can either be heaven on earth or hell on earth. The more that GOD is in it, the more it is like HEAVEN. The more that SATAN is in it, the more it is like HELL. The best marriage is when two servants are married to each other. The worst marriage is when two bosses are married to each other.

The Lord can bless any marriage if a husband and wife are willing to change their attitudes and become servants of each other. Jesus said, “Whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant” (Matt. 20:26). One servant is great, but two servants will make a great marriage that God will bless.

God can remove the curse on your marriage and turn it into a marriage made in heaven if you will let Him do it. “The Lord your God turned the curse into a blessing for you because the Lord your God loves you” (Deut. 23:5). www.makinglifecount.net 

Coveting My Neighbor's Hamburger

When I was in sixth grade, I attended a small Lutheran school where we had to bring a sack lunch each day to eat at our desks. Every day I ate the same tasteless sandwich; baloney on white bread. This was before wheat bread was “invented.”

Robbie Buckner sat to my right, and every day his mother delivered him a hamburger from a nearby cafe. No baloney sandwiches for Robbie. Just mouthwatering, delicious burgers. In those days our family had a meager income, and I only ate a hamburger from a restaurant once or twice a year. 

Robbie didn't know how to silently eat with his mouth closed and loudly smacked each bite. It tortured me to smell his hamburger and listen to him smack, while I forced a baloney sandwich down my throat. Paul said, “I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, ‘You shall not covet’” (Rom. 7:7-8). I would not have known about coveting if it wasn’t for Robbie Buckner’s hamburger.

In this Lutheran school, I had to memorize the tenth commandment: “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife . . . or his ox or donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor” (Ex. 20:17). “Anything” included my neighbor’s hamburger.

With my head I learned not to covet, but with my heart I learned how to covet. People can see someone killing or stealing, but who can see someone coveting? Coveting goes straight to the motives in our hearts. This commandment says we are not to even want what our neighbor has.

Coveting means I have to have what the “haves” have. Maybe your problem isn’t your neighbor’s sandwich, but could it be your neighbor’s spouse? Does it bother you to see your neighbor driving a nicer car, or living in a more expensive house? Check your heart. Enjoy your baloney sandwich and be thankful that you have something to eat.  www.makinglifecount.net 

The Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence

Perhaps you’ve heard of the SETI project—the Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence. The project searched for evidence of life outside of our solar system and in other star systems. 

Most of the searches in the last 60 years involved using large antennas trying to eavesdrop on any radio signals that aliens (if they exist) might be transmitting. Most SETI projects these days use radio telescopes outfitted with highly sensitive and specialized receivers.

NASA funded this effort until it was canceled in 1993. Since that time, it has been funded by private donations. In spite of spending hundreds of millions of dollars searching for intelligence in outer space, no alien signals have been picked up. Not even one.

Yet, you and I can communicate at any time with an Intelligence far beyond our solar system—the Creator of the entire universe! And it doesn’t require a radio telescope to do it.

Do you realize that prayer isn’t a duty, but a privilege? God could have said, “There’s no such thing as prayer. It doesn’t exist. You’re not allowed to talk to me. I refuse to help you if you’re in trouble. You’re on your own. If you need assistance, I’m sorry, but you don’t have a prayer.”

Imagine going your entire life without being able to talk to God. But if you don’t pray, it’s the same thing as if there were no such thing as prayer. Prayer can actually move God to make things happen on earth that otherwise wouldn’t happen, which explains why it’s such a magnificent privilege. Your prayers can bring about salvation, wisdom, provision, protection, guidance, and positive change in others. It’s also the way you release your burdens to God (Phil. 4:6-7).

One day I said, “Lord, this universe is so huge and I’m so small. Why would you want to speak to me?” The thought came to me, I don’t want to only speak with you. I want to talk to everyone else in the world too.

Yes, God is waiting to hear from you. And talk to you, too. www.makinglifecount.net