JERRYGILLIS

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:2-4 The weather here in our neck of the woods has been pretty great of late. The trees and flowers are popping (along with all the allergens), and these are the scents that usually call me to a baseball diamond. I played alot of baseball growing up, and now my two boys play alot of baseball (and…

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"My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you." James 1:19-21 There is something powerful about humbly submitting our lives to the Word of God. But it's not easy sometimes. Just as Jesus talked about in the parable of the soils, hearts have differing degrees of fertility.…

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"I am the most ignorant of men; I do not have a man's understanding. I have not learned wisdom, nor have I knowledge of the Holy One. Who has gone up to heaven and come down? Who has gathered up the wind in the hollow of his hands? Who has wrapped up the waters in his cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and the name of his son? Tell me if you know!" Proverbs 30:2-4 His name is Agur. We know so little about this guy except his name really. We know his dad's name is Jakeh, and that he is probably from Massa.…

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"The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops." James 5:16b-18 First, to both people that probably read this blog (like my Mom...and maybe one friend that my Mom has badgered to death with the "you would really enjoy some of my son's writings" spiel), I want to apologize for being the least caring and least conscientious…

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"Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint." Proverbs 23:4 Restraint is not a particularly popular word in the English lexicon anymore. The word itself implies that there are impulses that must be held back or controlled, and that you can't always get what you want (to quote the Stones). That is not an enjoyable thought for a generation of people that have what they want whenever they want - at least to a degree. While you could probably think of a hundred examples to every one I mention, the fact that we have…

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"Apart from Me, you can do nothing." - Jesus I was reading recently about the top selling Christian books of the new millenium. Since we are a decade into it, it was interesting to review what the general populace in the Christian community has been consuming. It gives us a good idea of what we are thinking. Of the top 100 titles, over 50 of them were about family/marriage/parenting, with basically the rest being about the self (you know, how to be the best "you" you can be). Of the few remaining titles, there were 6 about the Bible and4 about…

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"Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever." 1 Corinthians 9:25 I think the idea expressed in what Paul writes above is one of the more cumbersome ideas to live out. Here's why: we preach the gospel (as we should) and proclaim that salvation will never, ever be a result of our own works (which is of utmost truth and high priority). But then we are stuck with this idea that "works" are bad and it carries over into how we live our…

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