Thoughts from a Random Mind

         The world is filled with distractions. The enemy has made it that way; the distractions keep us occupied with nonessentials, which is designed to keep us from focusing on God. Take Sunday morning youth sports. Why Sunday mornings? Why? It’s just another spiritual battle to keep our kids away from church and godly values. Receiving forgiveness and eternal life are far better prizes than league championships. There is nothing wrong with sports in and of themselves, but should they really be allowed to take over our lives to the extent that we lose sight of everything else? 

I’m remembering a movie from 1981 called Chariots of Fire. * “It is based on the true story of two British athletes in the 1924 Olympics: Eric Liddell, a devout Scottish Christian who runs for the glory of God, and Harold Abrahams, an English Jew who runs to overcome prejudice.” ^[1] “The two athletes are driven to win in the 1924 Olympics as they wrestle with issues of pride and conscience.” ^[2] The Olympic finals were being held on a Sunday and the Christian, who was one of the favorites to win the gold medal opted out of the race because of his faith. He considered it wrong to race on the Lord’s Day.

Where has such faith gone? Have we become soft? Are we indifferent to that which is important in the eternal scheme of things? Once we give in to one thing, then another comes along, then another and another. I liken it to boiling a frog. If you toss him in boiling water he will immediately jump out because it is too hot for his sensibilities to accept, but if you place him in cool water and gradually turn the heat up he will stay there to his own demise, not realizing what is happening. That is exactly what happens with believers who begin to bend to the will of the world. Next thing you know you no longer attend church, so John or Sue can play sports ... and the downward spiral has begun. Now I love sports and I know it takes a lot of practice to become good, but why does it have to include Sundays?

Someday we’ll stand before God to give an account of our lives FOR Him.  He won’t stop loving us, even if we walk away from Him altogether, but it doesn’t have to be like that.  God loves us as we ignore or even forget all about the important role He has and does play in our lives. We need to put our priorities in the proper order based on God’s statutes. If you simply want to do what you want, without any guilt or contingencies, then don’t call yourself a Christian, because that’s not what you are. We are called to be Christ’s ambassadors; we need to work at that. We need to accept that we are swimming in the opposite direction as the world. That will give growth to some difficult choices. Heed the call to serve Christ above all else. No one can forgive your sins but Jesus Christ. 

Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing.

In His Name & for His Glory,

Richard Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

* Chariots of Fire won 7 Oscars & was voted best picture.

^[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chariots_of_Fire

^[2] https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082158/

Thoughts From a Random Mind

            I have failed so many times in this life, but in spite of my failed efforts God loves me. His patience is infinite, and his mercies are new every morning. I am humbled, for I don’t deserve such grace, but that’s exactly what grace is … unmerited or undeserved favor. Wow! I don’t know anyone this side of heaven that forgives and then remembers it against me no longer. That’s the example we’re supposed to follow, but I feel incapable of replicating his actions. Half the time I feel overwhelmed by the task before me; the other half of the time I’m stumbling thru an effort to succeed. If I only had my own resources to rely on, I could see why I would feel overwhelmed, but we are not alone in our efforts. 

            Distractions abound in this life. The devil is working overtime to slow us down in our efforts to serve the Lord. We cannot do this alone. It’s impossible. On our best day we can’t live up to God’s standard. That’s why we need him. We shouldn’t beat ourselves up because of our failings. We are like small children learning to ride a bike for the first time. First, we start with training wheels. When the training wheels come off, we are unsure of our ability to perform this task of riding on two wheels. A skinned knee may be the result, but we weren’t promised a pain-free life. In a way God is like a mom, who tends to the knee to bring about healing. He is also like a father who encourages and instructs us. We can’t do it alone. We must except that as a fact. 

            I have very poor concentration, which results in my being easily distracted. If we must be distracted let us be distracted by the Lord and not by irrelevant things that amount to nothing in the end. There is no such thing as a simple life any longer. Technological advances have seen to that. Our phones, iPads, Xboxes, Tik Tok, etc. have become the distractions of the day and from what I’m told Netflix is downright addictive. Anything to take away from time with the Lord. We fail because we cannot see the true importance of having God supersede all else in our lives. Without his constant interaction in our lives we will continue to fail. Hone in on the things of the Lord and let him lead you where he wants you to go. The victories will come. Minor setbacks will come as well, but they will be outweighed by the daily successes we will find in Christ. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing!   

In His Name & for His Glory,

RLKeller

Bread of Life Ministries

 

Thoughts From a Random Mind

                  I have a tendency that doesn’t serve me well at all. I fall into the trap of seeking the approval of others. I realized it today when I tried to act like one of the guys, but I’m not one of the guys and probably never will be.  I don’t always fit in with others particularly well and it is largely because I am a Christian with faith-based tattoos on both forearms and so everyone knows I am a Christian. That’s fine. I think some people might be a little uncomfortable around me.

            I’m not really sure how others see me. I get along with pretty much everyone. I appear to be well liked by others, but seeking their approval is a trap for sure and I get caught up in it regularly. I don’t want to simply be liked and I don’t want to be viewed as a good guy. I am an ambassador of the King of Kings but how exactly am I to act? Many believers love others but do it with conditions. If you smoke, drink, cuss, have tattoos, etc., you are frowned upon and not accepted. If you cut us we bleed like anybody else would. Believers in Christ may not be of this world, but we aren’t aliens from a different planet. There is a spiritual side to our existence and it has everything to do with placing our faith and trust in Jesus Christ.

            I need to learn to be different than the world without becoming otherworldly. I don’t have to dance on the fringe between what is right and what is wrong. What my actions should be are like the actions of Christ. Thankfully I do strive for this. Everyone wants to be liked, but in reality we may not have that choice for winning others to the Kingdom must be more important to us than our love for self gratification. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing! rlkeller

Thoughts From a Random Mind

           I think we all know the attraction of temptation. It is either something that we’ve done in the past that we enjoyed or something we hadn’t done before that looks inviting. Perhaps it’s something we’ve never done that we’re feeling the pull to do. Whenever this takes place within our heart and mind we must learn to mentally play out the scenario to its conclusion. In reality, the pay off is far more damaging than any benefit that comes from it. The benefit is always temporal, while the damage is perpetual. It is critical that we avoid sin by emulating Christ in our daily life. Our focus must be on the things of the Lord and not what we feel our own needs may seem to be. Trust me when I tell you that no matter how wonderful that thing looks in the beginning it ends up being a very dark and lonely road in the end. rlkeller

WHEN A CRISIS ARISES ...

“It is when a crisis arises that we instantly reveal upon whom we rely.”- Oswald Chambers

THE REPENTANT HEART

           The Lord loves a repentant heart. It would appear from scripture that no matter what we may be guilty of, if we repent with a “sincere & contrite heart” than we shall be forgiven. God’s love doesn’t change toward us because of what we think, say, or do. God’s love for us is unconditional. It NEVER changes. 

            An example of this is found in scripture. Let us set the scene: Bathsheba’s husband, “Uriah is dead. Bathsheba was raped. The resulting baby will die. And Nathan (the prophet) says, “The Lord has put away your sin.” Just like that? David committed adultery. He ordered murder. He lied. He “despised the word of the Lord.” He “scorned God.” And the Lord “put away [his] sin” (2 Samuel 12:13). What kind of a righteous judge is God? You don’t just pass over rape and murder and lying. Righteous judges don’t do that.” But the Lord did. You see He knew David. He knew his heart. Yes, what David did was terrible, a gross sin, and he paid dearly for them, for the consequences of his sinfulness was the death of the infant Bathsheba bore him. David acted selfishly and arrogantly with a person he had no right to be with. Because he was king he felt he could do as he pleased with no repercussions. How foolish. God knows all that can be known, so David might have fooled those around him, but God is not mocked, what you sow, so shall you reap.            

“Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.” (Galatians 6:7-8 NIV)

 

            The Lord knows us down to our core. He knows what drives us, what moves us, what influences us. He knows our heart; the seat of our emotions. ^[1] He knows when we are sincere and sorrowful about something we had done and when we are not. We cannot “fake out” God. Yet, in spite of what we may think, say, or do in this life, God loves us and will forgive us should we repent. Repentance is taking a 180 degree turn from the direction you are going in and begin to follow God’s path. We are all prone to battles with the “old man” who is supposed to be dead and buried, but the enemy won’t let him die completely, allowing that old ungodly nature to rise up at some pretty inopportune moments. Our focus must be on the Lord at all times to ward off the fiery darts of the enemy. ^[2]

            Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing.

In His Name & for His Glory,

Richard Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

^[1] “Historically, the heart has been considered the seat of emotions. Ancient civilizations like Egypt and Greece believed the heart was not just a physical organ but also held emotions and wisdom. Philosophers like Aristotle thought the heart was the center of both emotions and intellect.” _{[https://www.saybrook.edu/2009/03/09/emotion-heart-heart/]}

_[2] “In every situation take up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.” [Ephesians 6:16 Common Standard Bible CSB] Satan cannot be everywhere at once since he is not God, yet Satan attempts to attack every believer he can. Like a military commander, he can attack Christians indirectly through his demons.

WHAT IS CAUSING THE CHURCH TO FLOUNDER? (OPINION PIECE)

           Satan is working overtime to thwart the spreading of the true gospel throughout the world by spreading lies, and breeding confusion. Wokeism is flourishing under the liberal leadership of compromised pastors / priests. There has entered into the spiritual arena unbiblical thought that causes those who are listening to be fed with propaganda that will choke out the life of the body as a whole. Things that scripture is sinful behavior is being touted as new progressive thinking. When God declares something to be sin, who outside of God Himself can reverse that declaration? Does it not seem ludicrous for the creature to correct the creator?

            What we need is good, bible-based preaching and teaching once again. We need to call a sin a sin and not justify the world’s actions by claiming that God is love and would never send anyone to hell. Therein lies a fundamental flaw in their thinking. God doesn’t SEND anyone to hell, they go of their own volition.

            We need to learn how to worship God again. We need to get back to reading a trusted translation of scripture and reliable reference works. We need to understand that sin warrants punishment if left unchecked. We need to realize that while God loves us unconditionally, He also is the holy judge of all humanity and He will not wait forever to dole out retribution. We need to understand that Christians can indeed backslide back into sin (if you doubt it look at the complete story of the Assyrian city of Nineveh). We need to understand that there are charlatans who seek to lead true believers away from the faith and accept a cheap imitation for the real thing.

            Read God’s Word regularly. Pray continuously. Always trust God to bring about the best outcome to any situation. Don’t give in to anxious thoughts. Rely on the Holy Spirit within you to lead and guide you. And may we all always serve our righteous God with truth and honesty. 

Be aware of your surrounding and don’t allow yourself to be fooled or swayed into believing something that you are doubtful about. Research it out. Stay plugged into Godly sources and shun all evil. 

 

This is my opinion. 

Richard Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

A RECKONING IS COMING (an opinion piece)

         I happen to absolutely loathe politics. 100%. Hate it. And with all the corruption and lying going on, well, it's becoming a little hard to take. For those who are looking for justice, it seems like we are simply not going to see it this side of heaven. But whether those embroiled in lies and evil doings realize it or not, a reckoning is coming. You see, Almighty God's patience apparently has a limit and at some point unknown to man, He will unleash His wrath on all the unbelievers who have perpetrated corrupt acts and then lied about them. Frankly, let they think they've gotten away with all that they've done. God is not mocked. What a person sews, so shall he reap. The justice we seek shall be found in the afterlife, when they will find no redemption, no forgiveness, and no hope. They will be cut off from the presence of God forever. They will eternally reside with their master, Satan, who is not at all who people seem to think he is. He is the father of lies and a tough taskmaster. The perpetrators will find themselves in hell for all eternity, which is never-ending. THAT is the justice I see coming. No one gets away with anything forever.  God knows and He won't let anything slide. Oh yes, a RECKONING is coming and nothing in this world can stop it. 

In His Name & for His Glory,                                                                                                                                       

Richard Keller - Bread of Life Ministries