Thoughts From a Random Mind

This is for those who are Christians in Name Only.

         A Christian isn’t someone who goes to church whenever the doors are open. A Christian isn’t someone who gives money to the church. A Christian isn’t someone to volunteers for every class and committee. Those are things a Christian DOES, but it isn’t what a Christian IS. For those who say they are a Christian yet don’t feed themselves spiritually by reading the Bible, praying for others, seek to be more like Christ (for starters), you’re missing out on the adventure of a lifetime. God knows the vast potential you hold inside, yet many have shuddered the windows and doors keeping His spirit out of your life.   

Without Christ all our efforts will burn and only ashes will remain. Those things that seem to mean the most to us are temporal attempts to find happiness and satisfaction. They never last and even if they did they would have no intrinsic value. Not believing in the existence of a god is just a convenient way for mortal man to sidestep the inevitable conclusion that comes to us all eventually. We make our choices, for life is full of essential choices that must be made. Does God mean anything to you? Does Christ’s death mean anything to you? Are you avoiding that which our Lord has asked us to do? Do we realize the inevitable result of a life lived without God? Do we also realize the inevitable result of a life lived on Christ’s behalf? Did the Christmas holiday mean anything to you besides receiving gifts, or is your focus on the birth of God’s Son and all that stands for? Shift your focus OFF yourself and your endeavors for one moment and dedicate a little time to reminding yourself that God loves you and has a plan for your life. Don’t forget about your Creator as you would an old worn shoe; have a heartfelt conversation with the God who sees all yet is unseen. Our lives hang in the balance between life and death, good and evil, salvation and damnation. Don’t waste your life deconstructing your faith. Bolster your faith thru trust in Almighty God.

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

In His Name & for His Glory,

RL Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

We Get a Do Over

 

Do you understand that God’s plans for us many times do not jive with our own plans? We strain to comprehend the Lord’s reasoning to no avail. We come to the place where we will either trust God or not trust Him. Followers of Christ should by this time realize that God’s plans for us are always for our betterment. No harm will come to us if we adhere to His plan. We do not need to understand the “why” of His plans, we simply need to trust Him. Does that mean we are to do nothing? Not at all. We are to work at being tuned in to His Spirit so we can be led down the path He desires us to go down. Don’t try to figure out the “why” or “what” of any of God’s plans, because you’ll be wasting your time. God only reveals to us what we need to know when we need to know it.

Trusting God is like walking into a pitch dark room without knowing where the light switch is. The unknown is daunting because you don’t know what’s coming next. That’s why some folks are terrified of dying because death is the ultimate unknown. You can avoid going into a pitch black room if you so desire, but no one escapes death. Scripture tells us in Hebrews 9:27, “It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment” (KJV) Even the thought of being judged is daunting. Without Christ that too can be terrifying. We all like to know what is coming next, don’t we? I know I do.

You should consider this new year a fresh start in a way. Sure, things pick up right where they left off the day before, but I prefer to look at it as a clean slate to alter how I respond to the daily challenges of life. With Christ it will be a successful year, one day at a time because of who is in control, and thankfully it’s not me. Reassess your life in Christ. Are you living in such a way that you are pleasing to the Lord?  Have you been selfish or selfless? I am a firm believer in taking the time regularly to take an inventory of your behavior as it lines up with the behavior of Jesus. HE is the template we are to copy. Make this new year something special and may all of God’s blessings be yours in 2026 and beyond. Until next time, walk with the King & be a blessing.

In His Name & for His Glory,

RL Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Do You Use Your Time Effectively?

            There is a saying that TIME is a commodity you can only spend ONCE. My question is for the follower of Christ: Are you burning time indiscriminately or utilizing your time responsibly as a representative of Christ? 

            Do you realize that by being an ambassador for Christ you represent Him with your words and actions each day of your post redemptive life? This is why the once popular 1990’s catch phrase “What Would Jesus Do?” (aka, WWJD) was and is a valid question for any believer to ask themselves any time of the day or night, 24/7, 365 days out of any given year.

            We have a New Year bearing down on us and now is as good a time as any to look at the way we use our time. Are we productive with our use of time or are we unabashed time wasters? Take a hard look at yourself in the mirror and answer that question honestly. I know I need work regarding the wasting of time. Although I don’t think I waste a lot of time, it happens. Plus I have a tendency to procrastinate, thinking the task is much more difficult than it really is. 

            Going into 2026, try to be more conscious of your use of time. You can only use each minute once and it is gone forever. Take stock of your life for the Lord. Are you allowing the Lord to mold you into the absolute best version of yourself in Christ? If not, what’s holding you back. Let go and let God transform you into all HE knows you can be for the Kingdom.

Until next year, walk with the King & be a blessing.

In His Name & for His Glory,

RL Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

What Have We Become?

            We’ve become as a society very self-indulgent people.  It’s all about me... me... me. Whatever strikes our fancy. Whatever whim we can think of; whatever we want we can have at a price. And we should have it; we deserve it. 

            Now I’m not saying you can’t or shouldn’t buy material things. It seems to be what makes the world go ‘round. But being obsessive-compulsive about it isn’t cool. Especially during the Holiday Season. Whatever happened to the hospitable concept of “it’s better to give than to receive”. The apostle Paul attributed that phrase to Jesus Christ. 

There is a certain level of joy, peace, and satisfaction in blessing someone else instead of yourself. As Christians we are to come to the realization that God is our provider, not the government, or our parents. It’s the Lord. This is why the Jewish people refer to God as Jehovah Jireh, the God who provides. 

It seems to me that in a culture that is increasingly anti-God, the true meaning of the Christmas holiday has been lost under a huge pile of material wants. Is it nice to receive a gift? Of course it is. I’m no Grinch, that’s for sure, but celebrating the true meaning of the holiday brings joy, especially when you shift your focus from what you want and do not have to being grateful for what you do have. Giving joy, peace, and hope to others should be paramount in our minds every day, not just at certain times out of the year. Keep that in mind as you start each day. Enjoy this most wonderful time of the year. Until next time, walk with the King & be a blessing.

In His Name & for His Glory,

RL Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

Experiencing Love

 

“For those who haven't experienced this love, the good news is that it's available to all. John 1:12 promises, ‘But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.’ This love isn't earned – it's freely given to all who receive Christ in faith.” *

                  Those who HAVE experienced God’s love, we understand that we were created to be loved by Almighty God. All He asks is that we love Him in return. We're called to love the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to let that love overflow to others around us.

            The sad part about all this is that though is love is available to all, so few seek it out. It’s as if it seems too good to be true. It’s seems so farfetched that some are simply not willing to believe it. Life has mesmerized them into thinking that their life is what it has become and nothing aside from a miracle can change their situation. The equally sad part to that is that the miracle they seek is in the form of money... lots and lots of money. They say money makes the world go round. They also say regarding money; easy come, easy go. People can burn thru money faster than a Formula One race car running in the Indy 500. I know, I’ve had money before. The more money you have the more you are tempted to spend. 

            The Love of God is special because no conditions are placed upon it and nothing can ever chase it away. No matter what you think, say, or do, it cannot cause God to stop loving you. I believe we can disappoint God with our actions at times, but that’s just my opinion and not a hard, cold bible based fact. Once saved you are His child and though plenty of earthly parents treat their children poorly, it’s not at all like that with God. He can be trusted to take care of any one of us, not because I want Him to, or just because I say so; because the Bible is littered with statements from either God Himself, or His messengers, the prophets telling us about His undying, unwavering, unconditional love for His creation. Find me a Bible verse that disproves this. You will not find any. They do not exist. God’s love for us is “yea and amen”. "Yea" signifies a resounding "yes," affirming that God's promises are certain and will be fulfilled. "Amen" means "so be it", serving as an expression of agreement and affirmation, confirming the truth and reliability of God's Word. 

            More than nearly anything else, you can rely on God’s love for you. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 the following: ^“Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out.  Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.” That is exactly the way God treats us all.

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

In His Name & for His Glory,

RL Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

·      The portion in red at the top is from a sermon called “The True Meaning of Christmas: A Love That Transforms”, December 22nd, 2024, by Pastor Paul Boekell.   

My Letter to Non-Believers ...

“Since God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe.  It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven. And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom.”- 1 Corinthians 1:21-22 NLT

            It’s become pretty apparent that you want to come up with your own plan of salvation, which can be completely understood and acceptable to you. The Gospel message is too far out, too mysterious, too otherworldly. You can’t possibly grasp the message in all its simplicity. You must have to do something to earn it. There must be something spectacular that needs to take place. In reality what must be done is to lay your own life down and take second stage to an unseen deity. It boggles the mind. So what if this unseen deity isn’t real? Apparently you have to be able to experience it with your senses for it to be real. The fact is that either there is a God or there is not. To believe or not believe is a choice each individual must make. To not make a choice is to make one. By avoiding the topic you have made a choice. But are you willing to stake your own personal afterlife on it? There are two ways this can go. You will die and be either buried or cremated and that will be your last conscious thought forever. Or your spirit will be resurrected on the last day to face God’s judgment. It’s either one way or the other. Man thinks there has to be other options. There simply has to be. To be placed in the same category as rapists and murderers just because you reject the reality of Jesus Christ and his blood bought forgiveness from all sin simply isn’t fair. You reason that you’ve been a good person for the most part; however, God’s response to that is, “You were good by who’s standard, your own? No one is good except God.” The world has a myriad of questions, but faith isn’t based on facts or even answers to questions, because once answered there is always another question. As with God’s conversation with Job, God says to us, “Now I will speak, and you will listen.” Why? Because we simply do not know … anything. The information we have amassed is useless in the face of eternity.  So to you I say, let down your guard and accept the possibility that there truly is a God and that he loves you more than you could ever imagine. His desire is that you willingly serve him so you can enter into a peaceful existence that will last throughout eternity. Just do it. You will try anything else to find something, even though you don’t even know what that ‘thing’ is. You just want to be happy, at peace. You are either willing to release control and submit to a God who knows you better than you know yourself or you aren’t. Let go. For once in your life trust something that makes no logical, human sense. One word from God can change your situation forever. He means you no harm, only good. It starts with a simple step taken, an acceptance that you might be wrong about this whole God thing. Won’t you consider receiving Christ into your heart and life today? A choice must be made one way or the other. You will have to live with your choices, make them good, sound choices not based on what you think you know but what you place your faith and hope in the future in. Do as you must, but know that this decision will have eternal ramifications. May God’s perfect will for your life be done. 

In His Name & for His Glory.

RL Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

Why Do We Celebrate Christ’s Birth on December 25^th?

 

Galatians 4:4-5 teaches, “But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons.”

When was Jesus born? The truth of the matter is that we have no idea what the exact date of Jesus’ birth was. No clue. Sure, there are hypotheses, conjecture, theories, but no actual hard cold facts based on actual evidence that shows when Jesus was born. 

Historically speaking December 25^th coincided with a pagan festival celebrating the Roman god Saturn and the winter solstice. The church at that time offered believers a Christian alternative to the pagan festivities; so although the date of Christ’s birth isn’t found in the Bible, it’s not wrong for us to remember Christ’s birth on December 25th. The fact that he was born is far more important than the exact day it took place.

December 25 has become more and more acceptable as the birth date of Jesus. However, some argue that the birth occurred in some other season, such as in the fall. Followers of this theory claim that the Judean winters were too cold for shepherds to be watching their flocks by night. In the end, the timing of any of this is pretty impossible to prove, yet ultimately, it doesn’t matter.

Theological scholars believe Christ’s birth could have been somewhere between 6 & 4 BC. One thing is clear: if God felt it was important for us to know the exact date of the Savior’s birth, He certainly would have told us in His Word. The Gospel of Luke gives very specific details about the event, even down to what the baby was wearing– “swaddling clothes”—and where He slept— “in a manger” (Luke 2:12). These details are important because they speak of His nature and character, meek and lowly. But the exact date of His birth has no significance whatsoever, which may be why God chose not to mention it.

The fact is that He was born, He came into the world to atone for our sins, He was resurrected to eternal life, and He’s alive today. This is what we should celebrate, as we are told in the Old Testament in such passages as Zechariah 2:10: “‘Shout and be glad, O Daughter of Zion. For I am coming, and I will live among you,’ declares the LORD.” Further, the angel that announced the birth to the shepherds brought “good news of great joy that will be for all the people” (Luke 2:10). Surely here is the cause for celebration every day, not just once a year.

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

In His Name & for His Glory,

RL Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

Resources: Billy Graham Ministries; www.gotquestions.org