Seek Wisdom

The Bible talks a lot about wisdom. Solomon, the wisest man that ever lived, devoted an entire book on the matter. Living a Godly life in an ungodly world is no simple assignment. It takes prayer, faith, determination, and wisdom. Jesus told us to “be wise as serpents and harmless as doves” (Matt. 10:16).

One day an old German Shepherd was chasing rabbits. Before long, he discovered that he was lost. Wandering about, he noticed a panther heading rapidly in his direction with the intention of having lunch. The German Shepherd thought, "Oh, oh! I'm in deep trouble now!" Noticing some bones on the ground close by, he immediately settled down and started chewing on them with his back to the approaching cat. Just as the panther was about to leap, the dog exclaimed loudly, "Boy, that was one delicious panther! I wonder if there are any more around here?" Hearing this, the young panther halted his attack in mid-strike. A look of terror came over him and he slinked away into the trees. “Whew!" said the panther, "That was close! That old dog nearly had me!"

Meanwhile, a squirrel that had been watching the whole scene from a nearby tree figured he could put this knowledge to good use and trade it for protection from the panther. So, off he went. The squirrel soon caught up with the panther, spilled the beans and struck a deal for himself with the panther. The young panther was furious at being made a fool of and said, "Come on Squirrel. Hop on my back and see what's going to happen to that conniving canine!"

The German Shepherd saw the panther coming with the squirrel on his back and thought, "What am I going to do now?" Instead of running, the dog sat down with his back to his attackers, pretending he didn't see them. When they got close enough to hear, the German Shepherd said, "Where is that squirrel? I sent him off an hour ago to bring me another panther!" As you can imagine, the panther ate the squirrel. But he never bothered the wise, old German Shepherd again.

“If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5 NIV).




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Stay On The Line

There is a commercial that comes on television that advertises investments or some other financial matter. In it, the advisor maps out a plan for the client. After the consultation, the advisor shows the client a line that is painted on the ground. She tells the client that all he has to do to be successful is stay on the line. Afterwards, we see the client walking down the street, being careful not to stray from the path that has been drawn for him. But after a while, something in a store window catches his attention. The man takes he eyes off of the line and heads toward the store. Just then, we see his financial advisor standing behind him, yelling, “Stay on the line.” The man steps back on the line and follows it to financial freedom.

After seeing that commercial, I thought about a park that is located in St. Louis, Missouri. It is named Forest Park. It is very large and there are a lot of roads, twists, turns and curves in it. One day I decided to take a short cut through Forest Park. When I got in there, I got lost and couldn’t find my way out. Every turn that I made was the wrong turn and every road that I took was the wrong road. Finally, I said, “Lord, if you will get me out of this park I will never set foot in here again.”

Some time later, I was driving down a street that was close to Forest Park. I started thinking that I had gotten lost in the park the last time because I had gone in too deep. I thought I could go back in there, and as long as I was careful and watched where I was going and could see the main road, I would be OK. Besides, a lot of people drive through there without getting lost. So I ventured back into Forest Park. Before long, the street that I was driving on turned into a one-way street, so I couldn’t turn around. I found myself getting deeper and deeper into the park. Before I knew it, I was lost again.

Satan tricks us that way sometimes. When God delivers us from things, instead of staying away from them, we think that we can flirt with them again. We fool ourselves into thinking that we can dibble and dabble as long as we don’t go too far or get in too deep. But we don’t realize how quickly that road can turn into a one-way street, and we cannot turn around. Before we know it, we are lost again.

Don’t let Satan fool you with the distractions of the world. Jesus has drawn a path for us to follow. All we have to do is stay on the line.




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A Good Soldier

Christians are often compared to soldiers and Christianity to warfare in both song and scripture. One songwriter said, “I’m a soldier in the army of the Lord.” Another one wrote, “I am on the battlefield for my Lord.” The Apostle Paul knew this is warfare that we are involved in. That is why he told the church at Ephesus to put on the whole armor of God. Four years later, he wrote a letter to Timothy, telling him to fight the good fight of faith. Three years after that, he was led by the Spirit to write another letter to young Timothy telling him to endure hardship like a good soldier.

What is a good soldier? Some people confuse being a good soldier with being a soldier who is good. There is a difference. I was in the United States Marines for five years. Almost half of those years were during the Viet Nam War. During that time I saw a lot of soldiers and marines who had received medals for being good. Being good simply meant showing up for roll call, being at their assigned post, doing a good job and not causing any trouble. For that, they received Good Conduct Medals because they were soldier that had been good. But that was the only medal that many of them received. They did not receive a medal for valor. They did not receive a medal for bravery above and beyond the call of duty. They did not receive the Medal of Honor or the Silver Cross.

We have some Good Conduct Soldiers in God’s Army as well. Our churches are full of them. They never miss roll call, meaning, they are in church every Sunday. They are always at their appointed post: the usher’s board, the mother’s board, the deacon’s board, the choir, the pulpit, or whatever their post may be. They do a good job and never cause any problems. If God were to give out Good Conduct medals, they would certainly receive one. But that is the only medal that many of them would receive. Because, when it is time to go onto the battlefield and minister to the people in the community, that is where they draw the line. They say, “That’s not my job.”

What about you? Are you a good soldier? Or are you just a soldier who is good?





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Is Your House In Order?

I hate an unmade bed. I can’t stand it. It doesn’t matter how clean or neat a house is, if the beds are not made, the entire house seems messy to me. I got that from my parents and from spending five years in the marines. One of my father’s strictest rules was for us to make our beds as soon as we got up. That was instilled in me at an early age. When we got married, my wife got up to go to the bathroom one Saturday morning. When she returned, she was surprised to see the bed had been made. When I was in prison, my celly (cell-mate) and I had a fight one day. He would not make his bed, and I refused to live in a messy cell.

My mother was the same way. If my brother or I left our clothes in the living room or kitchen, she threw them in the trash. And we better not take them out. She said that she was our mother, not our maid. She did not believe in cleaning up or getting things in order when we were expecting company. She said the house should be in order all the time.

Keeping your house in order might be important to you too. No one wants to be surprised or caught off guard with a messy house if someone were to show up unexpectedly. But what about your spiritual house? Is it in order? No one knows the day or the hour when Jesus is coming. (Matt. 25:13) You don’t want to be surprised or caught off guard with a messy house (lifestyle) when He comes.

A few years ago, people were quoting a popular phrase, “What would Jesus do?” I think a more important question is, “Is your house in order?”




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PART I

PART II

PART III





Rev. Burton Barr's Trilogy on KINDLE Now!!!

No Pain, No Gain

When we were children, my grandparents had a piano in their home. It was more of a decoration since neither of them played. We lived in a two family flat. I lived on the second floor with my parents and my younger brother. My grandparents lived on the first floor. My brother and I had always wanted to learn how play the piano. All we were able to play was, “Mary had a little lamb” and “Twinkle, twinkle little star” with one finger.

Eventually, we talked our parents into letting us take piano lessons. We were excited when we found out that the piano teacher was coming on Saturday. My brother and I started a list of all of the songs that we wanted to learn how to play. We wrote down the names of all of our favorite songs that we heard in church. Then we listened to the radio everyday and added some of the songs that we liked to the list. We figured that since the piano lesson was going to last an hour, we should be able to learn how play at least fifteen songs. Maybe even twenty. We were so excited; we could hardly sleep that Friday night.

When the teacher arrived, we were ready. I handed her the list of songs and sat on the stool. She didn’t even look at the list. She had us play some crazy exercise over and over again for the entire hour. Then she told us to practice that exercise everyday for an hour, and she left. My brother and I were in shock. We looked at each other, trying to figure out what had just happened. I looked at the list of songs that we had prepared. I thought we would be able to play some of the songs that were on our list. I was so disappointed; I never took another piano lesson. As a result, all I am able to play today is, “Mary had a little lamb” and “Twinkle, twinkle little star” with one finger.

Nothing that is worthwhile happens overnight. To be successful at anything, it takes hard work. No pain, no gain. Although many of the great athletes, musicians and singers are gifted, they still have to work hard, practice and make sacrifices to perfect their skills. That applies to everything in life. Not only your chosen profession, it also applies to education, marriage, and parenting. It even applies to discipleship. Becoming a Christian is easy. All you have to do is repent of your sins and accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. But if you want to be a disciple of Jesus, you have to work at it. Bible study and prayer are very important. You also have to make sacrifices. Jesus said, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” (Matt. 16:24)

Do you want to be the best at whatever you choose? Or are you satisfied being able to play, “Mary had a little lamb” and “Twinkle, twinkle little star” with one finger? No pain, no gain.



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Are You Using All Of Your Strength?

A little boy was playing in his backyard one day when he noticed a huge rock that was in the middle of the yard. He decided to move the rock so he would have more room to play. He pushed the rock as hard as he could, but it would not budge. He tried pushing it from another angle, but still the rock would not move. Becoming frustrated, the boy sat down and tried to shove the stubborn rock with his feet. The rock would not move.

His father glanced out the window and saw him struggling with the gigantic rock. He went outside and watched his son as he toiled intensively, trying to move the rock. Finally, he said, “Son. Are you using all of your strength?” The boy said that he was. His father stood there, watching his son as he strained and struggled with the enormous rock. He asked his son again, “Are you using all of your strength?” Again, the boy said that he was.

His father stood there, watching his son grunting, groaning and sweating as he desperately tried to move the humongous rock. He said, “Son. Are you sure you are using all of your strength?” The boy was almost in tears when he said, “Yes Dad. I am using all of my strength.” His father put his hand on his son’s shoulder and said, “Son. You are not using all of your strength. I know, because you haven’t asked me to help you.

David said, “The Lord is my strength.” (Psalm 28:7) When things get rough and we find ourselves struggling, trying to move the gigantic rocks that life throw in our paths, instead of calling on God and asking for His help, we are determined to move them ourselves.

I don’t know what your situation is or what you are going through right now. But God is watching you. He is asking, “Are you using all of your strength?”





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