Author: Wesley Fryer

God has created and fashioned each of us for specific purposes. We are called not to argue with God, but seek to understand and fulfill our purposes.

Isaiah 45:9, 10 NLT

“What sorrow awaits those who argue with their Creator. Does a clay pot argue with its maker? Does the clay dispute with the one who shapes it, saying, ‘Stop, you’re doing it wrong!’ Does the pot exclaim, ‘How clumsy can you be?’ How terrible it would be if a newborn baby said to its father, ‘Why was I born?’ or if it said to its mother, ‘Why did you make me this way?’

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/Isa45.9.NLT

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Since I am reading about The Mongols in “The Fourth Part of the World,” this verse of prophesy from Isaiah makes me think of Kahn and his swift horsemen in the 1200s who pillaged to the doorstep of Europe. This is likely one of the verses cited by medieval Europeans who believed in Prester John. Read more about this fascinating history on:

Isaiah 41:2 NLT

““Who has stirred up this king from the east, rightly calling him to God’s service? Who gives this man victory over many nations and permits him to trample their kings underfoot? With his sword, he reduces armies to dust. With his bow, he scatters them like chaff before the wind.”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/Isa41.2.NLT

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I love Paul’s use of language in his letter to the Ephesians. I pray all our hearts will be “flooded with the light of God” and know both his truth and love.

Ephesians 1:18 NLT

“I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance.”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/Eph1.18.NLT

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There is a big difference between a “hate group” and a Christian organization whose member beliefs include “homosexuality is a sin.” Yet in the situation detailed in this NY Times article, that is the label assigned. The culture wars rage on.

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All who claim to speak for God in the name of Jesus do not. We should beware, just as Paul warned the Church at Corinth.

2 Corinthians 11:4 NLT

“You happily put up with whatever anyone tells you, even if they preach a different Jesus than the one we preach, or a different kind of Spirit than the one you received, or a different kind of gospel than the one you believed.”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/2Cor11.4.NLT

Life is a crooked road, and we cannot always choose our path. Solomon reminds us we should accept things God has ordained and directed, and not fight to try and make a crooked road straight.

This is a real challenge, especially when we are young and perhaps more idealistic. We need to work to discern the will of God, and the choices He places before us to make.

Ecclesiastes 7:13 NLT

“Accept the way God does things, for who can straighten what he has made crooked?”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/Eccl7.13.NLT

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The world tells is to seek power and position over wisdom, but Solomon reminds us wisdom is the virtue we should seek. He also reminds us of the importance of listening to advice.

Ecclesiastes 4:13-14 NLT

“It is better to be a poor but wise youth than an old and foolish king who refuses all advice. Such a youth could rise from poverty and succeed. He might even become king, though he has been in prison.”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/Eccl4.13.NLT

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Part of our jobs as followers of God is to continually test the words of others around us. Do they speak the truth? We use God’s Word, in the Bible, and the guidance of God’s Holy Spirit as measuring sticks of God’s truth.

Job 34:3 NLT

“Job said, ‘The ear tests the words it hears just as the mouth distinguishes between foods.’”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/Job34.3.NLT

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