I'm Supposed to Love People...But How?

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I’m Doug Apple...and my heart is on fire!  (Luke 24:32)

Yes, yes, yes, I know I’m supposed to love people...but how?

I think we all know that if we are on our way to Jericho and we come across a beaten man, we’re supposed to load him on our donkey and take him to the inn, right?  Like the good Samaritan.

But life is full of people and their drama, full of neighbors and friends and strangers and people we like and people we don’t like so now what?

We’re supposed to love them...but how?

First let me note that love is a fruit of the Holy Spirit.  (Galatians 5:22)  So the more we let the living water of the Holy Spirit flow in our lives, the more we will love people, automatically.

And the more we quench and grieve the Holy Spirit by our own sin and selfishness and disobedience and laziness, the less we will love people...automatically.

But I’m getting to a prayer we can pray, and this has really set my heart on fire.

Philippians 1:9 says, “And this is my prayer:  that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight.”

So that’s my prayer.  “God, please give me that depth of insight into how to love people, each and every one of them.”

I’m a father of four adult children, all married.  I need to love them in different ways than when they were 5, 7, 9 and 11.  What do I say?  What do I give?  When do I act?  When do I offer my insanely wise advice, and when do I keep my big mouth shut?

To love them well I need depth of insight!

The homeless man on the corner, or at least he says he’s homeless.  See how I am?  I need depth of insight!

And so I pray, “Lord, please, I love You so much, and to love all these people You bring into my life, I need to abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight.”

Amen.

God bless you, today.

I’m Doug Apple.
 

Power Through

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I’m Doug Apple...and my heart is on fire!  (Luke 24:32)

What might you have been excellent at if you had powered through?

Let me say it again.

What might you have been excellent at – if you had powered through?

See, we’re all made in the image of God.  He created us, and He packed us with individual gifts and talents. 

But it’s raw material.

It’s like the planet.  God created it, and He packed it full of astounding raw materials.  And I think we have only just begun to discover all the amazing things He put here.

The same is true with us.  Every one of us.  He packed us full of raw materials, but they are hidden.  They are under the surface.  It’s not obvious.  We have to dig, excavate, plow, work it.

I hate to see young people squandering so much time.  I hate to see anyone wasting time, but especially young people, who are still so much like an undiscovered land.  What might they be able to do if they just worked at it?

That’s the problem with raw materials.  They require a lot of work.

Phil Collins became known as one of the best drummers in the world.  But as a child it was just bare, raw materials.  He liked to hit things in a rhythm.

But he worked it, hard.  In his new autobiography he writes, “I must have put in my 10,000 hours before I’m even a teenager...when I’m home, I drum, to the exclusion of pretty much all else.”

You are a wonderland of raw materials, just waiting for you to discover!  What are you good at?  What can you be great at? 

Whatever it is, greatness never comes easy.  You start with the raw materials, and then you work.  You work, man!

You work now, so you don’t end up older with someone like me saying, “Just think - what might you have been excellent at if you had just powered through?

God bless you, today.

I’m Doug Apple.

But You Don't Want to Go to Church

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I’m Doug Apple...and my heart is on fire!  (Luke 24:32)

We lay down our lives for the brethren.

But you don’t want to go to church.

First John 3:16 says, “...we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”

That’s our Christian brothers and sisters...the brethren.

It’s our fellow Christians and our fellow church members, and we’re supposed to LAY DOWN OUR LIVES for them.

But you don’t want to go to church.

“This is how we know what love is:  Jesus Christ laid down His life for us.  And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.” (NIV)

When you lay down your life, you give up your own wants and desires.  You say, “What I want?  I give that up. I give it up to be with you, to love you, to help you, to serve you, my brothers and sisters.”

Man, what would the church look like if we did this? 

God has placed every believer in the body of Christ, and we all are assigned a particular part in the body.  We all have gifts and talents and resources to be spent in the service of the body.  The body will thrive and grow (be edified) as we each fulfill our part.

The church would look like a wonderland of love and service!  And the fulfillment and satisfaction level would be out of this world!

But you don’t want to go to church.

Or you’re a church consumer, shopping around like a little Me Monster for the Me Me Me.

Man, that’s the OPPOSITE.

Going to church is about finding your brothers and sisters, connecting with them in the body of Christ, serving with them, working together along side in the mission of Jesus Christ!

We serve one another humbly in love.  (Galatians 5:13)

Because He laid down His life for us, we ought to LAY DOWN OUR LIVES for each other.

But you don’t want to go to church.

God bless you, today.

I’m Doug Apple.

A Just Man

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I’m Doug Apple...and my heart is on fire!  (Luke 24:32)

I want to be a just man, like Noah.

Genesis says Noah was a just man, and he walked with God.

I want to be a just man, like John the Baptist.

Mark 6:20 says that Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just man...and holy.

I want to be a just man, like Joseph of Arimethea. 

Luke says, “Now behold, there was a man named Joseph, a council member, a good and just man.”

I want to be like that:  a good and just man.

I want to be a just man like Cornelius.

Acts 10:22 says Cornelius the centurion was a just man, one who feared God and had a good reputation.

Hardly anyone in the Bible is called “just,” but I want to be like them, a just man.

Proverbs 9:9 says, “Teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.”

“Lord, I want that.  I don’t want to be a fool who can’t learn his lessons.  Lord, I want to be a just man who increases in learning.”

Proverbs 20:7 says the just man walks in his integrity.  His children are blessed.

“Lord, I want to be that man, the just man, with integrity, whose children are blessed!”

Proverbs 24:16 says a just man falls seven times...and rises up again!

“Thank You, Lord, that even if I stumble I will rise up again!  By Your Spirit I will keep the faith.  I will run the race.  I will live for You and love You with all my heart, soul, mind and strength.”

“Lord Jesus, I am clay on the wheel.  Mold me into the man You want me to be.”

A good man.

A holy man.

A just man.

God bless you, today.

I’m Doug Apple.

Selfish Little Baby Wah Wah Wahs

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I’m Doug Apple...and my heart is on fire! (Luke 24:32)

Selfishness is like a pac-man.

It just keeps eating and eating and is never satisfied.

If you live to please yourself, you will never be satisfied.

I want this. I want that. I want her. I want him.

You can consume all the dots, gobble them up, every dot you see, and you won’t be satisfied.

Selfishness is sin, and you don’t gobble up sin. It gobbles up you!

Selfishness wrecks marriages and families. It wrecks businesses and churches. And it will wreck your life.

To the degree that you are selfish, to that degree you will be hollow.

But there is a glorious alternative!

Jesus died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him. (2 Corinthians 5:15)

As Christians, the key is that we no longer live for ourselves, but for God.

We take our eyes off of ourselves, off our desires, our wants, our selfish little baby wah-wah-wahs.
 
And we fix our eyes on Jesus!  We focus on Him and we run towards Him!

We want what He wants! We desire what He desires.

Our heart is turned toward Him. We surrender to Him. We love Him and desire Him, and we soak up His Spirit and are filled with the Holy Spirit and fire!

He sets us on fire for Him, for God, for eternity. Our eyes are fixed on heavenly things! And like the old song says, the things of this earth grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.

And selfishness? It melts and disappears, like cotton candy dropped in the ocean.

“He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.”

God bless you, today.

I’m Doug Apple.

Think of the Crown of Thorns

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I’m Doug Apple...and my heart is on fire! (Luke 24:32)

Think of the crown of thorns, brother.

When you think you’re going to sin a little, and it’s okay, because Jesus forgave you, or will forgive you, or whatever….think of the crown of thorns, brother.

Of all the things He suffered, man, He suffered for our SINS.

Those sins that separated us from God, He suffered for those.

He suffered so we could be forgiven and made right with God.

And then we’ll so easily return to the hog slop...after a meal with the King has been prepared?

“But I’m saved, Doug, I’m free! I have the righteousness of Christ so I’m free from the bondage of the law. I live under grace, so I can pretty much do whatever I want.”

I’m saying take a good, hard look, under the bright light. Then answer the question, “Is it sin?”

If it is, drop it. Drop it immediately and walk away.

And if you need a little motivation, remember that our forgiveness came at a price, and a transaction was made, and if you are a saved, born again Christian, you are not your own. You belong to God and you were bought at a price, therefore glorify God in your body and your spirit, which belong to God. (First Corinthians 6)

We. Belong. To God.

He saved us so we could be with Him, be close to Him, be His.

We are His. We are to be like Him. And He is holy.

And our sin, even as His children, will block up the works, quench and grieve His Spirit, and make us stink.

So the next time you are willing to throw caution to the wind and step your big boot right into that steamy, stenchy cow pie of sin...think of the crown of thorns, brother.

Think of the crown of thorns.

God bless you, today.

I’m Doug Apple.

Look a Fright

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I’m Doug Apple...and my heart is on fire! (Luke 24:32)

So there you are, looking in the mirror again.

Every morning, looking in the mirror, and making adjustments.

How much of our life is spent looking in the mirror and making adjustments?

But thank goodness we do!

I’m not sure I want to live in a world where y’all aren’t making those daily adjustments. 

But what if you didn’t have a mirror?  I mean literally, what if you went day after day without being able to look in the mirror, see what you look like, and make those daily adjustments?

You’d be a mess.  As we say here in the South, “You’d look a fright!”

Well the same thing happens spiritually. 

Every day we need to look in the mirror of the Word, the Bible, see what we look like, and make adjustments (James 1:25)

If we don’t make those daily adjustments based on the mirror of the Word, we look a fright...spiritually, that is.

One good thing is that the Word of God stays the same, like a mirror that gives a true reflection every time.

Imagine a crazy mirror that gives different reflections every time you look at it.  That’s what the world is like.  Just think if social media was your mirror, and you tried to groom your soul on that ever-changing fickleness.

Or the world’s idea of beauty or strength or success.  It’s a shifting mirror! 

But the Word of God is a good mirror, never changing, ever true.

James 1:17 – in God there is “no variation or shadow of turning.”

Jesus said, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will by no means pass away.”

So to be our best, morally and spiritually, we must continue to look daily into the mirror of  the Word, and make those adjustments that take away the wretchedness and help us become the beautiful creations that God has created us to be.
 
God bless you, today.

I’m Doug Apple.

Squeeze It Into the Glove

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I’m Doug Apple...and my heart is on fire! (Luke 24:32)

When I was helping little leaguers stop dropping the ball, I would tell them, “Squeeze it into the glove!”

I know it seems obvious, but really, they didn’t all know to do that, to just squeeze the glove and hold it once they had the ball.

Now if you’re laughing at the poor kid who didn’t know about squeezing the ball into the glove, let me ask you...have you ever dropped your phone? Is your phone screen cracked right now, even as we speak?

You gotta squeeze it into the glove!

I mean, there you are, your phone is in your hand...and then you drop it. It just falls out of the glove, so to speak.

You gotta take more care. You gotta get a handle on it, get a firm grip on it. Otherwise it’s going to slip and you’re going to drop it.

And the same is true with God’s Word. And it’s far more important than catching a baseball and more valuable than your phone.

You gotta squeeze it into the glove!

So the preacher preaches a great word, and there was especially that one point that really hit home, really hit you where you live. Write it down, man! Meditate on it. Let it sink in, sink deep, take root. Learn it. Live it. Love it. Share it. Shine it!

You read the Bible, and something hits you solid. It makes your heart burn within you. Now what? Underline it, man! Highlight it! Put it on a post it note. Memorize it. Let that thing set your heart on fire!

I should be able to ask you right now, “What Bible verse really has you lit up these days?”

Jesus said, “The sower went out to his seed.” The seed is the Word, and it’s hitting soil...and you and I are the soil.

Here comes the seed of the Word! It’s coming at you. What do you do? Does it bounce off? Or maybe you catch it, for like a minute, and then you inexplicably let it fall to the ground.

Come on, man! You gotta squeeze it into the glove.

Squeeze it into the glove, man.

Squeeze it into the glove.

God bless you, today.

I’m Doug Apple.

Thou Knowest

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I’m Doug Apple...and my heart is on fire! (Luke 24:32)

Here is a phrase I use a lot in my prayers:  Thou knowest.

When I face uncertain circumstances (and aren’t they all) I simply turn my mind toward heaven and say, “Thou knowest.”

What should I do?  “Thou knowest.”

How should I use my time?  “Thou knowest.”

Where’s the money going to come from?  “Thou knowest.”

How should I pray for my kids?  “Thou knowest.”

It’s my way of expressing my serious lack of knowledge to the Lord, submitting to Him, and running toward Him in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

I surely don’t know how the world really works and what I’m supposed to do...but He knows.  God knows.  The Lord almighty knows.  El Elyon knows.

It goes back to Ezekiel 37, when God took the mighty prophet Ezekiel to the valley of dry bones. 

Imagine the quiet.  The wind.  The solitude.  The arid land. 

God says to His prophet, “Can these bones live?”

And here’s where my phrase, “Thou knowest” comes from, because that’s exactly what Ezekiel says to God in this divine moment. 

Ezekiel doesn’t try to guess, or take a random stab, or even make light of it.

He just answers with the most sober, most humble and yet most trusting, sheep-like answer to the Shepherd.

Thou knowest.

God bless you, today.

I’m Doug Apple.

Great Is Thy Faithfulness

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I’m Doug Apple...and my heart is on fire! (Luke 24:32)

Lately I’ve been all cranked up about the old hymn “Great Is Thy Faithfulness.”

What powerful, encouraging words!

I decided to learn and memorize all the lyrics, I mean, how many songs do you know ALL the words to, right?

And sometimes the words aren’t worth memorizing, like those hymns where sing “verse 1 and 3, and definitely not 4, but maybe 5.”

Well “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” is worth singing and memorizing all the way through.

Just listen.

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father,
There is no shadow of turning with Thee,
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not,
As Thou hast been, Thou forever wilt be.

Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide,
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided,
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

I hope this causes your heart to burn within you today like it has mine.

The powerful and encouraging hymn, “Great Is Thy Faithfulness.”

God bless you, today.

I’m Doug Apple.

They That Turn Many to Righteousness

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I’m Doug Apple...and my heart is on fire!  (Luke 24:32)

So today I’m red hot on this verse fragment, from Daniel 12:3.

It says, “...they that turn many to righteousness...”

That’s what I want to be!

I want to be one of those people who help “turn many to righteousness.”

There is a righteousness, and it is God’s righteousness.

There is no shadow of turning in God’s righteousness.

It is not as shifting sand, but it is solid as a rock.

It does not change with the wind, or with our ever-shifting culture.

There is a righteousness, solid as a rock.

It is God’s righteousness, and I want to help “turn many to righteousness.”

I want to point people to God’s ways, His principles, His statutes, His precepts, His laws.

I want to say, “Hey, look, here is God’s righteousness, in all its beauty and splendor and power.

Let’s live like this!  Let’s live in God’s boundaries, by His principles, according to His ways and no other!

Whatever path we are on, let’s reset the GPS and turn toward God’s righteousness.

When we come to a fork in the road, let’s always take the road that leads to more and more of God’s righteousness, no matter the cost.

Let’s not take the road of compromise, or of the world, or of sin, or even of ease and laziness and cheap grace.

But let’s run hard and fast and with the zeal of the Lord, straight into the brilliant light of God’s amazing righteousness!

I hope this word causes your heart to burn within you today.

Daniel 12:3, “...they that turn many to righteousness...”

God bless you, today.

I’m Doug Apple.

The Border War - Apples of Gold - January 11, 2017

The Christian is on fire!

He is full of the Holy Spirit and he is on fire.

His sins are forgiven. He's forgiving others, and the grace of God is flowing out of him. The Kingdom of God is literally expanding because of him!

The Christian is grateful and humble, running to God in prayer daily because he loves Him and he needs Him and he must have sweet fellowship with his Savior!

He is seeking God's will for every part of his life. He is shining God's light into every area of his own life and into every area of the world around him. He is holding everything up to the piercing light of Jesus and His Word, His double-edged sword.

The Christian is doing a world-dump. A world dump. He is dumping worldly things out of his life. Those things look so....plastic...in the light of God and eternity. So cheap.

The Christian is offering his body to the Lord as a living sacrifice. “Jesus, use me; and O Lord don't refuse me...for surely there's a work that I can do.”

The Christian loves God and his heart aches to please Him. “As the deer pants for the water, so my soul longs after Thee!”

He hungers and thirsts for righteousness, and the living water of the Holy Spirit is flowing within him, bringing revelation and understanding, bringing deep conviction of sin and deep adoration for Jesus.

The thought of taking Jesus' name in vain...or anything close to it....is appalling. His love is so great for his Savior, he wants to do nothing that would hurt Him, or even disappoint Him.

To what shall I liken the Kingdom of God? It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and put in his garden; and it grew and became a large tree, and the birds of the air nested in its branches.

Because of the Christian, the Kingdom is expanding. The tree is growing, and neighbors are finding peace and rest and salvation in its branches!

He is like the nation of Israel in its best days. The nation was expanding and growing in power and influence. Foreign dignitaries came to marvel!

But then the people gave in to sin. They would relax their MORAL borders...then their PHYSICAL borders would be raided by enemies.

The Israelites really NEVER did a great job of establishing strong borders.

Listen to Judges 1:27. It's an awful passage, but we have to ask ourselves….is this a picture of our spiritual borders today?

27 However, Manasseh did not drive out the inhabitants of Beth Shean and its villages, OR Taanach and its villages, OR the inhabitants of Dor and its villages, OR the inhabitants of Ibleam and its villages, OR the inhabitants of Megiddo and its villages; for the Canaanites were determined to dwell in that land.

So back to the Christian. He is on FIRE for JESUS!

But sin....but SIN, like the Canaanites....is determined to dwell in his land.

Are his borders strong enough to keep sin out?

Or has the enemy already breached his borders and taken little bits of territory that rightfully belong to Jesus?

Listen to this. Sin is OBDURATE. It is stubborn. It doesn't want to be driven out. It wants to DWELL IN YOUR LAND.

Ephesians 4:22 says, “...that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the OLD MAN which grows corrupt...”

The Christian had driven out that old man in the past. Jesus had sent him packing!

But sin is obdurate. That old man is stubborn, and he wants to dwell in the land...and he is just waiting for his chance to cross back over the border and get back to work, making things corrupt.

That's a word you don't hear very often. Corrupt. “Whoa, Doug, it sounds so harsh.”

But you don't want your milk to be corrupt.

And you don't want your spirit to be corrupt, because the smell is even worse!

Judges chapter 1 ends with these fateful words, “Now the boundary of the Amorites was from the...” blah to the blah to the blah.

Wait a second. I'm wondering, “Why do the Amorites have boundaries at all? They are supposed to be GONE.”

But it's like the sin in our lives. It's supposed to be gone, but next thing you know.......next thing you know, we draw a little map. It's a wretched little map in our brain where we give some space to sin.

We set up a boundary for sin. On Saturday night....

On business trips....

While I'm single....

In Judges 2 the Angel of the Lord said, “I led you up from Egypt and brought you to the land of which I swore to your fathers; and I said, ‘I will never break My covenant with you. 2 And you shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; you shall tear down their altars.’ But you have not obeyed My voice. Why have you done this?”

The Christian doesn't make a covenant with sin. He tears it down! He gives it no space, no quarter.

Don't you know that friendship with the world is enmity against God?

So the fire of the Holy Spirit is still burning in the Christian...but it is being quenched. Sin is being allowed....and it is grieving and quenching the Holy Spirit who once set him ablaze!

The borders of the Kingdom are no longer expanding in this man, but they are contracting. They are shriveling.

In Judges 2, the Israelites allowed their borders to be weak and their enemies to remain; so their judgment would be that those enemies would be, now listen, “thorns in your side...and a snare to you.”

The Christian can't allow sin to remain! He can't draw up special borders for sin. It will be thorns in his side and a snare...a trap. Thorns and traps! That's what sin brings to the Christian's life....if he gives it space.

In Israel, the enemies were consistently creating breaches in their borders. They would invade and raid, ransack and plunder....steal, kill and destroy.

It started small, but grew larger as they grew bolder and the Israelites grew less resistant.

One of the Israelites' huge problems was their desire to fit in and be like the people around them.

So the Christian begins to allow border breaches in order to fit in with the people around him.

What borders does he relax first? The borders his neighbors have already relaxed. If it's okay with them, then it's okay with him!

Judges 5:8 offers a terrifying statement, “They chose new gods; then there was war in the gates.”

When we give way to sin, instead of being on fire for God, instead of offering our bodies as living sacrifices and seeking Him in every area of our life....if HE is not the God of that area of our life, then SOMETHING ELSE is the God of that area....and when they chose new gods; then there was war in the gates.

When we let anything but GOD ALMIGHTY call the shots for any area of our life, then we are allowing a border breach for sin....and we will have war in the gates.

That's not war afar off. That's not war on the other side of the ocean. That's not war down at the river. That's war AT YOUR DOOR.

To create a space for sin is to allow a border breach, and you will have WAR AT YOUR DOOR.

Do you love your family? Then do not bring the war to your door by allowing sin to have space in your life.

So where might the border be breached?

What about media? Do you allow things on your screens that taint, that desecrate the holy place within you. As I asked a group of Christian young men recently, “Is there anything you won't watch?”

So the Christian begins to let his morality loosen. After all, why be so judgmental and legalistic. That's not what Jesus came and died for, good grief. Loosen up, man!

The Christian was once concerned about his witness, about shining the light of Jesus as brightly as possible to a hurting, lost world. He didn't want to waste any time or opportunity to plant a seed for eternity.

But that drive has slipped. After all, who really cares? If the world's salvation is hanging on one little witness, we're in big trouble anyway.

So he pulls back and allows a border breach, because it doesn't matter!

Now he's thinking about intoxicants. I mean, really, where does the Bible say he can't? And the next generation is completely forgotten, ignoring that the small border breach in his life is likely to lead to a larger border breach in the next generation because when they are young, they rarely have the power on their own to rush in and reestablish a border that their parents and grandparents GAVE UP.

So he in-takes a little intoxicant.

And the war is at his door.

Another border is breached. His language. God set the Christian free from bad language, bad words, foul words, cursing, swearing, taking the Lord's name in vain, using sexual phrases, vulgar phrases, excrement phrases, bawdy jokes, double entendre....wait a minute... How clever! How cute! How witty and funny. In the ballrooms, the dance halls, the clubs, the bars, it doesn't matter where...from the crack house to the White House, WHY WATCH YOUR TONGUE? It's about FREEDOM, man, FREEDOM.

And in the name of freedom, another border is breached.

Another border is breached.

Look. If you have to redraw the map in your brain to account for the border losses to sin, YOU MIGHT HAVE A PROBLEM.

The sanctity of the marriage bed. The holiness of a Godly, Christ-centered marriage and family. For better, for worse. For richer, for poorer. In good times and bad. 'Til death do us part. What God has joined together, LET MAN NOT PUT ASUNDER.

Put asunder. The striking words of the sword of the Lord.

Make a vow to the Lord and keep it.

Except the marriage vow, which what is marriage anyway? Why, it's malleable! It's changeable. Shapable. Expandable! Shrinkable…..just like our borders.

The Christian's borders are shrinking. His borders are shrinking, and the war is at his door.

There is a devil and there are demons, and the Christian forgot. And he forgot their intentions, to steal and to kill and to destroy.

And he forgot that the devil is a roaring lion, and that lions go for the weakest in the herd, WHICH IS THE CHILDREN.

But now the Christian thinks he's a Lion Tamer. Strong in himself, doing what is right in his own eyes, redrawing boundaries, even thinking they are getting LARGER. After all, he's doing more, saying more, experiencing more. His life is getting bigger! Yolo, man! Live like you're dying. Tackle that bucket list. And if you get hurt, well don't be a burden, man. Let's have assisted suicide and just let Jesus welcome you into heaven on His magic carpet, with a little stash of your favorite intoxicant.

Forgetting that the middle word is TOXIC, as in poison, as in harmful and hurtful and the borders are eroding like sand, and now his children are wasted.

And his wife has Momma's Little Helper.

Now unforgiveness crashes through the border and takes up a stronghold in the Christian. It started with a few unforgivenesses, people that Jesus told him to forgive, but he wasn't quite ready to...you know, like his favorite Disney song, Let It Go. So he held on to it, but he had to keep it quiet, because those judgmental Christians down at the church would have told him to forgive, and that's the LAST thing he felt like doing.

And now he won't forgive the driver that isn't driving the way he wants, meaning mostly get the blank-blank-blank out of his way, because his language border was breached a long time ago, and where better for a good language breach than when you are in the car, alone, and someone doesn't MOVE THE INSTANT THE LIGHT TURNS GREEN GOOD GOD THEY'RE ON THEIR PHONE. And he tells himself, while redrawing the map in his brain, “Well, I meant it, because God is good,” but then he doesn't say that anymore, and pretty soon he drops the “good” and he's just screaming “Oh God” about every INFRACTION.....and his border is shrinking and his life is getting smaller...in the name of freedom.

And you know who the worst people are, that he might never forgive just for spite? The Christians who won't GET OFF HIS BACK about these LITTLE SINS.

But really, he doesn't even think about that word anymore...sin.

And he's not really thinking about going to church anymore, either.

And now his marriage bed has a gleaming wall of unforgiveness right down the middle of it.

Now the question is….what about us?

Where have we allowed border breaches?

Where have we redrawn the map in our brains, giving sin a little space, telling ourselves we will let it go this far, and no farther?

It's time for us to do a “world dump” and to return to the Lord with all of our heart!

Judges 10:10 says, “And the children of Israel cried out to the Lord, saying, “We have sinned against You...”

Judges 12:3 says the Lord delivered them and gave them the victory.

And He will do the same for us!

So ask the Lord to show you any border breaches, where you have allowed sin to creep in and take space...and then repent! Ask God for forgiveness and deliverance! Give all that territory back to Him! Let's reclaim those borders for Jesus!

Let us be the people who give no space to sin, but are full of the Holy Spirit and on fire for Jesus!

Let us be the people who are forgiven and walking in forgiveness, forgiving everyone.

Let us be the people who are literally expanding the borders of the Kingdom of God!

Responsibility

A responsibility is the same, whether paid or not.

So don't ever skip out on a responsibility with the lame excuse, "Well, I'm not getting paid anyway."

If you gave your word....do it.

If people are counting on your commitment....do it.

If you are lying on your death bed and could still get the job done....do it.

Put It On - Apples of Gold - July 15, 2013 vi

Click here to listen to the radio version.   

 

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for July 15, 2013

“Put It On”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

In the summer, it's always hot in Florida, so the weather's not a factor.  Instead I look at my calendar (Where am I going?  Who am I going to see?) and then I decide what to wear.

 

And you know how it goes.  Unless you are the Maytag repairman, you stand in front of your clothes and now you have to decide what to put on.

 

Well as Christians, there are certain spiritual things that the Bible tells us to put on; and in the same way that we have to make a decision about what clothes to put on, we have to make a decision, a conscious decision, to put on these Biblical things.

 

These are not things that God is just magically going to do for us.  That's why we have these specific instructions, in Colossians chapter three.  It is our responsibility to proactively put on these things.

 

Okay, let's begin at Colossians chapter three verse twelve, “Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on...”  and then comes a short but powerful list of garments you might say, clothing that we are to put on.

 

First on the list is “tender mercies.”  Put on tender mercies.  What on earth are tender mercies?  That's the New King James Version.  The New Living Translation says “tender-hearted mercy,” or the NIV says “compassion.”

 

Some people are naturally more compassionate than others, but we are all told to put on compassion.  It means we should do more of this:  pay more attention to the hardships of others and sympathize with their suffering.  Whether it comes naturally or not, we must consciously decide each day to put on compassion; to put on tender mercies.

 

Next on the list is kindness.  Who is the kindest person you can think of?  Maybe it's a generalization of a kindly old grandfather.  Well, put that on.  Put on that kindness.  In other words, act like that kindly old grandfather, or some other picture of kindness you can think of.

 

Now switch your thinking back to real garments for a minute.  A lot of people look at fashion magazines or ads or websites to help them decide what to wear.  Some people just look at the mannequins in the store, but most of us end up looking at an example to help us decide what to wear.

 

The same holds true for the things the Bible tells us to put on.  When we are told to put on kindness, we can look at the examples of others, and do what they do.  So just think of the examples of kindness you've seen in others, then put on that garment for yourself.  Put on kindness.

 

We're looking at Colossians chapter three, verse twelve, and next on the list of things we are to put on is humility.  We make a conscious decision to humble ourselves, to think less of ourselves, to get ourselves off the throne and think more about others...with the kindness and mercy we've already talked about.

 

Next on the list is:  put on meekness.  When I think of meek I think of mild.  I think of being lowly, and deferential.  I know that's not the American way!  We are loud and proud, yet God's word tells us to put on meekness.  We turn the other cheek.  We take insults.  We don't strike back.  “What?”  Yes, that is meekness.  “But I won't be a doormat!”  You don't have to be a doormat, but we all must put on meekness and humility, “considering others as better than ourselves...” like Jesus.  (Philippians 2:3)

 

The only “garment” on Paul's list that he goes into much detail about is this next one:  longsuffering.  He says, “...put on...longsuffering, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another;  even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.”

 

 I like the phrase “bearing with one another.”  It means hanging in there with other people, even when you'd rather bail on them.  Instead, put on longsuffering.  Stand in front of your spiritual closet each day and make a conscious decision to put on the garment of longsuffering, and bear with people who are hard to bear! 

 

And finally comes the cornerstone of the list.  Colossians 3:14 says, “But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection.”

 

Love may not come naturally to you, but we are all called to make a conscious effort to put on love, put it on like a garment – not waiting to feel it, not waiting for someone to deserve it. 

 

And then a wonderful thing happens.  God says love “is the bond of perfection.”  Do you want more bonding in your marriage?  Put on love.  Do you want more bonding and unity in your church?  Put on love.  Do you want more of a team atmosphere at work?  Put on love.  Do you want more bonding and togetherness in your family?  Put on love, the bond of perfection.

 

These things don't come naturally, or we wouldn't have to be told to do them.  It's like looking good when we get dressed in the morning.  It takes conscious effort each day.

 

And the same is true with this spiritual list in Colossians chapter three.  We make a conscious effort each day to put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering, and above all these things, love.

Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.


© 2013 Doug Apple 
 To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
 If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
3225 Hartsfield Road
Tallahassee, FL  32303
(850) 926-8000

Wave94.com

 

We Need Neighbors Who Set the Bar High - Apples of Gold - August 20, 2012 -vi-

 

Click here to listen to the radio version.   

 

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for August 20, 2012

“We Need Neighbors Who Set the Bar High”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

My neighbor is moving and my lawn hates me.

My neighbor was a lawn guy, the guy who fastidiously cares for his lawn.

He set the bar high for the entire neighborhood.  His lawn looked so good it put pressure on the rest of us.

Now that he is moving, I feel that pressure going down – and I don’t like it. 

I am not very motivated from within to take great care of my lawn.  Oh, I’ll keep it trimmed up nice enough, but I’m not too concerned if it’s lush and green and thick.  I’m not a lawn guy.

But I care more if I know my neighbor cares.  If he sets the bar high for lawn care, I will try to live up to his standards – and that’s better for the whole neighborhood.

But what if no one sets the bar high?  What if no one in a neighborhood tries to make his lawn look great?  Well if no one does, the whole neighborhood will go downhill. 

Someone has to set the bar high, and as soon as they do, the whole neighborhood benefits.

Now watch this.  That also applies to other areas of life.  We need neighbors who set the bar high.

In baseball I think of Albert Pujols.  You hear about his work ethic and his standards of excellence.  When he went to the Angels this year, his work ethic raised the bar for everyone.

In football I think of Tim Tebow.  I read one article that said he was the hardest working man in the weight room.  When he went to the Jets, I think he instantly raised the bar for starting quarterback Mark Sanchez.

We need people around us who raise the bar.

I remember as a young man hearing Jimmy Swaggart preach hard against adultery.  His preaching raised the bar.  Now I know he fell, and I know some people discounted his preaching, but that doesn’t change the high standard that was not Jimmy’s anyway.  It was God’s.  And that preaching raised the bar high for me, and it was a good thing.

Our pastors should raise the bar for us.  Our elders and deacons should raise the bar for us.  They set the high and good example, and their example puts pressure on the rest of us to live right and Godly and walk in the Lord’s ways.

Someone needs to be raising the bar, or the rest of us will let our standards down, sin will creep in, we will build our lives on sand instead of the rock of God’s truth, and we will all suffer for it.

Where should the bar be set?

Look at Ephesians 4:13.  Here is the goal, that “we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”

Wow.  I completely love that phrase, “…to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”

The New Living Translation says, “…measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.”

Jesus set the bar impossibly high, but then He empowers us through His Spirit inside of us to walk in His ways as we submit to Him.

But then as the body of Christ, and His congregation of saints, we influence one another.  We have a mighty influence on each another!

So let us raise the bar.  Let us live up to the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.  Let us kick our sin and our flesh to the curb, and walk in His holiness, and His love, His mercy and His grace, His fire and His Spirit and His light.

It’s all in Christ Jesus, my friend.  He is the perfect man, “the measure of the stature of the fullness.” 

So let us look to Him, and let us set an example for the others.  Let us be the neighbor that raises the bar in our own lives, and then watch, just watch how it makes a difference to everyone around us.

When one neighbor raises the bar for himself, it subtly raises the bar for everyone else.

Let us be the neighbors who raise the bar, for the honor and glory and praise of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Amen.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.


© 2012 Doug Apple 
 To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
 If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
3225 Hartsfield Road
Tallahassee, FL  32303
(850) 926-8000

Wave94.com

 

On the edge of uncomfortable is where learning begins.

On the edge of uncomfortable is where learning begins.

When you feel your brain stretching, and something says you can't do it.

Go.

Don't Glorify Old Sins - Apples of Gold - January 9, 2012 -vi-

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Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for January 9, 2012

“Don’t Glorify Old Sins”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

I dreamt that my children were children again.

There was a variety of people in someone’s home, a family-friendly affair.

I was sitting at the head of a table with two men on my right, two of my children on the left, and others milling around.

I and my children were listening as the two men, a bit younger than I, were bantering.  Suddenly one of the men said to the other, “You did drugs.”  The other said, “Well so did you,” and off they went, telling tales of the glory days, about run-ins with police and all the excitement and fun they had during the drug period of their lives.

Meanwhile, my children were soaking up the stories.  I said, “Hey guys, let’s talk about something else,” as I nodded toward the children.  They took the hint and that was that.

It was just a dream, but it tapped into some things I feel strongly about.

First of all, I don’t believe in glorifying old sins.  If it was sinful, if it grieved the heart of God, if it grieved your parents, don’t revel in it.  If God saved you from it, don’t rehash it like it was the good old days. 

Look, I’m sure some funny things happened when you were drunk and high.  And I’m sure some sad and pathetic things happened, too.  My advice is to apply the advice of Paul in the book of Philippians, forget what is in the past, and press on towards what Christ Jesus has for you.  (Philippians 3)

I know a Christian man who inexplicably went back to drinking after he had been saved and sober for many years.  He had even been a teacher and a worship leader.  How does that happen?

I think one reason can be the glorifying of old sinful behavior.  If you tell the old tales like it was the best days of your life, at some point you may start believing it.

“Well Doug, why would a Christian talk about the old days like they were so good if they weren’t?”

I think there are several reasons.  One is selective memory.  Sometimes we gut the bad parts out of our memories – the empty feelings, the betrayals, the hurts, the shame, the sense of going nowhere.

Another is not filling your life with something better.  If you used to party hardy on Friday nights, and now you just sit at home with an afghan on your lap, the old life can seem pretty attractive.

God has better plans than that.  There is a world to change, a gospel to share, light to be shone, people to love.  The Lord wants to make massive changes in this world through us, and sitting at home isn’t going to cut it. 

An idle mind is the devil’s workshop, according to the old saying, and idle hands are the devil’s tools.  That’s not in the Bible, of course, but there is some truth to it. 
There really is a devil, and he really is a liar, a cheat and a killer.  That’s what Jesus said in John 8:44. 

I don’t know exactly what the devil and demons are doing, but it’s easy to picture them tempting Christians to go back to the old slop; and this sounds like a good formula for it: 

1.  Laugh a lot about the old party days while leaving out the sad parts.

2.  Don’t fill your life with more worthy, Godly pursuits.

3.  Listen to the lies that sin actually has something good to offer.

Now let’s go back to my dream.  The men were laughing about their old druggie days.  That was the first thing I feel strongly about.

The second thing I feel strongly about is watching what we say in front of the children.

Adult stories impact children.  They become bigger than life in their little minds.

The other day I was talking to a detective.  He was talking about people literally drowning to death on a dance floor.  How is that possible?  He said they take certain drugs that are popular these days, and they feel so dehydrated that they frantically drink water in a way that literally fills their lungs and they drown.

As he told me this, I was instantly taken back to a story an adult told me when I was a child.  It was a fictional tale about a man who was cursed to drown, so he took a train into the middle of the desert where it would be impossible to drown.  He suddenly dropped dead on the train.  The cause of death?  Da-da-da-dummmmm…drowning.

I’ve heard a million stories since then that I can’t recall, but I’m telling you, the stories we hear as children stick with us. 

“Doug, what’s your point?”  The point is that we need to watch what we say in front of the children.  Lessons and values and truths are passed along through our stories.

If you are a Christian, beware of sitting around and laughing about your party times.  You are sending a strong message to your children, whether you realize it or not.

Better to build a great legacy of stories about what the Lord has done in your life, and what He is doing through your life to make a difference in other lives.

And if you don’t have many stories like that, it’s time to get a hold of God and see what you should be doing.

Children are going to soak up your stories and learn from them.

The question is – what stories are you telling?


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.


© 2012 Doug Apple 
 To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
 If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
3225 Hartsfield Road
Tallahassee, FL  32303
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

How to Have a Better Life in 2012 - Apples of Gold - December 31, 2011 -vi-

Click here to listen to the original radio version.

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for December 31, 2011

“How to Have a Better Life in 2012”

 

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

“I literally pictured my hand grabbing him by the throat.”

That’s what a friend told me about his recent golf outing.

They were together in a golf cart when the other guy started provoking him.    

Now you need to know that my friend has a somewhat violent past.  He’s not a killer, but he was a fighter – prone to solve problems with his fists.

And now this man was provoking him, and what popped into his head?

“I pictured myself grabbing him by the neck,” he said, “throwing him out of the golf cart and giving him the beating he was asking for.”

Now you also need to know that my friend is a born again Christian.  He has the Spirit of God inside of him, so while his flesh was picturing a pummeling, the Spirit of God was steering him towards righteousness. 

The image in his mind changed.  He stopped thinking about throwing the guy out of the golf cart, and started thinking about what would happen if he did, such as going to jail.

He decided to take the righteous path, and spared himself a load of sorrow.

That’s just one example of what I call “the blessings of the righteous.”

David wrote in Second Samuel 22, “The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands He has recompensed me.”

If we keep our hands clean, so to speak, God blesses us. 

That sounds obvious, I know, but a man asked me just the other day, “Does God really bless people for being good?”

I said, “Of course He does.  The Bible says it over and over.”

I’ve been reading through the book of Proverbs and, as expected, I found many references to wisdom and knowledge.  But another word kept coming up, too; the word “righteous.”

Even the secular world appreciates wisdom and knowledge, but righteousness?

Here’s one example.  Proverbs 13:21 says, “...to the righteous, good shall be repaid.”

I just heard about yet another couple going through a divorce.  It’s causing great sorrow, but they didn’t build their home on God’s righteousness, and now the family is being torn apart.

Recently I received a kind of backward compliment about my family.  A woman said, “Your family is not dysfunctional.”

If my family is not dysfunctional, I think one reason is the blessing of the righteous.  We aren’t as righteous as we ought to be, but to the degree that we are, we are receiving the blessing of the righteous.

Proverbs 11:28 says, “He that trusteth in his riches shall fall; but the righteous shall flourish as a branch.”

Psalm 92:12 says, “The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree…”

Righteousness means living according to God’s rules and principles.  If we deal in truth instead of lies, for example, we are taking the righteous path, which is the blessed path.

If we deal in love instead of hate; if we deal in morality instead of immorality; if we deal in justice instead of corruption, we will be blessed.

Psalm 5:2 says, “For You, O LORD, will bless the righteous…”

I just heard about a men’s accountability group, and they really take it to the next level.  They are so serious about holding each other accountable that they even go into each others’ homes and interview their wives and children.

Why?  To find out what is really going on.  The goal is to find any cracks in the spiritual foundation so they can be fixed before they get worse.

This is voluntary, by the way, so don’t be picturing some church Gestapo.  It’s just serious Christian men who want to prevent problems and receive the blessings of the righteous.

“But Doug, no one is righteous.”

That’s right.  In God’s eyes, on our own, none of us is truly righteous.  Romans 3:10 says, “There is none righteous, no, not one...”

It is through faith in Christ that righteousness is imparted to us. 

And then what are we supposed to do?

Romans 6 tells us to make ourselves instruments of righteousness.

First John 3:7 says, “…let no one deceive you.  He who practices righteousness is righteous…”

First and Second Timothy both say to “…pursue righteousness…”

Second Timothy talks about being instructed in righteousness.

We are to practice and pursue and instruct and make ourselves instruments of righteousness.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”

So do you want a better life in 2012? 

Then pursue and practice the righteousness of God in all areas of your life, and you will receive the blessing of the righteous.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.


© 2011 The Arrow’s Tip 
 To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
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If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
3225 Hartsfield Road
Tallahassee, FL  32303
(850) 926-8000
-vi-