Good News Brief For Men

We Have Been Commanded… (Part 2 of 2) Joshua 1: 9   “Have I not commanded you?   Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (NKJV) Good Day Men, When God commanded Joshua to “not be afraid nor be dismayed”, He did not say please.   Fear can cause us to lose our courage and soften our strength through doubt.   It can happen suddenly or it can happen over a period of time.   God’s Word says that we are to not fear what man can do to us as believers.   Here, Joshua was facing men in armies of other countries who in most cases outnumbered his army many times over.   However, He stood in God’s mighty hand, just as we should do today. “For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go”.   What a powerful promise.   We must wait upon the Lord and watch Him as He renews our strength for each task He places in our paths.   He promises to guide us.   He ...

We Have Been Commanded… (Part 1 of 2) Joshua 1: 9   “Have I not commanded you?   Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (NKJV) Good Day Men, We are commanded to be strong and of good courage just the same as Joshua was commanded.   He was not asked to be strong and to have courage.   He was commanded to be such.   This same courage and strength is available to us today.   God knows what lie ahead of each of us.   Much of our day is orchestrated by God to draw us into a more intimate and meaningful relationship with Him.   Each day is equipped with purpose and God desires us to seek Him for He knows and supplies what is best for us.   Sometimes that can be a humbling experience because oftentimes we need to be humbled.   James 4:10 says, Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord and He will lift you up (nkjv).   We are to rely on God fo...

Who Are We to Trust? Joshua 1: 3   “Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given you, as I said to Moses.” (NKJV) Good Day Men, In the early days of Joshua and during the time he assumed the leadership responsibility from Moses (at the time of his death), we see great challenges before him.   We know from the book of Joshua and the many battles that he fought, that he worked to do what God had called him to do; yet, God was faithful to His promise.   However, Joshua had to be involved, he had to be proactive in God’s calling. I was talking with a good friend of mine yesterday, and he brought up the point that stepping out and serving God meant that we would be involved in a lot of work.   No more Sunday afternoons on the sofa watching sports, or Monday night football without purpose (invite a friend, saved or unsaved).   He discovered that answering God’s call added great joy to his life and gave him purpose in doing what G...

Storms of Life Proverbs 10: 25    When the storm has swept by, the wicked are gone, but the righteous stand firm forever.   (NIV) Good Day Men, When the storms of life are over us we are to lean on Christ, the righteous one.   Not only is this necessary, but He expects us to lean on Him during trying times.   Sometimes we forget that when the storms of life begin, our shelter is Him.   He guides us through and sees us into the clear.   God wants us to experience His peace through all situations in life, both good and challenging.   He shows us His great love and grace during these challenging moments in life.   Lean on Him.   He truly is our strong and mighty fortress.   His powerful love and grace will see us through all the situations that will arise today.     Key Thought:   Trust in the Holy One.   He will see us through. The Savior is waiting for us to call upon Him.   He shows u...

He is WONDERFUL! Psalms 75: 1   We give thanks to you O God, we give thanks for your name is near; men tell of your wonderful deeds.   (NIV) Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we chose one day out of the year that we reserved to speak only of the good things of God?   Maybe one day a week, or maybe every day in the week.   As hard as it is to believe, if we truly seek Him in ALL things then we recognize His presence and His power and the fact of how wonderful God truly is.   It is very hard to keep a lid on the truly good news of God.   We need to share more and discover those believers that walk around us every day and are too afraid to say anything about God in public for fear of persecution.   God may just be placing you into their lives to help them open up with their testimony.   We never know until we….. ”tell of His wonderful deeds.” Prayer:   Dear Jesus, give us your courage and strength and your compassion for others that we to...

Wisdom From Above (Part 6 of 6) James 3: 18   And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.   (NASB) This verse is clear on the absolute outcome of God’s desire in our hearts.   We are a seed in Him who planted us, bearing fruit that can only be produced by the Master Gardener who nurtures us into a healthy fruit producing and vibrant life in Him.   To know Him, as we should we must acknowledge Him as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.   He sows in peace and reaps in peace through those who accept His pruning of their life, as they grow closer in the Christ-like relationship the Father desires for us.   The fruit of righteousness is full, ripe, and of great beauty as that fruit grows into full maturity by the nurturing from God the Father. Prayer:   Dear Father, help us to have a clearer understanding of your great purpose in our lives as we move closer to the fruit bearing life that You would have us...

Wisdom From Above (Part 5 of 6)   James 3: 17   But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy.   (NASB) James' statement in this verse sounds almost like it came right out of the book of Proverbs.   The things mentioned in this verse show an up-turn from what we covered in the previous verses.   This is the enlightening part of this section.   We see these things as being obtainable from God’s point of view and we should strive for them on a daily basis. These are true qualities of great wisdom from God’s work.   Dwell on these things, which are very good.   We must strive for what God wants us to have as His followers.   He only wants to pour out that which is good for us. Prayer:   Dear Father in Heaven, help us to strive for that which is meant for our good.   Help us to see the greater things in life that can truly only come ...

Wisdom From Above (Part 4 of 6) James 3: 16   For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing.   (NASB) Evil cannot co-exist with holiness.   God refuses to share his creation with evil.   It is our choice that we allow Satan to interact with our lives.   We, through our free will have the ability to say no to Satan and yes to God as well as no to God and yes to Satan.   The choice is easy but Satan is wicked and manipulative when it comes to His influencing our lives.   We are often swayed with the expression, “It's not hurting anyone but me”.   This is Satan’s great lie.   The truth is if it hurts me it will truly hurt those around me by impacting my personal testimony in a negative way.   And believe it or not, others, especially those who are close to us will see a (negative) difference in our lives.   Don’t let Satan have his way here.   Prayer:   Dear Jesus, help me t...

Wisdom From Above (Part 3 of 6) James 3: 14-15   But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth.   This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic. (NASB) Promoting one’s self is what this verse is all about.   I used to know a man whose practice was to elevate himself in business buy stacking spent (former) co-workers beneath him as he climbed the ladder of worldly success.   They all helped him climb that ladder only to be forgotten and discarded when this so-called leader made it to the top.   This man was jealous of those above him; selfish and ambitious to the point of greed, and arrogant enough to makes his lies believable.   This man had “earthly, natural, and demonic” written all over the trail he left behind along with the expendable co-workers whom he no longer needed nor remembered the names of.   How sad for those who trusted ...

Wisdom From Above (Part 2 of 6) James 3: 14   But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth.   (NASB) When we are jealous and have selfish ambition in our hearts, which most times is driven by bitterness we tend to take matters into our own hands, even to the point of lying in order to obtain an advantage.   We need to let God handle these things in His perfect order.   Give this over to Him and ask Him to remove this bitter jealousy and open an opportunity for Christ-like dialogue.   But don’t walk head long into the attitude of arrogance.   When someone advances ahead of you in the work force, be happy with them and for them and when you do this you will diffuse the workings of Satan who is at the very core of jealous generated selfish ambition.   Our ambition and focus should remain in Christ and our desires should be driven by Him.   Prayer:   Dear Father, gu...

Wisdom From Above (Part 1 of 6) James 3: 13   Who among you is wise and understanding?   Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom.   (NASB) Wisdom is described here as being shown in gentleness.   Wisdom is not wrath nor should it be displayed as such through the life of a believer.   Evidence of our salvation in Christ must be shown in our walk.   If we had a temper prior to salvation, then we should give it to God to remove, and season our lives and emotions through His grace and His will.   Work today at expressing Godly wisdom in your activities and see how God moves to bless you. Prayer:   Dear Lord, show me the areas in my life that need to be seasoned or maybe even removed by the touch of the Master’s hand. May God richly bless us as we continue to seek His will, and His way, through His word. Your servant in Christ, Rev. Ted J. Wilkins Men’s Pastor Director and Founder of Good News Brief ...

Direction In Our Daily Walk Proverbs 4: 26   Watch the path of your feet, and all your ways will be established.   (NASB) Solomon is warning us here that we must look closely at the direction we take in our walk in the Father.   We must look for His guidance and direction in every step we take.   More attention is paid to your visible testimony than is paid to your verbal testimony in Christ.   We can often talk the talk of a genuine believer but the proof of what we say is in our daily walk in Him. Is your walk sure?   Are the steps you take contributing to the Kingdom of God?   If not, maybe it’s time to begin watching where you are going.   My dad often told me “watch where you’re going!”   Our heavenly Father cares much about our destination in Him.   Walking in the ways of the Lord is always the only real path to follow.   His daily map is still found in His Word. Prayer:   Dear Father in Heaven, guide me oh g...

Know What You Believe   Hebrews 10: 23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)   (KJV) Good Day Men! Have you ever been involved in a conversation with someone who just couldn’t make up his or her mind?   This can be very frustrating.   In today’s verse we are told to hold fast the profession of our faith .   Further research into God’s Word clearly states what can happen to those who can’t seem to hold fast .   (Reference James 1: 5-8 and focus on vs. 6-8.)   Wavering in what you believe can be dangerous.   When we study God’s Word we need to allow enough time for God to speak to us through the scriptures.   I recommend that we all keep a daily journal of what we sense God is saying to us through His Word.   It can be a composition book, or a daily organizer.   Whatever it takes to jot down the things God has called your attention to.   Leave nothing out...

Slow to Anger (Part 2 of 2) James 1: 20   for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.   (NASB) The anger of man comes from our original sinful nature.   We need to let God control our anger through the Holy Spirit.   A positive sense of Godly control is necessary in order for God to move through us and reach others for Christ in ALL situations, even in times of anger.   The tongue is a powerful tool and can do great damage as well as great things in Christ.   We need to think before we speak and season our responses in anger with “What would Jesus do?” Key Thought:   Think, before you issue a response in any situation including anger. What Would Jesus (really) Do? May God richly bless us as we continue to seek His will, and His way, through His word. Your servant in Christ, Rev. Ted J. Wilkins Director of Good News Brief For Men

Slow to Anger (Part 1 of 2) James 1: 19   …..But let everyone be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger;   (NASB) This is one key verse in how to conduct ourselves as a good testimony to others.   We need to listen intently and fully understand what is being said and mentally evaluate the desired outcome of the conversation before we give input.   Jesus, as our example in everything never went off half informed.   He knew what and how to deal with the day-to-day challenges.   Being slow to speak means that we are to simply think things through completely, evaluating all the facts before voicing our thoughts.   Take the necessary time to respond in a Christ-like manner so that our testimony will be true and faithful.   Next we are to be slow to anger.   Listen and evaluate your personal response before you speak and do so in kindness but in all things, speak the truth in a Christ-like manner. Key Thought:   It always...

REFUGE!!!!! Psalms 71: 1   In Thee O Lord, I have taken refuge; Let me never be ashamed.   (NASB) Men, one of the biggest issues in our lives is dealing with pride and humility.   Many things we simply cannot do on our own.   We must ask for help.   Here the writer has stated that he has taken refuge in God.   He has come under the protection of the Father.   Going through trials and tribulation in our lives often produced or allowed by God helps us to realize how much we can and should depend on Him in all things.   If we could just be more aware of God’s timing in our lives we could make the necessary adjustments and be in place when there is something for us to learn in God’s open door school house of spiritual learning.   But pride in our realizing that we do need God’s help in many of these simple tasks, reduces our pride into humility, later into realizing that we really can’t do anything without His involvement.   Go...

For My Yoke Is Easy…. (Part 3 of 3) Matthew 11: 30 For My yoke is easy, and My load is light. (NASB) How can we trust Christ to handle burdens that are heavy to us?   He is God and He cares for us.   He never struggles with what we bring to Him.   He ALWAYS has time to listen to our needs and respond to our heart’s desires.   Sometimes His answer doesn’t match our request as we see it but we must remember, God has a better plan for us than we could ever have or develop for ourselves.   We often don’t fully or even slightly understand His answer but we can trust the fact that He is God, and we can fully trust Him in all things.   His yoke is easy .   How can this be?   He simply knows HOW to carry our load.   All through our life we are learning HOW to carry our own burdens, and there’s Christ with the answer.   We need to trust Him.   His load is light .   This is because He is God, and we will never be able to over-...