Today, we live in a world with many conflicts and read about them in the news daily. There are lots of political conflicts, both in our country and in and with other countries. World history is mainly made up of conflicts and wars between nations. These conflicts are inevitable, and much of the prophecy in the Bible is about these conflicts and their winners. The leaders and rulers in our world have methods and tools that they use to try and win their disputes. It may be tanks, bombs, economic sanctions, debating, protests, or tariffs. We each have various conflicts and disagreements with other people and have methods and ways of winning. The people might be our family, work associates, bosses, employees, neighbors, or friends. The average person uses methods much like the world: intimidation, threats, anger, ignoring, arguing, or debates. I sometimes find myself getting sucked into using those methods in my relationships with others. It is easy to do because my flesh is very much inclined that way; the devil and his demons are constantly tempting and urging us into conflicts, and that is the model we see every day all around us. I have made up a list of guidelines that I read when things get tense between me and others to remind myself of God’s way to be at peace with everyone around us. 

1. God is in control, and He causes or allows most of the events that cause tension in my life. I need to trust Him with my life constantly, pray, and ask Him to give me the wisdom to navigate life well, to pray and ask Him to work in and to change the people in my life and to change me. God works powerfully through much prayer. Tension and conflict tend to tie us all into knots. When I pray much, God gives me a peace that passes all comprehension. That is my test to see if I have prayed enough, inner peace. One of my personal rules is, “I can’t have peace with others until I have peace in myself,” work on first things first. 

I have four more guidelines, and I will write about them tomorrow. 

I have just finished memorizing 1 John. In the book, John writes a lot about being deceived. The devil can deceive us, false teachers can deceive us, and we can deceive ourselves. To be self-deceived is to have a gap between what we believe and perceive about ourselves to be accurate and who we really are. The bigger that gap, the more deceived we are. The opposite of being deceived would be to be mentally and spiritually healthy. To be deceived would be like looking in a mirror and seeing a horse head and thinking that it is you, or looking in the mirror and seeing John Wayne and thinking that it is you. People can’t grow in character or spiritually if they are deceived because they have no idea what to change. Everyone is deceived to some degree; we don’t really know who we are, why we do what we do, or even what we actually do and say. That is a scary thought. I spend a lot of time thinking about who I am, why I do what I do, and what I said and did in reality. Thoughtful Bible reading will help us a lot toward being spiritually and mentally healthy. Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

Patty and I are at Seaside for the annual meetings of the Conservative Baptist churches in the Northwest, now called Church Venture instead of Conservative Baptists. Our association of churches includes about 300 churches. For three days, we have meetings, good preaching, and marvelous worship times. In addition, we are staying in a nice motel and eating great seafood. Today, I was awarded a book for being the pastor here who has been in ministry for the longest time, 50 years. The guest speakers are chosen to preach to Pastors and are outstanding. It feels good to learn and be challenged when I am supposed to do that to others every week. One of my personal purpose statements is to be a lifelong learner and never to become a know-it-all. It is very easy to let happen, and I see so many who have let it happen. When I see professional pride in others, I am very nervous that it could be in me, and I don’t see it. At these kinds of events, I do a lot of reflecting on the past as a pastor in ministry, and I thank the Lord for the incredible privilege that He has given me. I want Him to keep using me and blessing me, and I remind myself of 1 Peter 5:5, “God gives grace to the humble, but is opposed to the proud.”

A funny thing happened yesterday. The day before yesterday, someone in our church came to my office and gave me a very nice but old single-shot 22 rifle. I told them I wanted to give it to one of my grandsons. It is exactly like the one I had when I first learned to shoot a rifle. While my truck was being fixed in the shop, I rented a car to drive, and it was outside my office. I took the gun out and put it on the floor in the back of the rented car. Someone loaned me their pickup the next day, so I returned the rental car. I forgot about the 22 rifle on the floor in the back. They asked if I had gotten all my things out of the car, and I responded yes. Patty picked me up, and on the drive home, I got a call from the car rental place asking me if I was sure I had taken everything that was mine out of the car. The fellow on the phone had a serious sound to his voice as if I had left a million dollars in the car. I thought for a minute and then remembered the gun. I started laughing and said you probably have never had a vehicle returned to you with a gun in it before. I said we will be right there. We got there, and there was a sticker on the vehicle warning anybody from opening the door; it sounded like it was booby-trapped. He opened the door, I retrieved the gun, and off we went. Today, my grandson is the proud owner of a single-shot 22 rifle. Now I need to take him sage rat shooting.

Forgetting is becoming more and more of a regular occurrence in my life. Patty and I continually look for our cell phones, glasses, and car keys because we have forgotten where we put them. I forget about taking medication; I forget to put my hearing aids in, and a whole host of other things. The worst thing is when I forget the names of people I am talking to. I really hate it when I forget the punch line of a story I am telling in a sermon.
When I get to heaven and get my new glorified body, I will have a perfect mind and never forget anything again. I am looking forward to that day.

Today, I filled out accident reports, called our insurance company, had my pickup towed to a repair shop, and rented a car. The fellow who hit me didn’t have insurance, so I was worried that I would have to pay for the pickup’s repairs. When I called my insurance company, they said I had uninsured motorist coverage, and all I would have to pay was a $250 deductible. Thank You, Lord! I needed to have a car while my pickup was getting fixed, so I went down and rented one. I didn’t know how long it would take, but knowing what others have gone through, I expected a month, so I rented it for a month, costing $1,000. A little later, I got a call from someone in our church who said they would let me drive their pickup while mine was getting fixed; hallelujah, I will take that car back tomorrow. The stiffness from the accident that I was feeling in my neck, shoulders, and back is nearly gone. I know that all accidents don’t turn out this good, but I am thankful that this one did. I am thanking the Lord tonight for His care and provision in our lives. Philippians 4:19 is a verse that I have memorized and believe by faith is true, “And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” Thank You, Lord, for dying for me and giving me eternal life in heaven forever, and thank You for taking care of me and my family before we get to heaven; you are wonderful.

I was in an accident this evening. A young guy ran into the back of me when I was turning into the church driveway. He was going very fast. I was going slow, turning into the driveway, and he hit the left back of my pickup truck. He went by me, rolling over several times and into the far ditch upside down. Initially, I was a bit dazed, but I got my wits about myself and pulled the pickup into the driveway off the road. I got out and called 911. While I was talking on the phone, several cars stopped, and several guys pulled the fellow out of the car; he seemed fine. It was just a few minutes, and there were three ambulances and about four police cars, all with lights going, with many vehicles coming into our driveway for AWANA and the Wednesday night service. I was supposed to preach tonight, but I was feeling a little disoriented and decided to go home. I am now sitting in my recliner, taking some ibuprofen, and getting stiff and sore in my shoulders and neck. I am glad that I was in my pickup. His little car didn’t push it too far, but he was going so fast. Had I been in my Kia Rio, I am unsure how I would have fared. It is so nice being a Christian and having a high level of trust in God’s sovereignty and protection over my life. It wasn’t my time yet. Well, I would write some more but I am getting sleepy so talk to you tomorrow.

One thing that I miss doing is short-term Mission Trips. From 1995 through 2020, I went on 44 trips. I have been to Senegal, Mauritania, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Nigeria, Guinea, Portugal, Spain, England, Germany, Bosnia, Serbia, Latvia, Russia, Brazil, Peru, Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Mexico, Vietnam, China, Thailand, Austria, France, Brussels, Japan, and Korea. The reason that I quit is because the travel took so much out of me. On the last trip that I went on to Sierra Leone, it took me three months before I felt good again. That might have been a fluke trip, but I think I will call that chapter in my life over. I can fly for five hours to Hawaii, but that pushes my limit. The memories I have from all those trips and sermons preached, seminars given, churches started, and prayer walks done are some of the best and fondest of my life. Some of my favorite stories are about getting stuck in the mud in Sierra Leone, getting arrested in Serbia for being spies, unknowingly drinking too much peach Brandy in Bosnia, drinking awful Yak Butter tea in China, getting stuck in China during 9/11, eating blood putting in Portugal, snails in France, sitting naked in a big Sauna with a hundred pastors in Latvia, and so many more. Short-term mission trips are the most life-changing experiences you can do. We had a parenting goal of having all of our eight kids go on a mission trip to a third-world country before they graduated from High School, and they all did. Some of my favorite trips were the ones I was on with some of our kids. If you have a chance to go on a trip, you should do it, as I said they are life-changing.

I wrote a blog the other day about self-examination and confession of sin. It is funny how sometimes when I write about a spiritual discipline or lesson, it convicts me for several days after I write it. I wrote that many people have blind spots, that is, character flaws that they are unaware of. These flaws will become more apparent to us during conflicts with others if we pay attention and are humble enough to assume that much of the fault of the conflict was ours. Several days after I wrote, it seemed like I was having a spat with everybody in my life. My initial thought was, “What is wrong with everybody?” Then I thought, “I guess I should do what I preach all the time.” Darn, you would think that at 76 years of age, I would be perfect by now. Oh well, maybe when I get 80.

When I was a kid, my Dad was very strict about honoring people. One group that he was particularly fussy about was seniors. As he put it, “Seniors have lived a lot of life and have accomplished a lot in their lives, and now they can’t do what they once were able to do, so they tend to feel like losers. We need to treat them and talk to them like they are champions, conquerors, and kings because much of what we enjoy in a society is because of what they did.”
Leviticus 19:32 You shall rise before the grayheaded and honor the aged, and you shall revere your God; I am the Lord.
It is interesting that in this verse, honoring the aged and honoring God, we’re doing the same thing in different ways.
I was in the airport recently, and a security guy said that because I was over 75 years old, I didn’t need to remove my shoes. I said, “That is nice,” and he said, “You have earned it!” That was a simple exchange, but I felt honored by this man I had never seen before. We don’t honor seniors because of what they did yesterday but because of what they did 10 and 20 years ago.

I read five chapters in Psalms daily as part of my prayer time. The Psalms have a lot of emotion as the various writers deal with life, crying out to God in joy, sorrow, anger, despair, loss, and victory. It is incredible how often, when I read the five chapters, there is at least one verse that perfectly matches where I am, and often, there is a whole chapter and even more that accurately expresses my feelings about the day. As those matches happen, I camp there for a while, allowing the supernatural power of God’s Word to refresh me if I need to be refreshed or to be a great expression of my joy. Almost always, if I am feeling down, depressed, melancholy, angry, bitter, or unappreciated, I feel satisfied, relaxed, joyful, and secure when I finish my prayer time in the Psalms. Maintaining this discipline is not particularly easy, but the results make it worth the time and effort, at least for me. Some days are easy days and the time spent in the Psalms is less, but other days are very hard and then I sometimes will spend an hour getting myself healthy on the inside of my soul. Occasionally if I don’t read what I feel I need I will read ten chapters. Also, besides the positive, upbuilding experience of the Psalms, sometimes I will read some that convict me of an attitude that I have. We all tend to be blind to bad attitudes that we have picked up from the experiences of the day. I don’t want to take them to bed with me. It makes for a bad night and a grumpy morning.