Daily Jewel

by Pastor Carnell, McAlester, OK
April 17, 2012

I Want to Know What Love Is
“Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart." – Proverbs 3:3

There was a song recorded in the 80's by a Rock Band known as "Foreigner." The title of the song was/is, "I Want to Know What Love is." The chorus of the song says: "I want to know what Love is...I want you to show me. I want to feel what love is...I know you can show me." The lead singer, Lou Gramm, co-wrote the song and then a few years later would turn his life over to Christ. He said in an interview: "As I was writing this song I was really struggling with my life and was looking for answers. Not long after we recorded the song I met the woman who would eventually be my wife who would then introduce me to Jesus. Obviously I was not thinking of either my wife or Jesus when writing the words - but if I were to sing it today - it would be dedicated to what the Lord has done in my life."
I have been studying this verse for quite some time and I must admit I am having a difficult time getting away from it because there is so much that can be said and I will not even be able to scratch the surface of all the things that could be written!
We’ve already talked of love and then yesterday referenced “faithfulness” in terms of being a loyal person…but isn’t there more we can learn from this? How can we truly grasp the kind of love this is referencing? Solomon encourages us to not let love leave us but he does not define it. Sometimes the best way to understand biblical concepts is when it comes from the pen of another…and in this case it comes in the form of one of the best hymns ever written by a man in the 17th century. Isaac Watts. Watts was not the prolific hymn writer that Charles Wesley was (his 697 hymns pale in comparison to the thousands written by Wesley), but a number of his hymns are some of the most loved and they continue to bless the Christian world today.
Watts was born in 1674, thirty years before Charles Wesley, and both lived long and musically-productive lives (Watts was 74 when he died, and Wesley was 80 when he passed). Watts was the eldest of eight children, and Wesley was the second surviving son of 19 children born to Susanna Wesley and her husband Samuel. John Wesley was the oldest child of the Wesley clan. Isaac Watts was a very gifted child. By age four he had learned Latin, and by age nine, Greek. By his thirteenth birthday he had also learned French and Hebrew. But being brilliant did not open doors to the universities at Oxford or Cambridge for him. His father was known as a Dissenter, and children of dissenters were not allowed to study at the British universities. This didn’t seem to affect Watts in any significant way. His academic gifts opened doors for him throughout England , and beyond.
Watts wrote poetry (in Latin) and experimented in hymn writing while still a young man. Although German Lutherans had enjoyed singing hymns for more than a century before Watts was born, the churches of England had no such tradition. Their hymns were “heavy,” lifeless, as was the mood of their public worship. Like Wesley, Watts preferred hymns that departed from the texts of the psalms, and some of his contemporaries complained that Watts’ hymns were too “worldly” for the church. He might have been considered a contemporary Christian writer of his day. Wesley’s hymns drew similar complaints, but years later. When Watts was 27 he was called to pastor a congregation in London. For the next ten years he totally immersed himself in the responsibilities of the pastorate, while at the same time he wrote books, poems, treatises, and hymns. His early success ended, however, when he became seriously ill and was forced to step aside from full-time ministry. He never fully recovered from this illness, which lasted about four years. During the next 38 years he attempted to return to pastoring, but he was not able to handle the rigors of full-time work. In 1739, at age 65, Watts suffered a stroke that left him able to speak but not write. With the assistance of a secretary, he continued to dictate his poems and hymns until he died in 1748. Perhaps his most famous hymn is one many Christian churches sing to this day, “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross.”

When I survey the wondrous cross, On which the Prince of Glory died, My richest gain I count but loss, And pour contempt on all my pride. Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast, Save in the death of Christ, my God. All the vain things that charm me most, I sacrifice them to His blood. See, from His head, His hands, His feet, Sorrow and love flow mingled down. Did e’er such love and sorrow meet, Or thorns compose so rich a crown? Were the whole realm of nature mine, That were a present far too small. Love so amazing, so divine, Demands my soul, my life, my all!

The last line of that song says it all! “Love so amazing!” God’s love. It is the only example of love that makes sense. It is in response to that love that we should cling to – and to let it be a visible part of our lives. It truly demands our soul…our lives…our all! That, I believe is the kind of love that we need to be examples of. There are a number of "Lou Gramm's" out there searching for something in their lives and if we can show them what love is then could it be that they just might see Christ as well?
Pastor J. T. Carnell

Good Things

by E. Christian, McAlester, OK
Monday, April 16, 2012

GOD SPEAKS TO US THROUGH HIS HOLY WORD
13 Keep your tongue from evil, And your lips from speaking deceit. 14 Depart from evil and do good; Seek peace and pursue it. - Psalm 34:13-14(New King James Version).

GOD'S PROMISE TO US FROM HIS HOLY WORD
(Jesus said) 38 "And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. 39 He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it." - Matthew 10:38-39(New King James Version).

A QUOTE
In comparison with this big world, the human heart is only a small thing. Though the world is so large, it is utterly unable to satisfy this tiny heart. Our ever-growing soul and its capacities can be satisfied only in the infinite God. - Sadhu Sundar Singh -

A THOUGHT TO REMEMBER
I had walked life's path with an easy tread, had followed where comfort and pleasure led; and then one day in a quiet place I met the Master face-to-face. - From It's A Beautiful Life -

NOTES
Today has been a sunny day with a high temperature of 70 degrees and a low temperature of 45 degrees. I had lunch with Charley and Bill. I went to the post office and then came home. I sat outside in the back yard for a few minutes before I took my nap. I lay down for my nap around 1:30 p.m. Beau and Smokey napped with me today. My neighbor mowed my front lawn this afternoon. I watched "Trains and Locomotives" at 5:00 p.m. I went outside to the back yard and sat with the cats at 6:00 p.m. I read and watched cats and birds for about an hour. A Mocking Bird was diving at Friendly and touching his back. That Mocking Bird had better be careful. He might find a cat with quick reflexes but seldom does a cat catch a Mocking Bird. I have had several e-mails the past few days which I certainly appreciate. I had several comments on Ella's picture. As you noticed I sent the picture side ways but that is the way I received it. I clicked on "view image" and when the picture came up I rotated it to the proper position. I appreciate the comments on Ella's picture. I also appreciate everyone who takes the time to read the Good Things. I talked with my daughter June last evening before I went to bed and things were fine with she and Keith. I called my daughter Treva this morning at 8:30 a.m. and left a message. She is on the job at that time and sometimes doesn't have time to answer or is in a meeting. She works at a hospital.
The cats are fine. Little Girl and Rascal are in the den with me. Leo was here a little while ago. I have seen them all this evening.
I will see you next time,
With Christian Love, Everett.

Daily Jewel

by Pastor Carnell, mcAlester, OK
April 16, 2012

“One Big Happy...”
”Here are some proverbs of Solomon: Children with good sense make their parents happy, but foolish children make them sad.” – Proverbs 10:1

We have now covered nine chapters and commented on 256 verses…and we are not quite a third of the way through the book of Proverbs! Imagine the possibilities before us as we continue our journey through this incredible source of spiritual insight and understanding!
Chapter ten starts out with an issue that is near and dear to my heart…Children!! More importantly…Godly children!
I am a parent…no great revelation there…and I am also a grand-parent, something that I have discovered to be God’s way of redeeming all the mistakes I made as a parent as well as erasing all of the heartaches my children caused me and my wife as they were growing up.
I would venture to guess that most parents have certain “goals” and/or hopes for their children. I would like to think that I as would every parent would want our children to make good choices—that they be successful in school or in life—that they would find their life’s partner and create for themselves a family and keep the cycle going. But most importantly, my highest hopes for my children and now grandchildren is that they find their place in God’s Kingdom and serve Him with all of their heart, soul, mind and strength, just as I have attempted to do throughout my entire adult life. That is and should be the ultimate goal for every Christian parent—to lead their children into a personal relationship with Christ!
Did my children always make the best (or right) decisions? No. I can honestly say that on many occasions growing up their judgments were clouded by their immaturity—by their innate human desires as well as by their search for independence. They were, after all, children and as children they were prone to make mistakes—mistakes that hopefully served as a springboard toward maturity. I can recall a couple of occasions where we sat with one of our children crying with them after an episode in their young lives caused their hearts (and ours) to break.
As I was contemplating this, the last thing I would want anyone to think is that I was a perfect parent. That I was mistake-free during my children’s formative years. Nothing could be further from the truth. I made my share of mistakes and I am honest enough to own up to that fact.
However, what I would like to think is that we created an atmosphere of love, an environment of acceptance and Godly instruction so that when faced with a choice or decision that had to be made—there would be no question or doubt what that decision would be. Did they always make that decision? Since we could not be with our children 24 hours a day I would venture to say there were moments and times when their choices were less than honorable or righteous. I can say with some degree of certainty that even as adults they continue to make choices and decisions that I would disagree with.
But I can say this with no hesitation, our children made us happy! And the reason for that is this—they all decided to choose Christ. Despite my many human mistakes—my own lack of proper judgment at times—I and my wife created an environment that led them to desire a personal relationship with the Savior! And we are eternally grateful and thankful for that. In the 1990’s a song was released that has one of the best “parental” lines of all times. It was written and performed by Bob Carlisle. Carlisle's rendition of the song entered five different Billboard format charts in the United States, becoming a Number One single on the Adult Contemporary chart. The song also received a Dove Award (the Christian Music awards) for Song of the Year, as well as a Grammy Award for Best Country Song. Here is the line that I love: “Oh with all that I've done wrong I must have done something right; To deserve her love every morning, And butterfly kisses at night.”
Regardless of how old you are or how old your children are—we still have a responsibility to create an atmosphere to hopefully help our children and even our grandchildren make good, Godly choices and decisions.
Pastor J. T. Carnell

Que's Occasional Views

From: DAYSPRING by way of Gillena Cox
April 16, 2012

Never Alone

You're never alone. God is with you.
He knows your name.
He numbers the hairs on your head.
He understands the cares in your heart.,br /> Every morning, He's by your side.
Every night, He watches over you as you sleep.
There's never a moment you're not in His thoughts...
Never a day you're not in His care.
You're never on your own.
He whispers to your heart, "You're forever My own."
Just a little reminder...Love is with you today. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God. I John 4:16

Que's Note: Inspirational for those who seek Him, who believe that "He is and a rewarder of those who seek Him".

Good Things

by E. Christian, McAlester, OK
Sunday, April 15, 2012

GOD SPEAKS TO US THROUGH HIS HOLY WORD
2 Oh, give thanks to the God of gods! For His mercy endures forever. - Psalm 136:2(New King James Version).

GOD'S PROMISE TO US FROM HIS HOLY WORD
22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. - 1 Corinthians 15:22(New King James Version).

A QUOTE
You are most Christian when you are holding steady under pressure. - Bertha Munro -

A THOUGHT TO REMEMBER
It doesn't do any good to sit up and take notice if you just keep on sitting. - From Reminisce Magazine -

NOTES
We have had rain showers most of the day. I think the last shower was around 3:00 p.m. High temperature today was 75 degrees and the low temperature was 58 degrees. I attended Worship Services this morning. We had a wonderful service. I had lunch at home. I rested this afternoon with Beau part of the time and Rascal part of the time. I attended church tonight. After I came home from church this evening I put out treats and food but I didn't have time to sit out with the cats. After I finish the Good Things I will get the garbage ready and put it out on the street for pick up in the morning. I have had e-mails since last time and I do appreciate the e-mails and I appreciate everyone who reads the Good Things.
The cats are fine. Little Girl is in the den with me and the others have all been seen this evening. I will see you next time,
With Christian Love, Everett.