Post Thankgiving Ruminations

 Post Thanksgiving Ruminations

November 28, 2025

Some post Thanksgiving proverbs::

Proverbs 28:1 (NASB95) 

The wicked flee when no one is pursuing, But the righteous are bold as a lion.

Proverbs 27:7 (NASB95) 

Asated man loathes honey, But to a famished man any bitter thing is sweet.

Proverbs 23:1-2 (NASB95) 

1 When you sit down to dine with a ruler, Consider carefully what is before you, 2 And put a knife to your throat If you are a man of great appetite.

I was thinking of the first one as we were walking off our Thanksgiving dinner this morning. I’m not much of a runner, so if you see me running, look for who is chasing me! So that is my favorite running proverb. But we did walk a bit to let the turkey settle. Now a couple of weeks ago, we might have been chased by our neighbor’s turkeys, but they were “processed” the other day, so were part of the dinner, not part of the walk this time. It’s just as well. They were sort of mean tom turkeys and reminded me of the rooster that pestered me when I was a child. We had to walk through the chicken yard to get to the outhouse, and the rooster would chase me and peck me on the hear, so I have no love for mean, male fowl!

Other proverbs speak about over eating. Of course it’s too late to prevent you from overeating this Thanksgiving, we’re already experiencing that sated feeling. But that will soon pass and we’ll be looking for honey again. So don’t put the knife to your throat just yet, but enjoy those turkey sandwiches and football games as you continue to give thanks for our bountiful blessings. We can make light of over eating because we are blessed with abundance and have plenty to eat. So be thankful. You can always try to remember to not eat so much next year!

Testing, Testing

 Testing, Testing

November 26, 2025

Psalm 26:1-12 (NASB95) 1 A Psalm of David. 

Vindicate me, O LORD, for I have walked in my integrity, And I have trusted in the LORD without wavering. 2 Examine me, O LORD, and try me; Test my mind and my heart. 3 For Your lovingkindness is before my eyes, And I have walked in Your truth. 4 I do not sit with deceitful men, Nor will I go with pretenders. 5 I hate the assembly of evildoers, And I will not sit with the wicked. 6 I shall wash my hands in innocence, And I will go about Your altar, O LORD, 7 That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving And declare all Your wonders. 8 O LORD, I love the habitation of Your house And the place where Your glory dwells. 9 Do not take my soul away along with sinners, Nor my life with men of bloodshed, 10 In whose hands is a wicked scheme, And whose right hand is full of bribes. 11 But as for me, I shall walk in my integrity; Redeem me, and be gracious to me. 12 My foot stands on a level place; In the congregations I shall bless the LORD.

Testing, 1, 2,3, Testing… How many times have I heard that when setting up a band. When everything is connected and seems complete, you aren’t ready to perform until you test everything. Similarly, in the Christian walk, you can say “I have walked in my integrity, and I have trusted the Lord without wavering”, but have you really? The proof is in the next verse, “Examine me, O Lord, and try me…” Testing, Testing… And I think that part of the proof that you doing Ok is in verse 7. When you are testing microphones, the proof that they are working is if you can hear the “Testing, Testing, 1,2,3” in the back of the room. Likewise the proof that you are walking with the Lord in integrity is if people can hear your voiced of thanksgiving in all circumstances. When you declare the wonders of the Lord and extol His glory you show the world that you are following Jesus. Thanksgiving and an attitude of gratitude is a proof of the test. The Lord will examine your heart and test you through various trials and difficulties, but if you can still lift up your voice of thanksgiving and declare His wonders, then you have passed the test.

So, tomorrow is thanksgiving day which is an excellent time to remember to be thankful for the Lord’s goodness, but we should be thankful every day. Let your voice of thanksgiving be heard and let them hear “testing, 1,2, 3, testing” in the back of the room.

Thanksgiving

 Thanksgiving

November 24, 2025

1 Thessalonians 5:14-18

14 We urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, bepatient with everyone. 15 See that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all people. 16 Rejoice always; 17 pray without ceasing; 18 in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Psalm 106:1, 12-13

Praise the LORD! Oh give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; For His lovingkindness is everlasting.

,,,

12 Then they believed His words; They sang His praise. 13 They quickly forgot His works; They did not wait for His counsel,

Why do we find it so hard to be thankful? We seem to be surrounded by an entitled generation that is not grateful for the blessings that we have received from the Father. Of course this is not a new thing. Psalm 106 is a history of all the good things that the Lord did for the nation of Israel, but then they quickly forgot His works. The psalmist is reminding them to sing His praises and give thanks to the Lord. So we are not so different from the ancient Israelis. The Lord has also done great things for our nation, but we quickly forget and grumble and complain. Even in Paul’s day, the admonition to give thanks  in everything is in the same passage as the instructions on admonishing the unruly. So I suppose it’s just human nature to forget the good things and focus on our problems. That’s why Paul encourages us to pray without ceasing and give thanks in everything.

We set aside one day this week as Thanksgiving day, but we need to remember to give thanks every day. The Lord has done great things for us, but we quickly forget. So remember what the Lord has done and give thanks. Praise His name and rejoice always for that is God’s will for us in Christ Jesus.

Enter His Gates with Thanksgiving

 Enter His Gates

November 17, 2025

Psalm 100:1-5 (NASB95) 1 A Psalm for Thanksgiving. 

Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth. 2 Serve the LORD with gladness; Come before Him withjoyful singing. 3 Know that the LORD Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. 4 Enter His gates with thanksgiving And His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name. 5 For the LORD is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting And His faithfulness to all generations.

A good friend reminded me of this psalm this morning. It was a timely reminder because there are some serious issues on our prayer list this morning. There are issues of life and death that we are praying for, so it’s good to remember that we need to give thanks in everything, not just in the good times.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-19 (NASB95) 

16Rejoice always; 17 pray without ceasing; 18 in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 19 Do not quench the Spirit;

We don’t understand everything that happens in life. Why is there death and disease and hardship? We can’t know all the purposes in the mind of God, but we do know the heart of God, that He works everything to good for those that love Him. He loves us, even when all seems dark and hopeless. So we give thanks for everything. We don’t understand, but we trust in God and praise Him. It is the only way to enter His gates where we can experience the joy of His salvation. So look to the Lord, even in hard times, and praise Him and thank Him and know that His love surrounds you and will be with you, even as you go through the valley of the shadow of death.

 Psalm 23:4 (NASB95) 

Eventhough I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

Restoring the Foundations

 Restoring the Foundations

November 11, 2025

Psalm 11:1-7 (NASB95) 1 For the choir director. A Psalm of David. 

Inthe LORD I take refuge; How can you say to my soul, “Flee as a bird to your mountain; 2 For, behold, the wicked bend the bow, They make ready their arrow upon the string To shoot in darkness at the upright in heart. 3 If the foundations are destroyed, What can the righteous do?” 

4 The LORD is in His holy temple; the LORD’S throne is in heaven; His eyes behold, His eyelidstest the sons of men. 5 The LORD tests the righteous and the wicked, And the one who loves violence His soul hates. 6 Upon the wicked He will rain snares; Fire and brimstone and burning wind will be the portion of their cup. 7 For the LORD is righteous, He loves righteousness; The upright will behold His face.

The Psalm I read this morning seems very relevant to our current times. It’s becoming more and more apparent to people; the arrows that are being shot into the hearts of the people from the darkness. There is a concerted effort to destroy the foundations of society. Many people are beginning to wake up to the battle being waged in the heavenlies, with effects in our nation and other nations around the world. Some are fleeing the worst situations in Europe and Nigeria. Many are moving to Texas from California and New  York to try to get away from the craziness,  but if we don’t stop the madness, where do we flee from here? Even in Texas, we are seeing the foundations of family, education and church being eroded. What can we do? “If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?”

The Psalmist appeals to heaven. “The LORD is in His holy temple; the LORD’S throne is in heaven.” Our only salvation is to humble ourselves and pray. Psalm 2 says that the Lord is not surprised by the enemies that conspire against Him, but He sits in heaven and laughs. So take heart. The situation looks dire, and there are real enemies all around us, but the Lord is in His holy temple.

4 TheLORD is in His holy temple; the LORD’S throne is in heaven; His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men. 5 The LORD tests the righteous and the wicked, And the one who loves violence His soul hates. 6 Upon the wicked He will rain snares; Fire and brimstone and burning wind will be the portion of their cup. 7 For the LORD is righteous, He loves righteousness; The upright will behold His face.

Wings Like Eagles

 Wings like Eagles

November 6, 2025

Isaiah 40:28-31

28 Do you not know? Have you not heard?

The Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth

Does not become weary or tired.

His understanding is inscrutable.

29 He gives strength to the weary,

And to him who lacks might He increases power.

30 Though youths grow weary and tired,

And vigorous young men stumble badly,

31 Yet those who wait for the LORD

Will gain new strength;

They will mount up with wings like eagles,

They will run and not get tired,

They will walk and not become weary.

I was reminded this morning that this was a favorite verse of one of my former pastors,  Michael. He had been a former newspaper man, so now he’s publishing good news in the heavenlies as he soars with the eagles and angels on high. 

This was also the scripture that Ern Baxter used in his most famous sermon on eagles. I always loved to hear him preach on eagles. He looked somewhat like an Eagle himself with his beak of a nose and his tremendous wingspan. And when he preached on eagles, you could almost see him soar. “Mount up!”, he would say. Wait for the wind of the Spirit to pick you up and carry you to great heights. But never so high that your keen eagles eye can’t see the ground. The Eagle  can spot his prey from great heights and swoop down with deadly force to capture his foe. No enemy can stand before the mighty Eagle as it soars and dives on powerful wings, always aware of the currents of the Spirit that power and guide him. An Eagle christian is likewise powerful, with a keen eye to spot and take out his spiritual enemies. Brother Ern could make it sound  like the eagles were right there in the room with us, and now, he too is soaring with the angels and eagles in heavenly places. 

So wait on the Lord so that He will give you new strength that you too may mount up on wings like an Eagle, not getting tired but relying on the wind of the Spirit to carry you to new heights in the Lord.

 in the CLASSIC TEACHING By Ern Baxter

               EB201            LIFE ON WINGS

           EB619          EAGLES

My Glory and the Lifter of My Head

 My Glory and the Lifter of my Head

 November 3,2025

Psalm 3:1-8 (NASB95) 1 A Psalm of David, when he fled from Absalom his son. 

O LORD, how my adversaries have increased! Many are rising up against me. 2 Many are saying of my soul, “There is no deliverance for him in God.” Selah. 

3 But You, O LORD, are a shield about me, My glory, and the One who lifts my head. 

4 I was crying to the LORD with my voice, And He answered me from His holy mountain. Selah. 

5 I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the LORD sustains me. 6 I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people Who have set themselves against me round about. 7 Arise, O LORD; save me, O my God! For You have smitten all my enemies on the cheek; You have shattered the teeth of the wicked. 8 Salvation belongs to the LORD; Your blessing be upon Your people! Selah.

We have been talking about our weapons of spiritual warfare. One of them is praise. We see a good example of that in Psalm 3 where King David was being chased from Jerusalem by the rebel army of his son, Absolom. Now David was a warrior, skilled in the use of sword and shield, but in this case, he didn’t want to harm his son, but he did need to resist the spirit of rebellion, so he chose praise as his weapon. In the early days in our church in Pittsburgh, we used to sing this as a chorus (in the King James):

Psalm 3:3-4 (KJV) 

3 But thou, O LORD, [art] a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of mine head. 

4 I cried unto the LORD with my voice, and he heard me out of his holy hill. Selah.

When you cry unto the Lord with a voice of Praise, He will hear and answer! I have seen this work many times. The demons of gloom, despair and agony can’t stand the sound of praise and quickly flee. Praise opens the gates of heaven for blessings to flow. Angels love to praise the Lord and will join with you in the battle. So raise a song of triumph and praise the Lord.

Salvationbelongs to the LORD; Your blessing be upon Your people! Selah.

All Saints Day

 All Saints Day

November 1, 2025

 Psalm 1:1-6 (NASB95) 

1 How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! 2 But his delight is in the law ofthe LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night. 3 He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers. 4 The wicked are not so, But they are like chaff which the wind drives away. 5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. 6 For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the wicked will perish.

In some Christian traditions, today is celebrated as All Saints Day. Personally, I come from a church tradition that says that we are all saints and we can celebrate that every day. But, that being as it is, Psalm 1 seems appropriate for today. A blessed saint is one who lives like the man in Psalm 1, who does not walk in he counsel of the wicked, not stand in the path of sinners, not sit in the seat of scoffers. Such a man (or woman) is indeed blessed and will be like the tree planted by the water that yields it’s fruit in season. This is living in the way of the tree of life, whose leaves are for the healing of the nations.

Revelation 22:1-2 - The River and the Tree of Life

1 Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throneof God and of the Lamb, 2 in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.

We certainly live in an age when there are wicked all around and scoffers on all the airwaves. We need men who will stand alone, apart from the crowd, proclaiming the way of life. This is the way to bless the nations and heal our land. So today is a good day to be a saint and meditate on the Word and the tree of life.