Posted by & filed under Mikes Blog.

I have heard that faith can be many things, but what I have been shown in the Word of God is very simple. Faith comes by hearing from the Lord.

 

When the Lord speaks to us from within the Holy Bible He  tells us the end, but does not tell us what the journey will be. It is in the journey that the Lord tests our faith in what He has promised us at “the end.”

 

An example of this is when the nation of Israel left Egypt. He told them He would take them to a land flowing with milk and honey. He did not tell them about the very long journey through the desert (even going in circles to teach them) and what that will require of them. Most people give up on the promises of God because they do not like the way of God’s journey for their faith. But, without the journey our faith in His promises will mean very little to us, and to others we share it with.

Ready and Prepared?

Posted by & filed under Carols Blog.

I found this man’s recount of the last 50 years of the Church’s decline in America very thought provoking.

 

The “Jesus Movement” was an epic revival, called by some historians “The Fourth Great Awakening.” It swept millions into the Christian Faith from its inception around 1965 to its demise around 1985. Biblical prophecy became basic to the revival – but it eventually lost its credibility, leading in part to the almost complete lack of urgency that today plagues the entire evangelical church. (Quote)

 

Whenever there is a crisis – most Christians continue doing things as usual. Yet, because of the powerful praying of “the faithful few,” God continues to work at getting the attention of all His people. The Lord certainly does desire that ALL His people be ready and prepared for Him in the way He says to.  We see the results of our complacency (lack of urgency) and our self-absorbed rejection of God’s call to us for repentance, as we see in all the Lord’s rebukes to His people as seen in 5 out of His 7 letters to His churches. (Revelation 2 and 3) This 5 out of 7 is called the majority of His people, or the majority of His churches.

 

We see the results of stagnant religions (growing in numbers) throughout our nation because people have missed what it means to be “in Christ.”

 

We see the taking over of children’s minds in the schools and of millennials in universities with unholy teachings that not only depreciate human life but subtlety destroys a society/nation.

 

America’s true purpose from God is hanging by a thread, but if God’s people will see their responsibility to the nation in which they live: daily repent both for themselves and for those before us who also dropped the ball, privately open God’s Word at home to hear directly from the Lord – that we return to His will and wisdom by the leadership of His Holy Spirit – God will still use America ‘for His good purpose’ and not allow her to be used by the ungodly politicians seeking their own agendas.

 

But do you believe that God is through with America? If so, then you will probably not do anything different than you have before, believing that God will take believers out of this horrible world one day with the “rapture.” BUT, the rapture is for the “faithful” not the “unfaithful.” And, we have been given a commission from Christ with the warning to be faithful to the end.  We see in Christ’s letters to His churches that if we are unfaithful – that we lose what we assumed we had with Him. (Revelation 2 and 3)

 

With all the ongoing ‘exposure’ of corrupt politics and with the growing acceptance of ‘truth’ about when life begins – is God beginning to answer the cries and prayers of the “faithful few” over this last decade or two? Yet, this “faithful” army MUST grow and spread into key positions of influence throughout our land. That means not only more enrolling to stay at their prayer posts through the ongoing battles, but also trained in righteousness to be in key positions of godly influence especially in branches of government; so that the disobedient will turn to the wisdom of the righteous as they see the RESULTS of righteousness leading in our land: GOD’S THOROUGH BLESSING.

 

So, may the hearts of fathers turn back to the children, and the hearts of children back to the fathers of faith, hope and love in Jesus Christ.

 

America’s “civil war” that we are in is supremely about protecting the freedom of the unborn from the evils of abortion and protecting the minds of children in schools from false teaching. As we see individual states rising up against abortion on demand – may the God of human life rise up in power on behalf of RIGHTEOUSNESS! May God crush the schemes and works of evil-doers, and humble them before their Creator. In Jesus’ Name.

 

The ancient enemy of God and God’s good future for those who love God and His Son – is after our young. And we as parents need to see this and do all we can to protect our little children from unholy teaching/influence in their maturing lives, even giving up our own aspirations in the world to do so, sacrificing for the next generation to know and obey the Lord, and to “GO!” wherever the Lord tells them to, or to just stay put doing His perfect and acceptable will.  And may they each teach their children to do the same.

 

We can see this “civil war” as “humanism” against “Christianity.” We can see it as “progressive socialism” against “conservative capitalism.” We can see it as “slavery” against “freedom.” We can also see it as “the god of this world” against “the Lord of the nations.”

 

As we look out at the nations today and who their leaders are and how people are forced to think and live – we would have to admit that “the god of this world” is just about ready to show up in “bodily form” with his one-world government so easily accepted along with his slavery “mark” (according to God’s Word of prophecy about the last anti-Christ). BUT, that only means that so is Jesus Christ showing up ‘shortly’ after that in fulfillment of prophecy that God has described in His Word about His Kingdom coming to the earth AS IT IS IN HEAVEN. GLORY TO OUR KING!

 

Is it possible for America to have a ‘fifth’ Great Awakening? Or, is God done with His people in America – so that He lets all our enemies overtake us? Will His people unite and pray according to how HE IS working through key individuals that HE HAS put in place? Or, will His people continue to be self-absorbed and disunited and without a clear vision of the time we are in and what it means to “be ready and prepared for Him”?

Faulty Appeal to Authority

Posted by & filed under Franks Blog.

Proverbs 2:6 “For the Lord gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.”

 

Proverbs 15:14 “The discerning heart seeks knowledge, but the mouth of a fool feeds on folly.”

 

Proverbs 16:23 “A wise man’s heart guides his mouth, and his lips promote instruction.”

 

A faulty appeal to authority is an appeal to someone who has no special knowledge in the area being discussed.

 

In other words, when we are not knowledgeable on a certain subject, the wise thing is to first ask an authority – somebody who is knowledgeable on the subject. For example, you do what the mechanics says because he knows more about cars than you do.

 

We are appealing to an authority when we claim something is true because an authority said it was true, but if the person we are appealing to is not actually an authority in the area we are discussing, our appeal is faulty.

 

What happens is that some people use an appeal to authority in the wrong way, appealing to an authority when arguing with people – just to overawe them.

 

Movie stars are often used as a faulty appeal to authority. Because of their movie star status their opinion on numerous things – politics, nutrition, etc. are being asked for, but we find that they are no authority on these subjects.

 

When the topic under discussion is controversial among several respected authorities, then appealing simply to the opinion of a single authority is a faulty appeal to authority. We find this for example in the argument regarding global warming.

 

We live in a world where knowledge base is so great that no one could ever achieve a level of expertise in every subject and therefore because of this we rely on the knowledge of experts and specialists regarding many areas of our life. However, we must be careful and even skeptical deciding which authority we ought to accept.

 

There are four appeals to the illegitimate authority.

 

  1. Accepting the opinions of one who has no expertise in the particular subject that he is talking about.
  2. Accepting the advice or opinion of a biased authority.
  3. Accepting the advice or opinion of an unnamed authority secondhand.
  4. Accepting the advice or opinion that transfers his celebrity status for the thing being talked about. This is especially true in many advertisements that we see all the time on TV.

 

We often find in the news media what is known as “un-named sources” or “unidentified spokespersons.” The news media does this to lend authority or credibility to their story or whatever it is that they are reporting on, but we have to look at these with great skepticism because we do not know whether these unidentified or unnamed sources are reputable.

 

One of the most common abuses of this approach is the use of celebrity’s testimonials for different products, but, often, there is little or no connection between the product and what it is that made the celebrity famous. Like someone said, it is not really Michael Jordan’s cologne that has made him famous.

 

The Proverbs 31 Woman – Chapter 42 – Groomed for Royalty

Posted by & filed under Carols Blog.

I love the book of Esther because it teaches as well as honors the good affect that a virtuous woman has on her husband, or a king and his kingdom. It reveals the glad heart of a real man or true king when he sees genuine beauty of femininity and wisdom in a woman who fears God.

 

Esther was called by God into the king’s palace to be favored by the king above all his wives. She was to have a huge influence on the king in protecting her people from evil Haman, governor of the king’s land.

 

If you aren’t familiar with the story of Esther I want to challenge you to read this book of the Bible that teaches God’s people how to influence the most powerful leaders, and trust in God’s promises to His people being oppressed and led to slaughter.

 

Esther was called by God through her uncle Mordecai to be stationed in the right place at the right time – to expose Haman’s wicked plan against God’s people. God used Esther to open the king’s eyes to the secret evil agenda of Haman against Esther’s people (the Jews) and which saved God’s people from Haman’s death sentence upon them.

 

We know that there are those who hate God and God’s people, and like Haman will do all they can think of doing to discredit them and even remove them all from the face of the earth. We have seen these types of anti-Christs throughout history because the devil is bent on killing off God’s children. There will be one last anti-Christ before our KING of Kings returns: Satan himself possessing a man of intrigue and prominence, a law unto himself, with false peace deceiving the nations. But with the coming of God’s KING – his short reign will be cut off. God’s Son will return and make the final war on the earth:

 

“With justice He judges and wages war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on His Head are many crowns. He has a name written on Him that no one knows but He himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and His name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following Him who is called Faithful and True. They ride on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Coming out of His mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. ‘He will rule them with an iron scepter. He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On His robe and on His thigh has this name written: KING of Kings and LORD of Lords.” Revelation 19:11-16

 

All the world is prepared (happening right now) by this last anti-Christ to wage war against God’s returning KING. (Revelation 19:17-21) At the start, Satan himself is bound for one thousand years and thrown in the Abyss to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After the thousand years are ended, the devil must be set free for a short time, where he goes back out to deceive the nations like before and gather them for battle against KING JESUS on the throne in Jerusalem, the City God loves.

 

And I LOVE this part: “They (the devil and his army) marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God’s people, the CITY He loves (Jerusalem). But fire came down from heaven and devoured them. And the devil, that ancient serpent, who had deceived the nations was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where his beast and false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night forever and ever.” Revelation 20:9-10

 

Isaiah God’s prophet spoke of our KING:

 

“And HE will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of His government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over His kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this! Hallelujah!” Isaiah 9:6-7

 

Don’t get too comfortable here in this wicked world. Even though we are in the world, we are not to love the world, neither the things of this world that will be destroyed and forever forgotten.

 

“Those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh; but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit… Those controlled by the flesh cannot please God… I consider that our present sufferings are not comparable to the glory that will be revealed in us. The creation waits in eager expectation for the revelation of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not by its own will, but because of the One who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.” Romans 8:5, 8, 18-21

 

Holiness is our responsibility with the Holy Spirit. We’ve already spent too much time doing what the ungodly do, looking at what they look at, laughing at what they laugh at, working for what they work for, talking like they talk, and thinking like they think; living the empty way of life. With God’s Word and His indwelling Spirit we know better, and we are completely capable of living the noble life that pleases our Father God as we prepare ourselves for His Kingdom. And Jesus has told us that as it is in Heaven so shall it be on this earth!

 

Live such good lives among your ungodly families and friends that though they accuse you of doing wrong, they can not deny the good deeds you do. Then on the Day when God judges the world – they will be ashamed of accusing you, and they will honor God. (1 Peter 2:11-12)

 

Live a life perfecting holiness out of reverence for God. Renew your minds with God’s eternal Word. Purify your hearts seeking the righteousness of God in every part of your life. Clear out all your idols that keep you from wholehearted devotion to God. Meet with Him each morning in prayer, as the Lord taught us to do by His own example and instruction. Do what He tells you to do, and when you fail – get back up and keep going with Him. His Hand is extended to you. His mercies are fresh each morning! This is how you put on your royal apparel for your upcoming royal position: the fine linen, clean and white. (Revelation 19:14)

 

“For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and His Bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wears. (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of God’s holy people.)” Revelation 19:7-8

 

There is nothing more beautiful to God than His earthly family who understands their glorious God-given purpose on the earth as they joyfully live it out with praise unto the Lamb of God, Christ Jesus, and awaiting His Kingdom.

Who’s Influencing Who?

Posted by & filed under Mikes Blog.

I have saying, “No where in the Bible does it say to the church you are to invite the unsaved into your services, nor the ungodly into your assemblies; but I DO read where the church is to go.” Why? If we go out – we influence the world, but if we invite the world in – this will influence the church in worldly ways.

 

So, has the church been influenced by the world – more than the church has influenced the world?  This verse sums it up:

 

Proverbs 25:26 “If the godly give in to the wicked, it’s like polluting a fountain or muddying a spring.”

AD HOMINEM

Posted by & filed under Franks Blog.

Proverbs 4:24 “Put away perversity from your mouth; keep corrupt talk far from your lips.”

Proverbs 10:11 “The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked.”

Proverbs 11:9 “With his mouth the godless destroys his neighbor.”

Proverbs 26:28 “A lying tongue hates those it hurts, and a flattering mouth works ruin.”

 

We have seen how people use red herrings to avoid a question, but another method that is used is known as an “Ad Hominem” when they want to avoid answering the question. In other words, and Ad Hominem attack is attacking opponent’s character, or his motives for believing something, instead of disproving his argument.

 

In the latest presidential campaign and the public debates that took place often we see “Ad Hominems” coming out in attacking one another’s persons rather than getting down to the real questions at hand.

 

Not only do we see Ad Hominem coming out in public debates, especially political debates, but also in the ads that come out on TV, etc. For example, in the last political debate between Hillary Clinton and Trump how often we saw the character of the two being attacked.

 

The idea in back of this type of fallacy in attacking his opponent’s character or motives that the public will often think badly of his opponents’ arguments as well. This is not the right way to argue. Someone might have character flaws, we all do, but his arguments might be valid.

 

An Ad Hominem can also occur when someone accuses his opponent of having bad motives. However, it is not an Ad Hominem when someone questions whether or not the person is telling the truth.

 

Ad Hominem can be translated as either “to the man” or “against the man.” Ad Hominem is probably one of the dirtiest tricks that a debater can employ, because it is irrelevant to the source of what is being debated and an uninformed public will often not make a distinction between the character of the man and his argument.

 

Another reason why an “Ad Hominem” is a dirty debater’s trick, although it is easy to spot, is because it evokes emotive language. The emotions come into play and in the process the real source of the argument is lost. The public loses because we do not get to the real answers to the questions being asked.

 

Using as an example the latest presidential elections that we have had here in America many questions that needed to be answered has been lost because of the “Ad Hominem fallacy.” In choosing our leaders we need to know what they really think and we get that by answering the real questions.

 

Another aspect of the “Ad Hominem fallacy” is what they call “circumstantial.” What this basically says is that a person’s argument ought not to be given weight simply because of the circumstances of that person. In other words an example of this would be not to give credibility to a person’s argument on abortion because he is a Roman Catholic. How often we have seen this type of fallacy being promoted in the abortion debate.

 

“Circumstantial Ad Hominem” is not necessarily abusive, but it brings out the circumstances or the credibility of the person in the debate. In other words, there is no credibility to his argument because of his/her circumstances.

 

 

 

 

Short Term Solutions – Have Long Term Consequences

Posted by & filed under Mikes Blog.

Short term solution always have long time consequences. What do I mean? Think of any solution the government has come up with in the past that we are not paying the consequences for today.

 

Almost 2/3 of our taxes are to pay for short term solutions of the past, called entitlements. When we think government has the solutions to our problems then government becomes the problem.

 

Obama said it best when he was talking about Trump, “What is he going to ,wave a magic wand and create these jobs.” Government does not solve problems, they only give us short term fixes that have a black hole at the end of them sucking the life and energy from everyone around it. So listen to the people running for office and you will see that the only thing they offer are short term solutions, and that WILL have long term consequences.

 

What is needed is to bring back the dignity of the individual. There is no such thing as an individual with dignity when government tries to solve our problems. Part of dignity is respect! I hear people saying, “Earn my respect.” Respect is never earned, but always given. You should respect your parents, teachers, our elected officials, our neighbors, the policeman, all those who fight for us in wars; everyone! Be proud of who you are, and what you do that benefits not only yourself but others. It is okay if you do not go to college. It is okay to work with your hands.  Some of the happiest people I know work very hard with their hands. Some of the saddest people are educated people who have degrees in a field they do not like, but only chose it because of the money it pays.

 

Next, bring back the wholesome family unit. Listen to what the government says. They think they know more in how to raise our children than we do. Their goal is to control the minds of our children, so that our children do not think for themselves but rather how government wants them to think. A good example of this is at our colleges today; when someone speaks that thinks differently – they want to shut him/her down. This is the by-product of a society that thinks government has the solution to our problems. When the family unit is strong then our country will be strong.

 

When government takes control it is always giving us short term solutions that will have a long time consequence that does not have a good effect on society.

The Proverbs 31 Woman – Chapter 41 – Home of the Just

Posted by & filed under Carols Blog.

The Bible has been called all sorts of things by all kinds of people who judge God’s Word when they could be wonderfully changed by God’s Word. The Bible continues to live on by transforming one bewildered mind after another, one meaningless life after another, one broken marriage after another, one dysfunctional family after another, and the Day is coming when the world will be transformed by God’s Son reigning on this earth, as promised.

 

Ignorance is a choice. Ignorance is Satan’s breeding ground. God makes sure that the truth about His Son comes to us all as many times as needed. His grace has appeared to all people for it is His will that no one dies under the guilt-load of their sins, but that they die “in Christ” who takes that guilt from us when we confess our sins and trust Him as our Savior.

 

No one will stand before God our Creator and Judge with any excuse for their ignorance concerning God’s Son and what He came down to earth to do for us, or for not knowing about His Son’s coming back to reign on the earth. God’s Word to us has remained and will remain available to anyone in any generation and His Word takes priority over the words of man.

 

The Lord will not hold us accountable to what anyone else wants us to learn and believe. We are to judge all teaching by God’s Word. His Word (the Bible) is the most important book to read and study. Devotionals are nice for bed-time reading but never to replace your own personal time with the Holy Spirit in the Bible. What others learn from opening up God’s Word themselves is not how we fellowship with the Lord, and hear from Him direct.

 

God wants us to be ‘heads’ not ‘tails.’ We are to follow Him and not others; not follow the crowd nor follow the majority. God’s children are to be leaders like Jesus. We are to be His helpers ready to help in the way He tells us to help, not to be those who are helplessly looking to others. God will prosper those who understand their God-given purpose in life; for they are wise – knowing how to use what God has generously given them.

 

The faithful woman knows all God’s promises and she won’t forfeit one of them for a temporary thing in this world. She will not be tempted to doubt that God will make good all His promises in time. This is why she is most confident with who she is, most content in life and most careful with her words and ways with people, especially with her husband and children.

 

The woman that God honors can make ‘accurate’ judgments about herself and her future, about her husband and children, about the culture she lives in, about her friends, about everything – because she lives by God’s love, God’s order and God’s promises. She condemns evil by what God calls evil. She commends righteousness by what God calls righteousness. The Spirit of God in her makes her a good judge of character knowing who can be trusted and who shouldn’t be trusted. Not even her beloved children can pull the wool over her eyes.

 

The godly woman is a student of the Holy Spirit where He instructs her about her own heart, her marriage, her family and home. Her daily attendance with the Holy Spirit is perfect because in her opinion she has no better teacher and friend.

 

Who is teaching you? What are you feeding your spirit and soul each day?

 

The homes of God’s people are to always be ready for guests and strangers – of the Lord. Since women don’t see their homes as the Lord sees their homes they keep busy with the ministries in their church buildings. “Come to my church!” has replaced “Come to my home” and worse, “Come to my church has replaced our telling our testimony to someone and adding, “Come to Jesus!”  We have even made the church service the way and place to invite people to come to Jesus. And yes, people can get saved by coming to our church. People need to hear your testimony more than a sermon. They need to be in your home and with your family more than in a church building where people are not always their true selves.

 

I believe that hospitality at home is one way that makes Christianity powerful and persuasive.

 

Is the Lord free to fellowship in your home? Is He free to have people over in your home where they are treated as He would treat them? In the home of the righteous is where the Lord gets to show off what He’s done for His servants who live there. Impartial and generous we are to be with His love for people. In the home of God’s saints you will see how His truth and love has been most effective.

 

“The curse of the LORD is in the house of the wicked: but he blesses the habitation of the just.” Proverbs 3:33 (Webster Bible Translation)

 

Red Herring

Posted by & filed under Franks Blog.

Proverbs 22:17-19,21  “Pay attention and turn your ear to the sayings of the wise; apply your heart to what I teach,  for it is pleasing when you keep them in your heart and have all of them ready on your lips.  So that your trust may be in the Lord, I teach you today, even you, teaching you to be honest and to speak the truth, so that you bring back truthful reports to those you serve?”

 

When I think of the passage above in Proverbs I thought about some of the different fallacies that are circulating in our society, and how important it is for us to understand so that we are not trapped by them and at the same time be able to give, like Proverbs says, an answer that is ‘ready on your lips.’

 

Probably one of the most important lessons to learn is how to think logically. This, I believe is where Proverbs come in dealing with the fallacies that we face today.  Thinking properly, we also learn how to recognize bad reasoning.

 

A fallacy is an error in logic and it is something that we have much of today. This is why Proverbs is important, because it will expose bad logic and help us to logically think things through.

 

Red Herring fallacy. Whenever we introduce something irrelevant into an argument, this is known as ‘a red herring’ – we are avoiding the question.

 

A red herring is a dead fish that has started to become ripe and smelly. Dog trainers used red herrings to train tracking dogs. They would lay out the scent of a raccoon or whatever they wanted the dog to learn to track and let the trail become old, they would drag the red herring across the trail and off in a different direction and train the dog to stay on track and ignore the red herring smell.

 

So a red herring is a distracting scent trail. A red herring is when someone brings up and irrelevant topic which distracts us from the real question. We might be discussing or trying to answer a particular question, but soon find that we are off in a different direction and completely away from the original question. Someplace in the conversation ‘a red herring’ was introduced.

 

When someone introduces a red herring, he may be saying something which is true, although irrelevant. Red herrings are often good arguments. The only problem is, they do not prove the point being argued – they prove something else.

 

A red herring is a debating trick used to throw an opponent or the audience off-track. One of the problems with a red herring is the appeal to ignorance. In other words, if we cannot prove that he is wrong then we often conclude that he might be right. It is often very difficult to prove a negative. In other words if we cannot prove Martians do not exist, conclusion is that they probably do exist.

 

Another aspect of the red herring argument is in regards to irrelevant goals or functions.  This type of arguments makes a good case for what it is trying to prove, but what it is trying to prove is irrelevant to the case at hand.

 

Another aspect of the red Herring is what they call the straw man fallacy.  The difference between the straw man and the irrelevant thesis is that the speaker is trying to disprove or discredit an opponent’s position, rather than prove a thesis of his or her own.

 

An example of a “straw man fallacy” is how, for example, all religious conservatives are lumped together under certain labels like homophobes or under hate speech. To lump all those who believe that homosexuality is wrong with violent thugs who beat people up is to distort the position of those who speak out with honesty and with compassion that homosexuality is wrong and that we should call those who actively engage in it to repentance. In other words a ‘straw man’ is the type of argument against a position that is not really the position held by the opposition.

 

 

 

 

Learning to use our minds!

Posted by & filed under Franks Blog.

Proverbs 1:5 “Let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance.”

 

Proverbs 12:15 “The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice.”

 

James 1:19 “My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.”

 

When I was writing my weekly letters on Ecclesiastes the one thing that Solomon kept bringing out to his son Rehoboam was the need for wisdom. With all of your getting – get wisdom seemed to be the criteria that Solomon was trying to get across to his son and to us. The problem is that when we get old enough to realize how short life is that we begin to realize how valuable it would have been if we had learned wisdom early in life.

 

I would say that one of the most important lessons in the book of Proverbs is that we should work hard to use our minds to understand things. This means that we will have to stretch and exercise our minds and not let our minds grow fat and flabby. One of the problems we face is that we try to avoid using our minds as much as possible. We need to change that!

 

As Christians we have the obligation to use our minds to serve God. We must exercise our minds just as we exercise our body. We need to develop an inquiring mind.

 

Some years back I read a little booklet called The Awesome Power of the Listening Ear. This book brought out how many people solve their own problems by being able to have someone to listen to them. As they began to talk they realize their own solutions. Often, we find that people enjoy telling what they think more than listening to what others have to say. It is in listening to others that we begin to learn things.

 

Solomon said in Proverbs 1:5 “A wise man will hear, and will increase in learning, and a man of understanding will acquire wise counsel.” A spirit of listening goes a long way to communicate and attitude of humility.

 

How do we know if someone is showing humility and has a desire to listen?

 

  1.   He is more interested in hearing what other people have to say than in having them listen to him. Humility brings respect for others and for their thoughts.
  2.   He places a modest value on his own opinions – he admits that other people often have better ideas than he does.
  3.   He willingly admits when he doesn’t know something. If he does not understand something, he is open about it.
  4.   He is willing to question his own position on an issue.

 

A person who loves to listen is another ingredient to having an inquiring mind. When we are forming an opinion on an issue, it is often a good idea to collect other people’s viewpoints on the issue. Proverbs 11:14 says, “Where there is no guidance the people fall, but in abundance of counselors there is victory.” Here Solomon is telling us to not only get guidance from a wise man, but from many wise men.

 

Why are many counselors good? If they all gave us the same advice we would not learn anything, but when there are many different points of view, we can observe and learn. Listening to all these different view-points can help us choose what is the best advice. Part of an inquiring mind is to be diligent in learning about alternative views.

 

In these letters we will be looking at some of the different fallacies being presented through media, entertainment, our judicial system and government and at times even from the pulpit.