Scripture

Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight.

~Psalm 51:4, NIV

Quote

I am more flawed than I ever imagined; yet more loved by Christ than I ever dreamed.

~Ya’akov

Sin is universal: all have sinned and come exceedingly short of the perfection we see in Christ. There is no one who is perfectly good and does what is right all the time {Eccl. 7:20}. We do good things but we have vain motives for the good things we do. All sin has consequences. You cannot name any sin that is free of consequences. If you smoke, you get lung cancer; if you drink, you get cirrhosis of the liver; if we over eat, we get fat; if you lie, you lose your integrity. When we sin something dies because sin by nature is anti-life; it is destructive. Our sin is first and foremost against God because only He is holy. Sin does not offend sinners in the same way it offends a holy person and God is holy. Technically, He is the only one who has the right to be offended.

Sin also creates a burden. It is like ice on the wings of a jet: if something is not done about it, it will bring us down. It is a burden that we are unable to bear. Sin destroys joy and peace. What human does not want joy and peace. Sin stains and polutes. It destroys everthing pure and leaves us with a guilty conscience. There is nothing good about sin. Early on, it may appear very attractive, but behind the makeup, sin is ugly, very ugly. A better word might be evil. It can rob us of our testimony and take us out of the game. The devil doesn’t want you on the field, he wants you on the bench or the sideline and sin will get there in a hurry.

Extra

I woke up this morning to the beautiful sound of gentle thunder; it was music to my ears. I love rain. April showers bring May flowers. Thank You Jesus for the rain. I visited my friends in Athens yesterday and he rained up there most of the day. Got home and it was not raining. Not one drop fell during Josie’s soccer game. She got a hat trick, the second or third of the year. I have a rule: I don’t brag on your grand children {unless someone will listen], but no one knows what a hat trick is, so technically, I am not bragging. Anyway, we needed the rain. Saw some pretty corn on Mooreville road yesterday; about 6 inches tall. Our corn has been up for over a month but not growing. I hope this rain will help.

Billy Turney got moved by to ICU. He is in Decatur General. Lincoln is having to go to the clinic in Huntsville to get fluid removed. They are trying to prevent him from getting full blown pneumonia. Pray for our man Lincoln. This surgery has been hard on him.

Extra/Extra

I visited a 96 and a 94 year old yesterday. They both live in the Coffee Pot area which is between Athens and Ardmore. Both have very keen minds and are in relatively good health. One is Lucille Inman, she and her husband Calvin served my home church. Bro. Inman was my mentor. Mrs. Inman has no family in the Athens area. Her family is in the Tupelo, Mississippi area. She is trying to make a decision about selling her house and moving to Mississippi. She would covet your prayers. The Second Lady is the mother of a set of twins that went through Jr. High with me. The twins are deceased and I stop in and check on her a couple of times a year. Her grand parents {Ruths} where German immigrants who got off the train in Elkmont with nothing but a couple of suit cases. I think they had nine children and one of them became very prosperous. My daddy borrowed money from him more than once. She told me they were given a grant of 80 acres. I plan to get on AI.com and see if I can get more info. One of the great grand children married Ken Jacobs. It was an intriguing visit. Can you imagine getting off of a train in a foreign country where you could not speak the language or understand what others were saying, with only a placard tied around your neck with the location of the property on it. One of the residents of Elkmont had mercy on them and walked them to their farm. It was a long walk, ten or twelve miles.