Friday Coffee with PJ

It's Friday ... so pour yourself a cup of your favorite brew and join me for a few (and I hope) helpful thoughts as you walk through this world with Jesus Christ! 

1. Here we are already six days into the year 2017! Wow! Indeed our days are like a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes (James 4:14). So given just how fleeting life is, how should we then live? For starters, don't waste your life! How many of us waste precious minutes in trivial pursuits (television, internet browsing, social media, video games, shopping at the mall, etc. - and if I stepped on your toes here, know that mine our hurting, too!). All of us should take stock in how we spend our "free" time and ask ourselves if we could be making better use of it (Ephesians 5:15). Time once spent is gone forever! In addition, we need to remind ourselves that this fleeting existence on earth is but a preface to the GRAND EVENT - ETERNITY! Keeping this in mind will help us make the kind of choices with how we spend our time in ways that matter - for this life and the life to come! The Apostle Paul urged the church in Ephesus to be "making the best use because the days are evil" (Ephesians 5:16). Even though Paul wrote those words almost 2000 years ago, they hold true today. One quick look around is all you need to know that these days in which we live are indeed evil! So let's be sure to make the best use of our time ... seeking to honor God in all that we say and do! 

2. In last Friday's post, I mentioned that this time of year in which we close the books on 2016 and open new ones for 2017, is a good time of year to do some "soul searching." This is an activity, by the way, that the Bible encourages. For example, the Apostle Paul in writing to Timothy, urges his young mentee to "keep a close watch"

on himself and his teaching" (1 Timothy 4:16). To help you do so, I recommend the use of Don Whitney's Ten Questions to Ask at the Start of a New Year. And if you are really brave, you might want to ask someone who knows you well for input. Remember, blind spots are labeled such because they are very hard to spot in ourselves!

3. Update on my wife: Sharon's journey continues with another surgery this coming Monday. The journey began on September 4, 2015 with a total replacement of her left knee. It continued with a manipulation of that knee while under anesthesia on November 10th of the same year. During this procedure, her femur broke. She underwent surgery to repair the fracture the next week. The fracture took a long time to heal (orthopedic surgeon pronounced it healed in August). However, due to long weeks of being unable to put weight on the leg (or go for physical therapy on her knee), she is now in need of a revision of her original knee replacement. This will be done on Monday (along with the removal of the plate and screws used to repair her broken femur, etc.). So all that said, we covet your prayers as we begin yet another chapter. We find much comfort in your concern and prayers. But we find our greatest comfort in our God, knowing he is sovereign and he has a plan for us all! To him be the glory! 
4. As I close, I borrow words from the Apostle John which he shared with the readers of his third letter, "I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul." 

Thanks for stopping by . . . 
pj