Articles
The Difficult Part
The Difficult Part
By Bill Hall
Many before entering the Lord’s service, no doubt feel that once they have been baptized, become accustomed to attending worship periods regularly, and overcome some of their old habits, they will pretty well “have it made” in serving the Lord. Doing these outward services, however, is the easy side of obeying Christ. The difficult side involves that which is written; it involves keeping the heart right.
It is easy to attend the worship periods, but it is difficult to worship, to rid the mind completely of worldly things, and to concentrate fully on the Lord. It is easy to sing, but it is difficult to meditate on the words, making the sentiments of the song one’s own sentiment. It is easy to bow the head, but it is difficult to pray. It is easy to eat bread and drink the fruit of the vine, but it is difficult to concentrate fully as one should on the suffering of Christ. Sitting through a worship period is not itself worship, for true worship must proceed from the heart. (Eph.5:19; John 4:24)
In moral realms, the difficult thing to do is to keep the heart pure. It is relatively easy to refrain from killing, stealing, or committing adultery. After all, one is hindered in such matters by the laws of the land, social pressures, forbidding circumstances, fear of being caught, etc. It is difficult, however to completely rid the mind of jealousy, selfishness, discontentment, lust, hatred, bitterness, a spirit of revenge, etc. Anyone who has ever been jealous of another knows the difficulty involved in cleansing the heart of this terrible sin. So it is with all the sins of the heart.
It is easy to develop a friendly way and gracious manner with others, but it is difficult to develop genuine love and concern for others within the heart. It is easy to give something to some charity drive, but it is difficult to develop real compassion for the poor. It is easy to say, “Forgive me, Lord,” but it is difficult to repent.
The wise man said, “Keep the heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life” (Prov.4:23). This is an essential part of serving the Lord – and the most difficult part!
A Father’s Greatest Sermon
The farmer and his family, after a hard year of typical farm work, were rewarded with an unusually fine crop of grain. There were happy days ahead. Just a few days before harvest came a terrible wind and hail storm. The entire crop was destroyed!
After the storm was over, the farmer, with his wife and little boy at his side, went out to the back porch to view the field and the damage. The little boy looked at what was formerly a beautiful field of wheat, and tearfully looked up at his dad expecting to hear words of despair.
All at once his father started to sing softly, "Rock of Ages, cleft for me, let me hide myself in thee..." Years later, the little boy now grown said, "That was the greatest sermon I have ever heard."
The farmer had lost a grain crop, but because of his faith, manifested in great trial, he had gained forever for the Lord the soul of his son. The son saw the faith of a godly man in practice.
Perfect Love
Slow to suspect - quick to trust.
Slow to condemn - quick to justify.
Slow to offend - quick to defend.
Slow to expose - quick to shield.
Slow to reprimand - quick to forbear.
Slow to belittle - quick to appreciate.
Slow to demand - quick to give.
Slow to provoke - quick to conciliate.
Slow to hinder - quick to help.
Slow to resent - quick to forgive. (1Cor. 13:1-13).
Keep Going
Live so as to never regret a day in your life.
Good days give you Happiness.
Bad days give you Experiences.
Both are essential to life.
Happiness keeps you Sweet,
Trials keep you Strong,
Sorrows keep you Human,
Failures keep you Humble,
Success keeps You Glowing,
But Only God keeps You Going!
A Moments Wisdom
--The Bible does not need to be re-written, but re-read.
--It is better to suffer wrong than do it.
--There is never a right time to do a wrong thing.
--Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.
--Contrary to what the word might seem to suggest, when people are high-minded, their thoughts do not come from above but from below.
--There is a sufficiency in the world for man's need but not for man's greed.
--You say, “If I had a little more, I should be very satisfied.” You make a mistake. If you are not content with what you have, you would not be satisfied if it were doubled.
--No person is strong enough to carry a cross and a prejudice at the same time.
--Pride and grace never dwell in the same place.
--Never throw mud. You may miss your mark, but you will always have dirty hands.
--The Lord gets his best soldiers out of the maelstrom of affliction.
Test Your Knowledge of Bible Women
1. I was the mother of Samuel __________
2. I was the wife of Hosea __________
3. I was a judge in Israel _________
4. I told my husband that I had a dream about Jesus _________
5. I was an Israelite queen who died from a fall _________
6. I was born in Moab, but married two Jewish men __________
Upcoming Sermons
10/3/21 AM - Some Things Never Change; PM - Themed Song Service: Around the Table of the Lord
10/10/21 AM & PM - What Does the Bible Teach About Christians and Indebtedness
10/17/21 AM & PM - Gospel Meeting with Barry Hudson, October 17-22, 2021
10/24/21 AM - “Fruit Worthy of Repentance”; PM - Joseph the Just
10/31/21 AM - How Well Does God Know Me?; PM - Guest Speaker: Doug Sander
