Conflict of Interest

Conflict of Interest

I accepted Jesus into my heart;

but I’m having trouble with the obedient and faithful part,

there appears to be a conflict of interest.

I say that it is You, God, that I love and trust;

Yet I say and do things that bring You disgust.

There appears to be a conflict of interest.

I claim in Your Name that I will be delivered, made whole,

and that Jehovah Rapha will heal; but more often than not

I’m speaking into the air another deal;

How can You bless me when I’m not for real.

There appears to be a conflict of interest.

In You I am to get my rest;

Because like a good parent You know what is best.

But I’m busy working, funning, ripping,

and running all of the time.

When will I spiritually open my eyes and see

that all You say and do is beneficial to me.

There appears to be a conflict of interest.

Every day it’s my same old way.

It’s either this or that, and Lord I don’t know what to do;

when will I humble myself and ask for more of you?

There truly appears to be a conflict of interest.

                                                            To God Be The Glory

                                                            Sis. Gail Miller (05/27/04)

I would like to thank the following: the bar, Conflict of Interest, (were I used to get my drink on) for the inspiring title.  My husband for saying that I should write a poem titled “Conflict of Interest.”  My brothers and sisters-in-Christ and, foremost, myself based on our fleshly weaknesses.  I saved the best for last.  I thank God for the gift of writing poetry, and for delivering me from 26 years of hard liquor drinking.  What do you need to be delivered from?

Spread the Gospel, Not the Gossip

Gospel: unquestionable truth (Webster's Dictionary).  The Bible refers to the Gospel as the Good News.

Gossip: idle (malicious) talk about other persons.

Isn't it interesting that the definition Webster's Dictionary gives for gossip is hateful talk about other persons.  Because, of course, we would never say anything bad about ourselves.

We all are guilty of gossiping at one time or another.  We like to talk about what we know.  The next time any of us get ready to tell something, we should first think about whether we would want the information told if it was about us?!

"A troublemaker plants seeds of strife; gossip separates the best of friends." (Proverbs 16:28)


"Yet preaching the Good News is not something I can boast about.  I am compelled by God to do it.  How terrible for me if I didn't preach the Good News!" (1 Corinthians 9:16)

God Purifies!

Malachi 3:3 says: “He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver.”

This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God? 

One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible Study.

That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work.       

As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities.  

The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot; then she thought again about the verse that says:  ' He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver.'

She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time.  

The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the sliver the entire time it was in the fire.  If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed. 

The woman asked the silversmith, 'How do you know when the silver is fully refined?'

He smiled at her and answered, ‘Oh, that’s easy – when I see my image in it.

If today you are feeling the heat of the fire, remember that God has his eye on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you.  

 

Why Would You Keep Wisdom From Me?

Whenever the good Lord blesses you with wisdom, share it with others. What good is wisdom if you keep it to yourself?  Unshared wisdom is only knowledge or experience, but when you pass it forward to others, it becomes something that creates positive success for generations to come!

Were you not listening at God's secret council. Do you have a monopoly on wisdom?  (Job 15:8 NLT)

Habits Can Be Good or Bad

It takes time for something to become a habit.  Habits are things that are created when we continue to do over and over again.

If I smoke, this is a bad habit, because it is common knowledge that smoking is bad for your health and can lead to cancer.  Now, this doesn't happen to everybody, but do I want to be the statistic that this does happen to?!

If I brush my teeth twice a day, every day, this is a good habit.  Taking good care of my teeth cuts down on cavities and overall oral health.

If I want to get rid of a bad habit, I have to replace it with a good habit.  I can replace all bad habits with good habits in every area of my life - one thing at a time, one day at a time.

Blessed to Still Be Living

It is amazing how many people are so vain about their age.  Some would rather die than tell how old they are.  Remember when we were kids, and someone would ask how old are you?  We would reply whatever our age was, always trying to be older by saying something like 8 1/2 years old.  Once we hit that magic mark - which I guess is 29 years, we dread that awful 30.  Really!  For real?  Stop the madness.

Whatever happened to growing old gracefully?  People are trying so hard to delay the inevitable.  A lot of people are having plastic surgery done, and, unfortunately, some of these people are left looking fake.  How is looking fake better than growing old gracefully and looking natural - which is like a real person?

Every day that we are still here, especially in these last and evil days, is a blessing in itself.  The older we become we can stake a claim to having overcome somethings big and small; happy and sad; joyful and tragic, health and sickness, and so on, but we are still here.  We grow older and wiser.  I've had both, and I wouldn't trade wisdom for youth for nothing.

I will be 52 years old on January 18, God willing. After all the sinning I did back in the day, I should be dead and in my grave, but God said not so.  I am blessed to still be here.  I'm even more blessed to realize it, and I thank my God every day for allowing me to see another day that was not promised to me.

"Is this the way you repay the Lord, you foolish and senseless people?  Isn't He your Father who created you?  Has he not made you and established you?" (Deuteronomy 32:6/NLT)

Stop Child Abuse

Child Abuse is rampant.  Nine times out of ten our children are abused and sexually abused by people they know (dad, granddad, mom, grandmom, uncles, aunts, brother, sister and cousins.  We must stop the madness.  If you know that a child is being abused, don't be part of the problem, be part of the solution.  Report abuse.

"You must never have sexual relations with a close relative, for I am the Lord." (Leviticus 18:6/NLT)