All posts by Larry

Inspiration

Job 32:8 But there is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding.

I was playing chess on line this morning when a memory came back of that pivotal moment when my whole attitude about the game changed. I was visiting the UT chess club. I came in late and all the young men were matched up and I had no one to play. So I watched for a time, pondering some openings I had just studied that afternoon.

One of the better players came in late having just returned from a tournament in Dallas where he had placed well and was going to show off his wins. Not wanting to interrupt play he thought he would challenge this old man. As we began to play I could see that his line of play fell into one of the games I had studied that afternoon and I saw how I could beat him, and I did.

He became enraged at his loss. Here he had come to show off and I humiliated him. Me a nobody. In that moment I knew what it was that I liked about chess. It wasn’t about the win, or my opponent. Most games are played out of memory or intellect but there are times when inspiration comes. A thing set aside from self where clarity is seen and knowing is not a part of intellect or memory. It is those rare moments when you touch something bigger than self.

The very same thing happens in the spirit when God inspires His children. That comes from a place set apart from self and special to that moment. Those moments can only be experienced when we are walking with God and seeking His will. There is nothing as satisfying as those moments when God uses us to serve His will. Do you want to experience that for yourself?

1 Thessalonians 4:1 Furthermore then we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more.

How we ought to walk is right there in the bible. God’s instruction manual.

English Lesson

1 Peter 5:5b all of you be subject one to another

I admit that the King James Version of the bible is difficult to understand at times. It was an archaic language even for the 1600’s when released. But it isn’t impossible to understand. Just difficult. So let us have a little English lesson shall we?

In sentence structure the subject is what is being talked about. All following verbs, adjectives, adverbs, conjunctions and prepositions are directly related to the subject. It follows that only one subject be addressed per sentence to avoid confusion as to what is being talked about.

In 1 Peter 5:5 clarity can be found if you look at the meaning to say, “It’s not about me, it’s about you.” We enter in so many conversations over the course of a lifetime that we take sentence structure for granted. We talk about sports, we talk about politics, economy, court rulings, or what we saw in a movie or on television. We have gotten away from making the conversation about things that really matter; YOU.

If we all make the person in front of you the subject, then someone is asking about you. Building relationships has to start somewhere and is impossible if no one asks how you are doing. It is hard to get the help you really need if you cannot trust people. Trust is built over time which means staying connected and keep communicating.

You can do this. I know you can.