The After-Oakdale Chronicles

a perfect day to reflect on the need for honor in marriage.

“Submit to one another out of reverence to Christ.”  Ephesians 5:21 NIV

For many people the word ‘submit’ carries with it negative connotations that convey images of one person being a doormat for another person. This simply does not have to be the case. To “submit” merely means to “yield.”

As Christians, we all know we should follow the examples of Christ. We all are aware that Christ submitted to the will of God. That fact in and of itself should remove some of the stigma that we may attach to the word. Submitting to God is something most of us have no problem with. Doing so, and knowing why we are doing it should help us understand that yielding – or subordinating our rights – to others is in keeping with God’s wishes, and nowhere is it more important than in a marriage.

Again, it is important to understand that this does not mean we give the other person carte blanche to walk all over us. Notice that Paul’s words are “submit to one another.” This means that two people joined in marriage should endeavor, on a daily basis, to honor God by always placing the other person before themselves.

Consider for a moment, the concept of a man or a woman placing their spouse on a pedestal, so to speak. This phrase refers to placing this person in a position of honor, respect and love and indicates a willingness to do all that is within their power to ensure that person’s happiness.

Of course, if the person on the pedestal doesn’t place their spouse on one as well, then he or she is always in a position of looking down on the other and this is not honoring God or the spouse and is not how God intends marriage to be. Both must place the other on a pedestal and do the things mentioned above, but do them so that they are then looking across at each other, eliminating the one-sidedness of one looking down on the other.

When two people have a strong relationship with Christ – and genuine love and concern for each other – bringing honor to the marriage should never present a problem. Submitting to each other demonstrates this love and concern and honors God. And when your marriage honors God, it stands to reason it is because you honor your marriage.

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Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

a superb day to whistle while you work.

“Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord, rather than for men…”  Colossians 3:23 NASB

It is unfortunate that many people think that we are defined by the type of work we do, how “important” our position is, or how much money we make. Far too often we worry about how others perceive us, and we also spend an inordinate amount of our time concerned about the other person: what they do, whether they make more money or are more “important” than we are.

As Paul wrote to the people of southern Galatia, “Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won’t have to compare yourself to anyone else.” (Galatians 6:4 NLT).

We are each unique.

No one looks, acts, thinks, talks or works quite the same way we do. No one can be us, and we cannot be anyone but us. Nor should we want to be. But we are all the same in the eyes of God, and our duty is to realize that, thank Him for it, and use the knowledge to motivate and inspire us on a daily basis. No matter how mundane our jobs, or how incidental and inconsequential the task before us may seem, we should approach it with a joyful spirit, humility, and the commitment to do the absolute best that we can.

Our attitude determines the importance of our job, not another person’s opinion.

When we work reflecting the joy of the Spirit and put energy and effort into what we do, God will know. The environment we are in may not permit us to physically whistle while we work, but performing our jobs with the right attitude will create the same feeling within us.

Why is this important? Because those around you will wonder why you are always so positive, happy, and diligent. When they ask, doors are open to tell them our relationship with God is what does it. In this way, everything we do can be seen as working for God.

“So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless.” (1 Corinthians 15:58 NLT).

As a matter of fact, when we stop doing what we do for a paycheck, and start doing it for God, our entire presence in the workplace will change and people will hear us whistling while we work, even if all we are doing is smiling.

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Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

the day to know what you are prepared to do.

“I am the good Shepherd: the good Shepherd giveth His life for the sheep.”  John 10:11 KJV

“What are you prepared to do?”

In the movie, “The Untouchables,” Sean Connery and Kevin Costner played dedicated government law enforcement officials fighting against Al Capone and other “bootleggers” during prohibition.

In the film, Sean Connery’s character was marked for death by Capone, was attacked in his home, shot multiple times, and left for dead. Kevin Costner, as Elliot Ness, found him just before he died and Connery’s last words were, “What are you prepared to do?”

In 1963, in Detroit, Michigan, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave the following challenge to the world: “If a man hasn’t discovered something worth dying for, he isn’t fit to live.”

On April 3, 1968, Dr. King was murdered as a result of his fight for the rights of all mankind.

Jesus Christ lived His life knowing how it would end. He is the only person to have ever walked the earth who knew what He was prepared to do from the very beginning of His life: He was prepared to die so that each one of us could live.

People frequently focus on the ways in which society, and the people who make up that society, fail. Certainly, things that can be made better need to be identified; situations that need fixing require attention; areas that can be improved upon have to be brought to light before that can happen.

Yes, those things that are wrong must be part of the public conscience in order that they may be corrected.

Be that as it may, it is equally important, at the very least, that we spend time identifying the things that are right which we can find all around us, and recognizing those individuals who make them so with their sacrifices.

In each of the instances mentioned, the individual at the center of the message died. Not for themselves, and not of natural causes. Each person died in service to others. Each person proceeded on a journey that they knew was dangerous. Each was aware that the potential for harm was very real, and very great. Not only were they aware of the potential for bodily harm, two of them were aware of the possibility of death.

And one was aware of the certainty of it.

In light of all of this, and on the subject of service to mankind, what are you prepared to do?

We don’t have to do something that involves dying or being killed, but surely, each one of us can do something. Make today the day you know what you are prepared to do.

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Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

a great day to enjoy God’s gift of music.

“Speak to one another with Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord.”  Ephesians 5:19 NIV

The Bible is full of references to music and singing. God gave many of us the ability to play different musical instruments. He gave others the ability to sing beautifully. We all also probably know someone to whom God gave the desire to make music but no talent for instruments or singing. But it is usually someone we love, so we grit our teeth and pretend we are smiling with joy as they sing and play for God.

God loves music, and especially loves to hear us joining together to sing spiritual songs. It demonstrates to the Lord that we are filled with the Spirit and we are “under the influence.” It is easy to get carried away when we are under the influence of the Holy Spirit. It is easy to be filled with a lightness of heart and a happiness that simply needs music in which to be properly expressed. Being under the influence of the Holy Spirit can produce a long term effect on our personalities, unlike being under the influence of alcohol which can make us want to sing as well, but can carry with it very negative consequences.

So, “Do not get drunk on wine, which can lead to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speak to one another with Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord.” (Ephesians 5:18-19 NIV).

When should we sing to God? Pretty simple, really. We can sing to God whenever we want to and no matter what is happening around us. We sing to God when we are happy. We can sing to God when we are sad. Paul and Silas sang in prison.

“But around midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.” (Acts 16:25 NASB).

Imagine that, singing hymns praising God in prison! Of course, we don’t have to go to prison to sing songs of praise to God, and we can sing to Him without accompaniment, or we can include the sound of musical instruments.

“Make music to the Lord with the harp, and the sounds of singing, with the trumpets and the blast of the ram’s horn – shout for joy before the Lord, the King.” (Psalm 98:5-6 NIV).

Use the gift of today to enjoy God’s gift of music. Sing to yourself, sing to friends and sing to God.

If you are a little (or a lot) off key, don’t worry – it all sounds perfectly fine to God.

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Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

a fine day to equip ourselves to do God’s work.

“God uses it to prepare and equip His people to do every good work.”  2 Timothy 3:17 NLT

Professional football players would not think of going out onto the field for a game without the proper equipment. The players themselves may not always know which type of equipment is best for their particular needs, but they are guided by individuals who are well trained and are a good source of information.

The same thing applies to those of us who participate in all sorts of sports activities, but also in our jobs, as parents, and productive members of our churches. It is important to be properly trained to do the task before us. We must have a source of information to help us make the best use of our equipment and training.

And, of course, we need the equipment itself.

As Christians, we all know that the Bible is our source of information. Our “training manual,” if you will. As Paul wrote in his letter to Timothy, “All scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip His people to do good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17 NLT).

With our training manual in hand, we turn to our pastors, ministers, preachers, and priests. “Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do His work and build up the church, the body of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:12 NLT).

We are all aware that Christians are all members of God’s army. We have an obligation to fight not only for all that is good in the world, but also against all that is bad, or evil. It is surprising how many of us may not feel up to the task, but we would all be equally surprised how effective we can be as an army if we use the “training manual” God has provided for us, along with the instructors that lead our church. Combined with the proper equipment, the combination is formidable, and properly equipped, even the smallest among us can be a giant for all that is right in God’s eyes. And where do we obtain the proper equipment? Paul tells us, in detail, in his letter to Timothy.

“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Ephesians 6:13-17 NIV).

And with prayer, we are now properly equipped.

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Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

the perfect day to reflect on the burdens of Jesus Christ.

“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”  2 Corinthians 5:21 NASB

We all know what the burden of our sin feels like.

No matter how much we try to ignore our sins, they can place an almost palpable weight on us that affects how we act, and who we are. Left unchecked, the burden of our sin can become so heavy that it crushes us – if not physically, certainly spiritually. Many times, we become so burdened with our own sin that we simply do not know how to get out from under it.

God, knowing what the burdens of sin can do, gave us His only Son to help us. Jesus was the only person ever to walk this earth who did not sin and yet His purpose in coming here was to take our burdens from us, and allow us to become reconciled to God. Those of us who know how oppressive the burden of sin can be cannot begin to imagine what it must be like to willingly accept that burden from each and every person on earth.

Christ takes our burdens and gives us His. When we give our burdens of sin to Jesus, He gives us a “burden” of love, healing and peace. But He assures us that ours is the better part of the bargain.

“For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:30 KJV).

The “yoke” is a tool utilized by oxen to accomplish hard work. The yoke that Jesus would have us carry, in exchange for what we are giving Him, indicates that we cannot expect that our lives will be free of responsibility or work. It does mean that we are working together with Christ instead of trying to do things on our own. It means that we are working in a spiritually productive manner and striving to live purposeful, meaningful lives of service to God. It means whatever weight our burdens have is nothing compared to what we gave Jesus, and with our closeness to God the burden we do have is carried with joy and thanks.

Before we know it, our smiles are broader, our steps are livelier, and our ability to deal with the obstacles that do come our way becomes easier, and with all of this comes a surprising eagerness and an ability to then reach out to those around us.

“Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ.” (Galatians 6:2 NLT).

When we get rid of the negative burdens of sin and accept the burdens of being a responsible Christian, our lives can only change for the better.

Think about what you are asking Christ to take from you, and then thank Him for taking it.

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Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

a good day to ignore what people say.

“The heart of him that hath understanding seeketh knowledge: but the mouth of fools feedeth on foolishness.”  Proverbs 15:14 KJV

Someone defined insanity as “Doing the same things and expecting to get different results.” Unfortunately, this is exactly what many of us do.

When we make our decision to follow Christ, we must change.

Once we are convinced we want to accept Christ as our Savior and seek forgiveness for our sins, we must then set about getting rid of old thoughts, habits, and situations that do not reflect the way we want to live the rest of our lives. Most of our lives are influenced by the information we absorb and expose ourselves to. If we surround ourselves with people who gossip, tear others down, or criticize and demean other people, we must put an end to it.

We must stop listening and learn to ignore people when they have nothing to offer but foolishness.

We must map out a course for ourselves that includes instruction from the Word of God. We must make use of the time we once wasted in foolish idleness to seek knowledge not only in the Word of God, but other useful knowledge that can be used to help those around us. Find a church where you feel comfortable and welcome and try to become involved in the many different ways in which that particular church tries to reach out to those in the community.

It is important to remember that becoming better, more responsible people is not something we do or work on for God. It is a very important part of what we do for ourselves. The inner satisfaction and the resultant feeling of worth and sense of belonging to something bigger than ourselves is our goal.

It is what God wants us to see, but it needs to be the way we want to live.

It all hinges upon changing all of the information that flows into us through the people we listen to, the things we read, and what we see. All of these things can be controlled to a great degree so that we are soon doing different things and obtaining results beyond anything we ever thought possible.

Old habits, old dogs and new tricks.

God is aware of every obstacle we can put in our way. When we recognize the importance of other people, and we ask God daily for His help and His direction, we can overcome old habits and those of us who are old dogs can learn new tricks.

But we first must learn to know when to ignore what people say.

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Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

a superb day to help God find favor with you.

“But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.”  Genesis 6:8 NASB

The story of Noah should not only serve as a lesson to us all, it should serve as an inspiration.

Of all the people on earth, God found favor with Noah. So much so that He chose Noah and his family as the ones selected to give the world a second chance. Noah was not perfect, but he lived his life in a manner that pleased the Lord. Even though he was surrounded by people who worshiped idols, committed acts of violence, and indulged in sexual sin, Noah still managed to be a righteous man who walked in faith with God and sought to do the right thing.

We should always ask ourselves, “What can I do to find favor in the eyes of God today?”

Is it really so difficult to do? It is possible that it is not as easy as we may think, but it may not be as complicated as we sometimes make it. Of course, another question to ask is, “Do I really want it?”

God’s favor does not automatically mean life is going to be a beautiful, smooth, trouble free existence.

Noah was charged with building a huge ship, rounding up thousands of living creatures, residing in that animal-filled environment for over a year, then having him, his family, and all the living creatures that remained on earth deposited on a strange mountain.

Not easy going for one who had found favor with God!

And what about Mary? God found favor with her as well.

“The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God.’” (Luke 1:30 NASB).

God’s favor caused her to have to explain to the man she was to marry that she was pregnant. Not only that, but she had to try to make him comprehend how this could have happened at all since there was no man involved. Once Joseph was convinced that she had been chosen to give birth to the one who would save the world, together they had to endure the looks, comments, and attitudes of the people in their community.

So if God’s favor is not going to lay down a smooth super highway to heaven, why in the world would we want to live our lives in a manner that actively seeks it?

Simply because that is what God wants us to do.

He tells us to obey Him and, “Do not let kindness and truth leave you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart. So you will find favor and good repute in the sight of God and man.” (Proverbs 3:3-4 NASB).

Look for ways today, and every day, to help God find favor with you. If you go out of your way to please God, everyone around you will notice.

And that can’t be all bad.

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Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson