YouVersion – Grits with Grace

Family, forgiveness, friends, Grace, life, loving others, prayer, Scripture, Trials

Posted on August 14, 2024August 9, 2024 by Dewayne Taylor

But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:40-42

I am so easily distracted. I mean if there is more than one thing going on at a time I flounder. One of the great miracles of modern times is that when I am on stage speaking, I walk, talk, and breathe all at the same time. Probably more of a miracle is the fact that in 42 years as a pastor, I managed not to fall off the stage. I’m sure there is a syndrome or something for people like me. It probably has something to do with being a male.

I try to have a quiet time each morning. A quiet time is when you set apart some time to read the Bible and pray. It is a great way to begin or end the day. The name is very appropriate. For me, it must be quiet. Sometimes I like to change things up, and in the process get too many things going on—which usually means more than one. It’s like going through a buffet line. We must be careful not to get too much on our plate. Well, sometimes that happens to me in my quiet time. Let me explain.

First, I do my quiet time thing on my iPad. I use the You Version app and it is just incredible. If you own a smartphone or a tablet of some sort you can download the app from the Apple or Android store for free. It has all kinds of devotions and reading plans as well as a zillion translations of the Bible. Even if you speak Swahili, they can fix you up. No kidding. One of the totally cool features of the app is that it will read the Bible to you. Amazing.

Well, a while back, I was about to start my quiet time and decided I would try some soft music. I asked Alexa, who lives with Judy and me, to play some music. I said, “Alexa please play Christian instrumental music on Pandora.” As always, she was so kind and said she would be glad to do that. In a few seconds beautiful music was wafting through the air in my office. Then I opened my You Version app and began to read. I was able to pull that off well, but I really had to concentrate on the words on the page and not the words of the songs that were playing. Just to be as clear as mud, the words weren’t really playing—they were just playing in my head. I told you; I get easily distracted.

Well, scripture is a part of most every devotion in You Version so after I had read the devotion, I mashed the button that started the app reading to me. That’s when things went south. The beautiful music was wafting through the air and then this guy was reading God’s word to me and the two collided in my brain. I found I couldn’t focus on either one. The same thing happens when I am watching the news and Judy comes in and starts chatting. It is an audio disaster. And then, as if it couldn’t, it got worse.

In my home office I have several clocks and one of them plays the beautiful Westminster chimes. Well, while my brain was struggling with the music and the guy reading to me—the clock went off. It was the top of the hour, and it began playing its melody. And what would normally be one of my favorite sounds, suddenly pushed me over the edge. If a quiet time is supposed to make you more spiritual…it, or rather I, failed. As the music is wafting, the guy is reading, and the clock is dinging and I lost it.

With all that going on, I shouted, yes shouted, at my friend Alexa, “Alexa, STOP THE MUSIC!” Oh my, did I feel bad. She did and at about the same time the clock stopped dinging and the guy stopped reading. Suddenly…there were only the sounds of silence and the Whisperer whispering, “Dewayne, it’s ok. Don’t let all this stuff that doesn’t matter get to you. Just listen for Me and to Me and everything else will fall into place.” That’s it. That was the message for the quiet time that day. I told my Father I was sorry for getting all frustrated and, as always, He gently whispered words of forgiveness.

In the Bible a woman named Martha got all frustrated and distracted too and Jesus told her the same thing. He told her not what she wanted to hear but what she needed to hear. He told her that she was all worked up over nothing. I guess it’s good to know that I’m not the only one who gets distracted and frustrated. Did I mention annoyed? Jesus invited Martha to come have a seat with Him and rest and it’s the same invitation He gives us. I like that. And do you know what? No matter the mess, it’s just good to know that He’s got this. Bro. Dewayne

Family, friends, life, love, loving others, prayer, priorities, Scripture, sovereignty of God, thankful

Lizards and Cats

Posted on June 19, 2024June 18, 2024 by Dewayne Taylor

They asked Jesus, “Do you hear what these children are saying?” “Yes,” Jesus replied. “Haven’t you ever read the Scriptures? For they say, ‘You have taught children and infants to give you praise.’” Matthew 21:16

It was a priceless moment. You might remember the MasterCard commercial that starts with a special moment in life and the ending tag line is something like, “for everything else there is Mastercard.” You also might remember the old Kodak commercials that coined the phrase, “Kodak moment.” When cameras were finally affordable and easier to use, more and more people were able to save their “Kodak” memories. Well, this one wasn’t recorded on file, but it lives in my heart.

Three of my grandsons were spending the night with my wife Judy and I one Saturday night. I passed by the open bedroom door and there were the three boys with their Mamaw. She had a Bible story app open and each of the grandsons would pick a story and they would listen to it. Well, I went into the room and plopped down on one of the two double beds and soon Will, the middle of the three, plopped down beside me. Before I knew it, we were having this really cool God discussion.

We talked about this, and we talked about that. I mentioned the Bible character named Abraham and Will wanted to know was his name Lincoln. I assured him this was a different guy. Well before long we had moved on to Jesus and I explained that He was in fact God. Well, Will knew about Mary and Joseph, and he was a bit confused. He wanted to know, and this is excellent, how two people could have a baby that was God. Now Will, in fact all three of this bunch, are as sharp as tacks. So, I wasn’t too surprised.

Before I could respond, he said this, “So isn’t that kinda like two lizards have a cat?” Boom. I loved it. What a great analogy. He figured out that two normal everyday people could not conceive a God. And this is one of those times I’m glad I had an answer for him. I told him, “Well, Will that is absolutely correct. But the deal is there weren’t two lizards.” I then explained to him how Jesus had a regular human mother but in fact Joseph wasn’t Jesus’ real dad. We talked about how some people have a stepdad because of a divorce or something. He said, “Or if the real dad dies.” Spot on, Will.

And then I explained how Jesus’ real Father was the Heavenly Father. How, miraculously God caused her to become pregnant and the Child would be like no other…literally the God Man. And the really cool part is that He seemed to get it. Like I said it was definitely a spiritual Kodak moment. The Bible talks about how sometimes out of the mouths of the young come truth and praise and this was one of those times.

The Bible also talks about how it is important that we have the same kind of faith that children do. They rarely have all the answers, and they don’t always fully understand and yet they trust. They simply take some things at face value. I’m sure that Will didn’t under that night all there is to know about the Virgin birth of Christ. In fact, I’m not sure I can fully grasp it, but you can take this to the bank…I believe.

So, as you journey along, and you bump into God stuff, you will find some things that make sense and some that simply do not. You will find some truth that you just can’t get your head around, but don’t let that stop you from believing. Sometimes with spiritual truth, 1 + 1 doesn’t add up to two. It is then you just trust. When you wonder how two lizards can have a cat…you gotta believe that maybe one of them is a whole lot more than a lizard. Smile. I still love that. After all, I don’t fully understand how the sun rises so precisely every day but that doesn’t stop me from believing. I just know this. No matter what…He’s got this. Bro. Dewayne

Family, forgiveness, Grace, gratitude, Integrity, life, prayer, priorities, Scripture, thankful, Trials

Dusty Neglect

Posted on December 12, 2023December 11, 2023 by Dewayne Taylor

For the Lord your God is the One who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory.” Deuteronomy 20:4

There it sat…unattended and unused. I started this year on a roll. I checked my blood sugar one morning and was rather shocked at the result. That caused me to take a quick assessment of my health and every indicator said it was time to do something…so I did. I kick started my walking regime, made a lot of correct decisions about ending my love affair with carbs and over all began to live healthier. The results were not necessarily quick, but they were steady. Before too long, my sugar levels were better, my weight was better, my energy level was better and obviously I felt better. And as we all know…better is better.

By May, I was a new guy. All the health coach people were applauding my results but oddly enough my success started me down the same old path to bad habits. It is kinda like the day after Christmas—you know, the emotional letdown after so much hype. At first the negative effects were there but they were not gigantic. But as the snowball rolled down the hill it got bigger and bigger and today, I decided to do something. That something was to step on the scale that had been sitting quietly between the toilet and the vanity. As I stepped on, I was saddened and discouraged by what I saw. My, my, how the mighty can fall.

After I had stepped on the scale, I later went back into the bathroom and that is when I noticed it. The scale was covered with dust and water stains—all the signs of neglect. It had become nothing more than a part of the floor. I decided there and then to pick it up and clean it up. It was a starting point…a declaration that enough just might be enough. The message was clear—the dust was a message, a sign that it was time to do something different.

We all have items around our house that have become dust collectors. Some matter and some really don’t. But let me ask you a question. What about the spiritual things, the spiritual markers of your life? If you looked, would you find your Bible covered with dust or buried with a pile of magazines on the end table? If you use your phone, is the Bible shortcut tucked away in some forgotten folder? If you are a YouVersion fan, would you find your reading plans declaring way too many days behind?

Now I didn’t type that as a guilt trip—I typed it as a fellow traveler, who in another area of his life found some dust where it doesn’t belong. I typed it because you, me, all of us at one time or another find ourselves just a little sloppy in the things that matter. Hey, instead of waiting for the New Year to resolve to do this or that, why not take an inventory of the things collecting dust in your life and maybe, just maybe, let today be the day you decide to get out the dust rag.

One thing I love about God is that no matter what the mess, He is never disappointed in me but rather He is constantly and consistently for me and not against me. I faced a giant today and although mine is a physical thing, it has spiritual overtones. How about yours? As you look around and poke around, just know that your Dearest Daddy is your biggest fan and no matter what…He’s got this. Bro. Dewayne

forgiveness, Grace, gratitude, life, prayer, priorities, Scripture, thankful

Stop the Music

Posted on August 18, 2022August 17, 2022 by Dewayne Taylor

But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:40-42

I am so easily distracted. I mean if there is more than one thing going on at a time I flounder. One of the great miracles of modern time is that when I am on stage speaking, I walk, talk, and breathe all at the same time. Probably more of a miracle is the fact that I have not fallen off the stage—yet. I’m sure there is a syndrome or something for people like me—I think they spell it “man” or “men,” if it is plural.

Well, scripture is a part of most every devotion in You Version so after I had read the devotion, I mashed the button that started the app reading to me. That’s when things went south. The beautiful music is wafting through the air and now this guy was reading God’s word to me and the two collided in my brain. I found I couldn’t focus on either one. The same thing happens when I am watching the news and Judy comes in and starts chatting. It is an audio disaster. And then, as if it couldn’t, it got worse.