Young People’s Blog

Friendship

“Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go: Lest thou learn his ways, and get a snare to thy soul” (Proverbs 22:24-25).

People are known and formed by the company they keep. The Bible clearly states, “Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners” (1 Corinthians 15:33). This shows the importance of considering carefully and prayerfully the question of intimate association, companionship, and fellowship. To keep company with a person given to wrath and fury is to be contaminated by their hasty ways, and to bring a snare upon our own soul. Anger and malice are the works of the flesh. With such the Christian should have no association, for we are too easily defiled by such things; and to go on in company with one displaying such evidences of unjudged sin is to endanger our own walk and testimony for the Lord.

Here are a couple of other verses from the book of Proverbs, concerning the results of anger:

“He that is soon angry dealeth foolishly”
(Proverbs 14:17).

“An angry man stirreth up strife” (Proverbs 29:22).

Stress

“The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want”
(Psalm 23:1).

We live in a hurry up, worry up world. Stress is something we are all prone to face, and this Psalm of six verses, 118 words and 28 pronouns is power-packed with truths that can help us face and conquer the stress that surrounds us. What causes you to fret, fuss and fume, toss and turn? What makes you wonder if it’s ever going to work out? What gnaws in the pit of your stomach? Worry is like racing your car engine: it is stewing without doing. Worry is unhealthy, unreasonable and unnecessary! Imagine if you saw me this morning choking myself. Would you think I was crazy? Sure, because I would be! Worry is like choking yourself.

What is God’s answer to our anxiety? God Himself! David, the writer of Psalm 23, had a lot of stress in his life. But he found his stress relief in the Lord, and the Lord’s provision for his daily life and path of faith. We can too! Read this Psalm through, memorize it if you haven’t already, and quote it to yourself whenever you are feeling stressed or anxious.

Dear Young Christian,

In the corner of the world where I come from — eastern Ontario, Canada — winter is upon us. Summer and autumn have long passed and now, cold, snowy, icy winter has set in. Everything in this life changes constantly! However, in the midst of all this there are some things that never change.

 The Lord Himself:

“Thou art the same” (Hebrews 1:12).

 The Word of God:

“The Word of our God shall stand forever”
(Isaiah 40:8).

 His purposes:

“According to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will” (Ephesians 1:11).

So, in a world of continual upheaval there are some things we can count on. Has someone disappointed you or let you down this past weekend? Never mind — you can start the week with confidence in the Lord, His Word, and His ways.

Your Christian Friend,

Jim Hyland

Fire From Above

“From above hath He sent fire into My bones, and it prevaileth against them” (Lamentations 1:13).

“Love is strong as death; jealousy is cruel as the
grave: the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement flame” (Song of Solomon 8:6).

What we have prophetically in these two verses, is not the physical sufferings of Christ at the hand of man, but the atoning sufferings of Christ at the hand of God. Notice it is “from above.” The Lord Jesus, in love, bore the judgment of God against sin in those three hours of darkness, when no eye could see, and no human hand touched Him. This is summed up by the Apostle Peter when he penned the words, “Who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed” (1 Peter 2:24). Paul also records this momentous event by saying, “For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Only the Son of God could do such a work to the glory and satisfaction of His Father.

You Are Loved

“Jesus beholding him loved him” (Mark 10:21).

Like the young man in this verse, the Lord loves you!

Frederick was raised in a Christian home like some of our readers. Sunday school, gospel meetings, family Bible readings, prayer time — he hated it — he was sick of it. Enough was enough! In his late teens, he decided that was it! He was gone! He left home for a distant city. He loved the busyness of metropolitan life. There was lots to do, plenty of entertainment, plenty of work — life was good.

However, the Lord loved him and had His eye on Frederick. One day while walking to the bus stop, he glanced down and saw a crumpled piece of paper with some words on it. Curious, he bent down and picked it up. It was a gospel tract with a very timely message, a message warning of the folly of following the ways of Satan and leaving this world at the end of a godless life. The Spirit of God used it to go straight to his conscience, especially the verse, “There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” (Proverbs 16:25). Not many days later, he was able to joyfully call his parents to tell them the good news, that now he was saved. This could be your joy too!

Making Time For God

“And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, He went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed” (Mark 1:35).

“And He withdrew Himself into the
wilderness, and prayed” (Luke 5:16).

It wasn’t easy for the prominent missionary, Hudson Taylor, to make time for prayer and Bible study while traveling in northern China. His children remember how at night, after darkness had finally brought a measure of quiet, they would hear the striking of a match and see the flicker of candlelight which told that their father, however weary, was pouring over his Bible. From 2 a.m. to 4 a.m. was the time he usually gave to personal, private prayer, as it was the time he could be most sure of being undisturbed to wait upon God.

In later years, the memory of that flicker of candlelight meant more to them than all they read or heard on the subject of Bible study and secret prayer. Their father, as busy as he was, had demonstrated in a very real and practical way the need for personal communion and time alone with the Lord.

God’s Dealing

“God dealeth” (Hebrews 12:7).

Have you ever heard someone say, “I’ve been dealt a bad hand in life”? Sometimes even a believer will blame God for dealing to them what they feel is a bad hand.

God does “deal” with His children. He deals out just what He knows and sees is the very best. What He deals to one of His children may not be the same as He deals to another. It is important for us to realize that we are individuals in His vast family, and that whatever He deals to us is in His infinite wisdom and love. If we don’t understand this, it will cause one of two things, bitterness or jealousy. Bitterness if we feel we have been dealt a bad hand that we didn’t deserve, or jealousy when we see others get what we feel is a better hand than us.

When I was a young person, there was an older brother in Christ who used to often quote the following lines of a poem to us:

He knows, He loves, He cares,
Nothing this hope can dim;
He does the very best for those,
Who leave the choice with Him.

Poison

“Let all bitterness … be put away from you”
(Ephesians 4:31).

“Holding on to anger and bitterness is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.”

At first we may smile at the above quote, but with this unique analogy there comes a message that I believe is important for us to consider. So often we harbor anger, bitterness or an unforgiving attitude, thinking that it is going to affect or change the other person, when in reality it does as much — or even more — damage to us.

The result of imbibing this poison of anger and bitterness is that we lose the enjoyment of several things:

 Our communion with the Lord.

 Our joy in the Lord.

 Our walk before the Lord.

 Our dependence on the Lord.

 Our service for the Lord.

That is why we are exhorted, “Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled” (Hebrews 12:15).

He Paid the Debt

He came to pay a debt He did not owe,
Because we owed a debt we could not pay;
Mercy to sinners now can freely flow,
His blood removes each stain of guilt away.

He came to pay a debt He did not owe,
Sold all He had, laid down His life in death;
God’s holy claims forever met, we know,
When on the cross He yielded up His breath.

He came to pay a debt He did not owe,
And now ascended, lives in Heaven above;
Blessings divine He richly doth bestow,
The Son of God who gave Himself in love.

“For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9).

Dear Young Christian,

I am in the West Indies this morning. By 8:00 a.m., it is hot and humid, and outside I can hear the hustle and bustle of the day beginning: vehicles are racing by on the road below my window, the roosters are crowing, dogs are barking, people are calling out to one another, and I can hear breakfast being prepared, just to mention a few. So it is time to start the day and another week. My prayer is that it will be with the conscious sense of the Lord’s presence and approval. And as I mop my brow, I will try to remember the verse that says, “This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24).

Yes, I am very thankful to be here, and for another day the Lord has very graciously given. Not only are there many opportunities to serve the Lord here today, but wherever you are reading this calendar page, don’t forget to look around and take advantage of the opportunities the Lord is giving you right where you are. He says, “Behold, I have set before thee an open door” (Revelation 3:8).

Your Christian Friend,

Jim Hyland