THE PROBLEM WITH SISTERS

Be sure that your sin will find you out. - Number 32:23b (NLT)

      It was another cool October afternoon in Pupperville and Martha Peterson was out shopping again. Since she still needed a costume for herself she headed back to the costume aisle. As she rounded the corner of the costume aisle she walked right into a girl trying on a pirate costume and tipped her shopping cart over.

     The young girl quickly spun around and shouted “IT’S ALL YOUR FAULT!” at Martha. “I’m sorry.” Martha apologized, “I was busy looking for a costume and forgot to watch where I was going.” “Well, maybe you should just quit looking and get lost.” the girl shouted back at Martha.

     “Why in the world would I do that?” Martha calmly asked. “Because you’re messing up my whole life.” The girl answered as she took off her mask. “Are you Mindy?” Martha asked a little unsure. “Yes,” Mindy replied, “And because of you everything is ruined.”

     “I didn’t bump you that hard.” Martha responded. “That bump was nothing.” Mindy snorted, “Because of you Cindy didn’t pretend to be ME at the costume party. She went as herself.” “Well, good for her.” Martha injected. “GOOD?” Mindy shouted back, “You talked her out of it and now Greg won’t even talk to me.”

     “So,” Martha questioned, “are you saying it’s my fault that Cindy did what was right?” “No” Mindy answered, “It’s your fault Greg won’t talk to me and I can’t even pretend to be Cindy because they have some kind of secret code to tell us apart.” “Well,” Martha smiled, “At least you still have Peter.”

     “Peter?” Mindy said a bit confused. “Yeah,” Martha replied, “Cindy said the reason she was supposed to pretend to be you was so you could go bowling with Peter.” “Um” was all that Mindy could say. “You did go bowling last week didn’t you?” Martha asked. “Well,” Mindy drooped her head, “There is no Peter and I didn’t go bowling.”

     “Now I’m confused.” Martha said as she shook her head. “I didn’t want to go to the costume party because my costume got ruined.” Mindy confessed. “Why didn’t you just tell the truth?” Martha asked. “Because,” Mindy said, “I was afraid I would lose Greg’s friendship.” “Looks like you lost it anyways.” Martha replied. “Yeah,” Mindy said in disgust, “And Mom found out as well and now I’m grounded. I guess I’m reaping what I sowed.. I better go before I get in more trouble.” “And I better find a costume.” Martha said as she turned her attention to a oversized bunny.

     If you throw a boomerang it goes out and.... falls on the ground. If someone who knows how to throw a boomerang throws one, it goes out and comes back. In Number 32 a promise is made and those who made that promise were warned in verse 23 if you fail to keep your word, then you will have sinned against the LORD, and you may be sure that your sin will find you out. (NLT)

     Mindy's attempt to deceive caught up to her, Jacob's ploy at deception catches up to him as well. Galatians 6:7 says Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. (ESV) Jacob sowed the sin of deception and in time, well, let's look at the story.

      Esau hated Jacob because he had stolen his blessing, and he said to himself, "My father will soon be dead and gone. Then I will kill Jacob." But someone got wind of what Esau was planning and reported it to Rebekah. She sent for Jacob and told him, "Esau is threatening to kill you. This is what you should do. Flee to your uncle Laban in Haran … finally arriving in the land of the east. He saw in the distance three flocks of sheep lying in an open field beside a well, waiting to be watered. But a heavy stone covered the mouth of the well. It was the custom there to wait for all the flocks to arrive before removing the stone. After watering them, the stone would be rolled back over the mouth of the well. Jacob went over to the shepherds and asked them, "Where do you live?" "At Haran," they said. "Do you know a man there named Laban, the grandson of Nahor?" "Yes, we do," they replied. "How is he?" Jacob asked. "He's well and prosperous. Look, here comes his daughter Rachel with the sheep." … After Jacob had been there about a month, Laban said to him, "You shouldn't work for me without pay just because we are relatives. How much do you want?" … Since Jacob was in love with Rachel, he told her father, "I'll work for you seven years if you'll give me Rachel, your younger daughter, as my wife." "Agreed!" Laban replied. "I'd rather give her to you than to someone outside the family." So Jacob spent the next seven years working to pay for Rachel. But his love for her was so strong that it seemed to him but a few days. Finally, the time came for him to marry her. "I have fulfilled my contract," Jacob said to Laban. "Now give me my wife so we can be married." So Laban invited everyone in the neighborhood to celebrate with Jacob at a wedding feast. That night, when it was dark, Laban took Leah to Jacob, and he slept with her … when Jacob woke up in the morning—it was Leah! "What sort of trick is this?" Jacob raged at Laban. "I worked seven years for Rachel. What do you mean by this trickery?" "It's not our custom to marry off a younger daughter ahead of the firstborn," Laban replied. "Wait until the bridal week is over, and you can have Rachel, too—that is, if you promise to work another seven years for me." So Jacob agreed to work seven more years. A week after Jacob had married Leah, Laban gave him Rachel, too.

Genesis 27:41- 29:38 (NLT)

     There's an old saying that says “What goes around comes around.” Jacob deceived and he was deceived. Laban deceived and years later he would be deceived. Sin has away of catching up to us, we reap what we sow.

     One more thing 2 Corinthians 9:6 says the person who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the person who sows generously will also reap generously. (HCSB)

      Here's Something To Ponder

• What are you sowing?
• How are things catching up to you?

SWITCH A ROO

Proverbs 24:28b Do not deceive with your lips. (NASB)

      It was a cool October afternoon in Pupperville and Martha Peterson was out shopping As she finished piling her shopping cart full of candy to hand out for Halloween, she headed over to the costume aisle to see if she could find something for Harold and Stella to wear to the school costume party.

     As Martha rounded the corner of the costume aisle she walked right into a girl trying on a pirate costume and tipped her shopping cart over. “I know you, don’t I” Martha said as stood her shopping cart back up. “You’re one of the Miller twins.” “Yep!” the girl replied, “I’m Mindy” “Mindy?” Martha said a bit puzzled, “I thought I just talked to Mindy in the candy aisle.”

     “You must have us mixed up,” the girl said, “People do that all the time” “Than why does your shirt have the name ‘Cindy’ on it?” Martha replied. “I..I..I..” Cindy stuttered, “I borrowed her clothes.”

     “You know,” Martha smiled, “A couple of weeks ago Harold tried to be some one he wasn’t.” “I was there,” Cindy reminded her, “And he failed miserably. Well, I can do a better job than he can any time.” she continued, “ Beside I look just like Min.......dy.” she went on to say and than ended with a “Oops” as she realized she had just given herself away.

     “Okay CINDY!” Martha said, “Do you want to tell me what’s going on? Have you been around Harold too much.” Actually,” Cindy sheepishly replied, “It’s not his idea, it’s Mindy’s” “Does that mean Mindy’s been hanging around Harold too much?” Martha asked, sure that her son had to have had something to do with it.

     “It’s like this.” Cindy fessed up, “Mindy wants to go to the school costume party with some one named Greg, and she wants to go bowling with Peter, and since we’re identical twins she thought I could pretend I was her so as to keep her friendship going with Greg.” “The Ole Switch A Roo.” Martha said as she shook her head.

     “You’re not going to tell, are you?” Cindy nervously asked. “Don’t you think your parents will be able to tell?” Martha asked. “Well,” Cindy started to answer but Martha went on “God will know too.” “But,” Cindy started in again, “If I don’t I’ll be in big trouble with my sister.” “And if you do you’ll be in trouble with your parents.” Martha tacked on.

     After a few minutes of thinking Martha piped up,“Why don’t you just go as Cindy?” “You mean, pretend that I am Mindy pretending to be me.?” Cindy replied. “No.” Martha answered, “I mean simply be yourself. No pretending at all.” “I’ll think about it” Cindy told her and than put the costume she was trying on back and left.

     In Proverbs 24:28 we read these words Do not be a witness against your neighbor without cause, And do not deceive with your lips. (NASB) Mindy and Cindy are plotting or at least Mindy is plotting, plotting to deceive, or at least have her sister deceive one of her boyfriends. But deception is something the Bible speaks against.

     In the middle of Genesis we read about a gal named Rebekah who's having a problem, baby problems. Apparently she was not able to have children and than she was.... Genesis 25:21-23 Isaac’s wife could not have children, so Isaac prayed to the LORD for her. The LORD heard Isaac’s prayer, and Rebekah became pregnant. While she was pregnant, the babies struggled inside her. She asked, “Why is this happening to me?“ Then she went to get an answer from the LORD. The LORD said to her, “Two nations are in your body, and two groups of people will be taken from you. One group will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger. (NCV) These words were remembered and when the time came, deception reared its dangerous head and someone had to run for his life..

      When Isaac was old, his eyesight was poor, so he could not see clearly. One day he called his older son Esau to him and said, “Son.“ Esau answered, “Here I am. Isaac said, “I am old and don’t know when I might die. So take your bow and arrows and go hunting in the field for an animal for me to eat. When you prepare the tasty food that I love, bring it to me, and I will eat. Then I will bless you before I die. So Esau went out in the field to hunt. Rebekah was listening as Isaac said this to his son Esau. She said to her son Jacob, “Listen, I heard your father saying to your brother Esau, Kill an animal and prepare some tasty food for me to eat. Then I will bless you in the presence of the LORD before I die. So obey me, my son, and do what I tell you. Go out to our goats and bring me two of the best young ones. I will prepare them just the way your father likes them. Then you will take the food to your father, and he will bless you before he dies. But Jacob said to his mother Rebekah, “My brother Esau is a hairy man, and I am smooth! If my father touches me, he will know I am not Esau. Then he will not bless me but will place a curse on me because I tried to trick him. So Rebekah said to him, “If your father puts a curse on you, I will accept the blame. Just do what I said and go, get the goats for me.” So Jacob went out and got two goats and brought them to his mother, and she cooked them in the special way Isaac enjoyed. She took the best clothes of her older son Esau that were in the house and put them on the younger son Jacob. She also took the skins of the goats and put them on Jacob’s hands and neck. Then she gave Jacob the tasty food and the bread she had made. Jacob went in to his father and said, “Father.“ And his father said, “Yes, my son. Who are you?“ Jacob said to him, “I am Esau, your first son. I have done what you told me. Now sit up and eat some meat of the animal I hunted for you. Then bless me. But Isaac asked his son, “How did you find and kill the animal so quickly?“ Jacob answered, “Because the LORD your God helped me to find it.“ Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Come near so I can touch you, my son. Then I will know if you are really my son Esau.“ So Jacob came near to Isaac his father. Isaac touched him and said, “Your voice sounds like Jacob’s voice, but your hands are hairy like the hands of Esau.“ Isaac did not know it was Jacob, because his hands were hairy like.... Esau hated Jacob because he had stolen his blessing, and he said to himself, "My father will soon be dead and gone. Then I will kill Jacob." But someone got wind of what Esau was planning and reported it to Rebekah. She sent for Jacob and told him, "Esau is threatening to kill you. This is what you should do. Flee to your uncle Laban in Haran. Esau’s hands, so Isaac blessed him.

Genesis 27:1-23,41-43

• Sometimes doing wrong seems great but wait - Proverbs 20:17 - Bread gained by deceit is sweet to a man, but afterward his mouth will be full of gravel. (ESV)
• How mad would one want to be - Proverbs 26:18-19 - Like a madman shooting firebrands or deadly arrows is a man who deceives his neighbor and says, "I was only joking!" (NIV)
• Should we not abhor what the Lord abhors - Psalm 5:6 - You destroy those who tell lies; bloodthirsty and deceitful men the LORD abhors. (NIV)
• Don't deceive yourself -Psalms 101:7 I will not allow deceivers to serve me, and liars will not be allowed to enter my presence. (NLT)

      Here's Something To Ponder

• How do you respond when you know you've been deceived?
• Do you ever try to justify deception?

I’M NOT ME

Even children are known by the way they act,- Proverbs 20:11(NLT)

     Teachers need to have patience, and when you’re the teacher that has to deal with the antics of Harold Peterson everyday, you need to have a lot of patience. Not only do you need a lot of patience, you need to be constantly on the look out for what ever Harold may be trying next as was the case one October morning.

     It was almost time for school to start and Florence was sitting behind her desk going over the day’s schedule when a young man wearing a mask walked into the class room. “Hello, everybody,” He said in a deep voice, “I’m new here!” “Take your seat, Harold.” Florence said as she looked up at him “We need to get started.”

     “Harold?, Who’s Harold?” the boy responded with his deep voice, “Can I meet him?” “Harold,” Florence replied, “Stop using that fake deep voice, take off that silly mask and sit down.” “I’m not Harold,” the boy claimed in a normal voice, “I’m, I’m, I’m George Frankenstein Robert Spookaschmitzal the Third”

     “Where did you come up with such a ridiculous name?” Florence asked as she shook her head in disbelief. “From the movie I was watching,” The boy started to say but quickly changed his story to say he got his name from his parents. “So,” Florence smiled, “You are Harold” “No!” the boy responded, “I’m not me, I mean, I’m Peter Thadeus Sandyberg the Fourth.”

     “What!” Florence exclaimed, “ I thought you said you were George Frankenstein Robert Spookaschmitzal the Third?” “Fine,” the boy growled, “I’m Harold but I’m not the Harold Peterson you know.” “I think you are!” Florence told him and than she told him to sit down.

     “How can you possibly think I’m somebody I’m not?” Harold quizzed his teacher. “Well,” Florence giggled, “Since you asked... you still smell like the skunk that sprayed you last week,” “That’s aftershave!” Harold injected, “You’re not old enough to shave,” Florence continued, “And besides, I don’t know too many pumpkins that talk.”

     “Pumpkin? What pumpkin?” Harold responded. “You’re wearing a pumpkin mask, Harold.” Florence giggled again. “What!!!??? NO WAY!” Harold shouted as he pulled off the mask “I guess I better go find my sit.” He finished saying as he headed to his desk. “I have a better idea” Florence said as she got up, “Let’s take a trip to the principles office - again”

     “I hope he’s not still mad about the water balloons I put above his door? Harold said as he turned and headed toward the door. “So, “Florence chirped, “That was you?” “Oops,” Harold cringed, “When will I learn to keep my mouth shut.” “That’s okay,” Florence added, “I think he already knew it was you.”

     Have you ever worn a disguise? People, kids and adults, often dress up in costumes or disguise this time a year as they party for Halloween. Sometimes we disguise ourselves for fun, sometimes because we don't want to be known.

     As God was laying down the laws for the Israelites, He made it know that there were some people that were not to be aloud is Israel. There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering, anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens, or a sorcerer or a charmer or a medium or a wizard or a necromancer, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the LORD. And because of these abominations the LORD your God is driving them out before you. - Deuteronomy 18:10-12 (ESV) In this list, one of the people God forbids is a medium which is a person who communicates with evil spirits or spirits of the dead. If one were to be a medium in Israel they would have had to disguise themselves but look who was actually wearing a disguise.

      Now Samuel was dead, and all the Israelites had shown their sadness for him. They had buried Samuel in his hometown of Ramah. And Saul had forced out the mediums and fortune-tellers from the land. The Philistines came together and made camp at Shunem. Saul gathered all the Israelites and made camp at Gilboa. When he saw the Philistine army, he was afraid, and his heart pounded with fear. He prayed to the LORD, but the LORD did not answer him through dreams, Urim, or prophets. Then Saul said to his servants, “Find me a woman who is a medium so I may go and ask her what will happen.“ His servants answered, “There is a medium in Endor.“ Then Saul put on other clothes to disguise himself, and at night he and two of his men went to see the woman. Saul said to her, “Talk to a spirit for me. Bring up the person I name.“ But the woman said to him, “Surely you know what Saul has done. He has forced the mediums and fortune-tellers from the land. You are trying to trap me and get me killed.“ Saul made a promise to the woman in the name of the LORD. He said, “As surely as the LORD lives, you won’t be punished for this.“ The woman asked, “Whom do you want me to bring up?“ He answered, “Bring up Samuel.“ When the woman saw Samuel, she screamed. She said, “Why have you tricked me? You are Saul!“

1 Samuel 28:3-12 (NCV)

     

     To some it up. The enemy is gathering, God won't talk to Saul so Saul disguises himself and goes to a medium and asks for Samuel, Samuel appears and Saul is found out. I'm sure lots could be said about this story, but the point I would like to draw from it at this time is that you can't disguise yourself from God.

     Even with others, when we try to disguise ourselves, in time our real self with make itself known Jesus said in Matthew 7:15-20 Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravaging wolves. You’ll recognize them by their fruit. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes or figs from thistles? In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can’t produce bad fruit; neither can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So you’ll recognize them by their fruit. (HCSB)

      Here's Something To Ponder

• Are you disguising yourself so the real you can't be seen or known?
• What kind of fruit do people see you as producing?

THE UN-SAINTLY SAINT

My experience shows that those who plant trouble and cultivate evil will harvest the same. - Job 4:8 (NLT)

     Finding a name for a puppy can be quite the challenge for some. For Harold, it took nearly three weeks for him to decide on a name and when all was said and done, he named his puppy Muffy.  And everyday, for three weeks after that, he made sure to tell everyone he saw what his puppies name was.

     With his new puppy to play with, Harold, believe it or not, managed to stay out of trouble for several months. Every day he would come home from school and from the time he got home till bed time he played with his little puppy. And when bed time rolled around he would snuggle up to Muffy and fall asleep.

     All of this would have been great but there was a slight problem, Muffy didn't stay small. Over the following months, Muffy started to grow and grow and grow. After doing some research, Harold learned that his little Muffy was a St. Bernard and when he learned how big they could get, he double gulped and started to wonder if he had made a big mistake in keeping him.

     By the following summer Muffy had grown from a little adorable puppy into a 175 pound 5 foot long monster of a dog. Muffy still slept on Harold's bed but now Harold was sleeping on the floor. When it came time to eat, Muffy was even out eating Harold, and Harold wasn't to happy with that but he didn't think he would win an argument against his dog.

     In a way, Harold's dog was becoming just like him. He ate and slept a lot, He was somewhat lazy and made big messes and just like Harold he caused lots of problems. In fact, Harold was getting into more trouble because of Muffy than he was getting into on his own.

     “I thought St. Bernard's were suppose to be saints?” Harold mentioned to his grandpa one day, “Muffy has been anything but a saint.” “Sounds like he's growing up to be just like his owner.” Harold's Grandpa replied. “I believe you're reaping what you've sown.”

     “Sew!” Harold said with disgust. “What does Muffy have to do with sewing? - Sewing is for girls!” “Where is Muffy anyway?” Robert asked. “He's, He's..” Harold said as he looked around, “No! He's in to the garbage cans again. I'll never get caught up picking up trash.” Yep.” Robert laughed, “He's just like his owner.”

     I have written many adventures for Harold and even when he tries to be good he seems to find a way to get in trouble and when a person always causes trouble, sooner or later trouble will catch up to them. Of course reaping what we sow doesn't always apply to the bad we do but can apply to the good we do as well. - Don’t be deceived: God is not mocked. For whatever a man sows he will also reap, because the one who sows to his flesh will reap corruption from the flesh, but the one who sows to the Spirit will reap eternal life from the Spirit. So we must not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don’t give up. - Galatians 6:7-9 (HCSB)

     Jesus shows this principal in a couple stories

• Luke 16:19-25 - Jesus said, "There was a certain rich man who was splendidly clothed and who lived each day in luxury. At his door lay a diseased beggar named Lazarus. As Lazarus lay there longing for scraps from the rich man's table, the dogs would come and lick his open sores. Finally, the beggar died and was carried by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried, and his soul went to the place of the dead. There, in torment, he saw Lazarus in the far distance with Abraham. "The rich man shouted, `Father Abraham, have some pity! Send Lazarus over here to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in anguish in these flames.' "But Abraham said to him, `Son, remember that during your lifetime you had everything you wanted, and Lazarus had nothing. So now he is here being comforted, and you are in anguish. (NLT)
• Matthew 25:31-40 - "But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. "All the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left. "Then the King will say to those on His right, 'Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 'For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.' "Then the righteous will answer Him, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink? 'And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? 'When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?' "The King will answer and say to them, 'Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.' (NASB)

     Some times we reap what we sow within minutes or hours. Other times we may wait for weeks, months or years. Sometimes we may wait a lifetime and still not reap what we've sown but a day is coming when we will stand before the judgment seat of God. For there is going to come a day of judgment when God, the just judge of all the world, will judge all people according to what they have done. He will give eternal life to those who persist in doing what is good, seeking after the glory and honor and immortality that God offers. But he will pour out his anger and wrath on those who live for themselves, who refuse to obey the truth and practice evil deeds. There will be trouble and calamity for everyone who keeps on sinning—for the Jew first and also for the Gentile. But there will be glory and honor and peace from God for all who do good—for the Jew first and also for the Gentile. - Romans 2:5-10 (NLT)

      Here's Something To Ponder

• Do you look forward to reaping what you have sown?
• Are you willing to live differently if you're not?