Refreshing Daily

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State Mottos part 2

Let us see JE

A father wanted to read a magazine but was being bothered by his little girl. She wanted to know what the United States looked like. Finally, he tore a sheet out of his new magazine on which was printed the map of the country. Tearing it into small pieces, he gave it to her and said, go into the other room and see if you can put this to-gether. This will show you our whole country today.

After a few minutes, the little girl returned and handed him the map, correctly fitted and taped together.

The father was surprised and asked how she had finished so quickly. Oh, she said; on the other side of the paper is a picture of Jesus. When I got all of Jesus back where He belonged, then our country just came together.'

MontanaOctober 1

Bible Reading: Revelation 21:9-27Key Verse: Verse 11 - “Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;”Key Words: Having the glory of God

The state motto for Montana is “Silver and Gold.” It would probably not surprise you to know then that Montana’s nickname is the Treasure State.

There is another state with great treasure that awaits us and that is our heavenly state.

Every year the state fair comes to visit. This is fair heaven. There is more food than you could ever eat out there. Usually, I can go to the fair for free because a member of the church will give me tickets. Like salvation, my entrance into this heavenly place is free. I receive a free gift that gains me entrance.

Now, inside the fairgrounds, there is so much to do. There are animals, games, an aquarium, shows – it goes on and on. Every time we go out there, we spend six to seven hours because there is so much to see. The best part is the Midway. There is where all the fun rides and roller coasters are. It’s also where most of the games are. When you play games at the fair, it ends up costing you more to play the game than to buy whatever it is that you are attempting to win. It’s all part of the fun though.

All of these various activities and events are available to me simply because I have entered the fair. Entrance to the fair gives me access to a lot of things.

The free ticket gains me entrance but it does not automatically make me a full participant. All of the extra things available to me at the fair are like rewards. I can only enjoy them as much as I can

afford them. I will have had to put in some work somewhere on somebody’s job in order to be able to afford the additional fun that the fair offers.

Salvation is a free ticket available to those who accept Jesus Christ as their Savior. It guarantees free entrance into heaven. However, the amount we are able to enjoy heavenly rewards is tied to the amount of effort we’ve made on earth. Our heavenly rewards are tied to our earthly effort.

There will be many Christians who enter the kingdom. They will be at the fair. It is true that it is better to be at the fair than to not be at the fair, but it’s a terrible thing to be at the fair and not be able to ride. It’s a terrible thing to have all the access but not be a full participant.

What to do:✞ Enjoy everything that Montana has to offer

but remember, there is a greater treasure to come.

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NebraskaOctober 2

Bible Reading: I John 2:1-10Key Verse: Verse 2 – “And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.”Key Words: And he is the propitiation for

our sins

Nebraska is the Cornhusker State, also known as the Tree Planter’s State. The state motto is “Equality Before the Law.”

The law is no respecter of persons. While law enforcers may have respect of persons on occasion,

the law itself does not. It finds us on occasion guilty, therefore we all have need of an advocate (someone to stand with us and for us).

He is also our propitiation. He is the great Equalizer; He is the One Who brings us to the place of peace.

Tony Evans shares the story of a father and son: They were riding in a wagon, trying to outrace a prairie fire, and the prairie fire was catching up with them. They were soon going to be caught because the fire was moving so rapidly. The father and son got out of the wagon. As the fire raced to them, the father dug a little ditch and set fire in a circle around him, his son, and the wagon. He burned a big space. As the fire came upon them, the fire raged.

“Dad, we’ve got to get out of here.”“No, son, stand.”“But Dad, the fire.”“Son, trust me. Stand.”“Yeah, but we’ve got to run.”“No, we don’t, son. All you’ve got to do is trust

your father and stand.”“How can I stand when I’m surrounded by

fire?”“Because, son, this place where we are

standing has already been burned once. I just set it afire. There is nothing left. All the fire can do is come up around us. It can’t touch us. Once the ground has been burned, it can’t be burned again.”

Jesus was burned once. If you stand on Christ and His accomplishment on the cross, you can’t be burned again. But we want to try to outrun the fire. We want to try to beat the Evil One. We want to try and work to avoid the fire, when all we have to do is stand on the atoning work of Jesus Christ

What to do:✞ Remember that Jesus is the greatest

Equalizer.

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NevadaOctober 3

Bible Reading: Proverbs 14:27-35Key Verse: Verse 34 – “Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people.”Key Words: Righteousness exalteth a nation

Nevada! No doubt when one thinks of Nevada, they think of gambling and Las Vegas…viva Las Vegas! But Nevada also has Lake Tahoe, the Hoover Dam, and of course, Virginia City (the place where the Cartwrights from Bonanza lived); and we won’t mention former Senate Majority Leader, the liberal Harry Reid! Anyway the motto for Nevada is “For Love of Country.” We should love our country but the motto “For Love of Country” indicates that we do what we do because we love our country.

French writer Alexis de Tocqueville, after visiting America in 1831, said “I sought for the greatness of the United States in her commodious harbors, her ample rivers, her fertile fields, and boundless forests—and it was not there. I sought for it in her rich mines, her vast world commerce, her public school system, and in her institutions of higher learning— and it was not there. I looked for it in her democratic Congress and her matchless Constitution—and it was not there. Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits flame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great!”

Amen!!

What to do:✞ You can’t always control what others do, but

you can live righteously.

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New HampshireOctober 4

Bible Reading: James 1:20-27Key Verse: Verse 25– “But whoso looketh into

the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein,

he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work,

this man shall be blessed in his deed.”Key Words: perfect law of liberty

New Hampshire: the Granite State whose motto is “Live Free or Die.” Their motto was adapted on July 31, 1809.

We understand that freedom, especially the freedom to worship God, was the primary reason for the forefathers coming to America. They would have rather died than be held in spiritual bondage.

Freedom: let us never take it for granted. But may we also understand that freedom has restrictions. I am not free to do as I want; I am free to do as I should. I am not free to sin; I am free from sin.

The wonderful thing about living in America is that we have options. In many countries around the world, options are limited. The government controls everything, and the ability to choose is lost. The wonder of the American experience and experiment is the opportunity, at least on paper and in principle,

for a person to freely pursue life, liberty and what makes them happy.

But there are also restrictions in a democracy. There are limitations. We do not enjoy freedom without boundaries. We can’t just drive through a red light. We can’t just shoot through a stop sign. Why are there limits? Because, very simply, in order to enjoy freedom, there must be sufficient restrictions so that freedom is maximized.

What to do:✞ Live free through Christ.

********************New Jersey

October 5

Bible Reading: Psalm 73Key Verse: Verse 3 – “For I was envious at the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.”Key Words: For I was envious at the foolish,

when I saw the prosperity of the wicked

I have had the privilege to live in New Jersey for a short period of time when I was in the military. As a matter of fact, I flew out of McGuire Air Force Base on my way to Viet Nam. The state motto for New Jersey is "Liberty and Prosperity.”

I don’t believe our founding fathers looked at prosperity the way we do today. Prosperity to them was growing their crops and having good health and their children receiving “some” education. Today we think of prosperity as having two cars and a fancy house, fine clothes and a rich financial future. Some become envious of those who have more than they do.

But I would encourage you to look at prosperity from the eyes of God’s Word, and ask “What have I gained if I gain the whole world and lose my own soul?”

About four or five years ago in Texas, a pilot left the motor running on a plane and somehow this plane engaged itself. It was without a pilot and took off. It was flying on its own. It stayed in the air for over ninety minutes. Then, the inevitable happened: it ran out of gas, crashed, and was totally destroyed.

For a while, you can fly on your own. For a while, you can take off and be somebody. For a while, you can act like God does not exist. For a while, you can play a little religion, but not be serious about subordinating yourself. And for a while, you can fly.

I know there are atheists, and they look like they are flying. I know, sometimes you look at evil people and you say, How come they can be so evil and can fly so high? I know sometimes you are jealous when you look at folk who have no respect for deity and seem to be flying high. Keep watching, because sooner or later, they will run out of gas, crash, and be destroyed. When you fly your life without God in the pilot’s seat of your life, that’s what happens. That’s why the Bible says don’t be envious of the evil-doers. Just because they are making money and getting ahead by doing wrong, don’t get jealous of them. One can only fly high on their own for a while, but there will come a point where they will run out of gas and will discover in an abrupt way there is a God Who is Lord over the universe.What to do:

✞ Be thankful for what you have, not envious of what others have.

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New MexicoOctober 6

Bible Reading: Proverbs 22:1-8Key Verse: Verse 6 – “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”Key Words: Train up

The state motto for New Mexico is “It Grows as It Goes.” Isn’t that true for all of us? The direction in life in which we choose to go is the direction in which we will grow. If we choose to lean toward the world, our roots grow deeper into this world and the world system.

The same is true for our children. The word train in Proverbs 22:6 carries the idea of bending or pointing in the right or Godly direction.

If our children grow and go to the wrong places in life, then maybe, just maybe we need to take a long look at ourselves to see if we pointed them in the right direction.

I was recently in Tennessee, not just any part of Tennessee, but out in the country of Tennessee, farming country, chickens…well, you get the idea. When I looked up where I was going on Map Quest there were literally dozens of turns onto small country roads. I immediately went to my GPS, programmed in the address, and off my wife and I went to Tennessee. As fate would have it, I missed a turn!!! My fault!!! But nonetheless, I was on the wrong road. Praise the Lord for a GPS!! It took me to only the Lord knows where, but then it said, “You have reached your destination.” And sure enough, there was the place I was supposed to be!! I could have never made it without the GPS. God has given every child a GPS called parents, and where they end up depends upon two things: 1) are you, as parents,

guiding them in the right direction? And 2) are they listening?

What to do:✞ As parents, be a Godly GPS for your

children.

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New YorkOctober 7

Bible Reading: Philippians 3:13-21Key Verse: Verse 20 – “For our conversation is

in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ:”Key Words: For our conversation is in

heaven

New York: the Empire State whose motto is “Ever Upward.” That would be a great motto for believers as well. We should be striving for the heavenly, not the earthly.

It is impossible for a fish to be happy on land. A fish on land is struggling trying to make it. A fish on land is going to be squirming and flipping and twisting and jerking and jumping. It won’t be able to relax because it is not where it is made to live. Also, eagles are most at home when they’re soaring in the air. You know why? Because that’s what they were made for. You can never be fulfilled when you’re attached to the earth.

What to do: ✞ We were not made for the earth, so seek the

heavenly.

North CarolinaOctober 8

Bible Reading: John 7:14-31Key Verse: Verse 24– “Judge not according to

the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.”Key Words: Judge not according to

appearance

North Carolina’s state motto is “To Be, Rather Than To Seem.” Isn’t this motto what we all should strive for?

I would rather be a Christian than just seem to be.

I would rather be a good laborer than just seem to be.

I would rather be faithful than just seem to be.I would rather be modest than just seem to be.I would rather be a good spouse than just seem

to be.I would rather be truthful than just seem to be.I would rather be obedient than just seem to

be.I would rather be humble than just seem to be.I would rather be grateful than just seem to be.I would rather be a person of integrity than

just seem to be.I would rather genuinely love Christ than just

seem to love Him.I would rather be a Godly parent than just

seem to be.

I would rather love others than just seem to love them.

Today and all the tomorrows let us be rather than just seem to be!!

What to do: ✞ Be, rather than seem to be.

North DakotaOctober 9

Bible Reading: I Corinthians 12:12-31Key Verse: Verse 12 – “For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.”Key Words: For as the body is one

The motto for the state of North Dakota is “Liberty and Union Now and Forever,” but they have a second motto, “One and Inseparable.”

You can tell from the words union, one, and inseparable, that unity was a big thing for North Dakotans. But unity has always been a big thing; it’s a big thing in the work of God. Division ruins. It ruins not only the work but the joy of doing the work.

Unity doesn’t mean that we are all alike; but it does mean that we all have the same goal and that we are all headed in the same direction.

If a football team is unified, it does not mean that everyone’s playing the same position. It does

mean everybody’s going to the same goal line. If an orchestra is harmonious, it’s not because they’re all playing the same instrument; it’s because they’re all playing the same song. If a choir is singing in great harmony, it’s not because they are singing the same parts; it’s because they’re adding their part to the same song. It is the goal that produces the unity. Unity is not sameness. Unity has to do with the same purpose.

Let us have the same purpose: to glorify God in all we do.

What to do: ✞ Either we serve as “one” or we fall apart as

“many.”

OhioOctober 10

Bible Reading: Matthew 19:16-30

Key Verse: Verse 26 - “But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.”Key Words: with God all things are possible

Ohio: the Buckeye State whose motto is “With God All Things Are Possible.”

Have you ever heard someone say, “I’m too wicked; God could never save me”? Now, we know that isn’t true; they have been duped by the great deceiver.

Have you ever gotten a letter in the mail from a credit card company telling you that you've been pre-qualified? These letters will usually tell you that you can spend five thousand dollars because they've already checked you out and decided you would be a good customer. Now, that is just a ploy, a joke, and a gyp. They are just trying to get you to spend money so that they can charge you interest. It's a trick. God has also pre-qualified us for righteousness. Unlike the trickery involved with the credit card companies, He has pre-qualified us by already applying the righteousness of Christ to our accounts. Our balances have already been paid.

Yes, all men can be saved for with God all things are possible.

What to do: ✞ Tell others about Christ.

OklahomaOctober 11

Bible Reading: Proverbs 14:14-24Key Verse: Verse 23 – “In all labour there is profit: but the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury.”Key Words: In all labour there is profit

“Resistance to tyranny becomes the Christian and social duty of each individual

Continue steadfast and, with a proper sense of your dependence on God,

nobly defend those rights which heaven gave, and no man ought to take from us,”

John Hancock

Oklahoma: the home of the Sooners and the Cowboys! Oklahoma’s motto is “Labor Conquers All Things.”

There is something that can be said for hard work, for in all labor there is profit. But there is one thing that labor cannot conquer and that is death: “For it is appointed unto man once to die.”

I've got bad news for you. Unless Jesus comes back, you are going to die. Your death will not be delayed because the Bible says you die by appointment. You are going to die.

Death today can look fairly nice. The folks down at the funeral home know how to get us looking fairly good when we are dead. The funeral parlors have professional makeup artists who dress you up and make you look good. I’ve seen some people look better dead than they ever looked alive. But they’re still dead.

Dead people used to be put into crude wooden boxes and carried around in horse-drawn carriages. You don’t die like that today. Nowadays when you die, you die in style. We’re talking about bronze caskets lined with linen. If you die before you’ve had a chance to put your head on a satin pillow, no worries. Now’s your chance. Always wanted to ride in a limousine? You’ve got it – a fleet, in fact. You will stop traffic that day. People will pull over just because you are riding by. But you’re still dead.

Back in the day, the coffin would be lowered into the ground by ropes tied around the top and bottom of the casket. Today, there are no ropes; a nickel-plated machine eases you down. They don’t want to wake you up so you get put six feet under in the most comfortable way possible. But you’re still dead.

Whether it’s a coffin or a casket, a limousine, or a horse-drawn carriage, a nickel-plated machine or a rope, you are still dead. A fancy death doesn’t change that reality.

What death should do is promote the idea of not wasting time in life. The older you get, there should be certain things you don’t have time for because you realize that you are losing time every day. You can’t waste it.

Yes, labor is a good thing; but it will never deliver you from death. The question is not “will I live forever;” but “where will I dwell in eternity, heaven or hell?”

What to do: ✞ Read some of these salvation verses: John

3:16, 36; Romans 3:23, 6:23, 10:9-10; Acts 17:31; Galatians 2:16; Ephesians 2:8-10; Titus 3:5;

I John 1:9-10; Revelation 22:17.

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OregonOctober 12

Bible Reading: Romans 13:1-7Key Verse: Verse 1 – “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.”Key Words: Let every soul be subject unto

the higher powers

Oregon: the Beaver State. Spanish and English sailors are believed to have sighted the Oregon coast in the 1500s and 1600s. Captain James Cook, seeking the Northwest Passage, charted some of the coastline in 1778. In 1792, Captain Robert Gray, in the Columbia, discovered the river named after his ship and claimed the area for the U.S.

The state motto was adopted for a second time in 1987, “She Flies with Her Own Wings.” You see, Oregon did not want Great Britain or the United States to rule over them. They wanted to be “free” from rulers. But we all have those who rule over us, whether it is our parents, a teacher, a supervisor, a mayor, and/or a government. The Bible instructs us as to how we are to conduct ourselves under authority.

Now, I admit getting people to obey in today’s world is, well to say the least, difficult. I am reminded of the mother who wanted to have the last word but couldn’t handle the hassle that resulted whenever she said no to her young son. After an especially trying day, she finally flung up her hands and shouted, “All right, Billy, do whatever you want! Now let’s see you disobey THAT!”

Remember, we all want to be free from tyrants, but we all need Godly rulers over us as well.

What to do: ✞ Obey them that have the rule over you.

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Pennsylvania, Part OneOctober 13

Bible Reading: Philippians 4:1-8Key Verse: Verse 8 - “Finally, brethren,

whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

Key Words: if there be any virtue

Pennsylvania became the second state in 1787. Pennsylvania’s state quarter features an outline of the state, a keystone (Pennsylvania’s nickname is the Keystone State), a statue representing the commonwealth, and the state motto: “Virtue, Liberty, Independence.”

The word virtue in our text means moral character or moral goodness. It’s great to have a motto that represents morality but I’m afraid we’ve lost our moral compass in America; we are way off course.

Thomas Sowell writing for Reader’s Digest says: All across this country, the undermining and destruction of the values that children were taught at home is going on in public schools. One of the first things a family tries to teach its children is the difference between right and wrong. One of the first things our schools try to destroy is that distinction. The up-to-date way to carry on the destruction of traditional values is to claim to be solving some social problem like drugs, AIDS or teen-age pregnancy. Only those few people who have the time to research what is actually being done in "drug education," "sex education" or "death education" courses know what an utter fraud these labels are.

For those are courses about how right and wrong are outmoded notions, about how your parents' ideas are no guide for you, and about how each person must start from scratch to develop his or her own way of behaving. 

We would all do well to adopt Pennsylvania’s motto of being virtuous.

What to do: ✞ Virtue, don’t leave home without it.

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Pennsylvania, Part TwoOctober 14

Bible Reading: Psalm 119:41-48Key Verse: Verse 45 - “And I will walk at liberty: for I seek thy precepts.”Key Words: And I will walk at liberty

The motto for Pennsylvania also includes not just virtue but liberty. Now, we’ve all heard that liberty is not the freedom to do as we want, but to do as we should. But sometimes even in “religious organizations” there is more law practiced than liberty.

Elizabeth Elliott once wrote: “What is it I must forsake to follow Christ?” a young person asks. “Get rid of everything in your wardrobe that is not white. Stop sleeping on a soft pillow. Sell your musical instruments. Don’t wear jewelry. You cannot, if you are sincere about obeying Christ, take warm baths.” Elizabeth Elliot comments on the above dialogue, “Does this answer sound absurd? It is the answer given in the most celebrated Christian schools of the second century! Is it possible that the rules that have been adopted by many twentieth-century Christians will sound as absurd to earnest followers of Christ a few years hence?”

Praise God for the liberty we find in Christ, not the liberty to sin but the liberty to be free from a life of sin.

What to do: ✞ We would do well to remember the words of

Thomas Huxley: “A man’s worst difficulties begin when he is able to do as he likes.”

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Pennsylvania, Part ThreeOctober 15

Bible Reading: Luke 15:11-24Key Verse: Verse 13 - “And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living.”Key Words: took his journey into a far country

We understand what is meant by independence, which is a part of Pennsylvania’s motto, but we have to understand that we are not to be “independent” from God.

There is a story of a kite that was flying and the kite began to talk to itself. The kite said, 'If only I could get rid of this string. If the string wasn't holding me back, then I could fly. I could fly above the clouds. I could fly as high as I wanted to. If I could get rid of this string, there would be nothing holding me back. I'm limited by this string.' 

One day the kite got its wish. The string broke and the kite came crashing down. What the kite did not realize was that the same string that kept it down kept it up. Cutting the string did not make it freer. 

We will always head toward disaster when we cut the string of dependence on God in search of more pleasure. The same string that seems to hold you down also keeps you flying high. God wants us to trust him and let him hold the string. Staying connected to Him keeps us from falling.

Independence from God isn’t independence; it’s self-centered!!

What to do:

✞ We should never be independent from God but dependent upon Him.

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South DakotaOctober 16

Bible Reading: I Kings 12 :1-14Key Verse: Verse 14 - “And spake to them after the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke: my father also chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.”Key Words: I will add to your yoke

Did you know that South Dakota is one of the top ten states to live in? And did you know it is listed as one of the “smartest” states in America?

South Dakota’s motto is “Under God the People Rule.” What a great motto! For truly only under God can anyone rule with true wisdom. Without Godly wisdom we will self-destruct.

Omar Bradley, one of the Generals in World War II, went to World War I, and he remembered it as a young man. He served in the army in the US, became a General. He actually led one of the largest armies in history during World War II. He spoke at an Armistice Day in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1948. He said, “With the monstrous weapons man already has, humanity is in danger of being trapped in this world by its moral adolescents. Our knowledge of science has clearly outstripped our capacity to control it. We have many men of science; too few men of God. We have grasped the mystery of the atom and rejected the Sermon on the Mount. Man is

stumbling blindly through a spiritual darkness while toying with the secrets of life and death. The world has achieved brilliance without wisdom, power without conscience. Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants. We know more about war than we know about peace, more about killing than we know about living.”

Abraham Lincoln said on more than one occasion, “I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go. My own wisdom and that of those about me seemed insufficient for the day.”

What to do: ✞ Only when we are “under God” can we have

the wisdom of God.

TennesseeOctober 17

Bible Reading: Job 2:7-13Key Verse: Verse 10 - “But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.”Key Words: good at the hand of God

Tennessee: the Volunteer State, whose motto is “Agriculture and Commerce.”

Agriculture is the growing of goods and commerce is the trading of goods.

As a born-again believer in Jesus Christ, I cannot think of goodness without thinking of God. Years ago we had a man in the church who when I would say God is good, he would always say, “He’s better than that!”

Agriculture and commerce remind us of just how good God is.

One of God's faithful missionaries, Allen Gardiner, experienced many physical difficulties and hardships throughout his service to the Savior. Despite his troubles, he said, "While God gives me strength, failure will not daunt me." In 1851, at the age of 57, he died of disease and starvation while serving on Picton Island at the southern tip of South America. When his body was found, his diary lay nearby. It bore the record of hunger, thirst, wounds, and loneliness. The last entry in his little book showed the struggle of his shaking hand as he tried to write legibly. It read, "I am overwhelmed with a sense of the goodness of God."

God is good!!

What to do: ✞ When you think of Tennessee, think of the

goodness of God.

Texas, Part OneOctober 18

Bible Reading: Proverbs 17:1-18Key Verse: Verse 17 - “A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.”Key Words: A friend loveth at all times

You would think that the motto for Texas would be “Everything is bigger and better in Texas,” but that is not the case. The motto for Texas is “Friendship: the Friendship State.”

Now, no offense meant to the great state of Texas, but when I think of a friend, I think of someone who stands by you when no one else does. I just can’t think of a state as being a friend. I think of people as being a friend.

One example of friendship remains with me as vividly as the moment I first heard of it as a boy. In his first seasons with the Brooklyn Dodgers, Jackie Robinson, the first black man to play Major League baseball, faced venom nearly everywhere he traveled -- fastballs at his head, spikings on the bases, brutal epithets from the opposing dugouts and from the crowds. During one game in Boston, the taunts and racial slurs seemed to reach a peak. In the midst of this, another Dodger, a Southern white named Pee Wee Reese, called timeout. He walked from his position at shortstop toward Robinson at second base, put his arm around Robinson's shoulder, and stood there with him for what seemed like a long time. The gesture spoke more eloquently than the words: This man is my friend.

What to do: ✞ It’s always good to remember the old saying,

“I went out looking for a friend and found none anywhere. Then I went out to be a friend and found friends everywhere.”

Texas, Part Two

October 19

Bible Reading: John 15:1-17Key Verse: Verse 13 - “Greater love hath no

man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”

Key Words: that a man lay down his life for his friends

The state motto for Texas is “Friendship”. Jesus reminds us of what true friendship really is.

When you really have a friend, you will disregard personal sacrifice. If you have ever read Charles Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities, there is a classic illustration of John 15:13. In fact, Dickens quotes it in the book.

The two people who become friends are Charles Darnay and Sydney Carton. Darnay is a young Frenchman who is thrown in a dungeon and faces the guillotine the next morning. Carton is a wasted lawyer who has finished his life, as it were, as a loose-living individual there in England. Carton hears of Darnay’s imprisonment and through a chain of events he gets into the dungeon and he changes garments with Darnay who escapes. The next morning Sydney Carton makes his way up the steps that lead to the guillotine. And Dickens says, as he writes of this, ‘Greater love has no one than this, than one lay down his life for his friend.’ And that’s a classic example of the ultimate in friendship.

What to do: ✞ If you want to have a friend, be a friend.

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Utah, Part OneOctober 20

Bible Reading: Judges 17Key Verse: Verse 4 - “Yet he restored the

money unto his mother; and his mother took two hundred shekels of silver, and gave them to the founder, who made thereof a graven image and a molten image: and they were in the house of Micah.”

Key Words: made thereof a graven image

The motto for Utah, the Beehive State, is “Industry.” That’s it, plain and simple: industry.

Utah is an industrious state. There is farming, tourism, and mining, just to name a few of its industries. One industry that Utah excels in is false worship through the Mormon Church.

Whether or not people realize it, worship shapes our lives.

James Michener, writing in his book, The Source, tells the story of a man named Urbaal, who was a farmer, living about 2200 B.C.  He worshiped two gods, one a god of death, the other a goddess of fertility.  One day, the temple priests tell Urbaal to bring his young son to the temple for sacrifice--if he wants good crops.  Urbaal obeys, and on the appointed day drags his wife and boy to the scene of the boy's "religious execution" by fire to the god of death. After the sacrifice of Urbaal's boy with several others, the priests announce that one of the fathers will spend next week in the temple, with a new temple prostitute. Urbaal's wife is stunned as she notices a desire written more intensely across his face than she had seen before, and she is

overwhelmed to see him eagerly lunge forward when his name is called. The ceremony over, she walks out of the temple with her head swimming, concluding that "if he had different gods, he would have been a different man."

So it is with all of those who worship a false god.

What to do: ✞ If our worship is wrong, our life will be

wrong. Be right with your worship.

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Utah, Part TwoOctober 21

Bible Reading: John 4:1-24Key Verse: Verse 24 - “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.”Key Words: in spirit and in truth

Utah’s motto is “Industry.” It’s leading “religious” industry is Mormonism. I had the privilege of serving in a church as the Assistant Pastor in Salt Lake City, Utah, back in the late 70s. At that time about 80% of the city of Salt Lake were Mormons. False religion, false doctrine, and false worship abounded in every region of the city.

While many in the Mormon Church would deny that Mormons worship a man, they truly do. They

worship Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, and the president of the Mormon Church, Thomas S. Monson.

We are not to worship man, but God, the true and living God.

During the tenure of the great orator Henry Ward Beecher, a visiting minister (Beecher’s brother) once substituted for the popular pastor. A large audience had already assembled to hear Beecher, and when the substitute pastor stepped into the pulpit, several disappointed listeners began to move toward the exits. That’s when the minister stood and said loudly, “All who have come here today to worship Henry Ward Beecher may now withdraw from the church. All who have come to worship God keep your seats!”

After attending church one Sunday morning, a little boy knelt at his bedside that night and prayed, “Dear God, we had a good time at church today – but I wish you had been there!”

Amen!!

What to do: ✞ Worship God, but worship Him in spirit (not

flesh) and in truth (not lies).

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Vermont, Part OneOctober 22

Bible Reading: Romans 8:1-17Key Verse: Verse 6 - “For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.”Key Words: spiritually minded is life and

peace

Vermont: the Green Mountain State, whose motto is “Freedom and Unity.”

Vermont is one of the seven states that incorporates freedom into their motto. Freedom to our founding fathers was a “big deal.” Freedom, something we are so profoundly used to, that we take it for granted.

A man who lived in a foreign country became a citizen of the United States of America. In the country where he was raised and grew up, there was a curfew overseen by the military. Beyond a certain time, the streets had to be cleared and everyone had to be in their homes. When he immigrated to the United States, he began immediately sightseeing to see part of the country that he was now becoming a part of. However, when he saw darkness set in and looked at his watch, he saw that he was about to pass his curfew time.

Seeing a man getting in his car, he said, “Sir, would you please rush me to my hotel so that I won’t overstay my curfew and get in trouble?”

The gentleman in the car couldn’t figure out what in the world the man was talking about until it dawned on him that he was a foreigner and that he was a little mixed up about his new life in America. He explained to and assured the man that in the U.S. the law that he had been used to no longer applied. He explained that he was no longer under the jurisdiction of the country he came from. He was in a new country now and that meant he was free to stay up and stay out. The restrictions of the old homeland no longer applied. This man was in the United States, but had not yet learned to cast off the bondage of the old country.

A lot of us are in Christ, but we’ve not yet learned how to cast off the old bondage of being in Adam. So we sing about freedom, talk about freedom, and yet we feel the pressure of the curfew and the bondage and oppression of the old law system under which we operated. Far too many

Christians today are in chains because they’ve just spent so much time in the old country. In getting used to this thing about being free in Christ, they have not adapted yet.

What to do: ✞ Don’t leave home without thanking God for

your freedom.

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Vermont, Part TwoOctober 23

Bible Reading: Hebrews 10:19-30Key Verse: Verse 25 - “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.”Key Words: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together

Did you know that Vermont leads the nation in the production of monument granite, marble, and maple products? It is also a leader in the production of talc. Vermont's rugged, rocky terrain discourages extensive agricultural farming, but is well suited to raising fruit trees and to dairy farming.

Vermont’s motto is “Freedom and Unity.” There is much that can be said for unity. There is much power in unity.

There is a story of a little teeny pygmy who was standing over a rhinoceros that he killed. This was an odd sight to behold, a big, violent rhinoceros under the feet of a little teeny pygmy. A guy saw this

dead rhinoceros and this little pygmy over it and said, “Did you kill that?” The little pygmy said, “Yeah, I killed it.” Curious, the man asked, “So how did you, a little tiny pygmy, kill this rhinoceros?” He answered, “With my club. Yep! I killed this rhinoceros with my club.” The man was still thoroughly confused, “Well, how big is your club?” The pygmy said, “There are about a hundred of us in my club.”

In other words, he was surrounded by folk who had the same belief systems and worked together so that they could handle being attacked by a rhinoceros.

What to do: ✞ I trust you support your church. There is

power in unity

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VirginiaOctober 24

Bible Reading: Revelation 9:1-11Key Verse: Verse 11 - “And they had a king

over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.”

Key Words: And they had a king over themThe history of America is closely tied to that of

Virginia, particularly during the Colonial period.  Jamestown, founded in 1607, was the first permanent English settlement in North America and slavery was introduced there in 1619. The surrenders ending both the American Revolution (Yorktown) and the Civil War (Appomattox) occurred in Virginia. The state is called the “Mother of Presidents” because eight U.S. presidents were born there.

The motto for Virginia is “Thus Always to Tyrants.” The motto is a rallying cry against abusive power or those who abuse their power.

Speaking of abuse, children who see physical violence between their parents are six times more likely to abuse their own spouses after they marry. If those children were also hit by their parents as teenagers, they are 12 times more likely to abuse their spouses.

Sexual abuse of children is more widespread than previously assumed, according to a recent study. Who are the victims? Between 15% and 34% of all girls in this country; between 3% and 9% of all boys. More than 90% of the abusers were adult males.

A recent survey on marital violence reports that approximately one in every seven American couples has used some form of physical abuse during an argument within the past year.

But the greatest tyrant of all time is yet to come, the Anti-Christ. He who isn’t saved will fall into the hands of this tyrant.

What to do:✞ Today is the day of salvation.

WashingtonOctober 25

Bible Reading: Ecclesiastes 3:1-10Key Verse: Verse 1 - “To every thing there is a

season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:”Key Words: To every thing there is a season

The motto for the state of Washington is “By and By.” It’s not a statement used often today and can carry a variety of meanings. The most-used meaning is sooner or later. But the motto no doubt deals with time.

When I think of the statement “by and by,” I think of the song “In the Sweet By and By.”

“In the sweet by and byWe shall meet on that beautiful shore,”…

is a genuine product of the Midwest United States. It jumped into life as the result of an impromptu con-versation between Samuel Fillmore Bennett (1836-1898) and his musician friend, Joseph P. Webster (1819-1875) in Elkhorn, Wisconsin, in the years of the gospel song makers in the mid-nineteenth century.

Webster came into Bennett’s office one day looking depressed. When Bennett asked him what was the matter, he replied that “I will be all right by and by.” That phrase leaped into life for Bennett. “The sweet by and by,” he mused. “That would make a good hymn.” Then and there he started to write the verse:

“There’s a land that is fairer than day,And by faith we can see it afar;For the Father waits over the way,To prepare us a dwelling-place there.”

Webster caught his friend’s enthusiasm, hummed out a melody, and bringing in a friend with his violin the three men soon were singing the song.

The two additional stanzas are:“We shall sing on that beautiful shoreThe melodious songs of the blest,

And our spirits shall sorrow no more,Not a sigh for the blessing of rest.

To our bountiful Father above,We will offer our tribute of praise,For the glorious gift of His love,And the blessings that hallow our days.”

What to do: ✞ By and by will you be on that beautiful shore?

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West VirginiaOctober 26

Bible Reading: Matthew 6:16-24Key Verse: Verse 24- “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”Key Words: No man can serve two masters

West Virginia: home of the Mountaineers. As a matter of fact, the motto for West Virginia is “Mountaineers Are Always Free.”

But in reality, as much as we talk about freedom, man is never really free. P. T. Forsyth wrote, “The first duty of every man is not to find his freedom, but his master.” As a child, we are under the authority of our parents. As rebellious teenagers, we are under the authority of our sin nature. A person without Christ is under the authority of the spirit of darkness (Satan). As believers, we are under

the authority of the spirit of light (God). But we are free to choose our master.

And it is always wise to remember that freedom isn’t free, it will cost you something.

Giuseppe Garibaldi, the great Italian leader of Italy in the 19th century, in a fiery speech urged some thousands of Italy’s young men to fight for the freedom of their homeland. One time a young fellow asked him, saying, “If I fight, Sir, what will be my reward?”  Swift as a lightning flash, came the uncompromising answer: "Wounds, scars, bruises, and perhaps death. But remember that through your bruises, Italy will be free."

Freedom will cost you something!!

What to do: ✞ Be vigilant: that is the price of freedom.

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Wisconsin, Part OneOctober 27

Bible Reading: Philippians 3:13-21Key Verse: Verse 14 - “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”Key Words: I press toward the mark

Wisconsin: home of the Green Bay Packers; Wisconsin: the cheese state whose motto is simply “Forward”…which I might add I love personally. Forward! Keep moving forward. In order to do that, you must have your eyes on the things ahead, not the things in the past.

Reggie Jackson was a baseball player known as "Mr. October." He got his nickname because he was

known to shine when his team played in the postseason playoffs.

Reggie would come up to bat, and the ball was going over somebody's fence. Reggie Jackson said once in an interview that he lived for the postseason because that is when he would shine.

But Reggie Jackson, in order to get to the postseason, had to get through the regular season. His secret to enduring the regular season was to keep his eye on October.

God is looking for some Mr. and Mrs. Octobers—people with their eyes on eternity who faithfully endure the regular season of life, because they're looking forward to postseason glory.

Let me encourage you to keep pressing forward for the glory of God.

What to do:✞ Remember, a quitter never wins and a

winner never quits.

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Wisconsin, Part TwoOctober 28

Bible Reading: Luke 9:51-62Key Verse: Verse 62 - “And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”Key Words: and looking back

The motto of Wisconsin is “Forward.” It is important that we learn from the past, that we live in the present, and that we plan for the future. But it is important that we keep looking forward.

If you spend all your time today thinking about your failures or successes yesterday, then you will ruin your tomorrow. When today looks too long at yesterday, we are borrowing from tomorrow’s time.

Yesterday is like a rearview mirror. When you go somewhere in the car, you use a rearview mirror. A rearview mirror shows you what’s behind you. You need a rearview mirror but you only need a rearview mirror to glance in, not to live in. You don’t move forward by focusing on a rearview mirror; you move forward by focusing on the windshield. If you live in a rearview mirror, you will hurt somebody. But in front of the rearview mirror is a much bigger piece of glass called the windshield. The windshield shows you where you are going and that’s a lot bigger than where you have been. Don’t let yesterday mess up today, which will ruin tomorrow.

While you are driving forward in your Christian life, every now and then look in your rearview mirror. Take a peek in your rearview mirror to see what’s behind you so that you don’t make a wrong turn while you’re moving forward. Just don’t stare too long.

What to do: ✞ Learn from the past, but don’t live there.

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WyomingOctober 29

Bible Reading: I Corinthians 10:23-33Key Verse: Verse 26 – “For the earth is the

Lord's, and the fulness thereof. “ Key Words: For the earth is the Lord’s

The Cowboy State and a beautiful state it is!! Wyoming’s motto is “Equal Rights.”

It was adopted as their motto in 1893. Unlike those who cry equal rights today, Wyomingites understood that with equal rights come this thing called responsibility.

A pastor once made an investment in a large piece of ranch real estate which he hoped to enjoy during his years of retirement. While he was still an active pastor, he would take one day off each week to go out to his land and work. But what a job! What he had bought, he soon realized, was several acres of weeds, gopher holes, and rundown buildings. It was anything but attractive, but the pastor knew it had potential and he stuck with it.

Every week he'd go to his ranch, crank up his small tractor, and plow through the weeds with a vengeance. Then he'd spend time doing repairs on the buildings. He'd mix cement, cut lumber, replace broken windows, and work on the plumbing. It was hard work, but after several months the place began to take shape. And every time the pastor put his hand to some task, he would swell with pride. He knew his labor was finally paying off.

When the project was completed, the pastor received a neighborly visit from a farmer who lived a few miles down the road. Farmer Brown took a long look at the preacher and cast a longer eye over the revitalized property. Then he nodded his approval and said, "Well, preacher, it looks like you and God really did some work here."

The pastor, wiping the sweat from his face, answered, "It's interesting you should say that, Mr. Brown. But I've got to tell you -- you should have seen this place when God had it all to Himself!" 

God gives us the land, but He expects us to plow it.

What to do:✞ Remember with rights come responsibility.

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America (In God We Trust)October 30

Bible Reading: Galatians 3:20-29Key Verse: Verse 28 – “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.”Key Words: for ye are all one in Christ

One of the great experiments when it comes to nationality is the American Experiment. The American Experiment is unique because of its intentionality to bring people from all walks of life, from every nation, under the banner of a single flag and to intentionally seek to bring across to these shores people from all kinds of other nations who would make up a union called the United States of America.

This experiment brought people together who would pledge allegiance to a single flag even though their backgrounds were different, unique, and dissimilar. We acknowledge our differences by annotating our original heritages to our current nationality with terms like Irish American, Swedish American, Polish American, African American, or Hispanic American. The introductory phrase cites the uniqueness. The last word cites the unity. Whatever I am uniquely based on regarding culture, history, background, or previous location, I am that under the American Banner.

There was in this Experiment an attempt to have a United States even though the people seeking

to be unified were totally different. What the American Experiment represents from a cultural, historical, and geographical perspective to this nation, the church of Jesus Christ was meant to be for the King of Kings and Lord of Lords – people from different backgrounds, cultures, and perspectives, all pledging allegiance to the cross.

What to do:✞ Pray for our country to return to God for He

is our Only Hope for unity!

The State of ContentmentOctober 31

Bible Reading: Philippians 4:1-11Key Verse: Verse 11 – “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.”Key Words: whatsoever state I am,

therewith to be content

The State of Contentment is not over-populated. As a matter of fact, the State of Contentment is quite unused in that people move in and move out of this state on a continual basis.

Oh yes, the State of Contentment…better a smaller home with happiness than a bigger house with misery. At least that’s the way it should be. Many people today pursue stuff that is bigger and better, then pop pills for the misery it brings.

Contentment is being just as happy driving that Mercedes as you would be if you had to drive that jalopy from college. In both cases you’d have a ride. Contentment is taking as much pleasure in that big three-hundred-thousand-dollar house as you would a two-bedroom apartment. In both cases you’d have a roof over your head. Contentment is appreciating that T-bone steak as much as you would a hot dog. In both cases you are not starving. Contentment is being just as satisfied with the designer outfit as you would with an outfit from the thrift store. In both cases you have clothes on your back and you are not naked. Contentment is realizing that God has met your needs.

What to do:✞ Live in the State of Contentment. It’s a great state to live in!

Notes

I deeply appreciate the help of

Mary Parsons

Glenda Myrick

And my lovely wife, Linda

Without God using these people to help, this

devotional would not have been possible.

Dr. Mike Rouse

is a ministry of

5568 Chalkville Mountain RoadBirmingham, AL. 35235

(205) 854-2741www.mountainviewbaptist.org