WHERE WAS THE TV GOING?

Almost every morning on my way to work, I see the same little gray car headed East as I drive West. I guess I see a lot of the same cars every day, but I don’t really pay that much attention to them. Most cars these days look so similar that not many stand out. I probably notice the little gray Chevette because it’s an older, unique, car, and I had one exactly like it when I was younger, but this story is not about either of those cars. Let me explain.

Early, one Autumn morning, I was driving to work as usual. I was in the right Westbound lane, listening to the radio, minding my own business when a car slowly started to pass me in the left Westbound lane. I don’t even know what kind of car it was, now that I think about it. I think it was gray, but I’m not even sure about that. Something else grabbed my attention and that’s all I could focus on at the time. As the car advanced from beside me, I looked over as it slowly passed by. As I looked at the car, I noticed there was a big wide-screen TV box in the back seat.

As the car slowly faded from my sight, I began to wonder about a few things. Where were they going? Where were they coming from? Was the TV, brand new? Were they taking it home to set it up or were they returning it to the store where they purchased it? Were they taking it to be repaired? Was there even a TV in the box? Was it just an empty box they were using for something else? The questions seemed endless.

I thought this lingering interest in the TV box was a little strange myself, and you may think I’m a complete nut, but I kept thinking about it and drew some interesting parallels and conclusions.

We all see people every day headed down the road of life. We usually have no idea where they’re going nor where they’ll end up. Most of us probably don’t think twice about them unless they affect us somehow. We don’t know how rocky the road they’re on really is. We don’t even know which road they’re on; the narrow road that leads to heaven or the wide road that leads to hell. Some would say that’s nobody’s business, but if we’re Christians, we have a responsibility to them, and to God, to reach out to them and make sure they know that there’s a heaven to gain, and a hell to shun. Many unsaved people have no idea that by not choosing Jesus, they’re choosing Satan by default. Jesus said, “Whoever is not with me is against me” (Matthew 12:30). There’s no middle ground.

So, take an interest in people; where they go, and what they do. What’s going on in their lives and in their families? Not to judge them, or gossip about them, but to know what their situation is. To understand what their immediate, personal needs are, and how we can help them; Be kind. Be a friend. Then you’ll know what, and how to be praying for them. You’ll find out their immediate situation, and their spiritual condition. Are they saved? Do they have a relationship with Jesus or are they bound for hell fire? Again, not to judge or gossip, but to help them.

Prayer is the most important thing you can do for anybody, but don’t stop there. Have you ever heard the phrase, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care?” That’s an interesting statement, and it’s certainly true. Many people think they have everything figured out. They think that knowing and believing that “there IS a God” is the same as “knowing God”, but that’s not the case at all. We get to know God by reading his word and communicating with him through prayer.

Many people miss what Jesus told Nicodemus that night so long ago. He said, “Everyone must be born again” (John 3:3-7). Referring to this, Paul said we are changed, and become a new creature (2 Corinthians 5:17). We’re recreated or “born again.” When we’re born again, our past sins are forgiven, and the Holy Spirit comes to live in our minds to lead and guide us and change us. That’s what we all need. It’s what we must all have if we want that eternal life to spend with Jesus. If you don’t have eternal life yet, please, turn to Jesus today and be saved. He’s eagerly waiting to give you the peace and comfort of salvation.

———————————————–
My Blogs
https://teddylynn.blogspot.com
https://teddylynn.wordpress.com

© 2020 Teddy Lynn – All Rights Reserved

My books are available in paperback and digital format on Amazon @ 
https://www.amazon.com/Teddy-Lynn/e/B01MZDB6L6

PREPARE FOR WHAT'S COMING

Have you ever had anything happen to you that you were totally unprepared for? Have you ever seen or heard of something happening to someone else and thought it could happen to you. Unfortunately, many people see something happening to someone else and think it could never happen to them. Well, not me. My grandmother was always thinking about what could happen if you do this and what could happen if you do that and I guess she passed that on down to me. Some people call it worrying but I call it being prepared. I think it’s reckless and irresponsible to begin anything without considering the possible negative outcome. We should never just jump into anything without thinking it out first. We always need to be safety-minded.

Remember my little blue Geo Metro? Well, I have another tale to tell you about it. One day I was going to check all the fluids as I always did once a week. That’s the life of your vehicle. When I pulled the hood release, I felt the cable break and the hood did not unlatch. I finally got it open but it wouldn’t latch back. The safety latch was working but I didn’t trust that enough to drive down the road. I had heard of several people having wrecks from car hoods fly up while going down the road so I put a bungee cord on it to keep the wind from blowing up under the hood.

I thought about what I would do if the hood were to blow up and block my view while driving down the road. I actually pictured it in my mind and planned out a strategy in case it ever happened to me. My plan was to put my head out the window and calmly apply the brakes and slowly and safely get the car off the road without having a wreck.

Then one morning, I was on my way to work, minding my own business, when my windshield suddenly turned blue and shattered. There was no warning like I thought there would be. I didn’t even have time to think about it. It was just there. I immediately put my well-thought-out plan into action. I put my head out the window so I could see the road and began applying the breaks and soon I was safely off the road. Thank God I had thought about what COULD happen before it did. Thank God I was prepared. If not, who knows what might have happened?

Throughout the New Testament, Jesus and his disciples warn us to be prepared for him to return. If we are not prepared when he comes back, we will not see heaven. It’s very important to have a plan. Thankfully, God has a plan for us already. He sent his son to live a sinless life and then die in our place so we could live forever. Jesus told Nicodemus that we must be born again in order to get into heaven (John 3:1-7). This is something beyond scientific explanation. It’s supernatural. In this process, our sins are washed away, we become a new person with a clean slate, and the Holy Spirit comes to live in our minds and guides us in making the right decisions every day.

Jesus is coming back soon and we need to be prepared. If you can’t say without a doubt that you’re ready, then please talk to God right now and make sure you don’t miss out on heaven. The only alternative is hell, and I’m sure nobody wants that. So be prepared and I’ll see you there.

———————————————–
My Blogs
https://teddylynn.blogspot.com
https://teddylynn.wordpress.com

© 2018 Teddy Lynn – All Rights Reserved

My books are available in paperback and digital format on Amazon @ 
https://www.amazon.com/Teddy-Lynn/e/B01MZDB6L6

FINDING TREASURE

We lived in Theo, Mississippi from the year I was three years old until the year I turned twelve. I had many adventures in that little community and I loved living there. We lived in four different houses during those years. I remember five different little country stores being in the community during that time. There were two pretty close to our house and they were in business at the same time with a third one a few miles down the main highway. One of the two that were close together closed down when I was maybe five years old, but another one opened up across the road so there were three again. We always lived within walking distance of a store and we would walk to our aunt’s house as well.

By the time the fifth store opened, we had moved again, and it was about the same distance from our house as the other two where we usually went, but we only had to walk a short distance on the highway and then cut through a church parking lot. Then it was just a short walk up a gravel road that never had much traffic.

One day, as we were walking to that store, I was dragging behind my grandmother and my two sisters at the time. We weren’t really in any hurry, anyway. Then, all of a sudden, I saw a dollar bill on the ground. A dollar was an awesome discovery at that time, so imagine how excited I was when I picked it up and realized it was a ten-dollar bill. I was so excited! I ran to catch up with my family yelling, “Look what I found, look what I found! I found ten dollars! Y’all walked right over it and didn’t even see it!”

I was rich! We walked on to the store, but I was not trailing behind this time. I was out in front, leading the pack. I went into the store and started looking to see what I could buy. What do you think a kid with ten dollars would buy in a grocery store forty years ago? If you said candy, you’re right. Sodas were only a quarter then, and so were candy bars. You could get ten pieces of candy, like Jolly Ranchers, for a penny. Double Bubble chewing gum was only a few cents each, and a pack of 16 baseball cards with a stick of gum inside was only a quarter. I bought several things for myself and my sisters and still had lots of money left over. That was a great day.

Another time, I found treasure was really like a scavenger hunt or an archeology dig. Back then, Coca-Cola was giving away prizes. I think you could win several different things, including free drinks and money and you didn’t have to wait. You just give the store owner the cap and get your drinks or money. We didn’t have much money to buy drinks, so we didn’t have many opportunities to win, but I had an idea. The bottle caps that could only be opened with a bottle opener were still being made, and the stores in the neighborhood had coke coolers with bottle openers that hung on the front with a long reservoir that held the caps. When they were full, they could be taken off the cooler and emptied into the trash. I asked the owners if we could look through their bottle caps before they threw them away. One store owner, Mrs. Wilbanks, said, “Sure.”

There must have been fifty or sixty caps in there and we looked at every single one of them but only found one winner. It was a prize of ten dollars cash. I gave the cap to Mrs. Wilbanks and she opened the cash register and handed me a ten-dollar bill. I don’t remember what we bought that time, but I’m sure we went wild.

These memories remind me of a parable that Jesus told about finding treasure. He said that the kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he went and sold everything he had and bought that field (Matt. 13:44).

Jesus told many parables about the kingdom of heaven to show us how valuable it really is. He wants us all in his kingdom. When we understand what a treasure he has to offer us, we will give up all worldly things and put our trust in him.

In John 3:3, Jesus said, “Unless a person is born again, they cannot see the kingdom of God.”

At first, Nicodemus did not understand what Jesus was saying. Many today do not understand what it means to be born again. Jesus explains it more clearly in Matthew 18:3. He said, “Unless you are converted, and become like little children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Children are pure and innocent. Jesus, Peter, and Paul compared being born again to becoming like babies; like becoming a new person. We’re basically starting over with a new life like a baby. We drink the pure milk of the word (1 Peter 2:2, I Corinthians 3:2, Hebrews 5:13). We learn like children until we become stronger in knowledge and graduate from milk to solid food. We are learning to be holy instead of the old sinful person we were. 
We’re born into this world as servants to sin because of Adam. The new birth is absolutely essential if we want to go to heaven. Without it, we can’t be saved. Remember, Jesus said, “You must be born again” (John 3:7).

Salvation is free, but each person has to accept it for themselves. If you haven’t been born again, I urge you to ask Jesus to save you right now. If you need more information on how to be saved here’s a link that will help.

What Must I Do To Be Saved?

———————————————–
My Blogs
https://teddylynn.blogspot.com
https://teddylynn.wordpress.com

© 2018 Teddy Lynn – All Rights Reserved

My books are available in paperback and digital format on Amazon @ 
https://www.amazon.com/Teddy-Lynn/e/B01MZDB6L6