We’ve Been Warned

01Jun

He may be drifting into the past for many, but Mickey Mantle was a Major League Baseball icon in my youth. Across the street from the church of my teen years was Mantle Brook Farms. Mickey Mantle had bought that farm on the outskirts of Dallas to develop a housing community as an investment. As far as I know, he was never there when I was around. We did have connections and would swim in the pool.

 

Reading Proverbs 1 this morning, I thought about that jarring statement in verse 26, where God says, “I will laugh when disaster strikes you; I will mock when calamity overtakes you…” (NIV) Of course, pulled from its context, it makes God sound cruel. The reasons given for God’s cold shoulder are found in the preceding two verses, “Since you refuse to listen when I call…since you disregard all my advice…” (NIV)

 

Those collective explanations make me think of something Mantle said in his later years, when alcoholism caused him to have severe health issues, “If I would have known I was going to live so long, I would have taken better care of myself.” None of us know how long we will live. The time of our death is known only to God. We do have some influence on our departure date. If we pay attention to his rebukes and follow His instructions, our days can lengthen like a shadow in the evening time. (Eccl. 8:13)

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Posted by Ron Lawler

I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior when I was a teen. A friend had invited me to attend church to help out in a Sunday School attendance drive. At the end of the worship service I asked the Pastor how I could know for sure I would go to Heaven. He had someone show me from the Scriptures how to receive Christ and from that day to this, I have had an assurance of Christ as my Savior and Heaven as my eternal home.

Within a few weeks I sensed a building desire to enter into full time ministry. My church observed me and confirmed the call. Upon graduation from High School, I enrolled in Bible College and I have been in ministry ever since. I was ordained to the ministry by my home church in Texas in 1974. It has been my privilege to be Pastor of Preaching and Teaching at Family Bible since 2005.

Cheryl and I were married in 1973. God has blessed us with two children, Rachel and David, and four grandsons.

Favorite part of ministry? - Researching and discussing questions about the Bible.

Favorite verse? - "Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm.  Let nothing move you.  Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." 1 Corinthians 15:58

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