shawnethomas

Are You A Friend?

Posted on 2012/09/04 by Shawn Thomas

Proverbs 17:17 says: “A friend loves at all times.” It is probably typical for us to think of this verse from our own perspective: that those who are our friends should always love us, and stick with us through thick and thin. If they do not, then they are not truly our friends. While this is true, the reverse perspective is the best for us biblically: we should make certain that we ARE that kind of friend ourselves! Ask yourself: “Am I the kind of friend who loves at all times?” Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies | Tagged being a friend, faithfulness, friendship, love, loyalty, Proverbs 17:17 | Leave a comment

This Week in “Paradise” Sept. 3rd

Posted on 2012/09/03 by Shawn Thomas

This Week in “Paradise” Sept. 3^rd

This week in the “Paradise” of the pastor’s home, we dealt with an impending hurricane, aging bodies, and of course our kitten, Eponine.

Get Behind Me!

My wife Cheryl loves French fries, but had been convicted recently that they were not best for her to eat right now. Unbeknownst to me, she had made a recommitment not to eat them. Did I say this was “unbeknownst to me”?

One day last week we had gone to pick up some fast food, and without thinking (as usual) I thought I would be “nice” to Cheryl and offer her a fry. I held it up to her mouth and said, “Here, you want one of my fries?”

“NO!” She exclaimed, “I’m trying to be obedient! Could you make it any harder for me?!”

We both broke out laughing at how “helpful” I had unwittingly been!

Continue reading →

Posted in Home & Family Life, This Week In Paradise (pastors family blog) | Tagged ailing parents, diet, dysautonomia, french fries, Hurricane Isaac, Hurricane Isaac spoof video, hurricnae preparation, ice cream, kitten Eponine, pastor's family, Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, POTS, spoiled kitten, weather reporters | 4 Comments

Is He Finding Fruit?

Posted on 2012/09/03 by Shawn Thomas

Jesus’ visit to the Temple in Mark 11 was followed by His cursing of a fig tree outside of town in :12-14. But the two episodes are not unrelated. He looked at the fig tree to see if He could discover any fruit to eat. He didn’t find any – which was symbolic of what He had ALSO discovered in the Temple! The idea here seems to be that He cursed BOTH for the lack of fruit that He found in them! Israel is pictured in the Old Testament as a fig tree. Thus this is a very symbolic passage!

But it is not just of “historical interest.” We should each consider: when Jesus examines US — as He did the Temple and the fig tree — what does He find? Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies | Tagged fig tree, fruit, Israel, judgment, Mark 11:12-14, Temple | 1 Comment

Wisdom in Trials (James 1:5)

Posted on 2012/09/02 by Shawn Thomas

Sometimes when a pastor preaches verse-by-verse through a book of the Bible, he comes to a passage which he is not sure will apply to anyone in the congregation that day. I can assure you that the verse we are studying this morning is NOT one of those verses! We are looking at James 1:5, which talks about asking God for wisdom in trials, and I have NO problem knowing that this applies to many of us here today, including myself! Many of us are right in the midst of trials, and we need the wisdom that God has to give us. The good news of scripture is, He promised that He will! Let’s read the chapter together and then see what verse 5 tells us about finding God’s wisdom in our trials. Continue reading →

Posted in Book of James Sermons: What Real Faith Looks Like | Tagged Cheryl thomas testimony, definition of wisdom, friends, Genesis 25:22, Henry Blackaby, James 1:5 sermon, James sermons, Job 28, Psalm 147:3, Rebekah, seeking wisdom, Shawn Thomas seminary testimony, trials, wisdom, wisdom deficit, wisdom in trials, wise counsel | 4 Comments

Jesus is Looking All Around!

Posted on 2012/09/02 by Shawn Thomas

A little phrase in Mark 11:11 is a curious one, and one which I had I never really pondered before. After Jesus came to Jerusalem in the Triumphal Entry, it says He came to the temple, “and after looking all around” He then went to Bethany. But isn’t that an interesting phrase? WHY was Jesus “looking all around”? WHAT was He “looking all around” for? Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

An Ounce of Prevention

Posted on 2012/09/01 by Shawn Thomas

It is easy to miss the timing involved in Proverbs 17:14, where it says “abandon the quarrel BEFORE it breaks out”. “BEFORE” — THAT is the time to stop a quarrel. Not “shortly after”, and certainly not “after it has gone a long way” – it is MOST difficult to stop then! No, abandon it BEFORE it breaks out! Have the foresight to see that what you are about to engage in is going to be contentious, and DO NOT START down that road in the first place! Don’t say that controversial thing! Don’t RESPOND in a way that you know is going to promote a quarrel. Abandon it BEFORE it breaks out! It is just like the old saying, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” The best time to end a quarrel is not to get involved in it in the first place! “Abandon the quarrel BEFORE it breaks out”!

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies | Tagged avoiding controversy, discretion, foresight, ounce of prevention, peacemaking, Proverbs 17:14, quarrel, words | 1 Comment

Love in a Besieged City

Posted on 2012/08/31 by Shawn Thomas

In Psalm 31, David was in the midst of some pretty bad days, but surrounded by trouble, he could write in :21, “Blessed be the Lord, for He has wondrously shown His steadfast love to me when I was in a besieged city.” (ESV) Notice what we can learn from this verse about how God’s love can minister to us in our most difficult times: Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies | Tagged chesed, God's love, love in a besieged city, lovingkindness, Psalm 31:21 | Leave a comment

A POTS Analogy: My Life in Miniature

Posted on 2012/08/30 by Shawn Thomas

Some moments in time can serve as a picture of your life in miniature, as a kind of analogy. Today (Thursday, August 30th 2012) was one of those days.

Like most other residents of Louisiana, we spent yesterday at home, keeping our eyes on Hurricane Isaac. The church office had been closed, and I had felt pretty well — I even made a video which parodies melodramatic weather reporters. (I will try to link it here.) I got up this morning and felt pretty well. I was in the office by 9:00, and was looking forward to finishing my Sunday morning message. I remarked to myself how well I felt — pretty much like “normal”, I thought; not sick at all. I wondered if we were getting this dysautonomia under control at last. I was planning for what I might do in the afternoon, once I had finished the message prep. But in a moment, it all changed. Continue reading →

Posted in POTS (dysautonomia) articles | Tagged dizziness, dizzy spells, dysautonomia, Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, POTS, preaching, sermon preparation, study | 3 Comments

The God Who Sees

Posted on 2012/08/30 by Shawn Thomas

Psalm 33:13 says: “He sees ALL the sons of men.”

That is a pretty inclusive statement! There is no one who flies “under His radar”. God sees us all. This is true for better and for worse: Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies | Tagged Genesis 16:13, Hagar, Isaiah 40:27, Jehovah Roi, Psalm 139, Psalm 33:13, The God Who sees, Yahweh Roi | 1 Comment

Our Limited Plans

Posted on 2012/08/29 by Shawn Thomas

Psalm 33:7-8 speaks of how it is God who gathers the waters in a heap, before whom all the peoples should stand in awe. That same Psalm then immediately goes on to point out the limited nature of the plans which we make. Verse 10 says: “The Lord nullifies the counsel of the nations; He frustrates the plans of the peoples.”

We have seen this in a concrete fashion this very day, as so many of us here in Southwest Louisiana had plans this Wednesday for our schools, churches, and businesses — and yet those very plans have been cancelled or postponed due to the threat of Hurricane Isaac. We had made our plans, but with a very little effort on His part, the God who controls the winds nullified them all!