Author: Rhodes Davis

My passion is analyzing information, exploring ideas, lifelong learning and sharing knowledge with others. I have a wide range of interests and am not easily bored so I approach unfamiliar and diverse subjects with great zeal. I am a business nerd, fascinated by what can be accomplished through innovative companies and people who want to change the world. My faith is very important and I enjoy opportunities to share my observations and study insights through teaching and writing. I follow the simple teachings of Jesus and try to reflect His glory in my life. I work with young people on applying the teachings of Jesus to their unique challenges and opportunities. "Curiosity keeps taking us down new paths." - Walt Disney

Wisdom Will Keep You Safe!

Sometimes it seems hard to know the right thing to do. The Bible is like a light in the darkness to show us how to live. But in order for the Bible to help us, we need to study it.

As we study the Bible we gain knowledge about God and how He wants us to live. Wisdom is the ability to use that knowledge to make good decisions.

For example, our knowledge of the Bible teaches us that God’s word is truth (John 17:17) and that we are to speak truth to one another (Ephesians 4:25). So when a situation comes up where you feel that a lie might get you out of trouble, wisdom teaches you that a lie is not a proper choice and that God will not be pleased when you are dishonest.

The more you know about the Bible, the better you will be able to know what you should do. God’s commands will make us better people. Some people do not like God’s laws because they think God is trying to take away their fun. However, the things that many people think are “fun,” like using drugs, getting drunk, and looking at bad pictures, are things that will hurt us and will make us sorry that we did them.

I worked with a man who, when he was younger, used a lot of drugs and got drunk with his friends. He did this for many years. He thought he was living free and having fun. He told me that he would give anything to live his life over again without the drugs and the alcohol. Not only did he hurt his body, he was ashamed of his life. He also wasted a lot of money on sin.

Proverbs 5:9 tells us that sin will harm our bodies and waste our years. Though some people might think you are acting strange by doing what is right (1 Peter 4:4), they will eventually realize that you made the right choice in serving God and following His laws. Of course, God will judge us all for how we have lived. Follow God’s commands for the best life on earth and eternal joy in heaven.

What Do You Do For Fun?

Author Unknown

Several years ago a Christian girl told me about an incident with a young man who had been trying to date her. He was not a member of the church, and they just did not have anything in common. She had turned him down twice and now she had said “no” to attending a rock concert with him. In a kind of mock exasperation, the young man asked, “What do you do for fun?  You don’t dance, you don’t drink, you don’t attend rock concerts. What do you do for fun?”

She replied, “For fun, I get up in the morning without feeling embarrassed, ashamed, or guilty about what I did the night before.” The young man had nothing more to say. She was right; it is not fun to feel guilty for your actions the night before. There are many things in life that are fun. For example, the Christian girl is now married to a fine Christian man. They have a little girl and are building an outstanding Christian home together. Think of the fun she is having.

She is having fun every day living without the scars of fornication, drugs, alcohol, or regrets from her past. She is having fun getting ready each afternoon to receive a husband home from work; knowing that he will not be stopping off at the local bar for a few drinks with his friends. She is having fun knowing that her little girl will never see her father in a drunken stupor or experimenting with drugs. She is having fun knowing that while he is away from her, his Christian conduct will not allow infidelity or even flirting. She is having fun watching him hold his little girl on his lap with loving, protective arms. She is having fun living with the assurance that the home will be led by a spiritual leader who will guide each family member towards heaven.

The list of fun things for the Christian is endless.

What do you do for fun?

Taking Sermon Notes

I really am happy when I see young people listening to me when I preach. I know that sometimes things can be hard to understand, but I am happy that they are trying to listen. When I am listening to someone else preach, I always take notes. I want to remember what the preacher said so I can learn from it later. We often forget what we hear if we do not write it down. How can you take notes?

Copy Words from the Screen
The preacher will often put important thoughts on a screen behind him. You can copy these thoughts down and remember the main things that he was talking about. Sometimes he may change them quickly. Do not worry, just do your best and start copying down the thoughts on the next screen. Even if you get a little bit from every screen, you will have words that might help you remember the lesson.

Copy Down Bible Verses
When the preacher mentions a Bible verse, copy it down in your notebook and then turn to it in the Bible. If he mentions a lot of verses, just do your best to write down as many of the verses as you can remember. You can always look up the Bible verses at home if you want to learn more about the lesson.

Copy Down Your Thoughts
Sometimes when I am listening to a sermon, I will hear something that will make me think of how I can serve God better. I will also write those things down. You can write down ideas you get from the sermon and ways that you can do what the Bible says you should do. For example, if the preacher is talking about loving one another, you might write down, “I need to be kind to my brother and sister” even though the preacher did not talk about how to treat your family.

Keep Listening
As I said before, sometimes you may not understand exactly what the preacher is saying all the time. But, most of the time you will be able to understand and everything you learn will help you learn more later. So keep listening and as you grow, you will know more and more about the Bible and what God wants you to do.

Sometimes I Don’t Understand

As a young person I know you often have many questions.  Sometimes your parents may roll their eyes when you ask questions.  But it is important to learn about your world and
especially about God and His word.

Sometimes we have questions that we have a hard time answering.  Adults will often do things that you do not understand.  You may ask why they are doing what they are doing only to hear, “When you are older you will understand.”  There are many things that you will not understand until you get older and have many more experiences, learn more about God’s word, learn more about people, and learn how to see things as other people see them.  Be patient with yourself.  Also, be patient with the adults.  Sometimes they are wrong but often they know things that you do not know in making their decisions.

Sometimes things happen in our lives that we do not understand.  When a loved one dies we often ask, “Why did they have to die?”  Death is such a mystery.  We may not understand why a person that we loved died but we can trust that God is taking care of them.  I know this myself because my Dad died when I was five years old.  I often wondered why he had to die while I was so young.  I wondered why he could not be with me every day.

I realized that the Devil brought death into the world with sin.  I also realized that God did not take away my father; he died because all people will die sooner or later.  I also realized that in heaven no one will die, suffer, or be sad any more.  Though I understood these things, I would still get sad when I thought about how much I missed my father.  But I am happy that I have some thoughts of him and pictures to remember.  When I keep him in my heart, he never really goes away.

Sometimes I do not understand what is going to happen to me.  When I was in school I wondered what I would do when I grew up.  I would also wonder what would happen with my family and friends.  Of course, we never will know what is going to happen but we can trust that God is in control and that even when we don’t understand why things are happening that God understands and is taking care of things.  We must realize that He can make all things work for our best if we trust and obey Him.

I Was Just Teasing!

How would you feel if someone started calling you bad names?  What if they made fun of your clothes or your friends?  Would you like it if they made fun of the way you play sports, talk, or your hair?  I think all of us are hurt, and sometimes
angry, when someone makes fun of us or teases us.

We need to remember how bad it feels so we do not tease or make fun of other people.  Some people in school, at church, or in our neighborhood are easy to make fun of.  Maybe they don’t look like everyone else or have some things that everyone else has.  Of course, God made us all different and we should be proud of our differences.  But we should never make jokes about other people.  Jesus said we should treat others as we want to be treated (Matt. 7:12).

In fact, the Bible goes further to say that we should treat others better than ourselves, Philippians 2:3.  This means that we should treat ourselves well and treat others even better.  We must show love towards our enemies, Matthew 5:44.

How can you love someone who makes fun of you or is mean to you?  First, you pray for that person to change, not only so they will leave you alone but that they would learn to be like Jesus. 

Secondly, do not make fun of them because they made fun of you.  Have you ever seen a fight with just one person?  Don’t let another person draw you into the meanness of calling one another names. Ignore them. Let them know by your
example that you will not stoop to their level. They will often be mad that you won’t say bad things back to them. They also get mad because they are not getting you mad!  They will be the ones who look bad, not you.

Finally, remember that people who make fun of other people, deep down, do not love themselves. A person who feels very good about himself will not feel any need to bring others down to make himself look better.  Feel sorry for the person that thinks so little of himself that he has to bring you down to feel good.

I would beg you, as ones who love God, to especially avoid teasing people whom you go to church with.  It is sad to see young people who are supposed to love God, saying such mean things to and about one another, teasing others, or keeping others out of “their group.”  We are all trying to go to heaven and we need one another.  Speak words that build one another up.  Do not destroy someone with your words, Galatians 5:14-15.