What Directions? #146

John 21:19-22 19 Now this He said, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, "Follow me!" 20 Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them; the one who also had leaned back on His breast at the supper, and said, "Lord, who is the one who betrays You?" 21 Petertherefore seeing him said to Jesus, "Lord, and what about this man?" 22 Jesus said to him, "If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow Me!" (NAS)

When all else fails read the directions. Great advice; but maybe it should read, “When all else fails; follow the directions.” How often have you received instructions only to ignore them? Most everyone has at some time read the instructions only to proceed to ‘do it your way.’ Whether it was a school assignment or putting together the Christmas gift that simply said, “Some assembly required” you did it your way and ended up with a mess. Usually that “some assembly required” meant a degree in engineering was required; you still ignored the instructions and jumped full speed ahead into the project without heeding any guidance.

The Apostle Peter had been following Jesus three years by this time. He had witnessed miracles, heard Jesus teach and had himself denied that he knew Jesus three times. After a miraculous fishing trip Jesus spoke to Peter about his future. He told Peter to follow Him and Peter responded by asking about John. “What about him?” The instructions to Peter were clear, “follow me.” Peter appeared determined to take attention off of the instructions he had received and make sure John followed his instructions.

Jesus merely responded that what I request of John is between me and John and not your business. Peter’s instruction was clear and simple; follow Jesus.

You may ignore your instructions, do it your way, try to get someone else to follow your directions, or do as you are instructed. The choice is yours. Today is decision day.

_______________________Today's personal note from Dennis

Greetings fom Starbucks,

It has been a great week. Sandy and enjoyed our time with the Golden Valley

Baptist Church this past week-end. God gave me the strength to preach three times. The church is a wonderful loving fellowship. We both were encouraged by their love for one another. Pastor Steve was in a men's retreat, but his wife, Julie, took great care of us. We are talking of a marriage retreat with them in the fall.

This week I signed up the 999th person to receive The Encourager. Send me some one's name and email to receive it and we will hit the 1000 mark. I am so grateful to write words of encouragement each week to so many. I also enjoy hearing back from you.

Collin had his last choir performance of the year. (see attach) His school is closing as part of the budget cuts in our Tempe Elementary School district so he will attend a new school next year. It is still close to where Susan and he live. It will take some

adjustments so pray for him.

Sandy had her tests performed yesterday to determine if the cancer had returned. She was clear for which we praise God. She has an Ultra Sound next week as one more test. The doctor does

not expect to find anything. Again we praise the Lord.

I will have labs done today (19th). The CT scan will be in two weeks. I will get results on June 3 when I see the oncologist. Pray for a good report.

Thanks for your prayers and love. It means a great deal to us. I pray that God will bless you today with an assignment that will bring glory to Him. Please continue to pray for ministry opportunities for both me and Sandy.

God bless you. ~ DGW