Tag Archives: people watching

Mouths of Fire

According to the site Crazy Hot Seeds, the top 3 hottest peppers in the world for 2016 are the Carolina Reaper, the hottest, the Trinidad Moruga Scorpion ranking second and the third is 7 Pot Douglah.  In recent years, restaurants are offering daring individuals a free meal or shirt for eating spicy dishes or peppers.  Some even offer a wall of fame with victorious eaters having their pictures and or names engraved on plaques hanging on restaurant walls.  Unfortunately, the losers are left with mouths on fire or a worst case scenario for a cook from London, losing his hearing after eating the world’s spiciest noodles.

With their mouths the godless destroy their neighbors, but through knowledge the righteous escape, Proverbs 11:9.

King Solomon refers to a different kind of mouths on fire in the Bible.  Whether Solomon engaged in people watching or received this revelation from God, individuals who like to talk a lot can ruin the lives of their neighbors.  Like a snake, tongues can spit venom upon those whom they dislike, lashing out with words instead of fangs.  While the childhood saying, “sticks and stones will break my bones, but names will never hurt me” seems nice, but its untrue.  Deep inside human souls, scars and wounds remain long after words have been spoken.

The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell, James 3:6.

Jesus’ younger brother also recognized that words are like a mouth set on fire.  When accompanied by anger, words can be like daggers, stabbing friends in the back in the form of gossip.   Before you reach this point, its vital to find the knowledge to escape the temptation to hurt those you love with a poor choice of vocabulary.  Although you can’t escape mouths of fire, you can control what comes out of your own mouth.  May the words of the Bible give you direction, insight and wisdom to tame mouths of fire.

by Jay Mankus

 

The Sheep Without A Shepherd

If you’ve ever gone to a mall to people watch, it doesn’t take long to see who knows where they are going and who is lost, trying to find their way.  Whether you’re driving a car, searching for something you’ve misplaced or walking on a unmarked trail, everyone from time to time experiences the pain of loss.  In the midst of this crisis, a sense of helplessness paralyzes souls, making it obvious that no matter hard one tries, you can’t save yourself.

While traveling throughout towns and villages, Jesus observed the crowd of individuals following him.  Watching intently, tears began to swell up in his eyes, as Jesus saw this group as sheep without a shepherd, Matthew 9:35-36.  They were looking for something more in life, hoping that Jesus had the answer.  Like sheep aimlessly roaming the countryside, hungry hearts longed for meaning to life.

Today, the silent majority wonders when their Shepherd will return.  As chaos abounds, modern sheep have been led astray by false prophets, hypocritical leaders and the twisting of the Bible.  Exiting the church after high school or during college, pessimistic sheep are searching for alternative means to enter heaven’s gate.  Although some turn back, coming to their senses like the prodigal in Luke 15, a growing number remain sheep without a shepherd.

by Jay Mankus

 

Who… Me?

Whether you believe in one or not, God has created a melting pot of individuals who are just as different on the inside as the color of their skin.  Personalities range from those who enjoy going to the mall to people watch, others prefer to listen, asking questions instead of talking too much and the strong willed seek to express their opinions and point of view.  Meanwhile, the active can’t get enough time with their friends, the sloths are always looking for an excuse to rest and modern technology has made the masses co dependent on their computer, phone or television.  When confronted or asked to changes their ways of in 2014, many will respond, “Who, me?”

The memories of Adam and Eve has been passed down from generation to generation, entering our D.N.A. in the form of the sinful nature, Romans 3:9-12.  Thus, whenever you make a mistake or screw up, you have a blue print to follow, Genesis 3:12-13.  “The devil made me do it!”  “It’s her fault your honor, not mine!”  “If God didn’t introduce me to this person, I would have never done that!”  There are somethings in life you don’t have to learn, it just comes naturally like blaming others, failing to take responsibility for your actions and justifying what you did to escape punishment or minimize the consequences.  As a result, Reality Television is filled with examples of adults acting like little children who got their hand caught in the cookie jar, “Who me?”

For any avid sports fans, especially during this Bowl Season, NFL playoffs or March Madness, this same mindset is played out daily in front of a national audience.  When committing a penalty in football, a foul in basketball or taking a dive to draw attention to the referee is hockey and soccer, pouting faces say a thousand words.  While watching the replay on the jumbotron, I’m surprised more athletes don’t go into acting, pleading their innocence.  However, replays never lie and the guilty will be penalized or fined for their illegal play.  Maybe one of the games this weekend will include a player who actually puts up his hand, signaling, “my bad, I didn’t it!”  Despite this optimism, there will be crying, complaining and disbelief today, as the next guilty player will express body language which suggests, “Who me?”

by Jay Mankus