Core Values

Remain true to core values like honesty, family, and your faith in God. When a person betrays his or her core values, he or she loses a piece of themselves. They are, at best, only part of what they could be. People respect and trust people that hold true to their core values.


Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) -Hebrews 10:23


Is your devotional life lacking? Rekindle the fire with For His Glory: 31 Daily Meditations. This affordable (Only $1.49) eBook will get you back on track. Peek inside and see why.

A Parenting Tip

When I first entered the ministry and my children were young, I could tell anyone how to rise their children. As my children grew faster than my wallet could afford, I grew smaller. I never doubted that the word of God contained all that was needed to raise kids; but I quickly became aware that the ministry of parenting is complex because each child is complicated. I found that they learned to push my buttons faster than I could learn theirs. I tell you this to prep you for this one simple truth: On planet earth their is no parenting guru and no earthly author that can tell you how to raise kids -- especially me!

Having said that, here is a Parenting Tip! 

Practice reading the Bible with your children. Let your children see you reading your Bible. Lastly, do everything within your creative power to encourage them to read the Bible! If you do so, your children will be introduced to the source of true wisdom and you will be reading the best book written on parenting and life.

So great is my veneration for the Bible that the earlier my children begin to read it the more confident will be my hope that they will prove useful citizens of their country and respectable members of society. I have for many years made it a practice to read through the Bible once every year. --John Quincy Adams

For insights into life and the wisdom of God, I encourage you to invest in  For His Glory. See how you can read it free on amazon.

Don't Play the Button Game

What are your buttons? What are those sensitive areas of your life that when exposed instantaneously ignites a response? What are those buttons that get an immediate knee-jerk reaction when pushed? Everyone has a few; and they are usually obvious to others, especially those close to us. When conflicts or disagreements occur, you can be assured that buttons will get pushed.

Don’t play the button pushing game on others and don’t allow others to play the game with you. The game never produces a winner and builds walls that are difficult to tear down. Resolve conflict and disagreements by disconnecting the sensitivity wire that connects to your emotions and resist the temptation to push the other person’s button. You will be surprised at how even the biggest disagreements can be resolved.  Share 

He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls. (Proverbs 25:28)

Follow Pastor Jim  Follow @pastorbarr

If you like our Tidbit, then you will love our book, For His Glory: A Kaleidoscope of Wisdom. See what others are saying and take a peek inside. Click Here!

Share the wisdom! Link us to your facebook and/or twitter and share this wisdom nugget with others.

Job's Fear for His Children

Today I am reading a devotional thought from F. B. Mayer on Job that contains some wisdom tidbits worthy of sharing.

Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned and renounced God in their hearts. Job 1:5 (R.V.).

TIMES of festivity are always full of temptation. The loins are relaxed, the girdle of the soul is loosed. Amid the general hilarity and the passing of the merry joke, words are said and thoughts permitted which are not always consistent with the character of God and his glorious kingdom and service. Job was not wrong, therefore, in supposing that his children might have contracted some defiling stain.

It necessary for some of us to move in society, and to attend festive gatherings. As the Lord went to the wedding feast, and accepted Simon's invitation, so must we. The sphere of our life lies necessarily in the world. But when we are entering scenes of recreation and pleasure we should be more than ever careful to put on our armour, and by previous meditation and prayer prepare ourselves for the inevitable temptation; and when it is all over, and the lights are down, we should quietly review our behaviour under the light that streams from the Word of God. If we then are made aware of frivolous or uncharitable words, of jealousy because others have outshone us, or of pride at the splendour of our dress and the brilliance of our talk, we must confess it, and obtain forgiveness and restoration.

What a beautiful example is furnished by Job to Christian parents! When your girls are going among strangers, and your boys into the great ways of the world, and you are unable to impose your will upon them, as in the days of childhood, you can yet pray for them, casting over them the shield of intercession, with strong cryings and tears. They are beyond your reach; but by faith you can move the arm of God on their behalf. –F.B. Meyer

Take care who you allow to influence your life*

Take care who you allow to influence your life for who you allow to influence your life will have some control of your life. The sphere of those who exercise influence is broader than you may think.  It includes your family and friends but also includes your enemies and those you may dislike. A person that allows his enemies to determine his or her attitude or his or her decisions allowed them, at that point to control their life. Of course, not all influence from others is undesirable. The loving influence of a father or mother can have positive results and the encouragement of a loving friend can determine a good attitude.

The choices of who you allow to influence you are yours and yours alone. Your choices will determine the paths of your life. Most of those paths can be altered and corrected with the exception of one. Who you trust to determine your eternal destiny will have an everlasting affect. The ultimate and only influencer for eternal directions is the Lord Jesus Christ because he alone holds the keys eternity.

“…choose you this day whom ye will serve…” Joshua 24:15

“How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him…” 1 Kings 18:21

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. John 14:6  

If you enjoy Pastor Jim's Wisdom Tidbits, then you will love his book For His Glory: A Kaleidoscope of Wisdom. Take a peek on the inside and see what others have said.

May we suggest Seven Tips for Dealing with Anger

Follow @pastorbarr

A Father's Prayer

Dear God, my little boy of three
Has said his nightly prayer to Thee.
Before his eyes were closed in sleep
He asked that Thou his soul would keep.

And I still kneeling at his bed,
My hand upon his tousled head,
Do ask with deep humility
That Thou, dear Lord, remember me.

Make me, kind Lord, a worthy dad,
That I may lead this little lad
In pathways ever fair and bright
That I may keep his steps aright.

My Father, Ed Barr -JB

O God, his trust must never be
Destroyed or ever marred by me.
So, for the simple things he prayed,
With childish voice so unafraid

I trembling ask the same from Thee
Dear Lord, kind Lord, remember me. 
 (“A Father’s Prayer,” anonymous)

Two Keys to being a Good Parent!

Deuteronomy 6:6-7 (NKJV)
And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. 

Proverbs 22:6 (NKJV)
Train up a child in the way he should go,
And when he is old he will not depart from it. 

Ask anyone what they would consider the toughest jobs on planet earth and you would get a long list of a variety of rugged occupations.  Ask them where they would place parenting and most would agree that it tops the list.  No calling carries the responsibility and is more demanding than that of being a good parent.

Parenting is an on-the-job, never-ending training that requires hands-on experience and a 24/7/365 daily attention.  Ask any parent that has changed a baby and they will tell you, parenting requires a strong stomach.  

Nonetheless, parenting is the biggest honor ever bestowed on a person by God. Thus the Bible addresses the requirements of a person to be a good parent. Near the top of the list is one big don't and one big do!

The don't is simple.  Don't be passive!  
Passiveness is to be indifferent, unconcerned, apathetic to the child and his or her needs.  Passive is unloving.  Passiveness leaves the child without guidance, instruction, and discipline. When a parent is indifferent to a child, they teach a disregard for life and God.  The child is detached from love and has no assurance of protection or acceptance. 

On the positive side, the Bible teaches us that parents should be proactive.  They should love with an unending and unconditional love; they should instruct the child in the ways of the Lord.  The child is nurtured and taught that they are important both to the family and to the Lord.  

This kind of hands-on-proactive parenting requires the help of the Holy Spirit, and parents willing to observe the teaching of the Bible -- and much prayer.  

The following Bible verses will reinforce this article and will be helpful to parents.

Proverbs 22:6; Proverbs 3:12; Deuteronomy 6:6–7; Ephesians 6:4; Colossians 3:21; Psalms 139:13-16; Proverbs 1:8-9; Proverbs 19:18; Proverbs 29:17

These quotations and blog articles may be helpful

• Quotes Addressing Raising Teenagers 
• Quotes on Motherhood 
• A Parenting Tip 
• Shut Up! Daddy's Watching Football! 

Fathers/Husbands - Show love, and you will win love!.

That every man should bear rule in his own house. Esther 1:22.

ONE of the pre-requisites in choosing a presiding officer in the early Church was that he should rule well his own house; "for if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the Church of God?" (1 Tim. iii. 4, 5).

When a man bears rule as husband and father in the love of God, there is no issue of commands which conflict with primary obligations; rather than that, his authority represents the Divine authority. As Christ received his authority from the Father, so does a man derive and receive his from Christ; and in the recognition of his delegated right and ability to lead, the entire household becomes well ordered. The relaxation of the bonds of authority and government in our homes is one of the saddest symptoms of national decay, as it is among the predicted signs of the end (2 Tim. iii. 2, 3).

But, on the other hand, you must show yourself worthy to lead and rule your home. Your character must be such as to command respect. Those whom God has put into your charge require that you do not us your authority for selfish or capricious ends. Above all, love is the source of the truest authority. We count nothing hard or irksome that we do for those we love. Show love, and you will win love; and on love will be built respect, reverence, and obedience.

One of the most eloquent of modern Italians has said truly: "You can only obtain the exercise of your rights by deserving them, through your own activity, and your own spirit of love and sacrifice!" Christ's golden rule holds good in every phase of life — "In all things, whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them." -F. B. Meyer (1847-1929), Our Daily Homily

Restart your devotional time with For His Glory: 31 Daily Meditations. 

Love Is Like A Might Oak

Today's Wisdom Tidbit is a Snippet from For His Glory: A Kaleidoscope of Wisdom and is used with permission. Get another peek into Pastor Jim's book by Clicking Here.

Love is like a mighty oak. It can weather the storms of life and withstand the heat of opposition. But even the might oak must be watered to live. Love must be nurtured to survive and grow. Nurture your love for your spouse, your children, your family, your friends, your neighbor, and above all for your Lord.

A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. -John 13:34

The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love That Lasts By Gary Chapman / Northfield Press Marriages may be made in heaven, but they must be nurtured here on earth. In this new paperback edition of Dr. Gary Chapman's bestselling book, The Five Love Languages, he explains how people communicate love in different ways, and shares the wonderful things that happen when men and women learn to speak each other's language. Chapters are categorized by love language and each one ends with simple steps to express a specific language to your spouse and guide your marriage in the right direction. Paperback. A Focus on the Family recommendation.

Love and Safety

Love and safety are two gifts every living thing desires. When you provide an environment where unconditional love can be found and safety is assured, you can always count on a positive result. This is true with children and spouses! By giving enormous amounts of unselfish love and by being consistent with providing an atmosphere of safety you will develop great relationships.

Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. -1 Peter 4:8 NIV

Shut Up! Daddy's Watching Football!

The crime of kidnapping is based on this premise: The family loves the victim more than their money. Without that basis, kidnapping would be futile. Yet, every day we claim and express in words our love for others but often put our substance and/or our desires before the one we claim to love.

Take for example a young boy our family tried to help. His father often expressed his love to his son in words but in practice he put a series of things before his son in the following order: Daddy’s Corvette, Daddy’s Boat, Daddy’s Job and Daddy’s New Wife (The new wife was well aware of the order).

While most of you reading this wisdom tidbit would not fit into the above extreme, many would in a less obvious manner. Work followed by rest comes before time with the kids. The new sofa in the “living room” is strictly off limit – thus making “the living room” an oxymoron. Watching football is more important than playing football. Hopefully, you are getting the idea.

What is today’s wisdom tidbit? The order by which you rank your loves speaks louder than words. Follow @pastorbarr

Comments welcome! Both Yea and Nay!

This site is made possible in part by Pastor Jim's book, For His Glory: A Kaleidoscope of Wisdom. Please consider adding it to your reading list. Find out more by Clicking Here.