Nick’s Rules

Reminiscent of “Gibb’s rules,” these are somewhat tongue-in-cheek rules that can help me – and maybe you – stay on track in this life. It’s strictly up to you to adopt or reject them 😉

Hey! Lighten up a bit. This page is “mostly” written to reign myself in and take stock of important core concepts and beliefs to help keep me in check. Life can come at me (and you) a thousand miles per hour sometimes. Even with our best human efforts, we can “oh so easily” stumble and fall into snares that our spiritual adversary sets for us. So, read over my rules for living, and maybe some of them will resonate with you. I hope so.

This list will grow and likely change a bit over time. I’ll fine tune them, give and add commentary, and make scripture references as need be. Alrighty then, let’s get on with it:

  • Number One – I ain’t God and I don’t have the mind of God.
    Indeed! When you get right down to it, it is very arrogant to think that we somehow know what God knows or can somehow be on an equal plane with Him. I understand what some believers actually mean when they pontificate about having the mind of God, but other than being sympathetic to how He looks at things, this really is an impossibility. Refs: Isaiah 55:8-9, Psalm 147:5, Romans 11:33, 1 Corinthians 2:11
  • Number Two – I need to yield to the created order.
    This rule examines priorities and acknowledges that God has an order to the creation He established. If we lose sight of the proper order that God designed within His creation, we can really experience spiritual derailment. The wreck can also manifest itself in our relationships and even within our physical existence. In my opinion, this order looks like this: God, family, work, church, and citizenship. I’ll agree that the last three are a bit tricky to line up, so allow me to give you the logic.

    God… this is a no-brainer, since Matthew 22:37 tells us to love Him with everything we are.
    Family… I say this because God established “family” (and yes, the old-fashioned Nuclear Family) as part of the created order in Genesis.
    Work… similarly, this was part of the blessing for man in the creation story in Genesis 2:15 (before the Fall). Then, in Genesis 3:17-19, it became part of the curse for man (after the Fall).
    Church… this was the second critical structure that God established, through Jesus, His Son. I think of it like a spiritual family unit, of sorts. In Matthew 16:18, Jesus told Peter that he would establish His church. Also, 1 Corinthians 12:12-31 talks a whole lot about the importance of the church, the universal nature of the church, and the giftedness of members of the church.
    Citizenship… this is a reference to our general membership in the world of men that God has made. I do believe that God intends for us to live with others in peace, as much as it is for us to control, Romans 12:18 speaks to this. Oh, and Romans 13:1-7 has a lot to say about citizenship and recognizing authorities and governments. I confess, this is not at all easy to do when we see the government perverting God’s culture for its own twisted purposes.
  • Number Three – I need to keep the main thing the main thing.
    This speaks to the Christian mandate found in Matthew 28:19-20 and Acts 1:8. In my view, this is not directed ONLY to the big “A” Apostles, nor to the people that our churches pay to lead us. I believe that in a general sense, we all should be engaged in Gospel outreach, sharing the Good News with people near and far. Consider what 2 Corinthians 5:11-21 has to say to us through Paul’s writings.


Hold on tight friends… this list will evolve and grow over time 😉