Struggling with God's Will?

There have been times I have earnestly prayed for God to show me His will for what He made me to do/be.  I have prayed for the job He wants me in, where geographically he wants me, what congregation to worship with/be involved at, and probably a host of other requests.  I came across an article the one day that has changed my outlook.  While it is perfectly normal to ask and seek answers from our God through prayer, are these petitions reflective of my will or God’s?  1 Thes. 5:16-18 says; "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus".  WOW!  I am guilty of wanting/perhaps demanding direct answers and guidance to specific prayer requests to God.  Yes, we should ask.  But my response should be to be joyful and thankful no matter the circumstance and/or answer and continue to pray and trust.  Prayer is our 24/7 hotline to God.  It keeps us connected to our rock/refuge/comforter.  Giving thanks helps take the focus off the trials and allows more time to enjoy the blessings God has provided.  So, no matter where I work or live, what career or potential spouse we (or our children)choose, and any other important choices-God’s will is to be thankful, prayerful and cultivate joy.  I sometimes fret over making the ‘right’ choice.  Instead, my goal now is to pray for guidance, use all available resources in making decisions, then trusting God, and getting to the understanding that sometimes there are no ‘right or wrong’ choices-but just multiple options.  That means the pressure of making the exact right decision, or else entirely missing God's will, is off.  And that's one thing we can give God thanks for today!  Blessings in your pursuit…….TO

Total Surrender

Are you ready to ‘give up’?  

All our lives we are usually encouraged by special influential people to persevere, don’t give up-you can do it!  Sound advice for becoming/being your best. It has been stated that Thomas Edison made 1,000 unsuccessful attempts at inventing the light bulb! We sure have benefited from Mr. Edison's resilience and perseverance. Winston Churchill said to 'never, never, never give up'. No doubt, excellent motivation/advise. That said, I want to suggest there is a time to ‘give up’....... in a different manner of speaking.  It is the humbling act of denying ourselves and following Jesus.   In Luke 14:25-35, Jesus addresses the commitment demanded for a life of obedience.  Verse 33 tells us that unless we give up everything, we cannot be a disciple.  Does this really mean we must give up all in order to faithfully follow Jesus.   I don’t believe that necessarily.  It’s more about an attitude of whether ‘we have things’ or ‘things have us’.  Just as Jesus was warning this crowd of followers of the cost for a complete surrender, we must put away/give up those things that distract us.  Prioritizing-beginning with God- is the perplexing and constant battle that can entrap us.  Blessings in your pursuit…….TO

One

  One is important to God

 We typically want to see ‘big’ results of our service actions.......and NOW! I want to help lead many to Jesus, perhaps be a super hero in sharing Jesus/The Good News.  While it’s great to set lofty goals, this can lead to getting discouraged, doubt, and narcissistic in my efforts to share Jesus.  Luke 15:1-10, one brings rejoice/joy, one is important to God.  If I should just lead one to know God-much rejoicing will occur in Heaven-just like in the parables that Jesus taught regarding the joy in a master/owner finding the one lost sheep and one coin.  Let’s nurture our relationships with others and plant seeds through our actions to all that are part of our lives.  We as humans may see just one/or a few as insignificant or as 'failing'. However, God rejoices, every ONE is important to our Creator!  Blessings in your pursuit…….TO

Circumstantial Faith

Recently, I heard a devotional on the subject of faith.  The fundamental point was how quickly we can allow life's circumstances to influence/affect our faith.  Faith is defined as hope/belief in the unknown/unseen.  In John 20:24-29, tells how the doubting disciple Thomas allowed the fact he had not seen Jesus after he had risen to affect his faith.  It was not until he encountered Jesus in person that he believed Christ had resurrected.  His belief/faith was circumstantial based on sight.  Jesus then says,  "because you have seen me, you believe.  Blessed are they that have not seen, yet have believed." 
When our circumstances find themselves in our favor or we have seen/experienced something, we more easily trust.  However, when the trials arise and alter our situation to the unpleasant challenges or the 'unknowns' of life......oh how quickly that can change our faith/trust.  It is then, I must respond to the question, is my faith embedded in God.......or in my circumstances?  Blessings in your pursuit.......TO

Just Drop The Blanket

This post is inspired by an article on Christianity.com. I never looked at this pivotal scene as brought out by Mr. Soroski.  Enjoy!
Just Drop the Blanket: The Moment You Never Noticed in A Charlie Brown Christmas,                   by Jason Soroski
This week A Charlie Brown Christmas aired on national prime time television for the 50th time. In a world where the latest greatest technology is outdated in a matter of months, and social media trends come and go in a matter of days, 50 years of anything becomes quite meaningful.
I am a fan of all things nostalgic and all things Christmas, and so when the two are combined I am hooked, and the Charlie Brown Christmas special falls squarely into that category. 
I was in the first grade back when they still performed Christmas pageants in schools (less than 50 years, but still a very long time ago), and our class performed a version of the Charlie Brown Christmas. Since I was kind of a bookworm and already had a blue blanket, I was chosen to play the part of Linus. As Linus, I memorized Luke 2:8-14, and that Scripture has been hidden in my heart ever since.  But while working so diligently to learn those lines, there is one important thing I didn’t notice then, and didn’t notice until now.  Right in the middle of speaking, Linus drops the blanket.......

Charlie Brown is best known for his uniquely striped shirt, and Linus is most associated with his ever-present security blanket. Throughout the story of Peanuts, Lucy, Snoopy, Sally and others all work to no avail to separate Linus from his blanket. And even though his security blanket remains a major source of ridicule for the otherwise mature and thoughtful Linus, he simply refuses to give it up. Until this moment.  When he simply drops it.  In that climactic scene when Linus shares "what Christmas is all about," he drops his security blanket, and I am now convinced that this is intentional. Most telling is the specific moment he drops it: when he utters the words, "fear not".

Looking at it now, it is pretty clear what Charles Schultz was saying, and it's so simple it's brilliant.

The birth of Jesus separates us from our fears. The birth of Jesus frees us from the habits we are unable (or unwilling) to break ourselves.
The birth of Jesus allows us to simply drop the false security we have been grasping so tightly, and learn to trust and cling to Him instead.

The world of today can be a scary place, and most of us find ourselves grasping to something temporal for security, whatever that thing may be. Essentially, today is a world in which it is very difficult for us to "fear not."  But in the midst of fear and insecurity, this simple cartoon image from 1965 continues to live on as an inspiration for us to seek true peace and true security in the one place it has always been and can always still be found--Our Creator.
Blessings in your pursuit.......TO

Righteousness-the gift that keeps on giving

Righteousness took place at the Cross.  The saving blood of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. This act of love and obedience to God was the just payment for our sinfulness, allowing us the freedom in Christ to escape what we deserve.

I recently read an article that described three viewpoints of righteousness:
Perfect Righteousness-discourages us especially when we fall short of God's glory.
Comparative Righteousness- deceives us.  Jesus is our example, no one else!
Imputed Righteousness- is given/credited to us.  This approach will define you, declare our innocence through the blood of Jesus, and provide freedom.

Righteousness dos not simply take something away (sin), it provides/gives us Hope; Eternal Life; Salvation. Righteousness is a unending/perpetual gift to all obedient believers.  I should always have a spirit of continuous gratitude.  Blessings in your pursuit.......TO

Clay and Hearts (Soft or Hard)

Just as a potter can only work with soft clay, God also desires soft hearts to create beautiful results.  The world in which we live measures us by education, abilities, social class, materialism, appearance, and other worldly comparisons.  God determines our value by the condition of the heart.  1 Samuel 16:7 says,  But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”  A hardened heart is not receptive to instruction, discipline, humbleness, submission, etc. (see Hebrews 3:15).  A forty year lesson was experienced by God's people in the desert due to disobedience and hardened hearts.  God will still work on us in this condition because of His great love.....but ultimately, it is our choice-He wants a genuine relationship, a soft receptive heart......not one out of force/compulsion. Only with a soft heart can we be molded into the person He desires.  Just as clay is hardened by many factors-content or lack of water, our hearts can be hardened by sin, deception, gossip, negativity, pride, rebellion and others.  Looking to God and Jesus is the remedy.  Protect your heart/thoughts with prayer, study of the Word, worship, meditation.  Look at what the following passages tell us: Proverbs 4:23 -guard our hearts; Ephesians 5:21 -submit; Romans 12:3 -lose the pride; many others tell us to flee sin, repent and run to Jesus.  This can result in a more purer, Christ-like  soft heart that he wants to work with.....just like a potter and soft clay.  Blessings in your pursuit.......TO