Do'er

Being an obedient follower of Christ (Christian), is an action. James 1:22-25,  "Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.  Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.  But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do".  We can hear the word all we want, know the word/law (Pharisee's) --yet not be pleasing to our God.  It's only when we apply/submit our lives by:  seeking the lost, praising God, being the light in a sinful world can we bring glory and honor to our King.  We have all heard the saying 'practice makes perfect'-very apropos to our faith walk.  We must 'be on guard' (Proverbs 4:23) to protect our hearts from being hardened.
I challenge us all, myself included, to put our faith in constant action, making our lives a self sacrifice for Christ.  Focus on the eternal (upward) and do not conform to the desire of earthly treasures.  Are you a "Do'er' today?  Or perhaps stuck on the sidelines or in the stands as a spectator.......simply attempting to 'get by'.  We know what God thinks about being lukewarm.  There is a song by former Newsboy Perer Furler which says- 'I'm alive, I'm on fire and my spirit burns with desire.  You set me alive.....and with no way to hold it inside'.  Are you on fire for God--a Do'er?  Blessings in your pursuit.......TO

Fruitful

There is a passage I recently read that prompted yet another self examination that I want to share.  Ezekiel 47: 1-12--'The River from the Temple'.  Particularly, inquisitive words in verses 9 and12.

(9)- Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. ........so where the river
flows everything will live.
(12)- Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither,
nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear fruit, because the water from the
sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.
                   
This river flowed from the Temple and yielded much fruit/life wherever it was present.  To parallel, I must ask myself, 'what type,if any or how much, fruit yielding substance is flowing from myself (temple)?  Am I the light of Christ,encouraging, kind, serving, compassion, loving, etc. to those where my life flows?  I challenge us all to live the life God calls us to as children of His.....to let godliness and Jesus flow from our temple/lives.........and allow God to yield many souls.  Blessings in your pursuit.......TO

Our 'Judas'

We live in a world filled with anger, polarization, disconnect, revenge, apathy/indifference and injustices.  We will be wronged many times in our lives....and yes, we ourselves will wrong others.  How do we react?  Do we want to get even, right the wrong, show we are better than they?   What was Jesus example?  John 13 shows Jesus attitude towards those that will deny, betray.....sin against Him.  He shows love, kindness, compassion and extends grace......He washed their feet.  God says vengeance is His (Romans 12:19 and Deuteronomy 32:35).  How are you reacting toward the "Judas's" of your life. How can we expect to be forgiven and shown love and mercy, if we do not practice that serving attitude?  We must be able to deny and humble ourselves to forgive when we have been hurt/wronged.......to extend love, kindness and compassion......'to wash feet',  allowing God to judge and make all the wrongs ---right--- in His timing.  Easy?  not in our inherent human emotions, but with God's power available, it is definitely possible....and commanded.  Blessings in your pursuit.......TO

Google Faith?

     We live in an instant gratification society where there is an abundance of knowledge and information at our finger tips.....literally!-- keystrokes to be exact.  Within an instant, we can find out just about anything about everything known to mankind via a search engine of your choice on the Internet.  I'm not complaining, it is cool, convenient and educational.  While this is not necessarily bad, if we are not cautious, we can easily transition this pattern of expectations within our faith.
     Quite frankly, we want/demand the same results from God through our prayers/petitions.....which can affect our attitude, our heart, and the way we live our lives.  We want to know all the "why's" of this earthly life..........and now!  However, God does not need to offer an explanation to us or answer all our prayers the way we would like........He simply asks us to trust.  Yet, do we? It is a challenge, but we must dismiss the need to know all those "why's", instead lean on God's promises/love. We do not need to discern all of life's trials to have that peace that passes all understanding--we need to know the One that is caring/compassionate-that is our Creator and God.  His wisdom is perfect.   Scripture tells us that God's ways are higher than ours (Isaiah 55:8-9).  In this world of instant knowledge, we must use caution not place our trust in the knowledge, but by placing it solely in our Almighty God.  It is human nature to ask God what our heart desires.......He wants us to.  The challenge is to mature in our faith to really believe and live as God knows what is best for us......and when.  It's difficult to not allow the unknowns to consume us, deteriorating our faith/trust in Him alone. 
     Where is your focus today?  Consumed with doubts and frustrations of the "why's", or upward in our Saviour's embracing love for us?  Proverbs 3:5-6, Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;  in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.     Blessings in your pursuit.......TO

Who is GOOD? Drop an "O"

I have lived my life sometimes with a prideful attitude by describing myself  as being a good person.  We all know how God views the proud and haughty!  While it may be true that I have lived a life more comprised of ‘good’ than "bad"-the fact finally hit straight to my heart the more I read the Bible.   NEWSFLASH!!!  I am sinful because I am human flesh-I AM NOT GOOD!-meaning I am not the source of any good things I have done/may do.  Sin is darkness/evil-opposite of God.  Scriptures tell us of the only source of GOOD, and that is our Almighty God.  Hence, who is GOOD-drop an ‘O’ which translates to GOD. God is good!   The more I study, I realize how unworthy I am of God’s goodness, patience, love, forgiveness-yet He freely gives and offers to all-desiring us to choose this obedience way of LIFE .  Good things should flow from those of us claiming to be Christians by God working in us in the form of the Holy Spirit.  We are simply vessels and instruments that God can use for good.  Satan has a knack for making us believe that it is about us-when it simply is not.  In Matthew 19:17 & Mark 10:18, Jesus tells the rich young man that there is only One who is good.  Even Jesus when called ‘Good teacher’, tells this man that no one is good except God alone. God is the source of all that is good. I now try to be more circumspect when I describe myself and/or when tempted to pat myself on the back for something ‘good I have done'!    Blessings in your pursuit…….TO    

Believe

I do not know what the writer had in mind for this song or the implication.  The lyrics do promote an uncanny resemblance  to God's promises.  One comment said the following-It's about God making himself known to a person who has nothing left to live for.  The following is what I  perceive as a derived analogy of the song's chorus. It's what our God is all about and this chorus, as I interpret, provides a reminder regarding the Sovereign God we should strive to serve.  The song is called 'Believe' by one of my favorite bands......Trans Siberian Orchestra (TSO).

CHORUS                                                          ANALOGY

I am the way                                               He is the Way
I am the light                                              He is the Light
I am the dark inside the night                    He is our refuge/protector

I hear your hopes                                       He hears our prayers
I feel your dreams                                      He knows our thoughts
And in the dark I hear your screams          Our earnest pleas/petitions

Don't turn away                                          Be steadfast, keep my eye on Jesus
Just take my hand                                       Humbly seek God, embrace His love
And when you make your final stand         What will my decision be-to follow or disobey

I'll be right there                                         God never leaves us-we have free will/choice
I'll never leave                                            God is faithful to His promises
And all I ask of you is                                  Salvation is readily available to all
Believe                                                          

 

Do you BELIEVE that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that He died for our sins, rose in 3 days, reigns in Heaven with our God?

I challenge each one to embrace the Word of God and grow in your belief- resting in His hope, promises, love and mercy.  Blessings in your pursuit.......TO

                                                                      

HOPE from the "pits of life"

The example of Joseph's life (Gen 37-50) has many facets/plots/twists.....favoritism from his father resulting in sibling jealousy/rejection, thrown into a pit and sold as a slave.  Joseph must have felt alone, abandoned, betrayed, doubt and fearful.  Yet, my guess is that through his dreams he chose to trust God's timing by persevering through these difficulties for a better plan/outcome.  Easy?  I'm certain we all agree.....NO WAY!

Joseph's trust and faithfulness led to him to become second in command in Egypt.  When the drought came (just as he had dreamed about), he could have taken revenge on his brothers.  Instead, he denied self and the tendency hold a grudge.....he chose to forgive and reunite his family.  God used Joseph trials for a greater purpose/good as he was instrumental in making provisions available to many during the drought.  Gen 50:20 says, You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.  It is certainly easier to view the story knowing the end result.  We struggle "in the now" as we do not know our future.  While I'm certain Joseph struggled at times, God knew he would persevere and trust to the end.  What a great example of HOPE from the "pits of life".  Of course, that does not mean that everything will work out the way we want.....there will be disappointments, hurt, suffering.....during our time in this world.

In order to get out of "the pits", we must trust while releasing our fear and pain to our awesome God.  We must learn to look at trials not as God not caring or that He does not love us, but as an instrument used towards His ultimate plan for our life......in His timing.  This trusting attitude will reap high rewards (as God has promised)........if we take the step of faith by submitting/releasing to our God.  Blessings in your pursuit.......TO