Time to Begin Again!

This is what the Lord says— he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters, “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.

Isaiah 43:16, 18-19

God is Right!

Was driving home this morning from my Uber responsibilities as a driver, and I was reflecting on my life.  Several thoughts ran through my mind as I reflected, but the major theme of my thoughts was that God is Right! His words are right! Whether we make bad choices or good choices, God's word will prove true in our lives.  If we are sexually immoral, commit adultery, dishonor our parents, steal, gossip, slander, murder, hate, envy, covet, or take delight in injustice, we shall reap the negative consequences of such evil actions. On the other hand, if we love, practice mercy, faithfulness, justice, show compassion, pursue peace, honor others, and stay humble, we shall reap the positive fruits of those good actions.

I have lived long enough now to have seen the results of both sides of disobedience and obedience to God. And the conclusion is this: If we can see the truth of God's word play out in our lives in this life, why should we not think that God will be true as it pertains to the next life? In other words, God shows us His reality, credibility and truth in this life, so that there will be no surprises when His word proves true in the next life.  Heaven is Real! Hell is Real! God is trying to prepare each one of us for either an eternity with Him or one without Him. God's preference is that we all will CHOOSE to spend an eternity with Him in Heaven, but He will certainly punish people in Hell who CHOOSE to rebel against Him.

Consider a few passages from Holy Scripture about the Veracity of God and His word:

"God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?" 

- Numbers 23:19

“Every word of God is flawless;

    he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.

6 

Do not add to his words,

    or he will rebuke you and prove you a liar."

- Proverbs 30:5-6

 "What if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? Not at all! Let God be true, and every human being a liar. As it is written: “So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge.”


- Romans 3:4

"God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged."

- Hebrews 6:18

He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

- Revelation 21:5

REMEMBER ..... GOD WANTS YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After the Explosion Detonates

There are occasions in our lives when the smoldering wick of sin fans into the flames of absolute explosion and destruction.  WE ALL have a great ability to hide who we really are, and we know how to smile at others while secretly enduring pain or plotting evil.  But there comes a time when we can't run or hide any longer, and the truth is revealed.

Jesus said that it is not the things that we put into our mouths that makes us unclean but what comes out of our hearts is what make us unclean.


He went on: “What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly.  All these evils come from inside and defile a person.”

Mark 7:20-23

There is a way to stop deadly explosions in our lives, however. The Bible encourages us to confess our sins to one another and to walk in the light.  In doing so, we crush the power of sin in our lives by taking away its stronghold, and we defeat the devil at the doorstep to our hearts.

Scripture says:

"Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective."

James 5:16

"This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin."

I John 1:5-7

REMEMBER .... GOD WANTS YOU!!!!!!!

Thank God for Patience

If you are like me, you have had times when you wanted something right here and now.  You did not want to wait for what you wanted. Sometimes we are very impatient! We want to be first in line, first for the promotion on the job, first pick for a date from someone we are interested in or we want to be first to be recognized for something we have done. In short, we lack patience.

Patience is sometimes very difficult because it requires us to wait for what we most long for in our lives.  It means that we have to delay our instant gratification attitude that so many of us have.  It also means that we have to allow others to go before us, and to have their needs met before our needs have been met.

The Bible speaks about the importance of patience.  As a Jesus follower, I am reminded that a life led by the Holy Spirit includes being patient.

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law." 

Galatians 5:22-23

"Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive." 

Colossians 3:12-13

Not only does Scripture inform us that patience should be a part of our Christian walk, but we are reminded that God is patient!

"But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.  But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed ."

2 Peter 3:8-10

WOW! This is a very important point about God because His patience toward us has to do with wanting to save everyone! God is delaying judgment to give everyone a chance to reconcile with Him before it is too late! 


REMEMBER .... GOD WANTS YOU!!!!!!

What if Everyone is Against You?

So what happens when you feel like everyone in the whole world is AGAINST you? Your spouse? Your kids? Your co-workers? Your siblings? Your parents? Your employers? What do you do? How should you feel? How should you respond?

If we live long enough on this earth, I suspect that we will all feel this way at some point in our existence. Many times in the Psalms, King David reflects on this very issue, and he writes eloquently about his view of others who have abandoned him, turned against him or attacked him.

Consider some of these passages:

"Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident." - Psalm 27:3

"My times are in your hands; deliver me from the hands of my enemies, from those who pursue me." - Psalm 31:5

"For I hear many whispering, “Terror on every side!” They conspire against me and plot to take my life." - Psalm 31:13

"Listen to my cry, for I am in desperate need; rescue me from those who pursue me, for they are too strong for me." - Psalm 142:6 

David cried out to God when his enemies came to take his life.  He relied on the God who created him to deliver him from trouble. David humbled himself before God and confessed that he was not strong enough to stand against such adversity. He pleaded for divine help.

In the New Testament, there is one passage that stands as a tremendous resource of comfort when faced with feeling like everyone stands against us.

Romans 8:31 

REMEMBER .......GOD WANTS YOU!!!!!!!!

Affirmation

For many of us, Affirmation is very important.  It's like water to a thirsty mouth, food to a hungry stomach, and sugar to a lethargic body. Affirmation can generally be defined as encouragement, declaration of something true, positive assertion and confirmation. I contend that ALL of us as human beings need some form of affirmation in our lives to keep us going in a good and healthy direction.

God is all about Affirmation.  In both the Old and New Testaments of the Holy Bible, God addresses His covenant people (Jews and Christians) with a variety of affirming statements.

Consider some of the Old Testament Affirmation passages that God speaks concerning the Jews:

"For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession." - Deuteronomy 7:6

"See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me." - Isaiah 49:16

Now Considers some of the New Testament Affirmation passages that God speaks concerning Christians:

"No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." 
- Romans 8:37-39

"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.  Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy." - 1 Peter 2:9-10

REMEMBER .... GOD WANTS YOU!!!!!!! 

Control

Seems like we all want to be in Control of something or someone at some point in our lives.  I heard a solid sermon this morning in church service where the preacher discussed this very topic.  He started the sermon by acknowledging that there are some things in our lives that we just CAN'T Control (e.g., the weather).  I could add many other things to that list: other people's attitudes, decisions that world or national leaders make, the economy, etc.

But what can you and I actually control? We CAN Control our own attitudes, how we respond to other people, and the decisions that we make. One of the more convicting points that the minister made this morning was that we need to Control our Tongues! Then he referenced a Bible passage to validate his point.  Scripture Says:

"Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless." (NIV) 

- James 1:26

OUCH!!!!

That is a very convicting passage of Scripture.  And when we think about bad usage of our tongues, we typically think of using fowl language.  But that is only part of the problem.  There's also gossip, slander, lying, negativity, people put downs, and complaining. We all have to do a much better job in these areas if we are really trying to become more Christ like and spiritual in our daily living.

The minister also reminded us to Control our Tempers.  This is another very challenging discipline because sometimes people misuse their tongues at us to arouse our anger at them! But Scripture says:
"He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty,
    and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city." (MEV)

- Proverbs 16:32

The sooner we begin to focus on the things we CAN control, the better off each one of us will be.

REMEMBER .... GOD WANTS YOU!!!! 

Pressing Forward

We are only Day #2 in the New Year of 2016, and many people are trying to fulfill their New Years's Resolution. One of the great figures of faith in the Holy Bible is the Apostle Paul. As I reflected on Paul's life just a few days ago with a post reflecting on God's usage of him.

Sometimes there are moments in our lives when we reflect on the past decisions that we have made. Those decisions were either good or bad, right or wrong, rich or poor, wise or unwise.  Human nature sometimes leads us down a very negative pathway, and we focus on the evil that we have done rather than the good that we have done.

Paul reflected on his own life BEFORE knowing Christ Jesus as Lord, as well as DURING his walk with Jesus.  He was a well respected, religious teacher in the Jewish community, but he was blazing a trail to Hell because he persecuted Jesus' followers.

All of Paul's accolades and accomplishments meant nothing (dung in his own words) because they didn't bring him any closer to knowing Jesus and possessing eternal life.

The climax of Paul's words in chapter 3 focus on his goal of moving forward in Christ.

"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal,but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."

- Philippians 3:12-14

REMEMBER .... GOD WANTS YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

New Beginnings

There is excitement in the air with anticipation and expectation that great things are going to happen in our lives this year.  This is a Presidential Election year in the United States, the Summer Olympics in Rio, and many more exciting events forthcoming.

The most important question perhaps we should all ask ourselves is this: what kind of person do I want to be this year? On the job? In school? In my personal relationships?

My guess is that most of us want to do better, be better, and make a positive impact in this world.

God has in mind what He wants for all of us this hour, this day, this week, this month, this year, and the rest of our lives.

God loves each and every one of us, and wants the absolute best for all of us. He wants us to enjoy life, be prosperous, help others, use our talents, and make a positive impact in this dark world. But more than that, God wants us to become more like His Son Jesus Christ.  Jesus modeled Perfection to all of us. He modeled Holiness, Sacrifice, and Undying Love for others.

As we begin a New Year, consider this great passage of Scripture:

"For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters."

- Romans 8:29

REMEMBER .... GOD WANTS YOU!!!!!!!