Tag Archives: Christian

April 19, 2016 · 5:30 AM

God’s Secret To Happiness

  Since I was a kid, I heard people tell me, “You become like those you run with.” It was great advice then and now for choosing who you hang out with and listen to. We’ve all received bad advice from someone in our life that has put us in a situation we didn’t want to be in. Some of us have a momentary awkwardness and others have a lifetime of regret because of the consequences of that choice. Either way, we got into the mess by taking advice from someone we shouldn’t have been hanging around.

Psalm 1 is one of my life chapters. What I mean by that is that I see it as a promise from God so I’ve tried to build my life on it. The chapter starts out by telling us, “Happy are those who reject the advice of evil people, who do not follow the example of sinners or join those who have no use for God” (GNT). If you want to be happy, stop taking advice from people who don’t know the principles found in God’s Word. Find better people to hang out with if you want your life to change.

If you’ve followed this site for a while, you know the struggles I went through years ago. When I hit rock bottom, I worked my way backwards to find out how I got there. It all started with choices to hang out with and associate myself with people who had no use for God and what I believed. When I looked at my life, I realized I wasn’t happy. God took me back to this chapter and called me back to being who He called me to be in verse 2. It says, “Instead, they find joy in obeying the Law of the Lord, and they study it day and night.”

If we will get away from the wrong crowd and start living the way God’s Word tells us to, we’ll not only find happiness, but joy. But God doesn’t stop there. He gives us another promise in verse three if we live that way. It says, “They are like trees that grow beside a stream, that bear fruit at the right time, and whose leaves do not dry up. They succeed in everything they do.” God promises productivity, success, favor, and happiness in our life if we will just live the way He wants us to and associate ourselves with like minded people.

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April 6, 2016 · 5:30 AM

Godly Counsel

  
We all need counseling from time to time. We need the wisdom of a trusted friend, advisor, or professional. Whoever we get it from. It’s important that the counsel we receive lines up with God’s Word. The Bible is full of wisdom that can provide insight and give direction in just about anything we face. The book of Proverbs alone is full of wisdom and great insight into how we should think and make decisions.

As King, David was often in need of counseling. He wanted to make the best choice. If he couldn’t find someone to give him godly advice, He went straight to God for help. In Psalm 16:7, David wrote, “I bless the Lord who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me” (ESV). David took what God said and put it in his heart so that even at night, he dreamed about what to do.

The thing about counsel is, its worthless unless you follow it. You can listen to it, dream about it, and think about it all you want, but nothing in your life will change until you do something with it. So many times, we get good, godly advice, but we are afraid to act on it. People who are like that are like those who admired the Brooklyn Bridge when it was built. They stood on the edge and admired it, but were afraid to walk across it. It wasn’t until P. T. Barnum walked his elephants across it.

God’s Word, like the Brooklyn Bridge, is strong and can be trusted to handle whatever you’re going through. Listen to the advice and counsel that comes from Him. Put it deep in your heart so that it becomes a part of you. Trust your heart too. God has given us the Holy Spirit to help us discern what is right. It’s not a sign of weakness to need or to get counsel. It shows strength to admit you don’t know everything. Just make sure the people you’re getting it from know God’s Word.

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April 5, 2016 · 5:30 AM

Go Without Going

  
When I read Mark 16:15 where Jesus said, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone, (NLT)” I get excited and want to grab my passport. I want to spin a globe, put my finger on it, and go immerse myself in that culture so I can be the hands and feet of Jesus. To many of you reading this, that is the scariest thought you could ever have. You have no desire to leave home, and that’s ok.

So many think that the only way to fulfill the Great Commission is to leave home and to go. I believe there are at least two other ways you can “go”. One way is to send your prayers for those who are around the world winning the lost to Christ. Having lived over seas in a missions capacity, I can honestly tell you that you can feel the prayers. You know at that moment that someone is praying for you. Those people who pray will inherit a reward for those souls as well.

Another way you can go without going is to give to those who go. It costs more than you think to be in full time missions. Beyond housing and living expenses, they have to create and print literature, deliver it or mail it, visit various parts of the country, and so many more things that require money. If you can’t or won’t go, give to those who will and are. You will reap where they reap.

In I Samuel 30, David and his men were chasing an army that kidnapped their families and burned down their town. A couple of days into the journey, about 200 men decided they couldn’t go any further. The rest caught the other army, fought them, and recovered everything and more. When they got back to the 200, they didn’t want to share. David said in verse 24, “We share and share alike – those who go to battle and those who guard the equipment.” He set the precedent that all of us involved, in whichever way we can, will receive the reward. 

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April 1, 2016 · 5:30 AM

Controlling The Tongue

  
Have you ever said the wrong thing at the wrong time? It happens to me all the time. I ignore the filter and say things that hurt, offend, or are not uplifting. It’s not intentional. It just comes out. I think many of us are guilty of poorly chosen words or of saying the wrong thing at the wrong time. The book of James says that no man came tame the tongue, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to watch what we say.

The Bible has a lot to say about the tongue and our words. I believe that while we will never tame it, we can learn to control it and use it better. We have a choice in the words we use each and every day. Some are spoken in the heat of the moment and others are well thought out. No matter when, what, or how we say something, once those words leave our mouth, they can never be taken back. It’s important that we choose wisely.

Here are some Bible verses to help watch what we say.

1. Watch your tongue and keep your mouth shut, and you will stay out of trouble.
Proverbs 21:23 NLT

2. Thoughtless words can wound as deeply as any sword, but wisely spoken words can heal.
Proverbs 12:18 GNT

3. A gentle response defuses anger, but a sharp tongue kindles a temper-fire.
Proverbs 15:1 MSG

4. Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.
Proverbs 18:21 ESV

5. If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless.
James 1:26 NLT

6. And my tongue shall talk of Your righteousness, rightness, and justice, and of [my reasons for] Your praise all the day long.
Psalm 35:28 AMP

7. For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven…

A time to tear and a time to mend. A time to be quiet and a time to speak.
Ecclesiastes 3:1, 7 NLT

8. Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.
Proverbs 17:27 ESV

9. Smart people know how to hold their tongue; their grandeur is to forgive and forget.
Proverbs 19:11 MSG

10. Take control of what I say, O LORD, and guard my lips.
Psalms 141:3 NLT

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March 31, 2016 · 5:30 AM

Being Rescued

  
A couple of years ago I joined a concierge service at the airport. With my card, I could bypass all the lines, go past the TSA person checking tickets and ID’s, and go straight to the X-Ray machines. It was great. I no longer had issues at the airport. I didn’t have to worry about getting there two hours early or worry about all the TSA drama. It was worry free traveling. It was a lot like many people think life will be like when they become a Christian.

They think that becoming a Christian means you have no more troubles, problems, or issues. You can coast through life bypassing all of its issues. If you have a need, simply pray and ask God for it. If you do have problems or unanswered prayers, you must have hidden sin or be out of God’s will. Their perception of Christianity is all wrong. Being a Christian doesn’t exempt you from any of life’s problems. It gives you someone to cast those troubles on.

Every Christian can attest that their troubles didn’t stop the day they became a Christian. They didn’t become a perfect person, nor did their life become perfect. In many cases, their troubles increased. When troubles over take my life, I like to remember Psalm 34:19. It says, “The righteous person faces many troubles, but the LORD comes to the rescue each time” (NLT). No matter how many troubles I face or how hard my life gets, I can count on God to come to my rescue.

That doesn’t mean the troubles go away or the devastation they cause in my life disappears. It means that God doesn’t abandon me in those times. He comes to give me strength to endure them. God knows that troubles produce growth, strength, and endurance, so why would he keep us from things that produce positive traits? Christians will have troubles, but they don’t have to be afraid of them because God comes to their rescue and uses them to work out His good in their lives.

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March 24, 2016 · 5:30 AM

Simple Obedience 

  
Do you remember when you were told to clean your room? What did you do? You probably went in there and thought of ways to not do it. After a long time contemplating, you decided to either shove everything under the bed or put it in the closet. When your room is checked, you didn’t fool anyone. The shelves and boxes where your things should have been are still bare. Your closet gets opened and your sheets pulled back exposing your lack of obedience.

Sure the floor is free of clutter, but you didn’t do what was asked. You didn’t clean your room. You merely rearranged it without putting things where they belonged. In your mind, you think you obeyed, but deep down you know what you did was an act of defiance. You try to argue your case by using technicalities, but you don’t get very far. What you’ve done is caused more work for yourself and lost more time because you have to do it over the right way.

Saul was like that. He got specific instructions from God on what to do, but somehow put the toys in the closet every time. He obeyed, but didn’t. Each time he had an excuse for doing what he did. God finally had enough and Samuel called him out on it. In I Samuel 15:22-23 Samuel said to Saul, “What is more pleasing to the LORD: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice? Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams. Rebellion is as sinful as witchcraft, and stubbornness as bad as worshiping idols. So because you have rejected the command of the LORD, he has rejected you as king” (NLT).

Each of us struggle with simple obedience for some reason. God gives us simple instructions, but somehow we complicate them. God is looking for us to simply obey what He’s asked us to do. Anything other than obeying His call on your life is an act of rebellion in His eyes. Whatever He’s called you to do, you need to do. Wherever He’s called you to go, you need to go. Whatever He’s called you to say, you need to say. Don’t find ways to put they toys in the closet. Do what He’s asked willingly and with a good attitude and your life will be fulfilled like never before.

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March 21, 2016 · 5:30 AM

A Fast Decision

  
As a person who spends a lot of time driving, I’m forced to make a lot of fast decisions. When people suddenly brake, I have to decide to slam on mine or change lanes. I also have another fast decision to make. Do I bless them or curse them? I would love to say that I hand out more blessing than cursing in traffic. The truth is, in those moments, we default to calling the other person a name, yelling at them, gesturing at them, and or using our vehicle to inform them we don’t like their driving.

In the book of Ruth, Boaz had to make a quick decision. He knew who Ruth was and what she had done for Naomi, so he was very kind to her. On one certain night, Naomi told Ruth, “Now do as I tell you—take a bath and put on perfume and dress in your nicest clothes. Then go to the threshing floor, but don’t let Boaz see you until he has finished eating and drinking. Be sure to notice where he lies down; then go and uncover his feet and lie down there. He will tell you what to do” (Ruth 3:3-4 NLT).

Imagine Boaz sleeping after a hard day’s work and then being woken up by someone pulling the covers off his feet. More than that, he notices it’s a woman. His thoughts may have been, “What if someone sees me laying with a woman?” They could have been, “How dare a servant take my covers!” Whatever they were, when he made a quick decision, it was to bless and not to curse. He told Ruth, “The LORD bless you, my daughter!” Boaz exclaimed. “You are showing even more family loyalty now than you did before, for you have not gone after a younger man, whether rich or poor.”

Boaz not only blessed her, he admitted that there was another family member who was a closer relative to her than he was. Boaz was willing to give up Ruth because it was the right thing to do. He acted with integrity and with a heart that blessed before it cursed. Each of us should adopt that kind of heart. As followers of Christ, we should be about blessing instead of cursing, giving instead of receiving, loving instead of judging, and building instead of tearing down. Our light shines brightest when it blesses. Proverbs 11:25 says, “The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed; those who help others are helped” ‭(MSG‬‬).

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March 10, 2016 · 5:30 AM

Crazy Faith

  
One of my favorite stories in the Bible is found in Joshua 10. Joshua led the Israelites into war against five kings. As they were fighting, God threw hailstones from the heavens and killed more men than the Israelites combined. The battle continued to rage, but the daylight was going to end. That’s when Joshua stopped, looked up into heaven, and said, “Let the sun stand still over Gibeon, and the moon over the valley of Aijalon” (Joshua 10:12 NLT). The next verse says the sun stood still until Israel defeated their enemies.

Can you imagine the kind of boldness, courage, and faith it took to make such a request? This is one of the greatest miracles of the Bible. God paused time so that Joshua could defeat his enemies. I love it when God shows off like this. To me, it’s Him saying, “If you can think it, I can do it. All you have to do is ask.” The problem is that I feel like I’m bothering God when I ask for something crazy like this. But God is sitting there wanting me to stretch my faith and ask Him for the unthinkable.

Ephesians 3:20 is a familiar verse to most Christians, and I love how the Amplified Bible writes this verse. It says, “Now to Him Who, by (in consequence of) the [action of His] power that is at work within us, is able to [carry out His purpose and] do superabundantly, far over and above all that we [dare] ask or think [infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams].” God can do infinitely more than your wildest prayers, craziest hopes, and unrealistic dreams. He’s just waiting for you to trust Him enough to do it.

Many times I wonder if I’m asking God for enough, is my faith big enough, or do I trust Him enough. Joshua asked the sun to stand still, a widow asked Elisha to bring her son back to life, and Peter asked to get out of the boat. All three were granted because they were bold and courageous enough to ask. All three had the faith in God to answer their requests. If God is able to do exceeding, abundantly above all we could ever ask or think, I believe it’s time we had a faith that’s crazy enough to ask for those things.

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March 8, 2016 · 5:55 AM

Read The Instructions

  
Have you ever purchased something that had to be assembled? How did you put it together? Did you read the instructions first and then try to do it? Did you have someone else read them to you and then you tried to build it? Or did you look at the picture and try to do it from that? I confess that I’ve been the latter more often than not. I’m getting better at looking at the instructions though. I’ve found that it’s quicker. As I age, it’s becoming more important to me to take a little longer and get it right the first time than to have the pride of building it on my own without instructions and having parts left over.

The same way we approach an assembly project can be the same way many approach being a Christian. Some people want to read the directions (Bible) to find out how to do it right while they build their faith. Others prefer to have a pastor read the instructions to them and then they try to figure it out from there. Still there are those who feel they have no need to read the Scriptures. They feel like that they can figure it out as they go. They try and fail over and over again until they get it or until they give up. Either way, they either have missing parts or there are parts left that they don’t know what to do with.

I’ve tried all three approaches to God at different stages of my life. When I was a teen, I tried to get by just by listening to my pastor and teachers. I got a decent understanding of what Christianity was about, but because I didn’t have the instructions in my hands, I didn’t have a clear picture to go by. In college and the years that followed, I tried the “who needs instructions” approach. I failed miserably. Things in my life kept breaking, parts were falling off and I was missing a lot things that I needed in order to be successful. The outside of my life resembled the picture on the box, but the inside infrastructure was missing. When I had weight applied to my life, it fell apart.

I’m a try, try again kind of person. I don’t easily give up. I may not have gotten it right in the first few tries, but I’m on the path to getting it right now. I’m spending more time reading the instructions and less time looking at the picture on the box. If I spend my life trying to create the picture on the box, I’ll never be the picture of who God wants me to be. We all have different gifts and talents which create different pictures, but our infrastructure has to come from God’s Word. We have to build ourselves up in the most holy faith as Jude 1:20 put it. We each are a work in progress guided by the Holy Spirit. If you’ve found your method isn’t working, try the original plan God had for you. Read His Word and follow the instructions He has for living this life of faith. Don’t ignore the instructions that are right in front of you. 

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February 29, 2016 · 5:37 AM

God’s Timetable 

  
One of the most difficult parts of walking by faith is not knowing God’s timetable. So many times, it feels like we are to move on or we want to stay where we are longer than God’s plan. When things are going well, we want to camp in that place and stay there forever. When we’ve been stuck in one place and haven’t seen the growth we want, we are ready to move on. But most of the time, God’s timetable for moving on is different than ours.

There are times in my life when things start happening quickly, and I feel like things are moving in the right direction. Then, all of a sudden, I hit a brick wall. I get stopped at one point, and have to stay there for a while. I don’t know why we hit these plateaus or why God camps us out where He does. Some places it seems very logical, but other times it leaves me scratching my head and asking God why.

As I’ve read through the Israelites wandering in the wilderness, I came across some verses that showed they went through something similar. Numbers 9:15-18 says, “On the day the Tabernacle was set up, the cloud covered it. But from evening until morning the cloud over the Tabernacle looked like a pillar of fire. This was the regular pattern—at night the cloud that covered the Tabernacle had the appearance of fire. Whenever the cloud lifted from over the sacred tent, the people of Israel would break camp and follow it. And wherever the cloud settled, the people of Israel would set up camp. In this way, they traveled and camped at the LORD’s command wherever he told them to go. Then they remained in their camp as long as the cloud stayed over the Tabernacle” (NLT).

You and I have the responsibility of following God wherever He leads, whenever He moves. Verse 22 says, “Whether the cloud stayed above the Tabernacle for two days, a month, or a year, the people of Israel stayed in camp and did not move on. But as soon as it lifted, they broke camp and moved on.” You and I have to learn to be flexible with God’s timetable. We don’t have permission to move until He says it’s ok. If you want to experience all God has for you, follow His presence when and where it leads you.

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