Isn't it so true that anger entices us do things we don't want to do? It is like, "I will show you! I will go hurt myself!!" I recently wrote a little book on how to be free of unforgiveness and offenses. In it, I included a profound quote that has changed my perspective, "Bitterness is like taking poison and waiting for the other person to die". How crazy would that be? But it is exactly what we do when we choose to hold bitterness in our hearts and unforgiveness. One of the biggest lies we believe, as humans, is that we can't be happy or live at peace, unless the other person changes their bad behavior. If that is true, then when will we ever be free? We cannot make anyone change. We can only control our own behavior. I hope that we will be able to see the value in ourselves and in our goals and that we won't allow someone else to steal our joy and peace. Next time we are tempted to allow someone else's mean words to blow our goals, may we be able to laugh and shrug it off just like when we were kids and we would say, "I'm the rubber, you're the glue; bounce off me and stick to you!"
I needed a Scripture to encourage myself today. Sometimes we just have to go out and seek that encouragment and I sought it in the Word of God. This Scripture puts me back into perspective. I was tempted many times this morning to eat something not on my plan. I heard things like "you need this or that". What a lie. By God's grace and His Word, and by His power, I was able to resist. Thank you Jesus! I hope this helps even one other person today!
Php 3:12 I do not claim that I have already succeeded or have already become perfect. I keep striving to win the prize for which Christ Jesus has already won me to himself.
Php 3:13 Of course, my friends, I really do not think that I have already won it; the one thing I do, however, is to forget what is behind me and do my best to reach what is ahead.
Php 3:14 So I run straight toward the goal in order to win the prize, which is God's call through Christ Jesus to the life above.
Php 3:15 All of us who are spiritually mature should have this same attitude. But if some of you have a different attitude, God will make this clear to you.
Php 3:16 However that may be, let us go forward according to the same rules we have followed until now.
Php 3:17 Keep on imitating me, my friends. Pay attention to those who follow the right example that we have set for you.
Php 3:18 I have told you this many times before, and now I repeat it with tears: there are many whose lives make them enemies of Christ's death on the cross.
Php 3:19 They are going to end up in hell, because their god is their bodily desires. They are proud of what they should be ashamed of, and they think only of things that belong to this world.
Php 3:20 We, however, are citizens of heaven, and we eagerly wait for our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, to come from heaven.
Php 3:21 He will change our weak mortal bodies and make them like his own glorious body, using that power by which he is able to bring all things under his rule
This is my "few words" response to the question I was just asked:
"Why don’t we spend one hour per day studying God’s Word?"
This is my personal opinion, based on my own Journey experiences.
1. First, I believe, we need a love relationship with Jesus that is inspired and fueled by the Holy Spirit. Martha worked hard for Jesus and wanted Mary to do the same. Mary chose the better part, to sit silently at Jesus’ feet and soak up His words, because she was in love with Him. Forgiven much, she loved much and spent limitless time in His presence, undisturbed by her sister’s judgments against her. (WE NEED A GENUINE LOVE RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS)
2. God draws us to himself with cords of love and when we know he loves us, we supernaturally long to know Him better through His Word. Our new Husband does not have to command us to study Him; we study Him because we love Him, we feel safe with Him, and because we KNOW He loves us. If we did not feel loved by Him, if we did not have grateful, thankful hearts for all He has done for us, we would not feel inclined to study Him or please Him. (WE NEED TO KNOW OUR HUSBAND LOVES US UNCONDITIONALLY AND HAS SACRIFICIALLY GIVEN HIMSELF FOR US)
3. There is therefore now no condemnation for us who are in Christ Jesus, for the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set us free from the law of sin and death. Praise our Living God, we are no longer under the cruel, hard taskmaster called Law, who bids us to conform to ordinances and pressures to perform to someone else’s standards, or to earn our acceptance in the Beloved, but we are set free to live and move and have our being in Jesus—we are in Him and He is in us. There remains therefore a rest for us as the people of God. For we who have entered His rest have also ceased from our works as God did from His. (WE NEED TO KNOW THE WORD WAS NOT SENT TO CONDEMN US; EVERY WORD GOD HAS SPOKEN TO US IS BECAUSE HE LOVES US; AND, OUR ACCEPTANCE IN THE BELOVED IS BASED ON LIFE NOT LAW)
Love is not just a warm,fuzzy glow or words we print on a page. Love is not even what we say. Love is a verb; it is an action word, it is something we DO. I would rather see love, than hear love, any day. I saw love today in a paper cup. It was a cappacino made just like I like it, because the one who gave it to me listens with her heart when I talk. I saw love today when I got the best thank you note ever written to a mother. I saw love today in laundry, folded just like I like it, which I didn't do, laying neatly on top of my dryer. I saw love today as two different friends shared their God-dreams about me and were willing to pray for me. I saw love today in action; it gave me a warm, fuzzy glow.
Love is not something you feel. It's something you do.
- David Wilkerson
When you're in the grip of frustration, love can seem pretty much out of the question. Care is going to be a stretch. But appreciation is easy—even if it starts out kind of snide like, "I appreciate the fact I haven't fallen flat on my face ... yet." After a couple of stabs at it, you're going to stumble across one that sincerely touches you. Maybe it's your friends, your partner, your loved ones. One strong dose of appreciation can turn your perceptions around 180 degrees.
- Doc Childre and Howard Martin
After the verb 'to love', 'to help' is the most beautiful verb in the world.
- Bertha Von Suttner
Treasure the love you receive above all. It will survive long after your gold and good health have vanished.
- Og Mandino
It is possible to give without loving, but it is impossible to love without giving.
-Richard Braunstien
What does love look like? It has the hands to help others. It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy. It has eyes to see misery and want. It has the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of men. That is what love looks like.
- St. Augustine
Love seeketh not itself to please, nor for itself hath any care, but for another give it ease, and build a Heaven in Hell's despair.
- William Blake
A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another.
- Jesus
Hebrews 10:22
Let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.
I love puzzles! I am especially fond of finding and fitting together all the corners and borders. Living this Christian Life is a puzzle. One of the best pieces of the puzzle is the freedom to choose. We are free in Christ; indeed, He whom the Son sets free is free indeed.
One thing I discovered early in my Christian life was the annoying fact that not many people in Christ share the same convictions. One says, “You are free to eat or drink or fast or wear pants, makeup, etc.”; another says, “You must not eat or drink or fast or wear pants, makeup, etc.” You know who you are.
Cultivate your own relationship with God, but don't impose it on others. You're fortunate if your behavior and your belief are coherent. But if you're not sure, if you notice that you are acting in ways inconsistent with what you believe—some days trying to impose your opinions on others, other days just trying to please them—then you know that you're out of line. If the way you live isn't consistent with what you believe, then it's wrong. Romans 14:22-23 (The Message)
As we progress in our Christianity, if we are not careful to pay attention, we may end up in worse condition than when we first began, as far as being bound up in rules and laws. Equally as bad, we can easily become self-righteous, judgmental Pharisees. I came from my own land of slavery called “Egypt”, so I know what law feels like.
This year
is the year of freedom in Christ. Free to live life according to my own convictions, based on the Holy Spirit Counselor who lives and moves within me. In the past 28 years, I have swung from one end of the spectrum to the other. In so doing, I have learned something about myself (and maybe, just maybe, this is true of you too); I have tended to bow to the judgments and convictions of other Christians sooner than to the convictions of the Holy Spirit at work within me. I have also (this grieves me) judged others. If Christ said I was free in an area, and Christian Joe said, “Oh, no”; I have tended to stay bound to Christian Joe’s convictions. That lifestyle was idolatrous—I was making humans my standard instead of Christ Jesus who died for me. Thank God for His grace! He is more than able to speak to me His words of life and truth. Any other contradicting voice is an idol.
Long ago I came to believe and apply the conviction “When in doubt, don’t”. It was easy to apply such a principle to things like, “Should I or shouldn’t I buy that new couch today?” and other such non-spiritual ponderings. But it was much harder to apply it to the harder, spiritual questions of life. Why? Because I was pre-programmed by Christian Joe in his laws and convictions and didn’t know how to be loosed to tap into what the Holy Spirit was doing in me. I was an unsuspecting chameleon—blending and changing to fit what Mrs. Christian Ignorance or Mr. Word Weak believed.
GOD says, in Romans chapter 14—every man must be persuaded in his own mind that what he is doing is right. Happy is the man who is not condemned in his own heart in that thing he is allowing himself to do. “Condemned” means “judged guilty of breaking the law of God”. If you are convinced in your own heart and not condemned in your own mind for doing that thing, then if you refuse to do it based on another’s conviction, isn’t that being double-minded? Isn’t that idolatry? What does James chapter one say about the double-minded? 5If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. 6But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; 8he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does. 8[For being as he is] a man of two minds (hesitating, dubious, irresolute), [he is] unstable and unreliable and uncertain about everything [he thinks, feels, decides].
But the man who has doubts (misgivings, an uneasy conscience) about eating, and then eats [perhaps because of you], stands condemned [before God], because he is not true to his convictions and he does not act from faith. For whatever does not originate and proceed from faith is sin [whatever is done without a conviction of its approval by God is sinful]. Romans 14:23
I left the Land of Slavery and the Hard Taskmaster, Law, 28 years ago. I thought I would never return to him. But Mr. and Mrs. Legal Religion cracked their whips of fear and unbelief at me, telling me I must do The Journey "Their Way or No Way". They are bound up in lies and tied up in knots. Many people are tangled up with them. As for me, I choose to be free. I am fully convinced in my own mind, according to the Holy Spirit who is at work within me (Romans 14:5). I will be free to live like this: WHEN IN DOUBT, DON’T. And, if I doubt and do it anyway, that is sin.
What about you?
Romans 14:23 (The Message)
22-23Cultivate your own relationship with God, but don't impose it on others. You're fortunate if your behavior and your belief are coherent. But if you're not sure, if you notice that you are acting in ways inconsistent with what you believe—some days trying to impose your opinions on others, other days just trying to please them—then you know that you're out of line. If the way you live isn't consistent with what you believe, then it's wrong. (It was worth repeating).
THE QUESTION THAT CHANGED MY LIFE
-by David Ryser.
A number of years ago, I had the privilege of teaching at a school of ministry. My students were hungry for God, and I was constantly searching for ways to challenge them to fall more in love with Jesus and to become voices for revival in the Church. I came across a quote attributed most often to Rev. Sam Pascoe. It is a short version of the history of Christianity, and it goes like this:
Christianity started in Palestine as a fellowship;
it moved to Greece and became a philosophy;
it moved to Italy and became an institution;
it moved to Europe and became a culture;
it came to America and became an enterprise.
Some of the students were only 18 or 19 years old--barely out of
diapers--and I wanted them to understand and appreciate the import of the last line, so I clarified it by adding, "An enterprise. That's a business."
After a few moments Martha, the youngest student in the class,
raised her hand. I could not imagine what her question might be. I
thought the little vignette was self-explanatory, and that I had
performed it brilliantly. Nevertheless, I acknowledged Martha's
raised hand, "Yes, Martha." She asked such a simple question, "A business? But isn't it supposed to be a body?"
I could not envision where this line of questioning was going, and the
only response I could think of was, "Yes."
She continued, "But when a body becomes a business, isn't that a prostitute?"
The room went dead silent. For several seconds no one moved or spoke. We were stunned, afraid to make a sound because the presence of God had flooded into the room, and we knew we were on holy ground. All I could think in those sacred moments was,"Wow, I wish I'd thought of that." I didn't dare express that thought aloud. God had taken over the class. Martha's question changed my life. For six months, I thought about her question at least once every day. "When a body becomes a business, isn't that a prostitute?"
There is only one answer to her question. The answer is "Yes."
The American Church, tragically, is heavily populated by people who
do not love God. How can we love Him? We don't even know Him;
and I mean really know Him.I stand by my statement that most American Christians do not know God--much less love Him. The root of this condition originates in how we came to God. Most of us came to Him because of what we were told He would do for us. We were promised that He would bless us in life and take us to heaven after death. We married Him for His money, and we don't care if He lives or dies as long as we can get His stuff. We have made the Kingdom of God into a business, merchandising His anointing.
This should not be. We are commanded to love God, and are called
to be the Bride of Christ---that's pretty intimate stuff. We are supposed
to be His lovers. How can we love someone we don't even know? And
even if we do know someone, is that a guarantee that we truly love
them? Are we lovers or prostitutes?
I was pondering Martha's question again one day, and considered the question, "What's the difference between a lover and a prostitute?" I realized that both do many of the same things, but a lover does what she does because she loves. A prostitute pretends to love, but only as long as you pay. Then I asked the question, "What would happen if God stopped paying me?"
For the next several months, I allowed God to search me to uncover my motives for loving and serving Him.
Was I really a true lover of God?
What would happen if He stopped blessing me?
What if He never did another thing for me? Would I still love Him?
Please understand---I believe in the promises and blessings of God.The issue here is not whether God blesses His children; the issue is the condition of my heart. Why do I serve Him? Are His blessings in my life the gifts of a loving Father, or are they a wage that I have earned or a bribe/payment to love Him? Do I love God without any conditions?
It took several months to work through these questions. Even now I
wonder if my desire to love God is always matched by my attitude
and behavior. I still catch myself being disappointed with God and
angry that He has not met some perceived need in my life. I suspect
this is something which is never fully resolved, but I want more than
anything else to be a true lover of God.
So what is it going to be? Which are we---lover or prostitute?
There are no prostitutes in heaven, or in the Kingdom of God for that matter, but there are plenty of former prostitutes in both places. Take it from a recovering prostitute when I say there is no substitute for unconditional, intimate relationship with God. And I mean there is no palatable substitute available to us (take another look at Matthew 7:21-23 sometime).
We must choose.
Dr. David Ryser
As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, "YOU SHALL BE HOLY, FOR I AM HOLY." ~ 1 Pet.1:14-16
Thanking God for not giving into my tantrums