Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature; sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Colossians 3:5
While walking down a street in Long Beach, California, I was reminded how a person's behavior can misrepresent the message of the gospel and cause an unbelieving world to be confused. I met a man who asked what I had to show for myself in life. When I referred to my confidence in the Son of God, he became very excited. He said he also knew Christ as his Savior and quoted some Bible verses about eternal life. As we parted, the man reminded me to preach the Word. I had a problem accepting his admonition, though, for he was roaring drunk. With slurred speech, several times he bounced "Praise the Lord!" off the concrete around us, drawing stares from passersby. His inebriated condition shouted a loud protest to the sober truths that echoed through the streets. As I walked away, I was struck with the stark reality of how Christian credibility is lost when our behavior reveals that we are controlled by sinful desires rather than the Holy Spirit. We can't expect others to believe a message that is contradicted by our actions. Every day we must "put to death" those actions that would tarnish our testimony Colossians 3:5). Only then can we be sure of offering "dying proof" of living faith. May all I am and do and say Give glory to my Lord always, And may no act of mine cause shame Nor bring reproach upon His name. If God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it.
If He had a wallet, your photo would be in it. He sends you flowers every spring. He sends you a sunrise every morning. Whenever you want to talk, He listens. He can live anywhere in the universe, but He chose ... your heart. Face it friend, He is crazy about you! God didn't promise days without pain, laughter without sorrow, sun without rain, but He did promise strength for the day, comfort for the tears, and light for the way. Our life is so precious and fragile. Sharing our love with others for a moment, an hour, a day, can bring much more to us than we can ever return. Love isn't -- until we give it away. When things happen in your life that you didn’t plan, do you find yourself trying to reason it all out, or look for a “file,” so to speak, in your mind? What happens when you can’t find a “file” to put it in? What if you can’t make sense of it all?
Here’s the answer: Every one of us needs to create a file in our thinking called an “I Don’t Understand It” file. When things come up that don’t make sense and you can’t figure out, instead of getting frustrated or confused, simply put it in your “I Don’t Understand It” file and leave it alone. If you go through life trying to figure out why something bad happened, why it didn’t work out, why my child didn’t get healed, it’s going to cause you to be bitter. Part of trusting God means trusting Him when things don’t make sense, knowing that His plan is always for your good; knowing that He will reveal all things in His time — even if it means in eternity. Here’s what I’ve learned. Don’t put a question mark where God has put a period. What the enemy meant for evil, God will ultimately use for your good. Keep moving forward because God loves you, God is for you, and He has a great plan for you! Precious Lord, today I surrender my questions, I surrender my past, I surrender my need to have all the answers and choose to trust that You have all the answers. I will wait on Your timing to reveal Your ways to me and choose to press forward into the destiny You have prepared for me in Jesus’ name. Amen. So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. James 2:17
Some people disregard the power of prayer because their urgent calls to God have gone unanswered. They may have been serious and devoted in their pleas, but seemingly it was all for nothing. The outcome of such an experience is often a weakening of one’s faith in the power of prayer. Genuine prayer in itself is an act of faith. It is not just a matter of telling God what you need and then sitting back and waiting for something to happen – the hoped-for am miracle! Effective prayer means laying your plea before God, seeking His will and then acting in faith, in obedience to the will of the Lord. No one can possibly believe that Jesus wanted to endure the humiliation and suffering of Golgotha, but His prayer to His Father is an enduring and eternal example of faith and obedience, for all time and for all people, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as You will” (Matt. 26:39). Christ sought the will of God and accepted it in faith, to God’s glory. Follow Jesus’ example in you prayer life and God will answer your prayers in the manner that He knows is the absolute best for your. Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! Php 4:4
Go with me back in history a couple of thousand years. Let's go to Rome … to a rather drab little room, surrounded by high walls… Inside we see a man seated on the floor. He's an older fellow, shoulders stooped and balding. Chains are on his hands and feet… It is the apostle Paul… The apostle who was bound only by the will of God is now in chains—stuck in a dingy house—attached to a Roman officer… He is writing a letter. No doubt it is a complaint letter to God. No doubt it is a list of grievances… He has every reason to be bitter and complain. But he doesn't. Instead, he writes a letter that two thousand years later is still known as the treatise on joy—Philippians… Why don't you spend some time with it? The Inspirational Study Bible (Max Lucado) Jesus is ANGEL OF THE LORD Today we declare: We shall continue to preach and teach the Word of God daily; We shall continue to pray for people and situations daily; We shall continue to sow seed into other ministries, into men and women of God to support their missions; We shall continue to help the less fortunate. No weapon formed against us, our ministry, our prayers, our seed or our members, shall prosper. (Isaiah 54:17) As Jesus is, so are we in this world. (1 John 4:17) AMEN! Amazing grace, how sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me I once was lost but now I’m found Was blind, but now I see Amazing grace; what is so amazing about God’s grace. It was God’s grace that spared Adam and Eve, whom God could have wiped from the earth on first sight after their fall. It was God’s grace that saved Moses while all other Hebrew babies were killed. It was God’s grace that kept Noah and his family from drowning when God flooded a sinful world. It was God’s grace that saved Abraham, Lot and their families when the God defying Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed by fire to ash and dust. It was grace, grace- so amazing. Grace, Amazing grace - Unmerited, undeserved favour from God. It was grace that made the blind to see, the lame to walk, the deaf to hear and the mute to talk. It was grace that saved a woman who committed adultery from death, that called Zacchaeus from a tree, that delivered a demon possessed child and raised a girl from the dead. Such grace, such amazing grace. But what about me, an undeserving, unlovable, unsaved hellbound sinner? God answers: "My grace is all you need” But Lord, I am weak and have nothing to offer! And God answers again: "My grace is all you need, for my power is greatest when you are weak." (2 Corinthians 12:9) And through His Spirit God reminds me of His love for me. A love that made grace abound. A love that gave His son. And then I remember Jesus, whom because of such amazing grace, took my place, died on my behalf, died so that I may be set free, died so that I can live. Such grace, such amazing grace. Grace, God’s amazing grace is also available to you. Driven by love, God wishes to flood you with His unmerited, undeserved favor. He wishes His face to shine upon you, His light to fill your soul. In darkness, by grace, He will be your light. In need, by grace He will provide. Thirsty, hungry, alone, depressed, scared, simply lost or simply blinded by the world God says: “My grace is all you need” Such grace, such amazing grace, available to one and all, who calls upon Him, who chooses Him, and who follows Him. Amazing grace, how sweet the sound! Ek betaal ‘n duur prys vir my naïwiteit. Ek vertrou mense toe-oë. Soms kos dit my. Enigiets van geld wat ek kwyt is, tot 'n verlies aan integriteit omdat mense my woorde verdraai en hul eie stories na die tyd spin. Daarom dat vroulief een keer gesê het party mense lees daardie plakkertjie op my voorkop. “Watter een?” vra ek toe. “Ag skat, die enetjie waarop daar geskryf staan: ‘sucker for punishment.’” Ware woorde. Tog dink ek die plakker moet net daar bly.
Iewers het ek die volgende spreuk gelees: “It’s hapier to be sometimes cheated than not to trust.” Paulus vat dit nog verder in 1 Korintiërs 13 as hy skryf dat ons altyd die beste van mekaar moet glo. Hierdie is nie sentimentele woorde waarmee ons vroom instem terwyl ons nogtans onlangse internasionale navorsing oor Suid Afrika in stand hou wat bevind dat minder as 20% mense mekaar vertrou nie. Ek wil nie so leef nie. Ek wil die beste van mense verwag omdat die Here dit ook van my verwag. Vandat Hy my gered het, behandel Hy my nie as ‘n sondaar nie. Hy dink regtig nie ek is tot geen goed in staat en tot alle kwaad geneig nie. Nee, God behandel my as ‘n tempel van die Gees (1 Kor 6:19). Hy beskou my as ‘n deel van sy heilige nuwe aardse volk (1 Pet 2:9-11) en as ‘n kind van ons Hemelse Vader (1 Joh 3:1). Ek weier om met agterdog te leef. Ek weier om toksies te raak en van vroeg en laat fout te vind. Ek weier om meer te weet wat alles verkeerd is met die wêreld as wat reg is voor God. Ek weier om my naam te alle koste te beskerm asof ek iemand danig is. My lewe is in die Here se hande. Goddank, ek het agtergekom daar is kosbare mense wat nie eindverbruikers van ander mense is nie. Sulke mense wat steeds ander vertrou, is die wêreld vol. Dit is hulle wat nie misbruik maak nie en wat steeds bereid is om jou laste te dra, te bid, om te gee en heel te maak. Sulke mense kan jy vertrou met enigiets van jou selfoon, rekenaar, kar, banksake, tot jou seer en swaar. Dank die Heer vir sulke mense wat ook met plakkers op hul voorkoppe leef. Some years ago on a hot summer day in south Florida a little boy decided to go for a swim in the old swimming hole behind his house. In a hurry to dive into the cool water, he ran out the back door, leaving behind shoes, socks, and shirt as he went. He flew into the water, not realizing that as he swam toward the middle of the lake, an alligator was swimming toward the shore.
His father, working in the yard, saw the two as they got closer and closer together. In utter fear, he ran toward the water, yelling to his son as loudly as he could. Hearing his voice, the little boy became alarmed and made a U-turn to swim to his father. It was too late. Just as he reached his father, the alligator reached him. From the dock, the father grabbed his little boy by the arms just as the alligator snatched his legs. That began an incredible tug-of-war between the two. The alligator was much stronger than the father, but the father was much too passionate to let go. A farmer happened to drive by, heard his screams, raced from his truck, took aim and shot the alligator. Remarkably, after weeks and weeks in the hospital, the little boy survived. His legs were extremely scarred by the vicious attack of the animal. And, on his arms, were deep scratches where his father's fingernails dug into his flesh in his effort to hang on to the son he loved. The newspaper reporter who interviewed the boy after the trauma, asked if he would show him his scars. The boy lifted his pant legs. And then, with obvious pride, he said to the reporter, "But look at my arms. I have great scars on my arms, too. I have them because my dad wouldn't let go." You and I can identify with that little boy. We have scars, too. No, not from an alligator, but the scars of a painful past. Some of those scars are unsightly and have caused us deep regret. But, some wounds, my friend, are because God has refused to let go. In the midst of your struggle, He's been there holding on to you. The Scripture teaches that God loves you. You are a child of God. He wants to protect you and provide for you in every way. But sometimes we foolishly wade into dangerous situations, not knowing what lies ahead. The swimming hole of life is filled with peril- and we forget that the enemy is waiting to attack. That's when the tug-of-war begins - and if you have the scars of His love on your arms be very, very grateful. He did not and will not ever let you go. Please pass this on to those you love. God has blessed you, so that you can be a blessing to others. You just never know where a person is in his/her life and what they are going through. Never judge another persons scars, because you don't know how they got them. Also, it is so important that we are not selfish to receive the blessings of these messages without forwarding them to someone else. Right now, someone needs to know that God loves them, and you love them too enough to not let them go. |
Ana & Andre Schoonbee God uses us to motivate and encourage the body. Authors
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