With the holiday season upon on, we are probably going to spend some time with our family. Spending time with my family has got my mind pondering my faith family also. My faith or church family has become very important to me over the last few months and I have discovered that sometimes my faith family is even closer and more important to me than my real family. The New Testament is full of commands and words for the faith family. Jesus and the New Testament writers tell the members of the church to act and do many things for the other members of the church. These commands are sometimes called the "one another" passages. I want to take a look at some of these commands to remind myself as family times happen during this season there is also actions I need to be doing for my faith family.
care for one another- 1 Cor. 10:16
love one another- John 13:34-35
host one another-1 Peter 4:9
receive one another- Romans 15:7
honor one another-Romans 12:10
serve one another-Gal. 5:13
instruct one another- Romans 15:14
forgive one another-Col. 3:13
motivate one another- Hebrews 10:24
build up one another- 1 Thes. 5:13
encourage one another- 1 Thes. 5:11
comfort one another- 2 Cor. 1:3-7
pray for one another- James 5:16
confess sin to one another- James 5:16
esteem one another- Philippians 2:3
edify one another- Romans 14:19
teach one another- Col. 3:16
show kindness to one another- Eph. 4:32
give to one another- Acts 2:45
rejoice with one another- 1 Cor. 12:27
weep with one another- Romans 12:15
hurt with one another- Romans 12:15
restore one another- Galatians 6:1-5
Listing all of these commands out in a list has made me realize I have a long way to go until I am truly fulfilling my duty and role in my faith family. I pray that as we spend time with our family and our faith family during this coming time of celebration of Jesus' birth, that we will remember the importance of our actions to one another as a faith family.
Saturday, November 30, 2013
Friday, November 29, 2013
Thanksgiving: Leftovers
Psalms 118:21 "I will give you thanks, for you answered me; you have become my salvation."
I pray everyone had a blessed thanksgiving holiday yesterday and that we were all able to reflect and be thankful for the amazing God who loves us and lets us know He loves us. As I was pondering the holiday yesterday and then the fact Christmas is now less than 4 weeks away I started to think about the correlation between thanksgiving and hope.
I shared a few days ago about what the focus of our thanksgiving should be. I believe that most Jesus lovers are very thankful people. Those of us who love Jesus truly are thankful for the ways He loves us. We are thankful for the blessings and gifts that God gives us, like our friends, family, material blessings, and spiritual blessings. We are truly a thankful people for how God showers acts of grace on us, His children. But has I pointed out in that post, we tend to miss a lot of the time that it is God that we should be thankful for. Yes, be thankful for the things He give us, but it should be focused primarily on who God is. Be thankful for the fact of God as the creator, sustainer, and Being we can have as a Father. To truly be thankful to God we must enjoy and bask in who God is and all that means. Be thankful for the blessings but more importantly be thankful for GOD and JESUS.
As, I was pondering the Christmas season coming up I began to think about hope also I am finding out in my life and the life of other Jesus lovers, we can fall into the trap of hope and the focus of hope the same way as thanksgiving. What should we hope in? I find in my life sometimes I am hoping in what God can do for me. I am hoping in the fact God can provide me with a better financial state, or a position in the ministry, or even little things like a better car. But when I am hoping in what God can do or change for me I miss the point. Yes, when I pray I should hope in what I am praying for and hope in God doing something for me, but I should be hoping in God. When I hope in God I should hope in who God is with all His attributes and qualities. I should hope in God and His love for me, His power to help me grow, His provisions for me, His answers for me. I should be hoping in all that God is and let Him do for me and my prayers what He desires. I find if I hope in what God can do, what happens when He sees it differently and acts differently then my hope? Hope in God so that my hope will never change or be crushed.
I find a connection here between my thanksgiving and my hope. Yes, it is good to be thankful and hope in what God can do, BUT WE NEED TO TRULY JUST BE THANKFUL AND HOPEFUL IN WHO GOD IS FOR US. That is a lesson and reminder that I need to preach to myself daily because then in all that God allows this life to throw at me, I will always be thankful for everything and hopeful in all of life.
I pray as we approach Christmas, our hope in God and in the power of His Son will grow.
I pray everyone had a blessed thanksgiving holiday yesterday and that we were all able to reflect and be thankful for the amazing God who loves us and lets us know He loves us. As I was pondering the holiday yesterday and then the fact Christmas is now less than 4 weeks away I started to think about the correlation between thanksgiving and hope.
I shared a few days ago about what the focus of our thanksgiving should be. I believe that most Jesus lovers are very thankful people. Those of us who love Jesus truly are thankful for the ways He loves us. We are thankful for the blessings and gifts that God gives us, like our friends, family, material blessings, and spiritual blessings. We are truly a thankful people for how God showers acts of grace on us, His children. But has I pointed out in that post, we tend to miss a lot of the time that it is God that we should be thankful for. Yes, be thankful for the things He give us, but it should be focused primarily on who God is. Be thankful for the fact of God as the creator, sustainer, and Being we can have as a Father. To truly be thankful to God we must enjoy and bask in who God is and all that means. Be thankful for the blessings but more importantly be thankful for GOD and JESUS.
As, I was pondering the Christmas season coming up I began to think about hope also I am finding out in my life and the life of other Jesus lovers, we can fall into the trap of hope and the focus of hope the same way as thanksgiving. What should we hope in? I find in my life sometimes I am hoping in what God can do for me. I am hoping in the fact God can provide me with a better financial state, or a position in the ministry, or even little things like a better car. But when I am hoping in what God can do or change for me I miss the point. Yes, when I pray I should hope in what I am praying for and hope in God doing something for me, but I should be hoping in God. When I hope in God I should hope in who God is with all His attributes and qualities. I should hope in God and His love for me, His power to help me grow, His provisions for me, His answers for me. I should be hoping in all that God is and let Him do for me and my prayers what He desires. I find if I hope in what God can do, what happens when He sees it differently and acts differently then my hope? Hope in God so that my hope will never change or be crushed.
I find a connection here between my thanksgiving and my hope. Yes, it is good to be thankful and hope in what God can do, BUT WE NEED TO TRULY JUST BE THANKFUL AND HOPEFUL IN WHO GOD IS FOR US. That is a lesson and reminder that I need to preach to myself daily because then in all that God allows this life to throw at me, I will always be thankful for everything and hopeful in all of life.
I pray as we approach Christmas, our hope in God and in the power of His Son will grow.
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
Thanksgiving: Results
Colossians 2:6-7 "So then, just as you received Jesus Christ as Lord, continue to live in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness".
So I have often wondered, in a somewhat sinful way, how can I recognize a thankful person? How do I know if someone is thankful for what they have or not? As I ponder these questions, I think the real question that I am asking is, what is the result of thanksgiving in a person's life?
I think there are many ways a thankful person can reveal himself or herself to others. But I would like to focus on 2 important ways that a lover of Jesus will show others they are thankful in their heart. I want to highlight 2 results of thankfulness.
The first result that thankfulness brings into the life of a person is joy. Someone who is truly thankful for blessings from God, whether it is people or stuff, is the person finding great joy in what they have. If I am truly a joyful person, even if I have very little, I am thankful for it and find joy in every circumstance or gift given. A thankful person realizes that God is the great giver of gifts, starting with His Son, and they will find joy in everything that their Heavenly Father and loving Lord does and gives. Joy in a thankful person will emulate everywhere if they are thankful.
The second result of a person being thankful is generosity flowing from them. A person who truly is thankful for what they do have wants to share those gifts and blessing with others. They want to share with others next to them that might not have as much blessing and gifts A thankful person is also always looking to pour into others around them and shower them with the great blessings and gifts they have been given and ultimately share the thankful spirit with them. The flow of a generous spirit is always started at the fountain of thankfulness.
Both of theses results are also a great way to check the thankfulness level in our hearts. If we are struggling in the joy factor and are not feeling generous to others maybe we should start to be more thankful deep from within and let that thankfulness flow out for others to see in our joy and generosity.
So I have often wondered, in a somewhat sinful way, how can I recognize a thankful person? How do I know if someone is thankful for what they have or not? As I ponder these questions, I think the real question that I am asking is, what is the result of thanksgiving in a person's life?
I think there are many ways a thankful person can reveal himself or herself to others. But I would like to focus on 2 important ways that a lover of Jesus will show others they are thankful in their heart. I want to highlight 2 results of thankfulness.
The first result that thankfulness brings into the life of a person is joy. Someone who is truly thankful for blessings from God, whether it is people or stuff, is the person finding great joy in what they have. If I am truly a joyful person, even if I have very little, I am thankful for it and find joy in every circumstance or gift given. A thankful person realizes that God is the great giver of gifts, starting with His Son, and they will find joy in everything that their Heavenly Father and loving Lord does and gives. Joy in a thankful person will emulate everywhere if they are thankful.
The second result of a person being thankful is generosity flowing from them. A person who truly is thankful for what they do have wants to share those gifts and blessing with others. They want to share with others next to them that might not have as much blessing and gifts A thankful person is also always looking to pour into others around them and shower them with the great blessings and gifts they have been given and ultimately share the thankful spirit with them. The flow of a generous spirit is always started at the fountain of thankfulness.
Both of theses results are also a great way to check the thankfulness level in our hearts. If we are struggling in the joy factor and are not feeling generous to others maybe we should start to be more thankful deep from within and let that thankfulness flow out for others to see in our joy and generosity.
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
Thanksgiving: Focus
Hebrews 12:28 " Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, "
When we truly stop and think for just a few moments we have a ton of things to be thankful for.
We can be thankful for our health; whether we have come through a trial this year, have not had any health problems this year, or are feeling good right now even as a health struggle is going on.
We can be thankful for the relationships in our lives; like a great friend that encourages and strengthens us, or a child that might bring us great joy, or even a spouse that loves us even in our worst moments.
We can be thankful for the material stuff in our lives; like a warm dry house, or a car that can take us places, or even a refrigerator that keeps the milk cold and the ice cream frozen.
We could be thankful for the job that drives us nuts sometimes.
We could be thankful for the church family the showers blessings on us.
We could be thankful for our freedom and the privilege it is to live in this time and place.
We can even be thankful for the small things in life; like I am thankful for the 90 I just received on the past essay test I took.
We have a lot to be thankful for and it might only take a few moments of thinking to come up with a dozen or more.
But what should be the true focus of our thanksgiving? God and God alone.
Who gave me the 90 on that test, or gave me the great friends, wife and kids? Who provided the job and gave me the house and car? Who's money is it that bought the tv or food I just ate? Who ultimately is providing the turkey and deep fryer to cook it in for Thanksgiving? God and God alone. Every blessing I have is given by God and He is the source for all I have. Yes, be thankful for people and things but God should be where the thanksgiving starts, stops, and always be.
So this Thursday as we are thankful for a ton of thinks and people, remember that God should be the focus of all the thanks we give because without Him and more importantly Jesus death, we have no reason to be thankful for anything.
When we truly stop and think for just a few moments we have a ton of things to be thankful for.
We can be thankful for our health; whether we have come through a trial this year, have not had any health problems this year, or are feeling good right now even as a health struggle is going on.
We can be thankful for the relationships in our lives; like a great friend that encourages and strengthens us, or a child that might bring us great joy, or even a spouse that loves us even in our worst moments.
We can be thankful for the material stuff in our lives; like a warm dry house, or a car that can take us places, or even a refrigerator that keeps the milk cold and the ice cream frozen.
We could be thankful for the job that drives us nuts sometimes.
We could be thankful for the church family the showers blessings on us.
We could be thankful for our freedom and the privilege it is to live in this time and place.
We can even be thankful for the small things in life; like I am thankful for the 90 I just received on the past essay test I took.
We have a lot to be thankful for and it might only take a few moments of thinking to come up with a dozen or more.
But what should be the true focus of our thanksgiving? God and God alone.
Who gave me the 90 on that test, or gave me the great friends, wife and kids? Who provided the job and gave me the house and car? Who's money is it that bought the tv or food I just ate? Who ultimately is providing the turkey and deep fryer to cook it in for Thanksgiving? God and God alone. Every blessing I have is given by God and He is the source for all I have. Yes, be thankful for people and things but God should be where the thanksgiving starts, stops, and always be.
So this Thursday as we are thankful for a ton of thinks and people, remember that God should be the focus of all the thanks we give because without Him and more importantly Jesus death, we have no reason to be thankful for anything.
Monday, November 25, 2013
Thanksgiving: Purpose
Colossians 3:15 "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.
Being thankful is a command in the Bible so over the next few days leading up to Thursday I want to reflect on a few things about thanksgiving and the spirit of being thankful. Tonight I want to focus on the purpose of thanksgiving and why the reason behind it is so important.
There are many reasons behind the idea of thanksgiving. There are many factors that can contribute to it and quiet a few purposes to the reasons we are commanded to be thankful. Being thankful will create a joyful people, it will stir in our hearts a love for God and others around us. But one of the biggest reasons for the command to be thankful is the perspective it brings.
When we are thankful for life, others, blessings, and the many great things we have, it will keep us in the right perspective. When I am thankful for the blessings from God it keeps me humble to realize what He does for me and what I could never do for myself. When I am thankful for friends and the joy I find in them, it keeps me in the right frame of mind where I cherish them and do not feel arrogant towards them. When I am thankful for family (especially my beautiful better half) it keeps my mind focused on their needs and my perspective is set on them and not on my own life. When I am thankful for my health and the amazing life I have in this country, it keeps me in awe of the greatness of others in medicine or those who gave me my freedom.
What I believe is the correct perspective for thanksgiving is humility. To truly be thankful first we must be humble, it is a prerequisite. I find this to be true in my life. When I am arrogant, prideful, and focused on my own stuff, I am never thankful. But when I am stripped down and humbled, then and only then am I truly thankful for everything. When I am humbled to the point where I ask, "Why not me" then I find I can be truly thankful for the blessings that I do have. The less I have the more I seem thankful for what I do have. I have truly discovered that humility leads to truly being thankful.
So the purpose and command for being thankful is to drive us to our knees and be humble. Next time we find it hard to be thankful, first check the level of humility in our lives.
Being thankful is a command in the Bible so over the next few days leading up to Thursday I want to reflect on a few things about thanksgiving and the spirit of being thankful. Tonight I want to focus on the purpose of thanksgiving and why the reason behind it is so important.
There are many reasons behind the idea of thanksgiving. There are many factors that can contribute to it and quiet a few purposes to the reasons we are commanded to be thankful. Being thankful will create a joyful people, it will stir in our hearts a love for God and others around us. But one of the biggest reasons for the command to be thankful is the perspective it brings.
When we are thankful for life, others, blessings, and the many great things we have, it will keep us in the right perspective. When I am thankful for the blessings from God it keeps me humble to realize what He does for me and what I could never do for myself. When I am thankful for friends and the joy I find in them, it keeps me in the right frame of mind where I cherish them and do not feel arrogant towards them. When I am thankful for family (especially my beautiful better half) it keeps my mind focused on their needs and my perspective is set on them and not on my own life. When I am thankful for my health and the amazing life I have in this country, it keeps me in awe of the greatness of others in medicine or those who gave me my freedom.
What I believe is the correct perspective for thanksgiving is humility. To truly be thankful first we must be humble, it is a prerequisite. I find this to be true in my life. When I am arrogant, prideful, and focused on my own stuff, I am never thankful. But when I am stripped down and humbled, then and only then am I truly thankful for everything. When I am humbled to the point where I ask, "Why not me" then I find I can be truly thankful for the blessings that I do have. The less I have the more I seem thankful for what I do have. I have truly discovered that humility leads to truly being thankful.
So the purpose and command for being thankful is to drive us to our knees and be humble. Next time we find it hard to be thankful, first check the level of humility in our lives.
Sunday, November 24, 2013
Worry
Today in my ABF class I lead a discussion on the topic of worry. Here is a few of the thoughts I had this week about worry, how it can show itself, and what it can lead to.
We tend to worry about things in life because we are ignorant of who God is and the promises He has given us of His love and complete control over out lives. We need to respond to worry by studying the Bible.
When we worry it is a control issue. We want to be able to fix what is going on in our lives and control the circumstances that are happening to and around us. This is a selfish and a form of Idolatry in our lives. Instead we need to worship God by giving Him back the thrown of our lives and living in faith of Him, which will then result in us loving others first and desiring to serve those around us facing bad circumstances.
Worry is another form of being anxious and instead of it we need to be at peace with what God is doing.
We tend to worry sometimes because of our guilt about something, so instead of worrying we need to repent and turn it over to God.
We worry sometimes because of immoderation. We love this world to much and the things in it, which in turn can kill our joy if we are in bondage to this life and the worry it can bring. So we should be generous with everything realizing that everything we have is God's and the only place to find joy is in the Lord. We should also kill our affections for this world and only focus them on God.
Worry can also happen when we worry about future blessings and passions for God. We instead of worrying about God's gifts we need to shout, I Trust God!
Worry can lead to confusion and deception in our lives, it can be a distraction to our mission. Worry leaves us vulnerable to other sins we could commit and ultimately worry makes us cowardice. So in response to worry we need to set our minds on and commit our lives to God. We need to be prepared and know God never said this life would be easy and with courage we need to keep remembering God's provisions in the past for us.
Satan leads us to worry because it can cause us crippling fear. So instead of worrying pray to Jesus.
Worry in the base form is an act of unbelief. So believe that Jesus loves us and does everything for our good.
Worry is finally a sin. So instead of sinning, do like Jesus commanded in Matthew 6:33-34 and Seek first the kingdom of God.
As I close my thought on worry for now, my Pastor in this morning sermon taught us on worry from Luke 12 and I want to share the poem he used to illustrate why we should not worry. This taken from verse 12:24.
Said the Raven to the Sparrow,
“I should really like to know
Why these anxious human beings
Rush about and worry so.”
Said the Sparrow to the Raven,
“Friend, I think that it must be
They have no Heavenly Father,
Such as cares for you and me."
We tend to worry about things in life because we are ignorant of who God is and the promises He has given us of His love and complete control over out lives. We need to respond to worry by studying the Bible.
When we worry it is a control issue. We want to be able to fix what is going on in our lives and control the circumstances that are happening to and around us. This is a selfish and a form of Idolatry in our lives. Instead we need to worship God by giving Him back the thrown of our lives and living in faith of Him, which will then result in us loving others first and desiring to serve those around us facing bad circumstances.
Worry is another form of being anxious and instead of it we need to be at peace with what God is doing.
We tend to worry sometimes because of our guilt about something, so instead of worrying we need to repent and turn it over to God.
We worry sometimes because of immoderation. We love this world to much and the things in it, which in turn can kill our joy if we are in bondage to this life and the worry it can bring. So we should be generous with everything realizing that everything we have is God's and the only place to find joy is in the Lord. We should also kill our affections for this world and only focus them on God.
Worry can also happen when we worry about future blessings and passions for God. We instead of worrying about God's gifts we need to shout, I Trust God!
Worry can lead to confusion and deception in our lives, it can be a distraction to our mission. Worry leaves us vulnerable to other sins we could commit and ultimately worry makes us cowardice. So in response to worry we need to set our minds on and commit our lives to God. We need to be prepared and know God never said this life would be easy and with courage we need to keep remembering God's provisions in the past for us.
Satan leads us to worry because it can cause us crippling fear. So instead of worrying pray to Jesus.
Worry in the base form is an act of unbelief. So believe that Jesus loves us and does everything for our good.
Worry is finally a sin. So instead of sinning, do like Jesus commanded in Matthew 6:33-34 and Seek first the kingdom of God.
As I close my thought on worry for now, my Pastor in this morning sermon taught us on worry from Luke 12 and I want to share the poem he used to illustrate why we should not worry. This taken from verse 12:24.
Said the Raven to the Sparrow,
“I should really like to know
Why these anxious human beings
Rush about and worry so.”
Said the Sparrow to the Raven,
“Friend, I think that it must be
They have no Heavenly Father,
Such as cares for you and me."
Friday, November 22, 2013
Trust
I had someone give me a great analogy today and I wanted to share it with all.
Trust is like a savings account. In order to receive trust from others we must slowly and continually make a deposit in the trust account. After making many deposits the trust level that others have in us will build;d up. But it will only take one action we do and others will lose all that trust we had build up. 1 mistake or action in destroying the trust others have in us will take away years of many small deposits we put in the account.
Here this today made me stop and think about how many times I have done things that have depleted my trust account and how I should be continually makeing deposits in others lives because I am not perfect and will make that mistake again and deplete my account.
Trust is like a savings account. In order to receive trust from others we must slowly and continually make a deposit in the trust account. After making many deposits the trust level that others have in us will build;d up. But it will only take one action we do and others will lose all that trust we had build up. 1 mistake or action in destroying the trust others have in us will take away years of many small deposits we put in the account.
Here this today made me stop and think about how many times I have done things that have depleted my trust account and how I should be continually makeing deposits in others lives because I am not perfect and will make that mistake again and deplete my account.
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