Month: November 2013

An Attitude of Gratitude

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Today is considered the day of giving Thanks.  Everyone has some sort of tradition for this holiday.  Whether it is the place you gather with family and friends, the food you eat or things you do on this day…or all of the above.  Some people will just have “another” day they will go to work…no matter how this day or your weekend is planned try to start a new tradition or continue with this if you already do it…give thanks to God…

Too often we spend hours focusing time and energy on what we don’t have or can’t do and don’t like…make a commitment today…be thankful to God for all he has done for you and your family or friends every day.  Have an attitude of gratitude today and continue it tomorrow and the next day and the next day…too make it easier think of 2-3 things you are thankful for every morning, write it down to help you remember, maybe even pray a prayer of thankfulness and praise.  God loves you and to show you his love he sent his Son into this world…he forgives you for all the sins you have done and he wants an opportunity to show you a new way to live…you just have to choose to believe in him…a great way to start is to look around you in your world where you are and find those things you are thankful for and tell him.

“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

                                                                                                                Colossians 3:17

Peace to you and Happy Thanksgiving.

“Come, Follow Me”

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It is written, Jesus said “Come, Follow Me”…and Levi got up and followed him.  Just like that…nothing further is written about this encounter specifically.  The message that can come out of such a simple interaction is strong.  Another interaction written in the bible…A rich young man ran up to Jesus and asked “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”  Jesus instructed him to “sell all of your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.  Then come, follow me.”  There it is again…

It is simply three words; come, follow me.  As they say, that is easier said than done!  Everything around us in the world is telling us to do this and get here and do that…very few times do we get the opportunity to sit and think about what it would mean to follow him.  Here is what I have learned…the bible has all the instructions.  It is clear about how God wants us to choose to live.  Both of the above interactions are written about in the Gospel of Mark.  The Levi encounter is in Mark 2 and the rich young man encounter is in Mark 10.  Then in Mark 12 there is writing about The Greatest Commandment…

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.  The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  There is no greater commandment than these.”

                                                                                                                Mark 12:30-31

Thus we have the instructions…Love God and Love your neighbor.  Do not do things just to serve you.  Pray daily to grow in your relationship with God.  Be humble and try to live with an attitude of gratitude.  Next week is the Thanksgiving holiday…start thinking now how you can show the important people in your life how much you appreciate them, maybe give food or clothing or whatever you can to the needy…whatever that looks like is up to you and God.

If you are not sure where to start sit down for a quiet moment and ask him…he is waiting to hear from you.  Then watch carefully for his guidance.

Peace to you and yours.

Actions Mean More than Words

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Have you ever been having a discussion with someone and you told them “I am listening” and yet as they begin or continue to speak your mind begins to wander?  Once they have finished they are looking at you for a response or a reaction…in that moment your actions will truly determine if your statement of “I am listening” was really true.

It is this belief about actions being more important than words that really gets me confused about the explosion of social media…words, words and more words.  Do you notice the items on social media that get the most attention or go “viral” (now there is an action) are the ones with a photo or a video?  Why?  Because they show actions not only words.  This is not to say that words and what you say is not important but words are less important if you don’t have actions to back them up.

There is a song by Rich Mullins entitled Screen Door and that song states “Faith without works is like a song you can’t sing
It’s about as useless as a screen door on a submarine”

Actions can be so much more powerful than words that sometimes just doing something for someone means more than anything you could say.  The bible has many words and usually they are words that are describing the actions of people in the past…so reading it is good to gain understanding of what God wants us to DO.  Then we need to go do it!

Always remember the greatest action in human history is this…

“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.  We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth”.

                                                                                                                John 1:14

That is action…he came into the world to save us……I am off to go pray that God can use me to help someone who needs it today.

If you are interested in learning more about Rich Mullins here is a video from one of his last concerts

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ZNYtYRbH6aI

Spiritual Growth

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Often times people put little value on the things that they can do to help another, yet others believe it is the simplest gesture that can make the biggest difference in their day.  This is something I was reminded of earlier this year while on a mission trip with senior high youth…

Do whatever you can

For whoever can

Whenever you can

Wherever you are

Because whatever you can do it will be something that someone else needs and never forget your actions DO make a difference in this world. 

“Be very careful, then, how you live- not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.  Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.”

                                                                                                                                Ephesians 5:15-17

Even those who lived during the time of Jesus’s life on earth had doubts about Faith in life…one of his disciples was walking on water towards Jesus and once the wind kicked up he doubted he could really do it so he began to sink and Jesus was standing right there.  We all will have moments of doubt and that is Ok, just don’t quit trying.

Even the easiest thing like holding a door open for someone can contribute to the spiritual growth of you and the other person.  But do not do things expecting the “proper” reaction from another…we must remember we can’t control what another person thinks, says or does.  Our spiritual growth will come from doing what God is asking us to do, not from what the world thinks we should do or how the world reacts to the things we do.

In short, we are blessed to be a blessing…we all have been given something to share…don’t immediately think about money.  There are far greater things in life than financial riches…ask God to help you find what you can share with others and…

Do whatever you can

For whoever can

Whenever you can

Wherever you are…

Peace.