Slave To Sin…..

When people are slaves to sin, what exactly does that mean? It means when people lie, become proud, and curse others, they become ensnared by their actions. They fail to see its ramifications. They become the victim of their own demise. The become controlled by their own desires. It spiritually blinds them, limiting them in their ability to see and recognize truth. This in turn prevents them from doing the “right thing”, such as saying you’re sorry, or forgiving someone’s trespass against you. When sin entangles you in its web of deceit, you become its slave. You become controlled by its power, and end up losing the ability to cope. People don’t realize that when you give in to sinful behavior, you sacrifice your freedom in Christ. You slap the Hand that feeds you. Everything that follows becomes self-inflicted. All the ills that happen are the result of willfully disobeying what you know to be true. You become a victim of your own doing. It’s like locking yourself up in a prison cell, then wondering how you got there. We bring on our own suffering when we give into to sin. And the saddest part is, we won’t have anyone to blame but ourselves.

11 Don’t kill them, for my people soon forget such lessons; stagger them with Your power, and bring them to their knees,O Lord our shield.12 Because of the sinful things they say,because of the evil that is on their lips,let them be captured by their pride,their curses, and their lies. Psalms 59:11-12

It’s A Guarantee….

When it’s in God’s will, it’s a guarantee. It may not happen as you see fit, but it will happen. The key is trusting, obeying, and carrying on with life as it’s worked out. David was being hunted down by King Saul. He had every right to worry and wonder “why” God was allowing this. But deep down inside, he knew he had to trust God, for God had told him he would be king. God doesn’t make promises that He doesn’t keep. If David knew he would become king, then he knew Saul wasn’t going to end his life. The same is true for believers. When God promises us to take care of us, never leaving or forsaking us, why do we allow ourselves to be distraught when things don’t go our way? It may not seem like it’s true or going to happen, but faith is all about taking the next step without seeing exactly where to place your foot. It’s how God operates. Trust me on this one. Trust God with His promises.

17 “Don’t be afraid,” Jonathan reassured him. “My father will never find you! You are going to be the king of Israel, and I will be next to you, as my father, Saul, is well aware.” 18 So the two of them renewed their solemn pact before the Lord. Then Jonathan returned home, while David stayed at Horesh. 1 Samuel 23:17-18

26 Saul and David were now on opposite sides of a mountain. Just as Saul and his men began to close in on David and his men, 27 an urgent message reached Saul that the Philistines were raiding Israel again. 28 So Saul quit chasing David and returned to fight the Philistines. Ever since that time, the place where David was camped has been called the Rock of Escape. 29 David then went to live in the strongholds of En-gedi. 1 Samuel 23:26-29

Heart Of The Gospel….

What is the heart of the Gospel message? There is forgiveness of sins for all who repent. Believers are witnesses of this. If you are not working out your salvation, showing the world the transformation that has taken place inside of you, then maybe you have forgotten the Gospel’s core message. If you minimize sin, you trivialize the Cross. If God isn’t the center of your being, your witness won’t be effective. If He is the substance of your life, your testimony will honor Him by pointing others to Him. Isn’t that the goal of being a follower of Christ Jesus?

45 Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. 46 And He said, “Yes, it was written long ago that the Messiah would suffer and die and rise from the dead on the third day. 47 It was also written that this message would be proclaimed in the authority of His name to all the nations, beginning in Jerusalem: ‘There is forgiveness of sins for all who repent.’48 You are witnesses of all these things. Luke 24:45-48

Constructive Criticism…..

Constructive criticism, who likes it? Any criticism is hard to take, but it’s when you learn to be honest with yourself, you learn to see it with new eyes. I’ve always told myself anytime someone has any advice, words of wisdom, criticism, or negative comments, I would weigh them all under the scrutiny of truth. When you look at yourself in a mirror, you will see the real you. You will see all of your imperfections. You will see what you like and dislike. It’s the same way with handling others’ comments, you take out what’s true and apply it to your life. And you throw out the bad, that which isn’t true. When you see yourself under God’s sovereign authority you are able to handle people’s words, because you know God is working on your character. God uses people to communicate His intentions. It’s like gold being refined in the furnace. It’s takes immense heat to separate the pure gold from all the impurities mixed in with it. In the same way, criticism, harsh remarks, advice, and the like, are God’s way of testing us to see if we are ready to move forward in our development. In order to be more like Jesus (which is the goal of the sanctification process all believers must experience), we have to get to the point of independently being dependent upon God. One of the surest ways of knowing your journey is headed in the right direction is how we handle criticism. God tells us that we don’t need to worry about what to say when we are brought before people demanding answers, for He will give us the words to say. The key is being close to Him, pursuing Him daily. This helps us look at ourselves from His perspective. It’s where humility starts and ends. It’s where pride isn’t allowed to reign. It’s what these proverbs are all about. Handling criticism shows us where we are on our journey with God. How you handle it, shows us our spiritual maturity. It all starts with a healthy reverence for God, and an honest look at ourselves. So the next time you receive criticism, pray about it, ask God to reveal what its purpose is. Separate the necessary from the untruth, and apply the truth to your life, while throwing out the lies. You’ll find yourself growing in understanding, and at home with the wise. Before you know it, people will be coming to you for this blessing (God-given ability) you’ve trained yourself to develop, it’s called wisdom.

31 If you listen to constructive criticism, you will be at home among the wise. 32 If you reject discipline, you only harm yourself; but if you listen to correction, you grow in understanding. 33 Fear of the Lord teaches wisdom; humility precedes honor. Proverbs 15:31-33

If God’s Spirit Left You….

Can you imagine what it would be like having to live knowing God’s Spirit left you? Saul did just that. When he didn’t follow God’s commands with the Amalekites, God removed His Spirit and allowed him a tormenting one. Imagine knowing God, having the ability to understand people, interpret the world from God’s point of view, and knowing your security is safe in God’s hands, then at the blink of an eye, it all being taken away. The only example that comes close to the destruction and havoc it would cause in your life would be how Judas acted once he felt remorse over handing Jesus over to the priests to be crucified. His desperation lead to his suicide. He couldn’t take the overwhelming remorse, guilt, shame, and most importantly loss of hope. We know God will never abandon us (Hebrews 13:5-6), but what if we abandon God to the point of Him granting us our desires to be left alone. It would definitely be a “Judas moment”, wouldn’t it? King Saul lived out the rest of his life in severe depression, paranoia, and hatred towards David. It eventually ended taking his own life, just like Judas. What a miserable way to live and die. God is so important in our lives, so don’t ever be like Saul or Judas. It’s the worst kind of life there is. Hell on earth, won’t compare to Hell after death, but it certainly will give you a taste of what God never intended for human beings.

13 But if he is angry and wants you killed, may the Lord strike me and even kill me if I don’t warn you so you can escape and live. May the Lord be with you as he used to be with my father. 1 Samuel 20:13

Being “Positive” vs. Encouraging With Truth….

There’s something to be said about “being positive”. It encourages others. It motivates others. It helps promote healing. The warning I would say we all need when it comes to positivity is this: truth must exist in our positivity or it’s just flattery. And we all know flattery gets us no where. It may earn us “brownie points”, but that satisfaction doesn’t last. Without truth, sincerity, enthusiasm, and intent, mean absolutely nothing. You can be the most sincere person in the world, and you can want to help someone so badly it hurts, but without truth, you can be sincerely wrong in your approach. Flattery is dangerous. It sets people up to later fall. A cheerful heart is a sincere heart, one filled with truth. When it brings truthful, sincere good news, there’s no wonder why good health follows. Truth is always something we must continually be pursuing. It’s necessary for life. When truth is pursued, accepted, and spoken freely, it heals a society. Anything else promotes decay. The next time you want to inject “positivity” into someone’s life, remember to be truthful, don’t make up your own truth just to make someone feel better about themselves. You just may inflict more harm than good.

30 A cheerful look brings joy to the heart; good news makes for good health. Proverbs 15:30

Prayers Of The Righteous….

The only reason America is still around is because of the prayers of the righteous. If we don’t continue to teach our children about God and His ways, America will literally become “History”.

29 The Lord is far from the wicked, but He hears the prayers of the righteous. Proverbs 15:29