Good-Bye Or Good Riddance?

"He was thirty-two years old when he became king. He reigned in Jerusalem eight years and, to no one's sorrow, departed. However they buried him in the City of David, but not in the tombs of the kings."
2 Chronicles 21:20 (NKJV)

2 Chronicles 21 tells about the death of King Jehoram of Judah.  He only reigned for eight years and he was a bad king who did not follow God.  The Bible tells us that when King Jehoram died no one expressed any sorrow at his passing, the people were happy to see him go and to get rid of him.  But, there are other kings we can read about who when they died the people mourned over them, they were good kings that the people were sad to see go.  It was not the position that these men held that they were honored for, it was who they were and the influence they had on the people they ruled.

We all have relationships with people in our family, at our place of work, people we socialize with, and other types of relationships.  The type of relationship we have with these people may be different, but the one thing that is the same is that we have an influence on these people.  Positive or negative we are influencing the people around us.  But, are we the kind of people who are helping and encouraging to those around us or are we a negative influence?  If our relationship with these people ended today, for whatever reason, would they say a sad good-bye or would they just say good riddance? 

We don't always realize what an impact we make on other people, good or bad.  Think about Jesus and how He lived; I am sure that He was a positive influence on those around Him.  David is another example.  He had people around him who were in distress, in debt, and who were discontented.  David became their captain and chose to be a positive influence on these people.  We all know people like this that we are happy to see arrive and sad to see leave.  But on the other hand, there are some people that we are sad to see arrive and happy when they leave.  The question for us is which type of person we will be?  Our relationships with others are important and an opportunity for us to make a positive difference in people's lives.

Staying On Course Through God's Word

"Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in heaven."
Psalm 119:89 (NKJV)

People are looking for something to focus on and follow in life.  But there are so many things in life that you can't always rely on because of the amount of change involved.  For example, I used to listen to cassette tapes, I used to own a pet rock, and I used to wear bell bottom jeans.  At one time all of these things were very popular but they are rare if found at all today.  With all of the things that change in life it is good to know that God's Word does not change and God's Word is always something we can focus on and follow with success.

Many people have problems because what they are using as a foundation for their life is not stable and secure, like God's Word.  People try to do something to fit in only to find that as soon as they think they fit in the style has changed.  Others try to stay current with the latest popular culture or trend in the world and then they find out something "new" has come along and now they are out of it again.  If we try to base our life on all of the things in the world that are subject to change we will certainly live a frustrating life. 

God's Word is settled, forever.  There are no new updates for God's Word, it has not changed or been revised and it never will be.  God's Word is always relevant and useful for our daily lives.  God's Word is the only stable thing that we can base the course of our life on.  True success and happiness in life is only going to come by knowing, understanding, and following God's Word.  If it seems like your life has just been a series of ups and downs then get off of the roller coaster of passing fads and get connected with the Word of God, that is the only way to truly stay on the right course in life.

Walking In Love - By Faith

"For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love."
Galatians 5:6 (NKJV)

Everyone knows someone who is not so loveable.  Whether it is a family member, a coworker, a neighbor, or even someone in our church, we have all met people who have been difficult to get along with.  Sometimes we even go so far as to find a way, if possible, to avoid that person rather than deal with them.  While this type of person can be a challenge for us, we need to realize that no matter what other people do and how they act we don't have to let their bad attitude or actions dominate our life.  No matter how the other person acts we can still walk in love and treat them right and do good to them.

Galatians 5:6 gives us a key that can help us, faith works through love and love can work through faith.  God's love is already in us (Romans 5:5) so we don't need to get more love, we just need to use what we have.  One problem is that we are often looking at our feelings and having a hard time dealing with them.  We need to move past our feelings and act on the love of God that is in us, by faith.  We may never be able to do anything to change how the other person acts but we can act the right way and treat them the way we would if we really did have the feelings of love for them. 

The Bible tells us in Romans 5:8 that God demonstrated His love for us in sending Jesus to die for us when we were sinners and we did not deserve His love.  This is an example for us to follow.  God acted the right way towards us and showed us love even when we did not deserve it or respond properly and this is what we need to do.  Others may not respond the right way but when we walk in love it opens the door for God to work in the situation and it will help us with the unpleasant feelings we have towards the other person.  If we release the love of God that we have in us towards other people, no matter how they act, we are walking in love and walking with God.

Crossing To The Other Side

"Now it happened, on a certain day, that He got into a boat with His disciples. And He said to them, Let us cross over to the other side of the lake. And they launched out."
Luke 8:22 (NKJV)

Luke 8 records the story of Jesus and His disciples crossing a lake in a boat, which was a fairly normal means of travel for them.  Today we don't travel with boats as much as we use cars, airplanes, and even trains to get where we are going.  We don't plan to live in the car, airplane, or train, they are just methods that we use to go from one place to another.  I have traveled by car, airplane, and train to various places and while not every one of those experiences has been the most wonderful and exciting time of my life I did reach my destination.

In the story from Luke 8 we see that as Jesus and the disciples were in the boat crossing the lake a storm came up.  The storm caused some concern for the disciples but Jesus helped them get to the other side, which was the whole reason for the trip in the first place.  What if the disciples had known for certain that the storm was coming and had said they did not want to travel in the boat?  They may have reached their destination by foot but it would have taken them much longer to walk around the lake than to travel over it by boat.

Just like disciples we will all go through some situations and experiences that are not so pleasant.  But, if we remember that Jesus is with us and that He will help us we can keep the right perspective.  The disciples began to panic in their situation because they started looking at the circumstances and they forget where they were going.  We need to trust God and stay with His Word and the leading of the Holy Spirit to get where we need to go.  If we just panic and get scared at the first sign of trouble and then quit we may never reach our destination.  No matter where we are in life we need to realize that God is on our side and He will help us to safely and successfully reach the destination of where we need to be in life.

Sometimes It Is Best To Say Nothing

"If you have been foolish in exalting yourself, or if you have devised evil, put your hand on your mouth."
Proverbs 30:32 (NKJV)

Sometimes the best thing to say is nothing at all.  Too often people just talk without any thought about what they are saying and what effect their words will have.  It is one thing to just talk but it is something else to actually have words that are valuable and proper to speak in a given situation.  Proverbs 30 gives us a good guideline for our words; if we have said something foolish or have had some wrong thoughts the best thing to do is to stop talking!  Instead of just going on and on talking and making a mess of things it is sometimes best to just not say anything until we are sure we have something good to say.

In Mark 9 we read the story of Jesus being transfigured on the mountain.  Peter, James, and John were with Jesus when this event took place; Peter began to talk and said that maybe they should set up some tents or something.  It is not exactly clear what Peter was talking about but we do know that the Bible says Peter was afraid and did not really know what to say.  It would have been better at that moment for Peter to just be quiet and do as God told them when He said, "This is my beloved Son. Hear Him!"  It would have been better for Peter to stop talking and just listen. 

We have all been in situations where we start talking and soon realize that what we said was the wrong thing to say.  Are we like Peter and we don't know what to say and so we just say something because we are afraid or uncomfortable in the situation?  Do we let our emotions get the best of us and we just blurt out something that we later regret?  As one wise person said, you can almost always say something later, but once you say something you can't take it back.  The best thing is to be careful with the words we say, to ourselves and to others, to choose our words wisely and realize that sometimes the best thing to say is nothing at all.

God Can Do More Than We Think

"Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,"
Ephesians 3:20 (NKJV)

God is a big God!  He is bigger than any of us realize and certainly bigger than any situation or problem we face.  God is big enough to be able to help us overcome anything we face and to enable us to do anything and everything He leads us to do.  Sometimes the problem is that we limit what God can do in our lives by what we think, what we have experienced in the past, and what we see happening around us.  We have to realize that God can do even more than we can think or dream!  The question is not if God is big enough but if we can really believe what He has said in His Word.

One key to this is renewing our mind with God's Word.  If our thinking is completely different than God's thinking we will always struggle with the possibilities available with God.  If we think small, and we dream small, then our expectation from God will also be small.  But if we understand that God has a great plan for us, then we will begin to dream big dreams for God.  The great thing is that no matter what big dream we might have, or what we want to do for God, that God is even bigger than that and can do even more than what we ask or think.

God has things that He wants to do in our lives and things He wants us to do for Him.  The biggest limitation that God has is with us and our thinking.  The only reason that God is not doing more in some people's lives is because they have limited Him with their thinking; their expectation of what God can do is too small.  We need to take off the limits that we have built up in our mind and renew our mind with God's Word and dream big dreams for God.  God is able to exceedingly abundantly above all we can ask or think; let's all believe for big things with God!

Helping To Support Others Through Prayer

"And the Lord said, Simon, Simon! Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."
Luke 22:31, 32 (NKJV)

The Bible is very clear about the fact that we have an enemy, the devil.  The Bible tells us in 1 Peter 5:8 that "the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour"; the devil is actively seeking people to attack.  There are some different methods that he will use to try to attack us but his goal is always the same, to separate us from God and His Word.  If the devil can separate us from these things we are going to be easy prey for deception and destruction.  The good news is that Jesus has already defeated the devil and we can do something about the devil's tactics.

In Luke 22 Jesus was celebrating the Passover with His disciples.  Jesus began to explain how He was going to be betrayed and put to death.  He also said something very interesting to Peter that we can learn an important lesson from.  Jesus told Peter that Satan desired to "sift him as wheat".  This is referring to the process of separating the wheat from the chaff by shaking it.  This is a picture of what the devil tries to do in the lives of believers today; the devil wants to shake people loose from their connection to God, His Word, their local church, and other believers.

Many Christians, especially when they are "young" believers, do not yet have a solid foundation in God's Word and they are easily shaken by trials, temptations, offense, and problems.  Just like a child in the natural needs support from their older siblings and adults so do spiritual children.  Just like Jesus did with Peter, we need to pray for the stability of believers and support them with our prayers. We can pray that God would help these believers to keep the truth in mind and not yield to the pressure they may be facing. Through our prayers we can help believers to be stable and strong in the face of temptations, tests, and trials.  Jesus did it for Peter and we can do it too.

God's Favorite Child

"For there is no partiality with God."
Romans 2:11 (NKJV)

There are some situations in life where one person is preferred above another.  Someone may have access to a place because they either work there or they have been granted special permission by someone else.  Another example is how a person who is someone's friend will be allowed to do some things that another person is not, just because of that friendship.  While these things do happen in life it is good to know that with God there is no special access or privilege for one person over another.

God loves and cares the same for all of His children.  Many Christians read stories in the Bible about some man or woman who did great things for God and think that this man or woman was in some special relationship with God.  Sometimes Christians look at Jesus and think that because He was and is God's only begotten Son that Jesus was God's favorite child and God loves Jesus more than anyone.  But, Jesus Himself said in His prayer in John 17 that God loves all of His children just as much as He loved Jesus!

So why is it that some believers have things working better in their lives than others?  It is not because some Christians have a special relationship with God and they are His favorite child, but because these believers have learned the truth of who God is and what He provided through Jesus.  We have favor and access to God because of Jesus and not based on who we are or what we have done.  The reason that Jesus and others people in the Bible did great things for God is because those people understood their relationship to God and knew that God would honor His Word when someone acted on it in faith.  God is our Father and we are all His favorite child and His Word works the same for all of us!

We Need To Know The Whole Counsel Of God

"Jesus answered and said to them, You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God."
Matthew 22:29 (NKJV)

There is an interesting story in Matthew 22 about a group of people who came to ask Jesus a question.  These people, called the Sadducees, were part of a religious group that did not believe in the resurrection of the dead, but they were asking Jesus a question about what happens to people after the resurrection.  What a strange topic for them to bring up.  But, they did not really want to learn anything or have an actual answer to a real question; they were only trying to justify themselves and their beliefs while putting Jesus down.

These Sadducees were more well versed in their beliefs and opinions than what God had actually said.  They did not really have an understanding of the Word of God.  If they had been as informed about the entire Old Testament as they were about their own group's beliefs and opinions about the Old Testament they would not have said what they said.  Jesus told them they were mistaken because they did not know the Scriptures.  They knew part of the Scripture, the part that fit their beliefs, but they did not know the whole counsel of God, as Paul called it in Acts 20:27.

Just like the Sadducees, too many believers only know small portions of the Bible and those are usually the parts they like the best, they don't know the whole counsel of God.  Too few Christians have a regular time of reading and studying the Word for themselves, they don't really know the Scriptures.  We need to be people who know the Word of God for ourselves and are well acquainted with it from having spent time with it on a regular basis.  We should all make it a habit to spent time with God through His Word, this will help us in our life and we will avoid making mistakes like the Sadducees did.

It Will Make Sense Later On

"His disciples did not understand these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written about Him and that they had done these things to Him."
John 12:16 (NKJV)

In John 12 we see Jesus talking with His disciples about things that they did not completely understand at the time.  During Jesus ministry on the earth, when He was arrested, crucified and buried, the disciples and other people around Jesus did not always understand was He was talking about or what was happening, but it all made sense later on.  We can see a parallel in our own life in how God guides us and directs us; everything God is telling us and everywhere He is leading us does not always make sense at the time, but it will later on.

So often we try to live our life based on what we know and we usually resist what we don't understand.  If we limit where God can direct us in our life based on what we know and understand we will miss some of what God is trying to work in us.  In my own life I can look back at several different situations that I thought were unnecessary and just a waste of time and effort.  But, as I continued in my walk with God I could look back and see exactly how these seemingly random things all fit into what God had planned for me and how God used them prepared me for my future.

We need to develop in our relationship with God to where we are obediently following His direction, no matter what He might lead us to do.  We need to learn to trust God and realize that what He is leading us to do today is preparing us for what we will face tomorrow.  Now I am not saying that God will bring tragedy or some dreadful disease into our life to teach us some mysterious lesson.  What I am saying is that God knows the best course for our life and He knows what lies ahead.  God is always at work in our life developing us and preparing us for the future.  If we trust God to guide us in the present then we will reap benefits now and especially in the future.

Run Your Race, With Endurance

"Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,"
Hebrews 12:1 (NKJV)

When I was in high school I was on the track team.  Our school would compete against other schools in various events, including different running events, during regular track meets.  I usually ran the one and two mile races, but one time the coach had me run the quarter mile race.  Although I did not finish last in that race it was not my best race; I had a hard time running the right pace because I was used to running longer distances.  I was so used to running a certain way that when I had to change I struggled, this is similar to the kind of spiritual problem that a lot of Christians are having today.

Many people are so used to doing things at a fast pace that they have a hard time doing something that takes a longer amount of time.  This kind of thing is often seen around the New Year when people make all kinds of resolutions with good intentions and a lot of zeal.  However, after a month or two, and possibly even after only a few weeks, when things don't happen as fast as they had hoped people give up and don't pursue that resolution any more.  It is not that what they wanted to do was wrong but they expected something to happen quicker than it did, and that is where the problem is.

The Christian life is compared to a race, but it is more like a marathon than a 100 meter dash because our race for God happens over the course of our entire life.  In Hebrews 12:1 we are told to run our race with endurance; we have to be consistent and persistent with the right attitude, moving forward no matter how fast or slow things seem to go.  We keep on going, staying focused on what the Bible says about our life and knowing that God by the Holy Spirit will help us and direct us in the things we are doing.  That is how we run our race with endurance and finish the race with success!

Happy Holidays?

"Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, I will never leave you nor forsake you."
Hebrews 13:5 (NKJV)

During this time of the year, around Christmas and the New Year, you will often hear people wish one another "Happy Holidays!"  The idea is that this should be a time of happiness and celebration, especially with family and friends.  Some people also travel somewhere to enjoy themselves and find time to relax.  But for others the holiday season is actually a time of sadness and depression because they are not able to be with family and friends, or they are unhappy because none of the hopes and dreams they had for the holiday season came to pass.

It is certainly good to be able to spend some time with family and friends as well as to get away from the usual routine.  The only problem is that no matter who you are with or where you go, the one constant is you!  Visiting with some people or doing something that will bring us some joy and satisfaction is nice, but no other person and no thing can really make us happy and satisfy us.  Too often people have been disappointed during a special time like Christmas because they are expecting someone to do something for them or for something to happen outside of themselves to make them happy.

If we look for some thing, some person, or some situation to bring us joy and happiness it will at best be short lived.  Christmas, a New Year with all of its hopes and dreams, or any other holiday or special time of year will never be as nice as it could be if we ourselves are not in the right frame of mind and living the right kind of life.  We need to put into practice the advice given to us by the writer of Hebrews, we need to have a life of contentment focusing on the fact that Jesus will never leave us or forsake us and that no matter where we go He will be there to help us and to take care of us.  Doing this will help us, and everyone around us, to have a satisfying life and a really happy holiday season.

Committed To The Course That God Has Given

"And see, now I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations await me. But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God."
Acts 20:22-24 (NKJV)

The Apostle Paul is a great example for us.  Paul was someone who persecuted the church before he became a person who built up the church.   Once Paul became a Christian he found God's plan for his life and he pursued it; Paul did not let anything stop him from doing what God wanted him to do.  Paul is not unique; God has a plan and a purpose for everyone's life.  Like Paul, we all need to be committed to doing God's will no matter what challenges we face.  Paul said he knew that difficulties were going to come to him but he was committed to fulfilling God's plan for his life. 

The biggest factor in determining whether or not we will fulfill the will of God for our life is with us. Just like Paul, we will all face challenges in life.  Following God's plan might not always be the easiest choice for us but it is always the best choice.  If we are committed to doing the will of God then nothing can stop us.  The devil will try many different ways to hinder us and get us off course.  If we get distracted or we stop and give up then we are defeated.  If we are determined to do the will of God no matter what then we will win!

God will speak to us through His Word and by the Holy Spirit to give us the direction we need for every area of our life.  Once we have the direction from God it is then up to us to follow through.  We can read in 2 Corinthians 11:23-27 about all of the problems that Paul faced but he did not quit; Paul made the decision that he would follow God's plan no matter what.  What about us?  Do we know God's plan for our life?  Are we committed to fulfilling that plan no matter what?  We need to be like Paul and be committed to finishing the course that God has given to us.

Pull Out The Weeds Before Planting The Flowers

"Then the Lord put forth His hand and touched my mouth, and the Lord said to me: Behold, I have put My words in your mouth. See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out and to pull down, to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant."
Jeremiah 1:9, 10 (NKJV)

One of the greatest challenges we will ever face is with our thoughts.  Many people have wrong thoughts and wrong beliefs based on those thoughts that are causing them to be ineffective in what they do.  For example, you may think that you are not able to succeed in life or you may think you are not the kind of person who can do anything great for God.  Thinking like this leads to wrong decisions and wrong actions, which will hold you back and hinder you from doing what you need to do.  To change our life we must change our thinking.

God told Jeremiah that He had put His Words in his mouth, this is a good thing for us as well; we need to say what God has said in His Word.  Next God told Jeremiah to root out, pull down, destroy, throw down, build, and plant.  Notice that God talked twice as much about getting rid of some things as He did about adding some things.  Sometimes we have to remove the wrong thoughts before we can build and plant the right thoughts.  It would be like pulling all the weeds out of your garden before planting the flowers.  To make room for one you have to get rid of the other.

What we think is based on the information we have received, the question is if the information is actually good.  Our beliefs, actions, and the words we speak are based on the things we think about.  If we find ourselves having the wrong kinds of thoughts then we need to remove those thoughts and replace them with thoughts that we find in the Bible.  We have the choice as to what we will think about, it is up to us.  We need to choose to think about the right kinds of things and weed out the wrong kinds of things; this will help us to live the kind of life that God wants us to live.

Walking In Love - Being Moved With Compassion

"But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest."
Matthew 9:36-38 (NKJV)

Jesus is our example in every area of life.  It is good that we have a record of the life of Jesus and the things that He did so we can learn about how He lived and follow His example.  We can know what worked in the life of Jesus and in turn what will work for us.  Wherever Jesus went it seemed that people followed Him.  People came to hear Jesus teach, to get healed, and sometimes people probably just came to see Jesus because they were curious.  What is interesting for us to see is how Jesus acted with these people and how He reacted to them.

In Matthew 9 we see Jesus teaching, preaching, and healing.  After this Jesus saw a multitude of people around Him, there were a lot of people and Jesus noticed that these people needed some help.  How did Jesus react to this multitude and their situation?  Jesus did not just feel sorry for the people because they had problems, He looked for a way to meet the need.  Jesus had a reaction of compassion; He told His disciples that more workers were needed to help these people and to pray for more laborers.  How would we have reacted to this and how do we react to people and their needs today?

Jesus did not say, Oh I wish these people would leave me alone. I've been busy with all my work and now there's this whole crowd that needs help!  No, Jesus reacted with love and compassion realizing the need and seeking a way to meet the need.  We can have a similar reaction because we have God's love in us (Romans 5:5), we can be moved with compassion just like Jesus was.  Jesus did not just focus on what He wanted and what was best for Him, we too need to look past our own needs to the needs of others.  Start looking past the crowd and the problems and start looking at people with compassion and see how you can help to meet their need.  We have the love of God in us, we just need to let it motivate us to help others.