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Do you want God's wisdom?

9/29/2013

“This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.” James 3:15-16 KJV

The difference between the wisdom of man and the wisdom of God is simply amazing. God's wisdom does not cause us to do wrong or hurt other people. God's wisdom holds us together. On the other hand, following the wisdom of common, contemporary thinking leads us away from our loving Father. In some instances, worldly wisdom may cause us to want to get angry with people every time they don't agree with us; then we wonder why there is confusion and hurt.

If you realize you are following the wisdom of the world in your life and you want to change - what type of wisdom should we have?

Lord – Lead Us Not Into Temptation, Lead us into You.

8/11/2013

“Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.” James 1:12

We can fall into our own pity parties in the trials that we go through; whether they be testings from God, from Satan, or maybe even our own silly mistakes – we humans seem to love to complain about the woes that are ailing us. We are not the only ones going through trials; and our trials are not unique to the human race. We must be vigilant in not falling into these pitfalls that James 1 warns us about:

Maturity Through Temptation

8/4/2013

"2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; 3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. 4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing." - James 1:2-4

There are many trials and testings (temptations) that come our way as Christians; our Scripture today implores us to have joy in those testings. These temptations may be physical, or emotional, or spiritual and may or may not affect the ones we love. In addition, the world is always trying to allure us away from our Savior, Jesus Christ, so that we will be ineffective Christians. If you do not know Christ as personal Savior, overcoming these tests will be more difficult. For believers, there are three reasons why we must go through what some have called the ‘Refiner’s fire’ – so we may be mature (perfect), entire (Christ like), and pure wanting or in need of nothing.

Steadfast in Love for Him by Prayer

8/2/2013

"And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers." Acts 2:42

Some of the greatest works we share together as believers is to pray or share the Lord’s supper with one another. While there are a very many good things that believers may share together, the activity of interceding on the behalf of others or "breaking of bread" marked the lives of the early church.

1 Peter 5:10 - Suffering a Good Thing?

2/3/2013

In contemporary Christianity, many have focused on the gifts of God that make us feel good; be they riches, comfort of life, great employment, or good health – who ever heard of suffering being a good thing? Even more, could suffering actually be a type of grace that God uses in our life? Yes, suffering can both lead and protect us.

Luke 22:54 - Prayer - A Bridge to God's Heart

1/29/2013

The day continued to get darker; not only had Jesus struggled in prayer the entire evening, His enemies captured Him with weapons in the dead of night. Now with Christ under the arrest of the Romans, Peter had to come to grasps with the fact that His Lord had been detained and all the disciples had fled. Oh, how distant God must have seemed to Peter. What else should he have done but bring all his concerns to God in prayer?

Titus 2:11-12 - Grace Going With Us Everywhere

1/26/2013

God’s grace will accompany us through our mental, physical, and spiritual lives. If we have filled our minds with junk, He can clean it out and fill it with the life giving power of His Word. If we find ourselves caught up in disobedience, He can help us to live in such a way that we always do the right thing with our only motive being His honor. And if we are having trouble walking in the path of purity, He can keep us aware that He is walking with us wherever we go.

Titus 2:11-12

1/24/2013

While we don’t take a jar full of cookies, place them on the roof, and then tell our two year old they can have some if they can get one – apparently we live our lives as if God has taken His most precious riches, hidden them out of reach, and then asked us to get them so we can be free! While our faith is not necessarily effortless, it is neither tortuously difficult (1 John 5:3)

Titus 2:12 - Teaching Grace

1/22/2013

Everyday, grace can teach Christians how to act, what to believe, and how to serve. Required on our part is being teachable every day and always listening to God’s word so we can become more like Christ.

James 4 - Grace Overcoming Complacency

1/17/2013

Watch your prayer life; observe the requests you have of God, why you are Him asking for it, and what items (if any) you are thanking Him for. The answers to these questions can help determine if you are desiring God’s heart, or have you become complacent. We can become complacent on spiritual matters because our focus is on our flesh’s goal; James tells us we can desire for things we cannot obtain. Perhaps we turn to God as a way to fulfill our fleshly wishes, but alas – “ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.” (James 4:2-3)

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