1 Corinthians 9:19-21
Even though I am a free man with no master, I have become a slave to all people to bring many to Christ. When I was with the Jews, I lived like a Jew to bring the Jews to Christ. When I was with those who follow the Jewish law, I too lived under that law. Even though I am not subject to the law, I did this so I could bring to Christ those who are under the law. When I am with the Gentiles who do not follow the Jewish law, I too live apart from that law so I can bring them to Christ. But I do not ignore the law of God; I obey the law of Christ. (NLT)
Galatians 6:2 tells us to "Share each other's burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ."
The Law of Christ is also referred to as the Law of Love.
So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples." (John 13:34-35)
And then in John 3:16 we hear "For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life."
And a few days ago we celebrated the birth of Jesus with lights and trees and food and gifts. Before that we sent reminders to many of the love we have for them because of what Jesus did for us. We sent out Christmas cards in cyberspace and by the postal service.
When we are with others, believers and unbelievers alike, we are to blend in. Paul speaks here of obeying the Jewish laws when with the Jews and of not being concerned about them when he was with non-Jews. What we never do is disobey the law of God.
It is not about our sharing our religion. It is not about telling people how to live their lives. It should be all about sharing the presence of Jesus every day, everywhere we go.
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Giving
1 Corinthians 9:14
In the same way, the Lord ordered that those who preach the Good News should be supported by those who benefit from it. (NLT)
Paul did not charge for his preaching as did others. This is true today as well. Many minister and expect payment for their time. Others give without expecting a reward. Does this scripture mean that all should charge a fee?
I believe Paul had it right. He preached the Good News everywhere he went. When he needed money, he made and sold tents. He did not depend on his teaching to pay his way. He depended on God to supply his every need.
Ministry today has turned for some into a vocation. Many churches are corporations with large financial needs. They have great programs to teach the congregations, to fill them with the knowledge the leadership believes them to need. To support the programs, the members have to give regularly. Much of the money is spent right within the church walls.
Then there are the smaller churches where the Word is preached and the preacher works to support his family. The offerings received go to support the work of the church in the local area and to spread God words to the lost.
Are all big churches like the one described? Are all small churches involved outside their little church body? No, I do not think so and only those in those churches really know what goes on.
This scripture tells us that those who benefit from the teaching should help support the teacher. We should be giving where we are being fed. I believe in tithing or giving a tenth of what I make back to the Lord for the work He has for us to do. Whether it is a tithe or an offering, it is important to support those who are helping to spread the Good News.
In the same way, the Lord ordered that those who preach the Good News should be supported by those who benefit from it. (NLT)
Paul did not charge for his preaching as did others. This is true today as well. Many minister and expect payment for their time. Others give without expecting a reward. Does this scripture mean that all should charge a fee?
I believe Paul had it right. He preached the Good News everywhere he went. When he needed money, he made and sold tents. He did not depend on his teaching to pay his way. He depended on God to supply his every need.
Ministry today has turned for some into a vocation. Many churches are corporations with large financial needs. They have great programs to teach the congregations, to fill them with the knowledge the leadership believes them to need. To support the programs, the members have to give regularly. Much of the money is spent right within the church walls.
Then there are the smaller churches where the Word is preached and the preacher works to support his family. The offerings received go to support the work of the church in the local area and to spread God words to the lost.
Are all big churches like the one described? Are all small churches involved outside their little church body? No, I do not think so and only those in those churches really know what goes on.
This scripture tells us that those who benefit from the teaching should help support the teacher. We should be giving where we are being fed. I believe in tithing or giving a tenth of what I make back to the Lord for the work He has for us to do. Whether it is a tithe or an offering, it is important to support those who are helping to spread the Good News.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Pick and Choose
Romans 14:1
Accept other believers who are weak in faith, and don't argue with them about what they think is right or wrong. (NLT)
I remember a story about cooking the Christmas ham. As the little girl watched her mother cut the end off of the ham and throw it away, she asked her mother why she did that. The mother said that the cut off end was not good to eat. The daughter again asked why. The mother thought about it and said she really did not know why, she learned this truth about the ham from her mother.
When grandmother came over for dinner that day, the little girl asked about the end of the ham that was thrown away. The grandmother laughed and told her grand-daughter she did not know why, that her mother always cut the end off, so she did too.
The little girl was still curious, so she approached the great-grand-mother who exclaimed "I had to cut it off because my oven was too small for the whole ham!"
Sometimes the truth as we know it is not truth at all. We tend to see things only from our own standpoint and not as other may see them. So when a situation comes up where we differ in opinion with someone, we can become argumentative since we know the truth. The truth we know is based on the experience we have had or what we have learned about someone else's experience in this matter. What we know may not be truth.
Even though someone is recently saved, they have the same truth inside them as we do. How much of that truth has been revealed to them has to do with their relationship with God, not in the number of years they have been saved or which classes they have attended. Faith grows in relationship to our experience with God.
This is so unlike our worldly view of knowledge. In that view, the more grades we have gone through in school and the more degrees we have obtained in college gives us an edge over those with less. Knowledge is somehow erroneously linked to experience. However, knowledge without experience is like a closed book. In this worldly existence, knowledge with experience leads to the discovery of new truth.
So we should not argue with another Christian about God. The Bible is the way to discover truth no matter how long someone has been saved. The truth revealed to someone else by the Holy Spirit as they read God's Word may be just what God wants us to hear. Do not argue about or dismiss what others hear. What we perceive as being week in faith may just be a perception based on the box we have allowed ourselves to be in all these years. A new Christian may in fact be stronger in faith then us.
Accept other believers who are weak in faith, and don't argue with them about what they think is right or wrong. (NLT)
I remember a story about cooking the Christmas ham. As the little girl watched her mother cut the end off of the ham and throw it away, she asked her mother why she did that. The mother said that the cut off end was not good to eat. The daughter again asked why. The mother thought about it and said she really did not know why, she learned this truth about the ham from her mother.
When grandmother came over for dinner that day, the little girl asked about the end of the ham that was thrown away. The grandmother laughed and told her grand-daughter she did not know why, that her mother always cut the end off, so she did too.
The little girl was still curious, so she approached the great-grand-mother who exclaimed "I had to cut it off because my oven was too small for the whole ham!"
Sometimes the truth as we know it is not truth at all. We tend to see things only from our own standpoint and not as other may see them. So when a situation comes up where we differ in opinion with someone, we can become argumentative since we know the truth. The truth we know is based on the experience we have had or what we have learned about someone else's experience in this matter. What we know may not be truth.
Even though someone is recently saved, they have the same truth inside them as we do. How much of that truth has been revealed to them has to do with their relationship with God, not in the number of years they have been saved or which classes they have attended. Faith grows in relationship to our experience with God.
This is so unlike our worldly view of knowledge. In that view, the more grades we have gone through in school and the more degrees we have obtained in college gives us an edge over those with less. Knowledge is somehow erroneously linked to experience. However, knowledge without experience is like a closed book. In this worldly existence, knowledge with experience leads to the discovery of new truth.
So we should not argue with another Christian about God. The Bible is the way to discover truth no matter how long someone has been saved. The truth revealed to someone else by the Holy Spirit as they read God's Word may be just what God wants us to hear. Do not argue about or dismiss what others hear. What we perceive as being week in faith may just be a perception based on the box we have allowed ourselves to be in all these years. A new Christian may in fact be stronger in faith then us.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Do No Harm
Romans 13:10
Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. (NLT)
Love. This is a word used everywhere you look. There are books about it. There are movies that make it look wonderful and one that make it dirty. Its meaning is twisted and it is used instead of the word like.
It reminds me of the Golden Rule. "Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets." This is from Matthew 7:12 and quoted in other places in the New Testament.
Reminds me of when I first signed up for an Internet service by installing one of those AOL diskettes we used to get ever week or so back in the 90's. I was on the Web and had an email address, but was not getting many emails. Then I heard a voice inside telling me that if I wanted to get emails I had to send some.
An old adage says "What goes around comes around." And it is true. We receive what we dish out. If we are full of anger it is not surprising that we would have others angry at us.
Would it not be better to show God's love to others, and then we will receive love back? And if we are looking to Love others (our neighbors) all of the law will be fulfilled for law is about punishment for doing something that wrongs another. If we act in Love we will do not harm to others.
Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. (NLT)
Love. This is a word used everywhere you look. There are books about it. There are movies that make it look wonderful and one that make it dirty. Its meaning is twisted and it is used instead of the word like.
It reminds me of the Golden Rule. "Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets." This is from Matthew 7:12 and quoted in other places in the New Testament.
Reminds me of when I first signed up for an Internet service by installing one of those AOL diskettes we used to get ever week or so back in the 90's. I was on the Web and had an email address, but was not getting many emails. Then I heard a voice inside telling me that if I wanted to get emails I had to send some.
An old adage says "What goes around comes around." And it is true. We receive what we dish out. If we are full of anger it is not surprising that we would have others angry at us.
Would it not be better to show God's love to others, and then we will receive love back? And if we are looking to Love others (our neighbors) all of the law will be fulfilled for law is about punishment for doing something that wrongs another. If we act in Love we will do not harm to others.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Getting Caught Up
Romans 13:7
Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor. (NLT)
It is not easy paying taxes. For some it is just a matter of accepting what comes out of the paycheck as fact and submitting an agreement to it in the form of an online 1040EZ after the W2 form comes in the mail. For many others, we can also do that if we want to pay the maximum.
If we own property, have a mortgage, have medical expenses, or a number of other valid deductions, we file a long form. To do that correctly, we have to keep good records of all our income and expenses.
In the move from RI to FL over the last year, I have been lax in keeping up with my bookkeeping on the computer for our personal expenses. I have a bookkeeping program I have used for years, but that is only as good as the data you type into it. I am busy getting caught up which means entering all the details from my checkbooks into the database and then balancing them with the bank records which are online.
Like our relationship with God, it works a lot better if we do a little each day. Had I entered the checks each day as I wrote them or the deposits as I received checks, the task would have been done. At any time I could have gotten needed answers at the click of key or point of a mouse.
This is kind of like our relationship with God. If we spend time with Him each day, even if just a for few minutes when we awake and/or when we go to bed at night, we get caught up. Sunday comes around and we head off to a church to praise and worship the one we have known all week long. Our details have been entered and now we can just be ushered into His presence.
Yet how often do we arrive at church and have to get caught up and balanced before we can get into the praise and worship that day?
Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor. (NLT)
It is not easy paying taxes. For some it is just a matter of accepting what comes out of the paycheck as fact and submitting an agreement to it in the form of an online 1040EZ after the W2 form comes in the mail. For many others, we can also do that if we want to pay the maximum.
If we own property, have a mortgage, have medical expenses, or a number of other valid deductions, we file a long form. To do that correctly, we have to keep good records of all our income and expenses.
In the move from RI to FL over the last year, I have been lax in keeping up with my bookkeeping on the computer for our personal expenses. I have a bookkeeping program I have used for years, but that is only as good as the data you type into it. I am busy getting caught up which means entering all the details from my checkbooks into the database and then balancing them with the bank records which are online.
Like our relationship with God, it works a lot better if we do a little each day. Had I entered the checks each day as I wrote them or the deposits as I received checks, the task would have been done. At any time I could have gotten needed answers at the click of key or point of a mouse.
This is kind of like our relationship with God. If we spend time with Him each day, even if just a for few minutes when we awake and/or when we go to bed at night, we get caught up. Sunday comes around and we head off to a church to praise and worship the one we have known all week long. Our details have been entered and now we can just be ushered into His presence.
Yet how often do we arrive at church and have to get caught up and balanced before we can get into the praise and worship that day?
Friday, October 16, 2009
The "F" Words
Here are the words I am thinking about:
Faith
Family
Food
Friends
Facebook
Talking about the F word is like mentioning four letter words. Both have been given a bad rap for years. My favorite four letter word is LOVE and second to that I guess would have to be FREE (another F word).
And there may be a bunch more, but this is a good start.
What order are they in your life?
Is Food on the top, or Family, or what?
Where is your Faith? I hope it is in Jesus Christ. And that you remember what it says in Hebrews 11:1 (NLT). "[Faith] is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see."
If we already have proof of its existence, then it is no longer faith. John did not need faith to know that Jesus was crucified. He was there and he saw it happen. He did not need faith to know that Jesus came back from the dead and walked among them. He was there.
"These signs will accompany those who believe: ... They will be able to place their hands on the sick and heal them." (Mark16:17-18 NLT)
However, John needed faith to know that Jesus is the way to life everlasting. He needed faith to lay hands on the sick and see them recover. And so do we.
I break family into different groupings. There is immediate family which starts with our spouse. In my case this is my wife, Dianne. After that comes those who are living under our roof. Then comes our offspring who are on their own and their families.
Food comes in two ways. There is the food we nourish our bodies with--those three meals a day we partake of. Some of us sneak in some snacks as well. What do we eat? Is it good for us, or just filler that tastes good? Many of us are more interested in the flavor (another F word) than the nourishment. As long as we feel full (another F word), we are satisfied even if we continuously gain weight because of it.
Then there is spiritual food. We even fast (another F word), the physical food and sustitute additional time with our Father God (another F word). Fellowship (another F word), with Jesus Christ is necessary for us to grow in our Faith. We grow in proportion to the amount of fellowship (relationship) we have with Jesus coupled with the action we take as a result of what the Holy Spirit directs us to. And not to forget the growth that comes from the relationship we have with others He leads us to.
When I speak of Friends, I include those we have a relationship with and not those we call friends because we work with them or see each other on Sunday mornings. Those are acquaintances, not what I think of as friends. If I have a need of any kind, I can call on my friends to help and know they will, even in the middle of the night. The list is short.
My wife is my best friend. There is nothing we cannot share and she is always there for me with loving words and a loving touch. After over a quarter of a century together, we still are not at a loss for words. Amazing as that seems!
Why Facebook? Well this is a Social Network popular with many Internet users today. It allow us to express our faith to a closed circuit of family and friends. We can stay in touch without having to pick up the telephone and hope to catch them home. We can see what is happening in each others lives, pray with them, see their pictures, and be included in their interactions with those they know.
Is Faith on the top of your list?
Faith
Family
Food
Friends
Talking about the F word is like mentioning four letter words. Both have been given a bad rap for years. My favorite four letter word is LOVE and second to that I guess would have to be FREE (another F word).
And there may be a bunch more, but this is a good start.
What order are they in your life?
Is Food on the top, or Family, or what?
Where is your Faith? I hope it is in Jesus Christ. And that you remember what it says in Hebrews 11:1 (NLT). "[Faith] is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see."
If we already have proof of its existence, then it is no longer faith. John did not need faith to know that Jesus was crucified. He was there and he saw it happen. He did not need faith to know that Jesus came back from the dead and walked among them. He was there.
"These signs will accompany those who believe: ... They will be able to place their hands on the sick and heal them." (Mark16:17-18 NLT)
However, John needed faith to know that Jesus is the way to life everlasting. He needed faith to lay hands on the sick and see them recover. And so do we.
I break family into different groupings. There is immediate family which starts with our spouse. In my case this is my wife, Dianne. After that comes those who are living under our roof. Then comes our offspring who are on their own and their families.
Food comes in two ways. There is the food we nourish our bodies with--those three meals a day we partake of. Some of us sneak in some snacks as well. What do we eat? Is it good for us, or just filler that tastes good? Many of us are more interested in the flavor (another F word) than the nourishment. As long as we feel full (another F word), we are satisfied even if we continuously gain weight because of it.
Then there is spiritual food. We even fast (another F word), the physical food and sustitute additional time with our Father God (another F word). Fellowship (another F word), with Jesus Christ is necessary for us to grow in our Faith. We grow in proportion to the amount of fellowship (relationship) we have with Jesus coupled with the action we take as a result of what the Holy Spirit directs us to. And not to forget the growth that comes from the relationship we have with others He leads us to.
When I speak of Friends, I include those we have a relationship with and not those we call friends because we work with them or see each other on Sunday mornings. Those are acquaintances, not what I think of as friends. If I have a need of any kind, I can call on my friends to help and know they will, even in the middle of the night. The list is short.
My wife is my best friend. There is nothing we cannot share and she is always there for me with loving words and a loving touch. After over a quarter of a century together, we still are not at a loss for words. Amazing as that seems!
Why Facebook? Well this is a Social Network popular with many Internet users today. It allow us to express our faith to a closed circuit of family and friends. We can stay in touch without having to pick up the telephone and hope to catch them home. We can see what is happening in each others lives, pray with them, see their pictures, and be included in their interactions with those they know.
Is Faith on the top of your list?
Monday, October 12, 2009
NEED CHANGE?
Romans 12:2
Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is. (NLT)
Every group of people tends to become alike over time. Take a bunch of children and send them to a private school and most of them will turn out being similar in many ways. The same can be said about people attending the same church over a number of years. Even people who work together for a long time pick up each other's traits and habits.
When you spend time with a very negative person, you can easily end up thinking in a similar way. Instead of looking on the bright side, you see the dark places instead. We are influenced by what we associate with and that could be people, books, movies, and television programming.
Last night we watched a movie and my dreams were influenced by what I let in. It was a fair flick even though very dumb and kept us in stitches throughout. Did it influence my way of thinking or change the way I will react to situations in life. No, it will not, but it did have an effect on some level as evidenced by my dreams.
No matter how good the teaching is at church or how great the last Christian author 's book was it does not transform us into a new person. It does add to our bank of intellectual knowledge and affect us on different levels. We may make different conscience decisions as a result of what we have learned.
True change, change that alters the way we think occurs when we let the Holy Spirit change us from the inside out. When that occurs, we no longer have to think about our reactions. They occur differently because our character has changed to be more Christ like.
Have you given the Holy Spirit permission to change you?
Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is. (NLT)
Every group of people tends to become alike over time. Take a bunch of children and send them to a private school and most of them will turn out being similar in many ways. The same can be said about people attending the same church over a number of years. Even people who work together for a long time pick up each other's traits and habits.
When you spend time with a very negative person, you can easily end up thinking in a similar way. Instead of looking on the bright side, you see the dark places instead. We are influenced by what we associate with and that could be people, books, movies, and television programming.
Last night we watched a movie and my dreams were influenced by what I let in. It was a fair flick even though very dumb and kept us in stitches throughout. Did it influence my way of thinking or change the way I will react to situations in life. No, it will not, but it did have an effect on some level as evidenced by my dreams.
No matter how good the teaching is at church or how great the last Christian author 's book was it does not transform us into a new person. It does add to our bank of intellectual knowledge and affect us on different levels. We may make different conscience decisions as a result of what we have learned.
True change, change that alters the way we think occurs when we let the Holy Spirit change us from the inside out. When that occurs, we no longer have to think about our reactions. They occur differently because our character has changed to be more Christ like.
Have you given the Holy Spirit permission to change you?
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Praying in the Spirit
Imagine that you have reached into the kitchen cupboard and taken out a dinner size drinking glass. It is clear and clean. You want to fill it with water and begin to do so with an eyedropper! Yep, one drop at a time you place water into that glass. It takes a long time before you have a full glass to drink.
That is not the way you usually do it though. Instead, you take that glass out of the cupboard and bring it over to the kitchen sink. You turn on the faucet and place the glass under the rapid flow of water that is streaming out. The glass fills quickly and completely.
It works the same with God. Like that glass of water, we yearn to be filled with the wisdom of God. And what do we do? We use an eyedropper. We listen to others preach His word. We read the scriptures one word at a time. We read other's interpretation of His word. We are using an eyedropper.
Ephesians 6:18
Pray at all times and on every occasion in the power of the Holy Spirit. (NLT)
We need to turn on the faucet. We need an instantaneous infilling of God. We want to get from where we are in God to a whole new place in God, to another dimension. And to do that most resort to using an eyedropper. But, there is another way.
It is like looking for a vortex to jump through to get to the other side filled with His knowledge quickly. It is like a jump through time and space to another place light-years away.
Romans 8:26
And the Holy Spirit helps us in our distress. For we don't even know what we should pray for, nor how we should pray. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. (NLT)
But some know the secret. The secret way to the portal that allows that rush of wisdom and knowledge is praying in your prayer language—praying in tongues.
When we allow our spirit to reach out in this way it is like plugging a lamp into an electrical socket and turning on the switch... instantaneously the lamp is lit. And that is how it is with God and us.
When we plug into God by opening up that vortex through prayer in tongues, He fills us to overflowing with His wisdom, His knowledge, and His peace, His Love…
1 Corinthians 14:15
Well then, what shall I do? I will do both. I will pray in the spirit, and I will pray in words I understand. I will sing in the spirit, and I will sing in words I understand. (NLT)
We must open ourselves up to all God has for us. We need to pray in the spirit often. The more we do, the more He can fill us, the more He can give us what we need to become what He has for us to be.
Romans 15:13
I pray that God, who gives you hope, will keep you happy and full of peace as you believe in him. May you overflow with hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. (NLT)
That is not the way you usually do it though. Instead, you take that glass out of the cupboard and bring it over to the kitchen sink. You turn on the faucet and place the glass under the rapid flow of water that is streaming out. The glass fills quickly and completely.
It works the same with God. Like that glass of water, we yearn to be filled with the wisdom of God. And what do we do? We use an eyedropper. We listen to others preach His word. We read the scriptures one word at a time. We read other's interpretation of His word. We are using an eyedropper.
Ephesians 6:18
Pray at all times and on every occasion in the power of the Holy Spirit. (NLT)
We need to turn on the faucet. We need an instantaneous infilling of God. We want to get from where we are in God to a whole new place in God, to another dimension. And to do that most resort to using an eyedropper. But, there is another way.
It is like looking for a vortex to jump through to get to the other side filled with His knowledge quickly. It is like a jump through time and space to another place light-years away.
Romans 8:26
And the Holy Spirit helps us in our distress. For we don't even know what we should pray for, nor how we should pray. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. (NLT)
But some know the secret. The secret way to the portal that allows that rush of wisdom and knowledge is praying in your prayer language—praying in tongues.
When we allow our spirit to reach out in this way it is like plugging a lamp into an electrical socket and turning on the switch... instantaneously the lamp is lit. And that is how it is with God and us.
When we plug into God by opening up that vortex through prayer in tongues, He fills us to overflowing with His wisdom, His knowledge, and His peace, His Love…
1 Corinthians 14:15
Well then, what shall I do? I will do both. I will pray in the spirit, and I will pray in words I understand. I will sing in the spirit, and I will sing in words I understand. (NLT)
We must open ourselves up to all God has for us. We need to pray in the spirit often. The more we do, the more He can fill us, the more He can give us what we need to become what He has for us to be.
Romans 15:13
I pray that God, who gives you hope, will keep you happy and full of peace as you believe in him. May you overflow with hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. (NLT)
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Be Happy in Your Work
There is nothing better for people than to be happy in their work. That is why they are here! No one will bring them back from death to enjoy life in the future. (Ecclesiastes 3:22 NLT)
What do you do nine to five to put a roof over your head and food on the table? Are you happy in your work? Scripture tells us "Whoever does not work should not eat." (2 Thessalonians 3:10 NLT)
Most of us grew up, attended school from K-12. Some went on to college and others got right to work. Often those getting right to work did what their father did, perhaps even at the same company. Generations of some families pursued the same vocation year after year. It was almost as if it was predetermined that this was their lot in life.
We worked all week to earn an income so the rent is paid and food is on table for our family, or even for our self, if we are not married. Weekends are times to be happy and forget the toils of the past week.
Then came the age of the charge card. My first one was a Sears card and I had to convince them to give it to me. Today I must get a dozen pre-approved applications in the mail weekly! No longer did we have to work and save to be able to afford some the rewards of life like a television, stereos, automobiles, and other things. We could get them now and promise to pay later. But with what? We were already spending what we made. Where was the payment for the charge card to come from?
The only way was to get a second job. Then we could pay off the balance and be free. But the more we worked the more we felt we deserved more things, so we charged them and the cycle continued. So we worked nine-to-five to pay the rent and put food on the table. Then we worked evenings to pay the charge cards. Then we gave up our weekends of happy times to cover more of our debt. Then our wives had to get jobs and we all worked to pay for the things we “needed” even though we no longer had time to enjoy them.
With mom and dad working all the time, someone had to take care of their children. The caretakers may have been grandparents or other relatives, but more often strangers at daycare centers were raising our children and teaching them their moral values; all for the sake of living a lifestyle beyond our capability.
Society, television, and video games are now raising our children filling them with the current slant on morality. The government is deciding what is good and what is bad for them all while we work to pay the bills.
I believe God has a plan for each of us and what we do to support ourselves is part of that plan. He gave us talents to be used and as we use them we will be able to support ourselves and our families and be happy doing so.
Not everyone we meet becomes our friend. We meet many in our life walk and only a few are more than acquaintances. Some we really click with and we tend to stay with them at least for a season. I believe it is the same with our jobs. Rarely do we start a job right after school and happily stick with it for the rest of our life. With each job we learn something and God moves us on to another place until we end up with the job He planned for us all along.
My first job other than shoveling snow or cutting lawns when I was a young teenager, was delivering newspapers. I was a paperboy. My route consisted of about one hundred customers and I delivered seven days a week, afternoons and mornings on Sundays. I enjoyed this first job even though it was work to lug those papers stuffed into my paper bag as I walked from house to house. And on Sundays I had to drag them around on my little red wagon because they were so heavy.
Was this to be my vocation? No, but I learned a lot about responsibility, how to deal with all kinds of people, and how to handle finances. God uses where we are at to teach us things we will need later on in life to fulfill the plan He has for us.
I have had many jobs since that first entrepreneurial one, from scooping ice cream, to working at a bank, to programming manager at an insurance company, to data processing manager at an eyeglass frame manufacturer, to being an entrepreneur once again by having my own Computer Consulting business. Now, in addition to that business, I am on the full time faculty at Rhode Island College teaching, and enjoying what I do.
I have never had a job I did not enjoy and can see where God had a hand in every aspect of my life.
As I look back over my life, I can see how God used every one of those workplaces to teach me what I needed to learn to be able to help others and bring them to an understanding of how He wants to use them in their life walk. Today we are Healing Evangelists teaching others about God and what He has for them to do right here, and right now.
What do you do nine to five to put a roof over your head and food on the table? Are you happy in your work? Scripture tells us "Whoever does not work should not eat." (2 Thessalonians 3:10 NLT)
Most of us grew up, attended school from K-12. Some went on to college and others got right to work. Often those getting right to work did what their father did, perhaps even at the same company. Generations of some families pursued the same vocation year after year. It was almost as if it was predetermined that this was their lot in life.
We worked all week to earn an income so the rent is paid and food is on table for our family, or even for our self, if we are not married. Weekends are times to be happy and forget the toils of the past week.
Then came the age of the charge card. My first one was a Sears card and I had to convince them to give it to me. Today I must get a dozen pre-approved applications in the mail weekly! No longer did we have to work and save to be able to afford some the rewards of life like a television, stereos, automobiles, and other things. We could get them now and promise to pay later. But with what? We were already spending what we made. Where was the payment for the charge card to come from?
The only way was to get a second job. Then we could pay off the balance and be free. But the more we worked the more we felt we deserved more things, so we charged them and the cycle continued. So we worked nine-to-five to pay the rent and put food on the table. Then we worked evenings to pay the charge cards. Then we gave up our weekends of happy times to cover more of our debt. Then our wives had to get jobs and we all worked to pay for the things we “needed” even though we no longer had time to enjoy them.
With mom and dad working all the time, someone had to take care of their children. The caretakers may have been grandparents or other relatives, but more often strangers at daycare centers were raising our children and teaching them their moral values; all for the sake of living a lifestyle beyond our capability.
Society, television, and video games are now raising our children filling them with the current slant on morality. The government is deciding what is good and what is bad for them all while we work to pay the bills.
I believe God has a plan for each of us and what we do to support ourselves is part of that plan. He gave us talents to be used and as we use them we will be able to support ourselves and our families and be happy doing so.
Not everyone we meet becomes our friend. We meet many in our life walk and only a few are more than acquaintances. Some we really click with and we tend to stay with them at least for a season. I believe it is the same with our jobs. Rarely do we start a job right after school and happily stick with it for the rest of our life. With each job we learn something and God moves us on to another place until we end up with the job He planned for us all along.
My first job other than shoveling snow or cutting lawns when I was a young teenager, was delivering newspapers. I was a paperboy. My route consisted of about one hundred customers and I delivered seven days a week, afternoons and mornings on Sundays. I enjoyed this first job even though it was work to lug those papers stuffed into my paper bag as I walked from house to house. And on Sundays I had to drag them around on my little red wagon because they were so heavy.
Was this to be my vocation? No, but I learned a lot about responsibility, how to deal with all kinds of people, and how to handle finances. God uses where we are at to teach us things we will need later on in life to fulfill the plan He has for us.
I have had many jobs since that first entrepreneurial one, from scooping ice cream, to working at a bank, to programming manager at an insurance company, to data processing manager at an eyeglass frame manufacturer, to being an entrepreneur once again by having my own Computer Consulting business. Now, in addition to that business, I am on the full time faculty at Rhode Island College teaching, and enjoying what I do.
I have never had a job I did not enjoy and can see where God had a hand in every aspect of my life.
As I look back over my life, I can see how God used every one of those workplaces to teach me what I needed to learn to be able to help others and bring them to an understanding of how He wants to use them in their life walk. Today we are Healing Evangelists teaching others about God and what He has for them to do right here, and right now.
Thursday, January 01, 2009
Here Comes the Judge
"Stop judging others, and you will not be judged. For others will treat you as you treat them. Whatever measure you use in judging others, it will be used to measure how you are judged. And why worry about a speck in your friend's eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying, 'Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,' when you can't see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log from your own eye; then perhaps you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend's eye. (Matthew 7:1-5 NLT also see Luke 6:37-42)
How easy it is to judge others—their dress, there lifestyle, their words, and their actions. We are so fortunate to have what we have. We have been blessed. But for the grace of God we could be just like that person we might be judging.
How often do we see someone else and think they could be different if only they would make better choices? We may even want to tell them how to clean up their lives and what their choices should be. We may even tell them!
We often forget where we came from and how it was other’s non-judgment of us coupled with their God given love that showed us about choices and change by the way they lived and not by what they said. They did not beat us over the head by judging who we were.
We did not stop doing those ungodly things of our past because of someone else’s judgmental ramblings. No, we chose to follow Jesus and He changed us from the inside out.
Some of our changes were unintentional. We just stopped doing some things right away without even thinking about it. No work on our part at all. Jesus just changed us. Some changes took more time. Self control helped us stop some bad habits until God changed us so we did not even consider them. Other changes are still in the works. After all, we are a work in progress.
2009 is all about change. No matter what candidate you voted for, “We the People” spoke and chose a new leader for this country. As we are a work in progress, so are the leaders in Washington, DC. Let us all pray daily for our new President and his team as they step into a new period of change, a period of new beginnings. May they hear God’s voice above all the others and receive his wisdom and guidance as they make decisions to propel this great nation into the future.
Remember. We will be treated as we treat others and we will be judged as we judge them.
May God be with us all.
How easy it is to judge others—their dress, there lifestyle, their words, and their actions. We are so fortunate to have what we have. We have been blessed. But for the grace of God we could be just like that person we might be judging.
How often do we see someone else and think they could be different if only they would make better choices? We may even want to tell them how to clean up their lives and what their choices should be. We may even tell them!
We often forget where we came from and how it was other’s non-judgment of us coupled with their God given love that showed us about choices and change by the way they lived and not by what they said. They did not beat us over the head by judging who we were.
We did not stop doing those ungodly things of our past because of someone else’s judgmental ramblings. No, we chose to follow Jesus and He changed us from the inside out.
Some of our changes were unintentional. We just stopped doing some things right away without even thinking about it. No work on our part at all. Jesus just changed us. Some changes took more time. Self control helped us stop some bad habits until God changed us so we did not even consider them. Other changes are still in the works. After all, we are a work in progress.
2009 is all about change. No matter what candidate you voted for, “We the People” spoke and chose a new leader for this country. As we are a work in progress, so are the leaders in Washington, DC. Let us all pray daily for our new President and his team as they step into a new period of change, a period of new beginnings. May they hear God’s voice above all the others and receive his wisdom and guidance as they make decisions to propel this great nation into the future.
Remember. We will be treated as we treat others and we will be judged as we judge them.
May God be with us all.
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