2 Timothy 2:24 "And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient,"
As leaders we need to lead others by example. Each and every person on this planet is a leader. Everyone is being watched by someone, and therefore influencing them
"Out of 100 men, one will read the Bible, the other 99 will read the Christian." - D.L. Moody
We need to constantly have our light shining. You never know when someone's watching you, so why risk it?
Matthew 5:14-16 "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven"
Monday, September 24, 2012
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Rejoice Always
Philippians 4:4 "Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!"
The keyword in this sentence is always.Unless there's some other version of the word that means 'Only when you feel like it', that means every moment of every day of our lives. No wiggle room. If we're spending our time being worried, depressed, angry, etc., we're not always rejoicing. When Paul wrote this, he wasn't sitting comfortably in some fancy house. He was in prison, tied to a guard, knowing any day he could have is head cut off. If Paul can rejoice in that, we can rejoice when our car breaks down, or things don't go as we planned, or some other small thing happens.
The beginning of Philippians 4:6 reads "Be anxious for nothing..."
We have NOTHING to be worried about:
Matthew 6:26 "Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?"
Matthew 6:34 "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about it's own things. Sufficient for the day is it's own trouble."
We can't be worrying about all these small problems. They are minor and insignificant to God! If we're faithful to him, he'll take care of us, even when things look bad. We just have to keep rejoicing, always!
So how do we keep ourselves rejoicing instead of looking at the negative side?
Philippians 4:8 "Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy-meditate on these things"
We need to always keep our mind focused on good, pure things, and we'll keep rejoicing. If we're thinking negative thoughts, we'll be in a negative mood.
The keyword in this sentence is always.Unless there's some other version of the word that means 'Only when you feel like it', that means every moment of every day of our lives. No wiggle room. If we're spending our time being worried, depressed, angry, etc., we're not always rejoicing. When Paul wrote this, he wasn't sitting comfortably in some fancy house. He was in prison, tied to a guard, knowing any day he could have is head cut off. If Paul can rejoice in that, we can rejoice when our car breaks down, or things don't go as we planned, or some other small thing happens.
The beginning of Philippians 4:6 reads "Be anxious for nothing..."
We have NOTHING to be worried about:
Matthew 6:26 "Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?"
Matthew 6:34 "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about it's own things. Sufficient for the day is it's own trouble."
We can't be worrying about all these small problems. They are minor and insignificant to God! If we're faithful to him, he'll take care of us, even when things look bad. We just have to keep rejoicing, always!
So how do we keep ourselves rejoicing instead of looking at the negative side?
Philippians 4:8 "Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy-meditate on these things"
We need to always keep our mind focused on good, pure things, and we'll keep rejoicing. If we're thinking negative thoughts, we'll be in a negative mood.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Born Again
2: Timothy 2: 20 "But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor"
Everyone's born with both good and evil inside of us. We all have a desire to do good deeds, a hunger for Chritst, and a desire for His love, whether we realize it or not. When people have a desire for a loving relationship with someone, or to be accepted, or to be approved of, a desire to be entertained, all those things are desires for God in disguise, because He's the only one who can truly fufill all those desires. We also have a desire to do evil. We have a desire to steal, to cause hurt to others, we have sin, we fall to countless temptations, we have the want to fit in. The term "I was born this way" is true. We're all born with sin. That's why when we're saved by Christ, we're born again
2:Timothy 2:21 "Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work."
When we're born again, we're born without any of the evil things I mentioned previously, and we're born with only the things pleasing to God. The devil no longer has any power over you. He can still tempt and attack you, and he will, and on your own you would have fallen to it, but through Christ you have the power to put Satan in his place (Phillipians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.").
Everyone's born with both good and evil inside of us. We all have a desire to do good deeds, a hunger for Chritst, and a desire for His love, whether we realize it or not. When people have a desire for a loving relationship with someone, or to be accepted, or to be approved of, a desire to be entertained, all those things are desires for God in disguise, because He's the only one who can truly fufill all those desires. We also have a desire to do evil. We have a desire to steal, to cause hurt to others, we have sin, we fall to countless temptations, we have the want to fit in. The term "I was born this way" is true. We're all born with sin. That's why when we're saved by Christ, we're born again
2:Timothy 2:21 "Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work."
When we're born again, we're born without any of the evil things I mentioned previously, and we're born with only the things pleasing to God. The devil no longer has any power over you. He can still tempt and attack you, and he will, and on your own you would have fallen to it, but through Christ you have the power to put Satan in his place (Phillipians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.").
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