Let Your Light Shine

We have all, at one time or another, “gone with the flow,” as opposed to standing up to the crowd? Giving away a piece of our convictions, to be a part of something we would not normally do, brings hypocrisy into our walk. Paul tells us in Romans, “not to be conformed to this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds.” (Romans 12:2)

He goes on to say that by renewing our minds (through the Word) we will then, “prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” This allows us to; behave more Christ like, remain free from hypocrisy, avoid the appearance of evil and gives power to our walk. As Christians, we are constantly being observed by the world to see if we, “walk the talk.” Therefore what we do, becomes more powerful than what we say.

The Truth
“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)

Merciful God

Have you ever found yourself in the position of desiring a little mercy? I know I have. Whether it is a warning instead of a ticket, extra time to complete an assignment or time off to deal with a personal tragedy, we could all use a little mercy at times. Mercy is getting what we do not deserve and is administered out of compassion. While enforcing the letter of the law is delivering what we deserve, administered in the name of justice.

Jesus Himself spoke of mercy in Matthew 5:7, “Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy.” This scripture indicates that mercy has a reciprocal effect. We will obtain mercy to the extent that we give it. Furthermore, James warns us that, “judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.” (James 2:13) Knowing this, we would all be well advised to be less proud and show more mercy.

Thanks be to God, for His mercies towards us, who has not administered to us what we deserve, but has shown His patience and longsuffering with our lives.

The Truth
“Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. For His mercy endures forever.” (Psalm 136)

Jesus Birth Prophesied

"Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel." (Isaiah 7 :14)

"Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David." (Luke 1:30-32)

The Prophecy fullfilled

"Then the angel said to them, Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You shall find the Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger." (Luke 2:11-13)

This is the true joy of Christmas, our Saviors' birth.
Merry Christmas.

Thy Will Be Done

How often have you said, The Lords' Prayer? Now, how often have you stopped to think about the words, "Thy will be done?" Those are some tough words to pray at times.

My wife is currently losing her brother to lung cancer. We have prayed for healing and continue to pray for healing but, Gods' will may not be to heal him on earth and that's OK. Even though as Christains we are told to, "make our requests known to God," He is under no obligation take our direction. Who are we to direct or council God?

Jesus, the night before His crucifixtion prayed, "Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will. (Matthew 26:39) The Bible also speaks of Jesus being in so much agony at this point, that His sweat became like great drops of blood falling to the ground. (Luke 22:44) This request must have been difficult for the Father not to grant seeing both the current and future pain of His Son. However, God had a greater purpose, the salvation of man.

Therefore, do not be discouraged by what seems to be unanswered prayer. Understand our Father has a heavenly purpose that is far beyond our current understanding.

The Truth
"To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven." (Ecclesiastes 3:1)

Press Forward

How often do we stop and think about Gods' work in our lives? If you're like me, not often enough. We tend to focus on life itself and not God's purposes in taking us through life. As the Apostle Paul wrote, "He who has begun a good work in you will be faithful to complete it, until the day of Jesus Christ." (Philippians 1:6) Therefore, whatever we are experiencing in life, has come through Gods' hand to us, with a plan for our perfection in Him. Who are we then to question. This has been a very comforting scripture to me as I have walked through life's difficult moments.

As Christains we are encouraged to, "Forget those things which are behind and to reach forward to those things which are ahead." (Philippians 3:13) In other words, focus on the opportunities yet to come. Not knowing the "whys" in life is okay, because we know," That all things are working together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28)

How should we then live our lives? Once again the Apostle Paul leaves us a valuable scripture as to the more excellent goal:

The Truth
"Press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:14)
"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God." (Philippians 4:6)

Thanksgiving History

The original feast in 1621 occurred sometime between September 21 and November 11. Unlike our modern holiday, it was three days long. The event was based on English harvest festivals, which traditionally occurred around the 29th of September. After that first harvest was completed by the Plymouth colonists, Gov. William Bradford proclaimed a day of, "Thanksgiving and Prayer", shared by all the colonists and neighboring Indians.

During the American Revolution a yearly day of national Thanksgiving was suggested by the Continental Congress. In 1817 New York State adopted Thanksgiving Day as an annual custom, and by the middle of the 19th century many other states had done the same. Here is a exerpt from the state of New-Hampshire's Thanksgiving Proclamation.

"The congress in general assembly do here by command the observation of THURSDAY the twenty-eight day of NOVEMBER next, as a day of solemn THANKSGIVING to GOD for all his mercies: and do further recommend to all ranks, to testify to their gratitude to GOD for his goodness, by a cheerful obedience of his laws, and by promoting, each in his station, and by his influence, the practice of true and undefiled religion, which is the great foundation of public prosperity and national happiness."

In 1863 President Abraham Lincoln appointed a day of Thanksgiving as the last Thursday in November, which he may have correlated with the November 21, 1621, anchoring of the Mayflower at Cape Cod. Since then, each president has issued a Thanksgiving Day Proclamation. President Franklin D. Roosevelt set the date for Thanksgiving to the fourth Thursday of November in 1939. (approved by Congress in 1941)

As a nation our forefathers knew the value of thanking God for all His blessings. It is my prayer that our current and future generations of leaders will do the same.

The Truth
"In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

The Body of Christ - A Tool Box

The Body of Christ is a collection of people who have established a relationship with Him. They are a mosaic of unique individuals with differing talents, gifts and capabilities. In scripture, this body is likened to the physical body of a person. While the physical body can learn to fuction without one of its parts, it will not move at full capacity nor function as well. The Body of Christ is the same, it does not function as well without all of its members either.

I like to think of the Body of Christ as a "Tool Box", each tool having its own unquie purpose. While it's possible to do some jobs without the correct tool, the job will not be completed as easily or sucessfully without it. For example, have you ever tried to loosen a tight nut with a pair of plyers? One can sometimes do more harm than good. But, tackle than same job with a socket wrench and you will be more secessful and have all the skin on your knuckles.

As we learn to use and respect the critical differences of the tools in our box, we should also learn to respect the uniqueness of those individuals in the Body of Christ and encourage one another in the use of the unique talents and gifts God has given to all of us.

Is there someone you know who could use a little encouragement to use their gift or talent for the Body of Christ? Give them a call, sometimes that's all it takes.

The Truth
1 Corinthians 12:12-27 (Unity and Diversity in One Body)

Swift To Hear

I can remember my grandfather Nick telling me, “Boy, there is a reason why God gave everyone two ears and one mouth. So they would listen, twice as much as they would speak.” To this day I do not know if he meant to impart some wisdom or if he was just telling me to be quite. Nevertheless, as Christians we should be, “swift to hear, slow to speak.” Listening can be the best approach when someone is going through a trial. Even though our first instinct is to “fix the problem”, restraint with prayer is the best counsel.

The Truth
“There are many plans in a mans heart, but the Lord’s counsel - that will stand.” (Proverbs 19:21)