First Action

First Action

James 5: ¹³ Are any among you in trouble? They should pray. Are any among you happy? They should sing praises. ¹⁴ Are any among you sick? They should send for the church elders, who will pray for them and rub olive oil on them in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵ This prayer made in faith will heal the sick; the Lord will restore them to health, and the sins they have committed will be forgiven. 

 

============

 

Nervous about the bad news, I laid awake at night. I could not sleep for a week. We got together and discussed the impending doom. More conversations about what “could” happen were had than that of what good was going on in our lives.

 

• My first “reaction” was to start planning.
• My first “impulse” was to try to make sense out of a situation that was out of my hands.
• My first “assumption” was that everything bad was “definitely” going to happen.

 

James gives the answer to all problems, namely “pray.” He gives three ways to do this. He says people who are in trouble should talk to GOD directly about the trouble. He also says, if things are going well, people should “praise” GOD. He then says the sick may need more people to help so ask for other to “petition” to GOD in prayer.

 

Prayer seems like a last resort kind of thing. I mean, usually I try to “fix” the problem myself and when things get even worse, I panic and possible blame. BUT GOD has a different way.

 

HE wants me to come to HIM first with any problem, trouble or sickness. Asking GOD for HIS advice, direction and counsel, helps me think clearly and takes the ownership off of me and places it on HIM. This requires a vast amount of faith. Those who like to “control” situations will not like the answer of prayer. BUT GOD lives when I can praise HIM. I am glad GOD is willing to listen to me.,

 

Challenge

• What ways does the writer give in developing solutions?
• Have you ever developed a solution and things did not come out as expected?
• How did you react?
• Will you take your first action to GOD so HE can heal, fix and provide for you today?

Do The Right Thing

Do The Right Thing

Hebrews 13: ¹⁸ Keep on praying for us. We are sure we have a clear conscience, because we want to do the right thing at all times. ¹⁹ And I beg you even more earnestly to pray that God will send me back to you soon.

 

============

 

Having said the lie, now I had to live with it. Whenever I saw the person, my conscience felt guilty. “Oh great! Now I’ve lied and I have guilt?” How can this be fixed? A thought popped in my head. “Lie again to fix the last lie.”

 

• I was headed down the wrong path.
• I was trying to fix my lies with more lies.
• I was starting to get good at lying versus simply having a clear conscience.

 

Paul, the assumed writer, asked for prayer because he knew they could be tempted to do the wrong thing which would lead to a guilty conscience. He must have been going through something difficult because he asked for prayer twice.

 

My Observations:

• GOD gives me rest when I have a clear conscience.
• GOD lets me sleep when I do not lie to HIM or myself.
• GOD provides peace when I desire to do the right thing.

 

Doing what is right can sometimes be hard. I mean, when I get insecure about what I did or am about to do, I may not want to experience any consequences, so I lie or stretch the truth. The problem with that approach, is I still face consequences and lost sleep in the process.

 

Peace and rest are elusive when I do not do the right thing. I’d rather follow GOD and enjoy peace than to live with hidden secrets and mounting sins. I gladly do the right thing for GOD and could use your prayers to keep going, HIS way.

 

Challenge

• What is “the right thing” the writer speaks about?
• Have you ever done the wrong thing and tried to cover it up?
• Have you gotten so good at covering things up that you now believe in your own lie?
• Will you get some relief from your guilty conscience and confess to GOD that you do not know how to go forward, so HE can step in and guide you to HIS path today?

Pray, pray, pray, pray, pray!

Ephesians 6: ¹⁸ Do all this in prayer, asking for God's help. Pray on every occasion, as the Spirit leads. For this reason keep alert and never give up; pray always for all God's people. ¹⁹ And pray also for me, that God will give me a message when I am ready to speak, so that I may speak boldly and make known the gospel's secret. ²⁰ For the sake of this gospel I am an ambassador, though now I am in prison. Pray that I may be bold in speaking about the gospel as I should.

 

============

 

Being on my own, I chose to stop praying. “What good is saying the LORD’s prayer anyway?” I said to myself. I wanted to just have “fun.” As things got worse and worse, I revisited prayer.

 

• I only prayed when I wanted something.
• I had stopped believing in prayer, because things were not going “my” way.
• I did not feel the need for prayer when I was in the middle of doing what “I” wanted to do.

 

Paul gives everyone several reasons to pray. He ties prayer to “building up your strength” and “Standing ready” as he mentioned earlier while urging us to put on the whole armor of GOD. Do all this in prayer.

 

My Observations

• Prayer helps me communicate with GOD to place my desires before HIM.
• Prayer guides me to a better place when led by the HOLY SPIRIT.
• Prayer gets other people involved to ask GOD to reveal HIS mighty power.

 

Usually prayer is the last resort when it should be the first. I mean, asking GOD for permission, direction and success seems like the right thing to do. Unfortunately, I have the tendency to start doing what “I” want to do and when it is a mess, ask GOD to fix it.

 

Prayer is a time to change “my” mind versus trying to get GOD to do something HE does not want to do. HE gracefully reveals the “gospel’s secret” and enables anyone who asks to become an ambassador for HIM. HIS SPIRIT shows me that HE can never be constrained. I am thankful GOD wants to communicate with me all day every day.

 

Challenge

• What different ways to pray do you see in the writers words?
• How is the SPIRIT leading you?
• Have you validated your desires by asking GOD “Is this what YOU want me to do?”
• Will you place every situation, thing and person, including yourself, before GOD in prayer today?

What Love Looks Like

What Love Looks Like

John 14: ¹⁹ “A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also. ²⁰ At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. ²¹ He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”

============

No longer could I mask the despair, I sat in the hallway. Things were going okay, but the future seemed cloudy. With no one to guide me, I sat and cried. It was Sunday morning and I was still up from the night before. “Want to go to church with us?” a few people asked. I had avoided the question for far too long. “Sure” I said. I went and felt better. But I stopped going soon after.  

• I once went to church looking for something, but did not find it.
• I once went to church looking for all of my problems to be cleared up, but the magic did not happen.
• I once went to church looking for things to immediately change in my life, but they stayed the same.

JESUS explains to HIS disciples that those who choose to follow the world will never see HIM again. But those who choose to follow HIM would be with HIM eternally. The belief that HE is the only need mankind has, creates a desire to follow HIS commandments.

• JESUS has shown me love, and I want to do the same.
• JESUS has given HIS live for me, and HE wants me to serve others so they will follow HIM to life.
• JESUS has provided a way back to HIM by showing love to those HE has given me.

“A new commandment I give to you, love one another as I have loved you.” This single word is easier said than done. In this selfish world of “me” showing love to someone is a rare occurrence. BUT GOD wants me to give up the “me” lifestyle and seek the lost HE brings to mind.

JESUS wants me to abide in HIM. The only way I can do this, is to show love and truly hope “that” person will give their life to HIM, not just by church attendance, but by eternal salvation. When I let go of JESUS, HE holds onto me with a tight grip. I am grateful for HIS love and mercy.

• Do you feel unloved?
• Has everyone abandoned you?
• Will you accept JESUS so HE can fill you up with IS love for others today?

Saying it plainly

Mark 10: Then He arose from there and came to the region of Judea by the other side of the Jordan. And multitudes gathered to Him again, and as He was accustomed, He taught them again.

² The Pharisees came and asked Him, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” testing Him.

³ And He answered and said to them, “What did Moses command you?”

⁴ They said, “Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce, and to dismiss her.”

⁵ And Jesus answered and said to them, “Because of the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept. ⁶ But from the beginning of the creation, God ‘made them male and female.’ ⁷ ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, ⁸ and the two shall become one flesh’;  so then they are no longer two, but one flesh. ⁹ Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”

¹⁰ In the house His disciples also asked Him again about the same matter. ¹¹ So He said to them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her. ¹² And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.”

============

“How did you socialize?” I said to the person. “I didn’t” was their response. My plan did not work. What I really wanted was permission to go to a party but was afraid to ask.

• There were times when I wanted something in my heart, but could not express them.
• There were times when I was afraid to say what I was really thinking.
• There were times when I desired something but could not say what I desired.

JESUS saw through everyone’s desires as they discussed divorce. HE knew the Pharisees and the disciples were looking at the law as an escape clause in order to fulfill their lusts. HE told them the law but they still questioned it. HE made it plain.

• JESUS says to me “Leave your parents and become one flesh.”
• JESUS says to me “I have put married people together for MY purpose.”
• JESUS says to me “Do not dream up reasons for divorce because I will classify it as an act of adultery.”

Seeing through lust filled plots is what GOD can do best. HE sees through my sordid plans and lets me know I should not continue down that path. HE speaks to me plainly so I can hear HIS words.

• Are you trying to twist your words because you are trying to create your own version of the truth?
• Are you amassing evidence for your version of the truth?
• Can you drop the hardness of your heart and find a place of peace where GOD wants you to dwell?