Don't give God lip service, but rather life service. Live like you love Him if you say that you love Him! John 14:15

Don't just pretend that you love others.  Really love them.
Hate what is wrong. Stand on the side of good.
Love each other with genuine affection and take delight in honoring each other.
Never be lazy in your work, but serve the Lord enthusiastically.
Be glad for all God is planning for you.
 

Be patient in trouble and always be prayerful.  
When God's children are in need, be the one to help them out.

And get into the habit of inviting guests home for dinner,
 

or if they need lodging for the night.

If people persecute you because you are a Christian, don't curse them;
pray that God will bless them.

When others are happy, be happy with them.

If they are sad, share their sorrow.
Live in harmony with each other.

Don't try to act important, but enjoy the company of ordinary people.
And don't think you know it all!

Never pay back evil for evil to anyone.
Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable.
Do your part to live in peace with everyone as much as possible.

Romans 12:9-18

Eat! For the Table is Laid!

When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart's delight, for I bear your name, O Lord God Almighty.  Jeremiah 15:16

These words were spoken to God by the prophet Jeremiah during his discourse with God because of God's wrath coming upon the children of Israel.  Once again they had turned from God's way of doing things to their own way.  God said to Jeremiah in verse 6 that they had rejected Him and continued to backslide. It sounds to me that in this 15th chapter, God was fed up with them.  He was going to destroy them in an utterly devastating way.  However, yet again, the voice of the prophet softens His heart, as Jeremiah pleads on behalf of the children of Israel. 

Jeremiah reminds God that when he received the words from the Book of the Law, he assimilated his life to line up with them.  He digested the Word of the Lord and it became a part of his core being.  Jeremiah reminded God that he not only lived by His Word, but that he delighted and received joy from His Word.  He let God know that he loved what he read and heard.  Jeremiah understood who and whose he was.  He belonged to God as he affirmed when he said, "for I bear your name."  God's Word was life for Jeremiah and he wanted God to know that although the children had turned away, he had dedicated his life to living for Him.   Because of what he understood to be God's way of living he didn't participate in or live like the heathen nations for he understood that he belonged to God.

As children of God, we too must understand at all times to whom we belong.  We must feast upon the Word of God, digesting it so that it becomes our very life.  And as we feed upon the Word of God, it will strengthen us and cause us to respond to life's situations in a Godly manner.   The more and more we feed upon the Word of God, the more and more Christ-like we become. 

The table has been set.  The smogasbord is awaiting.  Come, feast upon the Word of God and get your fill that you may receive strength as you continue upon life's journey.  And, you know,  the wonderful thing about feasting upon the Word of God is you don't have to watch what you eat when you eat of His Word, nor do you have to worry about becoming fat.  There is no dieting when you feed upon the Word because it is all proper nutrition.  Therefore you too can say like Jeremiah that you delight in feasting upon the Word because you can grow and grow and grow and grow.

Remember Jeremiah today.  Reflect upon how he understood the importance of proper spiritual nutrition and may you too join with Him in being spiritually fit and remaining faithful to God despite how others may be living.

On The Other Side of Through

Jesus, in Luke 4:35-41; 5:1, after having finished teaching by the lakeshore, told His disciples in v. 35, "Let's cross to the other side of the lake (NLT)." Now, notice what He said, they were going to the other side. Well, we all know the events that followed.

A great storm came and the disciples were afraid. And to top it all off, Jesus was sleeping in the midst of this ferocious storm! Frightened and distressed, the disciples awakened Jesus, who got up and simply said three words, "Peace be still."

He then asked the disciples why they were so frightened and whether or not they had faith in Him. See, the disciples lost sight of all the previous things Jesus had done. They lost sight of Who it was they had been with all this time. And they missed the simple promise Jesus gave in His saying, "Let's cross to the other side of the lake." Don't let your situation make you forget the promise. Don't become so focused on the storm that you forget the One who is right there with you in the midst of it and has the power to bring peace even in the midst of the storm.

Note that Luke 5:1 tells us that they did make it to the other side as promised and there Jesus healed the man who had been possessed by a legion of demons. Know that on the other side of the storms you face, you will have grown in your faith and because you have grown in your faith, you will have also become perserverant and more conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. Through the storms, come peace. Through the storms, comes increase. Through the storms, come healing.

When we have the proper perspective of our stormy times in life and understand that they come to make us strong, our attitude is that of joy rather than sorrow. It is one of the many ways in which our Heavenly Father shows His love for us. Proverbs 3:11-12 says: "My son, do not despise the Lord's discipline and do not resent His rebuke, because the Lord disciplines those He loves, as the father the son he delights in." So whether you are experiencing a storm because of a poor choice you've made or even just from life itself, know that God allows these to come to bring us into a closer and more intimate walk with Him. And God is just SO good that He doesn't leave us to go through it alone. We have a Comfortor, the indwelling Holy Spirit of God who leads and guides us if we'd but only listen.

So, when your storms come, for they will, remember that they have a purpose: to produce growth in your life, to make you strong and to bring you closer to the Father! And in the midst of that storm, know that your loving Heavenly Father is growing you more and more into the likeness of His Son, Jesus the Christ!

I Long For You, O God

As the deer pants for streams of water, so I long for you, O God. I thirst for God, the living God. When can I come and stand before Him? Psalm 42:1-2

O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water. Psalm 63:1

Have you ever ran a race or just walked and long distance and really, really needed a drink? Ever had the dry, parched feeling where the only thing that could quench your thirst was a tall glass of ice cold water? No, not Kool-Aid and definitely not Gatorade. But you longed for just a swig of water?

Sometimes in our walk with Christ we become "parched" and during those times our spirit is longing and thirsting for the Living Water. In a world where sin is rampant and it is unpopular to stand for what is right, we can become weary. Just as when our physical bodies have worked to the point of exertion and it seems that every cell in our being is screaming out for water, so too does our spirit when we have allowed the pressures of life to overcome us. We long for and thirst for Jesus. Our spirits cry out, longing for a quenching of our soul's thirstiness. Our spirit wants that intimate fellowship with the only One who is able to quench our thirsting souls.

Don't go today without drinking from the fountain that never runs dry. He is waiting just for you to come and pour yourself out to Him just so that He can fill you with more of Who He is. He is waiting for you to come and bow down before Him and cry Holy, holy, holy. He is waiting just for you to say, Jesus I want more, more, more of you. He is waiting for you to come and cry out to Him because you thirst for Him. Go before the Lord today and find quenching for your thirsty soul. Just pour your longings out to Him and just worship Him.

O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water. I have seen you in your sanctuary and gazed upon your power and glory. Your unfailing love is better to me than life itself; how I praise you! I will honor you as long as I live, lifting up my hands to you in prayer, You satisfy me more than the richest of foods. I will praise you with songs of joy. I lie awake thinking of you, meditating on you through the night. I think how much you have helped me; I sing for joy in the shadow of your protecting wings. I follow close behind you; your strong right hand holds me securely. Psalm 63:1-8

There is a river that flows from the heart of God where you can find quenching for your thirsty soul.

Earnestly Seek Him!

How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word. I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. Praise be to you, O Lord; teach me your decrees. With my lips I recount all the laws that come from your mouth. I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches. I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways. I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word. Psalm 119:9-16

In our lives we have so many things which we hold in high esteem: things, people, careers, however we tend to neglect the One whom we should hold in highest esteem. We read books to gain intellectual knowledge or even for enjoyment, but how quick are we to pick up The Book that is the Word of Life?

The Psalmist shows a deep devotion to and love for the law of the Lord. He says that if a young person wants to live a life of purity they can only do so by living according to the Word of God. He continues to speak of how he sought after God with all his heart. He didn't just sit back and wait for God to show up, he went searching for Him because he understood that life was found in God and in His Word.

We see that not only did he understand the importance of searching after and following God's Word, but he understood that he must commit to memorizing scripture so that in the midst of life's situations the Word would be in his heart reminding him of how he is to live and respond to those situations.

Let us follow the example of the Psalmist by searching and seeking God by reading and meditating on His Word. Let us follow after the commands we read in scripture so that we can live pure lives before God and others. Let us commit to scripture memorization so that we can make Godly choices in life. But let us also follow the example of the Psalmist by speaking the Word of God. Jesus said that the words that He speaks are life. Therefore let us impart life to one another by encouraging one another through the Word of God.

And finally, as we go about doing all the things that we pack into our day, don't neglect God's Word. Spend time each day feasting upon it allowing it to permeate your heart and mind. Bathe in the purity of the Word allowing yourself to be cleansed from all the filth you encounter as you go from day to day. God's Word is life giving, life changing, and full of abundance. Therefore, if you really want to live, don't forsake spending time in the Word of God.

Commit today that you will hide the Word of God in your heart, so that you won't sin against Him.

Its Good To Go Back To The Old Time Way!

Never speak harshly to an older man, but appeal to him respectfully as though he were your own father. Talk to the younger men as you would to your own brothers. Treat the older women as you would your mother, and treat the younger women with all purity as your own sisters. I Timothy 5:1-2


These words penned by the Apostle Paul to young Timothy are priceless! In this day and age we have moved so far away from teaching our children respect for their elders as well as showing respect to one another. It appalls me to hear how some speak to and treat the elderly and the disdain and disregard children have for them. We seem to have moved away from the "old way" of doing things in this area because I guess some feel that they have "arrived" and have no need to show respect.

I hear how children speak to their parents today and it breaks my heart. There seems to be a lack of boundaries or rather clear lines of who the parent is and who the child is. When I was growing up, we were taught to say either "yes ma'am and yes sir" or even just, yes instead of uh-huh and yep to an adult. We understood that they were to be respected because they were elders. Nowadays, I see how people just let their kids say whatever they feel. There are even some who laugh at their children when they are disrespectful because they think its cute or that the child has learned to speak his mind.

I just want to encourage us all to be more mindful of our respect for one another and those who are elderly. I encourage you to especially take time out of your day and do something special for one of your senior neighbors, friend, coworkers or church members. And in the unthinkable event that you hear or see a young person show disrespect, disdain or disregard for them, please stand up for them and help that youngster understand why they are wrong. Sometimes "its good to go back to the old time way."

I have committed to teaching my children as well as living it out before them, respect for others, especially our senior saints. I believe that as they see the behavior modeled before them, they will follow because children model more of what you do, not just what you say.