HONORABLE MENTION

 Do you consider yourself an honorable person? Honor is a pretty important personality charactistic to have in order to succeed in the world around us. Cheats, liars, and dishonorable people may get ahead for a while but it is those who have honor that will truly shine.

Think of the word honor. At place I like to hike in nearby Huntsville, Alabama, at the entrance to this state park, called Monte Sano, there is an "Honor Box" to place you entrance fee into. If the attendant is off duty they would expect you to do the right thing and place your money in the box and not try to sneak in. Think of another situation which involves honor. Let's say you go to see one movie and pay for only one movie but after it is over you casually sneak into another one. Is that honorable? Is it honorable to keep the change if a clerk gives you too much money back? You can probably add your own scenarios as well.

In the military there is what is called an "Honorable Discharge" where upon having served honorably with nothing bad on your military record you are awarded this certificate to proudly display at home or wherever you choose. The other two discharges will not help in getting you far in life and they are the "General Discharge" and the "Dishonorable Discharge". Honor is pretty important to those serving in the Armed Forces. Also the "Honor Guard" present at military funerals to pay tribute to one who served his or her country honorably.

How many of you have seen a road side stand with home grown produce on it and next to it is a box on the table with a sign that reads "Honor System" to place the money for the vegetables you are buying? Even if a person steals it is God who knows. It does not pay to be less than honorable.

The Bible speaks of honor in many places. One I like is in the Ten Commandments where it says to "Honor your father and your mother" and how important that is. Even into their aging years to hold them in high regard and in high esteem. In wedding vows the couple often repeat they will "love,honor, and cherish as long as they both shall live" but then how many just forget that and end up doing their own thing resulting many times in divorces. If you are married pray for God to give you the ability to do what your vows said.

1 Peter 2:17(NKJV) says to 'Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.' The Bing online dictionary defines honor as personal integrity: strong moral character or strength, and adherence to ethical principles. We see today that many in leadership in the United States do not have strong moral character and it is harder to honor and respect someone like that. We are to keep praying for them. Romans 12:10 says 'Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another.'

Honor system, honor box, honorable discharge, honor code, no matter what, honor is very important in the life of a believer and of a respectable citizen. It shows integrity and courage.

Are you an honorable person? Proverbs 21:21(ESV) is a good scripture to end on and it says 'Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness will find life, righteousness, and honor.'

PRAYER: Lord today I choose to show honor to those who it is due. I honor you above all Lord. I thank you Lord for parents that raised me to be honorable. Help me to walk with honor and integrity everywhere I go. In Jesus' name. Amen.

AFRAID?

Does fear have its' grip on you? Do you worry about your tomorrow's? Do you fret over your children or grandchildren who are either small or grown? Do you have a fear of flying or trying new things? Maybe you have a fear of what your boss will do at work or fear of being fired or laid off? What is paralyzing you and making you not be able to relax? A fear of dying troubles many people. Fear of surgery plagues  many because of the unknown. Fear will not get you any closer to God but take you away from Him because it shows you are not trusting God to fully take care of you. Fear is the opposite of faith. It can disable you if you let it get its' grip on you. You have to fight fear. There is a saying "Do it afraid". Sometimes that is what we have to do. Psalm 188:6 tells us "The LORD is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?"

2 Timothy 1:7 says "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." When you are fearful your mind is all over the place. You conjure up scenarios in your head and imagine things that may not even happen. You think you know but you are just speculating. Let's say a person is scared of what their boss is going to say or do and worry they may lose their job. They hear of many downsized companies and start to worry. Worry,by the way, goes hand in hand with that 'fear monster' and in order to maintain a peaceful spirit we have to try to get both under control. It is not easy. Say the 2 Timothy 1:7 verse above OUT LOUD. Get it into your heart and spirit.

Can you give your cares, fears, and worries to God and not take them back? Can you trust that God has a plan and no worrying or being afraid will change anything? It is basically useless but is so easy to be caught up in. Maintaining a peaceful spirit no matter what is in fact a discipline to be practiced. Romans 8:15 says "For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father."

By staying in the word and listening to positive uplifting Christian music we can at least alleviate some of it. John 14:27 says "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."

Matthew 8:23-27 shows how we should try to be and it says "Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. Without warning, a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!” For anyone who has been on whitewater or in huge ocean swells it can be scary. Thank goodness for the expert river guides to take us down the rivers and the ship captains to sail through rough waters.Also it can be a little scary up in a plane in turbulent rough air but the pilots are highly trained to fly in all sorts of weather.  Like Jesus, when his disciples started to get fearful he just simply slept. Can you 'just sleep' during these times? Jesus says in Matthew 14:27 "but Jesus spoke to them at once and said Don't be afraid. Take courage. I am here." Take courage friend. Jesus is with you!

PRAYER: Lord I need you in my heart and in my thoughts. I want to learn to relax and not use valuable time being afraid of the 'what ifs' of life. Lord I want to be more like you. I give you my fears of the world I am in and do not want to keep taking them back. I need your help to do this. In Jesus Name. Amen.

Note: Click on link below to enjoy a worship song to sooth your spirit. Be blessed!
http://youtu.be/4bD_90W6WIc