FRIEND OR FOE?

Do you love your friends? Would you do anything for them? Have you ever been mistreated? Do certain people humanly pester you or have you been guilty of pestering someone? If you want to be a friend you need to show yourself friendly. Friendship makes time for their friends. They listen to them and are there for them.

Some of us have lost friends whether it be to death, moving away, misunderstandings, or growing apart. It hurts no matter how it happens, I know because it has happened to me in all four categories. Sometimes friends can do things to make you feel left out and that hurts too. But when you find a true friend it is precious. Some married couples are blessed to call their spouse their best friend and the boyfriend/girlfriend relationship too is pretty special when you can call that person your best friend.  Think about a best friend for a moment. You can tell them anything. They will not ridicule you or put you down. They try to encourage you when you have a new endeavor in your life. They just like to hang out with you. They make time for you and want to be with you. They have an understanding heart and are ready to forgive you. They are there to laugh with you or to be a shoulder to cry on.

With the new age of social networking people seem to  have tons of  "friends" but how many of our Facebook friends would stick closer than a brother and be there through thick or thin? Proverbs 18:24 says "A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother." Some food for thought.

In Moms in Touch throughout the years we have prayed for our children to have the kind of friends who will lift them up instead of pulling them down. Proverbs 13:20 says " He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm." 1 Corinthians 15:33 says "Evil company corrupts good habits."  It only takes one bad friend to change the course of a persons' life so it is important who we associate with.This does not mean not to be kind to bad folks but do not get sucked down into the pit with them or it may be hard to get back out. Proverbs 22:24-25 says "Do not make friends with a hot-tempered man, do not associate with one easily angered, or you may learn his ways and get yourself ensnared."

"Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends". (John 15:13). Jesus did this for us on the cross. He is our ultimate friend. We think of this scenario on the battlefield where soldiers have given their lives for our country and to save their fellow soldiers. What a gift!

Faithful are the wounds of a friend.(See Proverbs 27:6). Friends sometimes tell you things that hurt but you want them to be honest. It is very hard to win an offended friend back. Proverbs 18:19 says "An offended friend is harder to win back than a fortified city. Arguments separate friends like a gate locked with bars." For anyone who has gone through this they will know it is true. Forgiveness is the key. Do not harbor grudges. It does no good.

Do you have true friends or superficial friends?  Do you have someone you can share anything with? They are there to share your joys and your sorrows. To comfort if needed and to celebrate with you when appropriate. It could be a boyfriend or girlfriend, husband and wife or two friends. God is our best friend. He is there when others betray you and run out. He is ready to receive you with open arms. He is there when others say they do not have time for you. God is our 24 hour friend. Hallelujah!

What kind of friend are you?

PRAYER: Father one of the best gifts ever is a great and true friend. We thank you for the friends you have placed in our lives throughout the years. We thank you for the things we learn from our friends and the ways they have brought joy to our lives. Help me be a good friend to those you have put in my life. In Jesus Name. Amen.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOCJAVlESEo

ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE

Tomorrow is Valentines Day. For some they may say it is just a Hallmark holiday but never the less it makes us think about love and what the word really means. John 13:34-35 says "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples." If we claim to know Jesus then we need to show love to others.

Now Valentines Day is thought to me more for romantic love but it is a good time to think about what the word really means. Jesus has commanded us to 'love one another' and this type love is sacrificial love that puts the other one first. Love is to be about the other person and thinking about them first. This is easy to do when you are 'in love' but needs to continue into marriage and in friendships as well. Do not always wait for other person to do something kind.

Love is not just romantic and full of wonderful feelings but it is the thing we need in relationships to make life livable. 1 Corinthians 13 is often used at weddings and it is good for the new bride and groom to commit to memory but it is good for other types of relationships as well. In verses 4-6 of this chapter it reads as follows, " Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres." Love is not just a feeling, although that part is important in the dating relationship as we all know. Love continues beyond feelings and for some you will need to show love when you do not feel like it. Love is commitment.

For those married people on Valentines Day it may be easy to overlook this holiday saying it is too commercial or you can perhaps use this as a time to renew your wedding vows to each other or just honor the other person that day in some special way.

Love thinks of other person. Love forgives and forgets. Love does not care about the others faults but loves them anyway. Love is caring.Love is kind. Love attempts to understand the other person. Love shows compassion and grace.Love is for better or for worse. Love looks for the good in others. Love looks for ways to share and give and put the other person first.Love is not rude. Love likes to laugh and have fun. To love is to enjoy someones company. Love sacrifices what he wants for what the other person wants and seeks to please them.

A real follower of Christ shows love to others. 1 John 4:7 says," Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God."

PRAYER: Father we love you and we want to show your love to others. Thank you for those who have a special person in their life to love. We thank you for bringing these special people into our lives. Help me show love to my significant other whether married or single. I thank you for bringing them into my life. For those without a significant other thank you Lord for the love I can show for all those persons you have put in my life. In Jesus Name. Amen.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GzfPHnoT0-0

UNLOAD THAT BURDEN

Are you carrying around a thought, a mental load, cares and worries, reasoning, and things you can do nothing about? Mulling over situations does nothing to profit you nor does it change things. We fabricate things in our mind and wonder about outcomes and this does no good as well. This is why we need to focus on good things and train and discipline our mind to let go of junk we can not do anything about and concentrate on what is good and worthy. The mind is a battlefield where thoughts can cause us to be victorious or trip us up and keep us defeated. Thoughts can lift you up or tear you down. They can bring happiness or gloom. Your outlook on life has to be positive to keep your thoughts uplifted. When you get up each day to 'seize the day', consciously make yourself have good thoughts and not dwell on concerns or negatives. There was a movie out where one of the characters said to 'think happy thoughts'. That is good advice.

Philippians 4:8 says " Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. "  Things we think about and things we say are two areas where not enough can be written about them. Words and thoughts can make us or break us. The enemy, Satan, wants you to sit and fret and ponder as it takes your focus off God. John 10:10 says that "the enemy comes to steal, kill and destroy" and that is exactly what his mission is. To steal your joy, kill  your dreams and happiness and destroy you as a person. God is not the originator of worry. 1 Peter 5:7 says to "Cast all your care on him for he cares for you."

If you are having difficulty thinking on 'things above' then might I suggest get your Bible and open it to Psalms and start reading. Soon your mind will be focused on Christ and not stuff down here on earth you can not do anything about. 1 Corinthians 14:33 says "God is not the author of confusion". Are you confused, mixed up,trying to figure things out in your head? Give these things to God before it causes you undue anguish and mental torment.

Persevere, stay encouraged, hang in there and run your race to win. Keep focused on God and his glory and let him take your burdens and let the joy of the Lord be your strength and carry you through. I love to run so it is a good word picture what it says in Hebrews 12:1-2 and that is "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,  fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." Be blessed today and be a blessing.

PRAYER: Lord God I thank you that you do not want us to fret over things we have no control over. Forgive me for the times I have done this and taken my mind off you and your word. I want to be conformed to your image Lord in the things I say and do. Help me stay on the path you have set for me to walk. Give me the ability to let go of past problems or future concerns and live for today. In Jesus Name. Amen.

REPRESENTATIVE FOR JESUS

 

It has been my privilege to spend time in our Nations' Capitol these past two years visiting offices of our Representatives. These men and women are elected to represent us and our viewpoints when voting for legislation. As we have seen in past year they do not always do this very well and go their own way. They are supposed to 'represent' us thus the name representative. We call them our Congress and our Senate.

 

 In the body of Christ we are to be His Representatives representing Jesus to the world around us. We are his ambassadors. How are you doing? Do you represent the kingdom of God in a good way or do you shame the Lord? Ambassadors are supposed to put on a good face and represent in a good way. They are to be the person who could represent what the country stands for and not bring shame upon it.

 

Lets say you are in a foreign country and someone finds out you are an American. Would your actions and appearance represent the United States like you wanted to or would you embarrass your nation? This is something to think about in the kingdom of God. There is a saying, "If you were arrested for being a Christian would there be enough evidence to convict you?"

 

Some things to think about would be when you drive do you speed and cut people off? Is your attire befitting of a Christian? For instance for ladies do you dress modestly with nothing too short, too low cut, too tight or too sheer? Do  you let people go in front of you in line occasionally? Is your language befitting of a believer in the Lord? When it comes to entertainment choices do you use discernment of what you allow in your mind because remember Jesus is in you and he has to sit through whatever you sit through. Are you any different than those around you? We are to mingle with non believers and not stay in a holy huddle but we do not go purposely to places we know would not please God.

 

2 Corinthians 5:20 says "We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God." 1 Peter 2:9 says "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light." Be a light for his kingdom wherever you go in the world. We are called out of darkness to light up this world for Jesus. Go do your job and shine for Jesus today!!

 

PRAYER: Lord today I want to be your representative wherever I go. Help me to not act haughty but to be humble and represent the body of Christ in a good way. Let the things I do and say bring glory to you and your kingdom. In Jesus Name. Amen.

BUSYNESS AND BUSY BODIES

 

Neither one of the above are good. Being too busy makes you miss out on lots in life. If you are unable to say no and constantly on the go then it can squeeze out important things. Someone told me once that an acronym for the word busy could be "Being Under Satan's Yoke." Ouch! Being too busy robs you of peace. God wants us to have peace. John 14:7 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." Make wise choices to bring peace. Pray for the ability to have good time management skills. Do not take on every little thing that sounds good. Even for those who stay home you can get over committed and frazzled even with seemingly good things. Some busyness may be unpreventable when it comes to being in a high pressure job unless you make wise use of your breaks and insure you are getting out of office and walking or taking that coffee break. Leave when it is time to leave and do not become a workaholic. For one, if you are married, workaholism can hurt marriages if you are constantly feeling things can not get done if you do not stay and do them. What about your home?Now of course as a Christian you want to work heartily (Colossians 3:23) as they Lord says to work and not be lazy but you do not have to go overboard either. There is a fine line.

 

Now busybodies, that is another whole issue probably harder for women to combat than men just because of our nature. Women seem to like to 'know' things. That is probably why all the daytime talk shows are on and People magazine flies off the shelves. But as a Christian we really have to discipline ourselves to not be carried away or enticed by the things of the world that do not really matter. In 2 Timothy 3:6 there is a verse that talks about leading "silly women' astray. Now I am not sure exactly it applies here but I always feel women can tend to be more gullible so we have to be on our guard. Another name for a busy body is someone who sticks their nose where it does not belong or offers their opinion when it is not requested. Being nosey is not appealing to anyone and can be quite irritating. The new Facebook generation has opened up the door through the 'wall" to sometimes be overly curious into people's lives. This is an area that takes self control to not obsess over stuff on there.  There is a time to know things and a time to let things go and forget about it. Now there is a difference in showing concern for someone and asking questions about how their family is doing just to show interest and then prying into their life for every detail.

 

Patience comes into play on both the issues of busyness and busy bodies. Be patient and relax and try to not orchestrate your day into some sort of marathon. Above all make time to take care of your spiritual and physical self in your day for your over all well being. Patience in the human relation area would be waiting for God to do things and not always opening your mouth and spouting off. Proverbs 10:19 says "Don't talk so much. You keep putting your foot in your mouth. Be sensible and turn off the flow." Now that verse is a clear word picture.  Proverbs 15:23 says "A man has joy in an apt answer, And how delightful is a timely word! "  If you are a parent of a married child for sure you may have an opinion about something but once they married you need to learn to let go and try to zip the lip. Give your concerns to God and then try to be patient and wait for the answer. Believe me it is not easy and takes discipline to accomplish. Sometimes speaking concerns can backfire and may take many weeks to heal and forgive. In Proverbs 18:21 it says "Those who love to talk will suffer the consequences. Men have died for saying the wrong thing!" How true is that? Proverbs 15:28 says that a "good man thinks before he speaks". Oh how we all could benefit from being patient and thinking before opening our mouths. Once those words are 'out there' they are hard to get back and the damage is done and misunderstandings start. Finally self control, which is one of the fruits of the spirit,(see Galatians 5:22-23) means to control what we say too. Proverbs 13:3 says "Self-control means controlling the tongue! A quick retort can ruin everything." When you feel like saying something or giving your "two cents" worth ask God if you really should and sit back and wait for his answer. Sometimes it is better to just not say anything.

 

PRAYER: Today father I need your help to control my tongue. When I feel a 'meddling spirit' coming upon me with whomever be it friends or family help me to stop and think about what I am about to do. Help me control the words that come out of my mouth. Also Lord help me today to say no to things that will over commit me and help me to focus on the tasks you have given me to do. I want to be guided by your spirit in all the things I say and do and give you the praise and glory. In Jesus Name. Amen.

NO MIDDLE MEN

Where do you stand with God? Are you firmly in his camp and his loyal soldier? Or are you somewhere out there sitting on the fence not truly dedicated to your task of serving him and serving his kingdom? Are you a Christian in name only? Something to think about.

 

We are either for God or we are against God. We are not to be a Sunday Christian or a fox hole Christian. God wants our total allegiance. You must not worship other gods it says in scripture. (See Exodus 20:3) Do not call on him just when you need something. Talk to God all the time. He is your friend. If you have earthly friends you want to hang out with them. God is the ultimate friend and he wants to hang out with you too.

 

Deuteronomy 6:5 says we are to "Love him with all our heart." Not part of it but all of it. Do you truly love Jesus? Or do you just call on him when something is going wrong or take him off the shelf at Easter and Christmas because it is the right thing to do?

 

And in loving him do you truly put him first and want to serve him? Examine your heart on this one. In Revelation 3:16 it says' Be either hot or cold  but because you are lukewarm I will spit you out of my mouth."  So are you lukewarm for God? Think of lukewarm food. If we were to get lukewarm food in a restaurant we would demand it be sent back and bring back a plate of hot food. Lukewarm is just not appealing. No one wants lukewarm bathwater or lukewarm coffee. Lukewarm just does not cut it.

 

Do not cry out to God just in trouble and then expect him to be a genie in a bottle. He is your 24/7 God and is there for you in times of joy and in times of sadness. He is your round the clock repair service for broken hearts, wounded spirits, and any condition you have. He is Almighty, Bondage breaker, Counselor, Deliver, Eternal, Forever, Great, Highest, Indescribable, Justified, King, Never tiring, Omnipotent, Powerful, Radiant,Supreme, Thoughtful, Unending, Victorious,and Wonderful. Start today and make Jesus Lord of your life and Lord of your day.

 

Proverbs 2:1-6 says " My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, turning your ear to wisdom
and applying your heart to understanding— indeed, if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God. For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding."

 

Make your schedule and allow time for a 'coffee date' with God. He is your forever friend.

 

PRAYER: Lord forgive me for when I put you on the shelf. I want to spend more time with you. Give me the ability to discipline myself to get into your word and study it. You are my best friend Lord so help me act like it and spend time with you. I am sorry Lord that I have not wanted to hang out with you. I will do better. In Jesus Name. Amen.

 

HERE COME DA JUDGE

Excuse the poor English, but I can remember a while back hearing this expression used either by the late comic Flip Wilson or on Rowan and Martins 'Laugh In' sketch. Talk about dating myself. My younger readers are going, "Say what?" Try not to be that judge because our assignment in life is not to pick people apart and criticize them.  But how many of us tend to judge something by sight without knowing the whole story? If we look at people through the eyes of Christ it will be easier to not condemn them or find fault.  Let God do the judging and you do the loving. 

Is there anyone who has not at one time or other looked at someone and formed an opinion about them without knowing 'their story' or situation? Unless you were raised in a perfect atmosphere then it has probably happened. Example of one would be a cell phone ringing in church and the person whose it was has no clue it is their phone ringing  because they never bring it in church with them.It is a total accident. Perhaps looking at someone who is overweight and not realizing they maybe have an illness or injury  that prevents them from working out. It is easy to form opinions such as looking at people with tattoos and thinking they are all bad which we know is not the case.  In John 7:24 it says ,"Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment." Whether getting a tattoo is right or wrong is not our problem. What God wants from us is to love and let go of a judgmental attitude. 

 Matthew 7:1 says to "Judge not less you be judged." Romans 14:2 reads, "Let not him who eats despise him who does not eat, and let not him who does not eat judge him who eats; for God has received him." Just like the woman caught in adultery where people were saying to stone her and Jesus said "Go and sin no more."  (See John 8:1-11). We can fall into a trap of being a self righteous judge acting like we are better because we do not do such and such or go to this place or that place. Be on your guard against this. Let God convict people of sin and wrong. You do not need to condemn them.

One of my favorite verses dealing with judgmental attitudes is Matthew 7:3 which says ""And why worry about a speck in your friend's eye when you have a log in your own?" Another catchy way to illustrate this is "why worry about the toothpick in your friends eye when you have a telephone pole in your own eye?"

"We all have sinned and fallen short of Gods' glory" it says in Romans 3:23. Our enemy the devil likes us to keeping judging as doing it separates us from God and makes us have condemning spirits and not loving ones. Be aware if you are falling into the trap of doing this and ask for God to deliver you from it. We are will stand before God's judgment seat so let us let him do the judging. (See 2 Corinthians 5:10).

PRAYER: Father help us look at all people through your eyes and not from the eyes of condemnation. We know it is not our job to pick people apart. Give us the grace to show love and kindness to even those we may not see eye to eye with. Give us Christian love for those around us. Help us let you be the judge and we be your hands and feet in this world. In Jesus Name. Amen!