Friday, February 29, 2008

Faithfulness of God

God is faithful. It is a part of who he is. What does it mean to be faithful? The dictionary lists these synonyms for faithful: loyal, constant, devoted, dependable, reliable, true, trustworthy, unswerving, unwavering, steadfast, dedicated, and committed. How is that for a description of God!

I think God's faithfulness is the most important Biblical truth we can come to understand. Without that one attribute, our entire faith would crumble. God is faithful. That is a factual statement. It is stated many times in the Bible. If this one fact isn't true, then God is a liar. If you can't trust Him on this fact, then you can't trust Him on anything and your entire faith is gone.

When someone makes you a promise, you usually think about that person's "track record". How has he done in the past? Has he done what he said he would do? Is he reliable? If you apply that same procedure to God, you would have to admit that God has never done anything contrary to what He promised He would do. Historical and Biblical facts back up His reliability. Nothing can compare with the faithfulness of God. He doesn't put conditions on His promises. What he promises will happen. What He says, is truth – always. This is so contrary to the world we live in. Hardly a day goes by without some news story about a famous politician or sports figure that has lied.

If God is not faithful, how can we trust that he will forgive our sins? How can we trust that He will take us to heaven when we die? If God is not faithful, and we are not 100% committed to the fact of God's faithfulness, it leaves everything about our Christianity in question. In a world of increasing hopelessness, God's faithfulness is the one thing that we can hold on to for security and real hope.

I am reminded of the hymn, Great is Thy Faithfulness

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Want to explore this further. Do a study on all the verses in the Bible that deal with the faithfulness of God. (Be sure to have plenty of time - as this could take awhile.) I'll give you a few to get you started ...

1 Thessalonians 5:24 "The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it. "

1 John 1:9 "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."

Psalm 36:5 "Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies."

Hebrews 10:23 "Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful."

2 Timothy 2:13" if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself."

Psalm 119:89-90 "Your word, O Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens. Your faithfulness continues through all generations; you established the earth, and it endures."

Thursday, February 28, 2008

Stress

My life is crazy. I often run around in circles trying to keep up with everything. One thing is pulling me this way and something else is pulling me the other way. I am under deadlines at work, in school, and at home. That leads me to “stress out”. With working fulltime, being a grad student, and having a family, this happens on almost a daily basis. Stress brings its own problems. Things like headaches, high blood pressure and, in my case, high blood sugar (I’m diabetic). To combat all of this, I need to refocus.

Matthew 11:28-30 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

Jesus says, “Come unto me” - he really meant get up now and do it – no procrastinating. When you are tired, weary, exhausted, stressed out, “come unto me” and “I will give you rest”. He will refresh your spirit. He will calm your nerves and your heart. He will give you a calmness that you can’t get anywhere else.

When we spend our lives trying to please everyone else, we forget that there is someone who wants to walk with us step by step through every day. He wants us to turn to Him when we are feeling the stress. He wants to hold us up and help us through.

Every day, wake up and spend some time with Him. Take time to read the Word and to pray. Only as we are quiet before Him can we hear Him speak to us. Listen to His plans for your life and your day. We still have to do our jobs but we can face it all when He goes with us. Before you get wrapped up in your day and details – like what to wear, what to feed the kids, deadlines at work, after school activities, etc…, take that “quiet time” to ask Him to go through the day with you.

Psalm 100 says to "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord." What more joyful noise would he love to hear than "Good morning, Lord"!

Psalm 100:1-5 – “Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.”

Trust God with everything. He is able to help you through anything.

Hebrews 10:23 “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful”

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Good Intentions

I had really good intentions when I started this blog. I really thought I could keep up and write something fresh and meaningful every day. It didn't take long for me to realize that I had set a really unrealistic goal. I now have the intention of trying to post something twice a week. I am again struggling. The struggle is with time not with desire. Regardless, I realize that no matter how great or little time we do have in life, we often make time for the things that seem important to us. For instance, I have never been too busy to take my vacation. I have never been too busy to go to work. On the other hand, I can get too busy to wash the dishes or cut the grass. My point is we choose what we are too busy for. What about doing that which God has called us to do? Can we really say we are a Christian if we are too busy to spend time with the one who gave His life for us? How can we develop a relationship with Jesus if we never spend time with Him? Yet when we are "busy" isn't our devotional time often the first thing that we cut.

We can have all the good intentions and still leave out our time with God. We may need to rearrange our schedule. We also need to think about ministry opportunities. An important part of your Christian life and growth is what you do for others. Is God calling you to an area of service? Is there something you can help out with at your church? Can you sing in the choir? Can you help with youth ministry? Has God gifted you in an area like speaking, teaching, preparing meals for others, leading a Bible Study, etc...? Whatever it is, God has called you to do it in order to strengthen the church. All of us make up the body of Christ. All of us together are better and stronger than one of us alone. Think about how using your gift may inspire and encourage someone else.


Ephesians 4: 11 – 13 “to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up”

I Corinthians 12:12 “The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ.”

Hebrews 10: 23 – 25 “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Encouragement

Often times people we come into contact with really need a word of encouragement. You may not even be able to sense that but the need is there. The problem is we get so distracted by the busyness of life that it is easy to miss the needs of others. Jesus made people his priority. He "did not come to be served, but to serve." (Matt 20:28) Think about who needs encouragement in your life. It doesn't have to be a big thing. A little goes a long way. Ask God to open your eyes to see others who need uplifting. Think about real concrete things you can do or say just to "make someone else's day'. Write them a note. Bring them a cup of coffee. Take some time to pour out God's love and blessings to the people around you.

1 Thessalonians 5:11 "Therefore encourage one another and build each other up."

Tuesday, February 5, 2008

Lent

Lent starts on Ash Wednesday (2/6/08) and ends at Easter. Ash Wednesday is typically celebrated by Catholics. They apply an ashen cross on their foreheads. The ash is to remind them that they come from dust and that some day they will return to dust.

Lent is about remembering that Jesus died on the cross for our sins. A lot of Christians let Easter "creep up" on them. They don't even realize it is coming and then all of a sudden it is Palm Sunday and Easter is next week. We should take time to really consider exactly what Jesus did for us.

Jesus took our place on the cross to appease God's righteous anger. He went alone. He was separated from God and deserted by his friends. Think backwards for a minute. Before the resurrection was the crucifixion. Prior to the crucifixion was the prosecution. Before the prosecution was the betrayal.

Put yourself in the position of the disciples. We would probably have fallen asleep as Jesus prayed for deliverance in the garden. We would probably have denied knowing him as he accepted his death sentence.

As you spend time in prayer between now and Easter, remember that Jesus' death and resurrection occurred "once, for all time". There is nothing you can do to earn it. It is a free gift from God. Just accept the gift and start your journey to an eternity with God in heaven.

Ephesians 2:8-9 "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-- not by works, so that no one can boast. "

Monday, February 4, 2008

Tough Times

I've been asked how I can keep up a positive attitude when I go through tough times. A couple of verses come to mind.

2 Timothy 6:12 " I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day."

If I trust God with my eternal salvation, how can I not trust Him with the every day details of my life. I believe that everything that happens to me, He already knows about. Nothing takes God by surprise - none of my struggles or problems are news to Him.

James 1:2-4 " Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything"

Romans 8:28 "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. "

No matter what troubles I face, I know that God goes with me, that He loves me, and that He wants the best for me. Sometimes I need to face hard situations in order for my faith to grow.

If you are facing hard times, thank God for them and look to see His hand helping you through.