James 2:1-4 NASB
My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism. For if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in dirty clothes, and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine clothes, and say, “You sit here in a good place,” and you say to the poor man, “You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool,” have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives?
Personal Challenge...
This passage reminds me that I must hold onto my faith in Jesus Christ as a gift from God. It is not for me to judge those around me whom have also been given this gift yet express it in ways different than me. I must be careful to not act as if my expression of this faith is the only right and true way and therefore treat my fellow brothers and sisters as inferior (unsaved) because they do not have my vocabulary or expressions of faith. It is God's responsibility to judge the hearts of His children. It is my responsibility to humble myself before Him and be His vessel used by Him and for Him.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Monday, October 10, 2011
October 10, 2011
2 Corinthians 5:20-21 NIV
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. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Personal Challenge...
I must always remember that life is not about me or my desires anymore. As an ambassador I may be the only image that those around me have of those whom I am representing (God and His kingdom). It is through my living testimony that these people can have a glimpse into the glory of God and the salvation He provides through Jesus. What a powerful reminder to always be showing God's love to my "neighbor".
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. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Personal Challenge...
I must always remember that life is not about me or my desires anymore. As an ambassador I may be the only image that those around me have of those whom I am representing (God and His kingdom). It is through my living testimony that these people can have a glimpse into the glory of God and the salvation He provides through Jesus. What a powerful reminder to always be showing God's love to my "neighbor".
Friday, October 7, 2011
October 7, 2011
Luke 1:50 NIV
His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation.
Words of Encouragement...
It is so wonderful, so freeing, to know that we serve a merciful God.
His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation.
Words of Encouragement...
It is so wonderful, so freeing, to know that we serve a merciful God.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
October 6, 2011
Psalm 40:4-5 NLT
Oh, the joys of those who trust the LORD, who have no confidence in the proud, or in those who worship idols. O LORD my God, you have done many miracles for us. Your plans for us are too numerous to list. If I tried to recite all your wonderful deeds, I would never come to the end of them.
Oh, the joys of those who trust the LORD, who have no confidence in the proud, or in those who worship idols. O LORD my God, you have done many miracles for us. Your plans for us are too numerous to list. If I tried to recite all your wonderful deeds, I would never come to the end of them.
Personal Challenge...
I am so thankful that we are held in the hands of the God of eternity and that He is the one that determines everything. It is not the doctrines, systems, or works of myself or other men and women that determines our place in eternity, but God Himself. As we all look at death today because of so great a reminder we can know that God is in control in ways that we will never be able to imagine and that He is the one who discerns the righteous from the unrighteous. It is up to me to humble myself before Him and call out, "Lord have Mercy!!!"
I am so thankful that we are held in the hands of the God of eternity and that He is the one that determines everything. It is not the doctrines, systems, or works of myself or other men and women that determines our place in eternity, but God Himself. As we all look at death today because of so great a reminder we can know that God is in control in ways that we will never be able to imagine and that He is the one who discerns the righteous from the unrighteous. It is up to me to humble myself before Him and call out, "Lord have Mercy!!!"
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
October 5, 2011
Job 1:21 NASB
He said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, And naked I shall return there. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.”
He said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, And naked I shall return there. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.”
Personal Challenge...
Talk about having a real relationship with his Lord! Job has just lost everything that he had in his life and still he stands firm in his love for his Father. What a challenge this is for me. How easy it is to slip into that mode of blaming God or other people for the bad things that happen in my life when it is just life happening. "Blessed by the name of the LORD." needs to always be the first response on my lips.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
October 4, 2011
1 John 3:18 NIV
Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.
Personal Challenge...
It is so easy to talk about loving others, whether it be our family and dear ones, strangers, or even our enemies. It is an entirely different thing to love them with our actions. It is even more of a challenge to love them in truth, to truly love them and not do it because I think it makes me look good in God's (and everyone around us) eyes. This is not an option if I profess that I am a child of God, it is a command.
Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.
Personal Challenge...
It is so easy to talk about loving others, whether it be our family and dear ones, strangers, or even our enemies. It is an entirely different thing to love them with our actions. It is even more of a challenge to love them in truth, to truly love them and not do it because I think it makes me look good in God's (and everyone around us) eyes. This is not an option if I profess that I am a child of God, it is a command.
Monday, October 3, 2011
October 3, 2011
Galatians 2:20 NASB
“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me."
Words of Encouragement...
Jesus loved us enough to give Himself up for us. But He did not stop there, as His child my life has been crucified with Him and He now lives within me. This is a mystery and I am okay with that. Through Him I can be transformed into the person that He desires me to be.
“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me."
Words of Encouragement...
Jesus loved us enough to give Himself up for us. But He did not stop there, as His child my life has been crucified with Him and He now lives within me. This is a mystery and I am okay with that. Through Him I can be transformed into the person that He desires me to be.
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