Friday, April 17, 2009

Desires

(Psalm 37:4)

What do we want in life? Our answer to this question molds how we view things in its different areas.

In the Bible, King David tells us to 'delight. . . in the Lord, and He will give us the desires of our heart.” In this passage a priority is established. We have to align ourselves with God and His Will first.

Also in the Bible, Matthew writes in Matthew 6:33. “Seek first His kingdom and his righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well.” This passage tells us our priority should be to seek God and His guidance for all our plans. This takes a bit of discipline on our part.

In order to know God and His Will, we have to spend time with Him through prayer, Bible study, and reading Christian literature–again discipline is required.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Contentment

(Philippians 4:11-13)

We meet someone who has a life filled with hardships but they don't gripe or complain. When they greet you, they actually wear a smile. We often wonder how they can seem so happy. Could they actually be so happy? As we get to know them, we hear it in their voice and find out they are.

What makes them happy is the relationship they have with Jesus Christ. He is their best friend, their Master, and their Savior. They lean on Him for guidance. They have surrendered their will over to God. Whatever happens to them in their lives, God has to okay it and they are content with that.

We have times where we need to learn contentment. By doing this we come to appreciate our lives and what we have. Believers are happy when a neighbor or a friend betters their life's situation. This elation stems from the belief that God is in control.

Sunday, April 12, 2009

He Is Risen

(Matthew 28:6)
The angel told the women who approached the Master's tomb. “He is not here, He has risen, just as He said.”

Christianity is the only religion that serves a risen Lord. We don't have a grave we can point to because Jesus Christ arose from the tomb to re-enter His heavenly home.

I remember hearing the story of two first century believers meeting. It goes something like this:
First believer: He is risen.
Second believer: He is risen, indeed.
One year I chose to greet people with whom I worshiped with the words of the first believer. I got different responses-even one young adult man answered with, “Hallelujah.” Only one man, my Sunday School teacher gave the reply I expected.

As we move from Lent through Easter to Pentecost, let's all remember He Is Risen, He Is Risen, Indeed.

God Alone

  Jesus and the children at our church's prayer walk.          I will both lie down in peace and sleep;  For You alone, O LORD make ...