World Choices

Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. ~ Ephesians 5:17

We live in a world of choices; who we listen to, what job we have, what car we drive, how to spend our money, what kind of house we want, and what type of lifestyle we are going to live.  We live in a time when morals and values are up to us; when what was once wrong has many times been made okay, or even considered right now.  Being a follower of Jesus means I am called to understand the righteous way to live in His will even when the world gives me so many other options.  We have to search out and imprint our hearts and minds with the wisdom of God as it does not automatically come to our sinful natures.  We need to dive in and dig into His Word for the real truths of life.  Time here on earth is short and so we must evaluate how we are living for His glory from time to time.  To be mindful of our relationships and how we treat each other; mindful of how we spend our time and resources; mindful that our faith produces the fruit of the Holy Spirit and mindful of the many traps and ways Satan may use to destroy us.  If we say we are followers of Jesus, we must walk the walk AND talk the talk.  We must make the best use of our time and resources for His kingdom while here on earth and we must live a life that is pleasing and glorifying to Him.  We don’t need to partake in slanderous gossip, but should be encouraging; we shouldn’t work more to line our own pockets, but for the widows and fatherless; and we should be mindful of trying to keep up with the neighbors and instead ask for contentment in what God has blessed us with.  As followers of Jesus, we need to recognize God’s will for us, cultivate our spiritual lives, be ready to act in faith and obedience to God’s will, live righteously in peace and ask God for wisdom to do it all the way He wants; not as the world wants.  I want to be a wisdom filled follower of Christ, not a foolish worldly follower. ~ Amen  

Slow Keeping

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness.  Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. ~ 2 Peter 3:9

We live in a “quick fix” society where we don’t have to wait long for anything anymore.  There is fast food, microwaves, ordering online for almost anything, our phone is always with us so we can get a hold of anyone and if that’s not fast enough, we can text a quick message.  With our devices, It seems like everything, everywhere is at our fingertips, at our disposal, and we can have almost anything in our hands in minutes.  Our need to practice patience in today’s world is almost null and void.  In the same way, as followers of Jesus, we would love to know when the second coming of Christ is going to happen and we would like it to happen soon.  God does not break promises.  He will return.  It’s inevitable.  However, He also desires all of us to come to Him.  In His infinite wisdom and great love for ALL mankind, He wants everyone to have the opportunity to repent and turn their lives and hearts over to Him.  God’s time is vastly, vastly different from our time and His ways are exceedingly different also.  His time has not yet come because not everyone has had the opportunity to hear his gospel; plain and simple.  God is patient with you, me, even the most wicked you can think of and wants none of us to perish and be separated from Him….so more time goes by and hopefully more will repent and turn toward God.  However, that does not mean everyone will repent and that He will wait forever.  There will still be people who hear the good news and keep their head turned from Him and refuse….but everyone will have heard.  The hope of Christ’s return should give you the strength, as believers, to endure and grow in Christlikeness.  There will be a day when you will hear, “Well done my good and faithful servant.”  He promises that. ~ Amen