Seasoned Salt

Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity.  Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. ~ Colossians 4:5-6

People are drawn to others who make them feel heard, respected, important and who make them feel genuine.  Boy, I have a lot to work on here myself.  Each of us knows people who we are happy to be around and people who we dread to interact with.  Most of us are drawn to positive and uplifting people, not negativity and complaining.  Then there are the people who don’t share your same values and morals; how do you treat them?  How do they see you?  What kind of message do we send them?  Man, in a world of  “my way, or the highway”, and in a country where it seems like we’ve forgotten that it’s okay to think differently, I hope I come across as kind and caring no matter who I speak to.  Some people will only come to know Jesus through my actions and words.  That’s scary.  That’s a big pill to swallow.  Lord, help my heart be prepared to be genuine and authentic to everyone in love.  There is no room for judgement.  We must love people for who they are and where they are in life.  Christ died for them just as much as He died for me and I pray I never pass up an opportunity to speak of God when prompted by the Holy Spirit.  We must be ready.  Every word that comes out of my mouth must be full of grace and life for those I might run into.  Many people will come in and out of our lives, yet some of them may still not have seen, or heard Jesus.  Ouch!  How tragic.  I am not saying that every conversation has to be about your salvation, or God, but every conversation should make the other person feel good and make them wonder what is so different about me.  Sometimes it’s about planting little seeds of kindness and compassion that later become watered, take root and grow into a big stalk of faith.  Let us never miss an opportunity to speak of and act like Jesus.  No judgement here. ~ Amen

Have Given

I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. ~ Luke 10:19

When Jesus sent His disciples out to proclaim the good news of God and His coming He also gave them a small taste of His power and authority.  We know that in Genesis Satan came to Eve in the form of a snake to deceive her and now in the verse, again, snakes and scorpions are used as a metaphor for the devil.  We know that the demons and the devil have to submit to the Lord.  They tremble; they cannot stand Jesus.  Power and authority has been given to every follower of Jesus through the Holy Spirit that will make the devil flee.  We can fight our spiritual battles and know that God will answer us.  We need to meditate on God’s work, be prayerful and thankful for what He has done and is going to do and we need to remember that we have victory over our sinful nature.  There are dark forces in this world and Satan would like nothing more but to destroy you, but you have the power to fight back.  Fight!  Just as Jesus gave His disciples power to overcome the enemy, we as believers must embrace that same power.  The enemy has plans to destroy your life, but God can turn what the enemy plans for bad and turn it into a beautiful work of art and good.  Through our salvation and because of what Jesus did on the cross, we are no longer bound by the world, or sin.  We have the power to overcome.  It is not by our own power, but only through Christ can we trample evil and wickedness.  The evil one has no authority over us anymore as followers of Christ.  Let us show him who is boss!  Let us take back our families, homes, and communities and trample the evil and wickedness out.  When you are afraid….stomp it out!  When you feel hopeless….stomp it out!  When you are tempted….stomp it out!  When you feel yourself getting sucked down by the weight of the world….stomp it out!  Let us use the authority and power to defeat the enemy and give God all the glory. ~ Amen

Their Destiny

Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach and their glory is in their shame.  Their mind is set on earthly things.  But our citizenship is in heaven.  And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ….~ Philippians 3:19-20

Our world is full of self-indulgence.  Too many people try to fill their lives with things that they think will make them happy only to find themselves unsatisfied in a matter of time.  They are insatiable.  For people who only rely on themselves and this world will never be completely satisfied.  They have no hope beyond their worldly pursuits.  In the end, their pursuit of selfish desires mixed with their denial of Jesus Christ will lead them to an eternity apart from God and will end in destruction.  These unbelievers have rejected God and sought to find peace in their earthly flesh.  They try to fill the void in their life with the world's pleasures only to be led to despair.  Instead, believers of Christ walk in His ways, trust and hope in the things to come and drink from the well of life that will bring victory and joy.  Forging ahead through life in prayerful and right living, we believe and know that everything will work out in the end.  Understanding that this world is our temporary home, believers don’t get swayed by the pursuit of worldly happiness.  We know our real rewards will be in heaven given to us by our Creator and the Maker of the universe.  There will be some who will have rejected God in order to pursue their selfish desires.  We are called and expected to be different as followers of Jesus.  Selflessness should be part of our being and we should live humbly seeking God’s ways and desires over anything this world has to offer.  Paul urges believers to follow his example in Philippians 3:17, Join together in following my example, brothers and sisters, and just as you have us as a model, keep your eyes on those who live as we do.  Be faithful, be on guard, do not let people sway you from the truth.  Keep vigilant and close to God.  Just as Jesus warned the New Testament churches that there would be many false teachers, the same is true today.  Be awake.  Be alert.  Let us keep our minds and hearts on the things of God, which will never pass away. ~ Amen

Great Love

See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!  And that is what we are!  The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. ~ 1 John 3:1

It astounds me that the Creator of the universe calls me one of His children.  Through my acceptance, belief and faith that Jesus Christ died on the cross for my sins and rose again I have gained favor with the same God who tells the wind where to blow.  And I have a hope and a love that no one can take away from me.  Being a child of God means I never have to walk this world alone and I have tremendous hope knowing all things will work out for my best in the end.  Weathering storms of life can be less difficult as I've acquired a whole army of brothers and sisters to help.  The Holy Spirit has made a new home in my heart and gives me peaceful guidance and direction when I ask and listen.  Jesus has shown me the way to live in a broken world.  When we become part of Christ’s family, we put our old ways and attitudes up and put on a new armor.  We become co-heirs of a greater kingdom and God’s love and grace are poured out on us.  What kind of God sacrifices His only son for people who may not even acknowledge Him?  My God did.  My God loves me so much that He wanted to reconcile my relationship to Him by sacrificing His perfect son.  That is unspeakable and unfathomable love.  All that God ever bestowed on Jesus is now for me also.  People, don’t do life alone without hope and a love that covers a multitude of sins.  The world does not know this kind of love, peace, hope and forgiveness because the world hasn’t accepted Jesus like believers have.  If you haven’t checked Jesus out and all that He wants to do for you, I ask you to just say a simple prayer to Him.  Just ask Him to reveal himself to you and see if He doesn’t come through.  Jesus wants you to be part of His family.  What do you have to lose?  Basically nothing.  Jesus, if you could reveal yourself to this reader today, what would you say?  When you become a child of God,  you will desire a purer and holy life and you will be guided by the grace and love of the Holy Spirit.  The world may not know us, but we will know each other for our love.  Let us rejoice in our new family! ~ Amen

More Grace

But he gives us more grace.  That is why scripture says:  “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” ~ James 4:6

In chapter four of his book, James is scolding and warning the believers of the church on how they have been acting towards each other.  They have looked no different from non-believers in the way they fight, covet, back bite each other and go after worldly pleasures.  Without realizing it, they have put God in the back seat and have taken their lives back over without submitting to Him first.  They have sort of lost their way, got off track, became distracted by their own desires and pleasures.  In essence, they became prideful and thought they could do life on their own; their way.  They became cheaters of their faith and therefore, took a step back into their old worldly ways.  James tells them to snap out of it!  You can not be best friends with the world and still live as God has commanded you.  However, there is good news.  God is in the business of grace for His children and it never runs out. When we have turned away from God and put our life in the ditch, God is there waiting for our return.  When we realize we have gone astray, if we repent and humbly come back to God with a sincere heart, He is more than willing and able to show us grace.  The gift of unmerited favor is poured onto us and He draws near again.  He lifts us up and we get a fresh start.  He delights in giving grace to the humble who come back.  No questions asked.  However, be warned, if as a follower of Jesus you stray too far and do not come back humbly on your own accord, one day God may use His own method to get your attention.  God always gives us opportunities to come back on our own, but if we don’t take those opportunities, in His timing, He may use a method of His choosing to bring you home.  He will leave the 99 to find His lost one.  So stay humble and submit to what God has for your life.  Let us be mindful of how we act and where our loyalty lies so that we may always be covered in God’s grace. ~ Amen