Posts

Showing posts from 2012

F.O.C.U.S

Image
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom is no ficklenss, neither shadow of turning. James 1:17, AKJV Have you noticed that when you look hard for something, or focus strongly on something, you will usually find it? For instance, if you decide that you'd like to purchase a blue Toyota Camry, whereas you never really noticed it on the road before, you will begin to see it more often than before. Why is that? Is it because there are now more blue Toyota Camry's on the road than before? I'd venture to say that is not the case. You never noticed them before because they were not of much interest to you. Thus, because your focus changed, it became more likely that you would begin to notice them. The more you focus on something, the more you begin to notice it. Likewise, the more you focus on the negative things happening in your life, the more you'll begin to see them. The reverse is also true: the more

Know Your Worth!

It is so very important that we know who and whose we are in Christ! This knowing will prevent us for succumbing to the Devil's taunts and temptations.  In the wilderness, Satan taunts Jesus with this recurring phrase, "IF You are the Son of God..." [Read: Matthew 4:1-11]. The conjunction, "if" was used deliberately for two purposes: 1) to produce doubt in Jesus' mind as to who He really was. 2)  to cause Jesus to try and prove His worth by doing the things the enemy wanted Him to do, thereby succumbing to the temptation. BUT Jesus, understanding Who He was said in essence, "there are no "IF"s about it...I don't have anything to prove...I AM the Son of God". Are you in the "wilderness"? In a place where resources are limited, problems seem to proliferate, and temptations abound? Your dreams don't seem to be coming to pass? Don't try to take matters into your own hands. Don't try to solve you problems the way th

QUICKSAND

Image
QUICKSAND The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. He will not always strive with us, nor will He keep His anger forever. He has not dealt with us according to our sins nor dealt with us according to our iniquities. For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; As far as the east is from the West, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. (Psalm 103:8-12) Have you ever done something so terrible or made such a mess of your life that hopelessness becomes your constant companion? Do you find yourself in that place right now, wondering "How in the world did I get here?". Even as Christians, we sometimes get ourselves into murky circumstances, with habitual sins and hangups designed to trap us. James, the brother of Jesus, explains the destructive nature of sin when he writes, "...each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has

CHANGE: Change Agent

“ “Therefore if any person is [ingrafted] in Christ (the Messiah) he is a new creation (a new creature altogether); the old [previous moral and spiritual condition] has passed away. Behold, the fresh and new has come!  “   [2 Corinthians 5:17] We cannot talk about change without discussing the biggest change of all: becoming a new creation in Christ. True and lasting change can only come about by one source: Jesus Christ, for He is our Change Agent.                                                                         A change agent is someone who  "alters human capability or organizational systems to achieve a higher degree of output or self actualization. Beginning with the end in mind, the goal of a change agent is obviously to make changes that stick. The result of change agent activity is to enable people to do more, or find a new and better perspective on life"  (Dennis Stevenson).  Our hearts as humans would remain hearts of stone without Jesus s

CHANGE: Tackling Fear

  “ “I will not leave you nor forsake you…only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses my servant commanded you; have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”  [Joshua 7:5a-7; 9] In the scriptures, Joshua is Moses’ assistant and was tutored in the way of battle by Moses, amongst other things; but when Moses died, Joshua was called to take over the task of leading the Israelites into the Promised Land, a very huge undertaking I imagine. I’m sure he felt fear at the responsibility that seemed thrust upon him, and God knew this, allaying Joshua’s fear with the command to be of good courage, not be afraid or dismayed; and the promise of guidance and companionship. God is saying that to you as well, “Be strong and very courageous, do not fear or be dismayed…”. Like Joshua, fear might be invading your heart at the prospect of s

The Bridge

Image
  " Jesus said to him, I am the Way and the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father except by (through) Me." - John 14:6 "Uhhhh...I thought you said it didn't matter what route we took, we would all get to our destination", she said, unsure. "Well...that's what I was told. Why, what's the problem?" He asked, coming up behind her "What is  that ?" she asked, pointing below to the deep and wide fissure interrupting the path to their destination "Oh!", He said in dismay. There doesn't seem to be a way around it. I wonder what we...", He said, trailing off when he saw a group of people a few yards ahead making their way across the fissure. "How are you all doing that?", He called out to them.  "It's not us", they responded. "It seems like a way has already been made for us", one said.  "Really?", he said, walking towards the group. He looked down and t

It's The Little Things...

Image
"...Ask the Lord for rain in the time of the latter rain. The Lord will make flashing clouds; He will give them showers of rain, Grass in the field for everyone." (Zechariah 10:1) Something great happened to me one day while in the middle of a great morning run. Now, it may seem a bit mundane to you, almost coincidental, but I assure you, it wasn’t. At that time, I was training for a half-marathon, and as I was running, it began to sprinkle a bit. Now, I wasn’t very surprised at this because I had read the forecast the day before and there was about a sixty percent chance it was going to rain on this said day. So, I ran, and a light drizzle began. And I prayed a silent prayer. I asked God to hold the rain till I was finished running. Now that may seem a bit narcissist, but there’s no harm in asking, right? And besides, I am a child of The Most High God and so…I asked. Besides, isn’t that what the word encourages us to do? “Ask, and it will be given to you…for everyone who as