Love vs. Hate

How does a Christian live their life?

onascalefrom1-10.blogspot.com

I've been watching the news, as I am sure you have. There is no question in my mind that the world is becoming a darker place.
I often wonder what it was like being in the time of Jesus. Near the end of His life there was so much confusion, betrayal, and hatred. Not just for Jesus but all the people that loved and worshiped Him. In the end, there was only 120 left of the thousands that followed Him. All huddled in the upper room: no doubt terrified and not knowing who to trust.
Do you ever wonder if a time like that will come for Christians in this present time? Feeling alone and not knowing who to trust? Perhaps, even civil rights taken away?
Sounds outrageous doesn't it?
So.....
How did His message survive with so many false witnesses against Him?

Seems to me that 120 was a core group of very strong Christians. This group supported the multitudes that came in after the crucifixion on Jesus. Did you ever wonder how a group of people that were once so afraid suddenly could suddenly so such a boldness in Him?

Something made them so confident they were not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In the midst of persecution they prevailed.
What would it be like to live without fear because of Christ? To live such a pure life as a Christian that if someone spoke badly of you, no one would believe it.......including you.

Words Have a Powerful Impact

Money
If you think nobody cares if you're alive, try missing a couple of car payments.
~Earl Wilson

Budget: a mathematical confirmation of your suspicions.
~A.A. Latimer

If you make money your god, it will plague you like the devil.
~Henry Fielding



Character

"Only dead fish swim with the stream."

"If wisdom's ways you wisely seek,
Five things observe with care;
Of whom you speak,
To whom you speak,
And how,
And when,
And where."

Mind is everything. Muscle - pieces of rubber. All that I am, I am because of my mind.
~Paavo Nurmi


“Toughness is in the soul and spirit, not in muscles.”
~Alex Karras



Attitude

“I had the blues because I had no shoes until upon the street, I met a man who had no feet.”
~Ancient Persian Saying

“To be upset over what you don't have is to waste what you do have.”
~Ken S. Keyes, Jr., Handbook to Higher Consciousness

“The only disability in life is a bad attitude.”
~Scott Hamilton

“If you aren't fired with enthusiasm, you will be fired with enthusiasm.”
~Vince Lombardi

Smiling Plastic

 "If Barbie is so popular, why do we have to buy her friends?"

I liked playing with dolls as a kid. Barbie was my favorite. I got teased in grade school because we had a kid in class named Ken. Ken Doll to be exact.
I wish I was kidding.
That didn't stop me from wanting a Ken doll to "go" with my Barbie. On the box he was labeled, "Accessory".
When I took child development classes there were many theories about this. Whether or not it is messing kids up it not. Quite frankly if we wanted to blame pieces of smiling plastic for kids being messed up I was simply thinking perhaps it's a much deeper issue than that.
I began to pray about what it is to be a good friend later on in my life. I started to realize that this was something only the Lord could touch my mind about. As I found a wonderful church and met wonderful people I read about Solomon and his prayer he made to the Lord. He wanted to the wisdom to walk in and out among the people. The Lord blessed him far above that because of the condition of his heart in that prayer.
Lord, help me to be a good friend and never to force people to be how I want them. Thank you for all those in my life and if I have found favor in your sight I would like to have the wisdom to be a good friend and sister.

Quotes About God

I really love Him. It's easy to beat myself up when I feel I don't do right. Staying positive while trying to be a good Christian takes a certain amount of strength. It helps to have positive people reminding you how much He really loves us...

Look up for your redemption draweth neigh.

~KJV Bible

"God understands our prayers even when we can't find the words to say them."

~Unknown

 

God's gifts put man's best dreams to shame.  ~Elizabeth Barrett Browning

"Weave in faith and God will find the thread." 
~Author Unknown
 

"Any fool can count the seeds in an apple.  Only God can count all the apples in one seed." 

~Robert H. Schuller

"People see God every day, they just don't recognize him."  

Look for Him everywhere.

~Pearl Bailey 

"Let God's promises shine on your problems."

~Corrie Ten Boom

"Your talent is God's gift to you.  What you do with it is your gift back to God."

 ~Leo Buscaglia

Never Give Up in Life

He is there through our toughest trials in life. Leaning upon Him with all out heart, soul and mind....he will make the impossible seem possible....and give us the grace and mercy to go on.

Love One Another

It is difficult to explain what chronic pain feels like. What has been the most trying for me is that I can't always do everyday things. I used to run six miles a day. I won't say those days are over but these days sure aren't those days.
The best thing I could have ever done with my life is to serve the Lord. He said, "This is my commandment, that ye love one another as I have loved you." Loving the people and being in the service of others gets my mind off myself. Days when I could have stayed in bed I choose to help or give of my time. It's easy to forget my own wants, complaints and pains when I do for others what i can.
I don't have to be in physical pain to know what it's like to have the pain of needing someone to care.
Lord, it is my desire to have a tender heart towards all people. Please create in me a clean heart and renew the right spirit within me while I wait on you.

peculiar

I'm a geek.
There.
I said it.
I'm not sure when it happened...having a mullet as a kid didn't help, I suppose. But I always felt....well, different from everyone. Kind of like I was looking through a window at life going on around me. Some one said that I was just one of those square pegs.
I love to read and study the bible. I love asking questions about scriptures and I have found some people don't like that very much. I decided to stop being around the ones that refuse to answer questions....
I thought at first some people just didn't want to tell me...like they wanted a corner market on understanding the Word of God or something. But later on I realized they just didn't know and didn't want to say it.
I am the type of person that will keep going until I get an answer that makes sense (hence the geeky-ness). I guess there is a spiritual hunger side to me that must be satisfied as well.
I read in the scriptures about the Lord having a peculiar people. And in another place he calls them a peculiar treasure. Jesus talked about being in the world but not of the world...the world hated him because he didn't belong to the world. Sounds like His people are supposed to be different. I suppose He was also talking about the heart of a person. I want my hearts desire to be turned towards Him, to be peculiar in His eyes....not just being different in my own way...but His way.

cracked

I'm sure at one time or another we have all felt like damages goods. I remember having a huge void in my life that nothing could fill. One friend of mine used to call it, "Broke, busted and disgusted".
Been there, but even talking about it didn't help.
Using quick fixes in my life didn't help either. Parties, music and most things that usually cheered me up just make me feel worse. I started to wonder if I was going crazy or something. You know, cracked. The cheese has slid off the cracker, elevator doesn't go to the top, couple cans short of a six pack.
That was about the time someone told me about Jesus. I thought, 'Your kidding, what would Jesus want with me? I'm a mess.' I'm not sure where I got the idea that I had to be put together to get serious about the Lord but that is what I thought. I heard about the scripture, a broken and a contrite spirit he will not despise. I also thought about how the full he will turn away empty but the empty he will fill with good things.

Cool.

I definitely felt empty. I suppose there is a chance for someone like me. If I can do it, anyone can....

Be Still

Being still and doing nothing are two very different things. I thought of the scripture 'be still and know that I am God'. Waiting on the Lord is still abiding in His will because in order to wait in someone we must serve them. I think if a waitress at a restaurant. Having a good spirit while serving the Lord and having full confidence and faith He will handle a situation that is out of our hands.
Looking for His in all situations.
I am thankful.
They that wait upon the Lord, they shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings as an eagle. They shall walk and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. Teach me Lord, to wait.

Provoking to Good Works

"Well I double-dog dare you!"

There are many ways to provoke someone. It always seems to be used in a negative way for some reason. I was having a teacher meeting and teachers complained to me that there was a particular child that went around 'provoking' others as well as them.
"Provoking in what way?" I asked.
One teacher rolled her eyes and explained, "You know, bugging kids when the read a book or tapping them all the time to get their attention. It makes everyone angry."
I thought of the scripture about provoking one another to good works. With the same attention and energy we give to provoking others negatively we can actually do it with love, understanding and compassion.
I suppose we can even use provoking as a form of teaching.
After some brainstorming the teachers came up with some great solutions to helping this child that clearly didn't know how to make friends. His actions were hurting his chances of making a friend, really.
"Looks like we will wind up provoking this child right back." I said.
The buzzing and chatter in the staff room went quiet.
"For the good." I explained.

Lord, help me to provoke others to good works. Help me to recognize what is in me that wouldn't want to bring out the best in others so that I may see myself each day. By your mercy and grace you can change my spirit to be one of a good servant. Being kindly affectionate one to another.

Standing in Awe

:0

PS 4:4 (KJV) Stand in awe, sin not. Commune in your own heart upon your bed and be still. There are so many things that I am amazed over in this crazy life. I know if I dwell too much on the negative it would happily swallow me up. The Lord has done so much for me. Leaning upon Him in all His ways means I have faith He will guide me though any situation if I yeild.
Yeild.
Not walking through life with a lead foot on my own ways but letting Him take the steering wheel.
Seeing the Lord in every situation seems to be the antidote for sleepless nights and worry.
I really love the Lord. Lord, if I have found favor, please create me a heart to see you in every troubling situation. Having a heart to see you until I can one day see your face (by your sweet mercy and grace).

Forgiving Our Brothers and Sisters

"Brothers are fun to do stuff with!"

I am so glad there is a process to making things right in the scriptures. An apostle once asked Jesus how many times should he forgive his brother. That question wouldn't have been asked if there weren't  problems. It is so easy to get swallowed up with resentment for things that have been done to us in our past. Matthew 18 talks about an order no how to make things right with our brother or sister.
There are many ways to offend someone. Often time I have to look at what it was that someone touched within me that made me angry. Anger is something for me that clogs up spiritual pathways to the Lord. I would like to always be ready and quick to forgive. Then there will be nothing in me the Lord will see in my own heart that he can't forgive me for.
Create me a clean heart, oh God, and renew the right spirit within me...

Got Guilt?

Having a guilty conscience seemed to be built in my DNA. Even as a kid there were things I simply 'couldn't' do.  My friends did certain things they knew they would get  in trouble for but I couldn't go along with the crowd...even if no one found out.
 It was my conscience.
When I decided to give my life to the Lord I felt relieved. He can forgive me for all my sins, too. That was huge for me.
I had read in the scriptures, "cleanse me from my secret faults". Wow.
There are things I do wrong I don't even know I have done wrong....
Like hurting someones feelings and they never said a word, or being careless or wreckless with what the Lord has given me.
Job prayed and sacrificed for his own family 'just in case' they had done any wrong doing.
Thank you Lord for your mercy and grace.

Nice Try Mr. Death...

SIGN READS: I'm not the Grim Reaper.
I am a Healing Monk and only $999.95

The obvious isn't always so obvious to some. I found in scriptures where their is a duality. Some things that sound or look the same but are clearly not. In the old testament there was two men named Seth (a good one and a bad one). There was also two Enoch's (a good and bad). To be able to discern between who is whom takes an understanding of right and wrong. I would like to have that type of discernment. Although I cannot see the heart of others I have the scriptures to guide me. When something doesn't line up with the Word things get a bit clearer. Confusion is made plain.

Thank you Lord for the Word and please help me to always have an appetite to read. One day I would like to say, "Oh Death, where is your sting...oh grave where is your victory?

He'll Do It Again

"These 'friends' aren't working for me."

I suppose the type of vibe you give off is the types of people that surround your life sometimes.
When I fell ill with some conditions I was around a lot of individuals that had the same diagnosis I had. Fine and dandy but negativity was one of our outstanding features...
Armed the that defeatist attitude, I felt like I was simply existing.
A home made cupcake that no one wanted to eat.
It didn't help that my friends around me felt the same way. The only time my friends and I disagreed was when I tried to be positive.

Me: "Hey guys, at some point we have to pull ourselves up by our boot straps."
The friends: "First you have to have boots, though."
Me: "Awe, come on. Let's stop thinking about negative stuff."
The friends: "I not negative. I'm an optimist masquerading as a realist."
Me:"Is there anything happy you can think of?"
The friends: "Like what? Seriously. Why don't you go first."
Me: "How about we start out by saying, 'Good morning' or something?"
The friends: "Oh. Sure. Let's start out the day lying to each other. Great."

My friends weren't working for me. I couldn't change them but I could change myself and be around like minded people. It reminds me kind of like our own salvation. It's an individual walk and I was ready to start walking strong. Making a change in my thinking felt a bit awkward at first, but I knew all things were possible through God. Hope unseen is believing He can do something when I couldn't.
Thank you, Lord....for doing that thing you do again.

A Sweet Smelling Savor

Protect me from knowing what I don't need to know. Protect me from even knowing that there are things to know that I don't know. Protect me from knowing that I decided not to know about the things that I decided not to know about. Amen......
Lord, lord, lord. Protect me from the consequences of the above prayer.
 ~Douglas Adams, Mostly Harmless

I was at work one day and feeling pretty good. Having practically no pain is such a blessing. I was in the staff room when I said, "Thank you Jesus, I really appreciate you." A co worker was standing there and I nearly jumped out of my skin when she spoke. "Who are you talking to?" She asked.
"Jesus," I smiled- panting somewhat, "I was just thanking Him for this wonderful day."
"You thank Him?"
"Sure."
"For a wonderful day?"
"Of course."
"Oh....I only call on Him when I am in trouble."
At first I laughed because I thought she was joking. She wasn't.
I don't know or pretend to understand everyone's relationship with the Lord. I am by no means perfect. In my own understanding and love for Jesus I wouldn't want Him to be a fair weather friend to me. I  look at the flowers and they appear to praise Him each morning. I consider it a privalege to praise Him-in all the seasons of my life. I want my prayers to be edifying and give off a sweet smelling savor to Him.
Lord, in my heart, I truly wish to be thankful to you in all situations and keep a good spririt. Even when the hour seems darkest you will still let me see the stars....

Ego....

E= Edging

G= God

O= Out

Putting myself, my fears, even excusing bad behavior in me is putting myself first above Him. In all my ways I wish to please the Lord. I have strong confidence that even if I falter, my ability to go back and make things right still pleases Him.
Lord, create in me a clean heart and renew the right spirit within me.
I don't ever what my own ego to get tin the way of serving You....

Patience.

"Patience is something you admire in the driver behind you and scorn in the one ahead."

~Mac McCleary

I often think about the patience of Job. Letting patience have her perfect work.
Long suffering.
Exactly how long is long suffering, anyway?
Not so long compared to eternity.....
Keeping a sense of proportion and scale makes sense when my mind is working on me.
Barbra:1
Devil:0

A Peculiar Treasure

The Lord love variety. I find it interesting that what we put a great price on He gives supplies us freely. Did you ever wonder if he was trying to tell us something?
This kind of beauty only comes with immense heat and pressure. It's not easily found either. We have to dig deep in the earth, and then.....a polishing and cutting process begins.
He call His people a peculiar treasure.
I think in a life striving to be a Christian we become His jewels.
I have to say this has always helped me when I feel the pressures of every day life.
The more he allow me to take, the more brilliantly I can shine for Him....