November 11, 2018

Our attitude affects our lives, more than we may know. Could it be that the issues we deal with in life are more about our attitudes, rather than our struggles, circumstances, or relationships? In the book of Numbers, God's grace and faithfulness contrasts sharply with the Israelites' thanklessness and grumbling complaining. Read chapters 11 through 14. What is the main trait exhibited by the Israelites? A thankless attitude. God had saved them from a life of slavery in Egypt, and had taken them to the very edge of the "Land of Milk and Honey", providing for their every need along the 300-mile journey. And what did the people do? They complained about their lot in life. Seriously?! Because they were unsatisfied with the food the Lord had been providing, and the leader that He had chosen for them, they said that they would have been better off had they stayed in Egypt...as slaves. As a result, an entire generation of Israelites would pass away, everyone aged 20 years and older, before the Lord would allow His people to enter in to the Promised Land! Aside from Caleb and Joshua, of the approximately 2 million Israelites that the Lord had freed from bondage, only the children among them were allowed to inherit the land that had been promised to them. A complaining attitude is an attitude of choice that, if left unchecked, will hinder a person's capacity to experience joy/happiness, genuine thankfulness & contentment, and the ability to grow towards godliness. Are you a complainer? Are you reaping the consequences of complaining in your relationships and in your relationship with God? Are you willing to repent?

November 04, 2018

If you were to write down the first 5 things that popped into your head when thinking about God, what would they be? Perhaps “righteous”, “holy”, “faithful”, “loving”, or even “judgmental” might be included in your particular list. What about “happy”? Would you think of God as being filled with joy? Very few people think of God as supremely happy in the fellowship of the Trinity and in the work of creation and redemption. But, God is eternally happy. Consider that in the Gospels, you will find passages such as these: Matthew 25:23 —“…Enter into the joy of your master.”, John 15:11 —“These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”, and John 17:13 —“But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves.” These examples serve to show us that God is happy and full of joy and delight. We on the other hand struggle with happiness and joy. Yet, God commands us to have joy! Only God can satisfy the soul forever. Only God can free us to make much of him while having ever-increasing joy for endless ages. Do you have joy? Are you happy? Will you let the Spirit of God fill you with God’s perfect joy?

October 28, 2018

And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved. — Acts 2:42-47 (ESV)

Who were “they”? The early church. This was right after Peter’s sermon at Pentecost. They began to realize that their possessions were gifts from God, and were willing to use their resources for the common good. Was this a utopian vision of things? No this was a real-life expression of radical love and care for other believers! In other words, they were good stewards with what God had entrusted to them. We see remarkable faithfulness and selflessness because of Pentecost and Peter’s sermon.