Fantastic Friday #1067 - Compare

Compare

5 You, Lord, are forgiving and good,
abounding in love to all who call to you.
6 Hear my prayer, Lord;
listen to my cry for mercy.
7 When I am in distress, I call to you,
because you answer me.

8 Among the gods there is none like you, Lord;
no deeds can compare with yours. Psalm 86:5-8

While some people can have success in this world, others may suffer and have difficulty, and others may be just getting through. How come we try to compare our issues we have in our own life with other people's lives? Why do we compare so much, is it because we think we want something that those other people have, whether it be physically or materially? What if we tried to compare ourselves to others who follow the Lord and live a life of purpose. While comparisons can be a dangerous road, looking at an example of how to live can be beneficial if it is truly someone living for our God. Remember when you get down in your life, you can always call on your Father in Heaven to provide you what you need. I love this scripture explaining that He is forgiving, good and abounding in love. How many of us want this in our life and lose faith when we try to compare with others in why we don't have it. Funny thing about comparison, you can't compare our God with anyone or anything, and you can't compare his offer of salvation with anything else, because there is nothing else greater. Be careful when you travel down the path of comparison, but call on God when the enemy tries to get you to compare to others. God will intervene and answer you because He loves you.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #1066 - Unchanging

Unchanging

12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:12-14

When we go through life, we come across many changes that we have to navigate and depending on that change, there could be a multitude of negative emotions. There could be hate, fear, frustration and a general feeling of inadequacy when those times present themselves. God doesn't want us to have these feelings, He wants us to rely on Him for getting us through those times. While we have to be careful about taking scripture out of context, there is one thing that is clear, we need to look forward to our Father in Heaven who is unchanging. He is always there in our times of need and our goals are not here on earth with our work or life, but they are a part of our biggest goal is to pursue a life that is honoring God in our preparation for Heaven. If our path is only filled with doubt, fear and frustration, it is easy to lose sight of what our Father has done for us. Keep looking for our unchanging Father to help make changes in you. Live your life full of love, happiness and adequacy. Our Father loves us, and that love can drive out any demons or fear we may have. Press forward, don't look back.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #1065 - Accept

Accept

7 Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. 8 For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the Jews on behalf of God’s truth, so that the promises made to the patriarchs might be confirmed 9 and, moreover, that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written:

“Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles;
I will sing the praises of your name.” Romans 15:7-9

If you are like me, sometimes you have a problem with accepting others. Maybe it is something in the way they carry themselves, how they act towards others, the lifestyle they are leading or how they act towards you. The interesting thing about God's Word is that He doesn't say Accept one another, except the ones that don't match up..., He says Accept one another...just as Christ accepted you. We all have different personalities, the way we look, act and dress, and we certainly all have our faults. God doesn't say I don't accept you because I don't like the way you dress or act, He accepts all who turn to Him. We should seriously reflect on this passage that outlines who we should accept and why. This is not always easy, I am the first to admit I still struggle with this daily. If I truly want to get close to what God has for my life, I should probably be following His commands. I should begin to look for ways to accept others and look at His example of how He accepts everyone who comes to Him.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #1064 - Stand Firm

Stand Firm

10 The Lord foils the plans of the nations;
he thwarts the purposes of the peoples.
11 But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever,
the purposes of his heart through all generations. Psalm 33:10-11

Do you find that it is hard to stand firm in your beliefs and positions in life? There was recently a court case that an individual stood firm in their decision based on their personal beliefs, and it had a significant impact on the court case. Even with pressure from 11 other individuals, this person would not change their viewpoint based on what they had heard and how they placed their beliefs. How many of us stand firm in our belief of God's plan for our lives, or His teachings and purpose through His plan? I know that the enemy can fight against our beliefs and make us think we don't need to lean in to our beliefs and think that God's plan is not all it is cracked up to be. However, this scripture is very clear that His plan stands firm, forever. It doesn't say, His plan is a wavering plan and changes with the wind, and it certainly doesn't say His plan changes based on our decisions. His plan is firm, so we should stand firm in our beliefs and know that God's plan for us is unchanging and for the good of all. Take a stand in your life knowing that God is for us and not against us. Stand Firm.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #1063 - Peace

Peace

17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19 Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”says the Lord. 20 On the contrary:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”

21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. Romans 12:17-21

The nastiness that pervades our society is something that we are more aware of because of how we obtain our information and how we communicate. People are braver behind a computer screen or phone than they are face-to-face. Maybe that is because when you look at someone in the face, you see the God-created individual who is a person created in the image of God. I am not saying that evil and nastiness has not always been around, I am just saying it is easier to hide behind a screen when you don't see the end result of your nasty behavior. God was pretty specific in His Word about being at peace with everyone. Not just your friend or family member, but with everyone. It is not up to us to punish or chastise others for their behavior, it is up to us to love everyone and be at peace. Our world can be a dark place with the world telling us it is ok to be mean and nasty, but in the end that will lead to evil, which is just what the enemy wants. Let us focus on overcoming that evil with good and being kind and at peace. Before you say something mean and nasty, think about what kind of impact that will have on the person on the other end of that screen, then picture their face that was created in the image of God.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #1062 - Sustain

Sustain

4 Even to your old age and gray hairs
I am he, I am he who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you;
I will sustain you and I will rescue you.

5 “With whom will you compare me or count me equal?
To whom will you liken me that we may be compared? Isaiah 46:4-5

Do you find it hard sometimes to sustain a positive self attitude, or sustain a path of righteousness? A lot of times this is due to us relying only on our own willpower and not relying on our Lord and Savior. Society tells us that we don't need anyone for anything, that we can do it all on our own. This is where we fail in many of our efforts to sustain good momentum in our life. God describes in this scripture how He will carry and sustain us, and will also rescue us. How easy would it be for us if we only remembered to allow God to sustain us. Let Him who laid down His son's life for us and rescued us from sin, carry us forward into a positive self attitude and path of righteousness. Be sustained through the power of God who already promised this.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #1061 - Faith

Faith


6 Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. 7 For we live by faith, not by sight. 8 We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 2 Corinthians 5:6-8


Why is it so hard to live by faith? We have challenges in our life almost every single day, and sometimes there are multiple challenges that can make us anxious and worry. God wants us to work through these challenges with a faith in Him, and that He will provide the path to getting through these challenges, but we are sinful people and think that we need to do it all ourselves. I can't tell you how many times I have told myself, I can do this, I can make it through this, but it always ends in heartache and worry. If I would take that first step to rely on Jesus and faith in Him, the heartache and worry may still be there in some form, but I know that He is getting me through it. I know that when I rely on Him, there is a calmness that overtakes me and lifts me up in times of struggle. When the enemy wants me to take the path to my past, God is right there to remind me of who I am in Christ. We don't want to live a life that is absent from God and certainly don't want an eternity without God. So, whatever you are struggling with in your life, however big or small, lean in and rely on God and His righteousness, have Faith.


Have a great weekend.


Matt