Time
2 Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. 3 I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. 4 My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. 5 Therefore
judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes.
He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the
motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from
God. 1 Corinthians 4:2-5
Does time haunt you? Do you find yourself occasionally short on
time? Why do we put ourselves through all the hoops to get things done
that we think need to be done? I think it is because sometimes people
think they have to keep up with everyone else, and meet a certain
standard. If we don't meet that standard then we feel like we are being
overly judged by others or we judge ourselves. A lot of times we are
our own worst critic. If you look at this scripture, why should we
worry about being judged by others when there is only one Judge. If we
are going through life in the time God has given us, it is His time and
not ours we should be focusing on daily. In His time we will be judged,
and our heart will be an open book. Don't let the worries about
getting as much as you can done in a certain amount of time drag you
down, but focus on what you can do in the time God has given to you.
Have a great weekend.
Friday, May 25, 2012
Friday, May 18, 2012
Fantastic Friday #315- Dwell
Dwell
16 This is what the Lord says—
he who made a way through the sea,
a path through the mighty waters,
17 who drew out the chariots and horses,
the army and reinforcements together,
and they lay there, never to rise again,
extinguished, snuffed out like a wick:
18 “Forget the former things;
do not dwell on the past.
19 See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
and streams in the wasteland.
20 The wild animals honor me,
the jackals and the owls,
because I provide water in the wilderness
and streams in the wasteland,
to give drink to my people, my chosen,
21 the people I formed for myself
that they may proclaim my praise. Isaiah 43:16-21
Are you one of those people that tells other people not to dwell on the past but to look at the future? Or, are you one of those that dwells on the past and keeps looking back at mistake after mistake? For those of you who tell people not to dwell, is there something in you that dwells just a little bit on the past because you just can't let go? This scripture is a beautiful description of God looking forward and reminding His people not to dwell on the past. He is doing a New Thing which is the reason why it is such a great scripture. Now, is He doing a New Thing in you or are you allowing Him to be able to do a New Thing in you. If you are dwelling on the past, then most likely you are suppressing what God wants for you and spending your time dwelling too much. Focus on God's New plan for you, which really isn't new because He has already had a plan for you and is now just implementing this New Thing in you. God is faithful in what He has created, and will continue to be faithful to you. Don't dwell.
Have a great weekend.
16 This is what the Lord says—
he who made a way through the sea,
a path through the mighty waters,
17 who drew out the chariots and horses,
the army and reinforcements together,
and they lay there, never to rise again,
extinguished, snuffed out like a wick:
18 “Forget the former things;
do not dwell on the past.
19 See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
and streams in the wasteland.
20 The wild animals honor me,
the jackals and the owls,
because I provide water in the wilderness
and streams in the wasteland,
to give drink to my people, my chosen,
21 the people I formed for myself
that they may proclaim my praise. Isaiah 43:16-21
Are you one of those people that tells other people not to dwell on the past but to look at the future? Or, are you one of those that dwells on the past and keeps looking back at mistake after mistake? For those of you who tell people not to dwell, is there something in you that dwells just a little bit on the past because you just can't let go? This scripture is a beautiful description of God looking forward and reminding His people not to dwell on the past. He is doing a New Thing which is the reason why it is such a great scripture. Now, is He doing a New Thing in you or are you allowing Him to be able to do a New Thing in you. If you are dwelling on the past, then most likely you are suppressing what God wants for you and spending your time dwelling too much. Focus on God's New plan for you, which really isn't new because He has already had a plan for you and is now just implementing this New Thing in you. God is faithful in what He has created, and will continue to be faithful to you. Don't dwell.
Have a great weekend.
Friday, May 11, 2012
Fantastic Friday #314- Plans
Plans
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 33:7-11
Do you start out your week with a plan? I typically have my week mapped out pretty clearly on what has to happen and what I have to get done. Then Monday hits, and the plan gets blown to pieces, mainly because life happens. Now, I am not saying we shouldn't plan, but maybe we should look at our life through a different lens. When our plans get thwarted for some unknown reason, we should be less likely to question why if we pay attention to God's Word. Look at who God is and how He has planned things with His creation of the heavens and the earth. There were clearly many well-thought-out plans, including us being here on this earth. God has a plan for each and every one of us, and we just need to remember that it is His plan and not ours. Earlier in this Psalm verses 4 and 5 state this:
4 For the word of the Lord is right and true;
he is faithful in all he does.
5 The Lord loves righteousness and justice;
the earth is full of his unfailing love.
It is very clear that God is Faithful and the Psalm bookends this statement by making sure it is clear to us that His plans stand firm forever. Just remember that when you are planning out your day, week or month and things don't exactly work out how you thought they should, that God planned them already.
Have a great weekend.
Matt
6 By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
their starry host by the breath of his mouth.
7 He gathers the waters of the sea into jar;
he puts the deep into storehouses.
8 Let all the earth fear the Lord;
let all the people of the world revere him.
9 For he spoke, and it came to be;
he commanded, and it stood firm.
10 The Lord foils the plans of the nations; their starry host by the breath of his mouth.
7 He gathers the waters of the sea into jar;
he puts the deep into storehouses.
8 Let all the earth fear the Lord;
let all the people of the world revere him.
9 For he spoke, and it came to be;
he commanded, and it stood firm.
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 33:7-11
Do you start out your week with a plan? I typically have my week mapped out pretty clearly on what has to happen and what I have to get done. Then Monday hits, and the plan gets blown to pieces, mainly because life happens. Now, I am not saying we shouldn't plan, but maybe we should look at our life through a different lens. When our plans get thwarted for some unknown reason, we should be less likely to question why if we pay attention to God's Word. Look at who God is and how He has planned things with His creation of the heavens and the earth. There were clearly many well-thought-out plans, including us being here on this earth. God has a plan for each and every one of us, and we just need to remember that it is His plan and not ours. Earlier in this Psalm verses 4 and 5 state this:
4 For the word of the Lord is right and true;
he is faithful in all he does.
5 The Lord loves righteousness and justice;
the earth is full of his unfailing love.
It is very clear that God is Faithful and the Psalm bookends this statement by making sure it is clear to us that His plans stand firm forever. Just remember that when you are planning out your day, week or month and things don't exactly work out how you thought they should, that God planned them already.
Have a great weekend.
Matt
Friday, May 4, 2012
Fantastic Friday #313 - Argument
Argument
3 For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:3-5
I participated in two discussions this week where the individuals on the other side of the discussion wanted to argue. How could you tell do you ask? Well both groups of people had a look on their face, you know the look. They both had a body posture that was confrontational. And they both had steam coming out of their ears, well maybe that last part wasn't right, but they looked like they could have had steam coming out of their ears. I took the stance of listening and diffusing the individuals hope of arguing by remembering who I am and who was with me. I didn't let the world take hold of me, which was very important in both of these situations. How often do we let the world take hold of us, instead of being obedient to Christ and diffusing these situations. Take a stand of not waging war with people, but by diffusing arguments through the love of Christ.
Have a great weekend.
3 For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:3-5
I participated in two discussions this week where the individuals on the other side of the discussion wanted to argue. How could you tell do you ask? Well both groups of people had a look on their face, you know the look. They both had a body posture that was confrontational. And they both had steam coming out of their ears, well maybe that last part wasn't right, but they looked like they could have had steam coming out of their ears. I took the stance of listening and diffusing the individuals hope of arguing by remembering who I am and who was with me. I didn't let the world take hold of me, which was very important in both of these situations. How often do we let the world take hold of us, instead of being obedient to Christ and diffusing these situations. Take a stand of not waging war with people, but by diffusing arguments through the love of Christ.
Have a great weekend.
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