Fantastic Friday #765 - Glory

Glory

13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:

14 “Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” Luke 2: 13-14

How often do you stop and give glory to God for anything? When you do, it probably sounds nothing like the heavenly host, but I am sure that God is honored each time you do. In this year of challenge, change, frustration and suffering, we might need to take that step of thanks to give God the glory that He deserves. He has given us life, He has given us family and friends, a roof over our heads, freedom of choice and most of all a Savior to give us hope and a future in Heaven if we choose to follow Him. So, during this day of remembrance of Christ's birth, let's give Glory to Him who deserves it and in your best voice try to match the glory of the heavenly host.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #764 - Kindness

Kindness

6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God. Ephesians 2:6-8

This week someone I know stated that they were just too nice and they seem to get hurt when they are nice. This got me thinking that being nice is not the same as kind. There is nothing wrong with being nice or doing something nice, but this reminds me of something that is fleeting and you can be nice and then turn right back around and be mean. It is very possible that kindness is what leads you to do something nice, but at the same time I only see niceness as an action in a brief moment. I look at kindness as something that is done from the heart and something that makes a significant impact. Just as God expressed in His kindness, we can express in our kindness from our heart. Remember that God first showed us kindness, so we can definitely return the favor and show kindness to others. Focus the next time you do something nice, and ask yourself if it is coming from a heart of kindness or a heart of necessity. Look to see how your kindness can improve your heart condition and those around you.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #763 - Resist

Resist

7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. James 4:7-8a

What have you had to resist this week? Maybe it was a temptation to eat one more piece of cake, have one more drink, or maybe it was to take a shortcut with something. While shortcuts can be advantageous for some things, when you leave steps out, it can have a great impact on the end result. God wants us to take steps to improve ourselves, but the enemy wants us to take the easy way out and follow him. The enemy wants to take us down a path of self-destruction as well, and this is what we have to be diligent about daily. This is a very simple scripture that is not always so simple, but if you look carefully, you can notice something that will help with resistance. That is where we are in our relationship with God. We need to stop and focus sometimes on how close we are to God. We should focus on Him and His previous impact on our lives, so we can resist when the enemy tries to pull us away. Submit, resist and come near God and I guarantee you will see a difference in your life.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #762 - Good

Good

15 Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name. 16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased. Hebrews 13:15-16

What have you done that is good for someone besides yourself this week? It is probably not a question you ask yourself very much because things like that are not always on your mind. What did you sacrifice this week? Another question that could be very difficult to answer, but one we should probably focus on more daily. A sacrifice is sometimes viewed as hard because it would mean you would have to give up something or time to accomplish something. Most have time that you think is very valuable and you could be doing something for yourself. Whoop, there it is, giving up what you want for something or someone else. Isn't that what God wants, us to share with others and by sacrificing our money, time, energy it is pleasing to God. So, think about something good you can do this week, but something good that causes you to sacrifice something.

Have a great weekend.

Matt