Fantastic Friday #938 - Mature

Mature

27 To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

28 He is the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ. Colossians 1:27-28


How mature are you? Maturity is one of those things that one may have many levels of in their life. I may be a mature adult at work, but can be very immature at home. I can have a maturity level that helps me when I work with people less mature than I am and can help mentor them to a level that will help them work better with others. There may be people who are adults that may have the emotional maturity of a 9 year old, and I wonder how they can really be helped. When we look for maturity in Christ, the only way we can get to that point is to put Him at the forefront of our life. I honestly at times can be spiritually mature in Christ, but I also have those times that I am emotionally taxed with questions and concerns that impact my maturity. There are also times where my maturity drops because I don't have the Lord in the place He needs to be with me. We all can come up with excuses about our maturity but do we stop and ask God for the wisdom to become more mature? Let God provide the guidance we need to achieve a maturity level that can help us and others grow.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #937 - Mocker

Mocker

Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. Psalm 1:1-2

What purpose does mocking serve? When someone mocks another there is some deep-seeded contempt in that person's heart that causes them to ridicule someone else. I am all for having good friends gently razz each other, but when does it become mocking? I believe it all has to do with the heart of the person and the intent. The world is full of people in high positions and influence who mock people relentlessly. All that action does is highlight a person's negative heart but it also shows people that it is ok to do something like this. I believe the more we see people unabashedly mocking or treating someone with significant ridicule, it begins to deteriorate our society. The enemy likes to see people with contempt in their heart because that contempt turns people's heart away from the Lord. Take a moment and set aside the mocking nature of our personality and see how loving those around us makes people feel. Maybe meditate on this scripture, it is very clear that God does not delight in mockers.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #936 - Bread

Bread

47 Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life. 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. John 6:47-49

Have you ever taken a close look at bread? If you start from the beginning including all the ingredients to make bread, there are not so many, but the process of making bread can be very problematic if you do something wrong with the simple directions. I made some bread(quickly) in the breadmaker this week and some may not know, but you have to get your milk to a lukewarm temperature. The reason for this part of the process is so you don't kill the yeast, which of course is a living organism that causes the bread to rise before it is cooked. When making bread by hand, it can be very strenuous when kneading the ingredients together to form a nice rounded piece of dough to rise. In my case, by quickly mixing my loaf ingredients together before it was time, the final loaf ended up being a dense small loaf and didn't last past a day because my hurried actions killed all the yeast. If we think of God being the perfect ingredient in our life, and if we would just let Him be in control of the ingredients in our life, we would be much happier and rise to each and every occasion. When we don't let God help us, or go out on our own way of mixing ingredients, we can become hardhearted and leave the blessings God provides behind. Take a moment to let the bread of life work in you and help find the one who can solve your hunger.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #935 - Trials

Trials

12 Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.

13 When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; James 1:12-13

What trials have you experienced?  Can you look back on those trials and say that you learned from them or do you not spend any time thinking about past trials?  I believe that we need to think about trials we have faced and see how the Lord has gotten us through them.  When we forget or push away the memories, it is much easier for us to think that we got ourselves through it and God didn't have anything to do with it.  We need to remember what gets us through tough periods is a strong faith in our Lord and know that He allows these trials to make us stronger and reliant on Him.  It is ok to ask God why, but it is not ok to blame Him for the trial we are experiencing.  He does not tempt us, but allows the enemy to put us through temptation and trial.  The more we focus on what God has done for us, the easier it will be to fight the negativity of the enemy.

Have a great weekend.

Matt