Fantastic Friday #893 - Strong

Strong

23 Love the Lord, all his faithful people!
The Lord preserves those who are true to him,
but the proud he pays back in full.
24 Be strong and take heart,
all you who hope in the Lord. Psalm 31:23-24

I have seen people who think that they are not strong enough, that their weaknesses with things overpower their ability to be strong. Finding our strength can sometimes be challenging because of the world we live in. We have expectations that the world sets that we can never reach, and why would we try to reach the world's expectations? Maybe that is where the problem lies. We know that God has expectations of us, and those are very achievable, but it does require us to be all-in with what God wants for our life. If we choose to deviate from that path that God wants, then it does become harder, but with God on our side, we can be strong and achieve anything. Take heart as the scripture notes, be strong and hope in the Lord because He is our stronghold and can do anything for us as long as we are faithful.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #892 - Wait

Wait

13 I remain confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the Lord
in the land of the living.
14 Wait for the Lord;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the Lord. Psalm 27:13-14

The human nature for patience has always been very thin, if it wasn't then we wouldn't have so many reminders about waiting on the Lord. Waiting is difficult because as we wait, our head swims with the different possibilities of whatever our situation is, and we tend to get impatient and rely less on the Lord. If we wait, we know the Lord is faithful and we tend to forget that part of waiting. We get in such a hurry to want what we think we need, that our patience runs thin. I know that I need to thicken up my patience and wait on the Lord to answer my calls for guidance and help. I don't need to let the enemy sneak in and make me think that God is not going to be there for me. So take a moment and wait this week. Listen to what the Lord says, and take heart and be strong. In the waiting comes the reward.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #891 - Story

Story




1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his love endures forever.

2 Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story—
those he redeemed from the hand of the foe,

3 those he gathered from the lands,
from east and west, from north and south. Psalm 107:1-3

Everyone has a story, and stories differ from family history, individuals who impacted you and your story to where you are today. Over history before writing and paper, stories were passed down from generation to generation, then people started writing them down. With the invention of the technologies of today we have mixed in historical videos of stories, and recorded audio stories. Sometimes the best stories are the ones told around a table with friends and family sharing food. Everyone is typically attentive, not on a device and paying attention to the person telling the story. So, what is your current story with Christ in your life, or if you don't have Christ in your life, where is your story and how can it be impacted by Christ? Those of us who have Christ in our life tend not to share a great deal about our relationship and how God has helped us grow, but your story can be one of the most powerful things to bring others to the awareness of what Christ has done in your life and how He has changed you. Take a moment to reflect on your story this week and how it can possibly impact those around you, and also by reflecting that may bring you that much closer to God and His teachings. Have a great weekend.


Matt


--

Matthew J. Grief
"There are no statues of pessimists."


mattgrief.blogspot.com

Fantastic Friday #890 - Place

Place

1 How lovely is your dwelling place,
Lord Almighty!
2 My soul yearns, even faints,
for the courts of the Lord;
my heart and my flesh cry out
for the living God.
3 Even the sparrow has found a home,
and the swallow a nest for herself,
where she may have her young—
a place near your altar,
Lord Almighty, my King and my God. Psalm 84:1-3

Do you find yourself wondering about your place in life? This week I was sitting on my back porch watching a mother and father bluebird feeding their young in our birdhouse. They would come back regularly with a worm or other insect in their mouth, and it reminded me that God cares enough about His creation of birds to have some way to have a new life fed. Stepping back and thinking if God cares enough to provide food and a place for a bird, think about how much more He cares about us and what He has provided us. Everyone has a place and it is important to recognize that God has given us this place. It is also important to remember to thank God for our place and what He has provided and continue to strengthen that relationship with our Father in Heaven.

Have a great day.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #889 - Work

Work


10 God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. 11 We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, so that what you hope for may be fully realized. 12 We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised. Hebrews 6:10-12


What do you think of as work? Your job away from home, your job at home, your job at school, or your job of raising a family. All of these are work, but the true work that we probably should take a closer look at is the work of the Lord. What work does He want us to do? He wants us to bring more individuals who are lost to Him, but how? Everyone has their own personal gifts, some of evangelism, some of teaching and others of encouragement. One thing is true and all of these gifts, they all lead a path to the Lord. For the simplest of things of telling or showing about God and His plan for us, we are working. We are working not for our own salvation, but the salvation of others. When we see that we don't have to work for ourselves, but for other's rewards, it makes it seem a little less like work. Take a moment and think how you can do the Lord's work through simple acts that could lead to a huge reward, not for you, but for those you work for daily.

Have a great weekend.


Matt

Fantastic Friday #888 - Forgive

Forgive

21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”

22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.

35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.” Matthew 18: 21-22;35

Do you feel that forgiveness is hard? It might be someone who you regularly have issues with, and they continue to make your life quite difficult. They might be that person that is constantly making your life miserable by doing things that impact your success or your plans. When Jesus was asked how many times to forgive, He was pretty clear how many times we should forgive someone, so how do we balance what Jesus says vs. our personal feelings toward a difficult individual. I think it all boils down to our true forgiveness of that person, and what that can do for our soul. When you truly forgive someone, there is a burden that is lifted and you can see that person as God sees them. The more you pray and forgive that person from your heart, the more the weight that person puts on you is lifted. We need to remember that God has the power to bring relief to you for your challenges, as long as you prayerfully forgive.


Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #887 - Sliver

Sliver


14 He guided them with the cloud by day
and with light from the fire all night.
15 He split the rocks in the wilderness
and gave them water as abundant as the seas;
16 he brought streams out of a rocky crag
and made water flow down like rivers. Psalm 78:14-16



One morning this week on my drive, the clouds were forming an interesting view of the sun coming up. There was this little sliver in the clouds that the sun was peeking through making an amazing light show for morning sunrise. It reminded me of how God guided the Israelites in their escape from Egypt with His own light show, but what it also reminded me of was God's neverending giving. We can daily look at our work and tasks and think that we have it all under control, then something spins on its head and the next thing you know we are underwater, or it feels like it. Do we stop down when this happens and pray for God to guide us or assist us with our day, or do we think that we can regain control of our day on our own. I guarantee the more we try to do things on our own, the more we are going to be buried. The simple task of turning to God will allow Him to create that sliver that can give us an abundance of courage, passion and guidance to do our jobs and life well. For in reality, is it not doing our life well what we all want? Just like God split the rocks and provided abundance, He can do the same for you through the smallest sliver. All we have to do is ask and focus on the slivers of presence of our Lord and Savior.


Have a great weekend.


Matt