Fantastic Friday #752 - Thoughts

Thoughts

6 Seek the Lord while he may be found;
call on him while he is near.
7 Let the wicked forsake their ways
and the unrighteous their thoughts.
Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them,
and to our God, for he will freely pardon.

8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.
9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
10 As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. Isaiah 55: 6-11



I hope that you have been thinking this week. I also hope your thoughts have been positive and uplifting. With so much evil in the world and anger, it is very easy to slip into thoughts of that same hate. This week I watched a video where police officers were being treated very badly verbally and being accosted for no reason while they were just doing their jobs. This mistreatment has made me angry the last couple of days as I try to rationalize why I am feeling so angry. Then I started to realize that God sees all these actions, including these people's thoughts and my own thoughts toward these actions. Why didn't I call on the Lord when I was feeling that anger in my heart, maybe it is because the actions were so evil and I allowed my anger to be kindled. Once I remembered my thoughts can be heard by God, it changed how I began to feel. I know that God knows the thoughts of all people and He probably is sad when people mistreat each other. We just need to remember that God will achieve His purpose and we should try and make our thoughts clean and full of kindness. Keep anger and hate for the enemy, and live a life of passion chasing after good thoughts.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #751 - Messenger

Messenger

24 “This is what the Lord says—
your Redeemer, who formed you in the womb:

I am the Lord,
the Maker of all things,
who stretches out the heavens,
who spreads out the earth by myself,
25 who foils the signs of false prophets
and makes fools of diviners,
who overthrows the learning of the wise
and turns it into nonsense,
26 who carries out the words of his servants
and fulfills the predictions of his messengers, Isaiah 44:24-26a


What do you listen to when messengers share information? Do you take what is said for gospel, do you dissect it piece by piece, do you ignore it, or do you just listen to part of what is shared. Today, messages come to us in many forms across many avenues. Sometimes there are just brief statements with not a full explanation that have character limits. Other forms include full articles written in an opinion format, or a visual story of 2-3 minutes with some information but holes and gaps. We also have pictures that send a message, but maybe not the complete message and we also have the technological manipulated images that don't give the full picture. I can't think of any better messenger than our Father in Heaven. Our God of the Bible gave the full story through prophets and His son Jesus Christ. When we hear messages today, the best thing for us to do is to ask God how He wishes us to hear those messages. Are the messages true, a little research can help you decide along with the Holy Spirit who prompts us when things don't seem quite right. We won't always be able to decipher the messages we receive, but if we open our hearts to God and what He wants us to hear, the noise will be silenced and we can trust that God has what is best for us. Trust in the messengers that God sends, and have reasonable expectations that not every messenger is sharing the truth. Choose what is known vs. the unknown. Choose God.



Have a great weekend.

Fantastic Friday #750 - Freedom

Freedom

13 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. 14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.

16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. Galatians 5:13-16

When you think about being free, what first comes to mind? For those who are Americans, is it the U.S. Flag, is it the military that has fought to preserve our freedom, or is it the constitution that gives us freedoms and rights. Freedom also is the ability to make your own decisions, now the question should be is how do you use that freedom? Do you use it to serve others, or do you do it to possibly harm the well-being of others. When we have the freedom to say and do as we please, we also have the choice of how we say and do those things. Today, people are using their freedoms to blatantly attack other's belief systems, their faith and their families. We need to remember that God was very specific about the freedoms He gave us, and we shouldn't abuse those freedoms. Many people in the world don't have the same freedoms we have to worship, to teach, and to love others. God has provided a special gift and we need to remember to humbly use it and not to abuse it. Use your freedom wisely.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #749 - Situations

Situations

17 Nevertheless, each person should live as a believer in whatever situation the Lord has assigned to them, just as God has called them. 1 Corinthians 7:17a

Our situations are not much different from each other as people. We wake up, we eat, we go to school or work, we eat lunch, we work some more, then we come home, we eat, and finally we go to bed and the next day it starts all over again. I know this is a very simplistic way to look at our lives and there are many holes in these steps that I have listed, but those holes are where we most likely differ. What do you do in those gaps between eating and sleeping? Are you bettering yourself, or are you being a stagnant human being? Those of us who are believers, I hope that you fit God into those gaps with prayer and reading the scriptures. I also hope that you approach each situation as a God-assigned situation, and not as a negative situation that you can't seem to overcome. God calls us to each and every situation presented and expects us to handle each situation, not alone but with His help. He already knows we can't do it on our own, but he wants us to trust Him to help us through it. Keep in mind that not all situations are able to be solved immediately, but God provides a plan and path for us, all we have to do is follow it. Live as a believer and things will be easier than if you approach something in a negative fashion.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #748 - Peace

Peace

16 The Lord’s justice will dwell in the desert,
his righteousness live in the fertile field.
17 The fruit of that righteousness will be peace;
its effect will be quietness and confidence forever. Isaiah 32:16-17

Do you ever wonder if there will be peace? Certainly with what we see every day, that hope is a long way off and we may never see the peace that you think of when people talk about it. If you look at history, there has always been war, fighting factions, government disputes, leaders who changed the way people think, and people who change the way governments think. It is pretty clear in scripture that God places people in leadership positions and we must respectfully understand that God has a reason for these leaders to be in power. However, peace does not come from these leaders, peace comes from God, and His peace is everlasting. Maybe that is why people cannot find peace, because they are looking for the wrong kind of peace. Maybe we should be looking for the quiet confident peace that God promises. Find your peace in God, and it will truly make a difference in your life.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #747 - Flesh

Flesh

5 Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6 The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. 8 Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God. Romans 8:5-8

After reading this scripture, look at your day-to-day activities, how many of you can say that you fall into setting your mind on what your flesh desires. I would say pretty much everyone. We don't always live with a mind that lives with what the Spirit desires, but we can start on that path by making simple changes. I mentioned this week that I am tired of the hate between people, and I got angry at work because of some information on a project that was withheld from me. When you stop and see the flesh take over, it is not easy in the moment, but afterwards you think to yourself, why did I let my flesh overtake my emotions? When we let our emotions be overcome by the flesh and the enemy, it tears up everything that the Spirit has built within you and you certainly aren't pleasing God with your behavior. Take a moment or several moments each day to remind yourself that the Spirit lives in you and can help you daily, even moment to moment overcome anything that is placed before you. Live in the Spirit.

Have a great weekend.

Matt

Fantastic Friday #746 - Riddles

Riddles

5 let the wise listen and add to their learning,
and let the discerning get guidance—
6 for understanding proverbs and parables,
the sayings and riddles of the wise.

7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,
but fools despise wisdom and instruction. Proverbs 1:5-7


Everyone likes a good riddle right? Some phrases put together to confuse us from finding out the right answer? I mean didn't Jesus speak in riddles so people did not understand him? Maybe riddle isn't the right word, because while the answer cannot be found in a riddle, it can be found in a parable. Riddles are meant to confuse us, but parables are meant to teach. If you work hard enough at a riddle, you can eventually solve it and find that the answer wasn't that hard in the first place. Understanding parables requires something that not everyone has, and that is a fear of the Lord. A humble respect of our Lord can help us understand the many parables shared in the Bible, and much of His word that is not always easily decipherable. We just have to believe and have faith in our Lord and He will guide our hearts to understand His word, whether it be through parables or deep scriptural meaning. The only way to get there is to pray, have faith and study His word regularly. If you don't do these things, then you are just going to be reading riddles where the answer is always right in front of you and you just can't see it.

Have a great weekend.

Matt