Grace for your spirit October 9, 2014

Grace for your spirit

Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as you have: for He has said, I will never leave  you, nor forsake you.  Hebrews 13:5

Coveting is the desire for anything wrongfully, without due regard for the rights of others.  When we talk about such desires, we show our lack of content of what God has given us.  Technically, our conversation is conspiracy to covet, and as bad as coveting itself.  Thou shalt not covet is the 10th commandment.  If you think about it, it is the cause of  breaking all the other commandments, and seldom remembered.  Let's trust in God's promises.

Grace for your spirit October 8, 2014

Grace for your spirit

Preach the word, be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.   II Timothy 4:2

Did you ever go out in the morning looking for someone to rebuke, criticize, and run down?  Hold that thought a minute.  Rebuking alone doesn't help anyone, and drives people to despair. God has a better way when someone needs correction.  Use the Word to reprove, or set God's standard.  Then show how far we have fallen from the standard, and finally offer a path of encouragement or improvement.  Mix in a little patience, and you create a great opportunity to do good.

Grace for your spirit October 7, 2014

Grace for your spirit

Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.  Matthew 6:11-12

We all certainly need to have enough spiritual sense to pray and thank God for our daily bread and for forgiveness from our sins each and every day.  Jesus taught us to do that, but He also added that we should pray for those we need to forgive.  Next time we pray, let's slip in a prayer for those we have not forgiven.  God has blessings for us we can't even imagine.

Grace for your spirit October 6, 2014

Grace for your spirit

You are the light of the world.  A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.  Matthew 5:`4-15

When a bad storm is rolling in, and I fear we might lose power, I prepare. I find the candles and matches before I'm stumbling around in the dark. Then I position them up high to spread the most light.  The world's power is already out, and people are stumbling in the dark. Jesus has appointed us the lights of the world.  A light not to be  hidden but up on a lamp stand to shine.  Let's get prepared now.

Grace for your spirit October 3, 2014

Humor for  your spirit

The preacher search committee asked the applicant to tell his favorite Bible study in his own words.  He stood and said,

 

"The Good Samaritan was man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, who went down to Jericho at night.  He fell among the thorns and they choked him half to death, and he said, What shall I do?  I will arise and go to my father.  And he arose and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see who was to pass that way. And his hair got caught in a limb of the tree and he hung there for forty days and forty nights, and the raven came and fed him.  Delilah came by with her sheers and snipped off his hair and some it fell on stony ground.  Elijah came by and took him down to Jericho and Jezebel was sitting on the wall and he said, Chuck her down boys.  And they said how many times shall we chuck her down, until seven times?  And he said, Nay, until seventy times seven.  And so they chucked her down and she burst in their midst.  Then they picked up 12 baskets of the fragments that remained.  And whose wife shall she be in the resurrection?"

The committee all agreed that he wasn't much to look at, but he sure knew his Bible.  :)

Grace for your spirit October 2, 2014

Grace for your spirit

The Lord spoke to Aaron saying, "Do not drink wine or strong drink, neither you nor your sons with you, when you come into the tent of meeting   Leviticus  10:9

The Old Testament Priests were commissioned to make distinction between holy and profane, clean and unclean, and teach the people. God wanted them to be good examples and get it right, and therefore avoid wine and strong drink.  I Peter 2:9 tells us that in the New Covenant of Christ, we are all priests.  We are called to proclaim the excellencies and light of Christ.  Our tent of meeting is never closed. We're on duty all the time.  Let's watch our behavior.  Everyone else is watching.

Grace for your spirit October 1, 2014

Grace for your spirit

And he answered and said to him, Let it alone, sire, for this year too, until I dig around it and put in fertilizer; and if it bears fruit next year, fine; but if not, cut it down.  Luke 13:8-9

This is a great parable from the vineyard. A fig tree is just taking up space and the owner calls for it to be cut down.  The vineyard keeper steps in and begs for one more chance, that with a little extra effort the tree might be saved.  We are in the vineyard of the Lord to bear fruit for Him.  We risk destruction by lack of productivity.  Jesus begs for one more chance, and a little better effort to help us.  Thank you Jesus for being our advocate with the Father.