 As parts of Georgia are still flooded, I would like to ask our fellow readers to continue to pray for those in the metro Atlanta area. Matt wrote about it here a couple days ago.
Coming from someone who lives in an area that has flooded before, I know what the experience can be. Between the stagnant, bacteria-infested water and the damage of homes and businesses, going through a flood is no picnic.
I would like to share some scripture from the good book on dealing with stressful times like these.
10 So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
- Isaiah 41:10
9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."
- Joshua 1:9
I think we’ve all heard this one:
4Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
- Psalm 23:4
So there you have it, folks. I, myself, always read Isaiah 41:10 whenever I’m on a plane that’s taking off. But it’s just as relevant to that as it is to the folks in Georgia; God has your back, and he’s handling it.
6Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
- Philippians 4:6-7
written by Josh
\\ tags: Atlanta floods, God, life, Matthew, stress
A friend of mine once said “If we don’t show our love, do we really love at all?” And that’s a good point.
A huge part of being a Christian is witnessing. When we witness to people who don’t have a relationship with God, we explain about the Gospel and God’s plan, and on top of that, who God is. A good number of folks who don’t have Christ in their life were probably never actually explained or talked to about who He really is.
As Christians, one of our sole responsibilities is to get the message out to those around us. We need to spread the good news of Jesus Christ and not just keep it to ourselves!
19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
- Matthew 28:19-20
Imagine if the man who discovered binary math kept it to himself; we would not have computers. Imagine if Thomas Edison didn’t share his invention of the light bulb; we may still be living in darkness! And as Christians, that’s what we’re supposed to do – to spread and bring the light to those who don’t have a relationship with God.
So pass it around! See if you can get it to the other side of the classroom…
written by Josh
\\ tags: God, Jesus, Matthew, salvation, witnessing
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.”
Matthew 16:24, KJV
Last night, I was at a Tenth Avenue North concert (which was amazing, by the way), and the lead singer was speaking for the moment between a song set, and he mentioned that verse in Matthew that says for us to ‘Deny Ourselves.’ He talked a bit about that, and I loved what he, Mike Donehey, said about it.
We hear ‘deny ourselves’ and a lot of the time, we think about giving up what we think is fun, entertaining, or things that make us happy for God. For some reason, a lot of Christians have the mindset ‘God wants us to be miserable… for him!’ This is not the case at all! Did you really think a God that loves you wants you to be miserable?
I think we can all agree – sin is tempting. Haha. We think it looks so good – it’s so tempting. That’s why it’s called temptation. It looks so good. Lovely. Harmless. Pleasurable. How else could The Enemy get us to disobey our God? It looks like ‘This will not hurt me,’ or ‘Oh, this is harmless.’
We THINK these things, but we know the truth – we know these are bad, awful things that God hates. Real happiness, real love, real pleasure, real joy does not come from sin. It comes from God.
‘You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever.’
Psalms 16:11
When Jesus say ‘Deny Ourselves’ he does NOT want us to be miserable or unhappy. Just the opposite. He wants us to live the BEST life possible. We KNOW this is the best life possible, too – God obviously did. He sent Jesus to DIE for THIS LIFE you’ve been gifted with.
When Jesus says ‘Deny yourself,’ he means for us to deny ourselves of the things we THINK look attractive, but what he and we know are wrong. Stealing something that does not belong to you. Sex and pornography. Lying to cover up something. All these things looks like good ideas on the outside. ’If I steal this, I’ll have something without paying for it!’ ’Sex feels so great!’ ’If I lie, then so-n-so won’t know what I did – I’m off that hook!’ But we know, from the bible, what these things cause. It does not end up good. Sin leads to death and a miserable life – exactly the opposite of what Jesus wants.
So next time you want a Cheeseburger, eat a Cheeseburger – you don’t have to deny yourself. Next time you’re sleepy, take a nap – you don’t have to stay awake ‘For Jesus’ sake!’
Deny yourself of the things that make your life miserable and that make you unhappy. Jesus loves you, and wants to see you smile.
So smile. Jesus loves you.
Thanks for Reading,
Lots of Love,
-Matt
written by Matt
\\ tags: Bible, Christ, Deny Yourself, God, Jesus, Love, Matthew, Music, Psalms, salvation, Sin, Story
So today I want to talk about temptations. We are tempted every day to do something we shouldn’t – whether it is big or small, Satan tries to get Christians especially to fall away from God in any way possible.
There are different ways Satan goes about doing this. One way, that I myself have fallen victim to and that many others have, is the method I like to call “the small things”. We are tempted to do small, seemingly unimportant, stupid things. Because they are so “small” and “unimportant”, it is easy to give in, and before you know it, you have fallen victim to it.
After the initial temptation, it becomes easier and easier to fall victim to these “small things”, and if you’re not paying attention and communicating with God, you won’t notice that you’re slowly straying off the path and into the far country.
This can go on as long as it takes for Satan to get us completely lost. And the more we sin, it is easier to do it, and harder to realize how we’re falling away.
But guess what – it is possible to resist temptations! Even Jesus was tempted:
1Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. 2After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”
4Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’[a]”
5Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. 6“If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:
” ‘He will command his angels concerning you,
and they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’[b]”
7Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’[c]”
8Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9“All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”
10Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’[d]”
11Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.
- Matthew 4:1-11
Remember – being tempted is not the same as sinning. We are all tempted, but have a choice to fall for it or not.
written by Josh
\\ tags: Jesus, life, Matthew, temptation
“It’s time for healing. Time to move on. It’s time to fix what’s been broken too long. Time to make right what has been wrong. It’s time to find my way to where I belong. There’s a wave that’s crashing over me, and all I can do is surrender.
Whatever you’re doing inside of me… it feels like chaos, but somehow there’s peace. And it’s hard to surrender to what I can’t see, but I’m giving in to something Heavenly…”
Those are lyrics to my favorite song by Sanctus Real, ‘Whatever you’re doing – Something Heavenly.’ It speaks about putting what we want aside, and focusing on what God wants. In the life of a Christian, we need to strive to MAKE what God wants we WE want. Sometimes it’s not easy, and it’s painful.
God will often call us away from something hindering us from growing in him. It can be confusing, hard, and painful, and ‘it feels like chaos,’ but I promise, there will be peace with it.
“This is something bigger then me. Larger then life… something Heavenly.”
Whatever your struggle is, the good news is that YOU don’t have to handle it by yourself! Back in Old Testament days, a Rabbi, that is, a religious leader in the Jewish community, would have students study under them. They’d say the students would ‘take up their master’s yoke,’ and in, they’d carry the burden of studying every last teaching and following EVERY LAST rule of Jewish law. Heavy burden to bear for such a little one, right? Jesus says this in Matthew 11:30,
“My yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”
He takes care of us. His yoke is easy. His burden is light, if existent at all. We don’t have to worry about what comes out way, or what seems to be constant attacks against us from the enemy. Jesus took away all our troubles, and they’re nailed to his cross. This doesn’t mean the life of a believer is going to be an easy one, but when times come when you need to carry your own cross, Jesus will be there carrying it with you.
So give into something heavenly today.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE MUSIC VIDEO
Thanks for Reading,
Lots of Love,
-Matt
written by Matt
\\ tags: Freedom, God, Jesus, Letting Go, life, Lyrics, Matthew, Music, Sin, Struggle, Worry
|
|
