Spiritual Food for Women

The Humility of Jesus

And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.  Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Philippians 2:8-11

Can you imagine the humility it took for Jesus to allow Himself to come to earth in human form, and have all the physical frailties that we have? Think about it. Jesus was there when God said “Let there be light”. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are all one, and were all there when it all began. In Genesis 1:2, we first see the Holy Spirit make an appearance as “the Spirit of God hovering over the face of the waters”. In John 1:1-3 and 14 the Bible says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He (Jesus) was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him (Jesus), and without Him (Jesus) nothing was made that was made….. 14) And the Word (Jesus) became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”

So….Jesus was with God from the very beginning of creation. I find it interesting that in the creation account in Genesis 1, God did not mention a plurality of beings until Genesis 1:26 where He said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness…”  Up until that verse, it was “God made” or “God created” or “God set”. I find it so cool that when God decided to make man, He had Jesus right there with Him. God already knew what Jesus was going to look like in His physical form, and man was patterned after that image. Of course, we know that being made in the image of God/Jesus is much more than the physical image. It is much deeper than that. It is our soul that is made in the image of God. But since God included Jesus when He said, “let us make man in our image”, it only stands to reason that God had a physical picture of Jesus in the flesh at that moment. 

And now….we turn back to the humility of Jesus. It is absolutely mind-blowing that Jesus was willing to allow Himself to become a helpless newborn baby for us. He had to go through His childhood years, His pre-teen and teen years, and His young adulthood. He grew up in much the same way that we all have. He “was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.” (Hebrews 4:15) If you have ever wondered if Jesus understands your struggles, your pain, your frustrations, your anger, your temptations, your emotions, your feelings….everything that we feel as human beings….just know that He does understand. He’s been there and done that my friend! He came to earth for that very purpose! He wanted us to know that we have someone who understands what we go through and can “sympathize with our weaknesses”. (Hebrews 4:15) He left the glory of heaven’s throne room for little ole me. He came for one purpose….to save me….and all of you. 

Here is some food for thought. I often wonder…..at what age did Jesus know His purpose. Did He realize His purpose when He was twelve years old when His parents found Him in the temple talking to the teachers and asking them questions? (Luke 2:46) Is that why He went to the temple? To find out more about His purpose? And after He went to the temple, the Bible says He went home, and was under subjection to His parents. (Luke 2:51) Is that when He found out that He was going to die for the sins of all humankind? I know there is no way to know for sure, but I feel like it is. Listen to what 12 year old Jesus says to His parents in Luke 2:49, after they found Him in the temple, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” Wow. Yes I believe He knew at that point. We know from His question that He knew that God was His Father. The use of the phrase, “My Father’s business”,  implies that He knew He had a higher purpose. He knew exactly what God wanted Him to know at that time as a twelve year old. To what extent did He know His “father’s business”? Did He know everything at that point? I think it is a good possibility that He did. Do you ever wonder how He felt at that moment? 

Imagine yourself at twelve years old…..and you find out that you are the Savior of the world. Everyone’s salvation is on your shoulders. You find out that you were born to be a sacrifice for people who were going to kill you. When I was a kid, and I thought about this account of Jesus as a twelve-year-old, I imagined myself saying something like that to my parents in that type of situation. I imagined myself saying, “Why were you looking for me? Don’t you know where I am?” As a kid, reading this story, I sort of thought that young Jesus was being a little condescending to His parents. I remember thinking, “doesn’t He care that He worried His mother so much?”. I thought this way because as a kid I never wanted to worry my parents. I didn’t want my parents upset with me. But, now that I am older, I realize that I wasn’t thinking about how Jesus might have felt at that moment. I wasn’t thinking that this could have been the moment that He found out everything about Himself….who He was and what He would have to endure. Of course, we don’t know the rest of the conversation between Jesus and His parents. I’m sure that more was said between them. And….we know that Jesus was in submission to His parents from then on. Jesus….the Savior of the world….humbled Himself to the will of His earthly parents, even though He knew so much more about His future than they did. 

So…..because Jesus “humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross”, God “highly exalted” Him, and gave “Him the name which is above every name”. (Philippians 2:8-9) To this day….no matter what happens in this world…..no matter how long this world remains….no matter who stands with Jesus……no matter who doesn’t give Him a second thought…..no matter who denies Him…..no matter who blasphemes Him…..Jesus is still exalted and He is the reason that it is the year 2024 right now…..2024 A.D…..Anno Domini…..which is Latin for “in the year of our Lord”. Every January 1st, the year changes. Why? Because our Savior was here….in the flesh all those years ago. Everything in regards to our concept of time revolves around the fact that He was here. He was born, lived on earth for around 33 years, was crucified for our sins as a sinless man, rose from the dead, ascended back into heaven, and now sits at the right hand of His Father at this very moment. He is alive! God rewarded Jesus with “a name which is above every name”, because of what He accomplished when He was on this earth. His accomplishment was conquering death for all of us…..for me personally…..and for every one of you. No one’s name in the history of the world, or the present day, or in the future, can ever come close to His name. Why? Because God wanted it this way. I know that sounds simple, but it really is that simple. And guess who else could be lifted up and exalted someday?

James 4:10 tells us in very plain language what we need to do, “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.” This verse tells us that we can also be rewarded someday if we wear the name Christian, and humble ourselves in God’s sight. This is a promise from God, my sisters and friends. If we humble ourselves and strive to be as much like Jesus as we can in this life, then He will exalt us in much the same way that He exalted Jesus. Remember we will be “joint heirs” with Jesus someday if we belong to Him. Listen to Romans 8:16-17, “The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.” Do we truly fathom the inheritance that we will have as joint heirs with our brother, Jesus? But….we have to be willing to bend our will to God’s will to be truly humble. Jesus had to bend His will to His Father’s will in the Garden of Gethsemane when He prayed, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.” (Luke 22:42) Jesus didn’t want to go through the pain and agony. I picture Him possibly saying, “Father….is there any other way??” But there wasn’t. I feel like Jesus knew there wasn’t, but He needed to vent His feelings. “And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” (Luke 22:44) Can you imagine being in so much agony and distress that sweat is pouring out of you in the same way that blood pours out of a wound? Pouring….like you’ve had a bucket of water dumped on your head. And, it is not because you are exerting yourself physically. But….because you are praying that hard about something that you are dreading. Jesus dreaded the cross. Who wouldn’t? But He bent His will to His Father’s will for us! That is the definition of humility. Here is the question for us. Are we willing to bend our will to God’s will? Are we willing to humble ourselves in that way?

So…..because God has exalted Jesus’ name above all names, what should happen here on earth? Notice the language in these verses, “that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:10-11)  What “should” happen is what this says “should” happen! Every person should bow to Jesus and confess that He is Lord. This is what God wants to happen right now at this moment, but He also knows that this is not going to happen right now. But someday….it will happen! When Jesus returns the second time…..it will happen! On that day every knee will bow….and every tongue will confess…..both those who have passed before he comes again, and those who are alive and present at the time of Jesus’ second coming. Every knee will certainly bow….but sadly….for many…..it will be too late. Those who spent their lives denying Him will suddenly realize that they were wrong. Those who took their faith lightly will wish they had taken it more seriously and been faithful. Those who listened to false teachers will wish that they had studied for themselves to make their “calling and election sure”. (2 Peter 1:10) And then there will be the false teachers themselves……I can’t even imagine the agony that they will be in as they see all the people that they have led astray as they beg for their salvation. And finally, there will be those who were once faithful Christians who have left the faith. How sad. How heartbreaking! 2 Peter 2:21 says that “it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them.” This is a terrifying thought to me, because it could have been me. I was found within some of the categories above in the past. If I had not changed, I could have led my husband and children down the wrong path. That terrifies me. It might even be that someone who I was a bad influence on in the past is in one of the categories above. Regret is a consequence of sin. Boy, could I go down a rabbit hole with this. But I won’t….I shouldn’t. This is one of my things that I struggle with….not forgiving myself….dredging up the past. I CAN NOT CHANGE IT. I can’t go back, I can only go forward, and do my best from here on out. I know that I am not even close to perfect, and never will be…..but I am striving. I certainly don’t want to be one who has to beg for my salvation on that day, because I didn’t humble myself to God while I had the chance. If that is the case, then all the begging in the world will not matter. It will be too late. So what do we do? 

All I can say for myself is that I need to work on my humility every single day. Here are some questions that I need to ask myself daily in order to work on being humble like Jesus. Maybe you need to ask yourself these questions as well. Can I be willing to humbly put God and His church first in my life? And humbly put others ahead myself? Am I willing to show others grace, because of the grace that God has shown to me? And treat others with compassion, kindness, and gentleness even when they don’t treat me that way? Am I willing to “be good to all” people, even the people who laugh in my face for following Jesus? (Galatians 6:10) Isn’t all this exactly what my Savior did for me? He humbly bent His will to His Father’s will. He put His Father’s will first. He put all of us ahead of Himself. He showed grace to the people who scourged Him, mocked Him, denied Him, and crucified him….ultimately killing Him. Jesus even asked His Father to forgive the people who hurt Him so badly on that day so many years ago. Could I do that if someone hurt me? I can’t say whether I could or not. Humility is hard. It is easier said than done. Why is it so hard? I believe humility is hard because we aren’t built for it. We are built to take care of self first….to put our will first. So….what does Jesus say?

Jesus calls us to deny self. He calls us to deny our natural instinct of putting ourselves first. It takes humility to do this. Listen to Jesus’ words in Luke 9:23-24, ““If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.” This is what the world will never understand. The world will never understand why we deny ourselves to follow Christ. This month is set aside as PRIDE month in our country. It makes me sad that our country glorifies what God has plainly called sin. It makes me sad every June to see all of the businesses, groups, and individuals who are involved in this and support it. It goes against everything Jesus is saying in Luke 9:23-24 about denying self. The Bible is clear on its definition of sinful behavior. We can’t pick and choose which behaviors we want to acknowledge as sin. Every single one of us is tempted in some way, shape, form or fashion. Whatever it is, that is our “thing” that tempts us…..that is our cross to bear. And Jesus is asking us to symbolically carry that cross in the same way that He carried His own cross the day He was crucified for OUR sins. He then asks us to die to that sin, humble ourselves, and follow Him. We can’t follow Him while still willfully living in sin. We have to deny ourselves, and die to it. It is all or nothing, friends. But I just want to add this statement….just because I don’t support PRIDE and those lifestyles that go along with it, does not mean that I have any hatred at all in my heart for anyone. I am called a “hater”, but nothing could be further from the truth. It is only out of love for souls that I stand where I stand…..with Jesus. And I’ll take the persecution that I receive for standing with Jesus. But that persecution won’t change my love for God, His Son, His Word, His church, and ALL souls.

Humility…..do I have it? I’m a work in progress, and I have a long way to go! I am striving to be humble like Jesus….and that’s all I can do for the rest of my life…..strive. That is all any of us can do. It is not about being perfect, because we won’t be. It is about first belonging to Christ. Then, after that….it is about putting Him first while striving to be like Him for the rest of our lives.

Are you a Christian? Have you denied self, picked up your cross, died to sin, and began to follow Jesus? 

If so, are you a faithful Christian? Are you striving daily to follow Him and humble yourself the way that Jesus humbled Himself for us? Are you still denying self? 

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His Word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins.  (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

Source

biblegateway.com

Today is Mothers’ Day 2024…..the day that we honor our mothers, grandmothers, great-grandmothers, aunts, sisters, and special friends who have filled our lives with love and joy throughout our lives. So first, I would like to say, HAPPY MOTHERS’ DAY to all mothers and mother figures who may be reading this. Many of us may have our mother from birth who then raised us. But some may have other people who serve as a mother for them. Any of the people listed above can serve as mother figures for us. We may have an aunt that we are extra close to, or a big sister who practically raised us, or a grandmother or great-grandmother who raised us when our mother could not. We may have a mother who adopted us, and raised us from birth, and is truly just as much a mother as any blood could ever make her. No matter who you consider your “mother”, let me suggest that you show her honor today, and every day of the year. Whether we still have our mothers with us, or they have passed from this life, the impact that our mothers have on our lives is second to no other human impact.

Since today is the day that is set aside in our country for us to honor all mothers , I would like to focus on what it means to honor our mothers. Well….first and foremost, we should honor our mothers for bringing us into this world. We know that God “formed our inward parts” (Psalm 139:13) in our mothers’ womb, but it is our mothers who went through all the travails of pregnancy, labor, and delivery to bring us into this world. So we should definitely honor them for that. Then, there is the love and care that our mothers have given us since birth. And by mothers, I mean the woman or women who raised us, whether that was your birth mother or not. Proverbs 31 tells a story of a virtuous woman. It tells of how hard this woman works for her family, but not only her family, but for the less fortunate people around her. She is a perfect rendition of what a wife and mother should be. And this chapter is a perfect way to honor this wife and mother. In Proverbs 31:28, Solomon says, “Her children rise up and call her blessed; Her husband also, and he praises her:” To me….as a mother and wife myself…..nothing could ever make me feel more honored than for my children and husband to feel this way about me. Of course, if I want them to feel this way about me, then I need to strive to be that woman in Proverbs 31. Fellow moms out there…..will we be perfect? No, we won’t. But we should all strive to be that Proverbs 31:28  mom whose children rise up in respect for her and call her blessed. But…maybe your mom has made some big mistakes that have affected your life in a negative way. Maybe your childhood was dysfunctional because of her mistakes. Can you forgive her? Can you show her grace? Maybe you have already forgiven her. Maybe you just can’t right now. Maybe you have forgiven her in your heart, but a relationship with her is simply not possible at this time. Maybe it won’t ever be possible. But guess what…you can still pray for your mom. You can still thank God for the mom who gave birth to you. But more than that, you can learn from her mistakes, and you can start a new legacy in your family by striving to be that godly mother in Proverbs 31:28 for your children. 

So……how is the best way to honor our mothers? I believe that the best way to honor our mothers is with the lives that we live. From my perspective, my mom raised me to be a Christian. She set forth that example for me every single day. I am so thankful to her for that. I want to honor her with my Christian life. I am so grateful that I still have her, and can treasure her for as long as I have her here with me. And really….all that I want from my children is for them to honor me through the lives that they live. I tried my best to raise my children to be faithful Christians, and I’m so thankful that they both are faithful Christians. Was I a perfect mother? Nope. At times I missed the mark badly. And I am so thankful to my children for showing me grace for the times that I messed up, or wasn’t the best example for them. I’m so thankful for the way each of them love and care for me every day. 

In reality, there is no perfect mother, because we are all imperfect humans. But we should all strive to be the Proverbs 31:28  mother……and to be a mother like Samuel’s mother, Hannah, who was willing to give him up, to even be able to have him at all. We all know what a special person Hannah had to be in order to keep her promise to God, and give her baby boy back to God. But she also knew that God must have had some big plans for Samuel. And boy did He ever! Samuel grew into an amazing servant for God. God knew that Hannah had the heart to do what needed to be done in order for Samuel to become the great prophet and judge that God needed him to be. (1 Samuel 1) She was a woman of integrity who put God first. As moms, isn’t that exactly what God wants us to be……women of integrity who put God first in front of our children. I hope if you are a mother that you are having a blessed day today as well as every day after today. I hope you are getting all the honor that you deserve. If you are someone who might be taking your mom for granted or neglecting her feelings, please STOP and THINK. There will be a time when you won’t have her. Everyone…..please…..honor your mom, not only today, but everyday. She is a big part of the person you are today. Love you all! 

Oh…..P.S…..There is one more way to honor your mom/mom figure! Spend time with her. Make time with her. If you can’t get to her in person, call her…..text her…..do what you can to let her know that you still need her and that you appreciate her. Everyone is busy, but she deserves your time. Remember, you mean everything to her. Oh and there is this really cool thing called facetime!! Facetime your mom!! Again, Happy Mothers’ Day! Love y’all! 

The Excuse for Today- “There are hypocrites in the church.”

Hello sisters in Christ and friends. I am going to dive into a subject that might step on some toes, including my own! Of course, I am always stepping on my own toes in all my posts. What excuses do people make for stopping going to church services/leaving the church? I have been guilty of making excuses for missing services in the past, so I’m not calling anyone out. I never completely stopped going, but there was a time when any ole reason could keep me from attending services. And that behavior is really no different in God’s eyes than not attending at all, because God wants us to be faithful, and I wasn’t. So…..there is no judgment here…..only encouragement and concern for souls. I am simply trying to use the Bible and my own experiences to help others to realize what I have come to realize……that there will be no excuse that we will be able to make when we stand before God on judgment day. 

Sooooo……”I’m not going back to church because there are hypocrites in it.” First of all, what is a hypocrite? A hypocrite is a person who claims or pretends to have certain beliefs about what is right, but who behaves in a way that disagrees with those beliefs. (Britannica Dictionary) Another definition is someone who puts on a false virtue or religion. (Merriam-Webster) Maybe someone in the church personally hurt you in some way, such as gossipped about you to others. Maybe some people made you feel excluded. Cliques in the Lord’s church are detrimental to the church’s growth. They have no place in the church. I absolutely agree that these things are hypocritical, because the Bible says not to gossip, not to show partiality, and to do good to everyone. Or ….maybe you have simply witnessed people in the church being fake in their words or actions. Maybe you’ve heard them use inappropriate language out somewhere, or know of them out drinking in a restaurant or bar. Hypocritical behavior? Absolutely. But ask yourself, who are you going to answer for on judgment day? Who am I going to answer for? Am I going to answer for the one gossiping? Or the one being cliquish and snobby? Or the one using bad language? Or the one drinking in the restaurant or bar? The answer is….I am only answering for me!  I will answer for myself, and myself only on that day. Pauls tells us in Romans 14:10, “But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.” When we judge others so harshly that we refuse to go to church services because of them, are we not being hypocrites ourselves? None of us are perfect, and leaving the church certainly doesn’t help us in that area. I submit to you that we have all been hypocrites at some point in our lives. How do I know? Because Colossians 3:17 says, “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” Can any of us say that everything we do or say is done or said in the name of the Lord? Maybe I’m wrong, but I don’t think that any of us can say that. We can only strive for that. Romans 3:23 says that, “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” Here are some questions that we can ask ourselves. Are we helping our relationship with God by not attending services? Do we think God is pleased with our excuse? Will God accept any of our excuses? Do we think we are better or holier than the hypocrites, because we are not attending church services? Is it God’s place to sort out the hypocrites or is it ours? Is the church full of perfect people trying to get to heaven or imperfect people trying to get to heaven? An honest heart will give honest answers to these questions. The first four books of the New Testament are about Christ’s life, death and resurrection from different perspectives. The book of Acts is about the establishment of the church of Christ, which is not a name by the way, it is a description. It is the church that belongs to Christ, per the word “of”. (Romans 16:16) The entire rest of the New Testament through Jude is written to either established churches of Christ or individual Christians. Christ died for His church. If we deny the church, then we deny Christ. If we were baptized into Christ, then our sins were washed away, and God added us to His church. (Acts 2:47) But….do we really think it is ok to just leave….and still have favor with God? Would we do that in any other setting, whether it be a job, a team, or a club. Would we just leave with no notice? No….because we made a commitment. I’m certain that it would take a lot for us to break that kind of earthly commitment. What if we asked the employer of a job that we just left without notice for a good referral to another place of business? Would he do that for us? Of course not! However, this is not a job or a club folks. This is our eternal soul. We made a commitment to God that we cannot go back on, friends. And being a faithful member of His church is that commitment. And remember, I’m speaking to myself here just as much as I’m speaking to anyone else. My toes are always hurting. And let’s not forget….we have obligations within that commitment. We have an obligation to build others up and help others get to heaven. (Hebrews 10:24-25)  And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching. Can we fulfill these obligations if we stop attending services and leave the church? Can Jesus, as our mediator, give us a good referral to God on judgment day if we left His church? (Hebrews 9:15, 1 Timothy 2:5) Will Jesus stand between us and advocate for us with God in that moment? Again, an honest heart will give an honest answer. So…in closing, the church is a perfect institution made up of imperfect human beings. So…..maybe someone treats us badly, or looks down on us, or doesn’t speak to us, but……do you know what? What they think or say about us DOES NOT MATTER!! They answer for THEM! I answer for ME! You answer for YOU! And can I just say that most of the time those people who are trying to make us feel “less than”, probably feel “less than” themselves for some reason. It doesn’t make it okay for them to treat us this way. That is not what I’m saying at all. Just know that they are insecure about something or they wouldn’t be focused on others’ shortcomings so much, and they wouldn’t be making light of others’ imperfections. And it makes us angry and it hurts….doesn’t it? I know it does, because I’ve been hurt by someone else’s words before, but here is one thing that I will not do….. I will not let anyone else’s words and actions affect my salvation. Think about Jesus for a moment. He was hurt by people’s words and actions, but He didn’t let it stop Him from fulfilling the will of His Father to save us…. His people….His church. So please don’t punish your Creator by leaving His church. If you have already left…..please come back. For every one person who is looking down on you, there are probably twenty who love you, and will embrace you with open arms. The best thing you can do for yourself, and those people who hurt you is to come back to God, be restored back into His church, and rededicate your life to Him. Then smile at those people who may have hurt you, pray for them, and then let it go. We can’t control other people. We can only control our actions and reactions. Please don’t let “hypocrites” cause you to lose your soul, and keep you from your reward in heaven….I’m begging you. I’m rooting for you. 

Maybe you haven’t started your Christian walk yet. If you need help understanding how to become a Christian and be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His Word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins.  (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

Source

biblegateway.com

Psalm 1- A Blessed Life- Part 5

Am I the tree or the chaff?

God, through the writer of this Psalm, makes an absolutely beautiful analogy of what a blessed woman’s life will be like as she follows Jesus. On the flip side, the writer also describes the life of a woman who is ungodly and does not follow Jesus. The top picture attached to this article represents the peace and tranquility of living a blessed life in Jesus. In contrast, take note of the bottom picture which represents the person who is either outside of Christ or is a Christian, but is not living faithful to Him……Need I say more? Look at the difference. 

“He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper. The ungodly are not so, but are like the chaff which the wind drives away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly shall perish.” (Psalm 1:3-6)

Today, as I write, I feel like writing in the first person to make it personal for me. If you read it in this way, you can make it personal for you as well. So here goes. The Psalmist says that if I am delighting in and meditating on God’s Word (Psalm 1:2), then I am like “a tree planted by the rivers of water”. (Psalm 1:3) If I am that tree that is planted beside or close to a river, then I am going to have an unending supply of water to nourish my roots for as long as that river flows. My strong roots will grow, causing my trunk and branches to grow and become sturdy and immovable even in the worst of storms. I will be able to withstand the heat of the sun, because of the waters of the river that continuously flow into the soil around my roots keeping me hydrated. When I became a Christian, I was planted with Christ in baptism. When I came up out of the waters of baptism, I was a new person in Christ. At that point, I was a babe in Christ. In the analogy of the tree, I was a seedling at that point. As a seedling, I need the water from the river to flow into my roots so that I can grow. I also need just the right amount of sunlight. That water allows me to get the right amount of sunshine without too much heat from the sun to damage me and stunt my growth. As a Christian, God’s Word is the flowing water of the river that will nourish my roots in Christ. Like Jesus told the woman at the well, he said that he could give her “living water”. Just as a young tree cannot survive without water, a babe in Christ cannot survive without the living water that is God’s Word flowing into her heart and mind. What happens as I grow as a Christian?

What happens to the “tree that is planted by the rivers of water”? The Psalmist says that it “brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.” (Psalm 1:3) Eventually, because I am getting the continual water from the river, I begin to grow stronger and bear the fruit that is synonymous with the type of tree that I am. If I am an apple tree, I will produce apples. The process is the same for the new Christian. If I continue allowing God’s Word to root and ground me, I will never wither, or become barren, and I will continually bear fruit for God. The verse says that whatever I do as a Christian will prosper. Is this talking about material or worldly prosperity? No, it is talking about spiritual blessings. It is talking about God’s kingdom, the church, prospering with new growth. A Christian prospers by bearing fruit for God, and in turn, the church also prospers. So…..I will prosper as a fruit-bearer for God. As a Christian, spiritual prosperity should be more important to me than earthly prosperity. If I am a Christian, I should be involved in producing other Christians through the spreading of the gospel. Like Paul said in 1 Corinthians 3:6, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase.” Paul is saying that He was the first to introduce the gospel to Corinth by planting the seed, then Apollos came and taught them in a more in-depth way by “watering” what Paul had already planted. But they both had a hand in helping the Corinthians learn the gospel. But…..Sisters, let’s never forget who gets the increase! Who gets all the credit when we help someone learn the gospel? God does! Why? Because it is God’s message. We are only His vessels. The greatest so-called preacher in the world is nothing if he isn’t preaching the whole truth. As a Christian, if I am truly listening to God through His Word….His Living Water, then I should want to share it with others. I should want my family and friends to know about Jesus. We tend to talk about what we love most, right? Our families? Our children? Our vacation? Our favorite sports teams? Our hobbies? Where does Jesus fall into our everyday conversations? Do we love Him enough to talk about Him? Do we love others enough to talk about Him to them? 

What happens if I am a tree that is not watered properly? What if I become a Christian, but do not water my roots with the word of God? As a tree, without water, I will remain a seedling with shallow roots. Without strong, deep roots, I will be uprooted by a storm, or I will be burned up by the heat from the sun from lack of hydration. It is the same situation in my Christian life. I must have God’s Word which is the water of life. Without it, I will not grow as a Christian, and I won’t be able to withstand the storms of life that Satan throws at me. Without it, I won’t be rooted and grounded in Christ. I will be sort of like the seed that was sown on stony ground that had shallow roots. (Matthew 13:5-6, 20-21) Without God’s Word, I will grow discouraged with life. Every bad thing that happens will get me down, and eventually I’ll just give up. I’ll start to grow bitter about things that I have no control over. That bitterness will destroy me in the same way that the sun’s heat can destroy the young seedling. Without God’s Word, I am more susceptible to temptations, and easily drawn into sin. Just like the seed that is sown on thorny ground is choked out by the thorns and has no room to grow, God’s Word is choked out of my life by sin, and has no room in my heart to grow. (Matthew 13:7, 22) Without God’s Word to ground me, I will not remain in a blessed state for very long, will I? What happens to me when I am not truly grounded in God’s Word?

Then comes the flipside of the blessed person, “The ungodly are not so, but are like the chaff which the wind drives away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.” (Psalm 1:4-5) What is chaff? According to bibleref.com, “chaff refers to the husks of grain that are tossed into the wind and blown away in the winnowing process. Just as chaff is worthless, the ungodly lifestyle is worthless in God’s sight.” If I am a woman who does not know Jesus or has fallen away from Jesus, then I am like chaff. If I am not a Christian or if I’m not a faithful Christian, I am like chaff. I am blown from one sin to the next, and one heartache to the next. I am always looking to the world for answers, but sadly, I never find them. I will forever be searching…..never finding the answers I truly need. I have no true joy. I have a void that I may try to fill with material things such as substances (alcohol and drugs), food, entertainment, a job, or man-made religious doctrines. I try to fill the void with my family, but even that doesn’t fill it. I am “tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting….” (Ephesians 4:14). In this verse, Paul was warning the Christians at Ephesus, as well as us today, not to be gullible and “tossed” around in this way. This is how my life could become “like the chaff”. If I am still “like the chaff” when I pass from this life, then I won’t be able to “stand in the judgment” . (Psalm 1:4-5)  Jesus will not be able to mediate between myself and God, because I did not follow Him. I will not have a case to plead before God at that moment. There will be no defense on my part. I will be without excuse. I will be alone…without a Savior. I will have no other opportunity to follow Jesus at this point. No second chances. No do-overs. Is this scary to any of us? I have to say that writing this in the first person is super impactful for me. The thought of this actually being one of my loved ones or myself……or anyone for that matter……is terrifying. Sisters and friends, let’s make any changes that we need to make so that we are not “like the chaff”. Let’s “be even more diligent to make our calling and election sure”. (2 Peter 1:10) Whether you need to become a Christian or rededicate your life to Christ, I encourage you to not put it off. And…..let’s not let the world deceive us into thinking that God is going to tolerate willful sin on judgment day. Psalm 1:5 says that “sinners” will not stand “in the congregation of the righteous.” I can’t live a sinful lifestyle or leave sin unchecked and expect Jesus to provide intercession for me with God. I can’t stand with the righteous on judgment day if I am not counted among them. And I can’t ride the coattails of the Lord’s church into heaven by being a member in name only, if I don’t live a faithful life and have His kingdom first in my life. 

So what does all this mean in conclusion? “For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly shall perish.” (Psalm 1:6)  God knows His people. He knows us if we are trying to live a righteous life. He knows our hearts. He watches over us, and knows what is going on in our lives. He is with us in good times and in bad, in joy and in sorrowing, in health and in suffering. We have nothing to fear in this life, because we know where we will be when we leave this life. We will be with our amazing Creator and Father for eternity. Of course, if we follow the path of the ungodly, what will happen? If we follow what men say instead of following God’s Word, what will happen? If we follow what the world thinks is right, what will happen to us? The Bible is clear….we will perish. Ask yourself, “What do I want my life here on earth to be like? Where do I want to be when this life is over?” The answers are most definitely related. We teach our kids that in order for good things to happen, we must make good and wise decisions. Have you made Jesus your choice in this life? Are you walking in His footprints? For myself, in regards to this beautiful chapter, I want to be that tree that is planted by the rivers of water. I want to bring forth fruit for God. I want my roots to run deep in God’s Word. Storms have uprooted me in the past, because of shallow roots. I wasn’t keeping myself hydrated with God’s Word. I wasn’t involved and invested in the Lord’s church the way that I needed to be. But….I changed. It started small. I simply began to open God’s Word more and pray more. Then, I began to study and dig deeper to understand God’s plan for me. I also began to get more involved in the work of the church. Finally, I was compelled to write about God’s Word. And eventually, I was encouraged to put my writing out there for others to read. But…am I finished growing? It all started with the realization that I had to be “all in” for Christ, and then I took that first step towards making that happen. It didn’t happen all at once. It is a process, and it is different for everyone. And I still have a ton of growing left to do. I will never be finished growing. I can’t ever be satisfied, and say that I am doing enough. Nothing will ever be enough. Let’s face it …in the past, I was a Christian….but I was still “like the chaff” for a long time. Why? Because I wasn’t “all in”. Sisters and friends, being a Christian is an “all in” decision. And ladies, believe me….I know that we can’t be perfect. There is no   possible way that we can. If that were possible, then Jesus wouldn’t have had to die for us. I speak for myself in particular, because I know that I make mistakes and sin on a daily basis. We all have different weaknesses….some are harder to deal with than others. However, there are things that I can say with confidence that I can strive for in this life. I can strive to be fully committed to God’s purpose for me. I can strive to be fully committed to following God’s Word without compromise in a world that compromises it continually. I can strive to be fully committed to Christ’s church when there are tens of thousands of different types of churches following different doctrines that are not found in the Bible. All of that is possible, ladies. God never asks us to do something impossible. Our Father in Heaven has never asked us to be perfect. He has only asked us to strive for perfection, and be committed to Him and His purpose for us, which is to save souls. He wants us to love Him, love others, and continually acknowledge His glory and majesty as our Creator and God. Nothing in this life will matter when we see Him face to face, and He says to us, “well done good and faithful servant…..enter into the joy of your Lord”. (Matthew 25:21)  Sisters and friends, let’s not let anything keep us from hearing this someday.  Love you all.

Have you started your “blessed” life in Christ yet? If you need help understanding how to be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His Word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins.  (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

Source

biblegateway.com

bibleref.com

Psalm 1- A Blessed Life- Part 4

What does it mean to meditate on God’s Word? Why should we meditate on His Word?

Psalm 1:2b  ……and in His law he meditates day and night.

What does the word meditate mean? According to Merriam-Webster, to meditate is to focus one’s thoughts on, reflect on or ponder over, or to engage in contemplation or reflection. Another definition from Merriam-Webster is to engage in mental exercise (such as concentration on one’s breathing or repetition of a mantra) for the purpose of reaching a heightened level of spiritual awareness. Or it can just be simple breathing exercises to calm the body and mind. One more definition of meditate is to plan or project in the mind, to intend or to purpose. I believe the word that the psalmist is using in Psalm 1:2 has a much deeper meaning than all those definitions. The word meditate is translated from the Hebrew word haga. The word haga is also translated as mourn, speak, imagine, study, mutter, utter, roaring, sore, and talk. Some of these words didn’t really seem the same as the word meditate to me…that is….until I read the verses and looked at the context of them. So what does it truly mean to meditate in a biblical context? 

Let’s begin with our key verse, Psalm 1:2b, “….and in His law he meditates day and night.” In the context of this verse, we are told that a person is blessed because he/she “meditates” on God’s Word day and night. This person meditates on God’s Word, because he/she finds “delight” in God and in His Word. (Psalm 1:2a)  If we look back at Psalm 1:1, we see that a blessed person stays away from ungodly people and sin. The time that this person spends meditating on God’s Word helps him/her to stay close to God and away from sin. Also, when the verse says that the person “meditates day and night”, it means that the person is actively in his/her Bible every day. But not only that, he/she applies God’s Word to every aspect of life. The blessed person seeks to gain wisdom from God’s Word in order to become a better Christian. There is no time in any day that God is not at the forefront of a blessed person’s mind. This is the meditation that the psalmist is speaking of. It is an active and living type of meditation. And when he/she is spending time in God’s Word, it is quality time. It is not a chore that the person feels as if he/she has to do. It is not a “let me get my chapter read today and then I’m done” type of attitude. It is not a box to check on a checklist. It is a “delight” to the blessed person to read, study, contemplate, analyze, reflect on and ponder on God’s Word. Let’s look at two examples of people who meditated on God’s word. 

Do you remember who took over as leader of God’s people after Moses died? Joshua showed leadership qualities all the way back to when he was sent in as one of twelve spies to go into the promised land, and bring back a report about the people and the land to Moses. He was one of only two men out of twelve, who reported to Moses and the people that with God they could take the land. The other ten were afraid, and had no faith in God, and said that God’s people were not strong enough to take the land. God already knew the kind of man that Joshua was. However….He gives Joshua some instructions as he is taking Moses’ place as the leader of the children of Israel in Joshua 1:8. It reads, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” God wants Joshua to be blessed in his endeavors as the leader of His people. Joshua is about to take the children of Israel into the promised land. He is going to have to lead them in many battles in order to take the land that God has promised His people. God tells him to meditate day and night on the book of the law, but not just that…he is to apply that Law as he leads the people. He is to do all that God says to do in the Law. And guess what…..God says he will be blessed, “prosperous”, and “have good success.” God assures Joshua that He will be with Him, but with a condition…..that Joshua does not neglect the Law of God. It is clear in Joshua 24 as Joshua makes his farewell speech to the children of Israel before he died, that Joshua followed God throughout his whole life. In verses one through 13, Joshua reviews all that God had done for them down through the years, beginning with Abraham. In Joshua 24:14-15, he says these words, “Now therefore, fear the Lord, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the Lord! And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” It is as if Joshua is pleading with them to follow his example, and stay faithful to God after he has passed on. But ultimately, he tells them it is their choice whether they serve God or not, but….he makes it very clear where he and his family stand, when he says, “as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” What a leader! What an example! We can tell that Joshua took God’s advice and meditated on His Law all of his days. 

Another example of a man who meditated on God’s Word throughout his entire life was David. In Psalm 63:6, David says, “When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches.” This is during the time when David was in the wilderness of Judah hiding from Saul who was trying to kill him. As David lay awake during the night watches, he meditated on God. In Psalm 71:24, David says, “My tongue also shall talk of Your righteousness all the day long; For they are confounded, for they are brought to shame who seek my hurt.” The word “talk” in this verse is the same word in Hebrew as meditate. (haga) In this chapter, it sounds as if God has delivered David from his enemies. For David, meditation is an ongoing, daily way of life in good times as well as bad. If you notice in the Psalms that David wrote, he meditated on God in hard times when he needed help, but he meditated on God in the best of times as well. In Psalm 143:5, David says, “I remember the days of old; I meditate on all Your works; I muse on the work of Your hands.” In this Psalm, David is praying for deliverance from his enemies and guidance for the future. He is meditating on all that God has done in the past, and remembering better days. We can see from the Psalms that David wrote that he was a wonderful example of someone who  meditated on God and His Word constantly. He wasn’t perfect, as are none of us. We can certainly see that David knows his imperfections in Psalm 51, when David is begging God for forgiveness for the sin he committed with Bathsheba and against Uriah. But we can tell that he truly loved God with all of his heart as seen through his writings. Just the fact that he wrote so many beautiful Psalms for us to read, study, and meditate on today shows us David’s heart. We can truly see why God called David “a man after His own heart” in 1 Samuel 13:14. David says in Psalm 19:14, Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer. The word “meditation” in this verse is from the Hebrew word higayon. It is a variation of the word haga. It means resounding music or murmuring sound. It makes perfect sense that David would pray for his “higayon” or “meditation” to be acceptable to God. The Psalms that he wrote are songs of praise to God, and David wanted them to be pleasing to God.

The book of Proverbs also has some references to the word meditate (haga). Proverbs 8:7 says this, For my mouth will speak truth; Wickedness is an abomination to my lips. In this verse, the word “speak” comes from the same word as meditate. It means that the person will continually speak the words of truth. We can meditate in the form of speaking if we are talking about God’s Word in a meaningful way with others. We could even be alone and meditate by speaking. We could say a verse out loud over and over again to ourselves in order to help ourselves get through a tough time. I can personally say that praying out loud when I am alone helps me. Also, reading verses out loud is comforting to me. I love hearing myself speak God’s Word out loud. It is meditation and it is beneficial to my soul to hear myself either talking to God or saying the words that God says to me in scripture. Sometimes I add my name into verses as I read them out loud. Try this type of meditation sometime. Personally, it really comforts me when I need it. Proverbs 15:28 says this, “The heart of the righteous studies how to answer, but the mouth of the wicked pours forth evil.” In this verse, the word “studies”  is translated from the same word as meditate. This makes perfect sense especially since it says that the righteous person studies or meditates “how to answer”. If we are to be righteous, then we need to meditate on God’s word so that we can be able to “rightly divide the word of truth” to others who are not Christians. (2 Tim. 2:15) We also have to be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks us a reason for the hope that is in us. (1 Peter 3:15) It takes some study and meditation on our parts to be able to truly fulfill our purpose, and tell others about the gospel of Christ. Proverbs 24:2  says this, “For their heart devises violence, and their lips talk of troublemaking.” The word “talk” is again translated from the same word as meditate. However, it is used in a negative context this time. The verse is talking about a person who wants to make trouble all the time. This person is constantly meditating on how he/she can cause problems for others. We have all known troublemakers in our lifetime. It seems as though they constantly thrive on conflict. 

In Isaiah 59, we find that sin has separated the children of Israel from God, and then we see how awful it really is in Isaiah 59:13. It reads, “In transgressing and lying against the LORD, and departing from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.”  The word “uttering” used here is translated the same as the word meditate (haga). This is not just a fleeting bout with sin. This is a deep-seeded rebellion against God. Not only had the people separated themselves from God through sin, but they were lying against God, and meditating on words that they could use to speak against God. It was hateful, deliberate and premeditated. When I look at this verse, it brings tears to my eyes. How could they do that, after all God had done for them? Then I go look in the mirror. And I realize that I have been guilty of not speaking the whole truth about God in the past, closing my eyes to what I know to be right, telling people what they want to hear, and making excuses to justify my own sins. It still hurts me to think about things I have said and done in the past, especially ways that I have influenced people in the wrong way. I wish that I could take it all back like it never happened…..but I can’t. All I can do is push forward, and spend the rest of my life in service to God and others. I can tell you with all honesty and sincerity that meditating on God’s Word will change you. How do I know? Because it has changed me just within the last few years. Meditating on God’s Word has helped me in a number of ways. Let me tell you some ways it has blessed my life.

First of all, I had to come to the realization that when I meditate on the words of the Bible, it is literally God speaking to me. When I began to realize this, that is when God, through His Word, convicted me, and made me feel better about myself all at the same time. He let me know that I needed to step it up, stop feeling sorry for myself over things that I can’t change, and get to work for Him. Low self-esteem has always been a problem for me. I know many of us struggle with this. I never felt like I had anything to offer God’s kingdom here on earth. But I have learned through God’s Word that I do! We all do, Sisters! We are all so valuable to God and His church! We are just as valuable as any other person in Bible history, including the two examples that I mentioned in this article, Joshua and David. Secondly, God, through His Word, has helped me let go of my past. Do I still regret things that I have said and done? Yes, and that will never go away. Sin has consequences in our lives, and regret is a consequence of sin that I experience daily. However, I won’t let my past stop me from God’s purpose for me. Ladies, we cannot let our past beat us down. Anyone who judges others on their past needs to go take a good hard look in the mirror at themselves in the present. Thirdly, God, through His Word, has helped me forgive people who have wronged me. This was very hard. I used to have so much bitterness and hardness inside of me, but God’s Word sweetened and softened all of that. God’s Word says that I have the capacity to forgive no matter how much someone may have hurt me. And God would never ever tell me to do something that He knew that I wasn’t capable of doing. And, I have learned that all of my experiences have made me who I am, so I am actually thankful for them. Fourthly, God, through His Word, has helped me to not be afraid to speak the truth, and to not worry about what others will think of me for speaking it. This may have been the hardest one of all for me. When I first began to write these articles almost a year ago for others to read, I started drawing up in my mind things that I was afraid people might be thinking about what I was doing. Now let me be clear….I am not saying that anyone was even thinking these things. I’m saying that they were thoughts that came out of my fear of putting my writing out there. They were excuses that I was trying to come up with as to why I shouldn’t do it! I’m so glad I didn’t listen. Some of my thoughts were, “who does she think she is to be starting a blog? I remember her when……(whatever they remember about me, fill in the blank). What business has she got writing about the Bible?” My answer to these is this….within my role as a Christian woman, I have just as much of a right to talk or write about God’s Word as anyone else does, as long as I am “rightly dividing” it (2 Tim. 2:15), and, of course, staying within the boundaries of my role as a Christian woman to not “usurp authority” over a Christian man. (1 Tim. 2:12) This is why my blog is called “Spiritual Food For Women”. If a man reads it, then that is his choice, but I am not stepping over any boundaries. And, as far as my past is concerned……everyone has a past, some people’s may be just a little more colorful than others. David, Paul, and Peter did not let their past stop them from spreading God’s Word through preaching and writing. Here are a few more things I used to worry about people thinking, “does she think she knows more than anyone else about the Bible? She doesn’t have any right to tell anyone else how they should be or what they should do. What could she possibly have to say that I need to hear?” Here are my answers to these…..no I do not think I know more than anyone else. I know that I have so much more to learn, and that is why I am doing this…..to learn and grow. Maybe the ladies that read my posts can come along with me on my journey to learn more about God’s Word. Maybe it will inspire someone to dig deeper. And I do have the right to speak the truth, because I am commanded by God to do so. And…everything that I write comes straight from the Bible with my own personality and style of writing mixed in. I am not telling anyone what to do or how to live. God, through His Word, is who tells everyone, including me, what to do and how to live. Trust me Sisters and friends when I tell you that I’ve struggled with these invasive thoughts….struggled greatly. But, those thoughts are from Satan, not from God. Sometimes I still struggle, and I let these thoughts begin to creep back into my mind. But now I know how to get rid of them!! I get rid of them by meditating on God’s Word with verses like this….“For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” and so many more. (1 Tim. 1:7) Writing about God’s word makes me stronger. Regardless of whether my writing helps anyone else or not, it helps me. I know that this is what God wants me to do, and that is all that matters. God, through His Word, has helped me grow up as a Christian, and take responsibility for my own mission and ministry for Christ. God can do that for you too if you really start to listen to Him through His Word.

So what did I hear when I started truly listening to God? In my own words, it was as if God was saying, “Greta Leslie Thaxton Hoover, it is time for you to grow up. Stop being the one-talent-woman that my Son spoke of in Matthew 25:14-30. Stop burying what I have entrusted you with, Greta. Know your worth to Me, Greta. Forgive yourself, Greta. Forgive the people you need to forgive, Greta. Stop being afraid of other people’s opinions of you, Greta. Use what I have given you for my purpose, Greta. And keep growing, Greta.” I can’t tell you how different I feel today, as compared to 30 years ago, 20 years ago, 10 years ago, 5 years ago, 2 years ago, even a year ago. And I am still far from where I want to be as a Christian. I’ll be a work in progress for Him until the day that I go to be with Him. I give all the glory to God that I am where I am right now in my life. I stopped just reading the words of the Bible, and started letting God speak to me, personally, through the Bible. There is a difference. Meditating on God’s Word is powerful. The Bible isn’t just words on a page, friends. It has the power to change us if we truly want to change. Just listen to Hebrews 4:12, “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” What other book in the history of books has ever been described in this way? “Living and powerful”? A discerner of the thoughts and intents of our hearts? Wow! I’ll be honest….when I used to read this verse, it just didn’t sink in what it was truly saying.  I often think….what if I had never begun to meditate on God’s Word? What if I had never begun to really listen to God? What if I never understood His Word the way that He wanted me to? I can’t answer the what ifs and I don’t need to dwell on them. Do I wish I had started sooner in my life? It’s only natural that my answer to that is yes. Of course I do! But I just wasn’t ready, and I wouldn’t be who I am without all my past experiences…..the good and the bad…..the failures and the successes. God needs me where I am right now. He needs you where you are as well. Wherever you are in your life at this moment, just know that you can change and you can grow, but change and growth will only come through listening to and obeying God’s Word. I would not be writing this article today had I not made changes in how I listen to God…..through reading, studying, and meditating on God’s Word, and how I pray to Him. Let God speak to you and help you grow. You will be so very blessed if you do. I hope everyone has a blessed weekend. Love to you all. 

Have you started your “blessed” life in Christ yet? If you need help understanding how to be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His Word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

Sources

merriam-webster.com

biblegateway.com

blueletterbible.org 

Psalm 1- A Blessed Life

Part 3- What should we “delight in”?

In part 1 of this series, I focused on the first line of Psalm 1:1, “Blessed is the man” (person). I talked about what it means to be blessed in a spiritual sense. We are blessed when we are in Christ, and have put our faith and trust in Him. When we do this, we have an assurance that cannot be matched by any other feeling. We have the blessed assurance of a home with God someday. We also need to understand that we won’t be blessed if we are not putting Jesus first in our hearts and lives. We won’t have that blessed assurance that comes from knowing that we have our hearts and our priorities in the right order. Ultimately, the reason that we are blessed is because we know that our future is set in heaven with God, as long as we are a member of His body, remain faithful to Him, and keep Him number one in our lives. In part 2, I focused on the rest of Psalm 1:1 which focuses on what to stay away from. I discussed the subtlety of sin, and how it can creep into our lives in a slow progression until we are completely away from God. The verse takes us through the progression of a person walking in the counsel of the ungodly, standing in the path of sinners, and finally, sitting in the seat of the scornful. It is a dangerous and destructive progression…..a downward spiral, as we might call it today. In part 3, we will begin to focus on the positive!! What things should we dwell on in order to lead a blessed life? 

In the next verse, the writer begins to relate to us the actions of a person who is blessed. We were told what not to do in verse one, and now we are told what to do in verse two. Psalms 1:2a reads, “But his delight is in the law of the Lord…… (Psalm 1:2 NKJV)  What does the word delight mean? In Hebrew, it means hepes. Hepes means delight, pleasure, desire, or longing. It can also mean to be inclined to or have an inclination towards something, which means “a person’s natural tendency”. (Blue Letter Bible, dictionary.com) With that being said, what does the word delight mean in our lives? Are we naturally inclined to bend towards God’s word and law? I would have to say from my own personal experience that as humans we are not always naturally inclined to obey God, especially when we are young and immature as Christians. I’m not going to lie, the world used to be my natural inclination. And believe me, I am still a work in progress in this. And….everyone is different. Some are more inclined to follow God than others. Some of us (me) are stubborn. Some of us (again, me) have to go through some hard times before we begin to really look into God’s Word, and see just how delightful it is. Don’t get me wrong, I believed it, but I didn’t appreciate what it could do for my life. Sadly, there are some who never see it as anything other than a book written by men. And there are some who want to twist it to make it say what they want it to say to fit their own life, or simply ignore the parts that convict them of sin. When I came to truly realize that God has given me the words of eternal life in this amazing book called the Bible, I began to delight in it. At that point, I wanted to learn more and more. Eventually, my desire to learn turned into a desire to share what I have learned with others. At this point, it is my natural inclination to bend towards His word, like a plant growing and bending toward the sun. I firmly believe that we can grow into this inclination if we are in God’s word the way that we need to be. We can grow to delight in His Word. I did, and you can also. Delighting in God and His Word ties in with so many other emotions and behaviors. 

In Psalm 40:8, David says, “I delight to do your will, O my God, and Your law is within my heart.” This verse ties in well with Psalm 1:2, because if we “delight in the law of the Lord”, then we will desire to do God’s will. It all goes hand in hand. Psalm 37:4 reads, “Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.” Is this saying that God will give us material things if we delight in Him? No, not at all, because our desires of our heart should be our salvation and the salvation of others who are lost. Our desires should be spiritual, because that is all that matters when we leave this physical world. The desire of my heart is to be with God, and for my loved ones to be with God. But not only them, my desire is for everyone to obey God so that they can be with Him. If I am a true Christian, then that should be my desire. 

In Psalm 112:1, the Bible says, “Praise the Lord! Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who delights greatly in His commandments.” So in this verse, a blessed man not only delights in the Lord’s commandments, but he also fears the Lord. If we delight in the Lord, we will fear Him. The word fear in this verse comes from the Hebrew word yare which means to revere or respect. Proverbs 9:10 says this, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom….” What is it called when we come to a knowledge of how powerful and awesome that God truly is? Friends, that is fear.  How do we act on that fear? That fear causes us to use that knowledge that we have learned about God to make the decision to commit our lives to Him. How do we commit our lives to Him? We commit to Him through repenting of our sins, confessing Jesus’ name before others, and being baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (See the scripture references at the bottom of this post.) At this point, we have used our knowledge of God to make an informed, smart decision. Isn’t this the definition of wisdom? Using the knowledge we have gained to make decisions for our own good? Knowledge is useless if we don’t use it. What happens next? Well….we continue to “delight” in God Word. This will lead to more knowledge, more wisdom, and a life filled with blessings that only God can give us. It will also lead us to want to help others gain this knowledge and wisdom, which is God’s ultimate purpose for us. Another Hebrew word for fear is, pachad, which means dread, terror, or a sudden alarm. We see this word used in 1 Chronicles 14:17 when it says that “the fame of David went out into all lands, and the Lord brought the fear of him (David) upon all nations.” This was not a respectful or reverent fear that all the nations around them had for David. This was a fear for their physical lives. If we have the proper delight for God’s Word, we will fear (yare) God in the manner that we should. It won’t be a trembling in a corner kind of fear (pachad). It will be a wonderful, awesome feeling of reverence and respect that only comes from being a faithful Christian.

What do we delight in? There are many things in my life that I delight in…..my husband, my children, my grandchild, my extended family, my best friends, etc. I truly enjoy being with and talking to my family and friends. I am now an empty nester! So when my grown children come around, I am for sure delighted! They just don’t even comprehend how happy it makes me to spend time with them. And when I hold my grandson…..I am in a place of happiness that is hard to explain. It’s amazing how much joy our children and grandchildren bring us. But….where does my true fulfillment and satisfaction come from? Aside from the people in my life, I enjoy good music. I am definitely a music enthusiast. I love sports…..mainly basketball and tennis. I enjoy reading a good book. But….as much as I enjoy all those things….where do I find true delight? This verse says that a blessed person delights in “the law of the Lord”. To someone who is not a Christian or not a mature Christian, this might sound fairly boring. Why would I delight in laws? Why would I delight in someone telling me what I can and can’t do? But to us as Christians, it makes perfect sense. We are appreciative of God’s laws because we know they are for our own good. We know that we cannot direct our own steps. (Jeremiah 10:23)  Psalms 37:23 says this, “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, And He delights in his way.” The only way that we can be truly good is if we allow the Lord to guide our steps, and when that happens…..delight goes both ways. God delights in us as we delight in Him. We know that He has given us His law so that we can go to heaven someday. Let’s not forget that God doesn’t want anyone to be lost. (2 Peter 3:9) And…..since God’s law is God’s word, and God’s word is the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is God, then when we are delighting in God’s law, we are also delighting in God Himself, and in His Son Jesus who is also God. I know….mind blowing isn’t it! 

To sum everything up, delight is about desire. We have to delight in God’s Word, and have a desire to please Him. These go hand in hand. That desire has to be number one in our lives above everything else. I know that I fall short every day. I miss the mark often. But I am trying to build my knowledge and wisdom by being in God’s Word. Being in His Word so much more over the last couple of years has finally made me see what God wants from me. He wants my heart. He wants my love. He wants my commitment to His purpose. He wants to delight in me. Why did I wait so long to really work at it? I know that I let the world get in the way. I let my low self-image get in my way. God doesn’t see us the way that we see ourselves. Oh if we could only look at ourselves through God’s eyes, and see the delight that He has for each of us. I encourage you to get in His Word. Find your way of studying that works for you. If you haven’t found your way yet, it is time to start to “delight” in your wonderful, compassionate, merciful God and Father who loves you so very much. 

Have you started your “blessed” life in Christ yet? If you need help understanding how to be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His Word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

Sources

biblegateway.com

blueletterbible.org 

Psalm 1- A Blessed Life

Part 2- How do we lead a blessed life?

In part 1 of this series, we talked about what it means to be blessed. We said that being blessed doesn’t necessarily mean that we will be happy all the time, but that we have a deep fulfillment that only comes from God. Because we have this deep fulfillment that only God can give us, we remain content and satisfied with what we have in life. We can also deal with the suffering and trials that come our way as we lead our “blessed” life. We are blessed because we have God to turn to in our suffering and hard times. So….how do we stay blessed in the Lord?

Today, I want to focus on the rest of Psalm 1:1. It reads, “Blessed is the man (person) who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful;”. What is God trying to tell us in this verse through its writer? It is actually a warning to us. It also shows us the progressions of how sin can enter into our lives, and then grow and fester until we are dead spiritually. Just like we can become septic physically, and eventually die a physical death from whatever infectious toxin has entered our body, we can become septic spiritually from the toxicity of sin, and die a spiritual death. So how does this progression begin? Well, it all starts with who we choose to listen to. First, we are told to watch who we take advice or “counsel” from. It says that we are blessed, if we “walk not in the counsel of the ungodly”. (Psalms 1:1) If we need help in making difficult decisions, where should we turn? Of course, we know that we should turn to God through prayer and through His Word first and foremost. But…sometimes we need help discerning what God’s Word says. This is especially true when we are new Christians. And even mature Christians need godly advice from godly people during times of great distress. Stress can cause even the most faithful of people to not think clearly, and need the guidance of godly friends. Let’s go back to 2 Chronicles 10 and think about a young king named Rehoboam who had a choice to either listen to the wise counsel of “the elders who stood before his father Solomon while he still lived” , (2 Chron. 10:6) or listen to the unwise counsel of “the young men who had grown up with him” (2 Chron. 10:8). His decision caused the kingdom of Israel to eventually divide. After King Solomon’s death, Jeroboam, who had been a former official of the king, came with all of Israel and asked King Rehoboam to lighten the burdens that his father had put on them. (2 Chron. 10:3-4)  Rehoboam asked the elders who had counseled his father to advise him in this matter. They gave him great advice! They said, “If you are kind to these people, and please them, and speak good words to them, they will be your servants forever.” (2 Chron. 10:7) But did Rehoboam listen to them? No, he listened to his buddies who he grew up with, who were young and inexperienced just like he was. This is how King Rehoboam’s young naive friends told him to respond to the Israelites’ request, “My little finger shall be thicker than my father’s waist! And now, whereas my father put a heavy yoke on you, I will add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scourges!” (2 Chron. 10:10-11) Rehoboam didn’t really want the counsel of the elders. He was only going through the motions of asking the right people. He knew all along that he wasn’t going to take their advice. Rehoboam was on a power trip, and his friends were going along for the ride with him. Ten of the twelve tribes of Israel revolted against him causing the kingdom to be divided, with Jeroboam being crowned as king of those ten tribes. Rehoboam was king of the Israelites that remained in Judah. (2 Chron. 10:17) If only Rehoboam had listened to the good advice that was given to him. Things could have been much different for him. However, because of his unwillingness to listen to good advice, Rehoboam did not have a blessed life. He had a life of turmoil between the divided nation that he caused. However, all of this turmoil made no difference to God. He still carried out his plan to perfection in bringing us Jesus. God works everything out for His purpose for the good of all of us who are faithful to Him. (Romans 8:28) But we can learn a lesson from Rehoboam’s mistakes and not take bad advice from ungodly people. Let’s take the advice that lines up with what God wants us to do. Didn’t it sound like the elders who gave Rehoboam good advice were godly men? It certainly did to me! If the people from whom we are getting our advice are using God’s Word to advise us, then we should definitely heed their wise counsel. God always puts people in our path to help us if we will simply recognize them, and seek them out for help. Godly people giving us godly advice help us lead a blessed life. The word path brings me to my second point. What path are we on?

Let’s move on to the next part of the verse. It says we are blessed if we don’t “stand in the path of sinners”. (Psalms 1:1) In the above paragraph, I said that God will line our path with godly people who will give us good advice along the way. This only happens if we are on that righteous path. But….do we sometimes go off-road and get advice? Does this normally work out for us as Christians? Well….first of all, straying off the path of God for any reason at all never works out for us as Christians. It leaves us confused and lost. If we are seeking advice from someone off of God’s path, then we were probably beginning to get off the path to begin with, or toeing that line very closely. Proverbs 4:14-15 says, “Do not enter the path of the wicked, and do not walk in the way of evil. Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn away from it and pass on.” This is a straightforward warning from God’s Word. It doesn’t get much plainer than that. Of course, staying on the right path includes seeking advice from the people who are on the right path along with us. Have you ever had a time in your life when you sought out and took advice from someone who was either not a Christian or not a faithful Christian? Why did you do it? I know why I did it. First of all, I already had one foot off the righteous path anyway. Plus, I did it because deep inside, I didn’t want to hear God’s advice through godly people. I wanted my actions to be justified. I wanted to do what I wanted to do, and I wanted someone to tell me that I was fine. And I heard what I wanted to hear from those folks, which was something like this…… “You are a good person, and that is all that matters. God loves you no matter what. What you are doing is no big deal. There are a lot worse things you could be doing. If you are happy, that is all that matters. You are not hurting anyone. God doesn’t expect you to be perfect. Nobody is perfect. You are just enjoying life. No worries friend.” Does any of that sound familiar to anyone else besides me? These are some words of advice that I have gotten in my lifetime when I was toeing that line, and listening to my friends who were not Christians or not faithful Christians. I need to also be honest and say that I have been the unwise counsel to some friends in the past. I said things like that to others which saddens my heart. I justified my friends’ sins with some of the very words above. You see….justifying their sin helped me justify mine. Do you see the progression of sin in a person’s life? First, the person listens to bad advice. Next he/she acts on the advice. And then eventually, the person who first listened to the bad advice, is the one giving more bad advice to someone else. It is a snowball effect. I ask you, did any of that advice above come from God’s Word? The only thing that lines up with God’s Word is that “God loves me no matter what”, because He certainly does. He loved me while I was yet a sinner. (Romans 5:8)  But does that mean He is going to let my willful sin slide? Romans 6:1 says, “Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not!” God also knows that I am not perfect, but He expects me to strive for that perfection as best I can. Am I striving for perfection if I am involved in willful sin and trying to justify it? Sisters, you know the answer, even if you are in a place in your life where you don’t want to admit it. If that is the case, just know that I have been where you are….and I’m so thankful that I did a 180, turned back to God, and turned to some of my godly sisters in Christ to help me get back to where I needed to be. If you are where I was, then I’m here to tell you that you can make that turnaround anytime. As the Nike slogan says, “Just do it!” Don’t procrastinate what you know you need to do for your eternal soul. And remember…..anytime someone gives you advice, hold that advice up next to God’s Word and see if it matches up. If we want to lead a blessed life, we need to seek out godly advice from God’s Word and from godly people, and stay on the path that leads to an eternity in heaven with Jesus. Jesus gave us some good advice about what path to take in Matthew 7:13-14 when he said these words, “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” I believe this verse speaks for itself, and needs no explanation.

What happens if you stay in the path of sinners? And you continue to take bad advice from ungodly people? And you continue to hang out with the wrong crowd? Friends, if you listen to the wrong people long enough, and stay on the wrong path long enough, you will eventually find yourself sitting in the “seat of the scornful”. (Psalm 1:1) At this point, you are far off the righteous path, and nowhere close to leading a blessed life. What does it mean to be scornful? To be scornful means to express extreme contempt. (vocabulary.com) Some synonyms that I have found for this word are: contemptuous, mocking, scoffing, and jeering. (Thesaurus.com) A scornful person is someone who makes fun of others for doing what is right according to God. They laugh at Christians for using God’s Word as a guide for their life. And they don’t do this in private! They do it openly, in public and on social media. They make fun of us for not going along with society’s norms. A scornful person may be very nice to start with….that is, until you say something that is opposite what they believe to be true. Then they will become arrogant, defiant, and hateful towards you. Many of these people are miserable, because of the life they are leading. They are usually negative, pessimistic, and cynical. They need Jesus. We need to pray for them to somehow be led to the truth. 

Specifically speaking, there are also people in other religious bodies who are scornful towards the church of Christ in particular, because we don’t compromise God’s word in any way. We don’t have musical instruments, because the New Testament church did not use them. It’s simple. We are told to sing, so we sing. (Colossians 3:16, Ephesians 5:19) Other religious bodies criticize us because we teach against having manmade musical instruments included in worship to God. We also don’t believe that a person is saved from their sins until they are buried with Christ in baptism. This goes against the norm of what other religious organizations teach. However, we have scriptures to back all of this up which include every conversion story in the book of Acts (11 total), but we are still ostracized for our stand on this subject. Some folks think it is ridiculous that our members are “baptized for the remission of sins” in order to “put on Christ”. (Acts 2:38) (Galatians 3:27) But not only do we believe what the apostles say in Acts about baptism, but we believe what Jesus said about baptism as well, not to mention that Jesus was baptized Himself. He did this as an example for us, not to wash any sins away since He had none to wash away. If Jesus was baptized and God was pleased, why wouldn’t we think it was necessary? Check out Matthew 28:18-20 and Mark 16:15-16 to find out Jesus’ words about baptism. If Jesus said for us to do it, then why would we argue with Him? So….if anyone reading this is not a member of the church of Christ, here is where we stand. We speak where the Bible speaks, and we are silent where the Bible is silent. We follow the Bible as closely as we possibly can without adding to it or taking away from it. (Revelation 22:18-19) We use book, chapter, and verse so that it is God who determines and authorizes everything that we do or don’t do in our worship to Him. And also…..when we share our faith with you, it is because God has told us in His Word that it is up to us to bear fruit for Him by spreading His message. We are His vessels. If we don’t stand up for the truth of the gospel, then we will be cut off from Jesus. (John 15:1-6)  Plus…..we love your soul, and want to help you learn the truth, and go to heaven. Don’t take chances. As Peter says in 2 Peter 2:10, “….make your calling and election sure…”, which means, make sure about your salvation. Make sure that you are saved. If anyone out there reading this needs help in understanding the truth, please reach out. I would love to help you or put you in contact with someone who can. Every word that I write in my posts is written out of love for souls. 

Now…..here is a question for myself and my sisters in Christ. It may be a tough one to think about. Can we be found being scornful towards others who don’t believe the way that we believe? I believe we can, and that is not ok either. You see…everything that we say and do has to be done in the spirit of love and kindness, but without compromising God’s Word. Sometimes it feels like we are walking a tightrope, doesn’t it? It certainly does, but remember….the path that Jesus told us to walk in Matthew 7:13-14 is a narrow one, maybe even as narrow as a tightrope sometimes. It is easy to be non-confrontational and just nod your head in agreement with everyone else, even when we know that what they are saying is wrong. We have all been there, and it is not easy to be the only one speaking the truth in a group of people. People may become obstinate and possibly scornful towards us in this type of setting. And then comes another challenge for us. We have to be careful not to cross the line, and become scornful in our response towards those people. It can be hard to keep our cool, can’t it? Another challenge for us is watching what we say about others who we either know or assume are lost. Do we ever make light of people who are lost? Maybe they look different or dress differently. They may look completely outlandish to us, and we can’t figure out why they would want to look so different. We must remember that we don’t walk in anyone’s shoes. We don’t know why people choose to do the things that they do to themselves. We don’t know what they have been through in their lives. Let’s remember to be kind, speak to all people that we come into contact with, and smile at those people. Just remember that God made them just like He made us, and He loves them just as much as He loves us. Remember God wants ALL to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9) We don’t need to stare at someone, and then look away when that person notices us staring at them. That is not how we would want to be treated. The reason that I bring this up is because I have caught myself doing this myself, and then scolded myself for being so rude and insensitive. I realized that I was breaking Jesus’ commandment for me to do unto others as I would have them do unto me. (Matthew 7:12, Luke 6:31) We certainly don’t want to find ourselves getting down on the same level with the scornful. If we have the attitude of a scornful person, we most definitely will not win anyone to Christ. In fact, we will instead turn them away from the truth, and that would be on us if we did. What a scary thought!

In conclusion, the progression in Psalm 1:1 is so clear. There are three verbs in the verse……walk, stand, and sit. First, we begin to walk close to ungodly people and places. Maybe we are curious about these people and places. We know that they are not Christian people, but they seem nice and fun to be around. We begin to listen to their mindset and way of thinking. We may think, “I can still be a Christian, and get to know them a little. It can’t hurt just to check it all out, right?” And I can almost guarantee that part of the reason that we are buying into this mindset, is because we are not in God’s Word the way that we need to be. Next, we stop and stand with these people, and realize the sin that they are in. But do we get away from them at that point? No, we continue to hang out with them sometimes. Eventually we begin to dabble in sin along with them. We may think, “It can’t hurt just to do this every now and then, right? It is really not that big of a deal.” Before we realize it, we are sitting with them, and they are our best friends. At that point, we are deep in sin, with scornful people who have no regard for God at all. This is how Satan uses people, places, activities, and basically anything that he can to lure us away from God. So what is the point? The point is….don’t even walk towards sin. Don’t be curious about it. Stay away from it. The truth is….if we are tempted to walk towards someone who is involved in something that we know is wrong, then we will probably be tempted to do what they are doing when we get there. If we fall to the temptation and continue in the sinful activity, then it will lead to our spiritual death and separation from God. I’m certain that Eve was probably curious about the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and we can certainly see where her curiosity got her. You can see the progression from curiosity to sin in her story. We can see the sin progression in the story of David, Bathsheba, and Uriah. What started with David taking a closer look at Bathsheba as she bathed, turned into adultery and murder. There are also three descriptive words in the verse…..ungodly, sinners, and scornful. This is the progression of the types of people in our lives if we allow ourselves to be led in the wrong direction. We can never lead a blessed life with God while taking advice from people who do not have God in their life. This will only lead to the deterioration of our relationship with Jesus and our brothers and sisters in Christ. Let’s take the advice of the apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 6:14 when he says, “Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?” And let’s always remember that we are to be in the world, not of the world. (John 17:11, 14-15) The only reason that we should be walking towards the ungodly is to teach them the truth in love. If we have any desire in our hearts to be like them in any way, then we need to stay away so that we won’t be dragged down with them. So…let’s all stay on the path with people who help us lead a blessed life in Christ. And let’s help others to lead that blessed life in Christ. You’ve heard the saying, “She’s livin’ her best life!”. I want to live my best life with Jesus by my side. Don’t you? My best life is a blessed life in Him. 

Have you started your “blessed” life in Christ yet? If you need help understanding how to be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His Word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

Psalm 1- A Blessed Life

Part 1- What does it mean to be blessed?

How can we have the most blessed life possible? I believe God’s Word tells us in detail the answer to that question. I feel like this is something that I need to remind myself of often. As a Christian, I should be happy for the most part. Of course, none of us are happy 24/7. But, I should not let the daily aggravations of life get me down and steal my joy so often. I need to realize just how “blessed” I am to be a Christian. Also, it took me such a long time to realize how to lead a blessed life. I can claim to be a Christian with my words, but does my attitude show it? Does my demeanor show it?  Let’s begin to break down Psalm 1 and begin to truly see how to lead a “blessed life”. We all want that….right? What does “blessed” mean? Is being blessed simply just being happy?

Psalm 1:1 starts with the words “Blessed is the man (person)…”. So…what does it mean to be truly blessed in life? The first thing that most people think of when they hear someone say, “I’m blessed” is happiness. This is not completely wrong. Being blessed would include happiness at times, but the psalmist is not talking about a person’s feelings of happiness or sadness in this context. We know that we can be blessed within our lives, and yet still have times of great sadness. Being blessed means that we are content and satisfied with the life that we are living. It does not mean that our life is all sunshine and rainbows every single day. It is a deep fulfillment that comes from only one place…..God. It is knowing that everything is going to turn out fine no matter what happens to us. It is that feeling of security that we have in Christ. We are blessed when we decide to put our trust in God….and upon making that decision, we then have hope. 

We see a beautiful picture of what it means to be blessed in Jeremiah 17:7-8, “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, And whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, Which spreads out its roots by the river, And will not fear when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, And will not be anxious in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit.” 

If we are in Christ, we can face the trials of life that come our way. We can endure when the “heat comes” and face the “year of drought” as Jeremiah calls it without fear or anxiety, because we have hope in Christ. Some people consider themselves blessed if they have lots of money and material possessions, but that is not the meaning of the word blessed in Psalm 1:1. We know that rich people are sometimes the most unhappy people of all, because they look to earthly treasures for fulfillment. I feel certain that many of you have seen the show “Little House on the Prairie”. It is one of my favorite shows of all time. The Ingalls family is considered poor, and they are always struggling when it comes to money, but they are always joyful because of the love they have for God and one another. And they are always ready and willing to help others even though times are hard for them. On the other hand, there is the Olsen family. They own the only store in town, and are considered the richest family in Walnut Grove. However, Mrs. Olsen is one of the most miserable and selfish people that I’ve ever seen on television, and she is raising her daughter, Nellie, to be even worse than she is. Her husband Nels disagrees with her constantly, but can’t seem to do anything to change her ways. In one particular episode, when the Ingalls family had worked together to pay off their bill at the Olsens’ store, Nels Olsen tells Charles Ingalls that he thinks Charles is the “the richest man in Walnut Grove”. Charles then says, “Nels, I know I am.” Nels envied the way Charles’ family loved and respected him and each other, and pulled together as a family to get things done. They didn’t need material things to find joy and happiness. Money and things will never make a person happy. In fact, when people become greedy and selfish with money, it makes them miserable. Money is not even a part of having a blessed life. Can you have lots of money and still be blessed in the way that we are talking about? Yes, but only if you don’t care whether you lose the money or not. The rich young ruler was blessed financially, but went away saddened when Jesus told him that he would have to be willing to part with all of his riches in order to inherit eternal life. (Mark 10:17-27) His love of money brought him sadness. To be truly blessed is having the assurance found in Christ….the assurance that we will live in heaven with God for eternity. It reminds me of the words of one of my favorite hymns, “Blessed Assurance” by Fanny Crosby.

 “Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine! 

Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine!

 Heir of salvation, purchase of God

Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.

This is my story, this is my song!

Praising my Savior all the day long!

If this hymn doesn’t sound like a blessed person in Jesus, I don’t know what does. I love it! Singing this hymn with only our voices in unity, together with my sisters and brothers in Christ is a blessing all in itself. No instruments, no choir, no one singing a solo, no one being put on a pedestal above anyone else….just a group of Christians offering “the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name”. (Hebrews 13:15) When we worship God in song, do we sing as if we are the blessed people of God? I’m asking myself this question for sure. Do I sing with my spirit and sing with my understanding? (1 Corinthians 14:15) When I sing the words of the hymn “Blessed Assurance” in praise to God, do I truly mean what I am singing? Do I believe it? Every part of our worship to God is a blessing and a privilege, and plays a huge part in us having a “blessed” life. We are blessed if we belong to Christ’s church, and we are able to “worship Him in spirit and truth”. (John 4:24)  Becoming a Christian is only the beginning of leading a blessed life. But how do we stay in this “blessed” state? We will break down more of Psalm 1 to find out the answer to that question in my next post. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend and a blessed holiday on Monday. 

On a side note, I hope you will spend a little time thinking about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life and purpose, since Monday is a holiday commemorating him. If you haven’t listened to his “I Have a Dream Speech”, I hope you will. It is phenomenal. His quest was to bring our country together during a tumultuous time in history. He only wanted everyone to be treated fairly no matter their race. His vision was for us to live in a world where people would not judge one another by the color of their skin, and he was murdered because of that vision. God made all of us. He does not see color, therefore we should not either. God looks at the heart of a person, as should we. (1 Samuel 16:7)  Love you all!

Have you started your “blessed” life in Christ yet? If you need help understanding how to be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His Word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

The Patience of God

Do you ever wonder why we are still here? Why has God let the world continue for as long as it has? God has kept every promise that He has ever made except the promise about Jesus’ second coming. In 2 Peter 3:8-9 ESV, we find out why Jesus has not returned. It reads:

“But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”

God isn’t slacking! He is not just being slow. He is not indifferent about passing judgment. He is patiently waiting on everyone to repent, obey the gospel, and follow Him. Why is He so patient towards us? Because  God, who loves us all so much that He sent His Son to die for ALL of us, does not want anyone in the human race to be lost!! Notice that verse nine says that he doesn’t “wish” or want anyone to perish, but it doesn’t say that no one will. Unfortunately, there are many people who have passed away in a lost condition. However, there are people being baptized for the remission of their sins every single day. I see it on Facebook. I hear about it from other people. God’s word, the Holy Spirit, is still alive and doing its work here on earth. God is continually adding people to His church every day, because the Bible is alive and working in people’s hearts!! 

Listen to Hebrews 4:12 describe the living Word of God,  “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” 

As long as there are souls being saved, then I have faith that God will continue to be patient. God already knows everyone who is going to become a Christian. He already knows everyone who will stay faithful until death. He already knows everyone who is wayward at this moment, but will eventually be restored. Only God knows the exact day that He will send Jesus back to get us. The angels don’t know and even Jesus Himself doesn’t know. (Matthew 24:36, 44) Jesus compares His coming to a thief in the night. If we knew exactly what time the thief was coming to rob us, would we not be prepared at exactly that moment so that we could stop him? (Matthew 24:43) 

Peter makes this statement in 2 Peter 3:10 directly after our key verses, “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.” 

So….upon hearing all of that….do we need to continue to test God’s patience by thinking that we have all the time in the world to get our lives right? It is a dangerous way to live, my friends. I procrastinated getting my life right for years. I tried to justify things that I was doing that were wrong, and I made excuses for the things that I was not doing that I should have been doing. I’m so thankful for God’s patience. I know He has waited patiently for a really long time for me to somewhat get my act together. If you are reading this, and you are not a Christian, or you are not being a faithful Christian, then you are who God is patiently waiting on. How long will He wait? We don’t know! Don’t take chances with your soul. God is patient, but we don’t know the hour when He has planned to send Jesus back. Plus…..we don’t know when our life will end. Anything can happen at any moment to cause our life to be over. At that point, God’s patience for us is over, and we don’t get another chance. Is God waiting on you? 

Jesus compares the end of time with the flood of the old testament in Matthew 24:37-39 when He says, “For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.” 

No one knew when the flood was going to destroy the earth, not even Noah. Speaking of patience, let’s think about Noah for a moment. He waited patiently for 120 years while building the ark, from the time God told Him to build the ark until the time of the flood. All that time, He was trying to warn the people, and get them to change their evil ways while they all laughed and made fun of him. God waited patiently for Noah to build the ark so that He could bring about the judgment that was needed for His plan to continue. You see….a day, 120 years, a thousand years….it makes no difference to God. He definitely works within our human time zone, but He isn’t concerned about the length of time things take, just like He isn’t concerned about how old we are when we get our life right with Him. It only matters that we do it before our time runs out here on earth. Think about that.

Do you remember waiting for Christmas Eve or your birthday to come when you were a kid? It was so hard to wait, but you had no choice but to be patient. Do you remember being in the car for a long trip and saying, “Are we there yet? How much farther?”? As an adult, I get impatient when I am in a traffic jam or when I get put on hold on the phone for a few minutes. Our time is precious to us, and we don’t like to waste it. We are always in a hurry to get where we need to go. That being said, I believe we all need to slow down and enjoy our moments more. That is just a free opinion, but easier said than done, right? But what is time to God? We know that God’s patience is so much greater than ours simply because of this statement in 2 Peter 3:8, “with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” This simply means that God will wait as long as He has to wait for His plan to unfold. Whether it takes a day, or a thousand years, God will wait until the time is right, just the way He waited until the time was just right for Jesus to be born. Things that seem like a long time to us are not a long time to our eternal God. This part of the verse has been taken out of context by so many people. I have heard some people try to make this relate back to creation. They try to say that, because of this section of this one verse, we can’t say that one day during the week of creation was a regular day as we humans know it. They say that each day of creation could have been thousands, millions, or billions of years long. This is just not true. The Hebrew word for day (yom) in Genesis 1:1 is the same Hebrew word for day that is used throughout scripture. If we can’t trust that when God says a day, He means a day, then can we trust anything that He says? God speaks to us in our time zone. He is the one who made time!! He would not speak to us about a day of creation in Genesis and mean millions of years, and then turn around and speak of a day later in scripture as meaning a regular day. That is confusing, and God is not the author of confusion. (1 Corinthians 14:33) Most of the book of 2 Peter is focused on being ready when the Lord comes again and watching out for false teachers while we are here. Why would Peter have thrown in something that refers back to creation and time in this context? The answer is….he wouldn’t have and he didn’t!! This is just another of the evolutionists’ desperate attempts to prove their theories. Moses spoke of the days of creation when giving the commandment about keeping the Sabbath day holy. 

In Exodus 20:11, he says,  “For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.” 

There is no doubt about it. God made the earth in six literal days and rested on the seventh day.  If God was speaking things into existence, then why would He need a million years within each day to create everything? Don’t let evolutionists cloud your mind with their baseless theories. Nothing they have ever said has been proven. In fact, the majority of their theories have been disproven by the Bible. Watch what your kids are being taught in school, because the devil wants them. Through the teaching of evolution, Satan can put doubt in our children’s minds, and then it can grow and spread until they don’t even believe God’s word at all any more. Please watch out!! Dinosaurs are so much fun for kids to learn about, but make sure to teach them with the Bible as the main source of information, and don’t buy books and materials that talk about dinosaurs living “millions of years ago”. That is contrary to God’s Word. There are wonderful materials out there that teach children all the wonders of the dinosaurs while keeping the information in line with the Bible. Check out apologeticspress.org for some great materials. Here is the bottom line my friends, we either take all of God’s Word to be the truth, without twisting it to fit what man says, or we don’t take any of it. 

So…what led up to Peter penning our key verses in 2 Peter 3:8-9 about the patience of our great God? If we go back to the beginning of the letter, we see that the book is written to: 

“those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ..” (2 Peter 1:1 NKJV)

The book is a letter that was written to those with “like precious faith” the same as Peter,  which means it was written to Christians. The letter is Peter’s final pep talk to his readers before his impending death. He tells his readers to “make their call and election sure” with diligence after giving them a list of attributes to add to their faith, which included, virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love. He tells them if they abound in these things, then they will never be unfruitful and they will never stumble. (2 Peter 1:5-11) Does this not sound like a motivational speech when you read these verses? It is certainly motivational for me. This short book is packed full of encouragement for us as Christians. And the example that Peter sets before us is amazing!! Here he is, knowing that he is on the verge of death (martyrdom) just as Jesus had told him in John 21:18, and what is his main concern? The souls of his fellow Christians after he has passed on is his main concern. Listen to these verses, 

“...I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth. Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you, knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease.” (2 Peter 1:12-14)

According to 1 Peter 5:1, Peter was an elder in the Lord’s church. What an example for all elders today!! Peter wanted his flock to have this letter as a set of reminders, words of encouragement, and a pick-me-up after he is gone. He wants them to have something that will be passed down through the generations. This letter was probably written sometime between 65-68 AD, before Peter was martyred in 68 AD, and here we are still getting the pep talk from Peter today. I love it!  In 2 Peter 2, Peter uses this entire chapter to warn Christians about false teachers. He says that many will follow them and “the way of truth will be blasphemed”. (2 Peter 2:1) Is this not a picture of not only the world, but the religious world as well today? 

He gives them a very eye-opening statement in 2 Peter 2:21-22 when he says, “For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. What the true proverb says has happened to them: “The dog returns to its own vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.”

In my opinion, this may be one of the scariest statements made in the whole Bible, especially for people who have fallen away and left the Lord’s church. I can just imagine standing before God on judgment day knowing that I had salvation in the palm of my hand, but I followed a man’s opinion and turned my back on the truth. Or…maybe I just gradually became unfaithful and left the church, because I didn’t grow and bear fruit. Or…maybe I was there every time the doors were open, but I was not living my life outside of those doors the way that God would have me to live it. Wow. Just thinking about having Jesus, and then throwing Him away would have to make that moment so much worse. The analogy of the dog and the sow paints a picture of how God feels about us when we go back into the world after becoming a Christian. It makes me think about how He has felt about me in the past, which brings me full circle…back to God’s patience. 

But why is Peter reminding them of God’s patience? Why does he bring this subject up? If we back up to 2 Peter 3:1-4 we see the reason. It reads: 

“This is now the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles, knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.””

Peter said that there would be people (scoffers) who would mock us and make fun of us for what we believe. The world says things like… “Do you really believe He’s coming back? It’s been so long! Do you really believe all that heaven and hell stuff? That stuff is all myths and fairy tales.” And then this one, “Do you really believe that Jesus was God’s son and was resurrected from the dead? He was just a regular guy who was a little radical.” And this, “Where is God? If He was coming back, He would have come back by now. Just do what you want, because if God even exists at all, He isn’t interested in us.” Have you heard things like this? Sadly, I have! I’m sure we have all heard variations of these statements. Wow! Peter called it, didn’t he? Aren’t we scoffed at just like Peter said we would be, because we follow the Bible and trust in God to keep His promises to us. Are we surprised? They mocked and made fun of Jesus for saying that He was God’s Son. Jesus said that the world would hate us, but not to worry because it hated Him first. (John 15:18-19) This is why Peter was inspired to write about the patience of God. Because He knew what we were going to be faced with. Peter was an elder….a shepherd of the Lord’s church who gave us one last phenomenal pep talk before he was martyred for the cause of Christ. Peter knew that God had been patient with him when he was weak in his faith, and guilty of denying Christ three times for fear of what men might do to him. Look back through Bible history at the patience of God. God has given everyone free will to make decisions for themselves. God doesn’t force anyone to follow Him. He never has! God has patiently waited as people all down through history have made bad decisions and turned away from Him, then made good decisions and turned back to Him, over and over again. God destroyed the earth once before, and started over again with only Noah and his family. And He knew that He was going to have to do that from the beginning, because He is all-knowing!! Does that not take patience on His part? Then one day, the time was right for Jesus. God always knew when that time would come about. And then….the time was right for His church to be established. God knew when those moments would take place from the beginning. And now, He is patiently waiting for each of us….waiting on us, Sisters…..to do all we can for His purpose….to help save as many as we can. 

Peter poses a question to us in 2 Peter 3:11-12, Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?

When I paraphrase this to speak to myself, here is what I say. “What manner of person ought you to be, Greta Hoover? Since all this is only temporary, how should you act while you are here?” We know the answer. Sisters, let’s recognize and be thankful for God’s patience with us, all the while staying prepared for the day of His return by “growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 3:18)

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! Love you all!!  

Are you in Christ? Are you a branch connected to the true vine, which is Jesus Christ? (John 15:1-8) Below I have added God’s plan of salvation with scripture references. If you need help understanding how to be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

Abiding in Christ

Part 2- What will 2024 look like for you?

Do you have a new year’s resolution yet? Have you thought about it? I make them every year. I usually start off strong and then I start to fizzle out after a while. It makes me feel bad about myself every year when I don’t keep the promises that I make to myself. What really upsets me even more is that the promises that I make to myself, I make to God first and foremost so … .basically I have broken promises to God every single year. I tell God every year that this year is going to be different!! Here are some of the things that I tell God I am going to do pretty much every year in no particular order of importance. I tell Him that I’m going to take better care of the body that He has blessed me with by changing my eating and exercise habits. I tell Him that I am going to get up earlier to devote a certain amount of time to Him every morning through Bible study and prayer. I tell Him that I am going to stay positive and not get discouraged about things I can’t control. I tell Him that I am not going to worry so much and that I am going to lay everything at His feet. I tell Him that I am going to try harder to find ways to talk to people about Him. And that’s only a few!! It’s overwhelming the pressure that I put on myself, and then when I fail, and I always do, I feel like giving up. That is why I have decided not to call it a new year’s resolution this year. There will be no making a list of things I am going to do differently this year. Because you see…..I can’t do anything on my own. I can’t change anything about myself all by myself. The new year’s resolutions may work for some people, but they don’t work for me personally. I believe that making that list of resolutions, for me anyway, is detrimental to me spiritually. It causes me to take my focus off of my Heavenly Father and put my focus onto myself, and I don’t rely on Him the way that I should. I am simply going to use the title of this post as my intentional phrase for, not only 2024, but for the rest of my life. My intention for the rest of my life is to intentionally abide in Jesus. If I can truly do that, then I might be able to have some success in some areas of my life that need improving. Obviously, I will fall short as we all do, but my focus will be on Jesus and not on a list of expectations I have for myself. I am super hard on myself, and not meeting those expectations that I have of myself, year after year, has taken its toll on me. Just remember this my sisters, nothing in our lives will truly get better, unless we are abiding in Jesus. I have learned the hard way that my physical, mental, and emotional health will not get any better until I get my spiritual life in order. We can be in the best physical shape we could possibly be in, but our spiritual life can be a shambles. So my intention from this point forward is to abide in Jesus. If I do that, then I will be able to improve the areas of my life that need improvement, whether they be spiritual, physical, mental, emotional, or even social areas of my life. I hope you will go on this journey with me and let’s be intentional about abiding in Jesus together. Like Jesus said in John 15:5, “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” There are many people in this world with many God-given talents who accomplish lots of wonderful things, but they don’t follow Jesus. I myself can do lots of things that won’t really matter when I come to the end of my life. The one thing that Jesus asks all of us to do is to bear fruit for Him. I can’t do that if I am not abiding in Him. In turn, if I want to abide in Him, then I have to bear fruit. Therefore, without Him, I can do nothing. If I leave this earth without bearing fruit, then I have done nothing with my life. 

Why does He use this analogy of a vine and branches to describe Himself and His followers? Why does He call Himself the “true vine”? In the old testament, the symbol of a vine is used to represent God’s chosen people, the nation of Israel. Psalm 80:8 says this, “You have brought a vine out of Egypt; You have cast out the nations, and planted it.” This is referring to when God delivered His people out of slavery in Egypt and then gave them the land of Canaan that He promised them. In Isaiah 5, Israel is referred to as a vineyard in which God is displeased. He says in Isaiah 5:4-5, What more could have been done to My vineyard that I have not done in it? Why then, when I expected it to bring forth good grapes, Did it bring forth wild grapes? And now, please let Me tell you what I will do to My vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it shall be burned; And break down its wall, and it shall be trampled down. God is at His wits end with His vineyard, Israel. Israel is a corrupt vine in the above verses. He uses the good grapes versus wild grapes illustration to make a point. Wild grape vines are considered weeds and will overtake the true grape vine or any other type of plant that is around them for that matter. They are very invasive and will destroy the plant if allowed to spread. The wild grape vines represent the idolatry and sin that had overtaken God’s vineyard, Israel. God says He will not protect them anymore from their enemies. This is why they were carried into captivity. Jeremiah 2:21 also speaks of Israel being a vine, “Yet I had planted you a noble vine, a seed of highest quality. How then have you turned before Me into the degenerate plant of an alien vine?”  Wow. In other words, God said, “I made you my special people, but now you are strangers to me.” Let’s put this into today’s perspective. Can you imagine God saying these things about us today? Imagine our great God saying this on judgment day, “What more could I have done for you? I gave you My Son! I gave you a way to be with me someday for eternity. But you have allowed a wild grape vine (sin) to take over your lives. I don’t know you anymore. So now I have to cut you off for eternity.” Now does the analogy of the vine and the branches make more sense? It does to me. After I went back and read about Israel being referred to as a vine, and how God had to cut them off and allow them to be taken into captivity, the analogy makes perfect sense. God did this so that they would eventually repent and turn back to Him. This is why sin cannot be allowed to remain in the church today unchecked. It can destroy God’s kingdom here on earth if allowed to spread. It also doesn’t help the person who is in sin to allow them to stay in sin, and remain a part of the church. This is why discipline is so important in the church. There are many scriptures on the subject of church discipline, but here are a couple for you to reference if you need them. (Matthew 18:15-20, 2 Thessalonians 3:6) When I started this study, the idea of tying church discipline in with the vine and the branches had not occurred to me. It is amazing how God’s word fits together like a puzzle, the finished product being our victory over sin and death. Here is one more example of church discipline found in 1 Corinthians 5:4-8, “In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” Do you see the connection between the wild grape vine and the leaven? Both are representing what sin does when it is left unchecked, whether it be in someone’s personal life, in the church, or in an entire nation. We cannot be connected to Jesus and be living in sin. Our church cannot stay connected to Jesus knowing that there is public and willful sin that is not being addressed. No one is perfect and we all make mistakes and sin, but willfully being involved in sin with no effort to get out of it is what Paul is speaking of in these verses. The church at Corinth had a person in willful and public sin in their assemblies taking part in the worship services. Paul said no to this situation as you can see in the above verses. He told them to give that person who is in sin over to Satan, or in other words, cut the branch off! Maybe the person will wake up and see the error of their ways and repent. Abiding in Christ in our personal lives affects the church as a whole. It takes all of us being “all in” to spread God’s word and save souls. The vine in the old testament, which was Israel, was the vine that spread through the course of history to bring forth Jesus, who is the true vine. God, the vinedresser, cultivated the vine of Israel so that we could have the true vine in His Son. He continues to cultivate us as branches on that true vine. We, the branches, are a product of that true vine. The fruit that we bear is a product of our connection with the true vine. In other words, as long as we are truly abiding in the true vine, which is Jesus, we will bear fruit. What conversations led up to this analogy of the vine and the branches? Let’s make some more connections. 

Let’s go back to John 14 for a moment to see what led up to Jesus using this analogy. In John 14:15-18, Jesus says,  “If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever—the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.” Jesus is telling His disciples, as well us today, that He will not leave us alone. He may not be physically present with us, but He will send a “Helper, the Spirit of truth.” This “Helper” is the Holy Spirit. The verses say that the “Helper” will “abide” with us forever. This Helper or Spirit of truth is God’s Word, the Bible. God’s word is truth. Psalm 119:160 assures us of this fact, “The entirety of Your word is truth, and every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever.” And God’s Word is God according to John 1:1. It reads, “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” The Word of God and God are one and the same. I’ve heard of some who say they believe in a god, or, as some call it, a higher power, but they don’t believe the Bible to be the absolute truth. They don’t believe in the only true and living God of the Bible. But … .I have to ask those people this question … .how do we even know about God … .who, by the way, is the ONLY higher power that exists or has ever existed, other than through the inspired Word of God, the Bible. In John 14:15-18, Jesus is setting up His presentation of the vine and the branches analogy by assuring us that even though He may not be with us in the flesh, He will be with us through the Holy Spirit which is God’s Word. Jesus wants us to know that through God’s Word, we should always stay connected to Him. We can continue to be a branch connected to the “true vine”, Jesus Christ. Does this mean that we will always automatically be connected to Jesus no matter what we do? No. The Bible says that as long as we abide in Him, He will abide in us. Jesus is not going anywhere. He will never leave us. Sadly, it is us who leave Him sometimes. It is us who neglect Him. Can we stay connected if we don’t study His word, if we don’t pray to Him, or if we don’t assemble to worship Him? The answer to that question logically is “no, we can’t”. The Bible tells us that we must abide in His Word if we want to remain attached to the true vine, Jesus Christ. To put this into an everyday perspective, can we stay connected to anyone or anything if we don’t put forth some effort ourselves? If we don’t stay connected with friends and family, then we will lose our connection with them. If one of our friends makes an effort to have a relationship with us and we just keep blowing them off, what is eventually going to happen? They will eventually stop making the effort. We may come to realize our mistakes and try to apologize for our neglect of the friendship, but who knows if the relationship will ever be the same as before. However, with Jesus, all we have to do is reach out to Him and He will pull us right back to Him just the same as we were before. We may blow Jesus off over and over but guess what?  He will forgive us over and over again as long as our hearts are sincere. That is the beauty of being in Christ. 

To sum all of this up, Christ has to be number one in our lives if we are truly abiding in Him properly. Abiding in anything requires faith in what you are abiding in. We have to have true faith in Christ or we won’t be able to abide in Him. Another word for abide is to remain. It is not a jump in and jump out type of situation. We can’t just abide in Christ when it is convenient for us, because it won’t always be convenient. Abiding has to be constant. It is not just showing up for church on Sundays and Wednesdays. That is only a part of it. Being at every service is the very least we can do. Abiding is a twenty-four hour a day, seven day a week responsibility. It is sort of like being a parent to a newborn baby or any age child for that matter. I just use a newborn because he/she is totally dependent on you every second of every day. You abide in that role as a parent every second of every day. We abide in Christ in much the same way. It is not easy and it won’t come naturally without effort. Jesus depends on us to be His branches that bear fruit through the spreading of His Word and Jesus is the Word. John 1:14 says this, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” Jesus is the word that became flesh for us. It is only fitting that we give our lives in service to Him.

So…I ask myself, and you ask yourself, what will 2024 look like for me? How can I abide in Christ this year? What does abiding in Christ look like in my personal life? In my family? In my church family? In my community? At my job? Abiding in Christ does not just happen without any effort on our part. It has to be intentional. We won’t continue to abide in Christ if we are not purposeful in it. Our choices are what keep us in Christ. Do we choose to set aside time for Bible study and prayer each day? Are we showing our children that example at home? Friends, that is where the fruit-bearing has to start, with our own families. But does it stop there? No, we continue to show Christ in our daily lives wherever we go, and we seek opportunities to share the gospel. Are we looking for those opportunities? Are we praying for opportunities? Are we giving of ourselves and our talents to the work of our congregation in whatever way we can? I hope 2024 finds each of us abiding in Him in everything we do. Our lives will be blessed and our cup running over if we do. Love you all! Happy New Year!! 

My friends…to abide in Jesus, we must first be in Him. We can’t abide in Jesus if we haven’t done what we need to do to be in Him. Are you in Christ? Are you a branch connected to the true vine, which is Jesus Christ? (John 15:1-8) Below I have added God’s plan of salvation with scripture references. If you need help understanding how to be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)