This Storm

   Psalms 3 shows us that although your enemies-those who loudly reject the LORD's name and pressure you to do so as well-are all around you and try to tell you that God won't deliver you from your circumstance, find peace knowing that He answers your prayers. He is strong, and will shield you against them. He gives you life and lets you wake. He is God indeed.

   Also, in Psalm 69, David calls out to the LORD for help. We, too, can present our struggles and lift up our needs to Him; He will surely save us. We're called to seek Him against all odds. If we endure through trials and hardships He won't let us sink.

   God knows what's going on in our lives because He is our GOOD father. He desires a personal relationship with us, so we should draw near to Him even in our times of trial. Praise Him because He is our comfort.

   Here's a song that really helps when you're struggling with finding ways to praise God throughout trials. I hope you check it out! God Bless!

Joy vs. Happiness

 Everybody wants happiness. However, do you really know the difference between having happiness and having joy?

 Happiness is only a state, a temporary emotion that comes about under certain circumstances. Joy, on the flip side, is eternal, unchanging, and unconditional. You can have joy in times of peace, and joy in times of trial.

 So how does one go about obtaining said joy? To understand that, we should first go back and understand exactly what is most important in life: following Christ. If you read through the book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon, the wisest man to ever live, presents a constant theme. He says everything is meaningless except for chasing after the LORD.  Luckily for us, Solomon also writes in Proverbs 10:28 that following God's will naturally brings about joy. So, by doing what is pleasing to God, you will also get what you really desire. In addition, David shows us that if you don't have joy, you can ask the LORD for it (Psalms 4:7) and He will provide.

 But how can having joy help your witness? This goes back to my opening statement. Everybody longs for joy, so if non-believers see that you have something eternal, they'll want to be a part of that. A part of them knows that they'll never be satisfied with their way of life, because if you only have happiness you'll constantly have to keep filling up that Jesus-shaped void in your heart with something new. I don't know about you, but quite frankly that sounds exhausting.

Shackles

1 Corinthians 9:22

God came down as a man and shared our sufferings so that we may be saved. He presented us with a key to release us from the heavy chains of sin. Why, then, would we stay in said chains if the key is right in front of our nose? Because the shackles are all we know.

You see, people refuse the key because they know they have to change after they're released from their bonds. Being stubborn and prideful often gets in the way of acceptance.

Pride also keeps us from introducing others to God's key. However, 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 states that we are supposed to preach to others (share the gospel) to receive the gift.

Are you being called to receive the key? To share it with family, friends, or perhaps even a passerby? Don't let the chains confine you anymore. We can't do that on our own; we need a savior. Let the Lord break you chains off.

The Rich Young Ruler

Mark 10:17-27 is the story of a very wealthy young man who meets Christ.

You see, in present day society, money talks. It gives you opportunities, gets you places, and opens doors that would otherwise be closed. 

However, there is one door that no amount of money can open: the gate to heaven. 

The young ruler learns of this when Jesus told him to give his wealth to the poor in order to inherit eternal wealth in heaven. Jesus also commands the young man to follow him.

This presented a problem for the ruler. Should he give up his earthly treasures and follow this man? At this point, his possessions had become an idol to him that he wanted to hold on to more than the Lord. It became an obstacle in his spiritual journey with God. 

The young man walks away downcast because he can't bear to give up his riches. He is the only person in the New Testament that we know of who comes to Jesus and leaves saddened. 

A practical analogy for this situation would be a doctor diagnosing a patient's problem, and then the patient leaving unhappily because they don't want to do what the doctor tells them to in order to become healthy.

The rich young ruler was supposed to give up his wealth so that he could follow the Lord without distractions, just as we're called to give up anything that we put before Him. Following Christ is the only way to inherit eternal life; salvation from beginning to end is not something a human can achieve by their own strength.  

Life Lesson: Put away your idols so that you may be in the presence of the Lord.

Heavy Sleeper

"Being Comfortable is Only Easy for the Non-Christian"

Do you want to be so transparent that your friends and family can see what God has done in your life?

James 4:5

We don't like being transparent. Because then they will hold us to a higher standard than before. We like being comfortable. But being a believer we are supposed to be uncomfortable.

There are too many people who know of God and about God, but they do not know Him. They have all the head knowledge, but lack a relationship.

If you're being comfortable in your faith, then it isn't real. If your faith is real, you can't stand being comfortable.

Our way is the wrong way. God is trying to get your attention.

God will try to get your attention early on, but when you don't hear the alarm, God will bring you to your lowest point for you to finally hear the alarm.

Sometimes a good friend can see the harm in you before you can see it in yourself.

Proverbs 27:6
Do you have someone in your life to speak the truth even when you don't want to hear it?

We often miss the alarm because we are not sensitive enough to it.

Once you wake up, you look around and wonder how you got to this certain point in your life.

How many alarms have to go off before you see yourself slipping.

We are naturally prone to wonder, but the more time we spend with God, the less likely we are to do that. This is why accountability is so important.

You don't have to hit rock bottom to come to your senses. You can turn back to God right now.

Genesis 4:1-10
We seem to always give God the leftovers.
v.6-7 God sounded the alarm. He said that Cain had an opportunity to do what is right. And then another warning.

God gives us instructions, but its up to us to make the decision.

God is always watching for us, waiting for us, pursuing us.

Christ is the only one that can clean us up. We come just as we are and then we get cleaned up.