Would it matter to you whether you were on the mountain top, or in the valley on your knees? I wonder sometimes whether God would rather be praised when things are good or if things are bad. I think maybe when God has us in a valley, He shows us that we need to praise Him above everything. I forget that sometimes when i’m on the mountain close to Him. I encourage you today that you would praise God wherever you are. If you’re in the valley on your knees, you can only grow closer to God.
Rooted in Christ
In youth the other night we had the topic “Rooted in Christ”.
By identifying winds of our christian walk, we could find ways to deal with them. Winds such as worldly influences, doubts, temptations, peer pressure, seeing others blown over and not getting up, media, consumerism and other discouragements.
These winds can destroy our roots in Christ, namely our faith. We need to be mindful of our doctrine. (“Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming.”-Ephesians 4:14) We are constantly bombarded with information, theories and ideas. We need to sift through what is true. (“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.” – Colossians 2:6-8 )
What can i do to become more rooted and established in the faith?? I can excersize applying what i believe. I can know my Bible, grow in knowledge of God’s word. I can spend time with other christians. I can be watchful, be careful who teaches me, what i read, and go back to the standard of God’s word. I can learn from mistakes. I can read and pray.
But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. -James 1:6
i heard this song…
es kann nicht immer nur die Sonne scheinen,
es muss auch ab und zu der Himmel weinen…
It was a german song by a german folk singer Heintje. It was all about how we can’t enjoy the sunshine if we never experience rain. This gave me some answers to why i often wonder why i don’t ‘feel’ saved, and why sometimes i feel as though i could burst with love for my Saviour.
I came to the conclusion that the reason i have mountain top experiences is because i spend time in the valleys. If i never had hard times, then i couldn’t truly feel so complete at other times. I used to wonder why, but now i know. Praise God!
I will not waste time on anything that i can’t change anyway.
God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.
Worrying about things that i can’t change anyway, is one thing i need to change. There always will be things i can’t change. There always will be people i can’t change. Not that they can’t change, but that they don’t want to. Can i let them steal my inner peace?
Only God can change things. And God can also help me to accept things that won’t be changed. This seems like a hard task. I need to pray for grace to understand. I need to remember that i can always find something good about everyone.
More times than not, I am the one who needs to change. It may be how i look at the situation or the situation is there to change me. I need to accept what the Lord wants me too. If i give everything to the Lord, i can watch as He takes care of everything.
Complaining while serving God?
Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does. – Ephesians 6:7-8
This something that i need to be reminded of daily. Whether it is cleaning up the dishes, or doing school work, it is so easy to complain. But why complain, when what i do is all for God? How can i complain to the God who sent his only Son to die so that i could live eternally with Him?
If we realized that absolutely everything we do is for the Lord, would we do it differently? Would our attitude change? Even while singing congregational hymns and when working with people we don’t like?
God will reward us. God can’t reward us for more than we do. Not only can we do good, but we can do it with all of our hearts only for God.
Thanks for the food.
Whenever i eat something that tastes good, i wonder why i was not only blessed with food, but with food that tastes good. There are so many people who starve, while i get a different variety of food every day.
I want to thank you God that i have it soo good. I don’t understand why you would give me the good tasting food. I want to let you know that i appreciate it. With each bite, i look to you in thanksgiving. Lord, you are soo good to me.
Redeem the time
When life gets busy it is easy to waste time on things that don’t really matter. Wasting time is when nothing beneficial comes from the time spent, and in our christian walk, anything that doesn’t get us in the direction of our Goal.
Among many time wasters, the worst would be surfing the Internet without purpose (facebook…), electronics (TV, Movies, & Video games), media (texting…), pointless conversations, lounging and daydreaming/worrying. Some of these past times don’t interest me, some do. By identifying what tempts me most, i can have the power the fight the temptation of wasting time when i could be focusing on growing closer to God.
I can’t expect to use my time wisely if i don’t prioritize. If i make myself a schedule, i can make conscience decisions on how to spend my time. I also need to practise self-control, so that i can limit my time. By concentrating on what i do and multi-tasking at the same time, i will have more time for God. When i have time to wait, I have time to pray.
I can redeem the time of my youth years by doing as much as possible for the ministry. That is something that i will never forget. I can also make wise decisions for the future such as health, education, career, and who i am friends with.
Therefore He says: “ Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give you light.” See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. –Ephesians 5: 14-17
that Saturday-night feeling.
Have you ever had a feeling on a Saturday-night, a feeling of excitment and longing for Sunday? I can really feel the difference as it gets later and later on a Saturday-night. I am excited because i get to go to the House of the Lord and worship with all my adopted brothers and sisters. I long to learn something new that will challenge me to grow closer to my Daddy in Heaven.
I was glad when they said to me, Let us go to the house of the Lord! ~Psalm 122:1
Inspirations from Above~ has moved!!
My blog was starting to feel messy and untidy, so i spend today transferring all the stories and poems that others have written to http://inspirationsfromabove.wordpress.com/
Not only do i speak out the overflow of my heart, but i also type it. My plan is, although when do blog plans actually work?, to publish my personal insight from the Lord here and inspirations from others on the other blog.
My prayer is that all written here will be to God’s glory alone.
Spiritual Beauty
God gave us a desire for beauty. The world emphasizes on the outward appearance, but the bible puts it on the inner being. Before we can put on the clothes of character, we need to take off the old clothes. As christians, we are to wear tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, long-suffering, forbearing and forgiving. Why do we need to but these on? Because if we were born with them, we wouldn’t need to put them on. We need spiritual beauty. We need to strive to become more beautiful. We need to find more ways to become prettier spiritually.
When we think back and remember people from years ago, we don’t remember their outfits, but their personality. Our spiritual clothing is real because it comes from the heart. Why do we want to clothe ourselves spiritually? It is out of gratitude for what God did for us. We need to be as similar to Jesus Christ as possible.
Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, long-suffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. Colossians 3:12-14
The Abundance of my Heart. 