All in Christian
How is your faith today? Does it remain stored away in a seed sack; a tiny seed in your heart awaiting its season in a barn, or does it flourish where you have planted and tended it? Are you satisfied with the little, or are you led by the Spirit to grow and produce much fruit? Jesus tells us to have faith in God, but that doesn’t mean that our faith is complete when first received, or is dormant and unable to grow like a seed which hasn’t been sown.
You say you are a Christian, but are you really? Have you taken the name of Jesus without having been born again? What a mysterious happening this is when we confess openly our faith in Jesus Christ, and go down in the waters of baptism. The joy and change that rushes over us leaves no doubt that our journey has begun, and that we are no longer dancing around the monicker of Christian, but have indeed become one. Are you still flirting with the flame of faith, or have you entered entirely into it... has it burned up the old you, and replaced it with the smoke and incense of a new and glorious person? Have you entered into the great mystery of faith?
Are you complacent in your edification of one another? Do you speak of your faith in Jesus Christ when together, and lift each other up in faith? Do you pray for the troubles of your brothers and sisters in Christ so that they might be spared the intoxication of night, and be ready for the moment of our Lord’s return? We should encourage ourselves and others of faith.
When times are tough for us, or we see someone else who is struggling, how do we approach the situation; who do we turn to for help, or guidance? So often our pride gets in the way, and we cling to self-sufficiency, or we see someone without clothing, hungry, or with anywhere to sleep, and we look away hoping they will get their life in order. We do these things when in fact we should turn to Jesus for our help, and offer assistance to others as He would have us do, but this requires a couple of very basic attributes... faith, and courage. Do you have these in you?
Do you feel hopelessly alone today? Are you feeling lost, abandoned, sick and without hope, dying and laying alone waiting for that final moment, or suffering without the care of a loved one? No matter how far we feel that we are from another soul, or devoid of love, we are never alone... no matter how lost, how abandoned, how hopeless, how near death, or intense our suffering... we are in the continuous presence , and hands of God. Take heart for He loves you now.
When was the last time you spoke to someone about your faith? I am not talking about standing on the street corner atop a soapbox or handing out tracts; I am referring to an earnest conversation about Jesus Christ with a friend at work who is suffering and lost, or a child you know that needs to hear one of the parables of Jesus to help them understand a life lesson? We often blame society for emasculating our faith, when the truth is that we gave up our swords of faith long ago. We stand in our armor of faith with no weapon and bemoan our circumstances.
Do you desire to please the Father and Son in all you do, or is your motive one of self gratification? Are your efforts designed to secure a beautiful eternity for yourself, or to make eternity a pleasurable paradise for God? Sometimes we seek the right things for the wrong reasons... how do you approach your faith?
So often we try to fix our own problems, or at very least help God as He endeavors to make things right. In this manner we are like a young child who gets in the way of his father after having just asked him for help. Most of the time we ask because we are unable to do these things, or at very least are unable to do them on our own, and yet when we ask for God to intercede, we then proceed to wrest control back from His hands as He responds. Is this you? Are you the impatient or presumptuous child?
When you are tired, or in need of shelter in a storm, where do you turn? When all is lost, and you can’t provide for yourself where do you find sustenance? At every turn you may be pursued by an enemy, but is there a strong tower where you can take refuge? The answer is yes, and no matter the circumstances it is forever true and dependable... we dwell in our Lord.
How often have you disobeyed God, and had calamity fall upon you? When this occurred, what did you do? How did you realign yourself with God, and experience His forgiveness and salvation? What did you promise the Lord in prayer to gain his deliverance from your time of suffering?
Why is it that we go to our knees at the altar before God? Why do we call out the name of Jesus and go down in the waters of baptism as He did? Do we truly believe, or do we come here out of a fear of what lies ahead? Maybe we think it is safe to purchase a ticket just in case this God stuff is all true? Ask yourself my friend; “Why do I come, or why did I come?” If it is for any reason other than true belief then you had better seek Him more diligently because He knows your heart.
Someone does you a good deed, and if you are a believer you might say “thank you”, but some might respond by wrongly saying “you have blessed me”, or “that was such a blessing!” In fact, no man can bless... only God. When Isaac gave his blessing to his son Jacob he couldn’t take it back because he had conceded to Jacob his own favored status with God. Who do you bestow your blessing on, or do you understand how important that is?
We are preparing ourselves for Lent, and during this Lenten season we will pray, deny ourselves, repent, and in quiver and contrition ask forgiveness for all our sins by God’s mercy and grace through Jesus Christ. As we ready ourselves, the story of Jesus plays out in our hearts, minds, and souls, and in remembrance of His promised return, we realize that He has never left, and will never leave us.
As we struggle through life, where do we look for our strength? Do we exercise our own bodies? Do we read self-help books to give strength to our minds and characters? If so, how is this working out for you? When we depend on our own devices, or books written by other men for our strength, we are never as strong as when God’s strength courses through us.
Do you like to try new foods, visit new places, meet new people? Well be careful, because such desires for newness and diversity can lead you astray when applied to your faith. Our love for Jesus shouldn’t require us to meet Him like a stranger every day, and we should resist the temptation to change Him in some way each time we visit Him, or redecorate His House every time we enter His door.