Life is Work

In the book of Genesis chapter 3 verses 17, 18, and 19 it says;

¹⁷ Then to Adam He said, “Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it’:

“Cursed is the ground for your sake;
In toil you shall eat of it
All the days of your life.
¹⁸ Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you,
And you shall eat the herb of the field.
¹⁹ In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread
Till you return to the ground,
For out of it you were taken;
For dust you are,
And to dust you shall return.”

God told Adam that in order to see fruit he had to earn it off the sweat of his brow. In other words, he had to work hard. There was no way around it. Living the “good life” means having to work hard. Some hard work doesn’t even provide the “good life”. Life is full of work. Not till we get to heaven shall we actually rest.

I have always been the type of guy who likes a laid back job. To be honest, I’m lazy. Right now I’m 30 years old and still skinny. At this point in my life I should be overweight. My mentality was that a good job should fall on my lap at any time now. It hasn’t happened, nor will it. Work is part of life. I never understood that till now. Call me a slow learner, but it’s true.

If I want a closer relationship with my heavenly Father I must be on bent knees and studying scripture. There is no way I can get to know my God without seeking Him. That is how life was programmed, so to speak. Life is work. I cannot succeed without working in some way, shape, or form. If my marriage is to succeed I must work at it. Work mustn’t be overdone though either for the Sabbath day was given for a reason, as it is stated in the book of Exodus chapter 20 verses 8, 9, 10, and 11;

⁸ “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. ⁹ Six days you shall labor and do all your work, ¹⁰ but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. ¹¹ For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that isin them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.

This all may seem so cliche, but to me it never quite hit home…till now.

I, the Bully and Bullied

Lately bullying has been a trending subject. One I relate very well to, because I was bullied and, though I was never aware of it, I did so too. My reason for this is bullying isn’t just some kid approaching another for their lunch money, which I never did. It also isn’t about some kid coming up to another to beat them up just because they get a kick out of it (sometimes literally), which I also never did. Bullying can be done by manipulating as well. In this case name-calling (something I did do) is not required.

Last night my mother, my wife, and I were looking at family pictures when suddenly a photo reminded me of a girl called Inez that everyone used to make fun of when I was a kid. This is why I want to speak on this subject, aside from the fact that I was a victim of bullying and that others were a victim of my foolish jokes. She used to take the meanest jokes from everyone that referred to her weight or her facial features. It was awful now that I think about it. ‘Kids will be kids’ is not an excuse in my mind.

We all know that line stated in the book of Mark chapter 12 verse 31 which says;

Love your neighbor as yourself.

Yea, I know it gets repeated with hollow feeling, but it’s Word. The following verse in the book of John chapter 3 may also be repeated with hollow feeling, but it’s oh so amazing;

¹⁶ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

It is important that I first understand that God loves us all. If God loves us all, who am I not to love everyone as He does? I must appreciate the fact that God loves me, and share that love. Jokes are good, but when they’re to bully…even if they’re funny it’s best not to laugh.

I repent. Inez deserved better.

By Faith, I Got It!

For years I was a Christian only in knowledge. By that I mean I was aware that Christ died for me, but did not actually live my life such as He did. Sure I was baptized, read the Bible, went to church, and evangelized once in a while. However, again, I was not actually living my life as Christ did. To be honest, my heart resembled more the one of an agnostic. I needed to feel Him in a supernatural way as evidence of His existence. Without God allowing me to feel His presence to reassure me of His existence I could not pray, study the Bible, or attend church confidently.

These are hard times for a believer, and they will not get any easier. Science feels more proven than faith. Doubt consistently enters one’s thought process. It is much easier to follow science since the flesh requires proof and evidence. God is now analyzed and proclaimed to be illogical, and the Bible made out to seem contradictory and exaggerated.

I enjoy what it says in the book of Hebrews chapter 11 verse 3;

By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.

That last part, which says that “the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible”, is something that I really enjoy. God didn’t create everything out of things that were in existence. He literally created and invented it out of nothing. It’s almost like a fashion designer making clothes out of thin air, or a vehicle engineer making a car out of thin air. To believe that is only by faith, which is believing without seeing, or as it says in the same chapter (11) in the book of Hebrews in verse 1;

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. 

Again, for years I was a Christian in knowledge; only acknowledging what I was taught as a child and following along. It wasn’t faith at all, but by playing follow-the-leader. Imagine ministering in the church with doubt reigning supreme in my heart and mind. In those days I couldn’t even begin to believe the visions of Ezekiel, a book I began to read over a month ago. Those visions that man had, revealed to Him by God, are amazing! To read that knowing it’s real is by faith alone.

These days it’s different for me. I have conviction now that God is more real than anything I have seen, see or will ever see on this earth. This life on earth is surreal, like a dream. Yes doubt still enter my mind, but I cancel them out. There is no room for it in my heart or mind if I am going to follow Christ, as he stated in the book of Matthew chapter 21 verse 21 as cliched as it may be to many;

So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have Faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done.

What can one say to make another believe? Nothing. It’s by faith alone. I no longer follow-the-leader in a play-along, but follow the King of kings knowing in my heart He’s true.

 

Attention Grabber

In the book of John chapter 3 verse 30 it says;

He must increase, and I must decrease.

I have been trying to apply that in my life so much it hurts! Everyday I fight myself. I have needs. My flesh desires and requires. God is supposed to be my everything who captures all my attention.

God does not have all my attention. I am shared, in pieces, in percentages. My attention is 10% here, perhaps 15% there, but definitely 100% on me. Now I have a wife with a child on the way.

What then? I must drive my attention to others.

In the book of Galatians chapter 5 the last part of verse 13 says;

But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love.

This clarifies it just a bit more for me, but what is states in the book of Matthew chapter 25 verse 40 clarifies it even more for me as it states;

And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’

Oh. Wow. I see. When I drive the attention away from myself onto another I serve God; less of me, more of Him. I decrease when I place all my focus on another, and He increases when I serve another.

Now to apply it and put it into practice…….

Rejoice in the Routine

In the book of Ecclesiastes chapter 1 verse 9 the Preacher states:

“That which has been is what will be,
That which is done is what will be done,
And there is nothing new under the sun.”

Indeed there is nothing new under the sun. On the radio I hear talk of politics and the economy, and on the news there is talk of the latest blockbuster movie. I have heard all of this before. King Solomon is stating in this verse that he has seen nothing new under the sun, and knows that the things he has seen have happened way before he came into existence even before his father King David did. 

There are those mornings where I have felt it’s the same old thing again. A routine can be depressing. I have to go to the same job. One can already tell how the day is going to go somewhat, unless there is a surprise. Anything can suddenly occur that can throw one off. Some surprises are welcomed, others are not. Changes are welcomed if we are pleased with them.

That being said, even if the day is taking the routine route I must rejoice as it is stated in the book of Psalms chapter 118 verse 24:

This is the day the Lord has made;
We will rejoice and be glad in it.

I must give my best efforts to enjoy this day no matter what, because God has granted me this day by His grace and mercy.

A Mind Renewal

Suicide seems like the easy way to go when depressed. It’s not too difficult to get to that point. All one has to do is enter that very dark place. There is no specific place in the mind, but the whole thing. A mind as a whole can be transformed, like a wedding vow says, for better or for worst.

One night I was driving home, after dropping my wife off at her house when she was my fiance, when God spoke to me. It wasn’t audible, but you know it in your heart because of the message. This message made me realize what has been wrong with me all my life. God made me realize that night that I was weak of mind, and that I needed to renew it. He was speaking to me what it says in the book of Ephesians chapter 4 verse 23:

 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind.

Whoa. It hit me hard. I have always been weak of mind, and I needed to change that immediately or I was going to enter a darker place. 

A short story for you.

As a kid I was ridiculed for being small and skinny, this I shared in my post  Insecurities (In This Might), so I felt sorry for myself instead of being strong. I didn’t reject the negative things that came to mind ever since I was a child, and this includes my teenage years and twenties. Now at the age of 30 I am learning how important it is not to pay attention to harmful thoughts. It may sound like something a school teacher would say, but I mean to go further than that. What I mean is that we go to both extremes. Some people in order to reverse what negative things come to mind build themselves up too much and others enter that dark place as I have before. Humility and confidence go hand in hand.

In the book of Romans chapter 12 verse 2 I learn that in order to be transformed I must renew the spirit of my mind, because it says:

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

The spirit of the mind is the way a person thinks, the center of one’s thinking. That needs to changed. I need to transform my point of view, the way I see things. If as a child I wouldn’t have allowed negative thoughts about myself to dominate me I would be much stronger today, although that experience has in a way made me who I am today. And if today I keep my thoughts in the things of God I will be stronger.

Here is another Scriptural reference on this subject in the book of Philippians chapter 4 verse 8.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

 

The Strong and Quiet Type

I have always wanted to be a strong and quiet type of man. My problem is I haven’t been. In fact, I have been the complete opposite of that. To be honest, I have been the weak and boisterous type instead.

I have always admired the quiet strong leaders in films or books or people in my life, because they have spoken only when needed. Innumerable times have I regretted what I have said almost immediately after I have said it. Never have I been able to properly apply one of my favorite Bible verses which is the book of Proverbs, it being chapter 17 verse 28.

“Even a fool is counted wise when he holds his peace;
When he shuts his lips, he is considered perceptive.”

If a fool is considered wise and perceptive when they hold their peace and shut their lips, then what does that make a loud and boisterous fool? Or perhaps the best question in this instance is, What am I counted or considered as when loud and boisterous?

In verse 27 I learn something very important that I had never paid attention to when in situations that really require me to stay quiet,

“He who has knowledge spares his words,
And a man of understanding is of a calm spirit.”

See those two very important words in there, knowledge and understanding? I need those. God knows its my request almost on a daily basis, because my bucket mouth sure could use some good patch work!