The Perfect Gift

The perfect gift. Some of you will spend many hours the Christmas season searching for the perfect gift. You will browse through store after store or website after website. If you are the giver you want it to be just right. Based on what the person you are giving the gift to needs, you want it to be perfect.

Maybe you have received the perfect gift. You have that memory of the time when someone surprised you with a gift you’ll never forget. As a child it may have been a toy you just thought you had to have.

It’s funny how the perfect gifts haven’t changed through the years. I still like movies, music, and jewelry.

Here’s how it is supposed to work on a perfect Christmas morning. You get up on Christmas morning. You get up on Christmas morning and you find packages underneath the tree. They are wrapped in colorful paper and ribbons and bows. A minor distraction when it comes time to open the gift. Up until that moment, they are a my. You may shake then and listen closely to detect some telling sound that would give away the secret.

Gifts are meant to be opened. They are not a gift until received. If this Christmas you leave a package unwrapped it will be useless. It could be a book you wanted to read but unless you open it, it will go unread. It could be the movie you wanted to watch but unless you one it, it will go unwatched. It could be the keys to a new car you wanted, but unless you open it, it will never be driven.

Whoever leaves a gift unopened? Who ignores the special package with their name on it? Who has that kind of willpower or who cares so little for gifts that they ignore the perfect gift that is for them?

I think I know just who it is. I think that millions of people leave the prefect gift unopened year after year. They ignore it, they act like it doesn’t exist. They may even use this gift in conversation but in reality they pay no attention to it.

The Bible says,

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the father…” (James 1:17)

There is one perfect gift. He was born a long time ago in a sleepy little town by the name of Bethlehem. This perfect gift was predicted to come thousands of years before it arrived. Since His arrival this gift has been unopened by millions, more. Have you opened the Perfect Gift?

The perfect gift of Jesus. There is no sense in trying to clever about it.

Heartbroken But Not Hopeless

We all wish that we could erase our pain. But we know that on this side of Heaven we can’t. We have an enemy who plots to distract us with disappointment and bury us alongside our losses. But the Bible teaches us God is near and the enemy can not win.

When were suffer, it’s tempting to believe God has abandoned us? We may mistake a faith-filled life for a life free from pain. But the Bible is brimming with stories of flourishing faith despite searing pain.

David, in Psalm 34:15-22 shows us he was a man after God’s own heart and was anointed the next king of Israel. But that happened incrementally, not immediately. Instead of wearing the King’s crown, he ran for his life as King Saul pursued him. As David fled, he penned this verse.

“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in Spirit. (Psalm 34:18)

The Hebrew word David chose to describe God’s presence means that God is close enough to touch. God is close enough to touch the hurt in our lives too. When He does, our pain serves a purpose. Our struggles prepare us to walk right into other people’s stories. It gives us conference to look others in the eye with integrity and assure them that they are not alone. If you face trouble and grow stronger then they can too.

Hope grows in our hurt. When we face the truth with God, pain is transformed into possibility. Heartache becomes an open door to experience God with deeper intimacy and an invitation to have more of Him.

If you’re heartbroken it’s more valid to let the tears fall and hand what remains to Jesus. Even in the desolate landscape of a broken heart, hope takes root, in a small manger, in a stable, and it’s for this reason we hold on to hope.

Watch Your Thoughts For They Become Your Destiny

Positive thinking is more than having an optimistic view. It’s seeing both negative and positive sides with a positive perspective.

Being positive is accepting reality, not realizing it.

What we think, we become.

Reality is not neutral. We are always passing judgment on what happens around us. You and si can face the same event, yet we will react differently – our thoughts shape our reality, not the other way around.

That’s why most people suggest we think positively – it has become an oversimplified approach to make us feel better,

“Be positive” can be terrible advice.

Telling someone who’s sad or depressed that positive thoughts will change their mental state, can be detrimental. Similarly, being overly optimistic can blind our reality.

I have to admit I am a overly positive person. I am able to see the good in every situation. The positive in everyone’s story. I had a very negative life for over 40 years. I am done feeling negative. There is always light in every situation.

Although Positive thinking is not what you think. We must embrace our whole self, not just the bright side,

The Color Of Your Soul

“The soul becomes dyed with the color of it’s thoughts

Marcus Aurelius

Our society loves black and white assessments – you are either an optimist or a pessimist.

Labels are a heavy burden, we get stuck in one place, rather the exploring our possibilities. Our self is fluid. We all have positive or negative thoughts or positive and negative moments.

Pretending to be happy all the time can be harmful. We focus on one aspect and fail to see out blind spots. Labeling oneself as a negative person doesn’t help either – we overplay our frames and become victims of self-pity.

I am not a negative person in so that I believe there is a reason for everything and a way out of every situation.

Research shows that optimists perceive less stress because either they are better able to cope with adversity or because of their positive views. However, when facing severe challenges, optimists suffer a lower immune response than pessimists.

Curiously, a strong bekifvib hope can make optimists think they can achieve anything they want to, just by trying hard. This perfectionist view can lead to unrealistic expectations – positive thinking can’t make everything come true.

I live by a quote by Martin Luther King. ‘ If you except nothing from somebody you will never be disappointed.” Blessed is he who expects nothing, for he shall never be disappointed.

Micah 7:5 says “Put no trust in a neighbor, have no confidence in a friend; guard the doors of your mouth from her who lies in your harm. Don’t expect people to return the love and understand that you give them. Only God cares for your soul.

We are not our thoughts, because they are always changing. Understanding our fluid nature is critical to continue growing – we are a work in progress, not a finished product.

Bad thoughts are harmful – they create more suffering. However avoiding our negative emotions won’t make then go away.

The God Of Hope

God’s Light

“God is light,” says 1 John 1:15. Light is a common metaphor in the Bible. Proverbs 4:18 symbolizes righteousness as the “morning sun.” Philippians 2:15 likens God’s children who are blameless and pure to shining stars in the sky. Jesus used light as a picture of good works: “Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds.

The fact that God is light sets up a natural contrast with darkness. If light is a metaphor for righteousness and goodness, then darkness signifies evil and sin. 1 John 1:6 says that “if we claim to have fellowship with God and yet walk in darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth.“ Verse 5 says, God is light, in Him there is no darkness at all. We are not told that God is a light but that He is light. Light is part of His essence, as in love. The message is that God is completely unreserved, absolutely holy, with no admixture of sin, no taint of iniquity, and no hint of injustice.

If we do not have light, we do not know God. Those who know God, who walk with Him, are of the light and walk in the light. They are made partakers of God’s Divine nature, “having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

God is light, and so is His Son, Jersaud, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have light of life. To walk is to make progress. Therefore, we can infer through John 8:12 that Christ are meant to grow in holiness and to mature in faith as they follow Jesus. (2 Peter 3:18)

God is light, and it is His plan that believers shine forth His light, becoming more like Christ every day, “You are are children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or the darkness.”(1 Thessalonians 5:5) God is the creator of physical light as well as the Giver of Spiritual light by which is hidden in darkness; it shows things as the really are. To walk in the light means to know God, understand the trutgm and live in righteousness.

Believers in Christ must confess any darkness within themselves – their sins and transgressions – and allow God to shine His light through them.

Christians cannot sit idly by and watch others conduit the darkness is sin, knowing that those in darkness are destined for eternal separation from God. The light of the world desires to banish the darkness and bestow His wisdom in everything. In taking the light of the gospel to the world, we must by necessity reveal things about people that they would rather leave hidden. Light is uncomfortable to those accustomed to the dark. (John 3:20)

Jesus, the sinless Son of God, not the “true light” (John 1:9) As adopted sons and daughters of God, we are to reflect His light into a world of darkness by sin. Our goal is witnessing to the undated is “to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God.” (Acts 26:28)

Hallowed Be Thy Name

The Lords Prayer

Our Father who art in Heaven hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive others who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen. Matthew 6:9

What should be our first request, as Jesus here teaches us to pray? “Hallowed be your name.”

Hallowed means to keep holy and set apart. We might ask, “Isn’t God’s name already holy! And most certainly it is. What then do we ask of the Lord God when we ask that His name be holy?

We ask that His name be kept holy among us and in our lives. We ask God to let all we think, say and do bring glory and honor to Hid holy name. We ask theta we would live in such a way that we do not dishonor His holy name and drag it down with us into the mud of sin.

It brings God glory and hallow His name when we humbly believe His Word, acknowledge our sinfulness and trust His Son, Jesus as our savior. (Ephesians 1:3-14)

Isaiah the prophet wrote (Isaiah 8:23, “The Lord of hosts. Him you shall hallow; let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread.

Instead of looking to ourselves, other gods and other people or things for help, we are to look to the Lord God and place our trust in Him.

God Himself says to us in Psalm 50:15: “ call upon Me in the day of trouble. I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.’

The Bible tells us in Jeremiah 28:28, 32, “ The prophet who has a dream, let him tell a dream; and he who has my word, let him speak My word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? Says the Lord… “Behold, I am against the prophets ,” says the Lord, who use their tongues and say, He says.’

God teaches us that it brings honor to the name of the Lord God when we are faithful to His Holy Word in our teaching, preaching and in our witness for Him. It dishonors the Lord when we preach our own words, ideas and opinions and attribute them to Him.

We pray the Lord’s Prayer that all we think, speak, and do may bring glory to our Father in heaven – that His name would indeed be kept holy among us.

Jesus said in Matthew 5:16: “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

May we bring Him glory!

Our dear Father in heaven, Your name is indeed holy in itself. Grant that we keep it holy among us also and not misuse it. Let us bring glory to You and Your holy name by acknowledging our sin and trusting in Your Son and our Savior, Jesus, for forgiveness and life everlasting. And grant that we might live for You here in this with the world until we join You in heaven in Christ’s eternal kingdom. Amen,

The God Of Hope

Life is unpredictable. None of us except the sudden circumstances that can bring about division, disappointment and loss. Who could have guessed a pandemic would force us into isolation, and upend our plans throw us into turmoil band leave us longing for hope.

Life can change in a moment and it deals blows we don’t expect, it’s so easy to find ourselves in a place of disparity longing for some type of comfort. Romans 15;23 is a wonderful prayer that Paul wants every believer to experience as a response to these types of circumstances.

Hope is the focus in Pauls’s prayer. Particularly that the God of hope would cause us to overflow with hope. Hope is mentioned not once but twice in this verse. The first mention refers to God as the origin of hope. We anticipate a favorable outcome not based on principles, but on His person. No matter how difficult our circumstances, we can have hope because of who God is: powerful, wise and good.

The second mention of hope refers to us as the recipients. God pours hope into us when we choose to believe He is who He says He is and that He always keeps His promises. When we do this. He gives us neither optimism not hype, but a rock-solid assurance that a favorable outcome will come our way.

Because we are people living among others desperately seeking hope. God wants our lives to spill over and release what we have received to those around us, creating in then a deeper curiosity to know the source of our peace. We can not concoct or create this hope in our own strength. God makes hope possible by the power of the Holy Spirit living in us.

But the more we meditate on Romans 15:7-13 and a final prayer, the more God heals our hurting hearts. We can hold onto hope knowing that someday, Jesus will return and set things right. One dstm He will wipe every tear from our eyes. As we wait, we call live in hope because the source of hope lives in us,

Meanwhile, we can look at the small miracles that happen every day. If we take a moment to look, close enough we can see. I know this brings me hope as I wait on God’s return.

Faith -vs- Works

There is a theological debate over the question of whether salvation is by faith or by works that has caused the denominations of the churches to disagree for centuries. Differences of opinion are still among many believers today. Some even say the Bible contradicts itself on the matter of faith and works.

Here are some questions about faith and works:

Is justification for salvation accomplished by faith or by works, or both?

Does a person need faith in Jesus and also a holy lifestyle and good deeds in order to enter the kingdom of God!

If only faith matters for salvation how does works fit in?

Justified By Faith Alone

The Apostle Paul stated clearly that man is justified not by keeping the law, or works, but solely by faith in Christ. Here are just two of many Bible Verses that solidly back up the belief.

Romans 3:20, “For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight.“

Ephesians 2:8, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.’

Faith Plus Works?

Interestingly, the book of June’s seems to say something different. James asserts that a person is justified by works, and not by faith alone.

James 2:24-26,

You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified you works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also Faith apart from works is dead.

Reconciling Faith And Works

The key to reconciling the doctrines of faith and works is understanding the full context of these verses in James. Let’s look at the entire passage, which covers the relationship between faith and works:

James 2:14-26

What good is it, my brothers if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to the, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also Faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith and I have works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe - and shudder! Do you want to be shown, you a foolish person, have faith apart from works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the alter?
You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness - and he was called a friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by a another way! For as the body apart from the Spirit is dead, so also Faith apart from works in dead.

In this passage, James is comparing two different types of faith; genuine faith which leads to good works, and empty faith which is not really faith at all. True faith is alive and backed up by works. False faith that has nothing to show for itself is dead.

Abraham’s faith was not merely an empty confession but a principle of action. He showed his faith through willingness to offer Isaac. The same is true of Rahab who demonstrated her faith by helping the spies. Faith and works cannot exist separately or alone. They must go together. As one commentator put it, “ Faith and works are as inseparable as the sun and sunlight. Faith is the sun; good works are the rays.”

Both faith and works are important in salvation. However, believers are justified, or declared righteous before God, solely by faith. Christ is the only One who deserves credit for doing the work of salvation. Christians are saved by grace by God’s grace through faith alone.

Works, on the other hand, are the evidence of genuine salvation. They are proof in the pudding,” so to speak. Good works demonstrate the truth of one’s faith. They are the obvious, visible result of being justified by faith. Authentic “saving faith” reveals itself through works.