One of the best choices I’ve made was to go to a Bible believing church. But a church isn’t what makes you a follower of God. The preacher should teach us how to follow God. And what the Bible teaches.
Many people sit in church week after week without hearing the gospel or learning what it means to be born again. Or without being told they need to read their Bible. They think they can get to heaven by pitting in their time at a church.
The church building is not the church, but those who follow Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
Jesus established the church for the purpose of fellowship and instruction on how to live in obedience to God and His Word. The Lord didn’t design the church to cater to people’s needs, establish community programs or blend into the community by embracing worldly practices. When it does it infiltrates the church.
Jude 1:4 warns of this,
“For certain (people) have crept in unnoticed, who turn the grace of God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.”
God breathed life into the church to proclaim His truth. The church should never seek pleasures, but seek after God. The church should be a place to get spiritual food so that the inner person is fed, nourished, and developed into maturity. If it fails to do this, it’s not a church, it doesn’t fulfill the purpose of the church.
I have been to many churches in my life that we’re not Bible-based and there’s a not a peace that goes with these churches. The church I am at now I have been with 17 years, and when I entered I still have an overwhelming inner peace.
Retail therapy isn’t an official form of therapy but it can boost your mood.
Nothing lifts your mood quite like something new. The act of shopping releases dopamine which is a feel good neurotransmitter in our brains. This immediate reward system can help get rid of feeling of sadness or stress and gives us a huge boost of happiness.
Just like everything else shopping can become an addiction. An uncontrollable urge to stop, or excessive spending that’s beyond our financial needs.
Remember that their attitude is more of a reflection of them than you.
Distance yourself from them if their behavior doesn’t change.
One thing I’ve found is that judgmental people form opinions without knowing the facts. They judge based on their experiences, not yours. They judge on psychological biases. And some judge others to feel superior or in control.
My Pastor goes through a Psalm each week and tells us what the pertinent information about them. I thought I would share. If you press on the picture the whole verse will come up.
“Listen to me in silence, let the people renew their strength” – Isaiah 41:1
Most of us find it hard to be quiet. We feel our solitude with binge-watching or scrolling. We interrupt our prayers with thoughts about our to-do lists. We clutter our minds with lists of errands we must run to purchase thighs that will turn to dust.
We distract ourselves with things of this world when the Creator of the universe desires to fully inhabit our lives so that every minute we live is fueled with His purpose.
We are into the third month of 2025, how many days have you carved out even 15 minutes to spend with God?
Being alone with God is where you learn to listen. In the Bible, God gave visions and directions to people when they were alone.
In Genesis, Abraham was called to leave his people and go to a land he had not seen where God gave him the greatest covenant promises of his age.
In Exodus, Moses was alone in the desert when God called him aside to the burning bush and assigned him to free God’s people from Egypt.
In Samuel, David met alone with God in the quiet of his shepherd role before slaying Goliath .
In Galatians, Paul spent time in the wilderness before beginning his evangelistic mission
In Matthew, Jesus spent 40 days alone in the wilderness before beginning His own ministry and continued practicing solitude until His arrest and the greatest time of His work -the cross at Calvery. He often drew withdrew Himself into the wilderness to pray.
We need to employ our soul, mind, will, and our emotions in the act of listening, so we can receive answers, wisdom, and direction. We can gain clarity and confidence about our lives and our future as we receive things God speaks to our hearts.
“Call to me and I will answer you, the Lord says, and tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know” -Jeremiah 34:3
Taking time for quiet time with God, listening, prayer, and the study of God’s revealed Word in the Bible as a part of our daily rhythm, alone with God will become your favorite place.
“No matter where we are, how lonely the night, how dark the road, how dismal the prison, how big the problem, Jesus is always there” – Adrian Rogers
When we are filled with the Spirit our lives will overflow with joy, praise, and service. Not only will there be an income, but there will also be an overflow. We will become springs of river of the living water of blessing.
The burning of bridges signifies a deliberate act of severing ties with the past, making a conscious choice not to go back.
If we want to get rid of sin in our lives we have to burn bridges that lead to that sin, to deliberately and decisively cut off all access to a particular temptation or sinful behavior. essentially making it impossible to return to that path by removing all means to engage with that again.
A drug addict will often return to the same town, the same group of “friends” that they did drugs with after being rehabilitated which often causes them to relapse and start using drugs again. They have to break all ties if they want to have a successful recovery.
This bridge represents a pathway or connection to a sinful action, like a bad habit, a certain environment, or even a relationship that enables negative behavior.
In spirituality context, the burning of a bridge is used to describe the process of repentance, where someone actively removes themselves from the influence of sin to fully dedicate themselves to a life of faith.
Of someone recognizes that a certain friend is leading them towards harmful behavior, “burning the bridge” could mean ending the friendship to protect their own well-being.
If someone decides to adopt a healthier lifestyle, they might “burn the bridge” by removing unhealthy foods from their home and committing to a new exercise routine.
Old acquaintances, old haunts, and old habits are the bridges that we must burn in order to start down and remain on a narrow path. (Matthew 16:24, 19:29, Colossians 3:5).
The last thing I learned is probably useless information for some. But I found it interesting.
I learned that severe carbon monoxide poisoning can cause the skin to appear cherry-red in some people. The skin turns bright red or cherry-red because of our mucous membranes. And blisters, it can cause necrotic skin lesions on the hands, legs, back, and ankles.
Other systems are headache, fatigue, dizziness, and abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, and confusion. If you have these symptoms this get out of the building you are and see if you start feeling better.
What is one question you hate to be asked? Explain.
I think people get upset and frustrated when somebody asked a question that is perceived as silly or dumb. When you feel like the question being asked the person should already know sometimes we get frustrated.
There is not much get worse than being asked a question you don’t want to answer, or a question being asked over and over again.
February 13 is the day that began the new year of trees. Which is known as Tu Bishvat in Israel. It’s a time for planting seeds. Not only in the soil but in our lives. Mark 4:20 says, a seed sown in good soil can produce a crop some thirty, some sixty and some a hundred times what was sown.
I’ve always said, “Never underestimate the power of a seed planted in someone’s life.” But we also need to plant seeds within ourselves.
We may find ourselves in difficult times but throughout history, there has always been suffering. These days it seems like suffering is in our faces all the time. If we have an open heart, it’s hard to bear the tragedies that befall so many around the world. But the worst thing we can do is despair and feel hopeless.
We can become a powerful force of light and love in this world. The energy we put into this world is important.
First, we need to cultivate our intention toward peace in ourselves. Remember our words and actions matter. What do you see when we look into our shadow? Do you see violence, judgment, or anger in your life? What is happening in the world can be a reflection of what lives within each of us.
For someone to harm another, there is a part of the self that separates that person as “the other.” The offering happens through our judgments and stories we tell about someone else. We can make them out to be the enemy we place them within a hierarchy of importance. I look at where I do this in my life. It might be something as simple as being rude to a store clerk because they are taking too long or we are rude because we are having a “bad day.” In this situation, we have judged them as below us, and see ed ourselves as worthy of better service, therefore we treat them with anger.
We need to be careful of identifying with the “us vs them” mentality. This is a form of tribalism, and this can be where the war begins. The world is good at giving us a “us vs them” mentality, we see it every day on the news. It’s a way to demonize the other person or group, they want us to shut down any possibility of peace with each other. The anger churns in us, and it grows and ultimately robs us of our equanimity.
“The easiest way to control a group of people is to divide them. Once they are divided, they can be easily conquered.” -Malcolm X
Everyone is worthy of compassion and love -Everyone!
I see this in politics, families, and communities. We are called to love people. Each person’s perspective and ideas are a reflection of their collective life circumstances, just as my ideas are a culmination of my life experiences and influences. I have seen enough hate in the world, I choose love, it’s time to set our differences aside and have love and compassion for each other.
What would it be like to see everyone as a beloved child of God, worthy of compassion, patience, and kindness?
Remember, each of us is doing the best we can on our soul journey with the circumstances we have been given. Do not take someone else’s behavior personally, they are moving through their life difficulties the same as you.
This is how we begin to plant the seeds of peace within our. As we practice rooting out our judgment toward others, we might be able to see these seeds blossom in ourselves.
When we plant seeds we are setting intentions for personal growth. Consider what you want to grow, such as improved relationships, self-awareness, or reaching a goal.
Water your intentions with positive actions and thoughts, and nourish them with self-compassion and patience. And don’t forget to talk (pray) and ask for God’s help.
We’ve all regretted or have felt remorse in our lives at one time or another. Having regret is feeling bad about something and giving a reason to throw pity parties for ourselves. Feeling bad about the past focuses on personal losses which lack the power to change, and can be overwhelming, making us miserable.
Choosing repentance is a decision to change and seek forgiveness from God and a chance to begin to forgive ourselves. Repentance can give a chance to reconcile with those hurt by sin. It doesn’t deny the fact that people have hurt us, but gives us a chance to heal. Which can lead to salvation and freedom from regret.
We have to consider whether we are sorry about the consequences of our actions or broken over the sin of doing it.
We need to ask ourselves if we are ready to change our hearts or if we are feeling sorry for ourselves. Are we really to take responsibility for our actions?
Regent sometimes masquerades as repentance, because both carry similar initial postures, but confusing the two can be devastating.
We can mix up regret and repentance easily because they both begin in the same spot -with pain,
If we look at Peter and Judas in the Bible we can compare the two. Twoo mean. Two failures. One leads to transformation and fresh faith and the other leads to despair and death.
When Peter disowned Jesus even after declaring himself incapable of denying Jesus, his willful heart choices caused regret (Luke 22:33:57). We can see a similar regret with Judas, who realized he betrayed innocent blood and drought to rectify it with his actions, there was one difference, it was whether or not they believe they could be forgiven.
Peter wept bitterly at his betrayal, he was deeply grieved over his sin (Like 22:62). And yet by God‘s grace, the Holy Spirit turned him tow hope (John 21:15-19). His surrender was so encompassing that he was able to believe his mistake was not fatal, but redeemable. In contrast, when Judas cast down the 30 pieces of silver and was met with indifference, he had no hope that he could be forgiven and then committed an act of final despair (Matthew 27:3).
Both Peter and Judas essentially asked the same question, “How could God possibly forgive me for my sin against Jesus?
Regret so easily masquerades as repentance.
When we choose to act misaligned with the Bible, it usually comes with embarrassment or self-condemnation. The pain often puts us on the path to shame, and that shame becomes either an end or a means to an end.
Grief over sin can never be a destination but it’s a tunnel through a mountain. We should not stay there, but give our guilt to Jesus because he asks for it and promises to deal with it once and forever. (John 3:17, Hebrews 12:2).
Peter’s response after succumbing to sin was brokenness and humility. Judas response was embarrassment at his weakness, as well as not thinking God would forgive him.
Repentance says, “I want to stand on Jesus’s record of righteousness and not my own.” It trusts that our failures, no matter the extent, are not fatal and that the only failure is not surrendering our fears, guilt, shame, sorrow, and sin to the love and goodness of Jesus.
We are human beings, God expects us to sin. Our proper response to the knowledge He already has is to shallow our pride and remind ourselves that we aren’t Him. Only He is God, we are all broken but deeply loved by Him.
Repentance doesn’t ultimately fix us, it’s simply how broken people, with broken lives, inhabit a broken world until Jesus comes to take us home. All the while experiencing substantial healing and transformation from God who longs to be in a relationship with us. And there’s not a thing to regret about that.
Because of my life experiences and my mother down-grading me as a child I never really became a social person. Talking never was my thing because I was always afraid of people judging me, or making fun of me. And I would get punished for speaking. My brain made different pathways. As a result, my writing seems to flow more fluently and easily.
Growing up I coped by creating a world inside my head. I see the world in a completely different way. I have always felt like an outcast no matter what environment I am in. I felt different because I was treated differently growing up.
As a result, I have no problem taking an idea or thought and putting ink to paper. I have always been able to sit down and write whether it’s about my belief in God, things I’ve learned through life or a short story.
Today I still have struggles but have been successful at coping and managing what life has thrown at me. Today choose to love, rather than hate. I’ve had enough hate to last a lifetime. That is my success.
From Pity to Praise 