Gratitude Makes Us Stronger

We always thank God for all of you and continually mention you in our prayers.  We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.   

1 Thessalonians 1:2-3  NIV

    Being part of the people of God is a blessing.  We are part of a people who are eternally grateful for God’s love and the hope he has given us in Christ.  We know what it is to receive mercy.  We are the family of the forgiven.  We accept each other  because God has accepted us.

    Maintaining a faithful and humble walk with God is next to impossible without the encouragement of our brothers and sisters in Christ.  We all have weak times, perhaps even times we feel like completely giving up.  But then God prompts someone to pray for us or to smile at us or to give a gift to us or to hug us or to speak an encouraging word to us.  And then we have energy again.  Then God’s light pierces our darkness.

   Who in God’s family has encouraged you?  Who has shown the kindness of our Heavenly Father to you?  Take time this week to thank them.  Send them a personal note or an email.  Buy them a small gift of thanks or thank them publicly on Facebook. Pray for God’s blessing to fill their lives.  Every act of kindness and every thankful response makes us stronger together.

Pursuing the Full Life of Jesus

And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.              2 Corinthians 5:15  NIV

    Jesus died for us so we can live for him.  Be careful that you don’t view this as some kind of contractual obligation.  If you view living for Jesus as something you “have” to do because he died for you, then living for Jesus will not produce joy.  It will feel like a burden and a daily grind.

    Jesus didn’t die for us so we could live a life in a tiresome daily grind.  Jesus came to give us life to the full (John 10:10).  He died for us to give us the opportunity to be renewed by and live in the goodness of God.  Our loving Heavenly Father wants us to understand that his commands are not a burden but a blessing.  The Holy Spirit wants to help us discover that the biggest blessing on earth is living in harmony with God and his will.

   The best way to discover the blessing of doing God’s will is to pray “The Lord’s Prayer” sincerely each day.  As you daily come to your Heavenly Father, seeking the daily bread you need to do his will, you will be surprised at how He changes your life.  Living for Jesus will move from being a “have to” to a “want to”.  Start each day this week by sincerely praying the Lord’s prayer.  Better yet, pray it each day for several weeks so it can grow into a lifetime habit.

The Blessing of Doing God's Will

 “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”  An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.                     Luke 22:42-42  NIV 

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.    

Matthew 6:9-13 NIV

    What better week to devote to praying the Lord’s prayer than the week before Resurrection Sunday?  When Jesus was facing the anguish of the cross, he prayed so earnestly for strength to fulfill the Father’s will that he sweat drops of blood.  Jesus understood that there was no better thing to do on earth than the Father’s will and he also knew we have a real enemy who tries to keep us from doing it.  It’s a battle!

     By praying The Lord’s Prayer, we can be proactive in pursuing God’s will.   In this way, we will grow in our desire to do God’s will.  We will discover that the greatest joy on earth is doing God’s will.  We will also gain strength to do God’s will in both good and difficult circumstances.  Sometimes we fail to do God’s will because we wait until we are tempted to ask for strength to do it.  Jesus teaches us to regularly seek daily bread from our Heavenly Father to do His will.  As we do, the Lord of The Lord’s Prayer transforms our hearts, minds and actions.

     This week, set aside at least two times each day to slowly and sincerely pray The Lord’s Prayer.  Ask God to give you the desire and the strength to do his will as it is done in heaven.

Taking Action to Live with Peace

Turn away from evil and do good. Search for peace, and work to   maintain it.   1 Peter 3:11  NLT

    If you’re like me, you’ve often been frustrated that peace of mind just doesn’t happen.  I have had to learn that peace is a gift from God.  1 Peter 3:11 says “….. Search for peace and work to maintain it.”   Searching and working are clearly action words!  So, how do we practically do this?   Prayer is certainly an action we should take, but I want to focus on something else….God’s Word.

    Ephesians 6:15 says “For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.”  There are literally hundreds of verses about worry and fear (or whatever your peace-stealer is) that God gave us to arm us for the battle of the mind.  But, we can’t expect to win the battle for peace of mind without carrying God’s word with us onto the battlefield!  Memorizing God’s word empowers us to use it at a moment’s notice when our minds begin to drift away from Him.  A full ammunition belt of memorized scripture is essential to winning the battle for peace of mind.

So, this week, recognize that peace is a gift from God and thank Him for it.  Take action, too, and put on your “shoes” by memorizing and meditating on these two verses to equip yourself for battle. 

John 14:27 - Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.  NIV

Colossians 3:15 - Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. NIV

** This week’s SPA was written by my friend, who is also an elder in our church, Steve McIntire