Dealing With Those Awful Sinners!

Oh, how we great and mighty Christians hate dealing with those people. Those ones who love their sin so greatly, that nothing else matters to them!
And did you realize that attitude is pride? Did you know pride is a sin?
It is a constant battle for me. Both trying to deal with "those people" and trying to keep myself from being one of them. I know I am one. I am a sinner. The difference is simply that I, like many other followers of Christ, seek to die to self and sin to serve God.


Galatians 5:17
For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

Matthew 26:41
Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

Romans 8:9
But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

In these three verses we can see several differences between the Flesh and the Spirit. The flesh being ourselves, our selfish desire and wants, the worldly part of our being, our bodies.

This is why we are in a constant battle. Our flesh wants to think we are so much better than "Those Sinners." That things should be very different than the reality we live in.

God, through the Holy Spirit, has given us the power to overcome our flesh. One of the biggest challenges in our lives is to be humble.

Philippians 2:1-8
 If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

This humbling is the key. We can not have both love and pride. God's Love, True Love, demands humility. 

Matthew 5:43-48 

Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

The hardest 13 verses in the Bible. The Challenge to be like God. It should be that I love for Him would drive us to WANT to be like Him. And, I'll admit, though I do, sometimes I feed my flesh and I harbor anger, hatred, contempt, and pride. Sometimes for days I will feast on my sin, until at last I feel sick, sad, and broken. Being so far from my Lord drives the sorrow and loneliness into my aching heart, and I repent. Sometimes this happens over and over again in a week, Every time I have skipped my time with my Savior, sin waits no time to move in its place.

We need to deal with all other people with the same love that God has toward us.

Only Half.

Oh, how much I hate being only half able!
Makes me too able to be helped, and too unable to help myself or anyone else.
I know God has a purpose for all things, and I really wish I knew the purpose for this! I get so frustrated with trying to DO when I can't. I really don't know what my life will be like. From what I understand, some day I wont be even half able to do things, but that should be years from now.
I don't know what kind of life I will ever have. I've always been to afraid to even try to picture one.
I look fine... Until I try to work at anything.

I think half is the worst. Pros and Cons with everything, but I think I hate it the worst. It may be that is just because it is where I am, but more than that. I hate being in this middle where I look fine, but I'm not.

I've just had my first job interview, to be denied at the mention of my limits. There doesn't seem to be anything I can do. There is no job for a half invalid. How am I ever supposed to have any kind of life? Maybe I can find a half life.

Maybe somewhere along the way, I will have... more.

Running to God to find a spouse.

With my recent longing for my life to progress the way I desire, I have had many talks with my Grandmother about her marriages. Again and again the problems she faced, she would say "And that's where a christian man comes in." Meaning that-that issue would not exist with a man that is following God. I was reminded of an example I've redrawn to share.

I went through many notecards and such from a time early in her marriage with Dusty, and saw a part that doesn't exist any longer. This caused me to wonder all the more. I asked Granny how she would describe the first part of her marriage with Dusty. "Fun," she said, "when we wanted to do something we did it. When we wanted to go somewhere we went." And after a few other notes about it, she said "Worldly." They did not have God as a part of their life, and she regrets that.

I have learned a lot from my grandmother, and her experiences. I have learned the truth and the need to do the saying "Run toward God as fast as you can, and if someone can keep up introduce yourself." The only kind of relationship I want, be it friend or romantic, is one focused on God first. The closer you are to God, the closer you are to a Godly spouse.

With the thought of marriage in mind, there comes the thought of maturity. Immature people get married all the time, and that brings trouble to them. The question also comes "What is maturity?"
I dwelled on this awhile, thinking about the things we attribute to it. It all comes down to Godly living.
Maturity is:
Someone who handles a bad situation calmly and with grace.
Someone who thinks of others, and not just themselves.
Someone who doesn't just waste.
Someone who isn't rash, and careless.
Someone who is willing to admit they aren't perfect, that sometimes things are their fault.
Someone who doesn't make excuses for everything they do, trying to pass the blame.
Someone who is willing to give of themselves.

That isn't a complete list of mature living, but a glimpse of what I have learned about maturity in the last year. I used to be so determined, frustrated, and obsessed with "growing up" that I couldn't see that I had the wrong goal. Growing older is something no one can avoid, maturing is something too few do.
Second Timothy 3:16-17 says  "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works." Perfect meaning completed. This perfection, or completion, refers to a maturity in the things of God.
So, I began to study what a Christian should be, what a wife should be, and what a husband should be. I am far from completing my study, but but what I have learned so far I have made a list of what to look for in a person I would live with:

One man of God:

Must have solid relationship with Christ.

Must be Responsible with money.

Must be Honest,

Humble,

Respectful,

Even Tempered,

Forgiving,

Loving,

Willing to Listen,

Willing to Work Hard,

Willing to Learn.

Must be of Good Reputation,

Hospitable,

Teacher of the things of God,

Leader,

and Patient.

God knowing you.

We focus much on us knowing God, because He already knows us, right?
The Word testifies that He knows us. He created us.

Psalm 139:15
My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

Galatians 1:15
But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by his grace,

Psalm 139:2
Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.

1 Samuel 16:7
But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.

He knows us inside and out, from before we were born, to after our death. God knows his creation. But there are two kinds of God knowing us. The first is that covered above. God knows what He has made. The second is knowing us as His children.

Matthew 7:22-23
 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

Nahum 1:7
The Lord is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him.

Psalm 1:6
For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.

John 15:15
Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.

2 Timothy 2:19
Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

Jeremiah 9:23-25 Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the Lord.

Lacking Surrender.

How lacking I was! I hardly noticed as I continually pushed my Savior away. "Right after this," I'd say, and something else would always take it's place. My nights began with heartless apologizes, and hardly a glancing thought of my Lord until the next night. I hardly realized the inner turmoil this caused until I changed. Finally, one night it was a heartfelt prayer, and I was ready to change to be what my Lord wants me to be. While some of my turmoil could be blamed on hormones, I know in my heart that much could have been saved if I had been near my Savior.

I write this not for any who may read it, but to be a reminder for myself of what is important in my life.
I've heard calls from the pulpit "Give your life to Christ! Surrender!" I realized that, though I believed, and though I have sought to claim that surrendering, I continually pick it up and call it "my life." It is no longer, and I need to remember that in every moment of every day, and every night.

Romans12:1-3 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

Galatians 2:20I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I,but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

How Hard to Trust!

Anyone who reads this much knows I have health issues that makes doing much hard. I've held tight to the fact that I can type, and have pursued trying to use that to find a job. I got the idea after many denials, that I could write a book and sell it on Kindle to start earning a couple dollars. I've written about 8,000 words, and tried to do more than the 500 a day I was doing. That night, I couldn't move my hands. I was in such pain. "that's it. there's nothing left I can do." My options of consistently working on anything have fallen to 0.

While I am not in any great need of money right this minute, I don't have plans for anything past my current situation. My grandmother won't live forever, and then what? It's up to God.
I really thought I would be working by now. Earning money, buying a phone, a car, whatever else would be helpful for having a job. "If only I physically able. I'd be able to work a job. There are so many openings if I could do all the physical labor required." ::Deep sighs.

"If only I didn't have to trust." I hate to admit this thought, and I really haven't had it as such, with those words, but I have had it. I hate not knowing how things will work out. I hate waiting. I hate the feeling that I "Need to figure it out-But I need to trust God" It's conflicting and confusing.

If I could *Just Do* then everything would be fine.

Life.
A progression of time from someone's birth to death.
In which a person should... what?
Should get a car?
Should work a job?
Should be independent?
Should be.
Who dictates these things?
I know sometimes some of these are needed, but why *should* someone, if they aren't needed?
Right now, in my life, I need nothing. I would LOVE to work. I would love to earn, and be independent of my family. But, then what? Work, sleep, eat, pay bills, work...
I don't know... much of anything.
But I know I have little choice but to trust God. And sometimes, may stubborn and proud heart really hates to.

What can you do, but pray?

Sometimes life just seems rough. The Lord is the only one who can give that internal, and eternal strength to go on.
Verses like John 16:33 help.
"These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."

Psalm 23:4
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

2 Corinthians 1:2-4 

Grace be to you and peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.

Reading the Word, and speaking to the Father are the only things that make life worth living. Looking to the end when our conversations won't be limited by "letter", and "phone", but will be face to face!

(food for thought.)

BLAME!

It's a time old tale, "it's his fault!" They began it in the Garden of Eden, and it continues today. We often blame the devil for the evil we do, even though we know full-well that it is our choice.
Don't get my wrong, satan is a powerful foe, just don't use him as an excuse.
One of the hardest things to do is to face the fact YOU are a sinner. You sin, and it is your fault.
You Are Guilty!
We hate guilt and all that goes with it. All the shame, anger, frustration, and loneliness drove us to create the blame game. In the Garden, Man and Woman chose to sin. God of All comes down to fellowship with them as He had done all their lives, but they had changed because of sin, and they hid themselves.



Genesis 3:9-13
And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.

The blame game had begun. In attempt to sweep away sin, we tried shifting the blame... Trying to hide who was actually guilty. The fact of the matter all three were guilty, and the Lord knew it. Verses 14-19 list the punishments God gave for each one of them.

Guilt is an ever expanding weight of discomfort and sorrow. No one likes to bear it, and there is only one way I know of to rid oneself of it: trust Christ.

God the Father sent God the Son to live a sinless life on earth and take the death penalty for us, so that we may have fellowship with Him, and be made righteousness.

The only one that care lift the guilt from our shoulders, and the Creator of All.

Hating Body and Beauty.

Because of the experiences I had as a child, whenever I heard someone say I was beautiful I cringed. I wished with all my aching heart that I was an ugly child. I did what I knew to do to hide myself. I wore clothes that were much too big, and I only brushed my hair enough so it wasn't one big mass. I hauled up in my bedroom as much as possible to stay away from people.
My health has been not good for many years now, and I always hated that, too. I often questioned God on why He made me the way He did. I didn't want to be noticed, I wanted to blend in. My health issues only made this harder to do.
My heart harbored a safe haven for that bitterness and hate to grow. I nurtured it with hateful songs, and metal songs, and "poor me" songs, from youtube. My prayers to God were as dark and hateful as my heart. I spent many nights basically demanding Him to kill me, because I was never quite willing to do it myself.

But all that began to change after I truly accepted Christ as Savior and Leader of my life. He showed me He has a purpose for everything, and often times more than one purpose. I, at first, simply began to accept that my body was a fact I had to live with. Over time I began to delight in my beauty. I started to wear clothes that fit right, brushed my hair often, learned how to use makeup to enhance the beauty He gave me, and started to smile and give a "thank you" when my beauty was complemented.

This has been a hard battle for me.

It has been a challenge from God to see myself as He made me, and not as I saw myself through the evils of the world. I am still in the great battle of learning to thank God for my health problems.
Whenever Granny and I are going into a store for any length of time, she gets the chair for me. It's hardly a choice I make, my body demands it. I'll tell her, "Okay, but I protest!"
She'll reply with, "Protest all you want to, but we're taking it."

I want so badly to be fully capable. I want to be able to just do anything I feel like doing, as I am told I should be able to do just because of my age. But that is not God's will at this time of my life. I can say, "I protest!" but God says, "We're taking it anyway." And so I climb into His arms, and I ride out my day in prayers for strength and thanks for what He has allowed me to do.

Don't get me wrong, I am far from perfect with accepting this trial in my life, but I am continually learning to praise Him at all times, and give thanks unto Him continually.

(picture: Myself, my older brother, and one of my younger brothers when we were quite young)

Mimic the Father!

Matthew 5:43-45
Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

Oh, the dreadful challenge given! How could I POSSIBLY love an enemy? Do good to those that hate me? Now... I can pray for them... pray their breaks go out running down a hill... flower pot falls from a window sill and hit them on the head like I want to!

oh?

It doesn't work that way? Why do I need to be so nice?

"That ye may be the children of your Father"

What does that mean? I'm a child of God!

John 15:8-10
 Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.
 As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.
 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.

John 17:21-23
 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
 And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

We are to be one with Christ, and how did He treat His enemies? How did He treat you, and me?

With love. With Prayer. With blessings, and sacrifices.

A child is born of it's parents; born of their flesh, their DNA. As they grow they mimic their parents to learn how to act, and how to live life. As a child of God, we are born of Him. Not in the flesh are we born of Him, but in the Spirit. We are to look to Him, and mimic Him to grow, and learn how to live life.

We are of Christ, we must act like it. As hard as it is, as much as sometimes you (I) want to yell and smack our enemies, we must not. We must go beyond just not harming them, we must be nice to them. Pray for them.

A challenge to be like Christ. Will you take up the cross?