What ARE You Doing?

"Brothers, what good is it to profess faith without showing works? Such faith has no power to save you." - James 2:14

Being a good person is often viewed in terms of what we don't do. Someone could say, "I'm a good person; I don't cheat, I don't kill, I don't steal." Great! Good for you! But now tell me… what ARE you doing?

A sin of omission, holding back on a good we could have done for someone, is just as bad as actively committing a sin. When an opportunity comes for you to help someone, you better believe that's God putting that in your way for you to lend a hand. It could be the time someone asked to borrow 20 bucks, although you knew they wouldn't pay you back. It could be the time that annoying person called you because they needed to talk to someone. It could be that woman you saw carrying all the bags to her car by herself. The bible says that even the demons believe in God and tremble, so if you say you believe in God and pass up these opportunities to actually do good for people God has put in your way, how is your faith any different than that of the demons? In the end, God will decide we're good people based on the work we did for Him, not from just believing. How do we show God we believe if not by the actions we take?

And don't stop at just helping out when a situation arises… look for these situations! Talk to someone who is depressed about the love of God! Be inspired to be a blessing for others. It's not all about you and what you need from God! There are people going through serious hardships, and if you want God to bless you, you better be willing to be a blessing to other people. Saying you believe in God can't save you, but living a life dedicated to the service of others will.

Today's Prayer:
Lord Jesus, in the same way You spent Your life serving others, I want to spend mine doing Your work. Help me see those that need my assistance. I am here to do Your will, My Lord. In Your Name we pray, amen.

You Believe In God, So What?

"Do you believe there is one God? Well enough, but do not forget that the demons also believe and tremble with fear!" - James 2:19

I was out to dinner the other night with a group of friends. I was having a conversation with the people sitting towards my left when I heard the people to my right talk about God. One girl said, "I don't believe in God. I don't care what happens because to me, there is nothing there," while the other person said, "I can't tell you if I believe a God exists or not, I don't know." I have come across a lot of people that have similar points of view, but more often than not, I come across people that do say they believe in God. For those that believe, including myself, how do we manifest this belief? A lot of times people think themselves righteous because they say they believe, or feel that by just believing, they are done and don't need to do anything else. But in this letter, Saint James gives us a hard reality check - even Satan and the demons believe in God and tremble with fear! Do we even tremble? If we who believe don't find a way of being better believers than the demons of Hell, we're in trouble! How are we any different?

The difference lies in our actions. Don't say you believe but never go to church, never pray, spread hate. Then you are just like the demons in Hell. Instead, show that you are not like the demons in Hell and let your belief in God show love, mercy, compassion, and a true friendship with God.

Today's Prayer:
My God, allow Your Word in me to always develop into fruit. Allow that through me, others may see how good You are. I don't want my faith to be dead and the same as the demons, but grant that in You, I may show Your light. In Your Name we pray, Amen.