The Good You Do

Before I start, I'd like to apologize for not sending out a message in almost a week. I was really sick and weak, and didn't have much energy for anything… but I'm better now so let's get to it!

"Be careful not to make a show of your righteousness before people. If you do so, you do not gain anything from your Father in Heaven. When you give something to the poor, do not have it trumpeted before you, as do those who want to be seen in the synagogues and in the streets in order to be praised by the people. I assure you, they have already been paid in full." - Matthew 6:1-2

Those of you looking to do something truly selfless for Lent should be volunteering your time, donating more money, and simply putting more effort into helping those around us who are in need… but when you do good for others make sure you question yourself as to why you're doing it. Some of us do it to be Jesus' hands and feet here on Earth while others do it so they can boast to others and receive praise for their "righteousness." They want people to tell them how good and selfless they are. During this sermon in Matthew, Jesus goes on to say that what your right hand does, your left hand shouldn't know about, meaning that when you do something good for others, even if it's donating a kidney, if you really intended it to be for God, don't tell anyone else. If God is who matters and you're acting out of the goodness of your heart, then God saw what you did… keep it at that. Instead, if you tell people what you did for someone and just "let" people find out so they can tell you what a good person you are, then don't expect the Lord to give you any kind of recognition since you have already received it from others. Your actions show you only wanted to please yourself, not God. If God was your real motivation, telling others and bragging about how holy you are shouldn't be happening. Throughout the gospels, there are so many instances where Jesus would heal someone and then He would tell them to keep quiet and not tell a soul. Even though He deserved all the praise in the world, Jesus kept quiet because the good He did was for God and not for His own ego.

Therefore, please examine yourselves and your motives. Let them be pure. Let this Lenten season be full of good acts for others that are only between you and God… I believe anything else is inspired by the devil.

Today's Prayer:
Lord God, search me and make me clean. Humble me and build me up again to be Your loyal and faithful servant. Let all the works of my hands be for You and You only, and not for others to see. In Your Name we pray, amen.

Good or Bad?

"But the fruit of the Spirit is charity, joy, and peace, patience, understanding of others, kindness and fidelity, gentleness and self-control." - Galatians 5:22-23

So many times in life we have to evaluate things and figure out if they're good for us or not, or even worthwhile or not. Sometimes I wish God would just give me a vivid dream in which He tells me exactly what to do so I don't have to figure things out. These fruits of the Holy Sprit are what I call the litmus test for getting our answers. I know someone who's been in a relationship for a while now and I know for a fact that her boyfriend isn't good for her because of the "fruits" of that relationship. I see the relationship breaking down her mental, emotional, and even physical state. I see her family at war with her. When things come from God and are good for us, they bring peace. They build us up and make us transparent people with nothing to hide. Why? Because God wants to better us and bring good things to our lives, so anything that comes from Him, gives us the fruits of the Spirit - peace, patience, fidelity, kindness, etc. There is nothing to hide or conceal. But where there are contant arguments, resentment, hate, jealousy, selfishness, shouting, bitterness, this does not come from God. In fact, the Spirit of God leaves from where this lack of harmony exists. We all need to examine our lives and the people and things in them. Is there something or someone that is bringing you down, causing division and stirring up hate and jealousy? This does not come from God and you need to pray for God to free you from that situation as soon as possible. Nothing good comes from this. And if you see good in your life and feel peace from decisions you have made, God is blessing you for following His will.

Today's Prayer:
Lord God, when I lack discernment, please step in and show me where the fruits of the Spirit are. I want to follow You, especially when things are not clear. Help me to see and put Your will into practice. In Your Name we pray, amen.

Words

"From the same mouth come both blessing and curse. Brothers, this should not be the case. Can both fresh and salt water gush from the same source?" - James 3:10-11

I was just praying and God let me feel that a great way to tell the heart of a person is by the things that come out of their mouths. Just in the same way that fresh water can't gush out of the same place as salt water, good things can't gush out of the mouth of a wicked person. Yes, people can fool us and be hypocrites, but this is a personal test for each of you - think about the things you speak about. Who do you talk about? When you speak to others, do you speak to encourage or do you speak to put down? Do you use your words to help others or do you use them to manipulate for your own advantage? Do you use your words for deceit or for truth? Or sometimes, speech isn't even necessary, do you lend a voice when someone needs to hear a kind word? Or do you keep your silence and not help? Whatever you choose to say or not say, especially the things that blurt out when you're angry or surprised, are all a true reflection of who you really are, what's really in your heart. You may try to hide this from others, but God sees who you really are and His is the only opinion that matters.

We all have things we need to change and work on. First, we need to realize that speech is a gift God gave us to build and encourage those in need of kind words, not to hurt anyone else or bring ourselves up. Then, we ask God to help us work on those issues we have inside so that both our heart and our words can be pure.

Today's Prayer:
My Lord Jesus, search me and reveal to me where I am lacking. Show me if my words have offended people and how I can correct that and correct my own heart. Help me, too, to forgive those who have hurt me with their words and understand that their hearts are wounded as well. In Your Name we pray, amen.

Filling Yourself with Good

"Brothers and sisters, fill your minds with whatever is truthful, holy, just, pure, lovely and noble." - Phillipians 4:8

Most of us are familiar with the phrase "you reap what you sow," and it definitely has a lot of truth to it. There are things that can poison your minds, hearts, and souls if you allow yourself to be contaminated by them. I have a friend now who let herself slip into a bad situation and now she is hurt and bitter. What she surrounded herself with has brought her down and killed her joy and her heart. God doesn't want this for us and instead, through this verse tells us to keep ourselves surrounded by good. If we want joy and peace in our lives, we need to keep ourselves free of anything that can contaminate us. We need to surround and fill ourselves with whatever is truthful, holy, just, pure, lovely, and noble. Being out in a club one night can be fun, but what truth or purity is in that? What joy can it bring about if there's emptiness the next day. Cutting class one day can be fun, but one can never find truth in that. Or hooking up with someone we're attracted to can be pleasurable a few times, but what nobility is there in that? These things bring harm to your soul when the good that God intends for us brings life. Look for this good, seek it and you will see how it brings more substance to your life.

Today's Prayer:
Lord Jesus, although I do not always see it, help me to seek the pure and good things for my life. Help me to avoid the cheap thrills and the things that are only good for the moment and later bring me harm. Help me see what You want for me and not just what I want. In Your Name we pray, amen.

For The Good of Those Who Love Him

"We know that in everything God works for the good of those who love Him." - Romans 8:28

Sometimes we get what we want but a lot of times we lose. A lot of times things happen to us that we don't quite understand and those things might cause us to get angry at God and jealous at those who seem to have what we're missing. But put your hope in the Lord because when you do, everything that happens to you, good and bad, is for your ultimate good. Why let anger and disappointment set in when God is working to give you more? When you trust in Him, you will see your prayers answered, maybe not in the form in which you wanted, but He will let you know that He is good and He is alive in your life.

Back in August, I wrote about trusting in God even when things don't work out our way. I wrote about how I lost something I really wanted. That something was a dream job that was offered to me. The company called me in, I met with the head of the online marketing department and it seemed like it was in the bag. I was so so happy. Then, a week later, I found out they couldn't bring me in. I had waited so long for a position like that and then it was gone. I could have asked myself why God would do that to me. Why would He bring in the job, get my hopes up and then take it away? But I didn't. Although I was so hurt I wanted to cry, I thanked Him because of this verse; because He is good and He loves me enough to only give me what's best for me. Fast forward to today and that same guy who interviewed me called me. He called to tell me how he was glad he couldn't bring me in because the label was going through changes, and on Friday they laid off everyone I would have been working with, and I would have been let go too. God took care of me for I know His Name. I didn't doubt, I just trusted and because of this, He showed me why He does things. If this is what He does to protect me, I can only imagine what He'll do to bless me and my future. Put your hope in the Lord. Trust Him, come good or come bad…as badly as your world may shake, the Lord is good and is working on turning your bad into good. Wait on the works of His hands.

Today's Prayer:
Lord God, You are good, You are holy, You are just, and You are loving. Thank You for answering my prayers in ways I do not see and for protecting me for I know Your Name. Please help me stay grateful always and help me spread faith in You to others. In Your Name we pray, amen.

God's Goodness Will Follow You

"Goodness and kindness will follow me all the days of my life." - Psalm 23:6

When you believe and develop a personal relationship with God, He takes you to another level of faith.At this level, you have made God the most important thing in your life. His will becomes your will and you learn to give Him thanks constantly for how good He is. Also at this level, you begin to walk by faith and not by sight, or fear. In the beginning of this Psalm, King David says, "although I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are beside me." Here, David is showing confidence in the fact that God will shower him with goodness and kindness for all of his life. This is something God wants to do with all of us, believers and non-believers, but what this new level of faith is is being as confident as David was in God's favor. It is putting away the fear and knowing, just as the sky is blue, that the Lord Almighty is your God and He will protect you, uphold you, listen to you, and be there for you right now and until the very end of your life.

Do away with any fear. Be confident in His promises and joyful because He is at work in your life

Today's Prayer:
Lord God, I thank You because You take special care of me each and every single day whether I acknowledge it or not. You bless me without me deserving it or giving enough gratitude. Help me to always trust in You. In Your Name, Amen.