Cleaning Up Your Act!

There are a lot of things going on in our world today that many of us find irreprehensible; however, for most of us, we would rather remain silent than make a fuss and call out the guilty parties.

I guess a lot of that mentality stems from the scripture where Christ tells his disciples to “Judge not, lest ye be judged.”…..however; a closer examination of the scripture in Luke 6:41-42 reads as follows: “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, “Brother let me take the speck out of your eye” when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite; first take the plank out of your own eye and then, maybe, you will see clearly to remove the speck form your brother’s eye.”

In other words….CLEAN UP YOUR ACT!!!!!

We need to hold other brothers and sisters in Christ accountable for their actions; but we must first make sure that we are living as God intended and in accordance with his will for our lives.

We can easily judge the sins of the world for the Bible spells them out in no uncertain terms….and we are called as salt and light to shine God’s holy light on the sins that would befall and hinder someone who does not know Christ….but our lives MUST be HOLY and WITHOUT REPROACH…..WE MUST LIVE AS CHRIST LIVED…..and let our actions point others to Jesus. Once they compare His life to their own, they will see that they did Him as their Lord and Savior.

Jesus told us not to judge unless we were willing to have the same “measuring stick” used to judge us ….and He told us NEVER to condemn lest we be condemned….

So where does that leave us in the greater scheme of calling “sin”…..SIN?

Simply put; make sure your life is in order and pleasing to your Heavenly Father before you set out to help someone else “clean up their act!”

The following poem was sent to me today from my beautiful bride and that’s what got me thinking about this …..Read on and enjoy…..and remember; if you know Jesus personally, then God has already judged you and found you blameless by the shed blood of His Son, JESUS CHRIST.


BEST POEM IN THE WORLD

I was shocked, confused, bewildered
As I entered Heaven's door,
Not by the beauty of it all,
Nor the lights or its decor.

But it was the folks in Heaven
Who made me sputter and gasp--
The thieves, the liars, the sinners,
The alcoholics and the trash.

There stood the kid from seventh grade
Who swiped my lunch money twice.
Next to him was my old neighbor
Who never said anything nice.

John, who I always thought
Was rotting away in hell,
Was sitting pretty on cloud nine,
Looking incredibly well.

I nudged Jesus, 'What's the deal?
I would love to hear Your take.
How'd all these sinners get up here?
God must've made a mistake.

'And why is everyone so quiet,
So somber - give me a clue.'
'Hush, child,' He said,
'they're all in shock.
No one thought they'd be seeing you.'

God Bless and Stay Strong...The Battle Rages On

WPQ


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Where Is Your Faith?

If you’re alive and breathing in our world today, you have been, you are currently or you soon will be involved with trials and tribulations that will have you searching for an answer to the question above…..so, let us take a moment and search the scriptures for an answer to this perplexing question…..WHERE IS YOUR FAITH?

Christ asked the same question of his disciples as told in Luke 8: 22-25 which reads as follows: “One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s go over to the other side of the lake.” So, they got into the boat and set out. As they sailed, Jesus fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake so that the boat was being swamped and they were in great danger. The disciples went and woke him saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown.” So he got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters and the storm subsided….AND ALL WAS CALM. “Why are you so fearful? Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples. In fear and amazement they asked one another, “who is this that even the winds and the water obey him?”

In our story above there are several things that need to be considered as we wrestle with this poignant question…First, who was it that decided that they should go to the other side?

JESUS….for when Jesus leads then we can follow with great confidence. It is a fore gone conclusion for those of us who are believers that if Jesus is with us, then we have NOTHING TO FEAR!!!! Jesus had already ordained the successful crossing to the other side for he said, “Let us go over to the other side.” He said they were going….so nothing would keep them from making a successful crossing. Remember…
What God ordains….God completes!

Secondly, what can possibly keep us from our destination if Christ is in the boat with us?

God is always with us in all our troubles; however, even as Christ slept and had to be awakened by his disciples, we need to assess our situation and be prepared to call out to the Master. God knows our needs and is just waiting to help us in any and every situation; but we must call out to him and ask for his intervention….He is not sleeping…rather he is just waiting for our cry for help before he begins to alter our circumstances.

And thirdly, where is your faith?

Is your faith in the sturdiness of your craft….the tenor of the wood and riggings ….the knowledge and experience of the crew or its captain….or is your faith based on the sight of some lighthouse on the distant shore?

The disciples had sailed these very same waters as fisherman for most of their adult years and they had probably encountered storms of this magnitude before….but what made this storm so different?

THE MASTER WAS ON BOARD…..AND HE WAS ASLEEP!

I am sure it was beyond their human comprehension to understand how anyone could sleep through a storm that was about to capsize the boat and drown them all….but Jesus knew that they would reach the other side because his trust was in the Father ….and God never forsakes his own!!!!!!

So no matter what storms of life come against you….as a child of God know this….HE WILL SEE THAT YOU MAKE IT SAFELY TO THE OTHER SIDE.

In fact that is EXACTLY where Christ is at this very moment…..Just waiting for you on the other side. So no matter what winds may howl or how tempestuous the seas may be during this season of your life, you can sleep and rest peacefully….just like Jesus did…with the secure knowledge that He is in the boat with you …rebuking the winds and calming the seas….waiting with outstretched arms ….safely on the other side.

If you will hold on to that picture in your heart and mind, you will always know the answer to the question…..where is your faith?....For your faith will not falter nor fail when you call on the name of the Lord and trust in His infinite power and promise….God is with you and HE WILL ALWAYS PREVAIL!

Setting sail with the Savior,

WPQ