Thoughtful Thursday: God Awareness

“Choose your words as though Jesus is hearing each one.  Because He is!”

It seems as though we spend most of our days with a God acknowledgement, but not a God awareness.  We acknowledge that He is there when it is convenient, but don’t actually go through our day with a total awareness that He is right there with us at all times.  I Corinthians 3:16 says “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?”  It’s pretty difficult for Him to not be with you when He lives inside of you.   He is next to us during every moment, every decision, every word and every thought.  Hebrews 13:5b says “for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”  We are quick to use this verse as a comfort when times are tough, but do we cling to the truth of it on a day to day basis.                  

I propose that our day would go much differently if we spent it with a complete “God awareness” in all that we do.  Before you go to that place…be God aware.  Before you say those words…be God aware.  Before you make that decision…be God aware.

Teen Tuesday: Insecurity - Part One

Written by Dave McCroskey

PART ONE: THE PROBLEM

When you check your inbox and you don’t have any new messages - do you hit the refresh button just to be sure?

How many times do you look in the mirror before you leave the house every day?

We have American Idol, The Voice, Dancing with the Stars, America’s Got Talent!

Why is our generation so consumed with popularity, good looks, talent, and fame?

In a word: INSECURITY!

I love my life. No really - I do. A wonderful job, fabulous family, amazing fiancé, and

obviously, an incredible God all make my life well worth the living. However, what I have

noticed among others in my generation is that how much I LOVE my life is

proportionately how much other people my age HATE their life. ! !

Why is that? In a word: INSECURITY!

On an individual basis, our generation doesn’t seem to be very happy with who they

are. Insecurity is one of the most prominent and prevalent human emotions in the

world. Everyone experiences it at some point or another. Most people experience it

every day. Many people live paralyzed by it.

Some are so perpetually perplexed by it that insecurity has begun to define them. They

don’t define themselves anymore - insecurity does. “Hi...I’m Insecure....”

One of my favorite portions of Scripture is Psalms 139. In Psalms 139 we uncover such

a potentially life-changing truth - God likes us. He really likes us. He cares enough

about us to know everything about us. He cares enough about us to stay by our side

through good times and bad. He even loved us enough to create us uniquely and then

divinely orchestrate our lives. The truth is that God likes you quite a bit....whether you

like you or not!

In this mini-series, we are going to analyze three human emotions that cause

insecurity. Then, in light of what the Bible illuminates to us in Psalms 139, we will learn

the answer to insecurity and find true, Biblical confidence.

Monday's Message: Do ALL to the Glory of God!

How do we determine the best way to live our lives? Whose feelings or perspective do we consider first when making decisions about our own actions?  Do we first consider Christ and what the Bible says? Does our influence or impact on others have any part in the decision, or do we simply decide what we want?  I believe the Father wants His children to enjoy this life, but I also know that we have been called to be holy.  I do not think that those two are mutually exclusive.  Paul uses the practice of eating meat that has been offered as a sacrifice to a false god to illustrate this principle.  It seems that there was a division in the Church at Corinth caused by this specific practice.  There was the one side who believed they had a Bible conviction against it, and the other side basically said, “It belonged to the Creator before those heathens claimed it, so let’s eat.” In this passage we learn that our personal preferences are not to be the key focus of our decision.  It is more important that we do not cause a brother in Christ or an unbeliever to be offended by our actions or practices.  Obviously, we should first please the Lord!  We should never participate in any sinful practice for any reason. If we do not have a definite Bible command to guide us we should consider how our actions will impact those around us before we make a decision to participate or abstain in such situations.  

I Corinthians 10:24-33:

24  Let no man seek his own, but every man another's wealth. 

25  Whatsoever is sold in the shambles, that eat, asking no question for conscience sake: 

26  For the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof. 

27  If any of them that believe not bid you to a feast, and ye be disposed to go; whatsoever is set before you, eat, asking no question for conscience sake. 

28  But if any man say unto you, This is offered in sacrifice unto idols, eat not for his sake that shewed it, and for conscience sake: for the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof: 

29  Conscience, I say, not thine own, but of the other: for why is my liberty judged of another man's conscience? 

30  For if I by grace be a partaker, why am I evil spoken of for that for which I give thanks? 

31  Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God. 

32  Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God: 

33  Even as I please all men in all things, not seeking mine own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved.  

Family Friday: His Mercies are New!

This picture says it all!  Each day we find new mercies to go through life, and frankly, I think God has to store up extra for me.  Do you ever feel like you have just gotten something down pat, only to have something else go terribly awry?  It seems to be a mode I am stuck in… I feel like, okay, I have the laundry down, now if I could just get a system for dishes.  They seem to breed overnight, right?  And then when I just seem to have gotten the dishes semi-under-control, the laundry had another baby of its own. Each day comes new with no strings attached.  Today, God has new mercies in store for all the mistakes I will make.  He is so patient, if I would only be consistent about asking Him, He would help me get all of my life under control.  But regardless of whether you are a free-spirit like me (doing whatever pops in your head, and having trouble keeping schedules), or whether you are like my patient husband who is neat, and very schedule oriented, God loves you unconditionally. I think He created me for His enjoyment. He looks down at me and says, “There she goes again,” and shakes His head with a wry smile.  I find pleasure in that. Whether or not your laundry and dishes are done, or whatever it may be that you struggle with from day to day, God chooses to love you, and He wants to help you.  His love is not based on how you feel about Him, and I am so glad He loves me when I am unlovable.  And it is a wonder to me that He does!

Thoughtful Thursday: I Will Sing!

“I will sing to the Lord all the days of my life”

Psalms 9:2  I will be glad and rejoice in thee: I will sing praise to thy name, O thou most High.

Psalms 13:6  I will sing unto the LORD, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.

Psalms 57:7  My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.

Psalms 57:9  I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people: I will sing unto thee among the nations.

Psalms 104:33  I will sing unto the LORD as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.

Psalms 144:9  I will sing a new song unto thee, O God: upon a psaltery and an instrument of ten strings will I sing praises unto thee.

These are only a few of the scriptures where David said “I will sing”.  There are many more.  There’s got to be something to it, if he said it that many times, right?  I challenge you to not let a day go by where you don’t sing unto the Lord.