Simply Spiritual

Paul and Barnabas

One of the roles of a Christian is to spread the word of God.  There are many ways to do this and it will vary from individual to individual.

Some people wait for a dramatic experience to happen to them before they can start witnessing to others.  Maybe they think something of what happened to Paul would happen to them.

The Apostle Paul was an avid persecutor of the early church, but when Jesus appeared to him in a vision, his life turned completely around and he became the apostle who took the gospel to the Gentiles.

Now, if we wait around to see visions or hear voices before we can do God’s work, then we will just wait forever.  You can only do God’s work if you really make up your mind to do it.

If you want to change your life – just do it!

If you want to do God’s work – just do it!

Don’t sit around waiting for miracles, just do what is necessary to be a witness.

Once you’ve made a start then the right help will come along.  Pray and ask God for guidance and then He would put everything in place for you to succeed.

“Draw close to God and He will draw close to you.”  James 4:8

Reflection in Water

What you think in your heart is what is reflected on the outside.  To change your outlook on life you must change how you think.  The type of life that you live is dependent on what you think and believe.

“As a face is reflected in water, so the heart reflects a person.”  Proverbs 27:19

To change your life to something better and more positive, you must change your thoughts.  No-one is responsible for your life but you.

What is your destiny?  Only you can decide.  Do not blame others for your failures or lack of accomplishments.  You are in control of your own life.  Your ideal life can be attained by constant positive thoughts and beliefs.  You should not change them to suit your circumstances, but build a positive, spiritual life by entertaining positive, spiritual thoughts everyday.

If you wish to change then you must build a relationship with Christ and as with any other relationship it takes commitment, patience and communication (prayer) to be successful.  Once you do this, it will be the best relationship you will ever have, and not to mention a life filled with happiness, joy and contentment.

What does it mean to ’see the Christ’ in someone?

Each and everyone of us have weaknesses and faults we sometimes cannot help.  If you are fortunate enough to have taken control of your life and deal with your shortcomings then praise be to God.  However, not everyone is so fortunate.

If someone is not leading an ideal life or has done something awful to you, then you should not judge or condemn them.  We must always look for the good in that person – The Christ in him.

We were all created in God’s image which means we all have the potential to do good.  We may not always understand why some people do the things they do.  Sometimes circumstances in their life have led them to live as they do, but they are not necessarly ‘bad’.

The bible tells us “all have sinned and fallen short of God’s glorious standard.” (Romans 3:23)

We all have sinned and it is only through Jesus Christ can we be made free from sin.  If someone has chosen not to believe in Jesus, then we must pray for them and hope one day they turn their life around.

Seeing the Christ in others is what helps us to love everyone, including our enemies, for this is what Christ commanded us to do.

“But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven.  For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and on the unjust, too.”  Matthew 5:44-45

Mountain

What is Faith?

“It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen.  It is evidence of things we cannot yet see.”  Hebrews 11:1

This is what a true christian lives by – faith. 

Many people don’t believe in God the creator because they cannot see him.  Even the Israelites that Moses led out of Egypt lacked faith from time to time.  They even built an image to worship when they got impatient after Moses went up to Mount Sinai.  This is what we do sometimes, when our patience runs out because God does not seem near, we falter in faith.

“So you see, it is impossible to please God without faith.  Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that there is a God and that he rewards those who sincerely seek Him.”  Hebrews 11:6

We must live by faith and not by sight.  Anything you want for your life can be achieved if you just have faith.

Now don’t confuse faith with wishful thinking.  It is not a matter of sitting around waiting for things to happen, but by working toward making it happen.  But while you are working, you are praying and believing.  Some things just take a little time, and there may even be times when we don’t get what we want, but that does not mean that God is not with us.

God promised Abraham that he would be a father of many nations.  Abraham did not live to see this happen, but it did happen because God promised.  Some of the things we hope for may not happen in our lifetime, but it still can happen and benefit our loved ones.  God does things His own way and we should not question it.

However there are some things that you do need to wait on God for.  Perhaps you are terminally ill, then you need to have faith that God can heal you.  It takes a little faith to make big things happen.

“I assure you, even if you had faith as small as a mustard seed you could say to this mountain, ‘move from here to there’, and it would move.  Nothing would be impossible.” Matthew 17:20

Have you ever seen a mustard seed?  It is very small indeed.  So imagine what you could do with a whole lot of faith.

We must live by faith for you see, we will not always get what we want in this life, and we have to face trials and challenges that we sometimes don’t understand, but there is a higher reward awaiting us.

“Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of highest privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.” Romans 5:2

 In God’s Kingdom we will be rewarded for all our faith and patience.  We should not be anxious about anything but continually trust in God for all our needs.

A child in Ghana

Stop complaining falls more or less in the same category as stop worrying.  Just as there are chronic worriers, there are chronic complainers, people who just complain about everything and could never be satisfied about anything.

I read in a magazine recently about some college students from the US who took a trip to West Africa – Nigeria and Ghana specifically.

Their experience there taught them to be appreciative and grateful for the things they have in their own country.  What they take for granted, these people don’t know much about.  Basic things like indoor plumbing and electricity.  One student said she has learned to be appreciative of her education, and not just the academics, but basic stuff like hygiene and health.

Another student said whenever she found herself wanting to complain about no airconditioning, hot water, or not having anything to wear, she remembers her trip to Africa.

But what was most interesting to me is that one of them expressed his amazement that even though the Ghanian people had barely enough to survive, they were happy and content. 

And this is the point really, we here in the western world, despite the fact we have everything – good education, access to technology, abundant food and the basic necesities – we just don’t seem to be satisfied or happy with life.  While the people in some partfs of Africa are struggling to survive, they have learned to be happy with what they do have – which is not much by our standards.

We have to start recognizing how blessed we are and stop taking our abundance for granted.  There is no need to complain or worry because God is always there to take care of us.

“Don’t worry about anything; instead pray about everything.  Tell God what you need and thank Him for all he has done.  If you do this, you will experience God’s peace which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand.”  Philippians 4:6

We have all heard about forgiving and forgetting.  But how easy is it to forgive, far more to forget?

When you hold hatred and malice in your heart you rob yourself of happiness and peace.  It literally destroys you.  You know, when somebody does you wrong, intentionally or otherwise, they may at some point, feel sorry for what they have done to you.  If they seek forgiveness from you, give it to them.  Let go of the hurt and pain and move on with your life.

“If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him.  If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, ‘I repent’, forgive him.”  Luke 17:3-4 NIV

Another thing to keep in mind is, when you hold a grudge against someone, you are actually doing nothing to them.  They would probably go about their lives normally and happily, while you make yourself sick with feelings of hate and revenge.  It really makes no sense doing that to yourself.  The best way to avenge anyone is to show them love and leave their actions up to the Lord.

“Dear friends, never avenge yourselves.  Leave that to God.  For it is written,

‘I will take vengeance; I will repay those who deserve it, says the Lord’. 

Instead do what the Scriptures say: ‘If your enemies are hungry, feed them.  If they are thirsty, give them something to drink, and they will be ashamed of what they have done to you.’ 

Don’t let evil get the best of of you, but conquer evil by doing good.”  Romans 12:19-21

Most importantly, when we forgive others, we allow ourselves to be forgiven also.  You must remember our lives are infallible and there may come a time when we may do something to offend someone and look for forgiveness.  If you don’t know how to forgive, chances are you will not be forgiven, especially by the one who matters most – God.

“If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you.  But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins”.  Matthew 6:14-15

“But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too”.  Mark 11:25

If you find your prayers are not being answered, it could be you have animosity towards someone.  Check it out, forgive and experience the peace of mind you deserve.

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him.  The Lord doesn’t make decisions the way you do! People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at a person’s thoughts and intentions.”  I Samuel 16:7

What does it mean to judge?  In this instance to judge means to form an opinion, to criticize or to assume or suppose something.

But how does this relate to having peace of mind?  Well for one thing, it can save you a lot of embarrasement.

I’m sure you’ve heard of Susan Boyle.  She was the woman who made an appearance on the British talent show, Britains Got Talent.  When she appeared on stage, she caused quite a stir with her ‘frumpy’ look.

People in the audience laughed at her when she said she wanted to be a professional singer like Elaine Paige.  They were all very skeptical.  But when she opened her mouth and began to sing, she shocked everyone, including the judges and she instantly became an overnight sensation.

See the video.

This is a classic case of judging by appearance.

We should never judge a person by their looks, attitudes or by what other people say about them.  It is always better to get to know the person personally, or find out more from someone close to them if necessary.  We should follow the Lord’s example:

“…people judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at a person’s thoughts and intentions.”  I Samuel 16:7b

You see when you judge you also put yourself in a position to be judged by others.  Don’t do to others what you do not want for yourself.

We all make mistakes, it is a part of life.  Never see yourself as better than anyone else for that is what you do when you judge others. 

“Stop judging others, and you will not be judged.  For others will treat you as you treat them.  Whatever measure you use in judging others, it will be used to measure how you are judged.”  Matthew 7:1-2

Be sure that your heart is pure when that time comes for you to be judged.

In today’s current financial climate, what is commonly called the ‘global economic crisis”, it is difficult not to worry about what the future holds. People have lost jobs, their houses, cars and are generally finding it difficult to make ends meet.

“Worrying is like a rocking chair, it gives you something to do, but it gets you nowhere” – Glenn Turner

Worrying really gets you nowhere.  As a matter of fact there are two things you can do to stop worrying:

1. Don’t put yourself in a position to worry, and
2. Find a solution to your problem.

Let’s look at the first point.

What is the most common thing that most people worry about –  Money.

A lot of people spend more than they earn.  They borrow to get what they want quickly.  This causes debt and debt makes them worry about their finances.   Of course sometimes there is no choice to borrow money, but there must be proper planning, and proper planning is the key to living a successful life.

Then there are those who prefer to sit and worry about situations instead of finding solutions.  There is a solution to every problem.  Let’s use finances as an example.

You are in debt.  You are having diffulty paying your bills, and that has you worried.  The best thing to do is find a way to get out of debt.  Talk to your creditors, together you all can work out something.  When you have gotton rid of your debt, start saving and don’t put yourself in a position to be in debt again.

Then there are situations we have no control over.  Maybe you or someone you know has been diagnosed with a terminal illness such as cancer.  Worrying about death and your family is certainly understandable.  But the whole point of living a spiritual life is to be able to cope with life in general.  You will be able to face any situation that life brings in a confident and faith filled manner.

“Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about what happens to you.”  1 Peter 5:7

And then there are chronic worriers, those who worry about things that are not worth worrying over at all.  It is something that on their own they have no control over, but there is help, there always is.

Matthew 6:31-33 states that we should not worry about things such as clothes and food, that God knows all our needs and He will give us everything we need once we seek His Kingdom first.

Whatever the problem in your life, there is help.  Worrying will not solve it, but prayer and faith in Jesus Christ certainly will.

In my post “Have Peace of Mind” I listed some things you can do to make life easier on yourself.

Weight loss asked that I expand on them in future posts and since my readers are special to me I shall oblige.  I’ll start with the first point, ’slow down.’

Life is a hustle.  We hustle to work, school or whatever it is that fills up our day.  But have you ever stopped and wondered what all the rush is really about?

Basically we rush because we need money.  It’s all about working towards getting the things we need and want to satisfy us.  Granted we need money to live, and in order for us to get what we desire we must work hard.  Or do we?

Stream

“The Lord is my shepherd;

I have everything I need.

He lets me rest in green meadows;

He leads me beside peaceful streams”.  (Psalm 23:1-2)

When was the last time you stopped and smelled the roses?  Watched the sun set?  Admire your beautiful surroundings?

Yellow Sunset

I’m sure you’ve heard people say, “God will provide”, and he does.  Once we live our life for him we shall never want for anything.

Of course, I don’t mean to just sit around and wait for things to happen, but life is much more than hustling and bustling to make a dollar.

Yes, there is nothing wrong in wanting the finer things in life, but it makes no sense stressing yourself out to get them.  You might just kill yourself in the process and you will not be around to enjoy everthing you worked so hard for.

Notice anything about the two verses I quoted?  They use nature to describe how God will take care of you.

Japanese Tea Garden

“The Lord will guide you continually watering your life when you are dry and keeping you healthy too.  You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-lasting flowing spring.”  Isaiah 58:11

Slow down, enjoy the beauty of God’s creation and imagine what your life will be like when you make a commitment to him -  as beautiful as a well-watered garden.

You may not necessarily get everything you want in this life, but look forward to the ultimate goal, and all this will help you to have peace of mind.

“And this is the way to have eternal life – to know you the only true God and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth.”  John 17:3 

Do you find it difficult to pray sometimes?  There are times in my quiet time with God I actually can’t think of anything to say.  I start saying something but find myself repeating, which just does not make any sense really, but then again I am not a talkative person by nature.  What I usually do in times like these is just to thank God for his many blessings and ask him to continually bless me and my family.

The best type of prayer is simple, spontaneous prayer.  In other words pray whenever you feel the need.  Of course, once you’ve gotten the hang of it, prayer comes easier.  The easiest person you can talk to is Jesus, you don’t need to be an eloquent speaker.  He will understand perfectly what you are trying to say to Him.

In Matthew chapter 6, Jesus gives instructions on how to pray.  Here’s what he said in verse 7:

“When you pray, don’t babble on and on as people of other religions do.  They think their prayers are answered only by repeating their words again and again.  Don’t be like them because your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!”

He then goes on to give an example of what to pray for by what we call the Lord’s prayer today.  You can say the Lord’s prayer in your own words, or pick aspects of it and concentrate on that.  For example, where it says, “Give us this day our daily bread”, is praying for your daily meals.  If you have a problem putting food on the table, then pray specifically for that.

God does not care about eloquence or how many fancy words you know.  He just wants to hear what is in your heart.  These are the prayers he listens and responds to.  Praying is not difficult.  Just think of God as your best friend, and you will be surprised at how easy it becomes to talk to Him.

Could you remember a time in your life when there was an emergency or something tragic happened and you called out to God for help?  Do you remember what you said?  It could have been a simple ‘please God, help me”.  This would have come directly from the heart without you even having to think about it.

Simple prayers are effective prayers.  If you don’t know what to pray about just take the Apostle Paul’s advice:

“Don’t worry about anything, instead pray about everything.  Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.”  Philippians 4:6