Persistence In Doing Good...
"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up" (Gal. 6:9).
Doing good.....This is what a Christian should be all about...Making his/her part of the world just a little better by doing good. Jesus did it wherever he went. "Salt of the earth" and "light of the world" are euphemisms for doing good. Paul was obsessed with the concept. It was a mantra for him...."Let us do good to all men" (Gal. 6:10)..."Created in Christ to do good works" (Eph. 2:10)....."Be careful to maintain good works" (Tit. 3:8).
To be good at anything, practice is required. It is called persistence. Elite athletes are so persistent in their practice. A marathon runner must get in that mileage. It often requires running twice a day...Mile after mile after mile...Can't let any internal or external force keep them from their task. Why? There is a goal... "let us not grow weary, for in due time we will reap the harvest."
So, with all of these evidences that doing good is the right thing, why isn't everyone into it? Its all those pesky difficulties. Doing bad things often "feels good." They're called the "pleasures of sin." "The care(s) of this world and the deceitfulness of riches" (Matt.13:32). "The flesh" (Rom. 7:18-21)..."You were running a good race, who cut in on you" (Gal. 5:7)? Sometimes we "just grow weary."
What's the answer? In simple terms, it is keeping our eyes on the goal....The harvest..The harvest of happiness that comes with doing good...The harvest of peace, satisfaction, and Jesus' "true greatness" of Matt. 20:26-27. And finally there is the REAL HARVEST! The harvest of eternal life that comes only if we keep our eyes on the goal..Lets be persistent in doing good.
Have a great day... Go about doing good.... Love mark Phil. 4:11
This is the Tallest I've Ever Been!
"And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God" (Col. 1:10).
Many years ago when we lived in Illinois, we had friends with a son that had basketball aspirations (I was the coach). The boy's mom had put a piece of tape on the wall by the door for him to measure himself, and one morning he proudly said to her as he walked from the house, "this is the tallest I've ever been!" I guess I had some of those same aspirations and would have liked to be taller than I am. But alas, by the end of my eighteenth year I had topped out at less than 70 inches. By way of tallness, our physical growth has a climax or maximum. There should be none in the area of spiritual growth.(2 Cor. 4:16)
Our spiritual growth requires that we have a spiritual rebirth. "For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God" (1Pet. 1:23) It requires a constant supply of spiritual food. (1Pet. 2:2) It requires freedom from the diseases (sins) of: neglect (Heb. 2:3), worldliness (1 Jn.2:15-17), love of popularity (Jn. 12:43), ambivalence (Rev.3:15)
Our spiritual growth demands that we exercise (1 Tim. 4:7) and place ourselves in the right environment (1 Cor. 15:13). It requires time. (Heb. 5:12)...
So...How can we tell if we are growing spiritually? Each day we need to be able to say, "this is the tallest I've ever been!" For those of us who have had children, we see their growth as they outgrow their clothes. We are spiritually growing when we
outgrow things. "When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish things behind me" (1 Cor. 13:11). We are growing spiritually when we bear fruit. "By their fruit you shall know them" (Matt. 7:20)...Are we the tallest we've ever been?
Have a great day...Go about doing good...Love mark Phil. 4:11
I Will
"Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident" (Ps 27:3).
David is the author of this Psalm, as he continues to be on his roller coaster ride of life. Sometimes he is riding the crest with the whole world turning his way. Other times he is in a trough, hiding in a cave hoping that the army outside does not come in and kill him. In this case it is the later. In the opening verses of this Psalm it tells us that "evil men advance against him," and his "enemies and foes attack." Even an "army besieges him."
David had no control over what came his way, but he did have control over how he reacted. His "I will" statement in this passage? "I will be confident!" How could he be so confident in light of these dangers? We have but to back track to verse one to find the source of his confidence. "The Lord is my light and salvation"......"The Lord is the stronghold of my life." How could these truths give David such confidence? How could he say "I am confident?"
David could have the same confidence that we should have. No matter what "besieges" us, the Lord is our light, our salvation, and our stronghold. I believe that this confidence comes as we actively seek Him. "My heart says of you, 'seek His face'"(V 8). David's seeking is not a casual one, and neither should ours be. Seeking God does not begin with the eyes but with the heart and soul. If you and I are to seek Him, it must begin where it began for David....In the heart.
It is echoed in the words of Jesus in a familiar passage. "But seek first his kingdom and righteousness, and all these things will be given to you" (Matt.6:33).
We need to hunger for His presence like a starving man does for bread. Although we cannot avoid the pitfalls of life, we can react to them with confidence. Confidence that God will not leave us or forsake us......I WILL! I will be confident...I will seek with my heart.