Forgiveness is for YOU!

God gives us many gifts but one of my favorites has to be forgiveness. Let me explain........

God gives us many rules to follow and for good reason. He is teaching us to live right and justly. God's greatest gift to us was His Son, Jesus dying on the cross for OUR sins. God wanted us to be right with Him! And then to receive his forgiveness all we need to do is repent and ask. There is no sin so bad, that can't be forgiven. The key is to repent and truly turn from your sin. God knows our heart better than we know our heart and he'll know if we are "faking" it.

There is one more part to forgiveness and that's forgiving others. Matthew 6:14-16 "For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins." It makes sense, doesn't it?! How can you expect God to forgive you when you are holding grudges against others.....? Mark 11:25 "And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins."  


I know forgiving is NOT easy. It can be really hard to let go of the bitterness, anger, resentment, and hurt. And sometimes we don't want to let it go. We like the feeling for whatever reason. But the reason I love God's gift of forgiveness is because I don't have to hold onto those horrible feelings and I don't have to avenge the wrong done to me. Romans 12:19 (NIV) "Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord." 


When you forgive someone, you aren't "letting them off the hook". I think when we forgive someone we feel like we are saying it was okay whatever he or she did. But in reality you are freeing yourself from those horrible feelings of hatred, bitterness and anger. Eph 4:26-27,31 (NIV) "In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold... Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice."  


"Corrie Ten Boom, a Christian woman who survived a Nazi concentration camp during the Holocaust, said, 'Forgiveness is to set a prisoner free, and to realize the prisoner was you.'"

Forgiveness is a choice and a choice you'll have to make many times. Sometimes you'll have to make the same choice over and over again. But with God's help and praying for the other person, you'll move on and experience freedom. Forgiving someone isn't for her but for you! Don't get stuck in those ugly feelings and bad attitudes because you are only hurting yourself.

God's View

"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life." 1Timothy 6:17-19

"But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that." and " For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil." 1 Timothy 6:6-7, 10

I firmly believe that the Bible is God's Word to us and that God inspired the writers. "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." (2 Timothy 3:16-17) I don't take His Words lightly. They encourage me, inspire me, teach me and convict me. 

In our world today it is so easy to get caught up in materialism and needing more stuff. I was that way......until I started going to church and reading God's Word. Until I started seeing things God's way. His word reminds us that we came into this world with nothing, not even clothes. We were naked. And when we leave this world we won't be taking anything with us. So why do we keep obtaining things? Why do we keep trying to have more and more instead of giving more and more? We won't lay up treasures for ourselves in Heaven by being selfish, but by doing good deeds and being generous and willing to share.

Money or wealth won't get us to Heaven or answer all our problems. You can't count on always having money but you can count on our Heavenly God to be there. He can answer all your problems. Maybe not the way you would like but he won't leave you or forsake you. "Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, 'Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.'" (Hebrews 13:5)

Part II

Have you ever thought about why we are here? What's the world about? Were we an accident or did a Creator make us. (Obviously you know what I believe) If we are here by accident than what's the purpose of life? What do we have to live for? Is life just about taking care of your children, cooking dinner, running errands, having drinks with the girls......If there's no God than does that mean you don't have hope? I have hope b/c I know there's a loving, compassionate, caring God looking out for me. I know I can turn to Him when I need Him and I will be comforted and encouraged. 

World Changing Idea

The two greatest commandments in the Bible are:

• Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. (This is the first and the greatest commandment)  
•  Love your neighbor as yourself   

So here's where it gets tricky. Love-your-neighbor-as-yourself-...........What a concept! Really think about it for a minute..............or two..............or three...........or ten.............

When you want something you go out and get it, right....? When you're hungry you get something to eat. Whatever YOU need, you get for yourself. You would never let YOU, not receive something you need and sometimes even things you want.

We are so quick to meet our own needs but we hesitant when other's need our help. Or we don't give as much as we are able to. It's not our responsibility. We're only suppose to take care of ourselves. It's a dog-eat-dog world out there and I have to watch out for myself or no one will. We see these attitudes a lot in this world.

But what IF, we stopped looking at other people and started SEEING them. What if we started LOVING them like we love ourselves. Because we all know we love "me." The human race is selfish and greedy and thinks me a whole lot. I'm not saying there's not good people out there and that we don't help BUT we can't deny that if we all LOVED our NEIGHBOR as ourselves than this world would be in a much better place. And by neighbor I don't mean the person living beside your house or apartment. I mean the WHOLE WORLD. Every person, every country, every continent. No one is forgotten.

Does anyone else see how amazing this concept is? That if we met other people's needs as quickly as our own needs, then this world wouldn't be suffering so much. There wouldn't be as much violence and war. There'd be much more love and compassion and kindness. I could go for that!

We Should Be

I absolutely LOVE, LOVE, LOVE buying books! Even when I have thirty books to catch up on, I'll still buy more! I'm addicted, what can I say. (This is one of the only "similarities" that Nathan and I share-buying books but we disagree on topics.) I blame it on my mother. I inherited her illness. The problem isn't so much the buying but the READING of the books. I can't seem to fit all the reading I need to into my very busy schedule. HA! (Not busy just not managing my time well-at least I know my issues-LoL)


I started off on a tangent. Let me wander back to my topic. I'm currently reading Timothy Keller's book Generous Justice; How God's Grace Makes Us Just. As many of you are aware I'm very passionate about the poor and downtrodden and I believe I have a responsibility to help but I wanted to get God's perspective on the subject; hence Mr. Keller's book. In the few pages I've read today I already have many posts I'd like to write. But today I want to respond to a common thought that Christians have.......


"Christians should not be concerned about poverty and social conditions but about saving souls."


I have to say this, WHAT??? Okay it's out of my system now. This attitude is wrong on so many levels. Some may get this attitude because they believe that the Old Testament isn't valid anymore and has nothing to do with the New Testament. However that is a wrong thought. Yes, the Old Testament was all about evil and justice and the New Testament is about love and forgiveness BUT Jesus still cared about the same people in the NT that God cared about in the OT, who were the widows, orphans, socially ostracized and the stranger or immigrant. Jesus didn't just come to save our souls but to also show the poor and downtrodden that God loves and cares for them, just like He does for everyone else. They were no less special or important. Jesus' ministry was very different from OT times but he showed that the God of the OT was the same God of the NT. 


Of course as Christians we want to save souls from going to hell. We want everyone to know the gospel or good news that Jesus died on a cross for our sins so we can have eternal life as long as we believe in Jesus Christ as our Savior. (John 3:16) So how do we go about this? How do we save souls? Actions speak a lot louder than words. It is so easy to talk the talk than to walk the walk. All day long we can preach the good news but some won't get it by hearing alone. They need to "see" the good news.........but how do you "see" the good news? 


Well for one you can be concerned about poverty and social conditions. I am an avid supporter of World Vision. Yes, they are a Christian organization but when they are overseas helping in Africa, Asia or Latin America or wherever a natural disaster is, they operate by the rules, regulations and religious beliefs of that country. They will share the gospel if allowed but their main goal is to help the people in need. 
Who we are-World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to working with children, families, and their communities worldwide to reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice.

Who we serve-We serve close to 100 million people in nearly 100 countries around the world. World Vision serves all people, regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, or gender.

Why we serve-Motivated by our faith in Jesus Christ, we serve alongside the poor and oppressed as a demonstration of God’s unconditional love for all people.

Reflecting Christ in Each Community-Wherever we work, our prayer is that our efforts will be used by God to heal and strengthen people’s relationships with Him and with one another. We do this by demonstrating God’s unconditional love for all people through our service to the poor — which includes providing for daily needs, working to build peace and promote justice, and partnering with churches and individuals to encourage spiritual transformation. So isn't World Vision doing exactly what some think we shouldn't be concerned about? By World Vision caring for those who have so much less than we do in the U.S., they are showing God's love for everyone. I much rather see a Christian ACTING like a Christian than talking like a Christian and that is what World Vision is doing. They will help anyone, whether that person or country believes in God. They are concerned for the people's well-being. I want everyone to be a believer but if you aren't that doesn't mean I won't help you or care about you. In fact by me loving and caring for you regardless of your beliefs in turn could turn you into a believer. As I write this, I don't feel like I got my view out like I wanted to. When I read that sentence today I wanted to shake the person saying it. To me showing concern for poverty and social conditions IS saving souls. It's a way of showing God's love for everyone. The two are one in the same, not opposing ideas. It isn't one or the other. As humans we are all sinners and as Christians we have a lot to learn and it won't happen overnight but when Christians act like a nonChristian it hurts us as a whole. If I say I am a Christian and I believe what the bible says but yet I don't follow the bible, what will people think? Would they want to be a Christian if they see me at church on Sunday and then on Monday I am cussing and on Tuesday I'm cheating on my husband?  Our attitude and actions speak for who God is and what he represents, so it is vital that we show the RIGHT God.

Gift of Mercy

Do any of you know what kind of spiritual gift you have? We studied this in Bible Study a couple months ago and I learned I have the gift of mercy. Here is what it says about this gift. (Do you have it as well?)

The Motivational Gift of compassion, or Mercy, is the ability to show great love, and
deep feeling, toward the needs of others, it is the “outward manifestation of empathy.”
The guidelines for this gift of compassion, or mercy, spoken of in Romans 12:15, are:
   1. To weep with, and
    2. To rejoice with

THE CHARACTERISTIC OF ONE WITH THE GIFT OF COMPASSION, OR MERCY

1. HE HAS A TREMENDOUS CAPACITY OF SHOW LOVE
Of all the Motivational Gifts, the gift of Compassion, or Mercy is the one that
gives one the greatest capacity, and ability, to show love to others. Reflecting the
nature of his heavenly Father, the person motivated by “the Gift of Compassion”
seems to be an unending source of “agape” love, and, the more opportunity he has to
give this love, the more joyful, and fulfilled, he is.
2. HE IS TYPICALLY CHEERFUL AND JOYFUL
The person with the Motivational Gift of Compassion / Mercy is a positive
person. The Amplified Bible tells us that when one shows mercy and compassion he is
to do so “with, genuine cheerfulness and joyful eagerness” (Romans 12:8), and
because the compassionate person loves showing love he, in fact, can do it with
“genuine cheerfulness” and “joyful eagerness.” Motivational Gift - Compassion 2
3. HE IS MOTIVATED TO HELP PEOPLE HAVE RIGHT RELATIONSHIPS 
    WITH ONE ANOTHER
Because the compassionate / merciful person grieves over broken relationships,
he is a natural builder of bridges, a mender of breaches, a “peacemaker.” He works to
bring about Jesus’ prayer in John 17, desiring to see the Body of Christ united, and
functioning, in love.
4. HE DOES OPPORTUNITIES TO GIVE PREFERENCE, OR PLACE, TO 
    OTHERS
The person with this Gift of Compassion / Mercy is the one who will give up
his own interests to help others, let others step in live in front of him, give others the
best seat, or wait patiently for others.
5. HE IS CAREFUL WITH HIS WORDS AND ACTIONS IN ORDER TO AVOID 
    HURTING OTHERS
Because the last thing a compassionate, merciful, person wants is to be the
cause of hurt to another person he will be extremely careful in his actions, and speech,
in order to keep from hurting others.
6. HE IS DEEPLY LOYAL TO FRIENDS
A person with the gift of compassion / mercy demonstrates loyalty to a friend
to the extent that he will even react harshly toward those who attack his friends. When
the Apostle John, with the gift of compassion/mercy, watched the Samaritans reject
Jesus, whom he love he wanted to call down fire from heaven to consume them (See
Luke 9:54).
7. HE IS TRUSTWORTHY, THEREFORE, TRUSTING
Because the compassionate, merciful, person is trustworthy, he expects others to
be also, that is why he assumes that everyone is honest and reliable until absolutely
proven otherwise. He can be so trusting, in fact, that he may tend to be gullible.
8. HE AVOIDS CONFLICTS AND CONFRONTATIONS
The person with the gift of compassion/mercy longs, and will do anything, for
peace and harmony, that is why he finds it difficult to cope with conflict.
9. HE ALWAYS LOOKS FOR THE GOOD IN PEOPLE
Because the compassionate, merciful, person is non-critical not only does his
focus remain on the good, both real and potential, in others, but he also seems to have
built-in blinders that keep him from seeing the bad in others.
10. HE HAS A NEED FOR DEEP FRIENDSHIPS
The very nature of a person with the Motivational Gift of Compassion/Mercy
requires close friendships, friendships where there are mutual commitments and
constant reaffirmations. John enjoyed such a friendship with Jesus. He was not only
closer to Christ than more of the other disciples, but he referred to himself as “the
disciple whom Jesus loved” (See John 13:23; 19:26; 20:2; 21:7 and 20).
-info from http://www.netbiblestudy.com/00_cartimages/Compassion.pdf