Whatcha Thinkin'?

And now, brothers, as I close this letter, let me say this one more thing: Fix your thoughts on what is true and good and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely, and dwell on the fine, good things in others. Think about all you can praise God for and be glad about.

Philippians 4:8 

 

We are ALL prone to mistakes, or is it just me?  We ALL have those people who focus purely on the negative in us and seem to thrive on making sure they point it out to us.  I once had a teacher like that.  Oh she would hit you with the "under handed compliment" by smiling and saying, "You did quite well.  However, I would be remiss if I didn't point out some ways you need to improve your performance." I felt so depressed in her class to the point that I dreaded having to go.

 

Let me ask you a question, are you an encourager or a discourager?  Do you focus on the good in others or on the negative?  The Apostle Paul tells us to "dwell on the fine, good things in others."  Do we?

 

Think about it this way, would you prefer to work for a boss who constantly criticizes or one that encourages? 

Why Live In A World Of "Don't"?

“Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?” Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”
Matthew 22:36-40

Have you ever looked at the Ten Commandments?  How many times do you find "Don't" in them?  Honestly, the concept that Christianity is about keeping a list of "don'ts" has driven quite a number of people away.  Let's face it, if all you hear are negatives then why be part of such a group.  Let me put it another way, if your supervisor only took time to give you negative feedback, how would your morale be?  How would your morale be if you knew you were under the microscope and people were just waiting for you to make a mistake?

In today's passage, Jesus was asked what is the greatest, most important of the Commandments.  Of all the "Don'ts" Jesus could have chosen, He chose to give a positive!  He told the Inquisitor that the greatest commandment was to LOVE!  First, love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.  Second, because of your love for God, you will be able to love others as much as you love yourself.  LOVE is the greatest commandment!

Now, how good are we at loving others as much as we love ourselves?  If you love someone, you will encourage, build them up, have their back, remember what it's like to be treated badly so you will do the opposite for others.  Love is about POSITIVE!   So, again, how good are we at loving others?  How good of an example did Jesus give us?

 

Weighed Words

Worry weighs a person down;
    an encouraging word cheers a person up.

Proverbs 12:25 

 

How does it feel when someone discourages you?  You hear the harsh words, the harsh tone of voice and your heart sinks.  The words weigh you down.  Discouragement is HEAVY!  Is it demoralizing.  It is awful.  So why do we do it to each other?  

 

I visited a church several years ago where the pastor seemed to only preach gloom, doom, and guilt.  I visited 5 times hoping he would preach something positive, but each of the 5 times I visited, I left feeling as though I had been chewed out.  I came for encouragement but instead was pounded with discouragement. On my last visit I asked the pastor why he only preached such harsh sermons, his response was "I tell people what they need to hear."  I thanked him and never returned.

 

When you talk to people, do you encourage or discourage?  Are you a positive or negative person?  Do you talk with people in the same way you would want others to talk with you?  When you deal with others are you one of those people who only have discouraging things to say? 

 

Being encouraging takes a conscious effort!  Yet when we encourage someone, we build them up.  When we build them up, that reflects positively on us.  Thus, encouragement is a win-win situation.  Try it! 

What's That You Say?

Let everything you say be good

and helpful, so that your words

will be an encouragement

to those who hear them.

Ephesians 4:29

We talk too much about meaningless stuff, don't we?  And we get upset about pointless issues?  Our brains are so full of useless information that it's amazing that we can think at all anymore.

What is the longest word that, when written forward or backward, remains the same?  REDIVIDER

What is the only bird that can fly backwards? HUMMINGBIRD

You see your nose all the time, but your brain chooses to ignore it.

We like games like Trivial Pursuit and other games that contain pointless information.  Let me ask you something, when was the last time you sat down with a friend or a family member and had a deep and encouraging conversation?  When was the last time you took the time to genuinely encourage others?  

Deep discussions tend to make us uncomfortable.  It's rather like having your boss come to your office to "discuss a few things."  But they don't have to be uncomfortable.  Being honest and encouraging doesn't have to be a difficult conversation.  It only takes being brave enough to be honest...with yourself, with the person you are talking with, and with God.  Prayer is also a deep conversation with God, which is why so many don't want to pray.  We like being superficial and insincere.  But God knows us!  He knows everything about us!  Why try to hide from Him that which He already knows?  Take time this week and have a deep conversation!  

Blessing for YOU Today!

Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into his glorious presence without a single fault. All glory to him who alone is God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord. All glory, majesty, power, and authority are his before all time, and in the present, and beyond all time! Amen.

Jude 24-25

 

I am discovering something that I should have figured out a LONG time ago, which shows that God is extremely patient with hard headed people like me.  The blessings I have found in the Bible have incredible power!  No matter what kind of day I am having; no matter what struggle I am facing; no matter what's going on...these blessings renew my faith and remind me that I'm in the hands of the ONLY one who makes a difference.

 

 

 

 

What's That You Say?

Read the words of the Scripture carefully.  We use a LOT of words throughout the day, don't we?  Some of us love to talk and some prefer to listen more than talk, but we all use a LOT of words.  

 

Have you ever given thought to the words we use? Do we use our words to tear down another so we can "look good"?  Do we use our words to build our own reputations up, whether they are true or not?  Or do we use our words to truthfully build up others?  Do we used our words to truly encourage others?

 

Here's an honest slap in the face that I have felt: "What's in your heart will be expressed by your words!" Let's take it a step further: When Jesus was asked what was the greatest commandment; Jesus' response was "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength; and the second is like unto it in that you should love others as you love yourselves."  Therefore, should we not use the same words with others that we would want used on us?  Speak words of encouragement.  Speak words of love.  Speak words of comfort.  Speak words of healing.  Speak words of caring. 

Kick In The WHAT?

And whatever you do or say, 

do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus,

 giving thanks through him to God the Father.

Colossians 3:17

 

 I like Benny Hill and used to watch the Benny Hill Show on Saturday Nights after my folks went to bed.  The thing that attracted me to the Show, aside from the Vaudeville Skits, were the song lyrics.  The lyrics below are from a song called "Down On The Farm."

"Now when I drive the plough horse I put his blinkers on,
And I say, "Come on there, Joey boy, come on there Big John.
Come on Dick, come on Harry, come on Jake and Carter."
It makes him think he's got some help and he pulls a little harder."

 

So what does this have to do with doing everything as a representative of Christ?  Well, it has to do with morale!  Let's face it, if morale is not where it needs to be, then what kind of representative are we?

 

We all enjoy the pat on the back, the awards, the recognitions, the promotions, because they show someone notices that we are doing something good and we are rewarded, thus raising morale.  

 

However, the truly important aspect of morale is not so fun....because it relies on each of us.      

 

 *  You see, there are some things we can change (and probably should).  

 *  There are some things we cannot change no matter how much noise we make about them or how many times we pound our heads on the wall.  So we must accept these. 

 *  WE are the ones who have to choose our REACTION to the things we can change and the things we can't...THAT is where morale comes in and THAT is how we represent Christ.

I'm not asking you to paint on a smile and pretend all is well.  Be honest!  

I'm not saying to just suck it up and drive on either.  Talk with someone!

I'm not saying everything will come up roses (because roses have thorns), but the thing we can change every time is our perspective of the situation.  

Change what you can;

Accept there are things you can't change;

But the thing you CAN change is your perspective!

Are You A Lifter?

Anxiety in a person’s heart weighs him down,
but an encouraging word brings him joy.

Proverbs 12:25 

 

I'm still a student, believe it or not, because there's always something to learn.  I may have mentioned before, I thrive on encouragement.  No, not the "cheerleading" kind, but the "let me in the muck with you and we will get out together" kind.  

 

I'll admit it, I haven't been to the gym in quite some time for a multitude of reasons.  Mainly, when I am focusing my mind on something, everything else gets pushed aside.  And the other reason is rather mundane, I just don't like going.  There is truly nothing about the gym that interests me.  But when I was going, it was because it wasn't just me...there was a group of us that went.  We did our exercise routines and encouraged each other because we did it together.

 

Now....today's devotional is not about going to the gym, it's about encouraging each other.  It's very easy to be a "cheer leader" who merely shouts "you can do it" or "you are awesome."  However, true encouragement is ACTION!  It is a verb!  Encouragement is what you actually DO!

 

True, there are those who will always want someone else to do FOR them, but will not do for themselves.  And, to be honest, I will help up until (and sometimes beyond) the point where I really have nothing left to offer.  

 

Remember the story of the Adulterous Woman the Scribes and Pharisees brought to Jesus?  Jesus encouraged her by standing up for her to the Scribes and Pharisees who wanted to kill her.  However, if you remember, Jesus also made it clear that SHE had to actually DO something....stop committing adultery.  

 

The best counsel on encouragement I ever got was from an old homeless man who lived in the parking garage where I used to work.  He said, "If you need encouragement, help someone else, because then you will see that you have if better than others."

 

Encouragement is a VERB!  

We're Pretty Amazing!

You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body
    and knit me together in my mother’s womb.
Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
    Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.

Psalm 139:13-14

We really are pretty amazing.  I have often wondered what kind of mind it took to design us in such a way that each bit has a function, yet some bits we can function without and some bits we can't function without.  We can function without a spleen.  We can function without a gallbladder.  We can function without an appendix.  But the heart? Nope, we've got to have one in order to function.  Lungs? Got to have at least one.  We have been intricately designed and it amazes me just how intricately designed we are.

Look at the ship in the photo.  It has been carved out of jade.  Will is sail? Probably not, but sailing is not the purpose for this ship.  This delicately intricate carving in jade's purpose is to be seen and appreciated.  Believe it or not, we all have a purpose, and we may not realize what our purpose is supposed to be for quite some time.

When I was in school, I was socially awkward, shy, quiet, bashful, and any of the other Seven Dwarves you can think of or imagine. For all intents and purposes, I thought my only purpose in life was to be miserable so others wouldn't have to be.  But I was wrong!  It took a LOT of years to understand that, aside from making me the Big Sexy Padre, my purpose was to minister to people in unorthodox ways; to love people who didn't think they were lovable; to encourage people because I know what discouragement feels like.  God made me in such an intricate way that I am His multi-purpose tool!  

And so are YOU!  Think about this...every single experience you have had was for a purpose (whether you understood it, understand it, or believe it).  Because of YOUR experiences you can reach out to people most of us cannot.  You can be a source of help and encouragement that most of us can't.  But you are the one who has to decide what to do with what you have endured.  

Make your legacy be a positive example!