may 13

"Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow."
Jas 1:17
 
How comforting, to know that God is the one who blesses us, no matter how that good thing or gift gets to us. He uses others to bless us and we should also be willing to be a blessing to somebody else too. Listen to God when he puts somebody on your heart, there is a reason for it. Do something good for the them so they can see just how awesome God is. May God chose to shine His light through you today!

May 12

"Enjoy life with the woman whom you love all the days of your fleeting life which He has given to you under the sun ; for this is your reward in life and in your toil in which you have labored under the sun."
Ecclesiastes 9:9

Well I know that this verse has been given to the man, but as women we should think about this one. Have you ever thought about yourself as your husbands reward? God had a purpose for you when you got married. You have been given to your husband. Now how does that make you feel? I hope it makes you feel valuable. God wanted to bless your husband, so He gave your husband you! I guess now as women we need to take this verse to heart, think about that first word - enjoy. Do we make our husbands life enjoyable? Really think about it. What can we do to make our husbands enjoy that life that he has with us? Today make your husband know just how special he is to you! First start by praying for Him, that God will wrap His arms around our husbands, protect their minds from anything that would hinder his witness for Christ, that He will guide them and protect them and bring them safely home to us. Next go beyond, yes we like flowers but what about our husbands? Give him a flower, let him know that you were thinking of him today and praying for him. Today is our day to let our husbands know how special they are to us. If God thought of us as a reward for our husband, our husband must be worthy of getting a special prize. Remind that husband of just how special you are to him, we must value him just as God values us. Enjoy your day!

May 11

"even as the testimony concerning Christ was confirmed in you,"
I Cor. 1:6

Oh how exciting! Isn't that what we would all like to hear about us, and even those that we know around us. There are several meanings of the word testimony, but this is the one that I like best - "evidence in support of a fact or statement; proof". And then we have confirmed - "made certain as to truth, accuracy, validity, availability, etc". Now think about it all together, Even as the evidence in support of Christ was made certain as to truth in you... I know that when we become Christians, that this becomes real to us, but can others see this about us? When others describe you to somebody, do they say - "oh yes, she is a Christian, in all that she does, she does for the Lord? Or do they say, "I think she is a Christian, she goes to church but I am not completely sure." Oh to have those last words said, it breaks my heart. I know that I have shared about being good fruit lately but this just goes along with it, we must be more aware that eyes are on us, the eyes of the lost just as the eyes of the Christian are on us, they watch us to see what we are doing. Now it may not always be right in their motives for watching us, but we have to be very careful what we are "saying" to those who are watching. It can only take one instance to destroy your witness. You can try and make it up, but by then the eyes are gone and they no longer care, they move to the next one to see if they are true or false and they cycle continues. Some watch just to make themselves feel better, some watch because they may think you inspire them and they want to be more like you! So keep this in mind, realize that eyes are on you, now take that same time to ask the Lord - what do you see in me? He sees a champion, His most precious jewel, now we must do our part and reflect what He sees in us. He is worthy to have His name reflected so that others may see!

May 10

"Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad ; for the tree is known by its fruit.:
Matthew 12:33

This is one of those verses to make you think, and it should make you wonder about your own fruit. Sure it is easy to be a fruit inspector for somebody else's tree, but what can others see about us? Are we all shiny on the outside, giving off that appearance of something just perfect and then when that person grabs hold us and they quickly see that we are bitter, even worse, rotten? Think about how you have been reacting to situations all around you lately, are people running from you or to you? It's amazing how I started with one thought and ended on another but it has to be for somebody, and yes there are days that this is right at me. My goal is to not be that bitter fruit and yes there are days that I have to work at it, so I challenge you to look at the fruit that you are producing. What are others seeing in you? Be pleasant, be good and may others see just what kind of tree you are, a Godly tree!

May 9

Even today my complaint is bitter; his hand is heavy in spite of my groaning.
Job 23:2

Shouldn't we be this honest? We have these days, even though we know God is in control. We think of it as "just human nature" and it is just that, human, not God's nature. May we take our eyes off of our circumstances and focus on what is to come. Though it doesn't seem as days will ever get any better, they will. Hang in there and keep your eyes focused on God. He knows what you are going through, He is allowing it. You will be able to thank Him later.

May 8

"Even now, take your stand and see this great thing which the LORD will do before your eyes."
1 Sam 12:16


God has called us to be different. We are to stand for Him and not be conformed to the world. We are to listen to God’s voice! He has a purpose and a plan for us but we cannot be silent and be used by Him. We are in the midst of something great right now and we will see great things done by God. The task is large but it is not too big for God. He calls us to be bold for Him and to stand firm in what He believes in. Stand behind our leaders! He has called them for His kingdom. If so many are trusting that God is right, then whom are the ones who are against His leadership listening to? Once again listen to the voice and ask God to guide your words. Don't be the downfall of something big.

May 7

envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
Gal 5:21

We are dealing with flesh issues. It is best to go back to verse 19 where it all starts:

19 Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions,

As a Christian we know that we are going to inherit the kingdom of God but we need to be careful that we don't let the flesh take hold of us so that we become a stumbling block. This is a list that we need to put beside a mirror and make sure that we are not reflecting any of these things. If anyone sees us using these characters of the flesh they may not recognize that we are a Christian. It could be even worse, they may know that we are a Christian and see that we act like everybody else, and see no need for Christ in their life. The rest of the chapter has great words of wisdom for us to live by. May we think before we speak and pray before we act so that we may have a reflection of Christ in our lives for others to see.