Slow To Anger

Does your temper get the best of you? Does it cause you to do things you regret later? Does it get out of control at times? Do you allow your anger to entice you to vengeance? In your anger, do you make bad decisions? Are you willing give up your anger?

Our temper can get the best of us. Out of anger, we can make some very bad decisions. Our anger can cause us to be vindictive. In seeking vengeance, we can put ourselves and others at serious risk, not only our physical well-being but our spiritual well-being, too.

James gives us warnings against anger. He says we are to be slow to anger and that anger does not produce righteousness. He goes right to the spiritual damage anger can cause. The opposite of producing righteousness is to separate us from God. So, being angry, and especially staying that way, drives a wedge between us and God. Certainly not good for our spiritual well-being.

How do we combat anger? James tells us to be quick to listen and slow to speak. Wow! That is the opposite of our current culture. Everyone wants to get their complaint out. Often, they fail to even wait for the other person to explain. It seems as no one wants to think about the other persons viewpoint. It is a “my way or the highway” attitude.

When we are willing to not only listen, but also ask questions, truly seeking to understand, we often find there is a logic behind the other persons viewpoint. We may not agree with them, but we understand. By understanding, we are less likely to be angry. After listening, we can then speak calmly and present our point of view. When this happens, a compromise can be agreed upon. Reconciliation can happen. Without listening, neither are possible and our own spiritual well-being is put at risk.

I pray we all seek to listen to one another. I pray we seek to understand one another’s viewpoint. I pray each one of us will be slow to anger for both our physical and spiritual well-being. Seek to listen first. Be slow to speak. Seek to understand. Be slow to anger.

James 1:19-20 You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger; for your anger does not produce God’s righteousness.

Perfect Gifts

Do you like to receive gifts? Do you like to give gifts? Do you spend a lot of time trying to pick out the perfect gift? Do you often exceed your budget for gift buying? Do you set a budget? Do you know where every perfect gift comes from?

No, it does not come from Amazon nor Temu nor any department store. It is not a handmade gift, though those tend to mean a lot to us. No matter how hard we try, we cannot make the perfect gift, even using machines that are very precise.

James is a man of concise writing, using few words, but packing a lot of meaning in them. He tells us every perfect gift comes from God. We might agree with that intellectually. But do we understand that in our hearts? We always fall short of perfection, but God is always perfect.

As someone with a Type A personality, I have always strived for perfection. As I have gotten older, I have learned to let things go as “good enough.” Through many hours of toiling, I have come to realize I cannot be perfect. It came to me the hard way. It came through failure. It came to me as I read God’s Word and spent time meditating on it. In other words, it came through experience and maturity.

James uses light as his analogy. God is the Father of lights with no variation. Even that is challenging for us. We see a multitude of light colors and variations. Yet, God’s light is perfect and dispels darkness. Have you noticed light travels in all directions? The sun does not need to shine directly in your window for light to come into your house. Think about that a moment and think about the implications of God being the perfect light. He dispels all darkness from all directions.

I pray we all know where perfect gifts come from. I pray we give God the credit due him for his perfect gifts. I pray each one of us allow the light of God dispel the darkness within us. God gives perfect gifts. Give God the credit. Know light dispels darkness. Allow God’s light to dispel the darkness in you.

James 1:17 Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

Positive Attitude

What is you heart condition? What is your attitude? How do you view life? Do you view life with a positive outlook despite the circumstances you face? Do you know it is your decision? Will you thank God for today and every day you have in the future?

Our attitude is ours and no others. It is our decision to face the day with a good attitude or a bad attitude. Our attitude does not have to change because of circumstances, even though we may have learned it should and our culture says it should.

A positive attitude is powerful. We decide to have a positive attitude or negative attitude. We choose to put our trust in God or not. We choose to believe he is in control or not. We choose to step out in faith or fear. We choose to give the credit to God or keep it for ourselves.

When our heart overflows with God, it is much easier to choose to have a positive attitude. The more we know about God and the closer we get to him, the more likely we are to see each day as a gift and approach it with positive outlook. Having a positive attitude not only affects us but also has a positive effect on others. Some will ask how we can be so positive based on the situation we face. That is a golden opportunity to share our faith.

Having a heart that overflows with God is not simply putting on rose colored glasses. It is a heart that believes God is in control and believe God is with us every step of the path we walk. It won’t keep us from experiencing difficult situations, but it will buoy us on those rough seas. Giving God thanks for another day is a good way to start our day.

I pray we all believe God is in control. I pray we trust God to be with us every day and every situation. I pray each one of us will choose to have a positive attitude, trusting God every step of the way. Know God is on control. Trust God. Know he is with you. Choose a positive attitude.

Psalm 45:1

My heart overflows with a goodly theme; 

I address my verses to the king; 

my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe.

Praying for Others

How often do you pray for others? Do you only pray for those you know? Do you primarily pray for good health? Do you pray they come to worship? Will you pray for people you do not know? Will you pray they come to know God and reach out to him?

We often pray for family and friends. More often than not, we pray for their needs, especially health issues. We may also pray they are moved to join us for worship services. These are good prayers for people we know. But who else can we pray for?

Solomon shows us in his prayer to God during the dedication of the temple that we can pray for people we do not know. He prayed for foreigners who may come to pray at the temple because of what they had heard about the God of Israel. He is implying the foreigners may hear of God’s mighty acts on Israel’s behalf.

How can we model this prayer? We can pray that people we do not know will choose to come to our church building because of the mighty acts of God. We can pray these people will hear of how God is working in our lives and our congregation, and decide they need God in their lives. As Solomon did, we can pray that God hear these “foreigners” prayers and grant them their requests to further the message of Christ and let people everywhere know who God is.

I pray we all pray for others. I pray we pray that people we do not know will come to our church building to pray. I pray each one of us will pray as Solomon prayed, asking God to answer the prayers of people we do not know. Pray for others. Pray for strangers. Pray that people come to God. Pray that God continues building his church.

1 Kings 8:41a, 41c, 42b-43a Likewise when a foreigner … comes from a distant land because of your name … and prays toward this house, then hear in heaven your dwelling place, and do according to all that the foreigner calls to you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you.

Open Hearts

How do you show God your appreciation for his blessings? How do you praise his wonderful creation? How do you thank God for him working in your life? Do you lift up your heart and your hands? Do you stand before God amazed and thankful?

Many of us give thanks to God with our heads bowed in prayer. We have been taught to bow before God. There is nothing wrong with that. Our hearts should be humbled before our mighty God. But that is not the only way to come before God in prayer and thanksgiving.

As we see in today’s passage, the Israelites would come before God in prayer standing with their hands lifted toward the heavens, their head thrown back, and praising God for his wonderful blessings. It was a vulnerable posture. The heart was open, unprotected, and susceptible to piercing. In other words, the physical positioning of their body was saying, “God, come pierce my heart and use me for your purpose.”

Solomon stood in this posture as he gave thanks and praised God as the ark of the covenant was put in the temple and as Solomon was asking God to bless the newly finished temple. Though he did request God to forgive the people when they sinned, it was not a time of repentance for personal sin. It was not a time of broken heartedness before God, which would have seen Solomon prostrate on the ground with his face in the dirt. It was a time of praise, thanksgiving, and dedication to God.

In those times when our hearts are especially thankful, positioning ourselves in this vulnerable stance is appropriate. It is also appropriate when we are dedicating ourselves to God’s work and asking him to work through us. Revealing our unprotected heart to God is a sign of trust in him. We might reconsider how we pray and use different physical positions, depending on the type of prayer we are lifting to God.

I pray we all consider how we pray to God. I pray we open our hearts to him. I pray each one of us will raise our hands in praise, giving thanks to God and asking him to use us for his purpose. Give thanks to God. Praise God. Raise your hands to God. Open your heart to God.

1 Kings 8:22 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the assembly of Israel, and spread out his hands to heaven.

Struggling Against Evil

How many battles have you fought? Does it feel as though you are fighting a different battle every single day? Who are you fighting? What are you fighting? Do you know? Is it a constant battle against “them”? What if you could know who “them” is?

Life can be a series of battles. We may sometimes call them uphill battles. It may seem as though just when you think things are heading in the right direction another roadblock or speedbump is put in your way. You may think that they are put there on purpose. They are.

You may be saying, “Wait a minute! Really? How do you know that?” There is evil all around us doing everything it can do to trip us up and set us up for failure. Don’t believe that? Take a look at today’s passage. The Apostle Paul certainly believed it. It is the evil in this world that seeks to be our downfall.

We are not fighting against other people. We are fighting against evil. It is the evil that has taken over the person we are fighting. When someone is selfish, chalk it up to evil. When someone is quibbling over not getting their way, chalk it up to evil. When someone is harsh, angry, and fuming, chalk it up to evil. When someone hurts, maims, injures, or kills someone, chalk it up to evil.

It is the evil that works in the shadows of people’s hearts that causes the person to be that way. Rather than returning anger for anger, we should pray that God remove the evil from their heart. That battle is being fought in the spiritual realm. True, we are on the front lines and may be injured from the fallout. But we are not fighting against another person. We are fighting against evil, and we need God to intervene for we are not strong enough to combat evil on our own. Prayer is the only way we overcome evil.

I pray we all understand we are fighting against evil. I pray we do not retaliate in like fashion. I pray each one of us will go to God in prayer, asking him to intervene on our behalf. Fight on your knees. Ask God to intervene. Overcome evil through God.

Ephesians 6:12 For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

Withstand Attacks

Have you ever been in a physical fight? Have you had to defend yourself against an attacker? Did you wish you had something to protect you from the blows? Do you know you are still under attack? Are you using protective gear to ward off the punches?

Most of us have likely been in a fight at some point in our lives. It may have been when we were children. It may have lasted less than thirty seconds. But we know that it hurts when someone punches us. We also know getting punched in the nose is worse than the arm.

As we grow from being a child into an adult, the fights become more dangerous. Adults are much stronger. Sometimes weapons are brought into the mix. Sometimes they not just individual fights but become national battles that include large military units. The larger they become the more dangerous they are.

Whether we realize it or not, all of us are under attack every day. Satan tempts us with all kinds of things. He tempts us to be unkind because the other person is. He tempts us to bow to peer pressure. He tempts us to lash out in anger. He tempts us to shun the unattractive. He tempts us to walk away from God.

How can we combat someone so much more powerful that we are, someone with more experience, someone who is pure evil? We must put on the full armor of God as the Apostle Paul tells us in today’s passage. He goes on to list all the elements of the armor in versus 14-17. We need to wear God’s armor every single day for Satan and his demons are prowling around looking for a weakness to exploit. We cannot avoid the fight, but we can be prepared for it.

I pray we all put on the full armor of God. I pray we prepare ourselves for the temptations Satan tempts us with. I pray each one of us realize we are under attack every day. Be prepared. Know Satan is attacking you. Put on the full armor of God. Wear it every day.

Ephesians 6:11 Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

Stand in God’s Power

Where do you find your strength? Do you attribute it to an inner strength? Do you attribute it to previous trials and your ability to weather them? Is it due to your upbringing? Is it your genetics? Or does your strength come from a far more powerful source?

There are at least two types of strength we think of. There is the physical strength. Strength to lift, push, or pull objects. Then there is mental strength. It is a strength to overcome. It is a strength to withstand. It often drives us beyond what we believe our limits are.

Both of those strengths can be attributed to God. After all, he is the giver of all gifts. God gives our bodies and a brain to think. He provides our DNA, the genetic code that determines who we are to a large degree. We are also molded by our experiences, which are also within God’s control, whether we always believe that or not.

But what strength is the Apostle Paul speaking of in today’s passage. I suggest he is speaking of spiritual strength. This is a strength that looks to God to supply. We may think it is a weakness. Yet, it is a strength to know that God supplies our strength. As Paul states, we are to be strong in him and in his power. It is by being strong in his strength that we can stand against temptation.

God’s power is greater than anything we can imagine. We can access his power. We often forget that important fact. We attempt to stand in our own strength when there is a mightier power available to us. When we stand in his power, we overcome the obstacles before us. When we realize we need God’s power to stand, we then begin to stand firm.

I pray we all understand we need to stand in God’s strength. I pray we know we have access to God’s strength. I pray each one of us will stand against temptation with God’s strength. Stand in God’s strength. Access God’s power. Stand against temptation with God’s help.

Ephesians 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power.

Be Convinced

How easily are you convinced of something new? Are you easily convinced? Or does it take overwhelming evidence to convince you? Do you go along with the crowd? Or are you willing to stand alone for what is right? Do you dig to discover the truth?

We all fall for something that isn’t true at some point in our lives. It may be that someone we trust is playing a trick on us. However, if we regularly fall for it, we are not learning the lesson we need to learn. On the other hand, being convinced of truth should not require overwhelming evidence.

Simon Peter was a fisherman. He was someone who was both reactionary and yet skeptical. He needed to have hard evidence to be convinced. Yet, he often reacted immediately to defend what he believed to be right. He was convinced, based on what he had seen with his own eyes, that Jesus was the Messiah. So, when Jesus asked if the disciples wanted to leave Him, Peter immediately and emphatically responded.

Are we convinced Jesus is the Messiah? Are we easily led astray? We may give Peter a hard time for being reactionary, but Peter stood for what he knew to be true. We should, too. When other try to lead astray, we should stand our ground, speak up, and continue to obey Jesus. If we know without a doubt that Jesus is the Son of God, that He has given Himself for our forgiveness, and given us eternal life, we should honor Him in all we do.

I wonder if we have lost the concept of God being holy and Jesus being his perfect and holy Son sent to save us. Jesus tells us to be perfect as the Father is perfect (Matthew 5:48). To pursue that perfection, we must first be convinced that Jesus is who He says he is, and God is who he says he is. Are we convinced?

I pray we all seek to know the truth. I pray we are convinced that Jesus is the Son of God. I pray each one of us will stand for Jesus, as Peter did, and follow His words of eternal life. Seek the truth. Be convinced of Jesus. Stand for Jesus. Follow His commands. Follow His guidance.

John 6:67-69 So Jesus asked the twelve, “Do you also wish to go away?” Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.”

The Gift of Life

What is life to you? How do you define life? Is life defined by the breath you breathe, the work you do, the things you buy, and the family you have around you? Have you thought that life may be more than all those things? Have you thought how more it could be?

Life requires us to breathe. We must work to earn a living and provide for our families. We need to provide basic necessities such as a place to live, clothing, food, and transportation. We love our families, as we should, and live our lives for them.

But Jesus tells us that life is more than that. Actually, He tells us that life comes from the Holy Spirit. In other words, without the Holy Spirit, we would have no breath in our lungs. He goes a step further by saying without the life the Spirit gives us our mortal bodies are useless. Isn’t that so very true?!

A lifeless human body is of no use. The gift of life we all have is given to us by God through the Holy Spirit. Yet, the Spirit is given us by God because Jesus asked the Father to give him to us. The very words that Jesus speaks are the Word of God. He speaks the Spirit and life into us.

As we live our lives, worrying about a dozen things at once, we can take comfort in knowing the Spirit is always with us, which means Jesus is always with us. His words speak to our spirit through His Spirit. Through His words we live. Our life is so much more than the breath we breathe, the work we do, the things we buy, and our families. Our life includes God.

I pray we all know our life is bigger than we think. I pray we know it is the Holy Spirit that gives us life. I pray each one of us know that Jesus speaks life into us through His Spirit. Know that life is more. Know your life is a gift from the Spirit. Know Jesus’ words are life.

John 6:63 “It is the spirit that gives life; the flesh is useless. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.”