Faith begins when the will of God is known.

Know the word:

When people say they know God, what they are really saying is they know the word of God. The better we know the (Bible) word of God, the better we know God. We can have faith for so many things, in so many things. But faith in God comes only by hearing, and hearing by the word of God (Romans 10:17). It is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him (Hebrews 11:6 NLT).

Know someone:

When you want to get to know someone, you get around them, hang out with them. The more you are around them, the better you get to know them — their characteristics, their mannerisms. After a while, you will get to know how they would react in certain situations — what they would say to certain things. Why? Because you have gotten to know them, taken the time to really know them.

Know God:

It’s the same way with God: the more we are around Him (being in His Church), the better we get to know Him. The more we hear the word, the more faith we will have to do it. The result is we get to know God: how He does things, how He helps us, His ways. Why? Because we know the Bible. I said earlier, Faith begins when the will of God is known.The more you know the Bible — when I say know the Bible, I mean you act on it, you are a doer of it — the better you will know our heavenly Father, the more you will appreciate Him and serve Him. You can’t get to know God, have faith in God, until you get to know His word.

So, let’s become doers of the word and not hearers only. Then we will truly see God work in our lives.

Just a thought,

PSS

For us to grow, mature spiritually, we must take responsibility for our thought lives.

Denial:

It is common today for people to speak as if they were not responsible for their thoughts, feelings, and actions. We are disempowering ourselves from making real change by denying our responsibility over our own minds. Our thoughts are our responsibility, and while we cannot stop every thought that comes to our minds, we alone will be held accountable for what we allow to engage our minds.

Owning up:

The first step to renewing our mind is to take ownership of our thought life. We will never change anything for which we refuse to accept responsibility. God changes our hearts — called the born-again experience — then He expects us to change our thinking to get in line with His word. Our job is to renew our minds. It’s our choice to think His way or not. It’s always our choice — and ours alone. It’s the truth God has provided so we can take wrong, ungodly thoughts and replace them with His word. It takes work and discipline.

Fearmongering:

The world is screaming at every one of us — BE AFRAID! BE FEARFUL! And I hope we all notice they have cut off anyone who says there is no need to be afraid. We must replace fear with faith. Terrible things will happen, and no matter how bad, we are never to succumb to fear — never.

We must renew our thinking to believe in, trust in God. Always our choice.

Just a thought,

PSS

Growth is a part of life. Either we are growing, or we are not. It’s our choice and only our choice if we want to change our lives or some part of them.

Changing our thinking:

We all need to work on some areas of our lives. Sometimes it can be physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual. There are always areas we can improve. The reason so many do not is that it is hard work. People will say, It’s no fun; it is hard. Changing our thinking can be a tough process. In our culture today, it seems as if hard work is a disease, and we have built up an immunity to it.

Being patient:

We want everything right now and we expect achieving, growing, and developing will be easy. Anything worth having will take work. When we work for something, we tend to appreciate it more. When it is given, and requires no effort on our part, we tend not to appreciate or value it as much. Our investment into our own lives helps us to respect the process.

Fixing it:

I believe there is an area or areas in our lives that we need to work on. Here is a thought: O.A. Battista said, “An error does not become a mistake until you refuse to correct it.” Let’s do the Lord’s work and watch the good things that will happen in our lives.

Do better; be better; live better. You are worth the work!

Just a thought,

PSS

Some people are so ashamed of their actions that they can’t bring themselves to tell anyone their secret. The result is the worst kind of guilt that festers inside with no chance of relief. This is called unforgiveness of self. It is the worst kind of unforgiveness.

We are forgiven:

Sometimes it is very difficult to forgive ourselves for things we have done. But we all need to find a way to forgive ourselves. I believe it is easier to forgive someone else at times than it is to forgive ourselves. The thing we must realize is that if God has forgiven us, then we are forgiven and must constantly remind ourselves of this truth. Maybe we write down what we have done and after we have done that and prayed, burn it or shred it.

We have no condemnation:

So many are so incredibly hard on themselves. It’s constantly living a cycle of disappointment over the things they have done. It seems endless. I’ve heard it referred to as the obnoxious roommate who takes away your self-esteem. It reminds you of the things you have said about yourself that are negative and wrong.

We are cleansed:

What we have to remember is that no one is perfect. We have all sinned and come short of the glory of God. So, no one is perfect. We need to remind ourselves that I John 1:9 says that if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. God is a good God and wants to help us, never harm us.

So, let’s kick out that obnoxious roommate of unforgiveness and replace him with one of peace and forgiveness.

Just a thought,

PSS

We can’t wait until life isn’t hard anymore before we decide to be happy, to live life, to serve God.

Waiting:

Too many people are waiting for the right moment, the right situation to come along, before they take action or do something. Some are habitual waiters and not doers. It’s as if that before I act on the word of God, circumstances must be favorable to me! God’s word or acting on God’s word, doing God’s word, is not dependent on circumstances being favorable.

Changing:

It’s the word of God that changes circumstances and can change the outcome. You’ve heard that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting different results. I believe it. It is insane, but people keep doing it. When I have more, I’ll do something. Why are we waiting to receive God’s blessings?

Believing:

Years ago, I was going into prisons and teaching the word. At the time, I would shrink back from teaching them to not really believing God for more than safety. As I was meditating one day, I believe God gave me a thought — If my word doesn’t work in there (prisons), then it doesn’t work anywhere. In other words, we can’t afford to wait for perfect circumstances to become doers of God’s word. It works anywhere and everywhere — where men will be bold enough to act on it.

Let’s not wait to live for God or be happy. Let’s live now — no more waiting.

Just a thought,

PSS