Good morning! I believe context is really important. Too many people try to make a belief system out of one verse without considering the context. In context, this verse is talking about being like-minded about loving and serving one another. It doesn't mean we will always agree on every issue or topic. It means we agree that Jesus is Lord and that if He came to serve, then how much more should we be servants of one another? We should seek to help and please others, not ourse

Good morning! From verses 13-18 is a comparison between heavenly wisdom and earthly, demonic wisdom. Wisdom that is self-seeking and full of envy is earthly, sensual and demonic. That is how we can tell the difference, by looking at the fruit. Whatever you sow will grow and reveal the fruit. If you sow seeds of selfish ambition, the fruit will be evident and God will not bless that type of behavior. If you seek to serve God and love others, those seeds will produce fruit that

Good morning! Understanding the nature of God means we cannot overlook His holiness. In His holy nature, we see that He indeed is just in all things. His love makes His holiness stand apart from any other thing in all of creation. He sees all and judges justly. People will overlook you and the work you do for Jesus. But God does not. He has a Book of Remembrance for all the works you have done. He will reward you for it in due time. If you only work for the "thank you's" of p

Good morning! Not only are the bad things that happen a life a mystery at times, but so is the love of God. How can a perfect, holy, just all-powerful, all-knowing, self-existent being like God also be loving, kind, merciful and personal? That is the depth of riches of wisdom and knowledge that are a mystery to me. Perfect in judgment, yet still reconciling all things unto Himself through Christ. It's reeling to think about that! At least to me. As I get older, the more I try

Good morning! Sometimes, in the midst of spiritual battle or attack, it feels like God has forgotten you. I have felt like that before. But my faith tells me the truth that God will never leave me or forsake me. He says that to all of us as a reassuring promise that we are not alone. He will save, rescue and deliver you because He loves and cares for you. Sometimes, the battle happens to test our faith to see if we truly believe in the midst of struggle. It tests the relation

Good morning! After yesterday's post, you may be wondering, "If God creates every person in the womb, why are there defects and problems? What has that child done to deserve that? How is that God's will?" Valid questions. And honestly, there are no answers for some of them. At least here on earth. We know that because sin entered into the world, there are things like sickness, disease and deformities that were never God's plan for us. But something bigger than that is we have

Good morning! There is a process by which humans procreate, but God is the One who forms the person inside the mother's womb. He already knew the day of your conception before your parents ever met. He knows all about your life before you lived one day of it. Life begins at God's inception of creation, not man's conception after consummation. Before the foundations of the world, He knew you and had a plan for your life (Ephesians 1:3-6). We are not aimless accidents or meanin

Good morning! My wife is responsible for my relationship with Jesus. Had she not entered my life, I wouldn't know Him or be alive right now. So, I understand the importance of women in the kingdom. Kingdom women are a treasure. Many women use their looks and features to get their way. They are seductresses who charm and flirt their way into places and positions they have not earned. Beware of such people! But, a woman who fears the Lord has a beauty that never fades or is use

Good morning! The greatest relationship you can have in life is with your spouse. Sometimes, we expect too much from them because we hold them to a much higher standard. But it's not fair to them to expect them to be super human. They will let you down, disappoint you, hurt you, say things you don't agree with or even offend you. The temptation is to let that destroy what God has brought together. They will have bad days just like you and everyone else. But men, pray for your

Good morning! Part of the willingness to reconcile relationships needs to include a willingness for forgiveness. Christ willingly forgave us and we should have the same willingness to forgive each other. It comes down to love. Our love has limits, but God's love does not (Romans 8:35-39). Love is patient, kind, compassionate and forgiving. It extends grace through a willingness to understand. A lot of offenses can be diffused through a conversation that seeks to bring underst

Good morning! Jesus gave us clear instructions for dealing with offenses against one another. As long as there are people living together in the world, there will be offenses. Rather intentional or not, there will be discord as some point. Jesus knew that. He gave us details on how to deal with it. His motive was always love and reconciliation. Never division, strife or separation. After all, He came to reconcile us to the Father and forgive us of our sins. So, our motives sh

Good morning! In Romans 7, the Apostle Paul talks about sin and the law and our inability to keep the law. Sin lives in us since the fall of mankind. The law is a mirror to show us our sin and our need for a Savior. Without that, we have no hope of escaping judgment. Our Savior is Jesus, who is outside of sin because He never sinned, but took on sin that He may be treated as the worst of sinners in order to pay the penalty for sin that we who believe, may go free and be forgi

Good morning! The world has become extremely sensitive and easily triggered, offended and incited by words. We have to be careful how we speak to people, especially those outside the body of Christ. We cannot expect them to think, react or respond like we do to the truth. How we present it can also mean the difference between someone receiving it or rejecting it. Love with grace in sharing the truth should be how we approach our speech. It should be seasoned with salt, not sm

Good morning! If you want to accomplish the will of God for your life, this is a good place to start. Rejoice, pray and be thankful in all things. Easy to remember, hard to apply at times. But it is possible and with practice, it can be a way of life. Rejoicing is our attitude. It is easy to train yourself to be negative and hard to break that habit when you do. Complaining can be contagious, but so can joy. Work at consciously thinking about how you respond to everything. Wh

Good morning! Sometimes, people who sin are embarrassed. They feel shame and like they can't go to God with their sin. We all need people in our lives who are able to help carry us to the feet of Jesus when we are too weak to carry ourselves there. A righteous person's prayers are powerful and effective because the motive they have is pure. It isn't to get juicy information about your sin to gossip over lunch. It isn't to blackmail someone to keep their story a secret. That i

Good morning! I used to look at this passage from verses 4-9 as a formula or pattern to use to change my thinking. And, to some extent, it is, but it's more than that. It is an invitation to a deeper relationship with Jesus. As a formula, it didn't always work for me. Some days were good and some were bad. It's not a math equation that always adds up like 2+2. It's about being in connection to the One who knows you better than you know yourself. It's an invitation to let His

Good morning! This is a very often quoted verse. It is the last half of a sentence that the first half is often overlooked. Verse 13 says, "When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people," which comes right before this verse. Context matters and that gives a completely different perspective. Because in context, God is sending problems to get people's attention with the goal to get them to repent and re

Good morning! This is a verse from a passage of Scripture about having Christian character. It describes what Christian behavior is supposed to look like. Love is at the forefront, without hypocrisy and hating evil comes while clinging to good is next. Being kind to one another in brotherly love, honoring each other, considering others better than yourself. That's humility. Being diligent, fervent in spirit and in service to the Lord. Then, this verse tells us to rejoice in h

Good morning! We must be students of the word in order to know the will of God. His will is found between Genesis 1:1 and Revelation 22:21. But not everything specifically deals with, "This is the will of God." So, we need to be studious of the word to understand His will. When we know His will, we can know how to pray according to His will. When we do, we can have absolute assurance of Him not only hearing our prayers, but answering them. Some of the things in His will are t

Good morning! Belief in God is good, but faith in God is better. Belief is different than faith because faith includes the element of trust. I can believe something exists but not trust it with my life. Belief can be based on evidence but faith takes belief and attaches hope to it. I believe in God, but I also trust Him. It takes faith to believe what I cannot see but have hope as a surety of His existence. Without faith, it is impossible to please God. It's hard to let go of