Thank You Lord

We have only to listen to the news to understand just how bad our life and our world could be right now. And yet we can be thankful. We have so much to be thankful for. God is still in control. When events happen that we just don't understand, He's still in control. When we are hurt by those who care about us, He's still in control. When finances diminish and we don't see a way out, He's still in control. We can look back over our lives and see all the different times when He has protected us, provided for us, and given us so much that we don't deserve. I am so thankful that I have a roof over my head, food to put on the table, shoes to put on my feet and people in my life who care about me. And on the slim chance that you personally, can't think of anything in your life to thank Him for; thank Him and praise Him for who He is. For He is Alpha and Omego, the beginning and the end, Savior, Father, Counselor, Prince of Peace, Holy, Creator of the universe, Our Guiding Shepherd, Lover of our Souls, and the truest best friend we could ever have.

Psalm 7:17 I will praise the LORD according to his righteousness: and will sing praise to the name of the LORD most high.

Psalm 9:1 ¶ I will praise thee, O LORD, with my whole heart; I will shew forth all thy marvellous works.

Psalm 9:2 I will be glad and rejoice in thee: I will sing praise to thy name, O thou most High.

Psalm 34:1 I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.

He accepts the shattered, broken pieces of our lives and very patiently puts us back together, healing every crack and crevice until the damage is no longer felt or seen. It's gone! How can we ever praise Him enough!

Being Judgmental of Others

Definition: (for our purposes here we will use the following definition)
Judge – to form an estimate or evaluation of; to form an opinion; critic

Mt 7:1 ¶ Judge not, that ye be not judged.
Mt 7:2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

Lu 6:37 ¶ Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:

Joh 8:15 Ye judge after the flesh; I judge no man.

Joh 12:47 And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.

Ro 14:3 Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him.

Ro 14:10 But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.

Ro 14:13 Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother's way.

1Co 4:5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.

Col 2:16 ¶ Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:

I think we all try not to judge anyone else. After all, we are followers and seekers but does that make us experts on the mind of God? And have we forgotten where we came from and what God has brought us out of? Further, as in the above verses, if Jesus Christ said he judges no man, and he is our mentor and leader, should we?

Have you every heard someone say “Well, I don’t know how he/she can be a Christian and do such and such.” We are not all alike, and many of us may be at a different place in our walk. Does that mean that God loves us any less? If you have been a Christian for a long time, think back to the time when you were a new Christian. Did you not stumble at times? And did God reveal everything to you at the time of your salvation? Or – did new things come to light as you trusted and obeyed Him and read His Word?

Lord, help us to be patient with others, not to judge, and if we see a concern, let us pray about it and put it in your hands, knowing you are capable and faithful to lay conviction on hearts where necessary. It has never been our job to do that. And most of all, help us to never, ever lose our compassion for people. Amen.

Forgiveness

For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Matthew 6: 14-15

I don't know how many times I have heard someone say, "Well, I'll forgive him/her, but I sure won't forget it." Refusing to forget is not really forgiving. To forgive means to forget it. It should be like it never happened. Think about the changes that the event caused in your relationship with that person and with others. You see, the devil wants us to become upset with each other and to hold on to bitterness and anger. We need to release it. It is not always an easy thing to do. But if we ask Him, God will help us little by little to forget the pain until the incident or comment becomes less and less important and as time goes on, we can barely remember it, even if we try.

As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. Psalm 103:12

This is how our gracious Father forgives us.