I will be honest. I have been hurt the past few weeks. I've seen a lot of people reject different viewpoints on matters that may in fact have helped them in some areas of their lives. Why is it we feel that we cannot be open to the things of God? Why are so many of us narrow-minded, never willing to admit that God is bigger than our thoughts and our beliefs, and that nothing....NOTHING, is impossible with Him?
I urge you: Please, do not close your heart and mind to new things of God. Of course, we should weigh everything we are exposed to with the Word of God. I wholeheartedly believe that. But, please don't doubt that God can and will reveal Himself in new and exciting ways every single day. He is not limited to what we see, hear, touch, smell, and experience. He is much bigger than anything we can ever imagine.
Do not be prideful, because in doing so, you will be setting yourself up to fall. God loves us, and He wants to reveal Himself to us. Let's let Him.
-Seeker
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Church Is The Only Hospital That Won't Accept Sick People
You may think this title is a little extreme, but if you really think about it, isn't it the truth? Today's Christians preach a gospel that isn't found anywhere in the Bible. We preach the message of religion instead of relationship. We turn away the "unclean", telling them they have to clean themselves up before they can be accepted, all the while forgetting that we were once and still are considered "unclean" without Christ. Alcoholics are turned away. Homosexuals are banned. People who may dress a little different may not necessarily be rejected, but they sure are talked about behind their back. Where did we go wrong? This is not what Jesus taught, and this definitely wasn't what He lived. When are we going to stop condemning people, and just accept and love them as God does? This does not mean we are giving them a license to sin, but it means that we would be showing them unconditional love and acceptance, which in turn could change their lives and cause them to grow closer to God. God changes people. We can't. So, let's stop trying, and just love them. He'll do the rest.
Matthew 9:9-12, Jesus tells us how we should go about it.
9As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector's booth. "Follow me," he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.
10While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew's house, many tax collectors and "sinners" came and ate with him and his disciples. 11When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?"
12On hearing this, Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.'[a] For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."
Jesus associated himself with the outcasts. He sat, ate, and fellowshipped with them! In other words, He just loved them....right where they were, exactly how they were. God loves us for who we are, not who we try to become. Why can't we love others in this same way?
Far too many times, and I've experienced this in my own life, condemnation is the rule rather than the exception. People are told what they are not supposed to be doing instead of being told "I love you, no matter what you're doing or what you're going through". This is sad. Jesus requires MERCY, not sacrifice. If you do not show mercy, you will not obtain mercy.
Does this mean we are giving people an excuse to sin? Of course not. We are just showing them the unconditional love, grace, and acceptance of our heavenly Father. We should trust HIM to do the rest in their lives. We're not their Holy Spirit, therefore, we should not try to be.
In closing, let us be Christ. Let us love, unconditionally. If there is someone who is living a different lifestyle than you that you may not agree with, just love them. Don't condemn them, and don't point out their "sin". Because, believe me, their "sin" has probably been pointed out thousands of times before you came along. So just LOVE....let God work and just love. Accept the sick. Some already know they are sick. We don't have to tell them. All we need to do is help them heal, and the best way to do that is to accept them and love them right where they are. No strings attached. If God loved us any other way, His love would not be perfect. It shouldn't be any different with us.
-Seeker
Matthew 9:9-12, Jesus tells us how we should go about it.
9As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector's booth. "Follow me," he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.
10While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew's house, many tax collectors and "sinners" came and ate with him and his disciples. 11When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?"
12On hearing this, Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.'[a] For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."
Jesus associated himself with the outcasts. He sat, ate, and fellowshipped with them! In other words, He just loved them....right where they were, exactly how they were. God loves us for who we are, not who we try to become. Why can't we love others in this same way?
Far too many times, and I've experienced this in my own life, condemnation is the rule rather than the exception. People are told what they are not supposed to be doing instead of being told "I love you, no matter what you're doing or what you're going through". This is sad. Jesus requires MERCY, not sacrifice. If you do not show mercy, you will not obtain mercy.
Does this mean we are giving people an excuse to sin? Of course not. We are just showing them the unconditional love, grace, and acceptance of our heavenly Father. We should trust HIM to do the rest in their lives. We're not their Holy Spirit, therefore, we should not try to be.
In closing, let us be Christ. Let us love, unconditionally. If there is someone who is living a different lifestyle than you that you may not agree with, just love them. Don't condemn them, and don't point out their "sin". Because, believe me, their "sin" has probably been pointed out thousands of times before you came along. So just LOVE....let God work and just love. Accept the sick. Some already know they are sick. We don't have to tell them. All we need to do is help them heal, and the best way to do that is to accept them and love them right where they are. No strings attached. If God loved us any other way, His love would not be perfect. It shouldn't be any different with us.
-Seeker
Monday, October 22, 2007
Keep On Keeping On
I haven't had a lot of time to post, but a little bit of encouragement real quick: Keep on keeping on!....If you feel like giving up, don't. God has something great for your life, and even if it doesn't seem like it right now, He does. So, don't give up. In your weakest time of your life, God is made the strongest. He loves you. Simple as that. God loves you, regardless of who you are and what you've done. He sent His Son to die a painful death so that you may live. You are important to Him. Seek Him, and you will find Him. I promise.
-Seeker
-Seeker
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Great is the Lord
Sometimes we forget how great our God really is. He's set us free and the King that rescued us. Let us not forget this simple truth: Great is the Lord...
-Seeker
-Seeker
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Accepted
I realze it's been a while since I've posted. To be honest, I have been dealing with a lot of things lately. I have had so many doubts about a lot of things pertaining to God and His Word. I questioned Him. I questioned if He was real, or just a figment of one's imagination. It's a place that I thought I'd never be, and a place I would wish no one would have to experience. But, through it all, God has brought me to a higher place. It's something that's really hard to explain in words, but I will try.
My main question to God was how could He send someone He loves to hell. It didn't make sense to me at all. But I've found that, whether Christian or not, people will find a way to question the validity of a higher power when they are in difficult situations. You would think it would be the other way around, but that's not the case. Sure, there were record numbers of people attending church right after the tragedy of 9/11. But, I venture to say that there were more that had a negative view on God, and questioned how He could let something so tragic happen to innocent people. What I've come to realize is that God loves us all, no matter what. One of the greatest gifts He's given us is the gift of free will. He allows us to make a choice. Whether right or wrong, He allows us to make the decision for ourselves.
Through all of my recent struggles, one thing God has revealed to me is that I'm accepted. A lot of us think that, in order to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we have to "clean" ourselves up. But, Jesus' whole ministry revolved around those who were unclean. He healed lepers, those who were blind, fornicators, the paralyzed, and the outcasts. God is not looking for perfection. He's looking for those who realize their need of a Savior, and those who are willing to give up everything in order to follow Him. Granted, it won't be easy. He never said it would. But, He did say that His yoke is easy, and His burden is light. When we trust Him, he will give us the strength to overcome any obstacle thrown our way.
So, if you don't take anything away from this, remember this: You are accepted and loved by God. Nothing can ever separate us from His Love. Whatever circumstance you're in, He still loves you, no matter what...and He accepts you. All you have to do is accept Him.
-Seeker
My main question to God was how could He send someone He loves to hell. It didn't make sense to me at all. But I've found that, whether Christian or not, people will find a way to question the validity of a higher power when they are in difficult situations. You would think it would be the other way around, but that's not the case. Sure, there were record numbers of people attending church right after the tragedy of 9/11. But, I venture to say that there were more that had a negative view on God, and questioned how He could let something so tragic happen to innocent people. What I've come to realize is that God loves us all, no matter what. One of the greatest gifts He's given us is the gift of free will. He allows us to make a choice. Whether right or wrong, He allows us to make the decision for ourselves.
Through all of my recent struggles, one thing God has revealed to me is that I'm accepted. A lot of us think that, in order to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we have to "clean" ourselves up. But, Jesus' whole ministry revolved around those who were unclean. He healed lepers, those who were blind, fornicators, the paralyzed, and the outcasts. God is not looking for perfection. He's looking for those who realize their need of a Savior, and those who are willing to give up everything in order to follow Him. Granted, it won't be easy. He never said it would. But, He did say that His yoke is easy, and His burden is light. When we trust Him, he will give us the strength to overcome any obstacle thrown our way.
So, if you don't take anything away from this, remember this: You are accepted and loved by God. Nothing can ever separate us from His Love. Whatever circumstance you're in, He still loves you, no matter what...and He accepts you. All you have to do is accept Him.
-Seeker
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Guilt
There are many of us that face guilt every single day. Guilt for doing something that we know we weren't supposed to do, or guilt for doing something we knew we were supposed to do, but regretted the consequences that came along with it. There is a simple thing God wants us to know when it comes to us feeling guilty about things: He loves us just how we are. He does not condone sin, but He still loves us, and still forgives us for what we do and don't do. I always remember the story of the woman caught in adultery, and was being prepared to be stoned. She was brought before Jesus. Jesus, in His mighty wisdom, knew exactly the right thing to say: "He who is without sin, cast the first stone." See, God knows that we live in a sinful, dying world. He knows that, every single day, we will be posed with temptation and doubt, and that occasionally, we're going to "slip up"....sin.
But, He gives us a way of escape. He says that if we call on Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Which means, along with that, He wipes away our guilt. Guilt is one of the major things that keeps us from furthering our relationship with Him. Mainly, because we feel that we're not good enough. In reality, we're not. But, if we know that He is what makes us right before God, then all guilt, condemnation, doubt.....all of that, doesn't seem to matter, and is not a focal point of our lives any longer.
-Seeker
But, He gives us a way of escape. He says that if we call on Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Which means, along with that, He wipes away our guilt. Guilt is one of the major things that keeps us from furthering our relationship with Him. Mainly, because we feel that we're not good enough. In reality, we're not. But, if we know that He is what makes us right before God, then all guilt, condemnation, doubt.....all of that, doesn't seem to matter, and is not a focal point of our lives any longer.
-Seeker
Thursday, May 17, 2007
True Love
What is love? You see different viewpoints of what love is everywhere. You walk down the street and see someone holding another's hand. You think, "They must really be in love". You go to your favorite restaurant and see a husband and a wife sitting side by side, gazing into each other's eyes, totally oblivious to the fact that their food has been sitting in front of them for the last ten minutes, and again you think to yourself that they must be in love.
But, why is our divorce rate higher than it's ever been before? Why does abuse abound in so many relationships? In my honest opinion, I believe that our definition of love is warped. We may think we know what love is, but in actuality, we may not know love at all.
Jesus showed us the true meaning of love all throughout His Word. He said, "If you say you love Me, but hate your brother, the love of God is not in you". Again, He said, "There's no greater love than this, then for a man to lay his life down for his friends". So, what is love? Love is putting others before yourself. Love is not harboring bitterness, but showing forgiveness. Love is when you're willing to lay everything on the line, just to help someone else. Love is caring so much that you would give someone your very best.
So, what is true love? God is Love.
-Seeker
But, why is our divorce rate higher than it's ever been before? Why does abuse abound in so many relationships? In my honest opinion, I believe that our definition of love is warped. We may think we know what love is, but in actuality, we may not know love at all.
Jesus showed us the true meaning of love all throughout His Word. He said, "If you say you love Me, but hate your brother, the love of God is not in you". Again, He said, "There's no greater love than this, then for a man to lay his life down for his friends". So, what is love? Love is putting others before yourself. Love is not harboring bitterness, but showing forgiveness. Love is when you're willing to lay everything on the line, just to help someone else. Love is caring so much that you would give someone your very best.
So, what is true love? God is Love.
-Seeker
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