Conquering Complainers

Complaining is a kill-joy.  It makes you unhappy and everybody else around you unhappy.  The problem is that it is a hard habit to break.  We are naturally negative.  We tend to look at the bad things in life. We are conditioned by society.  Bad news makes the headlines.  We are bombarded continuously with what's wrong with everything.  By our own nature and by our conditioning we tend to develop the habit of complaining.

The Bible says God wants Christians to be different.  Philippians 2:14-15  "Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe."

What does God's word have to say about dealing with this habit of complaining?

FOUR COMMON TYPES OF COMPLAINERS:

1.  THE "WHINER"

These people wake up negative.  They rise and whine.  David whines all through the Psalms. Psalm 73:13 "Have I been wasting my time?  Why take all the trouble to be pure? All I get out of it is trouble and woe."

The tell-tale sign of the whiner is:  "It's not fair.  I don't deserve this.  Everybody else gets all the breaks."

Life is not fair.  God never said it is going to be fair.  It will be fair in Heaven.  He will settle the score in Heaven.  As long as you complain about the fact that life is not fair, it only makes you more miserable.  But it will never change the fact that life is not always fair. Complaining does not work.

2.  THE "MARTYR" 

Favorite phrase:  "No one appreciates me."

Numbers 11:11-15 "Moses said to the Lord, `Why pick on me, to give the burden of a people like this?  I can't carry this nation by myself! If you're going to treat me like this, please kill me right now -- it will be a kindness!  Let me out of this impossible situation!"

These people are pros at having pity parties.  When they are sick or under pressure, they want everybody to know about it.  How do you react when you don't get your way?  Do you mount a complaining campaign?

3.  THE "CYNIC" 

Favorite phrase:  "Nothing will ever change."

Eccl. 1:2-4,9 "Life is useless.  You spend your life working and what do you have to show for it? The world stays just the same ... what has been done before will be done again." Actually, this last phrase probably refers to picking up after children. What's the use?

4.  THE "PERFECTIONIST"

Nothing is ever right for this person.  It is never good enough. Favorite phrase:  "Is that the best you can do?"

Proverbs 27:15 "A nagging wife is like water going drip, drip, drip on a rainy day." Proverbs 21:19  "Better to live out in the desert than with a nagging, complaining wife."

This refers to husbands, too!  Nagging perfectionists.  Nothing is ever right.  Always arguing. Nothing destroys the warmth of a home faster than complaining.  Nothing destroys the harmony of a marriage faster than complaining.  Nagging doesn't work.  It just makes everybody upset.

If your kids are complaining continuously, ask yourself if you are setting the example.

HOW DO YOU CONQUER COMPLAINING?

The Bible says "Do everything without complaining and arguing." How do you do that?

 ADMIT IT IS A PROBLEM

Admit it is a problem for you, not for other people, but for you. Proverbs 28:13 "A man who refuses to admit his mistakes can never be successful.  But if he confesses and  forsakes them, he gets another chance."

Complaining isn't just a bad habit; it's a sin.  We need to confess it.  It's a sin; it's serious. Complaining was the sin that kept the Israelites out of the promised land.  God destroyed them in the desert because they grumbled.  Seven times, Scripture says, "they murmured."  The reason the children of Israel never got into the promised land was because they were complainers.  That's how serious God says what we're talking about is.  

ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR OWN LIFE

Many times complaining is just an attempt to blame other people for the problems we've created. 

Proverbs 19:3 "Some people ruin themselves by their own stupid mistakes and then blame the Lord."

Do not complain how the ball bounces if you drop it!  

I hear so many people complaining about being in debt.  Is it possible you were irresponsible about spending and saving?  That you made a purchase you really shouldn't have made?  I hear people saying, "I'm just not appreciated at home."  Maybe you don't appreciate the others at home.  We reap what we sow. Whatever you want in life, you've got to give it out.  That is inviolable rule of God.  If you want friends you've got to be friendly.  If you want appreciation at home you've got to give appreciation.  If you want to be put first in your marriage, you need to put your partner first in your marriage.  We reap what we sow.

Which type of person are you?  accuser, excuser, or chooser.

Accusers are always going around saying "It's your fault." When Adam sinned he took it like a man and blamed his wife, "Eve did it," and then he blamed God, "You gave me that woman."

Excusers say "I'm a product of my environment.  It's not really my fault."

The people that are really successful in life are neither accusers nor excusers.  They are choosers.  They accept responsibility for their own decisions.  When they reap what they sow, they take it and move ahead.

DEVELOP THE ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE

I Thes. 5:18 "Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." God says "I want you to be thankful in all circumstances."  It does not say "for all circumstances".  You cannot always be thankful for the circumstances, but you can be thankful in the situation.  I know that God is working all things for good.  He has a pattern and He fits even the bad things in our lives into that pattern for good. God's purpose for my life is greater than my problems, so in everything I can give thanks.  Not for but in.

I develop the attitude of gratitude and I learn to be grateful for what I have.  It's a tremendous antidote for complaining.  Why is it that we often don't value what we have in life until it's gone?

Phil. 4:11 "I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances." When Paul wrote this he was in prison at Rome.  The situations do not determine happiness.

When you learn to be happy and joyful in spite of the circumstance, that is maturity.  

LOOK FOR GOD'S HAND IN CIRCUMSTANCES

If you want to get victory over complaining, look for God's hand in your circumstances.

II Cor. 4:17-18  "This small and temporary trouble we suffer will bring us a tremendous and eternal glory, much greater than the trouble.  So we fix our attention, not on the things that are seen, but on the things that are unseen.  What is seen lasts only for a time, but what cannot be seen lasts forever."

Paul is saying there are problems that come into our lives, no doubt.  But the way you look at them determines your attitude. Because God is working these things for good in your life and the good that you're going to get out of them will be much more long lasting that the problem. 

The reason why over and over in the Bible we are told not to complain is this: complaining is, in essence, rebellion against God.  When I complain about my circumstances that are beyond my control I'm really saying "If I were God things would be different.  If I were in charge, the whole human race would be much better."  That's rebellion and that's why it's so serious. God says don't do it.

PRACTICE SPEAKING POSITIVELY

Complaining is a habit.  Habits are only broken by replacement with something else.  Take out the negative complaining and replace it with positive speaking.  Ephesians 4:29 "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen."

I hope you have a wonderful new week.

How to be joyful ~ (no matter what)

Many people don't enjoy life; they just endure it. They don't enjoy happiness. We think that life must be perfect for us to be happy. If I could just change my situation life would be great. If I could just get rid of all my problems. But there's no such thing as a problem-free life. If you're going to learn to be happy and joyful, you must learn to be joyful in the situation, in the problems, in the very experiences of life.

We learn that Paul has been in miserable circumstances for four years. He was in prison for two years. Then he is put on a ship to go to Rome to appear before Nero. On the way he's shipwrecked, stranded on an island, bitten by a poisonous snake, waits the winter there, continues on to Rome, spends another two years in prison awaiting trial to be executed. During this two year period in Rome he is chained to a guard for 24 hours a day. He has absolutely no privacy. Every four hours he gets a new guard.

Yet in spite of all of these situations, Paul says in Phil. 1:18 "I rejoice and I will continue to rejoice." What's Paul's secret? How does he stay positive in prison, triumph over troubles, delight in difficulties, stay so happy, positive, joyful in spite of the fact that everything has not turned out the way he planned it? Paul gives us four secrets.

You need a perspective to live from. The perspective you need to live from if you're going to have joy in your life is Romans 8:28 "And we know that in ALL things God works for the good of those who love Him..."

You need a priority to live from. Learn to live by priority, rather than by problems. Either you'll decide what's important in your life or you'll let other people decide what's important. If you don't choose your priorities, you'll go around putting out one fire after another, living your life simply from problem to problem to problem and not choosing what's important.

What should I live by? Proverbs 3:6 "In everything you do, put God first and He will direct you and crown your efforts with success." This is what counts:  putting God first.

You need a power to live on.  Life can wear you out. Life can drain you completely. One crisis after another can drain you. You lose your energy and your power. Some of you are ready to throw in the towel. You say, "I've done the best I could, but it's not good enough and I'm tired and sick." You need a fresh power supply.

You can't live without hope. You've got to have hope to cope. Cornell University did a study of 25,000 POWs from WWII. They found that man can handle tremendous stress and pressure as long as he has hope. The moment hope is gone you're doomed.

Where do you get your hope to keep on keeping on? God's answer to personal energy crisis: Phil. 4:13 "I have the strength to face all conditions by the power that Christ gives me."

You need a purpose to live for.  Paul had a long term goal. He looked at things in the light of eternity. Phil. 3:13-14 "Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." The best use of your life is to invest it in something that will outlast it.

Here is your thought for the week:  It's great to be a Christian, but I'm not a Christian because I'm afraid I'm going to die tonight but because I've got to live tomorrow.

The Kingdom of Heaven is ours!

Matthew 5:10-12 "Happy are those who are persecuted because they do what God requires; the Kingdom of heaven belongs to them!"

One of the major causes of unhappiness is trying to be like everybody else and trying to have everybody like you. There is a myth that says "In order to be happy I must be approved by everybody" but that doesn't work, does it? You just can't please everybody.

Jesus was a realist and was very honest about the consequences of following Him. He said, If you follow Me there are many people who aren't going to approve of your decision; they're not going to like it. If you live by these beatitudes we've been looking at for eight weeks, you can expect some people to be upset. So in His closing statement of Matthew 5:10 "Happy are those who are persecuted because they do what God requires; the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to them!" The statement was so shocking, He repeats it twice. Again, in the next verse, "Happy are you when people insult you and persecute you and say all manner of evil against you falsely. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad for great is your reward in heaven for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you."

What are the reasons for harassment. The second part of verse 11, "...because you are My followers."  The fact is, the right reason for harassment is, "No servant is greater than his master. If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you also." (John 15:20).  Jesus said that and He's saying the right reason for harassment is being like Jesus. Evil people don't like Jesus. They don't like to attack Jesus directly, so they attack His followers. Romans 12:17 & 19 (Good News) "If someone does evil to you, don't pay him back with evil... Never take revenge. Let God's wrath do it."

Rather, use kindness and show your goodness.  Romans 12:21, "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." Is that your normal reaction when you're put down? But you never get ahead by trying to get even.

Matthew 5:44 "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you." Is that easy? No.  Unusual? Yes. Is that what God says to do? Yes. He says, "Don't react; respond positively." When people put you down, you build them up. When people hassle you, you just be nice to them. You do not retaliate. The moment you start retaliating, they are in control. One of the greatest principles of life that we must learn is:  we have control of our reaction. You cannot control the things that happen to you, you cannot control the things that people say about you. You cannot control the events, the persecutions, the hassles you'll get. But you can control how you choose to react. You can control how you choose to respond.

Respond positively. Love them. Pray for them. Pray for their good. Pray for God's will in their lives.

During Easter, Christians recognize the completion of Jesus Christ’s mission on Earth:  to come, to die for the sins of humanity and to be resurrected on the third day.  I may not have been there when the disciples watched their Lord breathe His last breath, but I can imagine how they felt:  hopeless.

Not only did He die in the most publicly humiliating way at the time, but He was also entombed. Now that’s final. For three days, there was nothing. He was gone. All seemed lost.

But then on Sunday morning…

This is why people get so excited about Easter.  It’s a celebration that the most hopeless of circumstances could be revived. The resurrection of Jesus is the heart of the Gospel message and, perhaps even, the meaning of  life: that there is hope. No matter how dark it gets, there is a light that shines. That’s why they call it “The Good News”.

I hope that during this Easter season, you take some time out to sit and reflect. Think about the areas in your life that you feel are dead and remember this message. Despite how “final” your Friday feels, Sunday is on its way and you can get a fresh start. Things will turn around. And you don’t even have to wait for Sunday, because every day is a second chance – a chance to change, to forgive, to forget, and to grow.

Have a wonderful week and I hope the past eight weeks of the Beatitudes have helped you to find the happiness that our Lord intends for us to have.

Be a peace maker

Jesus says there's one thing you can always know when we're like our heavenly father, Matthew 5:9 "Happy are the peacemakers,  for they will be called the sons of God."  You are a son of God when you're a peacemaker.

It doesn't say, "Happy are the peace lovers", everybody loves peace.  Or, "Happy are the
peaceable", those who never get disturbed by anything.  It says, happy are those who make peace -- who actively seek to resolve conflict.

Being a peacemaker does not mean running from the problem, pretending it doesn't exist.  You are not a peacemaker when you always give in and let the other person have their own way.  That's passivity.  Jesus was a very controversial person.  He stood his ground on a number of issues.

Why should you be a peacemaker?  The Bible says you cannot have close fellowship with God and be out of fellowship with other people at the same time.  I John 4 says "How can a man say `I love God' and hate his brother at the same time?"  If you're growing close to God and the other person is growing close to God, it's inevitably going to pull you closer together.

Matthew 5 says reconciliation is a prerequisite for worship.  When you come to church and you're ready to give your offering and you remember somebody has something against you, it says go, get that right and then come back.  Nothing can substitute for reconciliation.  Not giving, sharing, reading the Bible.  If you're having a hard time getting an answer to prayer, maybe you should check out your relationships.

How to be a peacemaker and face conflict:

Empathize with the other person.  Phil. 2:4 "Let each of you look out not only for your own interests, but also for the interests of others."

When you're upset, who are you thinking about?  Me, my needs, my hurts, you hurt me.  I don't care about you. God says reverse that.  Hold a peace conference and think about what are the other person's needs; what can you do to help them?  Focus on their needs, not your own needs.

Attack the problem, not the person.  Proverbs 15:1 "A gentle answer quiets anger but a harsh one stirs it up." Engage your mind before you engage your mouth.  Be sincere, not sarcastic.  You don't get the point across by being cross. Attack the problem not the person.  Don't criticize, condemn and compare. Ephesians 4:29 "Do not use harmful words, but only helpful words, the kind that build up and provide what is needed."

Cooperate as much as possible. Romans 12:18 "Do everything possible on your part, to live at peace with all men."  The hallmark of a Christian ought to be your ability to get along with other people.  It's not how much you pray, read the Bible, sing, give.  But, do you get along with other people?  That's the mark of a Christian.  Jesus said, "By this shall all men know that you're My disciples, that you have love for one another."

Please know that sometimes peace has a price.  It can cost you your ego, your self-centeredness, your selfishness.

The three most difficult words in the English language are "I was wrong."  That's compromise, cooperation.  The two most difficult words are "I'm sorry".  The five:  "I'm sorry.  I was wrong." Seven:  "I'm sorry.  I was wrong, a lot."

"Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called the children of God."  God says, "They are doing exactly what I would do if I were in that situation.  I would be trying to bring harmony where there is disharmony.  I would be trying to bring unity where there is conflict."  God has given us that ministry of reconciliation, of peacemaking.

Who can be a peacemaker?  You can.  Anybody can become a peacemaker.  But first you must have peace on the inside of you. You can't spread peace if you're at war on the inside.  Only what you have can you offer to others.

Don't look to other people, instead of God, to meet your needs. When you do that, you're asking for trouble.

God says I never intended for you to have all of your needs met by another person. There are some of those spiritual, emotional needs that only God can meet. When you look to God and you have peace with God, then your relationships can get better.  The reason why some of you have rotten relationships is because you have a war going on inside.
You're asking other people to meet needs that they never will be able to meet:  the deepest needs of your heart.

How do you find this missing peace?  You ask Jesus into your life.  Afterall, he IS called the Prince of Peace. You will then find inner peace. That's the kind of peace God wants to give you. When you have that in your life, then you can become a peacemaker.

Col. 3:15 "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts."

Have a wonderful week and I hope you find that peace.

Be pure in heart

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

What does "pure in heart" mean?  It means unmixed motives.  You are a person of integrity.  You don't say one thing and act another way.  Your motives are true.  God is concerned with why we do things as much as He's concerned with what we do.  He's concerned with our motives.

Matthew 6:1  "Be careful not to parade your good deeds before others to attract their notice or you will lose all your reward from your Father in heaven."

Is it possible to do good things with wrong motives?  Sure.  Is it possible to be outwardly religious and inwardly a mess?  Sure.  Jesus says, 'happiness comes when you are the same on the inside as on the outside.  You're a person of integrity.  You have unmixed motives.'  Jesus said this was so important He spent an entire chapter on it:  Matthew 6.

Remember that God sees everything. The key phrase in Matthew 6 is "your Father sees what is done in secret."  Nothing is a secret from God.  Nothing is ever a surprise to Him.   Does it bother you in knowing that you have no secrets from God?  It bothers me sometimes.  There are some secrets I would like to have from God.  But God says He knows everything about us.  A lot of people think they're fooling God. Have you ever had the devil tell you, "Go ahead, nobody will ever find out."  Somebody already knows.  "Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight.  Everything is uncovered before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account."  If God already knows everything, I might as well have a pure heart than try to fake it. I may fool others but I cannot fool God.  The wonderful thing is God knows everything that I'm going to do but He still loves me.

Do an honest evaluation of why you do what you do.  Proverbs 24:21 "God knows and judges your motives.  He keeps watch over you; He knows.  He rewards you according to what you do."

Give, give, give....... but give the right way:

 Matthew 6:2 "So when you give to the needy do not announce it with trumpets as the hypocrites do in the synagogue and on the streets to be honored by men. I tell you the truth.  They have received their reward in full."  He says when you give, you shouldn't give in order to be seen by other people. When you give the right way, you receive God's reward.

Pray, pray, pray...... but pray the right way:

"When you pray don't be like the hypocrites.  They love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men.  I tell you they've received their full reward."  Have you ever heard anybody pray to the crowds, pray to other people?  They pray a real flowery prayer, and when they're finished you want to say, "Wow!" and you feel like applauding?  God says, they don't have a pure heart.  Have you ever heard anybody pray reminding God of something He already knows to tell the other people who are listening?  "Lord help us to remember that Thursday night is a committee meeting at 7:00 at Mary's house."  Or have you ever given somebody a pat on the back when you're praying?  "Lord, thank you for the 15 people I witnessed to this week."  Jesus says, you have your reward.  When you pray,  don't do it to impress other people. When you pray the right way, you receive God's reward.

A pure heart is someone who is content with God's praise.  A pure heart is someone who is controlled by God's priorities.  Pure in heart means being continually conscious of God's presence.

How can I clean up my heart?  The answer is you can't.  You cannot clean up your heart on your own.  Otherwise Jesus wouldn't have needed to come to earth.

To get a clean heart you just ask God.  God wants to give you a brand new heart.  He wants you to put your trust in Him.  It's simple:  you ask Him for a clean heart and He'll give you a new heart, a new outlook, a new life, a new start.

What is the end result?  Happiness!

Have a wonderful new week. Strive to be pure in heart.

Mercy

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

The first four Beatitudes that I have written about deal with our relationship with God. The next four deal with our relationship with each other.

What is mercy?  Mercy is love in action.  It's more than just an attitude.  It's doing something.  The Bible says God is a merciful God.  Notice Psalm 145:8 "God is kind and merciful, slow to get angry and full of love."  If you want to be like God, you have to learn to be merciful.

God is saying if you want love, you must give love.  If you're going to criticize others, they will criticize you. If you want to be happy, you must treat people right.

What is the right way to treat people?  Be merciful.

1.  If I'm merciful, I will be patient with those who are peculiar.

I Thes. 5:14 "...Encourage the timid, help the weak, and be patient with everyone."  Are you patient with everyone?  I'm not. The Bible says if I'm merciful, I'll be patient with those who are peculiar. How can you be patient with those who are peculiar?  You learn their background.  When you understand where a person comes from, you stop saying, "Look how far they've got to go, " and start saying, "Look how far they've come!"  That makes you a little more patient.

2.  If I'm a merciful person, I'll forgive those who have fallen.

When people make mistakes, do you rub it in?  Or do you rub it out?  When people let you down, do you hold it over their head for the rest of their life, never let them off the hook?  That's not mercy.

Colossians 3:13 "Be gentle and ready to forgive, never hold grudges.  Remember the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others."  It's interesting about forgiveness that when you're called to receive it, it feels so right; when you're called to give it, it feels so wrong.  I don't want to forgive people, I want justice!

Like the lady who had her picture taken at a photographer's. She brought it back and said, "It doesn't do me justice!" He said, "You don't need justice, you need mercy!"

If I'm patient, I will be forgiving to the fallen.

3.  If I'm a merciful person, I will help those who are hurting.

Proverbs 3:27 "Wherever you possibly can, do good to those who need it."  Mercy is practical assistance.  There are people all around you who are hurting.  When you feel sorry for those people, that's not being like Christ.  When you do something about it, that's being like Christ.

John Wesley's motto:  "Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as you ever can."  Help those who are hurting.

Jesus is saying, "Happy are those who care enough to get involved."

4.  If I'm Merciful, I'll do good to my enemies.

Luke 6:33, 35-36.  "If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you!  Even sinners do that!  But love your enemies, do good to them, then your reward will be great.  Be merciful, just as your Father is!"

If you want to be like God, be merciful.  Do good to those who do evil to you.  Unfortunately, that's exactly the opposite of what society says.  Society wants you to get even, hurt those who hurt you.

God says, "No, that's a reactor.  Be an actor not a reactor.  You not only forgive that person, but be nice to the guy."  That's what Jesus would do.  Oh that's so hard to do!

The best way to eliminate an enemy is to turn him into a friend.  Smother him with kindness.  He won't know how to handle it because the world does not respond that way.  All of a sudden, you're in control of the situation.  You're on the offense, not the defense.  You're acting, not reacting.

Mercy is love in action.  It's the way God treats people.  God is kind, merciful, slow to anger.

Here are three motivations why you should be merciful this week:

1.  Because God has shown us mercy.
2.  Because we're going to need more mercy in the future.
3.  Because it makes us happy!

Proverbs 11:17 "The merciful man does good for his own soul."  In other words, as Ben Franklin said, "When you're good to other people, you are best to yourself."

Have a wonderful, and merciful, week!

Righteousness

Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for Righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

What are you hungry for today?  A Big Mac? How about the Lobster Lover's Dream? Maybe all-you-can eat salad and breadsticks?  Do you thirst for a cherry limeade or maybe a double chocolate hot fudge malt?

Of course, this isn't what Jesus meant when he preached this fourth in the series of happy living.

Satisfying your hunger for food is only temporary. Satisfying your boredom with a leisurely walk is only a quick, temporary fix.

What is it that's missing in your life?  What is it that's not there?  A lot of people really don't know what they want in life. The Bible says we are spiritual beings and God made us to love Him and to know Him and be loved by Him.  Nothing will take the place of that.  There is no substitute.  You need to recognize what your real hunger is.  Your hunger is your spiritual being and you hunger for God.  The sooner you recognize that, the better.

How does God give us a hunger for Himself?  Deut. 8:3 "So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna... that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord."

God is clearly saying "What you want is not pleasure, not possessions, not performance.  It's Me!"  God is saying "Quit eating spiritual junk food! What you are really looking for is Me!"

To further help us understand this beatitude we must ask ourselves, what is meant by righteousness?  Righteousness means being in complete accordance with what is just, honorable, and Godly. Righteousness are those things that are upright, virtuous, noble, morally right, and ethical. You could say that righteousness is a lifestyle that is in complete conformity to the will of God. It is a lifestyle that Jesus not only finds pleasing, but one that He approves of.

It's interesting that our appetites are influenced by our associations.  You get around hungry people, you get hungry. If you hang out with people who like the world's junk food, that's what you're going to be into.  If you want to have an appetite for godly things, get around people who have a godly appetite. Spiritual hunger is contagious.

John 8:35 "Jesus said, 'I am the Bread of Life.  Whoever comes to Me will never go hungry and whoever believes in Me will never be thirsty ... If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever!'"  How's that for Wonder Bread?

Blessed are the meek

The flower shown here is a Purple Winecup. The flowers open during the light of day and close up at night. "We are like these vibrant flowers. We bloom when we turn our faces to God’s light. But we wither in the darkness. His light alone makes us glorious." -- Lynda Young

"Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth." We are in the series of Jesus' eight secrets for happy living. In the Bible, "meek" does not mean wimpy, pushover, milktoast. Meekness means strength under control. Jesus said, "Happy are those who don't over react to people." Five ways to work on your reactions:

1. When someone serves you, be understanding not demanding. Philippians 2:4-5 "Don't just think about your own affairs, but be interested in others too, and in what they are doing. Your attitude should be the same as Jesus Christ's."

How do you treat people who serve you? Waitresses, secretaries, clerks, tellers at the bank, fast food operators. Are you understanding or demanding?

2. When somebody disappoints you, be gentle and not judgmental. How do you react when somebody messes up his life? Do you get excited about it: "I told you so! I could see it coming! Only a fool would have done that. I wouldn't have been that dumb."

Do you have a secret sense of satisfaction when other people blow it? Meekness is when people disappoint you, you are gentle, not judgmental.

The one thing that angered Jesus most, more than anything else in life, was self-righteous religious people who were always judging others.

3. When someone disagrees with you, be tender without surrender. Meekness is not compromising your convictions. You can be tender without surrender. It's not being passive, being a doormat, giving in, always letting the other person have their own way. That's not meekness; that is weakness.

Proverbs 15:1 "A gentle answer quiets anger; but a harsh word stirs it up."

2 Tim. 2:24-25 says meekness is a qualification for spiritual leadership, "The Lord's servant must not quarrel... those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in hope that God will give them a change of heart." 

4. When someone corrects you, be teachable -- not unreachable. Meekness is a teachable spirit. Meek people are eager to learn. Meek people don't pretend they know it all. They know they don't know it all and they don't try to pretend they know it all.

5. When somebody hurts you, be an actor not a reactor. When someone hurts you, how do you respond? Do you immediately think "Revenge"?  Some of us are so good at thinking up creative strategies for revenge.

To retaliate is to "react."

But to respond with forgiveness, even when they haven't asked for it, is to act, to take the
initiative.  Don't let others control your emotions. This is a sign of weakness. To react is giving up control.

Respond as Moses did: "God, I'm going to let you take care of this."  This is how to "act," rather than "react."

I hope you have a wonderful new week.

My inspiration for this mini-sermon comes from Rev. Rick Warren.

Blessed are those who mourn

This week we continue with the discussion of the Beatitudes.

Jesus said "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted."

The person who mourns is the one who becomes poor in spirit and repents. To mourn means to realize that you have sinned and how much that hurts God. When we become "poor in spirit," we admit we need God.

Psalm 38:19 "I acknowledge my guilt and grieve over my sin."

The Bible does not try to explain suffering. But it does teach us how to handle it: By receiving the comfort of God. How do we receive this awesome comfort?

1.  Realize that God is with you.  When you are hurting, God is with you in your pain.

2. Release the hurt.  God says "your past is your past. Let it go!"  Say to yourself  "I realize God is with me and I release the past." Release your hurt to God and let him handle it.

3. Rely on God's resources: (1) God's word. Fill your mind with Scripture. (2) God's people. God intended the church to be a family, where the family members are there to comfort each other. (3) God's spirit. The greatest comfort of all! God wants to be your friend.

"The God of all comfort comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort others with the comfort we ourselves have received from God."  2 Cor 1:3-4

 When you invite Jesus into your life, He puts his Spirit in you, to help you become what God wants you to become."May the God of hope fill you with joy ... that by the power of the Holy Spirit, your whole life and outlook may be radiant with hope."  Romans 15:13

I wish you a great week.

Be Humble ~ Be Happy

Part 1.  I imagine if I asked 100 people "what makes you happy?" I would receive answers like good job, friends, children, financial stability, being a good parent, a house. Most of the attempts to find happiness would be through external rather than internal situations.

The popular idea of happiness is this: having the right circumstances.  A classic example of this is found in Ecclesiastes 2. Solomon says "I decided to enjoy myself and find out what happiness is." Solomon admits that he tried it all and found three dead ends: accumulating things, experiencing pleasure and achieving success. He was the wealthiest man, had all kinds of pleasure and was the most successful man of his time but called them dead ends.

The popular idea of happiness is having the right circumstances. But God's way to happiness is having the right attitude.

The Sermon on the Mount begins with eight positive statements about happiness, called the Beatitudes.  Of all the subjects Jesus could have chosen to begin with, He chose "How to be happy" because He knew everyone was searching for true happiness but few managed to find it.

The very first step to happiness is to be humble. Matthew 5:3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven."  "Poor in spirit" means to depend on God. The opposite of poor in spirit is egotism and arrogance.

To be humble is to realize you don't have all the answers, the world does not depend on you, you can handle the tension between real and ideal.

Humility accepts the fact that you can be happy because you are depending on God even though life is not ideal.