Proverbs 15:1

Proverbs 15:1

A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

You ever been just so irritated by the ignorance, the close mindedness of other people; Christians and non-Christians alike? Doesn't it just make you want to snap at them to shove under their nose what is right in front of their face. Did you even think that maybe they feel the same way about you?  Well now you might say that they shouldn't that you are not being ignorantly stubborn like they are. Well perhaps they feel the same way. This I think is often the problem we have with other people. We know what is right and other people are just refusing to see the light. While I will admit that this can sometimes be the case I would also caution that in most cases it is not. Because for the most part people have arguments that they think are valid and that they have thought about and accepted and so to reject those arguments out of hand or attack those arguments as stupid, ignorant or in any other demeaning ways it to do the same thing to the person.

Let me be clear here. You DO NOT have to accept others view points, you CAN argue your own. But here is the catch, you have to do it with Love, your goal is not to win an argument but to WIN A SOUL for Christ. There is a definate difference between the two. When you win an argument the other person will always walk away in defeat, often times having been demeaned and ridiculed in the process. This is not what we are called to do, we are called to accept people with Love not thier ideas or practices but [people, that means anyone and every one; homosexuals' child molesters, thieves, People who annoy us, People of other faiths; islam, buddhism, hinduism. I mean anyone and every one should feel as if they are loved when they are in our presence.

This will be hard, It is hard for me and I fail more often than not. It is however what we are called to do and it is  the wise thing to do if your goal is to fullfill the will of God and win people from the grasp of satan into the shelter God provides us.

Many people you will encounter have had a bad experience with Christians and Christianity, And thier anger about those situations can get in the way of your conversation with them. SO in your dealings with others remember Provervbs 15:1 and be gentle in your dealings with others so as to turn thier anger away and maybe then you will have more success in your dealings with others.

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A Crown for you and me

2 Timothy 4:8

"Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day--and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing."

Paul has just finished telling Timothy that has given  every thing he can and he will be leaving soon. And he says this with the assurance of one who knows that have done every possible thing they could to do the Lords will. He says it as one who has an intimate relationship with him and knows what is coming next. This reminds me of the scenes in movies where the old beloved mentor is about to die and next to him is some one who he has taught and who has come to love him. And the dying person will say something along the lines of " Death is not an end, it is the start of the greatest adventure"
Paul knows he has something to look forward to. More than just lying around on clouds playing a harp, but a crown of righteousness, a reward for his life of service. To join God in the epic story of which he is author and main character. Perhaps it was his encounter with God on the road or maybe it was something else or many smaller encounters during his life that gave him this certainty of something more awaiting him. More than just our view of heaven today more than anything anyone else could imagine. And i think that this is what drove hime to let himself be "poured out like a drink offering "( 2 Tim 4:6) and what drove him to do the things he did with the fervor he did them.
If we could find that same fervor, if we would let our imaginations go and allow ourselves to believe that our reward in heaven will be beyond our wildest dreams, maybe then our service would change, maybe then our house would be opened up to complete strangers. Maybe if we truly believed in this kind of reward we would not live for the rewards of this world at all. Perhaps then our house, our car, our clothes would be offered up at any need from anyone, not just those we like or know but if the lady in the back who just joined last week comes up and says she has a need, maybe if we believed our reward in heaven is as big as paul thinks it is, maybe then we would be will to sell our car or our home to meet that need. This is the kind of crazy love the people of the early church lived with. Just read acts. Whenever there was a need and sometime just because they would sell portions of their land and give the proceeds to the church. What if we lived that way today, what if we expected from ourselves and from others to live with this kind of abandon and love, to trust that God would really provide for us and that anything we have could be offered up for his service and for the benifit of his children. Think about it.

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Be Prepared

1 Peter 3:15

"But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect."

Always be prepared to answer anyone who asks, give the reason for the hope that you have. This verse makes two very big assumptions in my opinion. The first is that we have and understand our hope. The Second is that this hope is so big and prevelant that people just have to ask how we do it. How do we live the way we do. How are we the way we are... especially in these tough times. In my experience these are very very big assumptions to make. Why is it that today you cannot tell the Christians from the non-Christians. Is it because the world is so much better than it was in the time of Peter. Well certainly we have some different morals which we might consider better than the pagan culture of that day. But we also have some problems that are more prevelant. Or is it that we Christians today are just not doing as good of a job. Perhaps we are not filled with all the enthusiasm that they had back then. I mean after all its been 2000 and some odd years since Jesus ROSE FROM THE DEAD. Whatever you think it is I want you to notice. The verse does not say that that people will ask you about your morals. No it says you will be asked about your HOPE a definate difference. So I have to ask. Are you living you life with hope. If the answer is no then I have to ask why not. What is it in your life right now that is keeping you from living a life of hope. Whatever it is I suggest you hand it over to Jesus and then walk away let him handle it.  If you say your are living a life of hope, then is it such a hope that draws people in and forces them to ask... How do you do it? What is it that allows you to live this way? Becuase let me tell you something you already know. The World is losing Hope. Global warming, Sex trafficing, Hunger, Homlessness, Child Soldiers, Cooruption of Governments and businesses. And in tha face of all these things if you live a life of extreeme hope then others will ask you and be drawn to that hope.

You will notice the last part too. It says to give them the reason for your hope with respect and gentleness. When you offer them the shining light of Hope that is our Lord do so with respect. It is not your place to judge and call attention to faults and failures. This is the complete opposite of and offering of hope. Also do it with gentlness. I said a second ago it is not our place to judge, Keep in mind also that your are offering them the light of the world which no shadow can hid from. When you give them the light od Hope that is our Lord it may feel to them like you have justkicked them out of a black cave where yes they may have been hopless, but at least they could hide that and anything else that they felt was wrong with them. In the Light nothing can be hidden and this can be painfull and uncomfotable for them. Therefore Gentleness is key when Showing them the Light, especially if you do not want them running back into the darkness and hiding there forever, and being consumed by it. It is by our love that they will know us but it is our hope that will draw them to us. remember that as you go out into the world. Find your hope and keep it infront of you always live your lives in such a way that others are drawn to you compelled to find out what it is that is so different about you. Pray that you are always ready to give the answer when they ask. Be ready.

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Trust in the Lord

psalms :16-22

16.No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength.17.A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save.18.But the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,19.to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.20.We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield.21.In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name.22.May your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord, even as we put our hope in you.

No king is saved by the size of his army. ... Despite all its great strength it cannot save. It seems like today we all put a lot of hope and trust in ourselves, or in the things we control. Family, work, money  and countless other things that we have the power to control.  But the Psalmist says these things cannot save us. No matter how strong they are ( or how strong we have built them to be)  they will fail us in the end. But the Lord on the other hand, the Psalmist says that he is our "help and our shield" and that our hearts can "rejoice in him". Most of us will say we believe this but our actions do not back it up. Our actions say ... Ya I believe he could help me, but im gonna do my best to take care of it on my own and then if he shows up all the better.... this is not what putting your hope in the Lord is though. It is trusting it completely to him much like you would when you give someone who works for a you a project. to them you say do this and expect it to be done. While we cannot command the Lord to do what we want we can know he will help us because he loves us. So here is my chalenge to you to day find one thing this week , just one, It can be as big or as small a thing as you like and put your trust completley in him. For me I didnt study for a test, now this was not supposed to happen this way but when I realized I didnt have time I gave it to God anddid not even bother cramming and you know what I passed with flying colors. Now it is your turn to do the same. Whatever it is that you cannot seem to handle this week, whatever it is that you dont have time for. Ask God for help and then leave it to him, and I know you will be pleased with the results.

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Failure

We try so hard to do what is right, I try so hard to do what I should. Instead however I give in to my fleshly desires and often cause others to stumble with me. I am a failure. There is no way around it, no excuse I can make, no way I can reason my way to accepting it. All my attempts to do right end in failure and it seems that I am destined for failure for the rest of my life. Now let me be clear I do not mean failure in the sense that the world would describe. In fact by their standards I am a privileged individual with everything going for me who has managed to achieve a decent amount of success in his 20-21 short years here. But all of their measures fall short of God who is the final Judge. I recall a passage from Romans that illustrates best this feeling


Romans ch7:15-16 "15I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good.

I do not understand what I do. Truly I have no idea why I am the way I am. I know that sin has no power over me, and that I have the power to rebuke and throw Satan from my presence. But I don't. I just do not do it instead I allow my self to sin and I have no idea why I know the consequences of my sin and I am beginning to understand what I am doing to the heart of God when I sin, but none of that stops me, not my love for God, nor my fear of eternal death.

Paul did offer some hope though. In the following verses 17-20 he tells me that it is not in fact me who is doing the sinning.

Romans 5: 17-20 "17As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 18I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature.[c] For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. 20Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it."

Well that is a relief I have given my heart to God and continue to do so on a regular basis every day, and when I fail it is not me doing it but the sin living inside me. He continues to say that there is in fact a war going on inside between our inner being and our sinful nature. And we have the advantage in that war, we have Jesus Christ on our side though whom we have dies to sin and come alive with Christ so that we might resist that sinful nature.


OK I have to stop for a minute and be honest I began this as a post about my failure but as I have been writing it God has called to my mind these scriptures and has spoken to me as I write to you I entered this in a place of despair over my failures as a warrior for God unable to do what is right in the sight of God, now however God has led me to a place where I have more understanding about what is going on inside of me. God often does that he allows you to fall to a place of despair so that you are willing to be picked up by him and then he will give you what you need to carry on.

I think that many Christians come to a place where they just cant seem to do anything right. perhaps it is a multitude of things or maybe it is one thing you just cant seem to conquer. Obviously at least some of the Christians in Corinth were there when Paul wrote this letter. And most likely we will all get there at some point in our lives if not at many points. God through the writings of Paul has offered me comfort tonight and I pray that when you reach that point or if you are at that point that you allow God to some into that place and, whether it be through scripture, memory or a kind friend, that you are healed in that place and can move on to new heights in your life and a more consistent walk with God

Weakness

2cnd Corinthians 11:30-31

30.If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.31.The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is to be praised forever, knows that I am not lying.

If I boast let me boast in my weakness. Who of you when being interviewed have ever been asked what your strengths and weaknesses are. I would think every one who has been through an interview process. Any time we are asked that question we probably all do the same thing. Maximize our strengths and try to minimize our weakness. Either that or we answer with a weakness they would want us to have like being "over committed". But Paul here says he would want to boast in his actual weakness. Why on earth would he want to do that? especially at a time when his authority is being called into question. Because as he says later it is in our weaknesses that God shows his strengths. (2cnd Corinthians 12:9-10) And Paul knows that it is not about us. It is not about us being the best at what we do. It is not even about us being blessed with a gift. No it is about us allowing ourselves to be exposed and to let every one know our weaknesses and to know that we are really pitiful creatures, because when everyone knows our weaknesses, they will be amazed at Gods strength when he comes through for us. Now this is not an easy thing to do. Especially if we do not really believe that the Lord will come through for us. Because if he does not then we fall flat on our face in full view of the world and we are made to look a fool. But God will come through for you confess your weakness open yourself up to failure be prepared to be a fool for God and he will come through for you. It could be a test you just couldn't understand the material for. Or a speech you are ill equipped to give. God will be there and in your weakness he will be strong and everyone there will see Him glorified through you.

Love

Galatians 6: 10

Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers

Let us do good to all people, especially those who belong to the family of believers. Oh How important this is.  Often times we are cruelest to those who share our faith. I myself have been called ignorant and dim witted after I had opened up about a personal attack on my faith. Instead of getting support and encouragement I was put down for letting something get to me. This is not what we are called to do. We are called to uplift and support others especially those who share our faith. Too many have fallen away from Christ when their christian family attacked and condemned them. It is a story I have read and heard far to often. So in the coming weeks remember to check your self and if even in doubt err on the side of compassion and love because those are how people are won we are not here to judge but to love so let us love. And if we Love those who do not share our faith how much more then should we love our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ building them up so that Satan will not take them away and devour them.

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Prayer for help

Lord,

I did it again I took my time and squandered it away. You gave us 24 hrs in the day more than enough to do what must be done. And yet we allow the world to distract us from what needs doing. Lord you know what I now face because of my lazyness. I know I deserve what is about to happen, but I could use a little help. I know I dont' have to be perfect but I feel that I am often evil instead of just a little messed up. So Lord I come to you now knowing that the consequences of my actions, my willful lazyness, are going to be tough. So Lord I ask for some divine intervention, knowing full well that I am completley incapable of doing one thing right and that only you can save this moment. Please Lord Save this moment glorify yourself here in this moment where I am worthless you will shine through and all will know that it was you and not me. However Lord if you will not glorify yourself here in this moment of my weakness and stupidity. Then Lord at least let me know you are still with me so that I can endure this trial with you in my heart and on my mind.

-Amen_

Wisdom

Proverbs 11:30

"The Fruit of righteousness is a tree of life, and he who wins souls is wise"

The Fruit of righteousness is a tree of life. I think we all have accepted this if you live for Christ and are righteous ( though his saving grace ) you will inherit eternal life, a.k.a a tree of life. And he who wins souls is wise ... not he who is wise will win souls. There is a subtle but important difference there to me and it changes my concept of wisdom, even biblical wisdom. I need not look for wisdom so that I may save souls but rather I should focus on saving souls and I will be considered wise, and in fact will be wise because, I believe, there is a link between the two parts of this sentence and the implication I think is that the one who wins souls is not only wise but also righteous and the fruit of righteousness is a tree of life. Which means that the one who saves souls will inherit eternal life and that, being the ultimate goal, is what makes him wise. He has figured out the path to eternal life which is winning souls for God.

(insert name here)'s Idol

Exodus 20:3

"You Shall have no other Gods before me "

Ahh the Ten commandments. You remember all those rules you learned in sunday school? Remember honor your father and mother. Don't lie. Don't steal. Don't go around killing people. All good rules to Live by, but as humans often do we put rankings on these rules and impose our own hierarchies to them. Do not kill is obviously more important than do not steal which is more important than do not lie, and so on, every one has their own hierarchies with them as did the men of Jesus time. They pharasees ask Jesus which of the comandments given by God is the greatest, obviously hoping to trap him but Jesus sums up the entire Law in two sentences, with the first and greatest comand being " you shall love the lord with all yoour heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind."  Perfect. Almost everything in the Law is summed up right there with the loose ends being tied up by " you shall love your neighbor as your self".

That hit the pharasees right between the eyes with something they did not even see coming. And it does the same thing to us today. Even today we get the Idea that Christianity is all about rules or that the only way to show love to God is by observing some set of rules and regulations. GO to Church. Dont cuss. Dont do this. But you have to do that. But GOd reminds us here that this is not what our relationship with him is about. It is about doing everything you do as if it was for the Lord.

Unfourtunatley it is the doing things for the lordthat we have a problem with most of the time. Just like the pharasees our rules and regulations tend to serve our interest just as the pharasees rules and regulation seved them. many people have been told that have to guard against other idols such as money and power and movie stars. Most people however, fail to guard against themselves becoming thier own idols.

This is especially easy in todays society with all the focus on getting ahead and making the most of yourself. Be all that you can be. the Self made (wo)man. But God says to put nothing be fore him and to do everything for him not for yourself. So ask your self now who you are doing things for. Will it advance your own kingdom or the kingdome of God. Because we are not Kings but slaves to Christ, because he bought us and brought us out of the slavery of sin, and now we serve him who grants us eternal life. So serve him in all that you do and place nothing and no one 9evenyourself) before him.

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Prayer for exposure

Lord
     I am a sinner, unworthy of your pleasure, grace and mercy. I have done nothing and can do nothing to deserve what you have given me and yet I take my  blessings and treat them with disdain and disregard them. I treat your gifts as nothing and instead pursue earthy pleasures and praise and success. The words of my peers is what I search for. Therefore Lord remove my successes let me Be seen for what I am so that my eyes will be turned back to you and I will remember you and know that with out you I am nothing, and when you raise me up again The world will see that it is not me but you working in me that succeeds and accomplishes the plans you have made for me. Let the world see me for what I am that they may know you for who you are and in my when my weaknesses are exposed then the world can see you fill them up and be strong there for me and I may boast in your strength Lord and the world will see and know that you are the one true God against whom none can measure them selves. reveal yourself to the world through me Lord.
Amen

Salty Light. Shining Salt.

Matt 5:13-16

 ¹³"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.

 ¹⁴"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. ¹⁶In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

Two characteristics of Christians shiny and salty. We have often heard this sermon before. " If you want to be a christian then you have to be salty and you have to be seen. These are things you must do to be a christian." That makes sense right? Well.. not really... at least not to me. Jesus did not say you need to be  the salt of the earth or the light of the world. What he said was you are  those things whether you like it or not. As christians we are the city on a hill we are the the salt of the earth here to preserve it from rotting. now I take two different massages from this section in Matthew. 1 that we are right now the Salt of the earth but we can lose are saltiness and then we arnt really good for anything. 2 that we are the light of the world and that Light cannot, no matter how hard we try, be hidden people will see it. Now that I think about it this is probably one of the biggest reasons the world Hates us. We are the light they just cannot turn off when they want to sleep. Now let me say that obviously there are " Christians " who do not shine a light to the world and who have definitely lost thier saltiness. Jesus did not say that a name made you this way only that when you were a true followed that you would be this way. Jesus in the Sermont on the mount, which these verses are a part of , takes every thign they knew about thier world , and everything we know about ours, and truns it on its head completeley rearanging thier priorities. So how are we the Salt of the world? What makes us the city on a hill? The difference between the rest of the world and ourselves how we live by a different set of rules and standards than they do. I am not talking about the general morals just about every one has come to accept ( do not kill, do not steal) but instead the counter cultural standards of living where the least is first and the servant is greatest in the house hold. These differences are what sets us apart fomr the rest of the world and what causes it to take notice and in the end what draws them to us. One caveat with our counter cultural lifestyle that makes it different from others is that it combines todifferent ideas, one that there is only one way to heaven and we know that way, and Love. most times a revolution will contain one or the other not both, either complete acceptance of every thing or the complet opposite with complete disdain and rejection and hatred of any other way than thier own. And this I think Is where many Christians lose thier saltiness and lose thier way on the Christian walk. They focus either on one or the other accpeting new Ideas into thier beliefs in order to apease the culture or by forgeting love when rebuking the culture. and with out both we will never be able to bring people to Jesus for salvation. So take a look at your stance on the issues today and first look to see if it is supported by the bible, actual verses from the bible, not some one telling you about thier interpretation or feelings about the subject, and then next how do you stand firm in your position in Love. Most christians today believe that thier position is grounded in the bible (but from my reading I have been very surprised by some of the words of Jesus) most however find it hard to stand in those ideas with Love and instead stand there with selfrighteousness and judgement condeming the World to Hell. This is not our place we are not the judges of this world because we were of this world and had to be rescued from it ourselves. Instead we are the salt and the light, preserving and guiding the world to salvation through sound doctine and Love and all who do not recieve the message will be judged in the end not by us but by the perfect one who is sinless and was from the begginning.

Technorati Tags: salt, light, gospel, bible. christianity, Love, Jesus, God, Christianity

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Harmed by the World, Glorified by God

Gen50:20

"You intended me harm, but God Intended it for Good, to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives."

We all know the story of Joseph and how his brothers threw him into a well because he was given visions by God of how they would one day bow before him. And then saved by one of his brothers from death he was sold into slavery and rose in regard in his masters sight until his master wife spread lies about him and he ended up in Jail. Frankly Josephs life seems to me like a series of unfortunate events. Sure there were times when He could have used a little more tact, I mean I would not take it well if my brother told me with the look of truth in his eye that a vision from God told him that I would be forced to bow before him. But all in all Joseph is just trying to do the right thing and every time he ends up worse off that before. And isn't this how our life works too after all " everything that can go wrong will go wrong". Every time Joseph starts to do alright for himself something happens and he ends up even worse off than before. He got a nice coat so he get thrown into a well. Works his way up in his masters favor and ends up in jail. Most of us would have just given up and gotten angry at God after all we were doing what we were supposed to right? Joseph certainly did nothing to deserve what he got. There are two reasons Joseph could have ended up the way he did and I imagine it was a combination of both. Reason number one, he was not in the right place for God to use him yet, I mean the reason his dreams came true was because he became second in command of Egypt and he got to Egypt through the evil and deceit of his brothers. So God could have been moving him so that he would be in the right place at the right time. The other reason is that perhaps Satan saw the potential of Joseph and had an idea of Gods plan for him and decided to try and intervene. After all Joseph had his shot at an exotic, beautiful, and powerful women. Who in their right mind would say that this is not a temptation I know many men who if they were in Joseph's place and given what had happened to them so far would not have been able to resist that temptation. And So it is in our life we are often not in the right place for God to work through us so he uses the world to get us there. It could be pride, shame, shyness, money, power, or simply being in the wrong geographical location whatever it is that is preventing us from doing the work of God he will do what he can to change that. And then there is actions the Devil takes to prevent us from doing the will of God after all Joseph could have just tried to get by with being a slave or he could have succumb to temptation, when he was in jail he could have just been discouraged about his fate and given up, but he did not instead he persevered and did every thing as if for the lord and wound up second in command of Egypt saving not only Egyptian people but his own people as well, all because he knew that God could work the evil of this world into good for Joseph and for every one else. So when you feel like you are doing things right, but everything is going wrong remember that what the world and the Devil intends for harm against us God can work for good. It definitely will not be quick and it will often times be painful but if we remain true and faithful working always for the Lord then our God will prosper us and work his plan of salvation and grace through us.

Prayer for Sight

Lord give me the sight so that I can see the plan you have for me. In every situation and through ever person you are working your plan for me. So Lord give me the sight so that I can see that battle raging around me. I know it is there Lord but I just can't see, so Lord give me the sight so that I can see the people around me as you made them to be. Lord because we are all created with a purpose and when I can see the purpose I was created for and the purpose those around me were created for I will not be able to help but love them as you do because they are meant to be great, and they are created to be beautiful, But Lord Satan has not stopped his attacks on us and we are weary and beaten down we are discouraged and wounded. Only though your works will be made whole again and only with your help can we reach the potential you created in us. So Lord give me the Sight so that I can see  the truth that is around me in every person, place and thing, your hand is in every situation so Lord give me the sight that I can see the truth that is around me.

Amen

It only takes TWO.

Matt 18:20

"Where two or three come together in my name, there I am with them"

Have you ever been to a concert or large gathering of Christians and seen People dancing, jumping up and down, or forced face first to the ground? When asked what happen you would expect them to respond with something along the lines of "I was over come with the holy spirit" or "I was filled with the joy of the Lord" or something else along those lines. Whatever it was it was in some way an experience of Jesus in their midst. While this is definitely evidence for the necessity of fellowship and group worship I wonder if it is thought of the same way in small groups of well... two or three people... that is after all what Jesus says it takes just two people in the same place who are there in the  name of Jesus and then he is there too. And we know what Jesus is capable of. It seems, though, that our small groups are not thought of in the same way these large gatherings and concerts are, but they are Jesus does not just show up at the biggest gathering he can find, no, he is there when you are with your friend, your spouse , your brother or sister, whoever you are with if you are with them in his name he is there too. So where ever you go and whoever you are with make it a point ,and make sure they are with you in this, to be there in Jesus name. Because when you are gathered in his name he is with you which means he is working with you to accomplish whatever it is you are there doing in his name.

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Pruning?

John 15

¹"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. ²He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes^[a] so that it will be even more fruitful

This verse is often cited in sermons and devotionals and other worship materials. It is most often used in the context of encouraging others to be more fruitful to, though someone should go about doing that is anyone's guess really, the sermon or devotional reading will move from this verse on to verses 5 - 6

⁵"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.

And while the message here is an important one what is often over looked is what happens to those who already bear fruit.  Go back up and read verse 2 again.  To those who do bear fruit God prunes them in order that they may bear even more fruit. Most people tend to skip over this part because after all when your doing what God wants you to do everythings peachy right ? Thats not what this verse says though this verse says that as you begin to bear fruit God will continue to strip away every thing in your life that does not bear fruit,  relationships, jobs, hobbies whatever it is that does not bear fruiGod will strip away so that all is left is a fruit bearing vine branching off from the true vine of Jesus Christ.

As I write this I remember  the story of the rich young ruler and Jesus. The rich young ruller desperate to make it to heaven comes and asks jesus what he has to do. Jesus replies that he must keep the commmands of God and pushing still the ruler insists that he already does that but wants more. So Jesus Tells him to sell every thing he has give the profits to the poor and then to come with Jesus and live the life of a homeless man. Jesus gave the man the traditional first steps so that the ruller maybear fruit for God but when he saw that the young man was all ready bearing fruit in this way he looked and saw the things that were keeping him of bearing even more and tried to strip those away but the man could not let go of those things .

This is why so many people do not meet thier potential in Christ because we think that when we begin to do things right and have faith and bear fruit that things will get easier. Some of us may not go that far and acknowledge that as we begin to grow in Christ, Satan will attack us even more. What none of us really expect is that God will make things hard on us. Now I want to explain that the only reason things are hard are because w we want to cling to things that are of earthly importance, but God on the other hand wants us to increase in the kingdom of heaven not in the realm of Satan which the world tends to put stock in because it provides rewards in this life. when we reconcile the pruning that God does to us with our increase in glory in the kingdom of heaven which only God can provide then the pruning does not become hurtfull. will it be difficult ? Absolutely because we have been raised on the standards of this world and to change those and be looked down upon by our peers ( even the Christian ones ) will be difficult and definately uncomfortable. But not hurtfull, unfortunatley that reconciling is all but impossible for us and so the pruning will be painfull in many cases and this is where a lto of christians lose faith and why Athiests and other can not accept that the things that happen to people in this world can be because of a good God. But we know that God is Good so when things that you cling to begin to be taken from your or " pruned"  know that it is so you may bear more fruit for God and increase in the kingdom of heaven.