Effulgent (Matthew 5:15-17)

Good morning ladies,

The word of the day is “effulgent.”  When someone decides to become Christian, they automatically have a responsibility.  Understanding that people would be looking at the way that I acted in my new Christian life was probably one of the toughest things I had to deal with.  Now everything that I did was looked at closely and with tons of scrutiny.  At first I did not think it was fair, but then began to understand that living a life for Jesus would have to be different than the life I had led up to that point.

“In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.” ~Matt 5:16

My question is: have you decided to live a little differently knowing that others are going to be looking at you and how you act as a Christian?  Although God does not expect perfection, he does want excellence, and for us to be effulgent in such a way that we shine brightly in our relationship with him.  My prayer is that others see a relationship with God and want to emulate you because of your desire to be a better Christian and follower of Christ every day.

Praying for you,

MO

Mysophobia (Isaiah 64:1-10)

Good morning ladies,

The word of the day is "mysophobia.”  We see some pretty strong language from Isaiah in today’s prassage.  We have to realize that at this time in history, God had done some pretty miraculous things for the people of Israel.  However, they looked right past all of the great things that the Lord is doing and attributed the blessings that they had received to their own righteousness.  For this, God set a pretty hard rebuke on them.  In fact, we can see by his language in this passage, that Isaiah grouped himself with these simple people.

“For all of us have become like one who is unclean, And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; And all of us wither like a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.” ~Isaiah 64:6

My question is: where do you look to find justification in righteousness?  I learned early on in my Christian journey that my own acts and deeds were not going to be good enough to get me through this life and to heaven.  That was the essence of accepting Jesus into my life.  No matter how good I thought I could be, it would never be adequate to pay for the innumerable sins that plagued my life both before and during my time as a Christian.  My prayer is that you heed the words of Isaiah this morning, and that you think God for the blessings he has the stowed upon you, because of his righteousness.  We must live somewhat of a mysohpobia, or fear of filth.  We need to stay away from that which makes our soul unclean.  Nothing that we have done warrants the blessings of God, and we should always remember that it is by his grace and mercy that we continue to have favor in his sight.  Live in the truth of that righteousness today!

Praying for you,

MO

Wight [James 2:14-26]

Good morning ladies,

The word of the day is “wight.”  Sometimes Christianity can get a little bit confusing.  We see that the apostle Paul tells us that we need to have faith in Jesus, and that it is the most important piece of our Christian walk.  Then we see the passages below that make us scratch our heads and wonder if we are on the right track…

In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do.”

~Jam 2:17-18

So which one is it?  Funny enough, this is the age-old battle between Bible scholars.  My question for you is: do you show your faith in God by the way that you live?  It's tough sometimes to do what God wants us to do.  But, my prayer is that each of you remembers that your life is not to be lived for you, but for the glory of God.  Always remember to be wight, or active and nimble, in your faith.  You never know when someone needs your encouragement and affirmation that there is a God working in their lives.

Praying for you,

Mo