Strength With Others

I am independent by nature. I like to go at things on my own, tackle my own problems, and face my weaknesses alone with God. I know in my head that being a Christian means that I am in a community of believers, a family who worships the Lord as a unit. However, my own inner pride and self-sufficiency keeps me keeping my own pains, faults and mistakes private. I feel that I can remedy my situations alone with God.

However, this is not scripture. The Bible explicitly tells us that we are to share our weaknesses, so that we can help each other walk the road of righteousness together:

Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed.

The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

James 5:16

 

Sometimes in order to attain healing, we need the prayers of our brothers and sisters in Christ. We need to share our burdens with each other and allow our righteous brothers and sisters to minister the healing power of God into our lives. We need to share in order to be repaired.

 

We cannot be too prideful to share our faults, especially when we cannot overcome those weak spots. We cannot distrust those who are walking in Christ with us. We cannot afford to be afraid of being embarrassed and stop ourselves from reaching wholeness in Christ.

 

So, if you are like me, independently trying to battle through your weaknesses and shortcomings alone, please take heed to the Word of the Lord today. Find yourself someone who is standing righteously before the Lord, ask the Lord to show you one of His men or women whom you can confide in. Confess your faults and allow them to pray for you and counsel you in the things of God.

 

None of us can walk this spiritual walk alone. All of us need someone to help us through.

 

Verse of the Day: Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love. Ephesians 4:15, 16 (NLT)

 

Wednesday's Word: True Righteousness

Today's word comes from Isaiah. Right now my church is meditating on this whole chapter, and it has been ministering to me. As you read, think about your life's witness, consider how you treat others, really investigate the motives behind your actions toward both God and man.

“Shout with the voice of a trumpet blast.
Shout aloud! Don’t be timid.
Tell my people Israel of their sins!

 

Yet they act so pious!
They come to the Temple every day
and seem delighted to learn all about me.
They act like a righteous nation
that would never abandon the laws of its God.
They ask me to take action on their behalf,
pretending they want to be near me.

 

‘We have fasted before you!’ they say.
‘Why aren’t you impressed?
We have been very hard on ourselves,
and you don’t even notice it!’
“I will tell you why!” I respond.
“It’s because you are fasting to please yourselves.
Even while you fast,
you keep oppressing your workers.

 

What good is fasting
when you keep on fighting and quarreling?
This kind of fasting
will never get you anywhere with me.

 

You humble yourselves
by going through the motions of penance,
bowing your heads
like reeds bending in the wind.
You dress in burlap
and cover yourselves with ashes.
Is this what you call fasting?
Do you really think this will please the LORD?

 

“No, this is the kind of fasting I want:
Free those who are wrongly imprisoned;
lighten the burden of those who work for you.
Let the oppressed go free,
and remove the chains that bind people.

 

Share your food with the hungry,
and give shelter to the homeless.
Give clothes to those who need them,
and do not hide from relatives who need your help.

 

“Then your salvation will come like the dawn,
and your wounds will quickly heal.
Your godliness will lead you forward,
and the glory of the LORD will protect you from behind.

 

Isaiah 58:1-8 (NLT)

Hungry for Righteousness

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Matthew 5:6

It's Thanksgiving Friday! I am thankful for entering into this new year with a fresh outlook and a fresh attitude. I'm moving forward, and I'm grateful to have the Lord on my side as I walk.

I love what Jesus shared with us in this scripture. According to the Bible, none of us are truly righteous on our own. (Romans 3:10) Yet, through the power of Jesus Christ, when we truly get a hunger and thirst for righteousness, we will have our fill.

When you're hungry or thirsty, food and drink is all you think about. You can't really concentrate on anything else. You're sole focus is to find something to stop your body's craving for sustenance.

A true hunger and thirst after righteousness makes it our main focus. Our lives become consumed with the goal of walking uprightly before our Heavenly Father. Everything we do is bring Him pride and joy.

When we position ourselves in that way before the Lord, despite our human failings, Jesus said we would be filled with what we desire. We will find ourselves transforming into the righteous of the Lord. God will give us our hearts desire!

Today, ask the Lord to give you a hunger for righteousness. Ask Him to make you thirsty to stand right before His eyes. Then allow yourself to be filled with His Word, His ways, and His love and watch the transformation that goes on.

Verse of the Day: Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart. 2 Timothy 2:22

Keep Living the Right Life

Noah lived in a time when everyone was living a wicked lifestyle. Everyone was choosing to live according to their evil thoughts all the time. Yet, Noah chose to live a just life before the Lord. In the midst of literally everyone else going the opposite direction, Noah chose the narrow, righteous path.

As a result of Noah's choice, God chose to spare him when he decided that man's wickedness had gone too far. Mankind had gone so far that God decided to wipe them off the face of the earth. But, since our God is a just God, he knew that Noah did not deserve to die. So God made a way for Noah to survive.

If there hadn't been a Noah, we more than likely wouldn't be here. Because of his righteous living, we have the chance to live today.

Are you in a "Noah" situation? Does it feel like you're the only one living right in your world? Are you feeling like everyone else is turning their back on God while you're trying to live holy?

Don't give up! Don't get weary in doing what's right before God. Just like He saw Noah's upright life, God sees yours. Just like He chose to bless Noah and his family for righteous living, the Lord will bless you as well. When everyone else around falls apart because of the calamities of life, God will provide a miracle for you to escape.

No matter how hard it may seem, continue to stay on the right path. No matter how alone you may feel, remember that the Lord always walks with you. You are not by yourself. You have the Lord of All on your side, and He will make everything work out for the best on your behalf.

Verse of the Day: And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD. Genesis 6:7, 8