Today, I just felt like sharing some Bible verses.  Let us remember others are always watching us, as Christians, and how we respond to life.  Along with that, God always knows what is in our hearts...no matter what we say or how we act.   When you do something for selfish reasons but claim to be righteous, you might fool the public, but not God. When you do what's right in the eyes of God, but the world persecutes you, it doesn't matter. 

God knows where your heart is and He will treat you accordingly.  Don't take my word for it; He said so in Jeremiah.

Here is Jeremiah 17:9-10 NIV:

"The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure.    Who can understand it?  I the LORD search the heart and examine the mind, to reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve."

Here is Jeremiah 17:9-10 GNT:

"Who can understand the human heart?  There is nothing else so deceitful; it is too sick to be healed.  I, the Lord, search the minds and test the hearts of people. I treat each of them according to the way they live, according to what they do."

Like I mentioned yesterday that my parents always said to me: "remember what we taught you, remember who you are, and make us proud."  We need to remember those things and act accordingly as God's children.  God and others are watching.

Blessings,

Chee Chee

Thursday, March 31, 2011 

Made for More (Lincoln Brewster)

...For I have told you often before, and I say it again with tears in my eyes, that there are many whose conduct shows they are really enemies of the cross of Christ.  They are headed for destruction. Their god is their appetite, they brag about shameful things, and they think only about this life here on earth...(Philipians 3:17-21)

"When in Rome, do as the Romans do..."  Ever hear this before?  When people from other cultures come to the US, they are often shocked by some of the things that are part of our society.  Public affection displays, eating so much fast food, treating our pets like family.  Things we don't think twice about, an alien finds strange.  When we visit another culture, we find strange things as well.  When we settle into that culture, or an alien settles in here, eventually we accept those strange things as normal and we find ourselves following the norm. 

How do college students fit these descriptions:

• Their god is their belly (what they eat, how their bodies look)
• They glory in their shame (proud of their sinful natures and deeds)
• Their minds are set on earthly things (greed, lust, things the world holds important)

Do you see yourself in any of these?

Christians are living as aliens in this world.  This world is not our home and we find ourselves witnessing things that we think are strange because we know they are not the things that are the norm for the kingdom of God.  If we accept this world's customs as the norm, and we settle into those things, we may become so attached to those customs we don't want to leave, or worse we may find we lose our citizenship to the Kingdom.  Paul was joyful to be a citizen of the Kingdom, and strove to maintain his citizenship.  He knew the world was broken and that God's eternal kingdom was not.

Where is your home?  My parents always told me, just before I went away to camp or some trip with other than family: "remember what we taught you, remember who you are, and make us proud."   Make your Father proud, remember what He's taught you, and remember you belong to Him.

Blessings,

Chee Chee

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Made for More (Lincoln Brewster)

...I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead... (Philippians 3:12-16)

Ever know someone who missed out on something fun because they were too caught up on something from the past?  Know someone who went off to school and didn't make new friends because they spent every free moment going back home or hanging out with friends from home?  Looking back keeps us from moving forward. 

Paul admitted his past mistakes, and shared those mistakes with his followers, but he didn't dwell on them. He certainly didn't let those mistakes keep him from going forward.  What if he had gotten so caught up in his former persecution of Christians and guilt from his old life that he could not go all over the place sharing the gospel?  How the spread of Christianity would have slowed!  Did he dwell on the fact that he was in jail?  No, he kept his focus on the goal and the prize----sharing the gospel with the world, and sharing eternity with Christ.

The best example of how paralyzing it can be to look back at your sins and sinful life....Lot's wife. (Genesis 19:1-16).  Remember all the sin that had consumed Sodom and Gomorrah?  God was saving her and her family.  All she had to do was go forward, like He told her, without looking back.  She hesitated and looked back.  Her freedom and salvation was zapped, just like that....all because she (1)didn't follow His instructions and (2)she looked back at her old life.  This is also a good lesson about questioning Him.  Why do we question Him when he gives us instructions?  He knows what is ahead and He knows what is best for us.  How many times did your parents or teachers tell you NOT to do something and you did it anyway?  You couldn't understand why they were not allowing you to do something fun.  What's the harm?  You don't understand.  Well, you did it anyway and what did you find out?  They knew something you didn't.  You found out the consequences.

If you are running a race and you are doing it to win, not just for the exercise, don't you keep your eyes on the finish line and the prize waiting for the winner?  Do you look back to see how far behind you the others are?  No, you keep your eyes on the finish line.  What's going to happen if you are running and you look back?  You are going to slow down and you may even stumble and fall. 

Don't stumble over your past mistakes.  Admit them, ask for forgiveness, learn from them, and move forward.  God's hand is waiting for you.  He wants to pull you out of that sin completely.  You grab His hand, let Him pull you up and keep you safe.  All you have to do is keep your eyes on Him and hold on to Him tightly. 

Blessings,

Chee Chee

Tuesday, March 29, 2011