Judging
A little slow on the draw this morning, Father, but I am here and ready to roll. Enable me to be productive today in ways that would show my love for You and my love for others. Help me to be the person You want me to be. Amen.
Matthew 7:1-2 (<<click the green)
Judging. Just the word by itself makes us bristle a little. The culture in which we live doesn’t help any for the mantra we embody is “Don’t judge me.” After all, “If it feels good do it!” We have this mentality that we can do what we want, when we want and others have no place to tell us otherwise. Mind your own business and keep your nose out of mine…don’t judge me! The Bible even says it, “Do not judge…”
But is that what it is really saying? It does say “Do not judge…” and, Lord, they are words from Your own mouth. But how we choose to interpret it, is that what You meant? No, it’s not.
The footnote in the Amplified Bible makes it very clear.
This is not a prohibition of judgment, nor is it a command to stop using godly wisdom, common sense, and moral courage together with God’s written word to discern right from wrong, to distinguish between morality and immorality, and to judge doctrinal truth. There are many judgments that are not only legitimate, but are commanded (cf John 7:24; 1 Cor 5:5, 12; Gal 1:8, 9; 1 John 4:1-3; 2 John 10); however, you cannot judge another if you are committing the same type of sin.
That is where the point is driven home. We are in no place to judge if we are committing the same types of sin.
Lord, You state very clearly,
“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. NIV
Today and every day, Lord, may I keep You and Your precepts at the forefront of my mind. May I take care of my issues and leave other’s issues for You and them to take care of. But may I also, again with You and Your precepts at the forefront of my mind, with common sense and moral courage…discern right from wrong and clearly distinguish between morality and immorality. May I be Your true representative to the world. Amen.
Feb 1st, 2018, Thurs, 8:26 am
Worrying
Thank You, Father, for a good night’s rest. With a full day ahead I would ask for Your blessing. May I be all I need to be for You. May I be filled with Your wisdom and strength. May I an ambassador of Your love to all with whom I will come in contact. Amen.
Matthew 6:25-34 (<<click the green)
One thing I’ve noticed lately is that there are a lot of commercials for all kinds of medications. Maybe it’s the shows I watch on TV and it’s my demographic that’s being targeted but I can’t even begin to count the number of times I see the same commercial in one sitting. And one common factor in them all is the warnings about possible side effects of each of them. So…first of all there are several things about which to worry and if we pursue these directions of treatment, there’s another whole list of things about which to worry! Like we need any help!
A couple of years ago 2,000 people were asked what worried them most. Here are the top 20 answers.
20. Worried about the area I live in/ crime levels
19. Pet’s health
18. If my dress sense is good
17. Meeting work targets or goals
16. Whether I’m a good parent/ raising kids right
15. A friend or family member I’ve fallen out with
14. Whether I’ll find the right partner/
whether my current partner is right
13. Whether my partner still loves me
12. Whether or not I am attractive
11. I need to find a new job
10. I seem to be generally unhappy
9. Paying rent/mortgage
8. Worried about my physique
7. Wrinkles or aging appearance
6. Job security
5.Financial/credit card debts
4. My diet
3. Low energy levels
2. Worried about my savings/ financial future
1. Getting old in general
Lord, some of those hit home. A couple of them are on my list of concerns as well. But what do we accomplish by worrying? You ask us, “Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?” Nope. Nada. Not one second. If anything worrying takes precious time from us.
So what is Your answer to our worries, Lord?
These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.
Lord, increase our faith. Help us to believe in You and Your promises.
Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. Hebrews 10:23 NIV
Jan 31st, 2018, Wed, 7:46 am
King of the Mountain
Father, I am grateful that You have laid upon my heart to once again make our time together at this early hour a necessity. The holiday season with all of its extended hours wears me down but too long out of this mode wears on me as well. Thank You for loving me the way You do.
Matthew 6:24 (<<click the green)
“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon [money, possessions, fame, status, or whatever is valued more than the Lord]. AMP
Now, this is going back pretty far but a game I remember playing when I was in Kindergarten was King of the Mountain. We played on top of an embankment and the goal was to hold your position at the top, not allowing anyone else to pull you down or knock you off and replace you.
It may have been a game of my childhood but, Lord, it is something I must decide upon each day of my life, even now. Who, this day, will be the king of my life? There cannot be two kings. Only one king can rule. Will the king of my life be money or possessions or fame or status…or will it be You, Lord?
The world is constantly trying to usurp the throne. It entices me with all kinds of temptations. This past Sunday in my sermon I quoted pastor and author David Jeremiah from his book Signs of Life.
“In case you haven’t noticed, the world frontloads its pleasures and back loads its pain. The Christian life sometimes front loads the pain, but it always back loads the pleasure. And I’d definitely rather be moving toward joy than moving away from it. That’s why I’ve chosen to live my life for the Lord and to walk in fellowship sweet.”
Lord, I choose You to be King of my mountain. Everything else will pass away, everything else will let me down, the promises of everything else will come to naught. But You?
[You] alone [are] my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will never be shaken. Psalm 62:2 NIV
Jan 30th, 2018, Tues, 6:43 am
Blind Leading the Blind
Father, as I look toward the day ahead I would ask for Your hand upon my shoulder. Guide and direct me in my words, my thoughts and my actions. May I think of You throughout the day. Amen.
Matthew 6:23 (<<click the green)
Lord, the last portion of yesterday’s passage is lingering in my mind and I feel You leading me to not move on quite yet.
“But when your eye is unhealthy, your whole body is filled with darkness. And if the light you think you have is actually darkness, how deep that darkness is!”
What’s grabbing my attention is the phrase the light you think you have. And this sentence makes me think of something else You said, Lord, which is recorded later on in Matthew 15. The Pharisees (the religious leaders of You day) were stirring up trouble and You said, in verse 14, “so ignore them. They are blind guides leading the blind, and if one blind person guides another, they will both fall into a ditch.”
Lord, Jesus, I never want to be a “blind guide”. I don’t want the light I think I have to actually be darkness. Some may think me silly for thinking such a thing. But, unfortunately, it happens to Your followers. They start off adhering to You guidance but power comes along and little by little their thoughts begin pushing out Your thoughts. The light they once embraced and the light they thought they had is now instead a deep darkness. It’s bad enough that they become blind but in their mind, they represent the Light and lead others – blinded as well – in their folly and “both fall into a ditch.”
Lord, I would ask that You keep me on the straight and narrow – flood my path and my heart with Your cleansing, guiding light. Might I always be at Your feet, learning and growing, lining up my thoughts with Your thoughts. Amen.
Jan 29th, 2018, Mon, 6:54 am
Watch Where You’re Going!
I am grateful, Father, for Your care and compassion. Your patience, I don’t know if I will ever totally comprehend but You have it in abundance and in so many ways I am indebted to You. May I continue to hear Your call in my life. Amen.
Matthew 6:22-23 (<<click the green)
A few years I had to get up in the middle of the night for a trip down the hall. I have done it so frequently over the many years that I literally can do it with my eyes closed! Well on that particular night it was a very poor choice. I took one too many steps forward and my big toe on my left foot slammed into the base of Karen’s dresser. Needless to say, it hurt like the dickens! I did discover a couple of days later when I had my foot x-rayed after I fractured it – just call me Grace! – that my toe, at least, was not broken.
On that particular night, my eyes were in fine working order – I just neglected to use them! Lord, You state in this passage, “Your eye is like a lamp that provides light for your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is filled with light.” We do not keep our house pitch black at night and if I had just cracked my eyes open a sliver, I probably would not have hit the dresser.
Spiritually, Lord, the same thing can happen. The Amplified Bible puts it this way, “The eye is the lamp of the body; so if your eye is clear [spiritually perceptive], your whole body will be full of light [benefiting from God’s precepts].” (emphasis mine)
How often do I close my spiritual eyes thinking, “I’ve done this hundreds of times – in fact, I’m sure I can do it with my eyes closed”? I may get by on occasion but far too often I slam into something detrimental to my spirit that I could easily have avoided if I had been paying attention.
Verse 23 in the Amplified Bible goes on to say,
“But if your eye is bad [spiritually blind], your whole body will be full of darkness [devoid of God’s precepts]. So if the [very] light inside you [your inner self, your heart, your conscience] is darkness, how great and terrible is that darkness!”
Lord, may my eyes always be wide open and may they always be focused on You and what You would have me do. Amen.
Jan 28th, 2018, Sun, 6:46 pm