Author: mary

Every sin begins in the mind with a thought. It grows in the mind and then becomes an action. That action produces a pattern and eventually becomes wrapped up in sin. Paul describes this in Romans 1:28: “And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.”

Wicked people do not care how they live. They are so wrapped up in their own selfishness that they cannot see any different, which is why God gives them up to their own desires. A lack of acknowledging God will result in a purposeless life. The opposite occurs when Christians are careful with how they live and follow the Lord and His righteousness. When they put God first in their lives and only see Him and His wisdom, God will become involved in their lives.

As Christians, it is important that we are careful with how we live. The world is watching and waiting to see us fail. While that seems like a lot of pressure, you will find joy and peace when you follow the Lord!

Romans 1:25 describes the biggest problem in the world today. “They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator-who is forever praised.” Our world worships created things. They worship the way people look. They worship material things: cars, houses, clothes, etc. They even worship people themselves. All of these things were created by God. They can be blessings, but they were never intended to be worshipped.

God Himself wants our worship. He wants us to praise and honor Him alone. Whatever we spend our time doing is what we place in high regard. We tend to prioritize things and people above all else instead of the Lord. When we do this, we are exchanging the truth for a lie and worshipping creating things rather than the Creator Himself.

Spend some time each day focusing on who God is and what He has done in your life. When you do that, you will find yourself following the Lord and His wisdom instead of yourself.

God has made Himself known to His people. He has been revealing who He is since the beginning of time. He created Adam and Eve and first revealed himself to them as they walked together throughout the garden. He then made himself known to Noah by flooding the entire earth to rid sin of the world and saving Noah and his family because of their righteousness. He revealed his plans to Abraham by telling him that his nation would number the stars. He continued to reveal himself to his people throughout the years through prophets and leaders. Then came the ultimate reveal: Jesus. God sent his precious Son to the earth to save mankind from the destruction they had caused. Rather than a worldwide flood, Jesus would bring restoration to the people.

God continues to reveal himself today through his people. There are countless ministries and programs created for the purpose of bringing the gospel to the unsaved. God reveals himself to his people through the many miracles he continues to perform today. Paul tells us in Romans 1:19, “…Since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. God’s plan was made known to his people from the beginning of time. He continued to reveal that plan through the prophets he sent to warn the people and encourage them to turn from their wicked ways.

The same message still applies today. God is still revealing himself to his people and the many people who do not yet know him. How will you be a part of the work he is doing? How will you make him known to a dying world?

As Christians, God gave us each other as the body of Christ. We were meant to lift one another up and encourage each member. This world can be a difficult place to navigate. Sometimes it feels as though you are just surviving. The beautiful thing of being apart of the body of Christ is being able to mutually encourage each other as Paul tells us in Roman 1:11-12, “I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong- that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith.” This is how we navigate the schemes of the world.

The secret to this Christian life is doing it together. Walking together, side by side, helping extinguish the arrows of the enemy. We must be mutually encouraged as verse 12 says. When we are mutually encouraged, then we will be able to face the enemy together. Take a minute to think about how someone has encouraged you in your walk with the Lord. Maybe it was a Sunday School teacher, youth leader, Bible Study leader, or just a friend or family member. What did they do that encouraged you? Was it their life or examples that encouraged you? Something they said or did? Make a list of the ways you were encouraged.

Now think of the ways you have encouraged others. Did you let a friend know you were praying for them? Did you do an act of kindness for someone in need?

We all need others in our lives to encourage and strengthen each other. Take some time to pray for ways that you can be an active part of the body of Christ by strengthening and encouraging others.

Paul tells the church in Philippians 2:1-2 “So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.” This is God’s purpose for the church and especially for the body of Christ. He wants her to be of one accord and one mind so that she can accomplish His purpose. She will be effective when all parts of the body work together.

God created the church, the body of believers, for a reason. The church is the bride of Christ. He loves her so much and wants her to glorify Him and work together for His purpose. I have seen churches that made Christ their foundation and built amazing ministries on that foundation. I have sat in a service and felt the Holy Spirit there, connecting the people and moving among them. These churches are seeing many added to their number as the Acts 2 church did. I have also seen churches that rejected Christ as their foundation and made it more about themselves. I have sat in services and felt the Holy Spirit leave because the people were glorifying themselves and rejecting others. God longs for us to work together for His purpose so we can see many come to know Him. That should be our goal: the salvation of souls.

Spend some time in prayer for churches across the country. Pray that they would refocus and allow God to be the center of their church and their foundation. May they work to unify their church so that God will bless their congregations. If you are part of a God-glorifying church, then thank Him for that church and work hard to make sure you are unified with the body of Christ. If your church is struggling to focus on God, then pray for them and make sure you are focused on God and His work. When God’s people turn toward Him, He will do amazing things.