Shaming People Who Pray?! Has It Come To This?

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Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak!"

Matthew 26:41 NLT

While we certainly must heed the words of Christ at all times, never have there been a time as this. Yes, that statement is unsupported, but when people are trying to shame others (even those wily lame politicians in Congress) who pray, well it cannot get any plainer.

Imagine my surprise when I find an article on NBC News about ‪#‎thoughtsandprayers‬ being thought of as a bad thing?! Of course, I had to use it for work, but also go the opposite way. We do it all the time. We shame people for lots of things. 

If I take it from my own life, it's goes a little something like this: "Those shorts are too short." 

"She needs to wear a slip." 

"So-and-so didn't get in to that school and she cried when you ran across the street to tell me you did." 

"And if you don't want to get married, I'm scared of you." 

"I understand, I just forgot now isn't the time to speak with you about something like that, you not coming from the right frame of mind."

See what I mean? So, in case, you do not understand: Shaming people for praying is a bad thing. I know most of you (all of three people) reading this would never do that. You agree. But let's just say the devil was busy yesterday. As soon as he saw an opening, he took it. See (and nope, not going to drop this for awhile*) while some Christians want to focus on a red cup, want to back a person who is just not good for this country, who has a platform built on race-baiting and fear-mongering, they ignore the real deal. And the real deal is this: let's shame those weak Christians into not praying. Let's get at those Christians who are in the midst of all types of trials and tribulations and whose faith is not only shaken but also shaking and get them to stop praying. Let's get the ones who claiming Christianity, but when it gets too hard, they resort to their own ways rather than God's ways. 

Get my drift? I could go on. We all know what happens when we do not pray. We know what happens when we do not stand. We know what happens when we do not put on the armor of God. We know what happens when we do not stand on our faith.

There are a lot of Christians who don't know this. Remember the parable about the scattered seed. And while he uses misdirection "I will make it a law to say "Merry Christmas" or "Congressman are to act, not pray (yep, it's in the article), we Christians are to watch and pray. Let's make sure every Christian knows that before they jump on this latest bandwagon that is actually a true threat. Kepp watching. And, most importantly, keep praying! ‪#‎staywoke‬ #thoughtsandprayers

Stay Encouraged and Be Blessed!

*Yes, at some point I will share my thoughts and hopefully, what the real issues (that is, what the Bible speaks) are in this "War on Christmas."

Nineveh Is Not Just A City

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“When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord; And my prayer went up to You, Into Your holy temple. “Those who regard worthless idols Forsake their own Mercy. But I will sacrifice to You With the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay what I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord.”

Jonah 2: 7-9 NKJV

I was reading Jonah, and as we know, (if you don’t check it out; it’s a short read) Jonah was tossed into a belly of a whale because he was being disobedient. He was supposed to warn the city of Nineveh of God’s impending judgment.

Jonah didn’t want to do that. He knew that God would take pity on them if they repented. And they did. And God spared Nineveh.

For his disobedience, Jonah spent three days and three nights inside a whale. A Whale! But once he saw how low he got, Jonah remembered the good things of God, and cried out to Him, begging for mercy. He was freed.

Jonah headed to Nineveh, and told them of their doom. The city of Nineveh fasted and prayed. They were spared.

Jonah wasn’t happy, but God does what He wants to do, when He wants to do it and how He wants to do it. Jonah had another hissy fit, but God made it plain. He does what He wants, when He wants and how He wants. I just thought I needed to reiterate that.

As I sat there hearing Jonah’s story being preached a couple of months ago, I realized that I act like Jonah did. No, I didn’t run from God and hide like he did but in my own way. I also walked in disobedience when God asked or required something of me. I would not walk in forgiveness with certain people.

But it wasn’t that I felt they did not deserve forgiveness. I felt they either would not change or they would beg forgiveness but would turn back around doing the same things all over again. Their behavior was like the city of Nineveh.

But just like Jonah, we come to a point that we need the forgiveness of God. It’s not about them. I know you have heard that before. And if you haven’t, well, it’s really not about them.

We need God’s forgiveness. He says that in order to get it, we must forgive those who have sinned against us. We have to forgive them, though they will yell and scream and fight again. You must forgive though she’s going to say the wrong thing again.

God is handling the situation and the perpetrators. And it might not look it, but they are being handled. And don’t worry about what God is doing to them. Be grateful that you are walking in obedience and most importantly, in right standing with God. Forgive them. Pray for them. Bless them.

Are you holding on to past grudges or hurts? Or maybe guilt? Let it go. You are hurting yourself.

Stay Encouraged and Be Blessed!

Don't Cause Others To Stumble

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But when you thus sin against the brethren, and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if food makes my brother stumble, I will never again eat meat, lest I make my brother stumble. 

 1 Corinthians 8: 12-13 NKJV

Well, no sooner had I wrote about people taking issue with a curse word, and how they should calm down, then 1 Corinthians 8 was covered in Sunday School. I wasn’t happy about that. It probably happened a week later, if not a couple of weeks.

Now, I know it is months later, but I want to cover this before I write another post. Yes, a lot of people understood the shirt and had no problems with it. Yes, those in a huff, probably were in a huff not because the shirt caused them to sin, but because they catch a huff for anything that falls into a grey area.

But as the Word says, we must look out for another and not cause a fellow Christian to stumble and fall. Yes, though we had no issue with it, someone may have. A child sees the shirt and because another child is wearing it or a minister has it on, they may begin to curse, though they know they should not.

With all the bravado I had in the previous post, I should have realized that “a day of reckoning” was due. But as I stated, sometimes it is not that serious, but if it will cause another to stumble, then we have to refrain from it. That is why it is so tricky for ministers, teachers and pastors. You have to cover something that everyone can relate to in their own way and keep those who hear from stumbling.

We all need to be careful. We are to uplift, and not tear down. So, let’s be careful with our words and our actions. 

Stay Encouraged and Be Blessed!