RECHARGE YOUR EMOTIONS! REFOCUS YOUR SPIRIT!

“You have six days in which to do your work, but the seventh day is a day of rest dedicated to me.” (Exodus 20:9-10 GNT) 

We all must make a conscious decision to make time for things other than work. If we don’t, we’ll never rest. I make a conscious decision about how many hours I’ll work each week, and I stick to it. I encourage everyone to do the same thing. Otherwise, we’ll quickly burn out.

It’s like a bow and arrow. When a bow is constantly strung tight, it loses its power. It has to be unstrung periodically. You need to force yourself to set realistic hours and then hold yourself accountable — and ask someone to check up on you in the process. 

Getting proper rest isn’t pop psychology or just good advice. It’s so important to the heart of God that he put it in the Ten Commandments — along with “Do not murder,” “Do not lie,” and “Do not steal.” “Take a day off every seven days” made it on God’s top 10 list of moral behaviors. Shouldn’t it make it on ours too?

The Bible says, “You have six days in which to do your work, but the seventh day is a day of rest dedicated to me” (Exodus 20:9-10 GNT). We call this the Sabbath, which simply means a “day of rest.” What do you do on your Sabbath?

1. Rest your body. If you don’t take time off, your body will make you take time off. Your back will go out. You’ll get a headache. You’ll get the flu. God didn’t design our bodies to go without rest. That’s why sometimes the most spiritual thing you can do on your Sabbath is to take a nap! 
2. Recharge your emotions. Everyone does this differently. For some, recharging happens through quietness. Others rejuvenate through recreation. Still others rejuvenate through relationships. Discover what it takes to recharge your emotions, and make it a regular part of your Sabbath.
3. Refocus your spirit. You need to worship on your Sabbath. Take time to focus on God instead of all of your problems. Worship puts everything else in perspective. It shrinks your problems. It reminds you that God is still on his throne. He’ll help you through whatever struggles you’re going through. Suddenly the problem you’ve stressed over all week long won’t be near as big any more.

We all need a Sabbath in our lives. It doesn’t have to be on Sunday. It can be any day of the week, but you need to take one day off a week to rest your body, recharge your emotions, and refocus your spirit.(Pastor Rick Warren)

WILL IT BE JESUS?

Happy New month to all of us,wishing us a prosperous year ahead and new beginning with GOD in all things.

“Seek first God’s kingdom and what God wants. Then all your other needs will be met as well.” (Matthew 6:33 NCV)

If you want to live a truly balanced life, you can only look at one person in all of history as a model: Jesus. If you put him at the center of your life, your life will be more balanced. 

Think of your life like a wheel. The center of the wheel is a hub. All of the spokes of your life (which represent your relationships, your family, your career, your goals, etc.) come from that hub. We all build our lives around some sort of hub. The question is, what will be your hub? Will it be your family? Will it be your career? Will it be money?

Or will it be Jesus?

How do you do know what you’re building your life around? Take a look at whatever you think about the most. That’s what is driving you.

The center of your life is critical to developing a balanced life. A solid center leads to a solid life. A weak, flimsy center leads to a weak life. When I hear people tell me that their lives are coming unglued, it usually means one thing: They have a faulty center. Something other than God has taken priority in their lives.

Not only does the hub create stability, but it also controls and influences everything else about your life. Whatever you put at the center of your life will also be your source of power. The power of a wheel always emanates from the center outward — never the other way around. 

Make Jesus the center of your life, and he’ll provide the stability, control, and power you need for your life. The Bible says, “Seek first God’s kingdom and what God wants. Then all your other needs will be met as well” (Matthew 6:33 NCV).

Don’t worry about making Jesus first in your life. Put him in the center of your life. Let him direct your life, influence it, empower it, and give it stability.

Do that and all the other areas of your life — from your family to your career to your goals — will find balance in Jesus.

Credit:Daily Hope

ITS TIME TO ADJUST YOUR VALUES!

“I have also learned why people work so hard to succeed: it is because they envy the things their neighbors have.” (Ecclesiastes 4:4 GNT)

We can come up with many excuses for overworking. Sometimes we blame it on providing for our family. Other times we insist our work is so important that to slow down would be negligent. 

But usually, it’s a values problem. We start valuing the wrong things. Specifically, we value the acquisition of stuff above all else.

The Bible says, “I have also learned why people work so hard to succeed: it is because they envy the things their neighbors have” (Ecclesiastes 4:4 GNT).

God says we have two options: We can either spend all of our time keeping up with the Joneses, or we can forget them and reduce our stress level. But we can’t have both.

That’s how this becomes a question of values. Do you want more stuff, or do you want less stress and more time with your family? The choice is yours. 

When is enough, enough? You can win the rat race, but you’re still a rat!

Jesus said it like this: “What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?” (Mark 8:36 NIV) To put it in modern language, “What good is it for a man to become president of his company but lose his kids or his wife?”

The simple answer? It’s not good at all.

Your work and your worth are two different things. Many of you grew up being told you’re worthless, and you’re out in the workplace trying to prove everyone wrong. In the back of your mind, you’re telling yourself, “I’m going to show them. I’m going to prove them wrong.” You work harder and harder, but no matter how hard you work, it’s never enough. Just about the time you start to relax, you hear a haunting voice telling you, “Keep pedaling. 

Somebody’s catching up!” You need to get rid of the voice. It’s feeding you a lie.

As a pastor, I’ve been by many bedsides as people died. I’ve seen many people take their last breath, sometimes at a hospital, sometimes in a home, and sometimes at the scene of an accident. Among all of the people I’ve watched die in my life, I’ve never heard anyone say with their dying breath, “I wish I’d spent more time at the office.” 

Not one. 

Don’t you think it’s time to adjust your values? Don’t be a rat. Jump out of the race.

Action Points

• How have you seen overwork affect your family?
• When you’ve struggled with overwork in your life, what have been the primary causes?
• In what ways do you sometimes equate your work with your worth?

 
 Credit:Rick Warren 

Why do I need Jesus To Take Control of my Emotion?

“To be controlled by human nature results in death; to be controlled by the Spirit results in life and peace. Those who obey their human nature cannot please God.” (Romans 8:6, 8 TEV) Learning to manage your emotions is the key to peace of mind. I want to share with you four important reasons from God’s Word why you need to learn to deal with what you feel. 1.You need to learn to manage your emotions because they are often unreliable.   Your gut is often wrong. Your intuition is often flawed. Your emotions often lead you down a blind alley. You can’t depend on everything you feel! Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death” (NIV). You don’t have to accept everything you feel, because not everything you feel is right or authentic or will lead you in the right direction.   2.You need to learn to manage your emotions because you don’t want to be manipulated.   If you don’t control your emotions, they will control you, and you will be manipulated by your moods. And, if you’re always guided by your feelings, other people are going to take advantage of you. Worst of all, Satan’s favorite tool is negative emotions. He will use fear, resentment, and worry to wreak havoc in your life. The Bible says in 1 Peter 5:8, “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”  3.You need to learn to manage your emotions because you want to please God.  God cannot rule your life if emotions rule your life. If you make your decisions based on how you feel, then you’ve made your feelings god, and then God can’t be God in your life. Romans 8:6 and 8 says, “To be controlled by human nature results in death; to be controlled by the Spirit results in life and peace. Those who obey their human nature cannot please God” (TEV).  4.You need to learn to manage your emotions because you want to succeed in life.   Study after study has shown that your emotional quotient is far more important than your IQ when it comes to success. How many people do you know who ruined their reputation because of something said in anger? Or missed a job opportunity because of their lack of self-control? The Bible says in Proverbs 5:23, “[People] get lost and die because of their foolishness and lack of self-control” (CEV). When you give your heart to Jesus, that includes your emotions. So when you say, “I gave my heart to Jesus,” you gave your emotions to him to be managed by him. Jesus wants to be Lord of how you feel, not just what you think and do. He wants to be Lord of your emotions. “From now on, then, you must live the rest of your earthly lives controlled by God’s will and not by human desires” (1 Peter 4:2 TEV).  Action Points Do you base your decisions on your feelings? How do you know if a “feeling” is right or wrong? Why do you think it’s important to learn to listen to the Holy Spirit? How do you do that? What about your emotions do you need to surrender to God today? Credit:Daily Hope with Rick Warren

ATTRIBUTES OF GOD'S MERCY

Well,many people describe Him as Omni-potent,Omni-Science,The All-Sufficient One,Great and Mighty King.

Sometimes I just wish that I could describe my Heavenly Father in that way that seems so right to me.I can't describe Him,He is just too Awesome to be described.The Bible says we are engraved on the Palms of His hands(Isaiah 49:16),if i am engraved on the Palms of this Magnificent GOD who sent his Son(Jesus) to come and die for the remission of my sins,your sins and the whole world generally,then who am I not to acknowledge His greatness."I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty."(Revelations 1:8) That's my Father!

Firstly,I want to use this opportunity to invite all and sundry to the wonderful light of Jesus.

You may say,why is it so sweet in those Christians mouth,why are they so happy with the very thought of Jesus passing through their minds,their souls and their bodies.Well,there is an answer to that question,when you come to to the light of knowing him and reading His Word Daily.It's there.

You might have at one time decided to give up on following Jesus,acknowledging him for who he is and what he has done or you might have decided to take the shortcut >>Professing Jesus as your Saviour and dabbling into sin to save your face from friends who dont believe in your belief.

It's all good but it has an end.

The truth is that we would one day leave this earth and face Eternity and Judgement.

The good thing there is that Jesus opens his hands wide to receive you anytime,any day,any hour.It all dawns on you to accept him before its too late.There is time for everything.

Remember,He is waiting but it is only for a limited time,He will soon be back to take his beloved ones,those who confesses and believes in Him and follows his Precepts and Will till the end.Hurry before it gets late.

Note:You don't have to be out rightly righteous in your own eyes before you accept Him,He accepts Everybody.

God Bless You.

12 Things To Thank God For!

One of the most important things we must do when we suffer is to give thanks. I don’t say this lightly and I know many believers who have endured unimaginable pain and tragedy.  Giving thanks in the midst of agony and affliction is certainly not easy to do.  Yet Ephesians 5:20 tells us we should give thanks “always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” and 1 Thess 5:18 says to “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” Giving thanks helps us focus on God in our affliction, steers us away from complaining, strengthens our faith, and brings glory to Jesus. There are many things we can give thanks for when we suffer, but here are 12 that I try to remember: 1.That God is sovereign and in complete control of the intensity and the duration of your affliction. 2.That God’s love and mercies never cease. 3.That Jesus will never leave nor forsake you. Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Heb 13:5 4. That God is with you in your affliction. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. Is 43:2 5. That God hears your every prayer. 6. That God is using this affliction to make you like Christ. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. Romans 8:28–29 7. That this affliction is momentary and light compared to the eternal reward it is producing. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison… 2 Cor 4:17 8. That Jesus is your sympathetic High Priest who intercedes for you constantly. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Heb 4:15 Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them. Heb 7:25 9. That God is near you in your pain. 10. That Jesus is your refuge, strength, and strong tower you can run to. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Ps 46:1, ESV The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe. Pr 18:10 11. That God has saved you, washed away your sins, and adopted you as his own child. Blessed are those whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Rom 4:7 12. That someday Jesus will wipe away every tear from your eyes and you will see his glorious face. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away. Rev 21:4 Credit:Mark Altrogge

The Principle of Having In Abundance

Hello there,There is a principle of seed time and harvest in the bible(Gen 8:22),which clearly depicts the story of a farmer who goes to his farm,digs up the soil and plants a seed he hopes to germinate and be fruitful.There is a specified time for that plant to grow (with proper care i.e watering) and there also comes the harvest period.These phases are bound to happen in our lives.This applies to our giving to God,as you give to God (Mal 3:10),you should also expect to be given in good measures,pressed down and shaken together and running over.Amen

Please read this great excerpt from Rick Warren that would inspire your giving attitude.Happy Reading.

“Wise people live in wealth and luxury, but stupid people spend their money as fast as they get it.” (Proverbs 21:20 GNT) As a pastor for nearly 40 years, I can tell you that the number one reason couples get a divorce isn’t adultery. It isn’t abuse. It’s debt! At one time, 54 percent of the divorces in the U.S. were related to financial pressures. That shouldn’t surprise us. The Bible makes it clear that it’s just plain foolishness not to manage your money well. And foolishness never ends well. Proverbs 21:20 says, “Wise people live in wealth and luxury, but stupid people spend their money as fast as they get it” (GNT). So often our culture convinces us to buy now and pay later. The average American puts $1,300 on his credit card for every $1,000 he makes. That leads straight to debt, and God calls that stupid! Friend, no one just drifts into debt — or out of it, either. Deciding to build your financial future on the commitment to be responsible starts with intentionality. After you’ve made that important commitment, you need a plan to get there. My parents taught me the 10-10-80 principle when I was a child. It’s a great way to become intentional about your financial decisions. Give 10 percent back to God. God blesses whatever you put him first in. Keep 10 percent for yourself. Commit to saving money every time you make money. Live on 80 percent. Only fools spend everything they get. Like it or not, God uses money to test you. He is testing your responsibility. When he looks at your financial decisions in Heaven, God’s going to say, “Were you responsible with what I gave you on Earth?” How will you answer that question? Give 10 percent of what you make back to God. Save 10 percent. Live on the rest. Action Points What’s your biggest temptation when it comes to managing your finances responsibly? Do you find it harder to give 10 percent of your income to God or to save it? Who do you know that needs to hear this message about God’s view of financial responsibility? What can you do to help that person understand the message?