Today we celebrate Memorial Day, a federal holiday to remember those who have died defending this country while serving in our armed forces. However, most Americans see this holiday as a day off from work or have the expectation to get paid more if they do work. Unfortunately, our nation has evolved into a self-centered, self-indulgent society with a mentality that thinks, “I’ll do what is best for me.”

Nevertheless, it would be nice to set ourselves aside for one day to remember those who have made the ultimate sacrifice, the most selfless act anyone can do. Also, let us take a moment to remember those mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, friends and family who are left to grieve and mourn the loss of their loved ones. When they died, their dreams ended, and with them the future families that will now never be.

Therefore, we should remember them with the utmost respect and gratitude. Their sacrifice is absolutely incredible. I don’t think there are any words to properly thank them. As our nation pauses to remember those young men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice in their service to this great nation, we have the privilege to remember them and be thankful.

So to all those who gave their lives, to all the families who have felt the pain of losing a loved one, and to those who continue to protect and serve this great nation, “Thank you.”

Just a Thought,

PSS

Correction usually doesn’t make us feel good or happy in the moment; but as children of God, we should be happy when God corrects us because He corrects those He loves. When you hear the Word of God and it brings conviction to your life, you can rest assured that you are His. However, if you sit in church week after week and never feel any conviction or correction, the Bible says you are not His. Meaning, you are not truly born again, you are lost and a child of darkness.

I know that most of us come from a background that didn’t include God. But, when we receive Him as our Lord and Savior by asking Him into our hearts, He immediately goes to work in our lives to reverse our thinking to line up with His. As we follow Him and learn His ways, He begins to deal with every aspect of our lives: the way we think, the way we talk, the way we treat others, and how we manage our money. Through His correction, He restores us to a right state with Him and improves our life and character. (Correction also means a change that rectifies an error or inaccuracy.)

God doesn’t punish the believer, but one day He will punish the unbeliever. I don’t say this to condemn you, but to encourage you that the reason He corrects us is because He truly loves us and wants the best for all of us. God’s correction is never to hurt us, but always to help us. He wants us to experience real life – the life He has in store for us. As good men and women of God, let’s realize He is only trying to make us better and stronger, but it is your choice to receive God’s correction or not. In order to experience all He has for us, let’s purpose to receive God’s correction.

Just a Thought,

PSS

By definition, to compromise is to accept standards that are lower than desirable. Unfortunately, so many people lower their standards by giving in to demands of others, whether a spouse, a child, or even a parent. Willing to compromise their relationship with God just to keep someone in their life, they tolerate things in their home out of a false sense of love for that person. The problem with this, however, is that whatever you compromise to get, you will have to continue to compromise to keep.

I’m enraged at the number of people who call themselves good Christians but don’t hesitate to ignore the Word of God for a loved one. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying every compromise is bad; there are times when compromise is necessary. In marriage relationships, for instance, we have to make compromises all the time. Your wife or husband might want the house to be painted blue, but you want the house to be painted white. To keep the peace, you compromise to find a place of agreement.

As you purpose to live a life of no compromise, understand that God and His ways come first and are never to be laid aside. In doing so, you will show people around you that when it comes to your beliefs there is no compromise and your standards will never change for someone else. Once this issue is settled, God will begin to go to work in your life and you will experience greater peace.

Just a Thought,

PSS

And to all you moms, I hope you had a blessed Mother’s Day.

Are you pursuing things like power, influence, wealth, or possessions? The Bible says in I Timothy 6:10, “For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows” (NLT). As a matter of fact, the Amplified version says, “Many acute (mental) pangs.” By pursuing the things of this world, you will always be in a competition and eventually find yourself on the losing end, resulting in pain and sorrow.

As Christians, we are told in I Timothy 6:11, to pursue godliness among other things. Godliness is devotion to live by God’s laws and a desire to please Him by living our lives according to the Word of God. Essentially, godliness is how much you reflect the character of God. As Jerry Bridges said, “Godliness is more than Christian character. It covers the totality of the Christian life and provides the foundation upon which Christian character is built.” He also said, “Godliness is a personal attitude toward God that results in actions that are pleasing to God.”

Ultimately, your level of happiness will be determined by what you pursue in life. I Timothy 4:8 says, “Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come” (NLT). As we pursue godliness, by learning about God and by being a doer of His Word, we will live happier and more fulfilled lives.

Just a Thought,

PSS

Have you ever heard someone say, “This is just the way I am,” or, “God made me this way?” What about, “God made me this way so there is nothing I can do. After all, if God made me this way, who am I to question Him?” But the truth is, in order to avoid facing the reality that they need to change, people say things like this because they think they have permission to ignore God’s Word.

Someone once said, “Resistance can prove fatal if the resistance is against desperately needed changes in your life.” If you are born with a physical disability, I get it. But if you are referring to things like being rude, arrogant, or mean, or even one’s sexuality, there is no excuse. Deliberately going against God’s Word and His design for His creation, cannot be justified. Even working to find someone to blame for the way you are, is an attempt to relieve yourself from personal responsibility.

We need to realize there is always room for improvement; we can always do better and be better. God never created us or designed us to go to hell. In truth, He created each of us to have a personal relationship with Him. By accepting Him and His ways, we are given the privilege to spend eternity with Him. Read and meditate on 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, and don’t buy into the lie that you don’t have to or can’t change.

We are all a work in progress and we can work to change our ways, our thoughts, and our behavior to do better, be better and live better.

Just a Thought,

PSS