Boldness is defined as not hesitating or fearful, in the face of actual or possible danger or rebuff; it also means to be courageous and daring. In this day of ungodliness, in a world that wants to see the Word of God censored, not taught, or in a society that teaches that somehow success is bad, if you believe in absolute truth, you are crazy and out of touch. It’s no wonder Christian’s are shrinking back and becoming more and more silent on the world’s stage. When you go against mainstream society or the politically correct crowd, you get blasted with words such as hater, intolerant and old fashioned. What we need, to fight the temptation to be silent, is boldness. We need to be courageous to stand up and exercise our free speech rights to proclaim the Good News about Jesus the Savior of all humanity, the only Savior. Acts 4:12 clearly states, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

It’s time that we rise up, begin to share our faith, and let people know that Jesus loves them and wants to help them. If they are willing to follow his ways, He will save them from an eternal death of punishment and torment. Let’s all stand up and begin to share the Good News with those people, in our lives. Let’s begin to invite our friends and family to Church. Let’s ask God to give us boldness so that we won’t ever be silenced. People will come to church if someone they know will invite them. When they come, they will hear that there is hope for a better life, through Jesus Christ, the only Savior of the world. An empty seat is a serious matter. Let’s fill our church this Easter and resurrection Sunday, and give people an opportunity to say yes to the one true hope, Jesus Christ.

Just a Thought,

PSS

“Grudges are for those who insist that they are owed something; forgiveness however, is for those who are substantial enough to move on” (Criss Jami). A grudge is a persistent feeling of ill will or resentment, resulting from a past insult or injury. In order to move forward in life, we must be able to let go of the past, including past hurts and even past success. Hurts seem obvious, but why should we let go of past success?  You can build on past successes, but you can’t live on what you did yesterday. We continually have to improve ourselves. Things like grudges will not only hold us back in every area of our lives, they can also destroy our lives. In life, no one owes us anything. It’s up to us to do the right thing, work hard, and be kind and respectful. When we are wronged in life, and we all will be, we have to develop a short memory. In sports, coaches always want their best shooters and their quarterbacks to have short memories. Why?  Short memories are necessary because they forget about the missed shot, or the interception the quarterback threw. If they don’t, they will lose confidence; the basketball player will stop shooting and the quarterback will begin to second guess himself. To move past a grudge, remember to have a short memory so that you can let go of the hurtful things people have done to you and forgive them. That way, you won’t lose confidence in yourself and will be able to move forward in life.

People who continue learning, continue to grow, and growth happens on purpose. We can learn things accidentally, but for the most part, growth happens intentionally. We need to put effort into it. Many years ago, I wanted to learn how to be a leader, so I bought books, listened to teachings on leadership, and constantly went to conferences so that I could learn. I was told once, "Learn something every day. Read the newspaper, a magazine, the Bible, but learn something every day.” It's not a secret most successful people are lifelong learners, always working to grow and develop. God has given all of us some type of gift or talent. The way we develop is by growing. If you are a singer, musician or athlete, you practice constantly and learn everything you can about what you do. There is always something else for us to learn. Don’t be satisfied with the status quo or being like everyone else. We never know what doors might open if we continue to learn, develop our skill set, or even if we are willing to learn something that is brand new.

Let’s purpose to be lifelong learners, purposing to learn every day. If that means getting up a little earlier to read or listen to some type of teaching, or taking a class, getting out of your comfort zone, then do whatever it takes to develop your skills and talents. Only God knows what opportunities await those who are learners, striving to do better in life.

Just a Thought,

PSS

Are you the type of person who is always telling people what you believe? If you are and you feel frustrated or maybe even a little condemned at times, it may be that what you say doesn’t line up with what you do or how you act. In our society, we want to deal with what we say more than what we do. The problem with this mindset is, however, that what we do is usually a good indicator of what we believe, because what we really believe will eventually come out in our actions. If I really believe in God (the Father of our Lord Jesus), then I should be following His ways and those beliefs should in turn dictate my actions.

The Bible says it best in contending, “Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” (James 1:22, NKJV). It’s deception to think that what I say I believe is more powerful then how I live, talk and act. If I really believe in the Bible, then my actions should reveal that, by being faithful to the teachings of it. To do otherwise, creates conflict in our hearts and minds. If you want real peace, begin to do what you say you believe. If you believe in caring for people, let it show in what you do, not just in what you say. If you believe something is wrong, work to stop doing whatever it is. People say they love somebody, but at times treat them very badly.

Contradicting ourselves doesn’t do anything but create feelings of guilt and condemnation. If I say I believe in the teachings of the Bible, then those teachings should be very evident in every area of my life. We are not perfect and will make mistakes and blow it from time to time, but the flow of your life is and should be a good indicator of what you truly believe.

Just a Thought,

PSS

Many today talk about how people that don’t agree with them are intolerant. Let’s see what the word tolerant means. Merriam Webster defines it as a capacity to endure pain or hardship, endurance or fortitude, and to allow the existence, occurrence or practice of something that one does not argue with. I tolerate things or those that I don’t agree with. That’s what we are as Christians, we don’t agree with the world’s ideas or morality and because we don’t agree, they label us as haters and bigots. What’s sad is that we do tolerate their way, meaning that we don’t agree with them. They, the world (those who don’t believe in God or His Word), would say that we are intolerant just because we don’t agree with them. Isn’t it ironic that those who don’t know Christ or agree with Him call us intolerant because we don’t agree with them, when the word tolerant means that we don’t agree? I think it’s strange when you realize that either you agree with the world (those who aren’t of God), or you are a bad person or out of touch with reality. However, Christianity allows you to choose to serve God and believe His Word or not. Christians are the most compassionate, giving people on the earth, but a secular media has convinced itself and even the church that we are the bad guys if we believe and act on the Word of God. We are the bad guys, if we disagree with ungodly morals. Let’s be strong, stand up and choose to go against the culture. When you do, it’s an act of love. Why is it an act of love? Because those who follow Christ, love people enough to tell them the truth. God gave us all a free will and you have the right to exercise your free will, but you have no right to expect me to agree with it. Stand for absolute truth that comes from believing the Word of God (the Bible) in its entirety.

Just a Thought,

PSS