Are You a Grudge Holder?

'Love...keeps no record of being wronged...' 1 Corinthians 13:4-5 NLT





This scripture popped out to me this morning during my devotions. "Love keeps no wrongs!" When you begin to break down what love is, holding a grudge is costly. In all probability the offender has moved on, forgotten the offence and left you holding the bag. But in reality, blame, not the offender, is the crux of the problem. And until you understand and accept that, you will continue to be upset. Don’t let your grudges fester and turn into: (1) Self–victimisation. Negative energy expended on others just drains your resources and robs you of the chance to fulfil your God–given potential. Stop cheating yourself. Don’t surrender your power to your grudges! (2) Bitterness. It’s like a deadly poison; a little of it can contaminate your entire system. The hurt you harbor pollutes the stream of your daily experience, including your experience with God! (3) Isolation. There’s no joy in being around someone who constantly indulges in blame, defensiveness and anger. Others pick up the vibes and feel at risk, so they keep a safe distance in case they become a target in the event that they displease you. It’s a formula for isolation and self–induced loneliness. (4) Negative role–modelling. Maybe you think, ‘My feelings are nobody’s business!’ Maybe—if you live on a desert island. Grudges are highly communicable. ‘…Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up…corrupting many.’ (Hebrews 12:15 NLT) (5) Sabotaged repentance. Genuine repentance and forgiveness aren’t possible until you’re willing to face up to your grudges. If you’re still blaming others, you’re avoiding responsibility. A bad attitude is like a flat tire—until you change it, you’re not going to get anywhere. Think About It!

Love's Power

'...God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.' 1 John 4:16 NIV




When Dr E Stanley Jones preached a sermon on love in India, a church leader told him how a layman, whom he loved and had helped, was making trouble and threatening to split the church. The frustrated clergyman asked Dr Jones what to do because, in this case, love didn’t seem to be working. ‘Increase the dosage!’ retorted Jones. Our self–centred nature would have us believe that happiness comes when we get what we want and all of our needs are met. Yet, when we do get a better job, or a bigger house, or a bit of fame, we find ourselves empty because these things don’t bring us lasting joy and fulfilment. They actually whet our appetite for more—and around and around it goes.


Peter Gillquist said, ‘Every time we have a chance in any way to flesh out the love of God to others, our joy cycle gets fulfilled all over again.’ Francis of Assisi may have expressed it best in his famous prayer: ‘Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace. Where there is hatred let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy. Oh Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.’

"Expectations of God"

Romans 3:27 Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? No: but by the law of faith.



Have you ever pondered what God expects of us? From this verse in Romans I have translated the Greek Words used to maybe give you a little better understanding of what was stated here.

"Where is boasting therefore excluded. Through what law of works? Not indeed but through the law of truth."

Chapter 3 deals with the fact all people are sinners and we are incapable of saving ourselves from sin and death. How many times have you tried to figure out a way to save yourself and obtain eternal life? Before I was saved, I was always looking for some way to make myself better. When we are in it, it's a continual cycle of failure. I am sure you have heard several suggested "methods" to ensure salvation, or make you into everything you can be. Nothing we can do will ever get us what God can give us.

The reason is simple. Our works which include all of our actions, potential actions, spoken words, beliefs, confessions, prayers, thoughts and all manner of works will never be an acceptable substitute for God's established plan to save mankind. God set the specific rule that all will be saved by and it has nothing to do with anything we can say, be or do. God accomplished all through Jesus as His perfect gift for the redemption of all people.

Today, we are saved by the faithfulness and graciousness of God. We are not saved by our faith IN God but only by God's actions and faithfulness. Thankfully God does not require or expect us to earn our salvation so accept His gift and stop trying to accomplish what God made impossible.  You are Loved!

Don't Bury Your Talent?

'...I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground...' Matthew 25:25 NIV




One of the most familiar parables Jesus told illustrates how things work in God’s Kingdom: ‘Then he who had received one talent came. “Master,” he said, “…I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground.”…His master replied, “You wicked, lazy servant!… You should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest. Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents. For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him …throw that worthless servant outside.”’ (Matthew 25:24–29 NIV) Can you imagine going to work next Friday and watching your boss hand your pay packet to someone else, while you stand there? That’s exactly what’s going on in this story. It’s a picture of what will happen at the judgment seat of Christ—and you’ll be there to see it. Why did the Lord come down so hard on this guy? Because he buried his talent. And why did he bury it? Because he ‘was afraid’. Afraid of what? (a) Afraid the talent God had given him wasn’t equal to the task. (b) Afraid to take a risk in case he failed. (c) Afraid he didn’t have the talents others had, therefore his didn’t count. Just like there are degrees of punishment at the Last Judgment (Matthew 11:21–24; James 3:1; Matthew 18:6), there will be degrees of reward in Heaven. And how you steward your talent now determines what your reward will be then.

How to Pray (3)

'I lay prostrate before the Lord...' Deuteronomy 9:25 NIV








One of things about prayer is to find a style that works for you. In Scripture people pray as they stand, kneel, lie on the ground, sit, stretch out their hands, lift their faces toward the sky, or bow them toward the earth. Just find the method that works best for you, and use it. Some people pray better when they are moving. If you’re one of them, take a walk, go for a drive, or run. You are free to use your body and posture to help you turn your mind and heart towards God. When you’re acknowledging your sins, you may find it helpful to have your head bowed and to kneel; it’ll help you to remember and experience the humility of the moment.


In worship, you may want to turn your face towards the sky. In asking for guidance, you may find it helpful to turn your palms upwards as a way of expressing with your body: ‘Lord, whatever You want.’ When praying for someone, say at a restaurant, you may want to look that person right in the eye while talking to God and say, ‘Father, I’m so grateful for this person. You know what they need. Give them what is required by their heart.’ When you’re praising God, put on a worship CD and sing along.


The point is you should approach God with the joy, excitement and simplicity with which a child runs into the arms of a loving parent. Just as you don’t have anyone else’s fingerprints, you don’t have anyone else’s temperament. So just approach God in a way that’s natural, spontaneous and comfortable for you.

How to Pray (2)

'Hezekiah received the letter...and spread it out before the Lord.' Isaiah 37:14 NIV




Many of us just don't know how to pray! I know that's a powerful statement and I don't really know who you are. But let me ask you, when push comes to shove and you need something big in your life, do you go to God first or do you rely on yourself?


Look at King Hezekiah, he received a threatening letter from a much more powerful king—the King of Assyria. The Assyrian potentate demanded unconditional surrender, and told Hezekiah not to trust in God. The letter was graphic, warning that resistance meant the Israelites would have to ‘eat their own excrement and drink their own urine’ before they died (2 Kings 18:27 NIV). Heavy words. We probably haven't been in a situation like that, but we may have needed to make a life changing decision a time or two. King Hezekiah was one of the good Kings who trusted God and immediately went to the temple ‘and spread it out before the Lord.’ Then he prayed: ‘…God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, You alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made Heaven and earth. Give ear, O Lord, and hear; open Your eyes, O Lord, and see…’ (Isaiah 37:16–17 NIV) Hezekiah basically said, ‘Lord, would you read this, then do something about it!’ And God did. Indeed, what He did was spectacular. ‘Then the angel of the Lord went out and put to death a hundred and eighty–five thousand in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies!’ (Isaiah 37:36 NIV)


So, what piece of paper would you like to spread out before the Lord? A financial statement that’s overwhelming? A divorce decree? A medical diagnosis? An angry email? Any piece of paper that causes you stress can be an invitation to prayer, and a candidate to be spread out before the Lord. If it’s important to you, it’s important to Him. You say, ‘I’ve never done anything like that before.’ Try it. Give it to God, trust Him, and watch how He works things out for you.

How to Pray (1)

'...the Spirit pleads for us...in harmony with God's own will.' Romans 8:27 NLT








Thank you to everyone who prayed for my mom's surgery. Now we need to pray that the Doctor got all the cancer. She will start radiation soon, so its not over unless God has healed her. As we head into the fall season, I'm asking everyone of you to make prayer a priority in your life. A praying church will do great things for Christ. Last Sunday we had someone give their heart to Christ. God is ready to even more if we are ready. You ask, how do I start? There is someone already at work on your behalf helping you in the area of Prayer. ‘...the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us... [and] pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will.’ (Romans 8:26–27 NLT) Notice, the Holy Spirit ‘prays for us’. Sometimes we’ve a hard time being ‘fully present’ in prayer. We all know what it’s like to be with another person when their mind is a million miles away. What’s the answer? Try jotting down what goes on while you’re praying. The two most common hindrances to praying successfully are: (a) your mind gets easily distracted by other thoughts; (b) you get tired. When author John Ortberg shared these two frustrations with a friend, he suggested that John go outside alone and simply invite Jesus to come along with him. Ortberg writes: ‘The next day I went to the ocean, took off my shoes, started to run and invited Jesus to come along. I found the strangest thing. When I thought I was supposed to be talking to Him, I found it effortful and difficult. Now that all I had to do was invite Him, I couldn’t stop thinking about Him. My mind kept reflecting on His being with me. I found myself wanting to point out the pelicans and the waves to Him. People and concerns would pop into my mind, and I would find myself telling Jesus about them. Everything changed.’ So, invite Jesus to come along with you today and share each thing you do with Him.