The Special Treasures in Life (Part 2 of 4)

The Treasures of Family - by Karen Finn

Webster’s Dictionary defines family as “a group of people connected by blood or marriage and sharing common ancestry,” or “a group or class of like things”. In Old Testament times, family represented a larger body than what we’ve come to define as a family unit. Persons related by blood, marriage, slave-ship and animals (yes, animals!) were considered family, if all resided in the same household.

Your parents, siblings, and extended family members…all are hand-picked by God. We don’t get a choice on the family we are born into, do we? But, make no mistake; your lineage was divinely ordained of the Lord. Ultimately, being born again into His family is the most cherished position of all!

Recently, I observed a number of scenarios which made me

think of the significance of family:

• an elderly man tenderly caring for his wife of sixty years, who is mentally impaired by Alzheimer’s disease.

• a young man, competing in an important athletic competition, encouraged by an audience of loved ones, grandparents and siblings.

• a young mother, preparing for the birth of her second child in a few weeks, eagerly anticipates the arrival of a new family member.

• a teenage girl saying her final farewell to a beloved grandfather, four months after the loss of her father.

Each of these situations shows the depth and demonstration of familial love, the uniqueness of its bond. Many of the challenges and changes that we face are more manageable with the assistance of another human being. Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 stresses the benefits and blessings of not being alone: “Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.”

When the Holy Spirit is present in our interactions, there exists a supernatural support system. The common thread of Christianity works in our spirits, cementing us in unity and faith. Verse 12 of the same chapter states an additional claim of strength with this statement: “And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” Our very

best relationships should include the security and stronghold of

God’s Holy Spirit.

The values and traditions we uphold in adulthood are usually instilled in the formative years of childhood. Our well-being rests upon the very foundation of a family unit. It’s a place of nurture, instruction and discipline, where memories are made and motives are pure. Life’s lessons on dealing with conflict, cooperation and management can be attributed to the experiences and time shared with family members. It takes only one to carry on a legacy…

As the Thanksgiving season approaches, allow thankfulness to abound in your heart, giving praise to God for a most wondrous treasure—that of family!

Is Jesus Your Everything?

by Nick Fox

Is Jesus your everything? Or do you put your confidence in your past and all the things that you have done thinking that that will please God?

Paul was one man that had the ability to boast in his past. Paul had done so many great things in the eyes of men. Paul had obeyed all the ritual traditions as a Jew. He was a Hebrew of Hebrews and a Pharisee. He persecuted the church and kept the Law fully. In all these things though Paul counted all this as loss compared to the surpassing worth of knowing Christ.

He uses the idea of loss and gain in terms of banking. All those things that Paul thought had value in his life were actually worthless compared to Christ. Really if you want to think about it, it wasn’t just worthless, but it had negative value. Paul lost all things that were close to him in order for him to gain Christ. He wanted to be close to God and to know God.

Paul describes his past as “rubbish”. This is the only time this word occurs in the New Testament and it has the idea of worthlessness or filth. Paul wanted to distant himself from his past knowing that he can gain Christ. He can be close to Christ. He can be like Christ.

Righteousness cannot come from the Law. The Law condemns us of our sin. Many Christians start to think in their mind that God is righteous towards them because of what they have done. We have done nothing that can make us righteous in God’s eyes. Our righteousness can only come through faith in Christ.

Do you know Christ? I sure don’t. Paul wanted to know Christ. I need to know Christ. The power of his resurrection is that God uses the very same power that he used to raise Christ from the dead is now being used in our lives daily. All of the problems that you are going through that you have no power to control...Christ has power to control it.

We have the ability to suffer with Christ. This seems like a crazy idea for us in our western culture. Did you know that Paul had joy in his sufferings? He was in prison while writing this book and this book has a huge theme of joy. We can share in Christ’s sufferings.

Do you consider all of your glories to be loss and the knowledge of Christ as gain? Is Jesus your everything?

The Special Treasures in Life (Part 1 of 4)

by Karen Finn

The Treasure of Friendship

Think back for a moment about the first, closest, “most best-

est” friend you ever had. Maybe it was a classmate, or a neighbor,

or someone you went to church with. How old were you? What

attracted you to become their friend? Have you continued to stay

friends over the years? How did that first friendship influence your

future relationships with others?

Can you imagine being acquainted with someone who tears us down or causes conflict? Most of us want to be around people whose company we enjoy. On the other hand, we need to be careful that we do not depend on friends for our emotional well-being either.

What qualities do you look for in a friendship? Most of our friendships are formed because of shared common interests. If the Lord is an active and important part of your life, does He hold the same position in your friends’ lives as well?

I like that God created us all so differently. Life would get really boring if we all had similar personalities. Even when we meet someone who is not quite like the kind of person we usually befriend, I believe God is giving us opportunity to expand our experiences and allowing us to become more like Him in the

process of loving one another unconditionally.

Read what these verses from the book of Proverbs have to say about friends:

· Proverbs 17:17: “A friend loveth at all times”.

A true friend will treat you with kindness, and not put

you into a compromising situation. A true friend will not

hold a grudge, or set conditions. If one who claims to be your friend isn’t treating you in a loving way, maybe they should not be your friend!

· Proverbs 18:24: “A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly; and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.”

Too often, we expect others to be friendly to us first. Do you display an “approachable” –ness, which makes others want to reach out to you? Also, we know the friend spoken of here (in the second part of the verse) is the Lord. Even when others may fail us, God’s friendship will last forever –you can be sure of that!

· Proverbs 27:17: “Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.”

I like this verse. The metal iron is so strong and sturdy,

that the only other object which can keep it sharp (in its

“best” state) is another piece of iron. Remember that

when it comes to your friendships. Choose your friends

wisely, make sure they are bringing out the best in you!

Writing about the treasure of friendship, makes me think of a dear friend, who I grew up with; we have known each other for nearly forty years! Although distance (>400 miles) separates us physically, and the busyness of raising our families has become a priority, we share a special bond, a familiarity with one another that is unique. We haven’t talked in months, but if she were to call me tonight, it would seem like yesterday when we last spoke. I feel blessed to have had such a friend in my life all these years!

Cherish your friends. Let them know how much you value their support and presence. The gift of friendship is truly a treasure!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*On a finishing note, here are some quips concerning friendship, taken from Zingers by Croft M. Pentz:

~The reason a dog has so many friends is that he wags his tail and not his tongue.

~A friend is someone who knows all our faults but still loves us.

~Friendships earned before you need them are almost certain to be more lasting.

~Don’t worry about knowing people—just make yourself worth knowing.

~If you were another person, would you like to be a friend of yours?

~Christ’s friendship prevails when human friendship fails.

Heroes of the Faith

This heroes of the faith article is from a message of Charles Spurgeons, that he preached on May 11, 1873 at the Metropolitan Tabernacle. It gives us a great encouragement as we fight the postmodern and emergent movements around us.

eloved, be stedfast. . . . Do not be as some are, of doubtful mind, who know nothing, and even dare to say that nothing can be known. To such the highest wisdom is to suspect the truth of everything they once knew, and to hang in doubt as to whether there are any fundamentals at all.

I should like an answer from the Broad Church divines to one short and plain question. What truth is so certain and important as to justify a man in sacrificing his life to maintain it? Is there any doctrine for which a wise man should yield his body to be burned? According to all that I can understand of modern liberalism, religion is a mere matter of opinion, and no opinion is of sufficient importance to be worth contending for.

The martyrs might have saved themselves a world of loss and pain if they had been of this school, and the Reformers might have spared the world all this din about Popery and Protestantism. I deplore the spread of this infidel spirit, it will eat as doth a canker.

Where is the strength of a church when its faith is held in such low esteem? Where is conscience? Where is love of truth? Where soon will be common honesty? In these days with some men, in religious matters, black is white, and all things are whichever color may happen to be in your own eye, the color being nowhere but in your eye, theology being only a set of opinions, a bundle of views and persuasions. The Bible to these gentry is a nose of wax which everybody may shape just as he pleases. Beloved, beware of falling into this state of mind; for if you do so I boldly assert that you are not Christian at all, for the Spirit which dwells in believers hates falsehood, and clings firmly to the truth. Our great Lord and Master taught mankind certain great truths plainly and definitely, stamping them with his "Verily, verily;" and as to the marrow of them he did not hesitate to say, "He that believeth shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned;" a sentence very abhorrent to modern charity, but infallible nevertheless.

Jesus never gave countenance to the baseborn charity which teaches that it is no injury to a man's nature to believe a lie. Beloved, be firm, be stedfast, be positive. There are certain things which are true; find them out, grapple them to you as with hooks of steel. Buy the truth at any price and sell it at no price.

Some have one creed to-day and another creed to-morrow, variable as a lady's fashions. Indeed, we once heard a notable divine assert that he had to alter his creed every week, he was unable to tell on Monday what he would believe on Wednesday, for so much fresh light broke in upon his receptive intellect.

There are crowds of persons nowadays of that kind described by Mr. Whitfield when he said you might as well try to measure the moon for a suit of clothes as to tell what they believed. Ever learning but never coming to a knowledge of the truth. Shifting as sandbanks are their teachings and as full of danger.

The apostle says to us, "Be ye stedfast." Having learned the truth hold it, grow into it, let the roots of your soul penetrate into its center and drink up the nourishment which lies therein, but do not be for ever transplanting yourselves from soil to soil. How can a tree grow when perpetually shifted? How can a soul make progress if it is evermore changing its course? Do not sow in Beersheba and then rush off to reap in Dan.

Jesus Christ is not yea and nay; he is not to-day one thing and tomorrow another, but the "same to-day, yesterday, and for ever." True religion is not a series of guesses at truth, but "we speak what we do know, and testify what we have seen." That which your experience has proved to you, that which you have clearly seen to be the word of God, that which the Spirit beareth witness to in your consciousness, that hold you with iron grasp.

Overcoming Anger and Wrath Part 2

Part Two: How to Assess Our Upsets

In my last blog, I covered overcoming wrath as a doer of God’s Word. But what of the times when we are upset or angry with good reason? Certainly there must be times when anger is the proper emotion. After all, did not Jesus become angry on several occasions? If anyone could become angry without sinning it was certainly the sinless Son of God. What can we learn, then from his example? This week’s blog will address how to assess our upsets from the following three questions.

1. Does my upset respond against actual sin (as biblically defined)? (Mark 3:1-6)

And he entered again into the synagogue; and there was a man there which had a withered hand. And they watched him, whether he would heal him on the sabbath day; that they might accuse him. And he saith unto the man which had the withered hand, Stand forth. And he saith unto them, Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to do evil? to save life, or to kill? But they held their peace. And when he had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, he saith unto the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it out: and his hand was restored whole as the other. And the Pharisees went forth, and straightway took counsel with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him.

In this first example, Jesus became angry because the Pharisees’ hearts were hardened, they were seeking an occasion to accuse him, and they lacked mercy and compassion for the suffering man. Each of these is sin as defined in scripture. Quite often, we get upset because of things that are not clearly sinful. When someone disappoints you—is it really sin, or foolishness, or an accident? Perhaps someone merely thinks that you are wrong, or has an equally good way of doing things. At times like these we may take the following actions:

· Ask, “What happened?”

· Ask, “Do I have the facts straight?”

· Ask, “What is it that just upset me?”

· Ask, “Is this sin as the Bible defines it?”

If we cannot say that we are angry with sin as the Bible defines it, we may need to rethink the problem and our response.

2. Does my upset focus on God and His kingdom (not me or my kingdom)? (Mark 10:13-16)

And they brought young children to him, that he should touch them: and his disciples rebuked those that brought them. But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you, whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein. And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them.

The disciples were concerned that the children were becoming a nuisance; getting in the way of an already busy ministry. But Jesus was concerned with the advancement of God’s plan. What was he angry with? He was upset that the disciples were keeping the children away from him. He viewed the “disturbance” as an opportunity for ministry. Perhaps the disturbances in our lives are just that. Perhaps the upset is an opportunity. An opportunity to minister, or maybe an opportunity to teach. Or maybe an opportunity that God has taken to show us something about ourselves. In such cases as these we must:

· Ask, “What is it that I want in this situation? Do I feel that I am being deprived of something—respect, attention, a possession, or an ideal situation?”

· Ask, “Am I more concerned with my kingdom or God’s kingdom?”

The upsets that we have may very well be opportunities rather than inconveniences. If we are focused only upon how things affect us, we will often miss opportunities to glorify God and work for His purpose.

3. Does my upset coexist with godly qualities and express itself in godly ways? 1 Peter 2:21-25

For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.

From the standpoint of mankind the arrest and crucifixion of Jesus Christ was the greatest outpouring of human hatred and injustice in all of history. And yet, from the standpoint of God, it was the greatest outpouring of love and godliness in the face of such turmoil. How did Jesus respond in turmoil? First, Jesus focused his attention on the Father. He did not return reviling for reviling, nor threatening for suffering. Instead, Jesus committed himself to the Father and trusted the Father to judge the matter righteously. In doing so, Jesus sought God’s will for his abusers by fulfilling God’s will on the cross. When we are facing an upset we must first evaluate our thinking in light of God’s Word:

· “Am I thinking godly thoughts?”

· “Am I thinking in hurt, or personal offence?”

· “Am I looking at this through God’s lens?”

And then we must:

· Ask if your course of action (what I wanted to do, or did)—planned or completed—was in line with godly qualities.

· Ask what you wanted, more than you wanted to honor God!

· Confess your sin of idolatry to God, and then give thanks for what you do have.

· If you have sinned in your speech, or actions against someone, tell them that you are sorry and ask for forgiveness.

When we assess our upsets in light of the example of Jesus Christ, we learn if our upsets are truly godly and righteous, or if we are making idols of things that we do not have or want to keep. By following Christ’s example we may more readily handle the things that upset us in a way that honors God.