Fear part 1

A moderate sense of fear may be considered normal, even healthy. It may be simply an awareness of impending danger — a defense mechanism. It may be just a pounding heart, flushed face, and sweaty palms and anticipation of being called on in class or being asked to make a speech at a meeting. Fears may be in reaction to imagined or real circumstances. They can be acute or chronic. Many fearful people tend to infect others with their anxieties and tensions.

When faced with a fearful person, you must demonstrate love and try to discover the causes for the fears. There may be no easy or instantaneous solutions to the total problem; but you can suggest a proper relationship with Jesus Christ, dependence on the Holy Spirit,  and a life focused on the Word of God as necessary steps to freedom from fear.

The expressions “fear of God” or “fear God” in the Bible don’t mean that God expects us to cringe in terror before Him in anticipation of punishment, but that we owe Him our reverential respect and trust. Solomon said,
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 9:10).
The fear of God is the one fear (a trustful, worshipful attitude) which removes all other fears!
“I sought the Lord and he heard me and delivered me from all my fears” (Psalm 34:4).
“Whoever listens to me will dwell safely, and will be secure, without fear or evil” (Proverbs 1:33)
“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10)

Humble Yourself

Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. James 4:10

Humble: (verb) to lower in importance or dignity.

Quit justifying your actions. He gives grace to the humble. Tell the Lord you are wrong and He will forgive and draw us closer to Him. Humble yourself before the Lord and He will exalt you. Do you ever see others judging people? Do you catch yourself doing it? There are times that we accomplish a lot of things in different aspects of our lives. When we receive the achievements we end up becoming proud. Once we end up in this situation, we are no longer aware that the enemy has struck you down already. On the other hand if we submit ourselves to God and acknowledge to Him that we can’t do anything without the Lord, then the devil will flee from you. When we fully submit to the claims of Christ upon our lives, our untamed natures are brought under His control we become meek, tamed, and “fit for the Master’s service.”

Read Exodus 10:3; Proverbs 29:23; Matthew 23:12; Luke 14:11; 18:14; 1 Peter 5:6

What does it mean to humble yourself before God?
Who are you at odds with right now? What can you do to reconcile that relationship?
Where is your relationship to Christ? What area do you need to humble yourself in?

Fishers of Men

Then Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” Mark 1:17

The great commission tells us to go make disciples of all the nations. (Matthew 28:16) We see that the first step in doing this is to follow Jesus. This reminds me of something I heard at church many times. Being saved is as easy as ABC. A: you have to admit that you have sinned. B: you have to believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins. C: you have to confess with your mouth that Jesus is the Lord of your life. This is true based on Romans 10:9 & 10. However, I think this leaves out the second part of being a Christian; discipleship. Once you are saved, you need the DEF. D: deny yourself. E: embrace the cross. F: follow Jesus. (Mark 8:34) This is the first step in fishing for men.

In an analogy about fishing,  I see the Gospel as the rod and reel bringing people into the kingdom. Unless you are a pastor,  most of us don’t use a net. We talk with people one at a time. We have to spend the time and effort to put the Gospel out there and God will bring in the harvest.

In this analogy we are the bait. Are you living a life that is attractive to other people? (Matthew 5:13 & 14) Some of you are grumpy. How are you fulfilling the great commission? How are you living a joyous life as an example to draw people in?

Praying to Know the Will of God

I have a situation that I need to change, but I don’t know exactly what to do. God has a specific will for the life of each Christian. It should be our highest purpose to determine just what His will is for us and then to do it, whatever the cost.
In order to know the will of God for our lives, we must first know God Himself. We can never know who we are without first knowing whose we are. We learn to know God as we submit more and more to His lordship, are obedient to His Word and are led by the Holy Spirit. In direct proportion to our knowledge of God and our submission to Him, we experience the joy of walking in his will: Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6

Some other scriptures I find helpful to pray for God’s will:

Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord ? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. 1 Samuel 15:22

Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture…. Commit your way to the Lord ; trust in him and he will bring it to pass. Psalm 37:3, 5

I desire to do your will, my God; your law is within my heart. Psalm 40:8

For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless. Psalm 84:11

If you love me, keep my commands…. Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. John 14:15, 23

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. James 1:22

Jesus prayed “not my will, but Yours be done.” Is prayer your first thought when you don’t know what to do?

My 10 Daily Affirmations

These are the things I say to myself to get going on the morning after my regular prayer and study time.

1. And the Lord will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today, and are careful to observe them. Deuteronomy 28:13

2. But those who wait on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31

3. No weapon formed against you shall prosper, And every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord , And their righteousness is from Me,” Says the Lord. Isaiah 54:17

4. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord , thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11

5. And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28

6. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can  be against us? Romans 8:31

7. Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us. Ephesians 3:20

8. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13

9. And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19

10. You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. 1 John 4:4

Do you have any daily affirmations?
What are they?
What scriptures did I miss?

What if someone died for you?

I recently watched a movie on Netflix called Pressure. I do not recommend it (I gave it 2 out of 5 stars), but this is not a movie review. To avoid a SPOILER ALERT jump down below the break. The point is that three guys died underwater  to save one young man’s life. I put myself in that kid’s shoes. He has to live with that every day for the rest of his life. How does he feel? What does he do with the rest of his life? I would hate that feeling. That sucks to think that someone gave their life for me. I would do all that I could to honor their lives and try to live a life worthy of their sacrifice.

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16.
It is the same with Jesus. He came and suffered and died for me. (and you too!) How does that make me feel? It is a horrible feeling. I wish I could die for Him instead. What do I do with the rest of my life? I do all that I can to honor his life and try to live a life worthy of His sacrifice. I know He has the power over sin and death he rose again on the third day, but that makes it all the more gut-wrenching. He did not need to do that for me yet he loved me enough to do it anyway. It’s overwhelming when you really think about it. A lot of people may say that they would do anything for you or that they would die for you but he actually did. So what are you going to do with that? Am I the only one who struggles to accept something you don’t deserve?

Karate!

Financial Advice

My financial adviser sent this to me recently, so I thought I would share:

First:

Three Keys to Greatness by Jim Rohn (attached). The focus was on teenagers, but it definitely applies to adults as well. Enjoy the short read.

Three Keys to Greatness by Jim Rohn

Eight years ago I went into the studio and recorded a 56-minute video for teenagers
called “Three Keys to Greatness.” Although my focus was for teenagers, the principles I
shared certainly apply to adults as well.

Recently I was asked to list these three keys using a couple sentences for each. Now
for your benefit here they are again.

1) Setting Goals. I call it the view of the future. Most people, including kids, will pay the
price if they can see the promise of the future. So we need to help our kids see a well-
defined future, so they will be motivated to pay the price today to attain the rewards of
tomorrow. Goals help them do this.

2) Personal Development. Simply making consistent investments in our self-education
and knowledge banks pays major dividends throughout our lives. I suggest having
a minimum amount of time set aside for reading books, listening to audiocassettes,
attending seminars, keeping a journal and spending time with other successful people.
Charlie “Tremendous” Jones says you will be in five years the sum total of the books
you read and the people you are around.

3) Financial Planning. I call it the 70/30 plan. After receiving your paycheck or paying
yourself, set aside 10 percent for saving, 10 percent for investing and 10 percent for
giving, and over time this will guarantee financial independence for a teenager.

If a young person, or for that matter an adult, focused on doing these three simple
things over a long period of time I believe they will be assured success!

—Jim Rohn

Second:

What we try to do for clients is basically summarized in this 3 part blog from Success magazine. I hope you find it as beneficial as I did.

 

Money, Money, Money Part 1 of 3

 

Money, Money, Money Part 2 of 3

 

Money, Money, Money Part 3 of 3

HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!!

Warriors go to work

I was inspired this week reading this story about all of the assistance given to our heroes coming home from military service.  As well as this story about Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta and Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki being committed to veteran success.

The Killer Angels

 

 

I recently read The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara and liked it so much, I picked up Gods and Generals by his son Jeff.  It was so cool to go to Gettysburg and actually see where those fateful events took place (although I did get some sort of eye infection while there).  I also wrote the following as part of a class project.

 

While reading the book The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara, I had great
difficulty choosing one character who exhibited the best leadership
qualities during the Battle of Gettysburg.  Each of the leaders had
tremendous attributes as well as flaws.  Most leaders from both sites were
similarly trained and many went to West Point together.  Ultimately, I chose
Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain based on his determination to excel, his ability
to make things happen, and his focus on people.  These qualities make
Chamberlain widely regarded as being a great leader.

The quality of excellence is at the core of every great leader.  Colonel
Chamberlain showed tremendous determination to excel as seen by his
continuing to fight after being wounded an incredible six times. Along the
same lines, Chamberlain also had an ability to overcome difficulties placed
in his way.  A good example of this ability is seen in the interaction
between Chamberlain and the one hundred and twenty mutineers from the Second
Maine.  The speech he made was very moving and he was able to turn a
liability into an asset as the Second Maine agreed to fight with him.

Chamberlain, professor of rhetoric before the war, had a great ability to
learn as evidenced by his ability without military training to recruit his
own regiment and lead them to victory on Little Round Top.  With this
capacity to acquire knowledge, he was able to accomplish great things.  He
never considered retreat as on option.

Colonel Chamberlain had a knack for guiding people to good behavior. He
showed profound respect for the individual.  Chamberlain had constant
respect even for those with whom he did not agree.  The ultimate example of
this is while receiving the Southern surrender at Appomattox, he calls his
troops to attention to salute the defeated South.

Overall, Chamberlain was a good example of Mission first; people always.  He
had many other great qualities not mentioned in this paper such as
selflessness, integrity, and honor.  A true citizen soldier, he had the
skills and character that make a great leader who is able to influence
people to achieve more than they thought possible.  Chamberlain was a master
at solving problems and mitigating risk; a true description of what a leader
should do.