...without faith it is impossible to please Him..." (Hebrews 11:6)
Today God used a friend of mine and Scripture to show me the unbelief currently residing in my heart. As I studied unbelief, I was reminded again, of the seriousness of this particular sin. "Lord I believe, help my unbelief!" (Mark 9:24)
What are you not believing?
What is it holding you back these days? Which of His promises have you let go of? What lie are you currently believing?
In Hebrews 11:6 we are told what it is we should believe:
"And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him."
When we believe God, it not only pleases Him, but it is counted as righteousness!
"...just as Abraham 'believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness'...it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham."
In Hebrews 3:12 we are warned to, "Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God."
That is a serious warning!
In Matthew Henry's commentary on Hebrews 3:12 he says,"An evil heart of unbelief is at the bottom of all our sinful departures from God; it is a leading step to apostasy; if once we allow ourselves to distrust God, we may soon desert Him."
I want to encourage you to examine your heart and trade in unbelief for faith in the Lord Jesus Christ! Here are some wonderful truths to stand on and to believe in with all of your heart!
Salvation:
~"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9)
~"There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." (Romans 8:1)~"Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation." (2 Corinthians 5:17)
Sanctification:
~"He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ." (Philippians 1:6)
~"...for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure." (Philippians 2:13)
God's Power:
~"I know that You can do all things and that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted." (Job 42:2)
~"for He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world." (1 John 4:4)
~"My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness." (2 Corinthians 12:9)
Truths to Give us Hope:
~"the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words." (Romans 8:26)
~Nothing can separate us from the love of Christ! (Romans 8:35-39)
~"I will not leave you or forsake you." (Joshua 1:5, Hebrews 13:5)
~"For everyone who has been born of God overomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world-our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?" (1 John 5:4,5)
Feel free to leave your favorite promises or passages you stand on in the comments below!
Bonus Material for your Encouragement:
1)
youtube.com/watch?v=dLKSYUJ9ysY
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
Tuesday, October 13, 2015
Interview with Mandy Szabo (Part Two)
Interview with: Mandy Szabo
Topic of Discussion: Hospitality
*This 2nd part to our interview had to be paraphrased because my audio recording reached it's capacity and I had to revert to pen and paper.*
Mandy: God has been challenging me lately about what hospitality is. In the wider context of the New Testament, hospitality was Gospel-focused. Hospitality was shown to strangers; foreigners. When people traveled there weren't diners, there wasn't an inn. Hospitality was needed. That's been challenging to me, because hospitality is more about having people over who are strangers than just having your friends over.
I'm trying to be more biblical in my hospitality. Having people over, who can't repay you or it wouldn't be easy for them to. I'm seeking hospitality that is harder for me. Since Marc and I moved up here to Kentucky we've had about 10-15 internationals over! People from Nepal, India, China...
For most of these foreigners, dinner with us, was the first time they had ever had a meal in an American home! One of them has come to Christ! We shared the Gospel, to the best of our ability (due to the language barrier) and we prayed. Others who spoke Chinese fluently went deeper into discipleship with her.
We've had our deaf neighbors over. We don't sign. We had to find someone from a local church who was a Believer, who could sign, and they came to translate! We found out that this older, deaf couple are actually Christians and we got to hear their testimonies! We also found out their needs. They are older and have health problems and I'm in healthcare so I've been able to help them out. And Marc is an IT guy and their sole communication with others is via the Internet. When they have computer problems, they call Marc!
We had another older gentleman over; a neighbor of ours. And he isn't "easy" to have over because he is hard of hearing and he repeats himself a lot.
But I'm learning that you don't just show hospitality to those who are "easy". It will be challenging but a blessing in the end.
Sam: That is awesome! This is challenging stuff, but great!
Mandy, how would you encourage others to be more open with their homes?
Mandy: Hmm, I think the best thing to do is figure out why you don't want to. This is where my classes in Biblical Counseling come in! A few years ago, if you said "It's hard for me". I would have replied, "Just do it!". But now, I would say, examine yourself.
Do you feel inadequate? You are relying on yourself. You must lean on Christ!
Is it inconvenient? Christ washed the disciples feet. That was inconvenient. We need to be more like Christ!
I'd say, identify the barriers.
Bring it to Scripture.
Renew that thought with Scripture, making it submissive to God!
Think about how you want to feel in someone's home. The home doesn't need to be spotless. You are happy when someone loves you; to have a friend. Coffee shops are great, but people grow most in homes.
Sam: Good advice!
Mandy, what are some of your favorite verses pertaining to hospitality?
Mandy: Acts 18:26 when they took Apollos into their home. I know it doesn't go into much detail. But it looks like discipleship happening in the context of their home!
"He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. After Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him home and explained the way of God to him more accurately."
And then, I just heard a sermon recently on the passage from 1 Timothy 5, talking to the church about widows. And it speaks to the fact that godly widows should have "shown hospitality" in their younger years.
Sam: Thank-you so much Mandy, for your time and for sharing with us! It is very encouraging to see how God is working through you and your home!
If you would like to hear the sermon that Mandy referenced go to Kenwood Baptist's website, click on resources and search 1 Timothy 5:9-16 "Our Widows: Exemplars of Godly Womanhood." I listened to it and was encouraged further to use my energy, home and resources to bless others for the sake of God's Kingdom!
http://kenwoodbaptistchurch.com/resources/sermon-audio
Topic of Discussion: Hospitality
*This 2nd part to our interview had to be paraphrased because my audio recording reached it's capacity and I had to revert to pen and paper.*
Mandy: God has been challenging me lately about what hospitality is. In the wider context of the New Testament, hospitality was Gospel-focused. Hospitality was shown to strangers; foreigners. When people traveled there weren't diners, there wasn't an inn. Hospitality was needed. That's been challenging to me, because hospitality is more about having people over who are strangers than just having your friends over.
I'm trying to be more biblical in my hospitality. Having people over, who can't repay you or it wouldn't be easy for them to. I'm seeking hospitality that is harder for me. Since Marc and I moved up here to Kentucky we've had about 10-15 internationals over! People from Nepal, India, China...
For most of these foreigners, dinner with us, was the first time they had ever had a meal in an American home! One of them has come to Christ! We shared the Gospel, to the best of our ability (due to the language barrier) and we prayed. Others who spoke Chinese fluently went deeper into discipleship with her.
We've had our deaf neighbors over. We don't sign. We had to find someone from a local church who was a Believer, who could sign, and they came to translate! We found out that this older, deaf couple are actually Christians and we got to hear their testimonies! We also found out their needs. They are older and have health problems and I'm in healthcare so I've been able to help them out. And Marc is an IT guy and their sole communication with others is via the Internet. When they have computer problems, they call Marc!
We had another older gentleman over; a neighbor of ours. And he isn't "easy" to have over because he is hard of hearing and he repeats himself a lot.
But I'm learning that you don't just show hospitality to those who are "easy". It will be challenging but a blessing in the end.
Sam: That is awesome! This is challenging stuff, but great!
Mandy, how would you encourage others to be more open with their homes?
Mandy: Hmm, I think the best thing to do is figure out why you don't want to. This is where my classes in Biblical Counseling come in! A few years ago, if you said "It's hard for me". I would have replied, "Just do it!". But now, I would say, examine yourself.
Do you feel inadequate? You are relying on yourself. You must lean on Christ!
Is it inconvenient? Christ washed the disciples feet. That was inconvenient. We need to be more like Christ!
I'd say, identify the barriers.
Bring it to Scripture.
Renew that thought with Scripture, making it submissive to God!
Think about how you want to feel in someone's home. The home doesn't need to be spotless. You are happy when someone loves you; to have a friend. Coffee shops are great, but people grow most in homes.
Sam: Good advice!
Mandy, what are some of your favorite verses pertaining to hospitality?
Mandy: Acts 18:26 when they took Apollos into their home. I know it doesn't go into much detail. But it looks like discipleship happening in the context of their home!
"He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. After Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him home and explained the way of God to him more accurately."
And then, I just heard a sermon recently on the passage from 1 Timothy 5, talking to the church about widows. And it speaks to the fact that godly widows should have "shown hospitality" in their younger years.
Sam: Thank-you so much Mandy, for your time and for sharing with us! It is very encouraging to see how God is working through you and your home!
If you would like to hear the sermon that Mandy referenced go to Kenwood Baptist's website, click on resources and search 1 Timothy 5:9-16 "Our Widows: Exemplars of Godly Womanhood." I listened to it and was encouraged further to use my energy, home and resources to bless others for the sake of God's Kingdom!
http://kenwoodbaptistchurch.com/resources/sermon-audio
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