Life is tough, but it's tougher without Christ

Matthew 11:28-30 (New International Version)

 ²⁸"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ²⁹Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

The world is full of hurts and burdens and disappointments. Jesus offers an alternative to that. If we are tired of fighting the things of the world and are worn out, He promises us rest in Him. He assures us the following Him is less burdensome that following the world.


Jesus Christ proved that to me in my life and continues to do so everyday. I was trying to go through life handling everything on my own and was failing miserably. I accepted Christ into my life and now live to please Him instead of me. I have learned that living my life to please God is much easier and less burdensome than living life on my own. His plan is perfect. His rules are simple and clear cut. When I follow God's ways there is no doubt of worry. H has never let me down. My decisions are easy when I make them based on God's word and His will for my life.

The only problem I have is that after all these years I still struggle to make the right decisions for the right reasons. I still take my eyes off God and try to do things on my own. When I see the outcome it is a reminder of who difficult life is without Christ and how blessed I am to be included as a child of God and able to rely on Him. My life in Christ is not easy by any means, but it always beats life without Him and He shows me that in different ways every day.

Dear Lord,
Thank You for loving me and giving me a relationship with You. Thank You for guiding my life and giving me rest in You. I know You never promised life would be easy but even in the turmoil I can always find peace in You. You are my refuge and a place of safety when I'm at risk. You give me peace when I am troubled. You give me rest when I am weary. I see You at work in my life every day in tangible ways and I thank You and praise You for that. I pray that You use me in the lives of others to share this good news and precious gift. I lift this up to You in Jesus' name, amen.

Keep the SON in your eyes,
Ron

Seek more than you ask Matthew 7:7-8

Matthew 7:7-8

 ⁷"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. ⁸For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

In this passage Jesus encourages us to pray and seek out God with our requests. He wants us to ask Him to meet our needs. He promises to give us what we need for He knows what is in our best interest.

I am very good at asking. When things go wrong, I'm right there asking God to fix my mistakes and take care of the mess I've made. If I have a need I am right there looking for God to meet it. I need to spend more time seeking God than asking. The more I seek the less I need. When I spend time in His word and search our God in my daily life, the more I realize how active He is in my life, meeting my needs before I even ask. I don't want to seek out what God can do for me, but what He wants for me. I want my desires to be in line with God's will for my life. The better I am at that the less I need to ask and the more I can appreciate His blessings.

I don't want to just seek Him from afar, I want to come into His presence. He promises that if I knock on the door He will invite me in. He is always available for me if I just knock and make myself known. I know I need to ask but I need to spend more time seeking and knocking. When I do, the needs often take care of themselves.

Dear Lord,
I am forever thankful that you are an accessible God. I am thankful that You want to spend time with me and are always available. i am quick to come to You with my problems and regrets and concerns. I am good at asking but don't make time to just spend with You. Help me to be a person who seeks you out throughout the day to share my experiences and not just my requests. Help me to seek your will for my life and not just answers to my requests. Mold me into the person You want me to be. In Jesus' name.

Keep the SON in your eyes,
Ron

Let your light shine in a positive way Matthew 5:14-16

Matthew 5:14-16
    "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. [15] Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. [16] In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.


Jesus says we are a light to the world. A light is meant to shine. It should not be hidden or subdued  but be put on a stand for everyone to see. Jesus calls us to let our light shine and let others see our good deeds. When they do, our deeds should prompt them to God the credit, recognizing they came from Him.

God has given me a new life and opportunities to share that new life with the people around me. He say I am a light to the world. My light will shine no matter what. The question is, what light will the people around me see? Every time I open my mouth, every time I act on a thought or desire, I am on display for all to see. Each time I am an example of how different my life is with Jesus Christ. I can be a positive example or a negative example, but whatever I do, and whatever I say is a reflection on Jesus Christ. I am an ambassador for Him here on earth and must remember that the example I set directly reflects on Christ and the difference He can make.

Dear Lord,
Thank you for the life You have given me and the changes you have made in my life. I am and example of the miracle of a changed life. I pray that my testimony and the life I live will always be pleasing to You. I pray that my testimony will be such that it can be used by You to lead others to the a life changing relationship with You. I know I will fall short and pray for Your forgiveness when that happens. Help me to be open and available to be used by Yo. Let me be that light on a hill shining for You. In Jesus' name, amen.

Keep the SON in your eyes,
Ron

Look at their heart Matthew 3:4-6

Matthew 3:4-6
    John's clothes were made of camel's hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. [5] People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. [6] Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.

    John was a devoted man of God, but he didn't have a church, he didn't wear fine clothes, he wasn't the center of attention, he wasn't the guy everyone wanted to be. John was living in the wilderness wearing homemade clothes, and eating bugs for dinner. Even so, people sought him out and went to  him to draw closer to God and learn more about Him through John.

John didn't look like a preacher. He didn't act like a preacher. There was nothing about his appearance or his surrounding that would attract people to him. People found value in the message he had and it prompted them to seek him out. There was something about John that make people look past his appearance and circumstances and want to know him better.

There are many people in my life who have the looks and the money. They live in the right areas and have the right jobs. We share the same interests so it is easy for me to connect with them . God has also put people in my life with whom I don't  take the time to get to know. I have no idea what they have to offer because I've never taken the time to find out. There are times I am too busy looking at the outside of a person that I miss what is truly important. I don't ever see their heart. I'll never know what I am missing out on until I open my heart more than my eyes and see these people the way Jesus sees them . I need to spend more time looking at what these people mean to Jesus than what they mean to me.

Dear Lord,
Help me to see the people You put in my path the same way You do. Stir my heart to reach out to them and take the time to know who they really are. Put people in my path who can help me grow closer to You and not just feel better about me. In Jesus' name I pray, amen.

Keep the SON in your eyes,
Ron

Ezekiel 43:8-9

⁸ When they placed their threshold next to my threshold and their doorposts beside my doorposts, with only a wall between me and them, they defiled my holy name by their detestable practices. So I destroyed them in my anger. ⁹ Now let them put away from me their prostitution and the lifeless idols of their kings, and I will live among them forever.

The Israelites had the pleasure of living with God. They drew close to Him and enjoyed His company, then defiled His temple and their relationship with Him in the process. God longed to restore that relationship but could not accept them the way they were. He offered them a relationship with Him but on the contition they change their ways and live a life to please Him.

God loves me and wants a relationship with me. He enjoys our time together, but will not tolerate being in the presence of sin. He accepted me with all me faults but expects me to grow more like Him as I grow closer to Him .It is hard to have a close relationship with God if we have nothing in common. The more my life is in line with His will for me, the closer I am to Him. To be more like God, I have to act more like Him. My relationships with the people around me need to glorify and Honor God. The closer the relationship the more like-minded we need to be. It is not possible for me to stay close to God and embrace the world at the same time because I "cannot serve two masters". I have chosen to please God first. My goal is to let my relationships and my life honor the God I serve so that He is comfortable having me around. To do that I have to learn to hate sin as much as He does. It's not easy, but I am willing.

Dear Lord,
I thank You and praise You for the relationship I have in You. I pray that i live a life pleasing to You. Stir my heart that I would have an unquenchable desire to draw close to you. I want that Jesus Christ would be my best friend and involved in every area of my life. i know that I cannot always say that now and ask for You forgiveness and pray that you would mold me into the person with whom You enjoy fellowship.Guide me to honor You in my relationships with the people around me and the way I live my life. Change my heart so that I will hate all of my sin as much as You do. I lift this up to you in Jesus' name.

Keep the SON in your eyes,
Ron

God never gives up on me

Ezekiel 39:27-29

²⁷ When I have brought them back from the nations and have gathered them from the countries of their enemies, I will show myself holy through them in the sight of many nations. ²⁸ Then they will know that I am the LORD their God, for though I sent them into exile among the nations, I will gather them to their own land, not leaving any behind. ²⁹ I will no longer hide my face from them, for I will pour out my Spirit on the house of Israel, declares the Sovereign LORD."

god spends much of the book of Ezekiel describing all of the was His people have let Him down including all the detestable things, all the idols they have worshiped, and all the wrongs they have committed against other people.  God warns them over and over of the punishment they will endure for their sin. They deserve all that is promised and more. Here toward the end of the book, God promises to restore His people and give them success against. their enemies. He never gives up on his people and loves them enough to see them through the hard times and back under His loving protection.

This reminds me that the God I serve is a God of love. While He does discipline me, He does so with a goal of making me more like Him. God loves me more than I can understand. he wants the best for me and cares about my every problem, every worry, and every trial i go though. I need to hear that and need to remember that when times are tough. It's during those times that I feel alone but it's during those times that God is closer than ever because he loves me.

Dear Lord,
Help me to see you at work during the tough times. Help me to see you as a God of love and recognize all you do in my life. Give me eyes to see what you are doing. Give me the words to say and the desire to open my mouth to tell other of your love and the awesome way you provide for me in your perfect love.I thank you for loving me and guiding me through life in Jesus' name.

Keep the SON in your eyes,
Ron

Grace is good, but there are consequences for my actions

Ezekiel 33:15

¹⁵ if he gives back what he took in pledge for a loan, returns what he has stolen, follows the decrees that give life, and does no evil, he will surely live; he will not die.

In this passage God calls His people to right their wrongs, to return what did not belong to them, and to obey Him. He says these changes are the way to salvation.

God has made it clear that my salvation is not based on works, but is a gift from Him. Being a good person is not what gets me into heaven. It is by God's grace that I have a relationship with Him and have eternal life (Ephesians 2:8-9). But, my sin has consequences. My sin also affects others. As a follower of Jesus Christ, I need to confront the effects of my sin and do what I can to make things right. It's not about working to keep my salvation but about living my life to please God and be a good living example of the difference He has made in my life.

I have hurt and disappointed many people in my life and I know that I'm not done. I need to consider those past hurts and make them right. I owe a lot of apologies but don't say them nearly enough. It;s good to know that God will not remember my sins, but I can still see the effects of them in my life and in the people around me. Like a tornado that has gone though an area. it was chaotic at the time and is quiet now, but when you look around, the damage is still there. I have been that tornado in the lives of others and while things may have quieted down, the damage is  still done. That damage is a result of my sin and is my fault. It is my responsibility to go back and right the wrongs in my life not because I earn points with God, but because it is the right thing to do.

Dear Lord,
Forgive me for the sins I have committed against You and against others. Bring to my mind the hurts I have caused and move me to reconcile the relationships I have damaged and the right the wrongs. You have changed me from the person I was to the person I am today. I know I am a work in progress and I have a long way to go, but trust You to guide me on the right path. Bless those I have wronged and use me to make this right. I lift this up to You in Jesus' name.

Keep the SON in your eyes,
Ron