The Ten Commandments.

You may not be sure of the direction you need to take. Ask Jesus and He will provide all you need.  

Romans chapter 5 verses 20 and 21.

The Ten Commandments were given so that all could see the extent of their failure to obey God's laws. But the more we see our sinfulness, the more we see God's abounding grace, forgiving us. Before, sin ruled over all men and brought them to death, but now God's kindness rules instead, giving us right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.  

Living in sin means we are not living up to the expectations of God. He has given us guidelines to live by but we do not follow them for we are unable to. It would be nice if we all could live up to the expectations of God. 

   Even the best of people, those who try their hardest to follow every little detail are not able to live up to the expectations of God. For it is in our inability to be the perfect examples, that we can see those things that are not right and turn quickly to God seeking His strength and forgiveness.

   What does selfishness look like?  

   In Exodus chapter 4, Moses argued with God when he was asked to rescue the people of Israel. He argued even though God had appeared in a burning bush, then took his shepherds staff and turned it into a snake and when God told Moses to grab the snake it became a staff again. God also told him to put his hand into his shirt, and when he pulled it out it was white with leprosy. God told him to put his hand back into his shirt and when he pulled it out again it was normal. Then he was told to fill a jar with water from the Nile river and then watch as it is poured out upon dry land, how it is turned to blood.

    If you have had an encounter with God, you will know the amazing things He does for you. Day after day, God watches over those who have come to know Him and love Jesus and praise Him for His wonderful love. Yet emotions are strong. Jealousy, envy, greed, worry and anger are hard to ignore. Wanting what others have, worrying over having enough, are common and can cause silly stupid thoughts to guide the way we act. 

   In Romans chapter 7 the apostle Paul talks about the confusing battle with emotions. He says, "So you see how it is: my new life tells me to do right, but the old nature that is still inside me loves to sin. Oh, what a terrible predicament I'm in! Who will save me from my slavery to this deadly lower nature? Thank God! It has been done by Jesus Christ our Lord. He has set me free."

   God wants us to obey His laws and live clean lives that are focused on Him and His love for us. Then He is able to shine through us the love of Jesus. It is in our joy that others see our happiness and peace. Can we be perfect people, doing all that is expected of us? No we will fail but God knows that and for that reason Jesus has become our Savior. 

     1 John chapter 1 verses 5-9 say, "God is Light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say we are His friends, but go on living in spiritual darkness and sin, we are lying. But if we are living in the light of God's presence, just as Christ does, then we have wonderful fellowship and joy with each other and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from every sin. If we say that we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and refusing to accept the truth. But if we confess our sins to Him, He can be depended on to forgive us and cleanse us from every wrong."

   In our times of confusion, in those battles with greed, envy and jealousy, God has given us Jesus and His Holy Spirit. 

   It is in the stories of the Bible that I gained my strength to believe in God's power. It was through believing that I came to God seeking His help. And He showed me Jesus and the powerful feelings of His Holy Spirit. I hold tightly to them today and now have my own examples of His love and strength. 

   Psalms chapter 30 says, "O Lord my God, I pleaded with You, and You gave me my health again. You brought me back from the brink of the grave, from death itself, and here I am alive! Weeping may go on all night, but in the morning there is joy. He took away my clothes of mourning and gave me gay and festive garments to rejoice in so that I might sing glad praises to the Lord instead of lying in silence in the grave. O Lord my God, I will keep on thanking You forever!"

   It is the awesome miracle of God's love that can take what was devastating and turn it into joy. Who are you that God would have to hear your prayers? Why should He care about your cries for help or how close you are to giving up?

   God does not have to listen but He does and for those who call out to Him, Jesus is there. And by them being there, your strength is renewed. You thought that you were alone but you were wrong, for God is real and your renewed strength is seen in the joy of your face, your smile and your love for Him. 

   1 John chapter 4 verses 12 and 13 say, "For though we have never yet seen God, when we love each other God lives in us and His love within us grows ever stronger. And He has put His own Holy Spirit into our hearts as a proof to us that we are living with Him and He with us.

   Jesus guides us to live in the joy of God's saving grace. It is in the nudging of the Holy Spirit that we turn away from those things we used to do and choose to reflect the joy we are feeling. 

   In Matthew chapter 8 Jesus is asked by a Roman officer to come and heal his servant. Then the officer turned to Jesus and said, "Sir, I am not worthy to have You in my home. If you will only say 'Be healed,' my servant will get well!" Jesus stood there amazed! Turning to the crowd He said, "I have not seen faith like this in all the land of Israel! And I tell you this, that many people shall come from all over the world and sit down in the Kingdom of Heaven."

   God hears your prayers and Jesus has responded and God's Holy Spirit, who is the truth, is the faith that you believe and hold on to. 

   Thank You Father for Jesus. Thank You for Your amazing love, grace and mercies. It is by Your commandments that we find the guidelines of Your love for all people. Help us to hold true to Your expectations and to hear Your whisper nudging us along the paths of righteousness. 😊       

1 Corinthians chapter 4 verses 1-5.

So Apollos and I should be looked upon as Christ's servants who distribute God's blessings by explaining God's secrets. The most important thing about a servant is that he does just what his master tells him to. What about me? Have I been a good servant? Well, I do not worry over what you think about this, or what anyone else thinks. I do not even trust my own judgement on this point. My conscience is clear, but even that is not final proof. It is the Lord Himself who must examine me and decide. So be careful not to jump to conclusions before the Lord returns as to whether someone is a good servant or not. When the Lord comes, He will turn on the light so that everyone can see exactly what each one of us is really like, deep down in our hearts. Then everyone will know why we have been doing the Lord's work. At that time God will give each one whatever praise is coming to him. 

John chapter 8 verses 34-36.

Jesus replied, "You are slaves of sin, every one of you. And slaves do not have rights, but the Son has every right there is! So if the Son sets you free, you will indeed be free!

Isaiah chapter 1 verses 16-19.

The Lord speaking through the prophet Isaiah says, "Oh, wash yourselves! Be clean! Let Me no longer see you doing all these wicked things; quit your evil ways. Learn to do good, be fair and to help the poor, the fatherless and widows. Come, lets talk this over! says the Lord; no matter how deep the stain of your sins, I can take it out and make you as clean as freshly fallen snow. Even if you are stained as red as crimson. I can make you white as wool! If you will only let Me help you, if you will only obey, then I will make you rich!

Philippians chapter 3 verses 12-14.

I do not mean to say I am perfect. I have not learned all I should even yet, but I keep working toward that day when I will finally be all that Christ saved me for and wants me to be. I am still not all I should be but I am bringing all my energies to bear on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God is calling us up to heaven because of what Christ Jesus did for us.

Jeremiah chapter 2 verses 21 and 22.

The Lord speaking through the prophet Jeremiah asked, "How could this happen? How could this be? For when I planted you, I chose my seeds so carefully---the very best. Why have you become this degenerate race of evil men? No amount of soap or lye can make you clean. You are stained with guilt that cannot be washed away. I see it always before me, the Lord God says."