Show Mercy

He has told you, O man, what is good,
and what the Lord really wants from you:
He wants you to promote justice, to be faithful,
and to live obediently before your God.

God has made his wishes clear. He wants his people to be just, merciful, and to walk humbly with him. 

In your efforts to please God, examine these areas on a regular basis. Are you fair in your dealings with people? Do you show mercy to those who wrong you? Are you learning humility?

Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us[ and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.
Ephesians 5:1-2

Therefore, be imitators of God.

Rely On The LORD!

Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.  Pslam 27:14

Waiting for God is not easy. But God is worth waiting for.

Lamentations 3:24-26 calls us to hope in and wait for the Lord because often God uses waiting to refresh, renew, and teach us.

Make good use of your waiting times by discovering what God may be trying to teach you in them.

Come Near To God

Come near to God and he will come near you. James 4:8

How can we come near to God? James gives five ways:

Yield to his authority and will. Commit your life to him and his control. Be willing to follow him.

Resist the devil. Do not allow Satan to tempt you.

Purify your hearts. Lead a pure life. Replace your desire to sin with your desire to experience God's purity.

Grieve and mourn in sincere sorrow for your sins. Do not be afraid to express heartfelt sorry for what you have done.

Humble yourself before the Lord and he will lift you up. Humbling yourselves means recognizing that our worth comes from God alone.

When we humble ourselves and realize our need for God, he will come to us and lift us up.

Embrace The New Year

Happy New Year...

Let us embrace the New Year from the book of Micah 6:8

He has told you, O man, what is good,
and what the Lord really wants from you:
He wants you to promote justice, to be faithful,
and to live obediently before your God.

God has made his wishes clear. He wants his people to be just, merciful, and to walk humbly with him. 

In your efforts to please God, examine these areas on a regular basis. Are you fair in your dealings with people? Do you show mercy to those who wrong you? Are you learning humility?

Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us^[ and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.
Ephesians 5:1-2

Therefore, be imitators of God.

Christ's Humanity

Lessons from God's Humanity...

Christ is the perfect human leader and he wants to lead you.

Christ is the perfect human model and he is worth imitating.

Christ is the perfect human sacrifice and he died for you.

Christ is the perfect human conqueror and he conquered death to give you eternal life.

Christ is the perfect human High Priest and he is merciful, loving, and understanding.

God, in Christ, became a living, breathing human being.

Keep Following Him

Jesus proclaimed good news. 

He told people that God had done something for them they could not do for themselves, that through Jesus he had made right their relationship with him.

Jesus also served people. Although God in human flesh, he did not come to be served, but to serve. He listened, healed, encouraged, taught, and loved those he encountered.

That's it. Not a long list, but a life worth living. When you follow Jesus you'll find yourself giving good news to others you are serving and helping. Just keep following him.

Jesus traveled throughout Galilee teaching in the synagogues, preaching everywhere the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed people who had every kind of sickness and disease (Matthew 4:24 NLT)

Who is God?

Who is God?

So who is God? Can I trust Him to take care of me? How much time do you have?

The weather changes—but God is UN-changing! Fashion changes. Even change changes. But Hebrews 6:17 says God is always the same—yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

So can we trust God? Is He powerful enough? You and I are limited—I think that goes without saying! One sneeze in my direction, and I’m contaminated, sick with a cold and out for a week. No one can soil or stain God. No sin contaminates Him.

We’re limited by brain capacity, time, relationship overload, and responsibilities—you can only be at one soccer game at a time after all! And patience! But God? He has no limit to his time, power, knowledge and love.

Check it out for yourself in Psalms 147:4-5

He counts the stars 

and names each one. 

Our Lord is great and very powerful. 

There is no limit to what he knows.

So—can God take care of you? I’ll let you answer that!

From Max on Life

http://www.christianity.com/devotionals/upwords-max-lucado/