Month: June 2016

Following up on the thoughts from earlier this week, it’s interesting to me when we take a look at what winning looks like for followers of Christ.  It’s not about laws and Politics and opinions .  It’s about the blood of Christ, sharing the good news and being selfless.

“And they have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb and by their testimony. And they did not love their lives so much that they were afraid to die.”

‭‭Revelation‬ ‭12:11‬ ‭NLT‬‬

http://bible.com/116/rev.12.11.nlt

Reminds me of this Jeremy Camp song https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=eP-JdZs4V54

“Turn away from evil and do good. Search for peace, and work to maintain it.”‭‭Psalms‬ ‭34:14‬ ‭NLT‬‬

My son, stay focused; listen to the wisdom I have gained;
    give attention to what I have learned about life
² So you may be able to make sensible judgments
    and speak with knowledge.

I am so frustrated this morning.  Frustrated about what happened in Orlando.  Frustrated about the ISIS connection.  Frustrated about our countries reaction. Frustrated as to who gets blamed.  Frustrated about how to react appropriately to this nonsense!

Today, I continue to try to tie myself back to the words of the Christ and his second greatest commandment – “Love others as yourself”.  I think the best reaction followers of the Christ have is to continue to impact those you come in contact with, regardless of beliefs and lifestyles, in a positive way by loving them as you love yourself.

I don’t know that this takes away my disappointment and frustration, but at least it provides a focus and a mission as well as a control to deal with the tension and strangeness of our current political and cultural environment.

Besides, everything hangs on it!

I was reading Psalm 145 this weekend and this little section caught my eye.

“The LORD is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. The LORD is good to everyone. He showers compassion on all his creation.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭145:8-9‬ ‭NLT‬‬

The whole psalm is very uplifting and encouraging, but I thought this was good to help remind us of the character of the creator! 
And the character we should work daily to emulate.