"...I have loved thee with an everlasting love; therefore with love I have drawn thee." Jeremiah 31:3
Definition of Love:
1. Powerful attraction to another.
2. A warm concern.
"Love" That is a very powerful word in our society today and everyone is trying to find it. It's in the books, it's in the media, at school, home....everyone is looking for it. Why did God make love? Love in a sense, is an example of our relationship with God. When we get saved, we are made into a new creature and in his image. We start building our relationship with him. We talk to him, we commune with him. We become as one in the spirit. Doesn't that sound like a man and his wife? When a couple is married, they become one in the flesh and now belong to that other person who they've commit their life to. Many people take these vows and relationships lightly and many marriages are ending in divorce today with a 50% ratio.
Are we taking our commitment to God lightly? When we knelt at that alter of prayer did we say "Lord, I give you my life...but!" and you hold back on something you don't want God to change or maybe you're not willing to give up. If you came to God in the right way, you came begging him to change your life and didn't hold anything back when you came to him. It was a complete surrender. We need to follow where he leads us, listen when he calls us and awnser if he asks us.
Ruth 1:16
Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God.
How is your relationship with God? Are you following him where he goes? Or are you just going with the flow of things? Listen to the still small voice.
Has God ever asked you to reach out to someone who you've thought they were inadequet? They weren't 'Cool' enough or they were just plain out annoying? "...Thy people shall be MY people." There's a dying world out there and are we doing anything to reach them?
Matthew 5:22
"...I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire."
Raca: A jewish word which means Vain, Empty or Worthless.
Matthew 5:44 "I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you..."
God showed us love freely are you showing others that same love?
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Hope and Faith
"...Hope thou in God." Psalm 42:5
God tells us in the scriptures to hope in him. The definition of Hope is 1. Belief that something Good may happen.
How many tiemes do we put Hope into practice? It can be easy to say 'God isn't going to help me, I'm stuck...theres no way out!' Are you putting your Hope in God? Are you trusting in him? I want to make a point that Hope and Faith go hand in hand. To have Faith is to believe and know that God will come through. Faith is the action of Hope.
Faith: Belief; Confidence. 2. Loyalty
Habakkuk 2:4 "...But the just shall live by his Faith."
If God tells us that we will live by our Faith, then what are we putting our Faith in? Faith is an important factor in our walk with Christ. To have Faith is to hope and to Hope is to have Faith. Without these our experience would be dead. Without Faith we can do nothing.
Proverbs 13:12 "Hope deffered (Postponed/yielded) Maketh the heart sick, but when the desire cometh it is a tree of life."
Ephesians 6:16 "Above all, taking the shield of Faith, where with ye shall be able to quench the firey darts of the wicked."
What is our foundation of hope and faith? The awnser is Jesus. We in ourselves cannot build our own foundations, then we're taking away from God and it no longer becomes his creation, but we become our own making our 'Religion' or our proffession that Christ is Lord, vain. Ultimately resulting in the downfall of our selves. However, we can be certain on the Foundation that Jesus lays for us for he tells us that he is our 'Rock' and 'Our Salvation.'
Psalm 62:1-2
"Truly my soul waitheth upon God: From him cometh my salvation. He only is my Rock and my salvation; he is my defence, I shall not be greatly moved."
Put your Hope and Faith in action today and see what God can do for you.
God tells us in the scriptures to hope in him. The definition of Hope is 1. Belief that something Good may happen.
How many tiemes do we put Hope into practice? It can be easy to say 'God isn't going to help me, I'm stuck...theres no way out!' Are you putting your Hope in God? Are you trusting in him? I want to make a point that Hope and Faith go hand in hand. To have Faith is to believe and know that God will come through. Faith is the action of Hope.
Faith: Belief; Confidence. 2. Loyalty
Habakkuk 2:4 "...But the just shall live by his Faith."
If God tells us that we will live by our Faith, then what are we putting our Faith in? Faith is an important factor in our walk with Christ. To have Faith is to hope and to Hope is to have Faith. Without these our experience would be dead. Without Faith we can do nothing.
Proverbs 13:12 "Hope deffered (Postponed/yielded) Maketh the heart sick, but when the desire cometh it is a tree of life."
Ephesians 6:16 "Above all, taking the shield of Faith, where with ye shall be able to quench the firey darts of the wicked."
What is our foundation of hope and faith? The awnser is Jesus. We in ourselves cannot build our own foundations, then we're taking away from God and it no longer becomes his creation, but we become our own making our 'Religion' or our proffession that Christ is Lord, vain. Ultimately resulting in the downfall of our selves. However, we can be certain on the Foundation that Jesus lays for us for he tells us that he is our 'Rock' and 'Our Salvation.'
Psalm 62:1-2
"Truly my soul waitheth upon God: From him cometh my salvation. He only is my Rock and my salvation; he is my defence, I shall not be greatly moved."
Put your Hope and Faith in action today and see what God can do for you.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Troubling Statistics
These are some of the statistics in the USA concering our teens. What can WE do as Christians to reach out to these young people and young adults? It might just be you who is able to awnser their cry for help. Don't ignore the cry!
Suicide Rates in the USA for Teens:
1.3% of all deaths are from suicide.
On average, one suicide occurs every 16 minutes.
Suicide is the eleventh leading cause of death for all Americans.
Suicide is the third leading cause of death for young people aged 15-24 year olds.
(1st = accidents, 2nd = homicide)
Suicide is the second leading way of death for 25-34 year olds.
Suicide is the second leading cause of death among college students.
More males die from suicide than females.
4 male deaths by suicide for each female death by suicide.)
More people die from suicide than from homicide.
(Suicide ranks as the 11th leading cause of death; Homicide ranks 13th.)
There were over 800,000 suicide attempts in 2005
These statistics are from 2005 and recent studies have shown there has been a 15% increase since.
Teenage Pregnancy Rates in the USA:
Three-quarters of a million teens between 15 and 19 become pregnant each year.
Teens who become pregnant are less likely to attend college.
Nearly a third of pregnant teenagers choose abortion.
Out of all teen pregnancies, 57% end in birth.
Very few teens who become mothers plan on doing so.
Two-thirds of teen pregnancies occur among teens 18-19 years old.
These stats were between 2005-2006 there has been a 3% increase since.
Underage drinking in the USA:
Three teens are killed each day when they drink alcohol and drive.1 At least six more die every day from other alcohol-related causes.
Americans who began drinking before the age of 15 are four times more likely to develop alcohol dependence.
It is estimated that teenage girls who binge drink are up to 63% more likely to become teen mothers.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 4,554 underage deaths each year are due to excessive alcohol use.
Alcohol use plays a substantial role in all three leading causes of death among youth - unintentional injuries (including motor vehicle fatalities and drownings), suicides and homicides.
There is growing evidence to suggest that alcohol use prior to age 21 impairs crucial aspects of youthful brain development. In one recent study, heavy-drinking adolescents who had been sober for three weeks still scored 10 percent lower than non-drinking peers on tests requiring verbal and nonverbal recall and skills needed for map reading, geometry, and science.
Suicide Rates in the USA for Teens:
1.3% of all deaths are from suicide.
On average, one suicide occurs every 16 minutes.
Suicide is the eleventh leading cause of death for all Americans.
Suicide is the third leading cause of death for young people aged 15-24 year olds.
(1st = accidents, 2nd = homicide)
Suicide is the second leading way of death for 25-34 year olds.
Suicide is the second leading cause of death among college students.
More males die from suicide than females.
4 male deaths by suicide for each female death by suicide.)
More people die from suicide than from homicide.
(Suicide ranks as the 11th leading cause of death; Homicide ranks 13th.)
There were over 800,000 suicide attempts in 2005
These statistics are from 2005 and recent studies have shown there has been a 15% increase since.
Teenage Pregnancy Rates in the USA:
Three-quarters of a million teens between 15 and 19 become pregnant each year.
Teens who become pregnant are less likely to attend college.
Nearly a third of pregnant teenagers choose abortion.
Out of all teen pregnancies, 57% end in birth.
Very few teens who become mothers plan on doing so.
Two-thirds of teen pregnancies occur among teens 18-19 years old.
These stats were between 2005-2006 there has been a 3% increase since.
Underage drinking in the USA:
Three teens are killed each day when they drink alcohol and drive.1 At least six more die every day from other alcohol-related causes.
Americans who began drinking before the age of 15 are four times more likely to develop alcohol dependence.
It is estimated that teenage girls who binge drink are up to 63% more likely to become teen mothers.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 4,554 underage deaths each year are due to excessive alcohol use.
Alcohol use plays a substantial role in all three leading causes of death among youth - unintentional injuries (including motor vehicle fatalities and drownings), suicides and homicides.
There is growing evidence to suggest that alcohol use prior to age 21 impairs crucial aspects of youthful brain development. In one recent study, heavy-drinking adolescents who had been sober for three weeks still scored 10 percent lower than non-drinking peers on tests requiring verbal and nonverbal recall and skills needed for map reading, geometry, and science.
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