Religion is what one practices. Faith is what a person becomes in accepting God (Jewish Faith) and or Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior (Christian faith) in their lives. With faith, someone has welcomed, declared, and given full permission for God and/or Jesus Christ to become number one ruler in and over his or her life. Religion does not do that. Religion is what one practices to try and meet a need – a need to feel complete – a need to feel spiritual – a need to feel. Brushing one’s teeth everyday is a ritual – a religious practice with the person having to do the same thing each time in order to get results.
Category: God’s Purpose
Weak vs. Strong (The Sermon)
There are times that I want to ball myself up into a corner. One part of me wants to bite, fight, and kick anyone who comes close to me. The other part of me wants to be hugged by a friend I can trust in order to release all of the anguish, fear, and pain. Do I remain strong, or am I really strong? Do I show that I am weak by releasing?
Paul says to be content in whatever state we’re in. “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.” (Philippians 4:11-12)
Life’s Solid Threads
One day, I walked out at 6:00 a.m. as the bright Sun peak within the clear blue sky. I would lift my arms half way to say, “Thank you Lord” for another day. I did not want folks to think that I was crazy, so I lift my arms half way. Then I was reminded of the passage “I will be ashamed of you if you are ashamed of me,” so I lift my arms as straight as I could to give God FULL PRAISE! After all, God has done more for me within these 6 hours of a new day than I could ever imagine.
Listening to God’s Purpose for Your Life
Have you ever been in a situation where everything was going great, and then out of nowhere, you get thrown a curveball? Work going well, relationship wonderful, and house in order…then BOOM…your boss writes you up for what feels like nothing, your significant other walks out and your house needs more repairs in one week than it needed in 1 year. Instead of screaming, “Lord, why me?! What did I do wrong?” think, “Lord what are You trying to tell me?” Sometimes God uses these difficult situations to shake us out of our complacency. Maybe you know the relationship you’re in isn’t the healthiest, but you don’t know how to leave; or you feel the urge to move from your current location but are scared because of the economy. You could even be like me: feeling stuck and praying for a breakthrough only to get frustrated when it happens. Let me step back a bit to help you understand…