LEARN TO WITHSTAND PRESSURE

By:  C. Dollar

Developing the fruit of the Spirit should be one of the primary goals of every Christian who desires to walk in God’s power. Contrary to traditional teaching, however, the fruit of the Spirit is love. In the same way that an apple is composed of seeds, a stem, core and skin, the fruit of love is comprised of joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance (Galatians 5:22, 23).

The fruit of the Spirit, or love, was deposited in your spirit man when you became born again. It is your responsibility to cultivate that seedling so your love can be perfected and fear can be cast out of your life.

Longsuffering is the part of the fruit of the Spirit that enables Believers to obtain the promises of the Word of God. Longsuffering is “patient endurance.” “That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises. For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself. Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee. And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise” (Hebrews 6:12-15).

Abraham obtained the promise of God—his son, Isaac—after he had patiently endured. Likewise, as you diligently obey what God tells you to do in spite of your circumstances, you will see longsuffering develop in your life. Abraham waited 25 years to receive the promise of God. Are you willing to wait that long?

Hebrews 10:36 says, “For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.” Longsuffering is an important quality to have if you want to see the promises of God manifest in your life. Do not give up, cave in or quit when you do not see the answers to your prayers right away. Know that if God said it, He will do it. In the meantime, make the most of the opportunity to develop your love by cultivating patient endurance, or longsuffering.

Scripture Of The Day: “For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.” - Hebrews 10:36 (KJV)

BECOMING A SKILLFUL ARTIST

By:  V. Osteen

It was in the news recently that renowned artist, Thomas Kincaid, died at the young age of 54. He was known as the Painter of Light, and millions of homes host his artwork. It's amazing to think about all the people who have been touched and inspired both by his life and his beautiful images.

You may not see yourself as an artist like Thomas Kincaid, but the truth is that we are all artists. We all have creative ability because we are made in the image of a creative God. We create impressions with the words we speak. You could say words are our brush strokes and the hearts of others are our canvases. With every word, good or bad, we are leaving a lasting image on the lives of others. That's why scripture encourages us to choose our words carefully because life and death are in the power of the tongue.

A beautiful painting isn't just about the colors; it's about the technique the artist uses to apply the color as well. A skillful artist chooses his brush strokes carefully, and we should also be careful with the delivery of our words so that we can create a positive, encouraging masterpiece on the hearts of our family members, friends and coworkers.

I learned this lesson the hard way when I was trying to encourage our son, Jonathan, to practice his guitar. I was driving the kids home from school one day and thinking about all the loose ends I'd left dangling on that particular afternoon. You might say I was feeling a bit stressed, and I let that stress come right through my words when I sharply asked, "Jonathan, have you practiced your guitar at all this week?"

Before he could answer, I continued, "You know, if you don't practice your guitar now, you'll be sorry down the road when you want to play in the band at church and you're not good enough." On and on I went, trying to "encourage" my eleven-year-old son to practice his guitar with enthusiasm and passion, and yet, I could see his countenance deflating and becoming more discouraged by the minute. Suddenly, I became aware of my words and tone and realized they weren't encouraging or inspiring. Immediately, I stopped myself and said, "Jonathan, I'm sorry. I realize I wasn't very encouraging just now. Will you forgive me?"

I looked at him in the rearview mirror, and he just smiled at me so sweetly. Right then, I decided to use my words to paint a positive image. I said, "Jonathan, you are so talented musically. That's why I want you to practice because I know the more you practice, the better you'll become." I changed my voice from the voice of discouragement and defeat to the voice of encouragement and victory.

Just like anything else, it takes practice to become a skillful artist with your words, but anyone can do it! Even when you have to bring correction or instruction, you can position your words so that they will be more easily received.

Always remember, whether you're a boss working with an employee or a parent working with a child, the goal should always be to help others reach a higher level. Choose your words carefully, wrap them in love and affirmation, and create a masterpiece in the hearts of the people in your life!

Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing (Proverbs 12:18, NIV).

CHANGE YOUR LIFE WITH YOUR THOUGHTS

By:  J. Meyer

The longer I live the more I realize how strong a connection exists between our thoughts and our words. I honestly believe that this connection is one of the most important things we can learn in our lives. 

So many people's problems are rooted in their way of thinking, which can actually produce a lot of the problems they experience. 

How does that happen? 

Well, a negative mind produces negative words and, consequently, a negative life. Our words can actually become traps that cause us to continue our cycle of negative thoughts and actions. 

Yes, we're all tempted to speak negatively, but we don't have to give in to that temptation. 

To turn our words around, we need to start thinking about what we're thinking about, and then make some real changes. 

Let me show you how. 

The Trap of Negative Thinking

Because I allowed many years of negative thinking and speaking in my life, I became an extremely negative, sour person. My philosophy became "if you don't expect anything good to happen, then you won't be disappointed when it doesn't." 

Have you ever felt that way? 

Because I had encountered so many disappointments, I was afraid to believe that anything good could happen to me. I had developed a terribly negative outlook on everything. 

If I had continued to believe those lies about never getting over my past, I never would've gotten over my past. 

New Thoughts, New Possibilities

With God's help I am continually reminded that my past doesn't have to control my future. I don't need God's help in my life to give up; I need His help to keep going! 

I now know how important it is for me to understand the fact that my life would not have gotten straightened out until my mouth did… 

And since the two are linked, my mouth wasn't going to get straightened out until my mind did. 

Changing your words and thoughts is definitely not an easy thing to do, but with God's help all things are possible.

Be Patient with Yourself

We have to choose to think and speak positively. It doesn't come naturally—and it doesn't happen overnight. In fact, it takes a lot of practice. 

There will be days when you have setbacks, but just get back up, dust yourself off, and start again. 

When a baby is learning to walk, he falls many, many times before he gains the confidence to walk. Failing from time to time—which you will do—doesn't mean you're a failure. It simply means that you don't do everything right all the time. 

Well, neither does anyone else. 

If you've been consumed with negative thinking and speaking, the pathway to your freedom begins when you face the problem without making excuses for it. 

Be patient with yourself. As you change your thinking, your words will change and so will your life!

THIN AIR-OGANCE

By:  M. Lucado

You can climb too high for your own good. The story of David and Bathsheba is less a story of lust and more a story of power. A story of a man who rose too high for his won good. A man who needed to hear these words: “Come down before you fall.”

“First pride, then the crash- the bigger the ego, the harder the fall.” (Proverbs 16:18 MSG)

This must be why God hates arrogance. He hates to see his children fall. He hates to see his Davids suduce and his Bathshebas be victimized. God hates what pride does to his children. He doesn’t dislike arrogance. He hates it. Could he state it any clearer than Proverbs 8:13: “I hate pride and arrogance.” (NIV)? And then a few chapters later: “God can’t stomach arrogance or pretense; believe me, he’ll put those upstarts in their place” (16:5 MSG).

You don’t want God to do that. Just ask David. He never quite recovered from his bout with this giant. Don’t make his mistake. ‘Tis far wiser to descend the mountain than fall from it.

Pursue humility. Humility doesn’t mean you think less of yourself but that you think of yourself less. “Don’t cherish exaggerated ideas of yourself or your importance, but try to have a sane estimate of your capabilities by the light of the faith that God has given to you” (Romans 12:3 Phillips).

Embrace your poverty. We’re all equally broke and blessed. “People come into this world with nothing, and when they die they leave with nothing” (Eccles. 5:15 NCV)

Resist the place of celebrity. “Go sit in a seat that is not important. When the host comes to you, he may say, ‘Friend, move up here to a more important place.’ Then all the othere guests will respect you” (Luke 14:10 NCV).

Wouldn’t you rather be invited up than put down?

God has a cure for the high and mighty: come down from the mountain. You’ll be amazed what you hear and who you see. And you’ll breathe a whole lot easier.

EMBARRASSMENT

By:  F. Kong

A girl from the Midwest made a trip to Hollywood, California to see the sights and hopefully to catch a glimpse of a real move star. One afternoon, she visited Beverly Hills and went into an ice cream shop to get an ice cream cone. She put in her order and then suddenly realized that the person standing next to her at the counter was none other than Paul Newman. She couldn’t believe it! Her heart leaped. But she tried to keep her composure. She didn’t want to act like an ignorant hillbilly. She didn’t want to embarrass herself in front of someone like Paul Newman. So she tried not to stare or show any emotion. She paid the cashier, turned, and walked calmly out of the store.

When she got outside, she took a deep breath and suddenly realized that she had walked out of the store without her ice cream cone. Oh no! She must have left it on the counter. Now she was going to have to go back in and get her ice cream cone in front of Paul Newman! She just couldn’t do that!

So she decided to wait outside the store until Mr. Newman had left the counter. When she noticed he was no longer there, she walked back into the store to retrieve her ice cream cone. But when she got to the counter, she felt a tap on her shoulder from behind. She turned around… It was Paul Newman! Flashing his famous smile, he said, “Miss, if you’re looking for your ice cream cone… you put it in your purse.”

No matter how hard we try, we all end up looking pretty foolish from time to time. We can try to look “cool” or totally in control, but down deep we struggle with fears, worries, lack of confidence, low self-esteem. And sometimes we let those things drag us down and keep us from experiencing all that God wants for us.

The work place carries with it tremendous pressures from day to day. We face an endless barrage of work assignments, quotas to fill, endless deadlines and I don’t care how brilliant a worker you are, because some time in your life you will have to face a real nasty situation and be embarrassed with the outcome. I’ve had mine too.

Just recently I came home from an exhausting trip abroad, couldn’t have time to go home but landing in our international airport, my car took me to the domestic airport where I should catch another plane for Davao. After 3 more exhausting days of work I came home, fatigued, nursing a flu and decided to rest the following day. Forgetting all along that I was scheduled to speak that same day, an engagement I committed some 2 months ago. So embarrassing and so humiliating.

I guess the question is: “How do we handle an embarrassing situation?” Do we keep up a front, defensively protect our self-image and try to argue our way out of that particular predicament? Frankly if we do all these, things become more complicated. Trust and confidence is destroyed because the response is totally dishonest.

The Word of God counsels us to let go of our pride and face the truth head on. Ask for an apology, ask for forgiveness. Repair any damages that may have occurred and determine never to allow a similar incident from happening again.

Embarrassment is difficult because it touches the pride aspect but being truthful and honest is easier than putting a mask and pretending to be perfect at all times. Being a diligent worker who serves with meekness and humility is always better than showing aggression and insensitivity. Always remember this: The world can forgive a person who has erred but it cannot stand anyone who pretends to be perfect.

There is only One who is Perfect and He even washed the feet of his disciples. (A pretty embarrassing thing for some people I may say.) He was God, yet he was kneeling down and doing the job of a slave.

We may look pretty foolish sometimes as Christians, but in God’s eyes, we are not fools, we are simply like Christ!

GOD USES COMPUTERS TOO!

By:  MB Smith

It had been a hectic day, one full of doctors appointments and then a dash to the hospital. My 82 year old Mother had a heart attack. As I sat by her bed, my mind began to replay all the scenes of Mama and I together. She had always been there -- through the scraped knees of childhood, the first heartbreak of my teenage years, my wedding day, holding her first grandchild -- Mama had ALWAYS been there. I had never imagined a time without her. I watched her during the night as she slept.

Strange, how much of life we take for granted. Our families, our friends, our homes -- the day to day moments of life -- and yet all too quickly we find ourselves facing life's curves, and we are suddenly faced not only with our loved ones' mortality, but our own.

I decided to go down to the hospital chapel to pray. I walked into a dimly lit room with an altar and a golden cross. Above the altar there was a picture of Jesus. I knelt as tears fell down my face. "Lord, please let Mama be OK ... please." They were the only words I could say because the sobs began. Sobs of wishing I had spent more time with her; sobs of wishing I had spent more time with HIM.

After a while I got up and walked out of the chapel and down the quiet hallway. I noticed a computer with a screen saver so beautiful sitting on a desk. I walked over to it -- peaceful waters, a pink sky that was a reflected majesty of God's creation, and then these words, "I am with thee.." And then the warmth of His love... His joy and the knowledge that HE was with me, and He was with Mama, flooded the depths of my being. I smiled. He had used a computer on a cold winter's night in a hospital to tell His child she was loved and He had heard her prayer.

And I knew that He was with Mama in her room. He used a computer to tell me and a scene of such beauty it lingers still within my mind.

And deep in my heart, I knew that message would be read by others -- all His children -- a message sent from heaven with love.

SET THE RIGHT AGENDA FOR YOUR LIFE

By:  Blackaby

Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed. (Mark 1:35)

It was common knowledge among the disciples that they would find Jesus praying during the early morning hours. When they needed Him, they knew to go to the place of prayer. When Judas betrayed Jesus, he led his cohorts to Jesus’ place of prayer.

Every time the Lord Jesus faced an important decision, He prayed. When He was being tempted to do things by the world’s methods instead of the Father’s, He prayed (Matt. 4). When it was time to choose His disciples, He prayed the entire night (Luke 6:12). If the Son of God required a night of prayer in order to determine the Father’s mind, how long might it take us in prayer to clearly determine our Father’s will?

Because Jesus was so often surrounded by crowds, He knew He must find a quiet place so He could clearly hear His Father’s voice.

Jesus had many people seeking to influence the direction of His life. His disciples wanted Him to go where the crowds were (Mark 1:37). The crowds wanted to crown Him king (John 6:15). Satan tempted Him to make compromises in order to draw a following (Matt. 4:3, 6, 9). Jesus knew that His mission was not to attract a crowd, but to remain obedient to His Father. It was prayer that set the agenda for Jesus’ ministry (Luke 6:12). Prayer preceded the miracles (John 11:42–43); prayer brought Him encouragement at critical moments (Luke 9:28–31); prayer enabled Him to go to the cross (Luke 22:41–42); and prayer kept Him there despite excruciating pain (Luke 23:46).

Follow the Savior’s example, and let your time alone with God, in prayer, set the agenda for your life.