Anger "who it really hurts"

Recopied from an article written by Tammy Dake

“ When you remain angry and bitter at someone, you give them power and control over your life. They will continue on with their lives, while you obsess over what was done to you, how to get revenge on that person, and how to keep it from happening again. When you let go of that anger, their hold over you is released and you are free from them. Holding onto anger does not hurt the person you are angered at, but it hurts you. You’ll lose control over your own actions and good judgment.

Is it easy to rid yourself of anger and bitterness? No. It takes time and much meditation, but eventually, just as the sun will rise each day, the anger will be washed away. Shield yourself and learn to recognize future things that anger you and be quick to deflect the anger so that it cannot penetrate your heart again. Only then can you have complete control over yourself.”

That was very well said. If you are harboring anger toward someone make the conscious choice to release that anger. Jesus spoke many times on anger and forgiveness, in fact he spoke those very words on the cross. The Bible is clear that as humans we may at times become angry, it is a human emotion that is God given. The choice, “free will”, that we then have is whether we are going to have righteous anger or worldly. Then whether or not we are going to release that anger and move on.

Jesus taught us to forgive when we are wronged. That is more for our healing than for the other person. But, keep in mind that you are not required to continue being hurt by that person. Forgive them, let them know that you forgive them, and then move on. Don’t keep putting yourself in a position to be hurt by that person.

Matthew 6:14-15 says this. For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespassing, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

During this Holiday season we will all be getting together with family, some of which we would just as soon not be around. Family has a way of hurting each other and then we just keep it going. I encourage you that if you have a family member that you need to forgive, do it this Holiday. If not for them, then for you, release the anger and start healing.

Spiritual Drifting

I heard this sermon preached a couple weeks ago by our Senior Pastor and it was so striking I wanted to summarize it and bring it to you. He spoke on Spiritual drifting. Hebrews 2:1-3 warns against neglecting your salvation. It does not say rejecting it, but neglecting it. So many times we are all in danger of neglecting our salvation and we start to drift away from God.

Neglect will cause us to drift away unintentionally, unknowingly, and unexpectedly. Very few people purposely reject and turn away from God, but many many people just drift away slowing without really knowing it. Drifting is easy because it requires no effort, people are looking for an effortless religion. You can go to church every Sunday and still be drifting away from God.

Remember that drifting never takes you forward only backward. And it will always lead to a waterfall disaster in your life. That could be a loss of a job, a marriage, ministry, or family. In many of these cases sin can be traced back to the root cause. Everyone, including ministers have to guard against drifting. Life becomes one day after another and soon you find yourself, if your even looking, a long way from where you started.

Some signs of drifting are these. A lack of interest of Bible and Prayer, when you would rather spend time around non Christian people, when you can hear the truth and the word and it not affect you, when you begin to see your sin as no big deal and when we forget that ending well is as important and how we began.

We must be properly anchored so as not to drift when life’s storms come along. Otherwise when the storm is over we find ourselves way off course. If we don’t re-evaluate our course we just continue along off course all the while not realizing how far away from God we have gotten. Our anchor is the Bible and Prayer. Neglecting these will most assuredly float you off course.

Take the time to do a little self inventory. Are you drifting, are you where you should be in God? Matthew 7 speaks of the narrow road and narrow gate. Don’t try to walk the wide road and think that you can just jump over to the narrow gate at the end. Your life must be a Christian walk not a worldly walk claiming a Christian salvation in word only.

We all find ourselves drifting. God’s grace will pick us up and put us back on the right road if we simply recognize that we are off course and readjust our path.

Leaning on God

Some of my readers are aware that my wife has been in and out of the hospital over the last couple weeks. This of course has delayed my postings a bit and I do apologize for that. I would also like to thank each of you for the prayers that have been offered and continue to ask that you hold Tammy up in prayer, as we know that her healing will take place through God. Whether He chooses to do a miracle in her life, or use the gifts of medical science which He has provided us. I should also tell you that this past year has made both of our faith stronger and we are trusting in the Lord. We may not like the situation that we are in but we are trusting.

As a husband it is hard to watch the person that you love so deeply go through the pain and problems that she is going through, and as a man, not being able to “fix” it as I have always tried to do, is also very difficult. I feel helpless and have no options but to lean upon the Lord for strength and encouragement. Yes, it does become difficult at times and in those times I ask that God renew my strength and give me the resources to be encouraged.

Prayer and studying the Bible is a great source of strength in times like this as well as encouragement of friends and readers like you. Be sure to encourage others as you see them in need, you too may need that encouragement some day.

Understand that God is grieved by our pain and suffering as well. At times He chooses not to fix a problem the way we think it should be fixed, but keep in mind that that is not up to us to decide, we may not understand the whole reason behind what is going on.

Also know that God does not cause suffering in this world. Sickness, child death, horrible accidents are not designed by God. Life happens. I believe that the world is on auto pilot so to speak and we are given free will to make choices in our lives that will results in consequences. Sin and corruption dominates this world and Christians, although should not consider themselves of this world are still very much part of this world and we will suffer right along with everyone else.

Old Testament times showed us very long life spans and dieses and sickness were few. But as sin and corruption continued in this world life spans shortened and dieses grew. Medical science can only do so much. Remember that Satan is currently allowed to roam the earth looking to whom he can devourer.

So know that God is still very much in control, but we are not immune to trials and suffering. Just lean on the Lord and He will give you strength to go through the valley that you are walking. Knowing that God will never leave you nor forsake you is a great encouragement for times such as these.

My post today was going to be on being a Consistent Christian but it seems that I was lead in another direction. I will post that discussion at another time..

God Bless

Who are you ? Image and Idenity

The following is a reprint of a sermon reduced to summary by our youth Pastor, Dave Wild. The message was so relevant to our everyday lives that I asked him to share it with us..

Who are you? This is a question that only you and God can answer. Our image is our identity; this is how others see us. In too many cases people don’t know who they are, or more importantly who God would like us to be. The only way to know who God wants us to be is to ask him! Who better to ask than the one who knew us before we were even formed in our mother’s womb, (Jeremiah 1:5). If we go through life not asking, not knowing, then we will miss out on who we were designed to be, you will never develop into the one that God wants you to be…

If we don’t inquire of God about His plans for us, then we allow ourselves to be molded and shaped by others. This is very common in our society today, it’s called identity theft. This happens when we allow Satan to convince us to be someone we are not.

This is a common struggle even in the church today. We often make choices and decisions based on what we see, and because of this we try to justify what we do based on what we see someone else do. The bottom line is that we’ll all be held accountable for what we do, and I don’t think God will let us off the hook with the “ because I saw brother or sister so and so do it” excuse. “ They have been in church their whole life so it must be ok for me to do what they do”. This is another misconception.

We are all individuals, each one of us are uniquely different. Paul calls us peculiar and special. We, each individual, need to learn to ask God what is right for ourselves. Our choices and decisions are what shape and mold our image. Our image is not only what others see ,but also refers to our qualities like intellect and personality.

Genesis 1:26 says that we are all made in His image. This means that if we are a child of God then we should bear some resemblance to him. Just as most children have a likeness to their parents. It should be no different with our relationship with God.

I want to encourage you to inquire of God who He wants you to be and let Him be the one who molds you and shapes you ! Don’t let identity theft rob you of your future..

Showing Christian Love

I sat in Sunday School this morning and was amazed at the lesson. The teacher, Joyce Corbett, taught on Christian love as written about in Romans 12. I was in awe at the simplicity of the lesson and how profound the message. It opened my eyes again to the need for Christians to Love each other.

Not just in word but in action. I first discovered this kind of Love last year when I was going through a pretty hard time in my life and I reached out to a friend from Church. At that time that’s all he was, a friend from Church. I knew little about this man’s background, only what he had shared. But his younger life resembled mine in a lot of ways, and although this man is younger than me, and has not claimed to be a Christian as long as me, God put him in place to be my confidant and friend when I needed him the most.

He has proven to be a trusted friend and a Godly man. I will, without hesitation, say that this man, in many ways, saved my life. He has no idea, until know, just how much he did for me during that time. His strength, Godly wisdom, and Christian love was everything God needed to direct me in the direction I needed to go. I could talk with him about what was wrong and the struggles that I was going through and he never judged and he never told. To this day he has never wavered as my friend, no matter how much I unloaded on him. He has remained a trusted friend.

It’s this kind of Christian love that we all need in our lives. Everyone of us need to be that person for someone and to have that person in our lives. Us men are the worst at having a “meaningful” relationship with another man. We too often see it as weak and not the “manly” thing to do, but that’s exactly what God wants us to do. Us men have the same struggles and the same problems, you are not unique. Having a Godly friend that can share in that struggle and will hold you accountable is one of the biggest blessings you will ever have.

God uses people in our lives to answer our prayers. We just too often shut out the answer and the blessing that God has for us because we are too scared to open our true feelings to someone else.. From the other side I challenge every reader to be that friend to someone. Show Christian ( Christ Like) love to everyone around you. Be known as the person that can be trusted and can listen without judgment. You just might be a bigger blessing to someone than you could ever imagine.

Are you a pessimistic Christian

Human beings tend to be caught in one of two cycles. A downward cycle of disappointment, or an upward cycle of blessing. We as humans are many times very pessimistic. We see the glass half empty. We often times focus more on our unmet needs than the goodness of God. We are a blessed people and although life is a struggle and obstacles arise, we are blessed.

Deep rooted and habitual pessimism is, after all, a spiritual problem. When we focus only on our needs we lose focus on God and the blessings that we have and are unprepared to receive more. Negative and the “woe is me” attitude will cause you to miss many of God’s blessings.

There is a profound blessing in knowing who God is and claiming His presence in your life. His greatness makes all other things, especially hard things, seem small. Be in a spirit of worship even in the hard times.

I am not immune to hard times and struggles. I have had many “dark” days in my life. As many of us, I have seen financial struggles beyond what I could ever take care of myself, family trials, marital trials and job trials. But through it all I have grown. I have grown to a point in God that I let him deal with it. Does that mean I never worry, of course not, but I worry a whole lot less and look for the blessing in the struggle, not focus on the struggle.

In Acts 16:25 it tells the story of Paul and Silas. They were in chains and in prison for their faith. They had a lot to worry about. But, in the midnight hour they started signing and praising God. The building shook and all doors were open and chains came off. And not just for Paul and Silas, but for everyone around them too.

Can you praise God in your midnight hour ? My challenge to you as well as to myself is to be careful to praise God, even in your darkest “midnight” hour. It’s not always easy, Satan wants you to look at the bad and not focus on the good. But you must look to God and find the blessing. List all the blessings in your life. God is a good God and His people are not immune to struggles, they will however, overcome.

I will leave you with this thought; 1 Thessalonians 5:16 Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstance, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus…

Who's Watching You ?

James 1:22 tells us, Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourself, do what it says. So who sees your behavior as a Christian? First, God. Who else ? Other Christians. Christians encourage one another not only by words, but by our actions. We as Christians want to see how others in Christ will react to similar situations, and so your actions become either a help or a hindrance. Our children are watching. Children know better than anyone whether your living your Christian walk. They can spot hypocritical parents within seconds…


An unbelieving world is watching too. The “world” does not care about our theology or denominations. Unbelievers want to see what faith in action really looks like, not what we say and what they have heard hundreds of times. What does it look like ? Who are you outside the church doors? If you claim Christianity, what example are you giving ?

I have heard many times from non Christians, that Christians are hypocrites and act like they are better than everyone else. They say many are so “Holy” they look down their noses at those they see as “less holy” .

Remember that the definition of a Christian is to be Christ like. The Bible tells us in Mark 10:45, that Jesus came into this world to serve, not to be served. So humble yourselves and remember that you are a living witness of Jesus Christ. The world is watching and you are the example.. Do you let Christian values guide your daily life in business, family, and everyday lifestyle ?

My challenge to you, as to myself, is to love everyone. You can hate the sin but love the person. Also remember that as a Christian you are the example. How would you feel if you knew that someone that was looking for a life changing answer was seeking Jesus and you looked down on them and brushed them off, or they watched as you was less than honest in a business deal or purchase, and because of your actions they turned away from Jesus. You will have to explain that to God someday. Let’s hope we have a good enough answer…

A godly life is not lived passively

Living a godly life is not lived passively. It is not a random and wandering life. Those who wait for God’s Word to change them will only be successful when they actively feed and meditate on it. Those who expect sermons they hear and the words they read to make them godly will be forever frustrated unless they are diligent in applying the truth to their lives.

Just sitting in a pew week after week will not do anything radical in a believer’s heart or life. Wisdom and knowledge can not be gained through absorption. It must be consumed and mediated upon. It must become the focal point of our thinking…

Those who hear the word and understand it, and even agree with it, but do not apply it to their lives are gaining no benefit. It isn’t real faith in Jesus Christ.. Hearing, understanding, and agreeing without application is a self-deceptive dynamic. It appears to be faith, but it has no effect in the life of the one who hears. Something more is needed, action for example. God and God’s Word must be treasured more than any other affection of our heart.

Where does your true affection lie? Are you like the passage in James 1:22-25. Do you hear the Word and go away not remembering what you’ve heard. It’s like looking at yourself in the mirror and then looking away forgetting what you look like.

God’s Words should be consumed every day and should be meditated upon all day.. Do you know how to worry about something? It’s on your mind all the time. You turn it over in your head every way you can, thinking of how every outcome will effect you and the situation. If you can worry, you can meditate on God’s word. Read a passage every morning. Then remember that passage throughout the day and learn how it can be applied to your life. Look for ways to remember what you’ve read and ask God to show you how it applies. It amazes me sometimes how something that I have read a dozen times may not mean anything that day , but the one time a read it again it applies then.

I challenge you to apply God’s Word to your life. Become a doer of the Word not just a hearer. Let God’s Word change your life and as written in Romans 12.. Do not conform any longer to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind..