"Baggage!"

     Have you ever seen the television show “Baggage?” It is a dating game show that airs on the Game Show Network. On the show one contestant is introduced to three potential “dates.” Each suitor looks appealing to the contestant and then their baggage is revealed. Some of the revealed issues or “baggage” will be things like; “sleeps with her cats every night,” or “steals money from his mother.” Each suitor gets the opportunity to explain their “baggage” to the contestant. They are also encouraged to entertain or amuse the contestant in some manner in order to be chosen.

     Once the contestant sees the “baggage” of their potential suitors, they decide which person they will go out on a date with or whose “baggage” they can deal with. After making their choice, the person who is chosen is then allowed to see the contestant’s “baggage” and decide if they want the date after all.

     Thinking about the premise of this show made me realize how glad I am that God is not like man! Our God is loving and forgiving. You may feel you can’t live the Christian lifestyle because you have too much “baggage.” But I want you to know that Christ is not like man and He will accept your baggage and forgive you of whatever you may have done, no matter how great or small.

     All you have to do is be open and honest with Him and repent. Let’s be clear; to repent is not just to say you are sorry for what you have done. It is to turn from doing wrong and strive with all your might not to error again.  Living a Christian lifestyle is not as difficult as many suppose. Christians are not repressed from having fun, we just choose to life as Christ would have us live. We are to make a conscience effort to be an example for others to follow by living a holy and clean lifestyle.

     II Chronicles 7:14 says, “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and forgive their sins and heal their land.”  With God it’s that simple, repent and turn and He will forgive and heal.

     No need for tricks. All you need to do is submit yourself to Christ; ask Him to come into your heart and live for Him from that moment forward. God doesn’t care about your “baggage.”  He doesn’t sift through it to decide whether or not you are good enough for Him. He will forget and remember no more.

Think about it!

Shred the Clutter!

Filing papers is part of my job. Though I am a very organized person I hate filing. I usually put off filing and shredding old papers until there is no other option. Recently the time came for me to de-clutter and do some filing and shredding at the office. Begrudgingly, I went through loads of papers that had overtaken several drawers. After gathering up a host of papers I began shredding. 

As I was shredding papers I reminisced about some things I had recently been through and thought, “I wish I could put “this or that” into this shredder and be rid of it or them forever!”

The shredder I used operates as follows; first open the door of the machine; second, load a few pieces of paper; third, close the door. Once you close the door, the machine automatically begins to shred.  As long as you continue to feed paper after closing the door just once, the machine will continue to shred.

I believe it is that simple to rid your life of unnecessary things. The first step is to recognize you have things in your life you need to get rid of. Now, gather those items together in your mind and prepare to let them go for good. Next you must “open the door.” Your door is your heart. Once you recognize the need for a change, you have to make up in your mind and heart to make that change. Finally you must “close the door” to those things and be determined not to go back and get them again.

It doesn’t matter if you need to sever a relationship that is poisoning your spirit or if you have a sinful habit you need to get rid of, you can do it! You may need to seek Godly counsel, or simply fall on your knees and ask God for His divine help. Do whatever it takes so that you can be the best “you.” 

I’m not saying it will be easy but it can and must be done. Matthew 18: 8 tells us, “If your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life lame or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet, to be cast into the everlasting fire.”

So pull out your spiritual shredder and get rid of all the things that hinder you, you’ll be glad you did. 

Think about it!

True Value

I recently ran across the story below and felt I had to share it. A well-known speaker started off his seminar holding up a $20.00 bill. In the room of 200, he asked, "Who would like this $20 bill?" Hands started going up. He said, "I am going to give this $20 to one of you but first, let me do this."  He proceeded to crumple up the $20 dollar bill. He then asked, "Who still wants it...?" Still the hands were up in the air. "Well," he replied, "What if I do this?" And he dropped it on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe. He picked it up, now crumpled and dirty. "Now, who still wants it?" Still the hands went into the air.
"My friends, we have all learned a very valuable lesson. No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it because it did not decrease in value. It was still worth $20.

Many times we may feel dropped, crumpled and ground into dirt by others or even by the decisions we make and the circumstances that come our way. How often do we devalue ourselves because of past hurt? Not only that but how often do we devalue others? At times you may feel as though you are worthless, but no matter what has happened in your past in God’s eyes you never lose your value. Do you know your life is very valuable? God loved and valued us so much that He was willing to pay a very steep price to ensure we have an opportunity to receive His most precious gift, eternal life.

The Bible says in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” Webster’s definition of perish is to become destroyed or ruined. This lets us know that God had us in mind when He wrapped Himself in flesh and died on the cross for our sins.

Dirty or clean, crumpled or finely creased, we are all still priceless to those who DO LOVE us, especially the Lord. The worth of our lives comes not only in what we do or who we know, but by WHO WE ARE. So who are we supposed to be? Well if God loved us enough to die I believe the least we can do is return the favor. Luke 10:27 says, “So he answered and said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your mind,’ and your neighbor as yourself.” It’s simple our true value lies within our relationship with the One who created us and know our worth more than anyone else ever could. So let’s love God, love ourselves and love our neighbors, the world will be a much better place if we do.

Think about it.

Turning the page

I am an avid reader. I really enjoy a good book. You may be surprised to learn that I do not own a Nook or Kindle Fire. I do not have an Android phone that I can download books on; and though I own a tablet, I do not have books downloaded on it either. I’m an old fashioned girl; I still like the smell of a new book. I still like the feel of a hard back cover in my hands and the prospect of turning pages.

The theme for my church this year is “Determined to move forward collectively.” When I think about this and the study we did in Philippians chapter three, it makes me think of reading a book. One of our focus scripture is verse 13 which says, “Brethren I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead.”

Every book lover knows that in order to fully enjoy a book, you need a few simple things that can also apply to our Christian walk, forgetting the past and moving forward in the New Year!  

1.       Desire: in order to really enjoy a book, you must desire to read it. Have you ever been assigned a book to read and that alone killed your desire to enjoy it?

2.       Time: in order to get pleasure from your read, you need time to actually sit down and read.

3.       Patience: in order to finish a book, you need patience to finish it, as well as, be patient enough not to skip ahead.

These three book-reading principles apply to new beginnings in our lives. In order to accomplish any goals you have set for yourself in 2013 you will need desire to see them through, time to make them happen, and patience to wait on results and not try to skip ahead. So as you venture forward in 2013 turning the pages of your life, don’t allow your past to dictate your future and be determined to obtain your prize this year whatever that may be.

Think about it!