Experiencing God Day By Day (42 page)

And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned,
and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face
at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan.

Luke 17:15–16

T
hankfulness is is a conscious response that comes from looking beyond our blessings to their source. As Christians, we have been forgiven, saved from death, and adopted as God's children. There could be no better reason for a grateful heart!

Lepers in Jesus’ day were social outcasts. Their contagious condition ostracized them from those they loved. When ten lepers encountered Jesus, they desperately implored Him to show them mercy. Jesus sent them to the priest. As they obeyed, they were healed! These ten men had been forbidden to enter their own villages, to live in their own homes, to work in their own jobs, or even to touch their own children. Imagine what unrestrained joy must have filled them as they ran home again!

One of the lepers, a Samaritan, stopped and ran back to thank Jesus. Samaritans were normally shunned by the Jews, but Jesus had healed him! Jesus asked, “Where are the others?” Ten lepers had been healed. Ten lepers were reveling in their newfound health, rushing to share the good news with those they loved. But only one considered the Source of that blessing and stopped to thank the One who had given him back his life.

We, too, have been healed and made whole by the Savior. We are free to enjoy the abundant life the Savior has graciously given us. Could we, like the nine lepers, rush off to glory in our blessings without stopping to thank our Redeemer? Our worship, prayers, service, and daily life ought to be saturated with thanksgiving to God (Phil. 4:6).

And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you,
because you obey the voice of the Lord your God.

Deuteronomy 28:2

W
hen you walk in fellowship with God, you do not have to ask Him to bless you. He
wants
to bless you! Just as you enjoy surprising someone you love with unexpected gifts, God delights in giving you His gifts in times and ways that you might never expect. God's blessings often come in the midst of your everyday life—an encouraging telephone call in the middle of a busy morning or a letter you receive at the end of a hard day. A friend may drop by to help when you are overwhelmed, or you may receive unexpected financial help at a time of need. Often, God's blessings do not come in spectacular ways but in the ordinary busyness of your life. They come just when you most need an expression of God's love.

Blessings come as a result of obedience. When you walk closely with the Lord, blessings will come, regardless of whether you seek them. Blessings from your obedience will also come to those around you—to your children and to your grandchildren. Solomon enjoyed vast wealth during his reign, but God's blessing upon him came largely as a result of his father David's obedience in the previous generation. God promised Abraham that his obedience would bring blessing to all the families of the earth (Gen. 12:2–3).

Do not take God's gifts for granted. When you receive an unexpected blessing, thank God for His continuing love and be alert to recognize the next time His blessing overtakes you!

Therefore, when Saul saw that he behaved
very wisely, he was afraid of him.

1 Samuel 18:15

J
ealousy is a destructive attitude that poisons the way you view life. It is so harmful that God condemned coveting in two of the Ten Commandments. King Saul was a jealous and insecure man. He had been elevated to the highest position in Israel. He had been blessed in numerous ways. But Saul saw that David was gaining the attention and praise of the Israelites. The Israelites recognized Saul's accomplishments, but they also praised David, whom God was using to accomplish even more (1 Sam. 18:7). Rather than rejoicing that God had empowered another to defeat their enemies, Saul became murderously jealous and sought to destroy David.

God has made us His children. None of us deserves this, so there is no need to compare our blessings with those of other children of God. Jealousy is self-centeredness at its worst. It robs us of joy and chokes out contentment. It hardens the heart and stifles gratitude. It assumes that God's resources are too limited for Him to bless another and still bless us. Saul grew so preoccupied with his jealousy toward David that he neglected important things, bringing suffering and pain upon his people. Because of his jealousy, Saul's family was destroyed.

Watch over your heart! If you are unable to rejoice in the success of others, beware! Do not let jealousy taint your heart. Repent before it robs you of any more of the joy and contentment God desires for you. When you are tempted to compare your success in life to that of another, ask God to remind you of all the ways He has blessed you undeservedly.

Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor.
For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who
is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help him up.

Ecclesiastes 4:9–10

F
rom the beginning of time, God made it clear that it is not good for His people to be alone (Gen. 2:18). God designed us to cooperate. Throughout the Scriptures He speaks of His people as a community that accomplishes more together than separately. God did not create us as isolated individuals, each seeking to achieve our own goals. Rather, the success of our endeavors depends upon our interdependence. This is why He established the church and released His Holy Spirit to empower the community of believers to spread the gospel. We are to be a kingdom of priests (1 Pet. 2:9).

During difficult times it is critical that we are walking in fellowship with other Christians. When a crisis hits, it is overwhelming to face it alone. But if we have cultivated supportive friendships, we will find strength in the comfort and encouragement of those who care about us. Interdependence is also a safeguard for us when we are lured by temptation. The consistent testimony of those who have fallen to temptation is that they isolated themselves from other believers and were not held accountable by Christian friends.

If you are not a part of a caring community of believers, you are missing out on what God designed you for. You are also in danger of falling into sin. You must link your life with others who are seeking God's will. Seek to be a person who willingly joins others in carrying out God's assignments. Be the source of support and encouragement that those around you need.

“If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well,
sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.”

Genesis 4:7

W
hen temptation enters our hearts and minds, we either deal with it and gain mastery over it, or it eventually leads us to sinful actions. The time between the initial temptation and the chosen response is critical. Much hangs in the balance.

Cain knew that God was displeased with him but pleased with Abel. Feelings of jealous anger crept into Cain's heart, and thoughts of murder pervaded his mind. As Cain considered what to do, God's Word came to him. God warned him that sin was waiting at the door of his life, looking for an opportunity to enter. Now was not the time to treat temptation lightly, not the time to assume sin would never cause any harm. Now was the time to master the sin and renounce it before it overcame him. Tragically, Cain did not master his sin; instead, sin overtook him and destroyed his life.

Temptations come at unexpected moments. Sinful thoughts may cross your mind. Selfish feelings may begin to invade your heart. The promptings of the Holy Spirit will warn you that God is not pleased with the direction your thoughts and feelings are taking you. At that moment of conviction, you must master the sin that crouches at the door of your life. Sin destroys. Sin brings death. Sin is not something to toy with or take lightly. God's Word to you is the same warning He gave to Cain: master the sin at the door of your life before it brings its inevitable and disastrous consequences. Heed His caution, and you will avoid unnecessary hardship for yourself and others.

For the kingdom of God is not in word but in power.

1 Corinthians 4:20

P
aul faced constant criticism about his work among the early churches. Some of his detractors would travel to cities such as Corinth and speak extensively about all that Paul was doing incorrectly. At times, people in the churches were enticed to believe the slanderous criticisms against the apostle.

Paul responded with a reminder that the test of a kingdom citizen's authenticity was not the persuasiveness of his words, but the spiritual power of his life. Paul candidly acknowledged that some did not find him eloquent in speech (2 Cor. 10:10). Yet they could not question God's power in his life. He had seen many people converted, and many churches were started through his ministry. He had been used to heal the sick and raise the dead through God's power. Regardless of whether his words were eloquent, they carried spiritual power and authority that came from God.

You will encounter many people who seek to convince you of their opinions concerning the kingdom of God. They may speak passionately. But the test of the validity of their words is the spiritual power of their lives. If a person speaks forcefully about a point of doctrine but is habitually sinning, his words are discredited by his life. If a person talks of the power of God but gives no evidence of victory in her life, her words are empty. It is much easier to talk about the victorious Christian life than it is to live it. If you only have the appearance of godliness without any corresponding spiritual power (2 Tim. 3:5), ask God to cleanse you of your sin and to fill you with His Spirit so that your life is characterized by power.

Do not quench the Spirit.

1 Thessalonians 5:19

W
e cannot prevent God from accomplishing His work in the world around us, but we can quench His Spirit in our lives. God has given us the freedom to withstand the Holy Spirit's activity in our lives. When we ignore, disobey, or reject what the Spirit is telling us, we quench His activity in us. The prophet Isaiah described the result: “Hearing you will hear and not understand, and seeing you will see and not perceive; For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them” (Isa. 6:9; Matt. 13:14–15).

When you sin, the Holy Spirit will convict you of your need for repentance. If you habitually ignore Him and do not repent, your heart will grow hardened to God's Word. If the Spirit speaks to you about God's will for you, and if you refuse to take action, a time will come when the Spirit's voice will be muted in your life. If you continually reject the Spirit's promptings, a day will come when you no longer hear a word from God. If you repeatedly stifle God's Word to you so that you are no longer sensitive to His voice, He will not give you a fresh word. Be wary of resisting the voice of the Spirit in your life. You may not always be comfortable with what the Spirit is saying to you, but His words will guide you to abundant life.

Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave
to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.”

Genesis 3:12

A
dam and Eve did everything they could to avoid taking responsibility for their sin. Adam blamed his wife: “She gave me of the tree.” He even pointed an accusing finger at God, saying it was “the woman, whom
You
gave me.” Eve blamed the serpent saying: “The
serpent
deceived me, and I ate.” God ignored their excuses and announced the judgment they would face as consequences for their disobedience.

One of the dirges of mankind is that we refuse to take responsibility for our actions. We want to blame others for our problems: our parents did not raise us well; our friends let us down; our pastor was not a good enough preacher; our children are rebellious; our employer is not sensitive enough; our spouse is not understanding; there is not enough time in the day … the excuses are plentiful! Yet forgiveness and restoration cannot happen until we accept full responsibility for our actions.

An obvious indication that we have not genuinely repented is that we make excuses for our sinful behavior. Nowhere in Scripture does God excuse one person's sin because of someone else's actions. If we make a habit of blaming others for our failures, we will not reach a point of honest repentance. God will hold us accountable for our own actions, not others (2 Cor. 5:10). Strive always to acknowledge and take responsibility for your own sins. It will free you to receive God's forgiveness and to press on to spiritual maturity.