"Pathway To Obtaining And Maintaining Peace In 2015"
The battle for true peace commences in the mind. The Bible counsels us to be very careful and guard our thoughts as well as what we ponder within our heart, because that will set the cadence of our life. Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance and above all that you guard, for out of it flow the springs of life. Proverbs 4:23
Christ Jesus, in His gracious message on the mountain, informs us that it is the pure in heart that see God. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Matthew 5:8
The writer of the book of Hebrews again admonishes us to actively seek, and powerfully pursue, purity and holiness, if we are going to see and behold the Lord. Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord.Hebrews 12:14
Not Double-Minded
It is a tragic mistake thinking we can live a double-minded lifestyle and still have the blessing and favor of God and peace of God surrounding our life. Scripture warns us that to be double-minded is to forfeit contentment and peace in every arena of one's life. Scripture states a wicked person is like the troubled sea filled with shame and unrest (see Isaiah 57:20-21). Again in Psalm 66:18 we see that sin hidden within causes our fellowship and communication with the Lord to be broken. (Photo via Pixabay)
If any of you is deficient in wisdom, let him ask of the giving God [Who gives] to everyone liberally and ungrudgingly, without reproaching or faultfinding, and it will be given him. Only it must be in faith that he asks with no wavering (no hesitating, no doubting). For the one who wavers (hesitates, doubts) is like the billowing surge out at sea that is blown hither and thither and tossed by the wind. For truly, let not such a person imagine that he will receive anything [he asks for] from the Lord, [For being as he is] a man of two minds (hesitating, dubious, irresolute), he is unstable and unreliable and uncertain about everything [he thinks, feels, decides]. James 1:5-8 (Amplified Bible)
Notice the sad list of actions and attitudes of a double-minded person: unstable and unreliable and uncertain about everything he feels, thinks and decides. These are lethal deadly actions that we must avoid. God wants us to walk in His light and love, guided and directed by His Holy Spirit.
What does it mean to be double-minded? Simply speaking: attempting to live in sin while seeking to portray yourself as a true upright Christian.
How to be single-minded:
Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, does not faint or grow weary; there is no searching of His understanding. He gives power to the faint and weary, and to him who has no might He increases strength [causing it to multiply and making it to abound]. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and [selected] young men shall feebly stumble and fall exhausted; But those who wait for the Lord [who expect, look for, and hope in Him] shall change and renew their strength and power; they shall lift their wings and mount up close to God as eagles [mount up to the sun]; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint or become tired. Isaiah 40:28-31 (Amplified Bible)
These should be days of mounting up and soaring higher and higher in the ways of God. NOW is the time to renew your strength and be empowered by a fresh touch and anointing of God's Spirit (see Micah 3:8).
The promise of God's protection and provisions are extremely clear in this passage and promise from Isaiah. Ponder these passages and take them to heart. You will discover abiding peace and tranquility, even in a hostile world:
You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes confidently in You. So trust in the Lord (commit yourself to Him, lean on Him, hope confidently in Him) forever; for the Lord God is an everlasting Rock [the Rock of Ages]. Isaiah 26:3-4 (Amplified Bible)
Yes, we will see trouble and chaos upon the earth, yet amid all this, in Jesus and by Jesus, we have peace and confidence. Notice how the Message Bibles states this fact:
It will seem like all Hell has broken loose—sun, moon, stars, earth, sea, in an uproar and everyone all over the world in a panic, the wind knocked out of them by the threat of doom, the powers-that-be quaking. Luke 21:25-26 (Message Bible)
Focus on Good Godly Things
Again, we will greatly benefit by focusing on good Godly things, not on the dark deceptive works of the devil.Good advice is released in this passage from the Message Bible:
Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. Summing it all up, friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Philippians 4:6-8 (Message Bible) (Photo via Geograph)
Keep your heart clean! Guard your thoughts keep your mind pure! Watch what you watch! It does matter what movies you watch. Keep your focus on Godly things!
May these days be filled with God's blessings and favor on you and your family (see Psalm 84:11).
Bobby Conner: This "Gentle Giant" i
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