A Life Understanding a Man’s Need to Lead

The Lord made men and women to rule. Both men and women are to lead. Each one has their own sphere of influence. The Lord designed for man to rule in the world. A man is born to be a leader. He is to lead not only in the world and in his workplace but also in his home. It does not mean that he is better than anyone, for leadership is a position given by God. A man must first learn to lead and he does so by being under leadership. There is a chain of authority that begins with God. As long as Adam was under God’s leadership and authority then he would rule well. A man who wants to do what is right will recognize and respect authority in others. For this reason, an older man can be under a younger man. A man understands that with authority comes responsibility. A man will respect another man, even if he is younger, by his wisdom and skill in leading and his faithfulness to fulfill his responsibility.  A man was made to lead as the Lord leads and when he does, those who are under him are blessed.

‘He who rules over men righteously,
Who rules in the fear of God,
Is as the light of the morning when the sun rises,
A morning without clouds,
When the tender grass springs out of the earth,
Through sunshine after rain.’ II Samuel 23:3b,4

Women were also made to rule but when Eve sinned the Lord put her under Adam’s authority. The Lord did this to protect her from being deceived again. Girls were never designed to be on their own even when they are older than the “legal” age. They are to go from their father’s authority to their husband’s authority. It is the father who gives his daughter to the man who is to love her and be her leader. For this reason, it is very important that a daughter stay under her father’s authority until marriage. Her father is her protection from boys and later men who would like to take advantage of her. Her father loves his daughter and will not give his daughter to a man who will be abusive.

So then both he who gives his own virgin daughter in marriage does well,  I Corinthians 7:38a

Do understand that a woman can not see through a man but a man can see through another man. Do go to your father for advice on any boy that is interested in you. When your father sees that you are looking to him for advice then he will most likely want to give it. However, if your father thinks that you have already made up your mind to do what you want to do then he will often not say anything. You need your father’s counsel. Other than your decision to become a Christian, the most important decision that you will make will be who you marry. The Lord gave you parents and especially fathers, to help you.

A Life that Believes and Receives

The Lord God has given us a wonderful revelation of who He is. He is Truth and that is who He is. The truth of God are the facts about God which describe His character or, in other words, who He is. The facts or truths about God never change. He is who He is and He has been who He is before all eternity.

“Even from eternity I am He, And there is none who can deliver out of My hand; I act and who can reverse it?” Isaiah 43:13

The Lord God has no beginning and no end. God was not created for He is the Creator. God has always existed. Man was created by God and we will never be able to grasp what it means to be God or to fully understand everything about God. He has chosen to reveal Himself but there are still many secret things about the Lord that we do not know and in all probability could not comprehend. In His love, He has made Himself known and in His love He has not revealed all to man.

“The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, Deuteronomy 29:29a

The only true revelation of God is found in the Bible, which is His inspired Word, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, who is fully God but became fully man when He was born of a virgin, lived and died on a cross and was raised from the dead. The Word of God became flesh and lived among man in the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the revelation of God.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. John 1:1-3

Jesus Christ has existed for all eternity. He was at creation.

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; Genesis 1:26a

Jesus Christ is the exact representation of God. He is God Himself.

And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. Hebrews 1:3

God, the Father, sent Jesus Christ, His Son into the world, to speak to us, to reveal to us who God is and to demonstrate His great love for us, so that we might understand and believe in God. He wanted us to know Him so that we would believe in Him and trust Him.

God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. Hebrews 1:1,2

Jesus Christ and the Father are One and we know God through Jesus Christ.

And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14

Only those who believe in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savoir have eternal life. A person believes the truth of who Jesus Christ is and they receive the promise of eternal life. The one who believes and receives Christ becomes God’s child and is born into the family of God.

But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name,  who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. John 1:12

The child of God receives the greatest of all love. They are adopted into His family, their sins are forgiven and their guilt removed.

See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. I John 3:1

They also become a new person and begin to become like Christ. The Lord starts transforming them into the person He created them to be. He removes the bad and gives them a new heart and a new start in life.

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. II Corinthians 5:17

Not only does the one who believes in Jesus Christ and who receives Him as their Lord and Savoir become a new person but they start living the new life that God has for them. He came to give us life, but not just life, but an abundant life.

I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. John 10:10b

Come to Him today. He has come to you and given you an invitation to come to Him that you might know His great love, His forgiveness, His cleansing within and His power to overcome. We come to Him through faith, which is believing Him and trusting Him.

For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God I John 5:4,5

A Life with Whom He is Pleased

Peace on earth and goodwill to men is often quoted especially around Christmas time. However, people do not finish the verse and so it leaves people wondering why there is not peace on earth. The verse says, “Peace among men with whom He is pleased.”

Luke 2:14 “Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.”

Jesus Christ did come and bring peace to us but only those with whom He is pleased will experience that peace. Who is the Lord well pleased with among men? There is only One who lived a life pleasing to Him.

Matthew 3:16,17 After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him, and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.”

Again, the Father reaffirmed His total satisfaction with Jesus and the life that He lived on earth. The Father was well pleased with Jesus before He did any ministry. He was pleased with the life of faith and obedience that Jesus lived as the Son of man.

Matthew 17:5 While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!”

Jesus laid aside His being God and lived in the flesh a perfect and sinless life.

Philippians 2:5-8 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Jesus lived a perfect life and had a perfect record of no sin at all. We have lived a sinful life and we have all fallen short of God’s glory.

Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

He offers His life and perfect standard of living in exchange for our life and our sinful record. It is not fair. It was God’s will to show us mercy and grace rather than fairness.

Isaiah 53:4-6 Surely our griefs He Himself bore,
And our sorrows He carried;
Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten of God, and afflicted.
But He was pierced through for our transgressions,
He was crushed for our iniquities;
The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him,
And by His scourging we are healed.
All of us like sheep have gone astray,
Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all
To fall on Him.

If the Lord gave us what is fair then we would not be able to receive the life of Christ. The Lord was well pleased with this message.

I Corinthians 1:21 For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.

If we will believe the message that God loves us and receive the gift of His Son then we will receive also the affirmation that God is well pleased with us. Not because of any righteousness of our own but because we have trusted in Jesus Christ to take our sin and guilt upon Himself on the cross and to give us His righteousness. It was not fair for Him to take our penalty and give us God’s acceptance of us through Him, but He did it anyway because He loves you. He came to bring you peace.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.

He gave us the greatest gift of all when He gave us His Son. Will you receive Him today?

John 1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name,

Will you thank Him and share this amazing gift with someone else? Will you tell someone else what He has done for you?

II Corinthians 9:15 Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!

Peace on earth, goodwill to men with whom He is pleased and that is those of us who are in Christ Jesus and Jesus Christ is in us.

 

A Life Understanding a Man’s Work

Understanding Men and His Work

Man was made from the dust, or in other words, man was made from the earth and he relates to the earth. Men do not mind getting dirty when they work because it is a part of work. One of the first things that the Lord gave man to do was to work. He gave him a job to do and that was to cultivate the earth and to name the animals. Men need to work in the world. Men receive their identity and self respect from their work. One of the first things that a man is asked is. “what do you do?”. When a man can take healthy pride in his work that he has done his best then he feels good about himself. A man is at home in the world and he feels at home when he is outside in nature. A man appreciates what he works for. A good man wants to work for what he gets and he does not want handouts. A man respects another man’s work and understands that he needs to be paid for his services. A man needs to be respected in his work and the Lord gave man a job to do in naming the animals and the Lord respected Adam’s work. Whatever name Adam gave to an animal, then that became the animal’s name and the Lord accepted it.

Then the Lord God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it. Genesis 2:15

Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name. Genesis 2:19

Understanding Women and Her Work

Woman was made from a person and she relates to people. She was not given a job in the world to do like Adam was given. Her job was to be Adam’s helper or support. The word “support” literally has the meaning of being something like cement. She is to be such a support to Adam that he knows that she will be faithful and immovable in her support of him. He needs for her to become all that God designed her to be so that he can become all that God designed him to be. A woman gets her identity and love from people. Often as a child, a girl will play with dolls and pretend to be a “mommy” and she will imagine what it will be like when she has her “own” family and home. As she matures she will be sometimes be asked. “do you have a boyfriend?” and when she is older the first question that she is often asked is, “are you married?” or “do you have children?”. Later on in life, she will be asked, “do you have grandchildren?”. She sees herself as who she is in relationship to people and will say that she is a mother or grandmother. If she works outside of the home she will usually go into a people oriented field, such as doctor, nurse, teacher, etc. A woman also can make an excellent business woman but for different reasons than a man. However, a mother who works outside of her home is often torn between her job and her family. When her children are conceived, they are a part of her. She begins to be intimately acquainted with her children even when they are in her womb. When a working mother comes home she will work some more because God made her world to be her home and her home is a major part of her world. No one can take care of her home and children like she can and the Lord made her that way. Just as a man takes pride in his job, so a woman takes pride in her home and her family. She cares about the way her home looks and how her children are fed and dressed. God made her to nurture and to make a home for her family. She does not like dirt and some women will clean and clean their home. A man has to learn these things. It is not natural for him, but if he loves his wife and children then he will seek to learn what is important to his wife in the home and with the children.

Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.” Genesis 2:18

So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that place. The Lord God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man. The man said,

“This is now bone of my bones,
And flesh of my flesh;
She shall be called Woman,
Because she was taken out of Man.” Genesis 2:21-23

Understand that men and women are different. They were each made unique and they are wired differently. One is not better than the other but they are very different. Their longings, desires and needs are different. The more you understand the needs of a young man then the more you will be blessed and the less you will be hurt. You will be far more satisfied when you learn to appreciate the differences and not try to make men like women nor women like men. A man is happiest when he is fulfilling his calling as a man and a woman is happiest when she is fulfilling her calling as a woman.

A Life that Is Praised

We are not to seek the praise of others but the Lord says that a woman who fears the Lord will be praised.

Proverbs 31:30 Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain,
But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.

The Lord says that a woman who fears the Lord shall be praised. The Lord requires His people to praise Him. He says that it will be for our good if we fear Him.

Deuteronomy 10:12,13 Now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require from you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul,and to keep the Lord’s commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today for your good?

There will be severe consequences if we do not fear the Lord our God.

Deuteronomy 28:58,59 If you are not careful to observe all the words of this law which are written in this book, to fear this honored and awesome name, the Lord your God, then the Lord will bring extraordinary plagues on you and your descendants, even severe and lasting plagues, and miserable and chronic sicknesses.

How do we learn to fear the Lord? The Lord’s Word produces in us the fear of Him when we learn to obey Him and His Word becomes established in our lives.

Psalm 119:38 Establish Your word to Your servant,
As that which produces reverence for You.

What does it mean to fear the Lord? When we fear the Lord we will hate evil, pride, arrogance and the perverted mouth.

Proverbs 8:13 The fear of the Lord is to hate evil;
Pride and arrogance and the evil way
And the perverted mouth, I hate.

The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life. When you fear the Lord you will avoid the snares of death. Death brings pain and destruction.

Proverbs 14:27 The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life,
That one may avoid the snares of death.

With the reward of humility and the fear of the Lord there are riches, honor and life.

Proverbs 22:4 The reward of humility and the fear of the Lord
Are riches, honor and life.

There is strong confidence and your children will have a refuge when you fear Him.

Proverbs 14:26 In the fear of the Lord there is strong confidence,
And his children will have refuge.

Your children will be blessed and mighty on the earth when you fear Him and greatly delight in His commandments.

Psalm 112:1,2 How blessed is the man who fears the Lord,
Who greatly delights in His commandments.
His descendants will be mighty on earth;
The generation of the upright will be blessed.

Do you want to be blessed? Do you want a life that is praised? Do you want to be a blessing to your family? Fear the Lord and keep His commandments. Greatly delight in the Lord and make it your aim to please Him and obey Him. It begins with fearing Him.

Proverbs 31:28-30 Her children rise up and bless her;
Her husband also, and he praises her, saying:
“Many daughters have done nobly,
But you excel them all.”
Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain,
But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.

A Life Free of Fear and Worry

Fears and worries are two of the biggest challenges of life. It begins when we come into the world. You can see the fear and worry in a baby and they let everyone know by their crying. They cry if they are fearful they won’t be fed or they become anxious if they can not see momma. As we grow older we don’t become less fearful but we just learn to not express our true feelings. We learn to cover up and pretend but on the inside the fears and anxieties grow. Will we be able to do what we need to do to make it in the world? What will the world be like? The list is endless of our fears and worries. Then if we add on to that all of the fears and worries that everyone else thinks we should have then it is no wonder that some people have a nervous breakdown. The Lord never intended life to be that way.

Thus says the Lord,
“Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind
And makes flesh his strength,
And whose heart turns away from the Lord.
“For he will be like a bush in the desert
And will not see when prosperity comes,
But will live in stony wastes in the wilderness,
A land of salt without inhabitant.
“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord
And whose trust is the Lord.
“For he will be like a tree planted by the water,
That extends its roots by a stream
And will not fear when the heat comes;
But its leaves will be green,
And it will not be anxious in a year of drought
Nor cease to yield fruit. Jeremiah 17:5-8

There are basically two choices in life. We can choose to trust in the One and only God, the Lord God, who is our Maker and Creator. He fashioned us and He made us to have a love relationship with Him. He made each of us to trust Him and to be His child. The other choice is that we can trust in ourselves or others and allow our heart to turn away from Him. All of us come into this world with our hearts turned toward God. We choose to either respond to Him and trust Him or to turn away from Him and trust in something else, whether it is science, knowledge, people or ourselves. Everything and everyone, other than the Lord Himself will let us down and disappoint us. The Lord is the only One who can satisfy our souls because we were made to know Him and to be loved by Him. The Lord is also the only One who can set us free from fears and worries. This freedom will only come to those who trust in the Lord God. The word Lord means Master, so the person who trusts in the Lord must allow Him to be their Master. The word God usually refers to Savior. When a person trusts Him to be their Master then He becomes their Savior. He will save them from their fears and worries and be their Provider and Protector forever and always.

that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.” Romans 10:9-11

Once a person calls upon the Lord then He is with them forever. He will never leave them or forsake them. All others may forsake them but He will not. You can trust in the Lord now and forever. He becomes your Lord and you Savoir and He is a present help in time of trouble. Call upon the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved.

‘Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’ Isaiah 41:10

for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,” Hebrews 13:5b

A Life with Peace

When we become a Christian then we come into a relationship with the Lord and we are at peace with God. He forgives us, our guilt is removed and He gives us His peace.

Romans 5:1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

Peace, how sweet it is when we have it and when we don’t have peace we long for it. The Lord promises us peace that no one else can give us.

John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.

There is nothing else that can give us peace but there are several things that can disrupt our peace and two of them are fear and anxiety. For this reason the Lord tells us not to be fearful. You can take courage for He has overcome the world.

John 16:33 These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”

Are you anxious? When you are anxious then you will not experience His peace. The Lord tells you that you don’t need to be anxious anymore but let Him know what your requests are. Be sure and thank Him for meeting your needs when you make your requests known to Him. Thanksgiving is an act of faith. His peace will guard your heart and your mind in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:6,7 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Don’t allow the devil to rob you of the peace that the Lord gives to you. The Lord is a God of peace and He will crush Satan under our feet.

Romans 16:20 The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

Let Him know about your concerns for He cares for you. Cast all of your anxieties on Him.

I Peter 5:6,7 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.

The Lord wants us to be at peace with each other.

Romans 14:19 So then we pursue the things which make for peace and the building up of one another.

When we live in peace with one another then we will know the God of peace and He will be with us.

II Corinthians 13:11 Finally, brethren, rejoice, be made complete, be comforted, be like-minded, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.

We must be diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. We must persevere at living in harmony with each other.

Ephesians 4:1-3 Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Finally, the Lord wants the peace of God to rule in our hearts. When we sin and do something that is not pleasing to the Lord then His peace is one of the first things that leaves us. Learn to be sensitive to His Spirit so that His peace rules in your heart.

Colossians 3:15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful.

Confess your sin to Him and allow Him to cleanse your heart and restore your fellowship with Him.

I John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

His peace will return as your fellowship with Him is restored. You will see that the God of peace will be with you as you learn to dwell on Him, for He is true and honorable. He is right, pure, lovely, of good repute and excellent. He alone is worthy of our praise.

Philippians 4:8,9 Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

 

How to Have A Life that is Successful

Everyone longs to be successful. We don’t want to fail in school, in relationships, on our job, at home or when and if we get married and have children. These next few promises are some of the most amazing promises in the Bible. It shows the heart of the Lord. He wants you to be successful in every area of your life. Incredible that we have a God who not only loves us perfectly but desires our best!

Joshua 1:8 This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.

Some people may not believe this promise but don’t let someone else’s unbelief pull you down because this verse is very true. The Bible says that it is impossible for God to lie. However, He makes it very clear what you must do to be successful. You must meditate on God’s Word day and night to that you may be careful to follow it exactly as He says. Sometimes it may not make sense to you but do it anyway. Meditate means that you think about His Word. We meditate all of the time. Worry is meditating on your problems and the outcome. If you will replace those thoughts with His Word then you will receive insight that you never saw before and He will show you what to do to avoid failure and to succeed.

Psalm 1:1-3 How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked,
Nor stand in the path of sinners,
Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!
But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its season
And its leaf does not wither;
And in whatever he does, he prospers.

Again, this is amazing. The Lord says that if you will meditate on His Word day and night then your life will be fruitful, you will not wither up during the dry seasons of life and in whatever you do…you will prosper. We spend so much time trying to be successful in our own efforts and even reading books on how to be successful in different areas but IF we will only do this one thing then the Lord promises us success. This shows how much He longs for you to spend time with Him. Just like parents want to reward their children big when they do something really big in their eyes even more does the Lord want to reward you IF you will take His Word, meditate on it and then do what He says to do in His Word. However, one of the instructions for learning to meditate on His Word is that you must stop listening to the many voices in the world…voices of the wicked, scoffers and sinners. Do not walk with them nor stand with them not sit with them.

James 1:25 But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does.

Again, in the New Testament our Lord repeats this truth. Blessing and success are closely related just as curses and failure. The Lord wants to bless you and He wants you to be successful. If you do not follow His instructions then you will experience curses and failure.

Hebrews 4:2 For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also; but the word they heard did not profit them, because it was not united by faith in those who heard.

The only part of God’s Word that will profit you is what you believe enough to do. Begin by taking a verse and memorizing it and then thinking about every way that verse can apply to your life and then do it. After you have done this then take another verse. You will see as time goes on that your life is being transformed into a beautiful Christlike life.

A Life of Thanking Others

Too much can not be said about being grateful to the Lord.

Psalm 118:21 I shall give thanks to You, for You have answered me,
And You have become my salvation.

Have you thanked the Lord for what He has done in your life?

Psalm 30:12 That my soul may sing praise to You and not be silent.
O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever.

No one makes it on their own. There are always other people that the Lord has used who helped you get where you are today. The Lord is for you through those who help you.

Psalm 118:7a The Lord is for me among those who help me;

Have you recently or ever thanked the Lord for the people who have helped you in your relationship with the Lord and who have helped you in life?

I Thessalonians 1:2 We give thanks to God always for all of you, making mention of you in our prayers;

A lack of thanksgiving in one’s life is a lack of God in that person’s life. Ungratefulness is a sign of ungodliness.

Romans 1:21 For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks,

Give thanks to the Lord for what He has done and give thanks to the Lord for the people that He has brought into you life and who have helped you. Thanksgiving is a great encouragement to those who have loved you and pointed you to the Lord.

Hebrews 13:7a Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you;

Remember those who have diligently labored among you and show appreciation to them. When you show appreciation to someone then it is a confirmation to them that what they did met a need in your life or made a difference. People don’t know if what they do makes any difference at all unless they are told.

I Thessalonians 5:12 But we request of you, brethren, that you appreciate those who diligently labor among you, and have charge over you in the Lord and give you instruction,

Has the Lord helped you through anyone else? Take the time and effort to thank them. Thanksgiving is a gift that you can give to the one who receives the appreciation. We are not to do anything for the gift of being thanked but when it is received then it is a great encouragement to continue helping others.

 

 

A Life Understanding Boys and Men

Do Receive Understanding

As with anything, if you want to understand a subject matter then the best way to understand it is to go to the one who created the subject. The one who created anything can give you the greatest understanding, not only “about” the subject but the understanding of the “manner” of the subject.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. Proverbs 9:10

If a girl wants to understand boys or if women want to understand men then they must go to the One who created man in the beginning. Not only will He give them understanding but He will give them instruction (which is wisdom) on what to do and what not to do so that they may not get hurt. Many girls and women have been hurt by boys and men simply because they did not understand boys and men.

Do Not Trust Your Own Understanding

Do not trust your own understanding of males of what you think they are like. A female will look at a male through their own perspective and try to “figure” him out. A male is made completely different than a female.  He thinks completely different than a female, he acts completely different and he does not have feelings the way a female does. Neither a male or female is right or wrong but they are different and will have different perspectives, thoughts, actions and reactions to the same situations. Do not trust in what you think you should do or in what your friends think you should do.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5

Do trust in the Lord with all of your heart and go to the Lord and ask Him for wisdom and understanding. He wants to help you.