Giving That Changed History…

Have you ever had those times when you really know that God is trying to tell you something?  Where you are constantly are reading the same thing over and over again….and it always seems to be in the back of your head…..and you constantly think about it…..

Well recently, God has been showing me the important of GIVING TO THOSE IN NEED.

You know, I think it’s interesting that we can go through something so many times, and miss a lot of what it is actually saying.  I know that I’ve read through the book of Acts more than three times, and have went through it focused on the Holy Spirit and healing and the church and prayer, which are all great and necessity for Christians and the church, but I think in that I neglected to see another huge part of the ministry of the early church: GIVING TO THOSE IN NEED.

And from this, it is incredible to me that one of the reasons that we are able to be saved today is through GIVING TO THOSE IN NEED.

When the Holy Spirit was poured out in the book of Acts, it was given to the Jews and the Jews alone, until three actions of a Gentile (Gentile: anyone who was not of Jewish decent).

In Acts 10.2 it states that:

Now living at Caesarea there was a man whose name was Cornelius, a centurion captain of what was known as the Italian Regiment, a devout man who venerated God and treated Him with reverential obedience, as did all his household; and he gave much alms to the people and prayed continually to God.

There were three important things that Cornelius did:

1. He obeyed God, and treated Him with reverence.
2. HE GAVE ALMS TO THOSE IN NEED.
3. He prayed continually.

And it was because of these three things that Peter saw a vision from God.  And when he saw this vision he realized that the Holy Spirit and salvation was not for the Jews alone, but also for the Gentiles.

And being a Gentile, it is vital to see that because of the actions of Cornelius that we are able to receive salvation and the Holy Spirit, and the fulfillment of God’s Word in our lives.

It is incredible that of all the things that could have been mentioned of Cornelius, GIVING TO THOSE IN NEED topped the list.

And if giving had such a profound effect on my life as a believer today, it is vital I GIVE TO THOSE IN NEED.

Decisions…

Decisions are all around us. Constantly. Consistently. No matter who you are, or where you are from, you will have decisions. Now, some decisions are small and some decisions are large….but what is so incredible about decisions is in fact that they are the things that affect us the most. They affect who we are, what we do, who we will become, how we treat others, and how we will react in any situation. Making the right decision helps us to succeed….but on the flip-side making the wrong decisions helps us to grow. And thinking of this, why is it so hard sometimes to make the right decisions?
Well many times we don’t make decisions because of fear. I know for me, what other people think has a tremendous effect on how I react in various situations, but this shouldn’t be. When making decisions, there should be only one thing that matters….God’s Voice…..everything else shouldn’t matter.  Now I’m not saying not to use wisdom, or to not seek wise counsel, but after you’ve done all that you can do, and you know every side to everything….it is vital that we hear God’s voice.  It is the only way that we will be able to keep our momentum in life.  It is the only way to know that you know you are in God’s will and doing what He has called you to do.

Psalm 25.1-5 states:

To You, O LORD, I lift up my soul.  O my God, I trust in You; Let me not be ashamed; Let not my enemies triumph over me.  Indeed, let no one who waits on You be ashamed; Let those be ashamed who deal treacherously without cause.  Show me Your ways, O LORD; Teach me Your paths.  Lead me in Your truth and teach me, For You are the God of my salvation; On You I wait all the day.

Seek God.  Wait on Him.  He will be faithful to answer.

What Is All Around…

 

It was one of the two hour drives that I normally take from good ole’ San Dimas to Bakersfield.  There was nothing particularly special about this drive, so I took some time to pray and ask God what he desired for the youth group, I prayed for AnnaMarie, my family, my life….and I even stopped and got a frosty @ Wendy’s to make the ride more enjoyable.  But what was so incredible about this trip was the beauty that surrounded me.  Driving through the mountains many times you see the same things, rocks, yellow or green grass, an occasionally a cow or two…but today it was springtime.  The mountains seemed as if the were brushed by a giant paintbrush with shades of yellow and orange, and it made everything so much brighter.  It made me feel so good, until I saw something that brought a smile upon my face that was impossible to get rid off.  Descending from the grapevine, I was encompassed by a sea of purple flowers.  Fields and fields, acres and acres of wild purple flowers that had to of grown within the past week…it was so incredible.  My breath was taken away by the immense beauty that was all around me.  God is so amazing, all of sights that he has created for us to see.  And….of course because I’m in bible school….a bible verse comes to mind.

Matthew 6:28-34

And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?….but seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.  

It is so easy for us to be worried.  Too much homework, too much work, too many errands to run, too many things to do.  Many times we often wonder how am I going to pay for that, or how am I going to make time for that, when in reality the answer can be seen in the beauty of creation all around us.  As long as God is first in our lives, we shouldn’t worry, because He will take care of us…we just must remember to look at the flowers…and God will take care of the rest.

Life…

 

Wow, so I guess this is my very first blog.  It’s kinda weird, I never thought that there would be a day when I would actually do this, but there are so many things in life that we miss.  The little things as my father would have said.  When we are young we feel as if we have forever to live.  Then as we get old, we really begin to see how fast life goes by.  Many times admist life going by we still seem to fall into the routine of life, and the things that we must get done order to have this or have that, but what is really important in life? You know not long ago I was at my two year old cousins birthday party…and I was shocked.  I remember the day he was born….and it feels like yesterday.  We must enjoy the time we have now and really understand what is important in life.

God.

Family.

Friends.

You know Robert Kennedy said….”Few will have the greatness to bend history itself; but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total of all those acts will be written the history of this generation”

We must realize what is important in our lives, act on them, and our lives will change history.