Nothing to do with it

“But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days.  People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God– having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.  They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over weak-willed women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires,  always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth.”  2 Timothy 3:1-7

This was a bad week for our nation, and a foreshadowing of times to come.  Sadly, it confirmed what “terrible times” we are indeed in.  We saw a nation of people blindly following a conceited, narcissistic, slanderous, Godless  leader, and an evil ideology.  What is even sadder, is that WE have allowed this tragedy to happen.  WE have allowed God’s word to be perverted, without resistance.  WE have allowed our  homes and churches to be places of ungodly “tolerance”, rather than beacons of light in a dark world.  WE have vilified God himself, and rejected HIS word by our complacency.

Let’s be clear – socialism is NOT a Christian value – the redistribution of wealth is the embodiment of covetousness – wanting…stealing… the fruit of the labor of others IS SIN.

And what of “social issues”?  I’m not about to pussy-foot around on this one.  Abortion IS murder.  Period.  A child is not a “choice” once he or she is conceived.  Abortion is about a life, not a social issue.

And as for me paying for your birth control, well – if you sold your vote for a few bucks worth of pills or prophylactics, then you sold your integrity and virtue.  Ladies, if that is something that you opted for, then you are one of the “weak-willed women” that the Bible talks about – loaded with sin, and swayed by your evil desires.  I say that with a sincere hope that you will re-examine yourselves and return to God and his truth.  The Bible tells us that the wounds from a friend can be trusted (Proverbs 27:6), so please take my words as just that – the wounds from a friend.

And gay marriage?  God calls homosexuality “detestable”.  (Leviticus 18:22)  It is a sin, NOT to be celebrated.  Are there other sins that we all experience?  Of course!  But we in no way celebrate those sins!  Marriage is between one MAN and one WOMAN.  Period.  And a relationship outside of marriage is adultery.  A government that spits in the face of God and codifies, celebrates and protects sin is actively rejecting God and his protections.  We are not better off when we celebrate sin.  Our “tolerance” opens the door to God’s judgment even further.

These are just a few examples of what we are to reject as Christians, and we are told, in no uncertain terms, that we are to “Have nothing to do with them.”  We must be willing to stand up for the truth – in our homes, in our communities, in our nation, and in our churches.

The question for you today is whether you are FOR GOD or against him.  God has put before you life and death.  CHOOSE LIFE!

Heavenly Father, we thank you for your protection in our lives, and your provision in our lives.  We thank you for giving us your word to guide us in our lives.  We ask you for strength to hold fast to your word, and the strength to stand by your word and in your word when those around us choose the darkness of sin.  Give us wisdom and strength to proclaim your word in a world that is filled with evil, treachery, godlessness, sin and darkness.  Lord, let us be light to those who are in that darkness.  Help us to live lives that are pleasing to you.  Thank you for the hope of salvation, and guide us to bring others into that hope.  Lord, give us inspiration today, especially when we are hurting.  Inspire us to hold on to you when our own faith is weak.  Bless us, Lord, even in these terrible times.  In Jesus’ name I pray.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD. 2012.  All rights reserved.

 

 

To stand

“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.”  Ephesians 6:13

Have you ever had to stand your ground?  As an employee?  As a boss?  As a member of your family?  Have you?

I don’t have children, but I’ll admit to having been one, and my parents never seemed to have any problem standing their ground.  In looking back on my life, I’m glad that my parents did that – they demonstrated their strength and conviction, regardless of whether they were right or wrong.  I would love to tell you that standing my ground came naturally to me, as a result, but it didn’t.  I have struggled with standing up for myself, because standing up for yourself can often be perceived as being self-righteous, arrogant or pushy.  And I don’t want to be any of those things.

So when God tells us “to stand”, it is in the context of first having on the full, wonderful armor that He has graced us with.  When we have that armor on, we are completely aware of God’s love for us – how He saved us, through the sacrifice of Christ on the cross.  We wear our helmet of salvation.  We also don a breastplate of righteousness.  Why?  Because righteousness in Christ allows us to face the world boldly, and it protects our heart.  We wear a belt of truth, because truth ties everything together, and holds our other armor in place.  What else can a belt do?  Ever lift something heavy?  A belt can tighten against our body to provide extra support when life requires heavy lifting.  So our belt – the truth – gives us critical support when we are expected to stand.  How can anyone argue against the truth?  But amazingly, we live in a world that rejects the truth, and that rejects God.  We live days when “evil comes” more frequently than ever.

Have you ever thought about how you might handle having to stand for what is right, in truth, at work?  How would you deal with the anxiety of having to stand up to a boss, or a board, to tell them that the truth matters?  It’s beyond “not easy” – it’s hard.  And it may have consequences.  Could you accept those consequences?  Would you be willing to walk away from a job, when it’s the only thing left that you can do?  I’ve done just that, and it’s a miserable place to be.  Walking away from a job is beyond difficult, and yet having to explain why you left, to a future employer is almost harder, even using as much diplomacy as possible.  I got quite a grilling about the issue in my last interview.  I was waiting for the room to darken and a bright light to be pointed in my face.  Yes, it felt like an interrogation.  When I got home I told my husband about it, and he said exactly the right thing.  He told me that I did all that I could do, and God respects my willingness to stand for the truth more than He respects the grilling that I got.  He reminded me that God would provide for us.

I cried when I didn’t get the job.

But today is a new day.  I have had so many reminders these last few days that standing for the truth was, and will always be, the right thing to do.  And God will take care of me.  Of us.  God’s truth will indeed set us free.

Lord, thank you for letting us know that you love truth, and that when we wrap ourselves in your truth that you will always care for us.  We thank you for giving us your armor, to protect us in this life, when the days of evil come.  Lord, we ask you to protect us, and to give us courage in the dark times of life.  We ask you to show us your grace, and your presence, and to help us to discern the truth.  Thank you for enabling us to stand.  In Jesus’ name I pray.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD. 2012.  All rights reserved.