Birds, Bees, and Fish? A New Year with New Problems
As we all either slept or watched the ball drop, a small town in Arkansas watched as thousands of red-winged blackbirds fell from the sky... Theories began swarming as approximately 10,000 drum fish were found dead that same day in the Arkansas river... we wont even get into the deaths of bumblebees all over Europe and Asia... but it definately makes us think... what is going on? and what a way to bring in a new year..
Some of us know all to well... we are 5 days in and though we may not find birds and fish littering our streets and rivers.. we feel like everything we know is changing and crashing around us... Christmas is over... time for the bills.. those of us who itemize our taxes wont see our checks for a couple months... our White House spokesman is quitting... theres absolutely nothing to watch on TV.. our holidays came and went so fast.. we barely had time to enjoy them.. and its back to the grind...
On top of that our personal lives are put to the test daily as we literally battle for peace..everyone is on edge... it is like the full moon just wont go away.. so how do we survive the after-holidaze... on our own? We absolutely cannot.. No longer can we handle things on our own.. and we do not have to.. We must look at ourselves with deeper skepticism... do we seek out peace? or do our actions or words cause war? Are we to proud to accept criticism or are we open enough to handle what we see? Are we selfish? Do we do our best every day? Why are we hurting so much inside?
In every chapter I read in my devotional today in Genesis, Ezra, Matthew, and Acts.. (all chapter 4's)... a battle was at hand.. In Genesis Cain killed his brother Abel.. over jealousy.. In Ezra, the Jews were attempting to rebuild the city and temple as God had told them.. but a law was put in place that stopped the building for many years..
In Matthew, Satan approaches Jesus and tempts him to do the wrong thing.. and in Acts, two of Jesus's disciples are thrown in jail for preaching about Salvation... everything seemed to be going wrong.. and in life.. it is so true..
Jesus beat out His temptation by quoting Bible verses at Satan.. that worked like a charm... Cain was given swift justice and labeled a murderer and removed from his country (swift justice... LIKE)... In Ezra the people obeyed the law and waited on God to tell them what to do next.. and in Acts, Peter and John stood up in front of all the politicians and made their case... and they won...Their boldness and trust in God catapulted them out of captivity...
This year we need to read God's Word.. and when we are tempted... fight Satan with God's word... when we are accused wrongly, we are to boldly stand up to our accusers (but with love), when we are unjustly treated, we are to wait on God... We dont have to worry about birds, and fish, and bees, and TV, and etc when we are not living for earthly things.. when we live to be used by God by every single contact we have with people.. to encourage them and love them.. then we dont have to be anxious about CNN text alerts.. or breaking news... or new rules.. or changes.. It is all about our attitudes.. our perspectives.. and how WE react to all that goes on around us..
This new year.. along with the diets, the resolutions, etc. Make it a goal to give God another chance... to have a bigger role in ur life.. maybe He was long ago and you feel He let you down... but maybe.. just maybe.. all that was a test.. and its time to just... move on... and let it all go... broken... and spilled out....
Some of us know all to well... we are 5 days in and though we may not find birds and fish littering our streets and rivers.. we feel like everything we know is changing and crashing around us... Christmas is over... time for the bills.. those of us who itemize our taxes wont see our checks for a couple months... our White House spokesman is quitting... theres absolutely nothing to watch on TV.. our holidays came and went so fast.. we barely had time to enjoy them.. and its back to the grind...
On top of that our personal lives are put to the test daily as we literally battle for peace..everyone is on edge... it is like the full moon just wont go away.. so how do we survive the after-holidaze... on our own? We absolutely cannot.. No longer can we handle things on our own.. and we do not have to.. We must look at ourselves with deeper skepticism... do we seek out peace? or do our actions or words cause war? Are we to proud to accept criticism or are we open enough to handle what we see? Are we selfish? Do we do our best every day? Why are we hurting so much inside?
In every chapter I read in my devotional today in Genesis, Ezra, Matthew, and Acts.. (all chapter 4's)... a battle was at hand.. In Genesis Cain killed his brother Abel.. over jealousy.. In Ezra, the Jews were attempting to rebuild the city and temple as God had told them.. but a law was put in place that stopped the building for many years..
In Matthew, Satan approaches Jesus and tempts him to do the wrong thing.. and in Acts, two of Jesus's disciples are thrown in jail for preaching about Salvation... everything seemed to be going wrong.. and in life.. it is so true..
Jesus beat out His temptation by quoting Bible verses at Satan.. that worked like a charm... Cain was given swift justice and labeled a murderer and removed from his country (swift justice... LIKE)... In Ezra the people obeyed the law and waited on God to tell them what to do next.. and in Acts, Peter and John stood up in front of all the politicians and made their case... and they won...Their boldness and trust in God catapulted them out of captivity...
This year we need to read God's Word.. and when we are tempted... fight Satan with God's word... when we are accused wrongly, we are to boldly stand up to our accusers (but with love), when we are unjustly treated, we are to wait on God... We dont have to worry about birds, and fish, and bees, and TV, and etc when we are not living for earthly things.. when we live to be used by God by every single contact we have with people.. to encourage them and love them.. then we dont have to be anxious about CNN text alerts.. or breaking news... or new rules.. or changes.. It is all about our attitudes.. our perspectives.. and how WE react to all that goes on around us..
This new year.. along with the diets, the resolutions, etc. Make it a goal to give God another chance... to have a bigger role in ur life.. maybe He was long ago and you feel He let you down... but maybe.. just maybe.. all that was a test.. and its time to just... move on... and let it all go... broken... and spilled out....
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