Honoring God

Deuteronomy 8:17-18 “You may say to yourself, ‘My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.’ But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today.”

 

            These verses are part of Moses’ second of three sermons or speeches given to the Israelites just prior to their entering into the Promised Land of Canaan. What can we take from these verses for ourselves today? If a person is of a mind to believe that God exists and that His written Word, the Bible, is true, then it isn’t that big of a stretch to see that abilities we have are God-given. Yet some of us end up choosing to believe at some point that we have accomplished things by the might of our own hands and the use of our own intellect. We must remember two very important things in this life that God has given us: 1) we are not greater than the One Who made us; 2) any wealth we acquire is on loan to us and not really ours at all.

            We are to remember the Lord in our daily comings and goings. We are to honor Him with our lives. We are to seek His counsel regarding matters that concern us or those we love. We are to always remember than what we produce in this life is to help sustain us yet is to also be dispersed liberally to those in need around us, for God is JEHOVAH-jireh, our provider - we shall not lack anything we need. 

There is no sin in acquiring wealth, it is in the hording of it that sin resides. Our ability to learn and function with the information we have acquired has been given to us by God. Don’t be fooled into thinking that we are self-made men, thus cutting God out of the equation altogether. Stand in awe of His greatness and give Him praise for all He has done. While we think we know so very much, in reality we know nothing compared to the vast and unending knowledge of our Creator. Acknowledge His greatness, for those who embrace their own perceived greatness shall find that it very well may be their own demise. It doesn’t have to be that way, for inherent in our praise of Him lies our reverence for Him. Live a life worthy of His honor. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing.

Richard Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

 

* pronounced  jah-hoe’-vah  j-eye-rah

The Good Work of God

Philippians 1:6 “… being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

 

            As believers in Christ, we can be confident in our future. God isn’t going anywhere. That which has begun within us shall continue on until the 2nd Coming of Christ. This should be encouraging to us. God isn’t going to give up on us. No matter what silly mistakes we make or how many times we ignore His instruction. His patience is shown throughout scripture. Patience is a characteristic born out of love. If you truly love someone, you will give them a lot of latitude when it comes to their conduct. God is no different. His good work in us is representative of the sanctification process that began once we accepted Christ into our hearts. Notice I said process. 

 

            sanc•ti•fi•ca•tion - 1: to set apart to a sacred purpose or to religious use.*

 

            Sanctification is both instantaneous and progressive. Instantaneous because at the moment we are forgiven we are seen by God through the blood of Christ making us, in His eyes, totally sanctified. Progressive, because in reality the process of being made holy and set apart takes our whole lives. God has a purpose and plan to use each one of us in some form or fashion. Just as the High Priest sanctifies that which is used to make an offering suitable to present to God, so God sanctifies us that we might be used for His glory. So based on this verse in Philippians, we could say that we are a work in progress. Until Jesus appears in the clouds to take us home with Him, we are to be seeking instruction and serving our Heavenly Father; but we buck at that. We don’t want to miss out on anything perceived to be fun. Christians are not to be sitting in a darkened room with a lone candle burning studying scripture all day long. We are to get out and mingle with the masses. Rub elbows with those the world has cast aside. We are being set apart for God’s use. We have a serious responsibility, yet it is a small price to pay for the forgiven purchased for us. It’s a price we can ill afford. We owe our lives to the payer of our debt, Jesus Christ, who will continue to sharpen us as we allow. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing.

Richard Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

Word for the Day

 

God's Love ...

Psalm 136:26* ^{[Contemporary English Version (CEV)]}

“Praise God in heaven! God’s love never fails.”

 

We have nothing this side of heaven to compare with his indescribable, unconditional, eternal love. With our finite minds, we are incapable of comprehending all that God is or what He can do. Could there possibly be anything He is not able to do for us? If there was, He couldn’t be who He says He is; an all-powerful, all-knowing God who is everywhere at all times. For a people who struggle with things they cannot see, touch or taste for themselves, it is nearly impossible to fathom. If you truly believe in God, then you must believe His word is true and accept it for what it says. You can have questions, but in the end, after your questions and doubts have been quenched, you will find it is all true. 

There is no situation He cannot pull you out of, no problem He cannot help you solve, no where you can go that He is not already there. He isn’t a genie in a bottle who grants your every desire, he is Almighty God, the creator of the universe, who loves His creation and is there to oversee all that transpires.

            We tend as a people to focus on all the things we perceive God has not done. We grow impatient when things do not go as we think they should. We tend to be a selfish, self-absorbed people who have a bad tendency to only think of ourselves, yet God loves us. He understands us. He knows us through and through. There is nothing we can say or do to cause Him to change His mind about us. We are His children, and just like a parent will always love his or her own child no matter what, God shall always love us … unconditionally. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing.

Richard Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

* The 2^nd portion of each of the 26 verses in Psalm 136 end with “God’s love never fails”. It says that because God’s love DOES never fail.

Thoughts from a Random Mind

Independence Day is an important day in our history. It represents the day the inhabitants of the new world broke free from the tyranny of Great Britain. A lot of blood was spilled during the Revolutionary War and in every war since that time. All the wars were to preserve freedom and / or thwart the efforts of an oppressive despot who sought to rule the world. Many men and women lost their lives on foreign soil. May it never, ever be in vain.

There is another Independence Day, and it is of the spiritual variety. The day you gave your heart, soul and spirit over to Almighty God in exchange for freedom from all the sins you had either knowingly or unknowingly committed your entire life. If you are born again, you are free from sin and bound for heaven. No one this side of heaven had to shed any blood to attain this freedom, it was willingly done for us all by God’s Son, Jesus Christ. So happy belated National Independence Day and if you are a believer in Christ, happy Spiritual Independence Day. May God bless you and yours now and forevermore. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing. 

Richard Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

Thoughts from a Random Mind

There’s a phrase that says, “An idle mind is the devil’s playground”. Perhaps you’re familiar with it. Let’s break it down ever so slightly. An idle mind - let me put this in terms of a vehicle. Wherever you happen to be, in your own driveway, at a stop light, anywhere really, if your car is running, but not moving, then at that moment, your car is “idling”. It isn’t going forward or backward; it is sitting still yet the engine is running. Your mind, like your car’s engine, is in what could be referred to as a passive state. 

40 years ago, the United Negro Student Fund had a successful ad campaign that stated, “A mind is a terrible thing to waste.” A true statement. They claim that when you retire you should keep your mind active, or you will grow despondent & depressed. Not remaining mentally active can shorten your life. 

A Christian need to keep his or her mind active with the things of the Lord or their faith will begin to fade. Like a person who deprives themselves of protein or water, their faith will slip into doubt. They will begin to question things that they used to accept as true. The enemy will take full advantage of passive Christians, nudging them in directions that could likely compromise their witness. Don’t allow it. Stay strong in your faith. Feed your spirit man or woman daily to ward off the fiery darts of Satan. Stay out of the devil’s playground by keeping your mind active in the things of the kingdom of God. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing.

Richard Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

 

Word for the Day