Giving the water of life

Hello Everyone,

This past week during an Alpha course my wife and are attending, the speaker Nicky Gumble was talking about Christ giving living water and the significance of the living water. In the middle east during those times water was very scarce and wells were spread out. When you went to the well to get water your got your days supply of water. In researching online I found you can go from between 3-5 days without water. So Jesus using water as a way of speaking of the Holy Spirit is very significant. Without liquid water we do not have our human life, without Christ in our life we are not able to live our lives to the full the way God intended for us to live. Below I have listed some examples of how Christ used water as a reference to the Holy Spirit.

This week every time you go to the water cooler or fill your glass at the sink take the time to think about what WATER means to you.

Have a blessed week!
Billy

In John 4:7-14 Jesus speaks of water and its significance.
7There came a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus said unto her, "Give Me to drink."
9Then said the woman of Samaria unto Him, "How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest a drink of me, who am a woman of Samaria?" For the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.
10Jesus answered and said unto her, "If thou knewest the gift of God and who it is that saith to thee, `Give Me to drink,' thou wouldest have asked of Him, and He would have given thee living water."
11The woman said unto Him, "Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. From whence then hast thou that living water?
12Art thou greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank thereof himself, and his children and his cattle?"
13Jesus answered and said unto her, "Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again,
14but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life."

Jesus was not talking of a days supply of water he was talking about the living water the very essence of life itself. He was speaking of pouring out the Holy Spirit into the hearts of all believers.

In Revelation 22:17 Christ tells us" 17And the Spirit and the bride say, "Come." And let him that heareth say, "Come." And let him that is athirst come; and whosoever will, let him take the Water of Life freely.

John 6:35
And Jesus said unto them, "I am the Bread of Life. He that cometh to Me shall never hunger, and he that believeth in Me shall never thirst.

John 7:37
On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink.

Isaiah 41:17
"When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none and their tongue faileth for thirst, I, the LORD, will hear them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.

How Christ sees us

Hello Everyone,

This week while listening to a song on the local Christian radio station I heard a song called This Man by Jeremy Camp, I had a thought. I have always thought that Christ went to the cross for someone he didn't know, even though he knew what was going to happen to him. In reality he did know us, just not the person that is before him now. In Jeremiah he lets the prophet know this by stating, "Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee, and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations."

It is funny how the more we read God's word the more things come to us. I had not thought about Christ still seeing us as an innocent child until I was driving that day. But that is what he sees that is why it wasn't even a thought for him to give his life for us. Even though we have grown into adults and have committed sins he does not see us that way. Much the same way a mother does not see her adult child as an adult that has done bad things. If you were to ask a mother of a person convicted of a crime you will get the same answer. "I know he has done wrong but he is still my son and I love him." This is exactly the way Christ sees us, he knows we have wronged him but he still loves us enough to forgive us if we ask.

As you go through the week think of ways that God speaks to you. Remember it is not always a thundering voice coming down from above, he may speak to you through your child, through his Word as you read scripture, or through a song on the radio. Slow down open your heart and listen to what he has to say. And if you haven't asked him to forgive you of your sins, ask him to forgive you and to come into your heart.

Have a blessed week!

Isaiah 49:15
15"Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.

Matthew 10:19
19But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak, for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak.
20For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaketh in you.

Problem solving through Christ: Anger

Hello Everyone,

We are continuing in our series of problem solving through Christ. This week we are going to address something that every person at one time or another has experienced. I doubt there is any one that has lived before or since Christ that has not had some sort of anger. It can consume us and cause us to make decisions we would not make under normal circumstances.
How many times has one person made you angry but you have lashed out at the innocent? Do you bring anger and frustrations home from the world just to have them come out around the ones you love. God has given us many examples in the Bible how our anger can lead us to ruin, in our emotional, spiritual, and financial lives.

This week when you feel anger creeping into your heart think of how patient God is with us. In the old Testament he was portrayed as an angry God. But through Christ he turned from the anger of judging an unjust world to the one true command that we should live by, to love each other as Christ loved us.



Have a blessed week!

Billy


Ecclesiastes 7:9
9Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry, for anger resteth in the bosom of fools.

Proverbs 15:1-2
1A soft answer turneth away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger.
2The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright, but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness.

Psalms 37 :7-9
7Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him; fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.
8Cease from anger and forsake wrath; fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.
9For evildoers shall be cut off; but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth.


Proverbs 16:32
32He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.

Problem solving through Christ: Greed

Hello Everyone,

We are continuing in the problem-solving through Christ series. I should have worded it differently though, it should be Christ solving problems through us as once we give our lives to Him. He is in us in all that we do.

This week we are going to cover something that is hard to define but so easy to get caught up in: the problem of greed. The reason it is hard to define is everyone thinks of greed differently. One person may see only money when they think of greed. Another may see land or material possessions. Webster's definition is : a selfish and excessive desire to have more of something than is needed.

If you look at it according to the dictionary definition it is not just money that can cause a person to be greedy. Anything that you have an excessive desire or obsess on can be seen as greed. Say you want the best seat at the football game, you think that you need to have a personalized parking space at work, or you have a collection of something and you just have to have that one item to complete your collection. These can all be seen as excessive and if we let them can control our lives. If they control us it can be hard for us to have an open relationship with God.

Matthew 6:24

No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

In Mark Jesus speaks about such things and warns us to beware of such people. If he warns us to beware of such people we could also take that as a warning not to become one of these people.

How many things in your life do you want more of than is needed?

Have a blessed week!

Billy


Mark 12:38-44


38And He said unto them in His doctrine, "Beware of the scribes, who love to go in long clothing, and love salutations in the marketplaces,
39and the chief seats in the synagogues, and the uppermost rooms at feasts,
40who devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation."
41And Jesus sat opposite the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury. And many who were rich cast in much.
42And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing.
43And He called unto Him His disciples and said unto them, "Verily I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast more in than all they that have cast into the treasury;
44for they all cast in of their abundance, but she of her want cast in all that she had, even all her living."

Problem Solving with Christ: Un-forgiveness

Hello Everyone,

We are continuing with our problem solving series with something that will help us get on the right path with Christ. Getting rid of any un-forgiveness we are carrying.

Jesus teaches us in the Lord's Prayer that in order for us to receive forgiveness we must also forgive those that have sinned against us. He uses the terms debt and debtors which is so symbolic as he paid all our debts when he died on the cross.
This is probably one of the hardest things to do today. So many people think it is ok to hate those that do wrong to us. You can't turn on the TV without hearing how this politician hates this one, or people in one country hate the people in the other country, or I can't believe you would talk to him after what he did. We have grown to be a hateful society.

That is not the way we should live our lives. It is hard to forgive people that have wronged you. But in order to truly free ourselves from the feelings of guilt we must let go of all of the of our old ways and let Christ live through us.

This week as you pray, pray for those who have wronged you, you will truly start to see life through Christ eyes.

Have a blessed week!

Billy


The Lord's Prayer:
Our Father in heaven
Hallowed be Your name
Your kingdom come
Your will be done
On earth as it is heaven
Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive our debts as we forgive our debtors
And do not lead us into temptation but deliver us from the evil one
For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen

Matthew 18:21-35
21Then Peter came to Him and said, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Until seven times?"
22And Jesus said unto him, "I say not unto thee, until seven times, but until seventy times seven.
23"Therefore is the Kingdom of Heaven likened unto a certain king who would settle accounts with his servants.

24And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him who owed him ten thousand talents.

25But inasmuch as he could not pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.

26The servant therefore fell down and did homage to him, saying,`Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.'

27Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him and forgave him the debt.

28But the same servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred pence. And he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, `Pay me what thou owest.'

29And his fellow servant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, `Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.'

30And he would not, but went and cast him into prison till he should pay the debt.

31So when his fellow servants saw what was done, they were very sorry and came and told unto their lord all that was done.

32Then his lord, after he had called him, said unto him, `O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me.

33Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellow servant, even as I had pity on thee?'

34And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors till he should pay all that was due unto him.

35So likewise shall My heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother's trespasses."

Problem Solving with Christ

Hello Everyone,

We are continuing in our series of problem-solving thru Christ. He is our true problem solver. I know there are many selp-help books and more than enough television shows "helping us with our problems both physical and emotional". There is a whole industry that has grown up from the self-help movement. That is not the way God intended for us to succeed in our life. When we rely solely on ourselves we leave out the One who wants to help us the most.

We are taught in the Bible not to be selfish, but in society we are taught to "look out for number one". This is just one of the several ways that the devil tries to alter the true word. I know we have all heard the saying " the Lord helps those who help themselves". Many people actually think that is in the Bible. We should seek the truth that is in his word and stop relying on ourselves to solve all of our problems. I have always found peace and strength in Jesus teachings in Matthew when he asked what will we eat.

Matthew 6:25-26
25 “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

We are not to be self seeking or self reliant God wants us to lean on him for all that we need. It is so hard not to be selfish or self-reliant but it is something we must work on everyday.

Have a blessed week!

Billy

Job 20:22
22 In his self-sufficiency he will be in distress;
Every hand of misery will come against him.

Proverbs 14:16
16 A wise man fears and departs from evil,
But a fool rages and is self-confident.

Matthew 23:24-26
24 Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!
25 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also.

Servant Leadership

Hello Everyone,

This week as we celebrate Labor Day I am going to dive into the biblical principles of servant leadership.

In Exodus 18:17-26 Moses' father-in-law Jethro teaches Moses about servant leadership. This is the first place where I can find any written examples of servant leadership. He has Moses pick leaders to oversee smaller things. They bring the harder things to Moses but make decisions on the lesser ones. This is a principle I am familiar with as this is the principle used by the leadership of the company I am employed by.

Christ in John 15: 13-15 takes this principle further. He no longer thinks of his disciples as servants but calls them friends. Do you think of your coworkers as friends? The person that works just below you, have you asked him or her recently how his family is doing? Do you know his wife's name? Do you no how many children he has and what there names are?

This week we need to take the "servant out of servant leadership" and to realize we are all serving someone higher than us, our lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

Have a blessed week!
Billy

Exodus 18: 17-26
17 Moses' father-in-law replied, "What you are doing is not good. 18 You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone. 19 Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people's representative before God and bring their disputes to him. 20 Teach them the decrees and laws, and show them the way to live and the duties they are to perform. 21 But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. 22 Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you. 23 If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied."
24 Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said. 25 He chose capable men from all Israel and made them leaders of the people, officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. 26 They served as judges for the people at all times. The difficult cases they brought to Moses, but the simple ones they decided themselves.

John 15:13-15
15I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. 17This is my command: Love each other.

Colossians 3:22-24
22Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to win their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. 23Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, 24since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.