The Tongue!

Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check.
When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.
All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.
With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.
James 3:1-12

Our tongues are the most powerful part of our body. They control almost every consequence whether it’s good or bad. What you say affects peoples’ lives forever. When you tell someone they look good or they beautiful/cool hair they remember for a long time. But they also remember the negative a lot longer than the good. Did you know that if you insult it will take 7 compliments to make it up? Every single thing affects you and others. You need to hold your tongue. I need to especially because I insult the most of all. So lets hold each other accountable. You keep praying about this and work on it this month and I will too.

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
Matthew 28:18-20
We as Christians are supposed to make disciples of all nations. Does that mean you need to leave the country? No, it means you need to do your job in your town, school or work. What is your job? To speak the gospel to everyone. Its not going to be easy, there will be people that don’t want to listen but all you can do is plant a seed and God will water the plant. One of the most efficient ways to spread the word is to live by example. You need to make people wonder, “why is he so caring to people.” Or, “I wish I could love like that.” Make them wonder what gives you that happiness.
The bottom line is that you got to let the Lord speak through so that you can change the world one step at a time.

Choose: God vs. World

What do you do when you get up in the morning? You probably brush your teeth or make your bed. Every day you make a choice. Either to start your day by listening to non-Christian music or playing video games OR you can pray. You can choose to start your day with God. You choose whether to cuss or gossip about someone. Choose. That’s a really big six letter word. You choose between simple things like whether you’re going to get ice cream or seconds at lunch. Or big things like whether you’re going to tell your friend about Christ.

Jesus answered, "My teaching is not my own. It comes from him who sent me. If anyone chooses to do God's will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. He who speaks on his own does so to gain honor for himself, but he who works for the honor of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him.”
John 7:16-18

If anyone chooses to God’s will….. You have to choose to be part of God’s plan. And you wanna know how to start off. Start every day with God.

Anger!

Anger. One simple word. It can mean hate, jealousy, ambition, but basically it boils down to a three letter word we all know so well. Sin. Why do we get angry? What makes us lose our patience? We get angry when people do stuff that we may intentionally or unintentionally do to others. Maybe you comment on how others do things and try to correct them. But the second they correct you... BOOM! You explode. Maybe it’s when people point fingers at you, when you do it to them all the time. Here’s a great verse:

My dear brothers and sisters, pay attention to what I say. Everyone should be quick to listen. But they should be slow to speak. They should be slow to get angry. A man's anger doesn't produce the kind of life God wants.

James 1:19-20

Quick to listen, that is the best advice you can get. Listen to what others say and take good advice and don’t get angry when they do. If you shut up, listen and don’t get angry you will live a happy life. But you have to make the choice. Are you going to not get angry?

Do me a favor and pray for a few minutes when you get up. Pray that you won’t get angry and listen.

Being like Him!

The light of the righteous shines brightly, but the lamp of the wicked is snuffed out.
Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice.
Proverbs 13:9-10

Pride is something we all struggle with. Especially me. I can’t help but wonder why. I think I found the reason. I love being right, I love to rub it in your face and say HA HA. I’m smarter, stronger, cuter, more intelligent, etc. But why would I do that? I don’t know. It’s second nature. Every person on the face of this earth does not want to admit they’re wrong. Let’s say you get in an argument with a friend or co-worker, and you’re 100% sure that you’re right. What do you do? Argue until he/she gives up? NO! W.W.J.D. What would Jesus do? How many times did the Pharisees think they were right? Always. How many times did Jesus argue??? Never. You’re probably saying, “I’m not Jesus. I can’t be perfect. Just because Jesus can do it doesn’t mean I can.” You’re exactly right! We can’t be like Him. Have you ever striven to be like an infamous football player or a movie star? You work to be as good as them even though you know your chances are pretty slim, right? Well then why do we not strive to be just like Jesus?

I want you to think about being like Him. To be the bigger person and stop always having to be right (even if you are). I want you to go to school/work and take all the advice you can unless, of course, it's against God’s word.

Trust....

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
Today we are going to focus on a man named Joseph. It all starts when one day he has a dream and he decides to tell his older brothers about it. He tells them that in the dream they BOWED to him!!! Well I don’t know about you but if one of my younger siblings said that I BOWED to them, I wouldn’t be happy. His older brothers make a plot to throw him in a ditch and leave him to die. Well Reuben’s plan was to rescue him at night so his brother would live. But instead all of the brothers stay and decide to sell him. By now I would have gone crazy… like on a rampage. But Joseph stayed cool. He gets to Egypt and the thugs sell him to a guy named Potiphar (Pharaoh’s head bodyguard.) It says that the Lord was with Joseph so he had found favor in Potiphar’s eyes. Joseph became head of the household but then… Potiphar goes out of town on a business trip. And his wife tries to get Joseph to sleep with him. Joseph was very strong in his relationship with God; so he said just plain “No.” but the sneaky wife tells Potiphar that JOSEPH tried to SLEEP with HER. If you couldn’t have guessed, he gets in trouble…. Jail trouble, but as always he trusted in the Lord and found favor in the head guard. Well one day Pharaoh calls for him because an old cup bearer mentions that Joseph can interpret dreams. When Joseph comes and interprets Pharaoh’s dreams he tells him that there will be 7 years of great crops and 7 years of horrible famine. And guess what He puts Joseph in second in command of all of Egypt.

What can we learn from Joseph? Hmmm..... We can trust him!!! You need to trust him no matter what; through thick and thin. Everything happens for the good of God’s will.

Words of Encouragement

Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.
1 Thessalonians 5:11
How many of you constantly put someone down or make fun of just random people throughout your class? I know I do. How do you feel when someone calls you an insignificant name that half of you wouldn’t think about calling someone else? It hurts… it stays with you throughout the day doesn’t it?
If it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.
Romans 12:8 Do me a favor and read that verse again. Ok, what that verse is trying to say is that we need to only open our mouth if we have something that is not going to put down someone else. Let’s say you tell one of your friends that you’re a good Christian and you’re trying to get him/her to go to church with you. Five minutes later you tell someone not to be such a retard. Why do we say, “What is the world coming to? Everyone is so evil! I hope the Lord will come back soon!” COME ON, we are not setting an example for the world to follow. If we can’t stick together and encourage others, why do we expect others too. What can you do to change the world?

Age Doesn't Matter

The Lord does not look at the things a man looks at. Man looks at outward appearance; the Lord looks at the heart.
Samuel 16:7
I have just looked at Samuel 16 and it seems to me that God has some pretty big plans for David. I’m guessing he was about 16 or so…. That’s a pretty young age. He ends up playing the harp for the king…. You would probably be really nervous if you had to do anything for Barrack Obama. If you read ahead into Samuel 17 we find that David’s older brothers, Eliab, Abinadab and Shammah go off to fight the Philistines. Well, they go and find this dude that is massive; we’re talking 9’3”, that’s humongous. So they chicken out. Well Jesse, David’s dad, sends David to the camp his older brothers are staying at to give them food. For 40 days David does that until one day he over hears a group of soldiers saying, “Have you seen this man that is coming to fight…. Surely he will beat us! But the king will give great wealth and his daughter's hand in marriage to the man who slaughters the giant.” David replied, “Who is this man that he should taunt the living God Almighty?” Eliab, being the big brother and all had to say, “What are you doing here? Who is watching the sheep?” Try and think about what David was thinking at the moment. Do you ever have an older brother or sister that thinks they're the boss? And they’re always right? Well David was probably thinking…. Who died and made you in charge because last time I checked you weren’t God!!! But David replied, “What have I done? Was it not just a question?”And then he turned around and did it again!!!
What can we learn from David? You’re probably thinking what does this have to do with me? Think real hard. Look back at Samuel 16:7. What do you think that means? It means all of us, every age, race and religion have a purpose in life. Just because your picked on, or judged doesn’t mean God has forgot you or doesn’t care. Does it not say in the Bible that we as Christians will have more trouble…? Satan wants you to feel like God has left you. He hasn’t, He loves you and has a plan for you. It could be that he wants you to be a preacher, or take care of younger kids that need a Christian role model or be a role model for you siblings. You could work in a soup kitchen for the homeless. I don’t know what He has in store for you; all I know is that you were made for a specific reason.
Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise. Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails. What a man desires is unfailing love, better to be poor than a liar
Proverbs 19:20-22