TRANSFORM YOUR LIFE

Ecclesiastes 3:11

God has made everything beautiful for its own time.

Ever transform something ugly into something beautiful? Maybe you didn't like the way a room looked and you rearranged it; or maybe you had a work area that was in disarray and you organized it? As for me, deep down inside I’m a frustrated artist and I was working on a portrait of a farm. As the portrait was developing, I realized that my painting was quickly going nowhere and in a bout of frustration, I handed the work off to my wife, who is a trained artist. She began to retouch it by adding some shrubbery, skylines and natural backdrops. She added the missing depth and it was transformed. There wasn’t, however, a single trace of my original portrait which reminded me about my life in Christ. You see, whatever mess we make of our lives can still be made into something beautiful if we placed our lives into God’s masterful hand. There’s a wonderful song that says:

Something beautiful, something good.
All my confusions He understood.
All I have to offer Him is brokenness & strife.
And He made something beautiful of my life.

Hand over your messy life, all of your stressful situations and difficult challenges to Jesus and He’ll turn your life into something beautiful. He’ll turn your life into a masterpiece.

IN EVERYTHING GIVE THANKS

1 Thessalonians 5:18

In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Have you ever tried counting all of the little things that you've been blessed with? After church services on Sunday, my wife and I would sometimes take our children out to eat. At an early age, my children were taught to say short prayers before meals and occasionally I’d ask my young son to pray and thank the Lord for the food. He was only about three or four years old then, but he would start praying for everything, “Lord, thank You for the plates, the spoons, the forks, the fried chicken, the fish, the rice, the sodas, the water” and so on and so forth. When he was unable to name specific vegetables he would pray, “Thank You for the... umm... plants.” Thinking back, it's hard to not laugh about his prayers for meals. I’m sure, however, that God was more than pleased with his prayers. After all, God wants us to be grateful for everything that we have - especially the little things. Start thanking God for everything and you’ll begin to see the difference in you when you have a thankful heart.

LIVE PASSIONATELY

Galatians 2:20

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

What do you want to accomplish with your life? There are many brave people that have committed themselves to die for the causes they believed in. From an extreme perspective, the kamikaze pilots of WWII shocked the world with their passionate belief in their suicide missions for Imperial Japan. From a vastly different perspective, two well-known Christian missionaries publicly declared their passions for Christ:

David Brainerd - “Lord, to you I dedicate myself. Oh, accept of me, and let me be yours forever. Lord, I desire nothing else; I desire nothing more.”
Dwight L. Moody - “Use me, then, my Savior, for whatever purpose and in whatever way you will require. Here is my heart, an empty vessel, fill it with your Grace.”

God isn't looking for somebody to die passionately for Him, but rather for people that would live passionately for Him. How passionate is your life for God today?

WHEN I TRY NOT TO DO WRONG, I DO IT ANYWAY

Romans 7:19-20

When I want to do good, I don't. And when I try not to do wrong, I do it anyway. But if I am doing what I don't want to do, I am not really the one doing it; the sin within me is doing it.

Do you want better control of your life and the things that go on in your life? During a graduation address, a university President once told the graduating class that, "It gets easier and easier for man to dominate his universe, and harder for him to dominate himself. It matters little what you learn or express if in the end you cannot find some ways of working things out with your neighbors." Well, the truth of the matter is that we can't individually dominate the universe, but with God’s help we can dominate our own lives. After all, it’s widely believed that man’s greatest enemy is himself. In order for us to have that kind of control, sin needs to be removed as a factor in our lives. 1 John 1:9 teaches us that, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Get a grip on your life by giving in to Jesus so that sin can be removed from you life.

MONEY CAN BE SO ALLURING

Luke 12:16-21

A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. In fact, his barns were full to overflowing. So he said, "I know! I'll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I'll have room enough to store everything. And I'll sit back and say to myself, 'My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!'" But God said to him, ‘You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get it all?’ Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.

Money has been a pursuit of almost everyone the world over and people that have money are considered a hot commodity. Some of us even have an inner desire to have large sums of money at their disposal just for the mere pleasures that it can bring. I know that feeling and I’d be lying if I said, "I don’t like money." Jesus told a story in Luke 12:16-21 about a wealthy man that planned out a perfect way to have even more, but he had a poor or non-existent relationship with God. Don't be deceived by the lure of money. Invest more into your relationship with God rather than worldly riches. A great relationship with God is where you’ll find true abundance.

THE LITTLE LIE THAT NEVER STOPS HURTING

Genesis 2:16-17

And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Have you ever told a little white lie? One can never truly know the actual effect of a lie until all the after effects are fully manifested. I'm reminded of a story about a minister that ended his sermon with some homework saying, “Next Sunday I’m going to preach about lying. In preparation, I’d like you all to read Mark, Chapter 17.” The following Sunday, the preacher began his message asking, “Can all of you that read Mark 17 please raise your hands?” As nearly every hand in the congregation shot up, the preacher replied, “Well, my message is on lying and you’re the very people I want to talk to because the Book of Mark doesn’t have a 17th chapter.” Lying is the very reason why man fell into sin and in Genesis 3:4-5 we learn about the very first lie ever told, “And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as Gods, knowing good and evil.” Isn't it amazing to see how that very first lie has resulted in generation upon generation of sin and that the after effects aren't even final? Do your best to remain honest and true, and remember that when you lie, the actual result is a self-inflicted wound.

TRUE HUMILITY

Philippians 2:5-8

Your attitude should be the same that Christ had. Though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his rights as God. He made himself nothing; he took the humble position of a slave and appeared in human form. And in human form he obediently humbled himself even further by dying a criminal's death on a cross.

On the topic of humility, I'm reminded of a story about a young foreign military commander that traveled to Europe for a special mission. Upon his arrival, he held a lavish party at a grand hotel and invited notable dignitaries to be honored guests. As the banquet came to an end, the young host rose to say a few words as dictated by his own national custom saying, “I am greatly honored by your presence tonight. However, the food was meager and simple, and I may have slighted you, for which I wish to offer my apologies.” After the guests had left, he was presented with a bill and to his great surprise, the chef's claim of defamation. The chef felt that his culinary reputation, and the reputation of his restaurant had been publicly slandered. The young commander’s self-expressed humility was offered at the expense of other people. True humility is meekness of oneself for the benefit of others. Jesus is a perfect example of humility because it was at Christ's expense that the whole world would benefit. Take the time to humble yourself like Jesus because it is completely for the benefit of others' salvation and the relationships that are needed to spread the Good News.

DO NOT PASS JUDGMENT

Matthew 7:1-4

Stop judging others, and you will not be judged. For others will treat you as you treat them. Whatever measure you use in judging others, it will be used to measure how you are judged.

Has life ever been unfair to you? Have you ever been misunderstood? Have you ever been betrayed? If justice were an actual person, he would've already died from job-related stress from everyone's demands. The downside of trying to provide judgment is the reason why Jesus told us not to judge. Living without judging others relieves us of the stresses of personalizing justice. You see it isn't our job to judge others because our minds are both limited and inadequate to postulate any truly righteous solutions. 2 Timothy 4:8 teaches us that Jesus is the righteous Judge and that He will reward us on the great day of His return. That prize is not just for those that you might deem worthy, but for anyone that eagerly awaits His glorious return.

THE SOURCE OF SICKNESS AND AILMENTS

Psalm 41:4

O Lord, have mercy on me; heal me, for I have sinned against you.

Have you been ill? Not feeling right in some way? Do you have any kind of pain? If you're like most people, you answered "Yes" to at least one of those questions. I'm reminded of an exchange between a physician and a patient that happened to be a stand-up comic. The doctor said his patient, “You seem to be coughing with more difficulty.” The comedian replied, “That’s surprising because I’ve been practicing all night!” It's a silly anecdote, but there isn’t a person that doesn’t need healing in some way. Pharmaceutical drug companies earn billions of dollars taking advantage of people's desire for healing. In fact, man will forever be caught in the vicious cycle of searching for cures while creating ailments. In God's eyes, the very source of sickness and ailment is sin and the cure is repentance. So if you're looking for the kind of healing that only supernatural healing could provide, take up your Bible and get right with God.

THE BEAUTY OF HEAVEN

John 14:1-3

Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

A little city girl visiting the countryside for the first time looked up to see a starlit night sky. She asked herself, “If heaven’s so beautiful on the wrong side, what’s it like on the right side?” Since the beginning of time there's been a debate over heaven's existence, but is the argument really all that important when heaven’s existence is already obvious when gazing upon the vast celestial? A famous evangelist once said that heaven is a spiritual home, a promised home, a home beautiful beyond all imagination, and a home with no sadness. In heaven, family and friends will be reunited with Christ at the center of it all. Unto Him, all hearts will turn, and upon Him all eyes will rest. The very first sentence of the Bible teaches us that, "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth." The little city girl that saw that saw the beauty of heaven from the dark side of life saw the hope of heaven because it must truly be more glorious on the other side. Do you know if you'll ever get to see heaven? Put your life in God's hands and you’ll learn the answer.

PRAYER AND FASTING

Mark 9:29

And he said unto them, this kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.

When the disciples tried to heal people in the way that Jesus did, they found that they couldn't heal anybody. In fact, people were still bringing their sick loved ones to the disciples for healing when someone complained to Jesus saying, "Teacher, I brought my son for you to heal him. He can't speak because he is possessed by an evil spirit that won't let him talk. And whenever this evil spirit seizes him, it throws him violently to the ground and makes him foam at the mouth and grind his teeth and become rigid. So I asked your disciples to cast out the evil spirit, but they couldn't do it." In Mark 9:29, Christ gave the prescription on how to accomplish the impossible with two key components: prayer and fasting. Since this is the solution and the Bible speaks no lies, what’s keeping you from praying and fasting so that you can accomplish the impossible?

IT'S ALL IN YOUR HEAD

1 Corinthians 2:16

For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.

A person can become imprisoned by one's own mind when thoughts are focused on the wrong things. Proverbs 23:7 teaches us that, "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he." Sir Walter Scott once wrote, "Give me my imagination and I can be happy in a prison." John Bunyan was imprisoned primarily to stop him from preaching the gospel, but his tireless soul refused to be enchained when penned Pilgrim’s Progress. The Apostle Paul, while imprisoned in Rome could not go and preach to the churches, so he wrote the epistles that have carried the message of Christ to all generations since their delivery. God has given us His mind to think, and His mind is the very same mind that created the heavens and earth, as well as everything seen and unseen. Remove the thoughts in your mind that are telling you what you can't do in life and what you can't become. Rather than be enslaved by those thoughts, be mindful to place your thoughts onto how powerful you can be and what your life can become.

STORING UP TREASURES IN HEAVEN

Matthew 6:20

Store your treasures in heaven, where they will never become moth-eaten or rusty and where they will be safe from thieves.

I’ve had the pleasure of being a part of treasure hunting expeditions and on each of those journeys I could easily see the bottomless pit of man's desire for riches and wealth. When Alexander the Great died, his armies had already conquered most of the known world. His armies had defeated the mighty King Darius of Persia and taken all of his kingdom's spoils, and then continued their conquering ways across Asia. Alexander the Great, however, kept for himself only one item from the war's booty: a small jeweled box that housed an original copy of The Iliad. The value of this book to Alexander could hardly ever be overestimated. In the same manner, we should also keep a valuable book for ourselves that washed us and freed us from sin: the Bible. Throughout the centuries, it's been the treasure chest of wisdom from God. There's no need to go on treasure hunting expeditions when you've got the Holy Word close to your heart. Whether you're searching for riches, guidance or inner peace, read the Bible and you'll find the map that will lead you wherever it is you're meant to go.

AUTHORITY COMES WITH MANY BURDENS

Matthew 10:1

Jesus called His twelve disciples to Him and gave them authority.

Have you ever wanted to be the person in charge of something, but lacked the authority? In the past, I’d served as a CEO of a company and had some very desirable executive privileges and the authority that comes with the title. Beneath the privileges and authority, however, were sleepless nights, stressful situations and challenging business decisions. On the surface, I might look smooth and unruffled, but inside I'd be struggling with decisions that could effect the company and it's employees. It can be tough to see at times, but authority comes with many burdens. From Matthew 10:1 we learn that the disciples were given authority by Jesus. Christ is willing and able to give you authority and responsibility, but you'll have to work at gaining wisdom from Him before He'll give it to you the authority you desire.

FOR THE WEARY AND HEAVY BURDENED

Matthew 11:28-30

Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke fits perfectly, and the burden I give you is light.

How do you deal with life and it's daily pressures? When I was a child, I studied martial arts so that I'd be physically ready for some tough kids that I might encounter on the streets. While practicing, I'd sometimes get so pumped up that I'd feel like I was in a real fight! The world sometimes feels like an endless battle that leaves us exhausted, tired and dying. Even powerful world leaders with extensive resources at their disposal can become exhausted. Here are some interesting quotes depicting exhaustion from the farewell statements of a few American presidents:

George Washington - “I’d rather be in the grave than in the presidency again”

Thomas Jefferson - “Never did a prisoner released from his chains feel such relief as I shall in shaking off the shackles of power”

James Buchanan (addressing Abraham Lincoln) - “If you are as happy, dear Sir, on entering this house as I am on leaving it, you are the happiest man in the country”

Life doesn’t have to be like this! Jesus taught us in Matthew 11:28 that He will give us rest - if we come to Him. Fight the good fight of life and it's pressures, but do it with Jesus as a partner. You'll find that old exhausting load to be much lighter and your journey will be much sweeter.

SUPERNATURAL SUPERPOWERS

1 Corinthians 15:48-49

Every human being has an earthly body just like Adam's, but our heavenly bodies will be just like Christ's. Just as we are now like Adam, the man of the earth, so we will someday be like Christ, the man from heaven.

When Jesus rose from the dead, Christ became "new and improved" in many significant ways. One of those ways is written about in the Bible when Jesus first visited the disciples after His resurrection. In John 20:19 we learn that, "On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, 'Peace be with you!'" Now how exactly did He get in when the door was locked? The exact answer is unknown. Did He walk through the walls? Did He teleport Himself into the room? It's nearly impossible to know the answer to those questions, but we do know this for sure: Jesus no longer had a frail human body and He was walking around with a new heavenly body. In the same way, faithful believers that have a relationship with Christ will someday also have "new and improved" heavenly bodies capable of the unimaginable and the supernatural. There's no science fiction involved with the supernatural superpowers that believers will have.

WHEN GREED OVERPOWERS

Ecclesiastes 5:11

So what is the advantage of wealth — except perhaps to watch it run through your fingers!

There's a Chinese allegory about an immortal who had the power to make anything turn to gold by just pointing his finger. This powerful being was saddened to find that an old human friend had become impoverished, and as a helpful gift he pointed at a pile of bricks and turned them to gold. He then gave the precious rocks to his poor friend. Surprisingly, his old friend was unsatisfied with the gift and asked for more gold. The surprised immortal reluctantly granted the request, and not surprisingly his now wealthy friend was still unsatisfied. The immortal asked his old friend, "What more do you want?" The greedy man replied, "I would like to have your finger." Our desire for excessive wealth can be blinding. The greed that fuels this desire is so powerful that we sometimes don't realize that we've become unhappy with what we have, and have begun to desire what other people have. Stake your life on something more sound than wealth. Stake it on Christ and your salvation through His grace. Unlike the wealth that will pass through your fingers, your relationship with God is built on the sturdiest of rocks, our Lord Jesus Christ.

GIVE CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE

Mark 12:17

"Well, then," Jesus said, "give to Caesar what belongs to him. But everything that belongs to God must be given to God."

Have you every really put some serious thought into what actually belongs to God? Those that are religious ought to know the answer to this question, but even believers have a tendency to forget the answer. Dr. G. Campbell Morgan once wrote that when his father visited his home, his father told him that, “this is very nice house, but nobody will know walking through these rooms whether you belong to God or the devil.” Do you truly declare God's ownership of your life? Is God reflected in your words and deeds? Never forget to give credit where credit is due. After all, the Creator of the heavens and earth already owns everything.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WANTING AND NEEDING

Ecclesiastes 5:11

The more you have, the more people come to help you spend it.

It's fair to say that at a shopping mall, there are sales, discounts and bargains being pushed upon consumers from every possible angle. Discount coupons are almost guaranteed to arrive in your mail every week. Credit card companies will even send you an application for services with your monthly statements. Television, radio, magazines, newspapers and websites will likely never cease to try to entice you into purchasing something. More often than not, you purchase things that aren't even necessary because: 1. you have the money to make the purchase; 2. you have a credit card that you're ready to use unwisely; or 3. you actually believe that the product is going to make you happier, smarter, better looking, more attractive, maybe even more spiritual, and so on, and so on. The hard reality for all of us is that people will "help" you and entice you to spend your money in every possible way. Be shrewd with your money and start by first being obedient to the Word. Remember, there's a big difference between needing something and wanting for something.

YOU DIDN'T KNOW ANY BETTER BEFORE

1 Peter 1:14

Obey God because you are his children. Don't slip back into your old ways of doing evil; you didn't know any better then.

During our moments of pain and suffering, we need to concentrate our efforts on behaving the way our Lord behaved during His moments of pain and suffering. Despite the torture at the hands of unfair prosecution, Christ remained obedient to His Father's will and to the teachings of the scriptures. Life might seem unfair at times, but life isn't about all things being fair. Life is about knowing and doing what's right and fulfilling our purpose set for us by God. After all, God already knows what's best and right for us. As believers in Christ, we have an obligation to this because the Word teaches us in James 4:17, “that knowing what is right to do and then not doing it is sin.” It's interesting that backsliding comes in all shapes and sizes, and sometimes you wouldn't even realize that you had begun to knowingly not do what is right to do.

DON'T WEAR OUT YOUR WELCOME

Proverbs 25:17

Don't visit your neighbors too often, or you will wear out your welcome.

Visiting our fellow Christian family, friends and neighbors can be such a sweet fellowship experience, but when that privilege is abused, it is likely lost. Sometimes we visit too often; sometimes we stay too long; sometimes we bring along people that weren't invited; sometimes we just very plainly expect too much of our hosts and even go as far as to question their mindset. There's an old adage that says, "Power leads to abuse of power, and abuse of power leads to loss of power." Using the same thought process we can postulate that, "Privilege leads to abuse of privilege, and abuse of privilege leads to a loss of privilege." Abusing this privilege may lead to our hosts thinking, "Don't let the door hit you on the way out" upon our departure. To avoid this, we need to understand the unwritten and unspoken limitations of our neighbors. If you do this with everything, you'll maintain better relationships and leave the door open for deeper and more meaningful fellowships.

DISCIPLINE LEADS TO PEACE OF MIND

Proverbs 29:17

Discipline your children, and they will give you happiness and peace of mind.

A society's behavior is dependent upon it's previous generation's ability to properly extend discipline upon itself and it's youngsters. There's an old saying that goes, "You can't change your past, but you can do something about your future." In the same vein of thought, complaining about and blaming previous generations for our woes and problems won't provide many improvements. Our energy would be much better spent trying to impact the next generation by disciplining ourselves and our kids. If we do this, and if every generation thereafter repeated this, cultures and societies would be blessed with a disciplined understanding, peace of mind and happiness. Use the Word of God and all of it's wisdom to implement Godly discipline in your life and your family's life. When you do this in your own household, you'll easily see an improvement in your household's quality of life.

FORWARD THIS TO 10 PEOPLE & YOU'LL HAVE GOOD LUCK

Proverbs 13:11

Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears; wealth from hard work grows.

I recently received an email forward of a horoscope from a Christian sister. The message ended by saying that if I forwarded the message on to 10 people, I would be blessed with luck. I was really saddened by this email because it dawned on me that some Christians are truly being deceived by horoscopes, fortune tellers and other forms of unfaithful prophecy. These wannabe witches cannot even tell their own fortunes and futures, let alone someone else's. These types of things are abhorred by God and He curses those who choose to believe these things over the Word. The Word of God tells us that money from quick schemes disappears as fast as it arrives. Don't be fooled by these schemes. It'll cost you in the long run.

WORK HARD & BECOME A LEADER

Proverbs 12:24

Work hard and become a leader; be lazy and become a slave.

There is no reason that a person cannot overcome poverty. The greatest asset that God gave all of us equally is time, and people that use their time wisely work smart and are usually key leaders. If you want to see a job done well as quickly as possible, just give it to a very busy person because that person will try to finish it as quickly as they can, with the best quality of completion because they don't want to waste more time by having to return and repair the work. On the other hand, lazy people likely procrastinate on simple things like making decisions about a project or work. Live this way, and before you know it, you'll be an indentured servant, which is essentially... someone's slave.

GIVE THE BEST & GET THE FINEST

Proverbs 3:9-10

Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the best part of everything your land produces. Then he will fill your barns with grain, and your vats will overflow with the finest wine.

How do we honor the Lord with our wealth if we have hardly any wealth to begin with? This is a legitimate question that the Word addresses in Luke 21:1-4,

While Jesus was in the Temple, he watched the rich people putting their gifts into the collection box. Then a poor widow came by and dropped in two pennies. "I assure you," he said, "this poor widow has given more than all the rest of them. For they have given a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she has."

So, you're wondering what to give if you have no wealth to speak of? Don't worry about such a thing, just give everything you can with a joyful heart and God will recognize the value of your offering. Live this out correctly and the Lord will grant you an overflowing of blessings.