Walk In His Ways

Psalm 128 KJV

Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord; that walketh in his ways.

For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.

Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table.

Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the Lord.

The Lord shall bless thee out of Zion: and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life.

Yea, thou shalt see thy children's children, and peace upon Israel.

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The Psalm today sounds a lot like "IF" you do this the Lord will bless you. The plain truth is that the Lord has shown us a fruitful way to live. Do good! Doing what is contrary to the way that God has shown you to live will lead you into trouble of your own making. 

He has shown us the way to live lives of peace. Dwell in his Word. Abide in Christ and follow in the way. 

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Love, Joy, Peace

So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

                                                                                                                        Galatians 5:16-23 NIV

Love - a fruit of the Spirit of God! There are days that I just shake my head in wonder at the lack of love that I witness around me. People using people to get what they want. I believe that everyone wants love but they have no clue that gratifying the desires of the flesh isn't going to get it. Sexual immorality, anger (temper tantrums and tirades), idolatry, etc. isn't going to get you love. Love is of the Spirit, not of the flesh. Love is not self-seeking. Love seeks unity with one's neighbor. Love seeks good for others and not harm.

According to St. Paul: "The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like." He warns us that those who live like this will not inherit the Kingdom of God.

On the other hand, those who live by the Spirit of God, will have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. They will produce fruit of the Spirit. "...the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." 

May God help us to love others, even as He loves us. May His Kingdom come; His will be done on earth as it is done in heaven.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Training Children

"Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it."  Proverbs 22:6

I am not sure about the wisdom from Proverbs 22:6. I have seen evidence to the contrary. I have seen parents who have been just awesome parents raise their children up in the church; in a loving family. I have known parents who have lovingly taught and disciplined their children and yet...? What went wrong. One child might not depart from the way they were taught to go; while another does depart. The truth be told parents are not the only influence on our children today. They are not even the main influence any longer in many cases. There are schools and peers who are not being raised up in the way the Lord would have them go to influence them. There is television and all sorts of social media that they can get their hands on to lead them down the wrong path. Even if parents monitor what they watch or listen to or read at home. Parents do not have the capability from shutting out the negative influences when they are not with them. 

But, then again I have seen children who head off in the wrong direction and when they are old; they remember what they were taught and return to the Lord.  Maybe we just have to give it more time and more patience and more love and lots of prayers that they will all return to the way that their parents and our Father in heaven would have them go.