Courage to Carry Out His Purpose

I have been inspired by all the wonderful posts this Good Friday and thank God for blessing me with more than I deserve. Reading the post, made me think about the tremendous courage it took for Christ to carry out His purpose.

I remember doing a topic study years ago about courage and found many examples of courage in the Bible. A few, I would like to share.

In Luke 9:11-28, the servant did not maximize his master’s gains because he was afraid to take a risk and make the money multiply. The lesson I learned is to have faith to step out and do what would produce the best return.

In Acts 4:1-12, Peter is proclaiming Christ as the savior to the same group that had crucified Him. What courage it took to speak about this in front of this audience.

As we see in Acts 25:23-26:32, God is the source of Paul’s courage. Within these scriptures, I see someone with the courage to admit that he once persecuted Christians and the courage to talk about controversial issues even when placed in a very difficult situation.

When Paul faced opposition in Corinth, God gave him assurance of safety. He spoke to Paul in a vision telling him to keep on teaching the gospel and not be afraid because he would be protected (Acts 18:1-11).

The Word says that God stood near Paul and told him to take courage. There is a peace in knowing that God is with you. Paul had that peace and trusted God to help him in time of need (Acts 22:30-23:11)

Like looking up at a scoreboard and seeing that your team is winning, we can see a clear picture of victory found in the Bible and know that Jesus is the most valuable player. To read more about my thoughts on courage, take a few minutes to read this post titled No Fear of Failure.

Applaud Qualities in Others

A personality trait lacking in our leaders today is the skill of building others up. A person can achieve much greater things when they only care about doing what’s right and do not have to receive the credit. People work hard so give them the credit when they deserve it. No one is perfect but there are qualities in everyone that can be applauded.

I don’t know about you, but I like being around people that can open doors of interesting topics to talk about rather than about the wrong going on. Also, people that have a sense of humor or that seem to find ways to stimulate conversation through amazing facts of the world or the love of nature are fun to be around. With the way technology is today, people can easily obtain interesting information from current events, news, and blogs.

We need more people today who can just be themselves with new interesting ways to enjoy life. Remember the character named Mary Poppins in the 1964 musical film starring Julie Andrews. She invented new ways to make boring task exciting. She came up with words like supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. Every day was a holiday with Mary as she was bigger than life, an original, always positive, energetic, and an encouragement to others. Let us all strive to be like Mary by making life a little happier, burdens a little lighter, and time a little sweeter.

There are many lessons we can learn from old TV shows or movies even though they are not factual. Reruns of the Andy Griffith show are available and we can see how Andy had a knack of knowing how to handle situations. There was one episode when Andy was trapped in a cave and found a way out but heard that Barney was organizing a rescue and decided to go back in the cave to let Barney look good. The lesson we can learn is to always take opportunity to make others feel good about who they are.

We are all God’s creation and share a common Father who loves and cares for everyone. Let us regard each other as a national treasure. We are all brothers and sisters that should live in harmony with one another, building each other up, and loving our neighbors as ourselves. Let us dream big because we live in a big universe and God can handle big dreams.

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People We Enjoy Being Around

What is it about some people that make us want to be around them? One trait is that they see others as being important with unique skills. They never underestimate potential in others.

Are there stories you have heard or experienced of people who attract crowds? Maybe it’s a friend, a teacher, or a family member. My Grandfather was a High School principal for many years and at his funeral were many former students that had gone through his school. He had the ability to see value in people and they all wanted to pay their respects.

Photo Credit

http://www.123rf.com/photo_6960926_friends-eating-pizza.html

The Foundation for a Better Life has a website. On this website at this link, I read story of an athlete who threw a winning pass to win a football game. Afterwards, he went with some friends to get pizza and they saw the nerdish team manager fall off his bike. Everyone laughed except the great athlete who then invited the team manager to come with them for some pizza. Let us all strive to be like the athlete and throw some winning passes at life by seeing some good in everyone.

I will always remember my friend Gregg who took me in and introduced me to everyone when my parents moved back to their hometown. He died in 2006 after a hard fought two year long battle with cancer and at his funeral, the church was filled with people he had touched in the same way he had touched me.

A few years ago, I remember seeing a commercial of a regional fast food restaurant chain called Whataburger. A guy in this commercial is enjoying breakfast and then looks at his watch only to realize he is late for work. Then he hurriedly buys some extra goodies to carry to work and share with his co-workers. Being late for work doesn’t make you look bad to the boss when you bring breakfast. Instead, he remembers you as the one who brought breakfast.

Every day, we have an opportunity to bring something that others can enjoy. We don’t have to bring breakfast every day; just bring yourself with a smile and an attitude that everyone is important with unique skills to offer.

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Free to Be Me and Jesus is the Key

The song Free To Be Me by Francesca Battistelli is about how we are empowered to be who we are made to be because of the freedom we have and that Jesus is the key.

God became flesh and came to earth with a purpose. He was a wonderful teacher who attracted large crowds; giving wisdom and truth to all. What is it about some people that seem to attract large crowds? Over the next few weeks, I’ll do a series of writings trying to answer this question. The first in the series is at this link: Being Pleasant with Others. 

Steps to Take

In my study of applying our faith, I wrote the following poem:

Steps to Take

Start each day out right

Each morning see the light

Tell God your need

He will help to proceed

Pray with confidence

And expect assistance

Listen for instructions

Then take actions

If plans need adjustment

Pray even more fervent

Know that He is with you

All the way through

This week, I finish my study of applying faith with some ideas at this link: Tools for the Journey.

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