Good afternoon, my friends!

As I was having my quiet time today, I was reading in the book of James. It was talking about faith. More specifically, how important it is that we are not only hearers of the Word, but of being doers of the Word. Faith with works.

I am sure that many of us have heard some sort of sermon dealing on the subject of faith without works, but how many of us actually put that into practice? The Bible clearly states that faith without works is dead. Dead! That is a pretty definitive statement.

Let’s take a peek at it, shall we?

“What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,’ but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” ~ James 2:14-17 (NKJV)

What does that mean to you? To me, it means that we need to make certain that we are not only telling people of our faith, but also putting our faith into practice. Doing whatever is called for to help those who are in need. Works = Action.

I don’t know about you, but I think about this a lot. What am I doing to help others? What does the Lord want me to do? How can I go about fulfilling the law of the Lord in this area?

Truthfully, I have found that I can sometimes be a very lazy Christian. (Uh Oh! Another one of those icky confessions!) I say that I want to get out and help, that I want to volunteer my time and my service, but I find myself letting another day slip away without actually putting that into practice. Not a very pretty picture. Self-introspection can be ugly sometimes.

Kind of ironic, really. I have been trying to take stock of who I am at this point in life. Taking a hard look at my internal mirror, and seeing if I truly like what is staring back at me. (At this point, not so much.) With that in mind, I thought it was interesting that I came across this verse today as well:

“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the Word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.” ~ James 1:22-25 (NKJV)

I have fallen into the “rut” of the daily grind, and have let the important things (like living out my faith) fall by the wayside. I don’t even know if I understand who I really am at this point in life.

Maybe it is due to the fact that my nest is emptying out and my children don’t need me so much anymore, or maybe it is because God is shaking me a little bit and making me open my eyes to what I have become. I don’t know. The one thing that I am certain of is that now is the time for renewal in my life, and believe it or not, I am thankful that the Lord is showing me these things about myself – even though I may not like the reflection being presented in my mirror.

Soooo … what now? How do I go about putting my faith into action? I am praying about this. There are many things I would sincerely like to do; working with the elderly, working with teens, being a support system for someone who needs a friend. My problem is I am not sure how to go about finding those who might need my help, and placing myself in that arena. I am going to have to do some research and find out where I can be of service.

I do believe it is good to support Christian ministries financially (which my husband and I do), but to me, I don’t think works means just writing out a check once or twice a month. I think it means we are supposed to actually get involved on a personal level; one on one with people.

What does your mirror look like? Are you putting your faith into action? If so, how? I would love to hear how you are serving others in your community.

Having my eyes opened day by day,

As I was reading my Bible this morning, the book of Colossians really stood out to me. There are so many verses that speak not only of the love and the hope that we have in Christ Jesus, but also of our need to remain steadfast in our faith and in our personal relationship with Him.

“As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.” ~ Colossians 2:6-7 (NKJV)

The words that stood out for me in this verse were “rooted and built up in Him”. I haven’t been very rooted lately. I haven’t been spending time daily with my Lord, and it breaks my heart to know that I have not been “abounding in it with thanksgiving” as I should be. Sure, I say my prayers and I thank the Lord for His blessings, but I haven’t been truly spending *quality* time with God.

I also confess that I have been finding it hard to get motivated to read my Bible. I don’t know why. I don’t have an excuse. To say that out loud is embarrassing for me, but it is true. My guess is that it is true for many Christians.

Why is it that we, as Christians, can find time to do just about anything we want to do, but yet so many of us find it hard to get “motivated” to spend time in the Word? The Bible is THE Book on the greatest love ever known, for crying out loud. Why would we need motivation to immerse ourselves in it?

We work, we read, we blog, we Facebook, we play games, watch T.V., we visit friends and family …. but where and when do we place our time with the Lord in all of this?

This is something I just don’t understand and I have struggled with this issue for years. I love the Lord so much, and yet I am not rooted as I should be. This is nobody’s fault but my own.

Why am I making this public confession? To hold myself accountable, and to encourage anyone else out there reading this who may also be in the same boat. We don’t have to remain where we are. We shouldn’t remain where we are. We need to pick ourselves up, ask for forgiveness, and step back into a heartfelt, sincere, daily relationship with the Lord.

I made this step today, and I am going to make it a priority in my life. God first, then the rest of life. I hope you will join me.

Lord, thank You for always being here for me, even when I fail You so miserably. Thank You for never giving up on me, and for always convicting my heart when it is needed. Help me Lord to remain rooted in you, and let me abound in my faith with thanksgiving! I love You, Lord, and I am so thankful for Your grace, Your mercy, and Your love. Help me to always remember the sacrifice You endured so that I could have the freedom from sin and the gift of eternal life with You! Thank You also, that I live in a country that I can praise You openly, without fear of persecution. Help me not to take that for granted.

In Jesus Name,
Amen