Tag Archive | pleasing God

Who gets to rule?

May9

1 Thessalonians 5:23 says the human soul is not only real but distinct from the body and the spirit: “Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Here’s an explanation:

Our bodies were given to us by God to live in and experience life on earth. It is via our bodies that we see (a glorious sunset), feel (the warmth of a child in your arms), taste (a chocolate cake with chocolate icing), smell ( the aroma of burning oak on a cool autumn day), and hear (the voices of those we love).

But we all know that at some point in time our bodies will cease to exist, we will die. So then what happens to our soul and our spirit?

The body contains the soul and the spirit. The body is NOT eternal, yet the soul and spirit are. The soul’s eternal destination is determined by the choice we make while living on this earth to either accept Christ as our Savior or not. Heaven is our eternal home for those of us who choose Christ. Hell is the eternal home for those who reject Christ.

Our soul is made up of our mind, emotions, and free will. The driving motivator of our soul is self. So visualize a throne at the center of your life. Whoever sits there gets to rule. Therefore, a soul that is ruled by self gets to do what it wants to do. Pleasing self is the primary goal. It is adverse to anything that would dethrone self.

WHO GETS TO RULE?

And finally, there is our spirit. Our spirit is what distinguishes us as Christians. It is our spirit that responds to the invitation of Jesus Christ bringing our spirit to life. Therefore, it is by our spirits that we interact/communicate with God. It is God’s spirit that reveals to us truths from God’s word. And the more we delve into God’s word, the more we will hear and understand God’s voice.

Now back to my throne analogy. When our spirit is made alive by accepting Christ as our Savior, then guess who gets dethroned? Yep, self! Our spirit, that part of us who belongs to and desires to obey God, now sits on the throne of our lives. The primary goal has now changed. Pleasing God becomes the drive that motivates us.

An individual whose spirit is NOT made alive through belief in Christ, is easy takings for Satan. Since our soul is so self-centered we are easily manipulated to go after what we want, when we want it!

Without the influence of God’s spirit within us, Satan’s subtle tactics can proceed unhindered. As he influences the soul of someone who is not a believer in Christ, he is free to manipulate, deceive, distract us away from God, Jesus, Holy Spirit. (Three components just like us). That is his whole aim on earth. His plan is to take as many souls with him as he can to his eternal hell.

But, an individual whose spirit is made alive through belief in Christ, has the power to avoid being victimized by the enemy. Our spirits, when communicating with God constantly and growing in wisdom through the absorption of His truths, expose the tactics of the enemy.

The problem here is those of us (Christians that is) who do not spend time with God in prayer and delving into His word on a consistent basis, simply don’t develop the skills we need to recognize the enemy’s tactics. As a result, we become prime targets of Satans fiery darts.

When our spirit (that part that communicates with God and He with us) is positioned on the throne of our lives then God rules. And when God rules, then we discover the life that Satan wants to steal from us. (Now, maybe we can realize why Satan doesn’t want us to read our Bibles.)

So now we need to ask ourselves, Who’s ruling our lives?

Much of my post today was gleaned from the following website: https://www.crosswalk.com/faith/spiritual-life/what-is-the-difference-between-the-body-soul-and-spirit.html

The Realities of this season…

May11

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Growing old wasn’t so hard when I was in my 50’s and 60’s. Yet now that I’m in my 70’s, it’s as they say, “A whole new ball game!” The rules are different along with the conditions. The 70’s are proving to far more challenging. Last November my mother passed away at 100. For the first time in my life, I was forced to walk the path of my life without her presence. Without her input, without her support, without her assistance. That’s left a lot of empty spaces. It’s like entering a room where everything has changed but you still have to navigate a way through it, only without the familiar markers of the past.

The physical aches and pains of growing old are a cold reality in my 70’s. I can no longer skirt around the term ‘elderly.’ I am now one of those. And during the scope of the argument my body revolts at fully applying myself to the requirements of caring for and maintaining yard and home.

Now a new shadow has been cast upon the whole scene, as my best friend has fallen victim to cancer– she has been one of my most consistent reprieves to keep all this in balance. She always filled in the gap when three of my four children and their families moved out of state and one out of country. Taking in a movie, going for a bike ride, shopping therapy, doing lunch and even making road trips now and then provided the company I missed out on when my children moved away. Her godly counsel directed my thoughts towards an attitude that was more pleasing to God. Kept my mind directed towards pleasing God; not getting my own way or wallowing in self-pity.

The days ahead appear dark and lonely or so that is what the enemy would have me believe. My challenge at present is to pick up the weapons God has given me to thwart the enemy’s plan.



Ecclesiastes 3:1, ASV, For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven:

Isaiah 46:4, NLV, Even when you are old I will be the same. And even when your hair  turns white, I will help you. I will take care of what I have made. I will carry you, and will save you.

Ruth 4:15, NIV, He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age

2 Cor. 4:16, NKJV, Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.



Thanks for things I was not so thankful for!

Nov17

Thanksgiving is upon us. And when we stop to ponder what we are thankful for, all sorts of reasons come to mind: family, friends, our Country, our jobs, our church, our provisions, food, shelter, clothing, our military, God’s beautiful creation. And that’s just scratching the surface!

But I want to focus on something just as wonderful, but perhaps not so obvious. How about all those hard times in our lives? Those times when we experienced rejection, humiliation, abandonment, pain, suffering, betrayal, disappointment, How on earth, we may ask, could we possibly be thankful for these?

I recall a time in my life when I encountered a time of huge disappointment and betrayal. It proved to be a pivotal point in my life. I had made a major decision that apparently many of my community did not agree with. It sent ripples of negative gossip throughout. Even affecting my home-life. For weeks I endured the fallout.

Yet, after a time of several conversations, but more importantly time spent with God in His word and prayer, I arrived at the following conclusions. The turmoil I battled with was due to the fact that some key people of my community opposed my decision. Being the people pleaser that I was, their disapproval was hard to accept. But then a friend reminded me that when I seek to please God, there are always going to be those who would not agree with me. His advice was a game changer for me.

That whole ordeal taught me some much needed and powerful life lessons. God tenderly brought me to the understanding that I was to seek to please Him, not people. By choosing to please God, not man, in this trial, I learned that I could hear from God and act on His guidance whether others agreed with me or not. God grew my faith and I became wiser for having walked this difficult path.

Because of the light God shed onto my life in that instance, I found that my gratitude to God over rode any bitterness I may have felt towards those who had talked against me. It was a lesson I needed to learn, so it took a hard thing to teach it to me. The best reward was that I harbored no ill feelings toward those who had disagreed with me.

Years later, the ones that had instigated the event, came to me asking forgiveness. With assurance, I told them I had already forgiven them. I shared with them how God had put me in a classroom that taught me how to stand on my own two feet spiritually and receive a word from God. That pleasing Him was far more important and necessary than pleasing others.

Being a people pleaser entrapped me. But this ordeal set me free of that. I have thanked God time and again for opening my eyes to my weakness back then.

I have found that it is often those hard things we experience in life that teach us the greatest lessons. And for that we can always be thankful.