Author: pumpkinslayer

“God has given each of you special abilities; be sure to use them to help each other, passing on to others God’s many kinds of blessings.” – 1 Peter 4:10 (LB)

God has given us all abilities and skills. We were given these right from the word go. From the time we left the womb we have had certain things that we can do well, things which we might excel at. These are not by random chance, although they might sometimes seem that way.

As we know, God has a plan. He planned you, so it makes sense that God gave us the talents and abilities we need to perform our service for him. If you have a talent, use it for God. Although God has given us talents, we are not always aware of them, the church is the best place to cultivate those talents.

Your personality too is unique to you. I know I’ve sometimes felt bad when I’m not the most outgoing person when I see someone else who has a very outgoing personality, but the reality is, I’m not made that way. God doesn’t have the same plan for all of us, and does not use us all in the same way. As we’ve seen before, the guys and gals of the Bible had a whole bunch of different problems going on and vastly varying personalities, but they all served God, “with all their heart, mind, soul and strength.”

Finally, our experiences. These are often the things that hurt us the most, because they are often bad experiences. But God wants you to use that pain to help others. My mother went through a terrible depression that lasted 2 years and when she came out of she had new ferver to start studying again to become a counsellor for people going through depression. Now, that is one of her big focuses in life.

So, your talents are perfect for you and for serving others, just don’t let them go to waste, use them.

“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” – Ephesians 2:10

God knew and planned us from the very beginning, there are no accidents and no mistakes made by God, because he is the perfect creator of everything.

It becomes quite hard in modern society to keep things in focus. We are often so concerned about the here and now and all the struggles that we are going through at the moment that we lose focus of “the purpose.” That is what being shaped is all about, the shape of something is determined by what its purpose is, not the other way round.

With this in mind, what has your shape made you good for? God had something in mind, and like was mentioned in one of the videos, when exercising, we don’t need to make a body, we need to use and develop the one we have.

We all have unique gifts too, making us rely on each other. We all contribute in different ways and we all help each other out in different ways too. Jealousy and envy are human traits, but they are not traits that are appropriate within the circle of believers. No ones gifts are superior to anothers. If we believe what God says, we also believe we are all unique and have something to give and contribute. We may not all like the way someone else does something, but in service to the master, the master is the judge of the appropriateness of someone else’s gift. Unless of course it goes against what God says altogether.

Your heart can be affected by so many things, and we often equate our feelings with what is in our heart. But it is more than that, it is a reflection of what is deep inside. Our heart, which is also our passions, show what we are really into. You have your interests not by some random chance, but because God knows that he can use what you are for the benefit of His church, and to serve Him and others.

If your heart is in something, you don’t need someone motivating you all the time to keep going and doing it because you love to do it, you love it, so use it for God. An example of this that is very close to me, is students of English. There are so many who need to be checked up on to do their homework and to practice, but it’s because the motivation is, “I need it to get a better job or more qualifications,” or for my students, “I’m here because my parents want me to be,” sometimes they do well, sometimes they don’t. The ones who truly excel are those who love it, their heart is in it and they practice it without having to be pestered to do it all the time. This is not a prod at English students, just a look at motivations.

When your heart is in it, serving is completely natural.

Use those passions for God, he gave them to you for a reason, so use them to serve him.

We are all put on earth to make a contribution.

It’s the same thing that drives us to ask the question, “What on earth am I here for?” That need has been placed in our hearts by the Lord our God. He has created us to serve just as the example he gave us through his son Jesus.

We were made in the image of God, we were made in that image so we could be like God, learn to live in his ways. From before time itself our existence was planned by our loving Father in heaven. When we learnt the truth and accepted Christ, we were saved, so that we may come to know the true meaning of our lives and to live to the full. We were not saved so that we can “reserve” a place in heaven and then sit back and relax, the reality is that if we accept and do not act we don’t really believe. So we have to serve God.

God has made it quite clear that we are to serve, but he hasn’t just nudged us along, the call to serve is a command. With the example of Jesus, it is not just a suggestion that we serve, but the command that we are to obey.

We are never too ugly, we never have too many problems or too many hang-ups that God cannot use us. But we have to be willing. If I hold anything back then I have not given it to God. All those people in the people were way from perfect and they were all used by God to do wonderful and miraculous things. They were not perfect, but they did give their whole lives over to God to do as he saw fit.

Patience, its tough for the best of us, and for everyone else too.

Getting towards what God wants you to be is not a short process, it never is. When we look back in the Bible it took an immensely long time for God to prepare people. Even Jesus took 30 years before he started his ministry.

Time and patience builds character. The things that take us the longest to get are the things we appreciate the most. Without the due process, we are missing out. In fact it is the process that makes us into what we become, rather than being a reward for getting past that time. Everything is done in God’s time, and he doesn’t have much reason to rush, he’s got eternity. He doesn’t forget us, but we must patiently wait for what is going to do.

There are certainly a number of bad habits that I have picked up over the years. If it took years to knock into place it will take a while to knock them out of their place. And if I don’t know its a problem, it can’t be fixed, only a humble heart that can recognize those flaws can be taught a new and better way.

Of course change is never easy, I know about this. Once I become accustomed to something its a tough transition to something new, whatever it may be. Very often the fears are just on the surface and are quite often unwaranted. My job is something where I have had this struggle. Once I become used to the routines and practices, no matter whether I like them or not, there becomes a familiarity in it.

So keep faith in God, knowing that things take time and that he is faithful in all things. Keep a notebook of change so we don’t forget what has been done for us and how far we have actually come. We are all a work in process and no-one on this earth is perfect, on Christ has that priviledge, so bear with yourself, with others and wait patiently for God to do his stuff.

“Remember that the temptations that come into your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will keep the temptation from becoming so strong that you can’t stand up against it. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you will not give in to it.” 1 Corinthians 10:13 (NLT)

If we put our strength and faith in God, we can defeat temptation. We cannot do it alone.

These practical steps tell us how to keep out of trouble or get out of it.

Refocusing our attention keeps the thought from becoming bigger in our mind. It is so true that if you focus on something in either a positive of negative way, it will affect you. Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus. And get away from the situation if needs be.

Reveal your struggles. Satan tries to convince us we are alone, when we are not. God has given us spiritual brothers and sisters to share with. Confess and pray, and struggle through your problem.

Resist the devil with the word of God. As he is the master of lies, don’t try to outsmart him, he’s not stupid, he is however afraid of the word of God. Use it against him, keep memorizing scripture to be prepared.

Realizing our vulnerability admits we are not perfect. When we do, the healing process is begun. And don’t tempt sin, it will bite you if you mess with it.

“Happy is the man who doesn’t give in and do wrong when he is tempted, for afterwards he will get his reward the crown of life that God has promised those who love him.” James 1:12 (LB)

Life is full of temptations, there are always chances to choose the right or wrong thing to do. We are given freedom to do what we like by God, but only by making the right choice do we grow in God. We all stumble, because we are not perfect, but perfection is not a requirement, it is a goal.

The fruits of the spirit are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. These are the characteristics that we need to show to be like Jesus. The opportunities to test these different characteristics will come in situations where we have the choice to do the opposite, patience is developed through situations where we perhaps usually become impatient.

It’s comforting to know that Satan uses the same old tricks, especially when we see that we all keep falling into the same traps, not so surprising then.

God has the answer for overcoming temptation and using it to grow, rather than letting it make us stumble.

• Refuse to be intimidated – Satan will always tempt you, your reaction and response needs to be in accordance with God’s word and purposes.
• Recognise your temptation – Plan to avoid tempting situations, don’t give Satan the chance to tempt you.
• Request God’s help – His help is on call 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, just call on him to help you when you need it, he knows you need it.

Temptation can be disheartening, but is a sign that Satan feels you are a threat. Keep your eyes on God, know that temptation is normal, but you choose how to respond.

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28 (NIV)

Life is full of problems. Just think back over one day of work and you will find things which bothered you, regardless of how much you like your work. There is always something that is making a new problem. But the answer now is clear, God works through all those things for good.

As I was growing up I came to think that things should be easy, if you keep your head low and get on with your own business, nothing to serious will happen. Now, that might even be true to a degree, but God has given us hope even when things do get low. As he is God, he is the big boss of everything, nothing happens without his permission, absolutely nothing. Our fallen world has many issues and problems, God doesn’t make things perfect, cause they are not meant to be, that’s what heaven is for. But God does have a plan. He is working and we need to trust him when he says, “in all things God works for the good of those who trust him”.

God’s plan is good, no matter what you are going through, his plan is good, he promises that. If you don’t believe that then God becomes a liar. So look to the master to know what the plan is.

We rejoice and give thanks. As the book says, we don’t have to say thank you for bad things, thats just silly. But we do have to rejoice for what God has done for us. Look beyond those problems to eternity, keeping the focus on God, and thanking him for the gifts he has given us and the love he has shown us.

And because we know that God will work for his own good and reward his faithful servants, we must not give up. He has promised us what will result from faithfulness, so keep those eyes on God.

The first thing I notice is that you need to be transformed by the truth.

Transformed implies a complete change, kind of like metamorphosis, which is where a caterpillar changes in a butterfly. It does not say, “affected by truth,” or “moved by truth.” The implication that it is a total change in our being, in what we do and everything about us.

The Bible is God’s word. Whatever God says comes to pass, and everything he says is the truth. All that God says has power. But we don’t just learn the truth. I find that very often the feeling of being a “good” Christian comes from going to Bible studies and the like. Although those are good, they are not the whole story. We need to allow the change to happen in us. We need to go about the difficult of knowing what we have learnt and putting it into practice.

To assimilate God’s word we need to…

• Receive it
• Read it
• Research it
• Remember it
• Reflect on it

The application of what we learn in the steps above is not easy, but nothing is really easy. Knowing how and making a plan of action to apply those things into your life gives it power. Faith without works is dead, is a bible verse that comes to mind. But we need to consciously impliment those truths, with God’s help.

“We are not meant to remain as children.” – Ephesians 4:14a (Ph)

When we first comes to church or are introduced to Jesus and become aware that we need to follow Christ, we make a commitment. We give our lives to Christ. Our salvation is a gift for us from God, that’s why Jesus died, to save us from our sins. Without that sacrifice, we would never get any further than trying to sort out our everyday problems, which would be impossible.

For many people, this is where things stop.

The commitment is good, perhaps a good idea, maybe we start to go to church. But we need to grow. But giving ourselves to Christ, we don’t just say, “I’ll go to church,” we give our everything to Him.

But that takes work and effort. Jesus models for us how we should live, he demonstrates how things are to be done. But the changing of our old habits and the way we do things to line up with his ways is tough. We need to consciously make choices that will take us in that direction. It will take a long time, but as long as we keep heading in the right direction, we will get closer to what God intended.

God works in you to make you the way he designed you to be, but it is us who make the decision as to what shows on the outside. Make your outward actions reflect what God has done for you and focus on him to help you do it.

Jesus came here to die to for our sins, we have been cleansed by his sacrifice. He also gave us the ultimate role model for right living.

It is a great priviledge that we are created in the image of God. He didn’t make us like the animals that are around us. He gave us a will and our intelligence, the ability to show and receive love and our moral conscience.

Our process of becoming more like Christ is not automatic.

One misconception that I had when younger was that once you are saved, that’s enough. And that’s true, but does not put an emphasis on what needs to be done. You still need to consciously seek to become more like Christ, with God’s help.

The idea that we can become a god is an idea which has been around for a very long time, in different forms. But we can only strive to become like him, we cannot be him.

We must continue to strive and put in the hard work required to be one of God’s servants. The position is one that is reserved for us, we were made to fill it, and it is what we were made for. When you are changed, people will see the change in you, because that’s how God works.