Feeling Out Of Sorts

 Have you ever had days when you feel “off”? There is really nothing wrong but you just feel “off” for whatever reason. 

I have felt this way a couple of days this week. There is nothing wrong. I don’t feel bad physically. I’m good emotionally. My relationship with God is intact. Yet I feel “off”. 

Some people have what is known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) this time of year. The days are cloudy, its often cold and they are stuck inside. I don’t have that. I prefer cloudy days as opposed to sunny days. The sun hurts my eyes. Yes, I know, I do have sunglasses and I wear them. I enjoy the snow and the cooler weather. I don’t have a problem being inside. Maybe I should live in Alaska. 

Life is going very well for us all things considered. We are, I believe, going to be coming through the other side of the pandemic we have been in for a year. We are beginning to get some singing opportunities which we are very grateful for. God is good. 

Yet this week I have felt “off”. I remember hearing older folks say they “feel out of sorts”. Perhaps that’s where I am...feeling out of sorts. 

I’m not depressed or down...I’m just feeling out of sorts. I’m not bored by any stretch of the imagination...I’m just feeling out of sorts. I have a few friends I stay in touch with. I’m not lonely...I’m just feeing out of sorts. 

I have things I still want to do but just haven’t had the energy to so them. Perhaps I’m feeling out of sorts. I have plans to learn a couple more instruments to add variety to our music. Maybe I’m just feeling out of sorts. God has been good at giving me things for my blog, podcast and now vlog. I guess I’m just feeling out of sorts this week. 

Don’t feel sorry for me. As the old saying goes, “This, too, shall pass”. 

Do you find yourself feeling out of sorts. Just hold on. A brighter day is coming. God is with you. This, too, shall pass. 

Until next time...enjoy the journey!

Ray

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Instead Of Criticizing, Lend A Hand

People are quick to find fault in others. Sadly, this appears to be especially true among Christians. We are quick to point fingers at others. If they don’t line up with what we think they should we think they are wrong. If they are different from us we find fault and criticize. We are critical of them. We freely spread this criticism to others. Have you been guilty of this?

Please don’t get me wrong. I’m not talking about giving people a pass on sin. Sin is sin. Sin is wrong. It needs to be confessed and repented of. God made provision for that through the shed blood of Jesus at Calvary. 

If you see someone stumble and fall due to sin, don’t kick that person while they are down. Paul in his writing to the church in Galatia addressed this issue. 

Galatians 6:1-2 CSB

[1] Brothers and sisters, if someone is overtaken in any wrongdoing, you who are spiritual, restore such a person with a gentle spirit, watching out for yourselves so that you also won't be tempted. [2] Carry one another's burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

What a great statement on how a sinning believer is to be treated by other Christians. It is a sharp contrast to the  Old Testament law which called down judgment on offenders of the law. Thank God for His mercy and grace today! Thank God for a better covenant. 

To be overtaken in a sin describes a person who has committed an act of sin rather than one who is habitually sinful. Such a person is to be dealt with by spiritual Christians. Spiritual Christians will not act in a spirit of pride or superiority, but rather in a spirit of gentleness, remembering that they also might be tempted.

Paul specifically stated it is the spiritual Christians who are to restore the one who has fallen. A carnal Christian might, by a hard, cold attitude, do more harm than good. Generally speaking, the offender most likely will not receive the admonition of one who is himself out of touch with the Lord.

Burdens, as mentioned in verse 2, refers to failures, temptations, testings, and trials. Instead of standing off at a distance and criticizing, we should run to the side of a brother or sister in trouble or distress and help them in every possible way we can. 

Most Christians tend to point fingers when in reality we should lend a hand of support to help them up, dust them off and even walk beside them on their journey until they are spiritually restored and on stable ground, spiritually speaking. 

Let’s be kind, loving and compassionate when dealing with other believers who have stumbled on their journey. Let’s do what we can to see to it they get back on track. That is how we would want to be treated, after all. 

Until next time...enjoy the journey!

Ray

Thanks for taking your time to read and share this blog. If you know of someone who would be encouraged by this blog, please feel free to forward  a link or use the icons below to repost or forward this blog.

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Knowing To Do Better

 Some time back a friend of mine posted something on social media as “Food for Thought”.  I told her the thought was a good one and I was going to share it on my blog. She even told me she was going to start charging me for the ideas I get from her for my blog. Good luck with that Deanna M! Ha. Ha. 

Her thought was a very serious thought. It’s one each of us could probably ask ourselves. Her thought was, “ How many times did we know better but didnt do better?” Think about that. Be honest with yourself and give that some deep consideration. 

As I contemplated this thought in my own life, a verse of Scripture immediately came to mind.  

James 4:17 CSB - So it is sin to know the good and yet not do it. 

The instructions, earlier in the epistle of James, cover a wide range of topics, that enable the believer to live a life that is pleasing to God.

 
He warns against conceiving sin in our heart, and the devastation that can be caused by an unguarded tongue. He exposes the dangers of allowing partiality to influence our judgement about other people, and teaches on faith and works, justification and the dangers of an unstable mind. James also teaches about the effects of true and false wisdom.

James teaches that to know what is good but to do what is not – whether in thought, word or deed, dishonors God and hurts our testimony. He warns to the one who knows the right thing to do yet does not do it – it is sin.

Living the Christian life as God intended and instructed, should be the main focus of the Christian, and failure to do so is identified by James as a sin which should be confessed to the Lord and addressed in our life if we are to remain in  fellowship with God, and grow in grace.

My friend went on to state, “I would not want God to ask me that because the answer would not be good.” Wow. After careful search of her heart this was her truth. This was her reality. 

She was in good company though. Paul, the apostle, had this to say:

Romans 7:15 CSB - For I do not understand what I am doing, because I do not practice what I want to do, but I do what I hate.

Paul, the great apostle, wasn’t always the great apostle. He was Saul, persecutor of the church. Paul still had struggles as we see here. Now we see in Romans 8 he gets the victory. But just knowing Paul struggled much like we do lets us know we are not alone in this.

As children of God, our whole life and attitude should be to live our life for Jesus, every moment of every day. We are to present ourselves as a living sacrifice to Him (Romans 12:1). We are to trust His word and walk in total dependence on God, moment by moment, day by day. 

The new testament epistles give specific guidance and instruction on living the Christian life. We have the Holy Spirit, who indwells us. He will lead us and guide us in all things. We also have the assurance of Jesus that His grace is sufficient for us. In our weakness He is made strong.  When we are weak in our own abilities, we have His  promise, that His strength will enable us to be strong.

2 Corinthians 12:9-10 CSB - [9] But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is perfected in weakness." Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may reside in me. [10] So I take pleasure in weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and in difficulties, for the sake of Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

We are not to rely on our strength but rather His. When I am weak then Jesus can come on the scene and do His work. It is then that I am truly strong.  

Until next time...enjoy the journey!

Ray

Thanks for taking your time to read and share this blog. If you know of someone who would be encouraged by this blog, please feel free to forward  a link or use the icons below to repost or forward this blog.

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It’s Later Than It’s Ever Been Before

 It’s Later Than It’s EverBeen Before!

 

Romans 13:11-14 CSB - [11] Besides this, since you know the time, it is already the hour for you to wake up from sleep, because now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. [12] The night is nearly over, and the day is near; so let us discard the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. [13] Let us walk with decency, as in the daytime: not in carousing and drunkenness; not in sexual impurity and promiscuity; not in quarreling and jealousy. [14] But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and don't make plans to gratify the desires of the flesh.

 

The story goes of a little boy whose family had a big grandfather clock in their home. When the clock would strike at the top of the hour it could be heard all over the house. One night as the clock was striking midnight, the little boy was counting each chime. One, two, three and on and on it went. When it approached twelve something happened that had never happened before. The clock let out one more chime. The clock struck thirteen! When the little boy realized what had happened, he jumped out of his bed and ran to his mom and dad’s room. He jumped on their bed screaming “Mommy and daddy, It’s later than it’s ever been before!”

 

So it is today. It’s later than its ever been before! We are one day closer to eternity. With the strike of each passing hour, we as believers, are one day closer to the Kingdom of God. 

 

Based on the above Bible passage we are encouraged to live a life of spiritual alertness and moral purity. The time is short. The lateness of the hour, spiritually speaking, demands that our lack of enthusiasm and inactivity be put away. Our salvation is nearer than ever. The Savior is coming to take us to the Father’s house (John 14:1-3).

The age in which we live is like a night of sin that has just about run its course. The day of eternal glory is about to dawn for believers. We are living in the dawning of a new day! This means that we should discard all the filthy garments of worldliness - that is, everything associated with unrighteousness and evil. And we should put on the armor of light, which means the protective covering of a holy life. The pieces of this armor are detailed in Ephesians 6:14-18. They describe the elements of true Christian character.

 

Notice that the emphasis is on our practical Christian walk. Since we are children of the day, we should walk as children of light. We should let our lights shine for Jesus. What does a Christian have to do with wild drunken parties, sexual promiscuity, sinful excesses, or even with bickering and jealousy? Nothing at all.

 

The best policy we can follow is, first of all, put on the Lord Jesus Christ. This is something we do. This means that we should adopt His lifestyle. Live as He lived. Follow His example. Secondly, we should not make plans to gratify the desires of the flesh. The flesh here is the old carnal man. It’s our sinful nature. It constantly cries to be pampered with comfort, luxury, illicit sexual indulgence, empty amusements, worldly pleasures and materialism, among other things. 

 

We make plans to gratify the desires of the flesh when we buy things that are associated with temptation. We make plans to gratify the desires of the flesh when we make it easy for ourselves to sin. We make plans to gratify the desires of the flesh when we give a higher priority to the physical than to the spiritual. We should not indulge the flesh even a little. Rather, we should make no plans to gratify the desires of the flesh in any way. 

 

It truly is later than it has ever been before.  The night is nearly over, the day is near. We need to take the necessary actions to draw closer to Jesus. Let’s put off sin and put on Jesus. Let Him impact every area of our lives – our thoughts, our words, our actions.

 

 Until next time...enjoy the journey!

Ray

Thanks for taking your time to read and share this blog. If you know of someone who would be encouraged by this blog, please feel free to forward  a link or use the icons below to repost or forward this blog.

Check out my website at www.rayspellbrink.com