I've been haunted this whole week by my thoughts and attitude that I had earlier this week. I was at work and not having a good day. I started feeling sorry for myself. I wasn't making money, the bar was slow (I work at a hotel, I'm a bartender, not the most encouraging job) and I was really starting to get down on myself. I need a new job, the hours aren't good, business is slow, I just dumped my motorcycle, my knee hurts, my bike is hurt, me me me...... YUCK.
I got away for a bit and just got on my knees in the middle of a hallway on the 12th floor of the hotel and had some quiet time with GOD. It didn't take but a half second and I was thanking GOD. Thank you God for the air I breath, and that's all it took. Nothing else matters with every breath I take and every second I am here, to GOD be the glory and I have no right to get down about anything. With that thanks it turned into about 20 others and I could of went on all night. One of the thanks even turned into thanking GOD for my job, the very job I was just so frustrated with and that I was ready to quit. GOD has given me so much and he has been so faithful to me. He has pulled me out of a life that was immersed in sin and going no where but down. GOD had that consistent attitude and never gave up on me in all those years of my failing to serve and love him. Why, why in a small time when things that don't matter would I even think of not loving on GOD and giving him glory for that moment and all others.
CONSISTENCY, Who's GOT it?
Psalms 34. (take a minute to read it)
I was reading it earlier in the week and I wrote it down so I would remember to go back and read it again and again. It really spoke to me and encouraged me earlier in the week, but here I was feeling down and out so quick in my troubles.
Psalms 34: 1. I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
2. My soul shall make her boast in the LORD: the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad.
6. This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.
9. O fear the LORD, ye his saints: for there is no want to them that fear him.
10. The Young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: but they that seek the LORD shall not want any good thing.
12. What man is he that desireth life, and loveth many days, that he may see good?
13. Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile.
14. Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.
15. The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry.
Of course the whole chapter is great but those are just a few highlights.
CONSISTENCY who's got it?
As you can read in Psalms 34 we are to strive and continually have GOD's praise in our mouth and GOD will continue to bless us and carry us through our troubles in life. CONSISTENCY. easy to say, not so easy to do.
On Saturday, in the Everyman meeting we talked about conviction. How everyone has to have convictions and the absence of conviction always leads to the presence of compromise. And might I suggest that you use baby-steps in this process of your life. Sure everyone needs to have the big convictions in place in your life but I also think that the little things are often overlooked and they compound and make it easier to let bigger things slide, down the road.
Big convictions like not denying that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior.
Matt 10:33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father is in heaven.
That's kind of a big deal. Don't wanna slip up on that one.
Those are things that without question should be in place already. I'm talking about the little things we let slide everyday. Wait did I say little things. GOD views them as big things and so should we. From the movies we watch to the company we keep. The things that you look at and see everyday. Books we read, things hanging on our wall. These are the things that will build and build in our lives until we are living in sin and finding it to be okay with us. If you watch a distasteful movie today what's to say that a slightly more distasteful movie won't be okay tomorrow. Just look at society in general. Look at how the movies have gotten worse, the teenagers are dressing worse, the commercials have gotten worse. I could go on and on but compare these things to 10, 20 yrs ago you'll see that they weren't around, and it has nowhere to go but worse. Same with our lives, if we continue to be okay with these things and not hold strong to our Convictions and be Consistent about them, we too will be worse and worse off.
SO CONVICTIONS and CONSISTENCY Who's got it?
I'm not bragging, because I have absolutely nothing to brag about, but I just wanna show you how GOD has worked in my life in these area's. I talked earlier how GOD was consistent and was always there for me even in my failings, so when it finally clicked for me and I realized I needed to do that proverbial 180 I instantly realized I need to take some things out of my life. I need to have some convictions and never let them be broken. Baby-steps. First off I had to stop hanging out with my secular friends all the time. That was hard. But when you hang around people and all they wanna do is live in the world and destroy the temple that GOD has given to you, you realize you can't be immersed in that and stay strong in GOD. So I had to give up on hanging out with these friends that I had know for years and years. But GOD is good. He has given me a new family and it is good. I threw away all my alcohol related apparel and signage. (working at the bars and restaurants all my life I had accrued quite a bit). Too make a long story short, I started small and I continually work toward the end goal and that's Consistency in my walk with god, from attitude, to words, to the company I keep.
Guys I know I'm rambling on here so I'm gonna wrap it up with this.
Latch onto your convictions, hold strong and continue to grow from them. Cause if your not growing, your dead, and no one wants to be dead in their walk with the Lord.
And there is only one I know that is always consistent, and that is GOD. So continue to strive to be Christ like and have comfort that GOD will consistently be there when we fail.
Love you all
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