Category Archives: Attitudes & Behavior

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September 1, 2013

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Attitudes & Behavior

What Would Jesus Say?

Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him and said concerning him, “See! Here is an Israelite indeed [a true descendant of Jacob], in whom there is no guile nor deceit nor falsehood nor duplicity!” [John 1:47 (AMP)]

Other Bible translations of the above passage use words like “trustworthy” and “sincere” in Jesus’ description of Nathanael. The Message version says he had “not a false bone in his body.” How do we measure up in comparison to Nathanael? What words would other people use to describe us? What sort of words we would use to describe ourselves? Most important, when Jesus meets us, will He be able to say, “Here is a genuine Christian, one who is honest and principled, a person of complete integrity”?

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August 31, 2013

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Attitudes & Behavior, Love & Works

We’ve Got to Love Both God and Man

If anyone boasts, “I love God,” and goes right on hating his brother or sister, thinking nothing of it, he is a liar. If he won’t love the person he can see, how can he love the God he can’t see? The command we have from Christ is blunt: Loving God includes loving people. You’ve got to love both. [1 John 4:20-21 (MSG)]

Lord, help me rid my heart of anger, disdain, and animosity. Let the way I treat other people be a direct reflection of my relationship with you. May I be as generous and forgiving with my love as you are with yours.

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August 30, 2013

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Attitudes & Behavior, Joy, Nature, Today: Make it Count

Greet the Day with Joy

2013-8-30But as for me, I will sing about your power. Each morning I will sing with joy about your unfailing love. For you have been my refuge, a place of safety when I am in distress. O my strength, to you I sing praises, for you, O God, are my refuge, the God who shows me unfailing love. [Psalm 59:16-17 (NLT)]

O Lord, may I wake each morning with a song in my heart. Let me be like the mockingbird who greets the dawn singing with confidence and delight. May I face the day’s challenges with a positive attitude and praise for you. I don’t want to be like the fish crow who shares his pessimism with a nasal whine of “uh-uh.” He’s emphatic about saying “no” to the day’s possibilities while the mockingbird sings almost endlessly with enthusiasm and hope.

Satisfy us each morning with your unfailing love, so we may sing for joy to the end of our lives. [Psalm 90:14 (NLT)]

 

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August 29, 2013

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Attitudes & Behavior, God's Plan, Trusting God

Expectations

I’m afraid that I may come and find you different from what I want you to be, and that you may find me different from what you want me to be. [2 Corinthians 12:20a (GW)]

Sometimes people or events don’t live up to our expectations; it’s good to remember that we might not live up to the expectations of others, either.
Lord, give us confidence that, even when things don’t turn out the way we expect them to, they will turn out the way they are meant to.

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August 26, 2013

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Attitudes & Behavior, Challenges & Difficulty, Forgiveness

Suffer the consequences

Endure your discipline. God corrects you as a father corrects his children. All children are disciplined by their fathers. If you aren’t disciplined like the other children, you aren’t part of the family. [Hebrews 12:7-8 (GW)]

Parents spend a great deal of time and effort disciplining children. Since we are God’s children, we need to understand that He, too, will discipline us. Because a loving parent lets his children learn from their mistakes, God’s discipline will often involve allowing us to suffer the consequences of our sins. If we repent of our sin, God forgives us, but God’s forgiveness does not free us from the adverse effects of our actions. Sin has repercussions and forgiveness does not shield us from its impact.

We don’t enjoy being disciplined. It always seems to cause more pain than joy. But later on, those who learn from that discipline have peace that comes from doing what is right. [Hebrews 12:11 (GW)]

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August 25, 2013

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Attitudes & Behavior

Be Nice

It is better to live in a corner of the housetop than in a house with a quarrelsome wife. [Proverbs 21:9 (ESV)]

Something tells me, Lord, that if one of Solomon’s wives had edited his proverbs, she would have included something about a quarrelsome husband as well! Guide us all so that we are even-tempered and good-natured, not just to our spouses, but to everyone we encounter this day. It’s so easy to let trivial irritations become significant; keep us from being argumentative, complaining or grouchy.