[James] a companion chapter [Psalm 15]

I was searching online for any ideas on studying James and came across Bible Study that seemed to delve into it quite deeply.* And the group leader recommended referencing Psalm 15 as a “primer” to studying James.

This intrigued me, so I am beginning with an overview from my own personal thoughts… after reading the first chapter of James and then reading Psalm 15.

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Keep in mind, my premise behind this study is learning about growing in Spiritual Maturity as a believer.

v~1: LORD, who shall abide in thy tabernacle?

who shall dwell in thy holy hill?

In the Old Testament, the Tabernacle and God’s Holy Hill were very specific places that the Israelites held as His Dwelling and places for their worship.

Today, as a believer, my person is now the dwelling of God, in the form of His Spirit:

[What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s. 1 Corinthians 6:19]

Did you ever do something wrong and felt a twinge? Did it make you “uncomfortable in your own skin”-as the saying goes?

In contemplating these thoughts… I believe that in order to dwell peaceably with my own self {and His Spirit which dwells within}, I must take heed to the answer given in the following verses…

With prayer, I believe these thoughts will give us a launching point into studying about

Spiritual Maturity!

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*I’ve not read through more than the introduction, so I am not comfortable linking straight to it. If I refer back to it during my study, I’ll give an update on it when I’m finished.

My next post will have a free download/printable.

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when your world is turned… upside down

When I was was young there were a few circumstances that occurred that turned my world on its head.

Now that yet another situation has turned my world upside down and been the cause of confusion, I realize that:

even as a child I was learning some lessons about God,

about life, about human nature… and myself.

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I may speak about the other types of lessons sometime, but for today I want to share a few lessons I have learned about God… when my world seems turned completely bottom-side-up.

**The verses often quoted from Romans 8 are not idle platitudes:

26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered…. These past few weeks I have been so grateful to have this comfort. When my heart is overwhelmed, The Spirit of God intercedes FOR ME at the Throne of Grace!

27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.And God listens.

28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.… I have seen it before, and I know I will see it again: Even when it seems that God could not work a situation out, I turn around and His name is being glorified and the darkest hour IS “just before the dawn.” While I do not yet see the rays of a new day pouring over the horizon of my heart, I am just as confident in them as I am of my salvation!

29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.… and “bad things happen” because this world is a sinful place, but God uses circumstances to mold my life to be more like Christ.

**It is not about my supposed position of service or paid ministry that makes me useful to God. It is my heart being conformed to the image of His Son, so that I may be counted among the “firstborn” of God.

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**It amazes me to watch how God uses us, sinful creatures, to accomplish His will, giving Himself supernatural Glory and causing His Name to be praised!  

Verse 35 asks who could separate us, His own, from the love of Christ... and the answer in all of us should be the same as the apostle’s:

38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

There are others hurting and questioning over some current situations in the life of my family. I give them these verses from II Thessalonians 1:

11 Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfil all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power: 12 That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

**Remember that God has called each of His children to proclaim His Gospel to the lost. That is our highest calling!

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And I pray that those hurting and confused over issues would ask for Lord to **remove all secondary causes** -meaning the human instruments-

and believe that God IS in control.

He wants us each to learn something,

**and the ultimate Glory is for God’s name to be praised in your own heart and life, even through this.

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One of the hardest and yet most rewarding things we can learn in the Christian life is it TRUST GOD…

…we are not commanded to trust any man or the wisdom of men.

Only trust God.

He is the only one that loved us enough to take the punishment of our sin upon His own body to pay for it.

 

In Proverbs 3 we are told:

3 Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart: …bind mercy AND truth about they neck. Often truth seems to call for judgment,

**but God asks us to COMBINE truth WITH mercy.

4 So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man… and this combining truth with mercy {goodness, faithfulness, kindness} will bring us favor with man-this is a good thing.

5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding

**our own understanding will fail us.

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Our own heart is full of wickedness. ALL men’s hearts are full of wickedness.

6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy pathsBut God can and will direct the path our lives take when we acknowledge Him.

7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil

We must not seek a wisdom from our own experiences

…or from a man.

This wisdom is faulty and flawed by sin.

Only fear the Lord. Only live your life as far from evil as you can… 

8 It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones….

and  your soul will be healthy and ready to stand before Him…

 …even if your heart is breaking. 

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happy 0123 {oops 2013}

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I pray everyone rang in the new year safely and surrounded by loved ones!

{The actual ringing in found me sound asleep, but safe, and in my home with loved ones!}

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The New Year here marks the official dropping of my old blog and writing exclusively for this new address.

{{wooo-hoooo!!}

I must admit, I still wish I had the time and mental acuity to type a post every day. I truly admire those who do it. But, that will not be happening any time soon!

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As the old year came to a close, I began pondering just what DID I want to accomplish this next year {now THIS year!}.

And I came to the conclusion that I was not going to make any “year resolutions.”

I have read much in the past 2-3 days of why to or why not to make “New Year’s Resolutions.”

But my own adventure towards what I desire from this year came when I realized… that truly,

every day is a fresh beginning.

newyear2Of course, a new year is a BIG new beginning; but if I confine myself to only beginning anew at the beginning of the year, I will continue to fail-by today–the second day of the new year!

Because I’m human. I have many excuses in my repertoire… and I am a firm believer in: life is what happens after you make plans!

So, my “New Year’s Resolution” is to not have a YEAR’s resolution!

But to treat each day as a new beginning.

To approach the morning as a time of goal setting.

To approach the evening as a time of pondering.

To live intentionally and on purpose.

Instead of only making lists of what I want to accomplish [in vague general terms] on December 31 that would supposedly encompass an entire year, I will make lists multiple times a week-or however often I can remember!

And then accomplish tasks.

And complete goals.

And grow as a Christian-

in being a wife, mom, friend, sister and daughter.

A quote that struck me a couple of month ago {and I do not know the true origin as I found it on Pinterest} was:

The only person you should try to be better than is

the person you were yesterday.

linked to: FarAboveRubies

keeping cool

and I’m not talking about turning on the AC! 🙂

{I know it’s been a while since I said, Hi! I trust and pray anyone still visiting is doing well!}

Sometimes, I feel like Anne Shirley: “if only you knew all I wanted to say and didn’t maybe you’d give me little credit.” { 🙂 }

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What did you say!?

But there are seriously times I know the only way I can remain quiet is because the Lord puts a stopper on my tongue. But that does not mean my “cool” is under control!

…that we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;  but speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all thingsEphesians 4:14,15

We must always speak the truth! but this verse also tells us to speak “in love.”

This is a wonderful principle to hold fast to, as I have found that when the truth is spoken in haste, without love, it does so much more damage then not speaking at all. This seems to hold true in all situations.

When correcting my children it is necessary, on many occasions, for me to take a moment and find that love from Christ before speaking. Otherwise I will speak words I should not or with a tone that is not appropriate.

I will not grow into Him in all things if I speak harshly.

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When telling others of Jesus’ love for them, I cannot get huffy or defensive when I am attacked-and truly, it is not ME they are attacking or questioning. It is Jesus Himself. This ought to invoke our pity, not our wrath. I will be as a child, tossed and carried about by the devil’s craftiness, if I get defensive and prickly about another questioning the gospel.

Have you ever been corrected? Who hasn’t??!! Even now, as a “mature” adult person [ 😉 ] when another points out a fault or wrongdoing, my reaction [which is always my own responsibility! {Romans 14:12}] is greatly based on their attitude. That’s not exactly the way it’s supposed to be…

If I am approached in love, I will be less likely to respond childishly.

If I do not perceive a loving spirit {KEY: they must realize you are speaking in love!}, I often do respond in a less mature manner [read: get defensive and prickly].

How much MORE defensive do you think an unsaved person or immature Christian would be if we do not approach them in love?

This truth is also relevant when people say unkind or untrue things about us or our family! When we find out, do we respond with the truth IN LOVE? or do we lash out in defensive anger?

Being upset about lies is not wrong. Being sad about unkindness is not wrong.

But we must respond IN LOVE when speaking the truth to combat the unkindness or untruth!

So, when I realize that I cannot respond in love, I often {should be ALWAYS!} simply do not say anything at all.

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Our children learn how to initiate and respond from watching us. Whether we are interacting with our spouse, one of their siblings or an adult friend, they see and comprehend so much more than we think.Let us “KEEP our COOL” and ask the Lord to:

Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips. Psalm 141:3,

because …there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether. Psalm 139:4.

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what did you say?

My husband sent me a link the other day for an article entitled ‘Christian Cussing?’

This topic is actually something that had been on my heart and mind for a couple of months now, as I listen to my children mimic my speech.

 As crazy as it may seem [today], I want my children to be well-spoken, use proper grammar and even know what the words they use mean.

With that being said, it is difficult for my children NOT to be exposed to illiterate speech. We live in an illiterate society.

[I am in no way trying to imply that every single person we come into contact with is illiterate. This is a generalization made from simply listening to people around me and is not meant to offend, just make aware. Words are important.]

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{Even more importantly} I also do not want my children uttering profanity.

BUT, what is profanity? What is unacceptable speech?

Is it just the ‘major’ cursings [the Lord’s name in any way other than speaking to or about Him, the 4-letter words, etc. I am not going to spell them out]?

Or are slang [replaced] words wrong, too?

The linked article at the beginning of this post has quite a list of slang-I will not try to delve into that. Please read what he has listed. Some of those expressions I had never heard of. But several I had, and seeing their origin made me question whether or not I should say them let alone my children!   

In Psalms 19 the Bible says:

Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression. Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.

If I am expressing words simply to let my emotion have voice [as the majority of reasons for cursing, swearing, or whatever you call it] are these ‘words of my mouth being acceptable in the sight of the Lord’? They have no use other than expressing feelings. They often are not even used in proper context. [Is God going to bring damnation on an object just because you don’t like it?]

These are just some thoughts that have been in my heart for a while.

Ecclesiastes 3:14

Ecclesiastes 3:14

I would love to read your opinions [kind words, please], but I must show one example that puts shame on my head.

I have often spoken the words ‘oh my goodness’ when I am at a loss of how to express shock or sadness. Each time, I would feel a prick in my spirit that those words were being used vainly, but I did not fully examine it until recently [not many days before I read that article].

One question I finally faced gave me my shame:

Who/what IS my goodness?

Do I even HAVE goodness apart from The Good One?

So is that not in essence saying…. Lord, I have no respect for your name or the simple fact that You are good.

As I said. Just a thought.

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