Happy Monday!

Have You Laughed Today? :-)

J

A cheerful heart is good medicine. (Proverbs 17:22)

Laughter is one of the best medicines a person can take. It’s free, has no negative side effects, and it improves your health physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. Don Colbert, MD, offers this eye-opening insight on the power of laughter:

“In one researcher’s words, laughter is like ‘internal jogging’. As with aerobic exercise, laughter temporarily accelerates the heart rate, increases blood pressure and breathing, enlarges circulation and enhances the flow of oxygen in and out of the body. A hearty belly laugh also exercises the upper torso, lungs, heart, shoulders, arms, abdomen, diaphragm and legs. …Ten belly laughs are roughly equivalent to thirty minutes of aerobic exercise.

…Laughter actually boosts the immune system and reduces harmful stress hormones in the body. In one study, there were sixteen men who watched a funny video that brought about much laughter. After a good belly laugh, the stress hormone levels of cortisol in these men decreased 39 percent and adrenaline levels fell 70 percent. At the same time, the ‘feel-good’ hormone endorphin rose 27 percent and the growth hormone (also known as the ‘youth hormone’) levels shot up 87 percent.”

God declares in Ecclesiastes 3:4 that there is a time to laugh. In Proverbs, He says, “A happy heart makes the face cheerful” and “he who has a glad heart has a continual feast [regardless of circumstances]” (15:13 NIV, 15:15 AMP). Indeed, a merry heart is good medicine!

 

Excerpt from Relentless – John Bevere

"Doubting Thomas"

I was doing some research on the patriarchs of our faith and ran across the following information regarding the death of the apostle we refer to as “Doubting Thomas”. It is believed that Thomas was thrust through with pine spears, tormented with red-hot plates, and burned alive because of his faith! He refused to deny Christ and, as a result, this is how he was martyred.

Why in the world do we still refer to this warrior of the faith as “Doubting Thomas”?!?!? Yes, he wanted proof that Christ had risen...we all know the scripture:

Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!” John 20:24-28

Thomas saw, and believed! Christ was compassionate enough to give Thomas this beautiful opportunity and Thomas went on to be a relentless believer!

How about you? Do you have a “shady” past that people love to bring up? Maybe you were a gang member, a prostitute, a drug dealer, an abusive spouse???? But the Lord got a hold of you and now you’ve turned your life over to Christ. Now you are a faithful Christ-follower. He has redeemed you. He has died for your sins…past, present, and future. HALLELUJAH! Someone wise once said that “the ground is level at the foot of the cross”, meaning that all sins are equally evil and we deserve to die for them. But mercifully, on that cross our Precious Savior Jesus gave His life in our place. This means that regardless of our past, if we have accepted Jesus as our Savior, we are forgiven and..

There is, therefore, now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (Romans 8:1)

Further…

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. (2 Corinthians 5:17)

You are new. You are not the old labels that people have stuck you with. You are a new creation! Believe what the Lord says about you and reject any message that is contrary to His word! He loves you and He is so delighted that you have accepted Him and…

…as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. (Psalm 103:12)

REJOICE! And be free in Him.

I Want to Know Him Better!

I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.  (Ephesians 1:17)

Your Gift Will Make Room for You - Dr. Myles Munroe

How is the fulfillment of vision meant to work in practical terms? Proverbs 18:16 is a powerful statement that reveals the answer: "A man's gift makes room for him" (NKJV). What you were designed to be known for is your gift.
God has put a gift or talent in every person that the world will make room for.

It is this gift that will enable you to fulfill your vision.

It will make a way for you in life. It is in exercising this gift that you will find real fulfillment, purpose, and contentment in your work.

It is interesting to note that the Bible does not say that a man's education makes room for him, but that his gift does.

Somehow we have swallowed the idea that education is the key to success. Our families and societies have reinforced this idea to us, but we will have to change our perspective if we are to be truly successful.

Education is not the key to success.

Don't misunderstand me. I believe in education. However, if education were the key to success, then everyone who has a Ph.D. would be financially secure and happy.

If you are intelligent but are not exercising your gift, you're probably going to be poor. If you're educated but have not developed your talent, you're likely going to be depressed, frustrated, and tired.

You will hate going to work on Monday mornings.

Education, in itself, doesn't guarantee anything.

It is your gift that is the key to your success.

The second part of Proverbs 18:16 says, "A man's gift…brings him before great men" (NKJV). You don't realize that the gift you're sitting on is loaded.

The world won't move over for you just because you're smart.

However, when you exercise your gift, not only will the world make room for you, but it will also pay you for it.

Anyone - yourself included - who discovers his or her gift and develops it will become a commodity.

If you're a young person in high school or college who is planning your career, don't do what people say will make you a lot of money. Do what you were born to do, because that is where you will make your money. No matter how big the world is, there's a place for you in it when you discover and manifest your gift.

Alexander Graham Bell believed that sound could be converted into electrical impulses and transmitted by wire.

No one remembers those who thought he was crazy.

We remember only the man who had the vision and created the telephone.

If you do things in a halfway manner, you can always find a job somewhere. Yet if you do just enough to get by, you are going to remain simply an employee.

However, if you decide that you're going to find something that is truly yours, then you will fulfill your vision, and you will be remembered by others.

Curling

A gift opens the way and ushers the giver into the presence of the great. (Proverbs 18:16 NIV)

I love the way that the NIV translation communicates this passage. You, who are gifted, will be invited into the presence of greatness because of the gift that you give. The desire for your gift will open doors and you will not have to stress and strain to get there.

Are you familiar with the sport of Curling? You’ve probably seen it during the winter Olympics. In Curling, the competitors slide polished stones down an iced path to a target. On a curling team, there are at least three team members. The Curler pushes the stone and the two Sweepers have brooms. The Sweepers brush the ice that is in the path of the stone to shape the ice and influence the movement of the stone so that it goes exactly where they want it to go - on target.

In the same way, the Holy Spirit designs the path for your gift to be given to the right people, at the right time, and in exactly the right place – right on target. Further, from this scripture we learn that your gift will be given among the great! So remember, the gifts that the Father has given to you are not for you to hold onto and just be proud that you have; they are to be given. Rely on the Lord to direct your path so that you may minister to those He desires for you to minister to. Don’t hold back! Don’t fear! Be bold and follow the path that the Holy Spirit designs for you.

Restoration

If a fellow believer hurts you, go and tell him—work it out between the two of you. If he listens, you’ve made a friend. If he won’t listen, take one or two others along so that the presence of witnesses will keep things honest, and try again. If he still won’t listen, tell the church. If he won’t listen to the church, you’ll have to start over from scratch, confront him with the need for repentance, and offer again God’s forgiving love. (Matthew 18:15-17 MSG)

The Lord has put Christians in a wonderful relationship where, by His Spirit, we are to live in relational community with one another. In this relationship, we are charged with the privilege and responsibility to be our “brother’s keeper”. This does not mean that we attempt to play the role of the Holy Spirit in the lives of our brothers and sisters; rather, this means that we are to be in such a relationship that we are willing to lovingly give and receive wise counsel. And further, as this scripture indicates, we are to be mindful of what is going on with our brothers and sisters, to the point that we seek to restore them to right relationship with the Lord and ourselves if a sin has occurred.

So let’s look at this practically. Bill’s car is in the shop for a couple of weeks and Carl loans him an extra car that he has. Bill drives the car for two weeks and when he returns it to Carl, the car is dirty, there’s a tear in one of the seats, there’s a minor scratch on the driver’s door, and the tank is near empty. Without a word, besides “thank you”, Bill returns the car to Carl. The next day, when Carl goes out to move the car, he sees all of the problems that have occurred while Bill drove the car. Rather than being mad and either hostile or passive, Carl’s choice is to talk with Bill, to find out what’s going on with him, and to try to get everything resolved.

This is a very minor issue but the point is that as Christians, we need to concern ourselves with the well-being and spiritual state of our brothers and sisters more so than being concerned with justice for ourselves. In the case of Bill and Carl, there is reason for concern and Carl should talk with Bill about what’s going on in his life and heart.

Then the LORD said to Cain, "Where is your brother Abel?" "I don't know," he replied. "Am I my brother's keeper?" (Genesis 4:9)

Matthew Henry: “When a person is unconcerned in the affairs of others and takes no care when they have opportunity to prevent hurt--especially in their souls,--that person in effect speaks Cain’s language.”

One of the greatest commands, Jesus told us, is to love our neighbor as we love ourselves (Mark 12:31). Because of this, we need to lovingly tend to one another and be a restorative factor in each other’s lives.