"If" you have been foolish..........

For me, I would not say, "if", but yes, of course I have been, in fact, many times.

As I read in my devotions this morning, these verses stood out to me.

Proverbs 30:32 If you have been foolish in exalting yourself, Or if you have devised evil, put your hand to your mouth.

Proverbs 30:33 For as the churning of milk produces butter, And as wringing the nose produces blood, So the forcing of wrath produces strife.

We tend to exalt ourselves, it comes naturally, it's really the problem of the "pride of life" Jesus talked about it so often, and we have so many examples of it in the Old Testament.

And, if we have devised or thought evil, yes, of course we have, then here is what we ought to do, and why.

We should put our hand on our mouths, that is, stop it. That's the simple instruction the Lord gives us here. If it's coming out of your mouth, put your hand on your mouth and stop it.

Then, the reason.........just like the churning of milk produces butter, if we do not exercise self control, and we are tempted to anger, and do not exercise self-control, it will produce wrath.

Self control, is part of the fruit of the Holy Spirit. He lives in us, to help us in so many ways. This is a big area where He can help. Self control, is when He helps us to master ourselves, and to restrain ourselves, to have control of ourselves.

The Bible teaches us that the Holy Spirit is our Helper, not the one who condemns us. He has come into our lives, to come alongside of us and to take our hearts as it were by His hand, to lead us and to guide us.

One of the main ways the Holy Spirit guides us, is to lead us to the forgiveness of God. The Bibles says in 1st John 1:7, But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

So, may the Lord be our helper today. We all have done foolishly, more times then we care to think about. But, the Lord has not given up on you, and will never give up on you. One thing He will do for you, for sure, is to help you.

Lord, thank You for having the Holy Spirit live inside of us, and for being our Helper. We confess our sins to You, and ask for cleansing, and strength. May we walk in that self control that You give to us. In Jesus name, amen..........

Pastor Bob Grenier

Calvary Chapel Visalia

Practical Application and promises from God.

1. Remember, God does not condemn you.

2. Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.

3. Take God's hand as it were, and let Him lead you today.

4. God is going to finish what He started in your life.

5. Be merciful to others, they may need more help then you do.

6. Jesus came to save, not condemn, let's try and act just like Him.

IMG_0226

IMG_0226, a photo by pastorbobgrenier on Flickr.

pastorbobgrenier's photostream

pastorbobgrenier's photostream on Flickr.

When you don’t want to do God’s will for your life.

If your feeling this way, you are not alone. Even our Lord Jesus Christ experienced this very thing in His own life.

As you can see from Mark 14:36 it says, “And He said, Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will”

When Jesus was facing the cross, in one sense He did not want to go through with it. It’s a mystery to us, because in other places in the Bible its speaks of Jesus coming into the world to do just that thing, to go to the cross to die for our sins and bring us salvation. But, in another sense, it’s clear that He did not want to go through with it. So, your not alone. But, please notice what He did. He said nevertheless, which means, yet, or notwithstanding, and rather. It’s a word of transition.

It means, I don’t want to do one thing, but let me move to another thought. And that thought is, regardless of what I want, I will do what You want me to do. And that is my supreme desire, it’s to carry out Your will.

So, the next time you are conflicted about doing the will of God, may God help you to follow the example of Jesus Christ. Don’t focus on what you don’t want to do, but rather on what God wants you to do. Ask God to help you. He will give you the grace in that moment.

Father, many things are easier said then done. And, this may be one of them. But, we know Lord, that when You call us to something, we are able to do it. Not by our strength, but by Yours.

In Jesus name.

Pastor Bob Grenier

Calvary Chapel Visalia

Applicational thoughts

1. God’s grace is sufficient to help us.

2. When we are at the end of our rope, there is no where to turn but to God.

3. Be encouraged, remember times in the past when God has delivered you.

4. Don’t be condemned, many others have had the same experience.

5. Remember, there is no condemnation to those in Christ Jesus

6. God is Your helper, be patient, He will help you.

Don't do what you want to do.....

Pr 20:22 Do not say, “I will recompense evil”; Wait for the LORD, and He will save you.

Pr 24:29* Do not say, “I will do to him just as he has done to me; I will render to the man according to his work.”

Many times in the Bible the Lord ( for our own good, and to give us His wisdom ) tells us what not to do, or what not to say. In the case of these two verses, that's what's being said to us. "Do not say etc, etc."

Both of these verses have to do with what we might tend to say, or tend to do, when someone has done something evil to us.

In Pro 20:22 We are told, "Do not say I will recompense evil"......Or don't say, I'm going to pay that person back. But rather "Wait for the Lord, and He will save you" To wait here means, to wait expectantly, and the Lord will rescue you.

In Pro 24:29, is pretty much a repetition. It's telling us in no uncertain terms to "Not to do to the other person what they have done to you"

Back to the Lord for a moment. He promises to save or rescue you in situations like what's described above. God has a plan, and He will come through in His plan, in His time, and in the meantime, it's best to follow His guidance and instruction. Don’t say or do what you might want to say or do.

In the NT, we are also told that "Vengeance belongs to the Lord"......It's not our responsiblity to pay people back for what they have done to us. We are to leave that with the Lord, that is His business.

Ro 12:19 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.

We are beloved by the Lord, though not by others. Don’t avenge, ( to exact penalty from another ), but rather give place to wrath...It’s the Lord’s business.....He will repay.

Father, thank You for Your Word, it fits to our lives so well, and deals with the needs that we have from day to day. We love you, In Jesus name, amen.

Pastor Bob Grenier

Calvary Chapel Visalia

Practical Applicational thoughts

1. It's best sometimes to not say what you want to say to someone.

2. We don't have to follow the world's example of dealing with evil and offense.

3. The Lord has allowed your situation, and He will rescue you in due time.

4. Be patient when in a trial, God is faithful, He will help you.

5. By obeying the Lord, you will not make the situation worse then it already is.

Which heart is yours?

Proverbs 28:25 says, "He who is of a proud heart stirs up strife, But he who trusts in the LORD will be prospered."

Which of the two do you want to be? Which one might you be today? Which one could you be as the day rolls on?

There are two kinds of hearts mentioned here, one that is proud and stirs up strife, and one that trusts in the LORD and finds itself being prospered. Let's take a closer look at them.

He who is of a proud heart.....meaning, (a greedy spirit, , a wide heart, an enlarged heart ) this person stirs up, or meddles, is contentious, and the bring about strife, or discord, quarrels. Meddling is of course when we are involved in something that is not really our business, and contention is causing trouble.

But, he who is trusting in the LORD, finds prosperity. To trust is have confidence in the LORD, that is, in Jehovah, or "the existing one"

That trusting heart is going to find the LORD bringing prosperity into their lives. One of the meanings of prosperity is "to take away ashes" and "to anoint" It really means, to be enriched and blessed. Ashes are a picture for us of something that has been ruined through fire. When a fire has taken place, there is normally a clean-up that takes place.

The LORD is the one who will take away the ashes of the ruin of our lives or circumstances. And, He will anoint our lives with His forgiveness, and cleansing.

The Lord is the one who alone excels in cleaning up a ruined life. So, if by some chance you have been brought to some ruin, and there is nothing but ashes to show for what has happened, know that the LORD today, can come and make your life new, and bless your life, and enrich your life.

All you need to do, is to come to Him, and to ask Him for His Grace and His mercy, and He will freely give it to you. Remember, He loves you more then you know.

Father, thank You for who You are, and for what You do in our lives. We can make such a mess of things, but You can bless what we have broken.

In Jesus name amen.

Bob Grenier

Pastor Calvary Chapel Visalia

Applicational thoughts.

1. You can be different.

2. God changes lives.

3. You can go from ashes to blessings.

4. Have faith in God today.

5. God is the God of forgiveness and restoration.

6. Let Him work in you today. Just believe Him, and act upon His Word.

What will happen tomorrow?

We don't really know.

Proverbs 27:1 says, "Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring forth.

Here we are being given wisdom from God. Don't boast about tomorrow etc. What does that mean? Boast is also translated, foolish, and can mean to make into a fool.

The simple reason that we ought not to boast about what may happen tomorrow, is that we don't know. No one knows that will happen even a second from now.

Much is said about this same issue in the NT, in James 4:13-17, but to summarize here, what we ought to say is, "If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that".

In other words, it's normal and needful to make our plans, and to even have our desires about tomorrow, but it's God's way for us to always remember, that He is in control, He is guiding, He has plans for us for the next day, He is leading our lives. So, to live with the Lord's will in mind is how consider what will happen tomorrow.

Father, we love You, and we thank You that we find comfort in knowing that You are in control of our lives, and You have a plan for tomorrow, and for the rest of this day, and for the rest of our lives. Help us to live with You as the priority in our lives. Putting You first in all that we do. In Jesus name,

Pastor Bob Grenier

Calvary Chapel Visalia

P.S Here are 6 Applicational thoughts.

God is also working all things that happen today and tomorrow for our good.

God's plan and ways are much better then anything we can come up with.

God's ways and plans may not be easy for us to accept, but He will help us along.

God knows what is best for us.

God has the power to bring about His will in our lives today and tomorrow.

Trusting the Lord is the way to go. He promises to direct our paths.