Character Faults

Dr. Mike 2022 , , , ,

Psalm 19:12-14 (ESV)

Who can discern his errors?
    Declare me innocent from hidden faults.
Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins;
    let them not have dominion over me!
Then I shall be blameless,
    and innocent of great transgression.

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
    be acceptable in your sight,
    O Lord, my rock, and my redeemer.

Yep, I’m not perfect. Always knew. But today, I realize how far from perfect I truly am.

When you compare yourself with others, you may consider yourself better than the average person. When you compare yourself today with the you of yesterday, you may also consider yourself a better person. But when you compare yourself with Life’s reference point, Jesus Christ, you walk away realizing how far short you are to true maturity.

King David penned the 19th Psalm while meditating upon the vastness of the heavens above. When one compares oneself with the Master Designer of creation, one realizes how tiny and insignificant one truly is in comparison.

David in addition to comparing himself with the created order also compared the beauty and significance of God’s moral order with his ability to live up to the standard of God’s character. The insight makes him respond with the above passage in a repentive and earnest heart for those hidden faults which we are not even aware but realize they are there.

Yes, today, like David, I saw something in my character for the first time. When I told my wife, she laughed. She recognized the same weakness in me over thirty years ago. I just came to the realization today.

One wonders what else will we discover about ourselves going forward that God already knows. And yes, HE still loves us weakness and all. HE not only loves us, but like David’s last line of Psalm 19, HE is our ROCK we stand on and HE is our REDEEMER who saves us. This is our reassurance that in weakness and failure HE is always there for us.

Like I have said so often, life is a learning process preparing you and I for eternity. Each day we discover our need for Jesus Christ, HIS spirit, and HIS domain. As the Holy Spirit works in us transforming our attributes into HIS Godly character, the old man continues to die as the new man becomes more alive. The process isn’t for the fainthearted. But neither are the rewards of walking with HIM.

So, when we gather together in an assembly to praise HIM and thank HIM and glorify HIM, you can add this one to the list.

Rooting For You in Christ!

Dr. Mike

Encourager & Author of e-Books

 *  Dancing With God: Life-Giving Theology Explained
 *  Great Business Emulates a Good God
 *  Be Radical…Follow Christ!
 *  Simply The Messenger
 *  Unequally Married

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Copyright 2013-Present | Abbaco LLC | All Rights Reserved

Learn. Live. Invest.

Dr. Mike 2022 , , ,

Proverbs 1:5

Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance,

Romans 8:5

For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.

Matthew 6:33

But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

What three activities could you make happen today and everyday that will propel you toward a life worth living? How about learning something new today? What about living with the Spirit today? And why not make a greater investment into God’s Kingdom today?

Since life is a learning process preparing you and I for eternity, what new idea or thought or word could we focus on today that will take us slightly outside our comfort zone, make us feel vulnerable, but afterward expand our awareness and confidence from the experience?

This morning for example, prior to my writing, I searched the concordance for multiple scriptures on learning, living, and investing, along with sub-categories which led me to a few other scriptures which I wrote down to investigate further after completing this page. I selected the above Scriptures as my focus, but there were many others I could have used with a slightly different perspective. Those are for another time and place.

Learning is a process built upon experience, knowledge, and insight. It is never ending unless one chooses to stop. Isn’t it interesting why those who are quite successful still make ample time to read?

Learning something new adds variety in one’s life, expands one’s knowledge and perspective of life and God, plus enriches one’s tank to better serve others when a situation arises. You have a good solution to the problem. Learning prepares you for better service.

If you are reading this, then I can assume you are still living. I jest, but how many people do you know are still breathing but the Spirit of love and joy are found nowhere in the room? In fact, they wouldn’t recognize the Holy Spirit’s characteristics unless they stop focusing on themselves for a moment.

When you read about the saints through the pages of the Bible, you begin to identify them as being persecuted yet with such joy and purpose for living that your head tilts in understanding how that can be. Then when you dig further and begin to understand the work of the Holy Spirit to sanctify us, you slowly come to learn by walking with HIM you begin to experience life the way God invented life to be lived.

After a small taste of Kingdom living, you can’t have enough and want more. But how? You learn to submit to Christ’s authority in your life and HE bestows the power of the Spirit which invades your inner being to replace the hardness of your heart with the gracefulness of HIS divine attributes. You are slowly being formed into HIS image of Godly Character.

As you become more involved with developing a relationship with your eternal partner, your heart and mind becomes more occupied with HIS domain and HIS macro purpose. You begin to align your micro purpose with HIS macro design and establish more order and boundaries into your life. You find yourself investing more of your time, money, and resources to expand HIS domain in your little corner of the world.

The daily work may seem routine and ordinary from an outside observer, but for you the real meaning of life becomes your foundation for investment. From here, you invest in HIS kingdom, HIS work, and HIS ways. Your family, career, and community involvement are the means and opportunity for you to invest yourself as a representative of Jesus Christ’s government. You now become a witness of God’s transforming power to enable others find fulfillment, freedom, and flourishment the way God intended people to experience.

You realize the investment God has in you and your aim is to return HIS investment to HIM manifold more times than humanly possible. You are grateful for the opportunity and appreciative of the challenge. Your only hope and prayer is God provides you the necessary resources to make it so and you don’t fail him in the process.

So, if you want a simple life with great returns, why not focus one’s time, money, and resources to learn, live, and invest with the ONE who makes everything possible – our Incarnate Triune God.

Rooting For You in Christ!

Dr. Mike

Encourager & Author of e-Books

 *  Dancing With God: Life-Giving Theology Explained
 *  Great Business Emulates a Good God
 *  Be Radical…Follow Christ!
 *  Simply The Messenger
 *  Unequally Married

Encourage a Friend…Share Today’s Message!

Copyright 2013-Present | Abbaco LLC | All Rights Reserved

God’s Reflection in You

Dr. Mike 2022 , , ,

Romans 8:9-11

 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you. (ESV)

God’s Spirit lives in you the believer. The same Spirit who resurrected Jesus, also lives in us and through us. As Christ-followers, we are ambassadors of God’s domain and privileged to reflect God at all times. Yet how well do we?

All humans are made in the image of their Creator. Our natural DNA includes genes with abilities to mimic in a small physical way the attributes of God Almighty.

We have been given a mind and consciousness, emotional personality, and strength of character to become more and more like HIM. Our ability to dream visions of what can be, and then create and move the process toward its fulfillment, are attributes found in our Master Designer.

The relational and social aspects of life to belong and share with one another are the divine attributes of the Triune God who lives in perfect relationship with Himself as Father-Son-Spirit.

As we walk with God, sharing our life with HIM as HE shares life with us, and as we enjoy living in HIS presence, communicating with HIM, and developing a trustful relationship with HIM, iron sharpens iron. HIS divine nature becomes more empowering in us. Our worldview slowly changes as we long to view life from HIS perspective.

In our journey through space and time, we take on more and more the attributes of Jesus Christ. Like Paul wrote in Ephesians 3:19, as we grow up, we are being filled with all the fullness of God who lives in us.

As we allow God more access into our inner being and allow HIM to sculpt out the ungodly spaces that are hidden in our darken soul, HIS divine nature becomes more and more real in us. It is then we begin to realize the work is more HIM and less of us. Yet our side of the partnership is to put in the effort and hang in there. HE will manifest the rest and give the growth. We are HIS workmanship (Eph. 2:10). The end result is more of a reflection of HIM.

And yes, you are included – if you so choose to participate at this time. If you haven’t done so yet, ask HIM to fill you with HIS Spirit and follow HIS lead in your life. Your only wish is you started earlier in life then now.

Rooting For You in Christ!

Dr. Mike

Encourager & Author of e-Books

 *  Dancing With God: Life-Giving Theology Explained
 *  Great Business Emulates a Good God
 *  Be Radical…Follow Christ!
 *  Simply The Messenger
 *  Unequally Married

Encourage a Friend…Share Today’s Message!

Copyright 2013-Present | Abbaco LLC | All Rights Reserved