christlike

Thievery Against Marriage

Dr. Mike Kingdom Paradigms , , , , , , , ,

Marriage has been under attack from day one. Since Adam & Eve, when Eve began to spend more time listening to the serpent rather than commune with Adam and the Lord, the temptation of grabbing the non-compliant fruit eventually turned into a path of alienation from God and a broken life.

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Jesus himself stated that in the beginning, God created the marriage relationship: one man with one woman (Mark 10:6-9). Yet mankind with his stony heart couldn’t understand and comply with God’s intent for the marriage relationship. So through the Bible He reveals how mankind is to behave toward Himself and others for our own sake.

The marriage relationship itself pictures the relationship between the church (you and me) and Christ. In addition, the marriage relationship bonded by love, mutual submission, and a lifelong commitment of faithfulness pictures the same relationship that Father God, Son, and Holy Spirit have with one another.

In many ways, the marriage institution provides a safe haven for two people to experience the abundant relational life that God Himself enjoys. However, if two people are simply in a contractual arrangement, than marriage becomes nothing more but a business enterprise; two people satisfying each other needs in exchange for services rendered. Which type of marriage relationship do you want?

God reveals the type of behavior and attitude that leads to a prosperous marriage relationship. His Word highlights what builds-up and what breakdowns the marriage relationship. They include external and internal factors.

Some external factors that break down the marriage institution includes: adultery, incest, same-sex relationships, pornography, and fornication. Internal factors includes non-submissiveness, selfishness, and ungodliness. All these factors are thieves of marriage blissfulness. The main text in the Bible that highlight marriage responsibilities and relationship builders include: Ephesians 5; 1 Corinthians 7; and Hebrews 13:4.

Marriage is the ideal place for two people joined together to experience the same relationship that the Triune God enjoys. Yet, as always, mankind wants to take shortcuts that benefit individuals at the expense of the community. God’s way may hurt a few upfront in the beginning of the process, but eventually leads to long term success and riches for the majority as well as the few.

It takes trust to know that the eternal values of God always leads to the best outcome in the long run. Marriage is no different. So if we want to enjoy a rich relationship that marriage brings, than let us begin by personally standing up as a committee of one and voice our disapproval whenever we notice thievery against marriage.  How? By simply witnessing what marriage pictures in our daily lives and if necessary, use words.

OUR PRAYER

PRAYER 2

Holy Father, Son, and Spirit: thank you for marriage and its solid foundation for a society. Thank you for your Word that explains how to make marriage a copy of your relationship with humanity and yourself. Thank you for your grace and mercy when we fall short of the ideal. Enrich us with your character, your attitude, and your heart in our marriages. Help us live and experience your life through our marriage. Thank you for everything.

Yours In Christ,

Dr. Mike

Consultant, Coach, Encourager
Author of Great Business Emulates A Good God

If You Are Seeking a Devotional Study, Check Out My New Book Be Radical…Follow Christ.

 

Who Do You Trust?

Dr. Mike Kingdom Paradigms , , , , ,

Trust is built within relationships. Without relationships, trust wouldn’t matter. Trust is important because it brings two or more parties together toward a mutual destination.
If you ever been on a team, or served in the armed forces, than you know the importance of building trust among others. If you are in a serious relationship, husband/wife, parent/child, or employer/employee, than you also have tasted the fruit of trust. The fruit may have tasted sour or spoiled at times, yet in between we have also tasted the sweetness of a trustful relationship. Most likely there is or was one person in your life that allowed you to experience the savory joy of trusting another. However, during that time there were probably many others that caused you to distrust and keep others at an arm’s distance away from the heart.
For most of us, learning to trust our Triune God is a time investment that requires commitment and obedience without focusing on immediate results. The Book of Hebrews (Chpt. 11) summarizes many people of the faith journey who held on in trust of God without receiving a reward in this bodily life. In fact, many of them lost everything including their life in a hideous manner. Yet they trusted God to the very end.
When someone asks me today how do I measure success in this life, my reply is one word: Trust. Real success is not how much toys one accumulates in this life; it is not how famous or important one becomes in the eye of others; it is not experiencing life’s good things like a blessed marriage, career, or meaningful relationships. At the end of our life, Jesus is going to review our relationship with Him. Our life is either going to exemplify trust in our self or in Him. He is simply going to evaluate through the trails, tests, and moments of truth how much we trusted Him, sought Him, and followed Him. He will accordingly reward us. He is also going to measure how well we submitted to the Holy Spirit’s lead in our life, and likewise reward us. Yes we are saved by Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. However, the Bible also teaches that we are rewarded by how much we maturely grow in our daily interaction with each other and with Christ.
So the next time someone asks you how do you measure success in life, let your answer always humbly remain the same: Trust in Jesus Christ.

OUR PRAYER

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Our Heavenly Father, Son, and Spirit: thank you for committing yourself to our redemption. Help us to partner with you in following you in your work and in your plan to restore creation back to your original intent. Help us in our vain attempt to trust you. Shower upon us your steadfast love so we may experience and build a deep, trusting relationship with you. Help us to invest the day with you in everything we do. From arising, breakfast, commuting, work, lunch, gym, school, dinner, and playtime, help me to live in your presence and look for what you are doing in our little world.
Help us to help others in learning to trust you in everything we do. Amen. Amen.

Witchcraft in the Marketplace

Dr. Mike Kingdom Paradigms , , , , , , , , ,

Most of the time when we speak about witchcraft we think of potions, wands, and black pointed hats worn by ugly women with a bitter facial expression. We may recall witches from such movies as “Harry Potter and ….” or “Wizard of Oz.” For most of us, witches are a make believe fantasy. Yet, God’s word strongly recommends us to stay away from them (Deut 18:10). Are they for real or have witches gone away along with the devil in red underwear and pitchfork?

The Bible most often uses the word sorcerer or sorceress to identify people who practice black magic or wizardry. They are people who practice the art of dark magic, creating harmful illusions, or playing with ungodly spirits that point others away from trusting the Triune God. There base of operation is built on falsehood. The Bible gives unpleasant examples of sorcerers and their outcomes. There is Pharaoh & Moses (Ex7:11), Daniel & the Chaldean King (Dan 2:2), and Micah’s prophecy of the end times (Mic. 5:12). The Book of Revelations likewise mentions what becomes of sorcerers at the end of the age (Rev 22:15).

What does sorcery look like in the marketplace? It comes in many forms but here are a few examples: 1) The illusion of success typically built on the back of others (picture of a 20 story office building on a brochure as the corporate office when in reality one has only 500 SF rented space in the building). 2) The distorted numbers of monthly reports(government inflation and unemployment numbers is a good example). 3) Keeping two sets of books (One that the public sees and the other telling the true picture [Enron]). 4) Building a business organization through a Ponzi scheme. Typical in an investment community where new money must be attained to distribute to the earlier players. (examples too many to mention.) 5) Portraying the ideal through media and advertisement. (eg. glamor magazine touch-ups). 6) Happiness through materialism (name your favorite product). 7) Dress for success (focus on form rather than substance). 8) Lies in Advertisement (we see this come alive in political campaigns). The list is endless.

What witchcraft sells is falsehood. Witchcraft denies accountability to a Final Judge. It removes God from the picture, and pushes for personal agendas no matter what the cost or price. It typically places the outcome and means more important than people, truth, and God’s sovereign plan. In the end, it is a lie that eventually hurts and destroys individuals, families, and institutions. It is generally self-centered and does not take into consideration the ramifications and impact into the lives of others. It prevents people from having a truly authentic relationship with God and others. It destroys character, damages eternal values, and ruins lives in the process. As faith-builders in the marketplace, we are called to restore God’s Kingdom reign in the businesses we own, manage, and work in. It begins with one person’s commitment to follow the lead of the Holy Spirit within the marketplace. It begins with you and me.

So next time when you see witchcraft within the workplace, call it out. Provide a better solution that is built on godly principles of honesty, truth, and authenticity. Your clients, supervisors, and peers may disagree with you, but at least you have taken a stand for Christ and those around you. In the end, your example may lead others along with you toward the real promise land.

OUR PRAYER

PRAY 4

Holy Father, Holy Lord, Holy Spirit – thank you for revealing your truth to us. Thank you for giving us the scriptures to read, study, and learn about you and your ways. Help us to place into practice your righteousness. Help us to glorify you in the marketplace. Help us to glorify you in our relationships. Help us to glorify you with our words, thoughts, and actions. Help us be a beacon for you in the marketplace. Help us to restore the marketplace under your sovereignty. Help us.

Yours In Christ,

Dr. Mike

Consultant, Coach, Encourager
Author of Great Business Emulates A Good God