In doing my daily bible reading I came across Romans 2. When reading Romans 2 it became clear that being humble and not judgmental is an area that God looks at closely. One of the areas we are challenged at is not comparing our faith to others. I know that I have been guilty of this and have listed to the enemy speak to me about how my walk is not "Christian enough" and I am a hypocrite. And I have seen my reaction to this be one of pride, which spins me away from God.

We are all influenced by our upbringings and by our environment. That means we will have different views on how we see the world. But God's word is constant and true. If we allow God to work in our lives and follow what we are told through the Holy Spirit and the Word of God, then we will be changed and transformed according to God's Word.

This challenge runs deep, especially here in America, where we see people really out for themselves and loving to celebrate and draw attention to themselves. Look at my favorite sport to watch, Football. The Nfl players celebrate every hit, throw, first-down and when they score a touchdown, WOW…there is going to be a big celebration.

So where is the line with being humble in spirit and the need of self approval? How do we move away from what the world wants to celebrate and what god wants to do with our lives?

It comes down to not only be willing to do God's Word, but also giving God the Glory in all the fullness and goodness that God pours out in our lives. Let's Give God the Glory and recognize his workings in our lives.

I was reading over at Share your story now and found this 

" Tamra B. writes:

It’s all about God! Our lives, our work, our words. As Christians we are to be Ambassadors for Christ so hen someone asks me what I do, my response should be that I am an Ambassador for Jesus Christ through God the Father. I currently minister to my husband and my two children and their school. My focus every minute of every day needs to be through, or with, the mind of Christ."

Well said Tamra

Watch out for pride, it is constantly looking to creep into every good thing in your life and attempting to move you away from God!

I listened to this today and was moved by this story.

God's grace is amazing and he has purpose for our life and here  is a story that reveals a womans walk of teen pregnancy and what her life road led here to where she is today..helping other teenage pregnancies

This has been quite a summer and alot has happened in my life. I would have to call this the Summer of Truth.

It was interesting today as I listened to the radio and heard a story of some protesters in San Francisco as they were explaining about the undocumented workers…I mean lets just say the truth and not twist it! There are millions of people who have crossed our boarders illegally and have broken the law. This is a good example, and by no means am I looking for an arguement or debate on this issue, that is not the purpose of this site. I am merely pointing out how 98% of the truth is a lie.

All summer long I have been dealing with many issues at home and with my own walk and [tag]my search for the truth[/tag]. It is so easy to just change things a little bit so we can either justify or avoid something. But the fact remains that we are lying. The funny thing is, as I was listening to this woman go on and on, it was clear that she does not see anything wrong with breaking the law, that we need illegal….ahem, undocumented workers to do work us Americans do not want to do and our country would be a mess without them. There may be some truth to that, but the fact they broke the law to get here and continue to break the law does not justify this.

I have had to deal with family members who have lied this summer and it has been painful. Even when I thought all of the deception was out in the open. I later found out that there were more layers of deception hidden underneath the surface.

My search for the truth led me to a path of confrontation and also a place of grace. Our church has been running a series called summer breeze and it has been a summer of seeking the lord through worship. It has been amazing and God has revealed his truth to me in a deeper way that has given me peace in the midst of some storms.

[tag]The Truth will set you free[/tag], so many people today are captive to the lies and deceptions that some are starting to believe it as the truth. It is amazing how if you tell yourself something long enough, you will believe it to be true, even though it isn't. And we all know that those convinced against their will, are of the same opinion still.

My Search for the Truth has brought freedom, heartaches, tears and trials, but it has also brought joy, and a deeping o f my love for God and also our family has grown. I thank GOD for revealing some hidden areas in our families life that could of been much more devastating…Thank you God for revealing YOUR truth and for your faithfullness.

My search for the truth starts in YOUR word O Lord. 

Walking the path of following Jesus is not an easy one and one that Jesus said himself "you do not know what you are asking" when men said they wanted to follow Jesus…

When things get tough in my life I have repeatably either walked away from God, or whined and moaned about it. When trials come my way, it has just seemed that God wasn't there….

Have you ever felt that way? Man, those are the days when praising God just doesn't come for me. And so I have gone around this circular track not getting any closer to god because what that says when I don't praise God is that I don't believe the bible. 

It has taken me a LONG time to realize this. Although I have only been a Christian for about 5 years, I have not been able to get beyond my own struggles in this area. 

Why is this so?

God has a plan and it is usually a bit different than our so called plan. When our plans go wrong, it may appear that God is not there…but that is NOT the case. God is always there, waiting for us to turn to him, in the midst of trials and troubles, he is there, worthy to be praised…ALWAYS…

It has taken me a long time to realize this, But GOD I believe Every word of your Bible and that means you are always there and you will carry me through the hard times and you will still love me when I fall and pick me back up…

So Lord, I praise you in the face of trouble…I praise you when I don't feel like it….I Praise you because YOU ARE GOD

And YOU ARE AWESOME

 And I love you …GOD…You are MY Master and Friend…

Sam 

Today, We lack leaders in the church as our world waters down the word and forms it to what man wants it to be and what it is convenient..

Where is the TRUTH?

Where are our leaders of GOD?

Here is a teacher of the word that explains what is happening…

Sunday Jan 21st 2007

The Last 15 Days our church has been going through the Purpose Driven Life Book for the 2nd time. My wife and I are reading the book daily online live in a conference room and it has been awesome.

Thank you Lord for walking with me, Thank you Lord for loving me despite all my struggles  and rebellion I have had in my life. Thank you Lord for never leaving me. Thank you Lord for showing me my faults and the way to correct them. Thank you Lord for drawing Closer to me today. Thank you Lord for my wonderful Wife who stands with me and prays for me. Thank you lord for setting your eyes upon me and never letting go.

I know you have a purpose for me Lord and I so much want to make sure I hear from you the path you want me to walk on. For your Word Says “For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. You will find me when you seek me, if you look for me in earnest.”

Thank you Lord for giving me a future and hope! Thank you for listening to my prayers.

Father, I trust you and today I give you all of me, as a living sacrafice. The greatest commandment of them all as Jesus says is to love the lord with all your heart, all your mind, and all of your body. The key part is ALL…Lord I give you all of me…I am yours

Thank You Lord For your Grace in my life, I don’t deserve it but I Thank you for keeping me.

You are God Alone, there is none like you. There is no other God.

Thank you most of all for Jesus, who you gave so we could come to you for our salvation. Thank you for your almighty sacrafice in which we will never know the depth of pain that caused you. And you did it for me! Sometimes that is too much to imagine. But I Thank You Lord for it, and I love you!