| |
| |
|
Religion Information |
|
|
|
The Armorbearer Coach & The Character of Christ In You
And even though Jesus was God's Son, He had to learn from experience what it was like to obey, when obeying meant problems and difficulties. -Hebrews 5:8 TLB paraphrased by author Recently, an actor with a career spanning over half a century told of his humble beginnings and one of his character choices that changed his life forever, "I was newly married and a new father. We were barely making it; living off my waiting tables and doing a few acting jobs here and there. A man called one day offering an assignment paying a lot of money (back then) to play a young rebellious man spewing out obscenities to his father. After thinking of the disrespect it would bring to my father, a good man, I turned it down and declared I would only play roles in which my family could be proud. Almost a month later, the man called back with a respectable role and an offer to represent me as my agent. He said he could not stop thinking about me. He said, 'If a man feeding his family off pennies could turn down an assignment offering this much money, there had to be something to him.' He represented me as my agent for 30 years until his death. The role he offered me was Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?" That actor was Sidney Poitier, who went on to win for his work in the movie, Lilies of the Field, 1963; the only Oscar for Best Actor awarded to an African-American in a 40 year span of U.S. history. Mr. Poitier's choice during that difficult time changed the course of his life. Have you noticed that much of how we respond to life's circumstances has to do with our character? God desires to build character within us. He desires to train (discipline) us as His children.1 Training and disciplining does not always feel good. In fact, it can be downright painful. Ask any private in a military boot camp or any professional athlete during his training season. The Apostle Paul encouraged us about God's training, "No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." 2 Many times, throughout Scripture we find God saying to man?I wanted to know what was in your heart. I tested you to know if you would keep My commands. After Abraham's character test, God said, "Now I know that you love Me." To the Israelites He said, "I tested you in the wilderness so that I would know what you would do." 3 As with any test, the day or season of the test is not the time to develop and prepare. Therefore, I believe the time to cooperate with God to build character is the now-everyday. In the everyday processes of life, we have opportunity to develop character (moral strength). Choices create character. Problems and adversity give us opportunity to develop character. The Apostle Paul (as incredible as it may sound) in one of his letters to the Roman church, encouraged them to rejoice when facing difficulties, "We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials for we know that they are good for us-they help us learn to be patient. And patience develops strength of character in us and helps us trust God more each time we use it until finally, our hope and faith are strong and steady." 4 We develop character every time we make a right choice. John C. Maxwell, America's expert on leadership and successful executive says, "We create it (character) every time we make choices-to cop out or dig out of a hard situation, to bend the truth or stand under the weight of it, to take the easy money or pay the price." 5 By daily recognizing, developing, and refining the moral strength in us, we are co-laborers in building the character God desires to see in His children. We desire people of character in our churches, our cities, our countries, and our world. Most if not all of the success stories turned failures in recent years, have been partially due to lack of character. No one can rise above the limitations of his character. Billy Graham was asked to comment on how he was able to maintain character in the face of so many ministry leaders showing a lack of character. He responded with, "People have put me on too high a pedestal. We do the same with other leaders. I know, however, I am not as good as some people think I am. I have seen men in the depths of wickedness and have thought to myself, 'There I go, except by the grace of God.' I have to depend on God every day to help me live as I should." We also must depend on the grace of God to help us live, as we should. To develop character in your life on a daily basis: ?Make right choices. Remember character is a choice. Invite God in on your choices. You will find it makes a lifetime of difference. ?Recognize your character will preach the gospel. Determine to set a good example for those watching your witness. ?Remember bad company corrupts good character. Watch the company you keep. Are they a good influence upon your life or a bad one? ?Depend on the grace of God. When you make a mistake, repent, and begin again. My pastor, Mike Hayes says, "God is a God of new beginnings. Look at how He provides us an opportunity for a fresh start each new season, New Year, new month, new week, and every fresh morning." We have determined that choices create character. If you have been unfortunate to make quite a few wrong choices in life as I have, then this will be good news to you. Pastor Amy Hossler encouraged me saying, "Even a wrong or bad choice repented of can eventually build good character." Our Father God has promised (if we ask for it) to forgive us and cleanse us of all unrighteousness. Additionally, He promised to work all things to our good.9 It seems our Father God is painstakingly involved in working character in us. However, it is up to us to work together with him so that we may reap the harvest of righteousness he longs to give us. Join me as I cooperate with God in creating good character in me with one good choice at a time. (c) Earma Brown
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Gods Breathed For it is written in the book of 2Timothy 3:16 it says All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. It goes on to say in chapter 4:1 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-with great patience and careful instruction. Sins and the REAL Demons We all must know that the Catholic Church has used fear of demons and so-called sin to make a great deal of their power. I hope to illustrate the inner workings of the separation of church and state that is not a reality and that the state uses the same techniques. War of the Worlds: Signs of the End of the Age Jesus said there'd be days like this.The disciples came to Jesus asking: "What will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?" (Matt 24:3)Jesus answered: ". The 7 Seal Judgements These next 3 articles are going to be extremely HARD HITTING. I am not going to pull any punches on what will be discussed in these articles. Jesus the Pharisee RESPONSE TO PAULINE CHRISTIANITY: - The whole of Christendom is not Popery or Romanized but the Pauline influence is arguably the strongest doctrine in the whole of philosophy and theology. 'The Mythmaker: Paul and the Invention of Christianity' by Hyam Maccoby say these things on the back cover:"Defying the accepted view of Jesus as creator of Christianity, Hyam Maccoby, a leading Talmudic scholar, offers a brilliantly argued, boldly provocative challenge to traditional theories about the origin of the Christian religion and leads us to a startling unorthodox conclusion. British B. S. CLEOPATRA'S NEEDLE: -MacDari was a Mason but his Masonry deplored the British 'alehouse and tavern denizens'. There are many heads or names in the 'octopus' of Freemasonry and we have only touched upon a few of them including the Bilderbergs. Ministry Of Absence I was meditating the other day and contemplating the thousands of folks in the cemeteries who lived and died without making any impression upon anybody. No one hated them and no one loved them. Have You Neglected This Righteous Cause Of God? As believers, we have a responsibility to care forthose who have been left without a bread winner, whichbegins with the responsibility of caring for our ownfamily and relatives who may be in distress.1 Timothy 5:8 But if any provide not for his own, andspecially for those of his own house, he hath deniedthe faith, and is worse than an infidel. Left Behind! Who Me? The popularity in the past few years of the apocalyptic fiction series Left Behind by Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins in indicative of the fact that people would rather believe a lie told to them in a sexy, slick way then believe the truth of the Word of God that has been staring them straight in the face for centuries.Many Christian groups today propound that one day soon and it seems like the more money that is needed by the preacher the closer the day is that all Christian believers will be gathered together and thus disappear from the earth and that all of the unbelievers of the world will be left behind. What is Love? Now many confuse love with admiration and most commonly sexual lust, now days the younger generation driven by their wild hormones more often than not confuse their sexual desires with love, even some of the older generation fall into the same trap, I suppose everyone at some stage or the other confuses love for what it actually is.There is only one place in the world where you will actually find out what love is and that is in the the word of God, the bible. Gays and Lesbians Attempt to Distance Themselves From Catholic Priests There is a new term being thrown around "phenophilia", no one can spell it and I cannot even be sure if this is the correct spelling. Even fewer know what it means; it is the molesting of teenage boys, which is different then that of pedophilia, which is the molesting and petting of children. Jesus Was a Hippie Actually he was more appropriately called a Cynic, but that kind of free-thinking humanist is indeed kin to being a Hippie. The Cynics were a school of thought or religious approach to intellectual understanding which many more modern hippies seem to emulate. What Is Faith? 1. Faith is a "spiritual substance" on the inside of you that can either grow or wane (decrease). Religion and Social Engineering - Part of an Introduction Thomas Carlyle is just one of the interesting characters who had much to do with Calvinism and the Knox family he married into. Friedrich Nietzsche never really completed a book and yet before he went crazy his Wagnerian or Illuminized 'radical aristocratic' handlers used him well. Rudraksha Beads - For Health, Wealth & Spirituality The Tears of Lord Shiva that are Rudraksha, are the original Vedic Beads of Power worn by the Yogis of India and the Himalayas for thousands of years to maintain health and to gain self empowerment and fearless life on their path to Enlightenment and Liberation.The Electromagnetic Properties of the Rudraksha Beads improve concentration, focus and mental stamina. Reading the Bible A friend of mine had asked my thoughts on how one should go about reading the Bible. I would first read the New Testament in its entirety in order to keep in the "flow" of it. In The Beginning Christ! As I was doing my studies, the Lord put something on my heart that really took me by surprise. He dropped a little bit of revelation knowledge into my mind, and it took me on a great ride. Kabbalistic Chanukah: The Downloading of Primordial Light God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.(Genesis 1:3)The 36 candles on the menorah correspond to the 36 hours when Adam and Eve were bathed in The Primordial Light of creation. Mystery, not Myth: Jesus Christ is real! In the children's section of any bookstore, books on the birth of Jesus stand next to Cinderella and Jack and the Beanstalk. The same parents who describe Santa Claus so convincingly also tell their children of Another who knows if they've been "naughty or nice. Universal Salvation: Gods Love and Grace Will Overwhelm All Men! I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service; even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. And yet I was shown mercy, because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
