.....::::: CAN YOU TELL THE DIFFERENCE? :::::.....

Ever look at yourself in the mirror and think, "wow, I have changed?" Have you ever realized the changes your body goes through over the years? Amazing right? It's even more amazing when others can tell the difference as well! The same thing goes for your walk with Christ. Have you ever worried about whether or not you really are a Christian, if you have changed or are you in the same place you were before you experiemented Him?

But what is a Christian though? A Christian is anyone who has the Spirit of God living in him or her. Some people believe that to be Christian, one must be perfect. But that is far from the truth.

No one is born perfect. Whether you are a believer in Jesus Christ or not, no one comes close to perfection but Christ himself. But how do you differentiate your lifestyle to that of those who are not Christians? What makes your walk any different than others?

In the Bible, in Ephesians 5 verse 8, we are called to live as children of the light. The Apostle Paul told the Ephesians to leave behind their sinful ways and their old life of sin. Yeah...I know it's hard, especially when everyone else around you is doing the cool and seemingly fun things but at what cost?

Living the Christian life is a process. It's an everyday thing. Yes, we do fall short of God's glory everyday but that shouldn't be the reason one decides to give up and do what he or she wants while screaming, "yolo" to the sky. Being a Christian means that our new nature and identity are found in Jesus Christ. Although we have a new nature, we don't automatically think all good thoughts and express all right attitudes right away. But that is the beauty of it! If we keep listening to God, the beautiful change is bound to happen with help from the Holy Spirit.

Looking towards the future, you can't help but feel positive and optimistic! Why? Because our old way of living life before we believed in Christ and His mission on Earth, death on the cross and His resurrection, is COMPLETELY in the past! Like clothes that have become too small for us, we should outgrow our old sinful lives and find peace and tranquility in Jesus. When Jesus was crucified on the cross, He was the replacement for your old life! Our "old self," our sinful nature, died once and for all, so we are freed from our past. We need no longer live under sin's power. For us to return tk the things we used to do in the past is basically making Christ's actions on the cross be for nothing. God does not take us out of the world or make us robots and we may even sin but our sin does not define us! The difference is that before we were saved we were slaves to our sinful nature, but now we can choose to live for Jesus Christ.

To conclude, we need to seek the One who can help us change. The way the world we live in functions, it does the exact opposite of what God recommends that we do. Instead of loving, society often discriminates. Instead of finding joy in God, it tells us to find joy in almost everything but Him. Instead of being at peace, patient, kind, good, faithful and gentle, the world demonstrates the opposite. And when it comes to self-control, it tells us that we "only live once". Think about a time before your walk with Christ and look at yourself now. Do you see the changes? And if so, how are you helping others seek that change too? Even if you can't see the changes now, hope is not lost. Let God speak to you today. Have a blessed day and stay in faith!

Ephesians 4:17-24 "So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed. That, however, is not the way of life you learned when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness."

.....::::: WHY SETTLE FOR LESS? :::::.....

We humans are a very incredible and perplex creation. From us being able to take action and even the emotions we are able to feel; everything is just so amazing! God really did an amazing job! But the choices we make don’t always reflect God’s character though. It often leads me to ask this question: “When your standards are fulfilled, why settle for less?” 

What does settle mean exactly? To settle is to accept or agree to something that one considers to be less than satisfactory. In this post I will give you 5 examples of how NOT to settle for less. Crazy thing is that the 5 examples are actually true stories. Haven’t you noticed that when you settle for less than you deserve, you get even less than you settled for? Pay attention.

First, I have a friend named Bray. He dated this girl named Sandy for almost 3 years. Bray loved Sandy. He did anything and everything for her. He would work a part time job and most of his paychecks were either put into providing for her (even though she had a job already) or to spend time with her. He put so much energy into their relationship that he even began to lose friends until she was the only friend that he had left. Of course, like every couple, they had their differences but their differences were always resolved because Bray looked at the bigger picture; his love for her. At that point in time, neither Bray nor Sandy’s faith in Jesus Christ was solid. So then came a very crucial moment in Bray’s life. Bray decided to enroll himself into University. What this meant for Sandy was that she would spend less time with Bray. So what did Sandy do? She settled for less. After almost 3 years of love, regardless of the hardships, she cheated. She cheated on Bray because she would see him less than usual (even though Bray made the effort to still see her as much as he did before getting into University). She had everything she could ever ask for in a man but wanted more, regardless of who she hurt in the process. Hmmm can some of you relate? Moving on…

The second example is actually that of Adam and Eve. We all may know the story but there is so much more to it than what we may know. Adam was the first human being on Earth. Fortunately, God didn’t let Adam be alone for too long before presenting him with an ideal companion and mate, Eve. They were complete, innocent, one and without a hint of shame. One of Adam’s first conversations with his delightful new companion must have been about the rules of the garden of Eden. Even before God made Eve, He gave Adam complete freedom in the garden, with the responsibility to tend and care for it. But one tree was off limits, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Adam would have told Eve about this, so when Satan approached her, she would send him running. Wrong! Even though she knew, even though she had everything she could ever ask for, she did what? She settled for less. Wait…how is this “less”, you might be asking. What is one single fruit compared to a whole garden? Does that answer your question? Eve ate the fruit and then offered some to Adam. At that moment, the fate of creation was on the line. Adam then ate the fruit as well. Man was separated from God by his own desire to act on his own. Hmmm…

Then there was David! David was a shepherd, poet, giant-killer, king, ancestor of Jesus - in short, David was one of the greatest men in the Old Testament of the Bible. He is remembered and respected for his heart for God. God even referred to David as “a man after my own heart” (Acts 13:22). But do not be fooled, David was a man. He made mistakes as well; enter Bathsheba. Bathsheba was the wife of a man named Uriah the Hittite. But how is she linked to David? She later became David’s wife. She is most known for having committed adultery with David (king at the time). Like I stated before, we tend to make crazy choices. David, a man after God’s heart, ancestor of Jesus, greatest king of Israel, settled for less! He could have had anyone he wanted, but he chose another man’s wife. He settled.

Like they say, “the apple never falls far from the tree…”. What this means in this context is “like father, like son”. David had a son; his name was Solomon. Solomon is our 4th example. He would go on and ask God for wisdom. But choice after choice, one could really ask if Solomon put into action what he asked for. Before David died, he told Solomon to obey God’s laws and to “walk in His ways”. Just because Solomon had this wisdom, it did not make him immune to making mistakes. He had been given great possibilities as the king of God’s chosen people, but with them came great responsibilities; unfortunately, he tended to make mistakes and neglect his responsibilities. How? He made many agreements with foreign leaders by marrying women that did not worship God but idols. He even allowed his wives to affect his loyalty to God. Solomon, one of the wisest of them all, settled.

And last but not least…"you and I". If you have read the Bible or not, it is filled with promises of the things God has in store for us. All He asks is that we stay obedient and have faith. But when those two things don’t really sound fun anymore, especially when others are doing the opposite, we settle. For example, God asks us not to have sex before marriage. Sex is an act reserved for those who are married right? But as time goes by, you get impatient. You are tired of waiting for the person God is reserving for you, and since all your friends are doing it, why not?! Well…let me tell you…you just settled! All that does is “open doors” that should never have been opened! Especially if you don’t see yourself getting married with that person. God is more than happy to give you what you NEED in His timing but we tend to settle for the “right now” instead. 

So basically what this post was intended to show you was that regardless of the situation, either in love, at work, promises that were made etc, do not settle! God has a plan for you. Be patient and have faith. If you already received, believe you received or have received confirmation that “something” or “someone” is God’s will for your life, why would you go after something less? Why choose the number 3 at McDonald’s when you’re on the road, when God is saving a juicy steak for you when you get home? Think about it! Stay blessed and in faith!