Is fear hindering you?

On this planet there is a force that causes a lot of destruction in peoples lives; and that force is fear.  Is fear holding you back, causing you to miss out on opportunities, not fulfill your dreams or not accomplish with your life what you feel you should?  There is a danger in fear, in that if it is allowed to be focused on and grow in our lives it will draw challenges, obstacles and will ultimately manifest defeat in our lives.  There is one spiritual antidote to fear and that is the love of God.  It says in 1 John 4:18 "There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment.  But he who fears has not been made perfect in love."  So there you have it, receive the love of God and meditate on it and it will drive out fear.

Do we have the capacity to love?

If we have been born again of water and the Holy Spirit, then yes, we have the capacity to love with the love of God.  It says in Romans 5:5 "Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.".  There are many people who hope for things but they never come to realization.  There are many people who hope but the hope turns to disappointment.  That is not the case when our hope has as its substance faith in the word of God.  So our faith in the word of God is what guarantees our hope.  This also is a manifestation of the love of God which has been shed into our hearts by the Holy Spirit.

How do we give?

It says in 2 Corinthians 9:6 "But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully."  So my question to us is how do we give?  Are we restrained in our giving?  I can tell you that the measure that we give to any undertaking will be a huge determinant as to what we will get out of it.  If we give little to no attention to nutrition in our diet, our body will most likely reflect  this deficit.  if  we give little to no time to exercise in our life, then our body will most likely reflect the lack of energy and time devoted to this.  This is also true in our support of God's work.  If we will sow with blessings (with the purpose of love, devotion and obedience) into the Lord's work then we will also reap greater blessings in our life.  To share a gift or make a donation into our ministry simply click http://www.arms.cc/giving.html.

Is your faith being tested?

Sometimes when we have received guidance from the Lord for a matter, our faith is then tested.  Our Heavenly Father never tempts us but he does permit tests.  The reason he permits tests is because he wants to evaluate where we stand and to give us the opportunity to grow.  When we prepare for a quiz or a final exam, we may not like the intensity that takes place to prepare for it.  But it does us a lot of good.  The test helps us to prepare not only for it but for also the real life situations that will come up that the test represents.  When we go through tests it also helps to strengthen us and gives us greater endurance.  (Romans 5:3-5)

We all have trials that we go through

There isn't a one of us who doesn't go through trials in life.  In other words, we at some point in our life will experience trouble, distress, challenges, obstacles or difficulties.  Their main purpose is to test our patience, endurance or belief.  During times like that we need to make sure that we maintain our faith.  We need to make sure that we continuously expose ourselves to the word of God.  Especially to keep our eyes, mouth and heart full of the promise of God that we are believing for.  By doing this, we will keep ourselves full of faith during the trial so that we can maintain our belief until the promise is realized.

How do we know if we really know God?

In 1 John 4:8 (NKJV) it says, "He who does not love does not know God, for God is love."  So our Heavenly Father is sharing with us via the Holy Spirit, the spirit of truth, that if we do not exhibit love in our life toward God and our fellow man, that there is something missing in our relationship with God.  In order to have this love, we first have to receive this manifested love toward us in the Heavenly Father's sending of his Son (Jesus Christ) to redeem us from sin.  Once we have received the Lord Jesus into our heart and allowed his word to transform us, then it is only natural that we would walk in the knowledge of God by exhibiting this love toward God and our fellow man.  (1 John 4:8-11)

Do we have a trusting relationship with the Lord?

As God's children it is always imperative that we have a trusting relationship with our Heavenly Father.  If we trust him we believe that our God is a God of integrity.  That he will do that which he says that he will do.  That he will keep the promises that he has given to us.  That he will be faithful to us.  If we trust God, then we will  believe that our Heavenly Father is competent or is able to do that which he says he will do.  In a trusting relationship, there is always compassion.  We will acknowledge the compassion of our God to us.  We will be assured of our Heavenly Father's compassion in our life. (Proverbs 3:5:6)