Who can tame the tongue?

James 3

"All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring?" James 3:7-12

Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. Ephesians 4:15

There are many things that should be said, but there are many things that should not be said. And there are many things that should be said privately and in love and respect for the other person, especially if what you are saying is your opinion and not based on scripture. Who can discern all of that? Who can always have their tongue and the attitude behind their tongue constantly in check? The Bible tells us that no man can. Do we have any hope?

Let's look a little closer at the verses:

All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, but no man can tame the tongue. James 3:7 (emphasis mine)

No man can tame their own tongue. We cannot and will not ever be able to do this in our own strength. We must rely on the Holy Spirit of God to tame this smallest and strongest muscle in our body.

The power of words are truly amazing. I'm sure even as you are reading this you can remember a time that someone's encouragement truly made a difference in your life. I am also sure you can remember when someone harsh words cut you to the heart. As a general rule, words are very important to women. We also tend to use more of them. Let us be mindful of what we are saying, how we are saying it, and who we are saying it to.

But, what if a rebuke is necessary? If we have truly prayed and sought the heart of God and know that He wants us to talk to someone about an area in their lives, then we must go in love. Anything else is judgment, will be seen that way, and ultimately will not be received. The only thing we will have accomplished is wounding another soul with words that cannot be taken back.

Today, spend some time in prayer about your mouth and what comes out of it. Ask the Holy Spirit to make you aware of what you are saying and how it is being perceived. Most of all, ask Him to help you speak everything in love.

Come and Listen to What He Has Done...

Come and see what God has done, how awesome his works in man's behalf. He turned the sea into dry land, they passed through the waters on foot— come, let us rejoice in him. Psalm 66:5-6

Come and listen, all you who fear God; let me tell you what he has done for me. Psalm 66:16

All through the Old Testament we find examples of the Children of Israel proclaiming what God has done for them. The crossing of the Red Sea was a pretty big deal! There are several references to them reminding each other and reminding God of what He had done for them there. (See Nehemiah 9:11, Joshua 4:23, and Hebrews 11:29).

We also see the Israelites setting up "stones" or memorials to remind themselves of what God had done for them. They did this so when they came upon the stones or their children came upon them, they could tell them what the Lord God had done for them.

It is so important for us to do the same thing. I did not see God part the Red Sea and I did not walk across on dry ground, but He has done miracles in my life. The very fact that I am writing this today is a miracle - and I know I have said that before, but I am going to keep saying it! Although I know I am forgiven, I never want to forget what God brought me out of. I never want to forget the blessings He has bestowed upon us in ministry. I never want to forget the divine appointments He has given me that later on I have stopped and realized that I was being pursued by the Living God. I do not want to forget the times He has showed up and taught me something amazing from His Word. And, because I remember bondage, I never want to forget that He has set me free.

The Israelites talked about what God had done for them so that on days when they felt like saying, "God where are you?" they would remember where He was. He is on His throne and He is watching over us. But, He is also acting in our behalf.

Today, tell someone about a time when God showed up in your life. Proclaim what the Lord has done for you. And, if you find yourself really wondering where God is, remind Him of what He has done for you and humbly ask Him to do it again.

But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect.
1 Corinthians 15:10

Taste and See

Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. Psalm 34:8

This has been a favorite verse of mine for a couple of years. Mostly because it was the first verse Joel memorized when he was two. But, I heard this entire Psalm preached on last night and God spoke so clearly to me through this verse. What does it really mean to "taste" the Lord? The Hebrew word used here for "taste" is "ta'am". This word is not used but a handful of times in the entire Bible. It truly means to "taste, indeed taste, discern".

In order to "indeed taste" something or discern what it tastes like we would have to get enough of it to know. When I cook something new for Joel and Caleb so many times they take a bite that is about as big as an English pea! There is no way they are able to "discern" or "indeed taste" if the bite they get is that small.

I believe this is true in our relationship with God as well. If all we are getting of God is church on Sunday and a 5 minute devotional a day, we do not know what God tastes like!! There are so many reasons why we do not spend more time with God, but I believe there is one underlying issue for all of our excuses. We are afraid He will not be enough. As long as we keep our relationship with God at an arm's distance we will never know if He is enough or not. And sometimes we would rather not know than be disappointed.

Oh dear sister, if we could ever stop believing that God is not a man! We are created in His image. He is not created in ours. Let's get in there and truly lay it all down before God and see what happens. Get a good mouthful and then we will all be able to say that "the Lord is Good."

Shut Up and Jump!

"If the LORD delights in a man's way, he makes his steps firm; though he stumble, he will not fall, for the LORD upholds him with his hand. Psalm 37:23-24

I have heard a story several times about a man that works at the top of a bungee jump. When people get up to the top, out of their nervousness, they are apparently very chatty. So to save time the man just points to his shirt that reads "Shut up and Jump!".

I can relate this to my relationship with God. Sometimes we know what He wants us to do or at least we know He wants us to do something, but we cannot take the first step. For me, I think it is because I am just not sure that I am tied on tight enough. If I jump, does the Lord really have me? Is He really going to catch me or am I going to fall on my face?

We can claim this verse as a promise over our lives. If we are truly seeking God, I believe He is delighted in us. Even if we stumble, He will reel us back in and not let us fall.

Today, let's seek to trust Him in all of our decisions. If you feel the Spirit prompting you to say or do something that you think "I just can't" or you come up with a million excuses - just "Shut up and Jump"!

"Whom Shall I Fear?"

Psalm 27

Never in my life have I felt like I am surrounded by such fear. If I watch the news or listen to the radio to much, I end up scared to death. Our country is facing dark days. How dark they get could possibly be determined by whether or not the body of Christ stands up for the things of God in this next election. Will we sit by and allow our nation to be taken off into captivity or will we stand up and ask God to have mercy on His remnant of righteous people?

Whatever happens, I have to remind myself that God is in control. He is not surprised by the wickedness that seems to be increasing almost daily in our country. And He has also not left us. His promises are still true. He is still my light, my salvation, the stronghold of my life. He will still keep me safe in the day of trouble. And one day we will be exalted with Him over the enemies of God.

I heard David Nasser say recently that "we are not electing a king. We already have a King".
Let us not forget that.

Today, if you find yourself feeling fear over the coming days, open your Bible and pray Psalm 27 over your life and our country.

God Calls You Beautiful

"Listen, O daughter, consider and give ear: Forget your people and your father's house. The king is enthralled by your beauty, honor him, for he is your lord." Psalm 45:10-11

I just finished the Bible study Do You Think I'm Beautiful? by Angela Thomas. It was a wonderful study that I highly recommend. I know that God will continue to use what He has taught me in it and I'm sure it will overflow into my writing. One of the greatest things He has taught me in the past 6 weeks is in this verse. Let's read it again:

"Listen, O daughter, consider and give ear: Forget your people and your father's house. The king is enthralled by your beauty, honor him, for he is your lord." Psalm 45:10-11

There are two things that I want us to consider in the verses:
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1. Forget your people and your father's house. This point speaks volumes to me. I realize that many of you came from a very godly heritage. Your parents were Christians, grandparents, great-grandparents, etc. That is wonderful! I do not want to dishonor my family in any way in saying this, but I do not bring with me a godly heritage. My mother's side of the family is very godly, but my father's side is not. In a way, I have always carried this around with me feeling like I was unworthy in some way. I found myself always being very envious of people that had their entire family following after Christ.

Even if your family is in church and following Christ, every family has problems. This verse speaks to me and tells me that I do not have to live in defeat. I do not have to make the same mistakes that my family has made. Through Christ, we can change our family tree. I'm not saying we are to forget our earthly families, but our heritage is from God. Our eternal father is God Himself.

2. The king is enthralled by your beauty. Wow! This verse I love. Can we accept this as truth today? Depending on your own personal experiences, it may be easy for you to believe that God sees you beautiful on the inside, but not on the outside. Or it may be exactly the opposite. Can we accept the truth of this verse that God sees us as beautiful on the inside and outside? He truly does! We are his children. When we look at our own children, do we see them as beautiful. They are beautiful to us because of our love for them. Our love on our best day is still frail and selfish in ways. God's love is perfect at all times. He loves us more than we can even imagine and we are beautiful to him through and through.

This may take some time to believe. I am still working on it myself, but I am asking God daily to apply this truth to my heart. What would our lives look like if we really believed this 100% and lived like it? I think we would be amazing women! I think we would be the women God intended us to be.

The God of Heaven calls you beautiful... and its true. - Angela Thomas

God Sings Lullabies

The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing." Zephaniah 3:17

I absolutely love to decorate for holidays. The minute it looked like fall might be in the air, I got out all of my fall decor. Now since Halloween is just around the corner, we have several Halloween decorations around the house and in the yard. Even though we do not encourage the scary part of Halloween, Joel and Caleb really wanted to hang some "ghosts" in our trees. So we got some trash bags and stuffed them with news paper and hung them up. Unfortunately, Caleb (who is 2 years old) got a little scared of the "ghosts". We have told him they are just trash bags, but all the same every night this past week he has cried saying that he is scared.

A couple of nights ago when he was afraid, I told him that he did not have anything to be afraid. Mama and Daddy were right outside the door and that God was right there in the room with him. I told him the Bible says that we do not have to be afraid because He is always with us. He calmed down and I thought he went to sleep. About 15 minutes later I took some clothes into his room and I saw that he was still awake. I gave him a hug and he said, "God is with me". I said, "That's right and He loves you more than anything". Then Caleb said that he was going "night-night" but that God was not going "bye-bye". I affirmed him again, but then he said the most amazing thing. He said, "God is going to stay right here and sing to me". The Holy Spirit immediately brought Zephaniah 3:17 to my mind and I just stood there in awe at the mercy and love of God.

I do not think it is too presumptuous to believe that my two year old was truly experiencing the supernatural presence and peace of God. I truly believe that Caleb heard the voice of God in his little spirit. Even though Caleb has never even read or possibly even heard Zephaniah 3:17, his words affirm that it is true.

If only we could be more like that. God is singing over us. He delights to show us mercy (Micah 7:18) and yet we walk around sometimes like we have no hope. Let us not forget who is in control. Let us allow His presence to calm our spirits in times of suffering or trouble.

Let us hear God sing a lullaby to us.

What can my prayers do?

1 Samuel 1
1 Samuel 7:2-15

The familiar story of Samuel has so much truth for us today. We see in chapter 1 that Hannah was childless and so desired to have a child. Not much has changed in the heart of women. Most women have a desire to have children. Hannah did not give up. She kept bringing her request before the Lord. She was obviously a very faithful follower of the Lord because scripture tells us she and her family went up every year to sacrifice to the Lord. And every year she brought her request to the Lord.

Hannah made a promise to God that if He would give her a son, she would give him back to the Lord. All of our children belong to God, but Hannah seemed to understand that better than I certainly do. She was willing to give the only child she might ever have to the Lord. Her faithfulness amazes me.

God did grant her request and she kept her promise. The Lord then not only gave her more children, but he honored her faithfulness in a way that so touches my heart. God used Samuel, the child Hannah had prayed for without ceasing, to bring his children back to Him. Maybe we all have dreams and aspirations for our children's lives, but God did something through Hannah that I doubt she ever imagined.

The people of Israel were living far from God. God used Samuel to lead them back. He could have used anyone, but He chose to use Samuel. It all started with the faithful prayer of a mother. What will our prayers lead to? Do they make a difference? Let us never cease in praying for our children - biological and spiritual. We can't even imagine what God can do in their lives.

Assurance of Salvation

Jeremiah 17:9, 1 John 5:13, Hebrews 10:23

Because of the overwhelming amount of responses that I received from yesterday's devotional about doubt, I wanted to follow up with some truth about the assurance that we have in the salvation of Jesus Christ.

Since I struggled with doubt for several years, I read anything I could get my hands on about doubt. One of the games that Satan plays is the game of shame and isolation. Many people will never admit or talk about the fact that a doubt has ever come into their heart because they fear what others will think. I used to be afraid that people would think I was "unspiritual" or immature. When I finally sought out some real help from the Word of God and confessed my doubt to a counselor, my life began to change. I was no longer living in the dark. I brought things into the light where they could be dealt with by the Spirit of God.

There are several misconceptions out there about a doubt. I have heard preached from the pulpit by many well-known pastors that if you ever doubt your salvation, you are not saved. I believe this is totally unbiblical and spiritually unsound. I see nothing is scripture that supports that statement. The other misconception is that Satan is always the reason we doubt. I do believe he is one of the reasons, but not the only reason. Foundations, a Bible study about core truths for the Christian life, truly helped me understand why people struggle with doubt.

Whenever a person is not sure if they are saved, there are several possibilities:

• They may be disobelying God; disobedience causes us to lose the joy of our salvation and causes us to wonder if God still loves us.
• The may be experiencing temptation to doubt from Satan, who obviously does not want us to feel secure in our relationship with God.
• They may not be saved.

Foundations 2003 - Tom Holladay and Kay Warren

One of the things I had to realize was that I could not depend on my feelings or trust my own heart. Just because we may not feel saved does not change the fact of our salvation through Jesus Christ. Women are so emotional and we trust in our feelings much of the time. Jeremiah 17:9 tells us that our own hearts will decieve us. We may not be able to trust our own hearts, but we can trust the Word of God. If we have trusted in Him, we will not be put to shame. (Romans 10:11)

The last thing I want to do is convince anyone that they are saved. But, I do want to tell you that "anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved" Joel 2:32. Our first son is named Joel to remind me that I have called on the name of the Lord. I will see Him face to face and He will hold me in His arms. I pray that you have called on His glorious name for salvation. If you have not, you can right now. There is no right or wrong way. The words are not important; the condition of your heart is. If you have never accepted Jesus as your Savior, I invite you to pray a prayer like this:

Jesus, I believe you are God's Son and I believe that you died to pay the penalty for my sins. I ask you to forgive me for my sins and to be the Lord of my life. I trust in you right now on October 15th to forgive me and save me. I give you my life. Thank you for your gift of salvation. I love you. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

A Bout with Doubt

Luke 7:18-28

This is one of my favorite stories in the entire Bible! I know I say that all the time! I guess I just love the Bible! I struggled with doubt for many, many years and still struggle with unbelief at times. Anytime that I am praying about an issue that I have chosen to believe the voice of the accuser over the voice of God, God reminds me of this passage. How does God feel about doubt?

For years, I literally saw doubt as the unforgivable sin. If I doubted my salvation, I was not saved and I could never be saved because I doubted. Sounds crazy now, but the feelings were so real then. I'm not sure how I missed this passage of scripture for so many years. Let's review a little about John's life before we answer the question about how God feels about doubt.

John's birth was announced by an angel. John was filled with the Holy Spirit from birth. John was the "voice calling out in the wilderness: Prepare the way for the Lord". John recognized and baptized Jesus - the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. John's life was all about serving God and preparing the way for Jesus. He had one purpose and he fulfilled it.

But, toward the end of his life we see that he had a bout with doubt. He just wanted to make sure that Jesus was the Christ. Instead of hiding in fear, he took his questions and concerns to Jesus via his disciples. Now, I would expect Jesus to be upset about this question. Maybe even a little hurt. However, scripture shows us the exact opposite. Jesus tells them to go back to John and tell him what is going on. He offers assurance for his friend.

What is even more amazing is what Jesus says next. The King of the Universe then talks about how greatness of John's life. Jesus did not condemn John's questioning and doubting. He answered his questions and even offered encouragement.

God is big enough to handle our questions, our fears, and even our doubts. He is not offended by them. Let us not be afraid to voice to Him what is in our hearts. Bring your doubts, fears, and areas of unbelief to Him. That He can work with.

"Many people in this City..."

Genesis 18:16-33
Acts 18:10

These are crazy times we have been living in the last few weeks. Every time it seems like things are turning around, they seem to fall apart again. I know there is a lot of fear driving most of the decisions on Wall Street and on Capitol Hill. This is very distrubing to me because God has not given us a "spirit of fear". But, I have asked myself during this time, is this the judgment of God? I cannot answer that question because I do not know the mind of God and His ways are so much higher than my ways, but I can know His character and His heart from the scriptures.

I had a conversation with a very wise pastor last week. He asked me, "Elaine, why did God destroy Sodom and Gomorrah?" And I gave the Sunday School answer, "because of their wickedness". He said, "has not the wickedness of America far surpassed the wickedness of Sodom and Gomorrah?". I had to think about it and say "yes". Then he gave the most thought provoking answer for a time like today. He said, "God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah because He could not find 10 righteous men".

The story of Sodom and Gomorrah is always seen as a story about the wrath of God, but now I look at it differently. How merciful is the God we serve that He would have spared the city if He had been able to find 10 righteous men. God brought Acts 18:10 to my mind every day last week:

"For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city." Acts 18:10

I am convinced that when God looks down and America, He still says "I have many people in that city". He has not forgotten us. He is not asleep. None of this has taken Him by surprise. We can trust in His Sovereignty and in His plan. He is in control of yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Be comforted by that. It is in times like these that we truly realize that we have no other hope except in the name of Jesus. He is the only hope we have or will ever have. Trust Him today and ask Him to calm your fears in these anxious times.

Looking for God

Matthew 2:1-12

I know it is not Christmas yet, but I am already getting excited!! We were reading the Christmas story the other day to the boys and they were especially intrigued with the wise men. They have always intrigued me as well. Where were they from? Who were they? How far did they travel? How did they know that this star was the "Star" that had been prophesied about in Numbers 24:17? These are questions that I have always wanted to know.

However, the other day, God whispered something else into my spirit other than my unquenchable thirst for knowledge. The question whispered to my soul was why did everyone else not see the star? I believe it was obvious to the entire world so why didn't they see it? Actually many people lots smarter than me have spent their lives researching and studying this very topic. (There is a wonderful article from the Institute of Creation Research that you can read by clicking here.)

Even if others saw it, scripture only tells us of one group of people that recognized the star as the sign that the Savior had been born. Literally, God in the flesh. The question my heart keeps asking is how many times have I missed God? How many times have the signs been as clear as that star was in the sky and I have walked right by? How many miracles has He done right under my nose and I did not even recognize them?

Today, let us not miss God. Ask Him for an opportunity to see Him at work. Ask Him for an opportunity to be involved in what He is doing. Ask Him to remove the veil from our eyes that we might truly see His Glory today. Let us not miss out on Him!

Desperate for God

Luke 23:32-43

"...apart from me, you can do nothing." John 15:5

Although the story of the cross is familiar, I hope it never becomes commonplace for us. The fact that Jesus died on the cross, taking the punishment for my sin and your sin, and then rose again is the basis for all of our hope. Aside from that, we have nothing.

We have all heard the story of the two thieves that were crucified with Christ. But, as I was thinking about them today I realized that they truly epitomize the two conditions of the human soul: prideful or desperate.

Both criminals were in a desperate situation. They had no hope whatsoever of being rescued out of their plight. They knew they were going to die and that it was going to be painful and terrible. The first criminal to speak in the scriptures mocked Jesus. I still find this amazing. He had lost everything. He had nothing. He was hanging there naked before everyone and he still held on to pride. He still did not humble himself to the One who had the ability to save his very soul. Although his desperation was visible to everyone, he failed to recognize it.

The other criminal is a different story. He realized his desperation for what it was and recognized that Jesus was the only one who could help him. With absolutely nothing to lose and everything to gain, he cried out to Jesus and Jesus answered him according to his Word. "Anyone who trusts in Him will not be put to shame" Romans 10:11.

This truth applies to us as well. Whether we see it or not, we are all desperate for Christ. He tells us we can do nothing without Him. Will we believe that truth and call out to Him in our desperate state or will we hang on to our pride thinking we can get through this one alone?

Right now, one of those criminals is still in paradise with Jesus while the other one is going over and over all the opportunities he had to turn to God. He has probably relived his last moments a trillion times by now. Now he sees his desperation, but it is too late. I hope it will not be too late for you and I.

"Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts." Hebrews 4:7

Given Over to a Depraved Mind

Romans 1:18-32

One of the things that I absolutely love about scripture is that if you are struggling for an answer on an issue, you can find it in scripture. Recently, I have really been having a hard time understanding how someone that is a Christian can "give themselves over" to a lifestyle of sin. Not only live in that sin, but believe that what they are doing is not a sin. The times in my life that I have lived in habitual sin, I still knew it was sin. I do not remember trying to convince myself that it was not. I have realized through this passage that God is so merciful and that if I had continued on that road, I would have been given over to a "depraved mind".

This passage deals with many tough issues. Homosexuality being one of them. Homosexuality is always described as a "shameful lust" and "sexual immorality", therefore we can know from scripture that those type of acts are wrong in the eyes of God. However, let us not think that we are off the hook from this passage if we are not a practicing homosexual. Idolatry is the first and foremost sin that is pointed out. When we allow the created to take the place of the Creator in our lives we are committing idolatry. When the place of God is taken by something or someone else, a downward spiral begins in our lives that ends with a "depraved mind".

What exactly does it mean to have a "depraved mind"? I looked up the word "depraved" and it means "corrupt, wicked, or perverted". When a person is given over to a depraved mind, many other characteristics show up in their lives. Slander, malice, envy, gossip - just to name a few. And finally, they end up as faithless, heartless, senseless human beings. The last verse actually portrays the most extreme form of sin. Verse 32 says "...they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them." This literally means that they are applauding, rather than regretting, the sin of others.

This is hard stuff! Where do we find "tolerance" in these verses? We do not, but that does not mean that we do not continue to show the absolute unconditional love of God to every human being on the planet.

My prayer for us today is that we would ask God to show us any sin in our lives that He has convicted us of and we have ignored. What do we need to get out of our lives so that we ourselves will not be given over to depravity in that area. I also want us to pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ that have chosen a life of sin to the point that they have been given over to a "depraved mind". Let us pray that they will see the truth and that the truth will truly set them free from sin today.

"Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts..." Hebrews 3:15

The Weak-Willed Woman

2 Timothy 3:1-7

At first glance this passage of scripture could sound like what you might have just read in the newspaper or saw on the news. Or you could probably turn on any television show and see most of these characteristics as well. We are in the last days. I am not saying that because I think Jesus is coming back next Thursday at 2:14 pm or anything! However, according to biblical theology, we are living in the Messianic era which is the time beginning with the first coming of Christ. Paul tells Timothy to have nothing to do with the unbelieving and unfaithfulness that will characterize this period of time. Timothy was living in it. We are living in it.

More importantly for me, are to truly study verses 6-7 because they mention a phrase that I never want to be characterized with: weak-willed woman. Now before you close this site thinking "well, that's not me honey!", let's look a little closer at whot the weak-willed woman is and some of her characteristics.

First of all, the weak-willed woman is someone who has allowed all or part of the godlessness mentioned in verses 1-5 to come into her home and set up residence. How and why did she do this? Scripture tells us that the godlessness "wormed" its way in, meaning it came in very subtly. The weak-willed woman probably did not even know that it was happening or that she had a choice to shut the door. The following list of characteristics was written by Angela Thomas. It may not be a complete list of characteristics, but I think it covers a lot ground in our lives.

Characteristics of a Weak-Willed Woman

• Consumed with her fears, eaten up with fear
• Self-absorbed
• Beaten Down - you may even be able to tell by her countenance that she is having a hard time
• Loud and Brash - she may cover up her pain by being this way
• Tells everybody what they should do but does not allow God to show her what she should do
• Is not sure God loves her or that He calls her beautiful
• Has an empty soul - no one has ever come through for her to fill her soul and she is not relying of Jesus to bring satisfaction
• Allows disappointment to become self-pity which can eventually lead to depression
• Harbors a grudge
• Plays with gossip, but is usually an expert at disguising it as something else
• Discretely indulges her obsessions - such as staying on budget while shopping with friends, but buying way too much on the internet. Or having a glass of wine with dinner and then drinking the whole bottle when everyone is gone. Or keeping a filter on the TV or computer for the children but looking at anything she wants to when the children are in bed.
• Very easily hurt or offended
• Critical Spirit
• Spiritually knowledgeable but essentially lost

Angela Thomas Do You Think I'm Beautiful

When I look at this list, I have to admit to myself that I have "weak-willed woman potential". The one that is the hardest to look at is the last one. The weak-willed woman is always learning. She know her Bible. But, she is guilt ridden because of her sins. She is torn by lust and has probably been subject to many false teachers. I never want to be her and I know that you do not either. So how do we not become her?

When godlessness knocks at your door through the form of television or the computer, shut it off. When godlessness knocks at you door through what you hear on the radio, turn it off. When godlessness knocks at your door through the books you read, put them down and get rid of them. When godlessness knocks at your door in your mind, immediately take that thought captive to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). Satan comes in many forms. Let us pray that God will make us acutely aware of his schemes and that He will guard our hearts and minds (Philippians 4:7).

There is something else that God says we can become... a display of His splendor. Let us allow Christ to make that a reality.

"...and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor." Isaiah 61:3