“I Just Wanna Be Happy!!!” – (Part 2 of 4)

April 9, 2015May 18, 2015buildafoundation Leave a comment

Have you ever heard this verse from the Bible? –

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD. – Isaiah 55:8

Or how about this verse? –

Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.
Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take.Don’t be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead, fear the Lord and turn away from evil.Then you will have healing for your body and strength for your bones. – Proverbs 3:5-8

As I mentioned in the last post, http://wp.me/p5nZpi-kK, our goal should not be the pursuit of happiness, but instead should be the pursuit of JOY. Happiness is fleeting, joy in everlasting.

And the verses above, well, they put me and God into perspective. They remind me that – I am not my creator, I do not have all the answers, I don’t always know what’s best for me, my friends, my friends, my career, my schooling, etc.?

What I do know, however, is that in a blink of an eye,

my whole world can be turned upside down.

And then what? What do I have left?

Thankfully we have an all-knowing, ever-present, all-powerful God who loves us so much, that He’s willing to freely share the Way to Joy with all people.

God’s way to joy =>> Other-centered – them, them, them (How can I be a blessing to others? What might I have to “give up”, sacrifice, to restore a relationship, to start a relationship, to set healthy boundaries in a relationship, etc.)

The world’s way to happiness =>> Self-centered – me, me, me (What’s in it for me? What will make me happy?)

SEE ALSO: “I JUST WANNA BE HAPPY!!”

(PART 1), http://wp.me/p5nZpi-kK,

(PART 3), http://wp.me/p5nZpi-kn,

(PART 4), http://wp.me/p5nZpi-lH

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Are Angels and God the Same Thing??? – ANGELS [3]

March 2, 2015March 6, 2015buildafoundation Leave a comment

My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 4:19

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Angel followers??

Back in the 1960’s a New Age movement began calling itself, “the Age of Aquarius”. Along with this movement came angel followers. The leaders of the movement led people to believe that angels could see all , hear all, and know all.

Ummm, do those characteristics that sound familiar to you? Perhaps, similar to all powerful (omnipotent), all present (omnipresent), all knowing (omniscience)?

Perhaps they sound like characteristics used to describe God?

So the New Age Movement was basically saying that angels were God???

The angels of the Age of Aquarius were thought to be either messengers of God, or spirits of deceased humans who could impart learning and understanding from “the other side” on us “earthlings”. They watch over every aspect of our lives, and death, everything. They loved us. Ummm…

Does this sound just a little bit too good to be true? Maybe so, but is sure sounds appealing.

Wouldn’t it be great if someone did love you that much? Watched over you. Cared about every aspect of your life. That nothing was too big or too small for them to deal with.

In fact, they would welcome the opportunity to help you. They would want to communicate all their knowledge freely to you, no strings attached. They would be willing to guide, protect, and direct you. That they would give you a “guide-book” to help you navigate through life as an “earthling”.

If you were thinking as you read, “Hey, we do have someone who promises to do all those things”. You’re correct, we do. But it’s not angels, it’s GOD, the creator of everything, including angels.

Keep in mind, that the “created” will never see more, hear more, or know more than the one who created it

So are angels real, or are just another made-up human idea seeking to fill the void God has put in hearts each one of us?

As you may know, angels (and demons) are mentioned in the Bible, and it is from this source that we will be learning about them. Not from unstable, unfounded speculation or superstitions, but from the stable and trusted Word of God.

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Keep Your Foot Out of Your Mouth…. – PROVERBS 3:5-6 [2]

January 7, 2015January 27, 2015buildafoundation 1 Comment

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. – Romans 8:28

Proverbs 3

5    (IF you) Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
(IF you) do not depend on your own understanding.
6    (IF you) Seek His will in all you do,
THEN He will show you which path to take.

Verses 5 and 6 have always brought me encouragement and comfort. In particular, the second “If” statement in verse 5, warning – DO NOT depend on our own understanding. Even now, as I write this verse down, I pause to consider the practical application of this principle. Let’s use an example to illustrate.

Have you ever found yourself judging someone? Sure, you may think that you are justified because you know this or that, or heard so-and-so say _______, and they act this way or that way, therefore, you can conclude _________. If you are anything like me, I’m sure there has been more than one time you’ve put your foot in your mouth. Awwwwww…. I doubt, however, anyone thought you were “cute”. Perhaps you’ve had this baby’s expression after thinking, “What did I just say? What did I just do? What was I thinking?” I bet you wish you could have a “do-over”. Unfortunately, once our words, attitudes, judgments, etc. are “out there”, there are no “do-overs”. What if we were to think of our life and other’s lives like jigsaw puzzles? Maybe then we could better understand and apply this principle.

Maybe you know someone as an acquaintance, as a co-worker, as a student we pass in the hall at school, etc. We know “surface” information about them. The color of their hair, the clothes they like to wear, the music they like to listen to, hobbies they enjoy, etc. Just the border of a puzzle.

Then there are the people who we know quite a bit better. We’d call them our close friends, our family, our kindred spirits, etc. These people have allowed us into the deeper parts of their lives. Into places few people will ever be welcomed. Their hopes and dreams, their frustrations, concerns, their values, their likes and dislikes, etc. The border of the puzzle plus many internal pieces.

No matter how close we are to another person, they will never completely know us, nor will we ever completely know them. In fact there are aspects we don’t even know about ourselves. Things that haven’t yet been revealed to us. All of our talents, characteristics, gifts, where we’ll be in the next 10 years, etc.

There will always be a missing piece(s) in “the puzzle”.

People’s lives are complicated. We see only what we see. But there is a lot more going on in people’s lives, more than we’ll ever know. We only know what they choose to share with us. Basically, as the saying goes, we don’t know what goes on behind closed doors.

Therefore, (IF you) Seek His will in all you do, THEN He will show you which path to take. – v.6

Only God knows every nook and cranny that makes me me. He has examined my heart and knows everything about me. – Psalm 139:1 – For more info about God’s love for you, check out – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+139%3A1-16&version=NLT

(IF you) Depend on God, seek Him, asking Him for direction, and the words to say. (THEN) you’ll keep your feet on the ground, and out of your mouth. 🙂

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