aliya721

Amen! What is impressed upon my heart the most is that He has made a way for me to be with Him in eternity. He STILL loves me despite all of the junk I've done, people I offended, times that I've rejected Him and He continues to chase after me. It is a love that I don't know. I love my children and would go to the ends of the earth for them, but I doubt if it's anything like Christ's love for us. He died a horrible and demeaning death not for one person, but for us ALL and our past, present and future sins. He paid debts for years to come and yet He still pursues me. I will never be righteous. I will never be perfect. But in my weakness He is strong!

Replying with gentleness is difficult. It is not impossible but it is the exact opposite of what our flesh desires which is to respond with sarcasm, something unkind, get payback, or just give up. I need to work in this area. I am better than I was but not where I need to be.

I would say compassionate. I love my church and as the congregation is pretty big and there are various ministries, I couldn't possibly suggest that we are lacking in any one thing because I am not all knowing. However, I can say compassionate simply because as the body, the members of my church, including me, and those of the body outside of the church need to do a better job being outward focused. If we did that, there wouldn't be so much hate, disunity, and most importantly, we would be able to actually come together to help those who need it the most. I can ride through the streets of Philadelphia and pass by 10 1-15 churches within 1 mile. The opioid crisis is rising and so are the number of churches. How could there be such a direct proportion if in fact we were all one and had compassion in order to meet these needs instead of throwin up this church and that church and no one's needs get met.

You cannot mistreat others and be right with God period. Husband, wife, child, doesn't matter. God is holding us accountable to show love and compassion and not Lord anything over anyone else. We are not to speak badly about anyone, but in humility regard others as better than ourselves. It is impossible to be blessed when we are not "for others" minded.

All of this! As a woman and a wife, I get very sad and discouraged when my husband responds to me with indifference or with the inability to try and understand what I am saying. When he chooses to intentionally have a dialogue then this when we break down walls and can grow in our marriage. When he chooses to stick to his guns, this is when the new me (the one who has been steadily growing since we last separated) applies grace. I have to remember that he is not perfect. Things will not be exactly the way I see them. I have to have hope and put all my faith in God to help me get through it. The old me would have entertained arguing because I had to make him see my sadness and pain. When he responds to me in a Godly way it shows love for me, that he wants to try and protect this union between us. If his sole purpose of responding in that way is so that his prayers aren't hindered then so be it. At that point he is yielding to God. Domination is all about power. I think this could easily be fixed if we changed our tone, our body language, and not thought that when everything is said and done, we are going to get our way. There is significant harm in doing this because we the domineering one develops this pedestal character and begins to see your needs as less important. It is damaging on every level. God did not do this to us. God did not Lord anything over us.

Inner beauty is cultivated as a wife hides the word of God in her heart. You become what you continuously do. If we are to establish His character and live out the fruits of the Spirit, we need to constantly keep them in front of us.We can't be one way today and another way tomorrow. We have to be consistent, putting others needs before ourselves, living like Jesus did and loving like He loved. Your inner beauty will be seen by your husband as you illustrate these traits: meekness, humility, respect, obedience, love, empathy, consideration...You will win his heart when He sees this in you.

We should try to look our best for Jesus as we should want to please Him. This is a slippery topic though since I do believe that we should also want to look our best for our husbands but not at the expense of becoming like a slave. Let me elaborate a bit using myself and my husband. My husband loves when I wear skirts. I do too, but I also love when I wear other attire, not to accentuate anything that should be for his eyes, but simply because I also like other items, modest of course. If it was up to him, he would have me in a skirt all day every day even in the house. If I did that to please Him, some would say that is an act of submission. I would say that is more like slavery. I should take into consideration his likes because he is the one I lay next to and I want his eyes on me. However, in me expressing my inner beauty, it shouldn't make him feel disrespected if I wanted to wear jeans and sneakers to go for a walk versus a skirt. He should appreciate that I am not only his wife but an individual. Women shouldn't wake up in the morning trying to look good for our spouses. Instead we should wake up wanting to please God. If we are pleasing Him, everything else will fall into place. I don't derive my beauty from outward attire, yet I do think there is a balance. At the end of the day, when your heart and soul is right with the Creator, this is what is displayed for the world and this inner beauty will shine brighter than any jewelry, adornments, or clothing.

Submission is difficult because we ultimately think we know better, our pride is hurt when we are told we are wrong, or simply when we are told to do something that we ourselves hadn't thought of. I had to deal with this first hand at work when my boss called me out on something I should have done, but only did half way when he was expecting me to do it all the way. He came up with a better idea and had me complete the task while he was watching. It was super embarrassing, my pride was hurt, and it made me feel incompetent. In the same vain, my husband and I who have been separated twice are now back together and most recently, we had a discussion on doing devotions together, He immediately declined because he assumed one thing when it wasn't so. He had a different idea, and even thought it made me sad and in previous years I would have fought him tooth and nail for him to see my POV, I simply said ok. I've learned you have to know what battles need to be fought and which ones require you to not make a bug fuss. You also must voluntarily place yourself under your husband. It doesn't mean he is right or that you can't voice your opinion. It just means you are choosing to defer to him as it says in the Word. Submission is wrong when it goes against our beliefs, our ultimate authority, God.

Sin has power over us because we slaves to it. We are in this world. Gal 5:16-17 tells us to walk in the Spirit so that we do not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. Our flesh craves things, desires things, wants things that are all contrary to what God wants for us. How do we combat this? We walk in righteousness. We plead the blood. We feed ourselves the Word. We constantly meditate on His goodness. We can't win without this. if we do not, we run the risk of giving into temptation all the time. We must die to sin by throwing off that which easily distracts us (good or bad), that which keeps us away form our main calling and our main work in the Kingdom. Live for righteousness means live a life pleasing to God, every moment, loving God and loving others as yourself.

My sins are plentiful. The fact that Jesus bore MY sins speaks to the fact that He knew me before I was born, He knew what sins I would commit, what burdens I would place on myself, my struggles, hurts and hangups, and He loved me so much that He said, I am willing to absorb it all and die a horrible death in order to set you free. Who would do that for me? As a parent I have often prayed for God to take pain away from my ids and give it to me or to not allow them to go through things but I also realize, while it is hard, that they need to go through things for their growth. What Jesus did for me personally I can never pay back, but I will be eternally grateful.

This is unbearable to think about. Jesus was spotless, blemish free, and he literally absorbed ALL sin. This is unfathomable. I shudder thinking of the immense amount of pain He was in. Knowing that He had to suffer like this. Knowing that He was the sacrificial lamb. He never knew sin and then all of a sudden He had to become sin. When I carry around something for a couple minutes I am in pain. But what Jesus did, now that is real pain. Those are heavy burdens. He did this for mankind so we can be free and experience life in eternity when we believed wholeheartedly and followed Him. The only way He could stand this type of corruption is in knowing that the Father was there and walked with Him always.

Jesus suffered an excruciating and utterly humiliating death that He didn't have to, all for me. For the sins I hadn't even committed yet. What a love!

Betty nailed it. Jesus was the definition of humble and meek. I'm not sure I can ever live up to that standard but I know I will have to try moment by moment. If we are honest, no one likes being wronged. Just writing it doesn't make me want to lower my head and resolve to respond biblically. I actually sat up a little higher in my chair thinking of my defense. Yet, we are not called to vindicate ourselves or play defense. To continue with the sports analogy, we are to play offensively by actively seeking peace, pursuing kindness, exhibiting the fruit of the spirit, and humbly trusting in Him to to be our advocate.

Our reaction should be of immediate prayer. This should always be our first action and when we are truly hearing from Him, He will lead us as far as what to do next. This could be inaction as we cast it on Him. This could be action as the Word does say if I see my brother ill and hungry I should not say bless you and keep it moving but I should offer assistance. While the work environment may not be the place where we are offering physical assistance in terms of food, we can very well offer spiritual assistance by living a life of submission. When others see our example, it may be easier for them to endure knowing that our own strength comes from the Lord. Can we be a complainer? Yes and this may be counteractive to what we are intending to do. We should stop, pray, believe that He's got it, and speak positive words. Only God can change situations and sometimes what needs changing is us and the way we see it. I'm in a position now where my boss doesn't pay the workers the industry average and doesn't see the full scope of His actions/inactions on the Customer. I pray. I have changed the way I view it and instead focus on the good that is happening. However, I constantly put before God the ability for me to be in a position where He can use me to help others.

God expects us to work as if we are working for Him. We are to submit wholeheartedly to our employers and ensure that we are displaying God's light. Our employers should not question our focus. We should also ensure that while working we are not only 100% focused on doing the work we are there to do, but giving full honor, fear and reverence to the Lord who is the ultimate authority. We dishonor God when we slack off and not give our full attention to the job. As His people, we need to set the right example of what Godly submission looks like. We should wholeheartedly complete the task at hand knowing that inwardly, we are working for the Lord.

By voluntarily submitting ourselves to authority, we give honor to the one who instituted it. We are not to be concerned with their actions whether unjust or not, as the submission is done by us. Jesus voluntarily submitted to His Father even though He could have said no I'm not going to put myself through the humiliation of death on the cross. When we choose to submit, we are honoring God. When we rebel we are hurting God because we are not reflecting Him. How can others see the light in us if we, through rebellious actions, give off darkness and not the love of Christ.

Everywhere I go, I am reminded not to blend in. Sometimes it's so apparent that I question it! But I know it's God. I have always lived a life in solitude. I have family, a couple of friends, a good husband and great kids, but I am always reminded to stop trying to fit in when He is calling me to stand out. I often wonder what it would be like to have more friends and be more outgoing, but then I have to realize that this is not what God wants for me. I don't want to blend in and if I did this, it would dilute my being. If I am to be separate and kept for Him (Jude) then being just like everyone else would dilute my character.

1 Peter tells us to abstain from sinful desires (pride, desire to be right, things the world suggests are good, bending of morality...) and live such good lives that those who are watching will see and glorify God.

Yes to the above. I am grateful that the Lord looks upon me as part of His chosen. That is a treasure beyond anything this world can offer me. It's better than wearing your favorite player's jersey with pride. We bear the name of Jesus and we are His chosen. To that end we must seek to live a holy life. We are not perfect but we must constantly be guided by Him and walk in His ways. If we follow what the world says because it's "normal" we will miss what God has for us.

The word that comes to mind is wholeheartedly. I should offer praise wholeheartedly. In anything I offer (my first and my best) I need to present it well. An analogy would be a dinner served on the top of a garbage pail vs an elegant plate nicely prepared. It's all about presentation. All of my praise should be for Him and done with the best intentions, should be a sacrifice of my time, should be done in humility recognizing that I am His child but nothing without Him, and done in all reverence.

A priest has the heart to serve God in any and all things and also offer up to God sacrifices. Sacrifices of my time, things that are the best, I am to offer these things up to Him. My gifting (which He has given me), my talents, my money(which is all His anyway). But all of these things are meaningless if not done and used for His glory. IN light of eternity, what I do on this side determines the other.

Honestly, I struggle deeply with this. I crave the approval of others even though I know I shouldn't. I want to be accepted and appreciated so much that it has affected me deeply. This is very subtle in my life but as I am practicing being more present with God He is revealing this to me and He is helping me through this. I only have to answer to Him. He has redeemed me and I am precious in His sight. I don't have to seek my husband's approval, my kids approval, my boss's approval. I don't have to post beautiful images on social media to get likes. I just need t breathe and let God transform me. 1 Peter says we are precious. I will be meditating on this today. I am precious in His sight. He bought me with the blood of His son! He sacrificed His son for my sins, for me! No amount of money or silver or gold can compare to what He did for me on Calvary. My true long term investments should be in things that matter. Things that will last in eternity.

Yes, agreed, pride is what rises up in us when someone dares to judge or speak a word to us contrary to what we know to be right. I experience this and I have to pray against it. It doesn't happen all the time but it does happen and for this I am guilty. God's final judgement is necessary. he loves us so much that He has to discipline us just like it says in Proverbs 3:11-12: "My son, do not despise the LORD's discipline and do not resent his rebuke, because the LORD disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in." When we ignore and don't take heed to the final judgement, we take God for a joke. He is not. We will be judged. God will not be mocked.

Holiness is the process of being more Christlike. being refined in His image moment by moment. Pushing forward, not conforming, not being condemned but the world but being transformed. I don't consider myself holy as I don't feel that I've met a certain level. I know that this doesn't make sense yet at the same time I feel that the Holy Spirit is living inside of me and it is the prompting to keep me away from dangers and things that would lead me astray. I must be obedient in order to be more Christlike. I must continue to resist temptations and see myself the way He sees me. My biggest struggle is in certain ways of thinking.

I agree completely. Trials and testing allow us to gain the proper perspective. While life on this earth can be entertaining, fun,enjoyable and there will be accomplishments we can celebrate, we should not live for those things, nor should we store up these treasures here. We should look forward to His coming, live soberly in anticipation of being judged, seek to be a blessing to others, and pay more attention to the things that matter: caring for the poor, loving others, and sharing our faith.