Monday, January 31, 2011

The Woman Who Said — 'I Hate My Mother-in-Law'

I did not write the following, but I wanted to share it. It gives a more in depth discussion of what I wrote about in my blogpost Do You Hate Your Brother?, please read! :) 

The Woman Who Said — 'I Hate My Mother-in-Law'


Kenneth E. Hagin

 

My wife and I once held a meeting in the western part of the United States. A young couple who were in the ministry went out to eat with us after the service.

The woman said to me, "Brother Hagin, tonight you quoted the Scripture from First John 3:15: Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.'"

I said, "I sure did. I plead guilty." When I quoted that verse, the Spirit of God inspired me to add, "That means mother-in-law too."

She said, "But I hate my mother-in-law." Here she was an ordained minister, and she said that she hated her mother-in-law!

I said, "If you do, the Bible says you're a murderer, and you don't have eternal life abiding in you. God wouldn't tell you to love your brother — that means mother-in-law too — if it were impossible to do so."

I knew she didn't really hate her mother-in-law, but I wanted to get her located so she could see herself in the light of God's Word. You see, just because 7 realized that she didn't really hate her mother-in-law, that wouldn't help her; I had to get her to see it.

Do You Hate Your Brother?







I was reading Love is the Way to Victory by Kenneth E. Hagin and came across 1 John 3:15 and went on to look up the whole chapter and read the passage in its entirety. Anyway it caused me to really think about some things....


Have you ever harbored feelings of hatred towards someone, because of something they did to you OR because of something you perceived they did to you? This seems to happen more often than it should in the church! 


I know we are probably all guilty of "hating" someone at some point in our christian walk, I mean we are human after all and completely capable of tripping and falling every now and then. But, do you know what the Word says about hating someone? It equates hating someone to MURDER! Yep, you heard me right, murder! You may say, "Oh, but Jess, you don't know what they've done to me! You have no idea how bad it is! They did...." Maybe so, maybe I don't know what they did to you because my experiences are different, and maybe what they did to you is worse than anything that has ever happened to me, BUT the God's love is UNCONDITIONAL! And we are supposed to exemplify God's love to humanity (Psst, even the people we don't like!). Love is something you just decide to do because you feel like it, it is a daily decision you make because it is what God wants you to do!


Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Diligence: Get Busy for God!



“If you’ll get busy for God, then, when He gets ready for you to do something else, He’ll know where to look for you. If you’re not busy, He’ll know you wouldn’t do it anyhow, so He’ll know there’s no use in talking to you, ‘cause you wouldn’t do it anyway. Sometimes people say, ‘Well I just don’t know what my place is, so I’m waiting to find out.’ Well, they’ll be waiting 10 years from now, if they’re not careful, and doing nothing. Do whatever your hand finds to do, and you’ll find as you’re busy working for God He’ll open up other doors to you, and He’ll witness to your spirit and to your heart just what He does want you to do!” ~ Kenneth E. Hagin

Hebrews 6:9-12
 "     Even though we speak this way, yet in your case, beloved, we are now firmly convinced of better things that are near to salvation and accompany it.


    For God is not unrighteous to forget or overlook your labor and the love which you have shown for His name's sake in ministering to the needs of the saints (His own consecrated people), as you still do.
    But we do [strongly and earnestly] desire for each of you to show the same diligence and sincerity [all the way through] in realizing and enjoying the full assurance and development of [your] hope until the end,
    In order that you may not grow disinterested and become [spiritual] sluggards, but imitators, behaving as do those who through faith (by their leaning of the entire personality on God in Christ in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness) and by practice of patient endurance and waiting are [now] inheriting the promises."
We need to be diligent in our work. I found the following definition of diligence inspiring:




Diligence is a zealous and careful nature in one's actions and work, exemplified by a decisive work ethic, budgeting of one's time, monitoring one's own activities to guard against laziness, and putting forth full concentration in one's work... 
Diligence is the act of doing all things efficiently and relentlessly to the best of one's ability in order to achieve success in every endeavor.


This is how we should approach every task we perform! In doing this, we exemplify our maturity and ability to take on greater tasks. If God sees that he can trust us with the "small" things He WILL use us for the "big" things! Praise God! 

Seek to be diligent in everything you set your hand to and watch doors of opportunity open up right and left! God's got an AMAZING plan for YOUR life, just hold on to His hand and you WILL see that His Word IS TRUE!!!!  Don't you DARE allow satan to rob you of that hope, YOU will walk in those things God has placed in your heart. Your past is in the past, you can't change that, but you CAN change your present and future by being diligent to do that which honors God.... even if that means cleaning the toilets at your church. God took a illiterate, british plumber and used him to RAISE THE DEAD and CHANGE THE WORLD! That "illiterate, british plumber" was Smith Wigglesworth! Just think about it..... if God could use someone from that background to change the world, imagine what he can do with YOUR life!!!!!!! :) 


BLESSINGS,
JRT <3 

Friday, January 21, 2011

Give Me the Word!




The following words are lyrics from a song that Raygene Wilson used to sing called "Give Me the Word." That song has just been stirring in my heart and I just wanted to put it out here! :) I may have messed some words up since I was typing and listening to the song (since I can't actually find the lyrics ANYWHERE!) ... but, that aside, these are AWESOME words to sing!