Are you an 'Outstanding' Christian?

The Outstanding Christian

by Barbara Henderson

All people have at least some desire to ‘stand out’ from among the crowd.  They want to be seen as smarter, prettier, more handsome, wealthier, more intelligent, more gifted, more talented, and generally just better than average.

I have news for Christians.  ALL Christians are outstanding.  Some just stand out in different ways than others.  I want to mention 3 types of ‘Outstanding Christians.’

Number one are the Christian who stand out because of their obnoxious, overbearing, bossy, demanding, ‘holier than thou’ attitude.  They are quick to call other Christians names like lazy, ignorant, backslidden, and even claim to know others are headed for hell because they attend the wrong Christian church, or haven’t been ‘baptized correctly’, or they are engaging in sinful activities such attending movies or wearing makeup.  These Christians are worse than legalists.  They follow to the letter the things that can be seen on the outside. They add their own brand of morality to the rules God has set. I have personally known women who will not wear makeup or cut their hair, yet they make gossip and dissension their daily business.  I have known men who demand utter submission from their wives and children, yet they themselves have not submitted anything of their own life to the God who created them.  There are Christians who live in the pride of what they have accomplished and do not give God the glory.  They are quick to condemn other Christians in need, or who are facing illness or trouble as ‘out of the will of God’.  They are without humility.  They see the small sin in their brother’s life, but ignore giant sins in their own lives.  They are proud, without thankfulness, without forgiveness for others, without humility, and without repentance because they cannot see their own sins.  They would not help a brother or sister in need if their lives depended upon it, because they see God as punishing those in trouble.  In fact, they condemn those in need as though they themselves were without sin or need. They are hypocrites.

Someone I know defines a hypocrite like this; ‘A hypocrite is someone who – seeing an illness or trial in YOUR life says, ‘well – there is sin in you life and God is punishing you.’  BUT, when they face the SAME illness or trial themselves they say, ‘The devil is persecuting me.  That proves I am doing the will of God.’

Believe me, these Christians are really outstanding.  They stand out in any crowd.  They make God sick.  They make fellow Christians sick, and they make the whole non-Christian population despise God’s gift of salvation.

Number two are the worldly Christians.  They are so much like the unsaved that they blend in completely until someone finds out they are Christians.  Then the people of the world say, ‘What is the point of Christianity?  It requires nothing.  It is no different than anything else.’  In a world constantly seeking satisfaction through something ‘new’ and ‘different’ worldly Christianity has no appeal.  The worldly Christian is a beacon leading nowhere.  They are lukewarm at very best.  They make God vomit.

Number three are the Christians who show their heart felt commitment to God in how they live their personal lives.  They apply Bible teachings to personal actions.  God can use such people to turn the tide of battles, both great and small.

I just watched ‘The Patriot’ again.  Toward the end, the armies of the Colonies are beginning to retreat.  The hero, seeing defeat as unacceptable, raises up the flag of the United States, and runs against the tide of the retreating army shouting ‘HOLD THE LINE’.  The soldiers stop to watch him run in what appears to be the wrong way.  Then some turn and began to follow him.  Then the entire army turns around, charges up the hill, and wins a decisive victory.

My Christian brothers and sisters, today is such a day for Christianity.  Christians are running in retreat instead of charging to victory.  The armies of darkness are crushing the freedom to worship our God and our King throughout the world.  ‘Outstanding Christian’ types one and two are aiding and abetting the enemy!   America, the beautiful, bastion of freedom, is gasping for breath.  Yet there is hope.  Out God is a God of victory, not of defeat.  He is willing to help those who are willing to change their lives to suit God.  Will you be such a Christian?  Will you be a light that leads the lost to God?  Just by claiming the name of ‘Christian’ you have become an ‘Outstanding Christian’.  The question is , ‘Which type of Christian will you be?’

Will you be:

a Christian that stands out as obnoxious? (type one)

a Christian that stands out as nothing special? (type two)

a Christian who charges up the hill to victory? (type three)

Whether you make a choice or not, you will fall into one of those categories. 

To be a ‘Type 3 Outstanding Christian’ begins when a Christian becomes willing to change what is bothering God in his or her own life.  Just do a quick self check and see if you find pride, lack of thankfulness to God and forgiveness to others,  gossip in the place of help, lies in the place of truth, lack of honor where honor is due, wicked thoughts in place of Godly thoughts, or lack of reverence and awe for the God who created you.

The Type 3 Outstanding Christian wants to please God more than they want anything else.   Hebrews 13:16 says, ‘but to do good and communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased. 

In the movie ‘The Patriot’, the hero charging up the hill wasn’t really looking to see who followed him.  He was looking forward to victory.  That is what every Type Three Christian needs to do.  Christians need to fix their eyes on Victory in Christ Jesus our Lord.  They look beyond the day and even the years.  Type Three Christians understand they are not playing a ‘numbers’ game.

Let Christians be like the Psalmist in Psalm 57:6-7 who says, ‘They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down: they have digged a pit before me, into the midst whereof they are fallen themselves.  Selah   (7) My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.

Type Three Christians must remember that those who seek our destruction will dig a well for their own destruction.  Fix your heart on God.  Sing and praise God louder than the doubt that troubles your mind.

Isaiah 50:7 says, ‘For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.

Isaiah 49:23b says, ‘for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.’

Actually, in the movie the hero who charged up the hill was not really going at a fast pace.  He was exhausted.  He had short legs and probably couldn’t run fast even when he wasn’t ‘plum tuckered out’.  (‘plum tuckered out’ is mountain folk talk meaning really really tired.)  The point is, he went forward against the tide in spite of physical exhaustion and without visible hope of victory or making a difference.  The hero gave his all to getting up the hill to victory.   That is the job of Christians today.  Ignore what you see; fix your gaze on Calvary’s Lamb; go forward to victory.

The song for this article is ‘Follow On’. It takes a Type Three Christian to follow Jesus. If you are following Jesus – you are always going in the right direction! 

God bless you.  Thank you for reading my article.

Barbara Henderson

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Follow Follow I Would Follow Jesus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uGKoqc6_J0

Down in the valley with my Savior I would go,
Where the flowers are blooming and the sweet waters flow;
Everywhere He leads me I would follow, follow on,
Walking in His footsteps till the crown be won.

Refrain

Follow! follow! I would follow Jesus!
Anywhere, everywhere, I would follow on!
Follow! follow! I would follow Jesus!
Everywhere He leads me I would follow on!

Down in the valley with my Savior I would go,
Where the storms are sweeping and the dark waters flow;
With His hand to lead me I will never, never fear,
Danger cannot fright me if my Lord is near.

Refrain

Down in the valley, or upon the mountain steep,
Close beside my Savior would my soul ever keep;
He will lead me safely in the path that He has trod,
Up to where they gather on the hills of God.

Refrain

Life is Always Easier When it Happens to Someone Else

 Life is Always Easier When it Happens to Someone Else

No matter how well a life is lived the grand finale is always a funeral. 

You may be asking what brought this sort of thought on for me.  Well it started with old photographs and a couple of sad movies.  In the photos I saw a young man who died at 25 while carrying the wounded to safety on the beaches of Normandy June 6, 1944.  I saw the face of a 33 year old woman who simply dropped dead one day while she was caring for an elderly lady.  Such good care did the elderly lady receive from that young woman that she thought her mother had died; and her grief was for the loss of a mother.  I saw photos of elderly people who lived long lives with good health well into their eighties. 

The movies conveyed similar though fictional stories.  Sometimes someone died young and heroically.  Sometimes they just died without any fuss leaving family and friends to cope with their loss.

When grief overwhelms someone, that person is not at his or her best too help someone else who is also overcome with grief.  When my sister died, I thought I automatically had first dibs on sorrow and grief.  I didn’t try to use it my advantage.  I just forgot to pay enough attention to my husband and children and how they were coping with it.  How silly of me.  My kids grew up with their Aunt April as their personal slave.  There wasn’t anything she wouldn’t have done for them.  I remembered her as the little sister who grew into an alleged adult without a shred of common sense.  My husband remembered her as a force of nature.  We all had to cope with her loss.  And since none of us are perfect, we dealt with it imperfectly. 

As it turns out, that is how we cope with every situation.  Since we are not perfect we can’t bring about a perfect outcome to anything no matter how hard we try.  And if we were perfect we still wouldn’t be able to bring about a perfect outcome because no one else is perfect. 

We now that is true because of the perfect life of Jesus Christ.  It is a given that no one took His life.  He gave it.  But we can look at how His perfection worked with those He knew.  A lot of people loved Him.  A lot of people hated Him so much they wanted to kill Him.  Jesus Christ did not sin, but He lived and worked with people who did sin.  Today He works with people who sin.  That means you and me.  We are the means Jesus Christ uses to reach a particular end.  From a human view point this would be a very frustrating situation.  It would be sort of like trying to cut a cord of firewood with a pocket knife instead of chainsaw with a recently sharpened chain, or something sort of like that.  The truth is that a perfect outcome to any situation is only possible when all parties involved are actually perfect.

No matter how hard an individual may work to achieve a proper and worthy goal, there will be bumps in the road.  And the end result will never be the exactly what we had in mind to begin with.  And, while an individual works toward something, or just works to get through the day, human frailties get in the way.  There will definitely be hurt feelings, anger, fear, and frustrations.  These feelings show up in how people act.  How one person acts affects everyone around them. 

When we look at people from a historical viewpoint, it is easier to see their successes.  It is easier to overlook their mistakes and personality peculiarities than it is those people that we deal with on a daily basis.  We don’t see the disappointments or struggles of historical figures or ancestors.  We don’t see tiny irritations that grew into big problems.  It is easy to forget that those people we admire are simply imperfect people just like everyone else.

Here is an example of how it works.  Julia doesn’t sleep well.  She wakes up tired knowing she has people counting on her to get a job done.  Kids are counting on her to get them fed, dressed, and off to school.  Her husband and family are counting her to bring home a paycheck in order to help pay the mortgage, put food on the table, and buy clothes.  Her boss is grumpy.  Her job is in jeopardy because of downsizing.  She prays for help from God and for a good attitude during the day.  And, she just might have pulled it off IF the rest of the family had cooperated.  Her husband Justin hadn’t slept well either.  He got up predisposed to having a grumpy day.  He fought the urge, and he just might have pulled it off except the kids got up coughing and sniffling.  They weren’t sick enough to keep them home.  They were just achy enough to be grumpy.  The kids got up expecting their parents to give them full attention and make them feel better.  And the day went downhill from there.

Scenarios like this go on day after day, day in and day out.  Over time frustrations and resentment builds up.  The truth is that everyone has a wounded life.  Their feelings are hurt by parents who are simply human.  They love their kids and try to do their very best.  Marriages are wounded by people who don’t actually do anything majorly wrong.  They just have a long list of little things that build up.  Work related stress and problems are often a buildup of small but constant irritations and frustrations. 

Taking time to consider other people’s frustrations, disappointments, sorrows, and worries is a good place to begin in dealing with or even resolving some chronic issues.  Understanding other people’s problems doesn’t give them an excuse for their behavior any more than your own problems and frustrations give you an excuse for your sinful behavior.  If you look at something from a distance you can say that a day of frustrating events for mom/dad/teacher/boss/sibling doesn’t give that person a right to respond to those around them in anger and impatience.  On the other hand, when it is personal and you are the one having a day of frustrating events it may seem more acceptable to vent your frustration on those around you. Does that sound about right to you?

Honestly, there is no total solution to human imperfections.  It is good to recognize our own shortcomings.  It is also good to recognize that other people are living in situations that while generally acceptable still have problems that simply go with being human. 

To improve one’s own life Christians should continue to pray and work to do the right thing with patience and good humor even in trying and boring situations.  Second, forgive those around you whether they deserve it or not.  Chances are they are dealing with a level of frustrations and disappointments that equals your own.  It doesn’t give them an excuse for behaving badly.  Forgiveness and understanding ultimately makes your own life easier.

Truthfully we are all in the same boat.  We want to do better.  We are tired, frustrated, and impatient.  We fall short of our goals.  Our behavior hurts those we love and care about.  Those around us want to do better, but their own problems influence their behavior.

No one can bring about a perfect world.  However, we can stop the cycle of anger and frustrations in our lives to some extent by modifying our own behavior.  If the rest of the people in your life want to continue in reacting to other people’s bad attitudes and behaviors, that will be their problem.  If all Christians let John 13:34 be our motto the world would be improved for the individual Christian, the Christians family and friends, and ultimately their country and the world 

A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.’ John 13:34

I don’t know about you, but I am longing for the ‘Sweet By and By’

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9g5Kn8C_lo

I’ll Fly Away – Jim Reeves – love it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tdBXen0ZK60

This World is Not my Home – Jim Reeves – wonderful song

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ndMZqT6i4I

ACROSS THE BRIDGE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-FYGjhwo40

 

My new book in the Soul Wars Trilogy available on Kindle for $2.99

Book One is now available for just 99 cents.

Thank you for reading and please leave a kind review.

 

Soul Wars Trilogy - Book Two - Walking

Count on God to Hear Your Prayers

Listen to God as He Listens to You   

‘My God will hear me’ is a promise made in Micah 7:7b.  I love that. My God will hear me.  This is so wonderful that it is almost incomprehensible.  One could get carried away with a continual string of requests.  There is certainly no problem or request too small to bring to God’s attention.  He wants to be involved in every moment of your life.  However, what we want to remember is good manners.  If God is listening to us, shouldn’t we listen to God?  Or, let’s make it more personal.  If God is hearing ME when I pray, shouldn’t I hear God when He communicates with me?

 You have undoubtedly been in close contact with at least a few people in your life who have an ability to ‘talk your ear off’ while having no ability to hear a word you say.  Encounters with these people are not pleasant.  It is only good manners to listen to what other people are saying as well as talk yourself.  In a private conversation between two people, both people should be able to not only speak but to be listened to by the other person as well.  It is an overwhelmingly wonderful blessing that God will hear His children when they pray.  It is an equally overwhelmingly wonderful blessing that God speaks to His children.  It would be wise to try to listen to what He has to say!

 How then do we ‘hear’ God?

 The first way is obvious.  We read what is written down in the Bible. The Bible is written specifically for every individual Christian, and through it God speaks directly to each of His children.  It is speaking directly to you personally, as well as to me personally.  We have been given rules of conduct by which we are to live in the word of God.  We have the commandments.  We have the love one another clause.  We have the forgive one another clause.  We have the treat others the way we want to be treated clause.  These things are definitely God speaking directly to every individual believer.  Once we hear what the Bible says, we are to do what the Bible says.  This is all very straight forward and easy to understand.  If we really hear what God speaks to us, then we will follow His instructions.  After all, we want God to hear us and do the things we ask.  How rude to ignore the things He asks of us. (It is also plumb stupid.)  Those wanting God’s full attention when praying should rightly give God their full attention when He speaks.

 Hear the Lord when He says in Psalm 119:11, ‘Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.’ 

 Also remember James 1:22 which instructs to not only hear the word of the Lord, but to do the things we are instructed to do.  It says, ‘But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.’   There is a stern warning in that verse.  If someone calls themselves a Christian but is able to continually habitually set aside the things God says to do, perhaps they are deceiving themselves regarding their faith.

 What then is a ‘doer of the word’ supposed to do?  We have instructions in Micah 6:8 which says, ‘He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?’

 A similar verse of instruction is in Deuteronomy 10:12 which says, ‘And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul,’.

 God is not first looking to see how many souls His children point toward Him.  He is looking to see how well each one of His children obeys Him.  If God’s children aren’t conforming to His image, how are they going to point others to Him?  Conforming to the image of Christ is progressive.  No one is converted one day and a mature Christian the next day.  However true converts begin the life long process of being more Christ-like in their actions as soon as they are born again.  They should want to tell others about Jesus and the way of salvation.  However, the true mark of a believer is that they do the things Christ says to do regarding their own personal actions.

 God also speaks to you through your conscience.  There are things you know to be wrong.  Don’t do them.  How simple is that?  Something to think about is that if you want to do something, but you know it will not lead you closer to God, then you should not do it.  For instance, that beautiful singing voice God gave Melodye Smith may get her an offer to travel and sing with a country band.  Melodye knows the band plays in nightclubs and bars.  She really wants to do accept the offer.  But, she has misgivings.  She KNOWS her Christian life will suffer.  More money than she now earns is offered.  Melodye is tempted.  What do you think she should do?  Based on the simple truth that she will not be led closer to the Lord by accepting the offer, Melodye should turn down the offer. 

 That is obviously a fanciful example, but people face choices every day.  Often the issue is clouded by ‘more money’ or ‘more prestige’, but the question is still the same.  Will this hinder my Christian walk?  Listen to your conscience.  If it is telling you ‘not a good idea’, listen!

 Remember that God will NEVER EVER lead you to go outside the boundaries He has set for all His children.  The most important thing a child of God can do is to be obedient to God.  Through obedience His children have an avenue to a life that is blessed by God.  The boundaries set by God are for the protection of His children.  They are not for set up to cause us grief.  Jesus says his yoke is easy and His burden is light.  I just love that passage.  Matthew 11: 28-30 tells us, ’(28)  Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

(29) Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

(30)  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’

 Any child of God who would like to lighten his or her own burden should begin with obedience to God. 

It is by faith that we know ‘My God will hear me’.

It is by faith that we know God will help us to hear Him.

What we do with what we hear is the measure of our Christian walk. 

 It is absolutely true that our salvation is received by grace through faith.  (Ephesians 2:8

 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:’.)

 But to show evidence or verification of salvation, then look to the works of your own self.  This is NOT to look to see if you have completed some mighty deed that attracts the attention of the world.  But rather look inside yourself. 

Have you hidden God’s word in your heart?

Are you a doer of the word as explained in Micah 6:8 and Deuteronomy 10:12?

Strive to become a ‘Bible driven Christian’ – someone who hears what the Lord has to say.

 Come Unto Me

http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/c/o/comeunto.htm 

Hear the blessèd Savior calling the oppressed,

 “O ye heavy laden, come to Me and rest.
 Come, no longer tarry, I your load will bear,
 Bring Me every burden, bring Me every care.”

 Refrain 

Come unto Me, I will give you rest;

 Take My yoke upon you, hear Me and be blessed.
 I am meek and lowly, come and trust My might.
 Come, My yoke is easy, and My burden’s light.

Are you disappointed, wandering here and there,

 Dragging chains of doubt and loaded down with care?
 Do unholy feelings struggle in your breast?
 Bring your case to Jesus—He will give you rest

Refrain

Stumbling on the mountains dark with sin and shame,

 Stumbling toward the pit of hell’s consuming flame.
 By the powers of sin deluded and oppressed,
 Hear the tender Shepherd, “Come to Me and rest.”

Refrain

Have you by temptation often conquered been,

 Has a sense of weakness brought distress within?
 Christ will sanctify you, if you’ll claim His best.
 In the Holy Spirit, He will give you rest.

Refrain