Aches and Praise Two Hundred & Seventy Five

Dear friends,

 

Have you ever walked near people and heard them speaking, but no one else is nearby? The first time I encountered this, I looked twice because I didn’t see a cell phone ear piece and wondered who they were talking to. This week I was in a parking lot and heard a woman talking loudly while walking toward a store. A boy who appeared to be less than twelve was a few steps ahead of her. The woman used a word that I thought was “strong” and I wondered if the boy was used to hearing words like this because he didn’t react.

We live in a society where crude language and inappropriate relationships are often glamorized in what passes for entertainment. If we are not careful, we may find our standards being eroded. How can we avoid becoming tolerant of behaviour that is detrimental to our spiritual growth? The apostle Paul wrote about virtues that will help us to stay close to the Lord (please see the Scripture below).

In his book “Dare to Discipline Yourself” Dale E. Galloway writes: “The problem of our minds making our bodies sick is much larger than most of us like to admit. As one medical expert has said, ‘Sickness is not so much an enemy from the outside as it is a breakdown in our internal defenses.’ Do you know that about 70 to 80 percent of people who go to a doctor, by doctors’ own admission, are suffering from emotional and stress-related illnesses caused by unhealthy thoughts?”

As we look forward to celebrating the birth of Jesus in less than ten days, we are reminded that we live in a world that is groaning under the weight of sin. How people need to hear the good news that Christ came to save sinners and to give people abundant life. While we enjoy giving and receiving gifts at Christmas, let’s remember to thank God for His indescribable gift (2 Corinthians 9:15).

Scripture for the weekend: “… Fix your thoughts on what is true and good and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely, and dwell on the fine, good things in others. Think about all you can praise God for and be glad about.” Philippians 4:8 (TLB)  
Thought for the weekend:  “The greatest thing a man can do for his Heavenly Father is to be kind to … His other children.” – Henry Drummond (quoted in the November 2016 issue of “Turning Points” magazine)
 
 

By His grace,

 

Steve


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