Good morning,
The holiday season is upon us. Thanksgiving and Black Friday are done. Now comes the push to Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanza. There will be stress coming from gifts to buy, food to prepare, parties to attend, decorations to display, and maybe some time for our families.
If we are not prepared to deal with the stress Biblically, we will have a miserable holiday season.
God has given us a battle plan not only to survive but to thrive. This week we will look at who is our enemy, our need for a spiritual mindset, spiritual conversation, spiritual fruit, spiritual conduct, spiritual trust, and spiritual cleansing.
SPIRITUAL FRUIT (GALATIANS 5:22-3)
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
(These character traits when applied to our lives will change us and others around us.)
SPIRITUAL CONDUCT (2 PETER 1:1-12) KEY VERSES 3-9
According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.
(Temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, charity or love, will allow us to live above the discontent of the season.)
When we conduct ourselves with these quality traits, people take notice. When we are in a store and are patient, caring about others, others cannot understand that. They think we should be as frustrated as them.
We are enjoying the holidays. Why? Because our focus is on Jesus. We know that He is the reason for the season. Our minds know who Jesus is, why He came, and that soon we will see Him face to face in heaven. That is the benefit of studying our Bibles.
Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001
Leave a Reply