Word for the day "Divine Paradox"
Luke 14:11 (NKJ) “For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” If we have learned nothing else from our culture telling us what we should do to be happy, we have learned this: It is just not true. We have realized where happiness isn’t. Please give me a chance and allow me to share my heart today. Have you learned what is to be happy? Prior to making the Lord my choice, I already knew the answer was not in the world we live (or the superficial supplements the world provides). I knew it wasn’t in the world of many of my friend’s, hedonism and drinking and partying. I knew it wasn’t in the world of as many believe today; power, prestige, possessions, So I explored many of these paths wondering where it was anyway? And ultimately by the Hand of God, the Lord saved me, and then I became a Christian. It’s one thing to know something and it’s quite another thing to do something about it! As people of God, we have a different paradigm to follow, given to us by God in His Word. We could call it the divine paradox, because in God’s design for the living of our days, if we want to be great, we must learn to be humble. If we want self-fulfillment, we should seek the fulfillment of others. I must confess we wrestle and try to go back often to the old ways of doing things only to be empty again in our inward parts (Psalm 51:6). Point to ponder: Regarding this divine paradox, Malcolm Muggeridge pointed out, “Where, then, does happiness lie? In forgetfulness, not indulgence, of self. In escape from sensual appetites, not in their satisfaction.” The way to happiness is sadness. By that I mean we are sad over our sinful state we often find ourselves, so we turn to God, ask for the Lord’s forgiveness, and enter into a relationship with God. Jesus gave us the beautiful beatitude, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted” (Matthew 5:4). Another way to translate this would be, “Oh how happy are the unhappy. There is no greater example of this upside down life than Jesus Christ Himself. Are you living a life that is happy? We want to find our happiness and our joy in the right place, or more specifically, in the right person, which is God and God alone. As we come to know and walk with the Lord, we will find something better than happiness, and that is joy. We will find joy in our circumstances, regardless of what they are. Enjoy your day great people of God!
Our Leadership team is especially thankful for those of you who provided financial donations and support in the month of February 2017 by partnering with us in efforts to advance the kingdom of God in this 21st century season: Special thanks to Mr. William Wilson, Mr. David Straker, Mrs. Annette Straker and Ms. Gertrude Scott. Why don't you take the opportunity to write us on our blog and let us know how we are doing in serving you Great people, we'd love to hear from you!
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Kingdom Blessings,
Pastor James Baker, Jr.
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