Your First 5 Minutes With God

Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good. Anyone who does what is good is from God. Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God. (3 John 1:11) Meditation We have been given the freedom to choose to do either good or evil. We do not, however, decide what is good and what is evil. It’s not left up to a committee, or a show of hands, not even the majority of the population of the world can decide. Today, secularists wants us to think that right and wrong, good and evil, are to be determined by each individual or society in general. In other words, good and evil are defined by the whims of the culture. However, if a culture believes that an unborn baby has no right to live, it’s perfectly alright, even good, to kill that baby. If it was evil fifty, a hundred, or a thousand years ago, it’s still evil today, and will be forever. God decides what’s good and what’s evil, not society. He’s never changes his mind about that and he never will. There are those tod...

Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His loving kindness is everlasting. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom He has redeemed from the hand of the adversary. (Psalm 107:1-2) Meditation Our God is good! In fact, he is great! He is the all-powerful Creator of the universe and yet he still loves each and every one of us individually, without condition. His goodness and kindness cannot be measured and will never end. Give thanks to him for your existence. If it weren’t for God, you wouldn’t be here. Give him thanks for his provision. All you possess comes from God. Everything from the money in your pocket to the food you eat is provided to you by God. Give him thanks for his love. You might think you know what love is, but when compared to God, you are oblivious. Our love for each other comes with conditions. If you hurt me, I’m not going to love you anymore. Every sin we commit, deeply hurts God. He loves you so much he will forgive your many sins by accep...

I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart, and I will glorify your name forever. (Psalm 86:12) Meditation This is the time of year, Americans celebrate Thanksgiving Day. Our Canadian neighbors celebrate in early October. However, Thanksgiving Day shouldn’t be treated as just a day off from work and a chance to eat too much. It’s much more important than time off, lots of food, and football games on TV. It should be a time when we gather our thoughts about what we’re thankful for. It doesn’t matter what circumstance you find yourself in, you most likely have many things to be thankful for. It’s easy to forget to thank God for his provision every day but if we’re on this side of the grave, we have everything to be thankful for. If you’re waiting for Thanksgiving Day to say thank you to God, you’re doing it wrong. Thankfulness should be an attitude you have in your heart, every day, all year long. Even when times are tough; no matter how terrible your life is...

After this, many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. So, Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?” Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.” (John 6:66-69) Meditation To those of you reading this who are followers [disciples] of Christ, have you ever considered this passage? What would happen if your faith was seriously challenged? I know my faith took a huge hit with the loss of someone I held dear. I was very mad at God at the time. However, as the days and weeks passed, I realized I had nowhere else to go. The thought of going back to the person I was before, was abhorrent to me. I couldn’t fathom trying to go forward with my life without the Holy Spirit guiding me. My only choice was remembering who saved me from the pit of hell. The only decision that made any sense was to continue to follow Jesus. ...

And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. (Colossians 3:17) Meditation What does it mean to speak or act in Jesus name? When we’re speaking to someone, inside church or out, they should hear a follower of Jesus. We cannot speak “Christianese” when at church and swear like a sailor when we’re not. Whether we’re at work, talking to a cashier at the store, or anywhere else, we should sound like followers of Jesus Christ. Every good thought or action we have in church, is made nil if we act like a pagan when we leave. In other words, we don’t take the Lord’s name in vain, we don’t participate in crude jokes, and we don’t laugh when others do. We should always speak words of encouragement because it’s what Jesus would have done. That’s how I give thanks to the Father. When God looks at us, he should see Jesus. Our actions are also ways we can proclaim the name of Jesus. When we show our love...

Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. (Colossians 2:6-7) Meditation Jesus didn’t die on the cross to save us because we were such good people. Not one of us has done anything to deserve salvation. In fact, it’s exactly the opposite. We only deserve the scorn and condemnation from the Almighty Creator of the universe. Now that we have accepted that undeserved gift of salvation, we must do our best to follow Christ. Showing his love to everyone we encounter, is how we walk in him. Jesus is the cornerstone our faith is built on. If the extent of our walk with Christ is a TV preacher on Sunday morning, how can we expect to somehow have a good foundation for our faith? A great deal more is required to build on your faith than just watching a few minutes of religious programming. While it’s true that church attendance is not required for salva...

For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. (1 Corinthians 1:18) Meditation Have you ever been the brunt of jokes because of your faith? Unbelievers think us fools because we believe in and cling to the cross. The worldview of an unbeliever is superior, in their minds. They believe, even embrace the lies of secular scientist who offer up only natural reasons for their existence. They cannot conceive of a supernatural explanation of how they got here or why they need a savior. In their rebellion, they refuse to believe any notion of a superior being they would be accountable to. If Christians are not physically persecuted, they are shunned out-right, and kept at arm’s length. We’re accused of having a mental defect. We’re deluded by some pie-in-the-sky dogma that makes us believe in fairy tales. They don’t realize they are slowly perishing in their unbelief. What significance does the cross ...

After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen. (Matthew 6:9-13) Meditation This is the example of how Jesus said we should pray. We should first acknowledge who we are praying to – our Father in heaven. Then we should give him the praise and honor he is due. We cannot honor (hallow) his name in prayer and then take his name in vain in our everyday conversations. Ultimately, God’s kingdom will reign here on earth as it does in heaven. That day gets closer with every passing moment. God’s will is supreme, so we must bend to his will for our lives. When we all submit ourselves to his will, earth will be like heaven. Only after we’ve given praise and honor to...

O Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you; I will praise your name, for you have done wonderful things, plans formed of old, faithful and sure. (Isaiah 25:1) Meditation What does it mean to exalt? The dictionary gives these synonyms; promote, dignify, raise, ennoble, and glorify. How should I exalt the Lord in society today? Am I glorifying God by acting like I always did before I was saved? Am I promoting God in my life when I don’t ever share his love with anyone else? Am I exalting him when I ignore him for six days out of seven? Am I dignifying God when I use his name to curse my enemy? Of course not. God is above all else. He should be our first thought in the morning, praising and thanking him for another day. Then, God should be one of our last thoughts as we retire for the night, thanking him for whatever kind of day we had. The Lord has done many great and wonderful things, including saving the lot of us through the blood of his Son, Jesus. His plan for us was e...

For freedom, Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. (Galatians 5:1) Meditation Some folks evidently don’t believe the blood of Christ is sufficient to cleanse them of their sins. Therefore, they create extra rules for things not to do. They hope to make sure they’re going to be seen by God and others as holy and righteous. They make rules for how to dress in and out of church, that go far beyond the Apostle Paul’s instructions for modesty. Some see the use of certain musical instruments as sinful if they are played during the worship service. They have no objections to those same instruments being played at any other time in the church. In truth, they are tying their salvation to their actions, making the blood of Christ secondary for salvation. They drive people from their churches for not following their rules Not only are there rules for what not to do, they also make rules for things you must do to hold on to our s...

“And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) Meditation There is a hugely popular Hollywood type person who claims there are many ways to get to heaven. She falsely asserts that it doesn’t matter what gods you worship, so long as you are a good person, you’ll go to heaven, or some paradise when you pass from this life. It’s her belief everyone worships the same god even though he’s known by different names in different parts of the world. However, if that were true, does it make any sense that the various and competing faith systems would have such contrary beliefs? When that question is asked, she doesn’t even attempt to give a plausible answer. She gives a wave of her hand, then explains, ‘We’re all good people at heart. We just have different values and lifestyles.’ Uh, sorry Miss High & Mighty, NO! Others believe in reincarnation. You live this life, trying to be the best p...

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us. (1 John 1:9-10) Meditation How many times a day do I sin? Far too many, I can tell you that. Even once a day is too many, but I have to be honest. It’s really not hard to fall into behaviors that are displeasing to God. All it takes is to stop praying for a few days, and the supernatural strength we get from God is weakened. It is extremely important to have a meaningful prayer time you set aside in your day. If you are married, do you regularly speak to your spouse, or do you ignore them for days or weeks on end? How long would your marriage last if you ignored them? It’s the same with God. Can we call ourselves Christians, and go through periods of our lives not speaking to the Lord? A good relationship requires constant communication. If you want to have a real relati...

For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. (1 Corinthians 15:16-17) Meditation There are many who say that the historical Jesus was just a good man but nothing more than that. They want everyone to believe he is someone we should all aspire to be like. They tell us, however; he was just a human and therefore still dead in the grave. If he is still dead, we who have put our trust and hope in him are still dead in our sins and therefore, believe a lie. If he is still dead, then our hope of life eternal in heaven is also a lie. If he is still dead, then everything about our faith is also a lie. If the author of this letter knew Jesus was still in the grave, why would he pen this scripture? He knew Jesus was alive because Jesus spoke to him on the road to Damascus. Even though we do not know the exact location of the tomb Jesus was laid in surely the Romans, who cruc...

Giving thanks always for all things unto God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; (Ephesians 5:20) Meditation A good parent will teach their children to always say thank you at the appropriate times. If we have been taught well as children, we will continue to be thankful as adults. When salvation comes to us, Satan continuously tries to distract us from being thankful. He knows, if we keep our focus on Jesus, we will always be grateful. That drives the devil crazy. Jesus has given us the most important gift ever conceived, our salvation. Jesus heals our sick, dead souls and makes it possible for us to live with him forever. How can we not be thankful for that? If it weren’t for the life-giving sacrifice of Jesus, everyone on earth would be spending an eternity in hell. Everything we have, we’ve been given by God. Every blessing we’ve received comes from the One who loves us more than we know. Our talents and abilities come from God, allowing us to provide fo...