NCarolinian

1 Corinthians 4:2 "Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man [or woman] be found faithful." Are you considering another job? Are you considering serving in the military? Are you considering service in any capacity? Then I encourage you to have a well established track record of faithfulness. In fact, whatever your passion is - faithfulness to that person, place, thing or idea will display your dedication to whatever or whomever. Being entrusted to manage anybody's business, especially God's Kingdom Business of studying, keeping and teaching His Word is the greatest responsibility of all. This duty comes with knowing the rules and parameters of God's organization.  The word "steward" in the original Greek is oikonomos . This word means court officials or palace officials in the Old Testament. The application for these officials is to fulfill their requirement or duty by honoring the law of the land in private and public life. As Christians,...

Our spiritual report cards in our Christian walk are the bon-fires of testing that the Holy Spirit uses in certain seasons of our life.  1 Corinthians 3:10-15 "But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames." The Christian's eternity - body, soul and spirit - is secured upon accepting Christ as Master and Savior. With this decision, Jesus becomes the Foundation of his or her life. Everything after this choice is susceptible to the fiery jud...

Jesus says in John 7:38 - " Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them." What Scripture was Jesus referring to? Cross references list about two handful of passages to consider. However, there were two verses I thought that really fit the bill nicely when speaking about the Holy Spirit within each true believer as the Headwaters Of Creativity. John 4:14 is the first verse to examine and compare. The verse records Jesus speaking to the woman by the well, saying - " But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a fount of water springing up to eternal life." Notice the elements to this water.  Jesus declares Himself as the Headwaters - "But whoever drinks the water I give him..." Jesus, by His Holy Spirit, becomes The Source of everything, especially Creativity. "...will become in him a fount of water..." His Holy Spirit is ...

Many people have common sense, but others who are true Christians have the Holy Spirit active within their lives to aide them in all their perceptions. Common sense can be fooled, but the Holy Spirit always speaks truth. However, you marry them both - common sense and the Holy Spirit - and you have a pair designed to supply you with clarity of view in all things. "How much is your reputation--and the reputation of the Holy One you represent--worth to you? If you want to maintain a good name and testimony in front of others, you must refrain from any action, language, or contact that gives the appearance of evil. And this is not just my suggestion--it is the commandment of God found in First Thessalonians 5:22." "Abstain from all appearance of evil." (1 Thessalonians 5:22) "Paul was telling us, 'It doesn't matter what you think or what you know to be true; what matters is what appears to be true in the eyes of others.' Even if there is a small...

"...the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." - Galatians 5:22-23 Do you love someone? That is precious because there is a great chance love will return to you.  Do you experience joy at times? Believing you do, cherish those times for they can bring a smile to your face later by remembering them and possibly be recreated.  Do you know peace or is there no peace in your life? A calm, steady assurance of who you are makes all the difference in living in this world.  Do you instill Forbearance or long-suffering or tolerance over things for a long time in others? This is a kind of patience that goes above and beyond the call of duty. I find there is usually a nice reward that comes from with-holding some thoughts, words and actions at times. Do you see your kindness paid off and appreciated? There is nothing like seeing your efforts go the distance and perhaps receiving a ...

Jesus used the analogy of The Tree in Matthew 7:17-20 to have us gauge our character. He said, "...every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them." So, what kind of tree are you? What kind of fruit do you produce? Does your life attract fruit lovers? Paul encourages us to be a portable tree of many fruits. In Galatians 5:22-23 , he lists many ingredients, characteristics or fruits of God's Spirit that should flow from a believer's life.  "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." Joy is a wonderful fruit to bear in one's life and having just a Joy Tree would be nice but our God is a God of Abundance! There are ot...

As much as I detest the song "Let It Go" from the movie Frozen , there are many times when we should heed the advice in the title of that song. Certain relationships fall into this category.  Timothy knew all too well that there were people in his life not worthy of his time and energy. He was pouring into their lives but they were not being faithful with the teaching and blessing given. New wine was being poured into old wine skins and the wine skins were bursting and spilling all over the place. "In Second Timothy 2:2, Paul wrote to his young disciple and told him, '...the things that thou has heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.' The word 'commit' in this verse is a powerful key to building strong and lasting relationships. It is the Greek word parathou , which is a compound of the words, para and thou , the latter being a form of the word tithemi ." "When t...

I do not know how people who choose to live a solitary life - live that lifestyle. Looking at Scripture we observe God and Adam existing with each other for a season, then in Genesis 2:18 God declares that Adam needs someone like him; like his kind, to enjoy the days with him and the Lord. So, God creates Eve from one of Adam's ribs while Adam sleeps.  Life is all about relationship(s). The first, most important relationship is the one between you and God, then the second between you and your family, especially your spouse. Ephesians 5:21-33 spells out how to do this, but verse 33 summarizes the whole passage nicely by saying, " each one of you [the husbands] also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband."   Not that alone moments are not healthy for us now and then. Our own personal time balanced with our precious relationships is a must for a healthy us. Jesus exercised this personal time and even then He was never alone an...