It's Easy to Forget...

"And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”

Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you."

Luke 22:19-20

On Sunday, at church, we took communion. Our church does this every month and there was nothing special about this time. They passed out the little wafers and cups of juice and then the person on stage read this scripture and talked about why we take communion. However, I believe whenever we take communion it is important to do an inner search at where we stand spiritually and take a moment to listen if God wants to speak to you in that time. 

Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians, puts it this way:

"But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body."

1 Corinthians 11:24-25

So as I examined myself on Sunday the thing that hit me was simply... It's so easy to forget. 

It's so easy to forget what Jesus did for us. It's so easy to forget the cross, to forget the sacrifice, even to forget Him. Jesus talked about this in the parable of the sower:

Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.

Matthew 13:22

It's easy to allow the cares of this world to choke out the Word that has been planted in our hearts. We get caught up in making sure our bills our paid, our families are fed, the stress of our job, etc. and we don't even remember the reason for our life. We get caught up in the cares of life and forget the one who gives us life.  

Remember Jesus' promise in the sermon on the mount:

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

Matthew 6:33

"all these things" is referring to the cares of life. It's referring to clothing, food, housing, etc. Jesus promises that if we seek His Kingdom first all of those things will automatically be taken care of. It's time to trust Him. It's time to regain our focus. It's time to remember! 

For more thoughts on how we can seek His Kingdom first check out this post:

 Four Ways We Should Seek the Kingdom First! 

The Challenge of Success

“If you have run with the footmen, and they have wearied you, Then how can you 

contend with horses?…”

Jeremiah 12:5

Do you ever feel tired in your walk with God? It's normal to feel tired but at the same time we need to get to the place where we can handle things without getting tired. 

Every level with God comes with a greater challenge but also with greater blessing!

In order for God to allow us to the next level in Him, the next level of our destiny, we need to first learn how to deal with the challenges at the level we are currently at. It is so easy to think, if we can just get past this challenge things will be easy. But the truth is things get harder as you get closer to the goal. It's just like in racing. The further you go the harder it gets. You need to learn how to handle a mile before you can try to run two miles. 

I ran across a quote on LinkedIn that goes along with this:

"Successful people do what unsuccessful people are not willing to do. Don't wish it were easier, wish you were better."

Jim Rohn

So often our prayers are asking God to make our life easier. We ask for him to take away our challenges at work, to cause the disruptive neighbors to move, to increase our income, or to help us win the lottery. However we should be praying that God would make us better. 

Pray that God would improve your ability to be successful at work.

Pray that God would help you relate better and be a light to the difficult people around you.

Pray that God would help you in creating a budget that works and to be disciplined to stick to it.

If we change our prayers then we will find that we will move further in God and in His plan for our life much more quickly. We need to match our prayers with His will and His will is for us to improve ourselves. He's not into quick fixes no matter how much we would like them, He's into long term improvement. 

Not Forgotten

A Tribute to the Women and Children in the Red Light District of Calcutta, India.

Born into slavery...

But Not Forgotten

Nameless and voiceless...

But Not Forgotten

Hopeless and abused...

But Not Forgotten

Tired and broken…

But Not Forgotten

Thrown out and dismissed…

But Not Forgotten

All seems dark but there is a light,

A lighthouse to lighten the way,

Showing that there is One who cares.

There is One who sees

There is One who cries into the dark

There is One who loves the unloved

One who brings hope to the hopeless and a voice to the voiceless

There is One

You are Not Forgotten

You are Not Forsaken

You are Cared for

You are Loved

There is One who is calling out to you

Lift up your eyes and see the light

He will never forget you

Who is this One?

He is Alpha and Omega, Beginning and the End

He is Savior and Lord, Father and Friend

He is Healer and Provider, He is Love and Peace

He is the only One who can make the pain cease.

He's Author and Finisher, He'll write your book's end

He'll gather the broken pieces and bring your heart to the mend.

Who is this One?

His name is Jesus

You are Not Forgotten!