DON'T FEAR REJECTION

I, even I, am he who comforts you. Who are you that you fear mortal men, the sons of men, who are but grass. - Isaiah 51:12

One way to overcome the fear of rejection is by keeping the right perspective. You can listen to the opinions of others, but never overvalue what they say.

In our verse today, Isaiah says our life here on Earth is temporary, so why be afraid of other people's opinions? Other people are not God, and their opinions aren't going to last, anyway.

The secret to success is to outlast your critics. Isaiah says if mortal man puts you down, don't worry about it. God is the one who counts.

Don't assume that their judgments are infallible or straight from God. You don't have to automatically accept someone's criticism; you ought to judge it for what it's worth.

When people's approval becomes all-important to you, you're setting yourself up to fear of rejection.

The Bible says, "What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8:31).

If you recognize how much God is for you, it gives you the ability to withstand rejection. For most people, all that matters to them is popularity, fame, or applause. "What do other people think of me? How do I look to everybody else? Image is everything!"

If you live that way, you are at the mercy of everybody else's judgments. If they think I'm a loser, I must be a loser! If they think I'm ugly, I must be ugly!

What a miserable way to live? Who are you more interested in pleasing? The crowd or God? You can't seek the approval of both at the same time. You have to decide who you want to impress.

Prayer: Lord, what You think of me is what matters to me.

Scriptural Reading: Isaiah 51:9-13

Signs You’re Idolizing Something or Someone

Let’s be honest, we are all passionate about something. Whether it’s a career, a hobby, material things, or a relationship. You have something that makes your heart sing, so to speak… something or someone that you love more than anything on this earth. We are taught from a young age that when we love something or someone we are to put our heart into it and give it our all. But, if you’re not careful, that passion and love can easily turn into idolatry.

Many of us have celebrities we like, look up to and even emulate. Some of my favorite celebs are Yolanda Adams,  Denzel Washington, and the late Maya Angelou. I like them all for different reasons and feel they inspire goodness. But as much as I like these celebs, I know I am not so enamored by them that I idolize them. I only have one idol (Christ). He’s the one I put before everything.

Today, I ask you this: Where does God fit in your life? Is He #1, #2, #3, or a better question would be… Is He even a priority in your life at all?

In Matthew 22:36, one of the Pharisees poses a question to Jesus: “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

Jesus answers that we are to love God with all our heart, with all our soul and with all our mind … to give God our complete and unwavering allegiance. God is jealous for us and He does not want to share us with anyone or anything.

Sometimes we place our relationship with God on the back burner without even realizing it. We don’t give it our all like we do everything else. 

Here are 10 Signs You’re Idolizing Something or Someone:

1. You find your worth and value in them because they give you status, popularity, and power.

2. When you think of your life without them, you feel empty inside.

3. When you’re away from them, they are all you can think about. Night and day, Day and night.

4. You often feel like they give your life purpose. Without them, there’s no you. Does this sound familiar?

5. They have a major influence on the way you feel and think about yourself. They have total control of your self-esteem.

6. Most of your time is consumed by them. If you could, you would spend 24/7 with them. As the saying goes… “You eat, sleep, and breathe” them.

7. You schedule everything around them. You try to squeeze God in wherever you can instead of making Him the priority to begin with.

8. You neglect other important aspects of your life in order to focus on the one thing  that really matters to you. Read here

9. You’d rather put your faith into someone or something other than God.

10. You found yourself nodding throughout this list, reaffirming that you’ve got work to do.

If so, try not to be so focused on material things or relationships that you forget about your relationship with God. Switch the energy you’re currently putting into your distractions and refocus it where it’s needed, on Him!

That’s why it is so important for us to fast from things that we might be giving too much of our attention to and not giving God enough attention. Just remember God is all you need.

MEEKNESS IS NOT WEAKNESS

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. - 2 Timothy 1:7

Isn't a Christian supposed to be meek? Yes, but meekness is not weakness. There's a big difference. Meekness means "strength under control."

Picture a wild horse that has been broken and is now tamed. That horse still has as much power as when he was wild, but now that power is bottled up for the master's use.

Only two people in the Bible were called meek: Jesus and Moses. Neither of them were weaklings or pushovers. They were strong men of conviction.

God doesn't expect you to just cave in every time somebody wants to manipulate you or control you. What would you do if someone asked you to do something immoral or illegal or unreasonable?

You'd say no! For a Christian, "no" is not an offensive word. It's OK to say "no." In fact, it's necessary from time to time.

The Bible tells us to say "yes" when we mean yes, and "no" when we mean no. It doesn't tell us we need to feel guilty about doing so. It doesn't say we have to make excuses for our decisions.

2 Timothy 1:7 gives us the answer: "For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline."

That's the way God wants you to deal with people —in power (confidence), in love (focusing on their needs), and in self-control. God's Spirit doesn't make us timid.

He doesn't turn us into weaklings. The Lord wants you to be strong and firm in your convictions.

Prayer: Lord, help me rid my heart of timidity.

Scriptural Reading: 2 Timothy 1:1-7

Relationship: A MOTHER TO HER DAUGHTER ABOUT MARRIAGE

1. The wife that wins all arguments with her husband is not wise. The home is not a law court.

2. The wife that uses sex as a weapon in the home - placing embargo, going to bed in jeans shorts and trousers - lacks wisdom.

3. The wife that uses the modern trends and laws of "women's rights" to insult or ridicule her husband simply makes a fool of herself.

4. A woman that makes her home devoid of peace through bickering, nagging and quarrels needs help. A man should be eager to run away from office to be at home, for that should be the safest and cosiest place on earth for him.

5. Modern-day equality in marriage does not mean competition. It simply means partnership. Taking advantage of such equality to turn around and become the de facto head of the home and oppress the man is tantamount to playing with fire. If you destroy your home, soon you will be the boss of an empty home.

6. A wise wife makes the man feel so good that he assumes that he is the head. Once he gets that feeling, the woman gently wields her power and the head actually turns to wherever the neck wants without a protest.

7. A wife that does not pull herself away from friends' influence and advice or even from the control of her mother and father will have herself to blame.

8. When a man is looking for a wife, he bypasses women of different shapes and sizes to choose a wife. But soon after childbirth, many women hide under the excuse of childbirth to let go of themselves. Many stop bothering about their looks, shape, dressing, etc. Within 5 years of marriage, people start wondering if the wife is the man's aunt, even though she is 7 years younger. Her defence is that if he truly loves her, he should love her the way she is, but when looking for a wife, he saw people like the present YOU and ignored them and settled for the former YOU. Today, you go to bed smelling of onions.... You go to bed wearing grandmothers' clothes. Why are you playing with your marriage? Love is not about looks - we know. But looks enhances love and marriage. There is a difference between someone disfiguring herself and the person being disfigured by an accident.

Please don't be complacent. As hard as it may be, work on looking like you were when he first saw you and began the chase.

9. If every night you are tired, sleepy, sore, down with headache or fever, "not in the mood," you are a joker, a serious comedian!

10. If your children suddenly become more important to you than your husband, you need prayers.

11. If you assume that as the woman, only you need to be pampered and fussed over while the man is a stone that has no emotions, you need to be pitied.

12. A woman that has the mind of a wife does not excite her husband. Wives are usually complacent and presumptuous. A wife must strive to have the mind of a girlfriend. A girlfriend is always nicer, sweeter, more loving and always thinking of ways to wow her sweetheart; a girlfriend does not try to win all arguments, does not call the man a "useless man", is not careless about her looks or dressing, always smiles and laughs with the man, sends the man sweet messages and calls, etc. Are you your husband's girlfriend in word and in deed? by Hope Gilbert

LASTLY, DO NOT INFORM ME OF YOUR QUARRELS, I DIDN’T JOIN YOU TOGETHER, GOD DID, GO AND INFORM HIM AND HE WILL SORT YOU OUT ..

TIME TO WAKE UP

And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. - Romans 13:11

Every now and then someone comes along and says they know the day of Christ's return. But don't ever believe that.

The Bible says, "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father" (Mark 13:32).

Though we can know the times and the seasons, no one can know the exact day or time when Jesus Christ will come back for His people. But the question we might be asking yourself is: Will He come soon? And will He come in my lifetime?

No one can say with absolute certainty. But there are signs that would say it is getting close. They are on the front pages of our newspapers, on our news websites, and on our favourite television and radio news programmes.

We will read headlines along the lines of, "Iran Threatens to Annihilate Israel," "China Builds up Military," "Another School Shooting Kills 23," and "Thousands Feared Dead in Earthquake."

These are signs of the times, because they are things that Jesus said would happen in greater frequency prior to His return.

If I were to go outside and notice that it was dark and cloudy and could even see the rain falling in a nearby city, if I saw that a weather system was moving our direction, would you think of me as a genius if I said it may rain soon?

Of course not. It is obvious that it will be raining soon. It doesn't take an act of great intelligence to predict that.

In the same way, signs of the times are all around us, telling us the return of Christ is close. Knowing this should affect the way we live. So let's wake up. Let's be ready for His return.

Prayer: O Lord Jesus, come!

Scriptural Reading: Romans 13:8-14

HOPE

So are the paths of all who forget God; and the hope of the hypocrite shall perish. - Job 8:13

It has been said that man can live 40 days without food, about three days without water, about eight minutes without air, but only one second without hope.

No matter what we are facing, we all need hope. But where are we going to find this hope that we so desperately need? We are not going to find it in people or things.

Nor are we going to find it in a politician or a political persuasion, regardless of what side of the divide we are on. Nor are we going to find it in technology or science or in a relationship or in an accomplishment.

Sometimes people will put their hope in their investments or their bank accounts or their home.

But listen to what the Bible says in Job 8:13-15: "The hopes of the godless evaporate. Their confidence hangs by a thread. They are leaning on a spider's web. They cling to their home for security, but it won't last. They try to hold it tight, but it will not endure."

These are very poignant words in the light of the world's present economic situation. We should not put our hope in people.

We should not put our hope in things. We need to put our hope in God. That is what the Bible teaches.

Psalm 42:5-6 says, "Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise Him again—my Saviour and my God!"

This will give us the strength to go on in life, because we know that we serve a God who is faithful. There may be times when you feel helpless, but you never should feel hopeless.

The Bible brims with promises of hope for every follower of Jesus Christ.

Prayer: Lord, my hope is in You alone.

Scriptural Reading: Job 8:8-18

Relationship: 10 reasons we need mom no matter how old we get

We sit around the table, listening to the elevator music coming from the television. It is the only thing we use it for now, but because Mom refuses to master Pandora we continue to pay the monthly cable bill. I shuffle the cards and pass them around the table. The game is called "Bohnanza" and you can only play two cards a turn. It is Mom's turn and she lays down three and we all laugh because no matter how many times we explain the game she never gets it (like the time we tried to teach her Mario Kart on the Wii.) She buries her face behind her cards and starts to laugh so hard tears come out.

These are some of my favorite times with Mom, and it has nothing to do with what music is playing in the background or what game we play. It has everything to do with being with her because she makes life happy. Even when you grow up and move out, get married and become a mom yourself, you never stop needing mom. Here are ten reasons why:

1. She listens to you without judging and understands how you feel

This is perhaps my mom's best quality. She always seems to know when I need to talk, vent and get it out. And her advice never begins with, "I told you so" or "You should have known better."

2. She is your best shopping buddy

Let's face it: No matter how wonderful your husband is, it's more fun trying on jeans with Mom.

3. She intuitively knows when you need help

Even though we claim we can take care of ourselves, Mom always seems to know when we need that extra $20 each month to cover the phone bill.

4. She brings you NyQuil, chicken noodle soup and Sprite when you are sick

But perhaps the best medicine of all is her hug.

5. She takes you out of school to spend the day at the museum, going to lunch or making cookies.

My mom believes that being educated is more than sitting at a desk for eight hours. Although an avid supporter of our successful schooling (my dad is a teacher), she knows it doesn't hurt to spend a day together every once in a while.

6. She always lets you pick the movie

She says she'll pick "next time," but "next time" never seems to come.

7. She goes out of her way to make you feel special

Think of the countless birthday parties, school plays and graduation celebrations your mom has organized and supported through the years. Whether it's staying up late to make party decorations or leading the cheering section, you always know who your number one fan is.

8. She spends her money coming to visit you

Even when you live halfway across the country, she's there.

9. She is the first on your list to call with news

Whether you have exciting news like a new job or a pregnancy, or disappointments like a miscarriage or a bad day, sharing with Mom just makes life better.

10. She loves you and is always there for you

When I moved away, what I missed most wasn't the homemade meals or the folded laundry. It was being with Mom and feeling her constant love and support. Friends may be fleeting, but family is constant.

Some may be reading this right now and feel discouraged. There are women who may not have a close relationship with their mother, or others who do not know who their mother is. Many women are single moms working two jobs, trying to keep their family going. read more

No matter the situation, what makes all moms special is that they embody characteristics like peace, support and unconditional love associated with womanhood. By honoring mothers, we are honoring women. Whether it's moms, sisters, aunts, mothers-in-law, stepmothers or close friends, everyone has someone to appreciate.

Let's take this month to celebrate womanhood and the women who make our lives worth celebrating. Thank you, Mom. I will always need you no matter how old I get.