Each and every morning the first thing we should endeavor to do is seek Him through our daily prayers. This opens a continual line of communication that He desires of us It is not so difficult to spend at the very least a few minutes speaking to our heavenly Father.

The second thing that one should do (in order to seek him), is to spend time reading and studying His Word. This serves not only to enlighten us as to what it is that God wishes to impart to us about Himself, but also instructs us about how he wishes us to behave and act in our daily lives. It gives us something to meditate on while perhaps we are commuting to our jobs or just simply doing chores around the house.

Meditating on God’s Word is the third part of our daily seeking and is a wonderful source to bring peace into our lives, and allows us to continually receive instruction from Him as to ways to achieve this peace.

Job 8:5

Psalm 27:8

Psalm 34:10

2 Timothy 2:15

1 Timothy 4:15

Psalm 63:6

Psalm 77:12

Unconditionally Conditional
By R.P. Woitowitz

Proverbs 28:9

“He that turneth away his ear from hearing the Law, even his prayer shall be abomination”

There is much debate as to what I am going to put forth, but I am of the “once saved, always saved” school. This does NOT mean that I believe that we can live our lives in a manner that is “right in our own eyes” and continue to receive all the blessings that God so desires to bestow upon us.

What this does mean, is that I feel that we are saved when we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, and by His grace, we can expect to live with Him when He returns. But, (as in life there are always a bunch of these), we simply cannot expect Him hear us or bless us just because of grace.

All the things that we do make God’s promises to us conditional and depend upon how we seek Him daily. By that I mean to say, that the things we ask for in life, that matter to us, are based upon whether or not we strive to serve His will diligently and for His glory, and not our own.

How often have any one of us prayed for something only to not get it or even receive an answer as to why not? Usually, no means no, and it is not a requirement of God to explain why other than it is sufficient for us to understand that it is not in His will for us. But also remember that it is WE that must meet certain requirements in order to receive answers to our prayers.

A number of things make these requirements necessary for God to bless us.

1) Seek Him daily

2) Walk in His righteousness

3) Honor Him

4) Praise Him

5) Give Thanks to Him

6) Humble oneself

7) Meditate on His Word

To be sure there are many more things that God asks of us, none of which are a tiresome burden, but a gentle yoke to be worn lightly and with the willingness of a devoted servant.

Study Related Scriptures

Proverbs 7:15

Psalms 15:2

Psalms 23:3

Psalms 24:5

Matthew6:33

Hebrews 13:15

Psalms 77:12

Joshua 1:8

Proverbs 16:19

Matthew 18:4

2 Samuel 22:50

God Doesn’t Make Junk
By R.P.Woitowitz

1 Corinthians 6:19

“What, know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit [which is] in you, which ye have from God, and ye are not your own?”

Yesterday I was at work and we were having a conversation about the new employee that has been awarded the bid that was available in my station. We were wondering if it were a man or a woman. As the conversation shifted to other area’s one of my co-workers asked a question, how is it that God allows for such imperfections in His creations.

I responded simply by a phrase that I remembered from my first pastor, Pastor Dan Cotrone, of the Village of Faith Church, wherein he gave a sermon that God does not make junk.

My co-worker seemed a bit confused, and continued on the track of reasoning as to why does God allow human beings to be mentally or physically disabled, and how could a loving God be all that loving if such things exist.

I spoke to him in terms that I hoped he would understand. But the gist of my statements is that God:

1) He does not see us as the rest of the world see us

2) It is our outsides, our bodies that are corrupted by sin, decay, disease, etc and not our spirits which is perfection in His eyes.

When God creates and gives one a spirit that is to inhabit a body it is in perfection that this is created. It is we, who through the sin of Adam and Eve, which brought death and disease to the body that suffer from the imperfections that afflict us as human beings.

However our Heavenly Father sees us in the spirit and not in the eyes of the world. For His wisdom is not of this world but of His Kingdom and therefore when He creates it is with perfection.

Remember we are vessels that house His spirit in us, holy temples that should be used to be presented not only to Him but to the world as well.

Study related scriptures

Ps 139:13

Romans 12:2

1 Corinthians 2:6

A Slip of the Lip
By R.P.Woitowitz Sr.

James 1:19

“Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:”

Matthew 12:34

“O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaketh”

Recently we have seen and heard about the firing of Don Imus, the comments by Rev. Al Sharpton on Mitt Rommey’s religious beliefs and as of a couple of days ago radio shock jocks Opie and Anthoney’s remarks on the satellite airwaves.

How often have we as individuals have said something whether it was out of speaking in anger, or thinking we were funny, or just plain ignorance and within seconds wishing we could snatch those words right back out of the air?

Sadly, we cannot, and the best we can ever hope to do is apologize for our words. In fact to quote the late John Entwistle (who I am certain borrowed and paraphrased the idea from God’s word):

“The present remains, the past is just burned”

Without trying to sound politically correct here the words we speak do indeed hurt others. And while it is my contention that all of us need to have a tougher skins it is just as important to watch what we say and to speak with thoughtfulness, clarity and with the goal of edifying others as well as our Lord.

When we speak ill of others we diminish not only ourselves but profane the very nature of God who looks upon us with the utmost love and who would only speak to us, and of us in those terms. (See Job 1:8 , Luke 3:22 )

As the old saying goes let us, each one of us

“Engage brain before putting mouth in gear”

Study related scriptures:

James 3:2 - 12

Proverbs 10:11 , Proverbs 10:19 , Proverbs 10:31

1 Peter 3:10

Job 27:4

Proverbs 10:3a

“The LORD will not suffer the soul of the righteous to famish”

In Matthew 4:4we are reminded by Jesus’ forty days in the wilderness and His temptation by Satan that;

“‘It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God’.”

I particularly note that the word “but” seems, in my mind, to be stressing the idea that man’s nourishment is not only physical, but spiritual as well, and as such is subject to blessings by God the Father Himself.

It is His love of us, and His wish for us to be as He is, that is to say to emulate our heavenly Father’s righteousness, that he not only provides for us in our daily needs but also by His Word, does he feed us spiritually.

Therefore, we who are called by His name will not go hungry or without, whether it be spiritually, nor physically.