Hidden

Hidden Feelings Always Come Out

Galatians 2:14

"But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou, being a Jew, livest after the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?"

Hiding one's feelings from others often seems harmless. We think that we can hide our feelings and that nobody will ever know, but what we don't understand is that hidden feelings will often change your treatment of someone. Though hiding your feelings may work for awhile, what is better is if you work out the problems that you have with someone.

Peter, Barnabas and Paul had a quarrel with each other because hidden feelings were not dealt with properly. Verse 13 says that Paul and Barnabas were "...carried away with their dissimulation." The word "dissimulation" means, "to hide one's feelings." In other words, the separation that happened between Paul and Barnabas happened because hidden feelings were not dealt with properly. Though they thought they could hide their feelings, it eventually caused two friends to have to separate.

What is interesting is that though they thought Paul did not know their feelings, he saw that their countenance towards him had changed. The verse above says, "But when I saw that they walked not uprightly..." Paul perceived their hidden feelings because of their changed countenance. You may think that you can hide your feelings and that nobody will figure them out, but what you don't understand is that it affects your countenance. Have you ever had a time when you felt that something was not right between you and someone else? You had those feelings because their countenance towards you changed. Though they thought they could hide their feelings, their hidden feelings changed their countenance and put a strain on your relationship with them.

I have found that it is better to work out your differences in a private setting than to allow hidden feelings to fester to the point where you lose a friendship. Barnabas hid his feelings, and because he did not approach Paul about them, they festered to the point that these two men who worked so well together had to separate. When you have problems with someone, instead of letting it destroy your relationship with them, it would be wise to approach them in a prayerful manner to try and solve the situation.

When you go to approach someone about your hidden feelings, don't approach them with an accusatory manner. Instead, approach them with the intent to find out what you have done wrong. Don't play the blame game for that will destroy a relationship. Furthermore, approach them in a humble spirit. Don't approach them as if you are better than they. Before you approach them, you would be wise to spend much time in prayer asking the LORD to intervene in your conversation with them. While you are talking to them, don't allow a heated discussion. Your whole purpose is to work out your differences, not to magnify them.

Everybody will at one point in their life have differences with close associations. When you have a difference, be careful not to hide your feelings and let it fester. If it is something that you cannot let go, then you need to approach them in the right attitude and manner so that you can correct what is causing the difference. It is better to save a relationship than to lose it over hidden feelings. Most of the time people don't realize that they may have done something that caused harm to a relationship. Most people will want to work things out. If you approach these things before they fester in your heart, then you have a better chance of working them out. Whatever you do, be sure to bathe these things in prayer before you try to handle them.

Universal Law

The Universal Law of Sowing and Reaping

2 Corinthians 9:6

"But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully."

The verse above is certainly about financial giving, but the principle applies to every area of life. Sowing and reaping is not just about money, but it is a universal law that cannot be reversed, and it will always work. When I worked in the strawberry fields as a teenage young man, we spent about three weeks planting strawberry plants in the fall. This was not a pleasant time for several reasons. One of the reasons is because there seemed to be no immediate reward. Another reason was because the pay was not the best. However, what I did enjoy was the next summer when it paid off with strawberries on the plants. The universal law of sowing and reaping worked.

First, let me apply this principle in its context of this verse. The LORD will give back to you according as you give to Him. If you give sparingly, then the LORD will return in the same manner; however, if you give in a generous manner, then the LORD will give back to you in a generous manner. Luke 6:38 says, "Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again." Whatever measuring cup you use to give is the same measuring cup God uses to give back.

Second, let me take this in another direction. If you need something in your life, then you would be wise to start sowing what you need so that you can reap later in life. You have heard the statement, "What goes around comes around." This statement is nothing more than the universal law of sowing and reaping. If you do good to others, then you will reap good from others. If you sow bad to others, then you will reap bad from others. If you are friendly to others, then you will reap friendliness from others. Whatever you do to others will eventually come back around to you.

Christian, if you want people to love you, then you would be wise to start loving people right now. You will never receive love from others if you don't start loving them right now. If you want to reap joy in life, then you would be wise to start sowing joy in the lives of others. You will never receive joy if you don't start giving joy. If you want to reap companionship when you are old, then you better start sowing companionship to older people right now. If you want to reap mercy when you do wrong, then you better start sowing mercy when others do wrong. Whatever you need in life, now is the time to start sowing.

Finally, reaping is never an immediate process. Don't give up hope in the area of reaping. Sowing takes a season for the fruit to ripen before it can be picked. Likewise, you will never immediately receive what you are giving right now; however, if you will be patient and trust that the law of sowing and reaping never fails, then you will find that you will reap if you don't quit. You keep sowing what is right, and eventually when the reaping season comes you will find that the fruits of your labors were worth the effort and the wait.

Overcoming

Overcoming Circumstances

2 Corinthians 4:8

"We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;"

The verse above is the beginning of several amazing verses concerning overcoming adverse circumstances. There are a few people in the Scriptures who faced many adverse circumstances who we all should study to see how they overcame them, and the Apostle Paul is one of those characters. When you look at Paul's life, you don't see a person who complained about his circumstances; rather, you see a person who overcame every circumstance that he faced.

Paul said he faced troubles on every side. Problems were everywhere, but he said he was not distressed. In other words, he was not anxious about how he would get through them. He said that he was perplexed, or completely baffled, but he did not live in despair. He kept hope while he was baffled about all that came his way. He was persecuted or harassed by enemies who wanted him silenced, but he did not feel that he was forsaken or abandoned in life. He said that there were times when he was cast down, or down for the count, but he did not feel like he was destroyed or ruined. These statements are amazing in that no matter what circumstance came Paul's way, he found a way to overcome them. The same way that Paul overcame his circumstances is the same way you are going to have to face your circumstances if you want to overcome them.

First, Paul overcame his circumstances with a good attitude. In spite of everything he faced, he always had a good attitude. I cannot stress enough how important attitude is to everything you face. I'm sure there were times when Paul had to give his attitude an adjustment, but the majority of the time he kept a good attitude. You will never overcome your circumstances with a bad attitude. If you are one who always has a bad attitude, then you need to let the Word of God give you an attitude adjustment so that you can keep a good attitude through all of your circumstances.

Second, Paul kept a right perspective. Verse 18 shows us that Paul did not look at the temporal, instead he looked at the eternal. In other words, he didn't see the negative in life. He always looked to the other side. I get weary of trying to help people look see the other side of every circumstance. There are some who all they ever see is the negative. Christian, there is always another side to every circumstance. Train yourself to see the positive side instead of the negative.

Third, Paul kept his purpose in focus. Verse 10 shows us that Paul never lost his purpose of what he was doing. You must keep the purpose of your life in focus or else the circumstances will overcome you. Keep your focus of why you are in the ministry. Keep your focus of why you are serving God. Keep your focus of why you serve in the church ministry. Keep your focus on the fact that you are trying to help people turn their lives around for Christ.

Fourth, Paul never lost hope. Verse 14 shows us that Paul always kept the hope that Jesus is coming again. The one thing that will help you overcome every adverse circumstance you face is that Jesus is coming again. All heartache and sorrow will one day be gone. That day is soon! Keep focused on the fact that Jesus will come again.

How you face your circumstances highly dictates how much God can use you. I don't know about you, but I want God to use me in a mighty way. Circumstances can either be obstacles to block you from God using you, or they can be the springboard for God to use you in a great way. Let these four areas help you to make your adverse circumstances the springboard for God to mightily use you.

God's Pet

God's Pet

Romans 9:18

"Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth."

Do you remember when you were in school how there seemed to be one student who everyone called the teacher's pet? The reason this student was called this was because they seemed to get away with things that others did not. You could say that the teacher showed them mercy when they would not show others mercy.

How would you like it if you could be God's pet? I know, God has no favorites, but I do believe that God is a merciful God. God's mercy will often cause Him to protect someone from doing things that would cause them much harm in life. This is nothing more than the mercy of God. I can recall in my life many times when God protected me from doing something that would have changed the whole course of my life for the worse. I don't know why God did this other than He is a merciful God. You may wonder how you can obtain this mercy so that you could become God's pet? The answer is found in the previous verse.

First, you need to realize your purpose. Christian, you must realize that God made you for a specific purpose in life. It does not matter what you consider your weakness, God made you with that weakness for a specific purpose. You will never obtain the mercy of God on your life if you are not living according to your purpose. Why should God give mercy to those who are running from the purpose for which they were made? God made you to do something for Him, and when you run from that purpose you are running from the very reason that would cause God to exercise His mercy. When a person sincerely desires to live in the purpose for which they were made, God will protect that person from things or decisions that would pull them away from their purpose. If you want God's mercy on your life, then you need to live to fulfill the purpose for which you were made.

Second, you need to realize your power. You will notice in verse 17 that God raised Pharaoh to show His power through Him. God also made you for a purpose so that His power can be shown through your life. You will never fulfill God's purpose for your life without the power of the Holy Spirit. God's Holy Spirit will empower you to be able to fulfill that purpose. You may think that you can't do it, and you are right; however, with God's power you can fulfill that purpose. This is why you must yield yourself on a daily basis to the power of the Holy Spirit, because only through God's power can you fulfill your purpose. Without God's power you will fail at God's purpose for your life.

Third, you need to realize your source. The biggest reason that Pharaoh did not obtain God's mercy is because he took credit for that which God did. Christian, when God fulfills His purpose in your life, you need to be sure that you give Him the credit. The quickest way to lose God's mercy is to start taking credit for what God does. Always give God the glory for everything that He does in your life.

Being God's pet is accomplished by doing these things. Yes, if you will fulfill the purpose for which God made you through the power of the Holy Spirit, and if you give Him the glory for this work, then you will find God's mercy will protect you from things that will pull you away from His purpose. Anybody can be God's pet, because anybody who will do these things will see God's mercy on their life.

Guilty

Guilty by Relation

Acts 23:16

"And when Paul's sister's son heard of their lying in wait, he went and entered into the castle, and told Paul."

There are a people in this world who are forgotten by most churches. These people will not clamor for your attention. These people will not let you know they have been forgotten. These people have been convicted of no crime, yet they are people who are looked upon as if they have committed a crime. These people carry a secret of which they tell no one. These people I am talking about are the immediate family members of those who are imprisoned.

In the verse above, Paul is in prison when his nephew visited him. Paul had not been convicted of a crime, but was being held for trial. While still in Jerusalem, it seems as if Paul's family visited him in prison. Though Paul was hated by most in that community, he still had family that loved him. Can you imagine how hard it must have been for this family to go and visit Paul? Can you imagine how they must have been looked upon as word got around that they were the family of the hated preacher? Many did not realize that even though Paul was being held for a crime, his family had committed no crime. What many did not realize was that though the community accused Paul of a crime, the love of the family did not cease. This family was guilty of one thing, being related to Paul.

I come to you on behalf of a large group of people who are forgotten and need your love. This group of people are the families of those who are incarcerated for crimes against society and humanity. The purpose of this devotional is not to defend the incarcerated, the purpose of this devotional is to defend the families of those who still have a great love for a family member who did something wrong. Sure, their family member probably is justifiably paying for a crime which they committed, but the family members committed no crime other than being related to the incarcerated.

Let me simply remind you that many of these families who have a loved one in prison hurt more than you will ever know. They certainly don't justify the crime of their loved one, but love doesn't stop just because their loved one did something terribly wrong. Yet, many in society look down on these family members as if they committed a crime. May I remind you that the only "crime" they committed was being related to the one who committed the crime. If you were to go to the waiting rooms of prison and jails, you would find inside those waiting rooms are dads, moms, children, brothers and sisters who carry broken hearts. Many times these family members feel like they are being treated as the criminal only because they are related to someone who has done something wrong.

Christian, one of the greatest ministries you could perform is to help these families. They need someone who will accept them and love them, and not hold them accountable for what their loved ones have done. You could probably lead many of these people to Christ if you would simply reach out and love them. Sure, this may not be the most flashy ministry which you could be involved, but let me remind you that Christ did not try to reach the righteous. He went after the lost.

Let me encourage you to think about helping the families of the incarcerated. No, I'm not asking you to help them financially, but I am asking you to reach out and love them and let them know that you don't hold them guilty. Let them know that Christ loves them and wants them saved. Don't be guilty of convicting a person because their loved one is incarcerated. If you would simply love them and let them know you will be a friend, you would be surprised how they would open their hearts to Christ.

Misdirected

Misdirected Drive

Acts 20:22

"And now, behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there:"

Some things are not wrong in themselves, but when performed in the wrong order they become wrong. A burden is not a bad thing, but a burden that blinds you from God's will becomes bad. It is hard to believe that a burden could be bad, but a burden, if not carefully controlled, will cause a person to leave what God called them to do.

The Apostle Paul had a great burden for the Jewish people. Romans 9:3 shows us how much of a burden Paul had when he said, "For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh:" Paul had such a burden for his people that he said he was willing to go to Hell so that they could go to Heaven. Though this was Paul's burden, having a ministry to the Jews was not God's will for his life. We find God's will for Paul's life in Acts 22:21 when it says, "And he said unto me, Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles." God's will for Paul's life was to reach the Gentile world; however, he allowed his burden to drive him to the degree that it caused him to waste much time that could have been spent doing what God called him to do.

There is nothing wrong with you having a burden, but when your burden drives you, it can cause you to leave God's will for your life. I have watched preachers allow a burden to take them away from God's will for their life. They left where God called them to go to another place for which they had a burden, only to regret leaving God's will. Sure, where they went needed the Gospel. Sure, their purpose in going to where they went was good, but your burden should never be the driving force in going some place, only God's will should do that.

Furthermore, when your burden drives you, it can cause you to waste time. Look at how much time Paul wasted trying to convince the Jews to get saved when he could have used that time to go after the Gentile world like God called him to do. Yes, he certainly reached the Gentile world, but one can only wonder how much more could have been done if he would have stayed focused on what he was supposed to do. If you allow your burden to become the driving force in your life, you could find yourself wasting time on that which God has not called you to do.

Moreover, when a burden drives you, it can cause you to make foolish decisions. Paul's burden caused him to take a Jewish oath. That oath resulted in Paul being bound for the rest of his life. A burden can blind you from what you are supposed to do. It can cause you to justify leaving God's will for your life. An uncontrolled burden can blind you and lead you away from God's will.

A burden in itself is not a bad thing, but a burden being the driving force of your life can cause you to make some very unwise decisions. Always keep a good perspective of your burden, and only let the Scriptures and God's will for your life direct you. If a burden comes because you are doing God's will then that is fine, but always keep God's will as your top priority. Sometimes, God's will is not always going to be exciting and flashy, as can be seen in the lives of many of the Old Testament prophets. If you allow your burden to become your driving force, then it will take you away from God's will when it isn't producing like you thought. Remember that God is more interested in you doing what He called you to do more than He is in results. If you keep that in mind, then you can keep your burden in its proper place.