We don’t have to take it…

Hey there BCU Fam!

For this post, because of the informal format, please tune into the podcast recording (click here or on the BCU avatar below) and refer to the written post for the highlights. We pray the post blesses and encourages you. If so, please thumbs up AND leave a comment! Thank you and enjoy the post!

Podcast highlights:

  • Last time, we talked about how in a conversation, we “give and take” with our words.
  • Specifically, we spoke about idle words, and our responsibility to ensure the words we give are profitable, edifying and give God glory.
  • What is equally as important is monitoring the thoughts, words and people we allow in our hearts.
  • If what is being said is not lining up with the Word of God, we do not have to “take” it.

Scripture references

James 1:19

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

Proverbs 4:23

23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.

John 13:34

A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.

Titus 3:9

But avoid foolish questions, and genealogies, and contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and vain.

James 2:9

But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors.

Romans 1:30-32

30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:

32 Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

1 Corinthians 10:13

There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

Ephesians 6:10-11

10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.

11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

Love does not mean that we have to take in everything someone gives us.

BCUFam, we are called to love everyone. That love reminds us that everyone we interact with will not know the Lord, or may only know Him to a certain extent, so, of course we do not reject everyone who doesn’t line up with our beliefs. As people of God, we are prayerfully listen to the person while asking God how to proceed. It is worth noting our love is not a free pass to allow everyone to continually deposit unbiblical thoughts and ideas into our hearts—we do not have to take it!

For example, I know of a few “semi-habitual” givers of unbiblical speech. In one situation, the Lord gave me directions on how to handle the things to keep my heart guarded, but not without me enduring some of the conversations first. In this way, we were able to dialogue about their “unsound speech” based on the Word of God, and with the prayer that the Word would penetrate the heart of the person and make a change. Sometimes changes do not come right away, so as the Lord is dealing with the person, my instructions were to limit our conversations to keep my heart guarded, yet keep my love for the person.

Heart-guarding and conversation-limiting can be a challenge with family members, those in a position of authority, or friends who have a “strong” personality. Even so, it is imperative to prayerfully allow the Holy Ghost to lead us as to how far a conversation should go before we politely shut it down. With the help of the Lord, He will give us perfect directions on what to say and do in the Spirit, so that God is glorified, the person is edified, the enemy is terrified and the situation is rectified! Amen? Amen!

As a reminder, if you have not subscribed to BlenCouragesU.com, please do so! It’s free and a good place to get the encouragement, inspiration and information based the Word of God! Additionally, you can also see what we are up to on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Also, if you so inclined, join us Thursday nights––we are LIVE on YouTube 8:05EST/7:05CST. You can also listen in and subscribe to the podcast on Stitcher Radio , Google Play, and Apple Podcasts.

Thank you SO much for stopping by. God bless, keep and make His face to shine upon you as you #StayOnTheWall!

Love,

BCU

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Idle Words…

Hey there BCU Fam!

For this post, because of the informal format, please tune into the podcast recording (click here or on the BCU avatar below) and refer to the written post for the highlights. We pray the post blesses and encourages you. If so, please thumbs up AND leave a comment! Thank you and enjoy the post!

Podcast highlights:

  • I spoke with a friend about our relationships and the conversations we share.
  • We talked about how in a conversation, we “give and take” with our words.
  • It is our responsibility to ensure the words we give others are good, profitable, edifying and give God glory.

Scripture references

Proverbs 18:21
The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way.

Ecclesiastes 5:2

Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few.

Hebrews 11:3

Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

Matthew 12:33-37

33 Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit.

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

35 A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.

36 But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.

37 For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

James 1:19

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

Colossians 4:6

6 Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.

Ephesians 4:29

29 Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.

Psalm 19:14

Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer.

Ecclesiastes 3:7

7 A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

In our conversations, are our words building people up or leaving people in tatters?

BCUFam, with the help of the Lord, let’s be intentional about asking the Lord what to say so that our words we are a blessing to those we interact with. Sure, we may have to have a challenging conversation with someone, but that doesn’t mean evil communication has to be a part of that exchange. If we speak what God tells us to say, our responses will always be perfect. Amen? Amen!

As a reminder, if you have not subscribed to BlenCouragesU.com, please do so! It’s free and a good place to get the encouragement, inspiration and information based the Word of God! Additionally, you can also see what we are up to on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Also, if you so inclined, join us Thursday nights––we are LIVE on YouTube 8:05EST/7:05CST. You can also listen in and subscribe to the podcast on Stitcher Radio , Google Play, and Apple Podcasts.

Thank you SO much for stopping by. God bless, keep and make His face to shine upon you as you #StayOnTheWall!

Love,

BCU

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2016 Loopback | Our words: Do they hurt or heal?

Hey 👋🏾 there BCU Family!

As usual, you have the option of listening to our podcast (click the BCU avatar below to listen), reading the notes or BOTH. In any case, we pray the post blesses you. If so, please thumbs up or leave a comment! Thank you and enjoy your the post.

For the month of January, we’re taking a walk through some of the lessons God taught over 2016. Last week, consistency in the treatment of others our topic (you can click here to catch that podcast/post). This week, we’re focusing on “speech patterns or how we use our words. I would like to start with a story.

As a youngster, “Meche*” was blessed with scholastic ability beyond her peers and to the marvel and delight of many adults–well most of them. There was this one leader whom  Meche was assigned to, that had an issue with this child. This leader openly criticized Meche about the silliest things, creating feeling of inadequacy, fear of making errors, speaking up, worry and low-esteem.  Unbeknownst to anyone at the time, Leader ended up breaking her little spirit.

Of course, Meche moved on from the leader and seemed okay, but in the back of her mind, she always felt inadequate, ugly and invisible, so in her mind, she needed to overcompensate by becoming a people-pleaser, no matter what the cost, including time, money, illicit activity, giving gifts, etc. To that end, Meche attracted the wrong type of people into her life for decades. After having her heart ache one too many times, Meche, (who had repented and gotten baptized in Jesus name awhile back), decided it was time to give her heart to Jesus–and was filled with the Holy Ghost shortly thereafter and has been walking with Jesus ever since.

The story ended well, thank God! And yes, there were likely other factors that contributed to Meche’s issues over her lifetime. The fact remains that a person chose to deliberately and repeatedly verbally mistreat a child—and that choice negatively effected that child well into adulthood. We certainly praise God Meche got the healing and deliverance she needed in order to function properly–my question: Did that have to happen in the first place?

How do we speak to our “not so favorite” family members? What tone do we give the “ex”? Do we stop speaking for days or weeks to our spouses/loved ones when we do not agree? Do we label our kids with horrible names? How are we talking about the neighbor’s children? Do we retaliate intentionally and willfully? Verbally, pscyhologically or physically?  Or do we rebel or say things in our hearts? Under our breath?

We did a series a #SpeechTherapy series last year and part of what we learned is that our the need to cut someone with our words is really steeped in a spirit of pride. I John 2:16 says that all that’s in the world is the lust of the flesh, lust of the eye and the pride of life, and that DOES not come from God, so it comes from the enemy. Experience tells us that NOTHING good comes from Satan. Pride will tell you  to “lay your Holy Ghost on the shelf” (really?) while you let her have a piece of your mind”. Or that you are justified in speaking sharply to her because of what they did to you. Or “don’t be a punk, cuss them out, so they learn their lesson.”

We all get irritated, angry annoyed, disappointed, frazzled and offended. These things are a part of life and the emotions that accompany are real!  Where the power of the Holy-Ghost comes in,  we control what we say and HOW we say it, versus letting our emotions control us to a point where we end up breaking someone’s spirit.   Proverbs 12:18 says there are some that speak like the piercings of a sword but the tongue of the wise is health. In thinking back to last week’s lesson and how you’d like to be treated, which speech would you like? Swords or health?  Right, health it is. I’d like it, so I have to speak it.

BCU Fam this is TOUGH one today!!! Let’s ask the Lord to bless us to remain prayerful and in the Spirit when we have to converse with someone who was offended us in some way. Even if we have to be direct or explain a wrong, we can still speak so that God is glorified. Colossians 4:6 reminds us that our speech should always be with grace and seasoned with salt, that we may know how to answer everyone. Have you tasted  “graceless” unseasoned food? Was it palatable? Flavorful? Easy to go down? Most likely it was bland, tasteless and after a bite or two, you didn’t want it. See the correlation? It’s a challenge, but not impossible. Luke 1:37 says, with God nothing shall be impossible! and we can do ALL things through Christ that strengthens us! (Philippians 4:13). So now, with God’s help, let’s stock up the mind/heart with a healthy abundance of grace and salt. Amen? Amen!

As a reminder, if you have not subscribed to BlenCouragesU.com, please do so! It’s free and a good place to get the encouragement, inspiration and information based the Word of God! Additionally, you can also see what we are up to on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram! You can also listen in and subscribe to the podcast on Stitcher Radio , Google Play, and iTunes.

Thank you SO much for stopping by! God bless you, keep you and make His face to shine upon you as you #StayOnTheWall!

 

Love,

 

BCU

 

 

*Name has been changed and details omitted. Story retold with permission.

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Lessons from the 2016 Election! 🇱🇷

Hi there BCU Family!

As usual, you have the option of listening to our podcast (click the BCU avatar below to listen), reading the notes or BOTH. In any case, we pray the podcast blesses you. If so, please thumbs up or leave a comment! Thank you and enjoy your study!

With all of the kerfuffle about the 2016 Election in the United States this week, supporters and opponents of the two main candidates took to social media to let anyone who would read  know how they felt about the result. While there were some civil comments, many fired back retorts in retailiation, doom, angry words, name calling, jeers and cursing. And sadly, some of those responses were from people who say they are Christian, Holy-Ghost filled, baptized in Jesus name believers.

What does that look like to the people we are trying to win to Christ?

What must God be thinking about the people who are called by His name?

Sigh.

Yes, God is forgiving, understanding and allows us to feel and be emotional about things that are passionate to us–He made us to do so. The issue comes in when we practice letting the emotion CONTROL us to the point where we start walking in the flesh rather than in the Spirit. In fact, Galatians 5 says that the works of the flesh, in part, produce hatred, wrath, and strife–and on TOP of that they that do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God (see Galatians 5:16-21). That should be enough to encourage us to walk in the Spirit! I do know that it can be trying at times–and the Lord knows that too, which is why He gives us His Word to apply.

  1. Matthew 18:7 says offenses will come. In this life, we will either offend someone or or be offended by someone. While we don’t want to be “repeat offenders”,  with the help of God, when someone trespasses against us, we are commanded to go to the person to straighten out the matter, as well FORGIVE  seventy times seven times–in order words, LOSE COUNT, otherwise WE will not be forgiven. Matthew 18 tells us all about that.

  2. James 1:19 reminds us to be swift to hear, slow to speak and slow to wrath. Why? Because the [deep-seated, retaliating] wrath of man does NOT work the righteousness of God–that holy standard of behavior that is required from us (James 1:20).  As we strive to be more like Jesus, we understand that the Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and plenteous in mercy (Psalm 103:8). That means we need to be the same way.

  3. Do we have to get upset about EVERYTHING? No.  The discretion of a man defers his anger and it is his glory to pass over a transgression (Proverbs 19:11). Simply put, slow the anger down and learn when to overlook being offended.

  4.   Even when we do need to respond to someone, we can do it so God is glorified! Proverbs 15:28 says, the heart of the righteous studies [thinks carefully and with wisdom] about HOW to answer [wisely and appropriately], but the mouth of the wicked pours out EVIL things. When you think of something being poured out, it’s coming quickly, forcefully, and with little to no control or regard to who is around or the effects of the pouring. This is NOT the standard of holy living God has called us to!  BCU Fam, NOTHING evil should ever come pouring out of our mouths whether in verbal or written communication. Words are weapons and the scarring can be PERMANENT.

    Bottom line: You know, God’s eyes behold and His eyelids try the children of men (Psalms 11:4), so this election and the outcome  and our responses were truly a test for many of us, myself included. Depending on how you did on this or a similar test, do know that it will be administered again, not to torment  or frustrate us, but to help us to be more like Jesus and be prepared for His coming–it’s nearer than we think and we DO NOT want to miss the rapture! Let’s  commit the Word spoken here today to memory and action–and pass this exam with the help of the Lord!  Amen? Amen!

Well, BCU family this was a tough yet needful reminder! It’s imperative that we respond to offenses in a way that glorifies God and does not taint our witness.

We have to stop here–but no fear, there are other podcasts for you to enjoy on the  BlenCouragesU.com site that are available 24-7!  You can also see what we are up to on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram! You can also listen in and subscribe to the podcast on Stitcher Radio , Google Play, and iTunes.

Before you go, we’d LOVE to dialogue with you! We’ll make it easy to comment by asking you to please answer this question:

Which of the points resonated with you the most? 

As always, thank you for stopping by and may God bless, keep and make His face to shine upon you! #StayOnTheWall!

 

Love,

 

BCU

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