RickWarren

Romans 8:18

I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth being compared with the glory that is about to be revealed to us and in us and for us and conferred on us!

Life is so tough at times. Sometimes it seems that one things goes wrong after another. Our friends can be unkind and we can sometimes feel so lonely - but Paul says these things are only small things. Paul himself suffered tremendously. He was whipped, shipwrecked, plotted against, went without anything cold and destitute travelling from town to town, he was nearly killed several times, stoned (not with drugs but people throwing stones/rocks at him), left hungry and put in prison several times - yet he seems to say these things are  nothing.

He isn’t saying  they are nothing or belittling anything we are going through but what he is saying is although these may feel big - put them against the glory of God and see how small they seem in comparison. Have you ever seen the earth pictured against the planet Betelgeuse (pronounced Beetlejuice)? If you see it - you will get the idea. If only we could get our eyes off this world and see the reality of the glory that is to come. It will be an eternity of glory and wonder, greatness and beauty. If only we could look up from our problems and see the glory that is going to be revealed then our small lifetime of problems will seem so small.

 RickWarren

I dare you to dream great dreams for God’s glory. It doesn’t cost anything to dream. Eph.3:20

    
Everything about Betelgeuse is supersize. More than 900 times the Sun’s diameter, this star would comfortably engulf the entirety of Mars’s orbit and the asteroid belt. It also outshines the Sun by 135,000 times — a dazzling 1st-magnitude beacon despite its distance of some 640 light-years.

Romans 8:14

All who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God

We are no longer slaves, servants, mastered over, separate - we are not even just companions or close friends - we are now part of God’s family. I have been thinking about what is like when families meet up at Christmas time.  The feel of warmth, friendship, fun and togetherness many families feel. I imagined what it would be like in heaven if their was a Christmas celebration and my thoughts were astounded by the feeling of being part of a family that we don’t deserve to be part of.

We were so bad and selfish, wanting our own delights and turning our back on God and others - but he chose us and adopted us. He paid the price for us that was way too expensive for us to pay so that we could join his family - even the death of his only Son. We are welcome at his home, we are loved by the King, we are welcome to share in what Is his and we are party to his plans and dreams . God loves us as his own, cares for us as part of his family, is always giving to us  and blessing us, wants the best for us now and in the future, desires for us to love our other brothers, wants us to be part of the family business, wants to train, nurture and bring us up into full maturity.

It is amazing that the God of heaven and earth would want to adopt us!!

BBC radio1 are having a special focus on anti bullying called bully proof.  This web site has some really cool ideas about tips on how to react, standing tall and feeling good, how to prevent cyber bullying, phone numbers to ring if you are under pressure because of bullying and many other ideas.

The link is here.

Find you a bit short coming up to Christmas? Need help to make your dosh go further?

Well I have a great site for you that has some top tips to help you make wise choices with your dough. God asks us to be wise stewards with all he gives us. Wise living gives us peace of mind and the freedom to be generous. In contrast to that debt cripples and causes many sleepless nights - at its worst some people find suicide is a favourable option to take. Be godly and wise with your finances and take top tips from those in the know.

I have added it as a permanent link under cool teen sites but if you click here you will be magically transported there!!

‘For all those who are led by the Spirit of God are Sons of God’  Romans 8:14

We are born of the flesh. We know how to eat, sleep, cry, walk, jump and do other bodily functions! How great is it that we who have believed, confessed  and follow Jesus are born of the Spirit of God. If you were not born into a body of flesh could you see the sunset with your eyes? Hear your mother calling you for tea? Do a forward roll? Pick your nose? Balance across the edge of the pavement? No - so how do those who are not born of the Spirit expect to hear God? Understand his desires? Move in power? See the kingdom of heaven?

BUT to us who follow where the Spirit is going we can do all these things as naturally as eating, jumping and walking.  Our life is one of following everyday and seeing what the Holy Spirit would have us do. We are Holy Spirit people - Sons of God- what a privilege! Lets allow ourselves to be led.

Do you remember Susan Boyle from Britains Got Talent? I heard her song on the radio recently and it stopped me in my tracks

To see fly by of the nurseryclick here

Romans 8:4

So that the righteous and just requirement of the law might be fully met in us who live and move not in the ways of the flesh but in the ways of the Sprit (our lives governed not by the standards and according to the dictates for the flesh, but controlled by the Holy Spirit’

How well are you doing? Are you successful? Do you achieved your goals?  - the answer to these questions will depend on how you are defining doing well. Do you measure your success by grades, friendships, amount done, money earned, people impressed or happiness gained? How do assess or measure you life’s worth?

This verse says that the standards that others use to measure their  ideals, achievements, understandings and the reasons behind their  goals and aims are not ours any more. It is like a whole change to metric, from feet to inches. Once we measured our day by things done, but now we flow by the Holy Spirit and he owns our time.

No longer are we to be dictated to by the flesh - our own desires and pride. We are not to feel the pressure to fit in, to follow the norm, to go along with - we are to be those full of the Spirit. The pressure inside us is to be greater than the forces and dictates on the outside of us.

‘but those who are according to the Spirit and are controlled by the desires of the Sprit set their minds on and seek those things which gratify the Holy Sprit’ Romans 8:5

Those who want to live controlled by the Spirit set their minds on and seek godly things. It has nothing to do with the emotions, nothing to do with gritting teeth, but everything to do with thought, vision and deep desires. The mind controls the direction of our lives. The mind is powerful - our thoughts causing us to succeed or fail. The mind does not have power over us - but we are to set its course and control its desires. We are to set our minds - just as one would set the clock to the right time- and  align ourselves up with the truth revealed in God’s book. Just as you set your clocks back to fit in with Autumn time, set your mind to think the same as Christ.

‘The mind of the flesh is sense and reason without the Holy Spirit’ v6 Where fleshly thoughts may make a lot of sense they lack faith and hope. Flesh thoughts are about our own living in our small box, Holy Spirit thoughts are about Gods desires in the expanse of eternity.  There is always a sense of courage and adventure with Holy Spirit thoughts. There is faith and trust for those whose minds are set on Christ. The mind of those directed by the Spirit is ‘life and peace’ v6

It isn’t that we understand it all and have every question answered - but that we enjoy thinking God thoughts, day dream God ideas, plan our God plans and enjoy just thinking about his revealed truths.

Beautiful young people are accidents of nature, but beautiful old people are works of art.

Adage

‘the shack of this body of death’ Romans 7:24

Look Good Naked? Body Beautiful? Sometimes it is easy to get caught up with the ideals of the world. Beautiful bodies,  clothes to flatter, food to satisfy, feelings to wow us, lustful hearts, hours sleeping in and work not done -  all to satisfy the crying out of the flesh - the body. We are fools to listen to demands of our own flesh. The body is nothing but a shack. If our garden shed cried out for attention  asking us to spend time on it, money on it and  live for it we wouldn’t listen (alright just imagine sheds can talk!!) Well just as foolish are we when we listen to the cries of this shack we are living in.

One day this shed of ours that we live in (called our body) will have to be left behind and the spirit within set free. The time spent on body or spirit - building it up, satisfying its desires, training and pruning it - will be obvious on this day as the quality of your spirit is revealed.

consider your selves also dead to sin and your relation to it broken, but alive to God [living in unbroken fellowship with Him]Romans 6:10

Our relationship with sin is finished. We do not have to talk with it, look at it, hear it ringing us, texting us, calling us, listen to its whining or its accusations - no relationship with it at all. It may tantrum because we pay it no attention - but we can totally ignore it. If sin calls we can say that we are not playing. If sin whispers we can turn our heads and walk away - it no longer has any power over us whatsoever.

On the other hand our relationship with God has never been stronger. We are totally alive to him- every heart beat, every pulsating rush of our blood, every muscle contraction  is in God. He has a spark in our Spirits, a spring in our step, a warmth in our soul - we are alive in him. He is our strength, our song and our life. He is with us every moment, for us everyday, holding us every hard time and stretching us when we are most ready. He has a relationship with us that can never be broken and the only thing that can hinder it is our turning, ignoring or walking away.