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In life there are some principles that are always right, love one another is
one of them. An unloving spirit has no place in God’s Kingdom. Are we loving
people? Do we really care about the lives of others? Do we love others the
way Jesus loved us? Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus
Christ.
Racing is a pressure packed sport. There are many things said and done in
the heat of competition that, when given a chance to think about, we may
very well have responded differently. We have seen it in many races where a
driver’s true character showed itself and he takes it out on another driver.
It is ugly.
What happens when we are no longer able to control ourselves? Our true
character shows itself. Sometimes it gets very ugly. The type of person we
are inside, given time, will show itself. We all have evil in us. But the
difference Christ makes is that he can help us change from the person we are
to the person we need to be. These instructions when prayerfully considered
will change our life. We will be conformed to the image of God. When God
promises us an abundant life He will help us learn how to receive it.
Colossians 3: 12-17;
Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves
with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each
other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another.
Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love,
which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule
in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And
be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and
admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and
spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do,
whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving
thanks to God the Father through him.
The instruction we receive deals with
our character, in other words, what goes through our heart and head. Our
character dictates what comes out of our mouth and the way we behave. True
character is said to show up when no one is looking. How do we behave when
we do not think anyone is watching? How do we behave under pressure?
Listen to what these verses say; And over all these virtues put on love,
which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule
in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And
be thankful.
“All these” refers to the character traits revealed in these verses;
compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forbearing and
forgiveness. To these add love, peace and thankfulness. Let me point out
again that all of these traits start inside a person not outside. Our true
character will be revealed when we face the stress of daily living.
Jesus said; Mark 7:20-23,
"What comes out of a man is what makes him `unclean.'
For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality,
theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit,
lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from
inside and make a man `unclean.' "
We must overcome these desires and
replace them with the character of Christ. It doesn’t happen overnight, it
is a process. We first need to submit to the process of change, pray for God
to guide and change us. Then we must replace our old way of doing things
with the new way God teaches us.
Let’s look at the three of these character traits we have read. First,
Love; being loving means caring about others more than you care about
yourself. It indicates a priority for our life. We need to make the decision
in our heart to love others, put others first. When we do that we put their
wants and needs above our own. Love is pretty complex and we don’t have time
to cover every aspect of it here. We can sum it up like this,
John 15:13, Greater
love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.
Peace and thanksgiving go together. When
we are truly thankful about all that God has provided for us we are at peace
and know that He will continue to provide for our needs. Knowing what God
has done for us gives us the trust and faith to know He will continue.
Knowing God provides for us gives us a peace that passes understanding in
our spirit. The circumstances of our lives do not matter because we know God
has a plan, His plan is good and His plan will provide for our needs. We can
be thankful for what He has done and be at peace knowing He is faithful and
will continue.
Romans 8:28 says; And
we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him,
who have been called according to his purpose.
Do we love God? Have we submitted our
life to His purpose? Have we put the needs of others ahead of our own? If we
have, be at peace, thank God for what he has done and trust in Him that He
will continue to provide for us.
This list of character traits is a challenging one. We cannot change our
lives to reflect these qualities without the Holy Spirit working in our
hearts. We need to reflect the character of Jesus Christ. Pray this week as
we continue to study this list that the Spirit would guide us to a new
understanding of the changes that need to be made. God is true and faithful
and He will help us become the person He wants us to be.
WORLD DIRT FINALS - Want to help out with one of our largest
events of the year? We’ll be having chaplains serve at The Dirt Track at
Charlotte for the One Dirt World Short Track Championship and the following
weekend for the World of Outlaws World Finals. We need just 30 people to
make a one time $20 donation. Help us support the great racing community!
Donate at http://www.rwjm.com/donate
Until next time, remember God loves you and Jesus is Lord over Auto
Racing! God Bless. Remember, that your prayerful support helps us continue
this ministry. Thank You.
Be a witness for our Lord with the ministry decals and
apparel. See them at the Show Your Faith Apparel Store at
www.rwjm.com. Send us
your prayer and counseling needs no matter what part of our racing family
you are in, or give us a call. Remember that God loves you, we love you and
Jesus is Lord over Auto Racing. GOD BLESS.
 Mail reaches us at Racing with Jesus Ministries, PO Box 586,
Tolland, CT 06084.
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Numbers 6:24-26 "The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord
make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you;
the Lord turn his face
toward you and give you peace."
May God always Bless you, everyday in everyway. Rev. Don
SHARE YOUR SPECIAL OCCASIONS WITH YOUR RACING FAMILY.
SEND THEM TO:
RACING WITH JESUS MINISTRIES
PO Box 586
Tolland, CT, 06084
TheChromeHorn RWJM Archives
Racing With Jesus Ministries Website
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