Trust God and
Live a Good Life
Psalm 37:3-8, 39-40
Dr. D. Marie Battle, Associate Minister
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Happy Mission Sunday
The word mission originated from the society of Jesus in the year 1598 and it means “to send.” The great commission given by Jesus to the Apostles in Matthew 28:19 was to send the disciples to all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father
and Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything He had taught them to do.
In our dark world today, Jesus is calling us as Christians to sharpen our faith and trust and to set in place an action plan to help us survive during this unprecedented time. We see our nation divided, broken and fragmented. We are divided ethnically, religiously, politically, morally, as well as by class and income. I believe as Christians, we can use the Word of God to improve this condition. As Christians,
we must and can come together and meet the challenges of our broken nation.
And the question becomes how?
As each of you know, my message is always centered around, “How To Live.”
I take the scriptures and actually put into practice the direction that God has given us. One way to improve our condition is to create an environment of spiritual energy. Here is what has come to me: God has everything but our love. He wants us to love Him. So, we are going to put Him first every morning. We will build an atmosphere of spiritual energy. Jesus said: the greatest commandment is to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. And we are going to repeat that commandment over and over and over and over until we feel this truth in our spirit!
Hopefully, those of you who have the time will join me. But for whatever time you have, will you repeat: “Lord, I love you with all my heart, soul mind and strength.” Speak from your heart and not your head. Just think, if everyone who is tuned in right now in radioland (which could mean thousands) is reciting these words right now, imagine the great spiritual energy we are creating and the blessings this will bring to our community and world! Just think, if everyone commits to reciting and repeating these words for one hour every morning.
Set up a place where you have a picture of Jesus and place your Bible there. Open
it to Deuteronomy 30, verses 11-20: the offer of life and death.
Now, what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, “Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?" Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, “Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?" No, the WORD is near you; it is in your MOUTH and in your HEART so you may obey it. For I command you today to love the Lord your God.
A voice said to me, “I made you in my likeness and image; I gave you the power to create." So, remember, whatever we say, do or think we are creating the very thing we are saying. (Repeat, we are made in the likeness and image of God…Just read the scripture. God is speaking.
Now you have heard the statement before, and I want to repeat this truth. The members of the church take over the world by thoughts and deeds. Every thought you think will either be done in obedience to God or disobedience to God. Now, you understand why we have Covid-19 and all the variants because of man’s negative thoughts of crime, killings ,cheating, stealing, lying - all this garbage is filling the air ways and making us all sick. This can and will stop now because you and I will fill the air with our love of God. Love!!! Hallelujah!
I just had to address the conditions of today!
Consider what it means to begin your day acknowledging
you love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.
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Trust God and Live a Good Life Psalm 37:3-8, 39-40
Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. 4Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. 5Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: 6He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun. 7Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes. 8Refrain from anger and turn from wrath do not fret—it leads only to evil.
39The salvation of the righteous comes from the Lord; he is their stronghold in time of trouble.40The Lord helps them and delivers them; he delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in him.
There is an old Baptist hymn that goes, “Trust and obey for there is no other way to be happy with Jesus but to trust and obey.”
Dear ones, we stand at the crossroads of life, and we have already decided. Trust God and live a good life. This is a continuation of saving ourselves and our planet. We cannot give up or give in. Today’s message is a message of HOPE!
You see, where there is no hope, there is no vision. The Bible says, “where there is no vision, the people perish.” (Proverbs 29:18)
What does the Bible say about trust?
Numbers 23:19: God is not man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that He should change his mind.
Malachi 3:6 I: “the Lord does not change.”
James 1:17: Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.
Hebrews 6:17-18: Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, He confirmed with an oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be encouraged.
Here we find in the Word of God confirmation that God cannot lie, neither does He change His mind. This means that we can believe everything He has said. We can rely on every promise. Trusting God is not a feeling, it is a commitment to have faith in what He says.
Consider what it means to read the Bible and trust what the Lord says.
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When you make up your mind to walk in the footsteps of Jesus, the devil is right there to place roadblocks to prevent you. Trying to change your behavior is challenging. It requires the right conditioning. “Lord, I love you with all my heart, soul mind and strength.” By reciting this mantra morning and evening, we can train ourselves to perform any task within the limits of our physical capabilities.
Let us think of God as a gardener, Christ the seed. With Christ in you, you will grow to be like Him.
This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are. Anyone who does not want to do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother.
I realize that these suggestions may not be receptive to all persons based on certain cognition, emotions, and moods. However, everyone can benefit. Just choose what will work for you.
Take a moment to check yourself before reacting, it will help you to react in a more compassionate and kinder way.
Consider what it means to have a biblical mantra that you
recite to remind you that you can trust God.
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Wednesday, August 3, 2022 |
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So let us see what living a good life looks like. It is a life of prayer – your total surrender to God. Your life becomes a mirror of kindness, compassion, love and support. You make God first in your life every morning. It is a decision of your will.
It is what you choose to do with your life. It is your conduct, living according to God’s commandments; separate from the ways of the world, living a lifestyle that puts God first. Love and keep His commandments. Love God with all your mind, heart, soul and strength. Have a lifestyle of thankfulness, obedience, and rejoicing. Serve others – study the Bible – share God’s Word – resist temptation – do not put a lot of value on material things.
You will build habits of power.
Mark 1:35-37: Jesus Prays in a Solitary Place
35Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. 36 Simon and his companions went to look for him, 37 and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!”
May I suggest that you set up an altar and go there to pray every day. When you pray with your whole heart, your attention stays on Jesus, you are building spiritual energy. After a while, you feel an awesome calm of abiding joy and uplifting power when you go to your altar to pray. You feel that you must help someone or serve others. You feel at peace and in love with the universe
Psalm 103:19 The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules overall.
Meditation – keep your attention on the presence of Jesus. Spiritualize your favorite Bible verse. Repeat it over and over until you feel the essence or spirit of the words. What you are doing is sculpting your brain.
Consider what it means to focus your thoughts
completely on trusting the Lord.
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Deuteronomy 27:10 Obey the LORD your God and follow his commands and decrees that I give you today.
Ephesians 5:18 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light.
Be filled with the Holy Spirit – you will feel God’s presence in everyone!
Luke 6:38 Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
Have a giving spirit. You want to help others! This brings a smile from God.
My personal thought: Giving is living.
Being holy begins inside your heart not your head.
Consider what it means to be holy and set apart to mirror God
through you life’s activities and behavior.
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We find in First Peter 1:13, Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
This is a call for all the people to live a life of holiness. It means to live a life that is set apart, reserved to give glory to God. It is a life of discipline, focus and attention to matters of righteous living.
I am sure all of you have heard of Mother Teresa. I often think of this modern saint, St. Teresa. She lived a life of service to the poor. She was the greatest humanitarian of the twentieth century. She died in 1997, at 87 years of age. Pope Francis gave the eulogy. He spoke of her life of service to the poor. He stated, “she was a generous dispenser of divine mercy, making herself available for everyone through her welcome and defense of human life, those unborn, and those abandoned and discarded. She bowed down before those who were left to die on the side of the road. Seeing in them their God-given dignity. She made her voice heard before the powers of the world, so that they might recognize their guilt for the crime of poverty they created."
The Pope asked the faithful to follow her example and practice compassion.
Mercy was the salt that gave flavor to her work. It was the light which shown in the darkness of the many who no longer had tears to shed for their poverty and suffering. May she be your model of holiness.
When Mother Teresa was asked to give a summary of her life, she said:
...by blood, I am Albanian, by citizenship I am Indian,
by faith I am a Catholic nun, as to my calling I belong to the world,
as to my heart I belong entirely to the heart of Jesus Christ.
What a great humanitarian she was. She is now a Saint. She exemplifies a praying child of God.
I believe everyone will agree that the purpose of life is to find happiness. When you find Jesus, you will have found God. God is happiness. He is love; He is joy that will never go away. You will not be bothered with all the ills and corruption of this world. I think this story will give you a more vivid picture of the result of living a good life.
You will have a Teflon mentality.
Consider the way Mother described her life and calling.
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Consider how you would describe your life
as to your ethnicity, citizenship, faith, calling, and heart.
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2412 Griffith Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90011
Phone: (213) 748-0318
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