There are many biblical principles that are counter-intuitive, meaning that they are the opposite of what the typical person might think.

An example of this is written in Psalm 119:1, “Joyful are people of integrity, who follow the instructions of the Lord.”

I think your typical secular person would be more likely to think that doing what-ever you want, whenever you want, and making up your own rules, would be the way to a joyful life. But we see all around us how the bible version is actually correct.

Those folks you see around your church, involved in lots of activities, studying God’s word, and doing their best to live lives of integrity following Jesus’ example, are the happy, content people. In contrast, it is sad how often we see people with money and fame who have the ability and means to choose anything, try to live lives making their own rules and who end up with all kinds of problems and tragedies.

We need to remember that the morality and instruction that God gave us in the bible, and which he has put into our concienses is there to help us have good and joyful lives, like the instructions for operating ourselves.

Dear Lord thank you for giving us concienses and your word to guide us. Help us follow your instructions, and realize this is the way to a joyful life. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Exodus 20 tells the story of Moses receiving the Ten Commandments. There is an interesting passage in Exodus 20:4-6 the Second Commandment, “You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands.”

What I think is interesting is that God telling Moses, and the Israelites, and ultimately us, that our parent’s and grandparent’s actions can affect us, and our actions will affect our children, grand children, and beyond. This can either be a positive effect, or a negative effect.

This cycle, however, can be broken by being one who loves God and follows his direction. For those of us whose parents have set us on a solid Christian foundation, we have much for which to be thankful, others have the opportunity to be the one who establishes a foundation for those that follow.

Dear Lord Thank you for affirming our knowledge that your love is on those who love you and follow your direction. Help us remember that our actions can bring your love on those we love as well. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

It is very common in our human nature to dwell on our problems, we can describe in great detail how big the problem is, how long it has been going on, how it runs in our family, etc…..

One interesting thing about successful people is that they spend much more time, energy, and thought avoiding, ignoring, and overcoming their problems than thinking about the problem.

As Christians also, we need to spend more time and energy remembering how big and strong our God is rather than the size of our problems.

Deuteronomy 1:28-31 tells part of the story of the Israelites coming to the promised land, “What are we getting into? Our brothers who spied out the land have frightened us with their report. They say that the people of the land are tall and powerful, and that the walls of their cities rise high into the sky! They have even seen giants there—the descendants of the Anakim!’ The Lord God is your leader, and he will fight for you with his mighty miracles, just as you saw him do in Egypt. And you know how he has cared for you again and again here in the wilderness, just as a father cares for his child!’ But nothing I said did any good.“They refused to believe the Lord our God”

They put more faith in their obstacles than in God’s ability to support them where He was leading them.

We need to remember that the will of God will never lead us where the love of God will not support us.

Dear Lord, you are bigger than any obstacle we can ever face. Help us remember to believe that and put our focus on your power to support us rather than the obstacles we face. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Today in America we celebrate Thanksgiving, which officially became an national holiday in 1863 by decree of Abraham Lincoln. However, a day of Thanksgiving was established in 1789, as a proclamation by George Washington, first President of the United States, our country, which was established by Christians.

Here is the introduction to Washington’s proclamation.

“Whereas it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor; and—Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me “to recommend to the people of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:”

It is hard to even begin to list the things we have to be thankful for in America. God has truly blessed us, and as a nation of Christians, America has been an amazing blessing to the rest of the world as we share the love God gave us through Jesus Christ.

Psalm 100:4-5 says, “Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation.”

Let us remember, not just to be thankful, but to whom we are being thankful.

Dear Lord, You have showered blessings upon all of us. We live lives of comfort, convenience, and abundance. Help us remember to be thankful to you for these blessings, and use them to be a blessing to others. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

I was playing one of the Mario Brothers video games with my kids the other day, and if you haven’t played it, the basics, and that is the extent of my skill level, are; you move your character across the play area on the screen, or down the paths, and avoid obstacles and attacks along the way. There are a variety of controls and techniques to get a higher score, but as a novice, my kids showed me how to move around, and showed me the “bubble” button, for use if you are in a completely terrible situation. When you hit the “bubble” button, a bubble forms around your character, and you cannot be destroyed, you float to another part of the screen and you can exit from the bubble. I thought, “great remember that button”. The other thing I learned, early on, is that if you get too far off the path, you fall into oblivion, but as long as you have lives available, you return to the game in the bubble and can keep playing.

I started to think a little about how life as a Christian, has similarities to this game. We move around in our lives trying to follow the rules, or sometimes we don’t. When terrible things may happen, our “bubble” button is reaching out to God in prayer. If we do this in faith and trust in Him, he will never give us a temptation more than we can handle, as written in 1 Corinthians 10:13, “He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.”

When we get off the path God desires for us, we to can return to the game, restored. All we need to do is repent, and we will be returned to good standing with God. 1 John 1:9 says, “But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.”

Just like in the video game, it is much more fun when we stay on the right path, and use the defenses God has given us, faith, the bible, and fellowship with other Christians, rather than needing to be rescued from our own mistakes, or forgiveness from leaving the path, but God can save us from those things also.

Dear Lord, We know life is not quite as simple as the video games, but we know you are there for us always, to help us if we ask. Remind us of your presence, so that we may return to the right path, if necessary, and stay on the path you desire for us. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.