June 27, 2007
Hello everyone,
I pray that everyone is having a great day thus far. Either yesterday or a couple of days ago, I was listening to an online gospel radio station (onenationfm.com) and this lady was doing a segment on Asking God. She was talking about how we were not asking God properly for whatever it was in which we needed an answer (or whatever request we needed filled). Then she went on to say that most of us today would rather live in "Familiar Hells" than live in "Unknown Heavens" and I was like "WHOA!". That totally blew my mind but made me think.
Complacency. Yep, it can be a bad thing. A lot of the times a lot of us stay in the same rut doing the same thing because it's what we are use to doing which can be also a familiar hell. You'd rather keep doing what you're doing because it feels "right" to you even when you know it is wrong. In Amos 6:1-7, the prophet Amos gives warning to those who were complacent in Jerusalem.
(1) Woe to you who are complacent in Zion, and to you who feel secure on Mount Samaria, you notable men of the foremost nation, to whom the people of Israel come! (2) Go to Calneh and look at it; go from there to great Hamath, and then go down to Gath in Philistia. Are they better off than your two kingdoms? Is their land larger than yours? (3) You put off the evil day and bring near a reign of terror. (4) You lie on beds inlaid with ivory and lounge on your couches. You dine on choice lambs and fattened calves. (5) You strum away on your harps like David and improvise on musical instruments. (6) You drink wine by the bowlful and use the finest lotions, but you do not grieve over the ruin of Joseph. (7) Therefore you will be among the first to go into exile; your feasting and lounging will end.The folks in Jerusalem was basically eating high up on the hog. They didn't have a care in the world because they were fine with what they were doing. Why change when you had all what they had right? WRONG! If you read the full chapter of Amos 6 you will see the Lord very much dislikes this prideful complacency.
We are in relationships, on jobs, and hang with "so-called" friends that put you through hell every day. But, despite it all, we stick with it because think we love him/her, or that job is really what we wanted to do and it pays well, or my boys/girls ride or die with me. Yep, but they can ride with you straight to hell.
Proverbs 13:20-21 says,
"(20) He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm. (21) Misfortune pursues the sinner, but prosperity is the reward of the righteous."Ephesians 1:7-8 says,
"(7) In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace (8) that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding."
Philippians 4:19 says,
"And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus."All the many unknown heavens we'd rather not try because it's not customary for us to do so. Before I talked about Robert Frost's poem about "The Road Not Taken" and again I think is applicable here (if you've never read it before here is the link to it: http://www.bartleby.com/119/1.html). Are you living in that familiar area or are you willing to change for what God has for you?
Be blessed gang and I pray that you all have a happy hump day.
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Regards,
Antoine E. Hall
Blog: http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall
"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33
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