As of late, a minister friend of mine texted me to ask when I was going to send him another one of my writings. His encouragement is certainly appreciated, which gets me off the dime to get alone with God and allow my mind to retreat from the everyday comings and goings to see what nuggets He has for me.
I asked God, “What’s up there today?” I am referring to my brain and thought
process when He speaks to me. Suddenly,
a phrase came to mind, which is the title of this writing.
Honestly, I am amazed at the content that God enlightens me
with. These words are always connected to
building blocks to live by. The words
and thoughts that fill my head are not my own, because I know my personal viewpoints
can be skewed and a bit unreasonable at times.
He levels me out and blesses me with words that encourage my heart and
lifts me above the troubled events around me.
I would be remiss to not tell you what I think the building
blocks to live by are. They are found in
(Galatians 5:22,23). “But the fruit
of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness,” (23) “gentleness, self-control.
Against such there is no law.”
God softens my harshness and opinions to help me grasp that
which He is speaking. My negative prospectives
are set aside as I write what I am impressed to write.
The noise of worldly influences bombards me daily, but God somehow
encourages me to listen to my heart of flesh rather than a heart of stone. I can do this because of God’s grace. He is teaching me to step into the realm of creative
thinking with Him, not only to encourage self, but others as they read thoughts
for today.
Poignant moments sometimes flood my mind, which are memories
of past happenings when God intervened on my behalf—lessons not to be repeated
before I met the Lord. They give me
pause to thank Him for His longsuffering and mercy.
Some of my past behaviors were beyond reprehensible because I
was running in the opposite direction from God.
I wanted to live life without interference from Him or any other
authority figure for that matter. I was
a headstrong young man that believed I had all the answers. How foolish I was.
I do not live my life looking in the rearview mirror at past
mistakes, but as I remember the pain and heartache that buffeted me, these
memories help me to stay on course toward heaven, with the Holy Spirit as my
co-pilot.
There is no fear like fear itself. Worrying what tomorrow may bring was like a whirlpool
draining the very life out of me. When I
met Jesus, the Prince of Peace, fear, and self-condemnation of past sins took
flight as the Lord gave me building blocks to live by—His attributes. All things became new in Christ Jesus and the
old nature of my past lifestyle was replaced by building blocks that help me
stay true to my faith and Him.
(Philippians 4:13) “I can do all things through Christ
who strengthens me.”
(1 Peter 5:6,7) “Therefore humble yourselves under the
mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time,” (7) “casting all your
care upon Him, for He cares for you.”
God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit found permanent residence in
my heart when I asked God to forgive me of my sins. The Holy Spirit is teaching me, every day,
how to enjoy life without all the drama that living in sin brought.
Learning how to cast my cares upon Jesus, while allowing Him
to heal hurtful memories, enables me to walk circumspectly before God. I can look at my mirror image and know that
God is walking with me. If I stumble or
fall, He is there to pick me up, dust me off, and say, “I forgive you,” when I repent.
God wants us to walk in victory, not under clouds of despair and
regret. His desire is that we live an
abundant life through His Son, Jesus.
Having many years of construction background, I am well
acquainted with industrial, building blocks that are used to erect structural retaining
walls, buildings, and a host of other uses in the building industry.
Building blocks are usually laid on a firm foundation of
concrete that is reinforced with steel rebar.
It provides stability for the imposed load rather than erecting the
blocks on mere sand, gravel, or unstable ground.
A foundation of Godly principles and divine building blocks,
with Jesus as the cornerstone, are a must to have a healthy, spiritual growth
that enables joy to be ours in life and hope regarding the hereafter. This concept of erecting a spiritual edifice
that houses the Godhead is crucial for a successful life. It is as important, and more so, as building
a physical structure on an engineered designed footing or foundation.
Jesus is our rock; the firm foundation that we need so desperately. He is speaking in the following scriptures.
(Matthew 7:24-27) “Therefore whoever hears these
sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his
house on the rock,” (25) “and the rain descended, the floods came, and the
winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on
the rock.” (26) “But everyone who hears
these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who
built his house on the sand,” (27) “and the rain descended, the floods came,
and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”
We can build our life on a solid foundation of faith in God
or refuse His guidance and pridefully depend on self to bring about certain
goals and desires. The latter lacks
lasting satisfaction when achieved, whereas trusting God provides happiness and
peace of mind not only in the now, but a wonderful hope of eternal life in
heaven with Christ when we pass from this life.
“My way or the highway,” was the slogan I used to live by
before I met the Lord. I thought self-sufficiency
was all I needed to succeed in life. “If
I can’t do it, it can’t be done,” was my attitude.
Yes, I was successful in the eyes of those around me, but the
fact of the matter, I lacked true, lasting happiness. The glamor of this world could not satisfy
the deep longing and emptiness inside me.
Though I had money to buy the toys that are supposed to make a guy feel
good…self-indulgent living could not begin to give me peace of mind that I was
searching for.
I learned after giving my soul to the Lord that my body is a
temple of God. Step by step, the Holy
Spirit is teaching me how to place block upon block on the foundation of
Christ. The “new birth” event that I experienced
when I surrendered myself to God is a happening that changed the whole focus
and purpose of living on earth.
Building blocks to live by help us build a healthy, strong
spirit. They are the fruit of the spirit
working in us. (Galatians 5:22,23).
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