Month: October 2017

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Water Under The Bridge

Water Under The Bridge

Water Under The Bridge

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!  (2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV).

Water Under The Bridge

“This is just water under the bridge.” If you can say this one day during trying times and mean it, know that you’ve achieved something that so many of us strive for. Forgiveness is a skill that takes time to learn and patience to practice when offering it upon others. That’s because the world isn’t always fair and gut-wrenching situations can’t immediately be solved with forgiveness. However, time heals all wounds and those who practice this trait will feel a lot better than walking around all day with a grudge hung around your neck like an albatross.  There are Biblical teachings on forgiveness that are beneficial for us all.

Ecclesiastes 7:20 tells us, “Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.”   I realize that that this passage may be of little consolation to those of us who are hurting

due to trespasses against us. In time however, we’ll understand that we’re not perfect and we could one day be in the position where we’re the one desperately seeking forgiveness.  In Luke 6:37, we see that this exact  predicament is addressed and resolved:  “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven.”  To the point of damage done to us, Matthew 6:15 has this to say: “But if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”

Forgiveness is a journey and a process and often takes time. If you are showing signs of increased criticism, negativity, and impatience, you are still on the journey.  It has been said that when we forgive someone the prisoner that we set free is ourself.  Unforgiveness also hurts our relations with others due to our sour disposition, depressed attitude, and tendency to easily be annoyed.  The hurt becomes water under the bridge when we achieve forgiveness.  We then release the other person from the debt and no longer desire payback for the offense. We acknowledge that the hurt is real and the relationship may be unable to be reconciled, but we also acknowledge that we are called to forgive others as Christ has forgiven us.

Prayer:  Dear God: Help us to forgive others as You have forgiven us. Whenever possible may we be reconciled with our brothers and sisters in Christ. Amen.

Meet the Author

Todd Shupe is a Men’s Ministry Specialist through the General Commission of United Methodist Men and is in training to be a Certified Lay Minister through the Louisiana Conference of the United Methodist Church. He currently serves as the President of the Baton Rouge District of United Methodist Men and is a Board Member for Gulf South Men and serves on the Action Team for The Kingdom Group. He is a volunteer for the Walk to Emmaus, Grace Camp, and Iron Sharpens Iron. Todd resides in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

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My Dream That Carried A Message From God

My Dream That Carried A Message From God

My Dream That Carried A Message From God

“In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams” (Acts 2:17 NIV).

I have lived 47 years and never felt that I had received a message from God.  I envied the people in the Bible that spoke to God either in person, through dreams or angels. I had decided that I was only going to hear God’s word through Godly friends, church, small groups, and reading the Bible.

I longed to hear God talk directly to me.  Several friends would tell me of dreams or hearing direction from God — but not me.  Two nights ago I heard from God for the first time.  He sent me a dream with people and symbolism that He knew I would understand and would alleviate any anxiety.

In the dream, I was on a bus sitting next to the late Dr. Elvin Choong, who has been deceased for over 10 years.  Elvin was my PhD adviser at Louisiana State University (LSU) and a dear friend and research collaborator for many years.  He was my father figure for many years.  There were many people on the bus, but I did not recognize them and the only person who spoke was me.  As we traveled down the road, we would periodically encounter some sort of road block (fallen trees or a car wreck) and the road would seem to be impassable.

The first time this happened, I told Elvin to stop and that there is no way to get through.   He continued at the same speed and we made it through fine. I have no idea how he did it — but he did.

We kept encountering roadblocks and he kept driving through.  The only thing that changed was my fear was lessened each time until finally I anticipated the road blocks with excitement – I wonder how we are going to get through this road block this time!

Now for my amateur dream interpretation: Elvin was my father figure for many years and he symbolized my heavenly Father.  He was in control; I wanted to do things my way at first but gradually came to trust in Him. I was sitting in the front in a leadership position, but I yielded all authority and leadership to Him. The people in the back represented people that count on me — not necessarily financially or emotionally, but in some aspect of life they count on me to smile when we meet, to be available when they need home repairs, to cut their grass when they go on vacation and to serve the church universal.

I am a leader of many but a follower of Jesus.  This dream gave me peace.  It showed me that God is in control. Life will always bring adversity but with God by your side, you can do all things.  I pray if you are struggling with fear, doubt, worry you will realize that God is with you and will never leave you or forsake you.

These are tools of the enemy to rob you of the joy that God has promised for you. Rebuke them in the name of Jesus.  Be blessed, be happy, be the child of God that He has called you to be.

Prayer:  Dear God, Thank you for sending dreams that bring a message of hope and peace. Be with us as we carry that message to others. Amen.

Meet the Author

Todd Shupe is a Men’s Ministry Specialist through the General Commission of United Methodist Men and is in training to be a Certified Lay Minister through the Louisiana Conference of the United Methodist Church. He currently serves as the President of the Baton Rouge District of United Methodist Men and is a Board Member for Gulf South Men and serves on the Action Team for The Kingdom Group. He is a volunteer for the Walk to Emmaus, Grace Camp, and Iron Sharpens Iron. Todd resides in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

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Thank you for visiting. We trust that you have enjoyed reading our articles.

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What Does The Bible Teach About Race Relations?

What Does The Bible Teach About Race Relations?

What Does The Bible Teach About Race Relations?

“And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation” (Acts 17:26 KJV).

What Does The Bible Teach About Race Relations?

We have had problems in this country with race relations for many years. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a landmark civil rights and federal labor law in the United States, which outlaws discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin. In recent years, untold news reports have documented the civil unrest in New York City, Los Angeles, Ferguson, Missouri; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Atlanta, Georgia and numerous other cities across our country. This unrest is often associated with police brutality against young black men or other young men of color.

What’s more, such instances have occurred repeatedly with seemingly no plan to curb them. If we turn to the Bible, however, it’s clear that such divisions were never intended by our creator. The

way we should treat each other as evidenced by scripture.

Any time one human dehumanizes another through racism, sexism, ageism, religion or more, it breaks my heart. There is truly one race of people — the human race. Throughout history, the enemy has used his weapons of fear, jealousy and greed to develop hatred and mistrust of the races.

St. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 12:12, “There is one body, but it has many parts. But all its many parts make up one body.” Acts 17:26 tells us, “From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth.” In other translations, the wording is “from one blood.”

We are all children of God and we all seek to enter His kingdom through the narrow gate. We are all commanded to love and respect one another. A Christian seeks to be a disciple and a disciple is known by their actions.  “By this, everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” Be blessed!

Prayer: Dear God, Help us to follow your example and look at the heart and not the outward appearance of our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Meet the Author

Todd Shupe is a Men’s Ministry Specialist through the General Commission of United Methodist Men and is in training to be a Certified Lay Minister through the Louisiana Conference of the United Methodist Church. He currently serves as the President of the Baton Rouge District of United Methodist Men and is a Board Member for Gulf South Men and serves on the Action Team for The Kingdom Group. He is a volunteer for the Walk to Emmaus, Grace Camp, and Iron Sharpens Iron. Todd resides in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

We welcome your comments below.

Thank you for visiting. We trust that you have enjoyed reading our articles.