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Inspirational Article From
Joanne Lowe

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TOO MUCH TALK

“But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”

James 1: 22 - 27 King James Version

Last night I turned on the television and I listened to a candidate who is in the presidential race talking about everything that is wrong in our country and what needed to be done in our country. The candidate said that all these things should be done but never addressed the issue of how they were to be accomplished. There is too much talk in the world today and not enough action. We talk about forming committees to discuss ways of handling the economy and the war. Instead of doing all of this talking, we need to take action.

Jesus said, “If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain”. It is not enough to read our Bibles; we must put what we read into practice in our everyday lives. A lot of people have read the Bible through many times but have neglected to do what Jesus has commanded us to do.

One of things that we read over and over in the Bible is that we are to love one another as Jesus loves us. All too often, we fail in this area of our lives. Instead of just telling people about a loving Saviour, we must love each other unconditionally as Jesus loves us. We should live so that others will see the joy, peace and happiness that Jesus gives to us. Many times we go around with a frown on our faces and then we wonder why people don’t believe us when we say that Jesus gives joy and peace.

It’s no wonder that our children don’t want to go to church. It’s because in a lot of families, the children don’t see any difference at home after they go to church. They hear their parents singing and see them read the Bible in church but when they get home they hear their parents fighting and sometimes cursing one another. Some children have to watch as their parents hit each other. Instead of seeing happiness on their parent’s faces, they see sadness.

There is no such thing as a gloomy Christian. Yes, we will have problems and heartaches. Just because we are saved does not mean that we won’t have trials and crises in our lives; but it does mean that Jesus lives in our hearts and He will take us by our hands and walk with us through the valleys and set our feet back on the mountain tops if we will only trust Him and keep our hearts in tune with His heart. God blesses obedience and if we are living in disobedience then He won’t bless us.

It’s time that we stop talking about the difference Jesus makes in a person’s life and prove it by living victoriously so that others will see the difference He makes in a person’s heart. It is not enough to tell people that Jesus loves them. We must prove to them that Jesus loves them by our kindness to them. We have been commissioned by Jesus to spread His love to a lost, hurting and dying world and we need to start by spreading His love in our own families and in our own neighborhoods.

What condition is your heart in today? Is it filled with joy, peace and happiness? Do people see smiles on your face and hear His compassion, tenderness, understanding and forgiveness in your words? Are you just talking about the love of Jesus or are you showing the love of Jesus to all you meet?

Joanne Lowe
September 1, 2007

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