I Will Follow

Note: Please turn off my music playlist at the bottom of this page before starting the video.


"To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in His steps." 1 Peter 2:21
"If anyone obeys His Word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in Him: Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did." 1 John 2:5-6

Could I Be Called a Christian?

Note: Please turn off my music playlist at the bottom of this page before starting the video.


This is a serious song with a very important message.  Saying a "sinner's prayer" does not make us Christians; going to church (I don't even like using the word "church" for a building where believers gather because the Body of Christ is the Church) does not make us Christians.  We need to truly repent (turn away from a lifestyle of sins/worldliness 180 degrees with no turning back), be forever grateful for God's grace, believe and trust in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, walk by faith and in the Spirit/in the Light, treasure Christ above all else, abide in Him and bear fruit, seek & do God's Will, obey His Word, strive for holiness & Christlikeness, make it our goal to please, honor, and glorify Him, die to self and live for Him.  "Claiming" alone doesn't count!  Do we love the Lord your God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength?  Do we love our neighbors/others as ourselves?

"If we claim to have fellowship with Him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth." 1 John 1:6

"If anyone obeys His Word, God's love is truly made complete in Him. This is how we know we are in Him: Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did." 1 John 2:5-6

"Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in darkness.  Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble." 1 John 2:9-10

"Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him." 1 John 2:15

"No one who lives in Him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen Him or known Him...No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God. This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother." 1 John 3:6, 9-10

"Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness." Romans 8:8-10

"What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead." James 2:14-17

"We cannot choose whom we will love if we claim to be Christians." ~Anonymous

Previous Songs:
- Cry Out to Jesus
- Jesus, Be the Center
- God of Justice
- Love That Will Not Let Me Go
- I Will Offer Up My Life
- When It's All Been Said and Done
- Knowing You, Jesus
- In Christ Alone
- Be Thou My Vision

Fruit Bearer

When one of my friends invited me to sign up on Facebook a few years ago, I did not realize that people used their real names there.  I was so used to using my username on other websites/forums; therefore, I chose "Fruit Bearer" for my name on Facebook.  I have been asked if "Fruit Bearer" was my real name (some really thought Fruit was my first name and Bearer was my last name) :).  I got so tickled.  I explained to them that it referred to the passage in John 15.  I desire to always abide in Christ and bear much fruit.  I hope I have been and will always be a "Fruit Bearer."
 
"I am the Vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in Me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to My Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be My disciples. As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you. Now remain in My love. If you obey My commands, you will remain in My love, just as I have obeyed My Father's commands and remain in His love. I have told you this so that My joy may be in you and that My joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are My friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from My Father I have made known to you. You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit--fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in My name. This is My command: Love each other." John 15:5-17

Previous WFW:
- More Than Conquerors
- Where Does My Help Come From?
- Jubilant, Joy, and Judge
- Rooted in Love
- Who Daily Bears Our Burdens?
- Reflecting the Lord's Glory
- The Rock Eternal
- His Eye Is On The Sparrow

Kindness

Wouldn't this world be a lovely, warless place if everybody is kind to one another? Wouldn't families be a lot happier if everyone in the family is always kind to one another? Wouldn't the poor and needy no longer be in need if everybody shows kindness? Wouldn't conflicts and arguments be quickly resolved (or not even take place) if people always use kind words? 
"Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you." Ephesians 4:32

"Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else." 1 Thessalonians 5:15

"And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful." 2 Timothy 2:24

"He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God." Proverbs 14:31

"An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up." Proverbs 12:25

Why..oh why is it hard for us to be kind sometimes? Is it because...the other person is unkind/mean to us, it's inconvenient for us, we're too busy doing our own things, we don't get recognized/rewarded, we just don't feel like it (or we're in a bad mood), or perhaps people keep taking advantage of our kindness...?

Does God tell us to be kind only if/when 1. others are kind to us, 2. it's convenient for us, 3. we're not busy, 4. we get recognized/rewarded, 5. we feel like it, 6. people appreciate our kindness...? NO! He simply commanded us to be kind! The Good Samaritan is a wonderful example of kindness. Remember...Jesus said, "Go and do likewise." I'm so pleased and touched when my kids secretly do their siblings' chores without being told to, save the last piece of dessert or treat for their sibling, let their siblings go first, complimenting their siblings, comforting their siblings when they're sad/upset, etc. (kindness doesn't always come easily for my kids, but they're learning and trying :))

Kindness has no price tags. We shouldn't expect anything in return. Even if nobody has noticed, God does :). Doing what pleases God should be more than enough motivation for us. We are to be kind to others, not because they deserve it, but because it's the right thing to do. I have failed miserably time and time again. I only have myself to blame. Please pray for me. Thanks! I'm so glad and grateful that God is patient with me. His kindness towards us is immeasurable, in spite of what we do or don't do. I know I certainly don't deserve it.

In my opinion, kindness is...
Caring about others' feelings and considering others' needs and wants above our own
Offering help, support, sympathy, understanding, prayers, encouragement, and friendship
Obeying the Lord's commands: "Love your neighbor as yourself" and "Do to others what you would have them do to you"
Loving others in words and actions. Love is patient, love is kind.

Be kind...be cool! :)

"Speak kind words and you will hear kind echoes." Unknown

"Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless." Mother Teresa

"Learn to say kind things--nobody ever resents them." Unknown

"Can you ever remember a time when you regretted having said a kind word?" Unknown

"Hatred and anger are powerless when met with kindness." Unknown

"Speak your kind words soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late." Unknown

"I shall pass through this world but once. Any good therefore that I can do, or any kindness that I can show to any human being, let me do it now." Unknown

"Kindness is a language which the deaf man can hear and the blind man can read." Mark Twain

"One kind act will teach more love of God than a thousand sermons." Unknown

Kind hearts are the gardens,
Kind thoughts are the roots,
Kind words are the flowers,
Kind deeds are the fruits.

Take care of your garden
And keep out the weeds,
Fill it with sunshine
Kind words and kind deeds.

~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

My prayer today: Lord, please create in my heart the unselfish kindness, that I may serve You and others joyfully...that I may be sunshine in the lives of others...that I may reflect Christ accurately...In Jesus' name, I pray...Amen.

Please visit here for the links to other Spiritual Sundays posts.  Have a blessed week in the Lord, everyone!

P.S. You may also want to read a somewhat relevant post titled, Taming the Tongue.