HillThread ~ Supporting Missions

2 Peter 1:5-9
“So don’t lose a minute in building on what you’ve been given, complementing your basic faith with good character, spiritual understanding, alert discipline, passionate patience, reverent wonder, warm friendliness, and generous love, each dimension fitting into and developing the others. With these qualities active and growing in your lives, no grass will grow under your feet, no day will pass without its reward as you mature in your experience of our Lord Jesus. Without these qualities you can’t see what’s right before you, oblivious that your old sinful life has been wiped off the books.”

Learning to control your impulsive reactions instead of “mouthing off” with the first thing that pops into your head takes great restraint: “Patience is better than strength.  Controlling your temper is better than capturing a city.  (Proverbs 16:32)  Learn to respond with wisdom, instead of reacting with anger.  The difference between responding and reacting is subtle, but crucial.

For instance, if your boss fires you and your first reaction is to take a swing at him, take 10, go for a walk, and realize you have a better long-term options than getting an assault charge.  If you can rely on God to keep your head above water during the flood, you might be able to negotiate severance pay, a letter of recommendation, or even a referral for your next job.  And if you want to be a learner instead of a loser, find out why it happened and what you need to do different next time.  Take the time to learn ad make the necessary changes.  There’s wisdom in every crisis – ask God for His wisdom, even if the situation makes you feel like your world is falling apart.  Be patient and remember that faith in our Savior is the bridge that will take you from where you are right now to where you need to be.

Don’t overreact to a crisis.  Instead, trust that God is working on angles you haven’t even considered:  ”13 Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s goodness while I am here in the land of the living.  14 Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous.  Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.”

Exercise self control in any crisis by learning to see beyond the eclipse of the present situation.  The sun will shine gain.  God has promised it, so you can count on it!

Deuteronomy 32:1-4
1 Pay attention, heavens, and I will speak;
listen, earth, to the words of my mouth.
2 Let my teaching fall like rain
and my word settle like dew,
like gentle rain on new grass
and showers on tender plants.
3 For I will proclaim the LORD’s name.
Declare the greatness of our God!
4 The Rock-His work is perfect;
all His ways are entirely just.
A faithful God, without prejudice,
He is righteous and true.
1 Samuel 2:1-2
1 Hannah prayed:
My heart rejoices in the LORD;
my horn is lifted up by the LORD.
My mouth boasts over my enemies,
because I rejoice in Your salvation.
2 There is no one holy like the LORD.
There is no one besides You!
And there is no rock like our God.
Psalm 18:2-3
2 The LORD is my rock,
my fortress, and my deliverer,
my God, my mountain where I seek refuge,
my shield and the horn of my salvation,
my stronghold.
3 I called to the LORD, who is worthy of praise,
and I was saved from my enemies.

Related Text:
Deuteronomy 32
2 Samuel 22
Psalm 62
Romans 9:30-33
1 Corinthians 10:1-4
1 Peter 2:1-8

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In the New Testament, Jesus is also referred to as the Rock.
Check out 1 Peter 2:4-8 -

4As you come to him, the living Stone-rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him- 5you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6For in Scripture it says:
“See, I lay a stone in Zion,
a chosen and precious cornerstone,
and the one who trusts in him
will never be put to shame.” 7Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe,
“The stone the builders rejected
has become the capstone,” 8and,
“A stone that causes men to stumble
and a rock that makes them fall.” They stumble because they disobey the message-which is also what they were destined for.”

If it just got WAY too confusing, read it again. This time, read it and pick out the names used to represent Jesus and the names that represent us. (Here’s a tip to get you started, Jesus = the living Stone and cornerstone, We = like living stones)

If God’s teaching is falling down like rain, then I want to be outside playing in His rain. Forget the umbrella . . .ella . . .ella!! I want to soak it up, I want to let my fingers get all wrinkly, I want to super jump on the wet trampoline!

I would like to send out a big Thank You to Pete at Bible Money Matters for allowing me to guest post an article about missions yesterday on his website www.biblemoneymatters.com.  Here’s a short summary about Pete’s passion . . .

“Hi, I’m Pete, and Bible Money Matters is my faith and finance blog where I’ll be chronicling my wife and my path towards becoming financially independent.

As of a year or two ago we were blessed to be able to become debt-free except the mortgage.  We love being debt free, and like to live by this verse:

The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender. Proverbs 22:7

We don’t ever want to be servant to the lender again.   We are now working our way towards building a nice nest egg for our future, and hope you’ll join us on that journey.

Bible Money Matters was launched around the 1st of February 2008 as a place for me to put down my thoughts on matters of my Christian faith and how it affects my finances.  Many people believe that faith and finances should be wholly separate, but I believe they are inextricably bound.  The bible has over 2300 verses on money, and it is clear to me that our money needs to be informed by our faith.”

Want to learn a little more about Pete and Bible Money Matters?  Read these interviews he did with some other blogs!

• Lending Club Blog: Interview Part 1 and Part 2
• Studenomics.com: Personal Finance Blogger Interview
• Ask Mr. Credit Card Interview: Interview With Peter Anderson
• Interview with TheDebtHawk.com: Interview with Peter from Bible Money Matters