Well, Marla is at it again with another read-along. God was faithful with the last one so I couldn’t turn this one down. And honestly, I need some accountability to stay in the Word.
James 1 is no joke. You could spend your whole Christian life in this one chapter and always be both encouraged and challenged.
I was specifically encouraged by two verses and then challenged by 3 more. Let me share.
Encouraged
James 1:2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, when you face trials of many kinds
How can you not be encouraged by this verse? Like everyone, we’ve been facing trials of our own. Many personal, others somewhat public like Emma’s start to school. What a great reminder that these things are doing a work within us. Even things that Satan means for harm can be used to make us more like Christ if we turn to him in these trials. And not for him to magically make them disappear but to learn to persevere through them.
James 1:5 If you don’t know what you’re doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help. (The Message)
I love the way The Message words this verse. And how many times lately have I just prayed, “God, I have no idea what I’m doing! You have to help!” It’s true. We have to remember to go to HIM for that wisdom and direction. He is just waiting to give his wisdom but we have to ask for it in faith.
Challenged
James 1:19 Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.
This has been on my prayer list for weeks. I need help controlling my tongue. Period.
James 1:22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.
I think those of us, particularly in the blog world might struggle with this. How often do we read or listen to posts or messages about Christ and yet fail to actually live them out? We are DECEIVED if our life does not look like the word.
James 1:27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
Marla pointed out in her post that these are the two spectrums of people..the socially aware liberal and the law-loving right-winger. We are responsible to be BOTH. But what struck me reading it is that phrase “polluted by the world”. What is the world? How do I become polluted by it? How do I be a part of it without being polluted? There are lots of questions for me here.
I’ll be honest and say one area I’ve been challenged by the past year is TV. Is that considered “the world”? All of it? Some of it? Just my penchant for addiction to it? I have stayed away happily from TV this summer. Should I continue through the fall? Or to what extent? All I can say is God definitely is pricking me in this area and I’m searching for the right balance for me. And trust me, I believe that it is different for all of us.
Whew, see? That is enough to keep me going for quite a while. Make sure to hop over to Marla’s and read the rest of the linked up posts.
Definitely encouraging and challenging! I’m glad you shared your thoughts and questions! I feel the older I get the more questions I have and find there are no immediate answers. Thank you for sharing!
For crying out loud. Stomp on my toes, why don’t ya? This is great, Amy. I love how you packed so much punch in such succinct thoughts. I love James 1:5 in the MSG too–it’s perfect. And as for TV… very, very tricky. God has convicted me big-time, and I have to be super-careful not to judge or impose my convictions on others (legalism!). I love that he’s moving in your heart though–would love to hear what he says. Sisterhood of the Traveling Television, anyone? 😉
I like you a lot, girl. Thanks for joining us!
Aw, I like you a lot too, Marla! Thanks for visiting and hosting the read-along!
i’ve been praying the “I can’t do this God. If you want it to be done you’ve gotta step up” prayer more and more often these days. Not sure why I’m still surprised when he does step up.
as for TV, my husband would never agree to giving it up. we did, however, give up cable for the $$$ savings. now we watch most everything via netflix and hulu. its amazing how much more content i am with my “stuff” now that i’m not comparing it to those homes on HGTV or my wardrobe to the “what not to wear” people. not to mention all those ads!
I reduced our cable package to the bare minimum but Scott had me go back up 1 level so he could have Fox News. I gave up What Not to Wear and HGTV a long time ago. Not because I saw anything bad with it but I just didn’t have time anymore. We’ll see with all the new seasons starting how it goes.
we have to have high speed internet for hubby’s home business, so he streams all those news channels on his laptop. i’m also thankful to be away from all that doom and gloom!
you’re right, the home and fashion shows aren’t inherently wrong. but definitely wrong for me given my contentment issues!
I am reading in the NIV and the MSG too…it is amazing how God can just slap you upside the head with a verse that made no sense in another translation. TV is a hard one for me…something I am frequently convicted on but not sure what God is asking..the cool thing is that He wants us to ask Him and He will reveal it.
Yes…one question arising from James that is also answered in James 🙂
I agree! James is a book I can and have read over and over again, each time finding something new.
I’ve also been challenged with tv. Several years ago we started cutting out shows, mostly ones that portrayed sex negatively and prominently. We’ve continued to scale back on what we watch to the point where I watch very little. Interestingly, it’s been our sci-fi shows that have made the cut so far…
I still love my dramas. I just love a good storyline. One tree hill, parenthood, modern family, chuck and vampire diaries are the only ones on my list right now. And that’s way pared down. I’m still figuring out what to do with those but I do love them, not gonna lie.