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God's Words For US
by Cecelia Lester
When we are born, we are someone’s daughter or son. As we grow, we have playmates. We also may have cousins and /or siblings. I have heard it said that our cousins are our first friends. In school, we have friends—kids we meet in our classes. Some of these friendships may last a lifetime.
When we mature and venture out on our own, we meet new people, co-workers, and neighbors. When we attend church, we usually find friends who may become closer to us than family. If we marry, we have a spouse and relatives from our spouse’s family who become ours as well.
My husband and I have lived in our house for many years. The neighborhood has changed over that time. Recently, I sat on our front porch and saw a rental moving van pull up and park across the street. A house down the block is for rent, so I really did not think much about it. I got concerned when the driver got out, walked to the back of the truck, and then started into a neighbor’s yard across the street. The man who lives there and his late wife were friends as well as neighbors. Their youngest child, a daughter, does my hair. I decided to call her at her place of business to alert her that something was happening. She appreciated that I did. I wasn’t certain how her dad would feel about my actions but, at the time, I was more concerned about his safety than anything else.
Ten minutes later, the two men re-entered the moving van and went on their way. Then my phone rang. When I picked it up, I heard the person on the other end say, “You are a good neighbor.”It was our neighbor. Later his daughter called me and told me the circumstances of the van and the two men being at her dad’s house.
However, the most important relationship a person can have is with Jesus. He guides us through the tough spots in life. He rewards us spiritually when He feels we have done something worthy. Jesus stands with us when we face uncertainties.
Nevertheless, we do have to realize that just because we have a relationship with the Lord Jesus that we will not cease to have any problems. The enemy will give us issues because we belong to Jesus and not to him.
We live in a fallen world; the time for Jesus to return and set up His kingdom draws nearer. The enemy ramps up his activities with the goal of derailing the work of Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Because of this, our relationship with Jesus Christ should be uppermost in our hearts.
Our pastor recently spoke of John Wesley’s “Holy Clubs” he and his brother Charles started when they were in Oxford University. Wesley created a list of 22 questions that each person had to answer at each weekly meeting. That next Wednesday evening, Pastor had copies of that list for us. The questions can be difficult to answer and can show a person his or her weak areas in their relationship with God. The woman sitting next to me said she was going to post it right next to her computer. I decided my copy would go into a sheet protector and put where I can see it every day.
When we reach a certain age, we realize our bonds with others (the horizontal) can be almost as dear as our relationship with God (The vertical.)
We all should work on our relationship with God through the Holy Spirit. As I became serious about my faith, I learned that we should do this work Daily.
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Cecelia Lester has been serious about her writing for over two decades..
She composes Christian essays and posts them to her blog quietspirit-followingmyking.blogspot.com/
She has served in a faith-based organization, Grace In Action by writing two newsletters and searching for possible grants.
In July 2017, she published her first book, 'Times of Trouble Bring Rays of Joy.'
She and her husband of 54 years live in central Indiana. They have one grown son.
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