WILL YOU STILL STAND FOR CHRIST?
By Linda A. Knowles
“Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father in heaven. Do not assume that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.”
Matthew 10:32-34
No matter who we are or what we do, what we believe about who Christ is and what He has done on Calvary matters. At some point, we are each faced with either choosing Christ and continuing on with Him OR we will choose someone or something else over Christ. Christ has done for us what no one else can do. There is nothing that will ever be able to fill the place in our heart and lives that He alone can fill.
No one wants to believe that a family member hates them or will go against them, but it does happen. Our stance in Christ may be the very thing that causes them to go against us. Our position in Christ may be the very thing that causes them to oppose us at any given opportunity. They can mock us and scoff at us. They can even work at trying to get us to change our beliefs about God and what God calls good and what He calls evil. Can family bring us to the point where we will have to choose between them or Christ? Yes. Not everyone will accept Christ. Not everyone is interested in following the ways of God. Not everyone will accept Christ as being Lord and Savior. Not everyone will believe all He did for us at Calvary. Not everyone in our families will be interested in hearing about Christ or about hearing what the Word of God says about living a life sold out to God. Unfortunately, this is altogether sad, but true.
For those who choose to stand for truth, even if it means losing beloved family members, there is hope. Our hope is found in Christ alone, and this is our assurance: Christ is with us until the very end. If we are not ashamed of Him before men, He will not be ashamed of us before our Heavenly Father. For those who choose Christ, even if it means we will be standing alone, the Lord is upholding us in His righteous right hand, and He has not forsaken us. For those who do not deny Christ and love Him with all their heart, mind, soul, and strength: to them, they have eternal life because Christ, their Savior and Lord, lives within them, and they will be living life with an abundance of blessings from the Lord.
Will you take a stand even if it means you are standing alone? Will you stand for what is right and holy even in the midst of family members who oppose and betray you? Each of us must ask ourselves these questions.
Heavenly Father, thank You for Your love and mercy. Thank You for choosing me to live for You that I might produce lasting fruit for Your Kingdom. Lord, help me to always walk upright before You, keeping my eyes fixed on the prize before me. Help me to keep my eyes focused on Jesus, the Author and Finisher of my Faith. Strengthen me. Guide me and teach me all of Your ways. Thank You for saving and rescuing me. Father, help me to remain strong even though family members may come against me, though they may oppose me. Your approval of me, Abba, is the only thing that matters, not the applause of men. Instruct me as I walk along this narrow path and help me not to slip to the wayside. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Every Halloween, it’s a mad dash to get out of the house as fast as possible by exactly 4:30 p.m. to avoid Trick or Treaters. I am one who absolutely loathes Halloween as does my husband. We don’t celebrate Halloween, and the idea of passing out candy every two minutes for four and a half hours doesn’t sound appealing at all… EVER.
HOWEVER, THE PROBLEM WITH MASKS AND COSTUMES is eventually they have to be taken off. When masks and costumes are stripped off, be careful because you may find the person was a wolf for the entire time you knew them. At that point, you have to decide what you will do. You will either stick around and be devoured by the wolf until there is nothing left of you except a skeleton, or you will run and get away from the ravenous wolf who is staring at you like you are dinner with its fangs exposed and ready to pounce on you.
That’s right: Let GOD fight your battles for you. Our GOD is THE GOD of JUSTICE, and it is difficult to let go of whatever is going on around us that we’re facing. However, letting go and letting GOD do what HE has to do is something we won’t regret. I learned many years ago, never to repay evil with evil because the WORD OF GOD states, “And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile,” (1 Peter 1:17 ESV). We conduct ourselves as GOD would have us to conduct ourselves. GOD has set the standards of morality and ethics. GOD has set the standard of holiness, and therefore, we need to conduct ourselves knowing GOD sees all we do and hears all we say. Eventually, we will have to give an account to HIM for every idle word spoken (Matthew 12:36) and everything we have done (2 Corinthians 5:10). “And he said, ‘Listen, all Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem and King Jehoshaphat: Thus says the 
Whatever God has told you to do, just obey. Yes, it’s worth it all. It may not be easy and the road may be rocky, but it’s worth it all. What influences you? What is stopping you from obeying God? Who are you listening to? What are you allowing your eyes to take in? What do you have to lay down in order to have a deeper walk with God, for Him to take you where He wants to take you? What will you give up? Do you care more about the approval of God or the approval of man? Where does your heart lie?
Back a few months ago, my husband and I received two Ethnicity DNA kits as a gift. I made sure I followed the instructions to the letter with the help of my husband so I didn’t miss a beat, and he completed his kit; we sent both DNA kits off to the center.
61% SOUTHERN EUROPEAN
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