Verse 7/30

[DerekP Houston]

A bit of a long one today, but I thought it was a good read.

17 So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longerlive as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. 18 They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of Godbecause of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. 19 Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed.
20 That, however, is not the way of life you learned 21 when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. 22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
25 Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. 26 “In your anger do not sin”[d (https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ephesians%204&version=NIV#fen-NIV-29299d)]: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 and do not give the devil a foothold. 28 Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands,that they may have something to share with those in need.
29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God,with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

I feel it difficulty to get rid of the anger and rage at things I see truly wrong in the neighborhood. Drug deals going down in plain site, gang graffiti, kids looking for stuff to steal. Wrong house, wrong neighborhood for that folks. I try to let it go but I can only be pushed so far when it is down the street from me.

God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.

[Boaz]

Thank you Derek .

[Pine Baron]

Derek, I share your anxiety brother.

[claude]

I feel it difficulty to get rid of the anger and rage at things I see truly wrong in the neighborhood.

There is such a thing as righteous indignation, where we see things that are wrong, and know in our heart they will have no place in the Kingdom of God. Paul wrote of such things and left us something to chew on (meditate on) in the book of Romans;

Rom 12:18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.

Some times it isn't possible.

There is this though, and once I came to understand the awesomeness and finality of it, I more often feel pity than anger for these people who believe the are "cutting the fat hog"...

Rom 12:19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.

I wouldn't wish to be in their shoes when the repaying comes to fruition. It leaves me humble knowing it's all covered, and one day, they will understand in a way I could never make them understand.

Heb_10:31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

[smoked turkey]

Great verse to share for the times we are all living in. I struggle with the resistance to authority that I see(especially our police officers). Seems that to some it is OK to randomly kill right now. Romans 12:19 as mentioned above is so right. One day things will be put right.

[Blackwater]

Thanks to all above. I think we all struggle with many, many things in our lives. I've come to think it's a lot like the old principle that exercise makes us stronger and more long-winded. Exercising our minds and hearts works the same way. And in order to exercise them, we need to follow the instructions and advice we've been given. Very simple, really, but so easy to miss, or gloss over! Only when we exercise our bodies do they get stronger. Only when we exercise our faith does it get stronger, too.

We've never been promised an easy path. It's always been a series of challenges and opportunities that we face in this life, here. Many, upon coming to light, look for our lives to be an earthly version of Heaven where God intervenes and won't let anything we regard as "bad" or "hard" confront us. Nothing could be further from the truth.

God lets bad things happen to good people so that we can deal with them and grow stronger and more deeply understand our faith, and to serve as examples for others of what faith really can do. Were it not so, we'd almost surely become lazy and, ultimately, become virtual babies. Christ seems to want good, full fledged adults who are strong and wise. We get strong and wise only by meeting challenges and exercising our faith. Makes sense to me, anyway.

Great verse and commentary. Thanks, guys.

[Traffer]

For me, (and I share your discouragement and ire towards this godless generation) this is the key, "And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God,with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you."
I was raised Catholic, Became a Baptized fundamentalist Christian at the age of 33 and now am a member of a "subdued Pentecostal" Church.
I do not have any bad feelings or attitudes towards any of these very different Christian faiths. However I do see that anything that has to be administered by humans is flawed.
It is very encouraging to me to see people professing the importance of having God's Spirit inside of us. And to hear preached that we really have no power to "overcome" our weaknesses except that The Blood of Christ washes us and we realize his power of change in the Holy Spirit. Galatians 5, to me, has always been an outstanding explanation of the dramatic difference that is available to us as we seek to walk in step with His Spirit.
I very often struggle with what is going at this time in politics and our society. I get emotionally involved. Very emotionally involved. But we are called to be "above the fray" as we are aliens here, strangers who are only visiting as we have a home with God in heaven. For me it requires time and energy seeking His Kingdom. "How can you claim to love God whom you cannot see when you don't love your neighbor who you can see?". What this calls me to is "focus on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God" as we focus on things above, and have fellowship with the Spirit, seeking God, rejoicing and praising God, worshiping God, it is not too hard to be "above the fray" and be able to show compassion to even those who hate us. When we spend time with God, becoming emotionally involved, seeing his wonder, praising Him for who he is, falling more and more deeply in love with Him, we carry His Spirit with us. It is through His Spirit that we overcome our worldly nature.

[DerekP Houston]

So apparently respect is earned not given. Neighbor owned up to his **** came over and we had a chat. Seems cool enough now and we will let water go under the bridge. What you do in your own house I don't care, when something shady is outside my house or adjacent I act out. Something suddenly clicked around a month or 2 back and I can't shake the feeling I'm here to protect my family first and myself second.

Thanks yall for the follow up verses will enjoy them this evening as I relax after more work around the house.

Instead of holding a grudge against the kid stealing packages I have gone out of my way to acknowledge him and say hi each time he passes by. Don't know what his home situation is but that doesn't give me the right to stay angry at a kid who didn't (maybe) know any better. He knows I'm watching though and won't let him slip up. If he can earn my respect back he'll be welcome back in the yard to help out and earn whatever he needs.