Universal Life Church Monastery of Massachusetts

Tuesday, December 8, 2015

HEALTH: Physical Health

Eating to satiate our physical need happens frequently. We feel hungry so we grab something to eat. We need food in order to live. But what about our spiritual appetite? It hungers as well. Do we feel our spirits stomach growling in hunger? Are we aware that our spirits need fed?

Our physical health is important, but our spiritual health is more important. If we are sick spiritually, it affects every aspect of our being. God wants us to feed our spirits with him. Whether it is through reading his word, or directly communing with him in prayer, it is important to take time daily to satiate spiritual hunger. Paul tells us in Ephesians 5:18 to be filled with God’s spirit. Take time today to fill yourself up with God.

Tuesday, December 1, 2015

LIFE: Motivation

Have you ever met someone that was always motivated? It seemed like they were always doing something to achieve their goals and with great passion. If I had to guess why they were so motivated, it was because one, they were passionate about their goals, and two, they found ways to keep themselves motivated.
If you’re finding yourself unmotivated, I encourage you to form some goals. You also may find it helpful to read inspiring and motivational literature. Look up some quotes on success, motivation, and passion and print them out and read every day. Use positive affirmations such as, “I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13)

Think of motivation using this analogy. An airplane is powerful and has plenty of potential, but unless there is a pilot to start it up and actually fly it, it just sits there, not moving. The pilot is the motivation to get that plane off the ground and you have incredible potential as well and motivation is that internal drive that will activate it.

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

HEALTH: Eating Healthy

Eating healthy is important, but try not to become stressed out if everything you eat is not considered healthy. Balance is key. Sometimes we cannot afford to buy all organic foods and that’s alright. Inorganic foods have nutritional value as well.

I Corinthians 10:31states, “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."

Making the effort to change your eating habits from unhealthy to healthy is wonderful, but be careful not to go to the extreme. God tells us that whatever we eat or drink, do it for his glory. If you are only able to eat inorganic foods, or you eat foods that aren’t very healthy once in awhile, don’t give yourself a hard time. Be thankful for the food, ask God to bless it to your body, and be sure to give God thanks.

Tuesday, November 17, 2015

Grateful, Always

Let thankfulness rule in your heart. As you thank me for blessings in your life, a marvelous thing happens. It is as if scales fall of your eyes, enabling you to see more and more of my glorious riches. – excerpt from Jesus Calling by Sarah Young Gratefulness changes everything. More than 75 percent of the world’s population lives in areas that we would deem unindustrialized. There are no Starbucks. No indoor plumbing. No mass transit systems. Yet there seems to be an overwhelming sense of gratitude for the little they do have. We need to adopt that philosophy.

According to the above excerpt, when we allow thankfulness to rule in our hearts, the scales of indifference, discontentment and self-indulgence begin to fall off our eyes. We begin to really take stock of all the wonderful blessings in our life—big and small. Running water, grocery stores, friends who love us, the jobs we have, healthy children, the ability to love, all of these things begin to resonate in our hearts. We spend less time worrying about the things we do not have and more time honing in on all that we do.

I often wonder how different things would be if Adam and Eve had adopted this train of thought. They allowed the serpent to plant a seed of discourse in their hearts. This eventually led to their focus shifting from God’s splendid provision to God’s suppression. They seemingly forgot about Eden’s beauty and God’s presence. Instead of rejecting the lies of the serpent or going to God with what they had heard, they simply allowed the seed to become thought which becomes action which lead to their spiritual death.

Seeds of discontentment will sprout roots and bear fruit. As believers, we have to rip those seeds out of our hearts and minds. Being grateful uproots those seeds and forces us to center our attention on things that truly matter. There are riches around us. There are blessings, abundance and joy that journey with us every day. When we avail ourselves to acknowledge their presence, we can begin to see just how blessed we are.
God is a praiseworthy God. We may not have everything we want to have but He does provide us with all that we need. If you find that your thankfulness reservoir is on empty, try beginning your day with thankfulness. Begin your day with prayers that thank God for who He is. Father, I thank you that you hear me and always hear me. I thank you for your love and your grace. Lord, I thank you that you continue to bless me even when I least deserve it. I thank you for the ability to bless others. Help me to be a blessing and to see your blessing, in Jesus’ name amen.
Simple prayers like these open our hearts and allow our souls to be receptive to God’s provision. We want to see more of His glorious riches. Ratnas refers to this as having a right faith.

Tuesday, November 10, 2015

A Praiseworthy God

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and a thank offering and into His courts with praise! Be thankful and say so to Him, bless and affectionately praise His name! 5For the Lord is good; His mercy and loving-kindness are everlasting, His faithfulness and truth endure to all generations. – Psalms 100:4-5
Max Lucado, renowned Christian author says it best:
Next time your day goes south, here is what you do. Steep yourself in the grace of God. Saturate your day in his love. Marinate your mind in his mercy. He has settled your accounts, paid your debt. What a gift he has given you. You’ve won the won the greatest lottery in the history of humanity and you didn’t even pay for the ticket! Your soul is secure, your salvation is guaranteed. What more do you need?

If you could not think of a reason to sing His praises or lavish Him with words of worship and adoration, this ought to get you thinking. Aside from the many blessings God bestows on us, the chief reason He is deserving of praise is because of his son Christ. Because Jesus dared to pay the price, the gift of salvation is ours for eternity. Our soul is secure and our redemption and reconciliation with the Creator of the Universe is guaranteed. Therefore, we should gladly come to God with gratitude, offering sincere thankfulness. We should open our mouths and bless Him and affectionately praise His name.

In case you did not realize it, God is great and is greatly to be praised. His mercy and loving-kindness are everlasting. Remember those times when you deliberately refused to do the thing He asked of you? Whether it was to apologize, even when you weren’t in the wrong or remain silent, you politely declined to do what God requested—we all have. Still, He never turned his back on us. He never despised us, wrote us off or even became angry with us. His faithfulness and His mercy covered us because we are His children.
Just like we would not discard our children for making mistakes, God does not discard when we do wrong. God’s mercy has no limits. For this reason, He is a praiseworthy God. He hears us when we pray. He moves and brings change when we ask. Why? God delights in our praise. The word of God says that God inhabits the praises of His people. He manifests His presence and power to His people especially when they offer Him sincere worship and praise Him. God is moved by our sacrifice of praise. He is moved by our heart-felt worship. What parent could hear their child crying and not want to do something about it? God is the ultimate parent, who answers when we call. Sikhs enjoy building close relationships with God. As believers, we know that sincere praise and worship help us to strengthen our relationship with our Father.
God is faithful. He is just. He is a praiseworthy God!

Tuesday, November 3, 2015

Hear it. Do it.

Again He sets a definite day, [a new] Today, [and gives another opportunity of securing that rest] saying through David after so long a time in the words already quoted, Today, if you would hear His voice and when you hear it, do not harden your hearts.

Show of hands: how many of us enjoy being told what to do? As I child, I remembered thinking that my parents were brutes. They constantly told me what to do, where to go and how to do things. Many times, I simply refused to do the things they required and I paid the consequence for it. But isn’t that what we do with God? He lovingly implores us to forsake our own wisdom and rely on Him and we do the opposite. He pleads with us to conduct ourselves with patience, kindness, long-suffering, and self-control. Instead, we’re haughty, self-absorbed and insensitive.

As children of the Most High God, it is our responsibility to listen to our Father when He speaks to us. We cannot harden our hearts and turn away from His instructions. Doing so opens doors to calamity, needless pain and confusion. We do not have the luxury of picking and choosing which things we will obey. Selective hearing is not allowed for believers. We cannot obey half of what God says and expect Him to move freely in our lives. Let’s look at what happened with King Saul, King David’s predecessor.

King Saul was instructed to wait seven days for the prophet Samuel to arrive. At that time, the prophet would offer up peace offerings to the Lord to ensure victory against the Philistines. During the seven days, however, the king and his people suffered devastating setbacks. They became afraid and desperate. Even though King Saul was forbidden from performing any offerings before the lord —that was the prophet’s job—he did so. He became impatient, afraid and desperate to prove that he was a king who could lead his people to victory. For refusing to listen and obey God’s instructions, Saul lost his kingdom and his reign came to an end.
We do not get to pick and choose which of God’s instructions we will follow. Remember, doing a good thing at the wrong time or with the wrong motives, is still the wrong thing to do. If we really want God to be Sovereign in our lives and guide us in how to conduct ourselves, we must be open to hear what He is saying. We must be receptive and obedient. The word of God says that we should not be hearers of the word but doers as well. If you hear what God says and refuse to respond to it then you are operating in disobedience and pride. You are setting yourself up for failure, pain and disappointment. Taoists believe in carefully weighing each action before taking it. Before you decide to choose what you’ll hear, make sure you’ve weighed the consequences.

Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Got Troubles? Seek God.

2It was told Jehoshaphat, A great multitude has come against you from beyond the [Dead] Sea, from Edom; and behold they are in Hazazon-tamar, which is En-gedi. 3Then Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself [determinedly, as his vital need] to seek the Lord; he proclaimed a fast in all Judah. – 2 Chronicles 20: 2-3
Tsunamis are gigantic waves that destroy everything in their path. They obliterate buildings and cities as though they were made of paper. Few things can withstand their power. Such are the things of life. We encounter colossal storms that wreck havoc on your psyche. They tear down our esteem, and fill our souls with debris. We are left ravaged but not without hope.

King Jehoshaphat knew what that felt like. Can you imagine an army of hundreds of thousands coming against you? Can you imagine the fear that punches you in the gut when you weigh your situation? The bible says that the King was afraid and rightfully so. It also says that he sought the Lord as though his life depended on it—probably because it did.
Many of us do not seek the Lord when things seem like they are at their worst because we do not believe our life depends on it. There is still some small part of us that believes we can handle or manage it on our own. WRONG!

Our personal wisdom and insights will only take us so far before we crash and burn. Our livelihood of peace, joy and faith depend on our relationship with God. We need to pursue Him as often as possible. His ways and thoughts far surpass ours. King Jehoshaphat understood this. When His enemies decided they would all attack Him, he had to know what his strategy should be. Should he leave? Should he stay? Should he fight?
A tailor-made strategy from God for your situation is precisely what you need. You need to know what direction to go in, when to do it and how to do it? The only way to obtain that is by seeking the Father. When we look further down in the passage, we see that Jehoshaphat received his answer from the Lord.
The Lord says this to you: Be not afraid or dismayed at this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God's.16Tomorrow go down to them. Behold, they will come up by the Ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the ravine before the Wilderness of Jeruel. 17You shall not need to fight in this battle; take your positions, stand still, and see the deliverance of the Lord [Who is] with you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Fear not nor be dismayed. Tomorrow go out against them, for the Lord is with you.

The King did not have to fight. He did not have to leave. He simply had to worship. Matsuri is the worship of the living God. Because he worshipped, God said the battle would be His.

Friday, October 16, 2015

Restore My Soul

THE LORD is my Shepherd [to feed, guide, and shield me], I shall not lack. 2He makes me lie down in [fresh, tender] green pastures; He leads me beside the still and restful waters. 3He refreshes and restores my life (my self); He leads me in the paths of righteousness [uprightness and right standing with Him--not for my earning it, but] for His name's sake. 4Yes, though I walk through the [deep, sunless] valley of the shadow of death, I will fear or dread no evil, for You are with me; Your rod [to protect] and Your staff [to guide], they comfort me.

Holy Spirit, take rest in me. Make me your temple, restore my soul. For I am yours, Lord, this I decree. Holy Spirit, take rest in me.¬ This is one of my favorite worship songs; it is titled “Take Rest.” One of the reasons it speaks to me so much is that the song isn’t really a song—it is a prayer. Every time we sing this song, we are imploring the Spirit of God to take rest in our hearts, to fill us with His splendid presence. Restoration is not something that materializes by happenstance—it occurs when the Spirit of God rests in us. The above passage drives this point home. God is our Shepherd. He cares for us, tends to our wounds and protects us from life’s wolves and predators. He leads us beside waters that are still and peaceful.
He refreshes and restores our soul. When God refreshes He restores our strength. When God restores, He brings us back to into His glory where we can behold His marvelous wonders.

Restoration means to restore us to our rightful places in God. Think of it like a 2-hour hiking trip in the woods on a hot, humid day. You’re sweaty, smelly, famished and dirty. If God were to refresh you, He’d feed you and give you a drink to restore your strength. If He were to restore you, He’d bathe you, dress you, make sure you hair was styled and anoint you with your favorite scent thereby restoring you.
Restoration is all about intimacy and relationship. All of us can be refreshed but only those who truly thirst for restoration will ever have it. Why? Restoration can only come if we ask. God can only restore us if we invite Him to take rest in our souls. We need the splendor of His presence to saturate the cracked, dry places in our mind. We need His grace to wash and refresh the barren wells of our hearts. We need Him to take rest.
If you desire a weary-free heart, a lack of sorrow and anguish or a joy-infused livelihood, ask the Spirit of the Living God to take rest in you. He is your God and He loves you. Shintos practice their faith through worship and honor of the Master of Creation. Remember, restoration is not something that simple occurs. It has be cultivated and harvested.

Friday, October 9, 2015

He’s Able

God is able to do just what He said He would do. He’s going to fulfill every promise to you. Don’t give up on God because He won’t give up on you—He’s able! – Excerpt of He’s Able by Deitrick Haddon
God is able to do exceedingly and abundantly more than we can ever hope or ask for. The bible says that we cannot even begin to imagine the wondrous things God can do. We serve an Almighty God. All power, all dominion and all glory belong to Him. He causes all things to work together for the good of those who love Him. In His appointed time, the bible says that God will release His promise and cause it to manifest in our lives.

Remember Abraham and Sarah? Both were well past their reproductive years when God made them a promise. Of course, like most of us they grew tired of waiting on God and decided to take matters into their own hands. Hence, Ishmael was born to Haggar and Abraham. However, when God’s timing arrived, God did exactly what He promised Abraham he would do: cause Him to have a son. Yes, Abraham and Sarah were just about 100-years-old when Issac was born; but God fulfilled His promise. Their age did not veto the decree He issued in the presence of heaven’s tribunal. The condition of their bodies did not thwart His promise. The fact that they arrogantly tried to manifest the promise themselves did not even cause God to miss a beat!

So My word that comes from My mouth will not return to Me empty, but it will accomplish what I please, and will prosper in what I send it [to do]." – Isaiah 55:11
God’s word never returns to Him unfulfilled. It will accomplish everything He designed it too. Therefore, if you are waiting on God to satisfy a promise He made to you, know that He is able. It does not matter how much time has elapsed or what things seem to look like. When David was anointed King over Israel it took years before he was able to operate in that call. When God made His promise to Abraham, it is estimated that it took twenty-five years before the promise, Isaac, was born.

God is not confined by the laws of time or space. He moves effortlessly through dimensions and space-time complexities like a swimmer glides through water. He is all powerful and omnipresent. He is able to do what He promised and He will—wait on Him. One of the most important things we can do is give God time to move. Abraham and Sarah failed to do this initially.

They became impatient and made decisions that were grossly unwise. What kind of person thinks it is a good idea to let their husband sleep with their personal assistant? Clearly, the person was prideful and impatient. God is God all by Himself—he does not require our help. Sikhism teaches there is only one God.

Friday, October 2, 2015

You Win!

24 "[The LORD also said,] 'Get up, move out, and cross the Arnon Valley. See, I have handed Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land over to you. Begin to take possession [of it]; engage him in battle. 25 Today I will begin to put the fear and dread of you on the peoples everywhere under heaven. They will hear the report about you, tremble, and be in anguish because of you.' – Deuteronomy 2:24-25

How many of you know that when God hands your enemy over to you, your victory is sealed? God never sends us into a situation that will result in our failure. He promises that He will not allow our enemies to put us to shame. He guarantees that our enemies will not triumph over us. When God sends us into a place or circumstance, it is because the outcome is already determined—we win!

Although the outcomes of our battles are determined by God, we still are required to get on the field and reinforce God’s spoken promise of victory. This is heavily chronicled in the Torah or Pentateuch. If you’re expecting to kick your feet up while others do all the work, you are sorely mistaken. Get up, move out, and cross the Arnon Valley. We do not have the luxury of remaining stagnant in our thought or deeds. The Almighty God is commanding us to get up off our behinds, move forward and go where God sends us. While some battles—like with Gideon—may not require us to pick up a weapon, others call for more combative methods. God tells the people to possess their inheritance and engage the enemy in battle.

We have an enemy whose sole purpose is to rob, kill, destroy or distract us. He is not going to give up without a fight. In truth, neither will we. When God sends us into the battle, He always goes ahead of us to make sure we have the advantage. What an awesome God He is! In this passage, God began to ignite fear in the heart of the enemy so that when the people showed up, fear, chaos and retreat showed up too.
Battles are not pretty. If you’re looking for a place to sit back, relax or sip on your favorite iced beverage, then this is not the place for you. The battlefield is not the place to make friends, play nice or goof around. Battles can be fierce, long and draining. Often times there are casualties. Some people who started out with you may not be there when the smoke clears. Some people may turn their back on you. In battles, people get wounded and sometimes they are victims of friendly fire. This is why it is important to have your marching orders before you get on the field. Know what you’re fighting for and why you’re fighting.
When God sends you into the battle, know that you even though you are in the trenches, victory is yours.