by Macy Tiradoegas | Nov 1, 2015 | Proverbs
Proverbs 10:7-8
“The memory of the righteous is a blessing, but the name of the wicked will rot. the wise of heart will receive commandments, but a babbling fool will come to ruin.”
These two verses are about legacy. What we leave behind, what we are remembered by. Not the things we have or even the people we were closest to, but character, integrity, and our standard of holiness.
I ask you today, what would your legacy be?
Would you be remembered for righteousness, for being like Jesus, for treating others with kindness? This kind of person leaves a mark, a “memory.” This memory causes others to want to be like Jesus. This memory blesses the people they marked. This kind of life takes persistence, discipline and intentionality, but this life is only life that leads to fulfillment and satisfaction. It’s like the feeling of giving an unexpected or undeserved gift. Being a blessing is a blessing in itself. Imagine your memory, your entire life, being that blessing.
Or would the memory of you warrant bitterness from those you loved? Would the memory of you be painful? Would you leave behind thoughts of absence, selfishness, wrong pursuits?
Maybe that picture is too harsh and maybe you find yourself somewhere in between. Still, the question remains, are you living the best story you could be living? Are you being the kind of person you want to be remembered for? Does your life point people to Christ?
Verse eight says, “the wise of heart receive commandments,” in other words, they receive correction. They take in the word of God and obey what it says. They know that to live a rich and satisfying life means walking in the way of the Lord, being close to Jesus and obeying his Word.
“But a babbling fool will come to ruin.” This person can’t be trusted. They let gossip control their tongue, ultimately controlling their reputation and their life. This person does not leave a memory of blessing, but their name comes to ruin.
In the small things and the big things, may our memory be worthy of remembering. May it bring honor and glory to the only one worthy. May we be remembered for wisdom and righteousness.
Which memory will you leave?
Photography: @alexamihalla
by Macy Tiradoegas | Oct 17, 2015 | Proverbs
Proverbs 6:1-11
Have you ever had someone shake you out of a funk? Maybe it was a best friend, a mentor, a coach, a mom or a dad, and maybe for you it was laziness, insecurity, materialism or pride. Whether you asked for it or not, they weren’t going to let you get away with it. That’s how I see God using Solomon in this passage, shaking us out of a funk. And I love that he cares enough about the details of our lives to do so.
“Straight up, don’t be stupid with your money and the things you have, learn to work hard and earn it!” Something like that. 😉
In verses 1-6, Soloman is warning against suretyship- the process of paying someone else’s debt when you can’t afford it. If you find yourself in a financial situation where you got yourself in over your head, he’s saying, do yourself a favor and go fix it. Help yourself. “Swallow your pride; go and beg to have your name erased.” He gives us permission to make things right. There IS something you can do about it, but you have to be willing to to humble yourself.
Verses 6-11 are especially convicting to me. He harshly advocates against laziness. In our American culture we are raising a generation of people who are used to having things given to them. So many of us don’t know what it means to work hard. The message version says it this way: “A nap here, a nap there, a day off here, a day off there, sit back, take it easy— do you know what comes next? Just this: You can look forward to a dirt poor life, poverty your permanent houseguest.”
What I see from this is wisdom in the small decisions. We know God is calling us to do more, we know his word says that whatever we do, do unto the Lord, but we say, “I’ll just push it back, I’ll work hard tomorrow.” Tomorrow may never come. There are so many excuses with laziness as the root.
Don’t just read this and look right past it. Examine your heart. Do you work hard at everything you do? Do you makes excuses? What are you putting off? How can you make better use of your time? What is causing your laziness? Whatever it is, change it. Whatever the excuse is, it’s not good enough. Stop waiting for someone to tell you what to do. Be a doer. We are responsible for our own time and our own life. Let’s steward it well and make the most of it!
Photography: @jacobnnorris
by Macy Tiradoegas | Sep 22, 2015 | James
James 4:7-10
“Humble yourselves before God.”
James is going to start and end this passage with that sentence. And it’s because it’s the foundation of everything else. Nothing else that we try to to do, nothing else that we try to be matters if we don’t start with humble hearts before God. It means full submission. It means, “not my will, but yours be done.” It means, “In good times, in the bad; in the times of prosperity and in moments when I don’t understand, I submit. I know that you are God, and I am not.”
“Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”
How do we resist the devil? In verse eight, James says, “Come close to God, and God will come close to you.” We resist the devil by being close to the Father. When we are connected to Him, the vine, we produce the fruits of the Spirit, we overflow with goodness, and the enemy knows he can’t have his way with us! We have to be intentional. We resist the tempter through prayer, and through the Word. We must stay connected to the vine to resist the devil. And the good news is, James says that God will help us! He will come close to us! God is not a far away God. He is close. He longs for relationship with you. He created you for it. That promise is so freeing. When we seek Him, we find Him. When we draw close to Him, he draws near to us. Thank you, Jesus for being a God who cares to be close to us!
“Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for you loyalty is divided between God and the world. Let there be tears for what you have done. Let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy.”
I love that after the bible says that he is a close Father, the Father disciplines. “He disciplines those He loves.” Here we are reminded of having a healthy fear of God. A God who won’t let us be luke-warm, who is jealous for a fully submitted heart. He loves us enough to not allow a one foot in, one foot out relationship. And he demands grief for our sin. “Understand that sin separates us,” he cries. He is calling us to repentance, the kind that brings us on our knees. The games are over. If you are serious about God, get serious about God.
Finally, James reminds us, “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.” I love how the message version says it. “Get down on your knees before your Master, its the only way you’ll get on your feet.” It reminds me of one my favorite lyrics from the new Hillsong United song, “I touch the sky when my knees hit the ground.” When was the last time your knees hit the ground? Humble yourself before God. Resist the devil. Draw close to Him. Purify your heart. Turn from your wicked ways. Get down on your knees. Get up on your feet.
by Macy Tiradoegas | Sep 10, 2015 | James
James 2:18-20
Here in James chapter two this so called, “paradox” of faith vs. works is fully revealed. This tension is something that every believer battles at one point or another, if not continually. In Ephesians 2:19, we read that salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, but that it is a gift of God through faith in Him alone. All throughout Romans, Paul makes the case for free grace, only found through Jesus’ work on the cross. So this makes it a little confusing when we read in James that we cannot have faith if we don’t have good deeds!
“But I thought I wasn’t saved by anything I could do, I thought it was only by God’s grace and that all I needed to do was believe.” I battled this for a long time. The “paradox” seems overwhelming.
But here is where we get it wrong. Paul is right. We are not saved by anything we can do. Our good deeds do not make us righteous in the sight of God, only Jesus, his death and resurrection. It is true that we are blameless before God because of Jesus. Our deeds do not save us BUT, our deeds REVEAL our faith. They are the evidence of a changed life.
“It is not enough to believe, even the demons believe!” That sentence should bring us to a shivering revelation! How many people are going about their life, ignorant to the fact that they are not saved by grace? Believing isn’t faith. Faith is putting your trust and your hope in something. When your trust and your hope are in something it produces a changed heart and actions that reflect that heart. It doesn’t mean that we will never mess up, it doesn’t mean that we don’t still stumble and sin, but it means we are pursuing a holy life. Jesus says in Matthew 7:16 that “you will know them by their fruit.” His disciples will show evidence in the way they live their life!
Jesus goes on to say in verse 21, “Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.”
I ask you today, are you the one doing the will of the Father? Are you living a life surrendered? Not perfect, not a check list of things you do right. But a faith that has produced a changed heart that has produced a changed life. Walking in the direction of righteous, overflowing the fruits of the spirit. Is your faith backed up by your deeds? It’s not something we have to force. As true disciples of Jesus, the beautiful thing about it is, it will come naturally as you seek Him. The paradox, this tension that is seemingly overwhelming, is actually what makes our faith worth it. Our works prove our faith and they go hand in hand. May the world be able to tell a difference. May that be drawn to Jesus because of our faith that produces every kind of good work.
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