#lystonVoice
1. Appreciate the gift of life that has been given to you! That you are alive is a miracle and a gift. Appreciate the love of God that sustains you and extends to you grace, mercy and great favor. Don’t forget to appreciate what others do for you – especially when it helps to alleviate even the smallest problem/issue you have been experiencing. In all these instances, remember to say ‘THANK YOU!’ (Psalm 100: 4; Romans 1: 21; Colossians 3: 15)
2. Respect yourself enough to represent Christ well through your attire, your attitude and your actions! Like it or not, self-respect is mainly if not only evident through your external/outward expressions! Show respect to those set over you. How you address or deal with those set over you at work or in ministry is important, regardless of how they treat you! (Genesis 16: 1 – 10; I Samuel 24: 3 – 7; I Timothy 6: 1 – 2) The more you choose to address those set over you with respect, the greater your reward will be, because you would be following the principles of God which He will ultimately honor; and you will also be setting good examples for the generation behind you to follow.
3. Empathize with those around you, particularly in difficult situations and times. (Romans 12: 9 – 11) You may not know exactly what they may be feeling or going through, but extend a hand, spend some time or give some words of encouragement and let them know that despite all, you feel their hurt/pain and that you feel for them. It is easy to avoid people going through painful situations – especially if they are surrounded by others, and especially when you really don’t know what to say. But even saying “I don’t know what to say to ease this pain, but I’m here for you” can go such a long way!
4. Care! Care genuinely about others. Don’t be afraid to let someone know that you care – about their welfare, their situation, them and the things that are significant to them! (Hebrews 13: 1; I Corinthians 12: 24 – 26) Furthermore, you must ensure that there are no ulterior motives attached to your care! So a pure heart and mind are key to truly caring about someone. This compels us to always seek the Lord for a pure heart and for His love to dwell in us. If you truly care, you will not run when adversity hits them. If you truly care, you will not walk away when you are experiencing the blessings while they have not yet come into their season of blessings. (Galatians 6: 1 – 6)
5. Pursue God through Jesus Christ and the things of God and you will never lose your way! God is Love and He exudes and exemplifies Holiness, Peace, Righteousness, Faith, Patience and Gentleness! Pursue these things and pursue the things which will edify another! (Romans 14: 19; I Corinthians 14: 1; I Thessalonians 5: 15; I Timothy 6: 11; II Timothy 2: 22; Hebrews 12: 14; I Peter 3: 11) These all allow us to experience the goodness of God and the kind of joy that can only come from God by the power of His Holy Spirit!
6. Submit yourself to God, to the principles and instructions of God and to God’s Word! (James 4: 7) As you do this, He will open to you ways of escape from trouble, solutions, new ideas and your faith and trust in Him will increase. As a result, you will learn to hear His voice and understand how He relates to you and how immensely He loves you! You will learn and understand what it means to truly love and also how to receive love!
7. Love the Lord God with your whole being and strength – with everything within you! (Deuteronomy 6: 5) Don’t be afraid to express your love to Him – through your obedience to His Word and His instructions; through your worship of Him without inhibitions; through praise without hesitation; through the frequency and level of intensity of your communication with Him! Never be afraid to express love to God your Creator and Father. Remember also to love your neighbor as you do yourself and owe no man anything but love! (Matthew 19: 19; Romans 13: 8) Remember too – love yourself because you are made perfectly and with great respect. (Psalm 139)
8. Meditate on the Lord and Word of God daily! Don’t try to ‘clear your mind’ and that sort of nonsense – that is not what the Lord tells us to do. (Joshua 1: 8; Psalm 1: 2; Psalm 63: 6; Psalm 77: 12; Psalm 119; Psalm 143: 5) Recognize that you can never truly ‘clear’ your mind – that is a deception! The Lord instructs us to meditate on His Word – think about His Word and ‘digest’ them with our minds! Keep them at the forefront of your thoughts so that we can execute them daily. Meditate on God’s Word because they are life to our spirit!
9. Communicate! Take the time to communicate with God in Prayer. (Matthew 21: 22) Spend time with God, not only to tell Him all about your troubles, but spend time to listen to Him, because He will speak to your spirit and refresh and strengthen you! Your relationship with Him will strengthen as your communication with Him increases! Furthermore, communicate with those you love! Don’t assume they know should know or should understand you! Talk to each other and make every effort to facilitate 2-way exchanges and dialogues.
10. Give! Always remember that your giving is the opportunity God gives you to receive the very blessings or solutions for which you have asked Him. God operates according to His own principles of sowing and reaping! He also honors His word! (Genesis 8: 22; Psalm 107: 37) As you sow/give into His work, He will cause you to receive even greater than you expect. But recognize that this principle is not a lottery game. Don’t give today and expect a windfall tomorrow! While He is more than capable of doing so, He gives you a harvest in the time of your greatest need! When you give to the work of the Lord, it’s one of the best investments you could ever make! You are helping to alleviate the needs of others, while obeying God’s word and instructions, and as a result, a double blessing awaits you in your time of greatest need.