Please god
There is so much joy and peace for those of us who are living a lifestyle that pleases God. We can all agree that while it has its rewards, there are those moments that seem very difficult and painful (especially in college where you can get whatever you want) people who live in holiness while everyone else is not. I can relate to frustration, pain, and aggravation.
I used to have that attitude. But as I grew (and continue to grow) in my walk with God, I began to understand that just because everyone else is not living according to God’s word, it doesn’t mean I don’t have to. Everyone will be judged according to what they did. Let’s look at some of the blessings:
A holy lifestyle impresses God
The windows of heaven will open
A closer walk with God
Draw others to the Jesus that you
A holy lifestyle impresses God
In Leviticus 11:45, God said, “You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy” (emphasis added). I speak or had an encounter with. I remember one time in high school, while working out in the gym. One of the young ladies with whom I fell hugely in love came in. When I saw her, I ran to the bench press machine and asked someone to help me with the weights as quickly as possible.
I put up as much weight as I could to impress her. When I started lifting it, that’s when I realized it was too heavy. Boy, did I feel embarrassed. There I was, trying to impress this girl. Unfortunately, things did not work out.
You may be saying what does this have to do with pleasing God? Well, it has a lot to do with it. Sometimes we try to impress God so much, but we don’t know how. Reading your Bible just so you can tell people who read it doesn’t impress God, dancing in church to show off doesn’t please God, or quoting scriptures without understanding them doesn’t impress God either. Do you want to know what impresses God? Then learn to live in holiness. Why does living in holiness impress God?
We are commanded to “be holy.” The word of God did not say “pretty, please be holy” or “I will pay you if you are holy”, but rather “be holy!” ordering us. God is impressed when you live in holiness because you are being obedient to His commandments. Doesn’t it feel good when someone obeys you? So it is with God. He loves it when you don’t put yourself in a situation that brings you down.
He also knows how difficult it can be to live holy on a college campus, especially in today’s society where everything is perverted. You have to understand that He was on earth and went through what you and I did. The scripture says: “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). Understand exactly how you feel. However, although he was tempted in all areas, he was without sin. Which means that he never sinned.
The windows of heaven will open
There is a story about a young man in the book of Genesis 37 named Joseph, the son of Jacob (God later changed his name to Israel) who was sold into slavery to the Egyptians by his brothers because they were jealous of him. .
While he was in Egypt, God blessed him greatly. However, before God poured out His blessings on him, he was tested. Potipher’s wife (Joseph’s slave master) was very attracted to Joseph and wanted him to sleep with her, but he refused.
One day while working around the house, she grabbed him by his clothes and dragged him to sleep with her. In the midst of all this, he pulled away from her, leaving his shirt behind.
José was only seventeen when that happened. At that age, I know her hormones were “kicking”. He could easily have chosen to sleep with her, but he didn’t. He knew that if he slept with her it would not be pleasing to God. Because of his actions, God made him second in command in Egypt, one of the largest nations at the time.
When you are obedient to God’s word, there is no limit to how much it will bless you. “No eye saw, no ear heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him” (I Corinthians 2: 9). God will reward you for your holiness.
During my freshman year in college, I did have some personal struggles though. I was still able to receive some of the blessings that God had for me because of His grace and mercy. My dad had lost his job due to 911. I had to support myself. It was only by the grace of God that I survived.
He blessed me academically I was fine. After my first semester I got a 4.0 GPA (God be all the glory). All my basic needs were met in one way or another.
Is there something you want to have but can’t afford? A car, a house, etc. I wanted a car for my freshman, but due to my financial circumstances, I couldn’t afford one so I had to get on the bus like everyone else.
Whatever it is, God wants to bless you with it; What about your future spouse? Do you want God to give you someone? I hope not. You want the best. There are many ways that God can bless you. However, when some people think of God blessing them, they only think of materialistic things. I’m not saying there is something wrong with that. God can bless you any way He wants. Don’t limit God’s blessing only to materialistic things; God wants to bless you; Are you ready to receive it?
A closer walk with God
“Submit, then, to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you” (James 4: 7-8 emphasis added). When I first encountered this verse, it literally changed my life. However, I made a mistake that most people make about it; I did not apply the whole verse, but part of it. To understand this verse, we have to break it down. Will allow me.
“Submit, then, to God.” How do you submit to God? For a while, I thought that submitting meant simply saying, “God, I submit to You.” Before we answer that question, let’s define the word send. Submitting means yielding to the authority, power, or wishes of another.
To my surprise, submitting to God was more than just saying it. When you give God your authority, power and desires, you are saying “Lord, I no longer want to be the head of my life, I want you to be in charge.” Remember, God will only go where He is welcome. Submit is an action word, which means you really have to do something. Although it hurts at first, the rewards are greater than any pain you will go through. Trust me.
This became more effective in my life after I understood the verse better. As soon as I had that revelation, it changed my whole life. I began to be more victorious in my spiritual battle.
“Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” One of the questions I used to ask was how can you resist the devil? When you resist the devil, you stop doing the things you used to do, hanging out with people you used to, watching shows, or visiting websites that aren’t spiritually healthy for you. Resisting him is another simple way of saying “don’t succumb to temptation.”
The moment you stop doing the things you used to do, in essence, you are telling Satan that he has no authority over you. You are a child of God and you were bought with a price. I will be very honest with you; it takes a lot to get through this stage. However, the ones you do, not everything else is so difficult.
When you stop hanging out with people who negatively influence you, it shows that you are unwilling to be corrupted by their sinful ways. This is one of the areas that most people struggle with. One of the reasons is that it can be very difficult to break certain relationships / friendships with people you know or have been with for a while. But until you do, you won’t be resisting the devil. You are allowing you to use those individuals to spoil your walk with God. “Conform no longer to the pattern of this world” (Rom. 12: 2).
When you stop watching certain shows like Howard stern, real sex, Sex and the City, etc. or by going to uncensored websites, you are letting the devil and his “boys” know that he do not you have control over your mind. More men are affected in these areas than women. For a while, I couldn’t understand why most women don’t fight the battle of the eyes like men do. Then I learned that men are visual while women are emotional. Putting filth in our minds will not bring us closer to God.
“Draw close to God, and he will draw close to you.” Some saw a T-shirt that read: “If God seems far away, who moved?” I found it very interesting because sometimes we feel that God is very far from us. God is as close to you as your finger on your nail. The scriptures do not say, “He will draw near to you when you draw near to Him,” but quite the opposite. He is already close to you, waiting for you. The closer you get to him, the better your relationship with him will improve.
This verse will not be effective if you do not apply it in its entirety. It’s sad to say that sometimes when we read certain verses, we only take the part that we feel is most important to us. We are all guilty of it. When you learn to apply the entire verse, it changes your life forever.
Draw others to the Jesus in you
“Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your father in heaven” (Matt. 5:16).
Most of us know or have met certain people whose walk makes you want to know God better, even unbelievers. Have you ever put someone up and feel like you can tell them anything without being afraid that everyone else will know?
I remember one day after returning from class, one of the students came up to me and said he needed to talk to me. He said, “I really don’t know you that well, I see you here and there and I say hi, but I feel like I can talk to you about this problem I’m having.” I didn’t know this guy, he’d seen him on campus and our relationship was like “what’s up” and “goodbye.” He knew nothing about me other than that I was a Christian.
What I mean here is that, as Christians, we should all live to be like Jesus. Others should be drawn not only to the Jesus in us at church, but also to the church in us at school, in bedrooms, etc.
Learn to live a lifestyle that shows others that the God you are serving is real. And He can change you if you let Him. Many people call themselves Christians when their actions don’t reflect it.