The New Life, Inc.

Questions! 

I remember as a little kid before I even started school I was a wanderer. I would follow Dad all over the place. He must have gotten tired of me being in the way all the time. I was always asking questions about everything that was going on. I am sure I didn’t understand most of the answers he gave me, but I continued to ask questions anyway.

Then I went to school and teachers began to teach me things I didn’t know. I stopped asking questions for many years. The teachers were asking me questions instead. I found out I didn’t know much and from that point on you would have to call me a wayward son. I went into the military service and later got married, no purpose, no more questions just a lost soul wandering lost in a fog.

I was in a Sunday service one morning and suddenly I realized there had to be something more and I started asking questions once again. My first question was; “There has to be something more than what I have and I want it?”

As a result I experienced the Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. I began to see, hear and then understand spiritual things. The bible opened up to me and I understood many new things. I had many questions and I found many answers. I began to think I really know a lot, until the Lord began to ask me questions that I did not have answers for.

I understand a lot more then I used to. I might be able to answer some of the questions you might ask me, but to be very honest I know very little. There is so much to be known and I know so little. We learn a little and then we think we know it all and it goes to our head and we start coming out with all the answers when we still know so little and should still be asking questions.

We have so many problems in the world, in our government, and in our homes. We think we have all the right answers, but we don’t. The reason we don’t have the right answer is because we don’t know how to ask the right questions, then we might find some answers.

The bible tells us the whole head is sick and it will continue to be sick until we turn to the Lord and receive a mind like Christ. You see the Lord gives us a new mind as well as a new heart. As long as we keep operating from the old mind and heart, we still have the wrong answers, ask the wrong questions and give the wrong advise.

Godliness

I have been reading the second epistle of Peter, in the first chapter there is a list of what Peter called qualities. One that caught my attention was godliness. I thought that was interesting, I wonder what godliness is? I looked it up in my dictionary and it said very little about it, but somehow I felt this is important. I remember from somewhere in the past a quotation, “cleanliness is next to godliness” and as I thought about this I realized if you think of cleanliness as referring to purity; godliness is purity, in our thoughts, our speech and in our actions.  

I then asked myself the question; “Do I know anyone that is godly?” I came up with a blank. I know people that are trying to be godly or think they are godly, but I didn’t think they were godly.  

I then began to ask other people, “Do you know anyone that you consider to be godly? Most people did not have an answer right away, but they started thinking about it. Some of the responses were, “I have never thought about it”.

If they did come up with an answer, my next question was, “Why do you consider them godly? One of the responses that began to give me a little understanding was from a lady bartender as I was having lunch one afternoon. I asked her the question, “Do you know anyone that you consider to be godly?” she answered very quickly. “Yes I know two people, one of them is my grandmother.” I then asked her, “Why do you consider her to be godly?” Her reply was, “Because of the way she lives her life.”

This gave me a new understanding of what godliness is. We can be godly in some ways and ungodly in others ways. People can see godliness in us. They may not recognize it as godliness, but they still see it.

Do you consider yourself to be godly?

I asked Pauline the question; “Do you know anyone you consider to be godly?” she thought about it for a few moments, and then she said, “Yes! I consider you to be godly;” This really surprised me; for I did not consider myself to be godly. Maybe it is important for us to see that some of the time we are godly, and that other people see us as a godly people.

I asked another friend; “Do you know anyone godly?” This person said, “Yes I know several people I would consider godly.” I asked why, and he told me they would hear God and do what He told them, they were obedient.

As I was thinking about these things I saw something real clearly. If every time there is a question whether a word or action is questionable; just consider; is this a godly word or action. You will know immediately in your heart and spirit if it is or not. Then it is up to you to be godly or ungodly.

Who Do You Think You Are? 

Or another way of putting it; “Who does he think he is? A number of times in the past years I have been asked this question; “Who do you think you are?” Other times when people were speaking to others about me they would say: “Who does he think he is”? I expect that many of us have made that remark at some time or other.

As I think about this I realize that is a very important question, “Who do I think I am?”

Several years ago the Lord asked me a question, “Who am I?” I knew He was not looking for a pat answer or a quote from the bible. There was something He wanted me to see. I thought about this question and pondered on it.  About two weeks later I saw what the Lord wanted me to see. I spoke to the Lord and said; “Lord I know who you are! You are who you are; and you don’t have to be anything different then that!”

The Lord replied; “That is right; now who are you?”

I had spent most of my life running away from myself, trying to be somebody else. I knew this question was very important. I pondered on this question for another couple of weeks, then I had the answer. I said, “Lord; I know who I am!” He replied; “Who are you?” I said, “I am who I am and that is all I need to be. I don’t have to be anybody else or be like anyone else!” It is easy to be me, difficult to be someone else.

Romans 12:3; For through the grace given to me I say to every man among you not to think more highly of himself then he ought to think, but to think so as to have sound judgement, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.

Am I thinking properly about who and what I am?

Am I thinking properly about other people?

If I am thinking with sound judgement about myself and others I am not lifting them up and I am not bringing them down. I think many of us like to think we are a little smarter, more intelligent, wiser, gifted and with greater understanding then the normal person. This may be especially true of people in leadership positions, it kind of goes to your head, when other people start exalting you, you start believing it yourself. This happens in government and in church. God starts working through people and the first thing you know, you think you are doing it.

I am aware I am gifted in certain areas, so is everyone else in different areas. I am aware I have some talents, but everyone else has their talents as well. May God give every one of us sound judgement to think properly of ourselves and the other folks in our lives.