Windows to the Soul

                  Diabetes causes approximately 8,000 new cases of blindness per year in the US.  According to Research to Prevent Blindness, 120,000 people within the US are currently blind due to glaucoma and 104,000 are legally blind because of age-related macular degeneration. In the US alone, 1,100,000 people are considered legally blind, while worldwide the number reaches somewhere near 42,000,000.

                  I suffer from near-sightedness. I also had a serious case of keratitis a few years ago, putting me particularly at risk for blindness.  Obviously, I prefer not to become an addition to these statistics. For this reason I have spent time researching how to have healthy vision (or in my case, as healthy as possible), but did you know that healthy vision is not limited to only our physical well-being? That’s right folks, we can become spiritually blind! Were you also aware there is a Research to Prevent Spiritual Blindness? It contains information on the causes of blindness, other types of visual impairing and the prevention of such.

Therefore speak I to them in parables:because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. But blessed are your eyes, for they see:and your ears, for they hear. For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them

Matthew 13:13-17

Just as we go the eye doctor for a physical eye exam we must go to the Word of God for a spiritual eye exam to be sure we aren’t diagnosed with any of the following diseases.

1.     Blinded due to leadership (Mat. 15:14), willfully rejecting the truth (2Cor. 4:4), or prejudice (Joh. 1:11; Mat. 15:9).

2.     Out of focus due to a confusion of physical and spiritual values (2 Cor. 4:18).

3.     Evil. Matthew 18:9 teaches that if our eye is evil, our whole body is evil.

4.     Lustful. We cannot allow ourselves to harbor lustful eyes nor should we be responsible for causing this fault (2Pet. 2:13-14; Mat. 5:28; 2Sam. 11:2-3). We also should keep in mind that this eye disease is not limited to a fleshly lust, but also to a carnal one. Lust of the eye is one of the devil’s main attractions.

5.     Downcast because of a lack of faith. As Peter walked across the water, he became afraid and began to sink (Mat. 14:25-30).

6.     Closed. The source of this disease seems rather obvious, yet some close their eyes to the truth and by extension, God (Luk. 19:41-42; Mat. 23:37). Some close their eyes out of fear of the truth. Some close their eyes because they are too lazy to study-Paul had trouble with the Thessalonians because they refused to study. Some simply close their eyes out of indifference. Christians can be guilty of closing their eyes too. In a literal example, while Paul was preaching, a man closed his eyes and literally fell out the window! We must take care to keep our eyes open not only physically but also to the suffering and needs of our fellowman.

Let’s say we have been diagnosed with one of these dreaded diseases. I have some great news, there is a cure-which also doubles as preventative medicine!

1.     Anoint thine eyes with eyesalve… Jesus is telling us to do what is necessary to correct the problem.

I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.

Revelation 3:18

2.     Let God’s will enlighten you through His word.

The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints

Ephesians 1:18

3.   Become the apple of God’s eye.

Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings

Psalm 17:8

What we see depends mainly on what we look for.

-John Lubbock

Sources: http://www.rightdiagnosis.com/b/blindness/stats.htm

Work-To-Do Wednesday-Developing a Better Attitude

Our attitude is our most important quality. The attitude we have determines what kind of person we are. I feel safe in saying that all of us struggle to have the right attitude from time to time, yet we all should desire to have a good attitude. A good attitude is essential for a proper relationship at home, work, school and in the church. Our attitude affects every single aspect of our lives. So here are five suggestions to help us develop better attitudes.

1.     Think positive. Most people who have bad attitudes are very negative people. There is always something wrong, never anything right. Individuals who fit into this category are usually very unhappy and hard to get along with. A better attitude begins with being a positive, optimistic person. Negativity is a part of life but it not something we can afford to dwell on. Do not allow yourself to become so negative that you cannot function as a child of God.

“I can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth me.”

Philippians 4:13

2.     Learn to cope with failure. We fail, both spiritually and in our day to day activities of life, but how we handle failure will determine what kind of life we have. David and Peter both failed miserably, but neither allowed it to destroy them. Judas did. Jesus told the apostles, “..he that endureth to the end shall be saved” (Matthew 10:22). Endurance is the key.

“If you keep on swinging, sooner or later you are going to connect.”

3.     Keep busy doing things for others. It’s very difficult to have a bad attitude if your focus is continually on others. Individuals who fill their lives doing for others are the most happy people on earth and they are missed when they are gone (Any one remember Dorcas? Acts 9:36).

“…It is more blessed to give than to receive.

Acts 20:35

4.     Don’t let sickness, suffering and death cause you to become bitter. Unfortunately, sickness and death are part of this life and sometimes bad things happen to good people. (It would do us all good to read the book of Job often.) Only a deep abiding faith in God will see us through. May we never forget that our eternal abode is a place free from sickness, suffering and death (Revelation 21:4).

“As we live our lives we either become bitter or better.”

5.     Pray CONSTANTLY that your attitude will be right. God WILL help all of us to have a better attitude. The question is-do we want to change? Are we satisfied with a bad attidue and a miserable life? If we want the right kind of attitude, God WILL help us get it.

“Pray without ceasing.”

1 Thessalonians 5:17

Attitudes are contagious. Is yours worth catching?

Motivational Monday-The Power of One

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Have you ever heard someone make the statement, “I’m only one person, there just isn’t much I can do?” Have you ever thought this yourself? Have you ever heard a sister in Christ get discouraged and say, “It really doesn’t matter what I do, no one notices or cares anyway”? It is easy for us to feel this way from time to time. After all discouragement is one of Satan’s most powerful tools but…

         What if Esther had this attitude? Esther risked her life to save her people. Can you imagine how different things might have turned out if she had told Mordecai that there was nothing she could do to help save her people?

         The midwives in Exodus 1:15 decided to obey God rather than man when Pharaoh told them to kill the Hebrew baby boys. What if, instead, they had chosen to carry out this order? Perhaps Moses would not have been around to lead the Israelites out of bondage. Moses may never have even known his true heritage if his sister, Miriam had not been watching over him and offered to find Pharaoh’s daughter a nurse to take care of the child.

         What if Joshua and Caleb had agreed with the other ten spies by saying, they could not take the Promised Land? Samuel might never have been born, much less have been a prophet of the Lord, were it not for Hannah’s prayer. The lineage of Jesus would not be what it is had Ruth chosen not to follow Naomi, because she would not have met Boaz. Timothy might not have the strong faith he did were it not for his grandmother, Lois and mother, Eunice.

         The point I am trying to stress here is that you never know how your actions will affect others. The only thing you know for sure is that you WILL have an impact on the lives of others positively or negatively. It’s known as the ripple effect. When you toss a stone into a pond, ripples form around the place the stone entered the water. The ripples start out small but they grow as they move outward. This illustration is described well in an article written by Bro. Nichols…

     During the War Between the States, a young woman learned the truth and obeyed the gospel. Her sweetheart, J.H. Halbrook, was a confederate soldier. He was captured by the union army and kept a prisoner in Michigan until the war was over. After the war, he returned to Centerville and married his sweetheart. His wife studied the Bible with him, and he soon became a Christian. He thought the truth was so good and so simple that he began to teach and baptize many of his friends and neighbors. He began to preach, but he recognized his need for more training, so he went to the original Mars Hill Bible School, taught by T.B. Larimore. Upon completing his studies there, instead of going back to Tennessee, they moved farther south, coming into Walker, Marion, Fayette, and Lamar counties in Alabama. One of J.H. Halbrook’s many converts was Charley Alexander Wheeler. Along with his wife, C.A. Wheeler obeyed the gospel and soon began preaching to others. He started more than 100 congregations and baptized more than 6,000 people. One of those 6,000 was my father, the late Gus Nichols. And twelve thousand were baptized under his preaching. Among those baptized by Gus Nichols, no one knows, nor can know, how many began to preach "the glorious gospel of Christ" (2Cor. 4:3,4); but I personally know several. I, Flavil Nichols, am ONE whom he baptized and whom he encouraged to preach the truth. And under my preaching, about 3,000 have been baptized. A few among them preach the gospel also! Only eternity can reveal the total results of the conversion of that one young lady nearly 150 years ago. The results are not yet all in! But this shows that TWENTY-ONE THOUSAND people have become Christians through this single thread in the fabric of her influence.

-Flavil Nichols Huntsville, AL
-From The Winfield Newsletter, Vol. 21, No. 14

         As this story proves, while you may only be one person, your actions and influence can have far reaching effects. As women we are many things. We are wives, mothers, daughters, sisters, teachers, neighbors, and friends. We are bosses, employees, coworkers, and citizens. All of us fall into a least one of these categories and there are many more that I did not name. The many roles we fill allow us to interact with people from many different walks of life. Our influence and power could easily be as far reaching as the young woman from the story who obeyed the gospel and simply shared it with her husband.

         The virtuous woman we read about in Proverbs 31 was aware of the power she possessed. She was very busy caring for her family, the poor and those in need. Dorcas (Acts 9:36ff) likewise was concerned about the well-being of others. What wonderful legacies these ladies left behind and what great examples for us to follow!

         As I said in the beginning, it is easy for us to get discouraged. Being a Christian is not easy. God never promised that it would be and Satan certainly doesn’t try to make it easy for us, however, we must not let him get the best of us.

         Bob Marley, a Jamaican singer-songwriter, believed racism and hate could be cured by injecting music and love into people’s lives. While I do not support or agree with his beliefs, he once made a statement that impressed me. When he was scheduled to perform at a peace rally, a gunman came to his house and shot him. Two days later he walked out on that stage and sang. When asked why he wasn’t resting after his injury, he said, “The people, who were trying to make this world worse are not taking a day off. How can I?” That quote can be applied to our lives as Christians. Satan doesn’t take days off and he is working especially hard on us. He already has the world where he wants it. He wants us to join it instead of make a difference in it. Satan knows the power of one.

While teaching Bible class, my great uncle has stated numerous times, “There is one thing that every Christian can do, that is encourage one another.” I believe he stresses this point because he realizes how easy it is for us to become discouraged and encouragement is our greatest defense against it. Hebrews 3:13 tells us to encourage each other every day.

"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see you good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven" Matt. 5:16 Jesus gave us these instructions because he wants us to realize the power we have as individuals as well as collectively. The world is dark and it our job to let the light shine through. We must light up the darkness.

“I can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth me.”

Philippians 4:13