Important for Christ

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There is a natural human need for acceptance and recognition.

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From birth we crave attention, acceptance and reward for accomplishments.

Our parents give us hugs and praise for deeds well done.

Our teachers give us good report cards.

This is how we grow in self-esteem, and self-confidence.

Growing up, how many young teens stand in front of the mirror fixing their hair, or trying on new clothes they think make them look nice?

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One day, our world is upside down when we hear a teaching about how we are supposed to die to our selves, and live for Christ.

The self image we have nurtured and needed to be accepted in the world is suddenly seen as a hindrance to holiness.

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To be successful, be like a child, not an adult.

In the world, this is not possible, but it is possible,  for the kingdom of God.

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To be rich is to be poor.

To be poor is to be rich.

How do we resolve this inner conflict?

To be whole to ourselves, yet broken for Christ?

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How do we suddenly handle rejection and hatred because of our faith?

We once were so loved, and happy?

Can we still be happy?

Can we still be blessed?

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Look at these descriptions of a born again bible believer:

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1 Cor 1:

26 For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called:

27 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;

28 And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nothing things that are:

29 That no flesh should glory in his presence.

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**Notes:

We see God does NOT choose the noble or rich, or the wise, or strong, or the honorable.

He chooses the foolish, humble, weak, foolish (at least in the opinion of the world), and despised.

There is no pride here.

There is no glory in the flesh here.

The glory belongs to God.

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1 Cor 4:

10 We are fools for Christ’s sake, but ye are wise in Christ; we are weak, but ye are strong; ye are honourable, but we are despised.

11 Even unto this present hour we both hunger, and thirst, and are naked, and are buffeted, and have no certain dwelling place;

12 And labour, working with our own hands: being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it:

13 Being defamed, we entreat: we are made as the filth of the world, and are the offscouring of all things unto this day.

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***Notes:

Here we again see how our faith makes us foolish in the eyes of the world.

We may suffer hunger and thirst, and have no place to live.

We work but are reviled for our good work, and we suffer.

We are even slandered, and treated like filth.

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Understanding God’s filter system

A filter is a device constructed to remove certain items, and let others go through.

Some filters are based on electric charge, others size, others chemicals.

Our life on earth is a filter system.

Life contains various elements that remove certain contaminants from our lives, so that only the best traits will come forward.

Each of these elements involves a person or thing, which is critical to us, or contains a tragic experience.

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Below is an example of life filtering out bad traits in us to produce holiness:

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Application

While the complete wisdom of God in how he deals with each of us is mostly a mystery to me, I trust that the negative experiences I have are filtering out something unpleasant or unwanted by God.

This means I may not be rich, if I tend to be greedy.

It means I may have people constantly impose on me, if I tend to be greedy or self oriented in getting needs met.

I may be talked, or lied about, about if I tend to gossip, or lie, to break me of that.

I may have many experiences trying my patience, if I have none.

If I have anger against someone, I may find myself in situations where I need forgiveness myself.

If I want to be a famous star, and get all the glory, I will most likely get experiences that humble me.

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This is why we should thank God for all the negative experiences we have.

While the devil may be involved in our afflictions, and we rebuke him for that, we should also look for the hand of God in trials we have.

For even if the enemy means our suffering for evil, God will use it for our good, and purification, so that we may be holy before Him.

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Final note

We are not too seek to be important in life.

Who is important to the WORLD is not necessarily important to God.

Each of us has a gift, and we should ask God how to use it for His glory.

Some are gifted to be silver vessels, some are gold, and some may be clay pots.

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There should be no jealousy or envy in the Body of Christ.

We rejoice in each other’s gifts, seeing God at work, and we diligently apply our own gifts to serve God.

If we are just a clay pot on this earth, we may have a gold crown in heaven.

What matters most is eternity…!

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So can we be happy, and can we be blessed?

The answer is yes, if we can see God working in our lives, and learn to thank Him for this.

While it may not make sense to the world, and we may suffer in our trials, what we GAIN is so much greater.

We have the peace of God in our lives, despite the enemy, and we have the precious hope of eternal life, and joy in heaven for eternity.