Rick Costa

However, the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything. He will remind you of everything that I have ever told you.

– John 14:26 (GOD’S WORD® Translation (©1995))

The Holy Spirit isn’t some ghost that floats around just watching us doing nothing.  No, He is God Himself just as much as Jesus walking the earth always was and is.  He is here to help us, to teach us and to help us remember God’s Word as we go through life.  Don’t ignore Him!  Ask Him for help!  It’s why Jesus had the Father send Him here.

But I say to you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which spitefully use you, and persecute you;  That you may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he makes his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

– Matthew 5:44-45 (American King James Version)

God doesn’t only do good to those who deserve it.  He does good to all because He IS good and our Father wants us to be like Him.  We’re to treat everyone with the same goodness that God has given to us when we surely didn’t deserve it.  No, it doesn’t feel good to be mistreated but God doesn’t feel good when we keep sinning against Him yet He is continually good to us.

Don’t put out the Spirit’s fire.

– 1 Thessalonians 5:19 (GOD’S WORD® Translation (©1995))

You may say, but the Holy Spirit is God so how can you stop God Himself?  Listen…God doesn’t work FOR you, but rather He works THROUGH you.  If you don’t want to get up and move when He tells you to, you are literally binding His hands.  But when you do this you are grieving Him tremendously.  Don’t wound Him like that!  We are Jesus’ hands and feet on the earth.  If you don’t do what needs to be done, who will??

“So I will acknowledge in front of My Father in Heaven that person who acknowledges Me in front of others.  But I will tell My Father in Heaven that I don’t know the person who tells others that he doesn’t know Me.”

– Matthew 10:32-33 (GOD’S WORD® Translation (©1995))

Do you want Jesus to brag about you?  Brag about Him!

Let your eyes look straight ahead and your sight be focused in front of you.  Carefully walk a straight path, and all your ways will be secure.  Do not lean to the right or to the left. Walk away from evil.

– Proverbs 4:25-27 (GOD’S WORD® Translation (©1995))

The enemy will do his very best to keep you distracted from the path God has for you using the things of this world.  He’s not a stupid devil…he has had thousands of years of practice enticing the hearts of men away from their Creator.  Don’t allow yourself to get side-tracked from the calling of the Lord on your life.

As Scripture says, “Whoever brags must brag about what the Lord has done.”

1 Corinthians 1:31 (GOD’S WORD® Translation (©1995))

Instead of talking about how great you are or your accomplishments, tell people how great God is and all the things He has done!

By mercy and faithfulness, peace is made with the LORD. By the fear of the LORD, evil is avoided.

– Proverbs 16:6 (GOD’S WORD® Translation (©1995))

Often times the reason why men can so easily sin with such audacity is that they lack the fear of the Lord.  Yes God is Love but he is also the Righteous Judge who will absolutely NOT tolerate sin in His presence.  It says in Hebrews 12:29,  “For our God is a consuming fire.”  You don’t play with fire!

Why are you crushed down, O my soul? and why are you troubled in me? Put your hope in God, for I will again give Him praise who is my help and my God.

– Psalm 43:5 (Bible in Basic English)

We all get sad and depressed from time to time but this verse encourages us to believe that God will give us the help we need as we praise Him.

Godless fools say in their hearts, “There is no God.”

-Psalm 53:1 (GOD’S WORD® Translation (©1995))

Only a fool actually would open his mouth and say that God doesn’t exist.  The book of Romans 1:20 says, “From the creation of the world, God’s invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly observed in what He made. As a result, people have no excuse.”

In every way we’re troubled, but we aren’t crushed by our troubles. We’re frustrated, but we don’t give up.  We’re persecuted, but we’re not abandoned. We’re captured, but we’re not killed.  We always carry around the death of Jesus in our bodies so that the life of Jesus is also shown in our bodies.  While we are alive, we are constantly handed over to death for Jesus’ sake so that the life of Jesus is also shown in our mortal nature.

– 2 Corinthians 4:8-11 (GOD’S WORD® Translation (©1995))

The ways of the Kingdom of God are often the opposite from the ways of the world.  From death comes life (that garden tomb is still empty!) and from circumstances that are bad will often come good.  Trust God that through our suffering He is transforming us into the person He wants us to be till that time when we’ll be fully in His presence forever.