We are the work of God’s hands, not our own. We are the clay which he is molding. But most of us don’t want to be molded by God. We want to mold ourselves, by doing what we think is best for us. We walk around saying things like; “I know what’s best for me”, “I know what I need”. Little do we know, we don’t.

Most of us don’t have a clue of what’s best for us. Our daily habits are normal to us, therefore we don’t see anything wrong with a lot of the things we say and do. We are therefore, on the inside looking out. But those, who see us on the outside, can see our insides — our flaws.

If we can be honest with ourselves by accepting constructive criticism from others, who we believe are not being judgmental, we will see God revealing to us those things that do not belong within us. Seeing it as coming from God, our thinking will change, our ways will change, and we will see God stretching us, pruning us, cleansing us, and molding us.

God wants you to be like him. He knows you are not perfect, but through him you are perfect. The good that is within you, is not of the flesh, but of the Spirit. And the flaws that is within you, is not of the Spirit, but of the flesh. Know that, you can do nothing without God, but through God. Let Him mold you.

Isaiah 64:8 (KJV) – but now, O Lord, thou art our Father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.

Matthew 6:8 (KJV) be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.

Deuteronomy 18:13 (KJV) – thou shalt be perfect with the Lord thy God.

Galatians 5:16 (KJV) – this I say them, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

John 15:5 (KJV) – I am the vine, ye are the branches; He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

Do you hold on to unforgiveness? Do you deserve to be forgiven?

Satan will tell you things to prevent you from wanting to give grace to others. He will remind you of how you were hurt, to make you hold on to the anger, the bitterness, and the pain.

If you have done someone wrong, and have hurt someone, you would want them to have grace for you, and forgive you. It is not God’s will for us to withhold that which is good. Treat others like you want to be treated. God has given you grace, why not extend grace, and give it back to the ones who have hurt you by forgiving them.

Forgive those that hurt you. God’s grace is undeserved to us, but God gives it to us anyway. God loves us so much, and no matter what wrong we have done, He still gives us grace. He still loves us.

Don’t hold on to anger, bitterness, past hurts and pain. For God’s grace is sufficient.

Proverbs 3:27 (KJV) – withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it.

I Peter 4:10 (KJV) – as every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.

Mark 11:26 (KJV) – but if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.

II Corinthians 12:9 (KJV) – and he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

We all want things to go right, and we all want people to do right. But, we all want to do whatever it is — our own way. Because we feel, our way is the right way.

When someone does something wrong, we are quick to judge and condemn, yet we have our own flaws.

Just like an automobile has many parts, but each part has a role. Therefore, they all work together so that that car can run smoothly, to get you from point A to point B.

God made us all different for a reason, and we all have different roles so that we too can work together, for things to run smoothly.

We choose to do things in our strength and do our own will, which makes our lives, as well as others around us, complicated. That is why there are systems and laws in place to make do right, and make us work together.

For those who choose to do things in God’s strength and do His will, there lives are not so complexed. They are not under the law, to follow the law, because they are doing God’s will and not their own. But under grace.

Let us stop throwing stones at others, and examine yourselves. Stop judging and condemning others and you will not be judged or condemned.

Proverbs 21:2 (KJV) – every way of a man is right in his own eyes: but the Lord pondereth the hearts.

John 8:7 (KJV) – so when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.

Ephesians 4:11-12 (KJV) – and he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.

Romans 3:19 (KJV) – now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.

Romans 6;15 (KJV) – what then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.

II Corinthians 13:5 (KJV) – examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?

Luke 6:37 (KJV) – judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven.

Do yo have a jealous streak? Are you jealous of others because of who they are, or what they have? Be honest with yourself — what are you jealous of?

We all have have some type of jealousy in our heart, but some jealously is more intense than others. We could be jealous of ones texture of hair, or of ones spouse, or of a persons accomplishments, to the point that it consumes us, and it affects our at-ti-tude, and it shows on the outside with our actions. We begin to verbalize it, then act on it, which is never nice. But when others recognize it, we deny it.

Satan wants to keep you in bondage to himself, and God wants to set you free from satan, from this world and all that satan try’s to offer you.

God is a jealous God. He doesn’t want us to worship others things, or put others and things, before him, which are considered gods. But, this doesn’t mean we should be jealous of others.

Whatever it is that consumes your jealousy, confess it to yourself, and to our Father that you have an issue of jealousy, and He will deliver you from it. Jesus will set you free — indeed!

Proverbs 6:34 (KJV) – for jealousy is the rage of a man: therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance.

Titus 2:12 – (KJV) – teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world.

Exodus 34:14 (KJV) – for thou shalt worship no other god: for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.

I John 1:9 (KJV) – if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

John 8:36 (KJV) – if the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

Our anger towards someone, due to their wrong toward us, can stir up within us that we don’t trust God to handle it, so we handle it ourselves. Taking matters into our own hands can be dangerous.

We can be lied to, treated wrongly, mentally and physically abused, or the life of a loved one taken by the hands of someone else, and that pain doesn’t go away overnight. Depending on the circumstances, it can take years. Then, there’s that cycle of pain and sorrow first, anger, then vengeance, way before the healing process.

It’s okay to feel sad and angry, but we shouldn’t let it last long, or let it harbor in our hearts. Harboring does not allow healing. And we must know that vengeance is not ours, it belongs to God.

We in the flesh, believe that man will get away with the wrong they have done. But, that is definitely not true. When we have wronged someone, we will not get away with what we have done. In due time, God will see to it that we pay for our wrong. It’s already done. Everything we have done, under the sun, good or bad, will be revealed, and we will pay for what we have done, whether good or bad.

Stop taking maters into your own hands, trust God, repent, and know that vengeance is not yours, but belongs to God.

Deuteronomy 32:35 (KJV) – to me belongeth vengeance, and recompence: their foot shall slide in due time: for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things that shall come upon them make haste.

Romans 1:18 (KJV) – for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness.

Ephesians 4:26 (KJV) – be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath.

Nahum 1:3 (KJV) – the Lord is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the Lord hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet.

Matthew 10:26 (KJV) – fear them not therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known.

Romans 12:19 (KJV) – dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.

Are you a talker or a listener? Are you trying to get your point across on someone else’s circumstances?

We are so anxious sometimes to tell someone something, that we start talking and the other person haven’t finished saying what it is they have to say. They are trying to get their point across, but we keep butting in, trying to get our point across. Sometimes, we want to answer before they can finish the question.

These type of conversations can sometimes turn into one-sided conversations, or forgetting the importance of what truly needs to be said — missing the point.

Some of us want to be the ‘winner’ in a conversation. We’re trying to let the other person know, we knew what they were going to say by speaking it first, while the other person is trying to tell it. It’s not even a race, and sometimes what we spoke is not the same thing the other person was trying to say. Also, most of us want to be right, and be on the smart end of the stick. But by doing so, you shame yourself.

We are to be quick to listen to what one has to say, then be slow to speak. If you just stop talking and listen, you will find some things have opened your eyes to yourself in some of these conversations.

Proverbs 18:13 (KJV) – he that answereth a matter before he heareth it, it is folly and shame unto him.

James 1:19 (KJV) – wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.

Are you ashamed . . . of the gospel? Of Jesus Christ?

Has there been a time in your life when you knew you should have said something to someone, to reveal Christ to them, and you didn’t? Do you not bless your food, pray over your food, in public because of what one may think of you? If that is the case, you are denying God.

We rob ourselves of our own blessings, by not doing what we should. The Holy Spirit lives within us to remind of things, and to guide us. We are ambassadors of Christ, and therefore, we are to speak boldly. When we speak boldly, it is Christ that speaks within us.

Don’t be denied before God, by worrying about what others think. You are the light of the world. God will make you stand out in the presence of others. You are not of this world, so don’t be like the world.

Trust God in everything and never be ashamed of Him. He’s not ashamed of you.

Matthew 10:33 (KJV) – but whosever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.

II Timothy 2:12-13 (KJV) – if we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us: if we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.

Matthew 5:14 (KJV) – ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid.

John 15:19 (KJV) – if ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.

Ephesians 6:20 (KJV) – for which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

John 7:26 (KJV) – but, lo, he speaketh boldly, and they say nothing unto him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is the very Christ?

Psalm 31:1 (KJV) – in thee, O Lord, do I put my trust; let me never be ashamed: deliver me in thy righteousness.

Whatever it is you are focusing on, is whats grabing your full attention and occupying your thoughts. It’s the BIG picture!

We are so concerned about this, and worried about that, that we can’t enjoy our lives. Some of us feel obligated to worry about people and things. Therefore, we feel guilty if we enjoy ourselves for a moment or two.

We “say” we want peace, but don’t “act” like we want it. We have this problem by thinking we know more than God, therefore we focus on the circumstances. Or we may give it to God, and quickly take it back.

God is telling us how to have peace, how to have joy, but we dont want to do what it takes to get it. There is a reason why God wants us to give him our cares, our worries. He wants us to live in abundance.

He is freely giving it to us. He said, cast your cares on me and I will give you rest. He said, peace I give to you.

Therefore, give your cares, your burdens to God, let Him give you peace, and live the life God wants you to live . . . a life of abundance!

II Corinthians 10:5 (KJV) – casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.

John 14:27 (KJV) – peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

John 10:10 (KJV) – the thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

I Peter 5:7 (KJV) – casting all your care upon Him; for he careth for you.

We go through life struggling, doing things we think are meant for us to do. We try to create relationships with people we think are meant for us to be with.

Everything that comes our way is not meant for us to have or to keep for ourselves. Some things that come our way are there for a season. Some things are there to teach us, or to teach the other person, to make us stronger, to push us forward, or in the direction God wants us to go. But all things that come our way, are there for a reason.

Some things are just obvious that they are not meant for us, but we force it, and don’t understand why it’s not working for us. That’s because we’re blinded by what we want, and what we want to do.

There are consequences when we go against what God is showing us or calling us to do. When we rebel against God, and be disobedient, sooner or later, He opens our eyes to what we have done. We can’t escape it.

Seeing things as coming from God, will help you to make decisions so much easier. You will be able to discern the truth of God and the lies of satan. You will see that God does love you, and know that all things are working out for your good.

Remember, every good gift, and every perfect gift is from God. Everything is of God, through God, and to God.

Ecclesiastes 3:1 (KJV) – to every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.

Joshua 22:22 (KJV) – and he Lord God of gods, the Lord God of gods, he knoweth, and Israel he shall know; if it be in rebellion, or if in transgression against the Lord, (save us not this day).

Titus 2:12 (KJV) – teaching us that, denying ungodliness and the worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world.

Romans 8:28 (KJV) – and we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

James 1:17 (KJV) – every good gift and every perfect gift is from God above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

Romans 11:36 (KJV) – for of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.