Mindset For Success

The sacrifice that God wants is a humble spirit. God, you will not turn away someone who comes with a humble heart and is willing to obey you. - Psalm 51:17 (ERV) Humility is defined as a modest or low view of one's own importance. With respect to the Christ-follower and authentic faith, this characteristic is evidenced as we recognize our utter spiritual bankruptcy apart from God. It describes those who are acutely conscious of their own lostness and hopelessness apart from divine grace. The importance of this mindset is emphasized with the first words Jesus spoke in the Sermon on the Mount. "Blessed [spiritually prosperous, happy, to be admired] are the poor in spirit [those devoid of spiritual arrogance, those who regard themselves as insignificant], for theirs is the kingdom of heaven [both now and forever]. - Matthew 5:3 (Amplified Bible) James further emphasizes the characteristic of humility with those who obtain God's grace in the following verses. God opposes the

Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the Lord." And you forgave the guilt of my sin. Therefore let all the faithful pray to you while you may be found. - Psalm 32:5-6a (NIV) At some point in our lives, we all have been the recipient of a non-heartfelt "I'm sorry" from a person that had wronged us, or have been encouraged to say "I'm sorry" when we were the guilty party. If your Mom was assisting you with the apology, you might have heard her say, "Now say it as if you mean it." She wasn't as concerned with the words you were saying as she was the sincerity of the heart from where the words were emanating. She was teaching you to move from "I am only saying this because she made me" to "I know that what I did was not nice" to "I understand that not being nice to people is wrong and should not be repeated." She was helping you to mo

Yet I still belong to you; you hold my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, leading me to a glorious destiny. Whom have I in heaven but you? I desire you more than anything on earth. My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever. Those who desert him will perish, for you destroy those who abandon you. But as for me, how good it is to be near God! I have made the Sovereign Lord my shelter, and I will tell everyone about the wonderful things you do. - Psalm 73:23-28 (NLT) Does the above passage describe the intensity of my relationship with the God of the Bible? Do I allow God to guide my steps? Do I desire God more than anything on this earth? Is God the strength of my heart? Do I look forward to spending time alone with God every day? Is the Sovereign Lord my shelter? Do I tell others about the wonderful things God does in my life? According to research polls, as many as 90% of people believe in God or a higher powe

Check up on yourselves. Are you really Christians? Do you pass the test? Do you feel Christ's presence and power more and more within you? Or are you just pretending to be Christians when actually you aren't at all? I hope you can agree that I have stood that test and truly belong to the Lord. I pray that you will live good lives, not because that will be a feather in our caps, proving that what we teach is right; no, for we want you to do right even if we ourselves are despised. Our responsibility is to encourage the right at all times, not to hope for evil. We are glad to be weak and despised if you are really strong. Our greatest wish and prayer is that you will become mature Christians. - 2 Corinthians 13:5-9 (Living Bible) With the evolution of technology, it has become increasingly difficult to differentiate the real thing from a fake. From phishing to smishing to vishing to whaling, cyber email attacks can appear to be legitimate, but all have the same objective, to stea