Then I looked up-- and there before me was a man with a measuring line in hi shand! I asked, "Where are you going??" He answered me, "TO measure Jerusalen, to find out how wide and how long it is." Zechariah 2:1-2
How do you measure yourself? Do you measure yourself by others? DO you think of yourself according to what the people who surround you think of you? Does your mood change based on the praise or lack of it you get? Does your self worth come from what people think of you? Does it come from how much money is in your bank account? Is it by the amount of facebook friends you have or how many texts you get during the day?
What happens when you fail or when you disappoint someone? Is your worth lessened or ruined all together? The trouble is that when we measure ourselves by a false standard we are going to be disappointed and the standard is going to constantly change. It is impossible to please man. As the old saying goes "You can please some of the people some of the time and you can please all of the people every once in a great while, but you can't please all of the people all of the time. There is always gong to be someone who opposes you no matter how nice, wonderful, and accomodating you are. That is the way the devil works. He isn't going to make it easy for you. In fact, the more you grow as a Christian the more roadblocks he will put in your way.
You need to measure yourself according to God's measuring line.... perfection. And then when you realize that you aren't perfect in any way, you can go to God to ask for His mercy and grace, that He would take away the measurement all together. What God has done, instead of measuring you according to His standards, is sent His perfect and sinless Son, Jesus to fulfill the measurement. He has taken your place! He has completed God the Father's expectations!
Quit measuring yourself according to what others think you should be and instead measure yourself according to what God thinks you should be, His child, a forgiven and redeemed sinner!
Prayer: Lord God, help me to realize that I don't live for others but that I live for you, and that living for you provides freedom for me to be who You have made me to be. Amen.
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MONDAY'S QUIZ: Who was Xerxes? He was King of Persia during the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the temple.
Question: What five points does this article discuss?
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CALENDAR:
Sat- worship 5pm
Sun- worship 8:30; Sunday school 9:45; worship 11am
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NEWS:
PARENTING CLASS EVERY SUNDAY AT 9:45
Could you use some help in learning how to deal with your children? Want to have fun, laugh, and get some encouragement at the same time? Come to the "From Me to We" class in the Sunday school room closest to the closet this Sunday and grow!
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STEWARDSHIP SPOLIGHT FOR THE MONTH OF SEPTEMBER IS LCMS Global Missions
Go to LCMS.org to learn more about what our Synod is doing in the way of spreading the Gospel globally!!
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PRAYERS:
For BOB LAMPEN, Karin Klaustermeier's dad, as he is doing quite poorly with his cancer.