The 5 traits of a righteous person

Righteous people are driven by heavenly success and a desire to please God rather than being driven by earthly desire and a need to gain self-satisfaction. Here are five traits  of to help you start your quest for God. 

  They know God’s word
In order for us to know how to succeed in life, we need to understand how God evaluates success in life. In Exodus 31:3 it recounts how God filled the workman who constructed the tabernacle of Israel with knowledge, understanding, and wisdom, in order to succeed in the building. Knowledge is the acquiring of facts; understanding is the comprehension of the facts; and wisdom knows how to properly apply what one knows and understands to life's situations. In James 1:5, he tells us, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God that gives to all liberally". Therefore, in order to know God's way of success, one must have knowledge of His Word and the discernment of understanding by the Holy Spirit (I Corinthians 2:9-14), then committed to God in prayer for wisdom (See also: Hebrews 4:16, and James 4:13-15). This is God's formula not only for success, but for fullness of life and peace, even in a troubled world.

   They follow God’s word

God knows us better than we know ourselves, as well as the fact that God desires that we enjoy success and fullness of life. Therefore He has provided a guide to that end in His Word. In John 10:10, Jesus stated that, "I am come that you might have life, and that you might have it more abundantly".

When Joshua became the leader of the people of Israel, and before he led them into the promised land, God said to him, "This book of the law shall not depart out of your mouth: but you shall meditate therein day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success" (Joshua 1:8). The words "good success" are used only once in the whole Bible, in this verse. Good success was dependent upon allowing the principles of God's word to be the foundation upon which the nation was to build and be successful. So, today it is no different for the individual. God's principles are true, eternal, and as valid for us today, as they were for Israel.Psalm 1:2, 3 further reinforces this thought for it says that the righteous person has, "His delight in the law of the Lord: and in His law he meditates day and night". The result is, "He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he does shall prosper". God cares and provides for His children, who trust Him, and follow His Word. Success comes in knowing and following God's principles in His Word.

 They are spiritually minded

Romans 8:6, where it states, "For to be fleshly minded (i.e. self-centered) is death (i.e. to not succeed), but to be spiritually minded is life and peace". Today, people are consumed with a desire to succeed in life, as well as to have tranquility, but with the pressures to succeed, it seems almost impossible to have both at the same time. Yet, God's Word gives us the right prescription.

  They honour and serve God

 An absolutely positive principle for our admonition is found in I Samuel 2:30, where God states, "For them that honor me I will honor, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed". In John 12:26, Jesus Christ stated a similar principle when He said, "If anyone serve me, him will my Father honor". Prosperity according to God's evaluation (which differs from mankind’s: see, Luke 12:15), fullness of life, and success, can be attained not only in this life, but in that which is to come, when we humbly accept the precepts of God's Word, and pattern our lives according to them. Then God guarantees it, unconditionally.

 They trust God

As a loving heavenly Father, God wants His children to succeed and enjoy life. At the same time, and unlike an earthly father, He knows what is in our future, as well as knowing absolutely what is best for every child of His. Therefore, our response should be absolute trust in desiring His best for our lives. In this way we can be guaranteed success and fulfillment, even in the trials of life, which He allows to strengthen and mature us (see: I Corinthians 10:13 and II Corinthians 12:7-10).

Is God really with us,even when we cannot see Him

Do you know the legend of the Cherokee Indian youth's rite of passage?

His father takes him into the forest, blindfolds him and leaves him alone.  He is required to sit on a stump the whole night without removing the blindfold until the rays of the morning sun shine through it.  He cannot cry out for help to anyone. 

Once he survives the night, he is a man.

He cannot tell the other boys of this experience, because each lad must come into manhood on his own.

The boy is naturally terrified. He can hear all kinds of noises. Wild beasts must surely be all around him. Maybe even some human might do him harm. The wind blows the grass and earth, and shakes his stump, but he sits stoically, never removing the blindfold. It will be the only way he becomes a man!
Finally, after a horrific night the sun appears and he removes his blindfold. It is then that he discovers his father sitting on the stump next to him. He has been at watch the entire night, protecting his son from harm.

We, too, are never alone. Even when we don't know it, God is watching over us, sitting on the stump beside us.  When trouble comes, all we have to do is reach out to Him.

Moral of the story: Just because you can't see God, doesn’t mean he is not there.

"For we walk by faith, not by sight."

 

Where is God when you really need Him?

I am in bed. I am not awake .I am not asleep either. I have been staring at the popcorn ceiling for quite some time. Then I let out a big sigh, everyday has the same routine for one week now. Stare out the window, think about why God is hiding His face from me, yell at the birds, eat breakfast, sit at the park, come home, watch the news, curse the world, eat dinner and go to bed. I am a modern day misery, nobody really knows much about me, and the people that know me, probably don’t even remember I exist. I have cut myself off from all my friends.

  On a normal day, I’d be having coffee with one of my numerous friends. We would probably be singing our favorite hymns and thanking God for being so good to us and for saving us. And if not that I’d probably preparing a sermon for Sunday. Yes! I am a preacher. If you had me preach, you would probably think that the sun rises and sets in my eyes. Think again. You know I could write this blog and paint a very beautiful picture of how close I am to God right now and how much I pray, read His word, and the likes

  But who am I trying to impress? I am no seeker for jobs. No head has impressed me enough to be honored with such a lie. The truth of the matter is I have been struggling with God and I got t a point where I gave up. Have you ever tried to pray consistently for something and then you got to a point where you feel like God is not listening? I have.

That is why I am writing tonight?
Hopefully in this pursuit I will find God