 John 15:15 says, I don’t call you servants now. A servant does not know what his master is doing. But now I call you friends because I have made known to you everything I heard from my Father.
It is so amazing that the God who made the universe, who hung the stars in the sky and created the mountains and oceans, wants to be friends with me. He doesn't choose his friends based on how attractive they are, or how much money they earn. In John 15:14 Jesus says, You are my friends if you do what I command you. Romans 5:10-11 says, We were God's enemies, but he made us his friends through the death of his Son. Now that we are God's friends, how much more will we be saved by Christ's life! But that is not all; we rejoice because of what God has done through our Lord Jesus Christ, who has now made us God's friends. Before you become a Christian you are God's enemy because you do what you want, not what God wants. When you become a Christian, you do what God wants, because you love him. You are counted as God's friend because Jesus died for you.
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 Never stop praying:
 When we decide to follow Jesus we become a new creation. God's Holy Spirit moves in and helps transform us. This process is both immediate and lifelong all at the same time. We immediately become children of God but our transformation into the likeness of Christ takes a lifetime.
Romans 8:5 says, Those who live following their sinful selves think only about things that their sinful selves want. But those who live following the Spirit are thinking about the things that the Spirit wants them to do. This new creature that we become thinks less about our sinful selves and more about what God wants us to do. And what does God want us to do, you ask? Here is a very simplified list:
Is there a particular area of your life that you think God is challenging to you transform to be more like Jesus? The Swahili in this song is roughly translated 'I remain for you' and 'how you love me' just in case you were wondering.
 1 Thessalonians 5:16 is only three words long and in some versions it''s only two words—'rejoice always.' This doesn't mean that we should strive to be happy all the time. It means that we are joyful because of what God has done for us (sent his son, Jesus) and because of the hope that we have in him (eternal life with God). No matter whether you find yourself in a good time, or a bad one, you can be rejoice and be joyful. The word rejoice is mentioned 154 times in the Bible. Many of them are in the book of Psalms.
Psalm 13 O Lord, how long will you forget me? Forever? How long will you look the other way? How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul, with sorrow in my heart every day? How long will my enemy have the upper hand? Turn and answer me, O Lord my God! Restore the sparkle to my eyes, or I will die. Don’t let my enemies gloat, saying, “We have defeated him!” Don’t let them rejoice at my downfall. But I trust in your unfailing love. I will rejoice because you have rescued me. I will sing to the Lord because he is good to me. King David often pleaded to God for help with his troubles but usually ended by praising God because of his goodness. Not because God fixed his problems, but because he was good despite them. God helps us through our troubles. He has also given us hope because we will spend eternity with him where there will be no earthly troubles. That's something to rejoice about! |
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