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Con’t from front….. Therein lies the key to our prosperity. It is a HEART issue, not an action issue. Sure Faith without works is dead, or NO Faith at all. But it is in the origin of our actions that counts. All our actions begin in our heart. What is the motivation or purpose of our Faith comes from our heart. Only GOD knows our heart! No man can judge another man’s heart. You simply cannot see or know ALL the circumstances as to why someone else does or says what they do. It simply isn’t our job to do that. That is God’s alone. If we were to read the entire Chapter of Ephesians 4 every day it would set a high mark for all of us to obtain. This scripture defines who we are today as a member of Christ’s body and how we are to treat one another so we can be His Bride without spot or wrinkle. We must obtain unity by this verse…. Eph 4:13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ: Our attitudes have overall been," what can I get from this ministry or that minister”. We have been so conditioned by our Western culture to expect something in return for our participation in anything by whatever that means (attendance, giving, or even loving) that we continually set ourselves up for disappointment because our expectations were not met! How can we continue to walk the Christian life as God has called us if we always set ourselves up for disappointment by expecting any degree of fulfillment from another person? Let me ask you this, “what qualifies anyone to be a leader or an example for others to follow?” Besides Christ, if you look at three most important people in the Bible, Moses, David, and Paul, they have a very unique qualification. They were all murderers. What can you expect from a murderer? I hope to never reach that level of qualification. Our society has the unique ability to garner qualifications based on how perfect we act or how we meet other people’s expectations. But, I think I’d rather be a murderer if that meets God’s qualification rather than man’s! Herein we see it is not the actions that make the man to used by God. It is the heart God puts in a man or woman that qualifies them to lead others and be used by God in tremendous ways. God is a God of continually bringing life out of death and seemingly unholy circumstances. To get the big picture look at all of history from Adam until now. God has always brought life out of deathly wrong mistakes and circumstances so that He can always prove His nature to be the author and finisher of all things. Jesus Christ Himself was crucified so that God could bring the ultimate, death, back to life so that we could all fit the model He created through His Son. Are we continually allowing the Lord to bring life from our deathly mindsets? Do we still walk around with condemnation, expectation, and judgment towards anyone else human while missing the same scrutiny upon our own life? Have we really the time and effort it takes to carry all that for other people when we ourselves are not living the standard being set for others in our own heart? Oh, what a wicked web we weave! Let go of those expectations and do what Jesus would do; Love one another no matter what. Take on the perspective of the Father without trying to be God by reading each other’s heart and judging them according to our own limited capabilities. God already knows what we are going to do. He doesn’t need to expect anything from us so He is NEVER disappointed in us. Why, then, would we be disappointed in anyone here on Earth as long as we are loving them as God loves them? Stop judging, then we will be free from disappointment and we will enjoy the great blessing of loving others without recourse and without expectation that would lead to our own heartbreak. This is a year for ENDING that type of thinking. This is a year for letting go of our vanities as in Ephesians. This coming year is a year of seeing our brothers and sisters as God sees them. This coming year is a year to show the rest of the world what the Love of God means by displaying it to one another and living in a state of continuing forgiveness towards one another no matter what the situation or circumstance. This is a year of aligning our finances to meet the absolute measure of blessing and prosperity God has available for all of us. Tithe His assurance, plant our seed for a greater harvest rather than a “maintenance” garden, and most of all, set our heart to love no matter what happens. It is a year to rise above our humanness. It is a year to be like Christ at all times and in all ways. There is no more measure of each other by our minute standards. His ways are not our ways. He measures us according to our potential, not our past. He loves us because we already are a success not because we live according to His rules. He loved us before His rules were made. They are there for our protection, not condemnation. This is the year we begin to rule as Christ rules, with love, compassion, longsuffering, patience…..an end is always a beginning! SOTERIA® is a Love based Church with IRS tax exempt status. We very much appreciate your support and pledge to apply all gifts to where God leads us in our mission. Please send your Love Gift to: PO Box 7, Mars Hill, NC 28754 Receipts sent yearly. THANK YOU! CONTACT INFORMATION: If you need information please call 828-350-7744 or email - Pastor Ernest H. Hays pastor@soteriaministries.org CHECK OUR WEWBSITE - WWW.SOTERIAMINISTRIES.ORG THANK YOU TO ALL WHO HAVE GIVEN GIFTS!