Zero 2 Income

The podcast is moving!  Look for Rock Solid Journals in your podcast player.

How do we treat others? Am I on the narrow path? How do I identify the fruit in other people's lives? Find some answers that help us align to Christ's message on the Sermon on the Mount.

Thank you God for your great compassion on us.  Please show us how to accept it and to bring to you what little we have so you can break it and use it for your kingdom and truly satisfy our souls. (Matthew 8:5-13 & Matthew 15:32-39)

Have you ever asked God for something out of a complete selfishness and out of a desire to be filled with the things of the world instead of the things of God?  Yeah, me too.  Today's passage is an often abused passage of scripture.  Let's scratch the surface a little.

Sometimes the easiest lessons are some of the hardest to practice.  However, we are not excused by the words of Jesus.  He clearly tells us not to judge others.  Rather, we help others only when we ourselves have been helped.  We are blind and cannot see, our sight might be restored before we attempt to remove the grain of sand from our brother's/sister's vision.

When we toil, we are trying to outdo the hand of the Almighty.  We are trying to be better than the Heavenly Father who truly meets our needs.  Let's put anxiety aside and put it in the context of the Lord's prayer.

Now it is time to tie some verses into the Lord's prayer we looked at just a couple days ago.  This give us a perspective that our businsses are truly God's and part of God's kingdom.  They cannot simply be my kingdom, else they will be shaken and fall.

Jesus words are no hyperbole.  Prayer and fasting are very real and impactful activities that he offers us to be involved in.  He doesn't just offer them, he commands them, "... and when you pray, "... and when you fast."  Have you ever fasted before?  Here are some tips when it comes to prayer and fasting.

Christ teaches us to pray.  Pray in private.  Pour out your needs before the Father.  Place his kingdom as a priority in your life. But, are you truly engaged in prayer?  Are you praying about your relationships?  Are you yielding every aspect of your businss to the Almighty? I hope you find this an encouraging episode.

How can we give with the idea that only God can be praised and glorified by our giving?  Let's dig into it.

Oh, how we so easily fall into the trap of hatred.  Let us cling to the commands of Christ and allow him to break our old ways and love and pray for our enemies.

Retaliation is a heart issue.  Just as anger, lust, divorce, and broken oaths are heart issues.  We must be careful not to align our hearts with the heart of this world, taking the gavel from God's hand and striking it against someone that has done evil to us.  In so doing, we become like our enemy, reducing our heart to their heart.

Warning: Difficult content discussed here. This is a challenging episode for me and I'm sure for many of you.  But lets dive into this hard passage embracing the words of Christ.

Has anger gripped you?  What if you could let go of it today?  Why not list all the ways that YOU have offended other people instead of dwelling on how others have offended you.  Then, simply ask them for forgiveness.  Let a good foundation drive you in the marketplace.

When Jesus tells us to seek his commands, he means it.  Let's stop dumbing down Christ words and cling to them in business... and teach others to do so as well!

Salt and Light?  That isn't just in respect to our personal faith, we have a public faith as well.

Reset your brain, spirit, and heart, as you consider how our lives should look in our pursuit of Christ.  Here are a few attributes that he is looking for and if you are like me, you struggle with most, if not all, of them.

To come to God and say, "Here is my work, bless it!" is the same as idolatry.  The have good intentions that are not grounded in God is the same as witchcraft.  Wow.  Those are some rugged words, but they are the words God spoke to Saul through Samuel.

Is your business eating every bit of time and energy that you have?  Why not do a big mental reset and get things back in perspective.

Think you are rich?  Think you need nothing from God?  You are really poor.  So poor that you are like a beggar on the street.  God is not impressed.  Let's dig into the message to the church at Laodicea.

Have you denied the name of the Lord when confronted about your faith?  Cling to him.  Hard times will come, but we must be faithful to the name of Almighty God.

Are your works complete?  Meaning, are you just doing things for show or do you have a true heart before Almighty God?  Are you vibrant and truly alive or is it just an illusion?

What deep sin is hiding in your life?  Is there a Jezebel hiding in there somewhere that is teaching you to practice things that are not of God?  How is this affecting your business?

Being faithful to the Lord in the end of days will not be easy.  Would you put your business at risk to stand up for the one that saves your soul, or cave to peer pressure?

Are you ready to lay your business at the feet of Jesus and say, "Lord, I give it to you, do with it what you will?"  Consider that as you hear what God says to the church in Smyrna.