The PASSION Blog

When I was growing up it was considered good to be ambitious. People who had ambition and a purpose at young age were thought of well and looked upon favourably. I have to admit that I was never overly ambitious for anything as a kid and into my teens!

But what is ambition and is it good or bad to be ambitious? Dictionary.com says that ambition is “an earnest desire for some type of achievement or distinction, as power, honor, fame, or wealth, and the willingness to strive for its attainment”.

As you can see from the above definition ambition is about having a goal or dream and striving to attain it. It doesn’t take much to see that there can be good and bad ambitions. Ambition can be either both positive or negative depending on how it is worked out.

When I did a Bible search on the word ambition I found six main references in the NIV. Two were what I would consider positive (Romans 15:20, 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12) and four were negative and were talking about selfish ambition that is self seeking (Galatians 5:20, Philippians 1:17, Philippians 2:3, James 3:14-16).

One positive reference for ambiton is found in Paul’s letter to the church in Rome. Romans 15:20 says, “It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation”. Preaching the Gospel and bringing people to Christ is very positive and something worth aspiring too.

The second positive reference is found in 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12. It says, “Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody”. Paul encourages the believers to be ambitous to live a good life in front of non believers.

I think the key for me is that ambition needs to be focussed for good and be God focussed. I have never been ambitious to have the biggest house, earn the most money or have the most “toys”. But I am ambitious to be the best husband and father I can be, have a close walk with God and see people become lifelong followers of Jesus.

How about you? Are you ambitious? Are your ambitions God focussed and for the good of others? I think this is worth reflecting on today.

God Bless,

Dave

The Bible says in Matthew 24:35, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away”.

Jesus said these words at the end of a section the NIV titles “Sings of the End of the Age”. He talks about things happening before He returns.

He talks about things like wars and rumours of wars, people falling away from faith, Christians being deceived, people claiming to be Christ and more.

In other places the Bible also tells us that our world is going to be destroyed by fire (2 Peter 3:7-13) and a new heaven and earth will replace it (Revelation 21:1).

The thing I find interesting in this verse is the thought that even though this world will pass away, Christ’s words ARE eternal! They are forever words!

I find it comforting to know that even thought Jesus spoke them 2000 years ago…He backs them up eternally.

God Bless,

Dave

Hello all,

I have set up a FriendFeed account recently. If you would like to connect with me that way, you can find me here http://friendfeed.com/passionoz.

I am also on Twitter and Facebook too!

God Bless,

Dave

When I read the Bible I am always conscious that God may want to speak to me through it. As I read a chapter a day I prayerfully try to ask myself a number of questions. Here are some that may help you in your readings.

1. Is there an example for me to try to follow?
2. Is there a clear command that I should obey?
3. Has someone made a mistake I can learn from?
4. Is there a sin mentioned that I need to avoid?
5. Is there a promise I can claim for my situation?
6. Does this teach me something new about God?
7. Does this teach me how to be closer to God?
8. Does this give me guidance that I can follow?

I find that when I read a passage and I am asking these questions, I am more open to God to speak and teach me something new.

God Bless,
Dave

The Bible gives us a number of clues on how to be great in God’s eyes and in His Kingdom.

In Matthew 5:19 it gives us two of them. It says, “…But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven”.

The two key thoughts of this verse are obedience to God’s laws and then teaching others to do the same. It says if we do these things we “will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven”.

Let’s all purpose in our hearts to obey God’s Word today and teach others how to do it too. It sounds like a great way to spend a day!

God Bless,
Dave

I recently got asked the question “Why do we need the Holy Spirit, when I already have Jesus?” It was by someone who was a new Christian.

It was a good question and one that I asked myself a number of years ago. I decided to pull out some Scriptures and see what the Bible said in my answer.

The verses paint a broad picture and give us a number of reasons why we need the Holy Spirit in our lives.

1. Jesus promised to send another Comforter to help us (John 14:26)

2. He dwells in us as Christians (Romans 8:11)

3. He shows us when we are not living right (John 16:8-11)

4. He give us a new life in Christ (Titus 3:5)

5. He empowers us to tell others about Jesus’ love and salvation (Acts 1:8)

6. He helps us to pray and connect with God (Romans 8:26)

7. He makes us more Christ-like in the way we live (Romans 8:5-9)

8. He gives us gifts to serve God and serve others (1 Corinthians 12:4-11)

9. He encourages us in our faith (Acts 9:31)

10. He reveals the secret things of God to us (1 Corinthians 2:10-16)

These are only 10 of the reasons why we need the Holy Spirit in our lives. There are a lot more when you search through the Bible.

God Bless,
Dave

The Bible says in John 3:3, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.”

It is amazing to think that it is 21 years ago today that I became born again.

This was the day that I realised that I was a sinner and I needed God’s forgiveness. I also realised that Jesus died on the cross to take the punishment for my sin. As a result of this I asked Jesus into my life to be my Lord and Saviour.

Looking back I have to say that it was one of the great days of my life. It changed me forever. It also changed my eternal destiny.

If you haven’t taken the step of becoming born again and asking Jesus Christ into your life, I would encourage you to do so today. You can find out more here.

God Bless,

Dave