Natasha’s Daily Scripture, Prayer, and Reflection for 8.8.14

“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of people, to be seen by them. Otherwise, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven….”

Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭1‬ HCSB

Pray
Let all things that I do be for You, not me, and through You, not me. May my actions reveal Your Light within me. Let me remember to always give You the glory for all good things that I do and say. Let me remember to always praise You in good times and in bad. Let me always remember my place, my role, and my purpose. This is not about me, but always about You. In Jesus’ name I pray to You. Amen.

Reflection
Don’t do, give, or say things to get credit, reward, or praise. Let every good deed and speech that comes from you be done so in the Light and presence of our Heavenly Father. Don’t parade around in your self-rigged limelight attempting to shine and bring attention to yourself for doing what you should be doing anyway, regardless of the recognition you receive. Serve without expecting some the time you invested. God isn’t keeping track (or the score), and leveraging it against you, so why are you?

Questions of the Day
1. What do you think of today’s message?

2. Recall a moment when you caught yourself absorbed in public self-righteousness. What happened? How did you feel when you realized your weakness and failure to follow our Savior’s command?

3. How do you keep yourself aligned to the Matthew 6:1 principle?

Feel free to share your answers, prayers, comments, and reflections in the comment section below. You can also send me an email at: breakingbreadwithnatasha@gmail.com

Please also feel free to share this post with others. We’re never quite sure who needs to hear and see what, and when! It would be awesome if whenever you run across a prayer, message, or scripture that moves you, you would kindly share it with the rest of us. You can post it on this blog or send me an email.

Love always,
Natasha

Copyright 2013-2014. Natasha Foreman Bryant. Some Rights Reserved. All Prayers and Reflections are Copyright Protected by Natasha Foreman Bryant, unless otherwise noted. Prior posts from 2009-2013 are copyrighted under the name Natasha L. Foreman. breakingbreadwithnatasha.com

Scripture quotations taken from the Amplified® Bible,
Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation Used by permission.(www.Lockman.org)

Scripture taken from the Common English Bible®, CEB® Copyright © 2010, 2011 by Common English Bible.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. The “CEB” and “Common English Bible” trademarks are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Common English Bible. Use of either trademark requires the permission of Common English Bible.

Scripture quotations marked HCSB are taken from the Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Holman CSB®, and HCSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Natasha’s Daily Scripture, Prayer and Reflection for 7.26.12

“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.”

Matthew 6:1 NIV

Pray
Father all that I do and all that I am is for You and because of You. I do not claim my Christian life to satisfy or impress others. I do not pray, worship, meditate, praise, and spread Your Word to prove to others that I’m a Christian and follower of Christ. These things I do to build upon my relationship with You, and to strengthen our bond. As a result, by praising You and sharing with others Your Word and the blessings You have given me, I have been blessed once more to bless others.

Let my service never be under false pretenses, for I promise that I give freely what I have received. Bless You Father. Amen.

Reflection
Some folks parade their Christianity around like it’s a new car, but will be the first to slap you, curse you, or gossip about you if given the chance.

Have you seen a person driving a car with the Christian fish symbol on the trunk? Have you ever accidentally irritated them while driving? What reactions have you received? More than once I have been cursed out or given the middle finger because I did something to upset one of these Christian drivers. I have never been appalled by the reaction in general, but I have looked in amazement when I see these reactions from Christians who advertise their faith, religious beliefs, and alleged commitment to be a follower of Jesus—like they advertise their favorite sport.

Overt public displays of your beliefs and commitments says a lot about a person, and the perception is that people who advertise their Christian beliefs would also be active practitioners—being and showing love to all, even in times of stress, or when the love isn’t returned.

Jesus said not to practice righteousness to get and keep an audience, because it’s not their opinion or accolades that matter—what matters is what God says, thinks and does in response to our actions.

If you wear a cross to let others know you are a believer, then you might as well take it off because your motives are self-serving. The cross is not a symbol to be used like a membership card. It is a reminder of the sacrifice Jesus made for us, the lessons he taught, and the responsibilities that we bear when we commit to our lifelong journey.

Walk for God. Walk for Jesus. Walk for yourself. Don’t walk or profile like you are just to get noticed. Or you will get noticed by God.

Have a beautiful day family. Remember to put God first, family second, and your career third. In that order all things are possible and balance is present.

Lovingly yours,

Natasha

Copyright 2012. Natasha L. Foreman. Some Rights Reserved. All Prayers and Reflections are Copyright Protected by Natasha L. Foreman. breakingbreadwithnatasha.blogspot.com
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