Three things... it's a long one, I warn you...

"Conscience, I say, not thine own, but of the other: for why is my liberty judged of another man's conscience? For if I by grace be a partaker, why am I evil spoken of for that for which I give thanks? Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God. Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God: Even as I please all men in all things, not seeking mine own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved."
- I Corinthians 10:29-33

I love this chapter, I don't fully understand it all, but I have been going through it and I have been listening to some studies on it and it's been a great blessing. There are three things here that have stood out to me as I have been studying and listening to studies. It's the parts that I have bolded out, I hope that doesn't offend anyone. (Is bolded a word?)

"For if I by grace be a partaker, why am I evil spoken of for that for which I give thanks?"

Good question... but what jumps out to me is the "for which I give thanks"... do I give thanks for all things? We give thanks before we eat... but can I watch a movie tonight and sit there all nice and cosy and say "Thank you Lord for this movie! I'm so happy to be watching this now!" Can I listen to my music and say "Thank you Lord for this music, it's a blessing!"? If I can't give thanks and praise the Lord for a movie... then I probably shouldn't be watching it. When my husband and I were colouring some days ago, I was so happy I would pray and thank the Lord in my heart. We weren't doing anything religious... or spiritual, but I could thank the Lord for it. Now... there are things that we cannot thank God for very easily, things we have to deal with that are not a choice. How do you thank God for a coworker that really gets on your nerves everyday, or... a little beat up car that never wants to start, or you are living in a city, country that you really don't like... you can pray that the Lord would change your heart about it, start thanking the Lord for that person you can't stand and you will see that as you pray for them your heart will begin to change towards them.... maybe not right away, but it will in time, through prayer ;) Thank the Lord for the little beat up car or the almost junk computer you have... at least you have one, and if it's better to get rid of it, then thank the Lord that you can do without... haha. But thank him, it will bless you. Now... what about illness, what if somebody you trusted really did you wrong, what about the death of a dear one... if you believe that God is love, that He is just, that He is all knowing, you can thank Him too... because by faith you can believe in this loving God, just and all knowing that keeps His promises. And when He promises that He will hold you up, that He will work whatever it is for the best of those who love Him... He will do it! Just like Jacob you could be crying "All these things are against me", but be of good cheer, the Lord will see you through. Ask people to pray for you, with you, seek the Lord in all things. When Jacob cried this he didn't know that what would come would be so much more, so much better than he had ever imagined. If you are thinking "Who's Jacob?" I'm talking about the Jacob in the book of Genesis... in the Bible... worth a read. I give thanks to God as I type this post.

"Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God"

When you wash your dishes tonight, do it to the glory of God... why glorify God while washing dishes? I guess because that might be what He will call you to do tonight, which then must be very important, and we are told to do all to the glory of God. Not to get into home-keeping... but God is organized... In creation you see that things are done in an orderly way. The sun comes up, the sun goes down... winter, spring, summer, autumn...always the same, year after year. Is it boring?... no, it's beautiful. Even the cloth that was used on Jesus at his burial, was found folded at the tomb after his resurrection. Pretty cool eh? (john 20:7) But again, do all to the glory God, all that you do. I used to think that I could only glorify God at church, or while I was doing "good" things... but now I know that I can glorify God by doing that which I should do each day... I know He cares for the little details in my life, and in yours too... so now I can mop for Him if you will, and I'm sure it pleases Him because I chose to bring glory to Him in doing so... yes, it takes faith ;) I hope to bring glory to Him as I type this post.

"Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God: Even as I please all men in all things, not seeking mine own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved."

I think this is also very important. I know what it's like to be around people that always want to have things their way, and it can be very tiring to try to please them, but "that they may be saved." is the part I try to remember. Within the body of Christ there are Christians that drink wine (I have never seen any of them ever get drunk), and there are those who believe that drinking any kind of alcohol is sinful... if you are a Christian that drinks wine, don't offer it to one that considers it a sin. You can offend them by it, or even worse, they might take it to not offend you and if they get drunk because they are not used to drinking then you will really be in trouble because you have caused them to sin. I haven't been in such a situation before, but I'm just saying. - If you are invited to a church where you know that women cover their heads, and only wear long skirts or dresses, don't go with shorts... or pants... not you Doug. "Oh, but I am free to do as I want in Christ... and if they don't like it, it's their problem..." I don't think that this is the attitude we should have. In love, I think we should try to not offend but please especially those whom we call our family in Christ. Yes we have freedom, freedom to judge for ourselves as to what would be a better choice, more pleasing to the Lord. A slave does that which the master commands, but a free-slave who loves his master can chose to follow his masters commandments. Now, if we have certain convictions that we believe are better, more noble, of higher standards than others... may the Lord keep us from judging those others, because only God knows their hearts, and perhaps that which we find lamentable is something that they are thankful and praise God for. Maybe you believe women should stay at home and not work outside the home... and you see a sister coming out of her office job... she has kids too... how easy it can be for some to comment, even out loud, on what a bad mother she must be... you see her, you wave at her with a smile, she smiles back, goes home, and maybe you have just judged her on something she by grace gives thanks to God for. Is she right? Is she doing the right thing.... maybe not, and if you believe she is not, then love her. Show her the way through your love... and not your condemnations. Encourage them to seek the Lord in all things, and read His Word. Trust that God loves them just as much as He loves you, and that He will lead them. I have at times changed the way I do things because of others... not because they have told me to be like them, but because I see their love, their families and I think... "hey, I would like that too!" I hope I offended none with my post, but do let me know if I did so I know I did...

These are just my thoughts now as I have gone through these verses. I know I don't know everything and I don't do things right many many times, so don't take my word for it, find out for yourselves... I have put some links on the side of teachers or places that I think can be helpful in case you want to know more. I also have some blog friends that are great examples to me. If you have a Bible I encourage you to read it... I know it can be scary, it's a big book, maybe you think it's confusing, or boring, maybe you have heard it is a book you should keep away from, or there is this "je ne sais quoi" that just keeps you from reading it... but it is a treasure, I promise you that. The best way to find out is by reading it.

Oh... and before I go... just the cutest of pictures... maybe you have seen it already... it makes me think of a good Shepherd I know. He knows what to do when little lambs like this one get lost.

Lambo

God bless...