Tuesday, April 25, 2023

Week Seventeen - Natural Laws

I was sorting my office and found some notes I had taken on natural laws. Natural laws are those that hold true no matter what. Like the law of gravity, they never change. The notes gave ten natural laws that, if implemented, would result in growth and personal development in any area where applied. So if you are a student, a worker, a mother, a minister, or in any place of life, these laws hold true.

1. You control your life by controlling your time. Many Bible verses support this truth. Time management is simply the wisest way forward in any situation.

2. Your governing values are the foundation of personal success and fulfillment. Joshua 1:8 supports this law, as does the book of Proverbs, Psalms 1, and the story of building our lives on sand or rock. What are you building your life upon?

3. You gain inner peace when daily activities reflect your governing values. Why? Because we aren't vexing our souls by living outside our values. 

4. You must leave your comfort zone to reach any significant goal. And how we try to avoid this truth! But God continually gives us Scripture to motivate us to go, love, press toward the mark, and hazard our lives for Christ. You can't get anywhere sitting in a rocking chair or hiding in the house.

5. Consistent daily planning leverages time and increases focus. Proverbs 16:3 says, "Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established." I use this verse as a prayer almost every day. "Lord, take my day and show me how best to use it." And Proverbs 17:24 taught me another truth. It reads, "Wisdom is before him that hath understanding, but the eyes of a fool are in the ends of the earth." To me, this verse says, "Concentrate. Stop looking at everything else and focus on what is before you."

6. Your behavior is a reflection of what you truly believe. If we believe kindness is important, we will be kind. If we believe forgiveness is the key to peace, we will be forgiving. We could list a host of qualities, both positive and negative, that are reflected by our behavior. This is the natural law of self-control that is never out of place.

7. You satisfy needs when your beliefs are in line with reality. This can be hard, but it means we find more satisfaction and happiness when we live in reality instead of drama and trauma. When we use God's Word to define truth, we find stability and productivity.

8. Negative behaviors are overcome by changing incorrect beliefs. And this is another hard one because change can be difficult. It requires honesty and humility. We sometimes don't even realize the false beliefs we hold. Mistaken beliefs or false ideas create wrong responses. Double-checking ourselves, discovering God's truth, and adjusting our belief system are wiser than doggedly holding on to a destructive belief.

9. Your self-esteem must ultimately come from within. There are two ways to look at this. First, Proverbs 14:14 says, "A good man shall be satisfied from himself." We find personal satisfaction and self-esteem from knowing we are doing right. But ultimately, our self-esteem comes from Who is within - from Christ and our position in Him. 

10. Give more, and you'll have more. This is an eternal truth. Proverbs 11:24-25 reads, "There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty. The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself." God is teaching us to give liberally. Don't hoard or withhold. Why? Because God gives the increase. Good measure. Pressed down. Shaken together. Running over. And, because He loves a cheerful giver. So stinginess won't get you anywhere, but giving holds the blessing. So be generous, and God can bless.

Successful people, happy people, have discovered these ten natural laws and live within them. They know that a haphazard life does not result in positive growth and personal development, so they conduct themselves by these laws positioning themselves into a place of blessing.

It's not rocket science! God says, "Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." And that's another natural law. So what are you sowing, and what are you reaping? It may be time to refer back to laws 7 and 8!

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