1 Thessalonians 5:16-22

Always rejoice, constantly pray, in everything give thanks. For this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not extinguish the Spirit. Do not treat prophecies with contempt. But examine all things; hold fast to what is good. Stay away from every form of evil. 

God’s will for us as we walk through life with Him is to have a constant growing relationship with Christ and in turn being transformed by His Spirit to be a light to the darkness around us. There are many ways we can nurture our relationship and faith in Christ. God lays out a plan, a map for us in the above verse from Thessalonians.

Rejoice Always 

In everything we are commanded to rejoice. God wants us to rejoice and be glad. To be grateful and thankful for His work in our life and the blessings He has given us. Even in hard times, God’s blessings and love are always surrounding us. God never stops either for He rejoices over us always.

Philippians 4:4 

Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I say, rejoice!  

Suffering & Troubles 

When we go through tough times it is hard to see joy or to comprehend being joyful. But it is most important during times like these to rejoice. God knows we need it. It’s not a mood or a feeling, it’s a choice in our minds and hearts. It keeps our mind focused on God and lifts us up. We gain understanding and hope as we think about God, pray to Him and put our faith and trust in Him. We grow in Christ as a result. When times are tough we grow the most in our relationship with Christ if we look to Him and choose joy.

Romans 12:12 

Rejoice in hope, endure in suffering, persist in prayer.  

Joy & Good Times 

It’s easy when times are good and joy comes naturally. We can be grateful and praise God. We see hope and feel God’s love and grace around us. We can easily rejoice in Him. God smiles and sings over us all the time, no matter what. We can always look to Him and find His help and support.

Zephaniah 3:17 

The LORD your God is in your midst; he is a warrior who can deliver. He takes great delight in you; he renews you by his love; he shouts for joy over you.

Choosing to Rejoice 

The choice is ours, but it is a choice, a daily choice. We choose to rejoice each moment of our day. We can ask God for His help to choose to rejoice. Read God’s Word and find peace, hope and comfort. Pray and find grace and forgiveness. Walk with God through every situation and part of our day and find a true trusted companion and best friend who is always there for us.

Romans 5:3-5

Not only this, but we also rejoice in sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance, character, and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. 

Pray Constantly 

Our communication with God comes through prayer and His Spirit within. God has given us this blessing and gift to be able to talk to Him, our creator. It’s a privilege and God wants us to come to Him in prayer.

Romans 8:26 

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how we should pray, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with inexpressible groanings.  

Throughout our Day 

Every moment, every day, we can commune with our Lord and Savior. Morning, noon, night and everything in between. God wants to hear from us. We can trust Him with all we experience and encounter everyday. Put into practice communicating with God as you go throughout your day. 

Philippians 4:6-7

Do not be anxious about anything. Instead, in every situation, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, tell your requests to God. And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. 

Throughout our Life 

Keeping in constant contact with God centers our life in Him. We keep our eyes focused on Christ. Through prayer we find peace, encouragement, conviction, faith, forgiveness, hope, confidence, connection, strength, support, grace and love from God. He gave us prayer for mutual benefit. He wants to talk to us and we are comforted by communing with God. 

Romans 8:28 

And we know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.

Give Thanks 

In deep gratitude we should thank God always. Look and see the blessings God has given us everyday throughout our life. An important part of our prayers is thanksgiving. 

Psalms 136:26 

Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his loyal love endures! 

Always be Thankful 

Thank God at the beginning of each day, at the end of the day, and throughout the day. In every circumstance, moment, hour we should be thankful to God. All the ways He helps us each day. All He works out. All He provides and how He guides us. Our salvation and the grace He has shown us. Cultivate a heart of thanksgiving towards God.

Psalm 146:1-2

Praise the LORD. Praise the LORD, O my soul. I will praise the LORD as long as I live. I will sing praises to my God as long as I exist. 

God’s Blessings 

He gives us so much. In Him we have riches. Each day His mercy is new. He gives us breath and life each moment. We have the privilege to have a relationship with God, to experience His forgiveness and compassion. To be loved by the God who created it all, including you, and holds it all in place. God sent His son to take our sin and wrongdoings. To take our punishment on Himself. He died for us, in our place. His love for us is deep, wide, and high. God graciously provides for us all our needs. He works on our behalf every day. We have God’s Word written to us. We have been given His Holy Spirit living in us. He guides us every moment. God never leaves us. His promises are true and we can claim them through prayer and reading His Word. 

Psalms 145:9-10

The LORD is good to all and has compassion on all he has made. All your works will give thanks to you, LORD. Your loyal followers will praise you.

Don’t Disregard God’s Spirit 

God gives us His Spirit as confirmation we are His. He promised His Spirit to the disciples and all believers. He promised He would never leave us, by giving us His Spirit. Jesus said His Spirit would guide us into all truth and that He would not speak to us on His own authority, but only what He hears from God.

John 16:13-15

But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. For he will not speak on his own authority, but will speak whatever he hears and will tell you what is to come. He will glorify me because he will receive from me what is mine and will tell it to you. Everything that the Father has is mine; that is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what is mine and will tell it to you.  

Grieving the Spirit 

God’s Spirit speaks to us everyday. We can tune it out. We can let the noise of our day and the world drown it out. Unless we train ourselves to listen for God we won’t hear Him. God’s voice usually doesn’t shout. It’s small, still, quiet and spoken with love. It’s always there if we listen. 

Ephesians 4:30-32

And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. You must put away all bitterness, anger, wrath, quarreling, and slanderous talk—indeed all malice. Instead, be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ also forgave you.

Hearing God’s Spirit 

By spending time in God’s Word and time alone with God as well as prayer with Him, we will learn to clearly hear God’s voice. We will recognize it quickly. We can ask God to help us recognize His voice. We can actively seek God throughout our day. Pray to Him always and in everything. Then we will start to hear God within us and understand His voice as He guides and directs our way.

1 Kings 19:11-13

The LORD said, “Go out and stand on the mountain before the LORD. Look, the LORD is ready to pass by.” A very powerful wind went before the LORD, digging into the mountain and causing landslides, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the windstorm there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake, there was a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. After the fire, there was a soft whisper. When Elijah heard it, he covered his face with his robe and went out and stood at the entrance to the cave. Suddenly a voice asked him, “Why are you here, Elijah?”

Listening to God’s Spirit 

Hearing and heeding the Holy Spirit is essential. We need to take action on God’s guidance. If we don’t act we can’t grow spiritually in Christ and we will stay stagnant. Our faith and our joy in the Lord will suffer. Whereas if we trust God and step out in faith, if we obey His Word and guidance, we find strength and hope in God. We will experience more of Christ and grow deeper into Him. Our faith will become deeper rooted as we listen and apply what God teaches us. We can pray and ask God to teach us and help us apply what He shows us. We can ask for more wisdom and understanding, for more faith and insight to seek and obey Him. He will gladly give us these things if we sincerely look to Him.

James 1:22-25

But be sure you live out the message and do not merely listen to it and so deceive yourselves. For if someone merely listens to the message and does not live it out, he is like someone who gazes at his own face in a mirror. For he gazes at himself and then goes out and immediately forgets what sort of person he was. But the one who peers into the perfect law of liberty and fixes his attention there, and does not become a forgetful listener but one who lives it out—he will be blessed in what he does.  

Examine All Things

The Bible and God’s Spirit are our guide. Neither one will contradict the other. If we study God’s Word we will learn who God is, His ways and how to live in Him. 

The Bereans 

They studied and tested what Paul taught. They read the scriptures and examined Paul’s teachings. They were mentioned in the book of Acts. They demonstrated discernment and showed us how to test everything we hear, read or see regarding the Gospel and God. They didn’t disregard what was being taught about God, but instead they tested it. That is exactly what we should do with all messages claiming to be from or about God and the Gospel. 

Acts 17:11-12

These Jews were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they eagerly received the message, examining the scriptures carefully every day to see if these things were so. Therefore many of them believed, along with quite a few prominent Greek women and men.  

How to Discern 

Reading and memorizing scripture, staying close to God, listening to His Spirit within, praying and seeking God first in all things – these things help us in knowing the truth vs lies from the devil. God never lies, but the devil will twist, dampen, mislead, manipulate and outright lie to keep people from the truth and to try to destroy young or growing Christians. The devil is like a lion looking to devour with his deception.

1 Peter 5:8 

Be sober and alert. Your enemy the devil, like a roaring lion, is on the prowl looking for someone to devour.

Hold Onto the Truth 

When we have tested what we see or hear being taught and we find it is true according to scripture and God’s leading, hold tight to it. Store it in your heart and let the truth sink into your soul. Let it transform and work within you eto make you more like Christ. 

Ephesians 6:14-17

Stand firm therefore, by fastening the belt of truth around your waist, by putting on the breastplate of righteousness, by fitting your feet with the preparation that comes from the good news of peace, and in all of this, by taking up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit (which is the word of God).  

Keep Away from Evil

Good and evil don’t mix. As God’s children we are to be separate from the world and its ways. Believers are not to pair with unbelievers. We are to get rid of the things of the flesh and embrace the things of the spirit of God.

Colossians 3:8-10

But now, put off all such things as anger, rage, malice, slander, abusive language from your mouth. Do not lie to one another since you have put off the old man with its practices and have been clothed with the new man that is being renewed in knowledge according to the image of the one who created it.  

Watch What You Consume 

What we see and hear goes in our minds and hearts. The places we go, the people we hang around with, the activities we participate in, the things we watch – are they glorifying God? What we consume in our minds and hearts affects our thoughts and actions. It affects our relationship with God.

Luke 6:45 

The good person out of the good treasury of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasury produces evil, for his mouth speaks from what fills his heart. 

The World We Live In 

Our world is moving farther from God. Sin is growing and the light of God is getting dimmer. We instead can choose to live as bright lights for God’s Kingdom. We can consume scripture, spend time every day alone with God, worship and fellowship with other Christians, let God lead our life, listen to God’s Spirit, choose God first, change our habits and live Godly lives. 

Ephesians 5:15-21

Therefore consider carefully how you live—not as unwise but as wise, taking advantage of every opportunity because the days are evil. For this reason do not be foolish, but be wise by understanding what the Lord’s will is. And do not get drunk with wine, which is debauchery, but be filled by the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music in your hearts to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, and submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ. 

God’s Will for us In Christ 

This is God’s roadmap for us. This is God’s will and way for us to live and walk in Him. His Word to us is clear. Follow Him in these ways and you will grow in Him, find peace and hope, and live abundantly with Christ. 

John 10:7-10

So Jesus said again, “I tell you the solemn truth, I am the door for the sheep. All who came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters through me, he will be saved, and will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come so that they may have life, and may have it abundantly. 

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