Have you ever gone for Chinese food, eaten until you were about to pop, only to find yourself ravenously hungry an hour later? Well, if you don’t know already, the culprit is most likely MSG (Monosodium glutamate). But what most people (even the health-conscious) don’t know is that many of the foods we eat every day are laced with some form of MSG.

Food manufacturers are very sly about this - carefully masking the term “MSG” - calling it something, even as innocent as “natural flavoring”. Read what my friend, Barry Bragg, a nutritionist and fitness trainer for Transformation LLC in Raleigh, NC has to say about this and how it could be negatively affecting your health.

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“Praise the LORD
Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good;
His love endures forever.

Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the LORD
or fully declare his praise?

Blessed are they who maintain justice,
who constantly do what is right.”

Psalm 106:1-3

Quite simply, what you can take from this passage are three very practical steps that will revolutionize your life:

1. Praise God.
2. Be thankful - no matter what your circumstance, for this is God’s will (see I Thess. 5:18).
3. Do what’s right.

I won’t get long-winded here and elaborate on these things for they are quite simple.  But, let me just say, if you’re in the midst of difficulty, adversity, trial or tribulation - take heart, because God has a plan for your life - if you’re in relationship with Him.  If you have a right relationship with the Father through Jesus His Son, the above three steps will keep your path straight and your focus on target.

My prayer for us all is that we might live accordingly.

God bless you today!

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Look before you leap!

Watch your step!

Guard your heart!

There, enough said. If I thought that just mentioning these clichés would keep someone from making stupid decisions, I’d stop right here. Unfortunately, most of us are hard headed and willful, myself included. The cruel truth of the matter is that many times it’s the bad choices that we make, along with their unpleasant consequences that teach us the best and most valuable lessons in life.

We’ve got to be vigilant, watchful, careful, guarded, etc. with the decisions that we make every day. One misplaced step - one wrong decision - one unfiltered calculation can land us in the mud and even destroy our lives. So, how do we know? How do we keep from falling into a pit in the midst of life?

The answer lies in our filter. My question for you is - what kind of filter do you have?

Picture for a moment the best cup of coffee that you’ve ever had. Pouring hot water through savory, fresh, roasted coffee grinds produces a rich aromatic brew of coffee that engages the brain and body. If you’re like me, there’s nothing like enjoying a great cup of coffee in the morning. But, imagine for a moment what that cup would taste like without using the right filter. It would either be too weak, too strong - full of grounds and taste like gritty mud - not too appetizing.

This is much of what our lives are like when we don’t use the right filter. A filter is used to keep out the bad stuff. It’s that simple. If we simply allow anything in, then our lives become polluted, sludgy, messy, stinky, filthy with severe consequences that we’ll have to struggle to overcome. Even worse is the fact that our bad decisions and involvements can negatively affect others, especially those whom we love.

Now, I’ll ask you again. What kind of filter are you using for your life? Do you even have one? Have you ever even thought about what you’ve allowed into your life? Furthermore, how is it affecting you? How’s it affecting the ones that you love?

Even if you have a filter, it’s a worthy question to be asked. Examine it, try it and test it. Make sure it’s the right one for you - the best one that will help you move positively forward from this point onward. It may be that you’re dealing with circumstances as a result of not having a filter or of using a faulty one.

Use God as your Filter

The first step towards putting the right filter in place is to understand the truth about yourself and your situation in relation to God’s wisdom.

Christ stated in John 8:31-32, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

My Suggestions for Adjusting Your Filter:

1. Ask God to reveal His truth to you on a daily basis.
2. Seek to know God in a personal way through prayer and studying His word.
3. Pray that God will transform you with His truth and wisdom.
4. As you learn more about God, allow Him to transform your life, creating the right FILTER for you.
5. Rest in the fact that you’re protected daily, because your choices and decisions are in line with God’s truth - a filter that He created because He knows what’s best for us.

Before your life leads you somewhere you don’t want to be, check your filter. Learn God’s truth, apply it to your life and live in freedom.

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