How does a “Follower of Jesus” identify truth in a fallen world of mixed messages? The obvious answer is God’s Word and what the “Follower of Jesus” believes about it. Is it truly God’s Word? What does His Word say about Him, you, the world and truth? This is the beginning of determining what is truth in the mixed messages surrounding you.

The Climate of your Relationships Improves when Conflict is Resolved, not Ignored. When conflict is resolved, the resulting climate is called “Unity.” Unity is the “Silver Lining in the Cloud” of Conflict.

Ideal Expectations meet the Reality of Suffering

You have a Climate- the Environment you Create with your Demeanor / Mood You Usually do NOT Know what Your Climate is Your Climate Dictates the Forecast- “What you Sow, you will Reap”

James closes his letter, written to followers of Jesus, with specific instruction on how they can serve and minister to one another through prayer.

In Scripture, Jesus’ return is described with three words: His Revelation (unveiling), His Appearing, and His Coming. The Bible teaches that as the return of Jesus draws near that those days will be characterized as days of difficulty, deception and defiance. Followers of Jesus and Churches will be tempted and pressured to follow the ways of the world. However James encourages us to be patient, stand firm and endure.

These verses are not saying that wealth is wrong in and of it’s self. This passage is referring to those who have allowed their wealth to be the controlling force in their life and for them James has a warning.

James calls each of us to have souls that are revived. Revival means to live again. It is the idea that faith was once alive and vibrant and then became lifeless and dull. The emphasis we see in this passage today is victory over temptation. And James is giving a strong formula and how we can overcome.

Pleasure in and of it self is not wrong, bad or evil; God Himself created it. However the enemy, as in everything else, seeks to take the normal desire for pleasure and make it corrupt. When pleasure becomes the ultimate pursuit of a person’s life, they lose sight of God’s plan and purpose for their life.

In his letter, James is demonstrating that one’s works, words, and wisdom reveal what a person believes. In this passage he is revealing the difference between two kinds of wisdom; one that is of divine origin and a second that is of a distorted origin.