The Problem with 'If' and 'Then'2 Corinthians 1:21a
Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ.

Thoughts for Today:If we read through the Bible and count, we would find there are over three thousand promises God has made to us. Promises about health, happiness, peace, prosperity, freedom, finances, family matters, and security. Many of these promises were given in the Old Testament based upon a formula most of us are familiar with: "If" we keep the commands of the Lord -- "then" He will solve our problems, do amazing things, and take complete care of us. For example: Deuteronomy 11:22-23: "If you carefully observe all these commands I am giving you to follow ? to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him and to hold fast to him ? then the Lord will drive out all these nations before you, and you will dispossess nations larger and stronger than you."

It remains the understanding many of us have: "If we do this, then we'll receive that." The problem is we know that we don't always love the Lord with all our hearts, we don't always walk in His ways, and we don't always hold fast to Him. With this kind of thinking in place we know, when we don't do the "ifs" we can't expect the "thens".

However, in our passage today Paul tells us God already has done the "if" part through His Son Christ Jesus. And He's given us the Holy Spirit so we can be absolutely certain of His guarantee. Therefore, Deuteronomy 11:22 now says: "Jesus kept all these commands I gave you to follow -- He loved the Lord His God, He walked in obedience to Him, He held fast to Him." So by God's grace and for His glory -- no matter how weak, foolish and undeserving we are -- when we opened our heart to Jesus, He placed us in Christ. It leaves us nothing to do but say: "Yes and amen!" (The previous verse -- 2 Corinthians 1:20: "For no matter how many promises God has made, they are 'Yes' in Christ. And so through him the 'Amen' is spoken by us to the glory of God.")

Questions to Ponder:Are you still working on the "if" part of forgiveness? What is remaining? Jesus has done all the work. His blood was spilled and His life was given for ours. Therefore, we are now living in the "then" part of God's promises. Have you repented of your sins? Have you asked forgiveness? Will you accept His grace and yield to His glory? Will you allow God, through the power of His Holy Spirit, to make you stand firm in Christ?


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​IT’S JUST MY OPINION
 
First let me state George Floyd’s death it was very tragic, and we should do everything we can to get rid of bad law enforcement people.
But I can not understand what is happening now. I am an older American and lived before segregation and never  went to school with blacks, back then we called them colored. When you stopped at a gas station in the south the restrooms were designated men women and colored. I was on orange avenue in Orlando when the colored had a sit in at McCrory’s five and dime lunch counter. Since the days of Dr Martin Luther King I have seen massive changes in America.
All you have to do is open your eyes, the mayors of different cities and governors would not have Black men and women in that position if many white people were not voting for them. I believe most voters nowadays vote for the person not their color.
I do not believe in condemning all law enforcement men and women for actions of a few, just like I do not believe in condemning all black and white and other colors for the ones looting and stealing, but the ones looting stealing burning their neighbor hoods  need to be put in jail. That kind of protest only divides us more.
Peaceful protest where you do not infringe on others right is a good thing, but so called peaceful protest that blocks roads so  people can not get home to work to the doctor is not peaceful protest. And looting burning and plain stealing is no kind of protests but criminal.
We need to all of us, look around you  we have many blacks in power many in law enforcement and in all parts of out economy, there are problems all the time but we must work on them peaceful if we are to survive as a moral nation
We must call on our faith and our neighbors faith no matter what their faith is and get ort country back on a moral path so we can live together, there are many blended families now, I have grandkids and great grandkids with black fathers, these mixed race children are going to need our support not constant racial hatred.
God bless America and God bless all his children.