So how does the bible define integrity or what does the Bible say about integrity?

• It means treating people fairly and honestly (Leviticus 19:35)
• The lord will test and judge your integrity( Psalm 7)
• Integrity is giving your word and keeping it (Exodus 8:28)
• Integrity will protect you-David prays that integrity and uprightness will protect him( Psalm 25:21)
• Integrity is more valuable than riches (Proverbs 28:6)
• The Lord hates lies and lack of integrity (Zechariah 8:16)
• Integrity will be rewarded (1^st Kings 9:4-5)
• Your integrity should set an example(Titus 2:7)

This week’s lesson guide is all about integrity. Can you be counted among those who can tell the truth? If someone asks about your personality, would integrity be one of them? In the Bible, integrity has been closely associated with health, holiness and wholeness.

Personal integrity has been known to produce positive hormones to our body for us to enjoy our happiness and health. It is all about constant actions, values, methods and measures and principles. If we consider the life we are living right now, does it act according to God’s integrity? Does your everyday action give you joy and good health?

For our actions to be aligned with his; we should align our roles, resentments, our worship, identity and our prayers so that we can become an integral part of his life. This will set us apart from other people.

Integrity is also one of the personalities that make people become role models to children and other young adults. Look at our parents, how much have they sacrificed for us, they gave us everything that we needed. This kind of virtue is what is in most of us and it makes us appreciate others and at time, sacrifice what we have to make them happy. Just like a cloth is woven, so should our character be woven on a daily basis. For us to have the highest integrity, we ought to look at God and see the example he has given us. He never lies, nor changes his mind (Numbers 23:19)

In a world where cheating is the norm, how do you get to be the person you desire to be? As youths, we should know that God looks at the heart and not the personal appearance (1 Samuel 16:7). If we put this into action, we will try to be better with our actions and have that commitment towards integrity.

In conclusion; the Bible values integrity, our actions as Christians and as youths should match our words. We have several people in the Bible who have lived with integrity, God’s men who have lived in consistent with God’s teaching, and they put God’s way before their own. As youths, we can maintain and develop biblical integrity by adhering to God’s values, spending time with him, trusting in him and letting him live in our lives.

As youths, this word is something that rings a bell to most of us. We get impatient when we wait for too long. I remember when i was in Senior High School back in Kenya,every candidate had to and still has to sit for the  National Examination from September to beginning of December then we would all wait until the end of February for our results.It was one of the most painful moments of my life, i could not eat neither could i sleep.I kept on asking myself what my scores would be like, i became impatient and often at times, i would have dreams about my grades. The same kind of feeling is what is going on today among us especially among the youths.

How many times have we become impatient just because we can’t wait enough?Have we given up on waiting for God?Just as the children of Israel could not wait for Moses to come back from the mountain, so are we christians of today not able to wait for anything patiently.(Exodus 32)

Satan has been known to attack our faith when we are waiting patiently for something to happen.He makes it feel like God does not care.There are times in our lives when we feel like whatever it is that we are waiting for is not happening and not worth the wait.Recently, with the recession, so many people have lost their jobs and they keep on waiting and hoping that God will give them another job.When the wait is too long, they give up and begin to wonder why God is not there for them.2nd Peter 3:1-4 gives us a chronology of the letters Simon Peter sent just to encourage his friends in the Lord on the virtue of waiting patiently on the Lord.He tells us that Satan will come to deceive us and ask us why we keep on waiting for something that is not coming and how we should not loose hope but to hold on to that faith.

We hear about ’safe sex’.Is that really possible?Can a young woman or man stay pure (virgin) until they get married?How long can youths of  today abstain from sex?Waiting on the Lord has been compared to sexual purity.If we can stay sexually pure then we can be able to wait on the Lord to deliver unto us whatever it is that our hearts desire.

Remember that anything worth the wait is always sweet at the end.God makes it worth the wait, this is because anything good doesn’t come easily. One English saying ‘when the deal is too good, think twice’.In every waiting that we do, we should have this in mind.God’s plan for us is that he wants to bring out the very best in us and for this to happen, he takes his time hence the waiting.Just as David made waiting a part of his life, so should we Christians learn to wait as a normal part of our everyday  life.

To the youths, let us devote ourselves to doing the good we know to do and that we are able to do, while we wait. And most importantly,When God’s plan is for you to wait, He will make it all worth the wait.

Greek defines patience in two words that express the meaning behind it. The first being hupomone (endurance) and makrothumia (great/long tempered).

A patient person is someone who is mild, gentle and constant in everything that they do. (James 1:4 but let patience has its perfect work, which you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing) And for one to have this kind of patient, one needs a lot of practice, God’s grace and willingness to put aside self and to surrender to the prompting of the hold spirit. Most of us not patient with so many of life’s things and that’s why we fail to achieve this virtue. We are not patient with our wives, husbands, children, job and most importantly God. Patient is God’s attribute (Exodus 34:6) and we see so many of God’s prophets who have shown what true patience means one of them being Jeremiah. Paul teaches us how we need to be patient especially in church with our fellow members. We need this virtue in order to get along as God’s children. We need a lot of patience to do God’s work as children of God. This is what is referred to as patience in the Gospel. We are impatient with people who do not know God’s word and we don’t seem to care about them. (2 Tim 4:2)

One person who has indicated to us that patience has no limits is God. At the same time, God has manifested his patience to human beings in ways that we cannot be able to compare. He was patience with children of Israel during Noah’s time for more than 120 years when the ark was being prepared. When he was tired, his patience reached its limit and those who did not enter the ark all perished. As human beings; we also have a limit to our patience. This is why we have so many divorces in the world, we have a lot of hatred for our brothers or sisters, we reach a limit where we cannot take it anymore and cannot forgive. Just like Sodom and Gomorrah, Israel in the wilderness and the Babylonian captivity, their attitude reached a limit and the patience they had reached its limit.

How does one develop the fruit of being patient? James 1:2-4 tells us that we should count it all joy when we fall and learn to be patient. In our everyday life, we will face trials and tribulations but we ought to learn to be patient so as to develop this virtue that is very important. Just as Jesus was patient with those who persecuted him, does God wants us to be patient in everything that we do as to later inherit God’s kingdom. Good things only come to those who are patient in life, nothing comes easy, friendships are hard to maintain so are marriages, our jobs are hard to keep, it requires a lot of patience to keep up with everything in this world but if we develop this spirit of patience, then we can be able to overcome everything that comes our way and achieve the very best.

As youths, we need to learn to be patience with our church members and when teaching God’s word to those who are unaware of it. Developing all these would lead is into acquiring the other fruits of the holy spirit like meekness.

All my life I’ve had to deal with several issues - one of them being confident of myself. This is because several things make us unsure of who we are. For women, our body image plays a very important role. How you perceive yourself will determine whether you are confident of your capabilities or not. This is made worse when people we have in our lives makes it hard for us to be confident by continuously pressing those buttons that hurt us most destroying our self image and degrading our confidence.

None of us is perfect, the society we live in has dictated so many things that confidence has become something we have to cultivate on our own. I came to America for my masters early this January. I looked for a job for over 6 months to no avail. My confidence in finding something good quickly deteriorated. Even though my family never seemed to mind about it, inwardly I was stressed so much. I went for numerous interviews of which none of them ever yielded anything. I would constantly ask God why this is happening to me and every time a voice would tell me to continue trusting in God.

Stories from other people gave me hope when they told me how hard it was for them to get jobs but after a while, things looked up. This gave me the confidence to continue pursuing my desire of getting a good job. God states that if we ask him anything according to his will, then he will hear us and grant us our heart desires. I continued to ask God every day to grant me my heart desires and his will be done in my life. This is something I do on a daily basis regardless.

The success that each of us has in life is built on self-confidence, our ability to put our all in everything that we do. We have to persevere and be optimistic that at the end of the road, everything will look up as we continue to trust in our God. It is that trust in the Lord that has brought me this far and everyday I continue to put my trust in the Lord for he is the one that gives me the confidence that I need to be able to overcome any obstacles on my way.

Confidence is belief. As long as we believe in the son of God then our confidence will be there. Believing takes place in our minds but it manifests itself in our words and deeds. You go for an interview which you are qualified for, but lack of confidence may limit your chances of getting the job. Confidence is an absolute trust that does not allow a taint of doubt or skepticism irrespective of the circumstance. One of God’s people who had confidence in him is Job. See Job 1:20. He developed confidence with his creator by forming an intimate relationship and this calls for us to boldly come before his throne of Grace for remission of our sins.

In conclusion, I would urge you to measure your confidence. Whether is it confidence according to Greeks or the confidence covered in this chapter. My confidence enabled me get a job with Alcatel-Lucent, and up to now I still give God all the glory and honor. If you can exhibit true confidence, then you are a Christian. Life throws so many things at us and if we can demonstrate our trust in God, then we should be able to sail through. Confidence is enactment, whether bold or tentative, of true faith. Having self-confidence is believing in your capabilities as an individual. However, confidence in God goes far beyond such wish fulfillment. Self-confidence is attractive, but God-confidence, faith, is inspiring.

How does He satisfy our heart’s most ardent longings?

Over the years, I have learned that I need to look to Jesus as the One who can satisfy all my needs.  While looking to Jesus, I have discovered that all my restless longings - everything that I require - are met and I am fully satisfied.

Here are four ways Jesus satisfies our deepest needs:

1. God has always taken (and will always take) time to show us that we are important to Him, that we are special and that He loves each of us the way we are. Our deepest and inner satisfactions comes from knowing that the Creator of the universe loves us with an incredible love and that we matter to Him and are valuable in His sight.

2. God didn’t just create us - He also has a plan for our lives.  Jeremiah declares, “ For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an-expected end” Jeremiah 29:11. He is always planning the very best for us.  Despite of all the life’s ups and downs, disappointments and sorrows, God is working all things out for our good. (Romans 8:28)

3. Enduring inner satisfaction comes from knowing that the grace of Christ is greater than all our failures. In Jesus there is forgiveness and freedom from guilt. And in Him we find mercy and pardon. John the Apostle states that, “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world but that the world through Him might be saved.” John 3:17
For those who are in Christ Jesus, there is no condemnation. (Romans 8:1) We find comfort knowing that our Father above does not condemn us.

4. The greatest satisfaction of all is knowing that one day, Jesus will make a complete, total, and utter end of sin. When Jesus returns, sickness, suffering, and sorrow will be no more. Diseases, disasters, and death will be over. Worry, want, and war will be banished forever. “God will wipe away all tears from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for former things have passed away…” Revelation 21:4

In Christ Jesus, our heart’s longings will soon be forever filled. Look unto Him each and every day and He will satiate the desires of your heart and soul. In Him we are complete - it’s time to rejoice unto the Lord.

When this site was started, its main intention was to unite young adults around the world through communication so that each and every time one posts a message, we all can get it at the same time. This is what has helped us be united in Christ by learning from other young adults around the world who have similar beliefs and convictions.

When God created us,he knew that we would be far away from each other but as long as we are united in love as a church then the journey seems not far away.The teacher of this week lesson guide tells us of his family whom he lives far away from and how they are connected by love. Thats how christians should be connected so that we can share our joys, sorrows and pains with one another who will later give us encouragement to deal with every situation that comes our way.

Just as the Lord is the head of the Church so should we be connected with christ all the time. 1st Corinthians 12.And with the help of the holy spirit,we can do our best to maintain the unity of the body.

The most important thing we learn from this weeks lesson is Gods invitation to us all to remain united and commited to the course he started.We should also not forget of Jesus second coming to reunite all of us as a family whose members reside everywhere in the world.

As we continue to encourage young adults around the world to continue living in the world and being united in christ through love,so should we always remember that as christians,we are connected by love and if this connection does exist, then the journey we arein will always seem nearer than we think.

Have a blessed sabbath and a great week everyone and remember to stay connected in love with everyone who calls upon the lord.

Jesus told us that God is love and he loves us beyond measure, so why are we committing sin of failing to love the lord our God with our all? And we cannot achieve this love of God if we don’t love ourselves first. Many of us fail to love the lord and our neighbors because we do not love ourselves first (Mathew 22:39).

When loving ourselves, we should be able to differentiate between selfless love and selfish love? If we can differentiate the above two, most of us will not be able to feel unloved. God loves us in so many ways; creating us and giving us life is one of those ways. We should be able to appreciate Him everyday. And if we can put all that we have been commanded by God concerning love, the negative peer pressure that most youths have of love will be gone and through his love and strength, we would be self loving morally people and courageous before his eyes.

We all need love from everyone around us, we need love from our parents, spouses, children, husbands, wives and above all God. This is the reason as to why we need them to love us selflessly and how we are. To achieve this, we must love who we are and who the people we come into contact with are. Another way we are shown love is when God sent his only son to die for us on the cross to cleanse all our sins (Isaiah 53). We all know that as human beings, we love ourselves too much that we cannot allow ourselves to die unless we have reasons to and one of the primary reasons is love. Most of us declare so much love to one another but when a crisis comes up, that love goes out of the window. Husbands and wives pledge to love one another until death do them part but when money issues crops up or unfaithfulness, that love is thrown out of the window. God set a perfect example for all of us, in his holy book Romans 5:7, he states that ‘while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us).

To live for is a further important aspect of love. The most chief thing that God asks of us is our life. That is why he says that whoever does not carry the cross and follow him cannot be his disciple (Luke 14:27). Living for God is when we learn Gods word and pass it to the other generations so that they can know what Love is and why it is the greatest commandment of them all because we only live to love. That is all we are asked of because if we can follow the commandment of love, then we can follow all the other commandments.

It is a blessing to give and receive. When we give, we receive double. And this can only happen if we can have someone to value us. We give people we love and care about gifts and that’s why they cherish whatever is given to the. Having friends who support you when you need them shows love, they help you when you fall, lift you when you down and help you in times of need (Eccl 4:9). This is why so many of value true friends because when you have a true friend, love exists between us and that is a form of giving.

Being known and knowing is part and parcel of our Christian life. If we know love, then we are bound to practice it. John the Baptist preaches of the love God has lavished on us and that’s why we are called God’s children. We go to church each and every Sabbath to give God all the praise and honor because of his wonderful love to us as human beings. That even though we are sinners, his love to us reigns forever. (1 John 4:7) talks about the love we should have from one another since it is from above, and everyone that loves is born of God and knows God.

That leaves me with one question to ask each and everyone of us, how much have we shown God’s Love in all our deeds?

Do we love our God with all our heart with all our soul and with our entire mind? Do we also love our neighbors the same way we love ourselves? This is something we cannot achieve within a day but working on it and following God’s commandment, we should be able to accomplish what Jesus wants of us. Some of Gods apostles such as Paul defines what real love is and that is found in the book of 1 Corinthians 13:4-8.

As Christians, we are expected to show real love, a love that is flawless and one that is valued by everyone around us. Above all, we should appreciate the love given to us by God, this way, we will learn to love other people. True love is something that exists when we direct it at someone, and it is the foundation of the best human relationships like marriage and friendship. With true love, happiness comes naturally and it will conquer anything that comes between it.

In conclusion, the Bible study started some of the ways through which we can more love in our lives;

1.      We should first understand that God is love

2.      We should believe that Jesus is revealed in God’s word.

3.      Spend time reading the Bible

4.      Share our time and money

With the above in mind, we can be able to truly appreciate how important love is in our daily lives and we can be able to acknowledge God’s love in our lives. We should as Christians follow Jesus example and the true meaning of love will be manifested in our life.

Studies done have proven that latterly, its very hard for couples to keep the love burning especially in marriages. There is a saying by modern youths ‘marriage is the grave burying all love”. So how does one explain this kind of thinking? Personally, I come from Africa where marriage is regarded as something very Important in ones life and is regarded as sacred. Most of the youths we know of today have had long time centered thinking of fornication and while in bed, only four minds come into play each of them thinking of how to make love and fornicate again.

When God created Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, the woman was taken from a mans rib. This describes the reason as to why marriage has always been ordained by God. Love is something that goes behind the skin; it is something that you feel when you are with that special someone. So why have people changed it’s main meaning? Are we this selfish that we seem to forget what’s its main purpose was from the beginning?

Have been in relationships a few times of my life and every time I could not get what I wanted from it, I would always get out. Having a relationship and making mistakes in the past have always taught me what is more important in an affair that I want to have and hoping to have it last ‘till death do us part’. This alone is enough for me to avoid the constant fights, quarrels; conflicts that arise in relationships making them not last especially in marriages.

Appreciation is something each and every couple should regard of one another. The Bible states that a woman was created from a man as a helper. As such, a woman should have respect for the man while the man should love the woman just the same way God loves the church. When we look at couples, they stay with each other most of the time, eat, sleep, cook, do shopping, share happiness and sadness and even feed the children together. Since this is something that calls for a lot of attention, it would be very helpful if the man and woman appreciated each other and that’s why you find them calling each other sweetheart or honey.

Forgiveness is the second thing that we need to look into in order to keep the love alive. The Bible states that we should forgive seventy times seven. So why is it so hard for us to forgive our spouses? None of us is perfect, we are bound to make mistakes everyday, and learning how to forgive one another will free us from most problems we incur. Trust is something that two people should cultivate the moment they bound themselves into a relationship, imagine it is you and no one else. Infidelity has been sighted as the number one cause of breakages among couples. Once the vows people made to each other have been broken, there is no forgiveness. And before marriage, it seems each and every one of us has committed a sexual act making us guilty. If one is able to forgive themselves for this act, why not forgive your partner?

Finally empathy, being sympathetic with each other is the finally thing that will keep the love afloat. True love is a gift given to us by God and we should cherish it. When two people are fully infused with sympathy, the heavens are in harmony. That was why Shakespeare said, “When love speaks, the voice of all Gods make heaven drowsy with the harmony.” After marriage a husband and wife in everyday life, on every occasion, at all times must cooperate and be united so that the two are really one. Both must always keep this idea, “I must give what is my own to him or her. I must feel that his or her delight is my own.” You must know that whatsoever you seek for yourself, then you fall from love. A proverb holds that “To be wife and lover is hardly granted to the Gods above.”
Love after marriage becomes much deeper and sympathetic. Whenever there is pleasure between a couple they love all in all; whenever there is sorrow or sadness between them there is sympathy for each other. They confound their enemies and delight their friends. They have the same good feelings. The husband will feel that, “It is not beauty but fine qualities that keep a husband.” The wife also feels that a woman’s best possession is a sympathetic husband. In women, sympathy begets love; in men, love begets sympathy; and all husbands will feel that of all the paths that lead to a wife’s love, sympathy is the straightest.

There are four things that are too

Mysterious for me to understand

An eagle flying in the sky

A snake moving on the rock

A ship finding its way over the sea

And a man and woman falling in love

Just the same way the writer of the book of proverbs tends not to understand how a man and woman fall in love so is someone like me as a human being. How do we end up marrying the people we have in our lives? Is it that we love them or is it that we married them because we had no other options?

It has been said that most young adults spend less time seriously considering what they want from a relationship than on what they spend on what clothes they will wear.

If you want to find someone to love you, with whom you can have a satisfying, nourishing relationship, one must have a plan of action. And the key important thing that we need to know is that to prevent getting involved in an unhealthy relationship and the tragedy that follows is to slow down.

Slowing down romantic relationships allows time to carefully to analyze our emotional health and emotional readiness of your dating partner and provides an opportunity for hidden difficulties to appear.

We as youth need to know that successful romance is most based on the feelings of our self worthiness and our ability to know that we are adequate. And for this to grow, one needs to first achieve success in the relationship they have with themselves and feel that they are both lovable and worthy.

Photo Thanks to: nomia29