Heart Focus and the Fruit of Salvation

James 1:26-27
"If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world."

As I was first reading this I wondered why James would write these things one right after the other? They almost seem to contradict each other. Verse 26 referring to how you shouldn't cuss, speak negatively, and stuff (generally, the "don't" of religion you could say), and 27 speaking of helping others (the do's of religion). But really, after thinking on this a while, I think these go hand-in-hand.
Though the passage talks about opposite things, the idea behind them is the same. That it is the heart of our religion that guides our actions. Are we supposed to check our words and watch what we say? Yes.   (Luke 6:45) Are we supposed to take care and watch after widows and orphans?  Yes. (clearly v. 27)  But this is only accomplished by having a God-focused heart, being changed through the process of sanctification which can only be a result of salvation through Christ. (2 Cor 5:17; 2 Thess. 2:13)
(Side note:  This is mostly pertaining to the 2 Thessalonians verse....  Salvation must come first before anything.  We cannot do good works without first being chosen by Christ, moved by the Spirit, and accepting of Him as our savior.  It is only after this that our hearts can be changed enough for God to produce good works out of us.  (Acts 2:23; Eph. 2:8-10))
So back to the topic...what I'm trying to say here is that everything we do or don't do is a result of God's work in our life.  It's that simple, folks.  If we have opened our heart to God and are allowing Him to work within us the fruit (see Gal. 5:19-24) produced will be in step with "true religion" - what God desires from us.  But if we are hiding from Him, not letting Him work in us what comes out of our life will match that of the world, not God.  I think the final phrase of that last verse sums it up well.  "...keep oneself unstained from the world."  Let Christ wash you clean and God remake you.  Even if you have already been saved by His amazing power and love, sometimes you just need to confess and allow Him to cleanse your heart once again.

So what fruit is being produced from your life?  Where is your heart?

Asking With The Expectation To Receive

James 1:5-8
"If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways."

Why is it so important to not just ask, but to ask with faith, believing that God hears and will answer us?  Because God desires to have us rely on Him for everything.  But to do that we must trust Him.  And one way we show our trust in Him is by expecting a response from Him.  Even though we can't see Him and can't touch Him necessarily we can still make contact and have a relationship with Him.  In some ways it's like an earthly relationship.  No one wants to go make a request of someone they know will not follow through, right?  Then why go to God with something if you don't think He will follow through either?  I would even venture to say that it is useless to go to God with something if you don't believe He will respond.  If we approach Him, we must expect response.  This is one way in which we can show our faith in Him, and our faith in His power and love for us.

Case in point:  Me. (Of course.  I'm the best example of flaws I know...since I know myself so well...anyway.)  For a while now I have been praying to God about a particular circumstance hoping that He will give me answer, direction, something. Hoping.  Catch that word?  HOPING.  It seems so innocent to think, "Maybe God will answer and maybe He won't.  I don't  know if He really has time for me.  Or maybe He didn't hear me."  But we can't think like that.  1 John 5:14-15  tells us that, "...if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him." So how will it help me if I don't really know and believe that God will answer me?  
(Side note:  Please don't take this passage to mean that God will give us anything for which we ask.  Notice that little phrase in verse 14?  "...if we ask anything according to His will..."  He (God) is very specific in granting requests.  But this is not about knowing the right answers for God's little trivia game.  It is about having our hearts in-tune and in-line with God's.  Basically, God does not spoil His children!  So check your motives....)
I know now that I must have confidence in God's reply and I must wait for it expectantly.  Knowing that my question is in line with His will, I will now begin praying anew, with faith, with the expectation of an answer.  (After I apologize for my unbelief of course!)
Do you believe God will respond to you?  Are you struggling in the wait for his reply?   Have confidence that He does hear you.  He loves you enough to listen and make time for you.