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Monthly Archives: January 2012

Dare to be different

31 Jan

Day 30 of our media Fast. You made it I hope. It has really been a joy to go without the headlines of the mayhem of every newscast. I find myself trying to catch the weather, and then change the channel right back again. I do believe something as simple as that, can make a difference in your every day. I hope and pray that God has used these short reads to speak to you too. I will let you all know later today how it is going to continue on. Be the Light today and dare to be different!

Dare to be different

John 15:18-19    If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

Hate – a four letter word that most of us relate prejudices of some sort. It has become a ‘popular’ term these days in our anger filled society. Hate is genuinely a term of Satan and one of his greatest tools, for it is the exact opposite of what Christianity should reflect worshiping our God, whom is the God of love. Therein we have why hatred is so common today, in the world is so far from God. If you accept and proclaim Christ, you posses a Light inside you that makes you different from the non-believer, therefore unknowingly you will become hated by those that reside in darkness.

Do you feel as though you are different in many situations? Do you feel as though you are even being persecuted at work, for being a Christian? Do not conform to this world, and let them drag you down. Matthew 5:15 tells us “Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.” You are where Christ wants you to shine. Your sphere of influence are those you are surrounded by every day. He has placed you there to become a Light in the darkness. What Christ has placed inside you makes you different. “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” (Romans 12:12) Dare to be different.

 
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Posted by on January 31, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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On a curve or a scale?

30 Jan

A great morning with God. I was actually researching another verse when this verse grabbed me, and I felt God speaking to me here. I know I have, and I think we all do to some degree, get confident about ourselves because we think in some way “well at least I am not doing that.” Then when we were watching the news, and all the mayhem that goes with it, we feel better about ourselves. Satan is instilling those thoughts. We are told that if we break one of The Commandments, we have broken them all. Uh ho,,,,,,,that puts us all in big trouble. I loved Pastor Jack’s story yesterday that culminated in him hearing God speak directly to him about another sins “Jack, that guys sins were just more visible.” Very convicting, and very true for all of us. But continue to press on to growing your relationship with Christ, and don’t let your enemy steal your security and peace that you possess through the Atonement of the Cross.

On a curve or a scale?

Romans 3:23,24     for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,

Undeniably you inherently have, and will continue to sin. Romans is the apostle Paul’s pinnacle book, full of deep theology, and even verse 23 goes back to Genesis and the beginning of sin in the garden of Eden. It is so hard for some to realize our depravity, and that we all are sinners by birth, We cannot live thinking that because of our good deeds, or lack of bad deeds, that God judges on a curve.We feel as though we are above the drudgery of society, we will make the scale, for we are not really that bad.

He is a God of perfection, and demands such. Their are no imperfections in heaven, no scale, no “you just made it.” We cannot ever obtain perfection, and realistically would never make His scale if there was one. Only through the washing of Christ’s  blood, the ultimate sacrifice that was given for us, are we justified in attaining paradise for eternity through Christ alone. The free gift that we must humble ourselves to accept as the only Way, grasping our depravity and Romans 5:1 says “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,” You can have this too, it is free, and it lasts an eternity.

 
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Posted by on January 30, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Grieving the Spirit

29 Jan
Boy I am opening up a can of worms this morning, but after a long talk yesterday, and a situation with someone I knew was doing something very wrong at another church, God has just really burdened me heavily with this. Probably one of the “great debates”, I have tried to state my views as God has shown me. It is not a popular belief, but it is mine.

Grieving the Spirit

Ephesians 5:18   And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit,

Hard Truth – becoming drunk is biblically wrong. I am not saying here, do not drink, for I do not know the line at which Christ judges, but becoming drunk is simply stated in Ephesians 5:18. There we are simply told not to, and being told that we are wasting our lives away. But apart from that verse, let’s look at Ephesians 4:30   And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.  When we accept Salvation, we are temples of the Holy Spirit who comes to live within us. We have Christ as our conscious now. Our conscious is hurting, for our relationship is broken when we give in to that temptation.

Some people think that Salvation is their get out of jail free card. That they can accept Christ, live it up now, and play that card before they die. What if, you die unexpectedly? What a dishonor to the one who came and died for you! Romans 6:1  What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?  Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? An assurance of Salvation is your deliverance from past sins, and your denial of present sins that you know are wrong. You simply do not want to do them anymore. Been there, done that, thank you God for delivering me from that.

 
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Posted by on January 29, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Just between you two

28 Jan

I was spending time in Matthew 6 this morning, and came across where my bible has these two verses highlighted and a line drawn showing the similarities. I probably could have written a couple of pages pouring my heart out on these, especially Fasting. If you have never Fasted, I would encourage you to seek God’s wisdom regarding this topic. If you feel God leading you Fast, you cannot come out the other side of a prolonged Fast the same. It is a game changer in your relationship and walk as a Christian. You will have a new spiritual awareness that you have never had before, for just as Matthew says here “He will reward you openly.”

We are almost through our 30 days without the News. ‘Yay,’ and ‘oh well’ in the same refreshing breath. I hope that this month you have felt refreshed without all the mayhem, and I hope that God has used me to encourage you in some way. I will be continuing these short daily devotionals, and I am trying to decide on the best way to continue the distribution.  Many of you are my Facebook friends (Michael Anderson in Huntersville -friend me!), and I have also secured a domain name (Huge God story) at http://www.oneminuteministry.me  and of course this email structure also. We are told to use all the means given to us to share the Good News and the glory of Christ.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Anderson

Just between you two

Matthew 6:    6 But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. 17 But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 18 so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

Private, personal things, held in secret between you and God. The similarity in these two verses is astounding. Here they are speaking of the Holy God who’s omnipresence means God is everywhere, even you think you are alone. You cannot hide from God. But you can also rest in that assurance of when you approach God alone, He is always there. Matthew 6 is a very powerful chapter, and speaks much of how people do things to be seen and heard to gain the respect of men. God tells us that they get what they want, an earthly reward, but miss the heavenly treasure if it had been done in secret to honor God, and not themselves.

Private prayer is something every Christian should seek and do regularly. Fasting is a powerful means to consecrate yourself to honor God, by denying yourself the pleasures of delicacies, and replacing them with spiritual nourishment. Both of these in this context are God honoring private  time between just you two. It is not for your glory, but His. We all have someone close of whom we may share deep personal things, and that strengthens our relationship. How much more do you suppose, when you share secret things with God, that honor and glorify God?

 
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Posted by on January 28, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Know it all

28 Jan
Good morning everyone. I was up earlier due to the storm, and I have had some great time in 1 Corinthians this morning. These scriptures really leaped of the page at me, and Matthew Henry had some powerful commentaries that I seemed stuck in for quite some time to. If you really want a better understanding of your bible, try picking up some quality commentaries sometime such as Matthew Henry, John Darby, and I love John MacArthur. They really have a great gift of helping to shed light on the Word. Much of today’s verses deal with pride, and as I have revealed before, I am a prideful man that God has been chipping away at for some time now. “Pride is the root of all sin” as Pastor Dean said one sermon. We have to humble ourselves to gain the glory of the Gospel and all our God has for us. Without it we can do nothing.

On another note, I hope that your New Years resolution has went well. Yesterday I watched more of the news than I wanted to trying to catch the weather to find out about this storm. It just turned my stomach, and I ended up muting it and keeping changing channels just in time to catch the weather. I think this is going to be a long term thing for me.

I have also secured a domain name, and web blog under construction to continue what you have helped spur me onto doing in writing these devotions every day. I am shooting for a launch Feb. 1.

Know it all?

1 Corinthians 1:17-18        For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect. For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

We think we know it all. Paul was preaching a simple message that neither the Jews or the Greeks could understand. The Jews were expecting a great king, and the Greeks rested on their intellect and could not accept the simplicity of the Gospel. They both thought they knew it all, and missed the eternal blessing. Matthew Henry said, “It is just with God to leave those to themselves who pour out such proud contempt on divine wisdom and grace.” Paul could have come with eloquent preaching with the wisdom he had gained in his upbringing, but he knew he would be glorified and not Christ. He realized he was nothing without Christ.

Once God grabs a hold of your heart, and you let Christ in, things change. The bible begins to make sense for you have the Holy Spirit residing in you, guiding your understanding of the scriptures. You will not understand the bible until you accept Him. The Light is given to us to be able to comprehend the great mysteries that were before us. We do begin to realize that it is the power of God that is at work in us. This becomes even more humbling, and even draws us closer to Him. You can have all these things, but you can have none of these things if you think you can do it on your own wisdom, without Christ you can do nothing.

 
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Posted by on January 28, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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What do you live for? 01/26/12

26 Jan

Good morning everybody. I was praying earlier this morning and felt God speaking to me about this verse. I could have wrote a book expounding on this verse I think. With all Paul had suffered, he understood it was all for Christ glory, He was tired and in prison, and he knew that heaven was not far away and longed for it. But he also knew God was using him while he remained here. He edified the Philippian church, and kept his eyes on Christ. He never wavered, he never lost the focus of his life – to share the love and Christ and bring Him glory. I pray the next trial you endure, your faith is strengthened as Paul, and not weakened as your enemy thinks it will. Press on, for the glory of God.

What do you live for?

Philippians 1:21    For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

A one sentence summary of the apostle Paul. Nothing else in his life mattered but Christ. He describes his life as ‘is Christ’, abiding in Christ, centering on Christ; all other matters simply did not matter. He had come from a leader of religion, in the persecution and death of Christians, to a  death to himself and slave to Christ’s Glory. He was persecuted all his remaining days, but never wavered on his focus or faith. Can you say the same thing about your faith when the going gets rough?

If anyone told you that being a Christian would be easy, they lied. Christ told the apostles in Matthew 10:22 “You will be hated by all for My names sake.” When Christ and that eternal security dwell inside you, people notice that something makes you different. Some are drawn towards you, others rebel against you. Tough times will come as a result of following Christ. But percever in your faith, look for those you can reach as a result of what you are facing. For God has allowed what you are facing to strengthen you, and encourage others. Don’t let the world drag you down, for what you have will be lifted up.

 
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Posted by on January 26, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Heavenly Love 01/25/12

26 Jan

This morning I was laying in bed watching a Christian TV show that just has beautiful pictures, and rolling scriptures. Today’s scripture verse rolled across the screen and I knew that was what God wanted me to write about. It has been so refreshing to not go to sleep (we do sleep with the TV on), and awake to the newscasts. My mind just simply feels clearer and more alert to the things of God, without all the mayhem that creates all that static between us. I hope you all have received a blessing as a result of our New Years resolution to Fast from the news. I honestly plan on continuing for some time. I just don’t miss it. Hope you have a great day, and I have some exciting news coming down the pipe about what you have unknowingly spurred me to do here ever day. I have secured a domain name, and a blog where I am in the process of getting ready to start these OneMinuteMinistries and continue sharing what God is revealing to me each day. I thank all of you for playing your part and the encouragement you have given me to do this, more than you realize.

Heavenly Love

1 Corinthians 13:    And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

God is a God of love, and you must possess love to emulate Christ. Chapter 13 is all about love and a great description of that love lies between verses 4-8. We cannot claim to be a Christian, and not have love for our fellow man. But we say, “How can I? Look at what they did!” What if Christ had said the same thing about you and I and the Redemption never came at Calvary? Their is no higher sacrifice that what Christ did for you, all from love, for all your sins past, present, and future. Once you realize that, humility and love come as a product of the reality of the Redemption.

The world we live in breeds only love for ourselves. Another reality of the depravity of the world that we live in, but once you are saved, you are no longer of this world. Faith is realization of the power of God for Creation and Redemption of the entire world. Hope is where place our security of future paradise with great expectation and the peace of living for that. Matthew Henry said of when we reach heaven “There is no room to believe and hope, when we see and enjoy. But there, love will be made perfect. There we shall perfectly love God. And there we shall perfectly love one another. Blessed state! how much surpassing seen as He is, and face to face, there charity is in its greatest height; there only will it be perfected.” Come Lord Jesus, come.

 
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Posted by on January 26, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Now I lay me 01/24/12

26 Jan

We are always in a hurry, to work, to bed, to the next thing. We don’t have time to pray….Satan gets a victory in that thought and action. He wants to keep us from praying for he understands the power that lies within us when we pray. Have you ever noticed that when you open your bible, or you start to pray a distraction immediately comes? That really is no coincidence, that is your enemy hard at work to keep you from deepening your relationship with your heavenly Father. Press on through that distraction, or immediately after it is resolved with renewed vigor as a result of the distraction. Just talk to God……and then be still and listen to that small voice deep inside you.

Now I lay me

Matthew 7:7     Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.

How often do you pray? How often do you seek the things of God through meditation and prayer? Is it simply the routine blessing at meal times, and the effortless “now I lay me down” type prayer in the evenings? It is so easy to say we pray regularly, but how would those close regard us if we spoke to them the same way?  God has prepared us for much more than that. I must confess that I am not an elegant prayer person myself, but yet I pour my heart out to God in my simple prayers.

Matthew Henry said “Pray; pray often; pray with sincerity and seriousness; pray, and pray again; make conscience of prayer, and be constant in it; make a business of prayer, and be earnest in it. Ask, as a beggar asks alms.” Prayer is not asking what God can do for you, it is not asking what we can do for God. Prayer is the alignment of our lives, into God’s Will for our lives. Prayer takes us to God, and even when we cannot find the words, the Holy Spirit inside us will utter the words only God can hear for us. Prayer is the most feared tool of Satan, and the power that resides in you through Christ is available only when you humble yourself and talk to God….daily.

 
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Posted by on January 26, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Stuff or Tresures? 01/23/12

26 Jan
I really don’t know how I ended up in Ecclesiastes this morning, but it sure is a book relevant to the day in which we live. A book written over 2000 years ago, and yet this society today that breeds the pursuit of possessions is straight out of the Old Testament. I was just as guilty as the next guy a few years ago. I mean I had the idea the one who died with the most toys wins right? Over the past couple of years, through some real hard realities in the areas of finances, I have come to realize how much stuff meant to me. But as a result of those trials, I have also realized how little they mean to me. I still have some toys, but a LOT less stuff, and the importance I place on it is MUCH less. My boys just can’t understand how I sell everything. I have told them everything but them and their mom is always for sale…..it’s just stuff.

Stuff or Treasures?

Ecclesiastes 1:14     I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

We all must work. We are even called to dedicate and perform that work to the Lord. “Whatever you do, do it with all your heart as working for the Lord, and not for men.” (Colossians 3:23). We all labor to provide for ourselves and our families, and for things we desire. But somewhere in us  is that desire for always more. The wants, far outweigh the needs, and we find ourselves in constant pursuit of “stuff”. The world we live in teaches us that more stuff brings happiness, joy, and success. All we have to do is put our minds to the task, and we shall succeed. If not, there will be a program to help you fix what you are doing wrong.

That is not what Christ teaches. Place your treasure and focus on things to come in Heaven. “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Luke 12:34) If we are in constant pursuit of worldly possessions, our heart will not be in constant pursuit of Christ. We cannot serve two masters, God and money. Work diligently as you are working for God, but use those resources He has given you to focus on Him. You can make a difference in where you work every day, in the kingdom of God for eternity.

 
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Posted by on January 26, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Lead Me 01/22/12

26 Jan

This morning I was in prayer and praying for God to lead me as I write these devotionals. When I stopped praying, I felt as though that was going to be this devotional. I got started on it, then had to finish it when we got home from church. Coincidentally we have been in a series that was much about David called Epic Fail. David was a man who failed on biblical proportions, but yet he also was a leader in repentance of those sins. Repentance is key to hearing God’s voice and knowing how to handle the things we face every day. I pray that you will seek God every day, and let Him lead you along in the life He has planned for you.

Lead Me

Pslam 25:5    Lead me in Your truth and teach me, For You are the God of my salvation; On You I wait all the day.

As I researched “lead me” it came up 14 times in scripture. Twelve of those 14 were from the Psalms where David was pouring his heart out to God. The story of David is an incredible one of God’s Mercy and Grace to forgive David’s great sins. “We all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” Romans 3:23. We cannot do this thing called life alone. We will fall short of what God has in store for us if we try to rely on ourselves, or anyone else’s plans or programs that are on every infomercial.

I love James McDonald’s ministry title – Walk in the Word. Knowing whether to turn to the right or the left, let me know thy way. Once you begin to truly seek God every day, you will begin to hear that small voice inside you leading you in the every day doldrums of life. We are designed to abide in Him, to walk with Him, we must humble ourselves and truly seek Him…first.

 
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Posted by on January 26, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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