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Monthly Archives: April 2012

Chief of sinners – Forgiven!

21 Apr

Chief of sinners – Forgiven!

1 Peter 1:13-16   Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;  as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”

I love how God works. I am giving my testimony this coming week, and the time I have been spending with God over these last couple of days has put me in 1 Peter where he is speaking of all the trials of life. How we were before Christ, and then how we are to conduct ourselves now upon Salvation and Christ dwelling in us. Of how the persecutions and difficulties will come on both mental and physical plains, but these realizations of being children of God will provoke a reverent holy fear of God. Proverbs 9:10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. Once you begin to grasp the understanding of who God is, and what He has done for you, that reverent fear comes as a strong emotion deep within your soul.

As I look back as part of reflecting for testimony preparation, I feel as Paul said in 1 Timothy 1:15 This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. It is so humbling realizing what Christ has done for all of us, even those who still hate Him. Now on this side of Salvation I strive to be a better person, to live a life honoring the One whom gave His life for me and you. I lean on the time in His Word and prayer and the pursuit of the renewing of my mind as in Romans 12:2 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. This is a daily pursuit, every day asking for forgiveness, and asking for guidance to help me along the way. I beg you to reflect on your life and understand there is nothing you have done that you cannot be forgiven for through repentance and acceptance of Christ into your heart. It is never too late, until it is.

 
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Posted by on April 21, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Trojan Horse

20 Apr

Trojan Horse.

 
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Posted by on April 20, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

Trojan Horse

20 Apr

Trojan Horse

1 Peter 2:11-12     Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.

The draws of sin are ever present, and the tugs of sin can become overpowering if you do not pursue a strength through the Holy Spirit to abstain from them. We all have the battle between good and evil that rages inside us as a result of the falling away in the Garden of Eden. Even after Salvation the inner war rages on inside us in a Spiritual realm that we all feel on a daily basis. Salvation does not bring perfection and the freedom from that war, but it brings the eternal freedom from the punishment of sin when Christ has paid our eternal debt on the Cross at Calvary. In  Romans 7  Paul speaks of the battle of good and evil inside us; that even the great apostle wonders why he does the things he really does not want to do.

Even in my early morning hours when I arise to spend my time with God, I will awake sometimes to a battle within my mind I was not even aware of while I slept. Anxieties, pressures of life, worry, doubt, and lusts can enter into our thoughts at the beginning of the day even before we are awake.  But we must pursue the time spent with God to fight that battle, and to walk in the Spirit. Galatians 5:16-17  I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. This pursuit and strength that come from time spent with God, is the necessary weapons that you need to fight these battles. Do not let pride creep in with the thoughts of conquering this war alone. Pride is the Trojan horse of Satan and will destroy you from within.

 
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Posted by on April 20, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Seeing the Son through the clouds

19 Apr

Seeing the Son through the clouds.

 
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Posted by on April 19, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

Seeing the Son through the clouds

19 Apr

Seeing the Son through the clouds

1 Peter 1:6-9   In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith–the salvation of your souls.

I have found myself in the book of James again this morning, and I have been there a lot through the recent years. This book is an epistle that speaks much of the trials of life, and facing them as Christians. This book is a great place to lean on God when you are facing the trials of life that will come. In the second sentence we are told to “count it all joy” (James 1:2) when we fall into these trials. Joy….Really? Satan’s plans in these trials are to draw us away from God through sin, and God’s plans are to draw us closer to Him through Grace. Matthew Henry’s commentary says, “The devil endeavors by sufferings and crosses to draw men to sin and to deter them from duty, or unfit them for it; but, as our afflictions are in God’s hand, they are intended for the trial and improvement of our graces. The gold is put into the furnace, that it may be purified.” Even gold  must pass through the fire to become pure as we may also.

James 1:2-4 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. Matthew Henry’s commentary is very strong in bringing light to this book of James. “Philosophy may instruct men to be calm under their troubles; but Christianity teaches them to be joyful, because such exercises proceed from love and not fury in God. In them we are conformable to Christ our head, and they become marks of our adoption.” God is in control of all things, and all things work for His glory when we are children of His (Romans 8:28). I know from my life, I can attest to the times I was the closest to God, were the times when I faced the biggest trials. You either will fall away into sin as James says, or you will place yourself in His hands to allow Him to carry you through. All we tend to see when we face the storm is the clouds above us, yet we must live in the faith that the Son is above them all along shining down upon us.

 
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Posted by on April 19, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Arise expecting

18 Apr

Arise expecting.

 
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Posted by on April 18, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

Arise expecting

18 Apr

Arise expecting

Romans 13:11 And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.

What drives you to arise every day? The alarm clock blares, and the toils of the day lie in wait for you. Is it the provision, or the necessity of the work load that drive you every day? Is there nothing better in your book than a day off so you can sleep as late as possible? We all need our rest, and we all get it in different ways and times, but Christ is calling you to arise from your sleep in sin. Our sin filled world has deadened our senses to Christ, and has us asleep in sin. The expectation of our coming Lord can awaken you both bodily and soulfully. That expectation He places within you is a priceless motivation.

Psalm 63:1 You are my God; Early will I seek You; My soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You In a dry and thirsty land Where there is no water. This is a Psalm of David who was known as having a heart that longed for God. That longing is available to you also, and will drive you as it did him. Prayer and time in God’s Word plays such a large part in the awakening of your soul to the things of Christ. The more time you spend with Him, the greater your expectation is to hear from Him, and the more “awake” you become spiritually with Him. Mark 13:32-37 speaks of the coming of the Lord, and how we are to be awake and prepared for it. This is an exhortation to not remain in sin, but to be awake and prepared for His coming. We simply cannot remain living in sin, and have a heart for God. 1 Thessalonians 5:6 Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober. Begin to seek that daily time with God, and from it will come a desire to arise from sleep, for that is the expectation of meeting Him every day.

 
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Posted by on April 18, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Oh no thanks, I can do it..

17 Apr

Oh no thanks, I can do it...

 
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Posted by on April 17, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

Oh no thanks, I can do it..

17 Apr

Oh no thanks, I can do it..

Luke 9:23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.

What is the heaviest load you bear? Mine is mental stress, and the anxiety and depression that are fed from it. If I were to divulge my testimony, it would be full of the stresses of life that many of us fall under. Pride could really be the topic heading under which stress falls though, because pride will lead you to believe that you are to bear the weight of that cross. Christ tells us when we feel those loads are too heavy, to give them to Him in Matthew 11:28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Christ is offering to carry our cross for us, and even as He says in Luke 9:23, we are to give it to Him DAILY. The weight of our cross, whatever it may be, we cannot shoulder for six days a week and give it to Him on Sunday mornings.

The true meaning in Luke 9:23 is much deeper, and our cross is none to compare to Christ’s carrying the weight of our sin. Christ was speaking to the apostles and what they must endure as followers of Him. 1 Peter 4:16 Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter.  The apostle Paul speaks of denying himself and dying daily for Christ in 1 Corinthians 15:31. We will suffer as Christians for we are not of this world, and the world is against us recognizing that. What I consistently beg you to do, is to humble yourself before God. That denial of pride, leads to forgiveness of sin, and leads to Him shouldering the load we cannot bear. The dying of yourself should come every day through time spent with Him in prayer and His Word. We are not designed to live our life as the world presses us to live in the instant gratification and pressures of today. The only way to release those daily burdens is through daily time with the One whom has already bore the heaviest Cross for you.

 
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Posted by on April 17, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Dad, can I pray?

16 Apr

Dad, can I pray?

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.

Yesterday on the way home from a great afternoon with my oldest son, he said “Dad can I pray?” It did surprise me a little but I said sure you can. He just gave God a prayer of Thanksgiving for the great afternoon, all the fun, and with the innocence of a child. It warmed my heart to say the least. So many of us don’t pray with the excuse of not feeling as though we know how to pray. This doubt is a direct influence of Satan and the sin in our lives. There is no right or wrong way to pray if you set your heart humbly before the Almighty God. The Lord Jesus Christ gave us an outline in the Lords Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13). This is the model prayer and leads into a deeper relationship with our God. Once you set your heart before God, your desire is to spend more time with Him in communication through prayer and His Word.

I grew up with many repetitious prayers in church and in life. I believe the older we get, the more we begin to feel our prayers should sound Holy with all the “Thou Art” and some of the beautiful language that honors God. All of your prayers should honor God, and the closer you draw to Him the more God honoring your prayers become. Don’t pray for others to hear you to impress them with your prayers. Matthew 6:7 And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.  Prayer is not to impress anyone but to draw our hearts near to our Sovereign God. Just as with that intuition that we feel as parents when our children ask, He knows on a much grander scale what we are going to ask even before we ask it. Matthew 6:8 Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. Humble yourself today in some quiet time with the One who gave you breath today, and give thanks to Him. Your every day is a gift, and the thanks for that gift is an easy place to start. Matthew 18:4 Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

 
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Posted by on April 16, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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