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About oneminuteministry

This blog will be a way for me to share where Christ is speaking to me, and how my relationship with Him is growing. My desire is to encourage you in your walk with Christ as the only Way. John 14:6 "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No man comes to the father but through me."

Hard Bottom

05 Apr

Hard Bottom

2 Corinthians 12:9-10   But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (ESV)

Yesterday I spent some time in an online course in Hermeneutics, which is how to study the Bible. I also spent some time reading a great book by David Platt, who’s heart lies in discipleship and evangelism. It became evident how these two intertwined; the heart of a disciple and the provision of God in His Word for all they need. All throughout the Bible are the evidences of how God miraculously provided for His people in relation to their faith; especially when that faith is rooted in His Word. We must’t respond or rely on emotion, but on the promises written in His Word for our benefit. Satan lies in our questioning God’s Word; “did God really mean?” Platt made a great point to beware of teachers that use that phrase, for that phrase was when man fell into sin in the garden of Eden at the beginning of time.

Paul was speaking of how He had been given great revelations; of how he could easily rest on them and preach a good word rooted in his pride. Of how God had allowed a thorn in his flesh to keep him humble; Satan meant it for evil and God meant it for good. Paul came to realize that in all his problems, he could glorify God. In everything he faced it could draw him closer to the One who was extended him grace through it. When we are struggling with anything, Satan comes in and attempt to plant doubt. He tries to weaken our faith; he is the ultimate deceiver, and if we let him we will take our eyes of God and the promises in His Word. But if we go to God in his Word and prayer, we gain strength and provision to fight the enemy. 10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Platt also wrote about one of my favorite chapters in the Bible; John 15. This chapter is where we are taught about abiding; a state of being IN Christ. In this chapter we are told of the relationship we should seek with our Savior, of a life focused on that relationship. Outside of the qualifications of a disciple found in John 15 is a scary place to be. But being found in that abiding relationship is the answer to all you need to accomplish the life and work He has planned for you. John 15:5 I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If you try to rest on the religiosity that comes on Sundays alone, you are not abiding or living your life as a disciple. The troubles you face, you face alone in your power, not the grace of God. Humble your heart and seek Him daily. Seek to grow into what He has given you with the power to be as a disciple of His. In that is found everything you need; for even when you are at your weakest point, your strength lies in Him.

 
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Posted by on April 5, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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Spiritual cleansing

04 Apr

Spiritual cleansing

1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

I am really trying to draw near to God right now. In a whole hearted pursuit, denial of self, seeking an intimacy to be able to hear God’s voice speaking to me. I have a big load on my back that He has placed there, and I do not want to rely on my own abilities for the solutions to it. I understand what He brings me to, he will deliver me through. I know that he uses prayer, his Word, and his servants to speak to me, and I do not want to miss any of those opportunities. I am trying to cleanse myself from all the dirt walking in this world stains me with. Every day comes more distractions, more grime to clog your mind, placed there by the enemy to keep your eyes off Christ. It is good to take a spiritual bath, a cleansing if you will from time to time. When was the last time you did all you could to live for God?

Walking in the light that John describes is that intimacy with God. The fellowship is gained both with God and other believers, all that is strengthening to us. John had begun this passage speaking to the hypocrisy of his day, of how people would say one thing and yet live another. The lofty claims, and the sin filled lives. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. God’s light represents his knowledge and purity; it was a reflection of the Old Testament teachings of that representation of God as light. You cannot claim this intimacy and live for this world. If your life revolves around decisions based on your next venture, your next purchase, your self worth in the eyes of others; you are not walking in the light with God. You are lying to yourself.

The closer you walk with God the more the revelation of your sin becomes evident to you. Light dis-spells darkness, and His light will reveal what you try to hide from others. The closer you become to Christ, the more you feel the weight of your sin, and the more you are led to repentance before Him. This continual repentant heart is a heart that realizes the magnitude of God’s grace in sacrificing His Son. This heart is moved closer to God in thanksgiving for that sacrifices. John 12:46 I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness. These are the keys to living a abiding life in Christ. When you seek God and not the things of this world, He will draw you closer, and your answers to that pursuit will allow you to gain that fellowship that John describes. It can all start today, for you are not guaranteed tomorrow.

 
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Posted by on April 4, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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Nooowww I get it.

03 Apr

Nooowww I get it.

John 14:27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

Christ was telling his disciples of the days to come, of his death, of their betrayal, of Him leaving them to return to heaven. In all of this they became afraid, for they did not understand the meaning of all of this. But wrapped up in all of this was a promise; a promise of the Holy Spirit that was coming to be with them. They did not even understand how great that gift was, but the Spirit was about to open their minds and understanding to the things of God, and the things that Christ had been telling them. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. It all would soon make sense when their minds were opened to the things of God.

Do you remember a time in your life that the Bible did not make sense to you? Do you have friends that are lost that don’t understand the Bible; that claim it was just a book written by men? Now that you have repented of your sin and accepted Christ as your savior, you now desire to read your Bible, and the same pages bring understanding into your heart. That is the Holy Spirit living inside you revealing the scriptures to you as in John 14:26 above. 1 Corinthians 2:10 But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. The apostle Paul teaches much about this in 1 Corinthians 2:1-15. You must understand that the Spirit is God living inside you; a member of the Holy Trinity coming to dwell with you; you are a temple of the Holy Spirit. An understanding of that brings about a new revelation of how you go about your day when you realize you are in God’s presence all day.

God can do great works in the salvation of a lost soul when the humble heart desires Him by opening His word and seeking Him. He can reveal himself to the previously blind in the pages of his Holy book that the lost soul had read before. He can save a soul from the pit of hell when one truly, humbly, seeks Him there. But, with a hardened heart the Bible will all make no sense; it will be a seemingly book of no meaning to that person. 1 Corinthians 2:14 But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. In this book is found the peace in life that the world cannot understand or take away. In this book are found the words and promises of God that bring about hope for eternity, and peace for the day, with the understanding He is in control of all of it.

 
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Posted by on April 3, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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Paddle, paddle, paddle…….

02 Apr

Paddle, paddle, paddle…….

Philippians 1:12 But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel,

My best friend told me in ministry one of the hardest things to do, is to know what not to say. When I gave my testimony a few weeks back I understood what he meant. I struggle with it in this ministry; I know God is allowing these trials in my life, but I struggle with how much to reveal. In my pride I am a contained person; even those closest to me do not know the level of my struggles, I do not wish to reveal them for they have their own burdens. Only God truly knows what I hide behind smiles. I am trying to draw near to God right now for discernment, clarity, and wisdom for these paths I am on. Those big things in life that affect more than just you; they affect those around you. The things that keep you awake, and occupy your mind during the day. Only God knows the level of struggles, and only God can get help you get through them.

I want to have the apostle Paul’s attitude; he understood every single thing in his life flowed through God’s hands and it could be used to draw glory to God. Paul wrote Philippians from prison, and in prison God was glorified. 13 so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; 14 and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. God was using Paul in prison to reach into the Roman military and royal courts. To his fellow brethren on the outside, he was inspiring. They heard of how he was preaching in prison, and that was what had landed him there to begin with. His faith was so strong he feared no man. His life, strength, and focus is found in Philippians 1:21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. Paul knew that God had his feet where He wanted him for that day. He was to remain there and preach the gospel wherever he was for that day. Paul was in the center of God’s Will for him.

I can just about guarantee that most of you are struggling in some way too. It is seemingly becoming a mark of a Christian to be struggling now. There comes with that an understanding that you are not of this world, and of how this world is headed downstream away from God. You must be constantly fighting against this world to swim upstream to keep your eyes and heart on Him. The enemy will provide you all the comforts of this world to keep your eyes off God. Living in this world and the ways of it, are much easier than living for the promises after it; but in this life determines the rewards, or punishment of it, for eternity.

 
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Posted by on April 2, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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Your turn

01 Apr

Your turn

Titus 2:11-14     For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.

I am pressed today in a tight work timetable. I have been reading and studying in Titus this morning, stopping at this passage – how to live a life as a disciple. I simply cannot hammer out a few words on such an important passage as this. Do you see the gospel presented; the deity of the presenter; the reasons for, and the expectations of? How are you to live your life as a Christian, or yet as a disciple you ask. The how and why of your expectations are found here. I urge you to spend time here yourself, to pray for God to open your eyes, mind, and heart to the truths found here. My goal is always to provoke you into the Word of God on your own. Here lies the passage of how to pattern your life after Christ; a great place to park and let God reveal His truths to you.

What does He say to you?

 
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Posted by on April 1, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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He ascended

31 Mar

He ascended

Matthew 28:1-7    Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. 2 And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it. 3 His countenance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. 4 And the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men. 5 But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. 7 And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold, I have told you.”

I have been struggling with what to write this morning……my mind is going down so many roads that I want to take you……. I imagine the good news of today, the celebration of our Lord rising from the dead, conquering death, providing eternal life, all for you and me. I could go down the road of the unthinkable sacrifice; of the pain of sin and death of His creation placed on His back. But that was Friday; this is Sunday, and He is Risen; He is risen indeed! Surely you understand you are going to die someday. Most likely you believe there is a life after this one. Even at your core you must believe their is either punishment or reward awaiting you. Christ conquered death at the Cross, and provided you the pathway to eternal paradise with Him in heaven. He rose from the grave by His own power, conquering death forever. 1 Corinthians 15:55 “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” 56 The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. This is the Good News!

You must understand today is the hinge of which the door of Christianity opens; Christ rose from the dead to ascend back to sit at the right hand of the Father. Paul spoke directly to this in 1 Corinthians 15:14 And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty. Do you believe? Do you believe that He was placed in that tomb a dead physical man, and arose from the dead an eternal living king? Do you believe that He was the only perfect sacrifice that could atone for your sins? He died a physical death, and arose an eternal Savior and Lord. He appeared to many before ascending back to sit at the right hand of God. There were many recorded proofs of His resurrection that are found in the New Testament. If today does not represent the foundation of your faith, you will pay for eternity for your mistake.

My heart rejoices today for I understand what today truly represents. My heart also hurts for those that have not heard this Good News, or worse those that reject it. In the same joy I feel in celebration, I feel pain in the lost. We are living in a world that defines self-centeredness. We are living in a world thinking all paths lead to God, and they do not. I pray that this Easter morning that God places a burden on your heart for the depth of what He has done for you. I pray that you are obedient to that burden He placed on your heart and respond to Him as your Savior, or even as to becoming a disciple. Don’t you want to stand at His feet and thank him for today?

He came. He died. He arose. He ascended. He is coming back.

Are you ready to meet Him?

 
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Posted by on March 31, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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The Day Between

30 Mar

The Day Between

1 Peter 3:18-20   For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit, 19 by whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison, 20 who formerly were disobedient, when once the Divine longsuffering waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water.

Where did Christ go the day between his crucifixion and resurrection? Many think he descended into hell. I am not an educated scholar, and not qualified to take on that debate, but from my understanding he did not. He may have descended in to Sheol (the place where the dead lie awaiting final judgement), but Hell is reserved in the future tense as punishment for eternity. Where did He go; what does it matter when had paid your sin debt in full at the cross? Your sins had been atoned for in the shedding of Holy blood; the perfect sacrifice for a fallen society. God became fully man and died an unfathomable death to provide you the opportunity to dwell with Him for eternity.

Today was the Sabbath 2000 years ago; no believing Jew could do anything but morn and remain idle in what had happened. They were torn and confused over the events that had just taken place. They had not the gift of the Holy Spirit placed in them yet for the understanding that would come to them as a result of it. The apostles had abandoned Him in his greatest time of need; their pain must have been great. Today was a great day of morning 2000 years ago. Luke 22:61 And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” 62 So Peter went out and wept bitterly. They had to be questioning every thing that they had experienced the last couple of years; today would be a great day to put yourself in their shoes.

We all mourn differently. We all will come to a place where we are faced with life when we loose someone that is close to us. As Christians we are to morn for the personal loss we feel, but to rejoice in the hope of eternity for those that have passed. If they are believers in Christ; they have passed into paradise; no more pain of these bodies trapped in sin for eternity. Your future and mine changed 2000 years ago; your destiny awaits you at the foot of the cross. This day between is a day to morn the pain of death; but tomorrow is a day to rejoice for resurrection.

 
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Posted by on March 30, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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The weight

29 Mar

The weight

1 Peter 2:24 who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness–by whose stripes you were healed.

All the evidence of God’s glory lies before you every day. All the magnitude of His creation, un-explicable majesty of a supreme designer of all the universe is open to your eyes. 2000 years ago today, the opposing weight equal to that glory in the weight of our sins, bore down on that Creator. All the sins of the past, present, and future of the race He created, he now bore on a perfect body. He had come to provide the only possible Holy sacrifice to provide access to a Holy God. It was the only way to atone for our failure; the only way we would not pay for our failure apart from God. He created us like Himself; Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”; He had created us for fellowship, and we had failed miserably. There was only One who could pay our sin debt and allow us regain access to eternal paradise with Him.

Look back at your life of sin in your years. The weight of your sin, both the evident and the unknown, and try to imagine how you could pay your sin debt to stand before a Holy God. All other religions teach the work you must do to gain access to God. If you honestly reflect on where your sin debt is today, could you from this day on repay that debt in holy service if you could even sin no more? Is there an level of service that outweighs the level of repentance? Christ had pointed to the Pharisee’s who considered themselves the righteous and holy of their day. He had pointed to their religiosity and the failure that lied in their ritualistic approach to God; their service to God to atone for their sin. Matthew 9:13 But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.” Going through the motions of religion and church attendance with it’s rituals will only give you a first class ticket to hell. You are never saved by religion; you are only saved in humble repentance and acceptance of the understanding that you can only obtain it in Christ’s sacrifice.

I can come up with no adjectives to describe the weight of my sin. I lived a life steep in sin, the unknown is greater than the known; I fail my Lord still every single day.  Even in my greatest sin of pride I understand that I could never pay my sin debt to God. That would make the sacrifice of Christ useless. Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. You have only one pathway to paradise, and it began today at Calvary. The pride in your heart steep in religion must be covered with the blood at the Cross. Your salvation began 2000 years ago and it is available to a humble repentant heart that kneels and pleas for forgiveness and acceptance. Thank you Jesus.

 
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Posted by on March 29, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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You are the Christ

28 Mar

You are the Christ

Luke 22:31-32     And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. 32 But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.”

Christ had gather all his disciples for the Passover feast. They had met in the upper room, and Christ had revealed his destiny to them; they had celebrated their last meal together. This meal became known as the Lord’s supper where Christ symbolized his body and blood to do in remembrance of Him. The gospel accountants of this meal summarize the events of it, and the events leading up to Christ heading out to the Garden of Gethsemene to pray before Judas betrayed Him. Christ had told them of one who will betray Him; he then later rocks Peter’s world by telling him that he will betray Him. Peter in all his zeal denies it; even says he would die to prevent it; but Christ knows it, and Peter will come to painfully realize it. 33 But he said to Him, “Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death.” 34 Then He said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me.”

There is so much going on in the world around us that places us in a position to stand for our faith, or deny it. The marriage equality debate is being held in the highest court of the nation; a debate that would never take place in a nation that lived by the commandments of God. A God fearing Christian does not hate homosexuals as they preach; but that does not mean that we support breaking the sanctity of marriage as God designed it. Are you willing to stand for your faith even in fear of the consequences? Do you say that you are a Christian but support homosexuality? That leaves you in the place Peter was. You are claiming what is convenient, but not when it comes to taking a stand for Christ. You are called to love your brother; Matthew 22:39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ In our love for all our neighbors, therein lies a call to repentance of sin, and for them to come to know Christ. Luke 5:32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”

This holy week represents all that you claim in Christ. Who do you say that He is to you? Christ asked that question to his disciples when they were in the region of Caesarea Philippi; Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (Matthew 16:16). Is He that to you? Is He your deliverer from sin, your eternal Savior? Almost every religion out there teaches a pathway to paradise. They place a hope in the life after this one; but their failure is they tell you what you must do to obtain it by your good deeds. Christianity teaches that you can never do enough good to reach God; it is obtainable only in a humble, repentant heart that see the sacrifice of Christ as the only way to eternal paradise. John 14:6 I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No man comes to the Father but through Me. Christ encouraged Peter in the midst of that disclosure; “when you return to me”; it is not too late to return to Christ. He waits with open arms for those that understand the hope that lies in them.

 
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Posted by on March 28, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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Not about the bunny

27 Mar

Not about the bunny

John 3:3 Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

I almost wish I could just open up my heart today. I am having a rough week in the spiritual sense; I had wanted this week to be special, to spend a lot of time with God. I feel God drawing me near, yet my enemy in this world is bringing the great distraction of busyness, and tormenting my soul. The inner wars create anxieties, but they have become expected, and I have become accustomed to my thorn in the flesh. I still draw near, and I still feel the weight of what this week represents. Do you? Do you place more emphasis on the birth of Christ than the death and resurrection of Him? The virgin birth is but a detail of the power of the blood that was in that child that morn. That blood in that infant had the power to save your soul, and this week represents all that the new birth of your life in Him, through Him, on that Cross contains.

Christ repeatedly slams the religiosity of the leaders of that day. Of the pride and arrogance that they carried; of the enslaving rituals that they demanded; of the methods that they preached and the hypocrisy in which they lived. They elevated themselves, and much of their preaching simply had a self serving motive. 27 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. 28 Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. Christ had come to fulfill the law that could not be fulfilled under their guidance. Their answer stood before them, not exalted, but in the example of a humble servants heart.

Christ ends his speaking out against the religious leaders of that day in a heartfelt lamentation for Jerusalem. He knows of how they have consistently rejected the signs and prophets that God had sent them. He departs Jerusalem and goes to the Mount of Olives on His way back to Bethany. There He teaches of the end of times, of His second coming; this is known as the Olivet Discourse found in Matthew 24. This week should grab you, it should tug at your soul for what it represents. It should make you question your religiosity and your eternity. This week should draw you closer to Christ; I pray that you answer that tug on your heart to it.

 
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Posted by on March 27, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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