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Tag Archives: relationship with god

Heartlamp

21 Aug

Heartlamp

Zephaniah 1:12 At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps, and I will punish the men who are complacent, those who say in their hearts, ‘The LORD will not do good, nor will he do ill.’

My heart is troubled, for I am seeing those in the circle of influence that God has given me becoming hard hearted, and yes even complacent as the prophet Zephaniah speaks of here. God has been putting people before me that are angry with society, angry with life, even angry with God. He has been putting before me those that place everything higher on their priority list than their relationship with God. He has been putting before me those that are complacent in their faith or lack thereof. He has been putting before me those that are all but uttering the words of denial…….my heart is troubled. I am not perfect; I have experienced all of these traits at some time in my life except the denial of God. Even at my lowest points, pinnacles of sins, I knew I was sinning but Satan had me convinced of the temporal pleasurable pursuits of it. I hang my head in repentant shame for all those paths I ran; ran from God into sin.

The book of Zephaniah is a prophecy book of God’s impending judgement on the sins of Judah. It is a book that uses the term “the day of the Lord” more than any other book (Judgement Day). I don’t know how you could be breathing and not see the similarities of how steep our nation is in sin. We live in a double standard spineless society that seeks to please everyone and bends the truth to fit everyone. We have lost the ability to say, “wrong is wrong” and uphold the moral laws that originated on two stone tablets. God will hold us accountable for all our actions at a future time determined by Him. Philippians 2:10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Oh how I pray that God will use me to encourage you to draw closer to Him. My prayer is that you respond with a humble repentant heart that seeks to abide in Him. My prayer is that you focus on your relationship to God more than any single other pursuit in life. There is nothing else in your life that has eternal consequences. Judah was being judged for their pursuits of idolatry too; their pursuits of “stuff.” Zephaniah 1:18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them on the day of the wrath of the LORD. In the fire of his jealousy, all the earth shall be consumed; for a full and sudden end he will make of all the inhabitants of the earth. Pray to God today to show you what stands before Him in line; ask Him to reveal it to you and to give you the heart and strength to put Him first. A humble heart before Him will be a changed heart through Him. He knows your heart; his lamp brings to light every, single thing.

 
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Posted by on August 21, 2014 in Daily Devotions

 

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04 Aug

Lemonade

 

1 Corinthians 2:3 I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling.

 

My desire was for God to awaken me early this morning, and he did. My heartfelt prayer was for a renewed spirit and relationship, and he provided in a devotional that put me exactly where He wanted me in his Word. I am coming off a vacation of healing time; the mental strains turned into physical ailments that shut my body down. The vacation did not serve any purpose of dealing with the stresses, but only time to rest, heal, and regain strength to press forward. In my prayer time this morning I realized how much of the world had crept into my life; I prayed for it to flee and my relationship with the Lord to move to a state of abiding.

 

If you have followed this ministry, you have heard me for years telling you of the importance of starting your day with God. I have been failing in what I have been preaching for a couple months; the strains of life took their toll to the point I could not get out of bed. That is why my request was for God to get me up early this morning; and what a renewed feeling to spend time with him before the world rushes in. Let me quote Oswald Chambers from this morning; “As Christians we are not here for our own purpose at all— we are here for the purpose of God, and the two are not the same. We do not know what God’s compelling purpose is, but whatever happens, we must maintain our relationship with Him. We must never allow anything to damage our relationship with God, but if something does damage it, we must take the time to make it right again. The most important aspect of Christianity is not the work we do, but the relationship we maintain and the surrounding influence and qualities produced by that relationship. That is all God asks us to give our attention to, and it is the one thing that is continually under attack.”

 

There is a strength found in starting your day with God that can be found by no other worldly means. There is a weakness found without it, that no other worldly means can provide to strengthen. I laughed the other day where someone said they wanted to wear a shirt that said LIFE, and stand on the street corner handing out lemons. Life is hard, and you cannot do it on your own. God uses all these tough things in life to draw you closer to Him. You will not find the answers on your own; the answers to life’s problems and questions are found through Jesus Christ and his Spirit in his Word. Go to God today with a humble prayer to seek a closer relationship again, and respond to what he shows you. You never know; He might be handing you lemons so you can make lemonade together.

 
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Posted by on August 4, 2014 in Daily Devotions

 

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Experience vs Comfort

20 Mar

Experience vs Comfort

Matthew 16:13-16    When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?” 14 So they said, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Yesterday at church we started the Experiencing God study by Henry & Richard Blackaby. This is a study close to my heart, and to be honest, I am very passionate about. I know that you cannot participate in this study for 13 weeks and your understanding and relationship with God remain the same. This study bends towards the understanding of joining God where he already is at work around you, not pleading for him to come join you at your work. This study opens up the scriptures, and develops the habits of spending daily time in the scriptures in a powerful way. “You will never be satisfied merely to know about God. Knowing God comes through experience as he reveals himself to you.”

Can you imagine being a disciple of Christ in the passage above? Can you imagine how it was to be chosen by God to be an apostle of God? Can you imagine…….the list is endless of their experiences being in the presence of Christ, chosen by God, for those few years. Peter, oh the outspoken Peter; you can almost picture yelling, was clear in his answer; and Christ built his church on the rock He called Peter. 17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. Jesus knew that God was opening the mind, heart, body, and soul to the truths found in Christ. Jesus rejoiced at what had been revealed to Peter by God.

If you are living your life in the comfort of Christianity, but have no evidence of your faith, how will you answer for your life on Judgment Day? What will you say when God asks you what you did with the knowledge of the sacrifice of His Son? Are you complacent; are you comfortable; are you feeling good about going to church every Sunday? Wouldn’t that be called comfortable? One of the scariest verses in the Bible is what Christ says in the book of Revelation that he will do with comfortable Christians. Revelation 3:15 I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. 16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. That passage should stir your heart and soul into a daily pursuit of God in his Word and prayer. That is all it will take for the Word of God to stir you into being obedient to what the Holy Spirit reveals to you. You will either be obedient, and begin to experience God, or disobedient, and feel his wrath on that Day. The choice is easy when you realize it.

 
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Posted by on March 20, 2014 in Daily Devotions

 

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Knowledge & Discernment

20 Jan

Knowledge & Discernment

Philippians 1:9-11     And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, 10 that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, 11 being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

Paul was writing the letter to the Philippians from prison. In a place where most would have seen  a huge setback and trial, Paul saw God’s work in it, and the ability to share the gospel and the joy he possessed in Christ. Paul saw God at work in every thing in his life; he knew that his paths were directed by God and he sought to serve him every day. A central theme in Philippians is Paul’s joy, and he expresses that joy in relationships. Paul used two Greek words to describe those types of relationships; knowledge for our relationship with God; discernment for our relationships with each other. The closer our relationship with God, the greater our discernment in our lives and relationships here.

What comes first; the earthly relationship or the one with Christ? We may hear the Gospel preached and come to know Christ; but at that point it becomes our duty to pursue Christ. We should desire to sit under good teachers that help reveal God’s Word to us. We should desire to spend time in the Word ourselves with daily diligence; to have a sincere heart for God. We should seek to know God and the things of God; in these things are found the knowledge of God. 9 And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment. In this knowledge is a relationship is nurtured; a relationship that you were created for by Him that you are now in pursuit of. You will never come to know more about God until you truly seek God with all your heart. God knows your heart and will reward you with opening your eyes and mind through your heart for Him.

The closer we get to God, the more discernment He may give us. Discernment is a key to unlocking a better understanding of the things that surround you every day. Paul is speaking of discernment in the light of person-to-person relationships, and we all need a better understanding of those realities. This world is full of darkness, and much of that darkness may lie in false relationships. God will open our eyes to these things the more time we spend with him. The promises that come in the scriptures that follow in verses 10 that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, 11 being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.(ESV). With this gained understanding comes the joy that Paul possessed. He saw God at work in all aspects and relationships of his life. He sought to glorify God in all his life with that knowledge of their relationship, and the worldly discernment that he gained from it.

 
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Posted by on January 20, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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