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They still point in the right direction

03 Jun

They still point in the right direction

Philippians 1: 18 What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached; and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice.

Paul was in prison, and wherever Paul was he was preaching the Gospel of Christ. He was bound in chains and could have asked God ‘why’ and sunk into misery and depression as a result of his imprisonment. Paul suffered for Christ greatly after Christ visited him on the Damascus Road. Christ even sent Ananias to Paul and told him in Acts 9:16 For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.” Paul understood unlike many of the teachers today that we will be required to suffer for His name, and all of those happenings can be used to glorify Him in it. He understood that wherever His feet were that day, was God’s Will for him that day, and he was to use that day to glorify God. 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.

One of my good friends came to know Christ through a popular TV pastor who is what in today’s terms we would call a ‘Prosperity Preacher’. His preaching is of the idea that if you don’t have all the blessings Christ intends for you now, you don’t have enough faith. But my friend also  is wise enough to see the Truth now; and does not judge that pastor, for he sees him preaching Christ too. Look at how Paul was dealing with similar circumstances: Philippians 1: 15 Some indeed preach Christ even from envy and strife, and some also from good will: 16 The former preach Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my chains; 17 but the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel. 18 What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached; and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice. Even in the misguided steps of many of today’s pastors, Christ is being preached. If they are preaching Salvation only through the blood of Christ, once you accept that, and your relationship and discernment grow, you too many see their err. Seek God daily with all your heart, mind, soul, body and strength. These things will open your eyes and allow you to see clearly the path He has for you today; and how you can glorify Him either in your blessings or your sufferings for that day.

 
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Posted by on June 3, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Ain’t Done Yet

02 Jun

Ain’t Done Yet

Philippians 1:6  being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;

Project 639, section 4, article 6b – status – in process, uncompleted. Do you have a “to do” list like that? Projects started, improvements or repairs made, yet lacking completion? Dana could write a book on mine. What if your life was like that in God’s eyes? Once you believe in His Son and you accept the Grace you have been given, He has begun that work in you. John 6:29 Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.” The first part of that ‘project’ is the accepting of Christ as the Savior of your soul, and the Grace that God has bestowed upon you. Grace is a free gift of something you don’t deserve, and surely are not ‘entitled’ to. Ephesians 2:1 And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins.

Matthew Henry said, “ The work of grace is but begun in this life; it is not finished here; as long as we are in this imperfect state there is something more to be done.” So much of this work rests on and builds our faith. Our faith is the evidence of the hope and peace we possess now, and the security of the future we have with Christ. This building of our faith is a work of God and it will and should grow until Christ returns for us. Is there something in this world that is hindering your faith and Christian growth? Remove it; it is that simple. Let God grow you by removing those things that keep your relationship from growing with Him. Even in the trials of life He is at work in you. Rejoice in that work! Romans 12:12 rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer. God will never start something and not complete it for He is a God of perfection and cannot lie. That includes you, once you find rest in His Grace and let him do His work.

 
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Posted by on June 2, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Soul Rest

01 Jun

Soul Rest

Matthew 11:28-30 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

How can we find rest in a world that demands the instantaneous, the constant, the never alone or downtime to find this rest? Our minds are running at warp speeds in many different directions, multi-tasking on so many fronts, going against all that God designed us for. I believe Satan’s greatest tool in today’s age is busyness. So how can we be told in the scriptures above that we can find rest for our souls? Our souls yearn for that inner peace, and there are even products that try to sell it to us. But it is not attainable through worldly means, but only through Christ. This goes against what the world teaches, but we are told not to follow the ways of this world 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.

Practically speaking, if I gave you a glimpse into my world and the hours I pack into it, you would understand why I am constantly tired. I am under the spell of busyness just like all of you; working 70-80hrs a week, all the gadgets that keep me plugged in, and pulled in many directions physically to the point of exhaustion. But my soul is at rest; and that rest brings me an inner strength that only God can provide. 2 Corinthians 12:9 And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. There is something about the growth of your faith that will bring about this Rest, and the Rest is found in that faith. The world cannot steal your faith, nor can they deliver it. Hebrews 4 speaks much of that faith and His rest found in it. If you will believe and accept Christ, their will come a rest for your soul that you have never had before and it will carry you into eternity.

 
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Posted by on June 1, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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How much is enough?

31 May

How much is enough?

Deuteronomy 6:5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.

In my studies last night I was in Deuteronomy. I loved Dr. Williams quote “This book is especially loved by the Savior and hated by the devil.” When I did a search this morning for ‘with all your soul’, it came up seven times in Deuteronomy. Christ even quoted Deuteronomy three times when He was tempted by Satan in the desert. So what does it mean to love as in the verse above? Your heart, soul, and mind is the whole you, the essence of your being, the way you are wired. In Christ’ rebuking of Satan he quoted Deuteronomy  8:3 So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord. Is there a desire within you to know more of God, to live for every word you can absorb from His Holy Word?

What you desire is a measurement of where your heart lies. This is a broad statement that demands self analysis, and prayer for God to realign us to Him. The world and all the distractions of it will draw our desire, or our hearts, away from God. Satan entices us continually with those things of desire to draw us away from the first and greatest commandment. Matthew 22:37-38 Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. God has told us that there is nothing higher than our love for Him on His priority list. Total dedication from every fiber of our being; putting Him first in all things, seeking Him in His Word and desiring more. I believe these scriptures describe a love and desire that is never satisfied, but a desire to always draw closer to God every step of every day for the rest of our lives here…..and reap the rewards for an eternity.

 
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Posted by on May 31, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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My anchor in His Word

30 May

My anchor in His Word

Hebrews 6:19 This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil

I have had some interesting conversations over the last week, much on which was faith. Have you ever considered that You Are What You Believe? In that little statement your entire life is woven. It will lead you down paths consciously and unknowingly. It will lead your decisions. It will lead you either closer to; or tug you away from God. God has designed ‘need’ into our DNA to draw us to Him. If pride is so strong in you you have no need, my prayer is those walls crumble down. As a Christian we are to have the ‘need’ or hope of eternal paradise in heaven, which draws us to Him. Galatians 5:5 For we through the Spirit eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. This righteousness that Paul is speaking of is the freedom from sin and coming into the presence of the Lord. When the Spirit dwells inside us, this yearning comes from the Spirit and grows with our relationship to Him.

Remember “doubting Thomas” who would not believe until he saw with his own eyes that Christ had risen? John 20:29 Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” This is a great encouragement to those of us who believe yet have not seen. That faith in which we stand is built on the belief and hope of what God has given us in His Word. The more time you spend in God’s Word the stronger your faith will become. Your hope is strengthened when God begins to reveal Himself through the Truths found in His Word. Your faith can grow from experiences of where you have seen God work in your life, but nothing can take the place of experiencing God speak to you in His Word. The measure of the time spent there is easily related to the depth of what you  believe, and how great your faith is.

 
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Posted by on May 30, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Equipped to Share

29 May

Equipped to Share

2Timothy 1:8-11 Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began, but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, to which I was appointed a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles.

Yesterday I was listening to a sermon on the weight and responsibility of teaching God’s Word. A good friend and I were talking about it last night and of how it that weight can scare you away from doing it. I decided to spend some time in the books of Timothy this morning because I knew Paul was encouraging Timothy in how to live and preach the Word of God. Satan will plant all types of fears into you to keep you from ever sharing your faith, or even a scripture at what may seem to be the perfect time. 2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. Those fears can be weakened and your faith strengthened by the amount of time you spend with God in prayer and His Word. The strength that comes with that time will keep you from being ashamed of God’s Word and remaining silent.

We all have those times when we feel like we want to share our faith, or even what feels like a perfect scripture for someone at a time of need. Those promptings are the Holy Spirit inside of you, using you to encourage others. He may be bringing your testimony or the perfect scripture to that person before you at just the right time. John 14:26 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. Your response to that prompting is key, and God is using you at that time. Don’t deny that prompting from fear, but know that God is equipping you for His service. He may be even leading you to explain what that verse means to you. If God is placing that scripture before you for someone, He will equip you to deliver what He has to say. This strength and equipping comes from seeking Him daily. That places His Word in your heart, and your heart that is equipped will be prepared to share when His time comes.

 
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Posted by on May 29, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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The Good News

28 May

The Good News

I have a thought in my head haunting me that I heard on a Christian radio sermon recently. “If you are not preaching a Gospel that will preach in a third world country, you are not preaching the Gospel.” There is a lot packed into that one sentence, and I don’t know that I could begin to unpack it in a “OneMinuteMinistry”. But I get what they were trying to say. The Gospel includes and begins at Creation.

Creation –Romans 1:20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse. Paul is pointing out the proof of Creation that is evident to everyone, and refuting the ideas of today’s “Big Bang Theories” or Evolution.

The Fall of Man – Genesis 3:6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. Paradise was lost here in the garden of Eden when Satan deceived Adam and Eve; and as decedents of them we were all born into sin. As a punishment for that sin and the disconnect with a perfect Holy God, there had to be a way to reconnect.

The Savior – John 3:15-18 that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. This is the Gospel, which The Gospel means The Good News.

The Good News is that God has provided a way into His Holy presence in eternal paradise with Him through the sacrifice of His Son. He came and paid the price for your sins by dying on a Cross and bearing the weight of your sin for eternity. He “Justified” your sin in an eternal holy court, finding you not guilty by accepting that price he paid as the only way into heaven. John 14:6 I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No man comes to the Father but by through Me. This is a free gift from God. The only requirement is the humbling of yourself by repenting of your sins and asking for forgiveness of them through the blood on that Cross. That is the best “Good News” I can give you today in a world that is far from God.

 
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Posted by on May 28, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Dying to self

27 May

Dying to self

John 15:13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. 14 You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.

Hopefully Memorial weekend you will spend some time reflecting on those who paid the ultimate price for your freedom with their lives. In that same respect we know that God gave us His Son as a sacrifice to pay for our sin with His life. John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. In the scripture above, Christ is asking us to lay down our lives for Him. He is not asking us for martyrdom necessarily (but that may come), but asking us to forsake the lusts of the world, and live a life for Him seeking eternal and not temporal pleasure.

Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. What is a living sacrifice anyway? A sacrifice is thought of as a death to bestow honor correct? Matthew Henry said, “A living sacrifice, that is, inspired with the spiritual life of the soul. It is Christ living in the soul by faith that makes the body a living sacrifice.” The world and the lusts of it are Satan’s tactics to draw you away from Christ. The list would be long of the idolatry he uses today in our world that places so much value on self pleasure and stuff. But we can move in our relationship with Christ to the point that the “stuff” just does not matter anymore, and what matters is what we feel led to do in honor of Him, and share the joy He brings with those that do not see yet.  Paul said in Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. You can place honor on the one who died for you for eternity, by dying to the lusts of yourself, and placing yourself at His feet for service.

 
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Posted by on May 27, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Warfare

26 May

Warfare

Ephesians 6:12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

This morning my mind seemed to be in reflection of what the Memorial Day weekend represents. Those fallen heros that have fought and died for our freedom. I thought of the ultimate war, the war against sin; and how Christ had paid the ultimate price with His life, and won the war for eternity for us over sin. I thought of writing of the defeated enemy Satan and how I believe he does not even understand he is already defeated. He is the great deceiver and liar, and he has ultimately deceived himself. But I thought of the Spiritual War that is still prevalent around us with this defeated foe. Satan still works his evil every day in every way to draw you away from Christ. You can’t see this war, but you do feel the very real effects from it. But through the strength and power of God you can still fight in it.

2 Kings 6:15-17 And when the servant of the man of God arose early and went out, there was an army, surrounding the city with horses and chariots. And his servant said to him, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” So he answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” And Elisha prayed, and said, “Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

This is one of my favorite stories in the Bible for it gives us a peek into the unseen Spiritual World that surrounds us at every moment of every day. This gives us a glimpse into the unknown, which affects the known we experience. The two are tied together, but yet since we cannot see the Spiritual one before our eyes, we are tempted to dismiss it. The Spiritual battles are fought on plains that we can only fight through the power of God and His Word. 2 Corinthians 10:3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. We must fight the sin of pride in believing we can war in the Spirit, and only commit our Spirit to God to fight that war. Our Spirit steep in faith and armed with His Word will realize the battle we are in and follow the leadership of Christ in that battle. Through the training and understanding that comes with time with God in prayer and His Word, we can rest on the assurance of our supreme commander that He will not lead us where He cannot protect us, and that we ultimately win the war.

 
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Posted by on May 26, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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How can I unplug?

25 May

How can I unplug?

Psalm 46:10  Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!

I expect if we were all to reflect, we would realize we were in a state of continual motion. At many times it would be bodily, but our society and the pressures of it have our minds constantly in high gear. Our world today is a place of constant contact, 4G immediate answers at our side that breed anxiety and stress on our inner selves. This “busyness” is one of Satan’s greatest weapons, for it keeps us from ever slowing down to seek or spend time with God. Even when I sit down here most mornings the pressures of the day invade and try to steal away my quiet time, and even prayer time with God. Resting is so important that God spent a day doing it after Creation, setting the example for us to follow. Genesis 2:3 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.

We all live under these pressures and are expected to perform to these tasks before us in the marketplace of total contact. We never unplug; never disconnecting our minds from our responsibilities at work, or home, or family, or even recreation. We were not designed for this lack of rest by God’s creation; but even from the fall of man into sin we were told our punishment was going to be the toil of the land and labor that came. But the means of rest, God’s provision, is always there in Christ. The inner hope and faith that He brings, is unattainable by the world to be swept away into busyness. Matthew 11:28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Although every day will try to drag you away, you can always return to Him. Take the time when the pressures seem too great to slow down, breath deep, and go to God in prayer and His Word. These will lighten you load, for unknowingly you are casting your load on Him by your actions in these. He can carry the world, and even your world in His hand……..for He created it.

 
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Posted by on May 25, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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