Tag Archives: spiritual growth

Close Of Day Meditation 2-10-16

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The devotion I chose for this morning’s prayer team meeting at church was from Joel 2:12-13. It led me to ask the question, “What would God have you mourn for?“

The private devotional I am reading is David Nasser’s, A Call To Die. Today I read Day 12, “Death…. and Your Good Clothes”. I underlined several phrases in the lesson but the one that caught my attention above all the others was this… “How do we decide what needs to be discarded and what needs to be worn? The answer is found in another question. What breaks the heart of God?” p.126

Two very similar questions. I think God would have us mourn for the things in this world which break His heart.

Tonight in Bible study we came up with a list of things which break His heart.

Human pride which keeps us from obeying God’s commands.

Our refusal to take the time to pray.

Life’s distractions that keep us from God’s presence.

Fear.

Unwillingness to let go of false security to embrace the only real security there is in life.

I think all of these break the heart of God. What would you add?

Close Of Day Meditation 2-9-16

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In this morning’s DIRECTION FROM MORNING SCRIPTURE, I asked the question,

What are the differences between being a slave to sin and being a slave to righteousness? I have been meditating on that question all day. As I close out the day I wanted to share with you some of the differences I have come up with.

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  1. A life enslaved to sin is bound by evil motives. A life enslaved to righteousness is bound to the law of love.
  2. A life enslaved to sin is constantly fighting the battle against shame. The life enslaved to righteousness is grounded in confidence and peace.
  3. A life enslaved to sin is constantly trying to outrun guilt and judgment. The life enslaved to righteousness rests in innocence.
  4. A life enslaved to sin must indulge the flesh with instant gratification because the present is all it can hope for. The life enslaved to righteousness does not need to indulge the flesh instantly because it has all the time in the universe, being promised eternal life.
  5.  A life enslaved to sin knows only silence from God. The life enslaved to righteousness hears God’s voice in ever increasing measure.
  6. A life enslaved to sin must work for its own provision because it has cut off God’s supply line. The life enslaved to righteousness has an open supply line to Jehovah Jireh and shall know the Lord’s provision continually.
  7. A life enslaved to sin will eventually see sin eat up all the riches it amasses. The life enslaved to righteousness shall know superabundance without end.

WHAT BENEFIT IS THERE IN THE LIFE OF SIN?

The Keys To Presence Pt. 3

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We have been discussing four keys that unlock the presence of God in the church. So far we have discussed:

HOLINESS

AND PRAYER

Today we are moving on to discuss the third key which is UNITY.

Psalm 133 SAYS

1 How good and pleasant it is
    when God’s people live together in unity!

2 It is like precious oil poured on the head,
    running down on the beard,
running down on Aaron’s beard,
    down on the collar of his robe.
3 It is as if the dew of Hermon
    were falling on Mount Zion.
For there the Lord bestows his blessing,
    even life forevermore.

This thing called unity is like the anointing. The anointing brings the authority and according to verse three of this powerful little psalm it brings the blessing of God. Unity is needed in the body in order to walk in the anointing, blessing and presence of God. In short the church MUST HAVE UNITY IN ORDER TO BE EFFECTIVE!

So what is unity?

Well the adverb used in verse one is “Yachad”. It means together. It means united.

The verse could be translated “How good and pleasant it is when God’s people stand together.”

Unity does not require perfect agreement. It requires a common cause. I may not see eye to eye with everyone in the church all the time but when we get together on Sunday mornings to worship God all our differences go out the window so that I can focus on the One I came to worship with my brothers and sisters. I can push all my disagreement aside because worship is not about me or them. It is about God.

One of Satan’s biggest weapons is in making us think that we can  only be united with people who think just like we do. If we really think that way we might as well stop going to church altogether.

Unity comes at a price. That price is to stop thinking your ideas of the way the world works are the best ones and that only people who think exactly like you can be part of your club.

While that is true unity does require a solid foundation and that foundation is Christ and Him crucified, risen from the dead, coming to reign in eternal power and glory. That frankly should be enough ground for us to stand together and see the power of God ushered into our midst powerfully. Requiring anything else is just pride.

Listen, I am not saying that we cannot disagree. Every family has its disagreements but at the end of the day family puts its disagreements aside to work towards a common goal. That goal in our case is building the Kingdom of our Heavenly Father. Once we stand together to accomplish that, the presence of God will not be able to be held back.

Directions From Morning Scripture: 2-9-16

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Today my morning devotional Scripture came through one of the devotions I am reading, David Nasser’s, A Call To Die.

The Scripture that I got stuck on and meditated on for some time was  Romans 6:16

Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?

What are the differences between being a slave to sin and being a slave to righteousness? Make a list for yourself.

The Road Through Romans: Trinity

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INFINITUDEWe are continuing our discussion through the attributes of God which are displayed in creation according to Romans 1:20 , which says, “20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.”

So far we have discussed God’s

WISDOM

INFINITUDE

SOVEREIGNTY

AND HIS HOLINESS

If you missed those discussions just click on the links:

Today we are discussing GOD’S TRINITY.

We see the trinity described in nature in: The egg, The shamrock and perhaps best in our own selves. As a human I am one being in three parts. I have a body, I have a mind, will and emotional center which I call my soul and there is  third part of my being which transcends logic, will and emotion and touches on the unseen realm. That I call my spirit.

Here to help us understand it all a bit better is Buffalo Herd: