If you believe that Jesus died for your sins and rose from the dead, you are a child of God. And as a child of God, only two things are necessary for you to be permeated by God's Spirit and power.
OBEY GOD.
According to the Apostle Peter, "God gives the Spirit to those who obey Him." And according to the Apostle Paul, we are actually commanded to "be filled with the Spirit" instead of "being drunk with wine." So the first thing to do is simply, completely, and unconditionally yield to the Spirit, giving Him complete and absolute control over you. That's what it means to "be filled with the Spirit." That is the command to obey. Once you've obeyed, you only need to do one more thing.
ASK GOD.
The Lord Jesus said, "If you, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him." So, if you are a child of God, and you've yielded to the Spirit, all you have to do is ask God to fill you with the Spirit, and He will do it. Right now.
Obey God. (Yield to the Spirit.)
Ask God. (To fill you with the Spirit.)
That's all that's required to be filled with God's Spirit, if you are a child of God through faith in Jesus.
Showing posts with label Christian Spirituality. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christian Spirituality. Show all posts
Sunday, June 18, 2017
Monday, November 23, 2015
How to be a spiritual person (Part 1)
"The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot
tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone
born of the Spirit." The Lord Jesus
You can't be spiritual without The Spirit. You can't flow with the wind without The Wind.
God's Breath in you is your spirit. This is the key to the beginning of being a spiritual person.
Let's begin being a spiritual person. If you agree, flow with me.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.
You heard it and felt it: your breath, your spirit, your life, your essence.
Your breath came from God's Breath--His Spirit, His Life, His Essence.
Before you think, speak, or act, breathe.
If you agree, flow with me.
Do it now.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.
When Moses asked God His name, God replied: I am who I am.
When you breathe in and breathe out, you are like God: You are who you are--God's creature.
Make no mistake. You are not the Creator, nor the same as the Creator.
You are a creature, made in the image and likeness and glory of our Creator.
When you breathe in and breathe out, you are who you are.
You can't be spiritual without The Spirit. You can't flow with the wind without The Wind.
God's Breath in you is your spirit. This is the key to the beginning of being a spiritual person.
Let's begin being a spiritual person. If you agree, flow with me.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.
You heard it and felt it: your breath, your spirit, your life, your essence.
Your breath came from God's Breath--His Spirit, His Life, His Essence.
Before you think, speak, or act, breathe.
If you agree, flow with me.
Do it now.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.
When Moses asked God His name, God replied: I am who I am.
When you breathe in and breathe out, you are like God: You are who you are--God's creature.
Make no mistake. You are not the Creator, nor the same as the Creator.
You are a creature, made in the image and likeness and glory of our Creator.
When you breathe in and breathe out, you are who you are.
This is how to be a spiritual person:
Breathe in, breathe out; be who you are where you are wherever you are.
Accept your Creator and yourself as His creature; accept that your breath is His Breath.
Click here for part 2.
Click here for part 2.
Friday, March 27, 2015
How people know you're a child of God
For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. Romans 8:14 NIV
My wife took a picture of my son and I walking hand in hand. On that day, the day my wife took the picture, anyone could see that my son looked like me, walked with me, and called me daddy. This is how they knew he was my child. And this is how people know you are a child of God.
You look like God.
You walk with God.
You call God "daddy."
When you pray, you feel God listening. Anyone with you or near you can also feel God listening to you, as it is written, "The LORD is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth."
When you hear a daughter call her daddy sincerely, you know who her father is and who she is as a daughter. The same is true for our heavenly father and us. When we pray, people see and feel God listening to us. I've personally experienced this on more than one occasion.
Once on a job assignment I silently prayed within me, in my mind only. Someone came up to me and said, "Excuse me, I didn't want to disturb you while you were praying...." He then asked me a question relating to my job position. But how did he know I was praying? I wasn't kneeling or bowing my head or putting my hands together like we sometimes do when we pray. Somehow, he saw it and felt it. Intuitively he knew I was connecting with God. Another woman I worked with saw the same thing and responded the same way. My prayer connection to God was so real they could feel it. The same is true for you, son or daughter or God, when you pray.
How do people know you're a child of God?
You look like Him.
You walk with Him.
You call Him dad.
They know you are God's child when you pray.
They feel Him listening to you.
They sense Him in the room with you.
Know the power of your prayers in manifesting the presence of God.
If you agree, pray right now with me:
Our Father in heaven, we approach you in the name of Jesus by Your Spirit in us. We welcome your presence with us and in us. Let everyone with me and near me feel you with me and in me. If they don't know you, let the come to know you. If they do know you, let them be closer to you. Amen.
My wife took a picture of my son and I walking hand in hand. On that day, the day my wife took the picture, anyone could see that my son looked like me, walked with me, and called me daddy. This is how they knew he was my child. And this is how people know you are a child of God.
You look like God.
You walk with God.
You call God "daddy."
When you pray, you feel God listening. Anyone with you or near you can also feel God listening to you, as it is written, "The LORD is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth."
When you hear a daughter call her daddy sincerely, you know who her father is and who she is as a daughter. The same is true for our heavenly father and us. When we pray, people see and feel God listening to us. I've personally experienced this on more than one occasion.
Once on a job assignment I silently prayed within me, in my mind only. Someone came up to me and said, "Excuse me, I didn't want to disturb you while you were praying...." He then asked me a question relating to my job position. But how did he know I was praying? I wasn't kneeling or bowing my head or putting my hands together like we sometimes do when we pray. Somehow, he saw it and felt it. Intuitively he knew I was connecting with God. Another woman I worked with saw the same thing and responded the same way. My prayer connection to God was so real they could feel it. The same is true for you, son or daughter or God, when you pray.
How do people know you're a child of God?
You look like Him.
You walk with Him.
You call Him dad.
They know you are God's child when you pray.
They feel Him listening to you.
They sense Him in the room with you.
Know the power of your prayers in manifesting the presence of God.
If you agree, pray right now with me:
Our Father in heaven, we approach you in the name of Jesus by Your Spirit in us. We welcome your presence with us and in us. Let everyone with me and near me feel you with me and in me. If they don't know you, let the come to know you. If they do know you, let them be closer to you. Amen.
Friday, March 14, 2014
What if It's Just YOU?
(Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.) Numbers 12:3
This is my dream: That before Jesus returns, there will be a people of God who finally get it right. A people distinguished by God's presence and power who remain faithful to Him until Christ returns in the sky. But I have no control over "the people of God." I only have control over myself. My dream has to be about me. I have to be a man, even if I'm the only man on earth, who is distinguished by the Presence of God.
What about you? What if it's just you? What if you alone are known on earth as a faithful follower of Christ? This is possible. At one point in time, Moses was "more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth." One man. Moses. Distinguished from every one else on earth. This could be me, or this could be you. We have no control over anyone else. But we do have influence.
But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.
Genesis 6:8
Again, in the history of men and women, only one man on earth found favor in the eyes of the Lord at one point in time. There was a time when God regretted making us, but one man, one family, found favor with Him. The word of God says that Noah walked faithfully with Him, but it doesn't mention the character of Noah's wife, his three sons, or his sons' wives. Either they all were righteous in God's eyes, or God showed favor to them because of Noah, or both. Either way, only 8 people in all of the human population were pleasing in God's sight. 8 people. One man. One family. Three couples.
What if it's just you? What if your family is the only family that is pleasing to God at this point in history? It's possible. Of course, we hope this is not the case. But let's face it. What else can we do? What else can I do? All I can do is walk with God to the best of my ability, and to the best of my ability influence my family and all who encounter me. That's it.
I'm prepared for it to be just me?
What about you?
What if it's just you?
The Guarantee of God's Goodness In Your Life
The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. Lamentations 3:25
To wait on God means you don't act without knowing His will. It means you don't want to act until you know His will. And when this is true, you have a guarantee of God's goodness in your life because you want the highest good: God's will for you. Whether for the future or today, if you're waiting for God, He will be good to you.
If you're waiting for God's future direction, where to move, what job to take, who to marry, you can know that God "knows the plans He has for you," according to Jeremiah 29:11. "Plans for good and not evil, to give you a FUTURE and a HOPE." Because you're only seeking to do His will, you have a guarantee that He will reveal His will. That He wants to do this more than you do. He knows the plans he has for your future job or home or spouse. Good plans and not evils plans. Plans to give you the very future that you are seeking: to be in the center of God's will. But this doesn't just apply to your distant future. It applies today, when you wait on Him every step of your day. If your soul seeks Him, meaning you want Him to be with you every step of your day, He will be good to you when you wait for His Spirit to lead you.
There are going to be points in your day where you can wait on the Lord's leadership. You can seek His Spirit's guidance and wait before you speak or act. Certain conversations, interactions, or directions you can take have pauses in them. Time lapses where you can pray and seek the Lord. Take these pauses as opportunities to wait on the LORD, to let your soul seek Him. Go to the bathroom at your job, or in your home, and pray.
To wait on God means you don't act without knowing His will. It means you don't want to act until you know His will. And when this is true, you have a guarantee of God's goodness in your life because you want the highest good: God's will for you. Whether for the future or today, if you're waiting for God, He will be good to you.
If you're waiting for God's future direction, where to move, what job to take, who to marry, you can know that God "knows the plans He has for you," according to Jeremiah 29:11. "Plans for good and not evil, to give you a FUTURE and a HOPE." Because you're only seeking to do His will, you have a guarantee that He will reveal His will. That He wants to do this more than you do. He knows the plans he has for your future job or home or spouse. Good plans and not evils plans. Plans to give you the very future that you are seeking: to be in the center of God's will. But this doesn't just apply to your distant future. It applies today, when you wait on Him every step of your day. If your soul seeks Him, meaning you want Him to be with you every step of your day, He will be good to you when you wait for His Spirit to lead you.
There are going to be points in your day where you can wait on the Lord's leadership. You can seek His Spirit's guidance and wait before you speak or act. Certain conversations, interactions, or directions you can take have pauses in them. Time lapses where you can pray and seek the Lord. Take these pauses as opportunities to wait on the LORD, to let your soul seek Him. Go to the bathroom at your job, or in your home, and pray.
- Wait on the Lord's Spirit to lead you before every step today.
- If you do this, you will have a guarantee of God's goodness.
Thursday, March 13, 2014
The ONLY Thing Necessary for YOU TODAY
Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus. Acts 4:13
The only thing necessary for you today is to be recognized as one who has been with Jesus. Not what you know or don't know. Not your status in life. No matter where you are life, you will have power and boldness as His witness. Only start and continue your day with Him, letting His Spirit be recognized in your life. You do this in two ways, in the same two ways that Peter and John did them:
Do everything in Jesus name, and do everything by His Spirit.
DO EVERYTHING IN JESUS' NAME.
We say grace and pray, and at the end we say, "In Jesus' name." But we don't realize what we are saying or why we are saying it. The apostles were strictly forbidden to teach or preach in Jesus' name. Evidently their enemies knew the significance of using Jesus' name, so much so that the first interaction with the apostles after a great healing was this:
"They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: 'By what power or what name did you do this?'" Acts 4:7
By what power they asked? By what name?
The name of Jesus on your lips, in your prayers, and in your life, means that you say and do everything under His authority and for His glory. To obey and display Him. When this is the case, people will recognize that you have been with Jesus. They will recognize His Spirit in you and with you.
DO EVERYTHING BY HIS SPIRIT.
It is written,
For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. Romans 8:14
This is your birthright, your identity, your normality. If you believe in Jesus, you should do NOTHING unless the Spirit is leading you to do it. NOTHING. Jesus told the 120 followers to stay in Jerusalem until they had been "endued with power from on high." His apostles had been with Him for 3 years, even performing miracles. They saw Him risen and ascending into heaven, and all they really were supposed to do is go and tell people what they had seen and heard. Yet even they were forbidden to start their mission without the Spirit.
So are you.
Here you are. You're awake. You pray to the Father, in the name of Jesus, by the Holy Spirit. You read the scriptures, or words based on scripture, as your spiritual food for today. The Spirit impresses on you the need to focus your mind on why Jesus came to earth: to seek and save the lost. He shows you that your number 1 priority for today is to be a witness of the Lord Jesus by imitating Jesus in all you do. You ask God to fill you with His Spirit so that you may imitate Jesus. You thank God for the power of His Spirit, because you know you've asked that which is God's will, and that God will grant prayers that agree with His will.
So you go. You imitate Christ to the best of your knowledge, at home, and when you leave, doing the one thing in your own mind that you know without doubt is an imitation of Christ. You feel the power of the Spirit giving you further insights into how Christ would speak or act in your exact situation. And people recognize that you have been with Jesus, because they know it is not your education level or status in life that gives you such boldness as a witness of the Lord Jesus. They see the same power and boldness in us that they saw in Peter and John.
The only thing necessary for you today is to be recognized as one who has been with Jesus. Not what you know or don't know. Not your status in life. No matter where you are life, you will have power and boldness as His witness. Only start and continue your day with Him, letting His Spirit be recognized in your life. You do this in two ways, in the same two ways that Peter and John did them:
Do everything in Jesus name, and do everything by His Spirit.
DO EVERYTHING IN JESUS' NAME.
We say grace and pray, and at the end we say, "In Jesus' name." But we don't realize what we are saying or why we are saying it. The apostles were strictly forbidden to teach or preach in Jesus' name. Evidently their enemies knew the significance of using Jesus' name, so much so that the first interaction with the apostles after a great healing was this:
"They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: 'By what power or what name did you do this?'" Acts 4:7
By what power they asked? By what name?
The name of Jesus on your lips, in your prayers, and in your life, means that you say and do everything under His authority and for His glory. To obey and display Him. When this is the case, people will recognize that you have been with Jesus. They will recognize His Spirit in you and with you.
DO EVERYTHING BY HIS SPIRIT.
It is written,
For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. Romans 8:14
This is your birthright, your identity, your normality. If you believe in Jesus, you should do NOTHING unless the Spirit is leading you to do it. NOTHING. Jesus told the 120 followers to stay in Jerusalem until they had been "endued with power from on high." His apostles had been with Him for 3 years, even performing miracles. They saw Him risen and ascending into heaven, and all they really were supposed to do is go and tell people what they had seen and heard. Yet even they were forbidden to start their mission without the Spirit.
So are you.
Here you are. You're awake. You pray to the Father, in the name of Jesus, by the Holy Spirit. You read the scriptures, or words based on scripture, as your spiritual food for today. The Spirit impresses on you the need to focus your mind on why Jesus came to earth: to seek and save the lost. He shows you that your number 1 priority for today is to be a witness of the Lord Jesus by imitating Jesus in all you do. You ask God to fill you with His Spirit so that you may imitate Jesus. You thank God for the power of His Spirit, because you know you've asked that which is God's will, and that God will grant prayers that agree with His will.
So you go. You imitate Christ to the best of your knowledge, at home, and when you leave, doing the one thing in your own mind that you know without doubt is an imitation of Christ. You feel the power of the Spirit giving you further insights into how Christ would speak or act in your exact situation. And people recognize that you have been with Jesus, because they know it is not your education level or status in life that gives you such boldness as a witness of the Lord Jesus. They see the same power and boldness in us that they saw in Peter and John.
- We have no power as witnesses of Jesus without the Holy Spirit leading us.
- You and I have the same Spirit that Peter and John had, bearing witness to the same Jesus.
Enter your day in the name of Jesus, under His authority and for His glory.
Enter your day by following His Spirit, doing only what He leads you to do.
The only thing necessary for you today is to be recognized as one who has been with Jesus.
Monday, March 10, 2014
Your Greatest Connection to God
"You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being." Revelation 4:11
How could there be?
Could the creature create itself by it's own will?
Could the creation come up with a purpose that is greater than the purpose of it's Creator?
God the Creator had something in His imagination for each of His creations. For you. When He made you, even before He made you, He had something in mind. An idea. A feeling He wanted to express. A purpose.
So He makes you.
You wake up.
You are conscious.
You look at each other.
Your one desire is to please Him, to be what He had in mind.
Is there a greater connection between Creator and creation at this moment?
Is there a greater agreement between them?
Is there anything you want more than to simply be what God made you to be, or to simply do what God made you to do?
You have this guarantee: If you want this, so does God. And it will happen.
This is your greatest connection to God.
When a creature desires nothing more nor less than to be what it was created to be,
there is no greater connection between the Creator and His creation.
How could there be?
Could the creature create itself by it's own will?
Could the creation come up with a purpose that is greater than the purpose of it's Creator?
God the Creator had something in His imagination for each of His creations. For you. When He made you, even before He made you, He had something in mind. An idea. A feeling He wanted to express. A purpose.
So He makes you.
You wake up.
You are conscious.
You look at each other.
Your one desire is to please Him, to be what He had in mind.
Is there a greater connection between Creator and creation at this moment?
Is there a greater agreement between them?
Is there anything you want more than to simply be what God made you to be, or to simply do what God made you to do?
You have this guarantee: If you want this, so does God. And it will happen.
This is your greatest connection to God.
Sunday, March 9, 2014
Your Two Witnesses
So the Lord said to Moses, “Take Joshua son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit of leadership, and lay your hand on him. Have him stand before Eleazar the priest and the entire assembly and commission him in their presence. Give him some of your authority so the whole Israelite community will obey him. Numbers 27:18-20
It is written,
"Every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses." 2 Corinthians 13:1b
In the matter of your calling before God, you have at least two witnesses: One on earth, and one in heaven.
YOUR WITNESS ON EARTH
What better witness could Joshua have on earth than Moses, the servant of God? What better commission? Yet Moses was a man. In fact, when he commissioned Joshua, he was being disciplined by God for his disobedience. Even with this being so, no one could deny Moses as a man of God. And no one could deny the power of his commission as a witness to Joshua's calling.
In the same way, there is a man or woman of God who bears witness to you. Someone who is clearly filled with God's Spirit and honors Christ. Someone who comes to your mind right now. Let the thought of that someone encourage you today in your calling.
YOUR WITNESS IN HEAVEN
Joshua not only had Moses as a witness, but he had the testimony of "the spirit of leadership." What if when I said "someone comes to mind" for you as a witness on earth, no one came to your mind as your witness on earth?" What if you can't think of a godly and holy person that bears witness to your call or commission?
You still have two witnesses, one from earth, one from heaven, as it is written,
"The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children." Romans 8:16
Your primary calling in life is as a child of God. Even if you can't think of a man or woman of God like Moses who bears witness to this, The Spirit and your spirit bear witness. And these are enough.
Your two witnesses should encourage you today in your calling.
A man or woman of God bears witness with your spirit.
Or the Spirit Himself bears witness with your spirit.
You are called.
You are a child of God.
Amen.
It is written,
"Every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses." 2 Corinthians 13:1b
In the matter of your calling before God, you have at least two witnesses: One on earth, and one in heaven.
YOUR WITNESS ON EARTH
What better witness could Joshua have on earth than Moses, the servant of God? What better commission? Yet Moses was a man. In fact, when he commissioned Joshua, he was being disciplined by God for his disobedience. Even with this being so, no one could deny Moses as a man of God. And no one could deny the power of his commission as a witness to Joshua's calling.
In the same way, there is a man or woman of God who bears witness to you. Someone who is clearly filled with God's Spirit and honors Christ. Someone who comes to your mind right now. Let the thought of that someone encourage you today in your calling.
YOUR WITNESS IN HEAVEN
Joshua not only had Moses as a witness, but he had the testimony of "the spirit of leadership." What if when I said "someone comes to mind" for you as a witness on earth, no one came to your mind as your witness on earth?" What if you can't think of a godly and holy person that bears witness to your call or commission?
You still have two witnesses, one from earth, one from heaven, as it is written,
"The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children." Romans 8:16
Your primary calling in life is as a child of God. Even if you can't think of a man or woman of God like Moses who bears witness to this, The Spirit and your spirit bear witness. And these are enough.
Your two witnesses should encourage you today in your calling.
A man or woman of God bears witness with your spirit.
Or the Spirit Himself bears witness with your spirit.
You are called.
You are a child of God.
Amen.
Saturday, March 8, 2014
YOUR ZEAL FOR GOD'S HONOR (Part 1)
The Lord said to Moses, “Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, has turned my anger away from the Israelites. Since he was as zealous for my honor among them as I am, I did not put an end to them in my zeal.
Numbers 25:10-11
What is your zeal for God's honor?
Your intensity. Your passion.
What are you as passionate about God, as God is passionate about Himself?
In other words, what dishonor towards God can you simply not tolerate, no matter the cost to you or those you love? What divine line will you simply not allow to be crossed?
You must have one if you're a Christian.
I'm not talking about a political cause necessarily, or one of the mainline issues of today like abortion or same-sex marriages, though these may be your zeal for God's honor.
I'm talking about intense and fierce anger for an honor of God that is core to your being.
I'm convinced that our mission is an imitation of Jesus' mission--that's what makes us Christians: Christ like.
It is written,
"The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil." I John 3:8b
As a son or daughter of God through faith in Christ Jesus, there are specific works of the devil that you have appeared to destroy. This is your zeal for God's honor. This is a fierce fire of holy anger that burns in you when you see it, hear it, or encounter it. Unless you quench it in fear. But it is written,
"There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love." 1 John 4:18
Your zeal for God's honor, and the works of the devil that you are here to destroy, are motivated by perfect love, from God, and for God. You feel the same way about God that He feels about Himself.
(click HERE for part 2)
Numbers 25:10-11
What is your zeal for God's honor?
Your intensity. Your passion.
What are you as passionate about God, as God is passionate about Himself?
In other words, what dishonor towards God can you simply not tolerate, no matter the cost to you or those you love? What divine line will you simply not allow to be crossed?
You must have one if you're a Christian.
I'm not talking about a political cause necessarily, or one of the mainline issues of today like abortion or same-sex marriages, though these may be your zeal for God's honor.
I'm talking about intense and fierce anger for an honor of God that is core to your being.
I'm convinced that our mission is an imitation of Jesus' mission--that's what makes us Christians: Christ like.
It is written,
"The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil." I John 3:8b
As a son or daughter of God through faith in Christ Jesus, there are specific works of the devil that you have appeared to destroy. This is your zeal for God's honor. This is a fierce fire of holy anger that burns in you when you see it, hear it, or encounter it. Unless you quench it in fear. But it is written,
"There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love." 1 John 4:18
Your zeal for God's honor, and the works of the devil that you are here to destroy, are motivated by perfect love, from God, and for God. You feel the same way about God that He feels about Himself.
(click HERE for part 2)
Wednesday, March 5, 2014
How God Took Away My Worst Fears (Part 1)
"Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil— and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death." Hebrews 2:14-15
I never really feared death. Especially after believing in Jesus. I thought about all of the gruesome and painful ways I could die for my faith in him, and asked Jesus to help me not be like Peter. I didn't want to think I was ready to die for Him when I really wasn't. So the best I could do was to assume I wasn't ready, and ask Jesus to make me ready to die for Him in whatever way would bring Him glory. So I felt peace about my own death. But something happened.
I got married and had 7 children.
When I thought of my precious wife dying, or any of my dearest children leaving this world, I would feel so much anxiety and dread that I thought I couldn't bear it, even the thought of it.
I never really feared death. Especially after believing in Jesus. I thought about all of the gruesome and painful ways I could die for my faith in him, and asked Jesus to help me not be like Peter. I didn't want to think I was ready to die for Him when I really wasn't. So the best I could do was to assume I wasn't ready, and ask Jesus to make me ready to die for Him in whatever way would bring Him glory. So I felt peace about my own death. But something happened.
I got married and had 7 children.
When I thought of my precious wife dying, or any of my dearest children leaving this world, I would feel so much anxiety and dread that I thought I couldn't bear it, even the thought of it.
My worst fears were of the death of my wife and children.
The Word of God took away my worst fears.
The first death recorded in the word of God is of Abel, killed in cold blood by his evil brother Cain. All of my fears about losing my wife and children had to be found here, in the first death in scripture. My fears of losing them suddenly, randomly, meaninglessly. My fear of not being able to say good bye, or simply of losing them before their time. The fear of them suffering in pain. The fear of not knowing they were going to die. The fear of not wanting them to die before me. Everything that made the thought of their deaths unbearably painful to me had to "explained" in the first death in scripture. This is how God did it for me.
First, Abel's death was neither random nor purposeless. Even from Cain's perspective, it was "premeditated." But Cain's perspective is not the issue. It's God's perspective, because He is the one that took away my worst fears. God was actively watching the lives of Cain and Abel. He was very pleased with Abel, and displeased with Cain. God honored Abel's sacrifice, his life's work, his purpose and calling on earth. But Cain didn't please God with what God gave him. So Cain was mad at God and took out his anger towards God in his jealously of Abel. You know what happens next. But focus on the word of God. Focus on what God says about Abel:
- The Lord said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground. Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. Genesis 4:10-11
- By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did. By faith he was commended as righteous, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead. Hebrews 11:4
- Therefore this generation will be held responsible for the blood of all the prophets that has been shed since the beginning of the world, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, this generation will be held responsible for it all. Luke 11:50-51
- You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. Hebrews 12:23-24
- Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother's were righteous. 1 John 3:12
In God's eyes, Abel's death was far from random and meaningless. Abel was the very first martyr, the first to die for being righteous in God's eyes. The first to be persecuted and hated for doing God's will. How did this take away my worst fears, the deaths of my wife and children?
(click HERE to find out.)
(click HERE to find out.)
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
How Our Enemies Should Know Us (Part 1)
"They have already heard that you, Lord, are with these people and that you, Lord, have been seen face to face, that your cloud stays over them, and that you go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night." Numbers 14:14
Not only did Israel see and know God face to face, experiencing His daily and real leading Presence among them, but even the Egyptians knew this about the people of God. Israel's reputation was that God Himself, the only real and true God, was literally and tangibly with them. Seen face to face. Staying over them. A pillar of fire by day (that you could see.) A pillar of fire by night.
What about us?
Do we not have a "better covenant" built on "better promises?"
Are we not the temple of the Spirit of God, individually and collectively, so that we and our enemies should know that God's Spirit is literally with us, in us, and among us? Do we not have a face to face relationship with God the Father, through faith in God the Son, by the very real guiding daily and nightly presence of God the Spirit?
Or do we just read the Bible, in our many Bible versions, according to our many denominations?
Do you want what I want? What if you and I and one other Christian decided we wanted one thing, and one thing only: The Experience of God's Abiding and Real Presence, with us in such a way that it becomes our reputation. Imagine.
You, another brother or sister in Christ, and me, meeting together. We do what Jesus said when He said,
"For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” Matthew 18:20
It only takes two, at the most three. It could be you and me only, or one other believer And Jesus would be with us. In the room. We would know it. Anyone who entered the room would know it, friend or foe.
This is church.
This alone is church.
Anything less than this is a lie about who and what we are.
I will not settle for anything less than this.
I hope you are with me.
I hope that you want nothing less than for your reputation to be that God is seen with you, and that you have a face to face relationship with Him in which He leads you day and night, and that even your enemies know this about you.
I will have this.
Today and every day.
It will define my life.
Let's have it together.
(click HERE part 2)
Not only did Israel see and know God face to face, experiencing His daily and real leading Presence among them, but even the Egyptians knew this about the people of God. Israel's reputation was that God Himself, the only real and true God, was literally and tangibly with them. Seen face to face. Staying over them. A pillar of fire by day (that you could see.) A pillar of fire by night.
What about us?
Do we not have a "better covenant" built on "better promises?"
Are we not the temple of the Spirit of God, individually and collectively, so that we and our enemies should know that God's Spirit is literally with us, in us, and among us? Do we not have a face to face relationship with God the Father, through faith in God the Son, by the very real guiding daily and nightly presence of God the Spirit?
Or do we just read the Bible, in our many Bible versions, according to our many denominations?
Do you want what I want? What if you and I and one other Christian decided we wanted one thing, and one thing only: The Experience of God's Abiding and Real Presence, with us in such a way that it becomes our reputation. Imagine.
You, another brother or sister in Christ, and me, meeting together. We do what Jesus said when He said,
"For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” Matthew 18:20
It only takes two, at the most three. It could be you and me only, or one other believer And Jesus would be with us. In the room. We would know it. Anyone who entered the room would know it, friend or foe.
This is church.
This alone is church.
Anything less than this is a lie about who and what we are.
I will not settle for anything less than this.
I hope you are with me.
I hope that you want nothing less than for your reputation to be that God is seen with you, and that you have a face to face relationship with Him in which He leads you day and night, and that even your enemies know this about you.
I will have this.
Today and every day.
It will define my life.
Let's have it together.
(click HERE part 2)
Sunday, March 2, 2014
The Husband who Healed His Wife
My head hurts so bad I can't stand it.
I'm sorry sweetie. How long has it been hurting?
For about an hour now. I can barely think straight.
Can I pray for you sweetheart?
Yes, I would very much appreciate it.
The husband went to get his Bible and the Olive Oil he set aside for one purpose: to pray for the sick, according to these verses of scripture:
Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up.
The husband studied these scriptures and the role of "elders." He found out that an elder is a church leader, one who is a "mature and seasoned man of experience." The husband led a home church of in his neighborhood of 5 people.
It was late, and he thought about the application of this verse to his situation. In his home, he realized by the Spirit that he is the "elder," or leader, of his home, as it says in scripture:
But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. 1 Corinthians 11:3
"So in my home, Christ is my 'elder,' I am my wife's 'elder,' and God is the 'Elder' of Christ," the husband thought. It's the only thing that made scriptural sense in his situation. If he were sick, he would have no "elder" to call, other than Christ, who is the head of the man in the home.
All of these thoughts went through the husband's head as he got his anointing oil and Bible.
He came to his wife, who was now lying on the couch with her eyes closed. Filled with compassion for his hurting wife, he opened the scriptures and the oil. "I'll simply pray exactly what the scriptures say," he decided.
"Our Father in heaven, I pray over my wife and anoint her with oil in the name of the Lord. Let my prayer offered in faith make my wife well; Lord, please raise her up. Amen."
His wife went to the kitchen and he thought about what happened. He knew he didn't have the "gift of healing." He was not a healer. The Word of Wisdom was his spiritual gift. But he also knew what the scriptures said he should do if someone is sick, so for him it was a matter of simple obedience to that command like any other command in scripture. But he thought about something else.
Jesus said one of the signs that would follow those who believe is laying hands on the sick and the sick recovering. He thought about the different words related to sickness that he remembered in scripture:
1. Healed.
2. Made whole.
3. Raised up.
4. Recovering.
5. Made well.
He also thought about the role of faith in the healer and healed, as well as the measure of giftedness each believer has. Finally, he thought about love and how when his wife was in pain, he simply wanted her to not be in pain anymore, to feel better, to feel good. Maybe the least he should expect when he prays for sick people is that in some way they feel better, that they are able to think and function without pain as a distraction. He learned from Ravi Zacharias that any pain (or pleasure) that distracts, diminishes, or destroys God's goal for your life is an illegitimate pain or pleasure. Nothing should keep distract us form prayer and service.
Like when Jesus healed Peter's mother-in-law of a fever, and she got up and served them.
He thought about basic Christian supernatural healing like taking Tylenol when he has a headache and has to go to work. Even though the Tylenol doesn't "heal him" of the fever or whatever his body is fighting off through the fever, the Tylenol relieves his pain and the distraction of the fever so that he can focus on doing his job.
He believed now that the least he could do by the Spirit, by trusting God's word, is relieve people of pain out of love, and for the purpose of them doing what God has them to do without pain as a distraction. In some way, he thought, every prayer should bring some relief...at least the relief of the "peace that surpasses all understanding," as Paul said.
Jesus at least makes people feel better. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
I'm sorry sweetie. How long has it been hurting?
For about an hour now. I can barely think straight.
Can I pray for you sweetheart?
Yes, I would very much appreciate it.
The husband went to get his Bible and the Olive Oil he set aside for one purpose: to pray for the sick, according to these verses of scripture:
Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up.
The husband studied these scriptures and the role of "elders." He found out that an elder is a church leader, one who is a "mature and seasoned man of experience." The husband led a home church of in his neighborhood of 5 people.
It was late, and he thought about the application of this verse to his situation. In his home, he realized by the Spirit that he is the "elder," or leader, of his home, as it says in scripture:
But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. 1 Corinthians 11:3
"So in my home, Christ is my 'elder,' I am my wife's 'elder,' and God is the 'Elder' of Christ," the husband thought. It's the only thing that made scriptural sense in his situation. If he were sick, he would have no "elder" to call, other than Christ, who is the head of the man in the home.
All of these thoughts went through the husband's head as he got his anointing oil and Bible.
He came to his wife, who was now lying on the couch with her eyes closed. Filled with compassion for his hurting wife, he opened the scriptures and the oil. "I'll simply pray exactly what the scriptures say," he decided.
"Our Father in heaven, I pray over my wife and anoint her with oil in the name of the Lord. Let my prayer offered in faith make my wife well; Lord, please raise her up. Amen."
"Amen," his wife said.
She sat up and said, "I actually feel much better! Thank you so much."
You're welcome sweetie. I thank God for hearing me and touching you. Is your headache completely gone?
No, not completely, but when you prayed and put the oil on my head, the throbbing completely stopped. I still feel pressure, but it's faint and bearable. I feel like I can think and do things now, even though the slight pressure is still in the back of my head. I feel so much better. Thank you again. It really made a difference.
You're welcome.
Do you want something from the kitchen? I'm going to get some tea.
No thank you.
His wife went to the kitchen and he thought about what happened. He knew he didn't have the "gift of healing." He was not a healer. The Word of Wisdom was his spiritual gift. But he also knew what the scriptures said he should do if someone is sick, so for him it was a matter of simple obedience to that command like any other command in scripture. But he thought about something else.
Jesus said one of the signs that would follow those who believe is laying hands on the sick and the sick recovering. He thought about the different words related to sickness that he remembered in scripture:
1. Healed.
2. Made whole.
3. Raised up.
4. Recovering.
5. Made well.
He also thought about the role of faith in the healer and healed, as well as the measure of giftedness each believer has. Finally, he thought about love and how when his wife was in pain, he simply wanted her to not be in pain anymore, to feel better, to feel good. Maybe the least he should expect when he prays for sick people is that in some way they feel better, that they are able to think and function without pain as a distraction. He learned from Ravi Zacharias that any pain (or pleasure) that distracts, diminishes, or destroys God's goal for your life is an illegitimate pain or pleasure. Nothing should keep distract us form prayer and service.
Like when Jesus healed Peter's mother-in-law of a fever, and she got up and served them.
He thought about basic Christian supernatural healing like taking Tylenol when he has a headache and has to go to work. Even though the Tylenol doesn't "heal him" of the fever or whatever his body is fighting off through the fever, the Tylenol relieves his pain and the distraction of the fever so that he can focus on doing his job.
He believed now that the least he could do by the Spirit, by trusting God's word, is relieve people of pain out of love, and for the purpose of them doing what God has them to do without pain as a distraction. In some way, he thought, every prayer should bring some relief...at least the relief of the "peace that surpasses all understanding," as Paul said.
Jesus at least makes people feel better. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
Saturday, March 1, 2014
What Happens When People Encounter You
Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you received from God?
The Apostle Paul
If you trust and obey Jesus as the only way to be a child of God, then the Holy Spirit is in you.
The Holy Spirit is God.
God is in you.
Therefore, whenever anyone encounters you, they encounter God in you.
How does this feel?
Have you ever felt God in someone?
I have. So did my wife.
We were at a Bible Study and there was a man there who taught us the lesson for the night. It was our first time at this study. We were invited by a friend of ours. The lesson was good, but that's not what I or my wife remember.
We were both struck by an invisible influence coming from the bible teacher. It felt like a calm, humble presence, but it wasn't the bible teacher. It was "with" or "on" or "surrounding" the bible teacher. The Presence didn't make us think anything about the teacher, but drew us to him and what he was like, as well as what he was saying. My wife and I didn't fully realize the effect The Presence around the teacher had on us until after the meeting. But we both could describe the same experience.
Someone was with the bible teacher. The Person was invisible to human eyes, inaudible to human ears, and intangible to human touch. The Presence had no color, scent, or sound. But I felt it, and so did my wife.
We both knew we were feeling God's Spirit coming from this man.
How did we know?
Because my wife and I have the Spirit of God in us just like the bible teacher did.
When you meet someone and become well acquainted with him or her, from that point on you know how that person is. You know his tone of voice on the phone. You know her hand gestures and mannerisms.
This is how it is with God, if you are intimate with Him. There is only One God. No one feels like Him. No one can. Once you know Him, you will know what He feels like in others who trust in Jesus. And people will know what He feels like in you if you trust in the Lord.
If you believe in Jesus, the Holy Spirit is in you.
The Holy Spirit is God.
Therefore, God is in you.
Anyone who encounters you encounters God in you.
The Apostle Paul
If you trust and obey Jesus as the only way to be a child of God, then the Holy Spirit is in you.
The Holy Spirit is God.
God is in you.
Therefore, whenever anyone encounters you, they encounter God in you.
How does this feel?
Have you ever felt God in someone?
I have. So did my wife.
We were at a Bible Study and there was a man there who taught us the lesson for the night. It was our first time at this study. We were invited by a friend of ours. The lesson was good, but that's not what I or my wife remember.
We were both struck by an invisible influence coming from the bible teacher. It felt like a calm, humble presence, but it wasn't the bible teacher. It was "with" or "on" or "surrounding" the bible teacher. The Presence didn't make us think anything about the teacher, but drew us to him and what he was like, as well as what he was saying. My wife and I didn't fully realize the effect The Presence around the teacher had on us until after the meeting. But we both could describe the same experience.
Someone was with the bible teacher. The Person was invisible to human eyes, inaudible to human ears, and intangible to human touch. The Presence had no color, scent, or sound. But I felt it, and so did my wife.
We both knew we were feeling God's Spirit coming from this man.
How did we know?
Because my wife and I have the Spirit of God in us just like the bible teacher did.
When you meet someone and become well acquainted with him or her, from that point on you know how that person is. You know his tone of voice on the phone. You know her hand gestures and mannerisms.
This is how it is with God, if you are intimate with Him. There is only One God. No one feels like Him. No one can. Once you know Him, you will know what He feels like in others who trust in Jesus. And people will know what He feels like in you if you trust in the Lord.
If you believe in Jesus, the Holy Spirit is in you.
The Holy Spirit is God.
Therefore, God is in you.
Anyone who encounters you encounters God in you.
How and Why God Wants YOU To Be Seen
“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house." Matthew 5:14-15
When Jesus came on the scene, it was obvious to all that His purpose was divine. From His birth, to His baptism, throughout His ministry on earth, His death, resurrection, and ascension, Jesus' life could not be hidden. And a Christians, neither should ours.
How can our lives undeniably give God glory?
Intentionally.
We intend it.
We make it our aim to speak and act in a way that draws attention to God.
This is what Jesus meant by "the town built on a hill," and people putting their lamps in conspicuous places. Look at the city on the hill! The lamp lights the whole house. Neither can be ignored.
Christ couldn't be ignored.
Christians, we who are Christ like, should not be able to be ignored.
Why?
Why does God WANT you to be seen?
Jesus said God wants you to be seen for His glory, that people will honor and praise God based on seeing your bright shining life.
The world needs to see Jesus, but more specifically, the people in your life need to see you reflecting Jesus.
How will they see Him?
According to Jesus, you display your good deeds so that they cannot be hidden, but they are completely seen wherever you are, just as a bright lamp is deliberately placed in a room to light up the whole room.
What good deeds are Jesus talking about? What shines so brightly when you do it that people see it and praise God? Before He told them to let their lights sine, Jesus told His followers in His sermon on the mount something that you can apply today. You can focus on doing this one thing because it inherently draws attention to you as a child of God, according to Jesus. By doing it, by deliberately and intentionally doing it, people will see this good deed and glorify your Father in heaven:
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Matthew 5:9
There it is. There is a way you can let your light shine today. You can put yourself in a position where you are a peacemaker. Whether there is a conflict to resolve between two people arguing, or whether you simply make the room feel peaceful by simply coming in with a prayerful and peaceful attitude from the Spirit of Peace, if you choose to deliberately be a peace maker in the name of Jesus, you will be called a child of God, drawing attention to God, letting your light shine before men and women. No one will be able to ignore you, just as a bright lamp cannot be ignored.
How does God want you to be seen? By you deliberately putting yourself in a position to draw attention to God whom you serve, so much so that it is impossible to ignore you.
Why does God want you to be seen, to be as impossible to ignore as a city DELIBERATELY built on a hill, or as lamp DELIBERATELY put in the middle of a house to light the whole house? Because He Himself wants to be seen and known by everyone you come into contact with. God wants to be known. He wants to be known through you.
Be a peacemaker today and be called a child of God. In this way, intentionally and deliberately let your light shine before the people in your life right now. God bless you as you do this.
(Tell me what happens when you do it. I need your encouragement, and I want to give you mine. Tell me in the comments section how you let your light shine today.)
When Jesus came on the scene, it was obvious to all that His purpose was divine. From His birth, to His baptism, throughout His ministry on earth, His death, resurrection, and ascension, Jesus' life could not be hidden. And a Christians, neither should ours.
How can our lives undeniably give God glory?
Intentionally.
We intend it.
We make it our aim to speak and act in a way that draws attention to God.
This is what Jesus meant by "the town built on a hill," and people putting their lamps in conspicuous places. Look at the city on the hill! The lamp lights the whole house. Neither can be ignored.
Christ couldn't be ignored.
Christians, we who are Christ like, should not be able to be ignored.
Why?
Why does God WANT you to be seen?
Jesus said God wants you to be seen for His glory, that people will honor and praise God based on seeing your bright shining life.
The world needs to see Jesus, but more specifically, the people in your life need to see you reflecting Jesus.
How will they see Him?
According to Jesus, you display your good deeds so that they cannot be hidden, but they are completely seen wherever you are, just as a bright lamp is deliberately placed in a room to light up the whole room.
What good deeds are Jesus talking about? What shines so brightly when you do it that people see it and praise God? Before He told them to let their lights sine, Jesus told His followers in His sermon on the mount something that you can apply today. You can focus on doing this one thing because it inherently draws attention to you as a child of God, according to Jesus. By doing it, by deliberately and intentionally doing it, people will see this good deed and glorify your Father in heaven:
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Matthew 5:9
There it is. There is a way you can let your light shine today. You can put yourself in a position where you are a peacemaker. Whether there is a conflict to resolve between two people arguing, or whether you simply make the room feel peaceful by simply coming in with a prayerful and peaceful attitude from the Spirit of Peace, if you choose to deliberately be a peace maker in the name of Jesus, you will be called a child of God, drawing attention to God, letting your light shine before men and women. No one will be able to ignore you, just as a bright lamp cannot be ignored.
How does God want you to be seen? By you deliberately putting yourself in a position to draw attention to God whom you serve, so much so that it is impossible to ignore you.
Why does God want you to be seen, to be as impossible to ignore as a city DELIBERATELY built on a hill, or as lamp DELIBERATELY put in the middle of a house to light the whole house? Because He Himself wants to be seen and known by everyone you come into contact with. God wants to be known. He wants to be known through you.
Be a peacemaker today and be called a child of God. In this way, intentionally and deliberately let your light shine before the people in your life right now. God bless you as you do this.
(Tell me what happens when you do it. I need your encouragement, and I want to give you mine. Tell me in the comments section how you let your light shine today.)
Friday, February 28, 2014
How to Use The Power of Your Free Mind
"I have found that, to make a contented slave, it is necessary to make a thoughtless one."
Fredrick Douglas
Do you realize that your power to think whatever you choose is one of the most God like traits you have? I treasure hearing my own thoughts so much that I can almost not bear needless noise or confusion or chaos. I've got to deal with it of course, but I now know that I have the power to deal with it. I can choose or refuse my mental focus. So can you.
You're reading my words by choice and for a reason. Why are you reading? Is someone forcing you to read this blog? Of course not. And no one is forcing me to write you. I'm writing you because I'm sharing with you my honor of my hero Fredrick Douglas on the last day of Black History Month. I want to inspire you as he is inspiring me to be as free as God wants us to be.
We're both freely thinking, as freely as God Himself thinks. This is the power of your free mind, the power to be like God.
Can anyone make God think what He refuses to think about? Or does anyone deceive God? What would that mean? It would mean someone could make God think that He is something that He is not. But God says boldly, "I am who I am."
And you are who you are, if you accept that God is who He is. This starts in the power of your free mind.
So how do you experience this power today, right now, in whatever you are getting ready to do?
Focus on one thing: A spiritual mindset.
Choose a "fixed mental focus that predetermines your interpretations and responses to situations."
That's the definition of "mindset" I found in dictionary.com. It's the best definition of mindset I've ever read.
The Apostle Paul says this about mindsets, "Those who live in accordance with the Spirit set their minds on what the Spirit desires."
So let the desires of the Spirit predetermine your interpretation and responses to every situation. Define life by what the Spirit wants, and respond to everything based on whether it fulfills His desires. You interpret life by what the Spirit desires, and you respond accordingly.
Your friend calls you in deep depression because he may lose his job. What does the Spirit want you to say to your friend who is in need today? Your spiritual mindset makes you interpret your friend's need by the Spirit's desire to meet that need, and you respond to your friend based on what the Spirit desires for him. The Spirit is showing you how to comfort your friend, and you follow the Spirit's desires. This was "predetermined." This was your spiritual mindset.
How does The Spirit desire you to respond to an insult from a coworker? Your spiritual mindset, which is the source of the power of your God given free mind, will predetermine your interpretation and responses to the insult. You know that the Bible says, "Bless those who curse you, bless and curse not," for example. So your spiritual mindset has predetermined that when someone insults you, you will not insult them back.
Your interpretation and responses are predetermined by YOU. This is the power of your free mind. Nothing will force you to act or react. It all starts with the power of your free mind.
You're already using it while you're reading my words. You are already experiencing the power of Fredrick Douglas' discovery of overcoming slavery.
I'm convinced that this freedom of your mind and my mind is the real issue of Black History Month and all I've been reflecting on. Slavery in this country and every country is the enslavement of minds to shackle the will. If you stop thinking about who God is, who you are, and who our real enemy is--the devil himself, you will be a slave to Satan, sin, and Satan's system, and things will be worse than the worse days of African Americans in this country, or of those who are still oppressed in this world. Your plantation will be your own darkened mind. What could be worse than being a slave in your own body?
Use the power of your free mind to choose a spiritual mindset. Have a fixed mental disposition that predetermines your interpretations and responses to every situation. Choose this fixed mental disposition, or ask yourself this question in every situation:
"What does the Spirit of God desire me to say or do?"
Fredrick Douglas
Do you realize that your power to think whatever you choose is one of the most God like traits you have? I treasure hearing my own thoughts so much that I can almost not bear needless noise or confusion or chaos. I've got to deal with it of course, but I now know that I have the power to deal with it. I can choose or refuse my mental focus. So can you.
You're reading my words by choice and for a reason. Why are you reading? Is someone forcing you to read this blog? Of course not. And no one is forcing me to write you. I'm writing you because I'm sharing with you my honor of my hero Fredrick Douglas on the last day of Black History Month. I want to inspire you as he is inspiring me to be as free as God wants us to be.
We're both freely thinking, as freely as God Himself thinks. This is the power of your free mind, the power to be like God.
Can anyone make God think what He refuses to think about? Or does anyone deceive God? What would that mean? It would mean someone could make God think that He is something that He is not. But God says boldly, "I am who I am."
And you are who you are, if you accept that God is who He is. This starts in the power of your free mind.
So how do you experience this power today, right now, in whatever you are getting ready to do?
Focus on one thing: A spiritual mindset.
Choose a "fixed mental focus that predetermines your interpretations and responses to situations."
That's the definition of "mindset" I found in dictionary.com. It's the best definition of mindset I've ever read.
The Apostle Paul says this about mindsets, "Those who live in accordance with the Spirit set their minds on what the Spirit desires."
So let the desires of the Spirit predetermine your interpretation and responses to every situation. Define life by what the Spirit wants, and respond to everything based on whether it fulfills His desires. You interpret life by what the Spirit desires, and you respond accordingly.
Your friend calls you in deep depression because he may lose his job. What does the Spirit want you to say to your friend who is in need today? Your spiritual mindset makes you interpret your friend's need by the Spirit's desire to meet that need, and you respond to your friend based on what the Spirit desires for him. The Spirit is showing you how to comfort your friend, and you follow the Spirit's desires. This was "predetermined." This was your spiritual mindset.
How does The Spirit desire you to respond to an insult from a coworker? Your spiritual mindset, which is the source of the power of your God given free mind, will predetermine your interpretation and responses to the insult. You know that the Bible says, "Bless those who curse you, bless and curse not," for example. So your spiritual mindset has predetermined that when someone insults you, you will not insult them back.
Your interpretation and responses are predetermined by YOU. This is the power of your free mind. Nothing will force you to act or react. It all starts with the power of your free mind.
You're already using it while you're reading my words. You are already experiencing the power of Fredrick Douglas' discovery of overcoming slavery.
I'm convinced that this freedom of your mind and my mind is the real issue of Black History Month and all I've been reflecting on. Slavery in this country and every country is the enslavement of minds to shackle the will. If you stop thinking about who God is, who you are, and who our real enemy is--the devil himself, you will be a slave to Satan, sin, and Satan's system, and things will be worse than the worse days of African Americans in this country, or of those who are still oppressed in this world. Your plantation will be your own darkened mind. What could be worse than being a slave in your own body?
Use the power of your free mind to choose a spiritual mindset. Have a fixed mental disposition that predetermines your interpretations and responses to every situation. Choose this fixed mental disposition, or ask yourself this question in every situation:
"What does the Spirit of God desire me to say or do?"
Monday, February 24, 2014
Two Ways To Know The Spirit in Your Life
The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. Romans 8:6
What were you thinking about before you started reading my words? Right before. The beauty about that question is that you know, or should know. It's easy to know. You have complete control over what you choose or refuse to think about.
Was it your plans for today? A conversation you just had or anticipate having?
Whatever you were thinking about was governed by one of two sources:
1. The flesh.
2. The Spirit
Of course, if you believe in the Lord, you want your mind governed by the Spirit of God. You know your mind is governed, or led, or influenced, by the Spirit in two ways:
What is life? It is more than mere existence and breathing. It is the energy of intimacy between God, you, and me, as Jesus said, "Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you sent." When you focus your mind on following the desires of the Spirit, you will feel the energy of God's intimacy. God listening and responding to you.
THE MIND GOVERNED BY THE SPIRIT IS PEACE
God is not your enemy, nor does He consider you His enemy. Jesus removed all hostility between us and God, so our relationship with Him by His Spirit feels like a harmonious union of two friends with one purpose.
Yet if you feel disconnected and conflicted, look at what you are thinking about. It will be obvious. The Spirit's desires will be the farthest thing from our mind, and you will be conflicted within yourself because you have contradictory and self centered desires, none involving Christ, none involving His Spirit's leading. This is what it means for your mind to be governed by the flesh--by self centeredness instead of God centeredness.
But You do have a choice.
Whatever you were thinking about before you read these words, from this moment on you can let the Spirit govern your mind, and experience the life and peace that Jesus died and rose to give you by His Spirit.
What were you thinking about before you started reading my words? Right before. The beauty about that question is that you know, or should know. It's easy to know. You have complete control over what you choose or refuse to think about.
Was it your plans for today? A conversation you just had or anticipate having?
Whatever you were thinking about was governed by one of two sources:
1. The flesh.
2. The Spirit
Of course, if you believe in the Lord, you want your mind governed by the Spirit of God. You know your mind is governed, or led, or influenced, by the Spirit in two ways:
- Life
- Peace.
What is life? It is more than mere existence and breathing. It is the energy of intimacy between God, you, and me, as Jesus said, "Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you sent." When you focus your mind on following the desires of the Spirit, you will feel the energy of God's intimacy. God listening and responding to you.
THE MIND GOVERNED BY THE SPIRIT IS PEACE
God is not your enemy, nor does He consider you His enemy. Jesus removed all hostility between us and God, so our relationship with Him by His Spirit feels like a harmonious union of two friends with one purpose.
Yet if you feel disconnected and conflicted, look at what you are thinking about. It will be obvious. The Spirit's desires will be the farthest thing from our mind, and you will be conflicted within yourself because you have contradictory and self centered desires, none involving Christ, none involving His Spirit's leading. This is what it means for your mind to be governed by the flesh--by self centeredness instead of God centeredness.
But You do have a choice.
Whatever you were thinking about before you read these words, from this moment on you can let the Spirit govern your mind, and experience the life and peace that Jesus died and rose to give you by His Spirit.
Saturday, February 22, 2014
Why You Should Be Different As A Christian
As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy." 1 Peter 1:14-16
If you are a Christian, you sin when you are the same as everyone else. It is the ultimate contradiction and hypocrisy, and Jesus had absolutely no tolerance for fakeness. We who believe are to be holy, set apart, distinct--different. We are different in two ways:
We don't conform to our old ignorant desires, but we are obedient children of God.
CHRISTIANS DO NOT CONFORM TO EVIL DESIRES.
We used to be ignorant of the truth and of goodness, according to the Apostle Peter. Those in his day worshiped idols, and we today used to do the same. We used to think of ourselves as central, the starting point from which we measure good and evil. But when Jesus showed us who we really, creatures who belong to our Creator, we changed our minds. We believed and became the children of God, and no longer made our desires center.
CHRISTIAN ARE OBEDIENT CHILDREN OF GOD.
We live to obey the Spirit of our Father in us. This distinguishes us. This makes us different. We have given our bodies as living sacrifices. We honor our bodies as the temples of the Holy Spirit. We present each body part to God as instruments and weapons of righteousness. Unlike those who consider their bodies their own to do whatever they please, we dare not defile God's Holy Temple. We set our bodies apart, using them only for God's glory.
You should be different as a Christian because you are different as a Christian. You should be holy because God is holy. There is only One God, and you belong to Him alone.
Be different.
Belong to God.
If you are a Christian, you sin when you are the same as everyone else. It is the ultimate contradiction and hypocrisy, and Jesus had absolutely no tolerance for fakeness. We who believe are to be holy, set apart, distinct--different. We are different in two ways:
We don't conform to our old ignorant desires, but we are obedient children of God.
CHRISTIANS DO NOT CONFORM TO EVIL DESIRES.
We used to be ignorant of the truth and of goodness, according to the Apostle Peter. Those in his day worshiped idols, and we today used to do the same. We used to think of ourselves as central, the starting point from which we measure good and evil. But when Jesus showed us who we really, creatures who belong to our Creator, we changed our minds. We believed and became the children of God, and no longer made our desires center.
CHRISTIAN ARE OBEDIENT CHILDREN OF GOD.
We live to obey the Spirit of our Father in us. This distinguishes us. This makes us different. We have given our bodies as living sacrifices. We honor our bodies as the temples of the Holy Spirit. We present each body part to God as instruments and weapons of righteousness. Unlike those who consider their bodies their own to do whatever they please, we dare not defile God's Holy Temple. We set our bodies apart, using them only for God's glory.
You should be different as a Christian because you are different as a Christian. You should be holy because God is holy. There is only One God, and you belong to Him alone.
Be different.
Belong to God.
The Worst Christian Sin (Part 3)
THINK LIKE CHRIST WHEN YOU SERVE GOD.
We should come to God to please Him, without an agenda of what He should and should not like. He tells us in His word that His "ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts. As high as the heavens are above the earth, so are His ways above our ways and His thoughts above our thoughts." Paul said that just as no one knows your thoughts except your spirit in you, no one knows God's thoughts except God's Spirit. How do I know what makes you happy and what makes you angry unless you tell me? If I'm your waiter, how do I know your order unless you tell me? In the same way, God is not subject to our church programs and agenda. We should seek the Spirit's desires, at church and in our lives, just like waiters seek to know what pleases their customers.
THINK LIKE CHRIST WHEN YOU SERVE PEOPLE.
Imagine this:
I see you at church and you look sad. I gently approach you.
"Excuse me, I'm Olatunde. Would you mind if I sat with you? "
In this scenario you don't know me, so I'm not expecting a yes or no. I'm waiting to see what you want. I'm doing my best to create an atmosphere where you feel free to say yes or no without any pressure.
"No thank you, I'm ok."
"Alright," I say. God bless you.
"Wait," he says. "Could you pray for me?"
"Yes, I'd be glad to. What do you want me to pray?"
"Right now I feel like dying. Please ask God to help me."
"Alright, I'll pray that God helps you. Do you mind if I ask the Spirit to lead me as I pray for you?"
"No, not at all."
So I first pray only what this man asks me to. No more. No less. Then I wait for the Spirit to lead me, if the Spirit wants me to say anything else. I'm serving the sad man. And I'm serving the Spirit by praying only what the Spirit leads.
I don't give the man unsolicited advice that I very badly want him to take. I don't try to force more information out of him. I am his servant. I'm there to meet whatever spiritual need he has, as he tells me, or as the Spirit tells me. I have no agenda of my own.
If you get nothing else from these 3 blogs, or the blogs on healing, or the blogs on spiritual gifts, get this:
WE ARE GOD'S SERVANTS WHO HAVE NO AGENDA OF OUR OWN.
We have "emptied ourselves," just as Jesus emptied Himself. When we come to God we come with the words of Jesus, "Not my will, but yours be done." When we come to each other, we come with the words of Jesus, "Not my will but yours be done."
Imagine two or three believers meeting at a home to pray. They don't come with any preset prayer plans or talks or anything. Each come completely submitted to the will of the Holy Spirit. Yes, each come with burdens or needs. But they have put their needs aside to focus on God's will and on each other. Each of the three come in this very mindset. Three servants of God, together.
So, they all enter the home and greet each other. They sit in silence, waiting for the Spirit's leading. Each of them. Sean, Fredrick, and Louis. The Spirit leads Louis to speak first. Sean and Fredrick felt led to stay quite.
"The Spirit is leading me to open us up in prayer. Do you both agree to this? They do, affirming Louis that he is hearing from the Spirit. So Louis prays as the Spirit leads him. Then Fredrick sees a picture of Sean at his job, alone, reading his bible during a lunch break. Fredrick asks the Spirit what this means and if he should tell Fredrick. The Spirit tells Fredrick that Sean needs to know how much of an impact he's making just by reading his bible on his lunch break. So Fredrick tells Sean what the Spirit says, and Sean is overwhelmingly encouraged! Sean never told either of his friends about his bible reading at work.
Each came to serve God and each other, not force God to follow their house prayer program, and not force each other to worship God, pray a certain way, or recite certain scriptures by faith. They all come with the mind of Christ, having emptied themselves, and avoided the worst Christian sin:
Seeking to be served instead of seeking to serve.
Thursday, February 13, 2014
Meeting with God: What I learned from Salli and Lucy
Now Moses used to take a tent and pitch it outside the camp some distance away, calling it the "tent of meeting." Anyone inquiring of the LORD would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp. Exodus 33:7
SALLI
I had a date, a meeting with Salli. I went to the lower level of Rick's Bar in Key West, where the pizza restaurant is. I sat at a table...and waited. I didn't have a book or a cell phone or ipad. I didn't order any food. I just sat...waiting for Salli. That's why I was there. It was obvious I was waiting for someone who may or may not show up. She did...finally...with her dog. Now it occurred to me that anyone watching her would not have known obviously that she was coming to see me. If I was there, and she happened to pass by....while walking her dog...great! But if I DIDN'T SHOW UP, oh well....Salli was just out...walking her dog.
LUCY
I had a date, a meeting with Lucy. I stood by the pole right in front of Denny's on Duval Street in Key West. I stood...and waited. I didn't have a book, or a cell phone...or a dog. I just stood there, obviously waiting for Lucy, who may or may not show up. She did, with no dog or cell phone conversation she interrupts to talk to me, whom she just "happened" to see at Denny's. I was waiting for Lucy. Lucy was coming to see me. It was obvious. Perhaps not as obvious with Lucy...after all, who knows why she was walking towards Denny's. But it became obvious when she saw me and I saw her. We planned to meet with each other. This was our only and obvious purpose.
(click HERE for part 2)
SALLI
I had a date, a meeting with Salli. I went to the lower level of Rick's Bar in Key West, where the pizza restaurant is. I sat at a table...and waited. I didn't have a book or a cell phone or ipad. I didn't order any food. I just sat...waiting for Salli. That's why I was there. It was obvious I was waiting for someone who may or may not show up. She did...finally...with her dog. Now it occurred to me that anyone watching her would not have known obviously that she was coming to see me. If I was there, and she happened to pass by....while walking her dog...great! But if I DIDN'T SHOW UP, oh well....Salli was just out...walking her dog.
LUCY
I had a date, a meeting with Lucy. I stood by the pole right in front of Denny's on Duval Street in Key West. I stood...and waited. I didn't have a book, or a cell phone...or a dog. I just stood there, obviously waiting for Lucy, who may or may not show up. She did, with no dog or cell phone conversation she interrupts to talk to me, whom she just "happened" to see at Denny's. I was waiting for Lucy. Lucy was coming to see me. It was obvious. Perhaps not as obvious with Lucy...after all, who knows why she was walking towards Denny's. But it became obvious when she saw me and I saw her. We planned to meet with each other. This was our only and obvious purpose.
(click HERE for part 2)
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
The ONE THING NECESSARY To MEET with GOD (Part 1)
"So I will consecrate the Tent of Meeting and the altar and will consecrate Aaron and his sons to serve me as priests. Then I will dwell among the Israelites and be their God." Exodus 29:44
The one thing necessary to meet with God is consecration. When God consecrates, He sets people and things apart as belonging exclusively to Him, for only His use, His pleasure, and His honor. Before God will meet with you or with His people, the Church of Christ, He will consecrate the place of meeting and the ministers of the meeting.
GOD CONSECRATES THE PLACE OF MEETING
These are the words of the Lord Jesus Christ:
“Believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” John 4:21,23-24
The place of meeting God is no longer confined to a strictly physical temple in Jerusalem, or a mountain in Samaria, or a church building, or a synagogue or mosque. Those who believe in Jesus, wherever they are, individually or collectively, have become the temple of God, consecrated by the Spirit of God, by the presence of Jesus in the midst of two or three who gather in His name:
The one thing necessary to meet with God is consecration. When God consecrates, He sets people and things apart as belonging exclusively to Him, for only His use, His pleasure, and His honor. Before God will meet with you or with His people, the Church of Christ, He will consecrate the place of meeting and the ministers of the meeting.
GOD CONSECRATES THE PLACE OF MEETING
These are the words of the Lord Jesus Christ:
“Believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” John 4:21,23-24
The place of meeting God is no longer confined to a strictly physical temple in Jerusalem, or a mountain in Samaria, or a church building, or a synagogue or mosque. Those who believe in Jesus, wherever they are, individually or collectively, have become the temple of God, consecrated by the Spirit of God, by the presence of Jesus in the midst of two or three who gather in His name:
- Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in your midst?If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy that person; for God's temple is sacred, and you together are that temple. 1 Corinthians 3:16-17
- Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
We who believe in Jesus, individually and collectively, are the temple of God's Spirit. Sacred. Consecrated. Holy. We are the meeting place of God on earth. Wherever we are, God is there with us. We dare not forget our consecration.
Click HERE for part 2
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