Eternal Weight of Glory

We cannot boast in tomorrow, because this very moment of life is the only one we are guaranteed. The past is gone and the future is insecure, so living in this one perfect moment is the best way to live (James 4:13-15).

Our fulfilled life depends on the pre-ordained will of God, which He designed before we were even born (Ephesians 2:10). This statement does not presume that God predetermines our life; but that He does not dwell in time, and He sees the past, present and future before Him at the same time.

He knows before we were ever born how we will act and react to life. His foreknowledge allows Him to maintain His order in this world. He is not only the original author of our life, but He also brings it to completion (Hebrews 12:2).

Nothing surprises God; we do not unnerve Him by our choices. I grew up and then married into homes with conditional love. I strove for half my life to win the approval of those I loved. This was a futile effort at best.

I did not need their affirmation, but I desperately needed an absence of judgment, and for my parents and mate to stop minimizing my needs and continually ridiculing my peculiarities.

However, God allowed me to survive emotionally all of those years by loving me freely and unconditionally with His free and unconditional eternal gift. All He asks of me in return is to obey Him without reservation and to show my love for Him by keeping His precepts and walking in His ways.

His path for my life is the only place I find true peace, joy and safety. Regardless of my circumstances, He plants a seed for a miracle in each trial and He works out everything for my ultimate good.

We have no need to receive success I the temporary existence, which we call life. God's Spirit gives us an eternal, rather than a temporal view of life. Issues which used to drive us to distraction just do not matter any longer once we view them from God's divine plan.

We abide in perfect peace and joy as we keep our focus and attention on Him all during our day; just like Jesus did by focusing on the joy set before Him, when He faced the horrendous tribulation of Calvary's cross (Hebrews 12:2).

Prayer:

Father, we pray that You teach us to abide in You and to see our circumstances through Your eyes. Help us to let go of the riches of this world in order to attain the treasures of heaven. Remind us that others will not come to a saving knowledge unless we share with them the testimony of Your unfailing love in our life.

As we lift Christ up in our daily choices, He will draw our loved ones as well as our acquaintance to Himself. Create in us a clean heart and renew Your Holy Spirit within us. Give us Your desire and power to walk in Your ways each moment of our life.

Thought For The Day:

Christians who accomplish the most in this present world are those who focus on eternal values and precedences.

 

Divided Loyalties

If we live life with one foot on the dock, and the other foot in the boat, we will end up getting dunked once the two move apart for any reason. The slightest turmoil in the water will cause us to lose our balance.

God says the lukewarm people - those who live with one foot in the world, and one in the church - make Him sick to His stomach! He would rather that we live up to our convictions and either follow Him wholeheartedly or not at all.

To live any other way is incomplete surrender, hypocritical and smears the name of Christ in front of the world. Even unbelievers know how Christians are supposed to act, and they lose respect for us and for God when we are hypocrites.

God calls us to live in complete surrender to Him; rather than living partly for Him, but mostly for our own plans and goals. When we seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, He will add to our life everything that we really need (Matthew 6:33).

At salvation, the Holy Spirit circumcises our soul - our mind, will and emotions, separating our fleshly carnal nature from our maturing spiritual nature (Galatians 5:25-25).

Change is an everyday occurrence in some area of our life; yet, at times it seems like transformation to the nature of Christ and conformation to the mind of Christ are painfully slow.

Our motto is, "Not I, but Christ" (Galatians 2:20, 29). Christ is our whole life (Colossians 3:3-4). We know the Trinity intimately and we obey God's precepts (1 John 2:3).

We take joy in who we are becoming in Christ and we bloom and flourish where He plants us. God's Spirit teaches us what to say, when to say it; how to act and what service to render to whom in His timing (1 Corinthians 2:13).

We flourish into the image of Christ who abides within us (2 Corinthians 3:18), grow in intimacy with Jesus and serve Him with our whole heart as we follow His Spirit's plan for each moment of our day.

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for drawing us close to You and never letting us go, for revealing to us Your mercy and power, for allowing us to suffer for Your name's sake, for conforming us to Christ's death and for perfecting us until we attain the prize of Your high calling (Philippians 2:11-12, 3:10-14).

You give us Your inheritance when we bring glory and honor to You through our thoughts, words and actions (1 Peter 1:3-4). We are co-heirs with Christ in all He took back from Satan by His death on Calvary's Cross. Regardless of our past and current circumstances, You give us a rewarding future in Your presence and Kingdom.

Thought for the Day:

Living with divided loyalties between the carnal and spiritual drains us mentally, physically, emotionally and financially; Jehovah is God, and there is no other.

The Mighty God We Serve

God formed us, the animals of the earth and the birds in the heavens, from the dust of the earth, breathed breath into our nostrils, and we became a living soul (Genesis 2:7, 19).

He calls us to care for one another, to pay attention when we see another person in distress, and to listen with compassion and pray about what God would have us do to help them (Genesis 42:21).

He calls us to an ever-deepening union with Him. How can a human being on earth experience intimacy with a supreme being in heaven? What is the connection that allows this phenomenon to occur?

The common denominator is Jesus Christ. He is God in the flesh, who left His glorious home in heaven to take on the form of a human being, pay our sin debt and to make it possible for anyone who chooses to, to abide in the presence of the divine forever.

Jesus was, is and is to come. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. He existed before there was time and He will rule and reign for eternity (John 1:1; 1 Corinthians 1:24). He is our ever-living, ever-loving Savior and Lord.

We are co-heirs with Him of the true riches of God's Kingdom, and He fills our treasuries from His abundance. He existed before the fountains of the ocean depths, the celestial orbs, the firmament over the earth, and the terra firma of the earth (Job 15:7-8).

He gave boundaries to the oceans and they cannot cross those limits without His decree (Job 38:10-11; Psalm 104:6-9; Jeremiah 5:22); yet, He condescends to delight in us (John 1:2; Psalm 16:3).

Prayer:

Father God, we can rest in the fact that You really do love us and have a predetermined path for our life (Ephesians 2:10). It is on this path, chosen for us by You, that our trails cease to trouble us and diminish in frequency and intensity.

If we will respond humbly to Your call on our life, You manifest Your love for us in Your provision of Jesus to pay the penalty of our sin and to guarantee a place for us in Your Kingdom. We praise You for Your provision for us in all things.

Thought for the Day:

As we make the major emphasis of our life to know God, and Jesus whom He sent, we grow in our intimacy with the Trinity and experience eternal life now while we continue to dwell on this earth.

Keeping God's Ways

In self-confidence, we become fools; simple-minded and thoughtless, not understanding the need to trust the Lord with every aspect of our life (Isaiah 32:6).

As we grow spiritually, God's Spirit within us changes us from the inside out. We no longer focus on carnality and earthly treasures. Evil is detestable to us and truth and righteousness are our mainstay.

God unpuzzles life for us, when we take our instructions from Him rather than striving after our own plans and goals. Silver, gold and human knowledge cannot compare to the power and joy found in knowing God intimately (James 1:5).

When we walk uprightly in every area and relationship, God's favor is on us. His fruit, abundance and kindness are better than any earthly treasure, because they endure through all of our trials (Proverbs 3:16; Matthew 6:33).

In God's sovereign plan, He chooses which king reigns and the rulers that govern the earth (Daniel 2:21; Romans 13:1). Before the earth even existed, Jesus planned to take the government on His capable shoulders. He is the beginning and ending of all things (John 1:1, 1 Corinthians 1:24).

God truly loves those who love Him and who seek Him diligently (1 Samuel 2:30; Psalm 91:14; John 14:21). He is our inheritance and He showers us with His true riches and fills our bank accounts with abundant resources.

Prayer:

Father God, You gave us Your Word to encourage us to fully trust in Jesus and to dedicate our life to Your service in holiness and in unity with Your Spirit. Thank You for filling us with your presence and Your Spirit without reservation or limitation. We depend upon You for every moment of our day.

Use us for Your glory in the divine moments of our life. Help us to introduce others to a personal relationship with You. Anoint us to inspire, encourage and influence others as they grow in spiritual maturity and make You the center of their life as well. We live for the praise of Your name and for furthering Your Kingdom though our life.

Thought for the Day:

Blessed, joyful, fortunate and enviable are those who keep God's ways and find their peace and joy in Him alone. 

- Psalm 119:1-2, 128:1-2; Luke 11:28