Struggling to Survive

At the root of sin and degradation is pride and rebellion. These often stem from unresolved conflicts in our past. We hide our pain behind a veneer of self-reliance in order to avoid further injury.

We do not want to take a chance on being vulnerable again. Struggling to survive, we choose self-absorption and arrogance instead of living a life of humility and self-sacrifice.

We live within the parameters of our sinful nature and set our mind on what our flesh desires (Romans 8:5). Our spirit is dead in sin and we cannot help our self (Ephesians 2:1).

Even church attendees who claim Christ as their savior play along with worldly culture, advice and popular demands. They came under conviction at one point, but their life was never converted.

Political correctness, religious pluralism, humanism and other new age lies color our concept of holiness. We take the path of least resistance and follow the crowd.

We lack discernment, spiritual understanding and perception. Caving in to the struggles, strain and stress of everyday life, we turn away from Biblical wisdom, God's love and devotion.

Jesus is the perfect example of a humble, yet powerful life. He said that no one could take His life until He was ready to lay it down (John 10:18). By following Jesus' example we truly convert from hedonism to holiness.

Jesus illustrates for us that the Lord is our portion, provider and protector as we obey His Word. We seek His face with our whole heart and God is gracious to us according to His promises (Psalm 119:57-58).

Prayer:

Father God, we invite Your Holy Spirit to cleanse our thoughts, heal our memory, calm our fears, and direct our goals and plans. We trust that in our pain and suffering, You are working out Your will and purpose for our life, giving us opportunities to share Your love and to bear fruit for Your Kingdom.

Teach us discernment through our life experiences; heal our raw emotions of discontentment, loneliness and anxiety; give us hope to overcome anger, unforgiveness and bitterness; and help us to walk in Your will with faith for each moment of our day.

Thought for the Day:

The Holy Spirit wants to direct the details of our day, so let's step aside, stop obsessing and trust and obey; there is no better way to enjoy the joy of the Lord.

I Would be Lost

I would be lost without God's presence and His Word. I do not just mean that I would literally be lost and going to hell, which I would be, but I would have such a meager life without Him.

Not having a Bible in my own language to read whenever I want would leave a huge hole in my life. I read the Word and write a post for my blog throughout each of my days. I commit verses to memory each day too.

There are many countries and people groups without the Bible in their own language. They are starving from a famine of hearing the Word of God. I cannot imagine the deprivation they feel.

Thankfully, there are groups dedicated to translating the Bible in the language of every culture around our globe. We can help by donating to these ministries, such as Wycliffe. You can even Christmas shop here ( https://www.wycliffe.org ).

The best Christmas gift we have ever received is the eternal life given to us by God through Jesus Christ. We simply make a searching moral inventory, ask God to forgive our sins and believe that Jesus Christ is the only Savior of the whole world (John 3:16-17; Acts 4:12; Mark 1:14-15).

This allows us to be filled with God's Spirit and to walk in God's presence each moment of our life. I depend solely on His presence for guidance, comfort, answered prayer and the peace and joy which only He can give.

Without God's love filling my life, I would feel alone, fearful, insecure, anxious and be overwhelmed with excessive sorrow. Yet, with His presence I find the true meaning of life, even in the negative aspects and the losses.

I would be lost without the presence and Word of God in my life. I dedicate my life to His service, because it is the least I can do in exchange for His generous love, provision and grace.

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for loving the world so much that You gave Your only begotten Son to pay for the error of our ways. Teach us Your ways and help us to walk in Your paths (Psalm 25:4, 27:11, 86:11). Help us to share Your truth and love with the lost and dying world all around us, so that they too can revel in Your presence and Your Word.

Help us to hide Your Word in our heart, so that we do not sin against You (Psalm 119:11); and so that we can flourish in this world because of Your presence in our spirit, Your Word in our heart and Your love providing a miracle in every trial that we will ever experience.

Thought for the Day:

God's Spirit enables authentic Believers to be totally capable of fully experiencing the magnitude of God's astounding and boundless love for us through a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ, until we are completely filled throughout our entire body, soul and spirit with all the fullness of God and have the richest portion of His presence in our life until we are entirely flooded with God Himself. 

- Ephesians 3:18-19, Amplified Bible

A Fulfilled Life

As humans, we are so engrossed in our soul that we fail to realize that our spirit is dead within us (Ephesians 2:1). We instinctively know there is a missing ingredient within, but we ignore this fact much of our life.

This causes us to delve deeper into the realm of the soul - the thoughts of our mind, our fleshly choices and the tyrant of our emotions. We seek satisfaction in any way, time and place we can find it.

We refuse to believe anything, which does not make sense to our human understanding. We even perverted the Serenity Prayer to relate to the "god of our understanding."

As fallen humanity, we are so blinded by our pride and rebellion to the Truth of God's Word that we miss out on the blessings, which God wants to provide for each and every one of us right here and now, as well as in the future.

The power of God for salvation is freely given to everyone who chooses to believe, without regard to color, age, race, financial status and ethnic background (Romans 1:16).

Our righteous God reveals a fulfilled life in His love to those who choose to reject the counsel of our pride and rebellion; and instead, to have faith in His faithfulness (Romans 1:16-17).

Prayer:

Father God, You freely give all things to those who put their trust in You. You infuse us with Your joy, which is our strength to live a fulfilled life in this sin-cursed world. Even creation cries out for the revelation of Your sons, so that You will restore the former glory of Paradise to the earth.

Thank You for moving by Your Spirit in my life and giving me the faith of Your Son, Jesus Christ, to believe in You (Galatians 2:20). Thank You for showering me with Your love every moment of my day and teaching me to follow the direction of Your Spirit through each one of them. Dwelling in the center of Your will is the happiest place on earth.

Thought for the Day:

We can conqueror every negative aspect in this life, just because of God's love for us. - Romans 8:37-39