Union with Christ - Spiritual Rest and Victory

Very few people in these modern times abide in God's rest (Hebrews 4:10). We are too overcome by the stress of the multitude of activities that we allow to rule our life, by the consequences of our choices and by the people with whom we fellowship.

We lack discernment, will power and wisdom; we take on too many tasks at one time; and we spend too little time in God's presence, growing into a spiritually mature Saint (John 15:16; Ephesians 4:11-14).

Unless we grasp the fullness of our identity in Christ, we fall short of all that God wants to do in us and through us. We do not earn this divine life by our good works; it is a free gift which comes along with Salvation (Ephesians 2:8-20; 2 Peter 1:4).

Christianity is not a religion. It is an intimate union with the Lord of Hosts living His divine life in and through every authentic Believer (1 Corinthians 6:17).

As God Word strengthens us, we overcome this world and we also live victorious lives over the wiles of Satan (1 John 2:14). We scatter the darkness by turning on God's Light.

Deceiving thoughts flee at the mention of Jesus’ name. Satan cannot initiate anything in our life without God’s permission; and if we submit to God and resist the devil, he is obligated to flee from us (James 4:7).

Satan may try to distract us from serving God, but as we keep our mind on Christ, we remain in perfect rest and victory as His Holy Spirit leads us through each moment of the day (Isaiah 26:3; Philippians 4:7).

Prayer:

Father God, You gave all of Your spiritual blessings and everything pertaining to life and godliness to all of Your Saints in the past, to those present with us now, as well as those who will be born in the future (2 Peter 1:3; Ephesians 1:3; 1 Corinthians 2: 20-21). Your love flows to all of us through thousands of generations of those who love and serve You with our life (Deuteronomy 7:9; Exodus 20:6).

Remind us that You work Your power in us and You are able to do more in us and through us than we can ever imagine or accomplish for You on our own (1 Corinthians 1:24; Ephesians 3:16, 20; Colossians 1:11; 1 Peter 4:11). You give us an abundant supply of power for everything we need in order to sufficiently accomplish Your will for our life (2 Corinthians 3:5, 4:7, 9:8).

Thought for the Day:

We do not pound out a meager existence for our self in this life, but we live in the fulfillment of abundant life through Christ in us. - John 10:10

Growing into Christ

 

In our growth into Christ, we acknowledge that we are indeed crucified with Christ, we are dead and our new resurrection life is hidden with Christ in God (Colossians 3:3-4).

We are raised from spiritual death with Christ, and we set our mind on the eternal aspects of life. We feast on His Word until it dwells in us richly. The cares of this life fade away and we abide in His unlimited rest, peace and joy.

We live by the faith of the Son of God through every new adventure He devises for us (Galatians 2:20). Even in secular employment and activities, we do all in the name of Jesus (1 Corinthians 10:31).

As we seek first His Kingdom, He provides us with everything we need to fulfill His purpose with our life (Matthew 6:33). Christ in us is greater than Satan and all of his demons (1 John 4:4).

God's Spirit gives us the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16), and helps us to take our carnal thoughts captive and make them obedient to Him (2 Corinthians 10:5).

We understand the things of God by His Spirit, having His discernment in every area of life (1 Corinthians 2:5-15). We do not have to strive and strain to die daily to our flesh.

We simply fully embrace the truth that Christ lives in us and wants to live through us. We are raised with Christ in newness of life and we will appear with Christ in glory at the end of this age (Romans 6:4,8,10).

These facts have practical relevance to our walk in Christ each day on this earth. They give us hope, faith and the power to walk in the Spirit, to pray without ceasing and to love God with our whole heart.  

Prayer:

Father God, through Christ in us, we minister to one another and to the world around us (Galatians 2:20; Colossians 3:1-16; Ephesians 2:5-6).  Enable us to set our affection on eternal matters and not to worry about or stress over the issues in this life. You gave us citizenship in Heaven with You now (Philippians 3:20).

Remind us that we have no meaningful life apart from Christ in us. Help us to adopt His purpose to seek and to save the lost; His perspective of doing Your will; and His practice of prayer, humility and obedience (Luke 5:16, 19:10; Philippians 2:5-8; Hebrews 5:8).

Thought for the Day:

Since we are fully human, we often feel like we are fighting life, the world and Satan all alone; but if we remember that Christ in us is fully divine with all the power of the triune God, then we can step aside and allow Jesus to deal with any situation that is troubling us.

 

Living in the Moment

 

The Serenity Prayer, the whole prayer and not just the first paragraph, teaches us to live in the moment. This is the key to living a life full of the peace and joy of the Lord.

The next moment does not yet exist; five years ago only exists as a memory and can no longer really affect this current moment; unless there are unresolved issues from our past, which still haunt us today, and which God wants to heal.

The only true reality is now…this one moment in time. We may pass from life one moment from now; so living this current moment fully is imperative to our joyful existence.

The excitement about this one moment of time is that we do not have to wait for it. It is already here. We can make of it what we choose. We can live in God's perfect will for every single moment of time (Ephesians 2:10).

As we pay attention to this exact moment, we take note of our breath. Is it shallow and tense or peaceful and deep? What thought is in our mind? Are we concerned about an issue or enjoying the presence of God?

What emotions accompany our thoughts? Are we angry, anxious, addled or are we basking in the love the Lord? How does our body feel? Is there pain, are we tired, do we have an unusual amount of energy?

As we learn to be present in the moment with our self, then we can take the next step of being present in the moment with God's Holy Spirit. Abiding within us, He gives us creative options, inspirational direction and Godly wisdom.

Do not be afraid of paying attention to who you really are inside. You may not like yourself, but God loves you. So you have value, which you never explored or acknowledged, just waiting for you to discover.

We do not need a mask, addictions or an escape to deal with our negative emotions or circumstances. This only postpones the inevitable need to face who we really are. Take time to look in the mirror and to love your self.

Living in the present helps us to care for our own needs, as well as the needs of people God brings into our life. We will look deeper than the manifesting emotions, into our own heart and into the heart of others.

God will give us discernment about the true needs in our soul or in the life of our family, friends, acquaintances and even total strangers that we meet along the way. 

God will show us how He wants to use us to help, heal, provide for, or to pray for these needs. As we walk in His Spirit every moment of every day, we further His Kingdom.

Prayer:

Father God, most of us have calendars that are so full of activities and responsibilities that we have no time to just "be" in Your presence. We rattle off a quick prayer as we rush out the door, but we have not truly connected with our self or with You.

Teach us to fully abide in each moment of time. Help us not to regret the past or fear the future. Remind us that You have a perfect plan for every moment of our life, and teach us to walk in Your Spirit through every one of them.

Thought for the Day:

God calls us to adopt the attributes of a little child - to trust the Lord without reservation, to be open to new experiences in life, to enthusiastically enjoy our current activities, and to joyfully, lovingly and freely walk in His Spirit moment by moment throughout the day.
- Matthew 19:14; Galatians 5:15-26