Admiring Without Coveting

 

The greatest fallacy of our current world is covetousness. The "haves" and the "have nots" are polar opposites. Many of those who do not have, believe there is nothing wrong with taking from those who do have. Theft and murder, home invasions, are on the rise.

Thieves do not even wait until the cover of darkness, they will break into a home in the afternoon when everyone is at home. They tie people up, gag them, force one of them to go to the bank and empty their accounts and turn everything over to the thief.

Admiring a person's wife or personal possessions is not enough for them (Deuteronomy 5:21). They want, without working for it, what the other person has; and they want it now. At times, desperation will fuel a person to use desperate means to provide for their family; however, some people are just too lazy to work.

The Bible encourages us to rejoice when someone rejoices and to show empathy when someone suffers loss (Romans 12:15). Did someone buy a new home with unusual architecture and modern conveniences? Rejoice with them.

Did someone inherit a large sum of money and use it wisely to better their circumstances? Rejoice with them. Did someone find a great deal on a new car? Rejoice with them.

There is too much tragedy in our world to add to it by coveting what our neighbor or family member has. Weep with them; but we also rejoice when someone is blessed, even if it is a greater portion of blessing than we received.    

Prayer:

Father God, remind us that every good and perfect gift comes directly from You. You are the Father of Lights and You bless those who walk in your ways (James 1:17). You even bless the sinner, which causes grumbling among the ranks of those who faithfully serve You. Yet, through this You show us that You willing allow Your rain of blessings to fall on the just and the unjust (Matthew 5:45).

You show Your love to thousands of generations, which proceed from those who love You - blessing our children and their children throughout the years, even beyond our day of our death - which is our deliverance from the ties of this earth (Exodus 20:6). Your ways are perfect and we want to have more of the mind of Christ and less of the mindset of this world (Philippians 2:5), so that we can rejoice in another's good fortune.

Thought for the Day:

People who seek wealth often fall into a snare and their foolish, harmful desires plunge them into destructive behavior and its consequences, which causes them to fall away from their faith in God and to reap grief and sorrow for themselves. - 1 Timothy 6:9-10

Daily Renewal

Read: Philippians 4:6-7

“Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” - John 8:32

As you know, “What we believe, determines how we act.” When we believe Satan's lies, we exhibit negative attitudes. We get "stinkin' thinkin'." Satan knows that if he captivates our mind, then he can control our actions also. Kay Arthur said, "Either you must learn to take your thoughts captive – or Satan will take you captive with your thoughts!”

Paul reminds us, “For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, we have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and WE TAKE CAPTIVE EVERY THOUGHT TO MAKE IT OBEDIENT TO CHRIST" (2 Corinthians 10: 3-5).

As we focus on God, He points out all of our negative attitudes and thoughts. These are the concepts, which we were taught in our youth or which we taught our self as we got away from home. We erroneously accepted these theories as truth. One issue at a time, the Spirit replaces these satanic lies with His absolute truth. God’s truth sets us free (John 8:32). Our only hope of mental stability in this life is to bring our thoughts into obedience to Jesus (2 Corinthians 10:4-5.). As we do this, we put on the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16).

We also discover the mind of Christ by reading the Word of God and meditating on it daily. If you have the Spirit of God living in you, you will have a hunger to read the Word. Jesus lived an example for us of a life built upon meditation and prayer. While others slept, Jesus went to the Mount of Olives and spent time alone with God. Then in the morning, He went to the temple and sat down to teach those who would listen. He went to His quiet place first and received His power from God through His time of daily renewal; then He was ready to minister.

We too need time alone with God to renew our peace and to ascertain His wisdom and direction for our lives. We need a physical, quiet place that will minister to our soul, in which we can spend time connecting our spirit with the Spirit of God. When we enter this "inner closet," we strip away all outer clutter. We empty ourselves of our “self” and focus solely on the voice of our Beloved (Isaiah 54:5). We bask in the rays of His comfort and direction and then we rise up to do His Will. We remain in this inner, spiritual place of connection all day long as we go about doing His will for our life.

Jesus did not leave us alone on this earth to accomplish His will.  As He ascended into Heaven to take back His rightful place at the Father’s right hand, He told His disciples to go and wait in the upper room for the Holy Spirit to come to them. God is the Father and the first person of our triune Deity. Jesus is the Son and the second personality. The Holy Spirit is the third person. He is our Comforter and our Guide. He changed the lives of those disciples in the upper room (Acts 2:4), and He has been changing willing lives ever since.

When worldly hostility bombards us, our hearts are tempted to faint within us. We do have the option of sharing our pain, frustration, and sorrow on a human level with friends and family. They, however, will only sympathize with us or sermonize about our feelings. It is only in the quiet place within our spirit, that we experience a profound sense of love, joy, and peace, which surpasses the comfort we can receive from any earthly entity.

Only in the still, small place within our spirit can we find true empathy and solace from the God who loves us more than He loves Himself. His love took Him to the cross to pay the penalty of our sin for us; and His love will bring Him back to earth for His Bride at the fullness of this age.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, when we spend time with You in the sanctity of our spirit, we have renewed power to meet the needs within our own life, as well as in the lives of those You sends our way. Due to Your love in our lives, we can forgive, nurture, empathize and minister to ourselves and others by the strength of Your grace, compassion and mercy, as well as through the direction of Your Holy Spirit. Our life in You is fulfilling indeed!

Thought for the Day:

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” - Psalm 51:10

 

 

Living in Perfect Peace

Read: Proverbs 3:5-6

“He trusts in the Lord; let the Lord rescue him. Let him deliver him, since he delights in him." - Psalm 22:8

Many of us are so hurt by our past that we are afraid of our future. We are so full of fear and worry that we hold our breath and hyperventilate most of the time, wondering when the next calamity will hit us. People often function in the present moment on automatic pilot, while our thoughts are either on the past or the future. The past is over and forgiven; therefore, dwelling on it only hinders the present.  We are not promised a future; so, worry about the future is also futile. God only gives us grace to face today (Matthew 6:31-24).

Jesus told us to take no thought for tomorrow (Matthew 6:34). We can plan as God gives us direction. Otherwise, imagining what the future holds only increases our tendency to worry, because we think too far ahead. We do not have God’s grace to face the future until it is today (Matthew 6:34). It is through this attentiveness to what is actually going on around us that we become completely aware of His presence and fully alive. We also become more effective in ministry, because we are in tune with God’s Spirit moment by moment.

If you feel any anxiety, you can be sure that you are worrying instead of focusing on God. He warned us that today’s trouble are sufficient for us to solve (Matthew 6:34). So, cast all your fears and anxiety on Him, because He cares about us (1 Peter 5:7). As we trust in the Lord with all our soul, our mind is not divided between faith and fear. If we do not lean on our own human understanding, and if we acknowledge Him in all of our ways, He promises to direct our paths (Proverbs 3:5-6).

As we dwell in the moment, we become conscious of our union with God through Jesus Christ by His Holy Spirit. His awesome presence permeates our being as we learn to live consciously by faith in His love. As we give our prayerful attention to the moment as God gives it to us to enjoy, we are aware of God’s presence in our lives and we follow the leading of His Holy Spirit moment by moment throughout the day.

That is why a daily quiet time of praise, devotion, and meditation on God’s Word is so important. As we emerge from our quiet time in His presence, we will radiate joy, and walk in a calm peace in the midst of all of life’s difficulties. If God wants you to plan ahead, He will put ideas in your mind as He wants you to be aware of them. Write notes as He bring things to your mind. Soon you will have a list of what to do and when to do it.

God keeps us in perfect peace, as we keep our mind focused on Him and trust in Him (Isaiah 26: 3). We do not need to worry about anything when we give everything over to God in prayer. The loving presence of God within you is closer to you than you are to your own self. God knew us before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4; 1 Peter1:20; Jeremiah 1:5). He knew us as He formed us in our mother’s womb. He has a perfect plan for our lives. Only as we dwell in His will can we be truly happy and fulfilled.

No person, place, thing, or experience can match the level of intimacy that we have possible with Christ within us, because "Christ within us is our hope of glory" (Galatians 2:20; Colossians 1:27). No human relationship can come from within us. Only our relationship with the Lord of life, living and dwelling inside of us, can bring this level of fulfillment. The only way we will know what God wants us to do is to listen. When we do take the time to listen, God meets us in all of His glory! As we sit in silence, with no inner or outer distractions, we reach a new level of awareness and a place of inner tranquility. We empty ourselves of our carnal flesh and focus solely on the voice of our Beloved God.

Living in this present moment gives us a break from our racing thoughts and chaotic minds. It allows us to appreciate God’s gifts to us for today. It is a good break from problem-solving and thinking about the future. We only have to deal with what is facing us at this current moment. God keeps us in perfect peace, when we keep our mind focused on Him and trust in Him (Isaiah 26: 3). As we cast our cares on the Lord, He sustains us; He will never let the righteous fail (Psalm 55:22).

Serenity comes as we are fully present in the moment and as we observe just what is in front of us. God exhorts us not to be anxious about anything, but in everything, by the power of prayer along with an attitude of gratitude, we can present our requests to God. As we commit to the Lord everything that He leads us to do, we will certainly succeed (Proverbs 16:3).

Once we completely surrender all our cares on Him, His peace, which passes all human understanding, keeps our hearts and minds stable through Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:5-7). This may sound simplistic, but too often people tend to over-analyze and over-think things, which causes anxiety. If we focus on tomorrow, we will miss the beauty of what God gives us today. The trauma of the past and the fear of the future have no place in the present moment. Once God heals our soul, we do not feel shame for the past and we have few worries about the future. We are safe and secure in the arms of God in this present moment, even if the circumstances around us are full of turmoil and conflict.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, our relationship with You gives us peace like no earthly bond can offer. When worldly hostility bombards us, our hearts are tempted to faint within us. Yet, only in the still, small place within, where we fellowship with You, can we find true empathy and solace from the God who loves us more than He loves Himself. We bask in the rays of Your comfort and direction. When we go out into the life to which You called us, we have renewed power to meet the needs of those You send our way. We can forgive, nurture, empathize, and "wait on tables"– minister to others in Your name.

Thought for the Day;

If we fail to spend time with God in the quiet moments, we will never be aware of Him in the midst of the chaos around us.




Thank you, Sarah Patterson, for the use of your photo.

Filling the Void

Read: Read Galatians 2:20-21

“They are empty, void, destroyed, deserted and demolished. Their hearts melt with fear, their knees knock together in exhaustion, their bodies and faces have grown pale with anxiety.” – Nahum 2:10 (various translations)

A young woman shared her heart with me during a mentoring session by saying, “I have a void inside of me. I want my husband to fill that void, but he is just too selfish and self-centered.” She felt lonely and unfulfilled.

Single people often relate to me that they long for a deep connection with another human being. Yet, as we see by this woman's confession, even married couples feel lonely. Sometimes their spouse is actually sitting in the very same room with them, but they are not connecting, not filling one another with love and contentment. As wonderful as a mate can be, however, even as nurturing and attentive and caring as they might act, sometimes he/she just cannot fill the blank hole in our heart. 

Only Christ within us fills this empty void in our life. He is the only One who can love us from the inside out! No earthly relationship can ever come from within us (John 14:17). Christ within us is our hope of glory (Colossians 1: 27). Only our relationship with the Lord of love, living and dwelling inside of us, can bring us this level of intimacy and fulfillment, which we human beings so deeply desire. From within our spirit His comfort brings delight to our thoughts and emotions  (Psalm 94:19). Christ’s presence in us also affects our physical health, as well as our soul and spirit (Romans 8:11).

The still, small sanctuary within our spirit is the only place where we can find true empathy and solace from the God who loves us more than life itself. When we enter this "inner closet," we strip away all confusion and clutter from our soul. We empty ourselves of our selfish desires and ambitions and chaotic thoughts (Galatians 5:24). Then, we focus solely on the voice of our Beloved. We bask in the rays of His joy and peace, as we seek His direction for each moment of our day.

Then, when we continue in the life to which God called us, we have renewed power to meet the needs within our own life, as well as in the lives of those He sends our way. We can forgive, nurture, empathize, and minister to ourselves and others by the strength of God and the direction of His Holy Spirit. This is fulfilling indeed!

If we pray as He prayed in the Garden prior to His crucifixion, “Lord, not my will, but Thy will be done”, that prayer will never fail. As we seek His kingdom, He always gives us what we need spiritually, emotionally, mentally and physically.

If you are married and disillusioned or disappointed with your mate, this same prayer will change your relationship, because it will change your attitude and then your heart. If you are single and looking for a mate, then seeking first the will of God for your life is the only way to bring you to the place where you can meet the man/woman He has chosen for you. My husband and I met at Books-a-Million bookstore. God led us both there on the same night at the same time. What are the odds of that happening? With God, all things are possible.

I have heard it said that each partner in a relationship must be whole in Christ before they come together. Having a saving relationship with God is the first and foremost relationship we should cultivate in our own life. Then, only as we seek God’s will together, will we ever find the type of fulfillment we crave, both in our relationship with God and then with one another.  

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, Your presence in us is our only hope of glory both in this world and the next. As we focus on this concept, You bring us the fulfillment and purpose we crave in this life. You avert our attention from ourselves and our perceived lack in body and soul to the nurturing fulfillment, which You provide in our lives. You give us "rest for our souls"; and in You we lack no good thing.

Thought for the Day:

Jesus satisfies our longing and He fills our hungry soul.

God's Great Love

Read: Romans 8:5-39

‘Many are the affliction of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all!’” - Psalm 34:19

We all view life from a limited human vantage point. We wonder, “How will I ever solve this problem?” “How am I going to succeed?” “When will I get past this?” “When will this sickness leave?”

When we notice our thoughts drifting in the direction of the Big “I” we need to remind ourselves that the battle is the Lord’s. Then, we can transfix our affection, our thoughts, our beliefs, our emotions and our worldview on things above, on a heavenly rather than an earthly point of view (Colossians 3:2-3).

The Eighth chapter of Romans gives us a powerful message of a life lived from God’s point of view. When we look at our problems from God’s angle, we soar into the heavenly realm and leave this old world and all of its problems behind us. Think of the photos of the earth as seen from outer space. These photos put the earth into proper perspective. In the light of all of the galaxies that make up the universe, earth is one of the smallest planets God created. God rules all of creation, and we can trust Him to conscientiously rule over our life as well.

At times, it seems that our whole world just came unglued. Everything swirls out of our control in every direction. We subdue one issue and several more pop up. Our molehill becomes a mountain in record time! This happens, because in the pressure cooker of life, God softens us until we are pliable enough for Him to mold us into Christ’s image.

Psalm 34:19 reminds us that the Lord delivers us out of all of our afflictions! God already won the battle 2000 years ago on Calvary’s cross. We are already conquerors through Christ in us, our hope of glory (Colossians 1: 27). When we look at life through God’s eyes, we start to see the possibilities rather than the problems. God used a small boy named David to defeat a giant like Goliath. He also empowers us with the same ability to face the giant problems in our life.

We serve an awesome and empathetic God. He loves, forgives, aids, chastises, transforms and molds us; and all the while, He gives us His abundant life now and for eternity. 1 John 3:1 reminds us, “Behold, what manner of love the father hath bestowed upon us.” Ephesians 2: 4 encourages us, "He is rich in mercy and loves us with abundant love.”

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, thank You for telling us that nothing in heaven or on earth can separate us from Your love. No human experience or atrocity can remove us from Your presence. We can run away from You, but You always wait right where we left You; so we will find You again when we go around the mountain of life one more time!

Thought for the Day:

Nothing will ever separate us from God’s great love.