Union with Christ - Not of This World

Our life on earth is simply a momentary breath on a cold day (James 4:14). We are not of this world. We dwell with Christ in the Kingdom of God and we are no longer limited by this world (Galatians 2:20; John 18:36).

Our citizenship is in Heaven and Jesus is our Savior and our King (Philippians 3:20). The Lord Himself called us to live in His timeless glory now as well as in eternity. He is our strength, and He confirms us and establishes our place in His Kingdom (1 Peter 5:10).

God delivers us through any trial, and we have joy in it as we accept that He is using it to do its perfect work within us and through us (James 1:4).

As long as we dwell in the realm of the flesh, we will continue to experience defeat at the hands of tribulation. We do not belong in Satan’s grip.

If we are living in Satan’s pit, it is because we allow Satan's thoughts to infiltrate our thoughts. We give in to his defeatist thinking and we buy into his lies, forsaking God’s truth in the process.

In the realm of the Spirit, our body experiences occasional negative circumstances, but they do not influence our spirit or our soul – our mind, choices and emotions. We see God working out all things, even the negative things in our life, for our good (Romans 8:28).

Do not waste time wanting what you do not have. If God wants you to have it, He will give it to you. Jesus died for us all, and rose again so that we will not live for our self, but for Him (John 3:16-18; 2 Corinthians 5:15).

Prayer:

Father God, we do not have to spend one moment longing for anything or anyone but You. We do not want to love this world nor the things that it offers to us. If we really need something in our life, which we do not have, You will give it to us. You will move us to another state, or give us a different car or house, or provide us with a spouse or a child, if it is Your will for us.

Remind us to trust only in You and in Your provision and timing. You have a perfect plan for each one of us and living in the center of Your will is the happiest place on earth. We give You all of the praise and honor and glory for Your provision, love and care for us each day of our life. We look forward to spending eternity in Your service as well.

Thought for the Day:

When we step out of the realm of the flesh and enter into the eternal realm of the Spirit right here on this earth, we finally find eternal rest for our soul and provision for our every need through Jesus Christ our Lord. - Psalm 116:7

Not of This World

We are not of this world. We dwell with Christ in the Kingdom of God and we are no longer limited by this world (Galatians 2:20; John 18:36). Our citizenship is in Heaven and Jesus is our Savior and our King (Philippians 3:20). The Lord Himself called us to live in His eternal glory now and in eternity. He is our strength and He confirms and establishes our place in His Kingdom (1 Peter 5:10). Our life on earth is simply a momentary breath on a cold day (James 4:14). God delivers us through any trial, and we have joy in it as we accept that He is using it to do its perfect work within us (James 1:4).

When we step out of the realm of the flesh and enter into the eternal realm of the Spirit right here on this earth, we finally find eternal rest for our soul and provision for our every need through Jesus Christ our Lord (Psalm 116:7). As long as we dwell in the realm of the flesh, we will continue to experience defeat at the hands of tribulation. However, we do not belong in Satan’s grip. If we are living in Satan’s pit, it is because we allow Satan's thoughts to infiltrate our thoughts. We give in to his defeatist thinking and we buy into his lies, forsaking God’s truth in the process.

In the realm of the Spirit, our body experiences negative circumstances, but they do not influence our spirit or our soul – our mind, choices and emotions. We see God working all things, even the negative things in our life, out for our good (Romans 8:28). Instead of looking at trials with a carnal mind, we view them with the mind of Christ. God’s divinity within us turns any trial into momentary and light affliction (2 Corinthians 4:17). We walk in His victory as we experience each new adventure that comes our way. God uses trials to transform us out of the earthly sphere into His spiritual Kingdom (2 Corinthians 5:17).

When we view trials as part of God’s will for us, we find Him in the midst of them (Romans 12:2). Jesus asks us to separate our self from the human realm of life, even while we still live in it (John 15:19). We physically live in the world, but we do we belong to any part of it (John 17:14-15). We do this by realizing that our humanity is dead in Christ, and we no longer live, but Christ lives in and through us (Galatians 2:20; Colossians 3:3). Jesus already overcame any negative aspect we could ever experience in this life and He dwells in us with all of the power of our triune God (John 16:33).

The more we look to the future, the more we waste the present. Most people spend more time believing that God is going to give them what they want and do not have, rather than in focusing on His will for them moment by moment throughout the day. God does not promise us tomorrow. Give God all of yourself in this moment. Do not hold anything back or worry about the future. Do not waste time wanting what you do not have. If God wants you to have it, He will give it to you. Jesus died for us all, and rose again so that we will not live for our self, but for Him (John 3:16-18; 2 Corinthians 5:15).

Prayer:

Father God, we do not have to spend one moment longing for anything or anyone but You. We do not want to love this world nor the things, which it offers us. If we really need something in our life, which we do not have, You will give it to us. You will move us to another state, or give us a different car or house, or provide us with a spouse or a child, if it is Your will for us. You gave us the life we have, just as it is right now. You want us to allow You to shine through us in it, rather than for us to wait around for something we think we need. Help us to learn to be content in Your provision for our life (Philippians 4:11). Remind us to focus on what is eternal rather on that which is earthly, because reality is only found in You.

Thought for the Day:

When you love the things of this world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. - 1 John 2:15

 

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Living in God's Peace

 

We often spend hours of our life thinking of the worse case scenarios and how we will deal with them, yet most never happen. This causes negative emotions, which will kill us. We sense a dread of immanent danger and we use negative emotions and behaviors to make us feel better. These negative emotions suppress our immune system and cause digestive disorders, muscle tension, short-term memory loss, the inability to concentrate, disabilities, anxiety disorders, premature coronary artery disease, heart attack, difficulty swallowing, dizziness, fatigue, headaches, breathing issues and nervous twitching and/or suicidal thoughts.

These fatal emotions alter our relationships, work performance, lifestyle, appetite and sleep patterns. We compensate by using alcohol, cigarettes, drugs, sleeping too much and overeating to soothe the stress and to hide from or to desensitize our self from the overwhelming feelings. Satan deceives us into thinking that we can use these negative emotions to protect us from harm. We think that we can hide behind anger, or worry enough to change our circumstances or prevent some disaster, or hate enough to punish the one who hurt or offended us, or to yell loud enough to change another person’s behavior or thinking.

Reading it in black and white makes this all sound ridiculous, doesn’t it? God gave us the reaction of flight or fight to protect us from real and imminent danger; however, in our modern society, we even allow an uncooperative spouse, child or co-worker; long lines; rude customers or a crying baby to throw us into the grasp of negative emotions. We nurse these feelings and build the situation up in our mind until it consumes us. Then, Satan has us right where he wants us. We take our mind off the eternal aspects of life and the Kingdom of God and allow Satan’s sidetrack to monopolize and consume our attention.

If our negative emotions are out of control, counseling or medication can help us to deal with the intensity of them. A great way to deal with these negative emotions is to keep a journal of how we are feeling. We can write out our feelings in the form of a prayer to God like the Psalmists did. Once they are out of our mind and down on the paper, we can leave them in God’s capable hands to deal with in His way and timing. If we are tempted to think of them again, we can remind our self that this concern is in “the heart of God”, and He is able to make us abound in every area of our life (2 Corinthians 9:8).

Whenever you feel your joy and peace disturbed in any way for any reason, take it to the Lord immediately. Allow His peace to rule your heart and mind (Colossians 3:15; Philippians 4:7). Refrain from depending on your human reasoning, but trust in the Lord with all of your heart (Proverbs 3:5-6). Then watch Him work them all out for your good (Romans 8:28). Do not allow negative emotions to rob you of your health, joy and peace in life. Nothing is too hard for God to handle (Jeremiah 32:17,27). He may not wave a magic wand and cause the situation to change overnight, but He will use the issues to perfect you and then He will change them when they have done their perfect work in you (James 1:2-4).

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, You dwell within us and want to live through us, but we so often push You aside and insist on facing life in our own strength and through our own human effort. This prolongs the issues in our life and thwarts the results of their outcome. Teach us to walk in the Spirit moment by moment and to relinquish everything to You. Help us to put on Your mind (Romans 12:2; 1 Corinthians 2:16; Philippians 2:1-11, 4:7), and to resist the urges Satan sends our way to allow negative emotions to ruin our witness for You and our reliance upon You for our health and success in this life.

Thought for the Day:

Trust God for one moment of your life today. Before you know it, you will trust Him in every moment.
 

 

You can buy a heart-shaped box and put little notes in the “heart of God” as prayers about your negative feelings.

Here are directions for making a heart-shaped notebook:

http://www.babycenter.com/210_heart-shaped-notebook_6042.bc

Or buy them already made and write your concerns on the back:

http://www.christianbook.com/heart-shaped-notepad-pen-someone-special/pd/680548 blue-white-200285