Daily Details

 

I have 1001 details to attend to every single day - well, that may be a slight exaggeration. At times, I feel like I am drowning in them. They wash over me and force me down into their depths.

As a young adult, I learned to make lists of my daily details every night before I went to bed. This helped me to stop thinking about them, so that my mind would shut off and I could fall asleep quicker.

I prioritized them and made sure that I had everything staged to achieve them as quickly and efficiently as possible. The next day, I crossed the chores off the list as I accomplished them.

I felt a sense of fulfillment and pride as the list got shorter by the hour. However, there were always items left on the list at the end of the day. Therefore, I added the new details to them that night and prioritized them for the next day.

My life was ruled by those lists, except when unexpected interruptions caused me to abandon the index and deal with that issue before referring back to my detailed catalogue of chores.

As I learned to walk in the Spirit, I continued to make the list, but not to prioritize the items. I listened to the Spirit and checked off the chores as He led me to deal with them. The list got shorter much quicker that way.

Over the years, I stopped making the lists altogether. I learned to listen to the Spirit each moment of the day and to obey His prompting for each one of them. I found that I accomplished more during the day than ever before.

Sometimes, God's Spirit would lead me to do several things at once, and also point out to me details that I would have forgotten to jot down on my list. I went to bed at night with my mind clear and no agenda hovering over me to control my next day.

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for the leading of Your Holy Spirit, which keeps us in the center of Your will through the mundane moments of our daily life. Sometimes, I still get overwhelmed by the magnitude of details that are my responsibility in a short day's time; and as I age, they bother me more often. However, thank You for freeing me from the demon of perfectionism, and for helping me to simplify my life by forsaking the details that are actually not important.

Now, I can expect less of me and more from You. You work out even the tiniest issues and the most challenging details by Your Spirit, and You often do this without any help from me. You are amazing, God, and I thank You for adopting me into Your family and giving me the privileges as Your child in both this world and the next.

Thought for the Day:

There are no more unexpected interruptions in my day, because I learned to expect the unexpected as I follow the Spirit's guidance throughout each moment; accomplishing more than mere human effort could ever produce, I experienced the wonder of His work in and through me. 

- Proverbs 3:5-6

Living in Contentment

As we live in the presence of God, and enjoy the still, quiet moments of our devotion time each day, then our schedule, to-do lists and responsibilities fade into the background of our mind.

Cleansing our soul and life, of dead works and all negative emotions, enables us to freely hear God's voice. Unhindered by the destructive influence of the devil's lies, we walk in the Spirit. ( www.theophostic.com )

Continually praising God for His provision in our life teaches us gratitude for what we have, which overshadows our longings for what we do not have. We learn contentment at His feet (Philippians 4:11).

While we praise God for who He is, for His blessings and for His perfect plan for our life, we consult Him throughout our day and hear His will for each moment of our life (Proverbs 3:5-6).

This way, when work deadlines, emotional turmoil in our family, rushed schedules, slander and false accusation, and a lack of fulfillment in our life all upset our sense of stability, we have God's Spirit to return our soul and spirit to peace and rest (Hebrews 10:4).

Once we learn to live in the gratification and fulfillment, which walking in the Spirit afford us, we never go back (Galatians 5:15-25). If life pulls us from the shelter of God's wings, we scurry back under the shadow of our Almighty God (Psalm 91:1,4).

We accomplish more in our day under the instruction of God's Spirit than by the direction of all of our lists, calendar reminders and sticky notes. The light of God's Son brightens each step of our way (John 14:6).

Prayer:

Father God, draw us to Your side and never let us go. Wrap us in Your everlasting arms and help us to experience the contentment of living in Your presence (Deuteronomy 33:27). Lead us to accomplish Your will, rather than our will, for every moment of our day.

Remind us to look for divine appointments to share Your love with people we meet. Help us never to look past someone who may need Your light in their life, simply because we are too busy. Our days are numbered, and we want to live each one of them in the center of Your will (Job 14:5; Psalm 39:4).

Thought for the Day:

As we contentedly dwell in the Kingdom of God and seek His will for each moment of our life, God provides for all of our needs. - Luke 12:31-32

Never Grow Up!

 

Do you ever get tired of adult responsibilities? In Christ, we never “grow up”. You are His child, totally dependent upon our Father God’s divine power for everything pertaining to life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3-4). This is not an ethereal metaphor, but a simple, sensible and sincere relationship. As God’s children, we fully realize in spirit, body and soul – our thoughts, choices and emotions – that only He can sustain our life. He calls us to share in His glory and virtue.

God does not remove our free will, but simply loves us so much that we joyfully submit to His desires. We soon realize that we are totally incapable of supplying what we truly want and need from life. In total surrender to His will and ways, we find complete fulfillment that transcends anything this world, the devil or the flesh have to offer. We shed our molting skin of flesh and walk in newness of life by God’s Spirit (Galatians 5:16,25).

We can fully trust our Father God. We serve the God of nations, and there is no one like Him (Psalm 33:12; Jeremiah 10:6; 1 Samuel 2:2). He is greater than every one else (2 Chronicles 2:5). He is the God of angel armies (Malachi 2:16). He gives us rest all around us (2 Chronicles 20:30; Joshua 21:44; 2 Samuel 7:1). History proves the words of scripture, which diagram God’s hand in the lives of mankind throughout the ages. There is not one reason for us to distrust Him.

When we come into union with our Father God through salvation, His will becomes our will, His choices become our choices, and the objects of His love become the objects of our love. We exhibit His divine nature in us, as our old human nature diminishes, because it is dead and buried with Christ in God. Jesus Christ is our whole life (Colossians 3:3-4). This union through Christ inseparably binds us together in union with our Father and His.

Prayer:
Father God, we will rejoice in You, even if life throws at us one catastrophe after another (Habakkuk 3:17). You give Your angels charge over us, to protect us wherever we are and to keep us from harm (Psalm 91:11-12). If darkness dares to surround us, You come as our Light (Micah 7:8). Whenever we fall, You are right there to pick us up again (Psalm 37:24; Proverbs 24:16). No one can ever separate us from Your love (Romans 8:35). We praise You and give You all of the honor and glory due Your name (Psalm 29:2, 96:8).

Thought for the Day:
Our Father God may put us flat on our back, but it is only so that we will finally look up into His loving face.

 

 

Our Enabler

When we help in a time of need, this is usually a one-time event, and it rarely causes any negative emotions to rise up in our heart. When the crowds asked Him, Jesus told them, “Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise” (Luke 3:10-11). Pure religion that is undefiled before God the Father is to visit the orphans and widows in their affliction (James 1:17). There is a time and a place to help one another (1 John 3:17).

However, there is a thin line between the concepts of helping and enabling a friend, neighbor, workmate or family member. Enabling drives us to help another person in inordinate ways, and to feel responsible and worried about things that this person should actually do for him/herself. Enabling allows addictive and irresponsible behavior in the person we are helping. Enabling often goes one step further into protecting the person from the consequences of his/her actions.

We make excuses for the person we enable. We do things for them that is their responsibility. We feel obligated to solve their problems. We try to make life easier for them at our own expense. Then we feel negative emotions rising up within our soul, because we feel taken advantage of and unappreciated. Enabling is as addictive as any drug and quite destructive both to our self and to the person we are enabling. The balance comes in when we help people as Christ directs us to assist them, instead of by doing things for them that they should do for themselves (Ephesians 2:10).

The Bible tells us that every person should bear their own burden (Galatians 6:5). It clearly states that those who do not work, should not eat (2 Thessalonians 3:10-15). When we enable others, we prevent them from growing up as independent individuals who follow God’s will for their life. God makes His grace abound to those who trust in Him, giving us the sufficiency to accomplish what He calls us to do by His Holy Spirit (2 Corinthians 9:8). There is so much that we cannot do for our self, however, and these are the things that God does for us. He is our enabler in the best of ways.

God reveals Christ to us and in us (John 16:14-15), guides us into all truth (John 16:13), regenerates us (John 3:5-8; Titus 3:5), sanctifies us (2 Thessalonians. 2:13; 1 Peter 1:2; Romans 5:16), washes and renews us (Titus 3:5) and strengthens our spirit (Ephesians 3:16). He also leads us (Romans 8:14; Galatians 5:18; Matthew 4:1; Luke 4:1), empowers us (Luke 4:14; 24:49; Romans 15:19; Acts 1:8), fills us (Ephesians 5:18; Acts 2:4; 4:8, 31; 9:17) and dwells in us (Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 2 Timothy 1:14; John 14:17).

He sets us free from the law of sin and death (Romans 8:2), quickens our mortal bodies (Romans 8:11) and grants us everlasting life (Galatians 6:8).  He teaches us to pray (Romans 8:26-27; Jude 1:20), distributes His spiritual gifts and manifestations in us (1 Corinthians 12:4, 8-10; Hebrews 2:4), anoints us for ministry (Luke 4:18; Acts 10:38) and brings unity and oneness to the body (Ephesians 4:3; 2:14-18). He proves we are His children and produces in us the evidence of His presence (Romans 8:16; Galatians 5:22-23), sealing us until the day of redemption (Ephesians 1:13; 4:30).

The Holy Spirit transforms us into the image of Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18), gives us access to God the Father (Ephesians 2:18), reveals the deep things of God to us (1 Corinthians 2:10), reveals to us what God gave us (1 Corinthians 2:12), reveals the mystery of God to us (Ephesians 3:5) and brings us into liberty (2 Corinthians 3:17). He is also our guarantee and deposit of our future resurrection (2 Corinthians 1:22, 5:5). He speaks to, in, and through us (1 Corinthians 12:3; 1 Timothy 4:1; Revelation 2:11; Hebrews 3:7; Matthew 10:20; Acts 2:4; 8:29; 10:19; 11:12, 28; 13:2; 16:6,7; 21:4,11).

The Holy Spirit sheds God’s love into our hearts (Romans 5:5), bears witness to the truth in our conscience (Romans 9:1), teaches us (1 Corinthians 2:13; John 14:26), gives us joy (1 Thessalonians 1:6), comforts us (Acts 9:31) and brings things to our remembrance (John 14:26). The Holy Spirit enables us to wait on God (Galatians 5:5), to obey His truth (1 Peter 1:22) and to preach the gospel (1 Peter 1:12). Jesus is our all in all (Colossians 1:17) and He lives within us by the Holy Spirit, enabling, leading and guiding all of our steps (Galatians 5:25).

Prayer:

Father God, You have done everything for us. Without You, we can do nothing (John 15:5). We can do all things, only when You enable us (Philippians 4:13). We trust and to obey You (Psalm 78:7). As we put on Christ each and every day (Romans 13:14; Galatians 3:27), we walk in Your Spirit by Your direction to accomplish greater works than Jesus did (John 14:12), because we are His Body (1 Corinthians 12:27). Remind us to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17) and to give You all the glory for everything we accomplish in Your name (1 Corinthians 10:31).

Thought for the Day:

God is working in us, enabling us both to desire and to have the power to work out His will in our lives. - Philippians 2:13