Running with Endurance

I thought it only fitting to do this weeks meditation on the bible verse that has been written on my foot every time I run. "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us." Hebrews 12:1 This verse is a verse that I felt the Lord gave me at the first race I ran back in August. Since then I have written the verse on my foot every time I run as a reminded. Of course I can't read it so well through my shoes but I know it is there so as I run I am able to recite it and remember what I am actually doing. I am running this race of life with God. I must strip off everything that holds me back. So many things in my life get in the way of my relationship with God. Sin kills, we all know this. However each time we are tempted we have a choice to either step into sin or to resist it. We must strip ourselves of that temptation before we commit sin. Something I have learned from running is the fact that you don't actually run until you make a conscience decision to do so. You must put forth the effort to not only move but to actually stride and move quickly. We must run when we are faced with temptation. God has a path marked out for us. To daily walk down the path of righteousness. However we must choose to do that. We must learn to run with endurance and the only way we can get endurance is to build it up. So we must do it over and over and then we will be able to have more and more endurance to run. I can honestly say that for me I could not have ran a marathon without the 16 weeks of training that I had. I had to build up my endurance to run miles at a time. The very first time I started running I ran 2 miles.... VERY SLOW and with a lot of walking in between. I didn't have endurance to run that far nonstop. It is again a conscience act that we must do. Our faith life is exactly like this. We must rely completely upon God and allow Him to lead us. Submitting ourselves to Him and His will and running from temptation and things that hold us back from serving Him.

As always I encourage you this week to look at your life. Where are you hindered by temptation and sin? What would it take to strip those off? Spend time with the Lord and ask Him to reveal those areas and then take the steps you must take to run on the path He has set out before you!

Truly Abiding

WOW, God has really been going to town on me lately. I know it has been almost 2 months since my last post. For that I am sorry sorta. :o) The reason I say sorta is the fact that I have literally felt like God has taken a plow to every area of my life. Requiring me to simply give up everything for Him. Which shouldn't be a surprise but I guess it is. I feel like I have truly been walking in the wilderness searching for God's promises. Waiting on Him to reveal what He wants to rid me of. It has been very difficult and I will be the first to admit I am not completely finished with what He's doing in me. He has truly been speaking to me the importance of KNOWING HIM and not simply just knowing about Him. How when I claim to be a believer and profess faith in Him my day to day life better reflect what I'm speaking. I had a very interesting revelation that completely messed me up. I realized that someone cannot come face to face with God, or experience them in their lives and not be changed. To walk away unchanged would mean you didn't see or experience God because EVERYONE who encounters God is changed in some way! I had to think upon my life, and really ponder whether I had changed. Yeah of course there are some areas but what about those other areas that seem to still creep up on me and draw me away from God. Those strings that are attached to me that come in times where I begin to doubt all i know about God. I have been challenged to cut off and run from all things that hinder my relationship with God. It is difficult. To purge myself of all things that draw me away from God and cause me to sin. However it is what each one of us is called to do in our lives. Jesus talks about this is JOHN 15:5 "YES, I AM THE VINE; YOU ARE THE BRANCHES. THOSE WHO REMAIN IN ME, AND I IN THEM, WILL PRODUCE MUCH FRUIT FOR APART FROM ME YOU CAN DO NOTHING." I encourage you to read this passage John 15:1-12. It talks about how God prunes the branches that produce bad fruit. I do NOT want to be that branch. I want to know that what I am doing matters. That I am pleasing God in all I do. That I can confidently say I am abiding in Jesus. I want to remain in Him and Him in me. To produce Kingdom Fruit. It clearly states that apart from Him I can do nothing. That no matter what I put my hand to, or mind to it doesn't matter. It amounts to completely nothing without Jesus being involved in it. That is a wake up call for me no doubt! I have really been searching my heart and all I do to see where I am abiding and where I'm not. It is something that God has been slowly revealing in these past few weeks. Am I perfect and abide with Him all the time.....Absolutely not. However I do my best and I am sacrificing myself daily to do His will. That is the best I can do. I have a choice daily, moment by moment to either choose to honor God or to ignore Him and sin. It is a conscience decision and I alone make it. So I am able to choose what type of fruit I will produce in each choice that I make.

I challenge you to pray and ask God to reveal areas that you are and are not abiding in Him. Ask Him to lead you to those areas that are a struggle for you. That you would be able to surrender to God and allow Him control in those areas. Don't allow yourself to produce bad fruit. Seek to honor God in all you. Bring a smile to your Heavenly Fathers face today!

My Temple

Lately God has really been speaking boldly to me about being submitted to Him. I think it is easy to say we are submitted to God but when we truly examine ourselves and EVERY area of our lives I think we discover the fact that we truly aren't totally 100% surrendered like we claim to be. Maybe some people are, TELL ME HOW TO GET THERE. It seems like it's a constant battle in my mind and life to lay down everything at every moment for Christ. My attitude tends to get in the way, my selfishness, my tearing down words, and my actions. 1 Cor. 6:19 Don't you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself. A lot of times we seem to only focus on the parts I mentioned about to see if we're doing ok with God. How about this, if our body is the temple of Holy Spirit how are we caring for it? Are we managing our time wisely? Are we resting enough? Eating healthy and right? Dressing in a way that is glorifying to Him. All area's of our lives must reflect Him and His kingdom. We are called to be set apart for Him. We do not have any control over ourselves, sure we're able to make decisions but truly we only have breath because God has given it to us. All we have, each beat of our heart is a gift from God. We are to honor Him with our bodies. With all we are! Each thought we have, each word we say, each action we do. We are called to be good stewards of all God gives us. He gives us opportunities daily to direct people to Him. How are we dealing with those situations? Daily we have an opportunity to walk in union with Him. To experience His grace, mercy, unconditional love He freely lavishes upon us and to share it with others. How are we doing in that? Are we seeking people out to serve them or are we seeking to see how others can serve us?

This week I challenge you to really look deep into your being. See if there is any area that you are still claiming to have control over and release it to God. The greatest thing we could ever do in life is to give God complete control of who we are. He has the plan and He knows us better than we know ourselves. Let the one Holy God that created you to guide you in your day. Take care of your temple and live a life worthy of God. May everything you do be an act of worship and thanksgiving to Him!

Walking In the Spirit

Everyday we have a decision to make. We must choose one or the other, living out our fleshly desires or living out the desires of God. It seems so simple to read and write out but when you actually think of your day and when you're faced with having to choose it seems so much easier to live by the flesh. So what does it look like to live by the flesh. Well here are just somethings that come to my mind that might be simple examples. How about when you are at work and you're completely swamped with work and someone comes in and asks you to do just one more thing. You can say yes to them and they will walk away all happy but what is your heart saying? Are you there complaining in your heart, and saying maybe how lazy that person is or why do you have to do it. Why can't they find someone else, can't they see you're busy!! This is the flesh speaking, our hearts and mind are usually the easiest places to look to see how closely we're living in the Spirit. Or what about when someone does something wrong to us, do we sit and dwell on it and hold a grudge against them? Do we sit and dwell upon how to get them back? Or do we just sit calmly and pray for them. Asking God to convict them of their wrongdoing and to strengthen us to love them like He loves them! It's not easy but it is truly necessary. God desires us to constantly walk in His Spirit. Galatians 5:16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desires of the flesh. It is a choice that we must make to walk by the Spirit. However look at the promise that we are guaranteed here. When we walk in the Spirit we WILL NOT CARRY OUT THE DESIRES OF THE FLESH! We will be living according to God's will and carrying out His desires. We will be constantly doing Kingdom Business!! How great is that! It must become our one and only desire to live in the the Spirit. We must be Spirit filled so that we can constantly be the Lord's hands and feet to the lost world. So to walk by the Spirit it is not only talking physically but also in every area. Our hearts, minds, words, actions, these all must be in line with the Spirit so we can see God's glory manifested in the lives of those around us. This is our daily goal to glorify God in all areas of our lives and constantly be in step with Him.

This week examine your feelings. Your thoughts, watch your reactions to other people when you are bothered, asked to do more, or get frustrated. When you see yourself living out the flesh contain it and turn your entire focus upon the Spirit and watch how God turns your situation into a glorifying opportunity!

It's all for Christ

We all have things in our lives that we like to do for certain people, or that we like certain people to do for us. Well God is the same way. He delights in us doing things for Him. He loves it when we honor Him, worship Him, give Him glory, center our days around Him. He loves the fact that we take time to invite Him into our lives to have relationship with us! Many times I find it so easy to praise Him, honor Him, even love Him when I am in a good mood or He has just done something awesome for me. Like for me when I receive a blessing from Him, in whatever form it may be. Someone doing something for me, a beautiful sunny day, a huge donation that will pay my upcoming bill! Whatever its easy to accept God and delight in Him. However there are also the times when we are struggling, that we're depressed, and upset, or not in the mood to really do anything that we must still remember to have a lovable attitude towards God. I mean for real, how easy is it really to sometime even to pray to God when things are going completely wrong in every way? For me not very easy I'll admit that! However I was reminded today in my time of devotions that sometime I have to suffer for the sake of Christ. I should count it a blessing to have my faith tested. To have just a little bit of suffering with Christ. In 2 Cor. 12:10 "That's why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am Strong." How contradicting is that?!! Lets just see all the crazy talk in there. 1 taking pleasure in weakness, and hardships and so on. And 2 being weak yet strong? What, how can that be! Is Paul losing his mind here? I don't know how many times I have read this verse over the years and said there is no way I can be happy when something bad happens. Because isn't that what taking pleasure would be? I know pleasure is associated with happiness in my mind! So how can you take pleasure in these things? It seems quite impossible but I am here to testify that its not! These moments are where we grow the most. Our true character is put to the test and put under pressure and we are able to grow into a more mature and faithful follower of Christ in these times! God wants us to seek Him in these times. To allow Him to guide us through but He also has growth in store for us. We by ourselves are weak. Cannot do anything without God working in our lives. There are so many times I've tried to get things my own ways and do things on my own and its impossible. I wear myself out trying. So in my weakness when I recognize my dependence upon God, then I am made strong through Him empowering me to go on. It is the same in every situation. We are able to make it through the toughest times only by god working in our lives and giving us the strength to keep moving!

Don't be defeated!! Look at your hardships, troubles, persecutions, anything with God's eyes. Look at it from a Kingdom perspective. Allow Him to transform you and strengthen you. No longer try to move alone but allow Him to move in you! Take time this week and look at your life. Are you struggling in some way? Ask God to reveal His will for this time. Take pleasure in the growing time and recognize your weakness. Allow God to manifest Himself in you to make you strong to defeat what is weighing you down!

Prayers of the Righteous

Well as many of you would know if you've read my other postings on my website about the healing that took place this last week I find this is very suitable for this weeks verse! We'll look at James 5:15-16 "Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven. Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective." The last phrase "the prayer of a righteous person is powerful" was all that was going through my mind this last weekend when I was walking and running without pain on my foot. It was so incredible to go from having complete discomfort and unbearable pain and then literally like 4 hours later the pain began to subside and each moment on it continually got better. I have never experienced anything quite like that in my life and I will proclaim to everyone that it was a miracle!! I'm not ashamed to say it! There are a few things in these verses that I want to point out. Like in the first line, "a prayer offered in faith" that is something that we must have when we pray. We cannot effectively pray without faith. God desires us to have extreme faith, faith that is beyond all human explanation. Our faith can determine whether something happens or not. When we offer up a prayer in absolute faith, believing that the impossible is able and will take place God moves! He loves when we belief beyond what are simple minds even say possible. God honors those people that faithfully pray and seek Him with complete confidence that they will be heard and that their request isn't to difficult for God. Another point is the fact of confessing our sins to each other. Why would we want to do that??!!! There is power in that my dear friend. When we can humble ourselves and admit our faults to one another that brings a huge smile upon God's face. We are saying look, I'm not perfect this is what I've done, please join me in prayer for God to release me from this sin and heal the void I have created between Him and I. THAT IS WHERE THINGS BEGIN TO HAPPEN SPIRITUALLY!! God loves the humble people and He honors them and a humble heart mixed with a faithful prayer is one powerful prayer. God turns His ear to that! He desires intimacy, honesty, openness, and humility in our relationships with Him and others. I am encouraged in knowing those that the Lord led me to share my situation with were people that faithfully prayed for my healing. They truly were righteous and their powerful prayers were answered and I feel it with each step I take!!

This week I challenge you to look into your heart, and really seriously ask yourself how much faith are you applying to your prayers. Are you praying with a passion and a confidence that your requests will be heard and done? Or are you simply coming to God tired, preoccupied, and only stating what you want and think you need and totally forgetting to lift up others or even show any respect for God. Are you filling your prayer with faith or just saying a memorized prayer because its something you do daily and cross it off your list of things I must do to be a good Christian? There are complete differences and I want to challenge you to take your prayers to a whole new level and see how God responds!

Don't waste a moment

Wow what a week it has been. I feel quite blessed this week by just having a normal regular schedule once again. This week I have really been evaluating all I do, my priorities and usage of time and doing my best to make the best out of every moment. I have been on a strict schedule of waking up early and trying my best to go to bed at a reasonable hour. I have trained my body to be completely different than it has ever been. I am usually one that stays up late and sleeps in. However as of late I have been waking up far earlier than anyone would dare to do. The things we do in our lives are interesting. How we spend time, what we pour into ourselves and allow to be poured out of us. Although it is a struggle sometimes to wake up at 4 am I know that it is what I have to do to get the desired time with the Lord each day. When I don't make time in the morning before I start my day I will be to tired in the evening. When I allow myself to miss time in His presence I am depriving myself and neglecting God. Which leads me to 1 Corinthians 15:58 "So my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is useless." There is absolutely nothing that we do that is a waste of time when our hearts are in the right place. That place being to serve God and bring Him glory. When we make God the center of our days, seeking every moment to know Him more and to do His will that is where all we do is Kingdom business. When we take time to listen and to ask Him what He wants us to do. How we can be used. What He wants to teach us and give Him opportunity to pour into us our lives become dramatically changed. That is why it is easy for me to wake up so early. To run at 5 o'clock in the morning might seem crazy but it is a time where I am not only spending it with the Lord but I am being a testimony to the 6 other people that I run with. They all know why I'm barefoot and they all know my faith and what I do. Daily God opens a door for me to share more and more. SO even in the simplest things God is able to use that as bringing Him glory. We are called to plant seeds wherever we go. In the lifes of all we meet. You never know what might come from a simple act of obedience.

This week try to take notice of what you are doing for the Lord. Stay strong in your faith, don't be moved by the opinions or the world around you. Take a stand on your faith and see where you can be used by God. I promise you when you begin to have a kingdom mindset all the time you'll be used for Kingdom business. And the simplest task that might seem insignificant to you could be the greatest thing in the world for someone else. Seek God, receive His heart for your days and be led by the Spirit at all times. That way you won't ever waste a moment!

Speak Out

I'm sorry for no updates for the last 2 weeks, it has been a very intense and busy time here. WE just finished running a 2 week overnight kids camp!

It isn't easy being a Christ Follower. Everyday having to decide what I am going to invest my time in. Whether it be God or myself those are the only 2 options that I have. I cannot serve God and myself. By serving myself I am serving the world, which God has set me free from! SO I must commit each day when I wake up to seek His kingdom above all else. To get on my knees before Him and pray for His strength to carry me through the day. The way I live my life is a testimony to God. It is my act of worship. When I have something good I don't hesitate to tell those around me about it. Why is it so difficult for me to tell others about the amazing love of God? The amazing grace that He bestows upon us each day! I cannot waste anymore time I have decided. I am here doing the work of God, and even if I had an everyday job I would have the same expectations placed upon me. To tell anyone that I had an opportunity to tell about Jesus Christ. As I evaluate my life and my actions I am extremely disappointed. I have spent so much time investing all my money, effort, and time into superficial things. I cannot live like this anymore!! Many may be asking yourself what is this missionary talking about and all I can tell you is that these are the thoughts that a lot of Christ Followers always have. Always thinking of changing and never acting. The sad part is that when we think and we put action to our thoughts things happen. Can you imagine if everyone that has had these thoughts put into action what they think what the world would look like? How people would be helping one another and seeking God's face above all else! What a tremendous feat that would be. Well I may not be able to control other peoples actions but I can take responsibility for my own actions. When I don't act upon my thoughts I am just adding to the problem. We must have a burning passion to got God into the lives of everyone we meet! I will tell everyone about your righteousness. All day long I will proclaim your saving power, though I am not skilled with words. Psalm 71:15 This must be the attitude we start the day with. To proclaim God's saving power, despite our imperfections and faults God will use us. We must rely completely upon Him to do anything. He is our strength, our healer, our provider, the life giver, and the wisdom we need for any situation. It is all about us trusting in Him and His love. We must passionately serve God in all areas of our lives, including telling people about who He is.

I challenge you this week to just speak to 1 person each day. Someone new each day and tell them about the love God has for them. Center your conversation around your savior and begin to see how easy it is to love those around you by sharing God with them.

Honest living

It is always easy to say that we are following God's will. That we are living according to His will and commandment. I know for a fact that it is so easy to put up a front for people to see. When we're at church we act like we ought to act. When we are away from fellow believers we tend to let ourselves slide. Then when we are alone that is when the true character and nature of who we really are is revealed. We can't put on masks, hide behind any image we want but when it comes to alone time we are who we are and WE KNOW WHO WE ARE! In those moments is when our integrity is revealed, our walls are down, and we are just us. Unfortunately there are a lot of people that are different people in this time then with others. When certain people are watching we have to be a certain way for fear of what they might say. Sounds so childish but you know what we all have our insecurities that we face daily and try and hide.

I have constantly been challenged to live a life of worship before God. It isn't easy and at times I have been ashamed to be who I am in front of others for fear of being made fun of or what have you. Then hiding behind my Christ Following mask for others to see. Knowing that my life isn't following God as closely as all would think but I keep up the fake image. Not living honest to others and being a hypocrite. But those who obey God's word truly show how completely they love Him. That is how we know we are living in Him. Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did. 1 John 2:5-6 This is an extreme verse because to me it speaks right to the depths of who I am. That if I truly love God like I continually profess I must obey Him to show that love. When I am living my life according to His will, and doing all I can to bring Him honor and praise then I am displaying my love. However when I am constantly searching out ways to sin, and doing things against God's commands I'm not truly loving Him. It isn't for anyone else to measure us by it is a way for us to measure ourselves. We must be the ones to determine whether we are displaying His love or not. It comes in the times when we're alone and no one is watching. How are we acting, what are we thinking, what are we doing. It all is a reflection on how much we love and seek God. I know for me when I begin to notice unhealthy patterns in my life. When I'm alone and I waste my time one meaningless stuff. When I begin to make an idol out of something. When my mind begins to do everything but glorify God that is when I have to sit back and reflect to see what is going on and what needs to be done. Our life of faith is something that should never be turned on or off. It should always be reflecting and shining bright for anyone to see at any moment!

Look at your life, are you living the life that Jesus demonstrated for us in the word? Are you constantly connected with His Spirit and searching to glorify Him at all times? Are you displaying your love for God in all you do whether christians are around or not? Are you living an honest life and not hiding behind masks or walls? Or are you a different person around certain people? Is God constantly your focus or are certain materialistic things brought before God? I just encourage you to check yourself and let God check you so you know where you are in your faith and if you're not in the right spot so you may get back to where He created you to be!!

Freedom in Christ

I'd be lying if I said this has been an easy week. Each day we are faced with so many different decisions and we are forced to choose which way to turn. Will it be glorifying to God or will it bring Him grief? Will we succeed or will we fail? Right or wrong? Stress is the enemy of so many people and I am proud to say it's not a common thing for me! However last week I have had a lot of physical stress placed upon me. Running 3 times a week, working out 4 days, and then doing my normal physical/office work. It has been an adjustment for sure! Last week in my bible study we started studying 1 Corinthians and this weeks Rumination will come from that. There we so many verses that stuck out to me in that first chapter. 1 Cor. 1:8 "He will keep you strong to the end so that you will be free from all blame on the day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns." This is a pretty jam packed verse in my opinion. Paul is speaking to the Corinthian church here telling them that God and Holy Spirit will keep them strong. All we must do is have our faith be solidified in who God is. It all depends upon where we are in our spirits. When we choose to be a Christ Follower we are declaring that we will leave our old ways behind us. We faithfully follow God and allow His strength to carry us each and everyday. Now that's not saying that we don't do anything but when we can no longer do anything in our power we must recognize that and be willing to admit it. So many people with stress problems in this world need to recognize that we aren't meant to live life alone. We were made for relationship. Relationship with God, with other people and we must be able to be humble enough to admit we can't do everything. We will never have complete control because that is God's position. We are able to partner with Him but we never have complete control. When we can come to a point and realize all we have is from Him and faithfully relying on Him to keep us strong we will discover true freedom. Freedom granted to us from God is complete, and everlasting! We are able to find peace, live a life full of joy apart from the stress, strain, and hardships of facing life alone. God sent Jesus so that we may live a life free in Him. All the blame, guilt, shame, anything that comes from sin, Jesus came to free us from that. To hold us close to His side, to guide us, to fill us with His joy. We must keep the faith in Him, continue to pursue Him and His righteousness. Live our lives as an offering of worship to Him. When we find ourselves faced with horrible situations we must remember we aren't alone, God is aware of where we are and He's waiting for us to run to Him.

This week look at the area's in your life that could be stronger, the area's that you need freedom in. Lay it out before God, and ask Him to bring freedom. Lay it down and walk away without picking it up again. He wants us to give Him complete control, when we ask Him to take something away we must willingly give it to Him for good. So Give Him your stress, or your daily worries, life's problems. Allow Him to speak into that and guide you on the path to freedom in Christ!!

Make Up Your Mind

Once again I am simply writing this as something the Lord has been speaking to me in my own personal quiet time. I just like everyone is a sinner undeserving of the love, grace, mercy, and life God offers me. However it is through Jesus that I am able to experience all these wonderful gifts. I am seen as righteous when I stand in the presence of God. HOW EXCITING!! One thing the Lord has been speaking to me is the fact that our life of faith is a choice. We can either choose to obey and serve Him or we can choose not to. It really is that simple. Consequences occur when we choose not to but God will respect our decision to not walk with Him. Romans 8:6 For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace. We either choose to live according to our fleshly desires or in the Spirit. There is a quote I like that says: Change your thoughts and you change your world. - Norman Vincent Peale. That is so true and it speaks right into this verse perfectly also. All we do is determined to what we set our minds to. When we set our minds to do something we are able to do it. A determined mind is unstoppable. However we must be wise with what we set our minds to do. When we are only concerned with ourselves, consumed with pride and selfishness we are living in the flesh and that leads only to death. There are so many things in this world that can distract us, and keep our minds occupied on unhealthy things. We must set our minds upon the Spirit, allowing God to have access to all we do. We must submit ourselves to Him and His will, doing only what He desires. I have been in this place, it is not a constant thing with me because I am human and I am tempted to veer off the path of righteousness. However I have experienced the life and peace that the Spirit gives and it is indescribable. Living every moment in the perfect will of God is just amazing. Satisfaction is found, Joy, peace are all experienced. It is quite incredible!! Our hearts and minds control so much of what we do so when we submit these two to the authority of God we are openly saying to Him that He is welcome to do as he wishes. The only way to live is to set our minds upon the Spirit. We are slowly killing ourselves each time we decide to lose focus on God and turn from His ways. It isn't only us that are effected either, we are able to slowly draw others around us into our fleshly mind set. That is why it is so important to surround ourselves with people that will encourage us to grow closer to God.

This week just think what do you allow in your life that is a fleshly desire. What are you setting mind upon? Is it the flesh or is it the Spirit? What kind of fruit are you bearing for others to see. Are you encouraging others in their relationship with God or are you slipping away and taking others with you?? It is all about just refocusing your mind to the Spirit and the amazing life God has for those that choose to deny everything and live a life of faith in Him.

Follow the Leader

Something that the Lord has really been showing me lately is the importance of obedience. I am by far NOT the most obedient person you will ever meet. I have a sense of wanting to ignore rules or just not caring due to the fact it causes me to have to change my ways. I am stubborn, and selfish. I am only able to admit this because of the work God has done in my life. It is not something I am proud of to have to admit these things that I am, but the fact that I can admit them means I am aware of who I am and where God has taken me. Living a life of faith as a Christ-follower is not an easy thing to do. It is a constant battle day in and day out knowing I should live one way but wanting to enjoy the past sins that have been a part of me for so long. It says in Galatians 5:16-17 So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won't be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. We must make a conscious decision each day whether or not we will allow Holy Spirit to guide us. When we are guided by Holy Spirit our lives reflect that guidance. Our nature is to fall into sin, if we were able to conquer sin ourselves Jesus wouldn't have died for us. It is in my human nature to desire to do evil, it sounds so bad to say that but when you reflect upon it your eyes will be opened to the truth. Sure I can do good things and many people would say I'm a good person. However below the surface there are always thoughts, qualities, and sin that if I didn't decide to suppress they would be shown. When Holy Spirit leads us we are able to honor God, live a life of praise to Him. Bring Him glory in our speech, actions, and thoughts. Our desires become those that are upon the heart of God. Although we have the natural desire to do what places a barrier between God and us we have a choice we must make. Build a wall of separation or follow the Spirit and allow God transform our lives. It is all about faith and the amount we apply in this area. When we set our hearts, minds, and spirits on the things of God and faithfully believe Him for all He says He is, we'll see great and awesome things. However when we believe with just a little bit, we'll only see a little bit of who God is. We must have ridiculous faith, not willing to allow anything to hinder it. Nothing to stop our belief in God and to press into Him for all He is. We have the ability to control how much God works in our lives. When we submit to Him, and faithfully trust our entire being to Him He is able to work without restrictions. He honors our decision whether we want Him in every area of our lives or out of it. He won't stop calling us to Him but He will not control anything in our lives when we don't surrender it to Him. I am as close to God as I can be at this moment............Think about it. Is that true for you? Are you as close as you can be to God right now? If you reply no I would love to know your thoughts why you would say that. However let me tell you how I know I am as close to God as I can be right now. I am only as close to God as I want to be. If I want to be closer than I pursue Him more, I spend more time getting to know Him. I only know Him as well as I want to. So when I have faith that cannot be quenched and I am eagerly pursuing God with all I am I am allowing myself to fall deeper into relationship with Him!! When I decide to allow my sinful nature to control my life instead of Holy Spirit I am still as close as I can be to Him because I am choosing to walk away from Him so I can experience what I want to experience apart from Him. It is a decision that I make each moment of everyday. Whether I will submit to Him or submit the the world and my human nature.

This week I again challenge you to look into the depths of who you are. Recognize your desires that are of God and what are not. Submit yourself to His Lordship and allow Holy Spirit to lead you on God's righteous path. He desires to bless us and to lead us into a beautiful life. We must submit and place all our faith in Him!

Jesus' Promise

Each day we are faced with a million decisions that we must make. Some seem harmless and others though they may not seem all that important can have an effect on the rest of our lives. We can choose to do something and in an instant it can change the whole course of our lives. Something God has really been laying on my heart is to truly live out my faith. To not be ashamed of who He is, what He's done in my life and to walk out what I profess. It is so important to live a life according to God's word and standard. In John 16:1 Jesus says: "These things I have spoken to you so that you may be kept from stumbling." It is so encouraging to me that Jesus speaks these words. The fact that it is a promise to us that His words will keep us from stumbling in our faith. That is why I think it is so important to read the Bible. It is our guide to a life that is acceptable to God. He gives us direction for our everyday walk of faith. When we can study the word and apply it to our lives it causes so many positive things to happen. It puts us in a better place to hear from the Lord, causes us to have deeper relationship with Him, we begin to have His characteristics in our life. Such as seeing people with love and desiring to meet their needs out of service to God. We become stronger and not fall into temptation as easy because the word is embedded into our hearts. We walk in the freedom that is given to us from God. Our days are centered around Him and His will for our lives. Jesus came to give us freedom from our sin, however we must embrace that freedom. We have to take the steps to walk in the freedom. We must turn from our ways that lead us to sin. Set our minds on the things of God, surround ourselves with Godly people. Another important thing that I feel is imperative to every Christ-Follower is to be connected to a church. Fellowship among other believers is critical to growth. It is a great way to encourage one another and also to have accountability with one another. We are called to have fellowship and be accountable to one another. I have to say I absolutely love the church family God has placed around me. Always encouraging and eager to lift me up in prayer when I am struggling. Jesus lays out a path we are to follow and by submitting to Him daily and walking along side Him we are able to faithfully serve Him. He guides us by His words and by placing His angels and other servants around us.

I encourage you today and this week to just read the word. Pray and seek God's direction in your life. Take time to be silent before Him and listen to the words that He wants to speak to you. Cling to the promise that He has given us that is found in John 16:1. He is here so that we can walk, or even run this life of faith and not stumble!! Take time to get right with Him and to experience His power in your life!!

Goodness, God is so good!! I have been seeing Him move in so many areas of my life since I've been on vacation and just getting a renewed view of who He is and who I am IN HIM!! I think the most important thing He has reminded me of is the fact that He is in control of all I do. That I am connected to Him. In John 15:1-2 it says "I am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn't produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more." I have found a renewed sense of security in this passage. In the last few weeks God has truly been speaking to me about bearing fruit. There is always fruit that we're able to produce. We either produce good fruit or bad fruit. God is constantly looking over us and waiting to prune us. When we allow ourselves to be pruned by God we are opening ourselves up to Him in awesome ways. We are saying to Him that we desire Him to get rid of everything in our lives that is hindering us in our relationship with Him. We can choose to either hang onto those things or give them up to God and allow Him to move us past those into a more intimate relationship with Him. It isn't easy to be pruned by the Lord, and it is something that is constantly needing to happen. We are either dying or growing so when we are growing we must be pruned to continue to grow in a healthy way. When we allow something to hinder our walk with God our production slows and it effects every area of our lives. That is when we must come to God and ask Him to look upon us and remove the garbage in our lives.

I have to admit I have been quite content in where I've been recently with the Lord and haven't allowed Him to truly prune me. When I recognized the fruit that was being produced and actually causing me to not really grow more I immediately insisted God prune me. It is so important to continue to grow because if you aren't growing you're dying. I don't want to be a Christ-Follower that is dying. I want to be one that is constantly living by faith and seeing God move in my life and the lives of others in amazing ways!! It can only come by submitting to Him and recognizing that we are in His garden. He has totally shown Himself faithful in this time also and giving me awesome opportunities to see Him work and increased my faith on so many levels. These past few weeks have been nothing short of amazing and I am completely blown away with some opportunities He's given me and I've walked away completely humbled and knowing at that moment God is smiling upon me!! Such an amazing feeling!

This week I want to challenge you to find some time alone with God and invite Him to prune you. It will be a bit painful but I can promise in the end when you rid yourself of the things holding you back in your relationship with Him it will bring you so much more Joy, Peace, and life! Recognize that you're here to glorify Him and do His work. You are to bear fruit and that fruit is suppose to be Godly fruit. Look at your live and see if you're even bearing any fruit, ask God to show you the fruit you're producing and then ask Him to lead you into a deeper relationship with Him so you can bear more Godly fruit!

We Must Love

This week has been such an amazing week for me. All that I've done has been revolved around hanging out with friends and their family. I have been in the south now for almost 2 weeks and I must say that the feel is different here. People are friendly and open to talking. I have been thinking a lot about what this week's Rumination should be and the one thing God keeps bringing love to my mind. I have felt at times lately that I haven't been doing that great of a job loving those around me. I find it quite easy to love those that I don't know all that well and the especially in St. Croix the homeless people I would help. When I was out serving and meeting needs is when I would love the most. Then when I would be around the people I work with all day everyday I wasn't so eager to serve or help out.....Why is this? Why is it that the people we spend the most time with are the ones we are most reluctant to really show we love them? 1 John 3:18-19 says Dear children, let's not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions. Our actions will show that we belong to the truth, so we will be confident when we stand before God. This is so important to understand. I'm not writing this for anyone but myself and I pray that if you are in this position then God speaks to your heart through this., We have all heard that old phrase of "Actions speak louder than words." It is so true on so many levels. We can't merely just speak words and think that is acceptable. We must live the words we proclaim out in all areas of our life. When we say we are a Christ-Follower and we don't extend our help, or love to someone in need we are completely hypocritical. We can't talk the talk unless we will walk the walk. The world is full of people who proclaim one thing and live another way. That in my opinion is why the Christians or Christ-Followers of this world are receiving less and less respect. So many have proclaimed faith but have not decided to turn from their old ways. The new redeemed life God has given to them they are not walking in. Whether it be because of fear, an issue with discomfort, to little faith to actually believe in what they thought. There are so many reasons why people aren't living in the Holy, Righteous life God has destined us for. For me.....I'm tired of not living in the blessing God has prepared for me. I have done some awesome and amazing things in my short life that is quite apparent. However when I look at all the things I have done, it is all because my reason for doing all my traveling is to share God. I have traveled to 8 different countries and each reason is for a mission trip. When I dedicate my devotion to God and live in obedience to the life He has called me to He is able to bless me. How can a Holy God who detests sin, and can't stand disobedience be expected to bless anyone that says one thing and then lives another way? He CAN'T bless disobedience, it goes against all that God is. He can extend Grace and Mercy to that person and not give them the punishment they deserve but He will never be able to completely pour out His blessings until we walk in obedience.

I just want to set a challenge to be aware of those around you this week. Take note of the ones you tend to serve more than the others. Pray and ask God to reveal the reason behind it. Ask Him to increase your love for those that you don't seem to love as much. To increase your heart to serve the ones you never would serve. See where it leads you. Pray that the words you speak would be uplifting, that you will find something positive in everything. I was challenged Monday night at a church service to fast from complaining, and grumbling. Try it! Let your actions line up with your words of love so that you can be fruitful for God's Kingdom. Don't miss out on an opportunity to be used by Him. How awful would that be? Unfortunately I think I have missed a lot of opportunities and I am determined to not miss another one!!

God is quite aware of YOU!

This week has been such an awesome blessing! God has continually shown me His love and blessings in so many ways! Last week we looked at what it meant to endure, this week I want to look at a section of scripture that has been on my mind all week long! Like the title states, God is quite aware of you, or US! He knows everything about us, what we're going to do, what we've done, EVERYTHING about us! God is our creator and there are so many places we could look that reveals His awareness of us. I can think of so many but my favorite one comes from Matthew 6:30-34 And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today." God created everything that we see, He is in control of all we see. There is nothing that happens that He doesn't know about, nothing. It is impossible for anything to happen without God first allowing it to happen! What comfort and peace that brings to me. I just sit here and think about all I've gone through, all that has happened in the world and to know that God is in control of all that makes it all well. Even though there are many things that don't make sense about why certain things happen I know that He sees it all and His will is constantly being done.
So when I read these verses and picture myself sitting among the crowd of people that day on that mountain top listening to Jesus speak I am truly comforted. The words of Jesus penetrate my heart and cause me to ask myself, why would I worry about anything ever when the God I serve is watching over me and taking care of me? The only answer....it is because it is human nature to want to be in control of everything. We desire control of our lives, and all we are. When one thing happens that we can't control it freaks us out and we have to fix the situation. That is not what Jesus is saying here, He is saying these thoughts are thoughts of those that don't have a relationship with God. That the ones that have no faith fear because they don't know the security of God's love.

Jesus tells us to "SEEK THE KINGDOM OF GOD ABOVE ALL ELSE." and He will give us all we need. When we truly submit to God and allow His will to be done every day in our lives we will be to busy doing His will to even care about our needs. He'll reveal Himself more and more, each day and continue to provide over and above our needs. It is a day to day lifestyle that we must have. The only confidence that we can have is that God is in control. Do we recognize that all we have is a gift from God? That the food we eat is provided by His hand. He is the one that gave us the ability to work our jobs, to receive our money, have our houses, and things. All we are and have is from Him, and if He decided to take it all away He could.

I have had times in my life where I've had amazing blessings and abundance, then there have been times where I have literally had to skip a meal to save money. I don't want to say that I am a master of this trust that Jesus is talking about here but I have learned how to live it out in my life. I am forced through what God has called me to do to live a life of faith. Having to place my faith in Him that He will meet my needs each month through the support of others. I make absolutely not money doing what I am doing. I pay to live where I live, I pay to do the work I do, and I have to pay my bills, I support 2 missionaries that I have worked with, and have enough to feed myself. God is the only way I can do what I do. There is no doubt in my mind that every cent I receive comes from Him. I have had months where I have received $180 and I've had months where I've received over $2,000. In each instance I thank God for what He provides and know that He is watching over me. Then there are moments like last Saturday when I was flying that I was handed a free pizza when I was hungry but not wanting to spend the little money I had. I love the moments when God just shows up in such an awesome way. I think all to many times I am surprised by God's working in my life and I wonder why am I surprised? I must continually trust that He is looking out for me and taking care of me and when those moments come I should worship Him for the awesome God He is.

This week take time to reflect upon all you have. The good, the bad, and the in between. Thank God for all He's blessed you with and then look at your day to day activities. Are you living with the Kingdom of Heaven above all? Are you placing God first in all areas of your life? Are you confident that no matter what happens God is in control? Are you faithfully trusting Him for all your needs? If there is any question you answered no to pray and ask God to increase your faith in Him and begin to make the changes necessary in your walk with Him.

Simply Endure

Well I pray you all had a good week and were able to pray last weeks prayer over someone and yourself!! It is very interesting to sit and think how much influence we can have with a simple prayer. It is such an important part of our relationship with the Lord. Lately I have began running, I mean REALLY running. I asked advice from a friend of mine because I knew they had a passion for running and with just that little email sent I have gone from an idea of possibly maybe running every now and then to basically training to run a marathon! This week I have ran 2 times with my friends running group and each time we have ran 5 miles. The first day pretty much wore me out but I was almost able to stay caught up the whole time, however this morning..... We did time trials where we ran a warm up mile, then from that went into a 3 minute fast sprint. Then a 3 minute cool down jog and then back to a 3 minute sprint. We repeated this a few times and I tell you what I was quite slow and pretty much worn out.

However I am only running because I feel like it is something the Lord has asked me to do. I enjoy running and have always wanted to run a marathon so I am working towards a goal I have had for a few years now. God has truly been teaching me a lot throughout this whole running process though. He has caused me to discipline myself in ways I have never done before, waking up at 4:30 to run by 5, adding new things to my diet to be more healthy and energized, and most importantly I am only able to continue on with HIS STRENGTH! Matthew 24:13 says: "But the one who endures to the end will be saved." I have learned so much about myself and God during these last 2 runs. I am so weak, physically, mentally, and even spiritually. God constantly has to come to my side and empower me to continue on. I truly must ENDURE. Endure means: to remain firm under suffering or misfortune without yielding. 2: to undergo (as a hardship) especially without giving in.

We must daily endure through many things the world throws at us. Sometimes it isn't easy and quite difficult but that is why its called enduring. When you endure something it usually isn't an easy thing to do. God allows situations to come our way that we will have to endure through. It is in those moments that we must recognize there is absolutely no way we can make it on our own and we must rely on God for Him to bring us through. When we realize that the most growth comes from going through something hard or challenging it should encourage us when we are faced with difficult times. It's an opportunity for our faith to grow in God, for us to completely rely on Him and see the impossible happen, and when we have endured to the end we can look back confidently and know we were only able to make it by the Grace, and strength of God. Daily we must come to Him and receive His strength, we must pursue Him and His ways. We are not meant to live and face this world alone, when we do we grow tired, stressed, overwhelmed, and reach a burnout point. We are called to endure to the end but we can only endure to the end by surrendering in the beginning to God and His will.

This week reflect upon the areas that are most difficult for you. Figure out if you are simply moving in your own strength or if you are accessing the awesome power of God. He's ready and waiting for you to come to Him and allow Him to be your everything. Then you will be able to Endure through anything and be saved by His love, grace, and amazing mercy.

A final word

As you know we have been looking at the new nature that we are expected to live in after we submit ourselves to God. He desires complete obedience to His commands. I feel it is something that we can never hear enough because we are constantly hounded by the world and those around us to live completely apart from the life God sets before. I pray that these posts have challenged you in your own faith. I know there are so many areas I could still cover on this topic but I feel I must conclude it with a section that I have prayed over people many times. It is my prayer for you as you read it that you take it to heart and believe the words you are reading. Like the other ruminations, I would encourage you to read this and pray it not only over yourself but the people around you EVERYDAY! I can guarantee you will be changed and those around you will also be if you dedicate yourself to praying this.

It comes from Colossians Chapter 1:9-14 So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy, always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light. For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins.

I just love this section because it has everything in it. Pretty much everything we have been studying over these last weeks is summed up here! There is just so much in here we could spend weeks dissecting! The knowledge of God's will and giving us Spiritual wisdom and understanding. With that we totally would be able to always honor God. We are called to produce good fruit in our lives. We can either produce good or bad fruit, and when we are not growing we are dying. It is something we must constantly keep in check. What are we allowing ourselves to produce. When people see us do they see the fruit of God in our lives or do they see the fruit of the world? We must constantly be growing in our faith, and in our relationship with God. That is the only way to live a life of complete worship to God. It isn't something that we do once and never follow up, we must daily grow so that we can continually be used in the best way for God. Our strength can only be given to us from God, and that is right where our patience and endurance comes from also! There is absolutely no way we can gain these characteristics without His hand actively working in our lives. Finally we must always live in complete thankfulness to God. Our lives must be a life of worship to Him. When we live according to Him and His ways transformation will take place. We will be different and our lives will show it. Every area of our lives, and people will notice our Joy. The only way we will ever be able to explain it would be to say, "It's All GOD!"

I do pray that this page has been good for you, it is my desire to just bring you to a place of wrestling with yourself and growing with God. He desires it, and I felt like this was what He was speaking to me and I wanted to share it with you! Be blessed this week and mark these verses in you bible and pray them each day and put specific names in there to pray over! Then watch to see how God works in your life and the lives of those you are praying for!!

Living Holy

There are so many things that we are called to do as Christ Followers such as what we've been talking about, having only good words be spoken. To turn from our old nature of walking in pride and forgiveness and instead be humble and forgiving. Last week we talked about how to actually live wise and not unwise. I want to cover another way of living today which I feel is probably on of me most important ways to live. The verse is 1 Pet. 1:15 But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. It seems like a rather easy verse when you read it, however what does it mean to be holy? We must first look at a simple definition of Holy which means:
Set apart to the service or worship of God; hallowed; sacred; reserved from profane or common use; holy vessels; a holy priesthood.
2. Spiritually whole or sound; of unimpaired innocence and virtue; free from sinful affections; pure in heart; godly; pious; irreproachable; guiltless; acceptable to God.

Now when you read that definition of the word Holy it takes the meaning of this verse to a whole new level. How many of us can actually stand up and say that each and everyday we are living a holy life? I for sure cannot say that, and I'm afraid the only one that truly can say it is Jesus. Our lives are always filled with so much stuff. Whether it be things that cause us to focus our attention on, things or people that upset us and we dwell upon that, jobs, bills. These are all things that fight for our attention all day everyday and it is so easy to be swept away by them. It is easy to forget to worship God in the busyness of our lives. Or to be a holy vessel when someone upsets us. It is something we must work on but also realize we'll never be holy alone. When we decide to truly live a life of holiness we must daily come to God and say: "I need you to work in me, I require your hand upon my life because I am everything but holy when left to myself. God I desire to be holy but I require you to move in me and through me. Set me apart for you today, make me holy like you are holy." Then the next day we must pray it out all over again. It is a great lifestyle we are called to, when you experience it you'll never forget the experience. I think it is such an awesome requirement for our lives because like everything else in our faith, it requires us to come to God. To rely on Him for every little part of what we do. We will never be able to be Holy without Him working in our lives.

So this week it is my prayer for you that you take time to examine your life, and figure out how you can live more holy. In what areas do you need to surrender to God and allow His hand to lead you into a life of holiness. Pray for Him to show you how to be holy and to give you the strength and wisdom to walk in that. As the week goes on, take note of your attitude and everything else about you. When you walk in holiness things will change about you, you'll begin to turn heads and they won't be looking at you but the holiness of God IN YOU!

Living with purpose

We will still be looking into characteristics of a Christ Follower. What it looks like to live in the "New Nature" that we are called to live in by having relationship with God. Each week we have discussed different issues from controlling our tongues speaking words of life, to being humble and forgiving. This week I pray it will be challenging yet again. Something that seems to be pressing upon my heart is Eph. 5:15-16 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. This I think is a very challenging verse selection because it pretty much sums up all the other verses we have been looking at. It states to carefully examine you life and to live wise. Making the most of every opportunity. Now some may think well I live wise always and I would challenge you to carefully examine every part of your life. What do you think it means when it says live wise? What does making the most of every opportunity mean? I think it is a matter that you must wrestle with. Are you truly being responsible in all areas of your life? Making wise decisions with your finances? Are you taking time out of your day to spend with the Lord? Where are your priorities? Is your time with the Lord something that you add to the list of duties and if you get to it you get to it, or is it at the top and never a negotiation YOU GET TO IT NO MATTER WHAT! Are you taking advantage everyday to share the love that God has for you to those around you? Whether it be your family, friends, co-workers, customers, strangers in the stores. Are you intentionally looking for opportunities to serve people at any given moment or are you stuck in a place that you can't see past your own needs. I think the thing that gets me the most is how easy it is for me to get caught up in myself. In my discomfort, or in my embarrassment to share my faith. That isn't living wise, my faith in God is the one thing that I have that I must share with everyone. It is my responsibility as a Christ Follower to display God's love in my life and give it to others. It is the one thing that can truly change a life. If there is one area that we must walk wise in, it is this area right here. Choosing to tell everyone we come in contact with about God, His love, and the relationship that is available to them through His Son.

I have been really examining my life this last week and seeing what things I am engaging in that aren't necessarily bad things but they aren't life giving nor is it wise to spend so much time doing them. I have made adjustments and still searching ways to make the most of every opportunity. It is just like this site, I have felt the Lord impress upon me to take time each week and give a challenge to anyone that may read this site. I don't know how many people read this, but at least I'm taking advantage of an opportunity and if just one person read this and it changed their entire relationship with the Lord then that is why I am doing this!!

Examine yourself this week, pray and ask the Lord to reveal ways that you may be living unwise. THEN seek Him so that He may guide you into how you can begin to live a life of wisdom and making the most of every opportunity that He has given you. Each day we have so many choices to make, all I ask is for you to pray and allow God to guide you into making the next right decision. Tons of things will happen in this but the 2 I will point out is you will increase the time you spend in prayer if you are constantly seeking His direction for the next right decision. Then the other thing is you'll be living in the will of God every moment! What satisfaction that would bring to know everything you're doing each day is bringing a smile to the face of your Lord!

Living in the Light of God

We are still going to be looking into Ephesians. It is one of my favorite books!! The last few weeks we have talked about living the new life; what and what not to do. This week we're going to look at Ephesians 5:7-9 NLT Don’t be fooled by those who try to excuse these sins, for the anger of God will fall on all who disobey him. Don’t participate in the things these people do. For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light! For this light within you produces only what is good and right and true. Oh man is this an encouragement or what?!! If you'd really like to get the full impact of this take some time and read the 5 verses that lead up to these. I love how it states here in verse 8 what we were like. It is painting a picture reminding us of where we've come from. No one is perfect and I can guarantee that at least one if not more of these sins has been displayed in our lives at one point or another. This section is spoken to everyone, that we used to be full of darkness. Darkness is often used to describe sin and our former life that we were held captive in. Paul is saying here that yes we were once in the darkness of sin, but now we are living the new life. A life in the light of God! Although we don't usually like the Lord to shine His light upon our lives because it exposes things we want to hide, it truly is good. God cannot stand sin, nor does He like darkness for the reason of hiding in the shadows. It is a choice we must make, to either live in the light of Christ or in the darkness of our sins. Being held captive and never seeing any victory in any of our life situations comes from the darkness. God is here for us and desires to guide us in all we do. We must walk in His light, invite Him to examine all areas of our lives. When we begin to walk in His light we begin to change, we begin to look at situations, people, and everything differently. People begin to notice a difference in us, a new spirit about us. This is the goal, not for us to brag about it to others but that we change so drastically that when we hang around people they compliment us saying you're not the same person. I pray it is a compliment, walking with God must produce positive fruit in our life. When we aren't seeing any good positive fruit or changes we must reflect upon why. Are we truly living in the light? For when we live in the light our life is right, good and true. It is where we are able to grow and be stronger in our relationship with God, and then with people. I just love these verses because it makes it so obvious that without God in our lives we'd still be in the darkness of sin. However now with Jesus working on our side and through personal relationship with Him we are able to live right. Live in the light!! What an honor and privilege to be called to living in such a great way!

This week reflect upon what it truly looks like to live in the Light of the Lord. How does your life reflect it? How does your life need to change to truly live in the light? Are you producing good wholesome fruit in your life? Is God's light shining so brightly through you that it's causing people to come out of their darkness? There are so many things you could ponder upon this week. Just start by asking God to reveal how brightly you're allowing Him to shine. Have Him examine you and walk in the light of Him!

Alright! Well once again we are going to be looking in Ephesians for our New Nature characteristics! This is such a great book and I'm going to exhaust this book of all it has so that we can receive as much out of it as possible!! We will go back to the beginning of chapter 4 verse 1 and 2. Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other's faults because of your love. WOW what a lifestyle we are called to have! Can you imagine experiencing all these things on a day to day basis? It is completely possible, this is how God designed us to live. In complete honest and pure relationship with everyone. Unfortunately the world is polluted by sin and is pretty much the devils playground so it is harder and harder to live our life of faith out. One by one lets look at these characteristics and think through how we can apply them to our lives. Always be humble and gentle, sounds so simple doesn't it? What is the meaning of humble? Here is the dictionary definition: 1: not proud or haughty : not arrogant or assertive 2 : reflecting, expressing, or offered in a spirit of deference or submission. It is a difficult one to really fully define but really in order to be humble look at the life of Jesus. He knew who He was and he walked in that. He didn't see others lower than Himself and he submitted to God's authority ultimately. I can't say that He always submitted to the authority of man because according to the church leaders he was breaking the law by his sabbath miracles. Now being Gentle, how can we be gentle? There are so many attributes that can connect with the word gentle. Someone who is gentle would not be aggressive, they'd be calm, sensitive. Take some time and try and think of 5 ways to be gentle. Ok now onto the last characteristic for this week and its the one people expect from everyone else but when it comes to us having it personally it seems to sometimes slip out of our grip. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other's faults because of your love. Patience, it is not always an easy thing to have patience. I think Paul gives a great explanation of how to exercise this Godly trait. It is out of love for the person and most importantly out of our love for God that we are able to make allowance for our faults. That is how to have patience, to extend grace in those times instead of getting upset and causing ourselves to overreact. No one is perfect, not even ourselves.....I know it might seem hard to hear but we are not perfect, we have faults so therefore we must practice patience in ALL SITUATIONS!

You guessed it, THIS WEEK PRACTICE THESE THREE AREAS!!! Think about how to become more humble, how to be gentle, and the best way for you to be patient. Pray this week for God to grow you in these areas. He'll bring situations your way that will cause you to apply these characteristics. Ask Him to empower you because I promise you without His hand working directly in your life in these areas, you will not walk them out to the fullest. Continue to just rely on Him for all you need. He has called you to walk in these areas, it is time to fully experience His intention for your life.

New Nature Characteristics

We read last week about having this new nature in our lives. The new nature can only be lived out through the power of Christ working in us each and every day. We will start on a journey that will show us what this new nature actually looks like! "Don't use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them." Eph. 4:29 When we begin living our life according to the standard of Christ we will find there are some areas of our life that we just won't be able to hold onto anymore. It is Christ's desire when we come to Him that we let everything go. He has given us so much more to live for through His death on the cross. He conquered sin, and restored fellowship with God and man. It is easy to speak out that the least that we can do is surrender our lives to Him. In all reality, surrendering ourselves is probably the hardest thing for most of us to do. We like the fact that we can be independent, and being able to live the way we desire. In order to live a life of intimacy with God we must devote our whole heart to Him. This verse attacks an area of life that is very common among most people. Speaking with foul or abusive language; think over that for a moment. What might that type of language be? The first things that come to mind are swear words, this is true but next comes my sarcastic remarks. Language that when I think about it doesn't bring any life to anyone. Usually sarcasm is used to bring someone down, to point out someones faults and "joke" about them. This has been an on going struggle with me, however the more and more I desire to live out my New Nature I have to remind myself this is part of my old self. It is a matter of holding my tongue when I want to say something destructive and either finding something encouraging to say or simply not speaking at all. It is so amazing how just a few little words can totally crush someone. An example that sticks out to me was something that happened to me this week. I was sitting in my house and one of my friends came by and heard the music I was listening to. I was listening to the internet radio and they commented saying what are you doing listening to such girly music? Then without giving me anytime to answer went on to say that the other day I had been listening to other similar music the other day in the shop when I was working. I wasn't hurt by this statement but I did however get upset at the fact there wasn't any hello or anything it was just immediately pointing out what they apparently thought was a fault in me. It probably wouldn't have been a big deal had it come from any other person but this specific person constantly only points out the negative and never seems to say anything encouraging. God spoke to me in this situation and showed me the importance of speaking encouragement. I want to only be known for the kindness and love that comes out of my mouth. I want people to not think when I walk into a room, oh goodness what is he going to say about me now. I want them to know that my words will lift them up and cause others to see them as the precious jewel that they are in God.

So I suppose this week, try and speak nice things to anyone you come in contact with. Compliment hair, outfits, character traits that you appreciate in people. If someone tries to bring you down turn the conversation around and lift them up instead of engaging in the abusive language that seems to be so common in this world. Think of the way Jesus would respond, either with words of LOVE, or saying nothing in reply.

Last week we celebrated Easter, Resurrection Day!! Isaiah gives such a great depiction of who Jesus was, and the torment He went through for each of us. We must not forget that EVER, each day we must remind ourselves of that awesome gift that was given to us by God. It is my desire that we look at ourselves today. That we look at the things that we are still living in, struggling with, and fighting even though Jesus came to take those sins away. We will be looking at our old nature and discovering what our New Nature is!

Ephesians 4:21-24 says:

²¹ Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, ²² throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. ²³ Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. ²⁴ Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.

What we have heard about God and Him sending His son is absolute truth. What this is basically saying is that we must be changed by knowing God. It is His desire that when we come into relationship with Him that we turn from our sin and walk in the new life He has for us. It isn't always an easy thing to do, sometimes we find ourselves stuck in addiction, depression, our lives must be dedicated to God in all areas. There are so many things that grab onto us and prevent us from being the people God created us to be. However that is not God's desire, He sent Jesus to free us from these sins that hold us captive!! When we allow the Spirit to lead us and guide us our whole life begins to change. The Spirit will renew our thoughts and attitudes, that is so encouraging to me! Knowing all I have to do is invite the Spirit in and He does all the work! It isn't something we can do on our own. WE NEED GOD to work on our behalf! So many times I have tried to walk in my "New Nature" but haven't allowed the Spirit to guide me in it. Let me tell you in your own power you will always fail. That is why God had to send His Son. Living in Jesus is the only way to live in our new nature. God created us to be righteous and holy, the only way we can be that is to define ourselves in Christ. Find our identity in Him, rely completely upon Him to meet our every need.

I don't want to unpack these verses to much because I want you to wrestle through it. Take time this week and pray asking God to reveal the characteristics in your life that you haven't let go of. The areas you know aren't reflecting God's glory. Ask for Him to walk you through those areas into the New Nature that He has planned for you. He'll be faithful if you give Him the time and are willing to part ways with your sinful nature and walk in His glorious light!