Active listening

What a blessing the pastoral voice is!
How important it is to listen to that voice, and know that God is speaking to you through that voice!

We are taught in Romans 10:17  NIV That faith comes by hearing and hearing through the Word of Christ.

 

 We must listen actively! Take notes! Pay close attention! Study as if it were your final exam, because ... it is!

Works vs Fruit

I have often wondered why there are works of the flesh but only fruit of the spirit.

The Works: (Plural)
Galatians 5:19-21   (NKJV)Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies,envy, murders,* drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

The Fruit: (Singular)
Galatians 5:22-23  (NKJV) But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.


It occurred to me. In the new testament we find references to show there are  evil spirits:

Matthew 12:43-45 NIV "When an evil* spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, 'I will return to the house I left.' When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first. That is how it will be with this wicked generation."

Luke 8:30 NIV Jesus asked him, "What is your name?" "Legion," he replied, because many demons had gone into him.

And then there is THE Spirit.  The Holy Spirit

I Cor. 12:4 NIV There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit.

Ephesians 4:4 NLT

For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future.

 

Psalms 21:11 NIV Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.

My Encounter

A few Sundays ago we viewed a video that depicted a girl having an encounter with Jesus.
The girl was carrying a smelly, black trash bag on her back. Jesus asked her why she had been avoiding Him. She told Him, that she didn't want Him to smell it.

Long and short of it is that Jesus wanted to set her free!
She had an encounter with Jesus and was on top of the world.
But then her reasoning became skewed.
She reached into trash bag and pulled out a sin to "remind" her of her deliverance, thus resisting the lover of her soul!

I was like that woman in the video.
The Lord's been dealing with me about smoking for a long time.
I have even at times thrown a pack into the trash can only to retrieve them later!
But on that Sunday, I realized Jesus wanted to set me free.
I put that nasty habit into His hands and He set me free!

John 8:36 NIV So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.
Jeremiah 29:11 NIV For I know the plans I have for you," says the LORD. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

NOTE: The date of the service was February 26th 2012, entitled "Encounter God". You can listen on our website or purchase the cd.

All Shook Up!

All Shook Up

We can be shaken by many things.
When good things happen to bad people.
When bad things happen to good people

Matthew 5:45 NKJV "that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.


By the words of false teaching and sensational reports:
Mark 13:21-22 NLT
"Then if anyone tells you, 'Look, here is the Messiah,' or 'There he is,' don't believe it.
For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God's chosen ones.

But we don't have to get all shook up.

Jesus said we'd have trouble but He has overcome the world John 16:33
John 8:32 NLT And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

II Thessalonians 2:2 NLT
Don't be so easily shaken or alarmed by those who say that the day of the Lord has already begun. Don't believe them, even if they claim to have had a spiritual vision, a revelation, or a letter supposedly from us.Psalms 62:6 NLT
He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will not be shaken.

Sweet Success!

If we want to succeed in anything we do we should:

Pray baby pray!!!

Proverbs 3:6 Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.

Proverbs 16:3 NLT Commit your actions to the LORD, and your plans will succeed.

Psalms 30:10 NLT Hear me, LORD, and have mercy on me. Help me, O LORD."

John 14:26 NKJV "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.

Practicing God's Presence

Proverbs 3:6 NKJV  In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.
 I had an experience once that I want to share with you.
I was in my kitchen looking out window, and I said in my heart, "Lord I do not "feel spiritual" right now but I will acknowledge that you are with me."

Immediately I had a vision an a word from the Lord.
The window transformed into a map.
The Lord spoke to me and said,"Do you see the big roads on the map? Those are your big decisions and you seek me about those, but I want you to seek me in the little decisions as well."

We are so used to thinking our own thoughts and going our own way.
But there are many scriptures to let us know that God yearns to have fellowship with us.

He wants us to realize that He is always with us.

I Cor. 1:9 God will do this, for he is faithful to do what he says, and he has invited you into partnership with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

John 14:16 NIV

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—

Blessed are the Pure in Heart

When we are "seeking" the Lord we must come with a pure heart.
There can be no other motive but just to seek" Him.
We must give Him the authority to look and really examine our hearts.
In Psalms 139:23 NLT Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.
When we do that we need to quickly respond to anything He shows us.
Is it an errant thought? Some unkind word?
Is there some situation you are trying to handle?
Remember Gods ways are higher than our ways and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. (Isaiah 55:9)
Matthew 5:8 NIV Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

What Are You Seeking?

We worry about so many things.

Jesus said, in Matthew 6:27 (NLT) Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?

Jesus said to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things would be added to us. Matthew 6:33

What things you may ask.
The answer is the things we have need of.
Matthew 6:32 (NLT) These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs.

So how do we "seek" God? How do we "do" His righteousness?

We come to Him in prayer with faith make our requests.

Philippians 4:6 (NLT)

Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.

 

Hebrews 11:6 (NIV)

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes (seeks) to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

 

 

What are you believing God for today?

 

 

 

The Battle Plan.. Summing it all up!

Spiritual warfare is fought on our knees.
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood.
God has given us wonderful weapons!
He has given us Himself.
He is the Living Word.
We need His word in us and around us!

II Corinthians 10:4-5 NKJV

For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds,

casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,

Ephesians 6:12-17 NKJV For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age,against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand

Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,

and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.

And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;

* I would recommend reading "This Present Darkness" and "Piercing the Darkness". While they are fiction they give a vivid picture of spiritual warfare!

The Whole Armor of God - Part 6 The Sword of the Spirit

Ephesians 6:17 NKJV

And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;

The helmet of salvation and the sword of the spirit work together. The helmet protects the
 mind with the Word and the sword,(the Word), is our weapon of defense.

Hebrews 4:12 NLT gives us even more information about this powerful weapon...

For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.

Divine Appointments

Our computer has not been working right.
Sometimes it works,  sometimes it doesn't.

Yesterday I felt an urge to go to the library to study... again, even though I didn't have a study plan.

When I got there I really wasn't all that productive.
But then an old friend came in.
We talked and caught up on eachother's family and work.

I felt the urge to ask her where she was going to church and she told me she was not regularly attended anywhere. She told me she could always find an excuse not to go.

I told her how much I love my church and can't hardly wait to be there.
She said she missed that feeling.
I told her how God was moving in our church and in my life.
I told her how Jesus has set me free from smoking.
Her eyes got teary and she said she had been struggling with the same thing.

She said she struggled because she sometimes feels like she's not worthy to be loved by Jesus, and I was able to tell her how much Jesus loves her.

We both agreed that this had not been a chance meeting but rather a "Divine Appointment".
I invited her to church and I believe she will come.

Sometimes we don't understand why things happen.
 The little frustrations that change our normal daily routine.
But we should rejoice because...

Psalms 37:23 NLT :

The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives.

His Super in my natural

A word of encouragement came to me this morning:
This is the day that the Lord has made,  I will rejoice and be glad in it. That is what I choose to do. I am glad for the good things in my life, they make the bad things bearable.  I choose to overcome today.  Nobody makes me do it.  I choose to do it.  I will be content.

It was a good word and I was glad to hear it.

And then I had a look around and found a pair of my favorite shoes chewed to shreds by these dogs that I love! My dogs are a good thing.  My shoes are a good thing.  Having my dogs chew my shoes is a whole different story.

I was so angry!  I wanted to yell at the dogs!  I wanted to yell at my husband for not crating them when he left!  I was frustrated at myself for not putting the dumb shoes away in the first place!

And I really did not want to get on my knees before the Lord.
But I did and of course He met me there.

I had to confess that I wanted to act  out my anger.
And then we reasoned together.
I was like a little kid, sitting in my Father's lap, crying out my frustrations.
Then He reminded me to cast all of my care on Him because He cares for me!

This is the day that the Lord has made.
 I will rejoice and be glad in it!

The Whole Armor of God - Part 5 The Helmet of Salvation

Ephesians 6:17 NLT

Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

We all know that a helmet is a protective head covering.
As a protective head covering, the helmet protects the continents of the head, chiefly the brain; our minds.

We are instructed to love the Lord with all of our soul, mind, heart and strength.
Mark 12:30 NLT
And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.'*

But how do we love the Lord with our mind?
We renew our mind with the word of God.
Romans 12:2 NKJV
And do ot be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

We submit our thoughts to God:
Psalms 26:2 NKJV

Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; Try my mind and my heart.

 

We commit our works to God:

Proverbs 16: NKJV

Commit your works to the LORD, And your thoughts will be established.

 

Take up the Helmet of Salvation! Love the Lord with your mind.

 

 

 

 

The Whole Armor of God Part 4- The Shield of Faith

Ephesians 6:16 NIV

In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

The Concordance defines shield as: a large four-cornered shield.

The dictionary defines shield as:

a broad piece of armor, varying widely in form and size, carried apart from the body, usually on the left arm, as a defense against swords, lances, arrows, etc.

  

 This shield is special because it is made of faith.

What is faith?

Hebrews 11:1 NKJV Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Now.. right now (the exact moment we need it)  faith is the thing you hope for with an expectation, the proof of things not seen. (My interpretation.)

What should we have faith for?

Of course we need faith to trust in God and believe that He will do what He says He will do. But we need to ask according to God's will.

James 4:3 NIV When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

 Psalms 37:4 NIV

Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you your heart's desires. (worship)

 

How do we get faith?

 Romans 10:17 NIV Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.  We need to come to church and hear the Word being taught.

How do we use the shield of faith?

Jesus deflected Satan's darts of temptation with the Word of God.

Remember the shield is moveable... we handle it.

I like both versions of one of my personal favorite verses.

II Timothy 2:15  NIV

Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

II Timothy 2:15 NIV

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.

Learn how to use the shield of faith.

1. Go a church where the word is taught accurately.Romans 10:17 (We love it at Christian Faith Center, where the Word is taught accurately and lovingly.)

2.Worship Psalms 37:4
 3. Study II Tim. 2:15.

 4. Memorize the Word. Psalms 119:11

I have one other thought to share. When I think of a shield I mostly envision the outter part of the shield. But there is also the inner side of the shield. The part that is closer to my heart.

 Psalms 119:11 NIV I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.

 

The Whole Armor of God- Part Three The Shoes of the Gospel of Peace.

Ephesians 6:15 NIV And your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.

While meditating on the armor of God, I was pondering having my feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace. I know that the preparation is in reading the Word and praying. But the illustration that I received was very cool!

We make the choice to put on our shoes or go barefoot. Naturally speaking, if  we go barefoot our feet are not protected. It is painful to walk on rocky ground, but not impossible. Just as we choose to put our shoes on every day, we have to choose to walk in the spirit or in the flesh. If we make the choice to go barefoot we have confidence in our flesh. If we put on our shoes, our feet are protected and our confidence is in God. We put our spiritual shoes on by yielding to the Holy Spirit in prayer and taking "in" the Word. We can walk "in" the spirit because our feet are "in" the shoes.

So put your shoes on and walk in the Spirit!

Pray: 

James 1:5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.

Study: 

2 Timothy 2:15

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.

The Whole Armor of God - Part 2 The Breastplate of righteousness

Ephesians 6:14 NIV 

Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place.
 

 The breastplate is the piece of armor that covers the chest, and heart.
The heart is where knowledge and wisdom meet. It is also the place our feelings and emotions dwell.

People are going to say things and do things that wound us. The breastplate protects us from being destroyed and from retaliating. Being righteous is having a pure heart and doing the right thing... even when we may be tempted to do a wrong   My pastor says, "It is never right to do a wrong thing."

 Jesus tells us to love the Lord with all of our heart, soul and mind.

Another reason to hide the word in our heart!

 

*Matthew 22:37 NIV Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'

*Psalms 119:11 NIV  I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.

Whole Armor of God Part 1 The Belt of Truth

The Whole Armor of God- Part 1 The Belt of Truth

Webster's defines belt as: a strip or band of leather or other material worn around the waist to hold up clothing support tools, it can be worn as an ornament, sign of rank or for safety.


The first piece of armor listed  in  the armor of God is the belt of truth.

Ephesians 6:14 NIV  Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place

I believe the belt of truth symbolizes self-control of our natural appetites.
Keep in mind natural appetite doesn't neccessarily mean food. Anything that appeals to the flesh is an appetite. Sex, spending habits, types of recreation. Anything that causes imbalances or distractions that keeps us from spiritual balance.

Notice how falsehood and lies affect our appetites and attitudes and how important it is to pray about our appetites.

Proverbs 30:8-9 NIV 

Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread.

Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, 'Who is the LORD?'(complacent?)  Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.
 The writer is asking for balance in his life.  So we too need to pray and ask God to give us balance in all things.

Jesus is the Way the Truth and the Life.  He is the Living Word of God

James 4:7 NIV tells us to Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Spend time with the Lord and in His word and let Him custom fit your ... belt of truth!

Spiritual Appetite-

Spiritual Appetite-

Spiritual appetite leads to fellowship with the Lord.

John 6:51 NKJV

"I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world."

This statement is really not such a stretch. And it isn’t some gross, cannibalistic ritual either. Jesus is referring to our spiritual appetite. Look and see.

And John 1:14 NKJV And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. (Emphasis mine.)

We see here that Jesus is The Word and He became flesh and blood.

So when Jesus is saying we must “eat his flesh”,what he is saying is we must have an appetite for, or desire to know The Word.

You wanna get close to Jesus? Get into the Word and get the Word into you!

Joy!

 What it is: It is defined as: mirth;(cheerfulness accompanied by laughter), gladness, gaiety;(celebrations, festivities)

Joy goes deeper than happiness. When we think of joy we attach the thought of happiness to it. That’s not a bad thing. But happiness is really more a feeling and emotion.

Joy must be expressed. It is an excited happiness. When we are excited we can hardly be still. We might not be able to contain it. We might bounce in our seat or laugh or constantly talk about its source. We may shout the victory when our favorite sports team makes a triumphant move. Or sway to the music and clap our hands with our favorite band. When we have joy you can bet we’ll be active and moving.

If you will look in the Bible joy is mentioned many times. And each time it causes something; rejoicing, singing, shouting, dancing, leaping.

Luke 1:41 NIV When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.

Joy us strength: Nehemiah 8:10 NLT And Nehemiah* continued, "Go and celebrate with a feast of rich foods and sweet drinks, and share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared. This is a sacred day before our Lord. Don't be dejected and sad, for the joy of the LORD is your strength!"

 Joy comes from the Word. Jeremiah 15:16 NIV When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart's delight, for I bear your name, O LORD God Almighty.

You want to find joy? Spend some time in the Word!

Grace Builders

Grace Builders!

We've all got em! Those people who get on our every last nerve. The driver who drives five miles under the speed limit! The lady at the check out on her cellphone! The person at work who thinks they know it all!

But God loves them and they may not  know it!

Jesus tells us to love our enemies.
These "grace-builders" aren't even our enemies. They may not even know us, but they need us to show them God's grace.
We may be the only Jesus that they see.

Grace is like a two-way mirror.
We are saved by grace and we need grace to lead others to salvation.

Romans 2:4 NLT

Don't you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can't you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?

Matthew 5:44 NLT But I say to you love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you!

My Encounter

 A few Sundays ago we viewed a video that depicted a girl having an encounter with Jesus.
The girl was carrying a smelly, black trash bag on her back. Jesus asked her why she had been avoiding Him. She told Him, that she didn't want Him to smell it.

Long and short of it is that Jesus wanted to set her free!
She had an encounter with Jesus and was on top of the world.
But then her reasoning became skewed.
She reached into trash bag and pulled out a sin to "remind" her of her deliverance, thus resisting the lover of her soul!

I was like that woman in the video.
The Lord's been dealing with me about smoking for a long time.
I have even at times thrown a pack into the trash can only to retrieve them later!
But on that Sunday, I realized Jesus wanted to set me free.
I put that nasty habit into His hands and He set me free!

John 8:36 NIV So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.
Jeremiah 29:11 NIV For I know the plans I have for you," says the LORD. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

NOTE: The date of the service was February 26th 2012, entitled "Encounter God". You can listen on our website or purchase the cd.

Patience

Patience isn't a butterfly that lands gently on our shoulders.
It is a spiritual muscle that needs exercise!

I Timothy 4:8 NIV "Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come."

 

We are going to be tested and tried.

Sometimes we'll even lose our tempers.

But don't lose heart.

 James1:3 NIV .... because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.

 

 

 

More Thoughts about Temptation...Loving the Lord with my mind.

The physical part of my most recent temptation is smoking.
That's part that people see.
To be honest when the thought occurs for me to light up, it's not that I need a nicotine fix.
I was absolutely delivered of that!
It's more like I just want to do my own thing.

It's a mindless kind of thing.
Some of those thoughts are kind of like this:
"Oh I'm in the car, time to light up.", "I'm on the phone...", "Just finished eating..."
So a lot of the "smoking" temptation is really just a habit that needs to be changed.
But it's a habit of the mind.
Temptation starts in the thoughts.

So now it is time to love the Lord with all of our mind.

How does that work you might ask.
Every time I find myself thinking about temptation, I must acknowledge the Lord in my thoughts, my mind. I may think, "So help me Jesus, to take my every thought captive and Lord renew my mind." And I ask Him, "Just let me walk close to You".
"Lord, let me have Your thoughts and not my own."
(II Cor. 10:5 NIV - We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.)

He is that friend that sticks closer than a brother!

We need Jesus to help us in every endeavor!
(Philippians 4:13 in NIV...For I can do everything through Christ,* who gives me strength.

Let me just encourage you, please take time to memorize some scripture.
You can't remember what you don't know!

Scripture references: 2 Corinthians  10:4-5. Philippians 4:13, Romans 8:7, Romans 12:2