Awakening Grace

Awakening Grace
by Charles R. Swindoll

Philippians 1:6

Want a boost of encouragement? Our God is working toward that end in all of His children. It is His constant pursuit, His daily agenda, as He points us toward our final destination, "the Celestial City," as Bunyan calls it. Having cleansed our hearts of the debris of inward corruptions and the dust of sin's domination, God is now daily at work awakening grace within us, perfecting our character and bringing it to completion.

As I think about our becoming people of awakening grace, I believe at least three things are involved in the process:

First, it takes time. Learning anything takes time. Becoming good models of grace, it seems, takes years! Like wisdom, it comes slowly. But God is in no hurry as He purges graceless characteristics from us. But we can count on this, for sure: He is persistent.

Second, it requires pain. The "dust" in our room doesn't settle easily. I know of no one who has adopted a "grace state of mind" painlessly. Hurt is part of the curriculum in God's schoolroom.

Third, it means change. Being "graceless" by nature, we find it difficult to be anything different. We lack it, we resist it, we fail to show it, but God never stops His relentless working. He is committed to our becoming more like His Son. Remember? "He who began a good work . . . will carry it on to completion" (NIV).

Temptation

Temptation

Written By: admin - Apr• 30•13

1 Corinthians 10:13 (NIV) “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.”
Too often, we face temptations in this world and think “something must be wrong with me that I am being tempted like this.” The truth is, these types of battles are common for both the saved and unsaved. The principality over this earth roams around seeking someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8). The problem comes when we do not recognize the source of the temptation. It has been said that “the devil’s greatest work has been convincing the world that he doesn’t exist.” We are tempted by greed, by sex, by money, by winning at all costs, by ______________(you fill in the blank!). We are tempted by things that seem “okay” in this world because society has become desensitized to moral absolutes. The quote above explains it all. If the world believes that the devil does not exist, then there are no consequences for acting on our temptations, especially if the temptations faced are accepted in today’s society. When we are in the Christ and are students of His Word, however, the Holy Spirit helps us to discern the traps of sin; to know right from wrong; and to know what is pleasing in our Lord’s eyes.
There is no doubt that we will be tempted while in this world, but we can have confidence that greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world (1 John 4:4)! Our Mighty God will counsel us (Psalm 32:8); He will hold us in His righteous right hand (Isaiah 41:10); and He will deliver us from evil (2 Thessalonians 3:3). Through Jesus Christ, we are overcomers!
 
Have a victorious day!

Maturity Based on Relationship

Maturity Based on Relationship – Dr. Tony Evans

In His Presence: We are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love (Ephesians 4:15-16).

Spiritual maturity is facilitated by spiritual relationship. Second Peter 3:17-18 discusses this factor in our growth: “You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, be on your guard so that you are not carried away by the error of unprincipled men and fall from your own steadfastness, but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity.” Peter said we have two choices: to go forward or to go backward. But what we can’t do is stand still. Often people will try to define their Christian life in terms of what they are not doing wrong. But the Christian life is more than that—it is also what we are doing right.

Spiritual growth, just like human growth, is not a mechanical process. People think if they follow a five-step or twelve-step program, they will get where they want to be spiritually. But nothing could be further from the truth. Spiritual development is a relational process, not a legal one. The law shows us our sin and has the power to condemn. Only the grace of Christ has the power to enable us to overcome sin. We grow into Christ by the knowledge of Him as a person, not by the fulfillment of a program. To do that, we must focus on what God is doing in the midst of what we are doing.

One Minute Please

We must connect what is happening in our lives with how God is using it to transform us into the image of His Son.

SPIRITUAL ESTEEM

SPIRITUAL ESTEEM: “...do not fret when men succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes.” Ps37:7 wp.me/p29yfQ-mG

STRENGTH

STRENGTH: "I pray that...he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being...." Eph3:16-17 wp.me/p29yfQ-mA #God

THE LUST OF THE EYES

THE LUST OF THE EYES – Dr. Neil Anderson

1 John 2:16

The lust of the eyes . . . is not from the Father, but is from the world

The second channel of temptation through which Satan came to Adam and Eve related to his lie concerning the consequences of disobeying God. God had said that death would accompany disobedience, but Satan said, "You surely shall not die!" (Genesis 3:4). He was appealing to Eve's sense of self-preservation by falsely assuring her that God was wrong on the issue of sin's consequences. "Don't listen to Him; do what's right in your own eyes," he urged. The forbidden fruit was a delight to her eyes (verse 6), so she and Adam ignored God's command in order to do what appeared to serve their own best interests.

The lust of the eyes subtly draws us away from the Word of God and eats away at our confidence in God. We see what the world has to offer and desire it above our relationship with God. We begin to place more credence in our own perspective of life than in God's commands and promises. Fueled by the lust for what we see, we grab for all we can get, believing that we need it and deceived that God wants us to have it. Wrongly assuming that God will withhold nothing good from us, we lustfully claim prosperity.

Instead of trusting God wholeheartedly, we adopt a "prove it to me" attitude. That was the essence of Satan's second temptation of Jesus: "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down [from the pinnacle of the temple]" (Matthew 4:6). But Jesus wasn't about to play Satan's "show me" game. He replied, "It is written, 'You shall not put the LORD your God to the test'" (verse 7).

God is under no obligation to us; He is under obligation only to Himself. There is no way you can cleverly word a prayer so that God must respond to it. That not only distorts the meaning of prayer but puts us in the position of God. The righteous shall live by faith in the written Word of God and not demand that God prove Himself in response to our whims or wishes, no matter how noble they may be. We are the ones being tested, not God.

Prayer: Forgive me, Father, for the times I have listened to the enemy's lies and tried to meet my needs the way I saw fit. You are God, not me. I look to You to supply all my needs in Your own way.

Focus on God's Plan

Focus on God's Plan – Dr. Tony Evans

In His Presence: . . . so we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures (James 1:18).

To overcome temptation, the final element we must focus on is God’s plan. James 1:18 refers to believers as the “first fruits” among God’s creatures. First fruits are things of utmost value. In the Old Testament, the first fruits refers to the tithe to bring to the Lord. The first ten percent of what was accumulated went to Him. Giving the first fruits to God shows that He is the priority because He receives the best portion. Here, God says in His Word that we are the first fruits of His creation. Nothing God ever made is more important to Him than His saints, His people.

God has mighty plans for us, and we shouldn’t let the devil convince us otherwise. To believe the devil’s lies is to live beneath what God has in store for us. If we want our behavior to change, we must believe the truth that we are special to God. That will impact the way we live and the choices we make. We will want to please and obey Him.

Dogs are trained using the tool of temptation. The dog’s master will throw a piece of red meat in front of the dog. The first time the dog sees the meat, he goes after it because that’s his nature. The master corrects the dog and says, “No, look at me.” The master throws some more meat down, and the dog moves to get it, but the master says, “Stay! Look at me!” You know that the dog is trained when it stops looking at the meat and keeps his focus on the master. The dog can handle the presence of the meat because his focus is on the master.

One Minute Please

Christians can overcome temptation when their eyes are focused not on the temptation, but on God’s character, Word, and plan.

PRAYER OF RELEASE

PRAYER OF RELEASE: "...Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do...." Lk23:34 wp.me/p29yfQ-mq #devotion #forgive

Focus on God’s Word

Focus on God’s Word – Dr Tony Evans

In His Presence: In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth (James 1:18).

In addition to focusing on God’s character, we must also focus on God’s Word in order to resist temptation. Sometimes we don’t understand the importance of the Word and the fact that it is alive and active. We view Scripture like the Queen of England: She holds the top position in the country, but she has absolutely no power. She can’t pass any laws or enforce any decrees. Many of us hold God’s Word in high esteem, but it has no power in our lives. The Bible wasn’t meant to decorate your coffee table or be held under your arm at church. The Word of God was written because of what it can do in our lives. James 1:18 explains that we were brought forth by the word of truth; the Word brought us spiritual life.

The Word saved us, and it can also sanctify us. God’s Word works in the spiritual realm. Temptation exists in the spiritual realm, and only God’s words have power and authority in that arena. When the Devil tempted Christ in the wilderness, he told Christ to “command that these stones become bread” (Matthew 4:3). He offered a physical temptation to meet a physical desire for food. But Jesus resisted the temptation by calling on the Word of God. He said: “Man shall not live on bread alone but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). This is a direct quote from Deuteronomy 8. Jesus knew the Scripture so well that He could employ it to resist the temptation the Devil was throwing at Him. He stood on the authority of God’s Word to recognize that He would trust in God and God’s Word.

One Minute Please

God’s Word is our sure guide to weather the clouds of life, no matter what our senses or emotions tell us.

ENGRAVED

ENGRAVED: “See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me.”Is49:16 wp.me/p29yfQ-mf #devotion #Jesus

A Dark Sabbath

A Dark Sabbath – Dr. Charles Stanley

John 19:31-42

Just as Christ once rested in the stern of a boat through a raging storm, He rested in the tomb as storms raged within His disciples. A day after Jesus’ death, fear, doubt, and grief must have cycled endlessly through their minds. Memories of their lives with Him must have played there too: how it felt to stand upon a rolling sea, to feed thousands with a few loaves of bread, or to see Lazarus’ burial clothes heaped in the dirt. No doubt their hearts grew sick with confusion as they contemplated these things.

The disciples’ feeble faith shouldn’t surprise us, because if we’re honest, we see it in ourselves. The “little of faith,” as Jesus often called them, failed to believe or remember things the Lord said of Himself—that He’d lay down His life and take it up again. Had His followers faithfully held these things in their hearts, that Sabbath day might have been a time of joyful anticipation.

At times in our lives, God may seem absent, but ultimately we know that He will never leave us (Heb. 13:5). And unlike the disciples, we’ll never experience the dark prospect of a failed Savior. But many times we forget the promises of God. In the face of uncertainty, how frequently do we turn to a “do-it-yourself” Christianity to fix our problems?

Too often we look no further than our own solutions, when what we need is the wonder-working power of Christ’s resurrection and a posture of humility as we wait on Him. If we are willing to wait through the darkness of night, we can rest in knowing that morning will surely come.

 

 

DAILY RENEWAL

DAILY RENEWAL:“...Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.” 2Cor4:16 wp.me/p29yfQ-m6

CHANGING YOUR BEHAVIOR

CHANGING YOUR BEHAVIOR – Dr. Neil Anderson

Galatians 5:16

Walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh

A careful distinction must be made concerning your relationship to the flesh as a Christian. There is a difference in Scripture between being in the flesh and walking according to the flesh. As a Christian, you are no longer in the flesh. That phrase describes people who are still spiritually dead (Romans 8:8), those who live independently of God. Everything they do, whether morally good or bad, is in the flesh.

You are not in the flesh; you are in Christ. You are no longer independent of God; you have declared your dependence upon Him by placing faith in Christ. But even though you are not in the flesh, you may still choose to walk according to the flesh (Romans 8:12, 13). You may still act independently of God by responding to the mind-set, patterns and habits ingrained in you by the world you lived in. Paul rebuked the immature Corinthian Christians as "fleshly" because of their expressions of jealousy, strife, division and misplaced identity (1 Corinthians 3:1-3). He listed the evidences of fleshly living in Galatians 5:19-21. Unbelievers can't help but live according to the flesh because they are totally in the flesh. But your old skipper is gone. You are no longer in the flesh and you no longer need to live according to its desires.

Getting rid of the old self was God's responsibility, but rendering the flesh and its deeds inoperative is our responsibility (Romans 8:12). God has changed your nature, but it's your responsibility to change your behavior by "putting to death the deeds of the body" (Romans 8:13). You will gain victory over the flesh by learning to condition your behavior after your new skipper, your new self which is infused with the nature of Christ, and learning to transform your old pattern for thinking and responding to your sin-trained flesh by renewing your mind (Romans 12:2).

Prayer: Lord, knowing that I am no longer controlled by sin is such a liberating concept. I can walk today in freedom from my old self, the world system, and the devil. Praise Your name!

 

 

Sid Stewart

Executive Director

864 226-6193

www.havenofrest.cc

THE PATH OF LIFE

THE PATH OF LIFE: “You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence...” Ps16:11 wp.me/p29yfQ-lX

CALLED TO COMFORT

“Blessed be the God... who comforts us...so that we may be able to comfort...” 2Cor1:3-4 wp.me/p29yfQ-lH

Weakness Or Power?

I can do everything with the help of Christ who gives me the strength I need (Philippians 4:13, NLT).

Dear friends:

Do you sometimes feel weak and inadequate, seemingly impotent against the powerful forces of life swirling all around you?

Well, in ourselves, we are weak and inadequate. However, over the years as I have better come to know our Lord Jesus Christ and His Word, I have become increasingly aware of that glorious promise that all the supernatural resources of deity are available to every believer, everywhere, and at any time!

In Christ dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily (Colossians 2:9). To Him God has given all authority in heaven and earth (Matthew 28:18).

And He lives within us in all His resurrection love and power!

That is the reason the Apostle Paul would dare to say, "I can do everything through him who gives me strength" (Philippians 4:13, NIV).

One of the most important lessons that any believer must learn is that we are no longer ordinary, mediocre human beings, but when we receive Christ, we link our lives up with the life of the infinite, creator God and all His unlimited, supernatural resources are available to us to live Godly lives and to be fruitful witnesses.

I look back over the years and see unbelievably exciting, remarkable and unprecedented events that have taken place in my life. This includes: the privilege of standing before the largest crowds in the history, secular or religious: proclaiming the gospel to 2 to 3 million people each night in Seoul, Korea during the Here's Life Korea World Evangelization Crusade; and speaking on nationwide TV to a minimum of 100-250 million viewers embracing the whole of the former Soviet Union on Easter day 1990.

You may say that this is only because I am Bill Bright. But Bill Bright was just a ranch teenager in Oklahoma, then an ordinary businessman in California until Jesus got hold of me, called me, empowered and equipped me by His Holy Spirit, and gave me a job to do.

Jesus said, "You will receive power..." (Acts 1:8, NIV); "I have given you authority to ... overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you" (Luke 10:19, NIV); and "I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father" (John 14:12, NIV).

If you have received Christ and are filled with His Holy Spirit, you are no longer weak and inadequate. Within you is the power behind the whole universe -- God's power -- just waiting to be released, by faith, in your life and in your world!

Claiming Our Freedom from Sin's Control

Claiming Our Freedom from Sin's Control
by Charles R. Swindoll

Romans 6:11 NLT

In the wonderful sixth chapter of Romans, Paul presents three techniques for living by grace, above sin's domination. I find each one linked to a particular term he uses:

Know—"Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? Knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; . . . knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him" (vv. 3, 6, 9).

Consider—"Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus" (v. 11).

Present—"And do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God" (v. 13).

In order for us to live free from sin's control, free from the old master, with the power to walk a new kind of life, we have to know something, we have to considersomething, and we have to present something.

Christ died for us on the cross. He was raised from the dead for us at the tomb. When we believed in the Savior's death and resurrection, we were "dipped" into the same scene. Our identity was changed. We didn't feel it, we didn't see it, we didn't hear it, but it occurred, nevertheless. When we came to Christ, we were placed into Him as His death became ours, His victorious resurrection became ours, His "awakening" to new life became our "awakening," His powerful walk became our powerful walk. Before we can experience the benefits of all that, we have to know it. The Christian life is not stumbling along, hoping to keep up with the Savior. He lives in me and I live in Him. And in this identification with Him, His power becomes mine. His very life becomes my life, guaranteeing that His victory over sin is mine to claim. I no longer need to live as a slave to sin.

"Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God" (vv. 8–10).

You will meet well-meaning Christians who teach about crucifying oneself. But I have good news for you: That has already been done. You are in Christ. He was crucified once for all. He died for you so you never need to die again. Because we have our identification with Him, we have all the power needed to live the rest of our lives above the drag and dregs of slavery. Death to sin is an accomplished act, a finished fact. It has all been taken care of. A victorious walk begins with our knowingthis fact. Christ's "Emancipation Proclamation" has put to death the whole idea of slavery to sin. Having died to sin's power, we are now free to serve our new Master.

 

ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE

ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE: "Rejoice...pray...give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus...." 1Thes5:16-18 wp.me/p29yfQ-lv

PRAYER

PRAYER: "...Jesus offered up prayers...to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard...." Heb5:7 wp.me/p29yfQ-lq

Four Antilegalistic Strategies

Four Antilegalistic Strategies
by Charles R. Swindoll

Galatians 5:1 NLT

Grace killers cannot be mildly ignored or kindly tolerated. You can no more allow legalism to continue than you could permit a rattlesnake to slip into your house and hide. Before long, somebody is going to get hurt. So then, since liberty is worth fighting for, how do we do it? Where can our personal grace awakening begin? I can think of four strong strategies:

Keep standing firm in your freedom. I'm reminded of what Paul wrote in Galatians 5:1: "It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery." Stand your ground. Ask the Lord to give you courage.

Stop seeking the favor of everyone. This may be a stubborn habit to break, but it is really worth all the effort you can muster. If you're in a group where you feel you are being coerced to do certain things that are against your conscience or you're being pressured to stop doing things that you see no problem with, get out of the group! You're unwise to stay in situations where your conscience tells you it is not right. That is nothing more than serving men, not God. I don't care how spiritual sounding it may be. Stop seeking the favor of everybody.

Start refusing to submit to bondage. Call it what it is: slavery. It's trying to be "spiritual" by performance. Think of how delightful it would be to get rid of all the anxiety that comes with the bondage to which you have submitted yourself; think how clean you could feel by being real again, or perhaps real for the first time in your adult life.

Continue being straightforward about the truth. That means live honestly. If you don't agree, say so kindly but firmly. If you are the only one, be true to yourself and stand alone. When you blow it, say, "I blew it." If you don't know, admit the truth. It's okay not to know. And the next time your kids spot hypocrisy, even though you may feel embarrassed, agree with them, "You know what, kids? You're right. I was a first-class hypocrite. What you saw and pointed out is exactly right." Tell them that. It may sound embarrassing to you now, but they will admire and respect your admission. And they won't grow up damaged. Best of all, they will learn to model the same kind of vulnerability and honesty, even if you are in vocational Christian work . . . especially if you're in vocational Christian work. Nobody expects perfection, but they do and they should expect honesty.

We need affirmation and encouragement to be all we're meant to be, and because so many are rather delicate within, they need those who are strong to assist them in their fight for liberty. And so, if for no other reason, liberty is worth fighting for so others can breathe freely.

If fighting for liberty sounds too aggressive to you, perhaps too selfish, then think of it as fighting so others can be set free—so others can be awakened to the joys and privileges of personal freedom. Those who do that on real battlefields are called patriots or heroes. With all my heart, I believe those who square off against legalism should be considered the same.

 

Blueprint for Life

I once read about a study in which a sample of people were asked to identify the most well-known scripture in the Bible. The majority of those who responded said, “God helps those who help themselves.” This in fact, is not found anywhere in the Bible. Instead, God has clearly defined that those who are dependent upon him are those he helps and delights in.

Psalm 147:10-11 says, “His [God’s] pleasure is not in the strength of the horse nor his delight in the legs of a man. The LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in [depend on] his unfailing love.”

Additionally, Proverbs 3:5-6 is a beautiful picture of how God helps those who depend on Him: ”Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.”

Even Jesus did not preach that God helps those who help themselves. Instead, he preached dependence on God. He said, “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can only do what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does, the Son does also.” (John 5:19)

In 1 Corinthians 1:25-29 it says that God delights in the foolish things of the world, the weak things, the lowly things, and the despised things. God delights in those who are desperate for Him—because it’s how He glorifies Himself.

Most of us can name a time or two when we have felt helpless. We have been lost, confused, or disheartened. But God never abandoned us (Hebrews 13:5). Our abilities don’t earn us God’s help; He helps us simply because He is good and He is love. Christian musician and singer Tammy Trent has experienced this truth first hand.

In 2001, Tammy’s husband, her high school sweetheart, died in a free diving accident in the Blue Lagoon in Jamaica on September 10, 2001. The next day, which happened to be 9/11, no planes were flying, and thus she couldn’t get home. She was all alone.

In her book Learning to Breathe Again, Tammy writes that she lay on the bathroom floor of her hotel room and wailed. “I sobbed and moaned and cried so loudly the hard-tiled walls of the bathroom seemed to echo every sound.” In the midst of her pain, Tammy somehow mustered the courage to pray: God, I’m not asking for a hundred angels; I’m just asking for one special angel, just one angel who could hold me right now. God, you’re so big. . . if you can hear me, if you care. . . please do this for me.

Tammy got up and looked out the bathroom doorway. A Jamaican woman, a housekeeper with a concerned look on her face, came in the room and said, “Oh! I’ve been trying to get to you. I could hear you crying. I’ve been trying to get to you.” She paused and stepped toward Tammy. “Could I just come in and hold you?” she asked. Tammy bit her lip and nodded. The woman wrapped her arms around Tammy as she leaned in, dropped her head on the woman’s shoulder, and cried. God showed up in the middle of Tammy’s desperation by sending her an angel in a housekeeping uniform. Through her experience, God has become more real to Tammy.

Whether you feel desperate about your wayward child, losing a spouse, unemployment, or navigating your way toward your purpose, God is always available. Just call out to Him.

He helps those cannot help themselves.

-Taken from Blueprint for Life

GLAD TO BE ME

GLAD TO BE ME: "...I heard the voice of the Lord saying, Whom shall I send...? ...I said, Here I am! Send me.” Is6:8 wp.me/p29yfQ-lj

SERVE THE LORD

SERVE THE LORD: "...choose...whom you will serve, but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord." Josh24:15 wp.me/p29yfQ-l2

Up with People

Up with People

The Bible says to "store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal" (Matthew 6:20). Which means what exactly?

We understand the part about not storing up "treasures on earth" (verse 19). We get it that we can't take our stuff with us into eternity. We never see a hearse pulling a moving van. We know that. But "treasures in heaven." What are those? And how do they become part of our life's purpose?

Every person you know or meet is an eternal being. Some, by God's grace and their faith in his son, Jesus Christ, will live with him forever. Some won't. But because each of us has an eternal soul, one way to store up "treasures in heaven" is by investing your life in other people—in your wife, your children, your work associates and employees, your neighbors, your friends, even people who cross your path in seemingly random fashion. We're not to regard them anymore "from a worldly point of view," the Bible says (2 Corinthians 5:16). We're to see them as a teller window for depositing our time, our attention, our concern, even just a kind "hello" made with deliberate eye contact.

Not every heavenly investment is transacted at church or in some other so-called spiritual setting. Just about anywhere you go, there's a branch near you.

Pray this prayer: God, help me to spend more time noticing the people around me and their needs—and less time focused on simply knocking out agenda items and daily objectives. I want my treasures in heaven, not here.

 

ON PURPOSE FOR HIS PURPOSE

ON PURPOSE FOR HIS PURPOSE: “...everything got started in him and finds its purpose in him.” Col1:16 wp.me/p29yfQ-l7 #purpose #Christ

ADVERSITY

ADVERSITY: "...For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son...." Rom8:28-29 wp.me/p29yfQ-le

Defining Liberty, Part One

Defining Liberty, Part One
by Charles R. Swindoll

Romans 7:24-25 NLT

Without becoming needlessly academic, I want to define a term that I've been tossing around. What do I mean when I declare that the Christian has liberty? Essentially, liberty is freedom . . . freedom from something and freedom to dosomething. Today I will concentrate on what our liberty gives us freedom from.

Liberty is freedom from slavery or bondage. It is initially freedom from sin's power and guilt. Freedom from God's wrath. Freedom from satanic and demonic authority. And equally important, it is freedom from shame that could easily bind me, as well as freedom from the tyranny of others' opinions, obligations, and expectations.

There was a time in my life without Christ when I had no freedom from the urges and impulses within me. I was at the mercy of my master Satan and sin was my lifestyle. When the urges grew within me, I had nothing to hold me in check, nothing to restrain me. It was an awful bondage.

For example, in my personal life I was driven by jealousy for many miserable years. It was consuming. I served it not unlike a slave serves a master. Then there came a day when I was spiritually awakened to the charming grace of God and allowed it to take full control, and almost before I knew it the jealousy died. And I sensed for the first time, perhaps in my whole life, true love; the joy, the romance, the spontaneity, the free-flowing creativity brought about by the grace of a faithful wife, who would love me no matter what, who was committed to me in faithfulness for all her life. That love and that commitment motivated me to love in return more freely than ever. I no longer loved out of fear that I would lose her, but I loved out of the joy and the blessing connected with being loved unconditionally and without restraint.

Now that Christ has come into my life and I have been awakened to His grace, He has provided a freedom from that kind of slavery to sin. And along with that comes a freedom that brings a fearlessness, almost a sense of invincibility in the presence of the adversity. This power, keep in mind, is because of Christ, who lives within me.

In addition, He has also brought a glorious freedom from the curse of the Law. By that I mean freedom from the constancy of its demands to perform in order to please God and/or others. It is a freedom from the fear of condemnation before God as well as from an accusing conscience. Freedom from the demands of other people, from all the shoulds and oughts of the general public.

Such freedom is motivated—motivated by unconditional love. When the grace of Christ is fully awake in your life, you find you're no longer doing something due to fear or out of shame or because of guilt, but you're doing it through love. The dreadful tyranny of performing in order to please someone is over . . . forever.

Transformed by Trials

It was once asked to a sculpturer who was in the process of working on a sculpture of a horse. “How to you fashion a figure out of rock and in this case a horse?” The reply was “ I just knock everything off that does not look like a horse.”

Transformed by Trials

In His Presence: Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials (James 1:2).

The television show “Extreme Makeover” puts people through all kinds of adverse circumstances so that they might look better than they did when they started the makeover process. They undergo surgical procedures, grueling workouts, and physical pain in order to be transformed into something beautiful.

One of the primary ways God makes us more like Christ is by allowing us to face trouble. To conform us into the image of Christ, we don’t just need minor surgery--we require major transformation. In fact, God has to put a brand new nature inside us. Just as a sculptor chips away at a piece of marble to turn it into a beautiful sculpture, God uses trials to chip away at us, sculpting us to resemble the image of Christ.

One Minute Please

Like a photographer developing his film in a darkroom, God develops a beautiful photograph of Christlikeness in us when we go through dark times.

 

HUMBLE HEART

HUMBLE HEART: "...Humble yourselves...under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time....” 1Ptr5:5-6 wp.me/p29yfQ-kU

Complete and Effective Divinity

Complete and Effective Divinity – Oswald Chambers

April 11, 2013

If we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection . . . —Romans 6:5

Co-Resurrection. The proof that I have experienced crucifixion with Jesus is that I have a definite likeness to Him. The Spirit of Jesus entering me rearranges my personal life before God. The resurrection of Jesus has given Him the authority to give the life of God to me, and the experiences of my life must now be built on the foundation of His life. I can have the resurrection life of Jesus here and now, and it will exhibit itself through holiness.

The idea all through the apostle Paul’s writings is that after the decision to be identified with Jesus in His death has been made, the resurrection life of Jesus penetrates every bit of my human nature. It takes the omnipotence of God— His complete and effective divinity— to live the life of the Son of God in human flesh. The Holy Spirit cannot be accepted as a guest in merely one room of the house— He invades all of it. And once I decide that my “old man” (that is, my heredity of sin) should be identified with the death of Jesus, the Holy Spirit invades me. He takes charge of everything. My part is to walk in the light and to obey all that He reveals to me. Once I have made that important decision about sin, it is easy to “reckon” that I am actually “dead indeed to sin,” because I find the life of Jesus in me all the time (Romans 6:11). Just as there is only one kind of humanity, there is only one kind of holiness— the holiness of Jesus. And it is His holiness that has been given to me. God puts the holiness of His Son into me, and I belong to a new spiritual order.

 

JOYFUL IN GOD

JOYFUL IN GOD: "Though the fig tree does not bud & there are no grapes...I will rejoice in the Lord..." Habk 3:17-19 wp.me/p29yfQ-kO

SPIRIT OF TRUTH

SPIRIT OF TRUTH: "...I will ask the Father, & he will give you another Counselor - the Spirit of truth...."Jn14:15-17 wp.me/p29yfQ-kJ

ALL IN

ALL IN: “...Love the Lord your God with all...This is the first and greatest commandment." Mt22:37-38 wp.me/p29yfQ-kw #allin #Christ

SEALED IN HIM

SEALED IN HIM – Neil Anderson

Ephesians 1:13

Having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise

After King Saul disobeyed God (1 Samuel 15), we're told that "the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD terrorized him" (1 Samuel 16:14). This is a difficult passage for two reasons. First, it seems to imply that a person can lose the Holy Spirit by an act of disobedience. But it must be understood that the presence of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament was selective and temporary. The Spirit involved with Saul was probably the same Spirit involved with David in verse 13: a special equipping of the Spirit for ruling as God's anointed king. This unique equipping is not the same as the personal relationship in the Spirit that we enjoy with God as His children today.

Beginning after the cross, the church is identified by the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, who forever unites the children of God with their heavenly Father (Ephesians 1:13, 14). Jesus promised that no one shall snatch us out of His hand (John 10:28), and Paul assured that nothing--not even disobedience--can separate us from the love of God (Romans 8:35-39). We are secure in Christ and indwelt by His Spirit through faith in the work of Christ on the cross.

The second problem concerns the bothersome idea that an evil spirit could come from the Lord. But we must remember that God is supreme, and He can use Satan and his emissaries as a means to discipline His people as He did with Saul. It is not inconsistent with the nature or plan of God to use anything to accomplish His will. Even the church is permitted to turn a grossly immoral member over to Satan "for the destruction of his flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus" (1 Corinthians 5:5). Why? Allowing people to experience the natural consequences of their actions has always been an effective means of discipline.

Do you want to do the devil's bidding? Go ahead, and maybe the painful consequences you suffer from your immorality will turn you back to God.

Prayer: Thank You, Lord, for sealing me in Christ by Your Spirit. Help me live obediently today as an expression of thanks for what you have done.

 

FEAR NOT

FEAR NOT: “...Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.” Is43:1 wp.me/p29yfQ-kC #fearnot #Jesus

FACE IN THE MIRROR

FACE IN THE MIRROR: “Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror...then I shall know fully....” 1Cor13:12 wp.me/p29yfQ-ks #Christ

SEATED WITH CHRIST

SEATED WITH CHRIST – Dr. Neil Anderson

Ephesians 2:4-6

God . . . made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus

The New Testament clearly reveals that Christ's power and authority over Satan and his kingdom have been conferred to those of us who are in Christ. In Ephesians 2:4-6, Paul explains that when Christ was raised from the dead, those of us who have believed in Him were also resurrected from our condition of spiritual death and made alive "together with Christ." It's only logical that the head (Christ) and the body (His church) should be raised together.

Furthermore, when God seated Christ at His right hand and conferred on Him all authority (Ephesians 1:20, 21), He also seated us at His right hand and conferred on us through Christ all authority because we are "together with Christ." The moment you receive Christ, you take possession of what God did for you 2000 years ago. Your identity as a child of God and your authority over spiritual powers are not things you are receiving or will receive at some time in the future; you have them right now. You are a spiritually-alive child of God right now . You are seated in the heavenlies with Christ right now . You have power and authority over the kingdom of darkness right now . We have the authority because of our position in Christ, and we have the power when we are filled with the Holy Spirit.

Paul also related this life-changing truth in his letter to the Colossians: "In Him [Christ] you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority" (Colossians 2:10). Notice again that the action is past: We have been made complete. When? At the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ. And since Christ is the God-appointed head over all rule and authority, and since we are seated with Him in the heavenlies, we have the authority and power to live responsible lives.

Prayer: Father, help me want to live responsibly, to claim my position as Your child, and to grow to full stature in You

 

GLORIOUS JOY

GLORIOUS JOY: “..even though you do not see him..you believe & are filled with an inexpressible & glorious joy”1Pt1:8 wp.me/p29yfQ-k8

A BLAMELESS CONSCIENCE – Dr. Neil Anderson

A BLAMELESS CONSCIENCE – Dr. Neil Anderson

Acts 24:16

I also do my best to maintain always a blameless conscience both before God and before men

Folklore advises, "Let your conscience be your guide." This has serious limitations since our conscience is a function of our mind. Having been conformed to this world, the conscience can be programmed wrongly. It is always true to its own standard. Until we come to Christ, the standard is the world system in which we were raised. Many people are falsely guided by a guilty conscience--not a true guilt, but a psychological guilt usually developed in early childhood. Satan works through this stronghold to accuse the brethren day and night (Revelation 12:10).

People like this are usually perfectionists who labor under condemnation, even though the Bible says there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8;1). They aren't led; they are driven. They constantly look for affirmation. They have a tendency to be man-pleasers. Paul said, "If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ" (Galatians 1:10). If you are striving to please men, of whom are you a bond-servant?

Since our minds were conformed to this world, we need to renew them in such a way that what we believe is in accordance with truth. Chapter 14 of Romans deals with how we should walk in regard to nonmoral issues. Paul says, "The faith which you have, have as your own conviction before God. Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves" (Romans 14:22).

However, we are to restrict our freedom if it causes a weaker brother to stumble. We never have the right to violate another person's conscience. Paul says, "I also do my best to maintain always a blameless conscience both before God and before men" (Acts 24:16). Be very cautious about going against your own conscience once you are committed to Christ. The Holy Spirit does work through our consciences as He seeks to renew our minds.

Prayer: Thank You, Lord, that my mind and conscience can be renewed daily through the power of Your Word.

 

 

HOPE FOR TODAY AND TOMORROW

“Many people say the Bible is a myth, but they’re myth-taken, myth-guided, and myth-erabel”. – Vance Havner

 

HOPE FOR TODAY AND TOMORROW

1 John 3:2, 3

Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we shall be. We know that, when He appears, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.

As children of the sinful first Adam, we were obstinate and ornery, helpless and hopeless, with nothing in ourselves to commend us to God. But God's love overruled our unloveliness. Through Christ God provided a way for us into His family. As God's adopted child, you have been given a new identity and a new name. You're no longer a spiritual orphan; you're a son or daughter of God. Romans 8:16, 17, tells us, "The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ."

If you're beginning to think you are some one special as a Christian, you're thinking right--you are special! Your specialness is not the result of anything you have done, of course. It's all God's doing. All you did was respond to God's invitation to be His child. But as a child of God, in union with God by being in Christ, you have every right to enjoy your special relationship with your new Father.

How important is it to know who you are in Christ? There are countless numbers of Christians who struggle with day-to-day behavior because they labor under a false perception of who they are. They see themselves as sinners who hope to make it into heaven by God's grace, but they can't seem to live above their sinful tendencies. Why can't they live the victorious Christian life? Because they have a misperception of who they are in Christ.

But look again at the hope-filled words of 1 John 3:2, 3. What is the believer's hope? That he will someday be changed into Christ's image? That's part of it, but that's only a future hope. What is your hope for today and tomorrow? That you're a child of God now ! You must see yourself as a child of God in order to live like a child of God. The blessed hope for the believer is "Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Colossians 1:27).

Prayer: Thank You, Father, for the glorious hope of being Your child. I want to live in the security and blessing of that reality today.

 

 

Sid Stewart

Executive Director

864 226-6193

www.havenofrest.cc

COMMITMENT

COMMITMENT: “...let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us...." Heb. 12:1-2 contemplationsoftheword.com #run #win #Christ #victory

RICH IN GOOD DEEDS:

 "...be rich in good deeds...In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves....”1Tim6:18-19 wp.me/p29yfQ-kn

Where the Wrath and Love of God Meet – Dr. Charles Stanley

“Mercy and truth have met together; Righteousness and peace have kissed” (Psalm 85:10)

 

Romans 3:23-26

In our culture, sin is no longer considered an issue. Although some people might admit to making mistakes or being wrong, few will actually say, "I have sinned." The Lord, however, takes sin very seriously. Until we learn to see transgression as He does, we will never understand what happened at Christ's crucifixion.

The cross was God's perfect answer to a terrible dilemma. Because the Lord is holy and just, He hates sin and must respond to it with punishment and wrath. Yet He also loves sinners and wants to be reconciled with them. The cross of Christ was the place where God's wrath and love collided.

The only way to rescue fallen mankind from eternal punishment was to devise a plan whereby the Lord could forgive sins without compromising His holiness. There was no way to overlook transgressions; His wrath had to be poured out--either on us or a substitute. But there was only one possible substitute: the perfect Son of God.

So Jesus came to earth as a man and suffered the Lord's wrath for us as He hung on the cross. Sin was punished, divine justice was satisfied, and now God could forgive mankind without compromising His character. His wrath was poured out on His Son so that His love and forgiveness could be lavished upon us.

Because of human limitations, we'll never grasp all that happened while Jesus hung on the cross. We can begin to comprehend only the physical suffering He endured, but in the spiritual realm, Christ bore so much more--the very wrath of God. This costly redemption plan proves God's great love.