TAKING TIME FOR GOD

Psalm 73:26

My flesh and my heart fail; But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

 Because of our sinful nature, it is so easy to let our weaknesses tempt us and walk the wrong direction, but because God lives within us and loves us we can lean on Him to be our strength for everything. When was the last time you asked God for strength and direction? Better question is when was the last time you thanked him for giving us that strength. So many times we ask God for something and then when He provides us with it we forget to thank him. We have to remember we are not perfect, but to God a successful day is making time for Him even if nothing else gets done.

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Climbing That Mountain

1 Thessalonians 4:1-2

Finally then, brethren, we urge and exhort in the Lord Jesus that you should abound more and more, just as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, for you know what commandments we gave you through the Lord Jesus.

There are many stunning and awe-inspiring landscapes that the Lord has created on Earth and few are more magnificent than the plateau of Mount Roraima. Known as the “floating island” with cliffs rising 1,200 feet and an appearance of a flat surface resting above the clouds is breathtaking not only for the local hiker but even for the novice internet surfer. As beautiful as this plateau is, the Lord did not create it for believers to model in their spiritual lives. Plainly stated, Christians we are not to plateau in their faith.  The Christian faith is a climbing of a mountain which can be difficult at times as we leave the world farther and farther behind us trying to reach the Lord at the top of the mountain. The closer we get to the Lord the more we can see Him and His character and the more we should be molded into the likeness of Christ. Paul’s statement is reminding us that we should be flourishing in our faith not being stagnant. We should be eager to learn new things about the Lord. We should be seeking out for His guidance and instruction. Reading scripture, surrounding ourselves with other believers, prayer, discipleship, sharing the good news are all important elements of flourishing in the faith. Without these components being active in our life we will begin to camp out on the mountain searching for the plateau to easily scale across. Let’s not get into that complacent mode, let’s keep climbing, let’s keep growing, and let’s keep becoming more and more like Christ!

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Proverbs 3:3



Proverbs 3:3

³ Let not mercy and truth leave you;
Bind them around your neck,
Write them on the tablet of your heart

 

Mercy and truth are virtues of God that as Christians we cling to for our strength. His mercy that he shows us on a daily basis is more than we deserve. His truth is absolute, meaning it is not dependent on anyone or anything else. In a chaotic world we need a solid foundation to fall back on, to lean on, when times get hard. Let God’s mercy and truth be that foundation you build your life on.

We are to take His amazing mercy and truth and bind it around our neck. What this verse is referring to is that these things become part of us - outwardly, as in our behavior, for all to see as a sign of our changed nature and commitment to God. We are not to be ashamed of His mercy or truth, in fact we want everyone to know about it!

This outward display should of course be a reflection of a true inward change. God desires a permanent change in our lives, which is why we are to write His mercy and truth on the tablet of our heart - tablets are permanent. Once you write on a tablet, there is no erasing, there is no undoing. As God’s children, we will forever have His mercy and truth written on our hearts.  

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Fruit of the Spirit

 

Philippians 1: 9-10

 

⁹ And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, ¹⁰ that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, ¹¹ being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

As a Christian our communication should always be open to God. We should always be asking for His will to be done in our lives. Our Father wants nothing more than for us to feel  the love and understanding He has for us, but in order for Him to teach us that same love, compassion and righteousness we must constantly be asking Him to show us those things and to teach us how to use then. God wants us to be filled with the fruits of His spirit, but good are the fruits to us if we do not use them in our everyday lives. He blesses us beyond understanding over and over, but somehow tend to thank man rather than our Father. When we take the law and the fruits He has given us and use them to share His love with others His blessing become understandable and His direction becomes knowledge that we will pass on to others till Christ come back.

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