Hey! Check out this quick video and then read the blog post below!
You Against You = Not What GOD wants
Matthew 12:25 – Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, ‘Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.’…”
When I am against myself – I will not stand.
But we say, “No – I must die and Christ must live.” Yes – but check this out – is God against you or for you?
For you.
We shouldn’t be against ourselves, but be for ourselves – who we are in Jesus Christ.
What Christ said wasn’t to constantly cut yourself down, but to lose yourself and make Him Lord.
Bringing yourself down all the time will get you nowhere – trust me, I know. Rather than cutting ourselves down (which is notwhat Christ wants us to do), we must be for ourselves as people of Christ.
Believe in Christ’s power in your life – believe – believe – believe- & be.
A house divided against itself will fall.
But stand in & let Christ’s power work through you in everything you do (Philippians 4:13).
Say to yourself, “This is one house not divided – but secure with the foundation of Jesus Christ.”
Fruit-caking wake up and experience the power we have to overcome everything in Jesus Christ!!! Don't be divided against yourself.
Q-&-A:
1)Where have you been cutting yourself down the most? How has that been productive? Realize that cutting yourself down is counter-productive to building yourself and God's Kingdom up.
2)What does God say about you? Don’t believe lies that Satan tells you, but look through the Bible & write down 5 things that God says about you. (i.e.: He made you in His image…; For God so loved you that He sent His one and only Son…)
3)Pray, simply, that God would help you overcome your problem areas of self-image and that He’d give you His strength to conquer & overcome for His Glory. That He'd let you see yourself as He sees you. Believe.
Another disciple said to him, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” But Jesus told him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”Mt 8:21-22
The time Jesus had on earth was short - and He devoted it to training and instructing others.
Jesus' response to a man is very important here - He recognized what was most important and kept to it.
I tend to be swayed by other peoples' desires. I'd say, "Ok, we'll wait for you." But Jesus was saying, "We're heading this way, either hop on or get our of the way!"
LEADership. Jesus had a great, big convoy and he knew where He was leading it. He knew what not to stop for.
He had direction, motivation & education.
Direction - We're healing & teaching til the cross Motivation - I love God & these people... Education (of where to put His time) - We won't stop here - or there. We must keep moving. He knew where not to stop.
Do you know where NOT to stop? Do you have a "To-Don't" list?
I really need to make one...
Keep your eyes on the goal. Eagle-eye it. Don't ignore people, but say, "This is where I'm heading - I need to know if you want to join me or not."
What do you need to no longer stop for? In other words, what's holding you back from running with what you've been called to do?
What have you been called to do?
Write down these three things: 1) Direction - where you're heading 2) Motivation - your motivation for your direction 3) Education - your knowledge of where not to stop.
The Bible says in Ecclesiastes 12:1 – “Remember your Creator, in the days of your youth…”
Why would God’s Word tell us to remember Him…?
It must be because He knows it’s so easy to forget Him in these years of our lives.
Think about it: how many days & activities have you ventured through…all without keeping God in mind?
I surely find myself forgetting God in areas of my day.
But the Bible says to “Remember your Creator, in the days of your youth…”
Every day.
It also says, in 2 Timothy 2:8, “Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead…”
Yet I don’t always remember him.
This is where the solution comes into play: spending your morning with Them.
It's not a complete fix to the problem, but it greatlyhelps. It sets order!
In the New Testament, the Bible says “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed…” (Mark 1:35)
Alone time with God is so extremely vital. Especially morning time, when we get up – it’s such a vital part of starting our day. In fact, it’s so important, that Jesus did it.
I encourage you to start your day off (tomorrow or today) in alone time with God – because this will help you focus on and remember Him throughout the day. Go ahead, set your phone calendar/alarm now! And do it!
Remember………remember. Never forget…
Why? Because what needed to be forgotten is forgotten (see below), now it’s time to constantly remember God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit….the love….and it’s time to praise.
“For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more."
“Remember your Creator, in the days of your youth…”
If you do not have a relationship with Jesus Christ…with God…then I encourage you to read Romans 10:9-13 here: http://read.ly/Rom10.9.NIV
And know this: He wants a relationship with you. If you want to know more about how to start a relationship with God, then I encourage you to FB message me or txt/call me @ 405-315-4837!
Rememba’!
Time-to-Talk!:
Q1: Have you been remembering God? Be honest here, because dishonesty to yourself in this question will only lead to more problems.
Q2: Where do you drift away from God (time-wise) the most? Where do you lose track of Him?
In response to your answer on Q2, I propose this: Start seeking God in the front, middle, and end of those times. It is vital - so vital - because nothing is more important than God, even though everything around us is trying to compete for what He deserves - our thoughts, attitudes, hearts, minds, and strengths.
Remember!
Let's get some convo going! (P.s.: Don't forget to set your schedule with God for tomorrow morning - first thing to do out of bed!)
In this series we are looking at how, already having a relationship with Jesus Christ, we need to live our lives.
This week we are observing Scripture surrounding Jesus, relating to how we can be stress and burden -free.
:) God bless ya!
Verses:
You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth? That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. "A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough." I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion will pay the penalty, whoever he may be. Galatians 5:7-10
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Galatians 5:1
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30
Time-to-Talk:
Where have you been stressing out the most?
Why?
Why have you been carrying the weight of that stress by yourself?
In the video above, we talked about how there are 3 things I see that Christ implements in hid daily life: Trusting God, Spending valuable (personal) time with God, and loving God and people. Step into Christs' ways (take His yoke), pray for help and watch how the stress washes away! Note: Don't give up. Keep going for it and believing :)
Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving.Ephesians 5:1-4
Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.Colossians 3:5-8
With the tongue we praise our LORD and FATHER, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. James 3:9-10
Just from the way you talk, do you think you are bringing praise to God?
Just from hearing what you say, would people think you are a follower of Jesus Christ? A Christian? A believer?
Me: I know I say things I shouldn't. I have a problem with coarse joking...but will fix it right now with God's help. How about you?
There comes a point in our lives where we have to ask ourselves, “Am I really fully surrendered to God?”
…if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is LORD,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.Romans 10:9-10
Grk: Kyrios: Lord, master, owner.
It’s hard, but it is so easy…I have to purposely pursue this. Denying myself and surrendering my life to my King. It’s hard, but it is so easy…because the Spirit of God enables me to do it.
Surrender
And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple…any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.Luke 14:27, 33
For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.Matthew 16:25
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16
----
Discussion Questions:
What is hindering you from fully surrendering to God?
Write out 2 things you need to move out of the way of your path with God.
Write out 2 things you need to, and purposely will, move into your journey with God.
When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them…Acts 2:1-4
Part of the above can also be written like this: Suddenly a sound like the carrying of a strong breath came from the residence of God and filled the whole house where they were sitting…
Sound a little weird? Mysterious? Cool? Yes, yes annnnnnd heck yes!
Do you want to hear something else strange? I believe it.
You could call me a nut, or insult me even further by reversing it and calling me a tun, but either way I’ve got to say it: I completely believe it.
Why? Because I can totally understand it. I’ve experienced the Holy Spirit too.
Here’s the point I want to make: As a believer in Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit is living inside of you (Mark 1:8).
Understand and see that the power of the One who shook a building with a single breath is living within you – if you are in Jesus Christ. What does that mean?
For me, it means that when I feel weak, depressed, stressed and burnt out, the Spirit of God changes me and refreshes me. The Spirit of God can do way more in & through me than I can by myself.
Realize who is in you. Draw closer to the Holy Spirit and seek its presence, guidance and help throughout your life. Then praise God for this glorious Counselor!
Wait…….but how do we get the Spirit of God within us? We surely aren’t born with His Spirit inside of us...we're born with sinful natures. In the Bible, John the Baptist answers this question quite clearly, saying, “I baptize you with water, but he [Jesus Christ] will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” (Mark 1:8) Now, remember that what is contained in Scripture is theopneustos, the very breath of God – so these are trustworthy words.
It is by believing in the name of Jesus Christ, and by declaring him LORD, that we are saved from our sins, given eternal life and receive the Holy Spirit.
We are submersed into the One who shook a building – the Spirit of God is living in you as a believer. Now, walk with passion, burden and urgency! :)
I encourage you to pray through this week and weekend, and to make a regular habit of praying, for yourself to recognize the power and blessing of the Holy Spirit more and more.
How has the Holy Spirit of God impacted your life?
RSS Feed