Tuesday, February 19, 2013

All Day, Everyday

"Then came one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name, and seeing him, he fell at his feet and implored him earnestly, saying, "My little daughter is at the point of death.  Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live." - Mark 5:22-23

Implore: to beg, call, or pray earnestly or desperately

Comfort and ease often crowd out our understanding of the need for Christ.  We need to understand that our need for Jesus in our lives in all day, everyday!  Often times we don't think God cares about us so we don't implore Him, we don't talk with Him, and we don't walk with Him.  We don't believe that God can do something because in our minds we limit His power because of our lack of faith.

"When I look at your heavens, the word of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?"
- Psalm 8:3-4

We need God all day, everyday!  May we walk and talk with Him and let Him know how much we need Him.

Saturday, February 16, 2013

You Shall...

"And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.  You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.  You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.  You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates." - Deuteronomy 6:6-9

The word shall simply means a command.  God commands us to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, and might.  We are also commanded to keep God's words on our heart, to teach them to our children, to constantly talk about them, and to always keep them in our sight.

God gives a great recipe for how to love him.  When his word is on our heart our emotions are engaged.  We ponder the truths of Scripture and allow them to fight against the lies that have a domino effect on our emotions.  Greater responsibility comes when you have someone that is watching you.  When you are raising children or discipling people there is a responsibility to teach God's word.  Children and people watch your life closely and we need to be examples.  Finally we need to keep God's word constantly in our minds.  We need to see it, read it, and always be thinking about it.

Saturday, February 2, 2013

Drifting

"In the Christian life, if you do not go forward, you go backward; there is no permanent standing still." - Warren Wiersbe

There is a deceptive drift that we as followers of Jesus Christ can fall victim to.  It starts with neglect, we stop spending time reading and meditating on the Scriptures.  Next comes entertaining lies which incites doubt in your life.  You begin to question God's character and your heart starts to harden. Bitterness, distrust, envy, and ungodly attributes start to take over your life.  The drifting continues as your life becomes sluggish, God's word tastes stale and feels dull.  Church or church people become hypocrites and you want nothing to do with them.  You start to isolate and become hard hearted to the things of God and the people of God.  In the end you become hardened by sin stop listening to God.

"But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called "today," that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin." - Hebrews 3:13

It is important for us to examine our lives and examine our hearts.  We must help each other stay focused on loving God and one another while understanding His grace to radically change those of us who have hardened our hearts.

Are you asking God for a spirit of humility to show you how you have drifted?  Let us exhort and encourage one another EVERY day to not be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.