My Spiritual Journey

when I was sinking down, sinking down sinking down, when I was sinking down, sinking down. when I...

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 22:59:57 -0400

when I was sinking down, sinking down sinking down, when I was sinking down, sinking down.

when I was sinking down, beneath God’s righteous frown, Christ laid aside His crown for my soul.

What wondrous love is this?

christiangirl21: “Love the LORD your God with all your heart...

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 12:01:43 -0400

“Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” - Deuteronomy 6:5.

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Fri, 14 Jun 2013 00:00:04 -0400

I was wondering, what do you do that helps when you feel that your slipping from Gods grace? I know everyone that are followers of Christ have moment where the feel like there not doing enough to serve Christ. I just want to know what do you do to make sure you stay on track with Christ. Thanks for answering this.

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 22:00:39 -0400

I think the best thing to do is to talk to God about it. I have a tendency to feel guilty when I wander from God, and not talk to Him because of this guilt I am feeling. but in reality He is forgiving and wants most of all to be close to us.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.~Romans 8:1

what is “doing enough to serve Christ”? yes, Jesus wants us to serve Him, but our faith is not determined by our works. remember, it is Him who saved us, not us who saved us. we did nothing to save ourselves. So yes, we should serve God, but there is no “not doing enough” or “doing too much” to serve Him. Everything we do should glorify Him.

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. ~1 corinthians 10:31

So to stay on track with God, the only logical thing to do is to keep in contact with Him. Speak to Him through prayer and let Him speak to you through the Gospel. When you have a friend, and you want to stay close to them, what do you do? you talk to them and they talk to you. thats how you stay in contact.

Hope this helps!

God Bless

spiritualinspiration: In life, we all go through a pruning...

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 13:19:19 -0400

spiritualinspiration:

In life, we all go through a pruning process. God will prune our lives so that we can bear much fruit. To “prune” means something is cut away, something is removed. In other words, maybe a good friend that you counted on moved to another city. Maybe a business shut down that you were connected to, or a relationship went a different direction.

Friend, God knows what you need in your life in order to grow and flourish. Sometimes when things happen that we don’t understand, we have to just trust that He is working behind the scenes preparing you for increase, preparing you to go to another level. Don’t put a question mark where God has placed a period.

When you’re going through transition, don’t get bitter. Don’t get down and think it’s the end. Don’t start thinking that you’re a failure. Have the attitude, “God, I let this go knowing that it was only temporary provision, and what You have in my future will be greater than what I’m letting go of.” If you will accept the change and stay in faith, God will open new doors. He will bring new opportunities, new friendships, and take you to another level of His glory!

Humble like Jesus (Part 4)

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 12:30:46 -0400

4. Application: unity through humility

Philippians 2:1-2

God has done so much for you. Now you have to do much for others. It isnt just about ourselves.

Philippians 2:3-4

³Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, ⁴not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

The needs of the people are way more important than your own needs.

Like chemotherapy eradicated cancer, humility eradicated pride. it will be painful, it will make you weak, but it kills the pride.

You can only be humble if you are a servant.

Philippians 2:9-11

Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
    and gave him the name that is above every name,
¹⁰that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
    in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
¹¹and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
    to the glory of God the Father.

Isaiah 45:23-24a~

By myself I have sworn,

my mouth has uttered in all integrity

    a word that will not be revoked:
Before me every knee will bow;
    by me every tongue will swear.
²⁴They will say of me, ‘In the Lord alone
    are deliverance and strength.’”
All who have raged against him
    will come to him and be put to shame.

The truth is, whether you want to hear it or not:

you are either going to have to humble yourself now before the Lord or be humiliated later. Every knee will bow, every tongue will confess, in shame or in joy or in surprise, that Jesus is Lord. Your pride will be your fall.

1 Corinthians 3:13~¹³their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work.

If we are humble and serve, God will honor your work.

I look around me and see people trying to fill up the void in their hearts with things that do...

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 00:11:00 -0400

I look around me and see people trying to fill up the void in their hearts with things that do nothing but make the void bigger. and they try everything: sex, careers, money, school, friends, and this void just engulfs them. They look at Christianity and laugh, thinking that Jesus was just a man. They dont realize that Jesus is the only thing that can not just fill the void, but redeem them. He is standing there, with arms outstretched, offering them this new life. but they just laugh and continue on the path to destruction.

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come...

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 00:06:19 -0400

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. John 10:10

did a video like this on my missions trip last yea. love it.

Denying Jesus

Tue, 11 Jun 2013 23:58:00 -0400

In my devotional tonight I was reading John 18. I was particularly drawn to Peter’s denial of Jesus. Even before I finished reading I thought to myself “I would never do something like that. deny Jesus? how could I possibly deny Jesus?”

Well lets take a look at the thought process behind Peter’s denial and how it relates to us:

What was Peter’s basis for this denial?

there are three parts to it:

1. His denial was based on pride

2. His denial was based on weakness/being human

3. His denial was based on fear

Peter was an interesting character. He was very dedicated to Jesus and His work, and Jesus used him greatly. He had a very strong personality to say the least. He is mentioned in the Bible many times and Jesus was very close to him. We have to remember however, that Peter was human. He often struggled with pride, fear, and other human flaws. He tended to rely on His own strength or doubt, and Jesus needed to correct him for it, such as the walking on water occasion.

Matther 14: 28-31

²⁸“Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”

²⁹“Come,” he said.

Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. ³⁰But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”

³¹Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”

So when we look at Matthew 26, we see Peter in a similar situation, claiming that he has strength that he has not. Jesus knows this and predicts that Peter will deny Him 3 times.

Before Jesus was arrested, He told Peter

Matthew 26: 34-35”³⁴Jesus said to him, Solemnly I declare to you, this very night, before a ^[i]single rooster crows, you will deny and disown Me three times.

³⁵Peter said to Him, Even if I must die with You, I will not deny ordisown You!

I am struck by the statement that Peter makes. He claims that before he will deny Jesus, he will die. That is a pretty big claim to make. First not believing Jesus when He tells him about what he is about to do, and then claiming that using the power that is within himself, he will do/not do something. This is the problem of pride. pride often causes us not to listen, not to hear what another, wiser person might be saying to you.

The second basis is human weakness/flaws.

“After the Last Supper, Jesus took His disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane to await His arrest. He told them to stay awake and pray while He went off to pray alone. When He returned to them, He found them sleeping. He warned Peter to stay awake and pray because although his spirit might be willing, his flesh was weak. But he fell asleep again and by the time the soldiers had come to arrest Jesus, it was too late to pray for the strength to endure the ordeal to come. No doubt his failure to appropriate the only means to shore up his own weakness—prayer— occurred to him as he was weeping bitterly after his denials. But Peter learned his lesson about being watchful, and he exhorts us in1 Peter 5:8, “Be on the alert, because your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” Peter’s weakness had caused him to be “devoured” momentarily as he denied his Lord because he hadn’t been prepared through prayer and he underestimated his own weakness.” (http://www.gotquestions.org/Peters-denial.html#ixzz2VyBfkJcz)

The third basis was fear. Although Peter boasted that he would never deny Jesus, never abandon Jesus, when he walked into an actual situation that would test these claims, Peter discovered that he was ill prepared for it. I twas easy to spew out words about what he could and couldnt do, but as soon as the real thing happened, he realized how weak he really was. When humans discover how weak they are, fear sets in. they realize how helpless and ill prepared they are, and in place of that false courage falls fear. Peter was afraid. Just like when he became afraid walking on water, the result was the same. He began to sink. over and over again he denied His Lord. “Earlier Jesus had warned His disciples as well as us today: “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first” (John 16:18;Matthew 24:9). Peter quickly found he wasn’t nearly as bold and courageous as he had proclaimed and in fear he denied the One who had loved him. (http://www.gotquestions.org/Peters-denial.html#ixzz2VyDD9CQJ)

So what does this have to do with us? A reoccurring topic that keeps coming up is pride/ faith in ourselves. We wander off on our own, telling ourselves that we are not capable of this sin or that sin, or that we have the strength to face the world alone. We attempt to walk on water, we attempt to be heroes, leaders. and this is our destruction. We begin to sink. We feel fear, we realize that our courage was false. We realize that pride is not enough. As Peter denied Jesus a third time “the Lord in trial looked out the window, their eyes connected.” “The Lord turned and looked upon Peter. And Peter remember the words of the Lord” (Luke 22:61).

³⁰But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” (Matthew 14:30)

What do we do when this happens?

“Lord, save me!” those simple words can make a big difference. Jesus wants to help you, He wants to pick you up.

^“31Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him.”

“Upon appearing to his disciples after the Resurrection, however, Jesus brings forgiveness, not retribution…To Peter, Jesus offers a three-fold opportunity for forgiveness, as is described in John 21:15-19. Peter is hurt when Jesus asks him a 3rd time, most likely because it made him recall his own three-fold denial of Jesus. This story…demonstrates how, despite his denial, Peter is restored – reconciled with Jesus – through Jesus’ forgiveness of sins.”

“He was equipping Peter to strengthen his brothers (Luke 22:32). Not only did Peter strengthen the other disciples. He became the pillar of the early church in Jerusalem, exhorting and training others to follow the Lord Jesus (Acts 2). And he continues to this day to strengthen us through his epistles, 1 and 2 Peter. As with all our failures, God used Peter’s many failures”

“ Do you think the Lord’s eyes were filled with anger and hate? Do you think the Lord looked at Peter with a look of judgment? I am sure the Lord’s eyes were filled with hurt. But, I am just as sure that the Savior’s eyes were filled with love, grace, forgiveness and compassion. I think that look said, “Peter, I tried to warn you, but you wouldn’t listen. You denied me, but I still love you. You denied me, but I will never deny you.”

· When Peter saw those eyes, the Lord’s words came back to mind. When Peter remembered, he ran from the courtyard and “he wept”. We are not allowed to watch Peter as he weeps his way back to the Lord. This is a time of private repentance and it is none of our business. The phrase “he wept” literally means that “he broke down”. He lost all control of his emotions. He was a broken man and he fell before the Lord in tearful, sincere repentance!

· What does this say to us? It simply reminds us that the Lord sees us in our waywardness too. He sees the sins we tolerate in our lives. He sees the evil attractions we follow after. He knows all about the forbidden friendships we keep. He looks upon everything we do. He hates the sins that drag us away from Him, but He loves us in spite of our sins and He calls us to come back to Him with a broken, repentant heart.

If we will come to Him confessing our sins, He will forgive us. That is His promise, 1 John 1:9. If we refuse to come back, He will have no choice but to send chastisement into our lives in an effort to bring us home, Heb. 12:6-12. If we repent, we will be blessed, if we refuse, there will be a higher price to pay, 1 John 5:16.” (http://www.sermonnotebook.org/mark/Mark%2075%20-%20Mark%2014_54_66-72.htm)

Melody, thank you so much for your humility and your great & infectious bold spirit! I'm oh so glad that I found your blog to study along side you and glean from you wisdom. You're a true Christian soldier, and I'm "proud" of you, little sister. Blessings on you, Kathy Lynch

Tue, 11 Jun 2013 17:33:20 -0400

thank you :)

God Bless

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Tue, 11 Jun 2013 14:17:59 -0400

Humble like Jesus (part 3)

Tue, 11 Jun 2013 12:30:38 -0400

3. Solution: Jesus

Ph. 2:5-8~⁵In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature^[a] God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature^[b] of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross!

The Gospel, the Cross, make you humble. Nothing else will humble you like that. The cross is extremely shocking. crucifixion was a punishment for slaves, rebels, anarchists. This is where Jesus hung. In polite conversation, it would never be mentioned. Jesus really humbled himself.

This is what Jesus humbled himself to:

“Roman crucifixion was an ancient method of execution in which the victim’s hands and feet were bound and nailed to a cross. It was one of the most painful and disgraceful methods of capitol punishment. Victims were usually beaten and tortured and then forced to carry their own cross to the crucifixion site. The Roman cross was formed of wood, typically with a vertical stake and a horizontal cross beam near the top. Different types and shapes of crosses existed for different forms of crucifixion.

The Roman form of crucifixion was not employed in the Old Testament by the Jewish people, as they saw crucifixion as one of the most horrible, cursed forms of death (Deuteronomy 21:23). In New Testament Bible times, the Romans used this tortuous method of execution as a means of exerting authority and control over the population.

Before nailing the victim to the cross, a mixture of vinegar, gall, and myrrh was usually offered to alleviate some of the victim’s suffering. Wooden planks were usually fastened to the vertical stake as a footrest or seat, allowing the victim to rest his weight and lift himself for a breath, thus prolonging suffering and delaying death for up to three days. Unsupported, the victim would hang entirely from nail-pierced wrists, severely restricting breathing and circulation. This excruciating ordeal would lead to exhaustion, suffocation, brain death and heart failure. At times, mercy was shown by breaking the victim’s legs, causing death to come quickly. As a deterrent to crime, crucifixions were carried out in highly public places with the criminal charges posted on the cross above the victim’s head.”

We are such wicked sinners that Jesus had to die in the most shameful, cruel way. Jesus took on our deserved punishment.

The grace we receive is not a free grace. This is a costly grace. Jesus gave His life for this grace. We deserve hell. He gives us what we dont deserve.

Can you be prideful after understanding this?

Jesus sets the example on how to live humbly. Jesus is equal to God the father, but He emptied Himself for US.

so think, is there anything in your life that you “can’t” sacrifice?

2 Corinthians 8:9~ ⁹For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.

Mark 10:45~ ⁴⁵For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve,and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Jesus sets the standard for sacrifice.

So, use what you have to serve others.

Mark 8:34~³⁴Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said:“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.

We have a cross to bear: Jesus’s example. it is hard to be disciplined and love others. it is a heavy cross.

People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care

Tue, 11 Jun 2013 00:14:32 -0400

Humble like Jesus series info

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 23:54:39 -0400

for those of you excited to read part 3 and 4 of “Humble like Jesus”, a sermon from this past Sunday:

part 3 will be up tomorrow

part 4 will be up the next day

It was a really wonderful sermon and when I typed up my notes I realized it was way too long to just make one post. I hope that God moves your heart through this series.

God Bless,

Mel

Humble like Jesus (Part 2)

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 23:40:37 -0400

2. Problem: Pride

a.k.a the problem of me.

Philippians 2:3~³Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves,

pride creates division.

people with selfish ambition: they try to push their own way. “I am right, you are wrong”

people with conceit: after their own personal glory. literally translated to “vain glory”.

These two things are the result of pride.

At the end of the day who are we? We are not God, but we want to be. Pride is all around us: in our relationships, politics, etc.

HUMANS ARE SINNERS and PRIDE IS A SIN

pride is dangerous, and God hates it:

James 4:6~⁶But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.”^[a]

Proverbs 8:13~To fear the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech.

Proverbs 16:5~The Lord detests all the proud of heart. Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished.

No matter how much you think that you are in control of your life: making decisions and trying to plan your future, GOD is the one in control. we don’t control the universe, He does:

Proverbs 20:24~A person’s steps are directed by the Lord. How then can anyone understand their own way?

Proverbs 16:9~In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.

James 4:13-16~¹³Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.”¹⁴Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. ¹⁵Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” ¹⁶As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil.

Proverbs 16:18~ Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.

Pride wil bring us to ruin.

Isaiah 66:2~Has not my hand made all these things, and so they came into being? declares the Lord.“These are the ones I look on with favor:those who are humble and contrite in spirit, and who tremble at my word

Contrite in spirit= you know you are a sinner

if you are humble= you take that fact extremely seriously.

Humble like Jesus (Part 1)

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 23:39:41 -0400

How many humble people do you know?

How many proud people do you know? probably a lot right?

Kanye West has a very strong view on humility (as most of you know). He says:

“People always tell you be humble. Be humble! When’s the last time someone told you be great? Be amazing? Be awesome! Be awesome!”

How would Jesus respond to kanye?

^{Mark 9:33-35- 3}They came to Capernaum. When he was in the house, he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the road?” ³⁴But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest.

³⁵Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.”

C.S. Lewis adds on to that:

“True humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less.”

Humble people are cooperative. Proud people think “who is going to get the credit? who is going to lead the group?”. there is no compromise.

WHAT DOES HUMILITY HAVE TO DO WITH UNITY?

Philippians 2:1-11

2 Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, ²then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. ³Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, ⁴not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

⁵In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:Who, being in very nature^[a] God did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature^[b] of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross!Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

1. Goal: Unity

vs. 2-4

“then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. ³Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, ⁴not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.”

like minded= unified in way of thinking

same love= Jesus’s love. we should have this same love that He has

one in spirit= full accord

one mind= intent on purpose/goal. We are all trying to follow God.

John 17:20-23

²⁰“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, ²¹that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. ²²I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— ²³I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

Jesus’s prayer is that the church become unified.

everlastingjesus: I Surrender || Hillsong

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 12:30:32 -0400

everlastingjesus:

I Surrender || Hillsong

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Mon, 10 Jun 2013 09:43:17 -0400

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Sun, 09 Jun 2013 22:05:53 -0400

shared my faith with two of my co workers. what a blessing!

Sun, 09 Jun 2013 12:30:45 -0400

shared my faith with two of my co workers. what a blessing!