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Luke 12

4/20/2010

Luke 12:15 “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.”

We need to remember what we are living for; it should be to glorify God in all we do by acting like Christ. As we grow in our wisdom from the Lord we will continue to work and live to think of others and we won’t be so focused on ourselves.

In verse 21 Jesus says, “Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.”

How is your focus? Is it centered on “you” or are you focused on God? The relationship with God is so important and helpful, it allows us to open our hearts and truly live an unselfish life focused on Christ.

I love what Jesus tells us in verse 31, “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and He will give you everything you need.”

You truly need that rich relationship with God by praying and meditating on His word daily. Never try and fill God into your life, He gave you life and He should be the main part of what you do. Amen

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Luke 9

4/19/2010

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Luke 9:2829 “About eight days later Jesus took Peter, John and James up on a mountain to pray. And as He was praying, the appearance of His face was transformed and His clothes became dazzling white.”

I love the fact that Jesus went through this transformation because we should also go through a transformation when we decide to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior. We need to think of how amazing it was for Jesus to die for our sins and truly read and learn how to transform our old way of living for self and live for Him.

In chapter 9 verse 23 Jesus says, “If any of you want to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow Me.”

We need to do it daily, not on the weekend or when we want to; it must be that we aim to live as Christ did everyday.

Verse 24 says, “If you try and hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.”

What is so good in your life that you need to hang on to anyways? I say forget it and devote yourself to learning and living to be like Christ. Take up your cross is a great image to think about. To me that means I must do something everyday to be the best servant I can be. This cannot be done without Christ living in me and filling myself with wisdom and knowledge from God. We should never be satisfied with what we know and we should be excited to plow forward and grow.

Chapter 9 verse 62 says, “Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.”

Be focused and devoted to the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, nothing is better than that. Amen

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Luke 11

4/13/2010

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Luke 11:28 “This is just after a women wants to bless Jesus’ mother for having Jesus and He reply’s ‘But even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and put it into practice.”

Are you giving yourself a chance to hear God’s word or is Sunday the only day you think about it? “Put it into practice” can only be done if you know what to do. This takes opening God’s word and studying it filling your heart so you can shine God’s light.

I like Luke 11:36 which says, “If you are filled with light, with no dark corners, then your whole life will be radiant, as though a floodlight were filling you with light.”

To get rid of your dark corners it takes wholehearted commitment and seeking wisdom from the Lord. It’s not by obligation that we do this it’s by desire and love for God. We should be excited that we were given the gift of eternal life through Jesus and that should be all we need to want to be fully devoted followers to Jesus.

I like what Peter says in Acts chapter 5 verse 29, “But Peter and the apostles replied, ‘We must obey God rather than any human authority.”

Then the apostles go on in verse 40-42 to show their love by their actions. “…They called in the apostles and had them flogged. Then they ordered them never again to speak in the name of Jesus, and they let them go. The apostles left the high council rejoicing that God had counted them worthy to suffer disgrace for the name of Jesus. And every day, in the Temple and from house to house, they continued to teach and preach this message. ‘Jesus is the Messiah.”

Who is Jesus in your life? Dive in and find out and rejoice that God has considered all of us worthy of His love. Amen

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Joshua 1

4/9/2010

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Joshua 1:7-9 “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do. Study this Book of instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. This is my command – be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

This is so amazing God is telling Joshua to be strong and courageous and that He will be with Him wherever he goes. This is so true for us as well, when we fill ourselves with God’s wisdom by reading His word continually, I like to say diligently, we are full of the peace and strength we need to get through life. “Do not be afraid or discouraged” you will know what to do because your heart is full and the Spirit guides you in your heart. It takes you truly understanding that your life is not your own and that just as Jesus sacrificed self to do God’s will we are called to do the same. We are not called to live the way we want and then plug God in whenever we need a fix. We are called to love God and live a way that is honoring to Him.

Deuteronomy 30:16 says, “For I command you this day to love the Lord your God and keep His commands, decrees, and regulations by walking in His ways…”

It doesn’t say walk in your way and make sure you fill yourself with all the desires of your own heart; money, power and sex then you will live a long life. What is keeping you back from fully devoting yourself to follow Jesus? I think it is our selfishness, we think we are going to miss out on life. Jesus said He is the way, the truth and the life, so that is the only thing that will truly make us free. Die to self, take up your cross and be a warrior for Christ. Amen

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Deuteronomy 30

4/8/2010

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Deuteronomy 30:19-20 “Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendents might live! You can make this choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying Him, and committing yourself firmly to Him. This is the key to your life. And if you love and obey the Lord, you will live long in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”

He has given us a choice also, His Son Jesus, we need to learn and live as He did loving the Father. When we choose life we prove it by the way we live, striving to be like Christ and working hard to continually resemble Him. You can’t do this without devoting yourself to Him by learning and growing and filling your heart with the Holy Spirit.

In Luke 7:35 Jesus says, “But wisdom is shown to be right by the lives of those who follow it.”

Have you truly accepted Jesus and are you living a life that pleases God? Or do you believe in Jesus and feel no change is needed?

Look at Luke 7 verses 47-48 it is about the lady that came in and washed Jesus’ feet with her tears, wiped them with her hair and then put perfume on them. “I tell you, her sins-and they are many- have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows little love. Then Jesus said to the women, ‘Your sins are forgiven.”

Show your love and how much you truly are thankful to God by forgetting yourself and living a way that resembles Jesus. When we realize how amazing Jesus is by taking our sins and taking the abuse He had to we can truly be free of our selfishness and seek the peace that he promises. Really feeling in our hearts how incredible Christ is truly lets us understand being the hands and feet of Jesus. Go in love and be a light. Amen

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Deuteronomy 10

4/2/2010

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Deuteronomy 10:12-13 “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you? He requires only that you fear the Lord your God, and live in a way that pleases Him, and love Him and serve Him with all your heart and soul. And you must always obey the Lord’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good.”

God gave Israel the laws for their own good and He gave us Jesus for our own good. We need to do our best to learn and grow to be like Christ. Gary Thomas made a statement in his book “The Beautiful Fight” that really made me think. He said, “But grace doesn’t remove human effort, it focuses and empowers it.”

Paul says in Philippians chapter 2 at the end of verse 12 “…work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear.”

We need to make sure when we accept Christ into our lives we really want to grow and learn because Paul says in Philippians 2:13 “For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him.”

Ask your self are you doing things that please Him or are you doing things to please you? Gary Thomas makes another statement that is so true. “When my faith can’t keep my marriage and other relationships together; when my belief doesn’t affect the way I speak, the way I care, the way I love – then, brothers and sisters, it’s not God’s fault; it’s mine. It’s because I have not been willing to pay the cost of Christ likeness, the daily dying to myself and rising in Him so that I can truly live.” Are we continuing to seek God and listen to the Holy Spirit or do we live to please the world? Jesus is our example; listen to your heart and fully devote yourself to true Christ likeness. Amen

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Luke 12

Luke 9

Luke 11

Joshua 1

Deuteronomy 30

Deuteronomy 10

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