For Those With Ears - Entries tagged "Spiritual Disciplines"
WedWednesdayDecDecember1st2010
It is God who works in us
You
know when you're reading through Scripture and there's that verse that
really hits you right where you're at? Well that verse for me of late
has been Philippians 2:13 which says "For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure."
I
don't know about you, but sometimes I find that I lack the will power
to love and follow Christ. Other things in my life become more
important than they should and I shove my relationship with God to the
back burner. I slack off in my quiet time with him, I become less
sensitive to the Spirit's leading in my life and I find that my desire
to do his will kind of disappears...
So
what do I usually do? Well, what happens is I'll hear a convicting
sermon or have a conversation with a friend and be reminded of how I've
been neglecting God. So in the past I've tried to dig deep and find
that passion within me again only to be discouraged because what I find
there is a love for myself and a desire to serve my flesh.
This
is where Philippians 2:13 cuts right to the heart. It's God who works
in me to will and to work. My human strength has proved to be weak and
doesn't cut it - I need more Holy Spirit power working in me to produce
godly desire and strength to live for him. I've found that the more I
simply humble myself, admit my weakness and confess the sin of pride in
my life, the more God works in my heart to transform me.
Loving Jesus
with my whole life doesn't come from trying really hard to be better -
it comes from realizing that I don't have that ability in and of myself,
and I need the Spirit of God to be my strength and power. I love how God's Word remains so relevant and practical for every day life. What verse/passage has stood out to you lately?
Mike
TueTuesdayNovNovember30th2010
In the quiet in the stillness I know that you are God
I
am a night owl…well, I used to be…I’m in transition, desperately trying
to train my body for mornings. I am well aware that personal time with
the Lord needs to be a significant priority and I tried, sometimes
harder than other times, to keep my priorities straight and make sure
that I spent time with the Lord every night before I went to bed. Lately
I’d been failing in this a lot more than I’d been succeeding and many
of my successes were weak.
My small group just finished reading Good to Great in God’s Eyes
by Chip Ingram (GREAT read!) and the last chapter focused on developing
great habits. Kerry asked each of us to share what habit the Lord was
laying on each of our hearts – I will admit to not being initially
thrilled about what the Lord was laying on my heart but I knew that
disobedience was no longer an option. I’ve been spending years making up
excuses as to why I don’t spend my time with the Lord in the morning:
“I’m a night owl, morning isn’t my ‘best’ time, the words don’t even
make sense to me in the morning, people in my life don’t even try to
talk to me before 9 a.m. so why would I spend my miserable hours of the
day with God?” …I had more excuses than that but I will spare you!
Honestly
as we went around the circle sharing what habits we needed to change I
was pleading with the Lord to direct me to a different habit – pretty
much anything other than getting up earlier would be fine. However, it
was the Lord’s timing and I committed to turning things off earlier at
night and trying for one month to get up earlier to spend time with the
Lord. I’ve done pretty well with this new resolve and am about three
quarters of the way through my specified time commitment…and I’m LOVING
it.
The
line from None but Jesus that says, “in the quiet, in the stillness I
know that you are God” has a whole new meaning for me. There is
something so precious about sitting on my couch, wrapped in an afghan,
fireplace on, listening to worship music, sipping coffee and spending
time in God’s Word by the light of a lamp while the rest of the house is
silent – I LOVE it.
I
love that there hasn’t been any distraction to my day that early in the
morning – no problems that need solving, no emails (that I know of)
that need answering…I’m rested and ready to begin a day with my
priorities straight and my heart being tuned to the Lord’s. I’ve found
myself to be much more aware of my words, thoughts and actions and that I
seem to be operating on more grace than I would say is usual for me. I
feel like my relationship with the Lord has grown immensely in three
short weeks and I’m a bit stunned.
People
have told me MANY times about the value of spending time with the Lord
in the morning…and there are LOTS of verses in the Bible to support the
idea of morning devo time – Psalm 5:3 for example - "O LORD, in the
morning you hear my voice; in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you
and watch." I’m not up preparing a sacrifice of anything but my
time/sleep…I just needed to come to this on my own and in the Lord’s
timing.
If
you have the same excuses that I did let me challenge you to give
mornings a shot for just one month to see if it makes a difference in
your life. You’ll likely need to be intentional – I have to write out
the verses I’m reading that really stick out to me and I’m journaling my
prayers daily…because early mornings aren’t my sharpest time of the day
I do need some tools to ensure that my time with the Lord is
meaningful…but it’s working!
Our Journey
is another EXCELLENT tool – there are always copies at the bookstore on
Sunday mornings. If this is a tool that benefits you make sure to order
your copy for the new year!
I would love to hear from you what tools you use in your time with the Lord…
Amy
© Harvest Bible Chapel - Barrie