Posted on 12/29/2008 10:34:41 PM PST by WhatNot
John 5:19
Jesus gave them this answer: "I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by Himself; He can do only what He sees His Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does."
Have you ever thought about a typical day in Jesus' life? Perhaps He might have had questions like these, "Who am I going to heal today? Who will I visit today? Which person will I deliver from demons this day?" etc. The demands on Jesus' time were great. Yet we see that Jesus allocated His time very deliberately. We don't get the idea that Jesus was flustered or stressed from the activity He was involved in. He often sought times of prayer and reflection away from the disciples. His life appeared to have a balance of quiet moments and active ministry into the lives He came in contact with.
How do we determine what we will be involved in each day of our lives? What keeps us in sync with the will of our heavenly Father for the daily tasks He calls us to? Jesus tells us that He was only involved in those things the Father was involved in. Nothing more, nothing less. So often we determine our participation in an activity based on whether we have the time to do it or whether we desire to participate. The real question we should ask is, "Does the Father want me to participate in this activity?"
"Lord, should I add this Bible study to my schedule? Should I spend an extra night out on this committee this week? Should I take on new business that will take me away from home more? Should my daughter be involved in music lessons?" These are the daily challenges for the world we now live in. We are an activity-based society that often encourages more and more activity, often in the name of Christian virtue.
Our lives will become less cluttered, less stressful, and more fulfilling when we follow the model Jesus provided. It may not always please everyone. Jesus never sought to please everyone. Ask the Lord each day this week how you and He are to spend your time. Yield your schedule to Him. Let Jesus direct your every activity. You may discover that He desires you to cut back some things in order to spend more time alone with Him. He will be faithful to show you. And you will become more fulfilled because you are centered in His will for you.
Paul instructs us to make no provision for the flesh. What if we do ? We are told to take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. What if we don't? James 4:7 admonishes us to "resist the devil and he will flee from you." What if we don't resist him? Is he required to flee from us if we don't take our stand against him? No, if we don't resist him, he doesn't have to go. We have the assurance of God's protection, but we must assume our responsibility to personally resist Satan.
Ephesians 6:10-17 outlines the armor of God which believers are instructed to put on in order to "stand firm against the schemes of the devil" (verse 11). But if we go into battle without some of our armor, are we impervious to getting wounded? No, if we fail to cover ourselves with the armor God has provided, we are vulnerable.
James 4:1 reveals that the source of our quarrels and conflicts is the pleasures that "wage war in your members." Paul instructed, "Do not let sin reign in your mortal body that you should obey its lusts" (Romans 6:12). The world, the flesh and the devil are continually at war against the life of the spirit within us. But what if we don't fight back? Will we still be victorious over the pleasures and lusts which strive to reign over us? No, they will control us if we remain passive.
Choosing truth, living a righteous life, and donning the armor of God is each believer's individual responsibility. I cannot be responsible for you, and you cannot be responsible for me. I can pray for you, encourage you in the faith, and support you, but if you go into the battle without your armor on, you may get hurt. As much as that may be a matter of concern for me, I still cannot make those decisions of responsibility for you. Those choices are yours alone.
excellent read. bookmarked. =)
Words of wisdom bump.
thoughts, anyone?
I don't guess it'll address your problem directly but it offers insights into why some people act this way. Amazon has reviews.
We built the business up, from the ground floor, going door to door, selling the service, as a preventive treatment in new housing tracks. After 2 years we had built a pretty sizable file of bi-monthly clients. Long story short, I took a few days off for a much needed vacation. When I returned, I noticed that the equipment I kept in the truck was gone, I freaked out, called my partner to tell him. No answer. I went into my house, and the card file was gone (I didn't own a computer in those days). I became suspicious, went to the bank and found that the joint business bank account was emptied. My partner forged my name, and took every penny we had in the account.
He had disappeared with everything, I did what I could to find him, but to this day, have not seen or heard, hyde nor hair from him. He simply vanished. Needless to say I was shocked, angry and wanted vengeance, and I held on to those feelings for years. After much time had passed, those feelings eventually subsided, and as I grew in the Lord, I began to see the benefit to me, of forgiving this person. But, it wasn't until I read a devotion, (which I posted here a few years ago), that my eyes were open to understanding why I should completely forgive this person, and move on with my life in the joy and freedom, only God can provide. It may or may not help you, depending on where you are in the forgiving process, but in case you're interested, here's the link.
My prayer is that God blesses you richly in the new year!
Thank you for your response. I appreciate it very much.
I pray the same for you my friend, and all other God-loving Christians.
Check out this show if you have time, start about the 1 hour 12 minute mark, Roy talks about having the ‘perfect hate’ on the 1/06 show. Make sure it still says 1/06 if you decide to check it out.
http://www.fhu.com/player/advice_line_recent_start.html
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