Jesus Didn't Come to Give Us Religion

I understand why Jesus Christ rebelled against the established religious system while He was here on earth.  Religion seeks to sustain itself, rather than build the Kingdom of God.  Religion doesn't necessarily meet the needs of the community in which it resides.  Religion and tradition walk hand in hand, looking behind them and reminiscing about what once was.  They will often refer to the "good ole days" with misty eyes.

I am challenged in my walk with Christ to forget those things which are behind me and press forward, toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:14).  There is a calling higher than religion, my friends.  There is a calling to imitate the example that Jesus Christ gave us while in human form.  He met the physical, mental, and spiritual needs of all those who chose to believe that He could.

The offer is still being extended to believe that He can!  He can eliminate that void in your life that you are trying to use religion to fill.  Church busy-ness won't satisfy your soul.  That longing that you feel deep down within is God calling you into relationship with Him.  The time is coming and now is for you to worship Him in spirit and in truth (see John 4:23-24).  God isn't seeking religious people; He's seeking true worshippers!

"...I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." John 10:10b (KJV)

I've Got My Own Problems!

"Right now I"m having so much trouble with D. L. Moody, that I don't have time to criticize my friends." ~ D.L. Moody

There is so much work to be done with Jennifer that I really just don't have the time or energy to worry about what's wrong with the rest of the world.  Things can always be better, but the person who deserves my focus in that regard is me.  God has given me the desire and resources to get myself together first and foremost.

When you are being given safety instructions on an airplane, the flight attendant says for you to get your oxygen mask on first before assisting anyone else with theirs.  How are you going to help someone else if you're passed out?  Well, I've come to the conclusion that life is just like those oxygen masks.  I can't point at you to criticize how crooked yours is, if mine isn't even on and I'm gasping for air!

My primary responsibility to you is not to tell you what you're doing wrong, but to love you with the love of Christ.  Love covers a multitude of sins (I Peter 4:8).  I find that most people know when they are doing something wrong, backwards, ineffective, or foolish.  It is truly pointless to argue or try to force someone to your way of thinking (maybe you're the one who's wrong).  State your case, voice your opinion, and move on.

Bottom line: focus on your own faults, rather than find fault with others.  I guarantee that their fault will find them eventually.  Meanwhile, you will be much happier not worrying about what's wrong with the rest of the world. 

You Must Needs Go Through Samaria

John 4:4 (KJV) And he must needs go through Samaria.

 

If you will read the story in John chapter 4 about the Samaritan woman at the well, you will understand that her encounter with Jesus was life-changing.  In fact, she ran and told her people about this man Jesus, and many of their lives were changed as well.  Jesus knew that there was a need in Samaria for a savior.

 

You also 'must needs go through Samaria'.  You might think that there is nothing there for you, but God has a need to meet that requires your presence.  You may have no kinship with the people there, but there is something for you to do.  Your journey is going to require you to go to places that you don't see as beneficial.  Your purpose may include spending time with undesirable people.

 

You need that Samaritan experience to grow.  What if Jesus avoided going through Samaria?  There would have been a whole town of people who would have missed benefiting from the woman at the well's personal encounter with Him.  If you don't go through your Samaria, you will miss out on some fulfilling experience intended for your life.  Samaria might not be pleasant; it might not be your ideal situation.  God has a plan for Samaria and its people.  He loves them just as much as He loves you.  Be grateful for the opportunity to be used by God in whatever situation you find yourself.

We Won't Understand Everything

I am resting on God's promises.  I know what He has given me; I know what He has shown me.  I keep letting my present state interfere with my hope of the future.  Just because I can't see how I will get to the vision from my present location doesn't mean God doesn't already have it worked out.

We tend to get impatient and want everything immediately.  God has to make sure that I'm ready for my next season.  He has to build my character, skill set, knowledge base, etc., so that I am prepared for whatever He has for me behind the curtain.  God knows exactly what I will need and the person I'm going to need to be to be successful in what He has planned for me.

God is never going to set me up to fail; I can trust Him while I go through the process.  No matter what it looks like to me, God is working everything for my success.  His ways are not my ways.  I could never wrap my head around everything God has prepared for me and prepared me for.  All the stops, detours, and u-turns along my journey are just that: part of the journey.

I have to stop looking at points along the journey as the end.  Eternity has no end; my soul has no end.  I am who I am because of my journey thus far, and I will continually evolve into the woman God would have me to be, growing in grace as my experiences shape me.  I am pressing my way through the hardships, trying to reflect Christ's image as much as I am able.  One day I will be like Him and with Him.

Called According to His Purpose

Sometimes I feel like the enemy is winning.  I know he's not, but when problem after problem after bad situation after conflict after miscommunication after disagreement occurs, it looks like he's got the upper hand.  It gets hard to press through some of life's foolishness at times, especially when the most hell is happening in what you thought was a safe place.

Satan's job is to steal, kill, and destroy.  Stealing your joy, killing your hope, and destroying your peace of mind are his most effective tools.  Once you've lost those, you become pretty ineffective for Kingdom building.  All you want to do is give up!  You wonder what's the point in trying if you're only going to fail.

God has designed your life for purpose.  If you can just keep your focus on God's Will for your life, all of life's disappointments won't distract you from that divine purpose.  I understand that our faith gets shaken by some of our trials, and we want to know why God allows certain things to happen.  It isn't always for us to know why.  All we need to recognize is that every setback, sucker punch, and sour grape is working to make us more like HIM.  It ultimately isn't about us anyway.

Galatians 2:20 (NASB) I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

Romans 8:28 (NASB) And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

Stand

Ephesians 6:13 (KJV) Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

 

It seems that sometimes every area of your life gets thrown out of whack all at once.  We get overwhelmed when there is trouble on every side, but we need to make sure we're geared up for battle.  We must remember that we don't wrestle just against flesh and blood.  We need to suit up in God's armor.

 

The trying of our faith produces the kind of character in us that God can use for great things.  Although the fire gets hot, God can't meld us into what He desires without it.  Plaster a smile on your face and go on through it!  I know it gets uncomfortable and even down right painful at times, but God is faithful.

 

The work that He begins in you, He will bring to completion in you.  Even when it seems that you aren't even moving forward, just stand.  The important thing is not to retreat.  God is working all those problems out for your good.  On the other side of these trials is greatness because that's what you are destined for.  See yourself how God sees you through the blood of Jesus Christ, as more than a conqueror.  In just a short while, you will wonder how you made it over.

 

 

 

 

Forget What You Think You Know

2 Timothy 2:15 (NASB) Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.

 

This has always been one of my favorite verses for as far back as I can remember.  Psalm 119:11 is also one of my favorites.  "Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee." (KJV)  We should never get tired of reading and studying the Word of God.  New revelations are received with every reading, every hearing.

 

I am about to embark upon a journey that I have begun so many times and never made it through:  to read through the entire Bible.  I get bored with the genealogies or bogged down in the measurements, and I just give up.  There is so much to be discovered in this #1 bestseller of all time!  There are so many treasures that I find through random readings that I can only imagine the gems that await me in a thorough read-through.

 

Sometimes we have preconceived notions of things that are in the Bible, false interpretations, errors in our applications, and just general confusions.  I am going to put away everything that I think I know about the Bible, and just begin as a blank slate.  My prayer is that the Holy Spirit will reveal new, fresh, and insightful things to me day by day.  I am also requesting the prayers of my friends that I stay on course this time and not quit before the goal is accomplished.

 

I have registered for an on-line Bible study that I would like to recommend to you as well.  It's entitled Cookies on the Lower Shelf by Pam Gillaspie (a Precept Ministries study).  If I do all 3 10-week segments, I will have gone through the Bible in 30 weeks!  I'm excited to learn all the new (to me) things that God has ready to unfold.  If you're itnerested in registering for this particular on-line study, here's a link for you -http://cookiesot.wordpress.com/?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=cookie&utm_campaign=c1