Thursday, April 14th, 2011
Today's Passage: Romans chapter 8
Memory Verse(s): Rom. 8:5-8
Jesus told His disciples, "Any who desire to come after me must deny themselves, take up their cross, and follow me." And yet, it seems to be the one thing many believers struggle with on a daily basis. Self-control is one of the fruit of the Spirit that people in the world ought to be able to look at and see that we are God's own, but the opposite is true the majority of the time.
One area of self-denial that we need to walk in is what we put into our bodies. As much as we love God, the number of Christians who also happen to be overweight and plagued with health issues is staggering. Brothers and sisters, by no means do I mean to offend, but many times we choose not to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit when it comes to what we are choosing to eat, and how we take care of our vessels.
Another area of self-denial is the lack of control over our emotions. Again, we spend so much time saying how much we love God and have Him as part of our lives. However, we get easily offended when things don't go our way, then expect to waltz right into God's presence during worship. We allow our mouths to speak what's in our hearts, even if it means we'll be hurting others among us. The thing is, we aim to please our flesh more than the Spirit of God. We give in to the notion that as long as we're not committing a deadly sin, we're okay.
What we're not realizing is that, no matter how big or small, the enemy uses every single pattern or habit against us. We enter into a vicious cycle that only Christ can deliver us out of. The solution is to walk in the Spirit so that we don't fall into the trap of giving the enemy something he can use against us. To be carnal- minded is satan's recipe for thinking only of ourselves. In this mindset, everything we do is geared towards fulfilling our needs-- which NEVER decrease. Have you noticed how much MORE self-centered we become once we start, until our hearts are completely removed from anything in God's kingdom? Pretty soon, we can't pray, and not long afterwards we've been rendered ineffective. But taking the enemy's power over our flesh strips him of his ability to condemn us when we really want to press in. The choice is clear: Rob ourselves of life for a few moments of pleasure, or hold off on that pleasure for abundant life. Let's choose LIFE today.
Prayer: Father, I realize Your Will is for me to take hold of everything You say is mine. I repent for the many times I chose sin and death over life and peace. May I show what real fellowship means through my life by walking in the Spirit daily. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Today's Passage: Romans chapter 8
Memory Verse(s): Rom. 8:5-8
Jesus told His disciples, "Any who desire to come after me must deny themselves, take up their cross, and follow me." And yet, it seems to be the one thing many believers struggle with on a daily basis. Self-control is one of the fruit of the Spirit that people in the world ought to be able to look at and see that we are God's own, but the opposite is true the majority of the time.
One area of self-denial that we need to walk in is what we put into our bodies. As much as we love God, the number of Christians who also happen to be overweight and plagued with health issues is staggering. Brothers and sisters, by no means do I mean to offend, but many times we choose not to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit when it comes to what we are choosing to eat, and how we take care of our vessels.
Another area of self-denial is the lack of control over our emotions. Again, we spend so much time saying how much we love God and have Him as part of our lives. However, we get easily offended when things don't go our way, then expect to waltz right into God's presence during worship. We allow our mouths to speak what's in our hearts, even if it means we'll be hurting others among us. The thing is, we aim to please our flesh more than the Spirit of God. We give in to the notion that as long as we're not committing a deadly sin, we're okay.
What we're not realizing is that, no matter how big or small, the enemy uses every single pattern or habit against us. We enter into a vicious cycle that only Christ can deliver us out of. The solution is to walk in the Spirit so that we don't fall into the trap of giving the enemy something he can use against us. To be carnal- minded is satan's recipe for thinking only of ourselves. In this mindset, everything we do is geared towards fulfilling our needs-- which NEVER decrease. Have you noticed how much MORE self-centered we become once we start, until our hearts are completely removed from anything in God's kingdom? Pretty soon, we can't pray, and not long afterwards we've been rendered ineffective. But taking the enemy's power over our flesh strips him of his ability to condemn us when we really want to press in. The choice is clear: Rob ourselves of life for a few moments of pleasure, or hold off on that pleasure for abundant life. Let's choose LIFE today.
Prayer: Father, I realize Your Will is for me to take hold of everything You say is mine. I repent for the many times I chose sin and death over life and peace. May I show what real fellowship means through my life by walking in the Spirit daily. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
1 comment:
Thank you Pastors,
Today's devotional is such a right now word that all can take a bite from. I am truly chewing my serving.
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