Tonight I was reading Numbers and I found so much to take from the reading. Consequently, I thought it would be a great idea to use one of the lessons I learned for today’s devotional.
The passage starts off with the people of Israel (God’s chosen people) settling in the plains of Moab. Balak, son of Zippor, the Moabite king, knew that the Israelites had conquered the land of the Amorites, so he was terrified that this would also happen to his land. He then sent his men to bring Balaam, son of Beor, to help them out. Balaam was known for his curses and blessings since he obeyed God and allowed the Lord to work through him. Balak’s men bribed Balaam multiple times to come back with them and curse the Israelites. Every time Balaam told them that he would only do as the Lord told him, no matter the offer.
After the third bribe, the Lord instructed Balaam to go with them but to only do what He told him to do. So Balaam saddled his donkey and went with the Moabites. But because Balaam had the wrong intentions (we learn later in Numbers that he was only going with the Moabites for the rewards), the Lord was furious and sent the angel of the Lord to block his way. Because Balaam was blinded by his own interests for the rewards involved, he could not see the angel of the Lord. However, his donkey saw the angel of the Lord so he did all he could do turn away. As a result of the donkey’s disobedience to Balaam, Balaam struck the donkey three times.
The Lord then allowed the donkey to speak. The donkey cried out, “What have I done to you that deserves your beating me these three times?”
This question made me think of our relationship with God. So often we disrespect Him by turning away from Him and following our own paths. Our disobedience is like a “slap in the face” to the Lord. It is as though we are walking away from a loved one during a rough patch in the relationship.
I know it’s a simple lesson but I’d really like to encourage us to ask ourselves what God has done to deserve our disrespect and disobedience. When answering this, think of the other devotionals you have read on His love for us, the grace He offers, and the mercies that our new every day! And, most importantly, think of all God has done for you! I’m sure the list could go on…
May you have a wonderful day in the Lord and cherish the relationship He has offered!
Wishing you all the best,
Shannon
I couldn’t find this song on YouTube so once you click on the link you just go down to #8 – Embracing the Call and press the play button to the left of #8. Let me know if that doesn’t work!
“Embracing The Call” by The Glorious Unseen
http://music.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=music.artistalbums&artistid=10218916&ap=0&albumid=9523537
“We expect the best and nothing less from You, but will we embrace the suffering too as part of Your plan for us, O Lord?”
About Me
- shannonlynn
- I'm just a simple sinner who received God's good grace, somehow!
Our Value to God = PRICELESS!
"Allow God to place His own values." - A.W. Tozer
Showing posts with label Jesus. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jesus. Show all posts
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Approaching God
Approaching God
I was recently going through old journals/notebooks and came upon some notes from a Christian Conference I went to last year called Battle Cry. Mike Guzzardo was speaking and he talked about how we should distinguish our wants from our needs. He continued to say that when we get what we need (God), it becomes what we want.
Here are some of the other notes I think are worth sharing:
Usually your wants in life come from the unfulfilled need you have for Jesus! (“God-shaped hole” in your heart) Only He can make us whole.
We shouldn’t treat Jesus as a want, because He is a need. See Him as a need and go after Him as you would go after a NEED. You need Him just like you need air! You have to have Him, and when you realize this, everything changes! :) Ultimately, it is our choice whether we treat Jesus as a want or a need, but it does not change the fact that we still DESPERATELY need Him!
John 14:6 – “Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
Food For Thought: The way we view Jesus determines the way we will approach Him. As a result, the way we approach Him is the way we will experience Him in our life. It makes sense, right?!
Deuteronomy 4:29 – “But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.”
Ephesians 3:12 - “In Him and through faith in Him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.”
Let us stop pursuing what we want and get what we really need – JESUS! :) May we no longer be enticed by the world’s distractions!
Soli Deo Gloria!
<3 Shannon
“Came To My Rescue” by Hillsong
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWPABE3gycs&feature=related
“Rescue (I Need You, Jesus)” by Desperation Band
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEO12GqfKPM
And an all-time favorite…
“The More I Seek You” by Kari Jobe
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVbJj1_fFUk&feature=related
I was recently going through old journals/notebooks and came upon some notes from a Christian Conference I went to last year called Battle Cry. Mike Guzzardo was speaking and he talked about how we should distinguish our wants from our needs. He continued to say that when we get what we need (God), it becomes what we want.
Here are some of the other notes I think are worth sharing:
Usually your wants in life come from the unfulfilled need you have for Jesus! (“God-shaped hole” in your heart) Only He can make us whole.
We shouldn’t treat Jesus as a want, because He is a need. See Him as a need and go after Him as you would go after a NEED. You need Him just like you need air! You have to have Him, and when you realize this, everything changes! :) Ultimately, it is our choice whether we treat Jesus as a want or a need, but it does not change the fact that we still DESPERATELY need Him!
John 14:6 – “Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
Food For Thought: The way we view Jesus determines the way we will approach Him. As a result, the way we approach Him is the way we will experience Him in our life. It makes sense, right?!
Deuteronomy 4:29 – “But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.”
Ephesians 3:12 - “In Him and through faith in Him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.”
Let us stop pursuing what we want and get what we really need – JESUS! :) May we no longer be enticed by the world’s distractions!
Soli Deo Gloria!
<3 Shannon
“Came To My Rescue” by Hillsong
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWPABE3gycs&feature=related
“Rescue (I Need You, Jesus)” by Desperation Band
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEO12GqfKPM
And an all-time favorite…
“The More I Seek You” by Kari Jobe
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVbJj1_fFUk&feature=related
Friday, February 12, 2010
The Other Side
James 4:14 – “What is your life? It is even a vapor.”
This week when I was discussing my long-term goals with my roommates, I was really humbled when one of them told me that they just wanted to continue passionately loving God and living for Him for the rest of their life. She basically told me that she did not want to limit God by making plans of her own. Not to say it is wrong to have goals or plan ahead, but I realized that when we have such specific goals and are pretty set in stone with making these happen, sometimes we end up missing God’s plans for our lives.
I included a devotional below from “Our Daily Bread” that I feel relates to this well:
When someone said to my friend, “See you in a year,” it sounded odd when he replied, “Yes, see you on the other side.” He meant that he’d see him on the other side of a one-year deployment for the US Navy. But because the phrase is often used of heaven, it made me think about the uncertainty of life. I wondered, Who will be here in another year? Who might by then be on the other side—in heaven?
We certainly don’t know what the next year—or hour—will bring. In his epistle, James wrote about this uncertainty. He rebuked the greedy merchants for boasting about what they would do that day, the next day, or even the next year (4:13). Their sin wasn’t that they were making plans; it was forgetting God and arrogantly boasting about those business plans.
James reminded them: “What is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away” (v.14). Commentator Peter Davids says that James was pointing out their foolishness and saying, in essence, “Come now, you who make plans—you don’t even understand how little control you have over life itself.”
No part of life is outside the control of God. So when we make plans, we need to remember, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that” (v.15). — Anne Cetas
Tomorrow’s plans I do not know,
I only know this minute;
But He will say, “This is the way,
By faith now walk ye in it.” —Ryberg
Write your plans in pencil and let God have the eraser.
This devotional is such a great reminder to give God the steering wheel in this road trip we call life. I pray that we will remember this as we consider our goals in life. And let us ask ourselves how open we are to God changing these plans.
May grace and peace follow you as you follow the Lord!
God bless!
<3 Shannon
“My Savior, My God” by Aaron Shust
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gt0WluTpFTg&feature=fvw
“I am not skilled to understand
What God has willed, what God has planned
I only know at His right hand
Stands one who is my Savior”
This week when I was discussing my long-term goals with my roommates, I was really humbled when one of them told me that they just wanted to continue passionately loving God and living for Him for the rest of their life. She basically told me that she did not want to limit God by making plans of her own. Not to say it is wrong to have goals or plan ahead, but I realized that when we have such specific goals and are pretty set in stone with making these happen, sometimes we end up missing God’s plans for our lives.
I included a devotional below from “Our Daily Bread” that I feel relates to this well:
When someone said to my friend, “See you in a year,” it sounded odd when he replied, “Yes, see you on the other side.” He meant that he’d see him on the other side of a one-year deployment for the US Navy. But because the phrase is often used of heaven, it made me think about the uncertainty of life. I wondered, Who will be here in another year? Who might by then be on the other side—in heaven?
We certainly don’t know what the next year—or hour—will bring. In his epistle, James wrote about this uncertainty. He rebuked the greedy merchants for boasting about what they would do that day, the next day, or even the next year (4:13). Their sin wasn’t that they were making plans; it was forgetting God and arrogantly boasting about those business plans.
James reminded them: “What is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away” (v.14). Commentator Peter Davids says that James was pointing out their foolishness and saying, in essence, “Come now, you who make plans—you don’t even understand how little control you have over life itself.”
No part of life is outside the control of God. So when we make plans, we need to remember, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that” (v.15). — Anne Cetas
Tomorrow’s plans I do not know,
I only know this minute;
But He will say, “This is the way,
By faith now walk ye in it.” —Ryberg
Write your plans in pencil and let God have the eraser.
This devotional is such a great reminder to give God the steering wheel in this road trip we call life. I pray that we will remember this as we consider our goals in life. And let us ask ourselves how open we are to God changing these plans.
May grace and peace follow you as you follow the Lord!
God bless!
<3 Shannon
“My Savior, My God” by Aaron Shust
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gt0WluTpFTg&feature=fvw
“I am not skilled to understand
What God has willed, what God has planned
I only know at His right hand
Stands one who is my Savior”
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Yesterday, Today, and Forever
Hi everyone! So glad to be back home and writing you all again! :) This weekend I went to St. Louis for a campus visit at Covenant Theological Seminary. During one of my interviews, the Admissions Director, asked me how I have coped with hurts in the past. I told her that the only thing that ever gets me through the most difficult times is knowing that God is always there and He never changes. I just wanted to share this with you today, because I feel it is so easy to forget this Truth when the hard times come.
Genesis 31:3 – “…and I will be with you.”
God says this to Jacob after telling him to move to his relative’s land. Just as He was with Jacob when he was alive, God is also with us in every circumstance we face in life.
2 Timothy 2:13 – “…if we are faithless, He will remain faithful, for He cannot disown Himself.”
How great is it that even when we turn our backs on the Lord, He never moves a step away from us?! I heard a really great analogy yesterday (I think from a sermon by Louie Giglio) about a man and a woman. While they were dating, they would drive around in the guy’s truck and he would have one hand on the steering wheel and the other on the back of the girl’s seat so she could rest her head on his shoulder. Through the years, the woman in the relationship began to move further away from the man (emotionally and literally, in the truck). Even so, the man never moved from his spot. Louie compared this to how we relate to God. There are times in our faith when we will turn away from God through our disobedience, but God never moves away from us. He is always there waiting for us to come back. I can’t imagine a greater love than this! :)
James 1:17 – “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” another recollection of how God remains the same
I was reminded of another great Truth last night while I was listening to Louie Giglio. He talked about how we often go to God, crying for answers (wisdom, guidance, etc.) as a last resort. After discussing this with my mom, she reminded me that I had written on this for a devotional a few weeks ago and admitted to doing this with God. As I continue to work on this - and ask for your prayers, grace, and patience with me - I challenge this group to do this as well: Continue to go to God in the good times and bad times, during your mundane activities and exciting activities, and for big decisions as well as “trivial” decisions. (God sees no decision of ours as trivial!)
James 4:8 – “Draw near to the Lord, and He will draw near to you.”
Isaiah 40:28-31 (New King James Version)
28 Have you not known?
Have you not heard?
The everlasting God, the LORD,
The Creator of the ends of the earth,
Neither faints nor is weary.
His understanding is unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the weak,
And to those who have no might He increases strength.
30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary,
And the young men shall utterly fall,
31 But those who wait on the LORD
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.”
Hebrews 13:8 – “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” I love this verse!! It ties into today’s song perfectly!!
Let us rejoice in the knowledge that the Lord is always here for us and that His love for us is never shaken! :)
With love and prayers,
Shannon
“Yesterday, Today, and Forever” by Vicky Beeching
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8zHJhPalLY&feature=related
Other Bible references: Matthew 28:20; Numbers 23:19; Psalm 48:14
Genesis 31:3 – “…and I will be with you.”
God says this to Jacob after telling him to move to his relative’s land. Just as He was with Jacob when he was alive, God is also with us in every circumstance we face in life.
2 Timothy 2:13 – “…if we are faithless, He will remain faithful, for He cannot disown Himself.”
How great is it that even when we turn our backs on the Lord, He never moves a step away from us?! I heard a really great analogy yesterday (I think from a sermon by Louie Giglio) about a man and a woman. While they were dating, they would drive around in the guy’s truck and he would have one hand on the steering wheel and the other on the back of the girl’s seat so she could rest her head on his shoulder. Through the years, the woman in the relationship began to move further away from the man (emotionally and literally, in the truck). Even so, the man never moved from his spot. Louie compared this to how we relate to God. There are times in our faith when we will turn away from God through our disobedience, but God never moves away from us. He is always there waiting for us to come back. I can’t imagine a greater love than this! :)
James 1:17 – “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” another recollection of how God remains the same
I was reminded of another great Truth last night while I was listening to Louie Giglio. He talked about how we often go to God, crying for answers (wisdom, guidance, etc.) as a last resort. After discussing this with my mom, she reminded me that I had written on this for a devotional a few weeks ago and admitted to doing this with God. As I continue to work on this - and ask for your prayers, grace, and patience with me - I challenge this group to do this as well: Continue to go to God in the good times and bad times, during your mundane activities and exciting activities, and for big decisions as well as “trivial” decisions. (God sees no decision of ours as trivial!)
James 4:8 – “Draw near to the Lord, and He will draw near to you.”
Isaiah 40:28-31 (New King James Version)
28 Have you not known?
Have you not heard?
The everlasting God, the LORD,
The Creator of the ends of the earth,
Neither faints nor is weary.
His understanding is unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the weak,
And to those who have no might He increases strength.
30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary,
And the young men shall utterly fall,
31 But those who wait on the LORD
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.”
Hebrews 13:8 – “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” I love this verse!! It ties into today’s song perfectly!!
Let us rejoice in the knowledge that the Lord is always here for us and that His love for us is never shaken! :)
With love and prayers,
Shannon
“Yesterday, Today, and Forever” by Vicky Beeching
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8zHJhPalLY&feature=related
Other Bible references: Matthew 28:20; Numbers 23:19; Psalm 48:14
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Satisfied in God Alone
Devotional Bible Reference: Genesis 29 – 30:24
In this passage I have included for today’s message, I noticed a theme of how people in Jesus’ time struggled with addiction of approval just as we we do today.
For some background: A man named Jacob had two wives (who happened to be sisters), Leah and Rachel. He fell in love with Rachel so he told her father, Laban, that he would work for him for 7 years for her hand in marriage. Unfortunately, Laban tricked Jacob into marrying Leah instead, and he ended up having to work 7 more years to marry her sister, Rachel.
That's quite the determination and act of love, right?!
The passage explains that the Lord noticed that Leah was unloved so He blessed her with the ability to have children, whereas Rachel could not at this time. After giving her four sons, she stopped having children, and she praised the Lord for providing for her. However, when Rachel started having her servant sleep with their husband, Jacob, to have children, Leah became discontent with her barrenness. Leah’s discontent led her to convince her servant to sleep with Jacob as well.
The first thing I noticed when I read this was how Leah, before comparing her situation to Rachel’s situation, was content with giving birth to four sons. However, the moment she stopped praising God for what she DID have and started complaining about what she DID NOT have, she was unsatisfied.
Similarly to Leah, once we take our eyes off the Lord and onto our present situation, we become dissatisfied. I believe this dissatisfaction happens because we are limited in our wisdom and we do not have the ability to see the FULL picture as God does. We can only see the present, whereas He is able to see the past, present, AND future all at the same time! As a result of our limited perspective, we begin to question God’s goodness.
If only these sisters would have trusted the Lord with their circumstance – they wouldn’t have had to compete with one another or have their servants sleep with their husband, Jacob. The passage goes on and the Lord displays His goodness in verse 22 when He remembered Rachel’s struggle to have children and gave her a son of her own.
A passage that I really like in Scripture that relates well to this is Jeremiah 18:1-6. “1 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD : 2 "Go down to the potter's house, and there I will give you my message." 3 So I went down to the potter's house, and I saw him working at the wheel. 4 But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. 5 Then the word of the LORD came to me: 6 "O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter does?" declares the LORD. "Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel.
Rather than worrying about everyone else and comparing our “pot” to others, let us fix our eyes on Jesus and be satisfied, for He knows what is best for our individual situation.
May we desire to please Him alone.
In Christ,
Shannon
“Hands of the Potter” by Caedmon’s Call
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tllPq3aQuIo&feature=related
In this passage I have included for today’s message, I noticed a theme of how people in Jesus’ time struggled with addiction of approval just as we we do today.
For some background: A man named Jacob had two wives (who happened to be sisters), Leah and Rachel. He fell in love with Rachel so he told her father, Laban, that he would work for him for 7 years for her hand in marriage. Unfortunately, Laban tricked Jacob into marrying Leah instead, and he ended up having to work 7 more years to marry her sister, Rachel.
That's quite the determination and act of love, right?!
The passage explains that the Lord noticed that Leah was unloved so He blessed her with the ability to have children, whereas Rachel could not at this time. After giving her four sons, she stopped having children, and she praised the Lord for providing for her. However, when Rachel started having her servant sleep with their husband, Jacob, to have children, Leah became discontent with her barrenness. Leah’s discontent led her to convince her servant to sleep with Jacob as well.
The first thing I noticed when I read this was how Leah, before comparing her situation to Rachel’s situation, was content with giving birth to four sons. However, the moment she stopped praising God for what she DID have and started complaining about what she DID NOT have, she was unsatisfied.
Similarly to Leah, once we take our eyes off the Lord and onto our present situation, we become dissatisfied. I believe this dissatisfaction happens because we are limited in our wisdom and we do not have the ability to see the FULL picture as God does. We can only see the present, whereas He is able to see the past, present, AND future all at the same time! As a result of our limited perspective, we begin to question God’s goodness.
If only these sisters would have trusted the Lord with their circumstance – they wouldn’t have had to compete with one another or have their servants sleep with their husband, Jacob. The passage goes on and the Lord displays His goodness in verse 22 when He remembered Rachel’s struggle to have children and gave her a son of her own.
A passage that I really like in Scripture that relates well to this is Jeremiah 18:1-6. “1 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD : 2 "Go down to the potter's house, and there I will give you my message." 3 So I went down to the potter's house, and I saw him working at the wheel. 4 But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. 5 Then the word of the LORD came to me: 6 "O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter does?" declares the LORD. "Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel.
Rather than worrying about everyone else and comparing our “pot” to others, let us fix our eyes on Jesus and be satisfied, for He knows what is best for our individual situation.
May we desire to please Him alone.
In Christ,
Shannon
“Hands of the Potter” by Caedmon’s Call
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tllPq3aQuIo&feature=related
Friday, January 1, 2010
The Heart – Mark Driscoll, Mars Hill Church Pastor
Happy New Year! We made it to yet another year!! :-D
I recently heard this AMAZING sermon about the heart so I have included a bit of it below with a few comments of my own. Enjoy!
Proverbs 4:23 – “Keep your heart with all vigilance [meaning, keep an eye on your heart] for from it flows the springs of life.” = Your heart is the source of that which flows into the river of your life. Everything in your life flows from your heart. This means that all of the issues in our life can only be dealt with by ultimately going back to our heart.
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart…” – Mark 12:30; Luke 10:27; Matthew 22:37; Deuteronomy 6:5
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” – Matthew 5:8
The heart really matters. Jesus cares a lot about the heart. We can see this by how often He speaks of it. In the Bible, the heart is mentioned over 900 times! It is considered the center of our being (in essence, it’s who we are) according to Scripture. So if we want see God, we need to have a pure heart.
Problem: Our hearts are unclean because of sin.
Sin defined = anything that dishonors or disobeys God (thoughts, words, deeds, motives)
By nature and choice we are sinners, therefore our hearts are impure and this is where sin lies.
Question 1: So why do we do the things that we do? Why do we sin?
According to the Bible – Ultimately we have a sin nature. This stems back to the fall of man (Adam & Eve – Genesis 3). Romans 5:12-21 basically states that because of one man’s sin, the whole race fell. When Adam sinned, we were all implicated. Just like when a president chooses to go to war, that whole country follows him into war because they do not live apart of the people in which they are numbered. However, it goes on to say that because of the resurrection of Jesus, many are made righteous. We have our sin nature from our father Adam and our salvation from our Lord Jesus. (We go more into Jesus’ solution for our sin later in this message.)
Psalm 58:3 – “We are wicked from our mother’s womb.” We are born with the inclination to rebel against God.
Pastor Driscoll brought up an interesting point on how it’s amazing that today we want to address behavior. We want to stop drinking too much, stop doing drugs, stop being addicted to something, or stop being angry or depressed. I can think of a couple, being that it is New Years and I’m sure a few of us have already started thinking of our New Year’s Resolutions. All in all, we want behavioral change.
However, Jesus says that all the issues that we struggle with regarding sin come from the heart. (See Matthew 5:28 where He says that if you have a lust problem, in reality, you have a heart problem.) Matthew 6:21 states “Where your treasure is, there your heart is.” So we don’t have spending problems, we have a heart problem. Additionally, Luke 6:45 says, “Out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.” We can start controlling our tongue when we get to the issues of the heart.
Mark 7:20-23 “What comes out from a person is what defiles him. For from within come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. All these things come within and they all defile a person.”
We can deal with all of these issues when we go straight to our heart. What usually happens with us, however, is that when we see sin in our life, we try to deal with the issue rather than asking God, “What is going on with my heart?”
Question 2: What can we do about this heart problem? What’s the hope?
The world says the answer is behavior modification. Yet God wants more than this. Behavior modification may lead to pride or despair. This may come to a shock to some of us, but God wants more than for you to become a good person. He wants you to be a worshipper out of your heart, loving Him and others in your life. The Lord needs to regenerate our heart first.
Christianity is different than other religions in that it is about getting a new heart. (See Ezekiel 36:26) And going back to Proverbs 4:23…when we get a new heart, as a result, we will also get a new wellspring. When we have a new heart, we have a new Lord. Jesus is in charge, not us. Also we have a new power because of the Holy Spirit living inside of us. We are now able to overcome the addictions we were once powerless to. We have a new purpose. With a new heart, we want to live in a way that honors God. Lastly, we have new desires. We will now want to read the Bible, go to church regularly, pray, grow as a Christian, and draw nearer to the Lord.
Does this mean we’re perfect? No! We are being sanctified (cleansed), constantly learning and growing with the Lord’s help. However, when we are resurrected from death, we will be made perfect in Heaven. But until then, this new heart allows us to live a new life. (2 Corinthians 5:17 calls us a “new creation” where “the old has gone, and the new has come!”)
The new heart has:
*Faith (Proverbs 3:5)
*A desire for obedience (Proverbs 4:4)
*The ability to be corrected (Proverbs 5:12)
*The ability to be taught (Proverbs 10:8)
*Contentment (Proverbs 14:30)
*A love for wisdom (Proverbs 15:14)
*Cheerfulness (Proverbs 15:15)
*Helpfulness (Proverbs 15:28)
*Discernment (Proverbs 16:21)
*Persuasive abilities (Proverbs 16:23)
*Humility (Proverbs 18:12)
*Intelligence (Proverbs 18:15)
*Beauty (Proverbs 27:19)
*A repentant spirit (Proverbs 28:14)
Proverbs 20:5 – “The purposes of a man's heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out.”
Psalm 37:4 – “Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.”
Pull these two verses together = “Deep desires”
Ultimately, while religion is saying, “All your desires are bad and you need to modify your behaviors through a lot of rules.” Religion is all about fear, intimidation, control, shame, guilt, and what you can’t do. Christianity is completely different. Because we have been given new desires, it’s not about what you don’t get to do, but rather what you get to do. It’s about not always denying what you really want to do. It’s about going for your DEEPEST DESIRES. [Our DEEP DESIRES are God’s desires for us.] Psalm 37:4 instructs us on how we can get these desires.
Basically the verse is saying that if we love God and are satisfied in Him, He will put desires on our heart AND a passion to pursue them so that our will and His will come together. In the end, we get to do exactly what we want to do! Ex: Be kind to our neighbors, know Jesus, have a loving family, serving others :)
Questions to ponder (and feel free to message me your answers if you’d like to discuss):
Do you have a new heart? How do you know if you have a new heart?
What has God been showing you about your heart lately?
What can you do to nourish the DEEP DESIRES of your new heart?
What desires are even deeper in your heart than your desires for sin? What are you passionate about? What are you hopeful for?
I challenge us to pay attention to our DEEPEST DESIRES today, because these desires are most likely given to us from God. When you find these desires, get passionate about them and pursue them!
May the Lord open your eyes to the new heart He has created for you!
God bless!
<3 Shannon
Song: Hillsong United – Hosanna
“Heal my heart and make it clean….Break my heart for what breaks Yours.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXCoHxX1OC8
I recently heard this AMAZING sermon about the heart so I have included a bit of it below with a few comments of my own. Enjoy!
Proverbs 4:23 – “Keep your heart with all vigilance [meaning, keep an eye on your heart] for from it flows the springs of life.” = Your heart is the source of that which flows into the river of your life. Everything in your life flows from your heart. This means that all of the issues in our life can only be dealt with by ultimately going back to our heart.
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart…” – Mark 12:30; Luke 10:27; Matthew 22:37; Deuteronomy 6:5
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” – Matthew 5:8
The heart really matters. Jesus cares a lot about the heart. We can see this by how often He speaks of it. In the Bible, the heart is mentioned over 900 times! It is considered the center of our being (in essence, it’s who we are) according to Scripture. So if we want see God, we need to have a pure heart.
Problem: Our hearts are unclean because of sin.
Sin defined = anything that dishonors or disobeys God (thoughts, words, deeds, motives)
By nature and choice we are sinners, therefore our hearts are impure and this is where sin lies.
Question 1: So why do we do the things that we do? Why do we sin?
According to the Bible – Ultimately we have a sin nature. This stems back to the fall of man (Adam & Eve – Genesis 3). Romans 5:12-21 basically states that because of one man’s sin, the whole race fell. When Adam sinned, we were all implicated. Just like when a president chooses to go to war, that whole country follows him into war because they do not live apart of the people in which they are numbered. However, it goes on to say that because of the resurrection of Jesus, many are made righteous. We have our sin nature from our father Adam and our salvation from our Lord Jesus. (We go more into Jesus’ solution for our sin later in this message.)
Psalm 58:3 – “We are wicked from our mother’s womb.” We are born with the inclination to rebel against God.
Pastor Driscoll brought up an interesting point on how it’s amazing that today we want to address behavior. We want to stop drinking too much, stop doing drugs, stop being addicted to something, or stop being angry or depressed. I can think of a couple, being that it is New Years and I’m sure a few of us have already started thinking of our New Year’s Resolutions. All in all, we want behavioral change.
However, Jesus says that all the issues that we struggle with regarding sin come from the heart. (See Matthew 5:28 where He says that if you have a lust problem, in reality, you have a heart problem.) Matthew 6:21 states “Where your treasure is, there your heart is.” So we don’t have spending problems, we have a heart problem. Additionally, Luke 6:45 says, “Out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.” We can start controlling our tongue when we get to the issues of the heart.
Mark 7:20-23 “What comes out from a person is what defiles him. For from within come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. All these things come within and they all defile a person.”
We can deal with all of these issues when we go straight to our heart. What usually happens with us, however, is that when we see sin in our life, we try to deal with the issue rather than asking God, “What is going on with my heart?”
Question 2: What can we do about this heart problem? What’s the hope?
The world says the answer is behavior modification. Yet God wants more than this. Behavior modification may lead to pride or despair. This may come to a shock to some of us, but God wants more than for you to become a good person. He wants you to be a worshipper out of your heart, loving Him and others in your life. The Lord needs to regenerate our heart first.
Christianity is different than other religions in that it is about getting a new heart. (See Ezekiel 36:26) And going back to Proverbs 4:23…when we get a new heart, as a result, we will also get a new wellspring. When we have a new heart, we have a new Lord. Jesus is in charge, not us. Also we have a new power because of the Holy Spirit living inside of us. We are now able to overcome the addictions we were once powerless to. We have a new purpose. With a new heart, we want to live in a way that honors God. Lastly, we have new desires. We will now want to read the Bible, go to church regularly, pray, grow as a Christian, and draw nearer to the Lord.
Does this mean we’re perfect? No! We are being sanctified (cleansed), constantly learning and growing with the Lord’s help. However, when we are resurrected from death, we will be made perfect in Heaven. But until then, this new heart allows us to live a new life. (2 Corinthians 5:17 calls us a “new creation” where “the old has gone, and the new has come!”)
The new heart has:
*Faith (Proverbs 3:5)
*A desire for obedience (Proverbs 4:4)
*The ability to be corrected (Proverbs 5:12)
*The ability to be taught (Proverbs 10:8)
*Contentment (Proverbs 14:30)
*A love for wisdom (Proverbs 15:14)
*Cheerfulness (Proverbs 15:15)
*Helpfulness (Proverbs 15:28)
*Discernment (Proverbs 16:21)
*Persuasive abilities (Proverbs 16:23)
*Humility (Proverbs 18:12)
*Intelligence (Proverbs 18:15)
*Beauty (Proverbs 27:19)
*A repentant spirit (Proverbs 28:14)
Proverbs 20:5 – “The purposes of a man's heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out.”
Psalm 37:4 – “Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.”
Pull these two verses together = “Deep desires”
Ultimately, while religion is saying, “All your desires are bad and you need to modify your behaviors through a lot of rules.” Religion is all about fear, intimidation, control, shame, guilt, and what you can’t do. Christianity is completely different. Because we have been given new desires, it’s not about what you don’t get to do, but rather what you get to do. It’s about not always denying what you really want to do. It’s about going for your DEEPEST DESIRES. [Our DEEP DESIRES are God’s desires for us.] Psalm 37:4 instructs us on how we can get these desires.
Basically the verse is saying that if we love God and are satisfied in Him, He will put desires on our heart AND a passion to pursue them so that our will and His will come together. In the end, we get to do exactly what we want to do! Ex: Be kind to our neighbors, know Jesus, have a loving family, serving others :)
Questions to ponder (and feel free to message me your answers if you’d like to discuss):
Do you have a new heart? How do you know if you have a new heart?
What has God been showing you about your heart lately?
What can you do to nourish the DEEP DESIRES of your new heart?
What desires are even deeper in your heart than your desires for sin? What are you passionate about? What are you hopeful for?
I challenge us to pay attention to our DEEPEST DESIRES today, because these desires are most likely given to us from God. When you find these desires, get passionate about them and pursue them!
May the Lord open your eyes to the new heart He has created for you!
God bless!
<3 Shannon
Song: Hillsong United – Hosanna
“Heal my heart and make it clean….Break my heart for what breaks Yours.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXCoHxX1OC8
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Being Open To God
"God loves you just the way you are, but He refuses to leave you that way. He wants you to be just like Jesus."
This is an introductory quote from one of Max Lucado's popular books, "Just Like Jesus: Learning to Have a Heart Like His." I chose to refer to this book, because today I have been listening to a song (the one I posted in this message) and I felt it had a great message so I wanted to find a good book to go with it.
Max Lucado talked about how God loves you just the way you are and how we should not confuse His love with the love of people. Whereas the love of people is often based on performance, God loves you right where you are. The author then gave a beautiful analogy of what it would be like if, for one day, Jesus were to become you. He raised some great questions that I challenge us all to ask ourselves: Would your priorities change? Would those around you detect more joy? Would you treat the less fortunate the same? And your friends and family?
The main message I'm hoping to send is a reminder to be open to God's leading in your life. See people the way He sees them. See trials, struggles, and daily circumstances the way He does. Ask Him to open your eyes, ears, mind, and heart the way Shawn McDonald does in the song posted.
I pray the Lord stirs something in you and you have a desire to let Him live through you even more today. Let His light be the light that directs your actions.
God bless,
Shannon
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FzSwqCbZqL8
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