John 15:4-17
4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in Me.
5 “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in Me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from Me you can do nothing. 6 Anyone who does not remain in Me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned. 7 But if you remain in Me and My words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted! 8 When you produce much fruit, you are My true disciples. This brings great glory to My Father.
9 “I have loved you even as the Father has loved Me. Remain in My love. 10 When you obey My commandments, you remain in My love, just as I obey My Father’s commandments and remain in His love. 11 I have told you these things so that you will be filled with My joy. Yes, your joy will overflow! 12 This is My commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. 13 There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are My friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are My friends, since I have told you everything the Father told Me. 16 You didn’t choose Me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name. 17 This is My command: Love each other.”
The question God convicted me of last night was this: If we aren’t changing, turning more into the likeness of Christ, then how does that help others? How do we change the world? How will God ever be glorified through our lives? It can’t. We can’t! He can’t!!! God reminded me that we must be continually be surrendering to His Will and opening our heart to Him if we ever plan to make a difference in the lives of others for Christ. We are nothing without Him. Without His love.
God’s Word says, “We love because He first loved us.” – 1 John 4:19
Christ is the ultimate source of love. Unless we are in His Word and on our knees in humble prayer, we cannot see His face and we cannot be overwhelmed with His love for others.
We ask, “Where is the love in this world? Where is the compassion?”
The answer is that we have left it at the foot of the Cross. The love we are looking for is the love God intended for us to extend to others. Sadly, for generations we, yes even us believers, have continued to turn our backs on the one true God, our Father and Creator. We have rebelled against His commands and against His guidance, while chasing after life on our own terms. As a result, we have ultimately caused our own pain and destruction.
But God says we can do life another way. In John 15 (the first Bible passage I used in this devotional) we see the promise God made for us even before He created us. He says that if we seek Him above all else and draw close to Him, He will be with us. He will fill the deepest places of our hearts and transform us to become more like Him.
The question remains…
How long will we refuse His love?
…..How long will YOU?
“I Am Nothing” – Shawn McDonald
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxcBzEFuC2A
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
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Elevation Church: Found Favor (Part 2)
Read Nehemiah 1:11, 2:4-6, 18; 1 Samuel 2:26
These are just a few stories of where God's people find favor with Him - even at a young age!
God's hand is on us in a special way, even before we know it!
Just like Esther found favor and saved a great nation, you too can affect everybody around you by finding favor with God.
Jesus is the ultimate example of God's favor for us.
Luke 2:52 - "Jesus grew in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and all the people."
Pastor Steven Furtick's (Pastor of Elevation Church) definition of favor:
The favor of God is the guarantee of His presence and the provision of His power to accomplish His special purpose in and through your life.
When you've found favor with God, you have the confidence that God is with you and for you to accomplish everything He's called you to do. You have the divine ability to seize opportunity and overcome opposition, because Jesus is fighting for you.
Unfortunately often when people ask for the favor of God, they expect favors from God. We can't pay Him back. Favor isn't fair. Fairness ended when Jesus died on the Cross and took our sins on His back. You don't want to play the favor game according to fairness. Favor isn't fair and you don't want it to be.
Favor is God deciding to be good to you just because He wants to be good to you and He wants to show the world who He is through your life.
God is fighting for you and the devil doesn't stand a chance against a child of God! :)
With God's favor your life WILL get harder - how else would God show His power over your circumstances if your life wasn't hard? God doesn't give you His favor for your convenience. He gives you His favor for His purpose to accomplish it through your life. God shows us favor not to make our lives easier, but to make His presence in our lives even bigger and more real so His purpose can be fulfilled.
Jesus found favor with God and it led Him to the Cross. With favor we learn to endure, trust, and have faith in God.
When we seek God's favor we will find it. You don't have to feel God's favor in order to find it.
"God's not going to give you the kind of help you're asking for because He wants to give you more help than any human can give. He Himself wants to be your source." - Holly Furtick, wife of Pastor Steven Furtick
These are just a few stories of where God's people find favor with Him - even at a young age!
God's hand is on us in a special way, even before we know it!
Just like Esther found favor and saved a great nation, you too can affect everybody around you by finding favor with God.
Jesus is the ultimate example of God's favor for us.
Luke 2:52 - "Jesus grew in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and all the people."
Pastor Steven Furtick's (Pastor of Elevation Church) definition of favor:
The favor of God is the guarantee of His presence and the provision of His power to accomplish His special purpose in and through your life.
When you've found favor with God, you have the confidence that God is with you and for you to accomplish everything He's called you to do. You have the divine ability to seize opportunity and overcome opposition, because Jesus is fighting for you.
Unfortunately often when people ask for the favor of God, they expect favors from God. We can't pay Him back. Favor isn't fair. Fairness ended when Jesus died on the Cross and took our sins on His back. You don't want to play the favor game according to fairness. Favor isn't fair and you don't want it to be.
Favor is God deciding to be good to you just because He wants to be good to you and He wants to show the world who He is through your life.
God is fighting for you and the devil doesn't stand a chance against a child of God! :)
With God's favor your life WILL get harder - how else would God show His power over your circumstances if your life wasn't hard? God doesn't give you His favor for your convenience. He gives you His favor for His purpose to accomplish it through your life. God shows us favor not to make our lives easier, but to make His presence in our lives even bigger and more real so His purpose can be fulfilled.
Jesus found favor with God and it led Him to the Cross. With favor we learn to endure, trust, and have faith in God.
When we seek God's favor we will find it. You don't have to feel God's favor in order to find it.
"God's not going to give you the kind of help you're asking for because He wants to give you more help than any human can give. He Himself wants to be your source." - Holly Furtick, wife of Pastor Steven Furtick
Elevation Church: Found Favor (Part 1)
Exodus 33:12-13
Moses talking to God: "...I have found favor with you... don't forget that this nation is Your very own people."
We should do this too - give to God what is His; Our families are His to do with what He wants, similarly are our lives, ministries, careers, etc.
When we show dependency to God as Moses did here, we will find His favor.
vs.14-16 We see Moses saying/admitting He can't take a single step without God - DEPENDENCE!
God's favor on His people distinguishes us from everyone else (see vs. 16).
**God's favor gives you an opportunity, but your response and obedience determines whether or not you will seize it.**
The Bible is an anthology - the story of who God is.
Favor is not a formula. It doesn't always work "like this" or "like that." God cannot be contained to a formula. If someone is struggling, that does not mean they don't have God's blessing or favor. (See the Book of Job) In Job, God trusted Job enough that Job would stay faithful to Him even in great struggle.
Here are a few Pastor's opinions of what favor means:
"Favor is God doing for you what you can't do yourself."
"Favor is God's goodness displayed in an individual's life in such a way that only He can get the credit."
"Favor is a relationship with God of great confidence where no matter what you know that with God you're going to come out on top."
"Favor is the acceptance, approval, and assistance of God awarded to us through the finished work of Jesus."
"Favor is God graciously working to optimize your life and your circumstances for your good and His glory."
Whoever God used in the Bible found favor with Him before He even used them.
Examples: Genesis 6:8 Noah
12 - Abraham: God blessed Abraham so that he, in return, could be a blessing to others
18 - Abraham prayed that he would find favor in the sight of God
God's favor is not limited to any circumstance or situation. God's favor can find you wherever you are and bless you even in the hardest times of your life.
Read Ruth 2:10
Similarly to Ruth, people who find favor with God can't even believe they are where they are and they know it's the Lord that got them there.
When you find God's favor it doesn't make you arrogant; it makes you humble. When people say they have God's favor, they're acknowledging their dependence on Him and saying it's Him who got them where they are. It's arrogant not to say this.
When you find favor with God, it's about realizing you're already blessed and that He wants to bless you even more! :)
Moses talking to God: "...I have found favor with you... don't forget that this nation is Your very own people."
We should do this too - give to God what is His; Our families are His to do with what He wants, similarly are our lives, ministries, careers, etc.
When we show dependency to God as Moses did here, we will find His favor.
vs.14-16 We see Moses saying/admitting He can't take a single step without God - DEPENDENCE!
God's favor on His people distinguishes us from everyone else (see vs. 16).
**God's favor gives you an opportunity, but your response and obedience determines whether or not you will seize it.**
The Bible is an anthology - the story of who God is.
Favor is not a formula. It doesn't always work "like this" or "like that." God cannot be contained to a formula. If someone is struggling, that does not mean they don't have God's blessing or favor. (See the Book of Job) In Job, God trusted Job enough that Job would stay faithful to Him even in great struggle.
Here are a few Pastor's opinions of what favor means:
"Favor is God doing for you what you can't do yourself."
"Favor is God's goodness displayed in an individual's life in such a way that only He can get the credit."
"Favor is a relationship with God of great confidence where no matter what you know that with God you're going to come out on top."
"Favor is the acceptance, approval, and assistance of God awarded to us through the finished work of Jesus."
"Favor is God graciously working to optimize your life and your circumstances for your good and His glory."
Whoever God used in the Bible found favor with Him before He even used them.
Examples: Genesis 6:8 Noah
12 - Abraham: God blessed Abraham so that he, in return, could be a blessing to others
18 - Abraham prayed that he would find favor in the sight of God
God's favor is not limited to any circumstance or situation. God's favor can find you wherever you are and bless you even in the hardest times of your life.
Read Ruth 2:10
Similarly to Ruth, people who find favor with God can't even believe they are where they are and they know it's the Lord that got them there.
When you find God's favor it doesn't make you arrogant; it makes you humble. When people say they have God's favor, they're acknowledging their dependence on Him and saying it's Him who got them where they are. It's arrogant not to say this.
When you find favor with God, it's about realizing you're already blessed and that He wants to bless you even more! :)
LifeChurch.tv Sermon Notes - Because of You
The local church is the hope of the world.
Mission statement of LifeChurch: to lead people to become fully devoted followers of Christ
1 Thessalonians 3:7-9
"We have been greatly comforted...because you have remained strong in your faith. It gives us new life, knowing you remain strong in the Lord. How we thank God for you! Because of you we have great joy in the presence of God."
When you walk in obedience to God, you're not surprised by the miracles of God.
It's impossible to please God without faith.
We are spiritual contributors not spiritual consumers. The Church does not exist for us. We are The Church and we exist for the world.
Mission statement of LifeChurch: to lead people to become fully devoted followers of Christ
1 Thessalonians 3:7-9
"We have been greatly comforted...because you have remained strong in your faith. It gives us new life, knowing you remain strong in the Lord. How we thank God for you! Because of you we have great joy in the presence of God."
When you walk in obedience to God, you're not surprised by the miracles of God.
It's impossible to please God without faith.
We are spiritual contributors not spiritual consumers. The Church does not exist for us. We are The Church and we exist for the world.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Love & Respect: Chapter 1 (Part 1)
Getting on the Crazy Cycle is all too easy. Recognizing that you're on the Crazy Cycle and learning how to keep it from spinning out of control is possible if husband and wife can learn how to meet each other's basic needs for love and respect.
Unfortunately, when a wife feels her husband is unloving, her usual approach is to complain and criticize in order to motivate her husband to become more loving. However, this usually proves about as successful as trying to sell brass knuckles to Mother Teresa.
Husbands are generally assured of their wives' love. Nevertheless, when wives show dislike, he interprets it as disrespect and even contempt. So the husband decides he will motivate his wife to become more respectful by acting in unloving ways. You see where this is going... it's a vicious cycle!
In regards to Ephesians 5:33, God commands wives to respect their husbands without conditions.
To say the least, doing something when you don't really feel you want to do it is counterintuitive. Therefore, this passage must be acted out in faith. God has ordained that wives respect their husbands as a method to win husbands to Himself. As a husband opens his spirit to God, he reopens his spirit to his wife. No husband feels affection toward a wife who appears to have contempt for who he is as a human being. The key to creating fond feelings of love in a husband toward his wife is through showing him unconditional respect.
Wives want their husbands to appreciate how much she loves him, and she yearns to feel more love from him. The best way to love a husband is to show him respect in ways that are meaningful to him. Such respect lets him feel his wife's love for him and ignites in him feelings of love for his wife.
End note: Keep things light - this releases tension.
Unfortunately, when a wife feels her husband is unloving, her usual approach is to complain and criticize in order to motivate her husband to become more loving. However, this usually proves about as successful as trying to sell brass knuckles to Mother Teresa.
Husbands are generally assured of their wives' love. Nevertheless, when wives show dislike, he interprets it as disrespect and even contempt. So the husband decides he will motivate his wife to become more respectful by acting in unloving ways. You see where this is going... it's a vicious cycle!
In regards to Ephesians 5:33, God commands wives to respect their husbands without conditions.
To say the least, doing something when you don't really feel you want to do it is counterintuitive. Therefore, this passage must be acted out in faith. God has ordained that wives respect their husbands as a method to win husbands to Himself. As a husband opens his spirit to God, he reopens his spirit to his wife. No husband feels affection toward a wife who appears to have contempt for who he is as a human being. The key to creating fond feelings of love in a husband toward his wife is through showing him unconditional respect.
Wives want their husbands to appreciate how much she loves him, and she yearns to feel more love from him. The best way to love a husband is to show him respect in ways that are meaningful to him. Such respect lets him feel his wife's love for him and ignites in him feelings of love for his wife.
End note: Keep things light - this releases tension.
Love & Respect: Chapter 1 (Part 1)
Part 1: The Crazy Cycle
Without Love - She Reacts - Without Respect - He Reacts
Chapter 1 - The Simple Secret to a Better Marriage
"Those who marry will face many troubles in this life..." (1 Corinthians 7:28)
This is why communication is so important!
You can be right but wrong at the top of your voice.
Tension has a way of tearing down your self-image.
"Each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband." - Ephesians 5:33
The Love & Respect Connection is the key to any problem in a marriage.
How the need for love and the need for respect play off one another in a marriage has everything to do with the kind of marriage you will have.
A husband is to obey the command to love even if his wife does not obey this command to respect, and a wife is to obey the command to respect even if the husband does not obey the command to love. A husband is even called to love a disrespectful wife, and a wife is called to respect an unloving husband. There is no justification for a husband to say, "I will love my wife after she respects me," nor a wife to say, "I will respect my husband after he loves me."
When a husband feels disrespected, it is especially hard to love his wife. When a wife feels unloved, it is especially hard to respect her husband. When a husband feels disrespected, he has a natural tendency to react in ways that feel unloving to his wife. Similarly, when a wife feels unloved, she has a natural tendency to react in ways that feel disrespectful to her husband.
If husband and wives do not learn how to control this "Crazy Cycle," it will just go round and round and where it stops nobody knows.
Without Love - She Reacts - Without Respect - He Reacts
Chapter 1 - The Simple Secret to a Better Marriage
"Those who marry will face many troubles in this life..." (1 Corinthians 7:28)
This is why communication is so important!
You can be right but wrong at the top of your voice.
Tension has a way of tearing down your self-image.
"Each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband." - Ephesians 5:33
The Love & Respect Connection is the key to any problem in a marriage.
How the need for love and the need for respect play off one another in a marriage has everything to do with the kind of marriage you will have.
A husband is to obey the command to love even if his wife does not obey this command to respect, and a wife is to obey the command to respect even if the husband does not obey the command to love. A husband is even called to love a disrespectful wife, and a wife is called to respect an unloving husband. There is no justification for a husband to say, "I will love my wife after she respects me," nor a wife to say, "I will respect my husband after he loves me."
When a husband feels disrespected, it is especially hard to love his wife. When a wife feels unloved, it is especially hard to respect her husband. When a husband feels disrespected, he has a natural tendency to react in ways that feel unloving to his wife. Similarly, when a wife feels unloved, she has a natural tendency to react in ways that feel disrespectful to her husband.
If husband and wives do not learn how to control this "Crazy Cycle," it will just go round and round and where it stops nobody knows.
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Love and Respect - Introduction
I recently ran across a book that I read and studied a couple years ago. After flipping through the pages and re-living all the truth that I learned from this book, I thought it would be great to share some of these lessons with others. So here goes to the start of many posts on the book Love & Respect by Dr. Emerson Eggerichs!
Introduction: Love Alone Is Not Enough
What we often miss is the husband's need for respect. In addition, wives can fulfill their need to be loved by giving their husbands what he needs - respect.
In this book, one wife gave a testimony of when she started showing her husband respect, even when it was undeserved. "I watched his demeanor change right before my very eyes."
When we speak our spouse's love language (whatever that may be), they are more likely to respond in a loving manner.
Unfortunately, a wife's deepest need - to feel loved - is undermined by her disrespect to her husband. Similarly, a husband's deepest need - to feel respected - is undermined by his lack of love to his wife.
The journey to a Godly, satisfying marriage is never over. God will work in remarkable ways when we, men and women alike, submit ourselves wholeheartedly to this Biblical design for marriage (Love & Respect).
Introduction: Love Alone Is Not Enough
What we often miss is the husband's need for respect. In addition, wives can fulfill their need to be loved by giving their husbands what he needs - respect.
In this book, one wife gave a testimony of when she started showing her husband respect, even when it was undeserved. "I watched his demeanor change right before my very eyes."
When we speak our spouse's love language (whatever that may be), they are more likely to respond in a loving manner.
Unfortunately, a wife's deepest need - to feel loved - is undermined by her disrespect to her husband. Similarly, a husband's deepest need - to feel respected - is undermined by his lack of love to his wife.
The journey to a Godly, satisfying marriage is never over. God will work in remarkable ways when we, men and women alike, submit ourselves wholeheartedly to this Biblical design for marriage (Love & Respect).
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