Power

     The moment we become believers, we receive the power of the Holy Spirit. That spiritual power is beyond this world, beyond what we see with our eyes, or hear with our ears or touch with our hands. It is a deep and abiding force that guides us through the rest of our lives. The breath and Spirit of Christ rests upon us. It is beyond our natural abilities. It is supernatural

And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit. Ephesians 1;13

     Yes, that moment you first believed the Holy Spirit was given to you. Are you ready to hear more about this great power? These next verses never fail to fill me with awe and wonder at what He offers freely when we believe that He exists and died and rose again for us. Paul is praying this prayer for his brothers and sisters in Ephesus. Let this be a prayer for you today. Let it soak into your heart.

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in His holy people, and His incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength He exerted when He raised Christ from the dead and seated Him at the right hand of the heavenly realms. Ephesians 1:18-20

     The same power that raised Christ from the dead is given to us?! Resurrection power. I could use a little of that today. You, too? Feel that great power in prayer, through your struggles, beyond your circumstances and in trusting His ability to use all things for His good. We may not understand it all until we are in heaven, but all of this, every single thing in our lives, will be, somehow, in some way, used for His glory. We are included in His glorious inheritance. Believe it!

Dear Lord,

We don’t see all things clearly right now. It becomes muddled in our daily existence, but we trust You. One day we will see it all and how you used us in unexpected ways. Tune us in to our Holy Spirit power today and every single day for the rest of our lives. Teach us how to be in constant contact with You and to share the power of Your great love with others.

In Jesus name,

Amen

Plan

     There is no other person on the planet like you. God’s plan for your life is different from any other. You were born at just the right time, for just the right season, for just these moments. You are gifted with a certain personality type, with natural, in-born gifts to share, and when the Holy Spirit comes to live within you, God enhances all of those unique attributes with gifts of the Spirit. These gifts are to be used for the common good. (See 1 Corinthians 12, Ephesians 4 and Romans 12 for the gifts of the Spirit)

     God’s plan will fit perfectly, with great precision, with who you are and where you are and with what you do best. Do you make a plan or go with the flow? Are your decisions based on logical thinking or from the heart? Do you connect with the world with your five senses or your intuition? Gifted in administration? Love to entertain? Are you quiet and prefer one-on-one conversation to a crowd setting? Love to teach or to stay behind the scenes setting up for the teacher? Are you meant to shepherd a small group or use your Biblical knowledge to help others?

     All of these and more can be used to influence the kingdom of God. The community of faith works together as a body. Jesus is the head, and we make up the other parts. Just as our body cannot function without all of its working parts, so our communities cannot function without all of us working in unity.

     The beautiful thing, well, one of the many beautiful things about the body of Christ, is that God gives special honor to the unseen, less focused-on gifts. Do you pray for others continually? Maybe you sharpen the pencils in the pews. Or you come early and stay late before and after the meetings? You are highly honored by our God.

     God’s plan is just right. Not too much, not too little, a one-of-a kind blueprint that fits you like a glove. And He will give you the power to do what you are meant to do in ways that may seem impossible without our Creator. He will pull out all of the stops to influence His children on earth. He needs you, and we are in it together.

If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.  1 Corinthians 12:26-27

From Him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.  Ephesians 4;16

     Discovering your gifts and doing your part is an awesome adventure. As you read God’s Word, He will show you the way you should go.

Dear Jesus,

We thank you for each part of the body of Christ all over the world. How you orchestrate all of us to work for Your kingdom is beyond our imaginings. Show us our part. Are we your eyes focused on a hurting world? Are we Your hands offering a loving touch to someone in need, or Your feet going to unsaved parts of the world? We all share Your great and powerful heart in love.

Amen

Purpose

     How do we find purpose on earth? What is it all about? If Jesus is the way, the truth and the life, what does He expect from you and me? He gave up everything to give us new life. I know I have nothing to give in return. There is nothing we CAN do, nothing God needs. He IS everything. What He wants and asks from us is to have a relationship with Him. He wants intimacy. He wants to work His plan with us and through us.

     As we get to know Jesus through His Word and through prayer, our purpose begins to become clear. Knowing Him, putting Him first, recognizing we can’t do anything without Him, finds us surprisingly able to do things we could not imagine. Our confidence is in Him, rather than our own efforts and He will use you and me to fulfill His purposes on earth.

     He may use your story, your suffering, your life as a testimony to others. People may notice a change and ask you about the hope that is in you. You might speak boldly about your faith to someone God places in your path. Jesus may even ask you to reach out to someone you don’t like very much. You and I couldn't do it on our own.

Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is iimpossible, but with God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:26

     Get to know Him. Open up the Good Book. Imagine a new life filled with possibilities. Most of the thoughts in our head, what we worry about, compete for, save to buy, work towards, will not come with us into heaven.

     When we meet Jesus, He will burn up the things that won’t come with us in through those pearly gates. But the things we did with Him and for Him and through Him? They will be refined like gold, beautiful and lasting. Good enough to last forever.

Their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved-even though only as one escaping through the flames.  1 Corinthians 3:13-15

     This work is not anything we can do on our own, but only with Jesus, the foundation. He shows us what to do and how to do it, through His Holy Spirit, through His Word, through our time of prayer.

     Ready to give it a try, this purposeful life? It comes down to the heart and His love.

As water reflects the face, so one’s life reflects the heart.  Proverbs 27:19

     What is the condition of your heart? Let it melt into a life with Christ.

Dear Jesus,

You give our lives meaning and purpose. Show us how to take the next step. Help us focus on Your love and getting to know You more intimately this year. We are one in spirit with You and the Father when we believe.

Amen

Perfection

    I want us to work backwards this week. We begin on this minus 50 degree windchill kind of day in Minnesota focusing our eyes on the end of the story, and the warmth of heaven. If you are a believer in Christ (if you are not, stay tuned all week) we know we will live forever!

     One day, af the end of these earthly lives, we will live in perfection. We will have new bodies, and yet will remain our unique selves. Let this truth give you strength and hope today; giving promise to a parent’s heart as they witness their child suffer with illness, disability or disease; joy to a widow’s heart as she continues to miss her partner; an end to the labored breathing that comes with lung disease; a day to be free of temptation and addiction. A new beginning at what appears to be the end of the road.

     Finite to infinite, imperfect to perfect, perishable to imperishable, the unseen will be seen, time will become timeless. (See 1 Corinthians 15) It puts our suffering, our temptations, our grief into perspective. God will redeem all of it.

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.  Romans 8:18

For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.  2 Corinthians 4:17-18

     We will meet Jesus face-to-face. We will live in glory. No time-frame, no hussle and bussle. No more scurrying from place to place. No more stress! We can drink our coffee for hours on end. We will have time to speak to others in history. We will see Moses and Elijah, John and James, Mary and Joseph, Abraham and Isaac. Forever.There is no end to our story, other than a giving up of our imperfect souls and bodies. We aren’t striving and struggling just to get to the end of this life. The end is the beginning of it all. Feel the hope. See the glory. Live out your life with passion and love. All of this is achieving a glory that far outweighs it all.

But do not forget this one thing, dear friends. With the Lord a day is like a thousand years and a thousand years are like a day.  2 Peter 3:8

    Our sufferings last only a moment in light of eternity. Take in that strength today. Count on that hope. Believe in eternity. All of this will be redeemed in His glory. And every breath on this earth can be lived for Him. Every breath is precious. He gave you life on earth and He gives new life forever.

Dear Lord,

You give us hope for tomorrow, when we will be like You, with new bodies in a perfect world. A new heaven and a new earth, with Your glory shining all around us. The Son will be the sun of heaven. No more night. No more tears. The hope of glory. Our blessed assurance.

It is Jesus.

Amen

Real

     Authentic, real, genuine, servant of God. Can we become fully His, living the lives He called us to live? Let that be our goal this year. Wouldn’t it be great to rest in living God’s way? We are all made in His image, yet there are no two alike. We have different colored eyes, various personality types, and we each have varied passions and values.

     God sees you as you are, and He sees who you will become with His gentle guidance and His love. He has called you. He has prepared work for you and only you. Has He placed a passion in your heart, a dream for the future? Remember, it took Moses 80 years to lead the people out of Israel. Abraham was almost 100 when he and Sarah had Isaac. Caleb was still healthy and strong, in his 80's, when he walked into the promised land.

     God’s purpose for us will never end, until we walk from this life into eternity with Him. Is it time to get real? There is so much that isn’t in the world around us. False pride, false eyelashes, false sincerity, and false hopes surround us. Lies and greed and unforgivenss and rage abound. All of the falseness of the world and the schemes of Satan want to hold us back from living our genuine, authentic lives.

    Is this the year for a real relationship with Jesus? He is calling you.

As for you, the anointing you received from Him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as His anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit-just as it has taught you, remain in Him.  1 John 2:27

    There’s the secret. Remain in Him. He will teach us. He is real and not counterfeit. His anointing, His call is waiting. Is it time?

Dear Jesus,

You promise to teach us all things through Your Holy Spirit. Show us how to live authentic lives filled with Your purpose for us, to live real lives of love and mercy. You show us how.

Amen

Renewed

     Things change when you become a believer. You may not have seen lightning strike or heard the angels sing. You see the same face in the mirror the next day, feel the same lure of temptation or go back to the same old habits. But, you are changed. God now sees you through the image of Christ. Your heavenly Father sees no more sin. You are different and over time, Christ changes us a little at a time to be more like Him.

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come. The old has gone, the new is here.  2 Corinthians 5:17

     You have been renewed and transformed. You are in Christ! Believe that this morning and throughout the year. Renew your mind each day with His Word. Listen for Him above all of the other noise around you and be changed!

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is-His good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2

     The things of the world will become less attractive as the Holy Spirit within you begins to guide your steps. Let David’s words from Psalm 51 be our prayer today in the renewing of our spirits and in taking the next step into a bright new year filled with the light of Christ leading the way. You are a new creation!

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from Your presence or take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit to sustain me. Psalm 51:10-12

Reborn

     Happy New Year! May 2014 bring great hope and peace for each one of you. Is today the day to accept Him? You have witnessed the Christmas story time and time again. There is something about Jesus. Something real. You have witnessed His love through others. You have seen the movie. Do you believe in the virgin birth, the sacrifice He suffered, the resurrection from the dead? Do you believe?

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in Me will live even though they die, and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”  John 11:25-26

     If so, and even if you already are a believer, read this prayer with me. That’s all it takes. A moment in time. A moment to be reborn into the kingdom of God, shifting all of your sin onto Him. It is not an even exchange. We receive His image for all of our crud. He gives us everything we do not deserve and we have nothing to give Him back. All consuming, all-encompassing love. It is yours for the asking.

Dear Jesus,

I do believe You came to earth, born of a virgin. You lived as one of us, but had no sin. You died in my place. You suffered for me on the cross and by Your shed blood I am forgiven. Please forgive me for everything I have done against You and others. I give all of it to You now and my sins are wiped away as far as the East is from the West. You rose again on the third day and one day I will arrive in heaven to live with You forever. Thank you Jesus. I accept You as Savior. Take my life and use me to do Your will.

Amen

Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” John 3:3

     Your spirit is born again. The Holy Spirit of Christ has come to live within you and you are eternity bound! He will never leave you. Let this prayer bring you great peace and joy as you begin this new year, a year of new beginnings. A year filled with a new song in your heart!