Explaination

So its been a really long time since I posted anything on here and there is a few reasons for this... 1.  I haven't been doing my devotions as regularly as I should and 2. When I have done them I haven't been bothered blogging... but to once again give myself some accountability, I have decided that even if I don't discuss the devo I will at least post the bible verse... so that you know, and I know I have done it...  So there you go, thats the new plan, stay posted.

Read more...

Community

Purity of Mind: Day 21 - Communal Thinking

Acts 20:32
I'm turning you over to God, our marvelous God whose gracious Word can make you into what he wants you to be and give you everything you could possibly need in this community of holy friends.

One thing I am really glad about is the fact that God made us to want to live in community.  I am a social kind of person, I don't really like being by myself for long periods of time, so moving up here, out of a fairly big family to just me has been really hard.  One thing I have been really grateful for is my new cell group up here and the Salvo's in Castlemaine too.  Without them, I think I would have struggled a lot more and perhaps even thrown in towel, but I think they fact that they have constantly welcomed me, supported me, loved me and shown an interest in me has made more difference than they will ever know.  

This week at my cell group, we looked at the forth week of a Salvation Army series called 'Salvo's out there' and the main theme was 'a fair go for all'.  I was really challenged about whether or not I do this, not just for the poor and needy but for everyone, every race, every gender, every age, every sexuality, every disease...do I give them all a fair go by showing them God's love?  By including them in my community and giving them respect and dignity...  Probably not always, but I guess its something that I am working on...something that I will probably never stop working on.  

God designed us to live in community, with him and with others.... all the time.

Read more...

Dad

Purity of Mind: Day 20 - Thinking Like a Child

Ephesians 5:1-2
Watch what God does, and then you do it, like children who learn proper behaviour from their parents.  Mostly what God does is love you.  Keep company with him and learn a life of love.  Observe how Christ loved us.  His love was not cautious but extravagant.  He didn't love in order to get something from us but to give everything of himself to us.  Love like that. 

So since I have moved out of home and Dad has moved back from China we have been getting closer and closer, its actually been really nice.  I have always known that Dad loved me, and I never really doubted it, but I think that over the last little while I have seen his love more than normal.  I have been able to chat to him about whats happening in my life, what I want to do, who I want to do life with etc.  But I have also been able to seek his advice.  Most recently while I have been car shopping, Dad has shown his love by helping me research and investigate everything I needed to know to chose the right car and then how to work my money so that I can pay for it.  Its been super helpful, because if it were left up to me I think I would still be looking, not because of lack of trying, but just lack of knowledge on where to look and how to work it all out.  The thing is Dad has gone out of his way to help me out and its been really nice.  Our newishly found good verbal relationship has also allowed me to learn more about my Dad.  The thing is that the more I get to know of him, the more amazing I think he is.  I really loved my Dad before, but I am only just starting to understand what an amazing person he actually is.  

I think that this is whats its supposed to be like with God...he is my heavenly father, and I need to take the next step with my relationship with him too.  Go from this, taken for granted love, to one that reveals more and more each time we talk.  One that helps me to see what I am aspiring to.  One that actually sees me experience God the Dad like I am supposed to. 

Read more...

Cheating on God

Purity of Mind: Day 19 - A Different Way of Thinking

1 John 2:15-17
Do not love this world not the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you.  For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything thing we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions.  These are not from the Father, but are from this world.  And this world is fading away along with everything that people crave.  But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever.

Today's devo challenged me about what I want in life, I think it challenged me simply because lots of the things I want are super worldly, you know the regular things, a nice house, a good job and some nice stuff to go with it all, but this stuff and seeking after this stuff doesn't actually please God at all, in fact it turns him away.  Sure I can enjoy these things, i think, as long as my heart is after God's heart and not the satifaction that comes from having the nice stuff.  One verse that really stuck out for me was this: 

'You're cheating on God.  If all you want is your own was, flirting with the world every chance you get, you end up enemies of god and his way.  And do you suppose God doesn't care? The proverb has it that 'he's a fiercely jealous lover.' And what he gives in love is far better than anything else you'll find.' James 4:4-6 (The Message)

I think I have spoken about this before, but I really need to start trusting God a bit more when he says he knows what's best for my life, rather than desperately trying to stay in control like I am, because I can't have it both ways.

Read more...

Seeking

Purity of Mind: Day 18 - Searching for Truth

Jeremiah 33:2-3
This is God's message, the God who made the earth, made it livable and lasting, known everywhere as God: "Call to me and I will answer you.  I'll tell you marvelous and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your own."

I think a lot of the time I take everything I know about God for granted.  It wasn't until when Dave first became a Christian, it dawned on me that I really had learnt heaps about who God was and what he did, but sometimes I wonder if its all really true, and how can I be super sure.  So often I look at other religions and wonder what would happen if I had been brought up in an Islamic house, or a Buddhist home, would I have just accepted those religions instead?  Thankfully, I guess I have had my own encounters with God and I know that he is real and that he has saved me, and continues to use me.  But this whole idea of truth and proof is something that I really struggle with in that, I feel like I need to be 100% sure all the time because if I am not than I fear I might be in trouble.  I know this is where faith comes in and all that kind of stuff, but sometimes I wonder what I could actually prove if I needed to, without just saying 'well I just know'.  In my devotion today, the author challenges me to seek God out, to test it all and to search, because God will prove himself time and time again.  I have often thought about doing this, but then I think of the verses about not testing God and wonder if its really ok to seek like that.  I think the other thing in all this is that even if I really wanted to search and test, I wouldn't even know where to start.  How does one start to research God...and the authenticity of the stories?  I have no idea.  

Read more...

It's under my feet

Purity of Mind: Day 17 - Sweet Surrender

Psalm 146:3-5
Don't put your confidence in powerful people; there is no help for you there.  When they breathe their last, they return to the earth, and all their plans die with them.  But joyful are those who have the God of Israel as their helper, whose hope is in the Lord their God. 

I am not really sure what I wanted this blog to look like, I don't think its quite there yet, so bare with me.  I think its hard to talk/reflect on what I have read with the blogging community if you aren't reading the book at the same time.  I guess, I also don't want to just regurgitate what I just read coz whats the point in that... so I am not really sure what the plan is, I just thought I would let you know my predicament. 

Anyway, after a my last blog when I was super pumped and hungry, not much has changed, I am still hungry but I haven't really done anything about it...enter new blog (a week later) which suggests that that some of the biggest spiritual warfare weapons facing us today are 'distraction, discouragement and discontent' and I think that this week I have let the devil walk all over me with the first D.  Seriously, that's all it took, this week I have been distracted but lots of little things, but all of them have meant that I haven't been putting God first.  I think I need to wake up a little to the fact that distraction isn't just something that happens, but that it can be actively used against me in my efforts to get closer to the king...So right here and right now I am putting a stop to it.  Distraction is under my feet, and it won't stop me from doing my devotions anymore...

Read more...

Hungry

Purity of Mind: Day 16 - Mind Motivation

Psalm 26:2-3
Put me on trial, Lord, and cross-examine me.  Test my motivations and my heart.  For I am always aware of your unfailing love, and I have lived according to your truth.

I think for the last little while I have been in a bit of a spiritual rut.  I have still been going through the motions and learning a few things here and there, but I certainly haven't been moving mountains, so to speak.  At the moment though, I am hungry.  I don't know if its just because its the beginning of the year and the things that has been propping me up previously haven't been on for a while so I have started to notice or whether its because I am actually hungry...but I like it.  I want more, I want to spend more time in God's presence and I want to do more for him in my day to day stuff.  I haven't quite worked out what that will look like yet, but all I know is I am hungry!  I want to know God more intimately, I want to know his plans, his ways, his majesty... I want it all. 

Read more...

Who am I feeding?

Purity of Mind: Day 15 - Mind Protection

James 1:21
Get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls

Today's chapter asked me to consider what part of my soul I was feeding more regularly, my flesh or my spirit.  What do I let permeate my brain day to day, are they things that are God pleasing? Or are the things that still remain from my flesh.  The author challenges that the one that gets feed the most frequently grows the most and becomes the strongest.  This concept really made me stop and think about which part of my mind I feed most often and to be honest when I really think about it, I think that there are probably days that my spiritual part doesn't get fed at all, but constantly I choose to spend time in front of the telly feeding my flesh with stuff and making it strong.  How can I ever expect to be who God calls me to be if I don't actively feed into that part of who I am.  I think I need to start purposely spending more time with God, and while this little blog has been helpful and kept me a little more accountable, there still needs to be more, its about more than just a quick devotion at the end of the day...its about the things I watch and the things I read and the things I listen to.  

'The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.  Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things' - Philippians 4:7-8  

Read more...

He's got it covered

Purity of Mind: Day 14 - Questioning God

Isaiah 55:9-11
As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire 
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

How incredible God is, even though sometimes life is a bit pooey, God is in control!  It is times like these, when the earth seems like it is falling apart that I wonder what is happening, what's going on with life, why is all this stuff happening and then I remember that God is in control.  I don't need to know why, just that God has it covered.  It may not look like the way we expect, but I know that my God is doing what he needs to and that when I get to heaven I can ask him.  

Read more...

Afraid No More

Purity of Mind: Day 13 – No Fear

1 John 4:17-18
God is love. When we take up permanent residence in a life of love, we live in God and God lives in us. This way, love has the run of the house, becomes at home and mature in us, so that we're free of worry on Judgment Day - our standing in the world is identical with Christ's. There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life - fear of death, fear of judgment - is one not yet fully formed in love.

Tonight’s devotion hit me pretty hard. I am a really anxious person, maybe even a little paranoid. I worry about lots of things, little things and big things and I worry all the time. Something I know are stupid to worry about and then there are other times that I worry if I am not anxious enough. There have been a number of times that I have been able to hand over the bigger things to God and experienced a real peace about the situation, but its not something that I do daily.

Tonight I realised, even though I think I already knew, that my fear/worry/anxiety is something that I have allowed the devil to have as a really powerful tool in my life and I need to put a stop to it. Earlier this year at my cell we did a study of fear, and the speaker (some American lady on the DVD) taught that the answer to fear is always God…and that there was nothing my God could not be the answer to. She got us to ask our most anxious questions, for example right now mine is What if there is a fire in Castlemaine and the answer is God. Its always what if….then God and I need to start holding on to this a little tighter.

At school I was given a bible verse to help me through my exams and that was Mark 5:36 “Don’t be afraid, just believe” in another translation it says ‘just have faith’. I need to start living this, really living this. I want to be fully formed in love, and fear is stopping me.

So God, break the chains that fear has in my life. I want to be free, I want to just have faith, I want the answer to my ‘what if’s’ to be ‘then God’. For the big things and for the little, everyday things. Do something new in me. Let me know that peace and freedom that goes beyond all understanding.

Read more...