RELATIONSHIPS
Colossians 3:18-4:1
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Colossians+3:18-4:1
Dear Father,
May Christian wives and husbands relate to each other as is
fitting in the Lord, with subjection and kindness.
May children obey their parents and may parents not provoke the
children.
May we work at our jobs in ways which will put honoring you above
trying to please someone.
Whatever our tasks, help us to work heartily, serving you.
Help us all to treat each other fairly in all our relationships.
In the name of Jesus I ask. Amen.
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Thursday, December 17, 2009
IN CHRIST, THE FULLNESS OF DEITY
IN CHRIST, THE FULLNESS OF DEITY
Colossians 2:8-9
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Colossians+2:8-9
Dear Father,
May I never be impressed with the philosophy and empty deceit that
comes out of human traditions which do not agree with Christ.
Keep me from being enticed by teachings that root their knowledge
in the elemental spirits of the universe, the laws of nature, and
in scientism, but not in Christ.
Help us to understand what it means that the very fullness of
deity dwells in our Lord bodily and that we have come to the
fullness of life in him and that he is the head of all rule and
authority.
Help us to hold fast to Christ, who is our head, in whose name I
pray. Amen.
Colossians 2:8-9
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Colossians+2:8-9
Dear Father,
May I never be impressed with the philosophy and empty deceit that
comes out of human traditions which do not agree with Christ.
Keep me from being enticed by teachings that root their knowledge
in the elemental spirits of the universe, the laws of nature, and
in scientism, but not in Christ.
Help us to understand what it means that the very fullness of
deity dwells in our Lord bodily and that we have come to the
fullness of life in him and that he is the head of all rule and
authority.
Help us to hold fast to Christ, who is our head, in whose name I
pray. Amen.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
YOU MADE ENDURANCE POSSIBLE!
YOU MADE ENDURANCE POSSIBLE!
Colossians 1:23
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Colossians+1:23
Dear Father,
Help me to continue in the faith by holding on to what you have
given and by being stable and steadfast.
Don't let anything move me away from the hope of the Good News
which I heard, which was proclaimed throughout the whole creation
under heaven.
You make my endurance possible by filling me with your Spirit.
Fill me more and more! And thank you for being my Father.
In the name of Jesus and by his authority I ask. Amen
Colossians 1:23
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Colossians+1:23
Dear Father,
Help me to continue in the faith by holding on to what you have
given and by being stable and steadfast.
Don't let anything move me away from the hope of the Good News
which I heard, which was proclaimed throughout the whole creation
under heaven.
You make my endurance possible by filling me with your Spirit.
Fill me more and more! And thank you for being my Father.
In the name of Jesus and by his authority I ask. Amen
Monday, December 7, 2009
FILLED WITH KNOWLEDGE
FILLED WITH KNOWLEDGE
Colossians 1:9-10
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Colossians+1:9-10
Dear Father,
Help me and all of your people everywhere to be filled with
complete knowledge of what you want, in all wisdom and spiritual
understanding.
Keep stirring up my spirit to make me want to lead a life worthy
of the Lord Jesus Christ, a full life because it is fully pleasing
to him.
May I bear fruit in every good work. May I daily increase in my
knowledge of you.
In the name of Jesus, our awesome Lord. Amen.
Colossians 1:9-10
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Colossians+1:9-10
Dear Father,
Help me and all of your people everywhere to be filled with
complete knowledge of what you want, in all wisdom and spiritual
understanding.
Keep stirring up my spirit to make me want to lead a life worthy
of the Lord Jesus Christ, a full life because it is fully pleasing
to him.
May I bear fruit in every good work. May I daily increase in my
knowledge of you.
In the name of Jesus, our awesome Lord. Amen.
In Need of a Savior
In Need of a Savior
Alan Riley
David Miller, a ministry friend of mine relates the story of the birth of his first child. When his son was born, David was sure that there had never been a child born to man and woman to compare to this special child. "But it wasn't long after we brought him home from the hospital," David relates, "that we realized that the chain of sin was still unbroken!"
We laughed when we heard David tell that story, but he makes an important point. His child was born with a sinful nature. You and I were, too. We all were. It is a legacy passed down from Adam. Each one of us at some point in our lives makes a conscious choice to disobey God and sin, but that is because we were born with a sinful nature, a bent toward sinning, if you will.
People sometimes get upset with you if you tell them they are a sinner. They think we are judging them, but in reality that is something that we have in common with them. The Apostle Paul said that he was the "chief of sinners" (1 Timothy 1:15). John reminded us that if we say we have not sinned we are a liar (1 John 1:8).
The late Rich Mullins (writer of "Awesome God" and "Sing Your Praise to the Lord") told the story of getting stranded at an inn while on a hike. To meet back up with his party would require a ten mile walk and he was already spent from the day's hike. He struck up a conversation with a man at the inn and in the course of the conversation, Mullins shared that he was a Christian musician. The man offered to give Mullins a ride to meet his party, but said there was something he needed to tell him first. "I am gay" the man told him. Rich chuckled and replied that he still needed a ride to the drop off point! As he took Rich to meet up with his hiking companions, the man was silent for most of the trip.
Finally he turned to Rich and asked, "Does God hate me?" Mullins wrote that the question, and the heart cry behind it broke his heart. He turned to the man and said, "God loves you as much as He loves me! Yes, God hates the sin in your life, but no more than he hates the sin in my life." The man realized that in Rich Mullins he had found a friend, not a judge. That is how we need to relate to those around us, many of whom are struggling with sin. We aren't better than them, we're just forgiven. When I share Christ with others, I am just one beggar telling another beggar where I found food.
We tend to want to rank sin in order of severity, but God doesn't make such distinctions. It's true that in the Old Testament (Proverbs 6) there is a list of things God despises, but included on that list are lying and sowing discord among brothers. Ever lied before? (If your answer is no, read 1 John 1:8 again!) Sin is sin. It is all rebellion against Him. We are all in need of saving. We are all in need of a Savior.
That is what we celebrate this Christmas season. We need to look beyond all the hype and the materialism of the holiday and focus in on the baby in a manger in Bethlehem. The only child who ever chose to be born. The one who left the glory of heaven to save us from our sins.
He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. 1 John 1:10-14 (NKJV)
Alan Riley
David Miller, a ministry friend of mine relates the story of the birth of his first child. When his son was born, David was sure that there had never been a child born to man and woman to compare to this special child. "But it wasn't long after we brought him home from the hospital," David relates, "that we realized that the chain of sin was still unbroken!"
We laughed when we heard David tell that story, but he makes an important point. His child was born with a sinful nature. You and I were, too. We all were. It is a legacy passed down from Adam. Each one of us at some point in our lives makes a conscious choice to disobey God and sin, but that is because we were born with a sinful nature, a bent toward sinning, if you will.
People sometimes get upset with you if you tell them they are a sinner. They think we are judging them, but in reality that is something that we have in common with them. The Apostle Paul said that he was the "chief of sinners" (1 Timothy 1:15). John reminded us that if we say we have not sinned we are a liar (1 John 1:8).
The late Rich Mullins (writer of "Awesome God" and "Sing Your Praise to the Lord") told the story of getting stranded at an inn while on a hike. To meet back up with his party would require a ten mile walk and he was already spent from the day's hike. He struck up a conversation with a man at the inn and in the course of the conversation, Mullins shared that he was a Christian musician. The man offered to give Mullins a ride to meet his party, but said there was something he needed to tell him first. "I am gay" the man told him. Rich chuckled and replied that he still needed a ride to the drop off point! As he took Rich to meet up with his hiking companions, the man was silent for most of the trip.
Finally he turned to Rich and asked, "Does God hate me?" Mullins wrote that the question, and the heart cry behind it broke his heart. He turned to the man and said, "God loves you as much as He loves me! Yes, God hates the sin in your life, but no more than he hates the sin in my life." The man realized that in Rich Mullins he had found a friend, not a judge. That is how we need to relate to those around us, many of whom are struggling with sin. We aren't better than them, we're just forgiven. When I share Christ with others, I am just one beggar telling another beggar where I found food.
We tend to want to rank sin in order of severity, but God doesn't make such distinctions. It's true that in the Old Testament (Proverbs 6) there is a list of things God despises, but included on that list are lying and sowing discord among brothers. Ever lied before? (If your answer is no, read 1 John 1:8 again!) Sin is sin. It is all rebellion against Him. We are all in need of saving. We are all in need of a Savior.
That is what we celebrate this Christmas season. We need to look beyond all the hype and the materialism of the holiday and focus in on the baby in a manger in Bethlehem. The only child who ever chose to be born. The one who left the glory of heaven to save us from our sins.
He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. 1 John 1:10-14 (NKJV)
Saturday, December 5, 2009
VERSE:
VERSE:
Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who,
being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with
God…
-- Philippians 2:5-6
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Philippians+2:5-6&translation=kjv
THOUGHT:
Jesus did not hang on to his heavenly glory, but surrendered it
to save us. Now he asks us to follow his example and share his
heart. He wants us to treat each other as he has treated us,
thinking of others' needs and God's will before our own. Now that's
one revolution I hope I get to see fully happen!
PRAYER:
O Father God, please transform my heart and mind by the power of
your Holy Spirit. I want my thoughts to be your thoughts. I want my
heart's desire to reflect the passions of your Son. I want my will
to be guided by your Spirit. Please forgive my tendency to
ruthlessly hang on to my own importance, my own will, and my own
self-justification, even when I know it is not right or best. Make
my mind more like the mind of your Son. In Jesus' name I pray.
Amen.
Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who,
being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with
God…
-- Philippians 2:5-6
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Philippians+2:5-6&translation=kjv
THOUGHT:
Jesus did not hang on to his heavenly glory, but surrendered it
to save us. Now he asks us to follow his example and share his
heart. He wants us to treat each other as he has treated us,
thinking of others' needs and God's will before our own. Now that's
one revolution I hope I get to see fully happen!
PRAYER:
O Father God, please transform my heart and mind by the power of
your Holy Spirit. I want my thoughts to be your thoughts. I want my
heart's desire to reflect the passions of your Son. I want my will
to be guided by your Spirit. Please forgive my tendency to
ruthlessly hang on to my own importance, my own will, and my own
self-justification, even when I know it is not right or best. Make
my mind more like the mind of your Son. In Jesus' name I pray.
Amen.
SOWING FAITH, HOPE, LOVE
SOWING FAITH, HOPE, LOVE
Colossians 1:3-5
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Colossians+1:3-5
Dear Father, God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
We thank you for every brother and sister, young and old, who has
faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and who is learning to love all your
saints because of the hope that is laid up for us in heaven.
Thank you for letting us hear about this abiding faith, hope, and
love in your word.
Thank you that your Word was proclaimed to us.
In the name of Jesus I pray. Amen.
Colossians 1:3-5
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Colossians+1:3-5
Dear Father, God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
We thank you for every brother and sister, young and old, who has
faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and who is learning to love all your
saints because of the hope that is laid up for us in heaven.
Thank you for letting us hear about this abiding faith, hope, and
love in your word.
Thank you that your Word was proclaimed to us.
In the name of Jesus I pray. Amen.
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