An Extra Hour
November 6-7
Tonight we "fall back" and gain an hour. How will we spend this extra time?
What if we started a new tradition in our families and trained them to claim this hour each year as a gift from God to be spent alone with Him, seeking Him? Watch out though, when you get alone with Him, He will get in your mind!
Yesterday, he issued me a challenge, which I tried to ignore, concerning Christmas. Max Lucado's book, Just Like Jesus all but jumped off one of our bookshelves the other day into my hands. The sub-title reads:
"God loves you just the way you are, but he refuses to leave you that way."
What a great Christmas gift we could give to our families, friends and co-workers...us becoming more like Jesus!
Consider joining me in reading this book between now and Christmas. In conjunction with this read, I will also be reading the book of John and dedicate these next two months to learning more about our Lord. I will still go with the flow of what the Spirit is up to in my daily writings and not be bound to a set routine, but for today join me in Chapter One of this book called...
A Heart Like His.
Ok, and here is the other part...I didn't put it in at first...ew I am being disobedient. I am to open the house one day a week for a time of prayer and reflection as to how God is shaping our lives. So from now until Christmas, the doors of Shiloh will be open at 1:00-2:00 on Thursdays for anyone who wants to come in and share and pray. Don't hold me to this, but I will try to have a Christmas treat baked and a recipe on hand each week.
Philippians 2:5 says: Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.
The Message makes it a bit more convicting...
In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus.
Lucado poses the question:
"With Jesus taking over your heart, would anything change?"
"God's plan for you is nothing short of a new heart."
But you were taught to be made new in your hearts, to become a new person.
That new person is made to be like God-made to be truly good and holy. Ephesians 4:23-24
How is that possible we ask ourselves? Lucado states:
"If you have given our life to Jesus, Jesus has given himself to you."
Paul says in Galatians 2:20 (MSG) Christ lives in me.
The question I am asking myself is this...
If Christ is living in me, how much power am I allowing Him to have?
It takes effort and a conscious decision to give Jesus the reigns and for me;
I have to make that decision multiple times a day.
I faltered just last night and it was easier to ignore the issue and go to sleep than deal with my sin. PTL the sun came up and I got a "do over" today. (No small coincidence I've had to put my nose in this book and take this challenge myself.)
Colossians Chapter Three is titled: Rules for Holy Living. It is a great place to start studying if we want to pass our "Character of Jesus" examination. God loves us so much. He wants us to be the best of the best!
Feel the love from this passage of Lucado's on page 3 of his book.
"God loves you just the way you are. If you think his love for you would be stronger if your faith were, you are wrong. If you think his love would be deeper if your thoughts were, wrong again. Don't confuse God's love with the love of people. The love of people often increases with performance and decreases with mistakes. Not so with God's love. He loves you right where you are. God's love never ceases. Never. Though we spurn him. Ignore him. Reject him. Despise him. Disobey him. He will not change. Our evil cannot diminish his love. Our goodness cannot increase it. Our faith does not earn it anymore than our stupidity jeopardizes it. God doesn't love us less if we fail or more if we succeed. God's love never ceases."
Tonight we "fall back" and gain an hour. How will we spend this extra time?
What if we started a new tradition in our families and trained them to claim this hour each year as a gift from God to be spent alone with Him, seeking Him? Watch out though, when you get alone with Him, He will get in your mind!
Yesterday, he issued me a challenge, which I tried to ignore, concerning Christmas. Max Lucado's book, Just Like Jesus all but jumped off one of our bookshelves the other day into my hands. The sub-title reads:
"God loves you just the way you are, but he refuses to leave you that way."
What a great Christmas gift we could give to our families, friends and co-workers...us becoming more like Jesus!
Consider joining me in reading this book between now and Christmas. In conjunction with this read, I will also be reading the book of John and dedicate these next two months to learning more about our Lord. I will still go with the flow of what the Spirit is up to in my daily writings and not be bound to a set routine, but for today join me in Chapter One of this book called...
A Heart Like His.
Ok, and here is the other part...I didn't put it in at first...ew I am being disobedient. I am to open the house one day a week for a time of prayer and reflection as to how God is shaping our lives. So from now until Christmas, the doors of Shiloh will be open at 1:00-2:00 on Thursdays for anyone who wants to come in and share and pray. Don't hold me to this, but I will try to have a Christmas treat baked and a recipe on hand each week.
Philippians 2:5 says: Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.
The Message makes it a bit more convicting...
In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus.
Lucado poses the question:
"With Jesus taking over your heart, would anything change?"
"God's plan for you is nothing short of a new heart."
But you were taught to be made new in your hearts, to become a new person.
That new person is made to be like God-made to be truly good and holy. Ephesians 4:23-24
How is that possible we ask ourselves? Lucado states:
"If you have given our life to Jesus, Jesus has given himself to you."
Paul says in Galatians 2:20 (MSG) Christ lives in me.
The question I am asking myself is this...
If Christ is living in me, how much power am I allowing Him to have?
It takes effort and a conscious decision to give Jesus the reigns and for me;
I have to make that decision multiple times a day.
I faltered just last night and it was easier to ignore the issue and go to sleep than deal with my sin. PTL the sun came up and I got a "do over" today. (No small coincidence I've had to put my nose in this book and take this challenge myself.)
Colossians Chapter Three is titled: Rules for Holy Living. It is a great place to start studying if we want to pass our "Character of Jesus" examination. God loves us so much. He wants us to be the best of the best!
Feel the love from this passage of Lucado's on page 3 of his book.
"God loves you just the way you are. If you think his love for you would be stronger if your faith were, you are wrong. If you think his love would be deeper if your thoughts were, wrong again. Don't confuse God's love with the love of people. The love of people often increases with performance and decreases with mistakes. Not so with God's love. He loves you right where you are. God's love never ceases. Never. Though we spurn him. Ignore him. Reject him. Despise him. Disobey him. He will not change. Our evil cannot diminish his love. Our goodness cannot increase it. Our faith does not earn it anymore than our stupidity jeopardizes it. God doesn't love us less if we fail or more if we succeed. God's love never ceases."
Let's Pray: Lord, You are the King of Kings. How blessed we are to be loved by You. Your love is ever lasting and You are our strength and ever present help in times of trouble. Thank You for wanting the very best for us and for leaving us an example in black and white to follow. Forgive us when we falter and let sin win. May we allow Christ in us to help us take a stand again and live for Your glory. Use this extra hour today to change us in a magnificent way, which only You can do. May it be an hour of extraordinary power. In Jesus' Name, Amen
Sorry. I started to say, I will keep it short today so you can have that hour with Jesus.
You may have just spent your extra hour reading all this. For those of you who are out of town, please pray for the people who are to come here on Thursdays. Ask God to give me the courage to invite the person He has in mind who needs a touch of Jesus. How exciting to think there is someone who hasn't been living for or with Christ and how different this Christmas could be for them. Much love to each of you. Boo
