The Cure is Eating

 

In my last post "Lost in Conversation", I asked the question, “When was the last time you got lost in conversation with God?” I talked about how spending time with God leads to a passion and desire to spending more time in his presence.

I encouraged you not to wait for ‘feelings’ to develop before getting serious about reading and studying God’s Word.

If you have lost your spiritual appetite, then eat! The cure for starvation, is eating!

The truth is, the passion and excitement for spending time in God’s presence will grow when you choose to lay aside how you feel about it, and just do it!

We like to live life based around our feelings. If we don’t feel it, then we don’t do it.

Aren’t you glad God doesn’t live like this? God’s closeness is not based on your feelings; it’s based on his faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:22-23 KJV - It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

Verse after verse in God’s Word declare God’s faithfulness to us. We never have to be concerned that his trustworthiness, dependability, steadfastness, and loyalty will fail. God is always will be faithful.

Our feelings won’t change that.

I want to speak to those of you who have lost your spiritual appetite. I want to speak to those of you who have lost your desire to be in the Word of God on a daily basis. Those of you who find reading the Bible a chore. Those of you who find praying just another thing you ‘have’ to do as a Christian.

It’s sad, but it happens. Every one of us goes through periods in our lives when we don’t ‘feel’ as close to God. Maybe we’ve become slack in our Bible reading. Or maybe we don’t have the passion we once had to diligently study his Word.

SPOILER ALERT: Just because you don’t ‘feel’ close to God, doesn’t mean he’s moved! He hasn’t. You have! He’s still there, faithfully awaiting your return to him.

The cure for your lack of spiritual appetite is to eat! It sounds kind of silly, but it really is that simple.

If you are not hungry for the Word of God, it’s not because you’ve eaten so much that you are satisfied. No. The lack of hunger is more than likely because you have nibbled so long at the world’s table, that you are no longer hungry for the things of God.

If you are feeling little desire for God, take a moment to consider your diet.

Ask any health-conscious person to explain to you how it is that the more junk food you eat, the less hungry you’ll be for the healthier options and the less room you’ll have for them. But the more you eat of wholesome, nutritious foods, the more you’ll desire to fill up on them.

So, what are you eating? What is your diet like?

If you are filling your soul and mind with too much scrolling, too much entertainment, too much of what the world has to offer in the way of reading, viewing and listening, you are not going to leave much room for the good things God has to offer.

If you consistently feed your heart on the wrong things, the more anaemic your fruit will be. You won’t produce the fruit of the spirit (Galatians 5:22,23) that God wants to grow in you. And you won’t desire the right things.

The Bible tells us that we are blessed when we have a hunger for God and his righteousness.

Matthew 5:6 KJV - Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

It also tells us to seek God first (Matthew 6:33). We are told that God rewards our seeking (Hebrews 11:6).

Many times in the Psalms, we see David speaking of the thirst he had for God. (Psalm 42:2; Psalm 63:1; Psalm 143:6).

And you know what the hungering and thirsting after God did for those who sought him? It increased their desire. Their appetite. It helped to remove their spiritual apathy.

So, what do you do when you have lost your spiritual appetite? If you have lost your desire for God, then resolve to flood your soul with his truth until your appetite returns.

The more you pray, the more you’ll want to pray. The more you read his Word, the more you’ll want to read it. The more you study, the more you’ll want to study. The more you feed yourself, the hungrier you’ll get.

The cure is eating!

Now, I don’t want to leave you simply feeling seen and exposed. I want to give you some practical tips on how you can gain back the appetite you’ve lost.

Remember the cure for starvation is eating. So, stop the hunger pangs, and EAT!

One of the first things you need to do is to be real! Be honest with God. Open up your heart to him and ask his forgiveness. Lay it all out on the table. Reveal your apathy to him. Tell him how you feel. (Psalm 62:8) You won’t scare him away by being open and honest with him.

Next, if you’ve stopped praying, then start again! Don’t fear that God will laugh at your feeble attempts to talk to him. He longs to hear from you. Your prayers don’t need to be intellectual and articulate. Let your prayers flow from your heart in words that even a child could understand. Don’t stop praying. Remember, the more you pray, the more you’ll want to.

Stay in the Word. Get back into reading God’s Word daily. If you have neglected your Bible for so long you have become unfamiliar, then read the Psalms. Read through the Gospels. Remind yourself of God’s goodness to you and to his people. Don’t let even a day go by without reading a verse or two and meditating on it. The Word of God will do more for your soul then any self-help book, motivational speaker, daily affirmation or inspirational quote will ever do!

And lastly, get around God’s people! If you have isolated yourself and shunned Godly, Chrisitan community, then you need to force yourself to get back into it! We were never meant to live our Christian lives alone. We were built for community.

It’s God’s idea for us to live in community with others. He is a relational God who designed us in his image. Built within us is a pattern for experiencing intimate relationship with God and then expressing that love to others.

It is so important to be grounded in the life of a local church. It’s where discipleship takes place, compassion, friendship, encouragement, accountability, exhortation, prayer, mentoring, shepherding, and teaching.

So, if you have lost your spiritual appetite, then gain it back by eating!

Be real with God. Pray regularly. Stay in the Word. Get around God’s people.

And watch your appetite grow. The more you eat, the hungrier you’ll get.

Jeremiah 29:13 KJV - And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

 

Lost in Conversation

 

For those of you that are married, do you remember the early days of getting to know each other? Do you remember the extra long conversations? The lengthy phone calls, or in my case, the pages and pages of handwritten letters about life. (To my frustration, I couldn’t have long phone calls as my dad, being a Pastor, always needed the phone). And yes, I am showing my age by referring to handwritten letters.

I can vividly remember taking days to write a letter, adding to it, a little each day, wanting to share the best and worst parts of my day with my special person, wanting them to know who I was, what I loved, what I hated, what I wanted in life. And more than anything, wanting to get to know them better.

Do you remember getting so lost in conversation because you longed more than anything to get to know this person so fully, that you lost track of time? Hours went by and yet it seemed like only minutes, and the ‘curfew’ was up, or the phone was needed by someone else (sorry, no mobile phones in those days) or maybe you had talked for so long, you needed to take a break to think up more to talk about as you had exhausted your list of discussion topics.

Okay, let me get to my point. I’m going to be blunt and upfront with you,

When was the last time you spent so much time with God that you lost track of time? Time flew by because you just wanted to talk to him. You wanted to be in his presence.

When was the last time you got lost in conversation with God?

When I was going out with my husband, the more time I spent with him, the more time I wanted to spend with him. The more I learned about him, the more I wanted to know about him. The more I heard his stories of his everyday life, the more I wanted to hear.

Do you see where I’m going with this?

The more time you spend with Jesus, the more time you will want to spend with him. The more the time flies as you sit and meditate on the Words of Scripture. The more you find yourself digging into the Bible, spending time in prayer, in worship, in study.

It wasn’t passion that led me to spend more time with my then future husband. It was the time spent with him that led to passion. The more I got to know him, the more I loved him and the more I wanted to be with him.

And I personally feel that it’s the same with God.

We often think that our passion or desire leads us to spend time with God, but it’s actually the other way around.

Passion and desire don’t lead to time with God. Time with God leads to passion. (Disclaimer: once this cycle begins, it becomes a little blurred as to what came first, but I hope you understand what I’m trying to say).

Time with God leads to loving him more. Desiring what he wants. Longing to follow his will. Wanting his best and not our own.

Now, for those of you reading this, maybe there is someone that is struggling right now with a desire to spend time with Jesus, can I speak to you for a moment?

If you are waiting around, just hoping the desire will come upon you, just waiting to feel excited before you open your Bible and pray, you could be waiting a very long time.

If you are waiting for ‘feelings’ to develop before you get serious about reading and studying God’s Word, then you’ll be sorely disappointed.

Our duty as a Christian is to strive to become more like Christ. We are to be daily following in his footsteps, watching him, imitating him. You can’t do that if you’re not in the Word, looking for instruction on how to do it.

The truth is….the passion and excitement for spending time in God’s presence will grow when we choose to lay aside how we feel about it, and just do it!

Yes, it’s a choice. We have a choice to obey. And it is a step of obedience to discipline ourselves to be in the Word daily.

But what a blessing it is and how amazing it is when the desire begins to grow as you cultivate the seed that is growing within you, watering it with God’s Word, feeding it with his teaching, pruning it with his loving rebukes.

There is so much in life that we do, even though we don’t feel like it. And yet we do it. Why is it that we don’t apply the same dogged determination when it comes to God’s Word?

Why do we think we can go a day without hearing from him? Why do we think we have to ‘feel’ something before we act?

I know from experience, that time after time, when I have made the choice to put aside something else, in order to be in his Word, despite my feelings at the time, my desire for him grows and my desire for more time with him lengthens.

I find myself lost in conversation. I bury myself in some beautiful truth and before I know it, the minutes have flown by, and I rise up to go about my day eager for my next encounter in God’s presence.

There is a beautiful verse found in Psalm 16:11 - Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

Did you know that there is joy in God’s presence? And not just joy, but fulness of joy. Abundant joy. Satisfying joy.

King David knew something about being in God’s presence and he longed for it.

Psalm 27:4 KJV - One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple.

David’s longing for close fellowship with God caused him to continually seek God’s presence. The ‘one thing’ that he desired was so important to him. He wanted to know God intimately. He longed to be in his presence continually.

Psalm 26:8 KJV - LORD, I have loved the habitation of thy house, and the place where thine honour dwelleth.

Morning by morning, day after day, David desired to experience God’s goodness and God’s presence. He wanted to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord. He desired to worship him. He adored God not for what he could get from him, not for God’s hand, but for his face. His presence.

Pursuing God’s face is about developing an intimate relationship with him. But you can’t have this without putting in some effort. For any relationship to work, both parties have to be intentional about communication.

God has already done his part. He gave us his Word. He gave us his Holy Spirit that dwells inside of us.

It is our job to do our part. We have to come into his presence and seek his face. We have to communicate with him. We have to read his Words of life. We have to meditate on them. We have to come to him in prayer and humility.

Just as Mary chose the ‘one thing’ (Luke 10:42) that was needed, sitting at Jesus feet, listening to his teaching and spending time in his presence, so too do we need this ‘one thing’.

The apostle Paul pursued the ‘one thing’ in life as well. He longed to know Christ for who he was, so he could worship him and serve him better. (Philippians 3:10-14)

Do you have a desire for the ‘one thing’? Is the greatest longing of your heart to seek God’s presence?

If your soul is running low on joy today, maybe it’s time you spent some time with Jesus, getting lost in conversation as you get to know him better. Allow him to bring renewal. Allow him to refresh you as you gaze on his beauty and his holiness.

Sometimes we read our Bibles simply to answer our questions or highlight Bible verses, or to find thoughts to jot down, but how about getting lost in conversation with God? How about spending some time in admiration of him. Talking to him about his goodness to us.

Take time today to come into God’s presence and sit with him. Commune with him. Listen as he speaks. Learn from him. Worship him.

Get lost in conversation and watch the desire grow.

 

 

Are you being led or driven? 

Do you know his voice? 

 

I learnt something interesting this week regarding shepherds.

“On one of my trips to Israel I once saw a man behind a flock of sheep, driving them down the road by holding out two long sticks, one on either side, in an attempt to force them to stay together in front of him. Puzzled that I had never seen a shepherd lead his sheep like that, I asked my guide, Zvi, “Why is that shepherd driving his sheep that way? I’ve never seen that before.” “Oh,” he answered. “That’s not a shepherd. That’s a butcher. He has bought those sheep and now he has to drive them to the slaughterhouse. They won’t follow him, because they don’t know him. He can’t lead them, so he has to drive them.”

Shepherds lead from the front. Butchers drive from behind.

It makes me think of a passage of Scripture found in the book of John.

John 10:3-5 KJV - To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.

What a beautiful word picture we have here in John’s gospel. I had never really thought about the position of the shepherd in relation to a herd of sheep. I mean, I know some of the basics of ancient shepherding techniques but never before had I seen it put so clearly in illustrating so well the importance of the shepherd.

Look at some of the phrases found in these verses.

“the sheep hear his voice”, “leadeth them out”, “the sheep follow him”, “they know his voice” and finally and so importantly, “they know NOT the voice of strangers”.

There are many references to sheep in the Bible. 187 of them as a matter of fact and 43 references to shepherds. And there are many more verses that refer to a lamb or THE lamb as well. Needless to say, sheep and shepherds were very relatable to people in Bible times and the stories told only helped to make clear the message God was trying to get across.

When we look at verse 4, we see that the shepherd ‘goes before’ his sheep. In Bible times, the shepherds would gather their sheep into a communal pen at night for protection. When dawn came and the sun began to peek over the horizon, each shepherd would call his sheep, and no matter how many sheep there were, each shepherd’s particular sheep would follow the sound of his voice.

The beautiful imagery we find here in this passage not only highlights the personal relationship between the shepherd and his sheep, but it also symbolizes Jesus’ relationship with His children.

Each shepherd knew his own sheep. Individually. Personally. And it is the same with Jesus. It reflects the knowledge and care Jesus has for His followers.

John 10:14 KJV - I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.

We have only to look at Psalm 23 to read about the Lord Jesus’ care for us.

In thinking of this example of the shepherd in Israel and the man driving the sheep from behind, I was so intrigued that the shepherd leads and the one who does not have ownership or relationship with the sheep, drives them. One leads. One drives.

The leading of the shepherd demonstrates guidance and protection. As the shepherd lead his sheep, he would not only be looking for the green pastures and good feeding grounds, but he was also on high alert for predators or anything that may cause harm to his sheep.

As the shepherd leads the way, we see that the sheep follow him. Why? Why do the sheep follow their shepherd? Because they know his voice.

It was essential for the sheep to know and recognize their own shepherd’s voice. There had to be an unmistakable familiarity between the sheep and the shepherd for the sheep to feel safe enough to follow the shepherd and to know which voice to follow.

John 10:27 KJV - My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:

Did you notice whose voice they don’t know and won’t follow? Have a look at verse 5.

John 10:5 KJV - And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.

They don’t know the stranger’s voice. Sheep will not follow a stranger because they don’t recognize his voice. There is no relationship there. There is no familiarity. No trust.

The reason that the butcher had to drive the sheep is because they didn’t know his voice. He couldn’t lead them. So, he had to drive them.

Isn’t it amazing that as God’s children, we know, or we should know, his voice. We should be so much in tune with God through our personal relationship with him, through our daily communing with him, that we instantly recognize his voice.

And because we know him, we can trust him.

This leads me to a point I want to make. When we find ourselves weighed down with worries and burdened with anxious thoughts, we have only to look to the shepherd. We have only to listen for his voice as he leads us.

When sheep trust their shepherd and know his voice from constant interaction with him, they can be content in letting him lead the way, knowing that he will take them on the path they need to go, resting along the way, offering nourishment and avoiding the things that would harm them.

And so it is with us. As we walk with Jesus, day after day, connecting with him through prayer and reading of His word, listening to His still, small voice, we develop a life of trust, recognizing his voice and allowing our anxieties to be cast on him, letting him lead the way.

When we add tomorrow’s burden to today’s, the weight is often more than we can bear. As Corrie Ten Boom so aptly put it, “Worry (and anxiety) does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows, it empties today of its strength”

If we find ourselves in this overwhelmed, overloaded state, remember, it’s not God’s doing, it’s ours!

F.B.Meyer put it plainly when he said, “This is the blessed life-not anxious to see far in front, nor eager to choose the path, but quietly following behind the shepherd, one step at a time. The shepherd was always out in front of the sheep. He was down in front. Any attack upon them had to take him into account. Now God is down in front. He is in the tomorrows. It is tomorrow that fills men with dread. God is there already. All the tomorrows of our life have to pass Him before they can get to us.”

Did you see that? God is already in my tomorrows, in your tomorrows. And that is why we can trust him. That is why we can cast our anxieties on him. In humbleness, we throw our cares upon him (1 Peter 5:6-7) and he bears our burdens on his shoulders.

And you know what is so wonderful? If we can stop worrying about tomorrow, we can work on trusting God today, and living out his purpose and plan fully and wholeheartedly today, knowing that he knows the path that lies ahead, and he will lead as we listen for his voice and follow it.

It is not the strangers voice we should follow. The stranger that masquerades as the Devil, but disguises himself as many other things. It’s not the lies he feeds us that we should follow.

If we know the Lord Jesus’ voice, that is the voice we should be following. He is not driving us from behind. He is leading from ahead.

Everything he is going to take us through has to pass through him to get to us. He decides what we go through. We decide the attitude we have as we walk through it.

Is our attitude one of worry and anxiousness? Is it full of fretting and trembling in fear?

We have a good shepherd. A shepherd that knows us fully and yet loves us unconditionally.

He speaks and we need to be listening.

As we read the Word of God, we hear him. We hear his voice. We begin to understand more of his character. We allow ourselves to trust. We grow in our faith. And we obey his leading.

The more in tune we are with the Lord, the more we will recognize his voice and the less likely we will be to follow the voice of a stranger (or false teacher, or misguided friend, or deceitful liar, or sincere believer that is sincerely wrong with their advice).

It pays to walk close to the Lord through daily communication with him through prayer and study.

Not only will be more readily recognize his voice, but we will be less likely to develop an anxious spirit and a discontented heart.

We can walk in full assurance that God is in control of each and every situation. We can follow his leading, trusting him in the light and in the dark as we listen for his voice.

Don’t let the butcher drive you, let the shepherd lead you!

Psalm 23:4 KJV - Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

 

 

Which Waves are you Surfing?

 

“Thoughts are kind of like waves in the ocean. You can’t stop the waves from coming, but you can choose which ones you want to surf.”

I came across this profound statement a while back and it often comes to mind when I begin to think about thinking.

You know we need to think about thinking, don’t you? It really is important to give some thought to our thoughts.

The Bible is very clear on this point. Do you know that we become what we think?

Proverbs 23:7a KJV - For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he:

I have done a LOT of reading on the subject of our thought life and the fascinating science behind how our brains work and the amazing fact that we can rewire our brains, creating new neural pathways.

God didn’t need neurologists and scientists to figure this out. He had laid it out in his Word, long before man ever thought to study it.

It really is true that our brains were designed by God to have renewable characteristics. It is possible to be transformed, changed, made new, by renewing your mind.

Romans 12:2 KJV - And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

What we think about becomes a physical reality in our brain and body and affects our mental, spiritual, emotional and physical health.

There is so much more on this subject that I would love to share, but for now, I’ll try and be brief.

So, back to the quote.

“Thoughts are kind of like waves in the ocean. You can’t stop the waves from coming, but you can choose which ones you want to surf.”

There is no denying that you can’t stop thoughts from popping into your mind. But what you can do is choose which ones you focus on.

The waves will come, and you can’t stop them, but you can choose which ones you surf.

You can choose which ones you dwell on.  Ultimately, what you focus on is what you’ll feel and what you feel is what you’ll do and what you’ll do is who you’ll become.

Thoughts determine actions and actions determine character.

If we really realized and believed how powerful our thoughts are, we would strive to get rid of the toxic thoughts before ever they had a chance to settle inside our minds!

Let me direct your attention to a very powerful passage of Scripture found in 2 Corinthians.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

This passage reminds us that we, as Christians, are fighting a spiritual battle. I don’t want to alarm you, but you have to remember that the Devil is out to destroy you.

1 Peter 5:8 KJV - Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

Now, I don’t pretend to understand this passage in 2 Corinthians 10 completely but let me see if I can explain it a little.

In verse 5 we are encouraged to bring every thought into captivity. We are to take every thought captive and make it subject to Christ.

Notice it doesn’t say ignore the thoughts you don’t like. It doesn’t say to simply neglect the thoughts that are negative. It says take EVERY thought captive and make it submit to the word of God. Paul is using language of warfare here. You have an enemy.

We all have thoughts that set themselves up in opposition to God. We believe the lies that the Devil feeds us. What do we do with these lies? What do we do with the anxious thoughts, the thoughts that don’t line up with the Word of God?

You take them prisoner! You bring them into captivity.  When you find yourself harboring a thought that doesn’t belong in your mind, don’t let it stay there!

You question it. You interrogate it. You ask it, “Where did you come from? Who sent you? What door of insecurity did you walk through? What lie did you believe to get here?”

When you answer these questions, by lining them up with the truth of God’s Word, you can then reject them, bring them into captivity and replace them with truth. And that’s how you win the battle of the mind!

Taking every thought captive and making it subject to Christ is vital for our spiritual growth. The Bible teaches us that our thoughts shape our actions and character, and when left unchecked thoughts can lead to sin and disconnect from God.

Your body is not in control of your mind – your mind is in control of your body. But guess what? Your mind is stronger than your body! Your brain doesn’t control you. You control your brain through your own thoughts and the choices you make in regard to what thinking you allow to live rent free in your head.

By submitting every thought to Christ’s authority, we align ourselves with His truth and righteousness, rejecting the lies and temptations of the world and the Devil. Becoming consciously aware of this disciplined practice renews our minds, as described in Romans 12:2, allowing the Holy Spirit to transform us and our thinking from within.

Going back to 2 Corinthians 10:5, when you observe your own thinking with the intention of capturing those rogue, unwanted, unhelpful, harmful thoughts, you direct your attention to stop the negative impact they have on you, and you choose to rewire healthy new circuits in the brain.

The brain will do what the mind tells it to do.

I know firsthand the power of creating new neural pathways in the brain through replacing negative thoughts with the truth of God’s Word and developing a heart of gratitude.

We don’t have to live defeated lives. We don’t have to let our thoughts control us. We have the power, with God’s enabling, to renew our minds, to bring our thoughts into captivity, to rid ourselves of the spirit of fear, and replace it with the sound mind that God wants us to have. (2 Timothy 1:7)

As the Israelites prepared to enter the promised land, after 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, God instructed Moses to remind the people of the authority of God and of the importance of obeying his commands. And he left them with an interesting instruction.

CHOOSE LIFE!

Deuteronomy 30:15, 19-20 KJV - See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil;

- I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:

- That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.

God built choice into every detail of our being. We do have a choice as to what we think about. Our genetic makeup is changed by what we choose to think about. We can choose life!

Follow the formula found in Philippians chapter 4, do your part and God will do his.

Philippians 4:6-8 KJV - Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

 (If you would like to read more on how gratitude affects the brain, please read this post -

https://learnliveloveshare.blogspot.com/2023/11/supercharge-your-gratitude-flip-switch.html

God bless xx

 

 

 

 

Religion isn’t enough

 

Religion can only get you so far.

The dictionary defines religion as this:

Belief in a divine or superhuman power or powers to be obeyed and worshipped; any specific system of belief, worship, conduct involving a code of ethics and a philosophy

So, reading that, we could classify Christianity as a religion. But Christianity has a key difference that separates it from all other religions. That difference is relationship!

Most religions of this world are man centred. They are built on the concept that man can reach a higher state of being through their own efforts, through good works and following a set of rules.

Let’s contrast this with Christianity.

Christianity is first and foremost a relationship. 

A relationship with God.

God did for us what we couldn’t do for ourselves. He bore our sins on the cross. (2 Corinthians 5:21). Our sin separated us from his presence and needed to be punished. But God, through his unconditional love, took on our punishment and extended grace towards us, urging us to accept his gift of salvation through faith. (Ephesians 2:8,9).

This grace-based relationship between God and man is the foundation of Christianity and it is vastly different from the man centred religions of this world.

Let me take you to a very well-known Psalm that might help to illustrate the importance of relationship over religion.

Psalm 23:1-6

The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

Religion can only get you so far.

Religion might help get you through the green pastures. It might help you as you walk by the still waters. But you’re going to need something greater and stronger to get you through the dark valleys.

Have a closer look at the way David speaks as he penned this Psalm.

In the first 3 verses, David is speaking about God. He says, “He maketh. He leadeth. He restoreth.”

He speaks of God as his kind shepherd. He lists some of the things the shepherd does for him. He speaks lovingly ABOUT him. But then he comes to the valley.

And valleys are where the rubber meets the road. Religion isn’t gonna cut it anymore. Something stronger is needed.

Valleys have a way of changing us. They have a way of transforming our lives.

In this verse, we see a shift. We begin to see ‘thou’ and ‘thy’. In modern English, you!

YOU are with me. YOUR rod and YOUR staff comfort me. YOU prepare a table. YOU anoint my head.

Do you see what happened here? David went from talking ABOUT God to talking TO him!

Religion can do no more than talk about God. But relationship? Relationship talks TO God!

Jesus didn’t just come to this earth to die on a cruel cross bringing forgiveness for our sins for us to simply talk about him. And yes, we need to do this regularly.

Jesus came to this earth so that we could have a personal relationship with him! He wanted connection with us. He wanted us to be able to talk TO him and come TO him with our cares.

Hebrews 4:16 KJV - Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

Religion might walk you through the easy times of life, but when you go through those dark valleys, you need more. You need the Father. You need more. You need RELATIONSHIP!

It’s not about rules. It’s about relationship!

The next time you read Psalm 23, take time to think seriously about whether you are stuck in a pattern of focusing on rules and rituals and instead, begin to develop a deepening relationship with God.

Christianity is not about signing up for a religion. Christianity is about being born into the family of God (John 3:3). It is a relationship. God wants us to know Him, to draw near to Him, to pray to Him, and to love Him above all else. He wants us to come to him, to talk to him, to put him first.

That is not religion; that is a relationship.

What will you do? Will you stay stuck in your religious rut, relying on your knowledge of God to get you through the hard times? Or will you make the decision to begin a relationship with God? Will you talk to him and let him speak to you? Only then will your cup run over. Only then will you experience his peace. His presence. His joy. His comfort.

Prioritize daily communication with God through prayer and Bible study.

Be vulnerable with God and pour out your heart to him.

Open your heart to God’s love and practice forgiveness towards others.

Seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit and listen for his voice.

 

Religion is not enough! You need relationship!

 

 

 

 

 

The Missing Ingredient

 

How do you treat Scripture? How do you read the inspired, authoritative and holy Word of God? When you open its pages and read verse after verse, chapter after chapter, book after book, how do you see it?

Do you perhaps treat it like a textbook to work your way through or is it instead a treasure to search out?

If you read the Bible like a textbook, it may explain why it feels laborious, boring and dry at times. As tasteless as cardboard. The words have no meaning; knowledge is gained but wisdom is not.

Do you know what is missing in many Christians’ lives when it comes to their reading of the Word of God? The missing ingredient may very well be not the time needed to read it, but curiosity!

We need to be more curious about the Bible and the treasures that lie beneath just a surface reading. The Bible is a book of hidden treasure. Its pages are filled with wisdom, comfort, truth, mercy, justice, grace, instruction, correction. But if we are reading our Bibles like we would read a textbook, we won’t find the gold that lies within.

The Hebrew people have a word for their searching of the Scriptures. It is called midrash. It has the idea of seeking out or inquiring deeply. Investigating, exploring and studying.

We need to approach Scripture with the same relentless curiosity. It’s the kind of searching that has you coming back again and again, always finding something new.

Now, don’t get mixed up with what I’m saying. There is no new revelation to be had. The canon of Scripture is complete, and we will ‘technically’ not find anything new in it, but as we search diligently, we will uncover truths that we haven’t seen before. Passages we didn’t realise were in the Bible will come to light. Promises we were unaware of will jump off the page at us. But this will only happen as we read our Bibles consistently, and with a heart that is seeking, searching and teachable.

The missing ingredient to make Bible study more irresistible is not more time. It is more curiosity.

Let me break this down a little more for you.

Think about one of your favourite hobbies. If you’re anything like me, you have a few to choose from. Have you got one in mind?

Right. With this hobby, do you study it once and then move on? No. Not if you are truly interested in it, you don’t.

You revisit it. You research it. You study it. You learn about it. You watch tutorials on it. You practice it. You share your discoveries with others that love it too. You connect with people with like passions for that hobby.

And that is what true curiosity is all about.

When it comes to God’s Word, there is always more to learn. Ask any Pastor or veteran Christian who has any humility about them. They will tell you honestly that they are always learning new things from God’s Word that they didn’t know before. They are regularly finding treasures in the pages of Scripture.

They believe the promise found in the book of Proverbs.

Proverbs 2:1-7 KJV - My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly.

My husband is an avid treasure hunter. Whether it’s swinging a metal detector over a local showground or park searching for coins or picking over rocks in a dry creek bed looking for a particular gemstone. He’s always on the hunt for a treasure. And his passion has spread to most of his family and we all, the grandkids included, are now treasure hunters always on the lookout for a great find. We search diligently, hoping to find that ‘pearl of great price’. (Matthew 13)

When we bring that analogy over to the Bible, the question isn’t whether the Word of God holds deeper treasures. It’s whether we are willing to take the time to search them out.

Allow me to let you in on a little secret. It doesn’t take hours of study! What? No. It is not long hours, head down, nose in the books, hour after hour. (Although that would be ideal)

It is a consistent curiosity.

It’s a heart that is humble, teachable and always eager to dig deeper, searching for the meaning, the understanding, the correct interpretation. Never content to just read casually.

You know those times when you sit down to read a Psalm or two, and find yourself stuck on the third verse, because you came across a word that didn’t seem to fit the context, which then lead you to looking into the meaning of the word, and then on to a commentary to help make sense of it, which then had you searching cross references and before you know it, you’re waist deep in a treasure box you never saw coming.

The Bible will become alive to you when you stop just trying to get through it and let it get through you.

One old preacher put it so well when he said, “What makes the difference is not how many times you have been through the Bible, but how many times and how thoroughly the Bible has been through you.”

What if you approached just one verse this week with a treasure hunters’ persistence instead of a ‘homework obligation’ mentality?

What if instead of just reading through your chapter a day, you took the time to slow down and dig a little deeper? What if you looked at each word in the verse, studied its context, its author, its time in history, its cultural significance, its true meaning and interpretation? Do you think that maybe your curiosity could unearth a treasure worth more than gold?

It’s worth a shot! The Bible comes with a promise to reward those who diligently study it and its author.

Hebrews 11:6 KJV - But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Gold is a precious and rare commodity. It’s not easy to find. You have to spend a significant amount of time and effort searching for it and extracting it.

Gold does you no practical good unless you work it out or the mine or the creek or the soil or the rock.

And so it is with the Word of God. We need to work it out. We need to read it. Study it.

Just like gold will do us no good unless we dig it out of the ground, the Bible will do us no good unless we dig into it and apply it and most importantly, obey it!

We are blessed with so many resources at our fingertips in the age we live in, that we really have no excuse for not becoming treasure hunters of God’s Word.

I dare you to become an avid student of the Word. To make Bible study a new favourite hobby. To research, to discover, to learn, to love and to share.

Ask God to open your eyes and heart so that you will have understanding and knowledge and wisdom.

Success begins with following God’s Word. But we can’t follow God’s Word if we don’t know it. And we won’t know God’s Word if we don’t read it. And we won’t find the treasures it holds unless we read it with a relentless curiosity!

May we say along with the Psalmist,

Psalm 119:18 Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.

Stop reading it like a textbook and 

read it for the book it is.

The inspired, living Word of God!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today IS the future

 

 

The only preparation for the morrow is the right use of today. The stone in the hands of the builder must be put in its place and fitted to receive another. The morrow comes for naught, if today is not heeded. Neglect not the call that comes to thee this day, for such neglect is nothing else than boasting thyself of tomorrow. — G. Bowen.

 

I am not ashamed to admit that I have a LOT of hobbies and interests. Only this morning, I was talking to my husband about all the things I wanted to do, and bemoaning the fact that I couldn’t fit it all in.

I can’t remember the last time I was actually bored. Quite possibly, it was 40 years ago! I know, this is showing my age, but it really is true. A person with numerous hobbies will almost NEVER be bored!

That’s a plus. But it does have its downside. The downside is that there are so many things to choose from and only so many hours in a day and only so many days in a week. Weeks turn into months and months into years, and we are left scratching our heads as to where the time went and what we have to show for it.

Priorities become of paramount importance.

Do you realise that every day is a gift from God?

Do you realise that with each breath you breathe, with every inhale and exhale, you are reflecting the goodness of God? Every morning that we open our eyes and see the sun peek over the horizon is a gift from God. It is a new day full of opportunities for joy, for growth, for gratitude and the chance to show God’s love and reflect his heart to those around us.

Every single heartbeat is a gift from God. Don’t take it for granted.

If this is true, and it is, then how do we use, accept, and cherish the gift we’ve been given?

We make good use of it!

Read over the quote at the top of the page again.

“The only preparation for the morrow is the right use of today”

What are you doing with your day? Are you stopping to acknowledge the gift that it is?

Every day, as we rise out of bed and prepare for the day, we make a choice as to how we will use our day. What will I prioritize? What will I fill my day with? How will I spend my God-given 24 hours?

If we want to prepare for tomorrow, we have to make good use of today.

Today IS the future. What you do with your today greatly impacts what your tomorrows look like.

Did you just casually step over your day while chasing a career? Did it pass you by while you were wishing yourself into a new season? Did you get so busy with family life, appointments, bills and your to-do list that before you knew it, the day was gone, and a new one had begun?

James 4:14 - Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.

Time is short. Life is a passing shadow. And today is important. What you choose to fill your day with today impacts what happens the next day, and the next and the next.

We are reminded in scripture that our days are numbered, and our life is like a vapour. What we do with our time is so important.

On my free days, when my outside-the-home work is done, I often face quite the conundrum. With endless possibilities to fill my day with, I have to make a choice as to what is important, what is urgent, what I want to do, what I need to do, what I have time to do etc etc.

I often feel like the apostle Paul in Romans when he says, “For the good that I would I do not….” etc. (Romans 7) I know this is not totally in context, but I think you get what I mean.

The only way we can prepare for the future and the days ahead, is by using today wisely. Which is why I say, what you choose to do or not to do today, will have a direct impact on what lies ahead.

Priorities. Priorities. Priorities. Why does it always come down to priorities? It really does matter how we fill our days. It really does matter that we ask for God’s wisdom in organizing our days, letting Him arrange our days and prioritize our never-ending to-do lists.

Sometimes we just need to set aside our hobbies for the day and spend time in God’s Word. Reading, studying, meditating and learning from him. I’m glad that that IS one of my favourite hobbies and interests. But sometimes, I’ll admit, it’s a toss-up between that and so many other things.

Sometimes it’s people we need to make time for. That friend that needs encouragement. That new convert that needs discipling. That frazzled mum that needs a hand in her home or an hour to herself to run errands without the children in tow.

No matter what role or what season we find ourselves in, we always have people counting on us, relying on us, and possibly looking up to us. We are setting an example by how we choose to spend our days.

When we fill our precious days with things of eternal value, it's like a bank up in Heaven receiving a deposit. Gaining interest. Laying up treasures in Heaven. (Matthew 6:19-21) Every day we take for granted and every day we don’t offer up to God, asking him to order it, is a day wasted. An opportunity wasted.

Now, I’m not saying that we shouldn’t take a ‘chill’ day now and then. Even Christ himself rested and emphasized its importance. (Mark 6:31)

There are times when we need to take a day to slow down the pace a little, take some time off, catch up with friends, do some shopping or whatever it is that you do to relax.  We just need to be mindful of the time we are spending on different activities and take care that we don’t prioritize the comfortable over the important.

We need God’s wisdom each and every day. We need his wisdom to know how he would have us use our time. We are reminded in Ephesians to redeem the time.

Ephesians 5:15-16 - See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

One of the definitions for the Greek word used for redeeming is to “rescue it from loss”. I think that is a very apt definition. We have to rescue our days from loss. Rescue them from being wasted.

We need to consistently ask for God to order our days. Although we may have our day all planned out, and I’m not saying that’s a bad thing, God often has a different plan altogether. And we have to be okay with that.

He sees the bigger picture. His eyesight is a lot better than ours. (Isaiah 55:8-9)

It’s not an easy thing to hold our day out to God with an open hand, letting him pour into it or take out of it what he wills.

Just remember, if you keep your fist tightly closed over your nicely laid plans, it hurts a lot more when God has to pry your fingers open.

I must confess that I don’t like having my little 'day plan' rearranged. I like to plan ahead. I like to know what I am going to do before I get out of bed, but I've found that time after time, when I let God order my day, he blesses it, and he brings to it a freshness that wouldn’t have been there if I had stubbornly resisted his changes.

 

Give your todays and tomorrows to God. Keep your hands open and your heart receptive.

 

 

If today is a gift from God, shouldn't we let Him choose how He wraps it? 

 

Only one life, ’twill soon be past,

Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, a few brief years,

Each with its burdens, hopes, and fears;

Each with its days I must fulfill,

living for self or in His will

Only one life, ’twill soon be past,

Only what’s done for Christ will last.

C.T.Studd