October 27, 2011

“So you too, when you do all the things which are commanded you, say, ‘We are unworthy slaves; we have only done that which we out to have done’”

Luke 17:10

     Jesus spent years traveling around and roaming streets healing and serving the poor, blind, crippled, anyone who was in need. Did He ever expect a thank you? Not once. That sums it up perfectly for me. As a Christian, I want to be like Christ. And He did everything freely unto God because He was supposed to.

Application:

     I’m going to ask God to give me His eyes in order to find the needs and for Him to show me how to be selfless when serving, because it’s so easy to expect something back.

Conviction

October 26, 2011

“He does not thank the slave because he did the things which were commanded, does he?”

Luke 17:9

     My IBS has nothing to do with this verse, but it is what it is and God is doing something in me. It’s real, so I’m saying it. During on the mount (which is supposed to be alone time) I had a deep, yet hard conversation with two people yesterday. The conversation will not be repeated, but what God is showing me will be. I have always had a hard time confronting people when I’ve been hurt. Ask anyone from my family they will say it’s the truth. When I get hurt by someone, I aint telling them about it, I always hold it in without showing emotion. I’ll never forget what they did to me, even if it is a little thing. The rage is like a little snow ball, and when u role it in the snow it gets bigger and bigger until you can’t hold it in anymore. After talking to Margaret about this I realized this has to change, because my brothers and sisters here are around me literally 24/7 and I am not willing to let the devil use this to ruin my friendships/relationships anymore. It’s usually fairly easy for me to admit my weaknesses, because it’s part of being humble. But this is different because I’ve always handled being hurt by coping with it and riding the other person off. This is just a glimpse of what the Lord is doing to change me here. I’m very grateful that God is bringing this to my attention so that I can learn to confront people with love and handle this the right way.

Application:

     I am going to read and study Matthew 18 over and over again. And I will confront people who hurt me, rather it be incidental or on purpose, with love. And trust the Lord to help me from there.

If you’d pray for me about this, I’d really appreciate it

Heaven is my resting place

October 25, 2011

“But will he not say to him, ‘prepare something for me to eat, and properly clothe yourself and serve me while I eat and drink; and afterward you may eat and drink’”

     What I get from this verse is that we are living to be of full service to the Lord. Everyone loves to have vacations after working all year long. We’re tired; we need a break, fair enough. There is nothing wrong with that at all. But the verse says we must serve our master and then after that we can eat and drink. After we are done serving Jesus with our lives here, our “vacation” will be waiting for us in heaven. But that time has not come yet, there is still work to be done here. My life here should be a full time ministry because my ultimate resting place is eternal life in heaven.

Application:

     I will persevere through the bumps in the road and remember to keep living a life of ministry until my time here is done, when Jesus takes me home.

“And He was saying to them all, ‘if anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me’” Luke 9:23

die to self

October 24, 2011

“Which of you, having a slave plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come immediately and sit down to eat?’”

Luke 17:7

      I have no right or reason to look for someone to applaud me when I serve someone who needs help. If I was doing it for that reason, then I am in the wrong place and it’s not true servant hood. We often look for some kind of reward after doing a good dead. But Why would we need one if it’s all for God anyway? “For whether then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all for the glory of God” (1^st Corinthians 10:31). This is where dying to self comes into play. When we die to ourselves then we are truly being humble before the Lord.

Application:

     To really be on the lookout for anything that needs to be done in front of my eyes and do it without expecting a reward.

October 20, 2011

“And blessed is he does not take offense at me”

Matthew 11:6

     When we aren’t afraid of what other people think, when we aren’t afraid to be different, when we aren’t afraid to be made fun of for standing up for Jesus, to be mocked or even physically attacked for our beliefs, we are true disciples of Christ. In Matthew Jesus warns His disciples that they will face resistance and people are going to hate them because of His name. How easy it is for us to respond with aggression and anger right back at those who hate us for loving Jesus. But if we do that, we are no different than they are. We are called to love our neighbors and pray for those who persecute us (Matthew 5:44). There is no shame in being a christian, and when we start to care about what others think about our beliefs, that’s Satan trying to get us to question what we are doing.

Application:

I’m going to pray for the next person who tries to bring me down for what I believe. I often just ignore what they say and leave it alone. But I am going to make an effort to intercede upon their lives because they are probably hurting deep inside.

“But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek; turn the other one to him also” Matthew 5:39

$$

October 13, 2011

“For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.”

Galatians 6:8

     To me this verse is a lot like handling money. Some people have a lot, some enough to pay the bills and have food on the table, and others who can’t afford either of those things. People often assume that the people with the most money are the happiest people, that money buys happiness. We tend to envy actors, singers, sports stars, all the people who have all the cash. But I can guarantee you that all those people who invest all their money for themselves and not for the Lord, are living miserable lives. I know of celebrities, who are as rich as one can be, yet the money doesn’t satisfy, they still revert to drugs or alcohol, or even abusing someone they “say” they love. It’s not the money itself that’s a sin; it’s the handling of it that leads to corruption. It’s the sowing to the flesh. I also know many people who are much less fortunate then I am, but truly live happy lives because they sow to the Spirit with what little they have, and they will have eternal life because of that.

Application:                   

I will always tithe 10% of what I earn and work on being more open to helping others out financially since I have been blessed in this area by my parents.

“He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves abundance with its income.” Ecclesiastes 5:10

He sees everything

October 12, 2011

“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.”

Galatians 6:7

     The day will come when we face the judgment seat of Christ and every decision we’ve made in our lives will be accounted for, both good and bad. There is nothing that we do that goes unseen by the Lord. We all have our deep secrets and do things that nobody else knows about, but God does, and He’s the only one who will ultimately account us for the decisions we have made. Bill Wilson, who runs the largest Sunday school in the world, which is in Brooklyn, New York puts it this way: “In life we all have choices, we make decisions, and we reap the consequences.” I don’t think it can be put any better way than that. We have no one else to blame for how our life is because it is a direct result of the decisions we have made in the past.

Application:

     I will seek counsel of older and wiser people when faced with difficult decisions to make.

“The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to counsel.” Proverbs 12:15

working on my weaknesses

October 12, 2011

“For each one will bear his own load”

Galatians 6:5

     What I get out of this is that my load is different than anyone else’s, and vice versa. God has placed certain burdens on my heart for a specific reason; He has brought me here for different reasons than he has brought others. That’s how I have to walk through it. I truly believe that since we (Christians) are saved and know where we are going when we die, that we should make it a life standard to minister and love on those who are lost, and ultimately make disciples of them (Matthew 28:19). That being said, we need to make sure we are on track with our relationship with the Lord. If we give ourselves the title of being a “Christian”, but are not pure in areas that me must be in order to lead, then we are not only hurting ourselves, we are leading others astray. “And if a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit” (Matthew 15:14). We must carry our load first so that we can enable ourselves to be true leaders.

Application:

     I’m going to spend the first few minutes of devotions in prayer, asking God what areas of my relationship with Him that I need to work on and how I can improve on them.

October 11, 2011

“But each one must examine his own work, and then he will have reason for boasting in regard to himself alone, and not in regard to another.”

     On every sports team there is a captain. His job is to be the leader of the team in every way. He is the one who gets on player’s case who is slacking, rather that be in school or in the games. The captain has to set the standards. But if the he does not set the example in the class room and on the field, then he has no position to correct his teammates. He must look at his work ethic, his grades, and his character first, before he can say anything to them. I think this verse ties in with responsibility, which has been a topic the last few days here at the ranch.

Application:

     I’ll be the one to initiate cleaning in the men’s dorm every weekend so that it always gets done.

“For even when we were with you, we used to give you this order: if anyone is not willing to work, then he is not to eat, either.” 2^nd Thessalonians 3:10

October 10, 2011

“For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.”

Galatians 6:3

     Everything that I am capable of doing is because of Jesus. More than that, everything I am, everything about me, Jesus created it all. When I accomplish something that deserves an earthly reward, I have no right to be cocky about it or even think that I did it on my own strength. I am not too good for anything or anyone. And if we think like we are, then we are living a great lie.

Application:

     I will keep this in mind and do my best to give God the glory for everything He accomplishes through me.

“Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.” (Ephesians 5:6).

numbers

October 7, 2011

“Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart.”

Acts 2:46

     I read this and instantly get a feeling of unity. What does it mean to be united? It’s when two or more are in agreement and stand together for something. As the body of Christ, we need to be united and have the same goal in mind, which should be the great Commission (Matthew 28:19). If a thousand people are a part of the same congregation but every individual has their own agendas, and no unity is amongst them, they will not make even a little impact on the world. But if a thousand people came together with the same goal and motivation, with the right leader in place, they could do such incredible things for the Kingdom of God! One person can only do so much, but if the entire body of Christ unites for a common purpose, then revival could be around the corner. In battle, if your army is not united in every way and you don’t have each other’s back, then the enemy already has you beat.

Application:

     When I’m on the field, I’m going to remember that I have my army right beside me and I am not alone. When the devil tries to bring me down and mess with my head, I will cling first and foremost to Jesus, but also communicate with those around me and tell them what I am going through so that they can help me fight the good fight.

“For where two or here have gathered together in My name, I am in there midst.” (Matthew 18:20)

compassion

October 6, 2011

“And they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need.”

Acts 2:45

     As I read this I can easily think of dozens of homeless friends back home who are going hungry every day, have one pair of clothes, and are very lonely. People are in need all around us! How often do we see the homeless man (or woman) at the end of the street holding up a sign begging for a piece of bread? We are so quick to judge them and call them lazy when we haven’t even talked to them and don’t know their story. This is not meant make one feel guilty for having a cell phone, computer, a house to sleep in, and three meals a day, but is meant to make one realize that we have all these things for a reason; and that is to bless others. Jesus instructs us to do this: “If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” (Matthew 19:21). Jesus painted a very clear picture for us.

Application:

     I’m going to keep this mindset and continue to minister to the homeless people of San Diego as long as I live there. I will also try to think of ways to make the ministry that I’m involved in grow.

friendship

October 5, 2011

“And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common.”

Acts 2:44

     Here at PFR (Potter’s Field Ranch), we all come from completely different backgrounds. We have people from California, Utah, Philadelphia, Oregon, Colorado, and Florida (Paige has been everywhere it would take too long to list all the places she’s lived). A couple days ago at dinner a few of us were eating together and we all stopped, looked at each other at the exact same time, and then Paige said “We are all so different.” This gave us a good laugh but when I think about it, it couldn’t be truer. We all like different things, come from different cultures, and we’ve all been through completely different situations in life. However, the one thing that binds our friendships together is the main thing we all have in common; we are all here for the same reason, which is to hear from God, and be discipled so that we can disciple others. From another standpoint, this actually makes us the same in many different ways in terms of seeking the Lord. It’s so cool to see God bring a random group of people together who are seeking the same thing! We’re all in this together, I wouldn’t have it any other way. Of course I miss my family back home, but I have a new family right here, my brothers and sisters in Christ.

Application:

     I’m going to make sure I do my part to maintain these unforgettable friendships that I’ve made.

“A man of too many friends comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” (Proverbs 18:24)

    

October 4^th 2011

“Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles.”

Acts 2:43

     If we fully, completely, without a doubt understood and grasped what Jesus went through for us, I think we would be more extreme in our faith. The Passion of the Christ demonstrates very accurately what happened to Jesus the day of the crusifiction. We watch that movie; we cringe, cry, scream, and even turn away sometimes because it’s so hard to visualize the pain He endured. Jesus deserves us to be in awe of Him! I believe we often become comfortable or casual with our walk with the Lord. I am definitely guilty of this. Imagine if Jesus just chose to pass up that sacrifice. A relationship with Him wouldn’t even be an option. “Everyone KEPT feeling a sense of awe.”

Application:

“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself up for me.” Galatians 2:20. I’m going to memorize this verse and remember to never get comfortable with where I’m at, but to keep staying in awe of the Lord.

fellowship

October 3, 2011

“They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

Acts 2:42

      Most of the interns left this weekend, now it’s just me and seven others. For the next two months this will be my family. I was really sad because I became close with so many of the ones who just deployed, but I know God has me with this group for a reason, and I am excited to see what He does in us. “But if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.” (1^st John 1:7). The verse also talks about the breaking of bread and prayer. How important it is to be in a constant state of prayer! Prayer is power, especially when two or more are gathered to pray in unison. But I know that personally I need to always be willing to pray to the Lord, even if I’m not having quiet time.

Application:

     I’m going to live each of the members of my team up in my daily prayers throughout the week.