Wake up Call

“Examine yourselves to see if your faith is really genuine. Test yourselves. If you cannot see that Jesus Christ is among you, it means you have failed the test.” 2 Corinthians 13:5

In my attempt to gather some research for a writing assignment I came across this amazing website that left me flabbergasted and in awe all day yesterday, I could not shake these statistics from my mind. Here is a preview for you.

“The rate in which a light flashes on top of an emergency vehicle is the average rate that people are dying and going to hell.” Biblehelp.org Copyright © 1987 -2004 Michael Bronson

Can you comprehend that? I highly recommend you check out this website http://www.biblehelp.org/dieday.htm

I think the statistics will blow you away! Please understand these are only statistics and only God knows, but this should be an eye opener for all of us. I don’t think we can even begin to comprehend just how many people are going to hell. Maybe this will light a spark with in all of us to start getting it together and examining our own lives. Oh I can only pray that it will!

We should be in a foot race to share the word of God with someone every single day. Again being that only God knows, I wanted to give you some numbers to look at.

As of 2009 the estimated world population was around 6,790,062,216. (That’s almost 7 billion) people. According to the statistics from our article if only 7% of the world’s population is going to heaven that means 490 million people will go to heaven and 6,510,000,000 will not!

(Thank you daddy for helping me with my horrible math skills, I know this gave you the heebie geebies so thank you for hearing the desperation and urgency that filled my heart for those who are lost.)

Again ONLY God knows the exact number and He gives us warning in Matthew 7:13-14 about how narrow the gate to Heaven really is.

“You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for many who choose the easy way. But the gateway to life is small, and the road is narrow, and only a few ever find it.”  

There will be no second chances when the Lord returns! Don’t put off coming to know Him, living for Him, and seeking Him through His word. Start NOW!!!

Is He in you? Are you living as Christ lived or as you want to live? Let this be your wake up call

Prayer: Lord only You know the exact number that will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, and Father how I pray that we will not waste any more days pleasing our flesh or passing up opportunities to share Jesus Christ with others. Thank You for placing this urgency within me to share and encourage believers and non-believers to turn and seek You now. Amen

Here's how to know

“Examine yourselves to see if your faith is really genuine. Test yourselves. If you cannot tell that Jesus Christ is among you, it means you have failed the test.” 2 Corinthians 13:5

How can we be sure our faith is genuine and that Christ is living in us?

1 John 2:3-6

“By obeying his commandments. If someone says, I belong to God but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and does not live in the truth. But those who obey God’s word really do love him. That is the way to know whether or not we live in him. Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Christ did.”

Examine yourselves to this passage today, store it, study it, apply it, understand it, and test it. If you are not obeying God’s commandments, if you are not obeying His word, (which how can we if we never read it) than you will know He is not within you and your faith is not genuine. If you are not striving to be Christ-like than you desire the wrong things.

Oh my goodness do you not just love the word of God. I wish I could put the excitement of my heart on here for you to see, but I can’t so sweet brethren just know I AM EXTREMELY EXCITED AND SO STINKIN IN LOVE WITH JESUS! I hope you are too.

Prayer: Jesus there is NOTHING greater than You! There is NOTHING greater than Your word. O’ Father it is my desire for others to experience You in such a deep and personal way. You are what excites me, I long to be with You, to study Your word, to know everything there is about You. Jesus hasten the day! Amen

If we failed, it’s our own fault!

“Examine yourselves to see if your faith is really genuine. Test yourselves. If you cannot tell that Jesus Christ is among you, it means you have failed the test. I hope you recognize that we have passed the test and are approved by God.” 2 Corinthians 13:5-6

It’s time for some in depth study of God’s word. No stories, no feel good this or that, just the meat of God’s word. It’s time we start stepping up and taking responsibility for ourselves, our faith, and our spiritual growth.

“Examine yourselves” Paul says, observe your life, and check out your heart’s motives and intentions. Look at your life carefully and inspect your lifestyle. Find a mirror that is close up what has priority in your life?

“See if your faith is genuine”, he says. Now listen close to what he is saying. Are you sincerely and honestly seeking more of Jesus? Are you DAILY experiencing Jesus Christ? Is your desire to know more about Jesus than anything else? If it is, than you will be more consumed with Him and His word than with yourself and the world.

Test yourselves-is your faith growing? Are you becoming more and more mature spiritually? If you cannot see Christ in your life than you are not growing, and you might not even be a Christian.  That is what Paul is saying! A good way to test yourself is by looking at your lifestyle. Is Jesus the center?

If He is not than Paul says, “You have failed the test.”

Real faith seeks Jesus daily; it is not a mere thought but an action. Real faith accepts discipline from God’s word and does not ignore it. Real faith seeks to be examined by the Lord; it listens to the Holy Spirit when it speaks. Real faith is lived out! Real faith believes and stands firm in the promises of God. Real faith has no room for complacency, it is not half-hearted, it is not lukewarm, and it does not self-serve.

Real faith does not base it’s salvation on works, or religious traditions, but on the free gift of salvation given to it through the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Real faith desires to have an intimate, personal relationship with Jesus Christ; it desires to grow in wisdom and in truth EVERY SINGLE DAY!

Real genuine faith can praise and worship God because of the pure love it has for Jesus. Real faith does not require its pastor or church to make it feel good, instead real faith looks to the cross and Jesus Christ because He is the one who feeds and fuels the soul.

If we are not seeking God daily than we are only pushing ourselves further away.

Prayer: Lord place us under Your microscope and examine the very cells of our souls. Open our eyes from the blindness. Let there be no way we can escape from the truth of where each of us are at with our faith. Lord out of love and respect for You may we not sugar-coat, make excuses, or try and justify our lack of faith. Abba Father You give us time, Your word, and opportunity to grow in faith, forgive us for choosing to pursue others thing. Amen

Our Exam

“Our purpose is to please God, not people. He examines the motives of our hearts.” 1 Thessalonians 2:4

I have enjoyed so much this week’s S.S.A.L.S. God has taken me to a deeper level of intimacy within through understanding the importance of pleasing Him.

So with that I want to close the first part of our passage up with some profound words spoken by Paul that I have fell IN love with.

“Obviously, I’m not trying to be a people pleaser! No, I am trying to please God. If I were still trying to please people, I would not be Christ’s servant.” Galatians 1:10

Paul could not have said it any better! Don't you just love his boldness?

Now for the last part of our verse, “He examines the motives of our hearts.”  The word motive is a factor or circumstance that induces a person to act in a particular way.

What is our motive for worshipping God? What is our motive for acting in the manner in which we do, whether anger, jealousy, spite, love, compassion, etc? God alone knows the underlying motives of our hearts. He examines them daily and He cannot be fooled. “People may think they are doing what is right, but the Lord examines the heart.” Proverbs 21:2

It is so neat to me how these two verses go so well together. If our motives are for the attention and praise of man, than are we not going to be people pleasers instead of God pleaser's?

What about when we lash out at others or speak words of hate, is it not because our underlying motive is to hurt someone because we are hurting, and instead of allowing God to deal with that hurt, we retaliate onto others so we can feel better about ourselves? Sick isn’t it? But how often we do it.

It is a vicious cycle especially when our motives are intentional. God sees our hearts brethren, He sees and knows why we do all that we do. He knows how we will handle every situation and every conviction; we will both accept and confess it, or we will reject it.

“Don’t try to avoid responsibility by saying you didn’t know about it. For God knows all hearts, and he sees you. He keeps watch over your soul, and he knows you knew! And he will judge all people according to what they have done.” Proverbs 24:12

Even we know our motives behind the things we do. So what are yours? The next time you do something ask yourself this, does this motive align itself with the word of God, the will of God and the love of God?

And we must always remember, “He examines the motives of our hearts.”

Prayer: Lord I pray the same prayer David prayed; examine me, O Lord and test me! Evaluate my inner thoughts and motives! Amen

The Outcome

“Our purpose is to please God, not people. He examines the motives of our hearts.” 1 Thessalonians 2:4

How did you do on the test yesterday? It sure puts things into perspective doesn’t it? It did for me!

So what is the outcome for being a people pleaser vs. a God pleaser? It is a temporary satisfaction vs. a lifelong satisfaction and it can all be summed up in one verse spoken several times throughout the Bible.

“Shout that people are like the grass that dies away. Their beauty fades as quickly as the beauty of flowers in a field. The grass withers, and the flowers fade beneath the breath of the Lord. And so it is with people. The grass withers, and the flowers fade, but the word of our God stands forever.” Isaiah 40:6-8

It is only through Christ Jesus that we will find a lasting satisfaction that our souls thirst for.  If you stop and evaluate how your life has been as a people pleaser I am sure you will begin to realize it is not that enjoying. It is like a roller coaster your happy one minute, mad the next, you seek the opinion of others because you didn't hear what you wanted, and it just goes on and on. That’s because people’s words, opinions, and attitudes will always change, just like the grass. But God’s words, His opinion, His attitude will always remain the same.

Aren’t you ready for some consistency in your life? Don’t you want to hang your hat on something you know is true and lasting?

Prayer: Lord I pray that we will move past being people pleasers and start becoming God pleasers. For then we will always be able to refer everybody to the word of God. May we always point directly to the cross and not to ourselves. Amen

The "Pleaser" test...people or God

“Our purpose is to please God, not people. He examines the motives of our hearts.”  1 Thessalonians 2:4

Here is a test for you to take that will help determine who you seek to please more. When taking this test you have to be 100% honest when answering each question. These questions should be answered NOT with how you want to be but how you are right now! And remember God knows the real answer!

1. Do you always worry about what others think of you?

2. Are you more concerned about your outward beauty or your inward beauty?

                -What do you spend more time working on, your outfits and appearance or your relationship with Christ?

3. Do you tell people what they want to hear or the truth?

4. Do you think about how your actions affect Christ?

5. Are your thoughts focused more on other people or Christ?

6. Do you go to church for the politics (to be seen) or because you desire to be in God’s house?

7. Do you do things for the attention and praise of others or for Christ?

8. Do you brag about your success and pay checks or about God’s mercy and grace?

9. Do your conversations consist more on worldly issues or on God’s word?

10. Do you desire to obtain more or to give more?

11. Do you spend more time with friends than you do with God?

12. Do you spend more time trying to please people or God?

13. Do you want to win the approval of people or God?

14. Do you enjoy the company of people more than God’s company?

15. Do you seek the opinion of others first or God first?

16. Do you know more about people’s lives than you do God’s word?

17. What are you more concerned about; what others say or what God says?

18. Are your motives people driven or God driven?

19. Do you spend more time trying to make people happy or God happy?

20. Do you take people’s words to heart or God’s word?

Well what’s the verdict? People or God

Join me tomorrow as we look at some outcomes of pleasing people vs. pleasing God.

Prayer: Lord you tell us in our verse that you examine the motives of our hearts and if our motives are to please people more than You, convict us in that area, but most of all Lord forgive us for fixing our eyes on those who will soon wither and die. Lord lift our eyes to You for You are the everlasting God. Amen

Pleased, Pleased, Pleased

“Our purpose is to please God, not people. He is the one who examines the motives of our hearts.” 1 Thessalonians 2:4

When we suffer for the sake of Christ, He my brothers and sisters is PLEASED!

When we endure through our suffering with patience and steadfast faithfulness, He is PLEASED!

When we stand on the side of good, He is PLEASED!

When we refuse to give into this evil world and those around us, He is PLEASED!

When we rise above the ridicule, mockery, name calling, words spoken in spite, He is PLEASED!

When we cling to EVERY single word of God like it is our life rope (and it is), He is PLEASED!

When we fall on our faces before the Almighty God and cry out for forgiveness and TRUST that He will forgive us, He is PLEASED!

When we set our eyes on Christ Jesus and no other God or thing, He is PLEASED!

When we instill the word of God into our children each and every day, He is PLEASED!

When we share the Good News with others, He is PLEASED!

When we give God every detail of our lives, He is PLEASED!

When we offer our lives up to Him, He is PLEASED!

When put a stop to fleshly living and start living by the Spirit, He is PLEASED!

When we put aside our selfish ambitions, He is PLEASED!

When we place Him in the center of our marriages, He is PLEASED!

When we remove ourselves from deliberate sin, He is PLEASED!

When we pick up our cross daily and follow Him, He is PLEASED!  

     
When we make our job’s God centered, He is PLEASED!

When we allow Him to guide our every step, He is PLEASED!

When we seek His face, when we spend time in prayer, when we commit our souls to Him, HE IS PLEASED!

My friend is your life pleasing Him?

Every time you make a decision ask this question, God will this please You?

Prayer: God show us how we can please You in the midst of our busy lives. May we always stop to ask ourselves if what we are doing is pleasing You. Amen

My cup runneth over

“Our purpose is to please God, not people. He alone examines the motives of our hearts.” 1 Thessalonians 2:4

We gathered our things to head to church. Avery and I were finishing up talking about the 10% he was to give to Jesus. Dax at this point had taken a handful of change that had fallen on the floor and made a mad dash outside. Avery and I grabbed our stuff and out we went. As I was getting everything in the car I noticed Dax had ran around the corner of the house and I could hear him talking. So I walked around to get him when I saw my 1 ½ year old little boy lifting up his money to the sky and saying, “Here you go Jesus, here is your money.”  

I walked over to pick him up when he looked at me and said, “Mommy I give Jesus my money” and he lifted it up to the sky. I pulled him in close and said, “Daxie Jesus is so pleased. Mommy is so proud of you.”  In that very moment my heart overflowed joy.

As we began making our way to the car I could hear Jesus say, “Kristi I am so pleased.”   

It has been my deepest desire to please the Lord in all ways. I want please Him from a depth within me that only He can reach, and tonight He showed me a glimpse of its depth through the action of my baby boy.

Jesus is pleased when I instill the love of God within my two little boys. He is pleased when I live by example and show them and teach them the word of God and how to have a personal relationship with their Heavenly Father.

And for me there is no greater reward than knowing my babies love Jesus passionately at a young age and are already developing a one on one relationship with Him. Garrett and I have only one job and that is to ensure that our boy’s spend eternity in Heaven.

Prayer: Lord thank You for my precious babies and their desire to know You. Lord we represent more than just the Morgan name we represent You and I pray that as we walk this earth we will not only represent You but that we will please You in all we say and do. Lord continue to fill Avery and Dax with wisdom beyond their years and guide Garrett and I to be the parents You have called us to be. Lord these babies are Yours and we gave them to You a long time ago, take them and use them, make them stewards and lovers of Your word. Amen

Rare perfume

“Our purpose is to please God, not people. He alone examines the motives of our hearts.” 1 Thessalonians 2:4

She entered the room carrying the best perfume she had. Her heart pounded as she made her way over to the feet of Jesus. She knelt down behind Him and immediately began to weep. The brokenness, shame and pain of her sins had become more than she could bear.

Having only the water from her tears and the hair on her head she began to wash the feet of Jesus.  With her hands shaking and weak from crying she reached over and grabbed the alabaster jar and opened it up. She then gently grabbed the feet of Jesus and began kissing and anointing them with the rare perfume.

With her eyes lowered and fixed on His feet she suddenly felt the hands of Jesus lifting her head. As her head rose up her tear filled eyes met the eyes of Jesus, He so loving reached His hand out and wiped the tears from her face and she heard him say, “Your sins are forgiven. Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” Luke 7:48, 50

 Her faith expressed itself through her love for Jesus and she did in such a way that leaves me feeling ever so desperate for my faith to express itself in love for Jesus in the same way. You see I too a sinner, have received the same forgiveness as she did, so shouldn’t I be anointing my Heavenly Father’s feet with my rarest perfume. I know that day Jesus was so pleased with the actions, humbleness, and faith of this woman. She made it all about Him and yet I wonder, do I make it all about Him, does my love for Christ go that deep? Does He feel my tears as they hit His feet? Do His feet give off the sweet aroma of my rarest perfume? How I pray that they do.

Prayer: Jesus it is my deepest desire to please You. Develop in me a faith that pours out love and gratitude for the forgiveness, mercy and grace You so graciously bestow upon me daily. Amen

Lord I want to please You!

“Our purpose is to please God, not people. He alone examines the motives of our hearts.” 1 Thessalonians 2:4

Pleasing God should be the force that drives us. It should be the first thing we think about when we wake up, as we go throughout our day, and when we lay down at night. Unfortunately for me it has not always been that way, there have been more times than I care to count of when I have tried to please myself, my family, friends, bosses, even people I don’t know.

So when the Lord impressed this upon my heart I had an overwhelming amount of emotions run through me. 

Lord I want to please You; I want to please You more than I want my heart to beat. I want to please You here, now, and for eternity. Lord I want  to please You in my suffering, my weakness, with my heart, my thoughts, my actions, attitude, words, with my example, in every step I take, as a mom, wife, daughter, friend, writer, but most of all Lord I want to please You because You are my Father.

Lord examine the motives of my heart and MAKE it pleasing to You. Lay out before me all that pleases You for then my life will be an example of Christ. Above all Lord make Your word come alive within me. Amen

Closing “Thoughts”

"The more I thought about it, the hotter I got, igniting a fire of words.” Psalm 39:3

I want to close our two weeks on thoughts with two passages that I have found to be profound.

Proverbs 15:14 “A wise person is hungry for truth, while the fool feeds on trash.”

If we are to become wise in thought we will seek out thoughts of truth, honor, righteousness, purity, love, admiration, excellence, and things that are praise worthy.

If we feed on trash (thoughts in the flesh), we are fools. In other words if we spend only 10 minutes flying through the word of God and spend the remaining 23 hours and 50 minutes filling our thoughts with the world’s garbage-We are fools!

Passage 2-“Lord, remind me how brief my time on earth will be. Remind me that my days are numbered-how fleeting my life is.” Psalm 39:4

Being that our time here on earth is so brief we must not waste any time being concerned about worldly things. We must take every thought and place it on Heaven and on those who are lost, widowed, poor, and broken.

We like David need to cry out to the Lord asking Him to remind us just how brief our time here is, and start putting our thoughts and attention on Christ.

Prayer: Lord knowing how brief my time is help me to use every thought, every action, every word, to glorify You, to encourage my brothers and sisters, and to share the joy of heaven that awaits us. May I not waste my time fixated on myself, or the things that I have no control over. Amen

Black and White

“The more I thought about it, the hotter I got, igniting a fire of words.” Psalm 39:3

When it comes to my faith I am black and white, there is no gray area with me.  God has no gray areas about Him and neither does His word. It is straight forward and I love that. You either choose to obey Him wholeheartedly or you don’t. Your hot or cold!

Being black and white I have been called many things, unloving, hypocritical, judgmental, turn-off etc. And do you know I am okay with that. Let me tell you why.

The Lord has instilled this gift within me. It is a gift I did not choose for myself, but one that He chose for me.  The Lord has instilled within me a deep passion for Him and His kingdom. He has placed within me the urgency to share His word with others and the truth of what will come to be if we do not turn from our ways and turn to Him.

I believe wholeheartedly in doing all things with love and that is why I believe in holding all people including myself accountable to the word of God. That is why I believe that people need to know that HELL exists. That is why I have such distaste for sin, in my own life and in the lives of others.

Jesus did not come down and preach feel good sermons, He preached with boldness, authority and power because of His great love for you and me. Jesus had a deep concern for the souls of His people. Jesus loved us enough to point out the filth that displeased His Father. He had so much love for us that He knew the only way we would ever be made right with God was through Him, His sacrifice, and His blood.

I also know that one day I will stand before the judgment seat of God and will be held accountable for the things I have done. And I will be darned if I go before my Heavenly Father and say I was just too scared to offend someone, so I remained quiet, and as a result those people or that person is in Hell for eternity because I failed to do what Christ called me to do. 

It would be like John the Baptist telling God, “Sorry I just can’t prepare the way for Jesus because I don’t want to have enemies or anger anyone.” REALLY?

So many Christians today would rather blend in, fit in and be liked that they are doing more harm than good.  

So whether you are offended or not, just know I love you enough to make sure you don’t spend eternity in hell! I love you enough to hold you accountable to the word of God. I love you enough to make sure you don’t become hardened to the convictions of the Holy Spirit. I love you so much I want to be standing next to you in Heaven forever! I love you so much I pray my guts out for you, and I love you so much I want you to be the absolute best for Christ as you can be. I want every intricate part about you and me to please Him.  Why, because HE DESERVES IT, PLUS SOME!

 And more than anything know this; I do it all because my love for Jesus Christ is greater than anything else on the face of the earth. And when my daddy is offended, I am offended. When He is rejected I am rejected. When He is used I feel used. When He hurts I hurt. My love for Him is so great I am willing to be called any name, be mocked, hated, and disliked for His name sake.

I want to finish up by giving you a thought to really think about and I pray it begins to consume you so much that it ignites a fire of urgency under you.

Can you say you “TRULY” love, yet let a friend, family member, colleague, etc. live in sin, and you never confront them? Can you say you “truly” love Christ, yet are willing to let those living in darkness perish?

Guys it’s time to get out of the stands, God did not put us here to be spectators, or pew warmers, He put us here to serve and time is running out. It is right now we need to be sharing God’s word. It is right now we need to be reaching out to the lost. RIGHT NOW! We are not here for our pleasure, it’s high time we get over ourselves and start focusing on the job at hand-saving souls!

Prayer: Lord narrow is the gate and only a few will enter. Use me Lord to be a utensil You can use for Your purpose. Father it grieves me to know there are people who are lost, people who will be going to hell. Use me Father to reach out to them and to my brothers and sisters stuck in sin.  Lord I know they hated You way before they hated me, I know it is You they persecute, You  that is in me, and I thank You for bearing that for me. I do all things for Your glory Lord. Amen

                                                                                                           

The deceiver and his helpers

“The more I thought about it, the hotter I got, igniting a fire of words.” Psalm39:3

Have you ever gone into a situation having positive thoughts about how it will go, only to leave being disappointed and frustrated? Having done that very thing last night I began to wonder if our own thoughts can deceive us, can they lead us to believe something that is just not true.

Yes and the deceiver himself is at the center of it all using anyone and anything to fulfill his plan, as he did last night.

So how does one overcome the deception and rise above it, with the help and power of the Holy Spirit, who will enable you with the ability to see each situation for what it really is. He will place the protection and armor of God’s word around you giving you the strength to fight the deceiver himself. And he will turn up the watts of Christ’s light within you, giving you a brightness that penetrates all darkness around you.  

Now don’t misunderstand me, it is good to always go into situations looking for the positive, and we should always see each situation as Christ does. But we cannot be naïve to the fact that there are just something’s and some people whose desires, motives, and thoughts are not fixed on God, therefore making the deceiver’s job that much easier.

Last night my faith was put to the test, I have had a week of studying thoughts in God’s word, I have had all week to store His words in my heart, and last night He handed me the test to see if I was ready to apply it.

Here was the test; would I focus on the negative outcome and what the deceiver did, or would I focus on Christ Himself and let my thoughts of Him ignite words of Praise.

And though my flesh fought me every step of the way I chose to focus on Christ, His power, His love, His control, and His word. I chose to apply all that God had taught me in overcoming thoughts in the flesh and in doing so I was able to face the deceiver and his helpers head on. I was filled with complete peace and joy. I was surrounded by a small group of brothers and sisters who TRULY live out their love and devotion to Christ, and I gained a new understanding that there are just some things and some people who will always be helpers of the deceiver. And though we might not set out to be his helper, we fall prey to it when we pretend to be someone or something we are not. And we ALL at one point have been his helper!!

I want to make one thing very clear, none of us are immune to becoming the deceiver's helper (boy do I know that), that is why we must never put on to be more than what we really are, we must never act one way towards a group of people and then another way towards a different group.Christ was always the same and so should we. We must be very careful at all times, always evaluating ourselves with the Lord and His word. If we claim to be true followers of God we will live like true followers of God.

Prayer: Lord protect us from the deceiver, protect us and help us from falling prey to his plans. May we NEVER be his helper. Lord show us areas in our lives where we might be deceitful. Amen

Thoughts of Praise

“The more I thought about it, the hotter I got, igniting a fire of words.” Psalm 39:3

She gave her heart to Jesus a long time ago, but somewhere in her life her heart became divided between her love for God, her desire to please Him, and her captivity of focusing on the negative. “How did this happen? How have I gotten to this point in my life? It almost seems difficult to find the positive in things; my thoughts always take me to the places of hurt, rejection, and failure. I am quick to see the wrong in everything. Lord deliver me from this sickness that has overtaken me.”  She cried

If this woman only knew she was not alone, if she only knew she was not the only one infected with this horrible disease of negativism.  I too struggle with the same thing daily, many of us struggle with negative thoughts. Our problems, our hurts, our pasts, our failures, our doubts, our fears, rejections, abuse, addictions, loneliness, our desires to be praised by man, our need to be noticed, to be of value, these things have consumed our thoughts placing us into slavery. They have robbed us of our joy, our health, and they have filled our hearts with sorrow and self.

It is time my brethren to break free and turn our hearts and our thoughts to that of Praise. How do we do that, I am glad you asked.

We become determined- “I am determined, O God! I am determined! I will sing and praise you!” Psalm 57:7. We determine today that we WILL praise God, we determine today to no longer focus on the negative but the positive that comes from Jesus Christ.

We awaken our soul-“Praise the Lord, O my soul! With all that is within me, praise his holy name.” Psalm 103:1. Our soul is aroused when we fix our hearts on God, by meditating on His word, works, and His magnificent ways.

We stay reminded-“I will remember the works of the Lord. Yes, I will remember the amazing things you did long ago.” Psalm 77:11

-“Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me. He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies.” Psalm 103:2-4

We focus on the gift (cross)-“But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through this other man, Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:15

-“But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:17

We focus on the gift of being children of God, “See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are!” 1 John 3:1

We treat the disease with Praise-“I will praise you, Lord with all my heart; I will tell of all the marvelous things you have done. I will be filled with joy because of you. I will sing praises to your name, O Most High.” Psalm 9:1

-“With all my heart I will praise you, O Lord my God I will give glory to your name forever.” Psalm 86:12

-We take every negative thought and turn it into praise; here is an example.This is one of my negative thoughts.

The Negative Thought-He cares more about his job than he does us.

                The Praise-Lord thank you that my husband takes pride in what he does. I know that he loves us Lord. May all his hard work glorify You. Thank You that he has a job and is able to work. Thank You that he has the opportunity to do what he loves and that because of his efforts and his job we have a roof over our head, food to eat and clothes on our backs.

Prayer: Lord we have been held captive too long to negative thinking. Today we are determined to praise You. We want to no longer with hold the Glory that belongs to You. Amen

The “First” Family

“The more I thought about it, the hotter I got, igniting a fire of words.” Psalm 39:3

Ladies and Gentlemen I would like to introduce you to a family of whom I refer to as the “First Family”. They do not have a last name, but because they were the first to do everything, I found it fitting to make “First” become their last name.  

So please make welcome Adam, Eve, Cain, and Abel First

Adam and Eve were the first man and woman to be created, the first and only ones who entered the world as adults, the first to walk in direct communication with God, the first to live in paradise, the first to experience peace between man and animal, the first to have everything provided for them, the first whose daily tasks were joyful, fun, and stress free. They were also the first to be tempted by Satan, to give in to Satan’s lies, and to fall into sin.  They were the first to have their eyes open to good and evil, the first to live in shame and fear of God, the first to be cast out of the Garden of Eden (paradise) and the first to experience death, jobs, stress, child-bearing (pain), parenthood, the importance of shelter, food, and clothing.

Their children Cain and Abel were the first to enter the world through a woman as babies. Cain being the first male child born is the one I really want to focus on today.

Cain was the first child ever born, the first baby to cry, the first baby to laugh, crawl, walk, the first to be spanked, the first to push his parents buttons, the first to learn how to work, the first big brother, and the first one to set an example of what happens when we ponder on a fleshly thought a little too long, thus igniting a fire of not just words, but a fire of sinful actions.

Cain grew up to be a farmer, while his younger brother Abel grew up to be a Shepherd. Harvest time was approaching so Cain got some of his best crops and gave them to the Lord as a gift. “Abel also brought the Lord a gift-the best of the firstborn lambs from his flock (Genesis 4:4). The Lord accepted Abel and his gift, but he did not accept Cain and his gift.”  I am not sure if this was the first gift presented to the Lord from the boys, but it is the first spoken of in the Bible.

Therefore, Cain was also the first to have his gift not be accepted by the Lord. And this is where it began.

Cain became very angry, and when confronted by the Lord he was told he could be accepted if he would just do what was right. But if he refused the watch out because sin would crouch at his door eager to control him. The Lord told Cain, “But you must subdue it and be its master.” Genesis 4:7

Guess what Cain became the first one to refuse to give up his jealous anger. Instead, he let his thoughts of jealousy, anger, and rejection control him causing him to be the first one to take a man’s life of which was his own brother. Because of Cain’s inability to take his thoughts captive and place them in the obedience of God, he became the first man to be banished from the ground, the first to leave the presence of the Lord, and the first to be a homeless wanderer on the earth. (Genesis 4:10-14)

What is my point to all of this? Thoughts in the flesh always lead to sin, and the more we focus on those thoughts the more we become slaves to them just as Cain did. Sin will always be crouching at our door, eager to control us, but we must subdue it and become its master.

Prayer: Lord I have become a slave to several of my thoughts that have led to sinful actions. Father forgive me for opening the door to them. I know I cannot subdue or become master over them without the help of the Holy Spirit. Lord help me to exercise self-control. Amen

There is only one Fire Chief!

“The more I thought about it, the hotter I got, igniting a fire of words.” Psalm 39:3

I took the kids to the church playground to play, stopped and got them a drink from Sonic, then drove them over to the football field to play on the track and run around. We then stopped over by the field house so they could see their daddy. He walks over and we all begin to talk. Up to this point it has been a great day.

We all get our daddy lovin’ and then I proceed to tell him all we have to do when he gets home. It is at this point I become “crazy woman” who is all of the sudden overwhelmed and frustrated. And I am sure if he was telling his side of the story he would say I was EXTREMELY frustrated and beyond “crazy”. We will discuss that later.

When “crazy woman” finishes speaking my calm and patient husband says, “Ok, I know, we will get it all done. I should be home around 3:00, love you got to go.”

The “Crazy woman” roles up her window gives him a look and drives off. As I drive off I begin to convert back to Kristi. We get home I throw the kids in the tub, get them dressed and laid down for a short nap. If you know my babies or have heard me talk about nap or bed time, you would know this is a chore, which brings “crazy woman” back out.  Anyway we all get calmed down Kristi comes back out gets a few minutes of peace and quiet and even gets in some studying.

I begin to finish up when you would think after basking in the presence of the Son “Joyful Kristi” would stay out right? Well “Joyful Kristi” left quick and in a hurry when she looked at the time and realized it was almost four and her husband was not home.

“Crazy woman” come’s flying out and begins thinking about how all she ever does is wait on her husband. The more she thought it about the hotter she got and the more she began thinking about all the negative. She got so hot she not only ignited a fire of words, she blew those words all over her poor husband through text and directly in his face the minute he put his self in that car. “Crazy Woman” burned him right up. She blew so much fire at him; he then became filled with fire.

So the whole way to Longview, the whole time we were in Longview, and the whole way home from Longview fire was being thrown.

(Sigh) Here is the greatest lesson “Crazy Woman” and Kristi have been taught. The more I focus on the negative, the more thoughts in the flesh I have the less I allow Christ’s light to shine. The less my boys (all three) see a woman who reflects, loves, and lives and breathes Jesus Christ. Instead they see a fickle woman.

That is not what I desire, that is not the example I want to set for my boys. That is not the wife I want to be. There is a reason God has kept me on the importance of thoughts and for this very reason, if my thoughts don’t change my actions won’t change and the ones who know me best won’t receive God’s best.

As I searched God’s word yesterday and came upon our passage, God stopped me dead in my tracks and humbled me. This friend is where I struggle; fixating on a thought until it makes me so hot that I ignite a fire of words onto my own family. 

In order to ignite words of love, I need to think more about God’slove. In order to ignite peace, I need to think more about God’s gift of peace. This is where I have failed in my thought life. I am not fighting the fire with the word of God as I should. I am not going directly to the fire house for help; I am trying to fight the fire myself. And all this does is cause third degree burns that hurt and leave lasting scars.

G, I love you more than life itself! Thank you for being so patient and for loving me and "Crazy Woman" unconditionally. You show me daily what true genuine love looks like, and for that I am ever so grateful.

Prayer: Lord You are the fire Chief and Your word is the water that puts out all fires. Help me Lord to call upon You at the spark and not when it is lit. Amen

The same patch of grass

“The more I thought about it, the hotter I got, igniting a fire of words.” Psalm 39:3

It was Saturday afternoon and all three of my boys were taking a nap. I couldn’t sleep so I spent part of the afternoon studying and hanging out with the Lord. I began to finish up and decided I would go mow the yard for G because I knew he was tired from the week and the football game Friday night.

I had just finished the big part of the yard and was headed over to mow the little part, when I got this great idea to try and mow it in a circle, you know one of those spiral circles? So there I am mowing, going around and around when I began to realize I had been mowing the same patch of grass for the last ten minutes and was not getting any closer to being done. I thought to myself how in the world have I not made any progress? So the next go around I tried to pay more attention to what I was doing when I realized, I couldn’t see the lines from what was mowed and what was not.

At that moment a million thoughts went through my head. I bet the neighbors think I am crazy and are probably wondering why I have mowed the same patch of grass all while going in a circle.

 Man I hope G does not come out here!

Wow, this is what Satan does to us when he fills us with his lies. He gets us going in circles, makes us believe we are making progress when in reality we are doing the same thing over and over.

It is not until the Lord gets our attention and shows us we have been “mowing” the same area. And just as I finally began to see my lines and make progress, the Lord also shows us our “lines” (sins) so we can make progress of confession and repentance. Thank You Lord for giving me this revelation.

The power of thinking, my brethren! My point to all of this is when the Lord has a point to be made; He is going to make it, no matter how long it takes us to get it, and no matter how many times we “mow” the same patch of grass, or in Jesus speaking terms, no matter how many times we keep committing the same sin. He will get our attention.

I have noticed that a lot with the Lord and myself lately. He will reveal to me certain things, I will listen and then move on only to find myself hearing Him say the same thing again, (mowing the same patch of grass) only in a different way (direction). For example in Aug one of our S.S.A.L.S (study, store, apply, learn and share) was over our enemies and one of the devotionals I did was, “Your step by step guide to a new…thought life.”

As I went back and read that last night I told Garrett, “wow the Lord must really be trying to get my attention in this area.”

I know today is the beginning of a new week for us, and we are going to begin it, but we are going to sit right here in the area of our thoughts for one more week.  Just to make sure we get what God wants us to. Same patch of grass just mowing with a new blade (the new blade would be our new verse for the week)

Do you have a patch of grass you have been mowing over and over? Maybe God is trying to get your attention.

Prayer: Lord as students of Your word we come hungry to learn. Put within our hearts the lesson You want us to learn. Amen  

Thought makeover

“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:5

 Our thoughts have been separated and taken captive; our sources have been identified, and now we need to make them obedient.

How do we make our thoughts become obedient to Christ, by receiving a thought makeover.

1. Transformation
2. Giving control to the Spirit
   
3. Renewal

How do we transform our thoughts? We don’t God does. “But let God change you into a new person by changing the way you think.” Romans 12:2- We cannot do it on our own, although we try.

How does God change the way we think? He fills us with the Holy Spirit who takes over control.

“Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things (thoughts in the flesh), but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. (Thoughts in and from the Spirit) So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace.” Romans 8:5

It is then through the Holy Spirit’s control that we are able to renew our thoughts by placing them under the authority and compliance of Christ’s laws and commands, or in other words obedience.

“Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes.” Ephesians 4:23

Without transformation, the Spirit’s control, and renewal our thoughts will stay in the flesh and eventually will lead us into death. 

Prayer: Lord transform, control and renew our thoughts. We want our thoughts to please You. Amen

The Source

“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:5

Where does the source of our thoughts come?

TV, Movies

Magazines, News, Books, Internet

Friends, Family

Church, The word of God, Prayer

-What are some results that come from each source?

TV/Movies-unrealistic expectations, impure thoughts, fear. On the flip side they can bring God’s word to people around the world.

Friends-this one takes evaluation; if a “true” Christian-they will be encouraging, keep you accountable, honest, forgiving, and genuine, encourage you spiritually, and will help you to have pure thoughts. They will give godly counsel, and always point you to Christ.

                -Those who are lukewarm friends will be there for you when it is convenient to them, will be easily angered when held accountable, will encourage you to partake in worldly pleasures, will talk about others to better themselves. And will very rarely carry on a conversation that is God centered.

Magazines/Books-Insecurity, gossip, lust, and impure thoughts, or if chosen properly can share God’s word, encouragement, help, and hope, but of course the greatest book to be used and read is the word of God.

Internet-let’s see; insecurity, lust, temptation, gossip, fraud, etc. However it can also bring God’s word to people around the world, Church resources, communication with friends and family.

Family-our families can either be a godly source or a worldly source. If it is a family who is absent from Christ-our thoughts will be full of flesh. If they are a lukewarm family-they will fill our thoughts with confusion, they will be one way at home and one way at church. If a “true” family of God-they will fill our thoughts with the word of God.

Church-should be the source that brings unity in thoughts with other brothers and sisters. It should point our thoughts to Christ through…

The word of God/Prayer-these two are the main sources from which our thoughts should be on continually! They are what will lead us in the direction of thinking in the Spirit.

What sources are controlling your thoughts? Do you have some sources that need to be removed?

Prayer: Lord examine our deepest thoughts, reveal to us the sources that have begun to control our thoughts. Give us a distaste for all those that are displeasing to You. May the thoughts of our hearts be pleasing to You in all ways. Amen

Two types of thoughts.

“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:5

How does one go about taking their thoughts captive and making them obedient to Christ, by the word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit.

Being a woman of specifics and detail, I am always asking the Lord to bring everything to a level of understanding for me, and He has always done just that.  Over these next several days I want to share it with you, having complete trust in the Lord that He will do the same thing for you.

Step 1: We need to become familiar with two types of thoughts; thoughts in the Spirit and thoughts in the flesh.

Thoughts in the Spirit Philippians 4:8	Thoughts in the Flesh These were a compilation from 200 people who were so gracious enough to share thoughts they have in the flesh.
Truth	Worry	Anger	Condemnation of ourselves
Honorable	Doubt	Anxiety	Lack of compassion
Right	Fear	Frustration	Impatience
Pure	Lust	Greed	Our own holiness
Lovely	Jealousy	Selfishness	Procrastination
Admirable	Timid	Hypocrisy	Insecurity
Excellent	Temper	Idolatry	Inferiority
Worthy of Praise	Pride	Loneliness	Addiction
Kind	Revenge	Am I measuring up	Bitterness

Separating our thoughts is the beginning of their captivity.

Understanding the source from where our thoughts come is the key to their demise when in the flesh and the key to their obedience when in the Spirit.

Begin separating your thoughts today, do it by asking the Lord to bring all your thoughts into the light of His Holiness.

Prayer: Lord place each thought under Your microscope, examine it and bring it out into the light. Help me to be able to discern those that are from You and the lies from Satan. Amen