Our Partnership with God
1 CORINTHIANS 12:4-11
I don't know how some in today's church got the false idea that the preacher is a servant and the folks in the pews are just members. No one is a bystander in God's kingdom! All believers are in partnership with the Lord (2 Cor. 6:1). He chose to work through mankind to accomplish the gospel mission on earth. To borrow a biblical metaphor, we are the workers cultivating and harvesting His fields (Matt. 9:37-38).
God gave one or more spiritual gifts to every single believer to aid in the work for His kingdom. We each need this special "wiring" to carry out our unique role in His plan. He knits that spiritual gift into our personality and inborn talents to create a useful and effective servant. And just to be clear, there is no such thing as a non-gifted believer.
Believers are the Lord's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for the purpose of good works (Eph. 2:10). Spiritual gifts are not our own abilities. The Holy Spirit manifests them through us. Remember, it is the sap running from the vine into the branches that produces fruit (John 15:5). In the same way, the Spirit lives and works through God's followers to bring forth acts of service. The Lord's power is behind it all. Think of that when you are tempted to shy away from God-given opportunities.
God's awesome power is present in and available to every believer. The Holy Spirit equips us to obey the Lord in whatever He calls us to do. Don't waste your life sitting in a pew! Get busy using that spiritual gift. The fields of this world are ripe for harvest (John 4:35).
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Charles Stanley's Week 11 Prayer: Deliver from Corruption
Thank you for joining with us in 140 Days of Prayer. Let's pray.
Father, thank You for loving and protecting Your people. We pray for those who serve as leaders in our government--that they would seek You and submit themselves to You. We know that there are those who would lead us away from Your best for our land. Father, You know them by name and love them. Shed light on any who would lead us astray so that they realize their sinfulness and repent of their wrong choices. We ask that You would draw them to Yourself, convict them of their sins, and bring them to salvation. Contend with their plans, Lord--do not allow those who seek to confuse or control people to prosper. Thank You for being our righteous Judge and King. We praise You for hearing our prayers and bringing hidden things to light. In Jesus' name, Amen. (See Isaiah 3:12-13.)
Father, thank You for loving and protecting Your people. We pray for those who serve as leaders in our government--that they would seek You and submit themselves to You. We know that there are those who would lead us away from Your best for our land. Father, You know them by name and love them. Shed light on any who would lead us astray so that they realize their sinfulness and repent of their wrong choices. We ask that You would draw them to Yourself, convict them of their sins, and bring them to salvation. Contend with their plans, Lord--do not allow those who seek to confuse or control people to prosper. Thank You for being our righteous Judge and King. We praise You for hearing our prayers and bringing hidden things to light. In Jesus' name, Amen. (See Isaiah 3:12-13.)
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
The Holy Spirit helps us pray and petition
John 14:16-21 (NASB)
Role of the Spirit
16"I will ask the Father, and He will give you another (A)Helper, that He may be with you forever;
17that is (B)the Spirit of truth, (C)whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.
18"I will not leave you as orphans; (D)I will come to you.
19"(E)After a little while (F)the world will no longer see Me, but you will see Me; (G)because I live, you will live also.
20"(H)In that day you will know that (I)I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.
21"(J)He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and (K)he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will (L)disclose Myself to him."
Charles Stanley elaborates on this nicely! :
I am convinced that if Christians truly understood what takes place during prayer, they'd call upon the Lord more often and with greater results. The believer's prayer isn't simply spoken into empty space; the Holy Spirit is there to guide us in offering God-centered requests, fill in the words we cannot say, and carry our needs before the Lord.
The Holy Spirit is part of the Trinity, so He knows the mind of God intimately (1 Cor. 2:11). Since He is as omniscient and omnipotent as the Father, He fully grasps the circumstance we are praying over—even the parts that remain unseen or utterly confusing to us. Also, the Spirit dwells within every believer and knows each one's mind and heart. With this full knowledge, the Holy Spirit can carry out His responsibility to make our petitions match God's desires. Toward that end, He speaks in our spirit and opens our mind to Scripture.
The fact that God gives His Spirit to all believers reveals the value He places on communication between Him and His children. Our Father provides the best possible Helper to ensure that we can be prayer warriors—wise, strong in faith, and fully yielded to Him. But we are none of those things unless we are habitually talking with the Lord.
Christians need never feel guilty for being uncertain about how to pray. The indwelling Holy Spirit knows our needs and desires—as well as the mind of the Father and the details of every situation. He speaks to God on our behalf while teaching us to pray in accordance with His will.
Role of the Spirit
16"I will ask the Father, and He will give you another (A)Helper, that He may be with you forever;
17that is (B)the Spirit of truth, (C)whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.
18"I will not leave you as orphans; (D)I will come to you.
19"(E)After a little while (F)the world will no longer see Me, but you will see Me; (G)because I live, you will live also.
20"(H)In that day you will know that (I)I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.
21"(J)He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and (K)he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will (L)disclose Myself to him."
Charles Stanley elaborates on this nicely! :
I am convinced that if Christians truly understood what takes place during prayer, they'd call upon the Lord more often and with greater results. The believer's prayer isn't simply spoken into empty space; the Holy Spirit is there to guide us in offering God-centered requests, fill in the words we cannot say, and carry our needs before the Lord.
The Holy Spirit is part of the Trinity, so He knows the mind of God intimately (1 Cor. 2:11). Since He is as omniscient and omnipotent as the Father, He fully grasps the circumstance we are praying over—even the parts that remain unseen or utterly confusing to us. Also, the Spirit dwells within every believer and knows each one's mind and heart. With this full knowledge, the Holy Spirit can carry out His responsibility to make our petitions match God's desires. Toward that end, He speaks in our spirit and opens our mind to Scripture.
The fact that God gives His Spirit to all believers reveals the value He places on communication between Him and His children. Our Father provides the best possible Helper to ensure that we can be prayer warriors—wise, strong in faith, and fully yielded to Him. But we are none of those things unless we are habitually talking with the Lord.
Christians need never feel guilty for being uncertain about how to pray. The indwelling Holy Spirit knows our needs and desires—as well as the mind of the Father and the details of every situation. He speaks to God on our behalf while teaching us to pray in accordance with His will.
Friday, November 13, 2009
He Makes Everything Glorious!!
19speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;
20always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;
21and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.
20always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;
21and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Prayer
"When prayer has become secondary, or incidental, it has lost its power. Those who are conspicuously men of prayer are those who use prayer as they use food, or air, or light, or money."
"If the Christian does not allow prayer to drive sin out of his life, sin will drive prayer out of his life. Like light and darkness, the two cannot dwell together." (M.E. Andross)
"If the Christian does not allow prayer to drive sin out of his life, sin will drive prayer out of his life. Like light and darkness, the two cannot dwell together." (M.E. Andross)
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Copying Charles stanley's Devotion for today..
....it really spoke to me:
October 7, 2009
Speaking Through Failure
PROVERBS 21:4 Haughty eyes and a proud heart,
the lamp of the wicked, are sin!
Probably the most painful and least desired ways that God gets our attention is through failure. After all, nobody likes to fail. However, this is often the best way for God to get through to us.
Pride is something that can absolutely block your communication with God. It is one of the few things that Scripture clearly says the Lord hates (Prov. 6:16-17; 8:13; 16:5). So, if there is pride in your life, God knows exactly what you need: a good dose of failure.
And that is what happened to Israel in Joshua 7. The new nation had just won a mighty victory in Jericho and, as a result, had become rather prideful. Considering themselves invulnerable after taking such a powerful city, they allowed faithlessness and disobedience to creep into their attitudes.
In arrogance, Israel ignored God's battle plan for the little city of Ai—the soldiers were certain that they could take the small town on their own. But they were wrong. God denied them this victory, and the few men of Ai drove them back in a humiliating defeat.
God had blessed Israel with a shocking victory over Jericho, but He now needed to get their attention in another way. And you can be sure that God still speaks to us through failure when it becomes necessary.
If failure today can lead to great success tomorrow, isn't the setback worth it? When unexpected failure occurs, be sure to check your response. Don't just say, "Well, I blew it." Instead, agree with God that "I messed up pretty badly." But then ask, "Lord, what are You trying to tell me in this?"
October 7, 2009
Speaking Through Failure
PROVERBS 21:4 Haughty eyes and a proud heart,
the lamp of the wicked, are sin!
Probably the most painful and least desired ways that God gets our attention is through failure. After all, nobody likes to fail. However, this is often the best way for God to get through to us.
Pride is something that can absolutely block your communication with God. It is one of the few things that Scripture clearly says the Lord hates (Prov. 6:16-17; 8:13; 16:5). So, if there is pride in your life, God knows exactly what you need: a good dose of failure.
And that is what happened to Israel in Joshua 7. The new nation had just won a mighty victory in Jericho and, as a result, had become rather prideful. Considering themselves invulnerable after taking such a powerful city, they allowed faithlessness and disobedience to creep into their attitudes.
In arrogance, Israel ignored God's battle plan for the little city of Ai—the soldiers were certain that they could take the small town on their own. But they were wrong. God denied them this victory, and the few men of Ai drove them back in a humiliating defeat.
God had blessed Israel with a shocking victory over Jericho, but He now needed to get their attention in another way. And you can be sure that God still speaks to us through failure when it becomes necessary.
If failure today can lead to great success tomorrow, isn't the setback worth it? When unexpected failure occurs, be sure to check your response. Don't just say, "Well, I blew it." Instead, agree with God that "I messed up pretty badly." But then ask, "Lord, what are You trying to tell me in this?"
Friday, September 11, 2009
9/11
9/11
I was on the 110th floor in a smoke filled room with a man who called his wife to say "Good-bye". I held his fingers steady as he dialed. I gave him the peace to say, "Honey, I am not going to make it, but it is OK... I am ready to go."
I was with his wife when he called as she fed breakfast to their children. I held her up as she tried to understand his words and as she realized he really wasn't coming home that night.
I was in the stairwell of the 23rd floor when a woman cried out to Me for help, for the very first time in her life. "I have been knocking on the door of your heart for 50 years!" I said. "Of course I will show you the way home - only believe in Me now."
I was at the base of the building with the Priest ministering to the injured and devastated souls. I took him home to tend to his Flock in Heaven. He heard my voice and answered.
I was on all four of those planes, in every seat, with every prayer. I was with the crew as they were overtaken. I was in the very hearts of the believers there, comforting and assuring them that their faith has saved them.
I was in Texas, Kansas, London... I was everywhere.
I was standing next to you when you heard the terrible news. Did you sense Me? I want you to know that I saw every face.
Some met Me for the first time on the 86th floor.
Some sought Me with their very last breath.
Some couldn't hear Me calling to them through the smoke and flames; "Come to Me... this way ... take my hand." Some had never heard my voice before.
And a few chose, for the final time, to ignore Me.
But, I was there.
I did not place you in the Tower that day.
You may not know why, but I do.
However, if you were there in that explosive moment in time, would you have reached for Me?
September 11, 2001 was not the end of the journey for you. But someday your journey will end.
And I will be there for you as well. But will you know that I am waiting for you.
Seek Me now while I may be found.
Then, at any moment, you know you are "ready to go"
...I will be in the stairwell of your final moments.
Love,
God
Deuteronomy 31:6
Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."
Thank you, Bob Wilson, for this entry.
I was on the 110th floor in a smoke filled room with a man who called his wife to say "Good-bye". I held his fingers steady as he dialed. I gave him the peace to say, "Honey, I am not going to make it, but it is OK... I am ready to go."
I was with his wife when he called as she fed breakfast to their children. I held her up as she tried to understand his words and as she realized he really wasn't coming home that night.
I was in the stairwell of the 23rd floor when a woman cried out to Me for help, for the very first time in her life. "I have been knocking on the door of your heart for 50 years!" I said. "Of course I will show you the way home - only believe in Me now."
I was at the base of the building with the Priest ministering to the injured and devastated souls. I took him home to tend to his Flock in Heaven. He heard my voice and answered.
I was on all four of those planes, in every seat, with every prayer. I was with the crew as they were overtaken. I was in the very hearts of the believers there, comforting and assuring them that their faith has saved them.
I was in Texas, Kansas, London... I was everywhere.
I was standing next to you when you heard the terrible news. Did you sense Me? I want you to know that I saw every face.
Some met Me for the first time on the 86th floor.
Some sought Me with their very last breath.
Some couldn't hear Me calling to them through the smoke and flames; "Come to Me... this way ... take my hand." Some had never heard my voice before.
And a few chose, for the final time, to ignore Me.
But, I was there.
I did not place you in the Tower that day.
You may not know why, but I do.
However, if you were there in that explosive moment in time, would you have reached for Me?
September 11, 2001 was not the end of the journey for you. But someday your journey will end.
And I will be there for you as well. But will you know that I am waiting for you.
Seek Me now while I may be found.
Then, at any moment, you know you are "ready to go"
...I will be in the stairwell of your final moments.
Love,
God
Deuteronomy 31:6
Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."
Thank you, Bob Wilson, for this entry.
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