Tag Archive | Christian

Be Careful Little Eyes

Aug6

For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, — Romans 8:5-6

Remember the children’s song “Be Careful Little Eyes”? As I read this verse today this song came to mind. I have often wondered why this song is considered a children’s song.

For those who may not know the song:

Be careful little eyes what you see
Be careful little eyes what you see
For the Father up above is looking down in love
So be careful little eyes what you see.

Be careful little ears what you hear
Be careful little ears what you hear
For the Father up above is looking down in love
So be careful little ears what you hear.

Be careful little feet where you go
Be careful little feet where you go
For the Father up above is looking down in love
So be careful little feet where you go.

Are not the things we as adults put into our minds as important as what children’s minds are exposed to? If we are honest with ourselves we would do so much better if we read, watched, listened to and went places that were not in contrast to God’s Word. What we fill our minds with will effect where our feet walk, what comes out of our mouths and our actions.

A few years back when my children were young, (okay, more than a few years back), I removed offensive movies from my house. I stood on the belief that if it wasn’t good enough for my kids to see, it wasn’t good enough for me to see. Since then I have wandered from that but was quite convicted today when I read this verse. Am I being careful what I feed my mind? What am I watching on T.V.? What am I reading? Would I be doing these things if Jesus were standing or sitting right next to me in the flesh? Hmmm. I wonder.

If I am to be obedient to God’s Word and bring Him glory through my life, then I need to be careful what I see, hear and where I walk.

Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. — Philippians 4:8

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Are You Certain?

Aug5

Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble; for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you. — 2 Peter 1:10-11

“Be diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you”. Are you sure that you know that you know that you know Jesus Christ? The scripture here says to be diligent (constant in effort to accomplish something; attentive and persistent in doing anything) to make sure that you are walking with the Lord.

How are we to be diligent? “Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 1:5-8)

Pursuing God with these traits keeps us from stumbling on the road to God’s eternal kingdom. As we diligently seek Jesus, the greater our knowledge of Him and the deeper our walk. Seek the things above and know the Lord. Be sure (certain) that you know that you know that you know Jesus personally. Your eternal life depends on it.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Son of God

Aug4

And we know that the Son of God has come, and he has given us understanding so that we can know the true God. And now we live in fellowship with the true God because we live in fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ. He is the only true God, and he is eternal life. — 1 John 5:20 (NLT)

Do you know that the Son of God has come? I hope so. Jesus is the Son of God. Jesus came to earth because of God’s great love for His creation. Jesus suffered and died on a cross so that we could have the opportunity to know Him, the only true God. Because of Jesus we are able to know God.

We live in fellowship with God because of our relationship with Jesus. A relationship that comes by belief in who Jesus is and surrendering our lives to Him. We ask forgiveness and follow Jesus and His example in life allowing Him to lead and guide us. This relationship is an eternal relationship.

So, do you know Jesus? Seek Him through His Word. Trust in Him as your Savior. Ask Him to come into your life so that you may experience an eternal relationship with God, your Father. Jesus is waiting to hear from you so that He may give you understanding so that you may know the true God. Jesus is the way, truth and life. Seek Him today.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Return to Worship

Aug3

This is a devotion written September 16, 2008 (long before I had a website). Still believe it is pertinent.

2 Chronicles 29:5-6, 10-11, 15-16, 18, 29-30, 35b

5 Then he said to them, “Listen to me, O Levites. Consecrate yourselves now, and consecrate the house of the Lord, the God of your fathers, and carry the uncleanness out from the holy place. 6 “For our fathers have been unfaithful and have done evil in the sight of the Lord our God, and have forsaken Him and turned their faces away from the dwelling place of the Lord, and have turned their backs.

10 “Now it is in my heart to make a covenant with the Lord God of Israel, that His burning anger may turn away from us. 11 “My sons, do not be negligent now, for the Lord has chosen you to stand before Him, to minister to Him, and to be His ministers and burn incense.”

15 They assembled their brothers, consecrated themselves, and went in to cleanse the house of the Lord, according to the commandment of the king by the words of the Lord.
16 So the priests went in to the inner part of the house of the Lord to cleanse it, and every unclean thing which they found in the temple of the Lord they brought out to the court of the house of the Lord…

18 Then they went in to King Hezekiah and said, “We have cleansed the whole house of the Lord,…

29 Now at the completion of the burnt offerings, the king and all who were present with him bowed down and worshiped. 30 Moreover, King Hezekiah and the officials ordered the Levites to sing praises to the Lord with the words of David and Asaph the seer. So they sang praises with joy, and bowed down and worshiped.

35 … Thus the service of the house of the Lord was established again.

I wanted to put the whole chapter but had to pick and choose. It spoke to me of our churches today and of our own temple. Repentance, cleansing, praises, humbleness and worship. True, pure, clean worship. I believe we are so lacking. Pray for our churches today. Pray for revival. Pray for a return to purity, cleanliness, a humbleness in worship, a true reverent worship of the King of Kings, Lord of Lords, God Almighty.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Until I See His Face

Aug2

But I have received everything in full and have an abundance; I am amply supplied, having received from Epaphroditus what you have sent, a fragrant aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God. And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Now to our God and Father be the glory forever and ever. Amen. –Philippians 4:18-20

As for you, the anointing which you received from Him abides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you; but as His anointing teaches you about all things, and is true and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you abide in Him. Now, little children, abide in Him, so that when He appears, we may have confidence and not shrink away from Him in shame at His coming. — 1 John 2:27-28

For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. — 1 Corinthians 13:12

God most high and holy
To You I send my praise
You are all I need Lord
Each and every day.

You are my strength and refuge
My courage in the race
Help me, Lord, to press on
Until I see Your face.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Grasp. Seek. Know. Hope.

Aug1

Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. — Romans 15:13

My prayer for you today. The awesome joy and peace of being a Christian. Available to all. Grasp it, seek it, know it. The hope that is Jesus Christ.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Set My Soul Afire Lord

Jul31

Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus. — Acts 4:13

Were Peter and John uneducated? I believe they were educated by the Master Himself. It must have been a different education because “they” were amazed and recognized that Peter and John had been with Jesus. They were different. They had performed a miracle in the name of Jesus. What about today? Are miracles still possible? Is Jesus still alive?

Today we lack, my opinion and observation, being recognized as being with Jesus. I do know some who have sat at the Saviors feet and been instructed by His Word and Holy Spirit. I bet you know a few yourselves. You can just tell that they have been with Jesus by their countenance. Many of those have a passion for the things of God. A heart like God’s. How does one get a heart like God? A passion for the things of God? From God Himself. From sitting at the feet of Jesus and learning from the Master.

Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from Your presence
And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of Your salvation
And sustain me with a willing spirit.
Then I will teach transgressors Your ways,
And sinners will be converted to You.

Psalm 51:10-13

Time spent at the feet of Jesus allows the Lord to do a work in us. It is by His power, and His only, that we can have a clean heart. Surrender to His ways. He will renew our spirit to be steadfast in the passion He puts in our heart. He has given us the Holy Spirit to guide our steps, our way, our coming and our going. He will sustain a surrendered, sacrificial and willing heart. Why would God do all this? So that we can teach transgressors His ways and see the awesome glory of God as sinners are converted to Him. Your daily time of seeking the Lord is so very important. God can use you. Spend time at His feet so He can set your soul afire.

  • Set my soul afire Lord
    Set my soul afire
    Make my life a witness
    Of Thy saving pow’r
    Millions grope in darkness
    Waiting for Thy Word
    Set my soul afire
    Lord set my soul afire — Chorus to Set My Soul Afire

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Where Is Hope?

Jul30

For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. — Romans 15:4

Is hope lacking in your life? As you look around you are people moving through life with no hope?

Hope can be found in the pages of a best selling book — the Bible. Do you need encouragement, direction, comfort, courage, hope? Open the Word of God and seek what you need. For whatever was written in earlier times was written for us — the Old Testament and the New Testament. And not only is the Bible a great source of hope for us but as we find our hope in the Bible we can share that hope with the world that is in need of hope also.

Seek the hope found in Jesus Christ through perseverance as you study the Word and are encouraged by the Scriptures. Then share the gift of hope with others.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Press On

Jul29

I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. — Philippians 3:14

Running the race of life for Jesus is fulfilling our individual call of God on our lives. Pressing on is moving forward — conditioning ourselves for the run by practicing the Word of God, by keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus Christ, serving Him everyday in word and deed.

Therefore leaving the elementary teaching about the Christ, let us press on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, (Hebrews 6:1) Imagine a child just learning to walk. They try and try and try again pressing on toward the goal of reaching their parent’s outstretched arms. Can you imagine God holding out His outstretched arms encouraging you to press on to the prize that awaits you? The prize of perfect, undefiled, eternal fellowship with God in heaven. He is there ready to pick us up when we fall. Persevere to the end of the race. Press on to cross the finish line.

If you are not growing in your faith you are out of the race. How is your walk (or should I say run) going? Are you pressing on? Are you practicing the Word of God daily? Are you spending time with Jesus every day? Do the things you say and do bring glory to God? Keep your eye on the goal.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

 

Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. — Hebrews 12:1-2

What A Day That Will Be

Jul28

Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. — 1 John 3:2

I’m out visiting a friend and her Pastor husband in Illinois this weekend and had the privilege to worship with them yesterday morning and evening. In the morning service Pastor Alan asked the congregation, “Who wants to go to heaven?” Surprisingly, at least to me, was how abnormally quiet it was. Finally someone yelled out “I do, but not yet”. Alan spoke my sentiments when he said that he was ready even if it was today.

I can only imagine what a glorious day that will be when we see Jesus just as He is. I’m anticipating it to be spectacular, wonderful, surpassing all I could possibly imagine. We sang the following hymn also:

What A Day That Will Be

There is coming a day when no heartaches shall come
No more clouds in the sky, no more tears to dim the eye
All is peace forevermore on that happy golden shore,
What a day, glorious day that will be.

Chorus:
What a day that will be
When my Jesus I shall see,
And I look upon His face,
The One who saved me by His grace;
When He takes me by the hand
And leads me through the Promised Land,
What a day, glorious day that will be.

There’ll be no sorrow there, no more burdens to bear,
No more sickness, no pain, no more parting over there;
And forever I will be with the One who died for me,
What a day, glorious day that will be.

Chorus:
What a day that will be
When my Jesus I shall see,
And I look upon His face,
The One who saved me by His grace;
When He takes me by the hand
And leads me through the Promised Land,
What a day, glorious day that will be
What a day, glorious day that will be.

Are you secure in your everlasting destination? Are you anticipating seeing Jesus face to face? Seek Him while He may be found so you may know what a day that will be!

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

The lyrics and music to the Gospel song, “What A Day That Will Be” is by Jim Hill.