Tag Archive | obedience

Love And Obedience

Oct20

but so that the world may know that I love the Father, I do exactly as the Father commanded Me. Get up, let us go from here. — John 14:31

Jesus’ words. He did EXACTLY as the Father COMMANDED so that the WORLD MAY KNOW His love for the Father. Powerful words.

Jesus, our example of love and obedience to God.

How’s that going for you?

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

It’s Really Jesus Doing The Work

Oct2

So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth. Now he who plants and he who waters are one; but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor. — 1 Corinthians 3:7-8

How humbling and revealing these verses are. It is a wonderful thing to lead someone to the Lord — exhilarating, exciting, pleasing and a bit of pride can slip in thinking that “we” led someone to the Lord. Truth is revealed here. Under the influence of the Holy Spirit and in obedience to Christ we share the gospel. The Lord is the one who changes the heart of the person to whom we are speaking. So the only part we play is surrender and willingness to be used for God’s purpose and glory.

As some of you may remember I spent two years with my Mom and Dad caring for their needs in another state, away from my family. While I was there the Lord taught me the reality of these verses. I often thought about my family and how I was not there to speak of Jesus and be an influence on them. How in the world are they going to continue to follow and grow in their relationship without me there to remind them and be an example?!!!

I tell you that my family grew in ways that blew my mind in those two years and the only real influence I had was my time of prayer for them each day. I had to rely on the Lord to change their lives and be the reminder that He is alive, loves and is with them always.

Jesus can do more and be more of an influence on your family than you can. Our focus needs to be on our relationship with Jesus. The closer our walk with Him the more influential we are to others “for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.” (Philippians 2:13) Are you willing to surrender to the will of God and let Him use you to lead others to Jesus? He is waiting to transform you into a witness of His glory.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

The Bible — Word of God

Sep2

Just how important is the Bible — the Word of God? To mankind as a whole? How important is it to you? Is it a priority in your life? Do you consider it the sustenance that keeps your spiritual life alive and well? Are you well fed?

The Bible says the Word of God is:

“the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” — Romans 1:16
“faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.” — Romans 10:17
“you have been born again through the living and enduring word of God.” — 1 Peter 1:23

The Word blesses those who read and obey:

“Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near.” — Revelation 1:3
“This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.” — Joshua 1:8

The Word of God brings light to the darkness, understanding:

“So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.” — 2 Peter 1:19
“Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.” — Psalm 119:105
“The unfolding of Your words gives light; It gives understanding to the simple.” — Psalm 119:130
“For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching is light; And reproofs for discipline are the way of life” — Proverbs 6:23

The Word of God is used for convicting, discipline, teaching:

“For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” — Hebrews 4:12
“and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness;” — 2 Timothy 3:15-16

The Word of God is food for growth:

“like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation,” — 1 Peter 2:2
“And now I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.” — Acts 20:32

The Word of God tells of Jesus!!!:

“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me;” — John 5:39

Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls. But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does. — James 1:21-25

My hope is that you are feasting richly on God’s wonderful Word.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Promise: The Holy Spirit

Sep1

I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances. — Ezekiel 32:27

O how blessed we are to have the gift of the Holy Spirit. Have you received Him? To receive the Holy Spirit we must believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who came to earth, born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, and for our sake died on a cross and was resurrected from the dead so that we would be reconciled to God. When we have accepted Jesus as our Savior and Lord we receive the Holy Spirit.

God puts the Holy Spirit within us. The Holy Spirit will cause us to walk in our God’s statutes and help us to observe His ordinances. Who knows the statutes and ordinances better than the Spirit of God? God wants us to succeed in following Him and obeying Him. He does not set us up for failure. Let us thank God for His Holy Spirit. What a wonderful promise.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

When God Moves

Aug24

Have you been there? When you know something is coming but you’re not quite sure yet what it is? When you are on the brink of something great that God has been preparing you for? When the floodgates of opportunity open up for you? When you’ve been walking in the desert waiting, knowing that at any moment you are about to step into the promised land?

Well, I’ll have to tell you that my life has been a whirlwind of God’s movement since Thursday.

If you recall my devotional on Friday, August 22, you will know that God blessed my obedience with six beautiful ladies coming to my house and enjoying a time of fellowship and introduction to my best friend, Jesus Christ.

Nothing, I mean nothing happens by accident. In God’s perfect plan, He knows all that is going on. Another blessing from my wonderful Father came my way when a free admission ticket dropped into my lap for Women of Faith. I was looking forward to going on Saturday.

God also knew that I would be offered a chance to go to the Friday night program. This of course wasn’t offered to me until 45 minutes before I was to be picked up. Since this was Friday and I had worked all week to make my house presentable for Thursday night fellowship I had decided to take Friday as a “lazy “day. I did laundry, which means all my clothes were dirty, so I lounged around in my PJs all day. When I received the phone call I had not seen soap, water, shampoo or a hairbrush all day. Exactly — 45 minutes to get ready, and do I even have any clean and dry clothes to wear?

I debated whether I really wanted to go. I went ahead and started getting ready, asking God whether I should go or not. I was like the verse in James that says, “like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind”. When I was ready I still have not made a decision until I read a verse from my phone. “Exalt the Lord our God and worship at his holy mountain, for the Lord God is holy”. (Psalm 99:9) I had my answer and off I went for a wonderful evening of worship.

Then comes Saturday. The conference was entitled “From Survival to Revival”. Let me begin by saying that two sessions were entitled Renew and Restore, which are two of the keywords in my mission statement. I am currently doing a Bible study and one week was on recharging, another topic of one of the sessions.  And then there was the final session on Revive. I believe I was there to be revived by God so I could be ready for the mission He is about to unfold through me.

Christine Caine, one of the speakers, spoke out of Joshua chapter 1 where God told Joshua to cross over into the promised land. The promise. Loud and clear I heard, through Christine, that God has prepared me and am I ready to cross over to what He has promised.

God gave to me a promised vision many years ago but He has been at work in me preparing me to cross over to that promise. Am I ready? Yes, although I am afraid, not of where or what God will do through me, but of my failure to lean on, trust in, surrender all to Him. I will move forward with my Lord because I know He loves me and He has promised to be with me always. So my weekend has been a whirlwind that has blessed, challenged and humbled this servant of the Most High God.

Was all this just coincidence? I don’t think so. I hope this testimony encourages you to be ready to be used by God. Sit at the Saviors feet and learn. Love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. Trust him with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. God has great plans for you and it is an exciting journey.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

 

By My Spirit

Aug7

Reading through some devotionals I posted to Facebook in the past. This one was originally posted on Facebook March 4, 2009.

Then he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel saying, ‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the Lord of hosts. — Zechariah 4:6

When we think we have a part in anything, we are wrong. It is by no means of our own. It has nothing to do with us except that a loving God wants us to participate in His will. We forge ahead by obedience to His Spirit and His Spirit alone. We have no might, nor power to do anything. Trust in the One who has the power and might and goes before us as a warrior. He is the Spirit of the living God. He is the living God.

My hope is that He is living in you today. Are you seeing the living God in your world, working and making a difference in you and your world? Look for, seek Him with all your heart and the Bible says you will find Him.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

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

Determination

Jul5

He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him.” — John 14:21

Do you want to see Jesus? Really see Him and experience His love and grace? Really know Him intimately? Are you seeking that sold out to Jesus relationship? Are you desiring His guidance and leadership in your life? Are you needing His comfort and peace?

Well if you do, it will take obedience. Obedience to God’s commands. That means searching the Word of God with prayer and determination. Determination that nothing will get in the way of your daily seeking of God through His Word and prayer. Determination to practice His Word on a daily basis. Determination to share your victories (testimonies to God) and your failures in prayer with the Lord. Keeping your eyes fixed on Jesus the author and perfecter of your faith.*

Our practicing obedience demonstrate our love for Jesus. In our love for Jesus comes the blessing of the love of the Father toward us. And still more love is directed toward us from Jesus Christ Himself. And the crescendo? Jesus will disclose Himself to us! What a promise to work toward. He will make Himself known, reveal Himself, allowing Himself to be seen. That is a most wonderful promise.

So? Do you want to see Jesus? Seek Him.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

*Hebrews 12:2

How Do You Handle That?

Jun26

When you “do good” — are obedient to God’s Word, will, direction, instruction and walking closely with Jesus — don’t you expect good results?

Going through a particular journey you know that God is present. He is guiding your every step. You see God at work and you feel extremely blessed. A lot of good is coming out of your obedience and God’s will is being accomplished. You are encouraged, blessed and praised by others around you. You are floating on cloud nine.

Then . . . the season of that journey comes to an end. You move on and it seems that all has been forgotten — all those “good things” that you did. The praise ends. It seems that no one cares. And to add to the feeling of abandonment comes persecution. Accusations of misconduct and inadequacy. “But I was in the midst of God’s will, doing what I believe the Bible instructs me to do. How can this happen?” How do you handle that?

Jesus was well respected by many people, especially those who benefited from His grace and power. He had quite a following. For it was fitting for us to have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens; (Hebrews 7:26) who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; (1 Peter 2:22) You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin. (1 John 3:5) Now when Jesus heard this, He marveled at him, and turned and said to the crowd that was following Him, “I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such great faith.” (Luke 7:9) Jesus was right in the midst of fulfilling the Father’s will and purpose. People were coming to Jesus and having their sin forgiven.

Then . . . accusations started to fly. And while He was being accused by the chief priests and elders, He did not answer. Then Pilate *said to Him, “Do You not hear how many things they testify against You?” And He did not answer him with regard to even a single charge, so the governor was quite amazed. (Matthew 27:12-14) In humiliation His judgment was taken away”  (Acts 8:33) He was good, loving, caring and obedient to the Father. He did not seek the praise of man but the will and praise of the Father. How could this happen to Jesus?

The Word of God says:
“Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. — Matthew 5:10-11
Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also. — John 15:20
Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. — 2 Timothy 3:12
If Jesus was persecuted we can expect to be persecuted also.

So, back to the question, “How do you handle that”? Remember! Remember to focus on Jesus and His example, how He reacted to persecution. Remember that He is with you always. (Deuteronomy 31:6) Remember where to stash your treasures. (Matthew 6:19-21) Remember His faithfulness. (Lamentations 3:23; Psalm 33:4; Psalm 100:5) Remember that all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28) And remember to Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. (Matthew 5:12)

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Righteous in God’s Eyes

Jun14

Zechariah and Elizabeth were righteous in God’s eyes, careful to obey all of the Lord’s commandments and regulations. — Luke 1:6 (NLT)  
They were both righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord. -Luke 1:6 (NASB)

In the sight of God are you righteous? Righteousness is characterized by uprightness or morality: Morally right or justifiable. Acting in an upright, moral way; virtuous. Many people who do not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ can be upright and moral. So what is the difference?

God is the judge on righteousness. I believe it is also seen in our reaction to our walking with the Lord. We are careful, diligent, focused on obeying His Word because we desire to please our God. In our desire to walk in the light of Jesus is where our righteousness is seen. We can walk in an upright and moral manner but not have the desire to please God in our walk.

So what does your walk look like? Is it different enough that God would see you as righteous in His sight?

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon