Week Four

The Saints of Christ’s Church

Everyone who believes that Christ died for our sins, that He rose from the dead and sits at the right hand of the Father in heaven is a member of Christ’s Church. It is not a place, a denomination or a building. It is a state of the heart. We are one with Christ, we are his brothers and sisters, we are joint heirs with Jesus. And that makes us part of one another.

Everyone comes to Christ individually, one at a time. No one can accept Christ for anyone else, it is a personal decision. I heard it said by a very wise woman that “God has no grandchildren, only children.” Our parents’ faith cannot get us into heaven. Our parents can lead us to the throne, but we have the option to accept or reject Christ. This week we are only going to refer to those who have accepted Christ as a personal savior. These people are the saints of Christ’s church.

What happens to us after accepting Christ? We become part of something bigger than us. We become members of the universal church of Jesus Christ and we are surrounded by others who share the same belief and are growing in their faith walk, just like us.

The Holy Spirit of God is at work within the church of Christ. He was sent by Christ to be in the church. Every true believer has the spirit of God inside their heart. It is by the Holy Spirit that we become empowered to do the will of God. We are also tied together with other believers and instructed to encourage and uphold one another.

In Hebrews 10:24-25 we see the way the church works to encourage and uphold one another. “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another-and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

We can encourage one another and help one another, that is what it means to be a part of something this huge. The same Spirit that speaks to me also speaks to my brothers and sisters in other parts of the world. We are connected in a way that is supernatural and almost mystical. The same spirit moves within the entire body of Christ and knows the needs and the pains within the body.

At times God has wakened me in the night with a strong desire to pray. Sometimes it is for believers who are close to me and have physical or emotional needs, but on other occasions I have felt a burden to pray for someone I didn’t even know. God’s spirit spoke to my heart that someone was in pain or that there was a situation going on with someone in bad circumstances that needed prayer right at that moment.

I have had occasions when I felt a burden for a man in China, I don’t know anyone in China, but God’s spirit does and the spirit put the desire in my heart to pray for this persecuted Chinese man. I had the impression that his house church was in trouble and I needed to pray for protection for them. That is how the saints of Christ’s church work together.

What a comfort it is to think that when I get into a bad situation God’s spirit will put me on someones heart. This just happened to me last week. With a family situation, financial problems and life in general overwhelming me, I could feel myself sinking into depression. When a person gets into that downward spiral it is hard to pray for yourself. I was spending a lot of time in tears, but I continued to praise God in spite of my sadness.

When I arrived home from work that day, there was a message from a prayer warrior in our church. I called her back and she said the Lord had put me in her heart. She gave me so much encouragement and I was able to share some of the grief in my own heart with this lovely lady who was being obedient and listening to God speak to her. I witnessed first hand just how God’s spirit will minister to the needs of the believers.

In Matthew Jesus explains the kingdom of heaven in parables. It is my belief that he was referring to his church when he said, “For I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.” Matthew 13:17 How blessed the church is to have the teachings of Jesus written for us to digest and soak in.

Jesus said, “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.” Matthew 13:45. Being a believer is like that pearl. It is of great worth and when put together with other pearls of great worth it becomes more beautiful, and it is strengthened.

Picture a tapestry with a beautiful scene, very intricate and detailed. Each saint of Christ’s church is a thread, we are different colors and strengths. Some are golden, others are brown. Each thread fits in a different place in the scene, but all threads are needed to make the scene complete. Jesus needs each one of us to complete his work on earth. Praise God for choosing you and give yourself to him to let him place you where he needs you within that picture.

Dear God,

How marvelous you are. That you would choose each one of us and see us as pearls of great value is wonderful. Thank you. Help us to see others as you saw us, so that your kingdom may grow and become all you meant it to be. In the powerful name of Jesus. Amen.

Missionary Devotion

Missionary Devotion

What does Missionary Devotion mean? It means taking hold of Jesus with all our might. Not letting go of the love we have for Christ and all He has done for us. And it means wanting to share that love with everyone we meet. It means being an ambassador for Christ right in our own neighborhoods, with our families, with our co-workers and people we come in contact with every day.

Having a Missionary Devotion to Christ is like being seated with Christ in the Heavenlies and yet having our feet planted firmly on the earth because we have work to do here. God has us here for a reason, he has a purpose and a plan for each one of us. We belong to God, Jesus is our brother, but the Holy Spirit needs us to minister here on earth.

John 15:5 says “If a man remains in me (Jesus), and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”

If we let go of Jesus, if we fail to remain devoted to Him and try to do things on our own, we will fail, we will not bear fruit, we will be serving men and not God.

How can we be servants of God and serve our fellowman at the same time? Is it possible to do that? Mother Teresa was a good example of one who served the Lord with all her heart. She never let her own needs come before the needs of others. She was truly the hands and feet of Jesus, working among the least, the last and the lost. Those she cared for could give her nothing in return and she didn’t ask for anything. She only wanted to serve her fellowman. She wanted to be God’s hands here on earth. But she never forgot that she belonged to God, that the Lord Jesus was her master.

We have to let the Spirit of God help us find ways to serve men. I experienced this in a wonderful way a few years ago. We lived outside Chicago and every few months we would take the train into the city for a day of recreation and fun. After a few excursions I began to feel compassion for the street people that we saw in Chicago. There are a lot of homeless people living on the streets, there are also a lot of people who make a living by pretending to be homeless. After one visit I prayed and asked God how I could help. Short of opening a soup kitchen, I didn’t know what one person could do. We didn’t go to the city very often, but I kept thinking that I could do something.

God’s spirit gave me very clear direction. We always took a back pack with us, it was an easy way to carry necessary things. God spoke to my spirit and told me to take sack lunches and give them to the ones he would show me. I began to pack peanut butter sandwiches, apples, fruit juice, cookies, whatever I had on hand. I would make about 4 or 5 sack lunches and I would put a sticker on the sandwich bag that simply said, “Jesus loves you.” Sometimes I would also enclose a tract or a devotional book, I guess I supposed that I enjoy reading when I am eating alone and someone else might also.

I would pray before we went into the city for God to show me the people he wanted me to offer food. I supernaturally knew the people when I saw them. I would always ask them if they were hungry and I would give them a sack lunch and tell them that God loved them. It was a very simple act. I always tried to offer them the sack lunch in a loving manner. After all, it wasn’t me feeding them, but God himself. I don’t live outside Chicago anymore and rarely come in contact with homeless people, but I now know what I can do for folks like that. And maybe I can’t feed all the homeless people in Chicago, but I did feed a few of them and planted some seeds for the Lord.

“But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life.” 2 Corinthians 2:14-15

Wherever we go, we are to be the aroma of Christ. We should leave the world a better place. We don’t have to do big things to spread the love of Christ around. I have found that the simplest act of picking up a candy bar wrapper or pop can and throwing them in the trash is a wonderful witness. A great place to make the world a better place is in public restrooms. It is quite easy to pick up paper towels and leave the place looking better than when you walked in the door. The environment always should look better after a Christian has passed by.

This missionary devotion should also prompt us to be like Father Abraham. He was obedient and did what God asked him to do. God made him a promise that he would give him all the land that he saw. God told him to walk through the length and breadth of the land, for he was giving it to him and his offspring forever. (see Genesis 13:14-17)

The promise that God gave to Abraham is still good today. I claim land for the Lord wherever I go. As I was praying about this promise one day, the Lord showed me that he was directing my footsteps and that I was going to places that had not previously belonged to him. Now everywhere I go, I am walking on land that the Lord has given me. If we look at the big picture we can see Christians all around the world going into enemy territory and claiming that land for God.

This book is my attempt to be an ambassador for Christ. In 2 Corinthians 5:20 Paul tells us, “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.” That should be our mission in life to tell people everywhere we go that God loves them and wants them to have a realtionship with him.

After we become Christians, we are new creations and are in this world for the purpose of spreading the good news. This will not necessarily make us popular or even liked. John 15:18-19 Jesus tells us “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.”

Jesus has given us a commission, Matthew 28:18-20 “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

We are on a mission and we can only carry out this mission in the world. It will not be easy, we may not be appreciated, we will probably be hated by some-those who are perishing do not want to hear the truth. But we are to spread the good news wherever we go.

Holy God,

May we be the aroma of Christ no matter where we are. You can use us in our occupations and in our homes, you can use us with our families and friends. Show us how to be missionaries right where we are. In Jesus’ name. Amen

Possessing Godly Qualities

Week Two

Possessing Godly Qualities

For this very reason do your best to add goodness to your faith; to your goodness add knowledge; to your knowledge add self-control; to your self-control add perseverance; to your perserverance add godliness; to your godliness add brotherly kindness; and to your brotherly kindness add love. These are the qualities you need, and if you have them in abundance, they will make you active and effective in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 1:5-8

It’s funny, the Bible tells us that God is Love - that is the end to which we are striving to become. That is the epitome of our existence.

There are steps that we climb to achieve this ultimate love. But before we climb the steps, we have to possess faith. It is our very foundation.

No one can give us faith, it is something that the Bible says comes from hearing and the hearing comes from the Word of God. The more we immerse ourselves in God’s Word, the more we hear God’s Word preached, the more opportunities we have for our faith to grow.

As our faith begins to grow, our goodness should increase. We know that our good deeds do not earn us a place in the Kingdom of God, but because we are grateful for what Christ did for us, we want to please God, our Heavenly Father. We want to be obedient children and be a blessing to God and to all those around us. This is a quality of the Father that we want to exhibit. The Holy Spirit helps us, by pointing out our sins and helping us crucify our flesh of these sins, one at a time. It is usually a process, making us more like Jesus, day by day.

To goodness we are to add knowledge. How do we do that? What can we possibly do to make ourselves smarter?

It is amazing how the Holy Spirit works in this area. God is all-knowing, He created everything in the universe and knows all about everything. If we have faith in Him and know that He loves us and cares about us, if we are truly wanting to be just like Jesus, God knows this and if we have a question, He will give us the answer. This is one of those super-natural, mysterious ways of God.

How many times have we lost something, keys, books, phone numbers, papers? Have you ever prayed for God to reveal something to you and found it almost immediately?

The knowledge of the universe is at our disposal through the Holy Spirit. Many times I have been stumped about trivial things, like what I should wear. At other times, I am stumped by mechanical things, how can I fix this computer? God has the answers to all these questions. All we have to do is ask.

To knowledge we are to add self-control. This is a very difficult godlike quality for us to possess. It means that we have to crucify the fleshly desires that want to rule us.

Our minds are where most control issues originate. We want something, not necessarily because it is a physical want, but because we ‘think’ we need it. When we begin to possess self-control, we ignore the part of the flesh or brain that says we desire something unless we check with God first. It is more of God-control than self-control.

It is really giving up self and relying on God. As we grow in our relationship with God, we realize what actions would be pleasing to God and what actions would not glorify Him. Since we want to glorify our Heavenly Father with our very lives. we will choose to do the ‘Christ-like’ things.

Perseverance is the next godly quality that we are to increase in. This is a quality that can only be increased by repeatedly doing the right thing in the right manner that is pleasing to God and in a ‘Christ-like’ way.

To persevere means ‘to continue steadfastly in a thing and give unremitting care to it.’ according to Vines. That is to say that we have a focus, it is to possess godly characteristics. With that goal in mind, we continue each day towards that end.

There will be days when we may falter, we may even forget the ultimate goal at times, but if we can just persevere, day by day, we will continue the climb to ‘love’.

After persevering, we make the climb to godliness. Godliness is a godward attitude. It reminds us of who we are in Christ. We are new creations, we are God’s children. He loves us with the same deep, abiding love that He has for Christ, because when God looks at us, He sees Jesus.

We need to understand this oneness with Christ and live as though we believe it. We are indeed ‘children of the king’. We are royalty-we are priests. God expects us to act accordingly.

We cannot go around doing the things that we did before we realized our heritage. The more that we know about our maker, the more righteous we become, not because of anything we do or because of anything we deserve, but because we were chosen and because Jesus died for us. That is what gives us the clothes of righteousness.

Brotherly kindness is a direct result of this godliness. If we do not have brotherly kindness, we are not truly exhibiting godliness, it is a fake form of godliness.

God loves everyone equally-he is not a respecter of persons. He doesn’t love Billy Graham any more than he loves Jeffrey Dahmer. In His eyes, we are each a child of his. Why would he expect us to behave any differently than he does?

We can’t be more kind to a brother who has a nice home and fancy car than to our brother who is homeless and in need of a bath. This brotherly kindness we exhibit is to be exactly the same way that God would be kind, without favoritism. A brother, is a brother, is a brother.

Jesus instructed us to love your neighbor as yourself. Our neighbor is our brother. If we are indeed children of God, if we are priests, if we are royalty, why would we not see that in our brothers? Christ died for them also-they have as much right to forgiveness and eternal life as we do. We didn’t earn a place in heaven and they won’t either. They just haven’t heard the word enough yet to develop that faith which is the foundation. Whose place is it to share the word? Jesus said, "therefore go and make disciples of all nations.”

To brotherly kindness we are to add love. Love, the gospel in one word is Love. The Bible tells us that ‘God is love.’ ‘God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever would believe in him would not perish but have everlasting life.’

This true perfect, holy love is not conditional, it is not a love based upon our actions. God loved each one of us, before the foundation of the world. He knew that we would be sinners and would need a savior. He loved us anyway. He knew that some people would reject his offer of eternal life, but he loves us anyway. His love is so unmovable, so perfect, so unbelievable! That is how we are supposed to love-can we do it?

Mother Teresa was able to love that way. She didn’t look at the outside of people, it was almost like she looked into their very hearts and saw what God sees in each one of us. A person of worth and value, a person created in God’s image, just waiting for a relationship with the Almighty God.

How can we love like that? We can’t, not on our own. But with the power of the Holy Spirit and with the purposeful dying to self, with perseverance we can ask God to love the unloveable people in our pathways. He wants to love everyone and it is God’s will that all men will come into a knowledge of Him.

How can we show the love of God to someone today? Jesus said if we did anything to the least of these, we did it for him. Food, clothing, shelter, meeting the basic needs is a good way to begin to show love to our fellow ‘earth travelers.’

Heavenly Father,

We want to be more like Jesus, but we know that it can only happen with the help of the Holy Spirit. Teach us today to grow into ‘little Christs’. We submit our wills to your will. We choose to be your children and live like children of the king. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen

Communication With God

Week One

Communication With God

What is communication? It is a two way interaction. Prayer is the way we communicate with our creator God. It is through prayer that we find out who He is and it is through prayer that He discovers how much we want him to be part of our lives.

John Wesley said it best, “God does nothing but in answer to prayer.” That is an awesome thought, our prayers enable God to act. He is waiting for us to ask for help, to ask for forgiveness, to ask for wisdom, to ask for knowledge, to ask for our needs to be met. Matthew 7:7 says, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”

I have first hand knowledge of asking and receiving. When I earnestly started seeking God in 1993, I would sit with my Bible opened to the concordance and just start looking up every reference to God. I wanted to know more and more about Him. I found out that He is the creator, He made man in His own image. I believe He made us in His image so that He could converse with us. Have a relationship with us. He wanted someone to share His knowledge with. Someone to marvel at all He is and all He has done. God is the same yesterday, today and forever. He still wants this relationship with each one of us. He created each of us with our own set of fingerprints, we are each one unique and different and He can relate to each one of us in a different manner.

God cannot communicate with us in our sinful state. He is so righteous and holy that He cannot look upon sin. He had to make a way to ‘atone’ for our wickedness so He made a way for us to come to Him.

Atonement is the Old Testament way that God taught the priests to come into his presence once a year. In Leviticus 16 we see God, through Moses, instructing the priest what to do to be cleansed of all their sins. Blood from a bull was to be sprinkled on the altar as a sacrifce to God. This blood was not a perfect sacrifice, it had to be done annually. This was always performed the tenth day of the seventh month. But this atonement was not lasting.

God took the form of a human being, clothed himself in humanity and willingly died for the sins of the world, just to have a relationship with us!

His blood was perfect sinless blood and the only way to provide a lasting atonement for all people.

That is amazing grace. We are so blessed to be called His children, and it is only through the blood of Jesus Christ that this happens.

What is more amazing is that Jesus would go back to the Father God and speak in our behalf.

Hebrews 7:24-25 tells us that “because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.” And in Hebrews 7:27 we see that “unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day... He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself.”

Every time we pray, Jesus interprets our prayers to God in a way that is acceptable to Him. He takes our feeble attempts of communicating, and puts our words into words that God can honor. Not because of who we are, but because of our belief in Christ as our mediator.

Therefore, we don’t have to worry if our prayers are eloquent or if we forget to say something that we are thinking. Even if we forget to pray for someone we promised to pray for, when we do remember them in prayer, we can know that God is timeless. Our idea of time means nothing to him.

Pray using your own language, using your own way of speaking because Jesus knows what you are saying and can tell his Father what we really need. He just wants us to ask.

Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to help us live our lives as Christians. This spirit is the very Spirit of God and it comes to live in those who believe that Jesus is the Christ, the messiah, the one God sent to be our atonement. The Holy Spirit is living inside each and every believer.

There are times when we just don’t know what to say or how to pray. That’s when the Holy Spirit comes to help us. He is just waiting to be asked. He is such a gentleman, he will not impose himself on us, but waits patiently for us to call on him.

He not only speaks to God for us, but he also speaks for God to us. He puts the desire to pray for specific needs in our hearts.

He is our transmitter sending us requests from God and receiving our prayers to be filtered through Jesus, our interpreter.

Jesus told his disciples about this promised Spirit in John 16:13, “But when he, the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.”

God is always on call - 24 hours a day, seven days a week. He doesn’t have an answering machine, or voice mailbox, he won’t put you on hold to answer another call, and you never ever get a busy signal.

I cannot remember a time when I asked God a specific question and he failed to give me an answer. I ask Him all sorts of questions and He gives me answers. Not in an audible voice, but within my spirit.

I remember one year in August in southwest Ohio, a cicada came flying into the car right in my face as I was driving down the road. They are very ugly bugs and very large. They don’t bite or hurt people, but their size is frightening.

I remember feeling fear and trying to overcome the fear by calling out to God. I asked Him why in the world He made cicadas. The answer came almost before I finished asking. In my spirit I heard Him say, “It’s food for the birds, Marsha.”

That’s right, he used my name, He knows each one of us by name and He is always eager to have a conversation with us. In Psalm 49:16 the Lord tells us that he has engraved us on the palms of his hands; our walls are ever before him. And in 1 Peter 5:7 he says, “Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you.”

The only way to truly get to know God is by spending time with him. The only way to spend time with him is by diligently seeking him and by deliberatly setting aside time in his Word, the Bible. He reveals himself to us through his word.

God wants to know about you and the things that trouble you. He wants you to ask him about decisions in your life. He wants to be able to guide and direct you. He really does want to be a daily part of your life. After all, He is the one who created you, He has a lot at stake in your life.

If we look to Jesus’s example we see that every morning he got up early and went to a solitary place to pray. He was directed every step of the way by God, His Holy Father. He asked Him for help in all that he did. Why should we be any different?

When Jesus lived on this earth as a man, he experienced everything that we experience. I would imagine that he really didn’t “feel” like getting up early, but he knew that was the only time that he could have time alone with his Father.

When could you spend time alone with your creator? What time of day is your best? Begin now if you don’t already have a quiet time. It will become the most important part of your day.

How do you start spending time with God? What is the first step? Get a Bible, make sure you get a translation that you can understand. Plan a time of day that works best for you when you won’t be interrupted by the phone, the door, the demands of children.

For me, the first thing every morning is best. I just get up a little earlier than I used to and plan to spend at least 1/2 hour with God. I started with five minutes back in 1993. I used a little devotional book to get a focus for the morning. But there is no set formula. If you start seeking God, he will help you with the details.

Continue meeting with God everyday. I have heard that if you do anything for 21 days, it becomes a habit. Get to know your creator, He is waiting to speak with you. It doesn’t have to be a profound or Biblical conversation, He just wants to get to know you and wants you to get to know Him. Go ahead...pray.

Heavenly Father,

We do want to know you more. We invite your precious Holy Spirit to teach us more about you. Today could you show us just one new thing about your character? We truly want a relationship with you because we love you and know that you love us. Thank you Father, in Jesus’ name. Amen