"I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in Me, even if he dies, will live."
Any kind of "death" is an invitation to resurrection life for the believer. Nothing is more natural than grief after a devastating loss, but those of us in Christ can experience satisfying life again. Perhaps the most profound miracle of all is living through something we though would kill us. And not just living, but living abundantly and effectively-raised from living death to a new life. Yes, it's a life that is indeed absent of something or someone dear to you, but it is filled with the presence of the Resurrection and the Life. Will you continue to sit in a dark tomb, or will you walk into the light of resurrection life?
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Breaking Free Day by Day - Beth Moore
"He lets it loose beneath the entire sky; His lighting to the ends of the earth." Job 37:3
One night when all I felt like doing was sobbing, I decided to throw on the headphones and go for a walk. The night was pitch black. No one appeared to be out but me. But the more the music rang through my soul, the more the tears of my wounds turned to tears of worship. Finally, I stopped walking, lifted both my hands in praise, and worshipped Him.
Flashes of distant lightning began to burst like fireworks on the Fourth of July. And the more I sang, the more the Spirit of God seemed to dance to each streak of light. I haven't had many experiences like this, but it was like getting a sudden, flashing grasp of God's amazing love.
One night when all I felt like doing was sobbing, I decided to throw on the headphones and go for a walk. The night was pitch black. No one appeared to be out but me. But the more the music rang through my soul, the more the tears of my wounds turned to tears of worship. Finally, I stopped walking, lifted both my hands in praise, and worshipped Him.
Flashes of distant lightning began to burst like fireworks on the Fourth of July. And the more I sang, the more the Spirit of God seemed to dance to each streak of light. I haven't had many experiences like this, but it was like getting a sudden, flashing grasp of God's amazing love.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Breaking Free Day by Day - Beth Moore
"Whoever drinks from the water that I will give him will never get thirsty again-ever!" John 4:14
Christ's encounter with the woman at the well introduces us to some realities of life we desperately need to remember:
1. Our insatiable need or craving for too much of anything is symptomatic of unmet needs or "empty places."
2. Salvation does not equal satisfaction. You can be genuinely saved and still be unsatisfied.
3. Satisfaction comes only when every empty place is filled with the fullness of Christ.
4. While salvation comes to us as a gift from God, we find satisfaction in Him as we deliberately surrender all parts of our lives to Him.
Christ's encounter with the woman at the well introduces us to some realities of life we desperately need to remember:
1. Our insatiable need or craving for too much of anything is symptomatic of unmet needs or "empty places."
2. Salvation does not equal satisfaction. You can be genuinely saved and still be unsatisfied.
3. Satisfaction comes only when every empty place is filled with the fullness of Christ.
4. While salvation comes to us as a gift from God, we find satisfaction in Him as we deliberately surrender all parts of our lives to Him.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Breaking Free Day by Day - Beth Moore
"Woes to the world because of offenses. For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes." Matthew 18:7
Christ healed people in many different ways. Sometimes He did it through touch. Sometimes He did it through speech. In this passage from Matthew 18, Christ offered healing through truth.
I found significant healing in my study of this particular Scripture. I learned how important I was to Jesus as a child. I was also able to accept how much He despised what had happened to me.
And in perhaps the greatest lesson of all, I learned that Scripture is the strongest bandage God uses to bind hearts that were broken in childhood.
Christ healed people in many different ways. Sometimes He did it through touch. Sometimes He did it through speech. In this passage from Matthew 18, Christ offered healing through truth.
I found significant healing in my study of this particular Scripture. I learned how important I was to Jesus as a child. I was also able to accept how much He despised what had happened to me.
And in perhaps the greatest lesson of all, I learned that Scripture is the strongest bandage God uses to bind hearts that were broken in childhood.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Breaking Free Day by Day - Beth Moore
"I will make peace flow to her like a river, and the wealth of nations like a flood." Isaiah 66:12
God's Word does not say we'll have peace like a pond. If we were honest, we might admit to thinking of peaceful people as boring, like they're a breath from death. We are apt to think, "I'd rather for go peace and have an exciting life!" But when was the last time you saw white-water rapids? Few bodies of water are more exciting than rivers!
When God used the analogy of a river, He described a peace that can be retained while life twists and turns and rolls over boulders. It means to have security and tranquility while meeting many bumps and unexpected turns on life's journey.
God's Word does not say we'll have peace like a pond. If we were honest, we might admit to thinking of peaceful people as boring, like they're a breath from death. We are apt to think, "I'd rather for go peace and have an exciting life!" But when was the last time you saw white-water rapids? Few bodies of water are more exciting than rivers!
When God used the analogy of a river, He described a peace that can be retained while life twists and turns and rolls over boulders. It means to have security and tranquility while meeting many bumps and unexpected turns on life's journey.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Breaking Free Day by Day - Beth Moore
June 4th
"I see a different law in the parts of my body, waging war against the law of my mind." Romans 7:23
God will not release us from anything that has enslaved us until we've come to the mind of Christ in the matter.
Take the bondage of unforgiveness, for example. When we want to be free from the burden of not forgiving, we want God simple to take that person out of our minds. We want Him to wave a magic wand so we'll never have to think about that person again.
That's not how God works. He wants to transform and renew our minds so we can think the thoughts of Christ about the person we are supposed to forgive.
June 3rd
"Who has known the Lord's mind, that he may instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ." 1 Corinthians 2:16
We posses the mind of Christ, but we still have the full capacity to think with the mind of the flesh. We are mentally bilingual, you might say. But in order to experience liberation in Him, we must let His language become our native tongue.
Look at it this way: my older daughter is almost fluent in Spanish, but she still thinks mostly in English. Why? Because she practices it more. Her thoughts follow the language she uses most often.
The same concept is true of you and me. We will think with the mental language we practice most: ours or Christ's.
"I see a different law in the parts of my body, waging war against the law of my mind." Romans 7:23
God will not release us from anything that has enslaved us until we've come to the mind of Christ in the matter.
Take the bondage of unforgiveness, for example. When we want to be free from the burden of not forgiving, we want God simple to take that person out of our minds. We want Him to wave a magic wand so we'll never have to think about that person again.
That's not how God works. He wants to transform and renew our minds so we can think the thoughts of Christ about the person we are supposed to forgive.
June 3rd
"Who has known the Lord's mind, that he may instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ." 1 Corinthians 2:16
We posses the mind of Christ, but we still have the full capacity to think with the mind of the flesh. We are mentally bilingual, you might say. But in order to experience liberation in Him, we must let His language become our native tongue.
Look at it this way: my older daughter is almost fluent in Spanish, but she still thinks mostly in English. Why? Because she practices it more. Her thoughts follow the language she uses most often.
The same concept is true of you and me. We will think with the mental language we practice most: ours or Christ's.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Imagine Me Video
Breaking Free Day by Day - Beth Moore
June 1st Devotional
"We are not obligated to the flesh to live according to the flesh." Romans 8:12
Not all captivating thoughts come from painful experiences. Our thoughts can be held captive to someone or something that builds up our egos or satisfies our fleshly appetites. Simply put, captivating thoughts are controlling thoughts, things you find yourself meditating on far too often. Taking thoughts captive to Christ does not mean we never have the thought again. It means we learn to "think the thought" as it relates to Christ and who we are in Him. When we relate our thoughts to Christ, they cause us less and less despair. They will not control us. With the power of the Holy Spirit, we will control them.
June 2nd Devotional
"I will certainly bring health and healing to it and will indeed heal them" Jeremiah 33:6
Nothing could be more natural than a mother grieving the loss of a child. If ten years later, however, the mother is still completely consumed with the loss and bitterness that have eclipsed all comfort and healing, she has wedged a stronghold between appropriate grief and gradual restoration. The enemy will capitalize on normal emotions of love or loss to swell them out of healthy proportion. They can consume our lives if we're not aware of his schemes. No, grieving is never sin. But disallowing God to minister comfort and healing to you over the passage of time is.
June 1st Devotional
"We are not obligated to the flesh to live according to the flesh." Romans 8:12
Not all captivating thoughts come from painful experiences. Our thoughts can be held captive to someone or something that builds up our egos or satisfies our fleshly appetites. Simply put, captivating thoughts are controlling thoughts, things you find yourself meditating on far too often. Taking thoughts captive to Christ does not mean we never have the thought again. It means we learn to "think the thought" as it relates to Christ and who we are in Him. When we relate our thoughts to Christ, they cause us less and less despair. They will not control us. With the power of the Holy Spirit, we will control them.
June 2nd Devotional
"I will certainly bring health and healing to it and will indeed heal them" Jeremiah 33:6
Nothing could be more natural than a mother grieving the loss of a child. If ten years later, however, the mother is still completely consumed with the loss and bitterness that have eclipsed all comfort and healing, she has wedged a stronghold between appropriate grief and gradual restoration. The enemy will capitalize on normal emotions of love or loss to swell them out of healthy proportion. They can consume our lives if we're not aware of his schemes. No, grieving is never sin. But disallowing God to minister comfort and healing to you over the passage of time is.
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