Progressing continuously in Christ

Happy new year everyone!

I know, I know, I'm quite late. I do apologize. I pray that in this year and the many more years that God blesses us with, that we will continue to grow in Him and be more Christ-like. I pray that all your dreams, hopes, desires come true this year and the years to come. Just put them before God and He will surely grant you the desires of your heart. Have faith in Him.

As a new year approaches, of course many of us will make resolutions. These resolutions are sometimes be based on things we may not have accomplished in previous years that we would like to accomplish this year. Or we may be inspired and have new goals and dreams. But imagine for a minute having

Our Battles Are Spritual Ephesians 6:12

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Ephesians 6:12

     Our battles are not with each other but with the forces of darkness. We can not see them, we cannot touch them and definitely physically fighting them will be in vain. Therefore we do not fight with the people whom we can see but with the evil forces we cannot see. Although sometimes the people who are causing us harm, are physically apparent but the force or spirit that is driving them or has control over their lives is not visible. 

     Therefore, stand and let God fight our battles. The only way we can win our battles is by the mighty hand of God. In 2 Chronicles 32:8, Hezekiah, king of Judah, encouraged the people and reminded them of this profound fact eventhough the Assayrian army had more men than theirs, he told them, "With him is an arm of flesh; but with us is the LORD our God to help us, and to fight our battles." God is indeed the only one who can fight our battles and win, no matter what the odds are. What we can do is make sure our feet are firmly grounded in His word, we are praying without ceasing and

Don't look to no one else to give you what God can and will Genesis 30:1-2

Now when Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister, and said to Jacob, “Give me children, or else I die!” 2 And Jacob’s anger was aroused against Rachel, and he said, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?” Genesis 30:1-2

Rachael expresses the sentiments that some of us may feel at one time or another. The thing that we want so badly that we feel will make us complete but we don't have. For some it may be a child as in Rachael's case, or a loving husband or wife, your own business or a good-paying job, a mansion on a hill etc. We each have a burning desire to attain or have something that we want. What if we felt like a person was in the position or had the power to give you that thing and they wouldn't or couldn't. Wouldn't you be angry at them? Wouldn't you sound desperate when relaying how you felt? In Rachael's case, she told her husband to give her children or she would die. That is the cry of a desperate woman, a woman who filled with envy, is sorrowful and even heartbroken that she can't give her husband a child. Imagine

Can two walk together unless they have agreed to do so? Amos 3:3

Amos 3:3 "Do two walk together unless they have agreed to do so?"

Our Lord Almighty had a relationship with the people of Israel from the beginning when He brought them out of Egypt. He had selected the Israelites as His chosen people. However, time after time, they disobeyed Him. God would continuously send prophets to remind them of His undying love for them and to call them to repentance.

Here we see God speaking through the prophet Amos to let the people of Israel know that He is going to punish them for their iniquities. And what God says is that two cannot walk together unless they are in agreement.

The Lord was referring to His relationship with His people. They had strayed far away from Him and therefore they were no longer in agreement with Him. From the beginning, this agreement had been established through the commandments. However, over time that relationship was severed.

It's interesting that Jesus often referred to His relationship to the church as a bride and a groom because even before the church had been established, God modeled that relationship between a bride and groom with His people. When two people get married,

No time for God?

If we were to evaluate our day, how much time do we dedicate to praying to God? How much alone time do we set aside for daily devotions, prayer and reading the word of God? If we are serious about our walk with Christ wouldn't these things be automatic?

Jesus Christ took the time out to pray and would go in solitude to pray to God. We need to spend time with Him, to get to know Him but sometimes we don't have time like this poem depicts.

No Time

I knelt to pray but not for long,

I had too much to do.

I had to hurry and get to work

For bills would soon be due.

So I knelt and said a hurried prayer,

And jumped up off my knees.

My Christian duty was now done

My soul could rest at ease.

All day long I had no time

To spread a word of cheer.

No time to speak of Christ to friends,

They'd laugh at me I'd fear.

No time, no time, too much to do,

That was my constant cry,

No time to give to souls in need

But at last the time, the time to die.

I went before the Lord,

I came, I stood with downcast eyes.

For in his hands God held a book;

It was the book of life.

God looked into his book and said

"Your name I cannot find.

I once was going to write it down . . .

But never found the time."

I'm sure none of us want to hear that therefore let's make the time for our Lord. God bless you and continue in reading the word, praying and making time for God.