breathing room for my soul

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Preparing for Easter ~ God is Love

Open your hearts to the love God instills . . . God loves you tenderly. What He gives you is not to be kept under lock and key, but to be shared. Mother Teresa

Love is an action, one a person chooses to receive and chooses to give. Because the Spirit lives inside the believer, we are empowered to love, to love like Christ. Commentary in the Life Application Bible says it this way: God's love always involves a choice and an action.

Read 1 John 4:7-8

. . . God is love. 1 John 4:8 NCV

God's love is higher and deeper and wider and grander than we can begin to imagine. He loves us, calls us, draws near to us. God chooses us! When our response is to choose God, we discover more than enough. When we choose God, His love overflows into us. Loving each other is the action that demonstrates His amazing grace.

Consider this!

What is the source of all love?
Is real love a feeling?
How well do I really love?

Love Most High ~ You can only love one way ~ Completely, Generously, Perfectly. Kindle my heart with that tender Love. My heart weeps at such an offering. Forgive me when I hold tightly to Your love, when my selfish soul stops the flow of Perfect Love. Amen. ~dho

Monday, March 21, 2011

Preparing for Easter ~ God is Greater

I saw the Milky Way in full glory once, while visiting a refugee camp in Somalia, just below the equator. . . I could not lift my sights beyond that refugee camp situated in an obscure corner of an obscure country on the Horn of Africa. Until I saw the Milky Way. It abruptly reminded me that the present moment did not comprise all of life. History would go on. Tribes, government, whole civilizations may rise and fall, trailing disaster in their wake, but I dared not confine my field of vision to the scenes of suffering around me. I needed to look up, to the stars. Philip Yancey from Finding God in Unexpected Places (pg. 29)

Philip Yancey's words paint a true picture of this world ~ full of difficulty and full of God. Those who serve the world do not speak of God, do not listen to God. These unbelievers denounce Christians who faithfully witness for Christ.

Read 1 John 4:4-6

. . . because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world. 1 John 4:4 NLT

We find ourselves surrounded by chaos and confusion, which always comes from evil; yet we are never alone, always have hope. The Holy Spirit resides within every believer. How easy to get lost in the negative and forget to look for God's Presence ~ it is everywhere! Just take time to look.

Consider this!

Can you identify evil influences in your daily life?
How can you give God the "greater" place in your life?
Is the Spirit abiding in you?

Holy Father ~ The world speaks a language designed to rob You of glory. Sometimes, the burden of the confusion and disorder almost suffocate me. My Hope is Christ! Like fresh air, the Spirit breathes new life into the darkest moments. You are greater than anything in this world. Amen. ~ dho

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Preparing for Easter ~ False Prophets

2nd Sunday in Lent

Kathleen Norris recounts in Amazing Grace of preparing a Bible Study session on the "Antichrist" and her pastor's reply:
What the pastor said was so simple that it will remain with me forever. "Each one of us acts as an Antichrist," he said, "whenever we hear the gospel and do not do it".

Too often we believe what sounds good instead of searching for the truth. Satan is clever because there are always threads of truth in all his deceptions. We get tangled in the rhetoric and miss the point.

Read 1 John 4:1-3

. . . do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. . . every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the Antichrist. . .
1 John 4:1,3 NIV

Many will try to confuse us ~ evil spirits and humans that are being used by the evil spirits. Scripture tells us that every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God. To acknowledge Jesus requires our words ~ our confession of faith in Jesus ~ and our actions ~ our deeds done in response to our faith. Words are powerful but our actions evidence our faith to others. When we say we believe that Jesus is our resurrected Savior but act without love, we become the Antichrist.

Consider this!

What must one believe about Christ to be a Christian?
Why is important to know The Truth?
Does the Antichrist live at my house?

Father ~ I know the world is full of trickery, and Satan delights in my failure to listen for the Spirit of Truth. I want a discerning heart. Amen. ~dho

Saturday, March 19, 2011

Preparing for Easter ~ Fellowship Defined

We are saved so that we might know Him in intimate daily fellowship.

Steve McVey/ Grace Walk

This growing intimacy defines a deeper relationship. God calls us into community with Him, longs to have intimate daily fellowship with His children. Do we really desire this?

Read 1 John 3:23-24

And this is His commandment: We must believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He commanded us. Those who obey God's commandments live in fellowship with Him and He with them. And we know He lives in us because the Holy Spirit lives in us. 1 John 3:23:24 The Message

Love defines this mutuality ~ His Love for us, our love for others. In our obedience to Love, we find ourselves both loved and loving. We are never alone when we live in fellowship with Him.

Consider this!

What is the character of Jesus?
What is required for living in fellowship with Him?
What evidence of God's presence is given the believer?

Spirit of Life ~ You draw near to me, call me to live deeply in Christ. Let Love shine through me however You desire. Amen. ~ dho

Friday, March 18, 2011

Preparing for Easter ~ Completely Yielded

But many Christians have misunderstood the purpose of the law. The law was given so that people might see their own absolute inadequacy to live in a way that glorifies God.

Steve McVey / Grace Walk

We live in a world where anything goes; we live with its illusions of perfection. Success and wealth and beauty demand attention. In our disillusionment, we are discouraged when these self sufficient attempts do not bring satisfaction.

Read 1 John 3:19-22

For God is greater than our worried hearts and knows more about us than we do ourselves. . . . We are able to stretch our hands out and receive what we asked for because we're doing what He said, doing what pleases Him. 1 John 3:20,22 The Message

We cannot save ourselves by following a set of rules. Only through Grace can a relationship with God be established. The world exploits the heart and mind by promoting "more and better". Soon the expectations are greater than the reality. When we focus on Christ and His unending Love, our hearts and minds are renewed. Realizing we no longer work for the world, we can live for Christ.

Consider this!

What lies is the world telling me?
When God reveals my heart's intentions, what will I see?
Do I depend on God or myself?

Jesus ~ My heart often settles for "more and better" when You offer me "the most and the best." My mind struggles with "greater" but You offer "enough." My desire is to completely yield myself to You. Let Your work be done through me. Amen.~ dho

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Preparing for Easter ~ Real Love

I have always thought the actions of men the best interpreters of their thoughts. ~John Locke

The well-known idiom actions speak louder than words is true. If our hearts embrace real love then we will respond with real love to others. Loving is not always easy and involves time and sacrifice. We like to believe ourselves to be generous but often we are more generous with our 'things' than our ''time'.

Read 1 John 3:14-18

This is how we know what real love is: Jesus gave His life for us. So we should give our lives for our brothers and sisters. . . My children, we should love people not only with words and talk, but by our actions and true caring. 1 John 3:16,18 NCV

Jesus gave the ultimate sacrifice for us ~ His life on the cross! Scripture says we should give our lives for others. How can that be? Our giving does not have the power to pardon sin, but with Christ, we are empowered to forgive, to listen, to love, to reach into another's pain, to touch another's grief, to celebrate another's joy. With Christ, we speak His name with good deeds and a sincere heart.

Consider this!

Have I ever received real love?
When was the last time I put down my life, lay down my agenda, gave some of my precious time, offered real love ~ for someone else?
What do my actions reveal?

Lord ~ It is so hard to believe in Love so real! It is hard to accept Love so pure! You are Perfect Love given to me. Words come and go, heard and not heard, written and forgotten, but when I love others in their ordinary days, touching their everyday wounds and weaknesses, dilemmas and decisions, fears and failures ~ I am loving You and offering Your Love to others. Use me, Lord! Amen. ~ dho

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Preparing for Easter ~ Evil vs. Righteousness

Christian discipleship is a decision to walk in His ways, steadily and firmly, and then finding that the way integrates all our interests, passions and gifts, our human needs and our eternal aspirations.

Eugene Peterson ~ A Long Obedience in the Same Direction

Love is the message God has given us from the beginning. To love God and to love each other sums up all the commandments. What is the first Bible verse children learn? ~ God is love! Because He is love and because He loves us, we can love.

Read 1 John 3:11-13

This is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another.
1 John 3:11 NIV

In these verses, a reference is made to Cain and Able in Genesis (4:1-16). Cain does not give his best to God; Able does, and this makes Cain look bad. In fact, Cain is so angry that he kills his brother Able. Sometimes when we choose to live righteous lives, the world will respond in a negative way. The world always tries to undermine God's Goodness. As we read a few days ago, Live deeply in Christ, let His Holiness permeate all areas of your living, even though the world will hate you. God promises to always be with us; He does not promise an easy path.

Consider this!

Who should love?
Whom should we love?
Will you?

Father of Light ~ We live in a world that loves itself. Without You, we do not even know what love is. You are the Love we must choose for ourselves, the Love that we must offer to others. Give us strength for the long journey through the darkness. Amen. ~dho

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Preparing for Easter ~ Righteousness of Christ

When the heart begins to burn with truth, when it takes root in you and you simply must respond to it, that is when you know with certainty that God is real, that the hope of your calling is genuine, that the power of His presence is available, and that the riches of His ministry through you is manifest to others as well.

Ray Stedman from The Power of His Presence / www.raystedman.org

Christians are not perfect but the intentions of their actions should be Christ-focused. Evil is real, and Satan always lies waiting for another opportunity to tempt us. Sadly, we frequently follow his lead. As children of God, we must strive for righteous living. Joyfully, we can find our Example, our Success, our Intercessor ~ in Jesus.

Read 1 John 3:4-10

Dear children, don't let anyone deceive you about this: When people do what is right, it is because they are righteous, even as Christ is righteous. But when people keep on sinning, it show they belong to the Devil. 1 John 3:7-8 NLT

The world will tell you there is no evil, that Satan does not exist. The Living Word of God tells you the truth ~ evil and Satan are alive and well and looking for you! As humans, we are incapable of "not sinning"; we are sinful creatures, fallen and imperfect. In Christ we are made new; our new hearts desire to live a more holy life. To engage in habitual, repetitive sinning, is not righteous living; it is destructive living. Christians are called to live as Christ and love one another.

Consider this!

Read 1 John 3:5; compare our sins with Jesus.
Read 1 John 3:8; what do we know about the Devil's sins?
What do your actions reflect ~ child of God or a child of the Devil?

God ~ Your goodness overwhelms me as the Spirit draws near to whisper of Perfect Love and holiness and peace. The world distracts me and shouts and lures. But You are greater than anything in this world. I hold to Your Promises. Amen. ~ dho

A New Beginning

"This is my [new] life work: helping people understand and respond to this Message. It came as a sheer gift to me, a real surprise, God handling all the details . . . God saw to it that I was equipped, but you can be sure that it had nothing to do with my natural abilities.

And so here I am . . . writing about things that are way over my head, the inexhaustible riches and generosity of Christ. My task is to bring out in the open and make plain what God, who created all this in the first place, has been doing in secret and behind the scenes all along."
Ephesians 3:7-10, The Message

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