Beyond Ourselves

Jesus came to earth as a baby so He might grow into a man, but not just any man. He came from heaven as our MESSIAH. Andrew heard John the Baptist announce that Jesus was the Lamb of God who had come to take away the sins of the world. Andrew followed Jesus and after spending time with Him, he told his brother, Simon Peter, “We have found the MESSIAH,” John 1:41.  Andrew was intentional about his search for the Messiah and after finding Him was intentional about telling others. In what ways can we be more intentional about sharing Christ with others? We can begin by praying for the unsaved to turn to Christ. I label the last column in the Week at a Glance section of Prayers of My Heart: “Unsaved.” What can we pray for those who do not know Christ as Messiah? Here are 8 suggestions.

Jesus Christ, MESSIAH, You are love, forgiveness, hope, peace, and joy! Help us be as Andrew – intentional about following You and telling others about You.

Have you ever explored a black cave with only a dim flashlight? Some time ago, I had the opportunity to walk two miles in a black cave. Did I say opportunity? It was only because I knew my time in the cave was temporary. Had I thought I couldn’t return to the outdoors and light I would have gone mad. Is that what hell is? Trapped in what Colossians 1:13 describes as a “domain of darkness?” Jesus Christ is Light. The beauty of heaven reflects His nature. Close your eyes and picture an eternity of despairing people screaming for release from Satan’s dark domain. Now open them and praise Jesus, whom Malachi refers to as “the MESSENGER OF THE COVENANT,” Malachi 4:1. 

‘the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; and the MESSENGER OF THE COVENANT, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,’ says the Lord of hosts.  

Having been in the cave has made me mindful of how important it is to live a celebratory life. Why? There are people who don’t know Jesus, the Messenger of the Covenant, and that He can save them from the black torment of eternal damnation. We have the opportunity to celebrate our present day and eternity. We have reason to celebrate Christ’s Light in our heart.  Are we a bright or dim reflection of Christ to the unsaved?

Lord Jesus Christ, MESSENGER OF THE COVENANT, thank You for transferring us from the domain of darkness to the Kingdom of Light! Help us be mindful and joyful about our freedom and take every opportunity to shine brightly and point others to You.

In 1953 Baskin Robbins wowed ice cream lovers by offering customers a choice of 31 flavors.  That’s a great offer for ice cream, but unfortunately, our world has adopted a “31” viewpoint concerning salvation. In other words, we’ve decided we can be reconciled to God through the plan of our choice, be it self-improvement, doing good things, or a world religion of our choosing. But not so warns God throughout Scripture such as in 1 Timothy 2:5,

There is one God, and ONE MEDIATOR also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.

If we think we can make a Baskin Robbin choice of how we’re reconciled to God, we’re wrong. Dead wrong. God has warned us that the only way we can be reconciled to Him is through His Son.  Christ Jesus is the ONE MEDIATOR who can reconcile us to God for eternity.  Tell others!

Christ Jesus, we praise You, our MEDIATOR, for making peace between Your Father and our Father.

• His WORKS are MARVELOUS. Revelation 15:3 says, And they *sang the song of Moses, the bond-servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, ‘Great and MARVELOUS are Your WORKS, O Lord God, the Almighty; Righteous and true are Your ways, King of the nations!’”

Think. In what way do you recognize God marvelously working in your life or in the life of someone close to you? Praise Him for it.

• His LOVINGKINDNESS is MARVELOUS.   The psalmist writes, “Blessed be the LORD, for He has made marvelous His lovingkindness to me in a besieged city.” Psalm 31:21.  In this verse, marvelous means “wonderful, surpassing, extraordinary, separate by distinguishing action.”

Think. In what way can you personally testify to the fact that God’s lovingkindness is “wonderful, surpassing, extraordinary, separate by distinguishing action”?

• His SALVATION is MARVELOUS.  In Matthew 21:42, Jesus asks, “‘Did you never read in the Scriptures, ‘THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED, THIS BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone; THIS CAME ABOUT FROM THE LORD, AND IT IS MARVELOUS in our eyes?”  Jesus said God’s plan for saving sinners is marvelous, which means “worthy of pious admiration, admirable, excellent, passing human comprehension, causing amazement joined with terror, extraordinary, striking, surprising.”

Think on God’s marvelous plan for saving you and praise Him.

• His LIGHT is MARVELOUS.  First Peter 2:9, a favorite verse of mine because it defines the believer’s purpose states, “But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God’s OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His MARVELOUS LIGHT.”  We are to tell others of the excellencies of Christ and share the good news that they can live in His excellent, extraordinary, striking, surprising light.

Think. In what way are you fulfilling your divine purpose?

Friends, our Lord’s works, lovingkindness, salvation, and light is marvelous – extraordinary and amazing.  Spend time praising Him. Write out one of the above verses in the “Meditation, Notes, and Prayers” section of your Prayers of My Heart. Turn to the verse and meditate on it when you are moping rather than marvelous minded. Let His marvelous light do its transforming work.

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, You are marvelous in Your work, love, kindness, salvation, and light. We celebrate, worship, and thank You!

                                                             

We like our freedom, right? We may have heard someone tout, “No one is going to tell me what to do!” Maybe we’ve said that. But, here’s some news that may shock you. God has the right to tell us what to do because He owns us. That’s right. He is our MASTER as Colossians 4:1 explains: “Masters, grant to your slaves justice and fairness, knowing that you too have a MASTER in heaven,”  Yes, we have a MASTER. Does that please you or cause your hair to bristle?  What is the implication of you having a master? The word, “master” in Colossians 4:1 means “owner; one who has control of the person.” Maybe we’ve never thought about God owning us, but it isn’t a one-time teaching in the Bible. First Corinthians 6:10 explains we’ve been “bought with a price.” Romans 6:16 says we are slaves to sin or righteousness. Who do you prefer to be your master: satan or Jesus?  I bet you’re waving your hand for Jesus.

Let’s think further. Since Jesus is our Master, what should be our posture before Him? I wonder if we’re too flippant about our relationship with Him. I wonder if when we get to heaven and see Jesus in His glory if we’ll wish we had bowed before Him every morning and asked how we might serve Him. We have a MASTER in heaven. He’s a glorious, giving, gracious Master. Let’s serve Him well today with a smile on our face.

Heavenly Master, we worship and adore You and cannot wait to continue our worship of You in heaven. Remind us throughout our day to serve You well.

                                                             

In Christian circles we often speak of the joy of the Lord and rightly so. Jesus tells us to pray in His name to our Heavenly Father so that our joy will be made full.  We share Christ’s joy when we use the gifts He’s given us. Joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit in our lives. That doesn’t mean, however, that every day will be free of sorrow or we’ll be on a joy ride to heaven. Far from it. I remember when Philippians 3:7-10 became my life verses. I prayed, “Lord, I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection!” I was changed after that prayer. The Holy Spirit filled me and I read the Bible with new eyes. I had an intimacy with and passion for Christ that I’d not before experienced. But I’ll tell you a little secret. I stopped my prayer before the end of verse 10. I did my own edit of applying the Bible to my life. Philippians 3:10 says, “that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.” I did not pray “and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.” I saw the end of the verse. I read it. But I didn’t pray it. I had no desire to know Christ’s sufferings. Years later, after the Lord let me know Him more fully by studying His divine attributes and experiencing His power in ways beyond my power, it was time for me to experience the “fellowship of His sufferings.” It hurt. It was not fun. I cried. I journaled Scriptures. And, my intimacy deepened with the Lord in a way it could not have had I not gone through that time and other times since then.  Isaiah 53:3 states about Jesus, “He was despised and forsaken of men, a MAN OF SORROWS and acquainted with grief…” If you are going through a time of sorrow or grief, that doesn’t mean something is necessarily wrong with or in you. Of course if it’s due to sin that is another subject which the Bible addresses and has guidance concerning. But if you are staying the course with Jesus and are suffering in some way, this is when you can get up close to Him, curl up in His arms, read the Bible with fresh eyes, and discover that He’ll see you through the suffering.

Jesus, MAN OF SORROWS, thank You for being here for us when we are going through hard, sorrowful times. Deepen our fellowship with You. 

July 12,2021 numerous news outlets reported about a biological male “mother” attempting to breastfeed a newborn birthed by his biological female “boyfriend.”  The biological male holding the baby to his chest commented, “The baby has been able to latch, but I have not been able to produce any milk…” * 

As I watched the news on TV, I had to rewind and watch and listen closely, thinking I had misunderstood. As the news continued, my heart and mind sank in sorrow. Not for the couple. My heart sank for the newborn baby looking/yearning for a nipple to suck that would bring forth God’s intended milk. How cruel is it to taunt an innocent hungry baby with the biological male’s breast that the couple knew had no milk? How cruel to have a hungry baby’s mouth latch to a male nipple already knowing the outcome? “I have not been able to produce any milk…”.  At what point do we as a nation begin caring about innocent babies? At what point do we make our voices loud and clear that we believe in the LORD our MAKER and we stand for males and females being created with distinct genders to God’s honor and glory?

Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, and the one who formed you from the womb, ‘I, the LORD, am the MAKER of all things, Stretching out the heavens by Myself and spreading out the earth all alone…Isaiah 44:24 

Formed from the womb. Formed male and female. (Genesis 1:27)  By the LORD our MAKER.  My heart breaks. Does yours? Tears and prayers are desperately needed for our nation and for innocent babies.

LORD, our hearts are heavy. We grieve over the blatant denial of You as MAKER of heaven and earth, as the LORD who forms us from the womb. Hear our prayers. Turn hearts back to You. Bring revival to our nation for the sake of  all the innocent babies and children and those who have never heard about You. 

*https://realnewsaggregator.com/news/2021/07/13/biological-male-mother-attempts-to-breastfeed-newborn-birthed-by-his-biological-female-boyfriendvideo/

Are you a sourpuss? You know, grumpy, negative, never satisfied? If so, take your thoughts CAPTIVE to Christ. Pay attention to what you’re thinking. Why? Our thoughts make us who we are. An example: After God opened a way for the Israelites to miracuously cross the Red Sea on dry land to escape the Egyptian army, Moses could have said, “Boy, that was close! I don’t know why God let that happen! He about got us killed.” Yes, Moses could have complained. Instead, he chose to sing praises to God. Listen to his words:

Your right hand, O LORD, is MAJESTIC in power, Your right hand, O LORD, shatters the enemy,” Exodus 15:6. Who is like You among the gods, O Lord? Who is like You, MAJESTIC in holiness, Awesome in praises, working wonders?  Exodus 15:11

So, yes, we can look at our day and circumstances and complain. Or, we can choose as Moses did to see the deliverances God has brought us through and how He’s empowered us when we’ve been weak. If we’re a sourpuss and tend to focus on the negative, we’re not doing ourselves or anyone a favor, including God. As a matter of fact, we’re being a bad showcase of our Majestic Lord. Isn’t it time we change?  If you want to take your thoughts captive to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5), do it now. Go to God’s throne room and examine your thoughts in the light of His glory. Remember, Moses isn’t the only one who has a God who is MAJESTIC in power and holiness. We do, too. Isn’t it time we align our thinking to Philippians 4:8?

If you have Prayers of My Heart, join me in turning to the Meditations, Notes, and Prayers section today. Write words of praise to your Heavenly Father. Do you need prompts? He’s saved us. He forgives our bad behavior and careless words. His Word straightens our wayward thoughts. His Spirit is our downpayment and security of heaven. His grace is new every morning. Do you have family or friends, a roof over your head, clean water, food, a bed to sleep in at night? Write words of thanks to Him now. Practice gratefulness.

You, O LORD, are MAJESTIC in HOLINESS and POWER! We sing Your praises for all the things You’ve done, are doing, and will do. Help us showcase You by examining our thoughts and being people of praise .  

Would you like to experience some magnificence? Our Heavenly Father would like for you to, also. He never intended our lives to be filled with angst, anxiety, and the consequences of sin. He created Adam and Eve in His image and placed them in the magnificent Garden of Eden. He created them to share life in and with Him, to live by His divine nature and experience His MAGNIFICENT GLORY. But now? We live in a sin-sick world that is experiencing the consequences of sin and of shutting Him out. But as believers, our hope is not lost. Rather, our hope is firm in Christ Jesus. After turning from sin and confessing Jesus as Lord and Savior, we can daily meditate on God’s Word. We can be emotionally, mentally, and spiritually grounded in God’s magnificent truths.  Second Peter 1:4  tells us that God…

 “has granted to us His precious and MAGNIFICIENT promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.”

Stop. Let that sink in. PARTAKER. Of the. DIVINE NATURE. Friends, corruption is not our eternal destiny, but neither is it to be our daily experience. Rather, Christ’s magnificence is to be our daily moment by moment experience. It can be IF we study and grasp what Peter is telling us. We can escape worldly entrapments of despair, hopelessness, powerlessness and so much more by means of Christ’s divine nature in us operating in accordance with God’s promises. In other words, believers have the joy and privilege of learning God’s Kingdom ways and experiencing them through Christ’s Divine Spirit who is in us. Never let the unbelieving world’s despair, anxiety, and hopelessness infiltrate your soul. Begin each day welcoming your Heavenly Father and Spirit’s presence, praying,

“Heavenly Father, thank You for this day. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit, Your divine nature. Help me be increasingly sensitive to Your voice. Overflow in and through me. Help me be increasingly sensitive to Your voice.

The Father, Son, Holy Spirit, and Bible, all MAGNIFICENT, are ours through the gift of salvation. Immerse your mind with the Father’s ways. Bath your heart in His truths and promises. Walk by His MAGNIFICENT divine nature/Spirit. Learn more with “How to Live by the Divine Nature,” my Bible study on 2 Peter.

LORD, You are MAGNIFICENT and Your promises are MAGNIFICENT. Thank You for salvation by which we become partakers of the divine nature. Help us walk out Your magnificent, divine promises so others see and believe.

Record your praise to God that He is “Magnificent” in Prayers of My Heart.  Pray for yourself and intercede for your family and others that they live by God’s magnificent nature and promises.