Ephesians 5:18
Dry as A Prune or Plump?
“I’m thirsty!” How many times have we said that? Our bodies need water. But, what about our spirits? According to Jesus, they need spiritual water, Living Water, the Holy Spirit.
Listen to Jesus’ words. “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’ But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified” (John 7:38-39).
In these verses, Jesus tells us an important truth. Just as our body needs water, so does our spirit. Unhappy? Grumpy? Dry as a prune? If so, you could be spiritually thirsty. Go to your Heavenly Father. Tell Him, “I thirst. I feel spiritually dry.” Ask Him to refresh you. Open your heart and ask Him to fill you to overflowing with His glorious, refreshing, life-giving Spirit.
Ephesians 5:18 reinforces Jesus’ words with the command that believers be filled continually with the Spirit. So yes, when your body is dry, reach for a glass of water. When your spirit is dry, reach for the Lord’s filling.
Jesus, thank You for giving me the LIVING WATER of Your Spirit who cleanses and refreshes me; who fills and energizes me to serve You. I love You, Lord.
Click HERE to watch all of Debbie’s teaching on John 7, where Jesus says that whoever believes in Him will have rivers of living water flowing from within them, referring to the Holy Spirit. You can also listen to the podcast teaching by clicking HERE.
Hard Work, No Joy
Have you ever worked hard for what you thought was for Christ but you experienced little joy? As a matter of fact, you felt agitated as you worked? If and when that happens, it helps to step back and consider if what we’re doing is a mission Christ assigned to us and we’re relying on His wisdom and power, or if it’s an activity we decided was a good idea and we’re pushing through in our own strength. Why is this important? Colossians 1:18 explains that Christ is “head of the body, the church…so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.” In other words, if it is not Christ’s idea then it’s not a good idea and will not be empowered by Him. Why? As a body is lifeless without its head, so we the church are lifeless apart from Christ. We may do what we consider to be important, but if it is done apart from Christ’s calling and Spirit it is merely human effort. Therefore, it is important for us to continually seek to be filled with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18) so that both our individual and corporate actions flow from Christ’s mind and are done in His power. When we do the work Christ assigns us it may be challenging and difficult, but we will also experience Christ’s joy. Matthew 25:23
Lord Jesus, we praise You, HEAD OF THE CHURCH and life of the body of believers. May our words and actions be an extension of Your heart, strength, and power.
Bite, Chew, Graze
Are you hungry? Is there a gnawing in you? Do you feel that something is missing? Do you feel that no matter what you do, purchase, or where you go, you still want more? Do you fill the emptiness but it quickly returns? If so, maybe it’s your spirit that is hungry. If so, the solution isn’t more food, clothes, or money. The solution is found by filling our spirit with the Holy Spirit of Jesus who John 6:48 describes as the BREAD of LIFE. Jesus is to the soul what a delicious nourishing meal is to our body. Begin your day with bite-size Bible verses. Chew on them throughout the day. At night, graze on the promises of Christ. Go to sleep with your soul fully satisfied in Christ.
Lord Jesus, we praise You, BREAD OF LIFE! Thank You for satisfying the yearning of our spirit as we meditate on You.
Hard Work, No Joy
Have you ever worked hard for what you thought was for Christ but you experienced little joy? As a matter of fact you felt agitated as you worked? If and when that happens, it helps to step back and consider if what we’re doing is a mission Christ assigned to us and we’re relying on His wisdom and power, or if it’s an activity we decided was a good idea and we’re pushing through in our own strength. Why is this important? Colossians 1:18 explains that Christ is “head of the body, the church…so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.” In other words, if it is not Christ’s idea then it’s not a good idea and will not be empowered by Him. Why? As a body is lifeless without its head, so we the church are lifeless apart from Christ. We may do what we consider to be important, but if it is done apart from Christ’s calling and Spirit it is merely human effort. Therefore, it is important for us to continually seek to be filled with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18) so that both our individual and corporate actions flow from Christ’s mind and are done in His power. When we do the work Christ assigns us it may be challenging and difficult, but we will also experience Christ’s joy. Matthew 25:23
Lord Jesus, we praise You, HEAD OF THE CHURCH and life of the body of believers. May our words and actions be an extension of Your heart, strength, and power.
Bite, Chew, Graze
Are you hungry? Is there a gnawing in you? Do you feel that something is missing? That no matter what you do, purchase, or where you go, you still want more? Do you fill the emptiness, but it quickly returns? If so, maybe it’s your spirit that is hungry. If so, the solution isn’t more food, clothes, or money. The solution is found by filling our spirit with the Holy Spirit of Jesus who John 6:48 describes as the BREAD of LIFE. Jesus is to the soul, what a whopping delicious meal is to our body. Begin your day with bite-size Bible verses. Chew on them throughout the day. At night, graze on the promises of Christ. Go to sleep with your soul fully satisfied in Christ.
Lord Jesus, we praise You, BREAD OF LIFE! Thank You for satisfying the yearning of our spirit as we meditate on You.
Hard Work, No Joy
Have you ever worked hard for what you thought was Christ, but you experienced little joy? As a matter of fact, you felt agitated as you worked? If and when that happens, it helps to step back and consider if what we’re doing is a mission Christ assigned us and we’re relying on His wisdom and power, or if it’s an activity we decided was a good idea and we’re pushing through in our own strength. Why is this important? Colossians 1:18 explains that Christ is “head of the body, the church…so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.” In other words, if it is not Christ’s idea, then it’s not a good idea and will not be empowered by Him. Why? As a body is lifeless without its head, so we, the church, are lifeless apart from Christ. We may do what we consider to be important work, but if it is done apart from Christ’s calling and Spirit, it is merely human effort. Therefore, it is important for us to continually seek to be filled with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18) so that both our individual and corporate actions flow from Christ’s mind and are done in His power. When we do the work Christ assigns us it may be challenging and difficult, but the result will be Christ’s joy. Matthew 25:23
Lord Jesus, we praise You, HEAD OF THE CHURCH and life of the body of believers. May our words and actions be an extension of Your heart, strength, and power.
Bite, Chew, Graze
Are you hungry? Is there a gnawing in you? Do you feel that something is missing? That no matter what you do, purchase, or where you go, you still want more? Do you fill the emptiness, but it quickly returns? If so, maybe it’s your spirit that is hungry. If so, the solution isn’t more food, clothes, or money. The solution is found by filling our spirit with the Holy Spirit of Jesus who John 6:48 describes as the BREAD of LIFE. Jesus is to the soul, what a whopping delicious meal is to our body. Begin your day with bite-size Bible verses. Chew on them throughout the day. At night, graze on the promises of Christ. Go to sleep with your spirit fully satisfied in Christ.
Lord Jesus, we praise You, BREAD OF LIFE! Thank You for satisfying the yearning of our spirit as we meditate on You.
Hard Work, No Joy
Have you ever worked hard for what you thought was Christ, but you experienced little joy? As a matter of fact, you felt agitated much of the time? If and when that happens, it helps to step back and consider if what we’re doing is a mission Christ set us on and we’re relying on His wisdom and power, or if it’s an activity we thought was a good idea and we’re pushing through in our own strength. Why is this important? Colossians 1:18 explains that Christ is “head of the body, the church…so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.” In other words, if it is not Christ’s idea, then it’s not a good idea and will not be empowered by Him. Why? As a body is lifeless without its head, so the church is lifeless apart from Christ. We may do what we consider to be important work, but if it is done apart from Christ’s calling and Spirit, it is merely human work. Therefore, it is important for us to continually seek to be filled with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18) so that both our individual and corporate deeds flow from Christ’s mind and are done in His power. When we do the work Christ sends us to do, the result will be we enter into Christ’s joy. Matthew 25:23
Lord Jesus, we praise You, HEAD OF THE CHURCH and life of the body of believers! May our words and actions be an extension of Your heart, strength, and power.
Bite, Chew, Graze
Are you hungry? Is there a gnawing in you? Do you feel that something is missing? That no matter what you do, purchase, or where you go, you still yearn for more? Do you try to fill the emptiness but it’s still there? If so, maybe it’s your spirit that is hungry. The answer isn’t more food, clothes, or money. The answer is found in Ephesians 5:18, to fill our spirit with the Holy Spirit of Jesus who John 6:48 describes as the BREAD of LIFE. Jesus is to the soul, what a whopping delicious meal is to our body. Begin the day with bite size Bible verses. Chew on them throughout the day. At night, graze on the promises of Christ. Go to sleep with your spirit fully satisfied in Christ.
Lord Jesus, we praise You, BREAD OF LIFE! Thank You for turning our yearning into satisfaction as we meditate on You.
Praise to Jesus, HEAD OF THE BODY, the CHURCH
“He (Christ) is also HEAD OF THE BODY, THE CHURCH;”
Christ is the founder of the church: the body of believers. Therefore, Christ is the rightful HEAD. And, as a body is lifeless without its head, so our churches are lifeless apart from Christ. We may serve in our church, but if we serve in our own strength, it’s just that – “ours.” What Christ seeks are people like Steven, a disciple in the early church. His job was to serve food to the widows. That might seem like an insignificant task that anybody could do. But listen to whom was sought for the assignment: men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom. (Acts 6:3) Acts 6-7 is a good reminder of how God uses Christians who are filled with the Spirit. Thank you for your service in the church. Be encouraged that as you prayerfully ask God to fill you with the Holy Spirit, He’ll use you to His glory.
Lord Jesus, we praise You, HEAD OF THE CHURCH. Fill us with Your Spirit and wisdom so our words and actions are done in Your power and strength; for Your glory.