Category: Courage

Life-Style Upgrade

But as money must be spent to change a life-style, so the Spirit must be active to change the style of life.

Meditation Thought: These are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. (1 Corinthians 2:10)

The gift of the Spirit as the means of affecting every area of a life can be compared to the gift of money in the world: the money can be applied to purchase goods which can be completely life-changing as to the style of living. And so the Spirit changes the style of life, not just a minute area. But as money must be spent to change a life-style, so the Spirit must be active to change the style of life. The knowledge to activate the Spirit is easy to find: the difficulty lies in our willingness to deny our human willfulness to dictate what we will think and say and do, and instead to yield to God’s will, and especially to accept the manner of His teaching.

We would choose to learn with little effort having our lessons all laid out before us, without our research any commitment on our part. But this is not the way we learn in depth, in a depth that takes the lesson learned beyond the ‘head knowledge’ and extends it to ‘heart knowledge’, making it a part of our actions as well as our mind.

It is the Spirit that keeps us researching, who leads us to new discoveries and resources. We must ask His help – and accept it and heed His instructions in order to learn the lesson, and having learned it, to make it a life-changing element in our lives.

No Division – Only Multiplication

Will you hand it to Me that I may warm it in My Spirit and expand it into fulness?

Meditation Thought: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Mark 12:31 & Romans 13:9)

You shall minister to your neighbor as yourself. In every thought, every word, every deed, it matters not who is the recipient; the action is to be as unto Me. When you care for your body, you care for Me;
When you enrich your mind, you enrich My glory;
When you say words of encouragement to your enemy, you praise My Name; When you sacrifice your desires to minister to others, you sing the songs of angels exulting in the fellowship of My Presence.

Do you understand now? There is nothing separate on earth or in heaven. Your choice must be for good, for your God’s will, if you desire good for yourself. For the measure you give is the measure you receive; your cast-out bread will return.

As you pour yourself out in all the means available to you, when you pour yourself through My Spirit rather than pouring directly into the world, My Spirit enriches your expressions and makes them blessings multiplied on earth and in heaven. It’s like a kernel of corn puffs up in the heat – and the volume expands and overflows to the point that what you poured out is then gently returned to you in a new, more desirable form.

Until this concept is learned, the sin of selfishness and pride of possession keeps the kernels of corn your only possession. Do you dare to trust Me with every kernel in your life? Will you hand Me each one that I may warm it in My Spirit and expand it into fulness and bless your neighbors and yourself?

You Choose Your Inheritance

You are responsible as to your choice of parents – a seemingly impossible situation. It is possible because…

Meditation Thought: “This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as descendants.” (Romans 9:8)

“You have been given a measure of faith, you have been given the promise in the Word, you have been given free will. What are you doing with your gifts? Are you using them as they are intended? Are you enjoying them? Are they changing you and changing those whom you know and whom you meet?

Every particle of time, every particle of matter, every particle of spirit has its purpose and meaning. Sense this purpose and meaning with your spirit, your mind, your emotions, your will – the history of the world and of the Kingdom is shaped and revealed by this awareness in each soul. You are responsible as to your choice of parents – a seemingly impossible situation. It is possible because your free will may be exercised to choose to be a descendant of the promise (i.e. Jesus), or a descendant only of the world. You choose your inheritance rather than being born into it. Choose carefully among the choices of inheritances available; ‘looks’ can be deceiving. A casual glance determining your choice will bring you grief; a determined effort to explore the depth of every inheritance before choosing will reap eternal joy.

Do not be envious that while some play, you are working at detecting the nature of all the possible inheritances available: your joy will be in your discoveries, bit by bit, and your growing confidence in your final choice bringing eternal joy to you and by your example, to others also.

Take heart, keep on keeping on, by the strength of example put before you by those who have gone before you, living and dead, who reveal to you the depths of possible inheritances if you will ask them and trust them to do this for you.

I have set before you a task; I have set before you the tools, and I have set before you a reward. The choice is yours – to take up the tools and to work, or to sit idly by, wasting the energy and the talent given to you by love. But one thing should you remember: there will come a day by which you give account of your choice, and you may not even realize that the day has come until much of it is over. Think about that. Prepare to defend your choice from the moment you commit yourself one way or the other, that when the final accounting overtakes you, you are in confidence prepared to defend your choice.”

Spirit Banking

The scriptures in your mind are your deposit in the bank, and your prayer is the check that releases them for your use when they are needed.

Meditation Thought: “But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.” (Matthew 5:39)

“Turn the other cheek in an act of love, compassion, understanding, a sweetness of spirit – of Spirit, a compliance with heavenly laws rather than “human nature”. Thus you are staying in the Spirit and not being of the world. Your Spirit-strength will not go unnoticed; an act which could have come and gone without note, or have exploded into a quarrel, will thus be turned into a victory: for God, for you, for the striker as he/she sees a new way.

Pray first, act later: even in the situations where action is quickly required, a ‘flash prayer’ is possible and required. This releases power from heaven, and power in you, rightly directed and effective. The principles are consistent in every situation, but you must know how to operate them appropriately. The scriptures in your mind are your deposit in the bank, and your prayer is the check that releases them for your use when they are needed. Keep your account well deposited so that you can pray constantly and have ample scriptures to supply every need.

The words of my Kingdom are foreign to you now, but the longer you reside in the Kingdom in your mind and in your spirit, the more competent you will become in understanding and using the language. Only by trying to use it can you become proficient in it. Knowing the language will facilitate communication but the sign language of love can always be used, even before the language is learned. We have come full circle now – turning the other cheek is an act of love and not an act of hate, which the world might expect as a reaction to being struck. Your nature is to become 100% love so that whenever it is touched in any way – whether by a loving expression, or a hateful expression, the only response that is capable of emerging is a loving response: an understanding, compassionate, truth-knowing, God-oriented and God-directed response.”

Spiraling

But if we keep moving, we will come to the center – to the Beginning and the End, and the Meaning.

Our lives are like a spiral leading to God in the center. We go along the path, moving constantly, sometimes wondering if the path really does lead anywhere. But if we keep moving, we will come to the center – to the Beginning and the End, and the Meaning. If we stop in the path because of the difficulties we encounter, then we do not find the Treasure which is at the end of the path.

Step One

We need to study the principles and pray for enlightenment so that we are acting with knowledge and with the will of God – which ensures that “all is possible”.

Meditation Thought: “All things are possible for one who believes.” (Mark 9:23)

The first step to any accomplishment is to believe that it is possible so that we will make the effort to succeed in it: we need to learn all we can about the situation, how to solve the problems and what cause will have what effect. When we learn the principles of life as set out by our Creator, we can apply them to each situation and know that they will work. But if we are ignorant of even one factor, the results can be vastly different.

We need to study the principles and pray for enlightenment so that we are acting with knowledge and with the will of God – which ensures that “all is possible”.

When I Am

When I am surrounded by enemies – no matter of what kind: real or imagined, physical or spiritual, feelings or thoughts – God rescues me when I call upon Him

Meditation Thought: “The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; The God of my strength, in whom I will trust.” (2 Samuel 22:2-3)

When I am standing upon rock, I am confident that I will not sink down into mire and find myself unsteady or unable to move freely.

When I am in my fortress, I am protected from harm.

When I am surrounded by enemies – no matter of what kind: real or imagined, physical or spiritual, feelings or thoughts – God rescues me when I call upon Him.

My weakness leaves me vulnerable but His strength overcomes all problems. I trust my Lord because He has proved Himself to me – His promises are real, and He backs them up with His actions.

That’s a Win!

When you see the enemy’s strength, quickly turn your eyes from him to your Leader.

Meditation Thought: “But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:57)

“I have sent a Hero to lead you to conquer your foes: Will you recognize Him, follow Him? If not, defeat will come. But the more you believe in Him, trust Him, obey Him, the more glorious the victories, the more enthusiastic you will be in the battles. Let Him use you – He knows your strongest assets and will use them well. Read your ‘marching orders’ every day, so you will be taking the right path to vanquish the enemy. When you see the enemy’s strength, quickly turn your eyes from him to your Leader – you know He has already been given the victory, and if you are right with Him, – both in the sense of obeying Him, and in the sense of being close to Him, the victory is yours also.”

P.E.A.C.E.

We can rest assured that we no longer need to fear the dark.

Meditation Thought: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27)

“You light up my life” – a few words from an old song, but what meaning! In the dark, we are afraid, uncertain of what surrounds us, where to go; we are apprehensive, nervous. A sudden illumination of light – and instant change: our fears vanish, we are assured, we are at peace.

With the Light inside of us illuminating everything with which we come in contact, we can rest assured that we no longer need to fear the dark – for there will be no dark for us. There will be all kinds of circumstances, situations, places – but always clearly seen, as our Guide is with us to deal with them.

P – Pray
E – Everything
A – Anytime
C – Circumstances
E – Everywhere

Psalm 23: A Psalm of David.
23 The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
3 He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord
Forever.

Daily Rescue

We do not have to wait for help to come, it is present all the time.

Meditation Thought: “Blessed be the Lord,
    who daily bears us up;
    God is our salvation. ” (Psalm 68:19)

Praise first, acknowledging the power, the ability, the willingness of our Lord, our God to help us – and our acknowledging this fact and our appreciation of it. He daily bears us up – we do not have to wait for help to come, it is present all the time.

We are presented with a problem: we do not panic, we know where to turn to find the solution: God is our salvation – our rescuer. With a Rescuer with such power, such love, why should we fear? As long as we call upon Him we overcome all difficulties, and we can enjoy much of the process in doing so – certainly we can bear the suspense, knowing the solution will please us and bring glory to God.

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