Knowing Christ

Philippians 1:9
And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight.

I often hear people talk about how they love Jesus more and more each day. They talk about how each and every day should be an opportunity for us to love Jesus more than the day before. Even as I type this, I hear a little Southern accent spicing it up a little. Gives me warm fuzzies, how about you?

So, how do we come to love Jesus more and more each day? Is it something that we just will to happen? We just make up our minds, and VOILA, we love Him more today than we did the previous day – right? Well, I really don’t think so. I think this verse very much illuminates the process through which we must go to love Jesus more with each passing day – we must know Him more, and let the relationship go deep.

We talk about love at first sight, and yet, is that really love? The Bible defines the greatest love as one that would cause a person to lay down their life for the other. I hope that is the kind of love I have for Jesus – it has never been tested, so it’s hard to say for sure, but that is my prayer. That is my goal. But that kind of love goes only as far as we know Jesus.

As we see His footsteps through Scripture, and hear His words, we come to know Him a little better, a little deeper - we love Him more. As we remember His sacrifice for us, and see how that has affected each of us so personally, we love Him more. As He reveals His great promises to us through Scripture, and we see how those promises are kept, we love Him more. As He reveals Himself, and His thoughts to us through prayer, study, life, and so many others things, we love Him more. Just as we get to know the people who are so dear to us, learning about them a little more each day, and growing to love them more with that knowledge, so it is with Christ.

We must seek Him – listen to His words, let Him reveal His deep thoughts to us, let Him touch our hearts and souls and make us different. We must get to know Him in the Word. We must get to know Him through prayer. I pray that each and every one of us would have a hunger, a fiery desire to get to know Christ so deeply that we will seek to know Him in any way possible. We will seize every opportunity, each and every day, so that with each day we can honestly say "I love Jesus so much more than I did yesterday!"

All His Benefits

Psalm 103:1-5
Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits - who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

The Lord has so many benefits, there’s no way we could list them all, but I think this Psalm says so much. I love the completeness of each statement – He forgives us of our sins, and heals us of our diseases. It’s not as though He says we’re forgiven and then just lets us sit and rot in our own guilt and pain. No, He heals us, restores us.

He redeems our lives from the pit, and crowns us with love and compassion. It’s not as though He simply reaches down into the pit, pulls us out, sets us on the edge, and says “keep moving!” like some slave-driver. No, He pulls us out, cleans us up, and crowns us as though we had never been in a pit, but always upon a throne.

See, God doesn’t just do things because He has to. We are His children, and He desires to give us good things, great things. So often we live as though He has just given us the first part, without completing it with the second. We live forgiven, but not healed; redeemed, but not crowned. We live as though He saves us, but doesn’t seek to satisfy our desires with good things, blessed things, heavenly things.

Let us praise the Lord for all that He is, all that He does, and let’s live each day victorious, remembering all His benefits. Be blessed today!

Whatever is Pure

Philippians 4:8
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.

Our minds are a HUGE battle ground – so much of the spiritual life is won or lost in our thoughts. That is why lust is considered adultery, and hate considered murder. Our thoughts are what trigger so much in us – most everything starts with just a thought, a day-dream, a consideration. Yet, this is one of the most difficult areas in our lives to master and control.

The Bible tells us that we are to think on such things that are excellent or praiseworthy, but how can we do that when our brains are being dominated by thoughts that seem to be out of our control? Well, first, we MUST give our every thought, our every dream, our every desire to God. We must give Him permission to direct us and re-direct us as we need. Then, when He taps us on the shoulder to let us know that we are headed down a dangerous road, we must make a concerted effort to think on something true, noble, right, pure, and lovely.

We must also fill our thoughts with the Word of God. There is no better way to affect change from the inside out. We must read it, meditate on it, memorize it. As our minds take in this Manna from heaven, our thoughts will begin to change in response. It will become much easier with each passing to day to keep a smile on our faces, to handle difficult times, and all the challenges that we face. As we begin to view the world through the words of God, our whole lives will change.

It will take a lot of practice, and re-direction on God’s part, and our willingness to cooperate, but it will be so worth it! There will be many days when we would rather sleep than get up a little early to read our Bibles. We will struggle and muddle through, but each day it will get easier, as we begin to see the changes in all that we are. Our hearts and actions will begin to change in reflection of all that is changing in our minds. Our whole countenance will reflect Christ in a dazzling array of the glory and love of God. Then, all that we face will be seen through the "rose-colored glass" that is the Word of God.

Eyes Fixed on Christ

Psalm 141:8-9
But my eyes are fixed on you, O Sovereign LORD; in you I take refuge-do not give me over to death. Keep me from the snares they have laid for me, from the traps set by evildoers.

Keeping our eyes fixed on God would alleviate so many problems in our lives, wouldn’t you agree? We get so busy looking around at everything else that we forget to follow Him. Or else, we try to side-step and avoid all the traps that we come across, and in the mean-time find ourselves having backed into another one we didn’t see. The evil one has done his job well, that’s for sure.

Yet, as this verse indicates, when we simply focus on Christ, He leads us around the death that is awaiting us, otherwise known as sin, keeps our feet on a firm foundation, and keeps us headed in the right direction.

Seems so easy, doesn’t it, to just look to Christ at all times? Ah, but we are easily distracted creatures, and Satan knows that. So what’s to be done to keep from distraction? Nothing, really. All we can do is turn back to Christ the moment we realize we have looked away, and rest in the promise that He will restore us. Now, depending on how long we gawked and gazed in other directions, it may take some time, but He will do it. He will get us back on the path, headed in the right direction again.

So, let’s try to keep our focus on Christ, one step at a time. I think with practice, we will find that it becomes very natural to look to Christ at all times, and we will not be as easily distracted by the one who has death in his eyes. I bet he just fumes when we are able to avoid all his nasty little traps by simply looking to the One who defeated him some 2000 years ago. Now that’s a thought that makes me smile!

Know That God Is God

Psalm 46:10a
Be still, and know that I am God.

This is such a common verse - most everyone knows it, probably because we really need it, especially in our crazy, fast society.

Be still; cease all worry, anxiety, striving, etc, and know that He is God. We so often focus on the first part of the verse (at least I do), without thinking much about the second part. Yet, really, the second part is the most important part.

It doesn't do to just be still, to stop striving, and rest. Yes, it's good, and it's necessary, but in and of itself it will do no real, lasting good. It's in the knowing that God is God that brings the real benefit.

Those five words really have such power, but because we tend to throw the name of God around, it has lost so much of its power and meaning. What does it mean to be God? Let's really think about it. What falls under His name? What power does it have? Who is God? The Bible says so much about the One who pursues us relentlessly, loves us unconditionally, and forgives us endlessly. The name of God should conjure within us release from all worry and anxiety, because He is in control; strength and courage, because He is our strength; comfort and peace, because He is our shelter and our strongtower.

There is so much to the name of God - so much to learn and know of Him. Spend time in the Word today, looking at His characteristics - all He is and all He promises us, as His precious children.

Spur One Another On

Hebrews 10:24
And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.

This verse serves as a great reminder why we need to have those people in our lives that are Christians, spurring us onward in this Christian walk. It’s so easy to withdraw and become a Christian recluse - not attending church or a Bible study or anything that would give us consistent contact with people who know us and know how to encourage and challenge us. But that is dangerous ground. Verse 25 in this passage tells us to "not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another–and all the more as you see the Day approaching." So, it is obvious that to spur one another on we must be in the "habit" of meeting together with other Christians.

But, is just being around other Christians enough? I don’t think it is. We must allow them to be in our lives, as we are in theirs, so that we can grow together and support each other. We must open up and let them know what is going on, good and bad. We must let them see us for who we are, and be vulnerable. And we must let them challenge us when we are wrong, and encourage and help us when we are down. We must let them in, as they let us in. We need to be there for them, as they are there for us. Sometimes we may have to be a little inconvenienced or go out of our way to help them, but it is so worth it as these relationships grow and we begin to see how God uses them in our lives and theirs. God did not intend that we would be solitary creatures. He designed us for fellowship, with Him above all, but also with those around us, as well.

Do you know someone who needs some encouragement or help right now? Perhaps you know someone who needs to be challenged to go further or deeper. Is there someone who consistently provides support and encouragement in your life, that you could now return the favor in some way? Most importantly, are there Christians in your life on a consistent, relationship-growing basis, that can challenge and support you, as you challenge and support them? If not, that is where you need to start. Join a small group or Bible Study - find some way to surround yourself with people who can spur you on toward love and good deeds, and whom you can then return the favor. Then, when you have those people in your life, try to be constantly aware of their needs, and any way you can be there for them. Let’s see what God has in store for us through the people He surrounds us with.