Give to God all of you, not just a few hours on Sunday!
Welcome to the latest edition of my Blog!
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Reflecting on a song by Tenth Avenue North, Control, Click HERE to see video.
“…the King of heaven wants me…”
A friend of mine call me the other night after almost six months. He wanted to know if I can help him build a shed on his back yard. He went on to explain how he loved my friendship and he was sorry he did not call or visit more often. He explained he was so busy with his business and did not have the time.
The call made me reflect on a devotional by Oswald Chambers, My Utmost For His Highest. I read this devotional daily and sometimes there is one that touches my heart the right way as if God was telling me, “Pay Attention Son!”
How often we approach God in prayer to ask something from Him? How often we think of God during the day? Maybe when I am trouble and I need His help. When do we give thanks to God? Only when He gives us something we expected from Him?
We almost treat God as a genie in a bottle. Whenever we need Him we rub the bottle.
When do we just pray and ask God to hug us and let us feel Him close to us because we miss His presence? When, in our waking moments, we just say, Thanks Daddy for waking me, good morning, I love you!
Our God is more than a thought, and idea. He is a Personal God and wants a Personal Relationship with us such as the one Adam and Eve enjoyed with Him before they disobeyed. They enjoyed times with the Lord in the cool of the day (Genesis 3:8.)
Read below how Jesus longs for a relationship with His creation:
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!
Matthew 23:37 NKJV
God want to bless us so much, He wants to give us so much, but we must give Him control. We must deny ourselves and pickup our cross daily (Matthew 16:24.) He must increase, we must decrease until all that people see in us is Christ!
Here is the devotional transcript from March 12:
Total Surrender
By Oswald Chambers
https://utmost.org
Published March 12, 2019
Peter began to say to Him, “See, we have left all and followed You.” —Mark 10:28
Our Lord replies to this statement of Peter by saying that this surrender is “for My sake and the gospel’s” (Mark 10:29). It was not for the purpose of what the disciples themselves would get out of it.Beware of surrender that is motivated by personal benefits that may result. For example, “I’m going to give myself to God because I want to be delivered from sin, because I want to be made holy.” Being delivered from sin and being made holy are the result of being right with God, but surrender resulting from this kind of thinking is certainly not the true nature of Christianity.
Our motive for surrender should not be for any personal gain at all. We have become so self-centered that we go to God only for something from Him, and not for God Himself. It is like saying, “No, Lord, I don’t want you; I want myself. But I do want You to clean me and fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I want to be on display in Your showcase so I can say, ‘This is what God has done for me.’ ”
Gaining heaven, being delivered from sin, and being made useful to God are things that should never even be a consideration in real surrender.
Genuine total surrender is a personal sovereign preference for Jesus Christ Himself.
Where does Jesus Christ figure in when we have a concern about our natural relationships? Most of us will desert Him with this excuse— “Yes, Lord, I heard you call me, but my family needs me and I have my own interests. I just can’t go any further” (see Luke 9:57-62). “Then,” Jesus says, “you ‘cannot be My disciple’ ” (see Luke 14:26-33).
True surrender will always go beyond natural devotion. If we will only give up, God will surrender Himself to embrace all those around us and will meet their needs, which were created by our surrender. Beware of stopping anywhere short of total surrender to God. Most of us have only a vision of what this really means, but have never truly experienced it.
If our relationship with God is not near as close to that level, we may need to be BORN AGAIN! Only when we are born of the Spirit can we experience a relationship that God wants with us. We must give him control and seek Him with all our heart. We are talking about Total Surrender, Total Control.
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.
Jeremiah 29:11-13 NIV
Abba Father,
I long for your presence and your joy every second of my life. When I am with you, I have everything. Thanks for being such great and loving God. I give you control of my life because you know me inside and out and have the best interest for me, I trust You! May your will be done here as it is in heaven.
In the name of Jesus!
Amen
Are you BORN AGAIN? Click to know more!
May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
2 Corinthians 13:14
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