Intentional!

The word of the Lord, our bible, is full of wisdom, guidance, conviction, love, and is a powerful tool the Lord gives us to live our lives.  If we are to grow in the Lord, be overcomers in Him, we have to be more INTENTIONAL in our seeking the Lord with all our hearts.

God says in Proverbs 2 vs 1 - 6:  My son, if you receive my words, and treasure my commands within you, (2) So that you incline your ear to wisdom, and apply your heart to understanding;  (3 ) Yes, if you cry out for discernment, and lift up your voice for understanding,  (4 ) If you seek her as silver, and search for her as for hidden treasures;  (5 ) then you will understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God.  (6 ) For the Lord gives wisdom;  from His mouth come knowledge and understanding.

Reading the word is one thing, receiving it, treasuring it, listening to it, applying it, crying out for it, voicing it, seeking widsom, and searching for it.... all these things will lead us to a much deeper understanding of what it is the Lord wants us to know, and do in our lives.  We will have a better understanding of our place in the world and in God's kingdom.  

God says in Jeremiah 29 vs 13:  And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.

God says He will be found if we search for Him with all our hearts.  

Well, how does one do this?  I think the answer is to be intentional.  Not haphazard, not habitual, but intentional - on purpose - about seeking Him. 

Last year I tried to make it a habit to start each day in the word.  This year, I want to continue doing that, but, dig deeper.  Take more time, mull over the word as I read it.  Research what the study notes say and if they do not satisfy with clarity my questions, then, dig deeper.  For me, its not about getting through the bible in a year, its more about understanding it as a whole as I read through it.

I also am trying to surrender my emotions, the things that take up too much of my time idols (if I put these things before God, they are idols, not so?), and my fears and anxieties that come with my days and the circumstances we find ourselves in.  I am working on surrender!  Surrender to God - dependence on my Lord and Saviour!

I'm trying to put into action what I read in the word into my day to day life, and I think by being more intentional about how I read the word, what I understand, and what it all means, I think that I will start being able to apply these principles to my life intentionally, and I believe my life will never be the same again.  Jesus will not allow anyone who strives to seek Him, to not be able to find Him!

I encourage you today to be more intentional in your relationship with the Lord, and I have no doubt your life will never be the same again.

God bless
Tracy

Matthew 18 - Wow!

I have started to read my way through the New Testament and of course starting with Matthew.  As I get older and hopefully a little more knowledgeable and wiser (one can only hope 😯), I find myself really enjoying each book more than I ever did in the past. 

In a recent quiet time, I read Matthew 18.  Shoo!  So much wisdom there.  So much practical application!  So much profundity!  So, thus, I had to share! 😃

Herewith Matthew 18 vs 1 - 35, listing the verses that jumped out at me this time round:

****Please note, highlights/italics/colour changes, are all mine****

Who Is the Greatest?

(1) At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” (2) And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them (3) and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.  (4) Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

-What does being child-like mean?  I would say naive, trusting, believing, dependent, humble (hmmm?).  However, for me the key here is humility and dependence.  Someone who does not think more highly of themselves than they should.  Children know their need of help, supervision, care, etc.  We should be like them and know our need of Jesus and His salvation, and this, as per what Jesus says, reflects who is greater, although being greater should absolutely NOT be our motivation-

(5) “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, (6) but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.

-I have to say that for me this scripture is very heart-breaking and vindicating.  Jesus is saying that if you cause a child who believes in Him to sin, it will not go well with you.  On one hand the heart-break comes from the understanding that there are people out there that do just that, and on the other hand, vindication comes from the fact that should they not repent and change their ways and seek the Lord's forgiveness, they will not get away with it!  Enough said!-

Temptations to Sin
(7) “Woe to the world for temptations to sin!  For it is necessary that temptations come, but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes!  (8) And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire.  (9) And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire.

-When I read this, that highlighted part jumped out at me.  Yes, there is temptation in the world.  Yes, we will all face some sort of temptation, probably pretty regularly.  Facing temptation is not the sin!  Falling for it and acting on it, is!  However, the one BY WHOM the temptation comes, Jesus says "Woe to that one!"  Yikes!  I think a "woe to you" from Jesus is something one should strive very hard to avoid. -

The Parable of the Lost Sheep
(10) “See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.  (12) What do you think?  If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray?  (13) And if he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray.  (14) So it is not the will of my Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.

-If you are chosen by the Lord for salvation, and I believe anyone who believes in Him and acknowledges Jesus as Lord and Saviour, is, and you go astray, Jesus will search for you, He will not let you go, and He will make sure you are brought back into the fold.  And, He will celebrate over you being reunited and returned to Him.  I find this very humbling.  God's steadfast love is so very thorough and we should NEVER take it for granted!-

If Your Brother Sins Against You
(15) “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.  (16) But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses.  (17) If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. (18) Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. (19) Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. (20) For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”

-When I read this, I feel that if we follow this process as above, and do everything as Jesus instructs here, and the person who has sinned against you refuses to budge (its called pride) and see the error of their ways, I have complete freedom to not see them as part of my family, as in the family of Christ.  In the past I have felt guilty.  Guilty that I do not want to embrace a person who has treated my family abominably and that they and their circle see only what they choose to see instead of the truth.  These verses set me free from that guilt.  I do not need to have anything to do with them.  I leave them in God's abundantly capable hands.  However, I can still pray for them-

The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant
(21) Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?”  (22) Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.

-Forgiveness of others is paramount to a healthy relationship with Jesus, with ourselves, and for our growth and inner peace.  It is truly easier to forgive, and forgive again, if you trust the person who hurt you to God, and trust Him to do what He knows best to do.  Release them to the Lord, constantly, until your forgiveness of them is cemented in your heart and soul.  You know it is when you have compassion for them.  Think of Jesus and His love of Judas.  He was full of compassion for him.  Sadly, Judas made his choices, which the person who hurts you does too.  Remember too, your choices.  Choose forgiveness always-

(I love this story.... ⤵ )
(23) “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants.  (24) When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.  (25) And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.  (26) So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’  (27) And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt.  (28) But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ (29) So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’  (30) He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt.  (31) When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place.  (32) Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me.  (33) And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’  (34) And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt.  (35) So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”

-Just incase the message has not got through, we need to forgive, as the Father has forgiven us.  God does not only forgive us what we can fix, He forgives us what we can't fix (eg the servant's debt was huge). Yet we do not reciprocate and forgive others????  Jesus says that when we do forgive, it should be from your heart!  Make sure your forgiveness is genuine and from and in your heart!-

Read Matthew 18 some time and let me know what it is you find in there that the Lord is impressing upon your heart!

God bless

Tracy