Who Is Directing Your Heart?

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“Who is Directing Your Heart?”
February 2011

May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance.

– 2 Thessalonians 3:5

The above verse is just a very simple one that caught my eye as I was reading His Word a few months back. So, who should be directing our heart? Man? The world? TV? Radio? The news? Our favorite author? Our friends? Who?

The scripture makes it clear that it should be the Lord directing our heart. And then the follow-up is – Into what? The answer is again clear – “God’s love and Christ’s perseverance.”

To me that speaks of two things:

First, we are to view things from the love of God. We love because He first loved us. (I John 4:19) God is love. (I John 4:16) We should be viewing others around us through the love of God.

Second, “Christ’s perseverance” speaks to me of staying the course. Do not be distracted by the world and worldly things. It speaks of standing firm in godly convictions, standing firm on His Word, doing the right thing.

Bottom Line: May our hearts be directed by the Lord and may that directing lead us into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance so we can view others through His love and so we can stand firm, stand strong in the faith and not wavier in our walk with Him. Amen? Amen!

Love in Christ

MG

Be Bold

The wicked man flees though no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion. – Proverbs 28:1[NIV]

So Saul (later Paul) stayed with them and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. – Acts 9:28 [NIV]

So we may boldly say: “The LORD is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?” – Hebrews 13:6 [NKJV]

I have been saying for a few months that the Lord has been speaking to me about boldness and being bold. I believe this is something we are to take to heart as we enter the 2011 New Year. The scriptures are repleat with examples of being bold, of exhibiting boldness, and encouraging others to be bold – all in and for our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

I pray that this New Year brings a “boldness” into your daily walk with Him that you have never experienced before. And, that as we recognize His activity around us (wherever it may be – home, work, publicly, privately) we will be “bold” to enter in and be a part of it for the sake of His Kingdom purposes.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! AND LET’S BE BOLD FOR HIM!

MG

Now Word -- Be Bold

A Now Word for CCC
Be Bold

Be bold in letting your light shine so that His light shines through you to others.
Be bold to speak His truth in love.
Be bold to uphold His standard of righteousness.
Be bold for the Lord Your God is with you.
Therefore, do not hold back.
Do not hold back your joy.
Do not hold back your excitement.
Do not hold back your gifting.
Do not hold back your service, your giving, His tithe.
Do not hold back the love, grace and mercy in your heart.
Do not hold back your transformed life in Christ Jesus.
Be bold in Him and in His calling upon your life.

Let your light shine so that His light shines through you to others.
Be bold in Christ Jesus.

Ascribe to the Lord Glory and Strength

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October 2010

Glory in His holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice … Ascribe to the LORD, O families of nations, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength, ascribe to the LORD the glory due His name. Bring an offering and come before Him; worship the LORD in the splendor of His holiness. –
I Chronicles 16:10 & 28-29

These are some of the words from David’s Psalm of Thanks after the ark of the LORD was brought into the City of David. There was great rejoicing over the name and the presence of the LORD that day.

Through the power of the Holy Spirit His presence now dwells within us [Eph. 2:22]. Just plain and simply this month I want to encourage us to rejoice in the LORD and to give Him the glory everyday. To be able to say when we wake up every morning, “Glory to God! This is Your day, LORD. I am going to rejoice in it.”

Shout it in the shower. Proclaim it in your car on the way to work and do the same on your way home. “Glory to God! This is Your day, LORD. I am going to rejoice in it.”

He is Creator of heaven and earth [Gen 14:22]. He created our inmost being [Ps. 139:13]. There is not anything that is hidden from Him [Heb. 4:13]. He is light and in Him there is no darkness [I John. 1:5] He is the Alpha and the Omega [Rev. 21:6].

Bottom Line: May we give the indwelling God of all creation the glory due His name each and every day.

Love in Christ,

MG

Do Not Put Out The Spirit's Fire

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September 2010

“Do not put out the Spirit’s fire;” – I Thessalonians 5:19

Several things speak to me concerning these seven words:

1. Spirit denotes God’s Presence as we read in Acts 2:1-4 concerning Pentecost and the outpouring of His Spirit just as He promised (Acts 1:4-5).

2. The Spirit represents God’s Presence in the life of the believer.

3. If God’s Presence is with us then others around us should want to be around us.

4. Do my actions, my words, my deeds, my attitude, etc. (as a Spirit filled believer) draw people to Christ?

5. Or, because I have “put out the Spirit’s fire” do my actions, my words, my deeds, my attitude, etc. repel people so that they say, “Well! If that is what being a ‘Christian’ is about, I want no part of it.”?

6. When we do not represent God’s Presence – “the Spirit’s fire” – we repel not attract people to the life of Christ.

Bottom Line: Let us not quench God’s Presence in our lives. Let “the Spirit’s fire” be evident in our lives so others may want to “taste and see that the Lord is good.” (Psalm 34:8)

Love in Christ,

MG

A Now Word -- Be Transformed

A Now Word for CCC

Given on August 8, 2010

Be willing to be transformed.

Transformed by His Spirit.

Transformed into His likeness and all that involves.

Transformed to produce the fruit of His Kingdom.

(His love, His joy, His peace, His patience, His kindness,

His goodness, His faithfulness, His gentleness, His self-control)

Transformed to have eyes to see as He sees.

Transformed to have ears to hear as He hears.

Transformed to speak the Father's words.

Transformed to know the mind of Christ.

Transformed to go and do as He directs.

Be willing to be transformed.

Transformed by His Spirit.

MG

Set Your Hearts and Minds on Things Above

August 1, 2010

Since, then, you have been raise with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. -- Colossians 3:1-2

I do not claim to understand all there is to this scripture, but some time last summer God began to reveal some things to me. Some of the key phrases here are: "set your hearts on things above", "set your minds on things above", "where Christ is seated at the right hand of God".

That tells me that my heart and my mind need to be pondering, thinking about and praying about things from a heavenly perspective. There is so much happening around us in this world that can be absolutely distracting to our daily walk. We become burdened by events, news articles, news reports, disasters, wars, lack of peace and the list could go on and on. I am not saying we are to stick our head in the sand and ignore national and world events but our perspective on those national and world events should be viewed "against the background of eternity".* We so often (and this is a natural thing to do) view our life and this world through only our natural eyes. I believe that Paul is encouraging us that there is more than meets our natural eyes. Our hearts and our minds need to view things from a heavenly perspective. That's not easy but we need to try and do it daily.

Jesus himself states in John 14:33 -- In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.

BOTTOM LINE: Ask for a spiritual heart and a spiritual mind so that you may view events, circumstances, situations (national and worldly) from a heavenly perspective and not just your natural eyes.

MG

* William Barclay, The Daily Bible Study Series, Colossians, p. 147