Why am I too busy for God...or am I?

^{Luke 24:13-35}

       And behold, two of them were going that very day to a village named Emmaus, which was ^[about seven miles from Jerusalem. And they were talking with each other about all these things which had taken place. While they were talking and discussing, Jesus Himself approached and began traveling with them.  But their eyes were prevented from recognizing Him.  

     And He said to them, “What are these words that you are exchanging with one another as you are walking?” And they stood still, looking sad. One of them, named Cleopas, answered and said to Him, “Are You the only one visiting Jerusalem and unaware of the things which have happened here in these days?” And He said to them, “What things?” And they said to Him, “The things about Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word in the sight of God and all the people, and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to the sentence of death, and crucified Him. But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, it is the third day since these things happened. But also some women among us amazed us. When they were at the tomb early in the morning, and did not find His body, they came, saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said that He was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just exactly as the women also had said; but Him they did not see.” 

      And He said to them, “O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?” Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.

     And they approached the village where they were going, and He acted as though He were going farther. But they urged Him, saying, “Stay with us, for it is getting toward evening, and the day is now nearly over.” So He went in to stay with them. When He had reclined at the table with them, He took the bread and blessed it, and breaking it, He began giving it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him; and He vanished from their sight. They said to one another, “Were not our hearts burning within us while He was speaking to us on the road, while He was explaining the Scriptures to us?” And they got up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found gathered together the eleven and those who were with them, saying, “The Lord has really risen and has appeared to Simon.” They began to relate their experiences on the road and how He was recognized by them in the breaking of the bread.

The following thoughts are from Sammy M. Gumbe on the Upper Room Devotional. They resonate with me at times and often use these words as a reminder to stay on track and focus on God. Hearing His voice is the key to successful spiritual formation.

"The two disciples walking on the road to Emmaus were so busy in their thoughts and in their discussion that they did not recognize Jesus when he began to walk with them. How this story reminds me of my walk with Jesus! 

"As a Christian leader and trainer, I often find myself extremely busy in ministry, training ministers in spiritual formation and Christian leadership. Recently, though, I have realized that in doing so much work "in the name of God," I have neglected a basic element in my own life of faith: intimacy with God and growth in my personal spiritual formation. 

"When we become busy in our "doing" for God and forget to spend time in God's presence with scripture and prayer, we will find ourselves becoming tired and frustrated with our work. In our ministry for Christ, we miss Christ's ministry to us. 

"I have learned that I need to have intimate times with God constantly, even as I go about doing things for God. My Christian service has changed for the better as I have prayed, 'Lord, help me and lead me as I daily serve you'."

May we never forget to listen for His voice and His character in our lives. You know I love ya, Don

All our Questions are answered in the Presence of Jehovah!

"Co-Union" what? Is this like co-habitate?

“For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority;” Colossians 2:9-10

The "Him" of this text is of course Jesus. Paul is teaching his readers that Jesus was God. He was God in bodily form. Jesus chose to take on the form of a flesh and blood. He establishes Himself in the body. He is God dwelling midst us. God living among men and women. It is a wonderful life of "co-habitation."

Paul than goes on to teach us that a result of God dwelling in flesh and blood is for those who believe are being made complete. Complete in what? We are made complete in a restored relationship with God. That is we are able to have a friendship, a conversation, and a mutual dwelling with the creator of all things. It is a relationship God is seeking. Through God's willingness and desire for us, He made it possible for us to know, feel, and live a mutual essence of life together. Simply put, Jesus is God and because of Him, we have "co-union" with God.

Just like any other relationship, it takes work and dedication. That is why we practice the spiritual disciplines for the purpose of Spiritual Formation. We learned to walk as a child by getting up and falling down...we then would get up and fall down...eventually we would learn to run and stay up. The same is true for the Christ-Follower. We must start to study, listen, fast, meditate, seek out solitude and all the other disciplines, so as to learn to toddle...then walk....then run.

We are in the process of being made complete. We are bring transformed into His likeness. We are striving for holiness because He is Holy. Is it easy? No, but no one ever said it would be. In fact, it is said, "That if it was easy, anyone could do it." Holiness requires hard work, discipline, and dedication. These are not easy. These can become natural. 

I think the hardest step for Christ-followers is the second step. My advice is just take the step...yes, you might fall again, but persistence is the key. I love walking with the Lord and I can testify the work is worth the relationship. Being made complete is a continual journey...God loves the journey. Notice, that He doesn't wave goodbye as you start your journey, He packs His bags and walks with you. Thus, "co-union" with Him is the best part of the journey and the journey is today.

Where are on the journey and are you "co-habitating" with God?

Thank you for sharing the journey with me. You know I love ya, Don

Spending our Energy....Seeking a Renewable Energy!

Everyone needs to learn and grow in faith in order to hear the voice of God in their life. The hard times are often the great times for spiritual development and learning to discern God's voice. Ronald states in the following devotions as a call for us to renew our love for God and to hear Him in our daily lives. It is discovery of His love and purpose that is truly a renewable energy. This is a devotion borrowed from a Spiritual Gifts website...may each of us grow closer to Him in order to find the peace, abundance, and joy He offers.

TODAY’S VERSE
“Jesus replied, ‘I tell you the truth, you want to be with me because I fed you, not because you understood the miraculous signs. But don’t be so concerned about perishable things like food. Spend your energy seeking the eternal life that the Son of Man can give you. For God the Father has given me the seal of his approval.’” – “At this point many of his disciples turned away and deserted him. Then Jesus turned to the Twelve and asked, ‘Are you also going to leave?’”
Matthew 6:26-27, 66-67 (NLT)

TODAY’S MESSAGE
Sometimes we don’t get it. Our priorities get all mixed up. Like many of Jesus’ disciples, we follow Him for the food and miracles. We have the offer of a deep relationship with God and yet we would rather have the blessings than the blesser. The truth is, it takes maturity to really understand all that we have in God. After all the time they spent together, Jesus still had to ask His disciples, “Are you also going to leave?” In his book, “The Pressures Off”, Dr. Larry Crabb writes, “Until we develop a taste for God, we prefer a better life of blessings from God over a better hope of intimacy with Him.” But what happens when blessings don’t come? What happens when the job we wanted doesn’t pan out, when sickness interrupts our plans, our children don’t act the way we think they should? When our eyes are on our circumstances and not our creator, it is easy to get discouraged. We can lose hope and become bitter. Why, because we have worshiped the gifts and not the giver, the blessings and not the blesser. Today, we need to renew our love for God. Knowing Him is the real blessing. We need to love God, who alone is our source of our joy. No matter what circumstances come our way, as we develop a relationship with God and truly love Him, we will find true peace and joy in life.

TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, help me love You today more than ever. Help me seek You more than Your blessings. Help me understand Your love for me and the incredible joy that is mine as I follow You.
AMEN

You know I love ya, Don

Developing, Growing, Learning in my Spirituality!

This devotion is to draw us closer to God and develop our Spirituality. It is borrowed from Spiritual Gifts website. May each of us be mindful of who we are and what the Almighty is developing within us. 

TODAY’S VERSE
“In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.”
Romans 12:6-8 (NLT)

TODAY’S MESSAGE
Are you aware that God has given you certain passions and abilities to use for His glory? God has given every believer at least one spiritual gift for doing His will in this world. And then His Holy Spirit nudges you to use it through a strong desire to serve Him in a way that seems to make sense for you. Paul gives examples like serving, teaching, giving and leadership. So if different people all see a need, like helping the homeless in the community, He could motivate one to serve food at a shelter, another to teach at a job readiness class, another to give of their income to provide for the needed shelter and yet another to lead a church to get involved. Each person reacted to the same problem through the way God motivated them, using the gifts he blessed them with. Today, ask God to reveal to you the different ways you could serve Him. He has given you spiritual gifts and will show you when and where to use them.

TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, thank You that You have given me spiritual gifts. Help me learn everything I can about them and help me use them for your glory.
AMEN

You know I love ya, Don

Happy Birthday America!

Advice for the disillusioned.....

 

The following is a portion of an email I receive from Jeff Goins. It is a blog post on "when we stop believing" in what we write. Jeff is an outstanding writer's resource and has some great advice and thoughts. You can check out other Jeff Goins material at http://goinswriter.com/ . I highly recommend it.

 

 

The cure for disillusionment

Living vicariously through the adventures of others is what we scribes, writers, and bards do. Frankly, it’s your job, and somebody’s gotta do it. However, sometimes you just have to get out there and live your own story. That’s what I did, and it changed everything.
Here are three ways I learned to do that — and how you can, too:

1. Embrace the extraordinary nature of ordinary life. Look around you — you’re living a miracle. Every day is a gift; treat is as such, even when it feels like a discipline. Remember: Without the people in the dark, the person in the spotlight doesn’t shine.
2. Find ways to be remarkable, wherever you are. Mother Teresa said, “We can do no big things, only small things with love.” Take out your neighbor’s trash; go for a walk. Don’t just sulk; seek ways to make today amazing.
3. Live a better story. Ditch your excuses and find a way to travel, even if it’s only across town. Serve the less-fortunate through a mission trip or service project, even if it’s in your own back yard. Do something unexpected, like skydiving or planning a surprise date for your spouse. You have opportunities; use them.

If you feel like the work you do is taken for granted, you’re probably right. But that’s what you signed up for. That’s what it means to serve, to tell somebody else’s story. Deal with it, or be done with it.

I choose to embrace the extraordinary, look for the remarkable, and live a better story. Thanks for reading and you know I love ya, Don