Hungry for the Transformation....

Followers of Jesus should be the old game, Hungry, Hungry Hippo. The goal of the game that each play gets a hippo to catch up as many marbles as possible. Christian that are strong toward the Apostle’s teaching should be like the hippo quickly seeking to get every nugget of truth from God’s word.

Sins damage the human soul. Transformation is the hunger from deep within the belly of a believer seeking to know more of God and his ways. Acts 20:1 states, "On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight." Paul was leaving the next day they hungered for the word…so they listen all night long. It is like being out doing physical labor or exercise for a long period of time without food. Deep within your stomach is this urgent call for good food…when you get that hungry there is no desire for junk food only the nourishment that comes from quality food.

The Apostles lived as Jesus lived and followed him for three years. They possessed the knowledge and experience of the tangible life of Jesus. The Holy Spirit guided them in mentoring others as Jesus had mentored them. The new believers embraced mentoring while establishing disciple making as a major pillar in the infrastructure of this new sect within the Jewish faith. 

    The Holy Spirit within a believer encourages the heart and mind to know more about Jesus on a personal level. Jesus was set apart to accomplish the will of God. The Holy Spirit sets the believer apart as a demonstration of transformation. The Holy Spirit sets that church apart as the church sets out to impact the surrounding environment. The Christian theologian, John Stott describes, “They sat at the apostles' feet, hungry to receive instruction, and they persevered in it.”^[1] Discipleship for the early believers was to take that which was forming within their own being and share it with others.

You know I love ya, Don

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[1]          John Stott. The Spirit The Church and The World (Downers Grove, IL.: Intervarsity, 1990), 82.

Being Elevated to Save our life!

Developing a habitual commitment to study and meditation on God’s word elevates the believer to a place of heighten awareness of God’s purpose and a keen awareness of right living. It is the ability to discern right from wrong. It is the absolute truth of God’s revelation. The bible is God’s letter of love and grace to you and to your abundance in living.

Airplane and a rat! An airplane pilot was flying his plane one day when he heard a scratching sound behind him. Knowing he was the only one on board, he quickly realized that it must be a rat. Putting on his oxygen mask, he began to increase altitude and continued this until the scratching and gnawing sounds stopped. After concluding his flight, the aviator searched his plane and found the dead body of the rat next to a hydraulic line that was almost chewed into. He had killed it by taking it to an altitude where there wasn’t enough oxygen to sustain its life. Had he not done so, that little rat could have taken the pilots life. 

 

When we study the truths of the apostle’s teaching, we elevate ourselves to a place that eliminates the unrighteousness from our lives. Hebrews 4:12 states, “ For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

You know I love ya...Don

Transforming me in 2014: Pursuing personal experiences with God

A few moments in the presence of God will change anyone.  Sometimes God just shows up on His own initiate and changes people.  However, He has also given us several places to meet with Him and experience Him…if we are looking for Him.  We can experience God in what we commonly call the spiritual disciplines.  (Prayer, meditation, the Bible, silence, solitude, giving, serving, worship, fellowship with other Christians, fasting, etc.)  Spending time with God allows Him to customize us to abundant life.

Jesus said in John 15:4, “Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.”

 Cling to the truth…always forgive…resist temptation…pursue God…goals for transformation!

You know I love ya, Don

Tranforming me in 2014: Resisting evil influences

Resisting evil influences

The true test and temptation is not what you do with your weakness. You know your weakness. You know what you do not have. You have no choice but to stand in humility because you are weak in that area.  You and I have a choice when it comes to our weakness… we can fight it and let it take over or you can recognize it is a weakness and go through the fire and suffer. You are powerless in the situation. The true test in temptation is what do you do with what you have? 

 

What you have is what power you have. This is why people who have nothing will lie, steal, and cheat to get something. They have nothing so they must find a way to gain the power to make their own choices. 

It is what you have that truly draws in your temptation. How do you handle this opportunity? Do you use it for your own good or for the good of others. It is not about how you handle broke with your tithe…10% of broke is still broke! It is about how you handle what you have been given and do you give with an open heart that says it all belongs to God and 10% is His portion…. or do you keep strings attached to what God has given you.

You have Internet at your house…you have the power of the world wide web. How you use it is your test. 

“Having” opens responsibility and that opens the influence of temptation…Do you show off so everyone can see what super Christian you are…when you resist evil influences you never have to prove what you already are.

James 4:7 states; “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

Satan and his minions are like hackers who are constantly trying to insert bad software into your mind.  We must learn how to identify them, remove them and shut down their access points into our lives. Resisting temptation is hard work and it is hard to remain faithful when all we think on is the sin.

Cling to the truth…always forgive…resist temptation…Seeking transformation in 2014. You know I love ya, Don

Transforming me in 2014: Practicing all aspects of authentic forgiveness

Sins damage the human soul.  Education does not bring healing.  Practicing forgiveness does! Forgiveness is the key to freedom. Fully receiving God’s forgiveness, effectively forgiving other people and sincerely asking others to forgive us allows God to heal the damage caused by sin.

 Colossians 1:13-14 says; “For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”

Practicing forgiveness is like having someone repair damaged hardware in your computer. The truth has new meaning when you truly forgive those around you. This is the activity most commonly left unattended and hinders transformation.

Developing a lifestyle of forgiveness is essential to life-transformation and spiritual formation.

Seeking transformation in 2014...You know I love ya, Don

Transforming me in 2014: Exposure to and assimilation of Truth!!!

Truth is a life-transforming agent.  The more truth we know (personally, intimately and exponentially) the more we will become like Jesus.  Jesus said it this way:

“If you continue in my word…you will know the truth and the truth will make you free.”  John 8:31-32

Assimilating truth is like downloading new software into your mind. You are what you think. If you want to be a scientist, you go study science. If you want to be a musician you think on music. If you want to be a historian, you study and think on history. If you want to be a follower of Jesus, you need to think on Jesus. If you want to renew your mind and bring about a transformation with in your heart…then you need to think on the truth.

Being a racist is not something you were born with …you thought on these things and it is a lie that changed your thought process. Sin in your life of watching bad things or using crude language or clinging to property or coveting and lusting over things are all sins of the mind…want to change and have a new day... a new year…find exposure to and assimilate in your life truth.

Seeking Transformation in 2014...You know I love ya, Don

Merry Christmas From the Crane's

Wishing you a Merry Christmas from Don, Karen, Matthew, Alice, Kendyll, and Nathan!

You Know We Love Ya, Don