One week left! I feel great! My energy is up, my pants are falling off, and I am SO ready to be done with this month. haha
There's something about a rainy day that makes me extra productive; I suppose it's because I don't feel that I should be outside or something. I love rain, it's so soothing. So I thought I'd post today since I just know the creative juices are flowing...
I was really challenged in Bible study last week. Phil 3:16 Let us hold true to what we have attained As I was sitting there thinking about the next 6 months of this fast, I was instantly convicted. Let us hold true to what we have attained. Why am I always looking toward the future and what it holds for me, or striving for the next stage in life, when I haven't quite finished the work in front of me?
I'm just finishing up my month of a food fast. And instead of going over what I've learned and applying it to my life, I've just been focusing on what comes next. We can't be making judgements today on what our future holds when we haven't experienced the journey to get there.
Is it just women who fantasize about the next stage in life? Somehow I can't see men yearning for a white dress or little feet running around the house...hmmm
Regardless of the fantasy, I think we are all yearning for what comes next. We don't want to be obedient to what we know, but if we don't use what we know and just continue searching for what's next, we will never truly grow. Matt Chandler challenged us: Do we need to stop and repent before we can move forward? Complacency is not the high road to success.
It's time to start applying the basic truths to my life consistently! More prayer, more time spent in the Word, more awareness of what is going on RIGHT now. Less less less time worrying about what the future holds and less time focused on what I can learn to benefit tomorrow. It's about NOW
Showing posts with label to live is christ. Show all posts
Showing posts with label to live is christ. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Day 10: To live is Christ and to die is gain
My young adult group at church has been studying Philippians with Matt Chandler. It's been a completely refreshing perspective and I've felt he teaches in a way that clearly gives us opportunity to take things away and apply them to our lives.
This past week has been every kind of stressful you can imagine. Put this fast, extra-curricular activities and the promise to write to you all as often as possible on top of it, needless to say I sleep pretty hard. Last Thursday (and yes I'm just getting to writing about it today), our study reminded me of why I feel that this mutiny against excess is so important to my walk with God. It was complete confirmation that I had made the right choice in doing this fast, and it was encouragement that the end goal will be worth the issues it is creating in my immediate existence.
Here is what we studied and the notes I took:
Philippians 3:7-12
But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
In Phil 3, Paul intensely outlines the reasons to pursue Christ and then how to pursue Him.
We pursue Him because we are broken people with issues in our lives that will never be able to be fixed with any earthly effort.
In our darkest moment, in our deepest sin, God chose us. Cool thing is...there is never a day that we don't fall short, yet He still wants us to chase after Him! God rescues the dirty to the praise of His glorious grace. What do we have in our lives that is blocking us from pursuing him?
We are imperfect people chosen by a perfect God, our priority should lie with pursuing Him. Nothing can compare to the riches of His grace!
To live is Christ and to die is gain. Amen.
This past week has been every kind of stressful you can imagine. Put this fast, extra-curricular activities and the promise to write to you all as often as possible on top of it, needless to say I sleep pretty hard. Last Thursday (and yes I'm just getting to writing about it today), our study reminded me of why I feel that this mutiny against excess is so important to my walk with God. It was complete confirmation that I had made the right choice in doing this fast, and it was encouragement that the end goal will be worth the issues it is creating in my immediate existence.
Here is what we studied and the notes I took:
Philippians 3:7-12
But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
In Phil 3, Paul intensely outlines the reasons to pursue Christ and then how to pursue Him.
We pursue Him because we are broken people with issues in our lives that will never be able to be fixed with any earthly effort.
In our darkest moment, in our deepest sin, God chose us. Cool thing is...there is never a day that we don't fall short, yet He still wants us to chase after Him! God rescues the dirty to the praise of His glorious grace. What do we have in our lives that is blocking us from pursuing him?
We are imperfect people chosen by a perfect God, our priority should lie with pursuing Him. Nothing can compare to the riches of His grace!
To live is Christ and to die is gain. Amen.
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