Tag Archive for holiness

Jesus, My Power and Wisdom

2014-04-13 Devotional with Hymn No comments

To those whom God has called…(we preach) Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength. 

Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. 

It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 1:24-31, NIV)

Jesus, today
You are my power.
I rest in Your doing.
I move every moment
in Your enabling.

Jesus,
You are my wisdom.
I pray for Your mind.
I listen.

Jesus,
You are my holiness.
I rejoice in You in me.
I quiet my planning
and relax in Your Spirit.

Jesus, today
my work will be to trust You.
Glorify yourself through me today.

Listen…and sing if you want:
Hymn: Lord Jesus, Living Presence
Recording
Printed Music & Lyrics

Blessed Are the Pure in Heart

2014-01-19 Beatitudes, Devotional with Hymn No comments

This is the eighth of an eleven-part series on the Beatitudes.
Each part features a hymn to a familiar tune.

Jesus’ sixth beatitude is this:

Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they shall see God. (Matthew 5:8, NASB)

That is very much like Psalm 24, where it says,

Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord?
And who may stand in His holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
Who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood
And has not sworn deceitfully.
He shall receive a blessing from the Lord
And righteousness from the God of his salvation.
(Psalm 24:3-5, NASB)

Father, I long to be pure.
I long to want only what You want.
I long for my every desire, every thought, and every action
to flow from love for You.
You have planted this desire deep within me.
I know that I can only live in Your holy presence
if I have clean hands and a pure heart.

But Father, purity is beyond me.
I was born in sin.
My roots sink deeply into it.
Even when I want to do the right thing,
without You I’m too weak.
Only You are pure, and
only You can make me pure.
You call me to a purity that only You can provide.
And Lord, You have promised it to me.
You said:

“I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness…I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you…I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes.” (Ezekiel 36:25-27, NASB)

Father, You have promised my purity, and
You have provided it completely through Jesus Christ.
But what is my part?
Am I only a passive observer in all this?
How should I respond to what You have done for me?

Paul wrote:

Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. (2 Corinthians 7:1, NASB)

And this:

In reference to your former manner of life…lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit…and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth. (Ephesians 4:22-24, NASB)

And to the Colossians, he wrote:

Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature.
Rid yourselves of all such things. (Colossians 3:5, 8, NASB)

Father, Your promises are always a call to faith, and
faith always demands action.
My faith is in You.
I believe that in Jesus Christ, Your divine power has given us
everything we need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3, NIV).
I believe that as I walk in the light,
I have unbroken fellowship with You, and
You deliver me from all sin (1 John 1:7).
I believe that as I turn to You and trust You,
You help me lay aside my old self and
put on the new self You have created for me.
Holy God, I believe that as I trust and obey You,
You help me purify my heart and mind and life.

Praise to You, Father!
Continue to make me more and more like Your pure and beautiful Son,
Jesus Christ!

Listen…and sing if you want:
Hymn: Holy in Me
Recording
Printed Music & Lyrics

 

Daily Holiness

2013-12-19 Devotional No comments

O what an awesome God You are!
I hear Your voice and touch Your heart
And glimpse Your perfect plan.
Then how I long to live and grow
With love as constant guide and goal,
To move at its command.

But life is such a daily race.
The pressures mount, and selfish ways
Invade my life unseen.
And though I seek the things above,
Consistency and perfect love
Still seem a distant dream.

But mercies every morning new
And faithfulness flow but from You,
Eternal God of grace.
You give the Spirit of Your Son
To live Your life in everyone
Who daily walks by faith.

My Father, faithful, loving Lord,
I look to You and trust Your Word
And praise You for release.
The One who works Your will and way
Will work in me and grow each day
Your love and joy and peace.

Complete in Christ

2013-11-28 Devotional No comments

In [Christ] are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

In Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ. (Colossians 2:3, 10, NIV)

Not in an abstract sense;
not just someday,
but right now, Lord.
All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are in You, Jesus.
All the treasures.

I am complete in You.
Complete as a person.
Complete as the being You created me to be.
Complete in You.

Jesus, help me to remember this in the push and pull of life today.
Remind me of this when other things call for me to
want them and
seek them and
need them.

Today, Lord, all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are in You.
Today I am complete in You.
Today I will desire only You.

Your Holy Temple

2013-07-21 Devotional with Hymn No comments

I will be careful to lead a blameless life…
I will walk in my house
with blameless heart.
I will set before my eyes
no vile thing…
I will have nothing to do with evil.
(Psalm 101:2-4, NIV)

Do you not know that your body is
a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you,
whom you have received from God?
You are not your own;
you were bought at a price.
Therefore honor God with your body.
(1 Corinthians 6:19-20, NIV)

Father,
I cherish Your holy presence
always with me,
always in me, and
always enveloping me.

Help me never to entertain thoughts
that are offensive to You
or say words that are unloving
or take actions unworthy of the name of Christ.

By Your Holy Spirit,
by simple faith,
keep my heart, mind, and life pure,
fit for your use.

If a man cleanses himself…
he will be an instrument for noble purposes,
made holy, useful to the Master and
prepared to do any good work.
(2 Timothy 2:21, NIV)

Listen…and sing if you want:
Hymn: Prayer for Purity
Recording
Printed Music & Lyrics

I Want to Know You

2013-07-07 Devotional with Hymn No comments

I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. (Philippians 3:8, NIV)

My life is crowded with so many desires, so many goals, so many questions. But, Jesus, I’m realizing that I truly want only one thing:
          I want to know You.

All my ambitions and drives, my goals and dreams of glory, my preoccupation with my own comfort, I give them to You, Lord. I release them to You and cut the cord. Nothing else is worth holding onto. Nothing else is worth craving.
          I want to know You.

My eyes go to the future, my Lord, and I know that more storms are coming. What troubles await me in life? What does it matter? Whatever troubles come, they will bring new discoveries about You. They will bring a deeper, more personal knowledge of You, and a stronger faith that sees You more constantly and clearly.
          I want to know You.

My heart begins to leap at the possibility of being found always and entirely in You, with the baggage of self-interest forever buried and gone. Praise to You, my God! What a wonderful redemption that will be! My faith comes alive, knowing it will be. It is coming. You are doing it, and You always finish what You start. I know You now, Jesus, by Your goodness, and then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known (1 Corinthians 13:12, NIV).

Thank You, my Lord! Fill my heart now with the desire that will delight me throughout eternity:
       I want to know You. I want to know You, my Lord.

Listen…and sing if you want:
Hymn: Lord, Life Becomes More Simple
Recording
Printed Music & Lyrics

Filled to All the Fullness of God

2013-05-16 Devotional No comments

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith…that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:16-17, 19, NIV)

That beautiful passage of scripture has always intrigued me, especially that last phrase. The concept is grand, but what does it really mean to be filled with “all the fullness of God”?

In Christ, all the fullness of God dwells bodily, and you have been made full and complete in Him. (Colossians 2:9-10, para.)

What could it mean to me—to you—in practical, daily terms to be completely filled with God himself? We know that He is always present, not only with us, but in us, in an intimate and holy way.

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you…?
(1 Corinthians 6:19, NIV)

You have experienced that presence. What if we learned to look to Him, to trust Him more simply and constantly, to realize His presence and rest in it completely and always?

Imagine the wonder of hearing Him speak to you in wisdom and love. Imagine the wonder of knowing His will.

Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” (Isaiah 30:21, NIV)

When he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. (John 16:13, NIV)

Imagine Him speaking His words from your lips.

Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit. (Mark 13:11, NIV)

Imagine dreaming His dreams, envisioning what He has planned for His people.

I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. (Joel 2:28, NIV)

“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him”—but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit.
(1 Corinthians 2:9-10, NIV)

Imagine being sufficient for every challenge, empowered by God’s own strength.

“Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,” says the Lord Almighty.
(Zechariah 4:6, NIV)

God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. (2 Corinthians 9:8, NIV)

Imagine the pleasure of having His own character growing and developing within you, naturally, daily.

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Galatians 5:22-23, NIV)

Consider what it would be like to be free forever from the bondage of your sin.

Now that you have been set free from sin…the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. (Romans 6:22, NIV)

And imagine being wrapped in His perfect peace.

The mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace. (Romans 8:6, NIV)

These blessings are not someday and far away. They are all in Christ, and He is present. These blessings are not vague and abstract. They are practical and life-oriented. They are for talking, thinking, reacting, and doing.

They are not by struggle or superior intellect, not reserved for the elite, not beyond anyone’s grasp. They are available for all who will daily, simply trust the God who is with us right now.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us…with every spiritual blessing in Christ. (Ephesians 1:3, NIV)

What Is Beneficial?

2013-03-21 Devotional No comments

“Everything is permissible for me”—but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible for me”—but I will not be mastered by anything. 

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body. (1 Corinthians 6:12, 19-20, NIV)

Father, guide my lifestyle and shape my habits by these verses.

Everything is allowable to me, but which things are beneficial? Which are truly beneficial to me? Which are beneficial to You, Father, and to our relationship? Which will be beneficial to those I influence?

Those things that are not beneficial, things that bind me, things that hinder our relationship or Your work or Your people, help me to set them aside. They are not fitting to encumber Your ministry through me.

Cleanse my life of them, Father. Take each one away. You know that I need Your help with this, but as You lead, I will obey.

I am Your temple. I am bought with Your blood. I am not my own. Lord, help me to glorify You with every part of me, with everything I do and say.

Prepare to Be Available

2013-02-26 Creative Process, Devotional, Reading & Study One comment

Father, I can only create as You,
the Creator and Source of all,
the Spirit of Truth,
create through me.
I look to You alone.
I depend on You.
I rest in You.
I am available to You.

But being available to You is more than just words and wishes.
In obedience to You and by Your Spirit’s enabling,
I keep myself a pure vessel for Your use:

If anyone cleanses himself from these [dishonorable] things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work. Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. (2 Timothy 2:21-22, NASB)

I do what I can to make myself ready.
I try to keep both my body and my mind
rested,
fed, and
prepared.

I make my moments available to You.
I ask for Your leadership,
Your prompting,
Your enabling.
And as You lead, I take that one step of faith.
Procrastination is disobedience.
It is missing a precious opportunity from You.
“Well begun is half done.”

Father, teach me to do all I can to
keep myself available to You.

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