Daily Bread

Daily devotion: I have been studying sanctification. It is a very interesting topic to study, and very informative.And He said to them all, If any man will come after Me let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me. -Luke 9:23
There is that word again, daily. The Bible speaks so much about today.We need to daily put ourself in it's place. If you want victory that place is in Christ. We do this by forsaking our own agenda, our own desires, and "take up the Cross." By Jesus telling us to do this on a daily basis tells us that we have a problem that must be addressed constantly. What is your "daily" problem? What one thing do you wrestle with on a regular basis? For some it is alcohol, drugs, sexual sins, food, money, etc. Some are more subtle, we don't even know about them, but prayer will bring them to the light.How do you take up our cross? You look only to Jesus for your answer, not some scheme devised by man. If you look at the church world today they seem to have so many answers for our problems, but rarely mention the word sin, or the Cross of Christ. How many christians do you know that claim to have faith in Christ yet they place their faith, their way of getting victory from different things by doing certain things. Confess this, give that, do this, do that, etc. The Bible tells us not to do anything, but to believe. Believe in what? Believe that Christ' death on the Cross is complete payment for our salvation and our victory. By grace we are saved, thru faith, not of works. It is so simple, people don't get it. They think they have to do something, when in fact, when Christ died on the Cross, it was finished. All we have to do is believe. When you truly believe, works will follow. You don't work to get something from God, you work because you love God. Will giving to God bring blessing? YES, you will reap what you sow. But giving to God is not what will deliver you from money problems. You can't buy your deliverance, Christ already paid the price. When you give your money only to reap a blessing so you can pay down your debt, (which is a result of greed, not trusting in God's provision) you are not addressing the real sin problem in your life. I would dare say that 95% of the church world would not give money to the church to further the gospel if they wasn't promised a return. Most people give in faith that they will be blessed from it. Any christian can tell you Christ died to save you from your sin, but then they can't admit they have any sin. There is no such thing as sinless perfection, so if you are breathing today, you are wrestling with something. We go from glory to glory the Bible says. It is a process called sanctification. You can look at it this way, we are not sinners because we sin, we sin because we are sinners. It was born into us from the fall, unfortunately. Getting saved did not take away your nature to sin. But instead of admitting that, we try all of these different ways to get our victory, instead of admitting what the true problem is. Jesus said, ye shall know the truth, and truth shall set you free.We are deceived into believing that we must "work" to get victory. I need to read so many chapters a day, or pray more, or give more money, be a better church member, etc. All of these things are good and important, but it is Christ and His death on the Cross and faith in that + nothing, that brings victory.Oh, the simplicity of the Gospel, and the deceitfulness of sin. Open our eyes Lord to the truth. Jesus is the Truth. He is the Way, the Truth, the Life. Yes, He is the Way, no other way, not works, not anything, just Jesus. You get this in your spirit and you will have life, and have it more abundantly.

Losing Weight God's Way...pt3

Why are so many people overweight? First, lets look at some of the excuses for being overweight. Obesity tends to run in families, but since family members share diet and lifestyle habits as well as genes, identifying genetics as the sole cause may be difficult. Simply put, you are not overweight because your mom was, or your grandma was, you are overweight, and they were too, because of poor eating habits. There are some medications that will make you gain weight. I have taken steroids for bronchitis and felt like I could eat a buffalo on the run. The effects should not last a lifetime though. I am guilty of overeating at stressful times. When Abe was so sick and in the hospital I put on over 10lbs from stress eating. I had my focus on the wrong thing. I am getting back on track finally.I love what Charles Stanley said, "Remember the flesh that rages within you is at war with God, not with you. You may feel as though the battle is yours, but in a spiritual sense it is God's battle. We are the ones that must learn to say no to the desires of the flesh, but not just because we are disciplined. Without a sincere love for God and a desire to obey His will for our lives, discipline becomes nothing more than a physical exercise."The flesh is the part of us that stands in opposition to God's truth. It cannot be improved, disciplined, or changed. It is totally self-focused. It is self-centered, self-pleasing, self-promoting, self-seeking, self-concious, self-righteous, self-indulgent. Oswald Chamber writes: "If you are not right with God, you can never turn your mind anywhere but on yourself." We overcome the flesh by setting the focus of our hearts on loving the One who gave us life.There you have it, the answer to permanent weight loss is summed up in those 2 paragraphs. Change your focus. Change your eating habits for God, not because you want to look good in a pair of jeans. When you say no to that second helping, or that krispy kreme, because you want to please God, He will help you with the rest. Soon, you won't even be thinking about food. But it is a DAILY battle. Have you ever noticed how much the Bible says about "today?" Choose you THIS DAY whom you will serve, TODAY is the day of salvation, etc. That is why you should live for the day, not worry about tomorrow. Every day give your eating to God as worship, you won't believe how much that will change your spiritual life. So give up the urge to listen to worldly wisdom. Admit your gluttony is a sin problem, and remember, only Jesus can deliver from sin. You can't get deliverance from a pill, or a diet.How many overweight people 50 yrs of age or older have you seen in church requesting prayer for different things like diabetes, heart disease, etc, and testify that the devil put those diseases on them when the truth is the devil had nothing to do with it. They chose death by their years of overeating. Deut 30:19 - I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing, therefore choose life... Lets not spend our lives digging our graves with a fork, and expect the results of that to go away in a prayer line in an instant. Yes, God is a loving God but He is also just. Be not deceived, God is not mocked, whatsoever a man sows, that shall he also reap.

Losing weight God's way, pt 2

To begin I was the skinny kid that know matter what I ate I could not gain weight. I even took the super weight on pills trying to gain weight and couldn't do it. That is hard for me to imagine now, but that is the way it was. That was the trend all the way thru my twenties. At first I was maybe a hundred lbs soaking wet and then it began after I got into my thirties, I started gaining weight. Believe it or not I was so thrilled at the idea of not looking like a toothpick that before I realized what was happening my little 100 lb frame was 155 - 160lbs and I looked in the mirror one day and thought, OMG, I am fat. The first thing I did, was what the Word warns us against in Psalm 1, I took counsel from the ungodly by reading all the diet crazes, the womens magazines, doing what I thought was the right thing. I noticed I would lose weight, put it back on, lose weight, put it back on, on and on it went. I decided to ask God for wisdom.I was in a buffett restaurant and I looked around and noticed that everyone had their plates piled so high they couldn't put another thing on them if they wanted to. Some people were shoveling the food in so fast it was as if they were unconcious to what they were doing. I watched as people left with their hands on their stomach, groaning. It is something we don't give much thought to, but we should. Eating IS a spiritual matter. God has a lot to say about it in His Word. You wouldn't think a visit to a buffett restaurant would be a spiritual experience, but it was. That visit changed my relationship with food forever. It was then God had my attention, and he lead me on a study that changed my life. ICorinthians 3:19 - For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God.A good example of worldly wisdom is found on any newstand. Magazines, especially womens, are covered with all the ways to lose weight. Eat and stay thin, do this exercise, buy this, yada, yada, yada. They usually throw some drs name in their with their article to make it look more appealing. Anyone who as ever struggled with weightloss has fallen for it. To think we spend our money, our energy, our time, and get all stressed out over weight loss, and the answer is found in God's Word, if we would just listen to what He has to say. Oh, the deceitfulness of sin. We are a deceived bunch.There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. Proverbs 14:12Dr. Atkins was a good example of this. He sold millions of dollars worth of books, tapes, food products, etc all promoting his famous diet. Just because he had Dr in front of his name, everyone falls for what he sells. After his death his autopsy revealed he had extremely high cholestrol, high blood pressure, and major heart disease. I know he died from a fall, but that didn't change the fact he was in very bad health. I guess he was feeling good from all of the money he was raking in, he didn't realize he was so sick.God said He would destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. ICorinthians 1:19 Part 3 tomorrow

Losing Weight God's Way...Part 1

The scripture I am using, just about any christian can quote, but few live by it. It is funny how we can underestimate the scriptures that doesn't fit our lifestyle.I Corinthians 3:16,17- Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

I think the first problem with the church and obesity is people don't want to address their weight problem as sin. A quick study of the scriptures will tell you that gluttony is sin. I think that is one reason Paul worked so hard to keep his body under control.(ICor 9:27) Now there are a number of sins against the body, not just gluttony. There are sexual sins, which we have no problem addressing as sin, so why when it comes to gluttony do we have a problem? Drinking alcohol in excess is obviously destroying God's temple and we have no problem addressing it as sin. Gluttony is just as deadly, maybe even deadlier than alcohol. You get diabetes, heart disease, stroke, just to name a few. So, the first step to freedom is addressing your eating problem as sin. That is the reason diets and diet pills are a proven failure, they are man made, and nothing man made will ever free you from sin.What is gluttony? A glutton according to websters dictionary is a person who eats too much. Plain and simple. God's answer to weight loss is so simple it is almost laughable, quit eating when you are full. It is not necessarily what you are eating that is putting on the weight, it is how much you are eating. It is a sin of excess. But with that comes suffering, and we don't want to suffer, that is why America spends billions of dollars each year on diets, and pills and books, etc. We want to hang on to our sin and still be skinny, sorry won't work. God won't let it work because it goes against His Word. We spend all of that money and America remains the fattest nation on earth. Have you ever heard that the definition of an idiot is a person who does the same thing over and over expecting to get different results? I kid a lot about my weight, but I use to be a whole lot bigger than I am now, and I have kept my weight off for about 8 yrs now. I still manage to put on some extra pounds, especially in the winter months, but I have been delivered from the dieting, and I know what it takes to get results. My next few blogs I am going to be sharing that. So take the journey with me and learn some habits to keep you off the never ending counting calories, counting fat grams, counting carbs, etc. All of that counting is not freedom, it is bondage. Everything I went through on that journey many years ago I wrote in a book and I am going to blog a little of it each day, so stay tuned. When it is all over, I may even upload one of my old fat pictures and you will see the difference.

Daily Bread

Bind Youself to the Mast

In centuries past, sailors and even captains of ships would bind themselves to the ship's mast to keep from being swept overboard by giant waves that threatened to capsize the vessel. In that manner, they'd ride out the storm, trusting in God to calm the winds and waves.When the storms rage against us, and we find ourselves sailing in waters where we know the Lord has led us, we must do likewise. We must bind ourselves to the mast of the Lord Jesus and hold tight, trust in God to rebuke the storm that is raging against us, and, at the same time, preserves our lives and keep us strong in our faith.

I'm experiencing a tempest, God. The wind is howling, and the billows are raging. Right now, I am binding myself to the mast of the Lord Jesus. Let me cling fast until this storm has passed.

Taken from "The Power of the Cross" by Charles Stanley.

If you haven't read any of Charles Stanley's books, go to your local christian bookstore and purchase one. There are many to choose from, not just daily devotions. He is an awesome writer and speaker. He is the pastor of the 1st Baptist Church in Atlanta Ga.

Daily Bread...

This is my favorite daily devotion site. Click on their page at the bottom and sign up for the daily devotion email. It is very uplifting, and will teach you the Word like nothing else will.
Today's WordSaturday, January 10, 2009
Doing Theology
he who does these things shall not be shaken forever Psalm 15:5
Does – David asks a very important question. “Who will spend time in Your presence?” It’s worth reading the list in Psalm 15. You will notice one important quality about every facet of the answer. They are all actions toward others. Not a single part of David’s answer is about the right doctrine or an inner feeling or having a personal experience of salvation. Everything David mentions is about actions on behalf of other people. The one who will enjoy God’s presence is the one who does theology; who turns cognitive contemplation into benevolent deeds.The Hebrew verb is asah. All of its nuances are about getting things done. To do, to make, to accomplish, to complete, to perform an action with a particular purpose, to construct, to engage – there is nothing here that remotely suggests a passive, cognitive stance. Apparently, entering into God’s presence demands doing things.Our Greek-based view of the primacy of reason has affected our idea about what matters to God. We are believers in beliefs. We think that what God really wants is our affirmation of doctrines. We think that God is really interested in our inner experience. We think that being a Christian is having the right beliefs. This means that all those Old Testament verses about “works” don’t apply to us. We have Jesus in our hearts – and that’s enough to guarantee our goodness before God. We no longer share the worldview of those who delivered God’s Word to us. We have progressed.It’s such foolishness. The Old Testament view of works has nothing to do with God’s choice about His people. That is grace, and grace alone. But both the Old Testament and New Testament consistently exhort us to act according to the grace God has given, and without the action, there is little evidence that grace has ever had any part of a man’s real life. James said it perfectly. “Unless there is tangible evidence of grace exhibited in outward deeds, any claim to have faith is worthless.”Of course, we all know this is true. Faith claims without visible manifestations are bogus. But we might not appreciate the underlying psychology of God’s emphasis on action. God knows better than anyone how human beings really work. He knows that if we begin doing our theology, we will very soon discover that the attitudes and beliefs that support those actions become a part of us. God also knows that merely entertaining a cognitive belief never transformed anyone. So, God starts with action. “Do what I ask you to do, and it will change your heart in the process.” It’s the oldest psychological method in the book. Obedience comes before understanding. Do what God asks even if you don’t feel like it. Do it anyway. Do it again and again. And one day you will discover that it feels just right.So, go read the list. Then do it until you stand in His presence.Topical Index: Faith, Belief, Action, asah
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Daily Bread

Today's WordWednesday, January 7, 2009
Theological Correctness
but you must master it Genesis 4:7
Master – Everything important happens in the first three chapters of Genesis. Oh yes, plus the appendix of the story of Cain. This verse is absolutely crucial. Why? Because it says something about the essence of the Fall that we absolutely must know. It says that sin did not destroy the nature of Man.Read the story again. You probably think you know it, but I’m guessing that you haven’t really paid attention to all the details. After the Fall, Cain brings his sacrifice. It is rejected. We are not told why. Cain is angry and distressed. God comes to Cain and tells him that sin crouches at the door, ready to take possession of him (that is an important word too). God advises Cain to do what is right and everything will be just fine. Then God warns Cain to master his inner voice. What does this imply? It implies that Cain is able to do just what God says. It implies that Cain can make a choice to do what is right, that Cain has the ability to master (mashal) sin’s desire and that Cain’s offering will be accepted. It’s all up to Cain.That seems entirely reasonable, doesn’t it? After all, it is clearly what the text says, it makes Cain responsible for his actions and it shows us that God responds to our real choices. It seems reasonable – until you start to read the history of theology. In that history you will find a theological concept called Total Depravity. This idea, popularized by John Calvin but developed more than 1000 years before Calvin, claims that when Man fell, his nature was totally corrupted. From that point on, nothing that Man did could be considered good. In fact, Man did not have the ability to make right choices. He was cursed with a sinful nature that made choosing the way of God impossible. He was forever trapped in evil intentions and actions. He had no way out except by God’s act of grace. Total depravity leads to the doctrine of sinful nature, a concept imported into the translation of the NIV and other Bibles. It suggests that no matter what Man does, it is worthless and morally corrupt without the intervention of the Savior. The bottom line of this theological stance is this: in the Fall Man lost his ability to choose God.That doesn’t seem to square with this text, does it? It certainly looks like God expects Cain to control himself and do what is right. But if Cain as a fallen man is totally depraved, then this is a charade and a sham. Cain cannot choose what is right and God is just playing with him. Something doesn’t add up.Lest you think that this is just theological jargon and really doesn’t affect you, consider what happens to the idea of evangelism under the doctrine of total depravity. First, it means that every non-believer must be rescued by any means necessary. Evangelism becomes intervention focused on winning souls, not building relationships. All that is required is to get the non-believer to cross the line into a saved state. Secondly, it means that no good done by any non-believer really has any value at all. In fact, all non-believers are inherently worthless. They are not even capable of morally correct choices. Unless God intervenes, they are eternally lost. Therefore, while I may be called to present the gospel as the only real solution to life, I don’t have any further obligation toward these people. Their minds are corrupt, so unless God brings about understanding, there is nothing more for me to do. Evangelism from this perspective is proclamation without relationship. It is announcement of the non-believer’s darkened state of existence, the delivery of saving information and justified disengagement. I give the message but God has to save. And I can deliver the message as a tract, a billboard, a television commercial or any other information-transfer mechanism. Actually building relationships is unnecessary. That’s not my job (and they are incapable of understanding anyway).Isn’t it strange that Yeshua seems to have never taken this path? His life revolved entirely around relationships - deep and abiding ones. Do you suppose that we got off track somewhere along the way?Topical Index: Evangelism, Depravity, Choice, mashal
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Daily Bread

Today's WordSaturday, January 3, 2009
Untranslatable
In the beginning, God created [et] the heavens and [et] the earth Genesis 1:1 (Hebrew added)
Et – It’s there but you don’t see it. In Hebrew, this verse is Bere’shiyt bara’ Elohim et *hashamayim ve et *haarets. I put an asterisk around the words translated “the heavens and the earth.” The first three words are “in the beginning created God.” But after elohim is a Hebrew particle, et. It also shows up before “the earth.” It is not translated. In fact, it is never translated in spite of more than 1000 occurrences in Scripture. Why? Well, the grammatical explanation is that et is just a marker, a kind of verbal signal, that the next word or words are the direct object of the sentence. And we don’t translate grammatical symbols. So, in English it disappears.That is perfectly good English grammatical translation except for one amazing thing. Every Hebrew reader knows that et shows up in this verse and in hundreds of other verses. It’s all over the place. So, when Yeshua speaks in the book of Revelation, He refers to this odd phenomenon. In Hebrew, “I am the Alpha and Omega” becomes “I am the Aleph and the Taw.” And et is the two letters Aleph-Taw.Now, it might just be accidental (are there really any accidents in Scripture?) but it seems to me that when Yeshua claims to be the beginning and the end, the Aleph-Taw, he claims something quite amazing about the first verse of Scripture. In fact, the apostle John endorsed this claim in his prologue (which we also need to read in Hebrew). What Yeshua says is that He was there as the active verb in the formation of the heavens and the earth. If Yeshua is the Aleph-Taw, then His signature is stamped on the opening line about the creation of everything. Through Him all things were created, says John. Maybe John was reading his Hebrew Bible too. Yeshua is the One responsible for transferring the action of creation into the form of heavens and earth. He is the connector between bara’ and all that comes into being. No wonder the men on the road to Emmaus felt their ears burning. It’s just too bad that our translation robs us of this amazing little particle. We don’t get to see the hand of the Messiah moving space in the beginning.It’s truly unfortunate that contemporary Christianity converts God’s language into the parlance of the receiving culture. It’s like listening to your native tongue in the mouth of a tourist. Yes, most of the words are there, but often the idioms are lost, the nuances disappear and the whole communication is wooden. If you’ve ever heard broken English spoken by a native Japanese or broken Spanish spoken by a native American, you know just how much gets lost. If we wanted to really know what God said, our churches should be teaching His language, not converting the Hebrew culture into something that sounds like ours. That won’t happen today, but today we can start to appreciate just how amazingly complex and rich and revelatory God’s chosen language really is. Today we can offer up praise for His choice of Hebrew. It wasn’t an accident. It kind of makes you wonder what else we’re missing, doesn’t it? Topical Index: et, translation, Hebrew
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Copyright 2003-2009 © Skip Moen and AtGodsTable.com. All Rights Reserved.Articles may be reproduced in whole under the following provisions: 1) A proper credit must be given to the author at the end of each story, along with a link to http://www.atgodstable.com/ 2) Content may not be arranged or "mirrored" as a competitive online service.

Daily Bread

The scripture I was reading this morning Isaiah 55:12 - For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.

The greek word for joy is chara it means joy or delight. It's related to chairo, which means to rejoice. We know our joy comes from trusting God, and we can always find reason to rejoice even when we oversleep, wake up with a headache, etc. Just knowing Jesus is reason enough to rejoice.

I like what John Piper said, The glory and grace of Jesus is that He is, and always will be, indestructibly happy. Reflect on that a moment. Remember all the things Jesus went through as a man while on earth, but they couldn't steal His joy.

As you go through your day today and everything doesn't go just like you would like it to go, rejoice in knowing Jesus and He ultimately is in control.

Lord, bless all of my online friends with peace and joy. Remind them, You are in control. Get their minds off of their circumstances.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Have a great day.

2009...It is all about choice

I have decided 2009 is going to be the best year of my life. I will turn 48 in March, just a few short months. That is getting really close to the big 5-0, and as fast as life passes, it will be here before I know. But, like the saying goes, do not regret growing older, it is a privilege denied to many.
This year I plan to slow down, enjoy things more. If you read God's Word, He has a lot to say about "today". Choose you "this day" whom you will serve, "today" is the day of salvation, don't worry about tomorrow, etc. We are so busy getting thru "today" we don't take time to enjoy it. So one of my resolutions is to be a better steward of the time God has given me. I don't want to waste my time. I want to "choose" to serve God each day, whether be in taking care of myself, being more kind, being a better wife, mom, grandmother, friend, employee, etc. Yes, something as simple as eating, when you sit down to eat a meal, you have a choice to make. When you snack throughout the day, you are "choosing" to put on the weight! Think about that. That is why God says "choose." In Deut 30:19, God says I have set before thee life and death, blessing and cursing, therefore choose life. So for 2009 I want to "choose" to be better, do better, act better, and not take anything for granted.

I am very thankful for the new friends I made in 2008, I pray they are life long. I look back and think that 2008 sure flew by, another reason I want to slow down.

May God Bless all of my friends, whether personal or online, and my family this upcoming year.