Weak Without the Word

Life without the Word of God is weak. We think of ourselves. We forget the strength in God's word. We lean on our own understanding, which only complicates things, and then we consult the flesh, which has no agenda but its own.

Life in the Spirit is strength. We draw strength from one another. We think of others. And we call upon and rely on God's strength, and He answers. This life requires only disciplined obedience. We lean on God's wisdom when we do not understand. And the central pillar is faith -- believing God and His wisdom over our own emotions, our own knowledge, our own experiences and in spite of what we see.

When an angel came to Mary and said, you shall be with child, she wondered aloud -- How can this be? But it is simple how it came to be, and why she was chosen: Despite all evidence to the contrary, she believed.

Life in the flesh sees every obstacle as imposingly real and every solution -- even those from God -- as flawed. Life in the spirit sees God as real, and every obstacle as an opportunity to show that nothing is impossible with God.

Who's winning your battles today?

Worth the Weight?

"Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith , who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross …”Heb 12:1-2

Have you ever noticed in the Bible that Christ was thronged by people all the time -- people who believed in Him and people who wanted Him to do things -- but they were not all disciples? The bible refers to them as "the multitude." But disciples are different.

That is because anyone can follow Christ but not everyone can be a disciple. Why? Being a disciple requires discipline. It requires the ability to lay down one's life for another and calls for consistent behavior, for commitment and intense effort.

Not everyone is ready to do that because it always requires giving up that one thing that stands between you and the kingdom.

What always separates the best athletes from the rest is discipline. The best athletes are quick to rid themselves of whatever separates them from the prize. And if it is not a quick fix, they discipline themselves until it is no longer a problem.

They'll change their food, their clothes, their hair, their breathing, their shoes, their friends, their sleeping patterns, their eating patterns, their pain thresholds, their entire lifestyle just to compete for the prize. Nothing is unreasonable because, quite simply put, the best athlete is just willing.

Yet consider: they run only for a prize -- for bragging rights, fame and to be called the best.

Disciples run for a prize too: to be like Jesus, to have a closer walk with God, to see the salvation of our family and friends, to gain wisdom and understanding, to be called sons of God.

Paul wanted to know Him, and the power of His resurrection, the fellowship of His suffering.

The most committed disciples know that like the athlete, there are things that hinder us, weights that slow us down and keep us from pushing, or burdens that intentionally make it harder to live for Christ.

What's your weight? Anger? A lack of trust? Disappointment?

More importantly, when you consider the prize before you, knowing there is only one thing separating you from it, is it worth it?

Get Up!

I usually write about spiritual matters in the column, but this time I’m taking things a little further to where the rubber meets the road. Only because what the Lord has convicted me of lately is not a spiritual challenge but my own physical inactivity.

Brothers and sisters, I’ve noticed that when it comes to changes that affect our physical and food habits we’re far more likely to talk the talk and fail to walk the walk – and I mean that literally and figuratively.

Now I can’t sit and point fingers, because there are three more pointing back at me.

When a brother or sister talks to us about caring for God’s temple (Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? –I Cor. 6:19 ) and how we ought to care for it – mixing that spiritual with the physical, we nod and say amen, with downcast eyes, momentarily convicted of the need for change. But then along comes a piece of cake.

Statistically speaking, a quarter of Americans between the ages of 40 and 70 are obese, according to data from the US Census Bureau. Since 1980, obesity rates have risen three-fold or more in some areas of North America, statistics show.

For African Americans, the statistics are even more dismal. Higher rates of heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes – all controllable conditions directly related to eating and exercise habits – and more death from those diseases as well.

Our kids, too, are out of control, and how can we blame them, if we’ve been their nearest and dearest example?

Saints, I know we have prayer, and that’s the most powerful tool the Lord left us with. I won’t discount it. But should it be a crutch when we’ve stood convicted of sin and taken it lightly?

The Apostle Paul put it this way in Romans 6:1-2, “Shall we continue to sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any more in it?”

Maybe it’s my own father’s death from heart disease and complications with diabetes. Maybe I’m just trying to force on myself what I don’t want disease to force on me. Maybe it’s just that I’m finally getting the message. Who knows?

All I know is that now that I have grasped the urge for transformation, I’m compelled to do it and committed to making a change, both in diet and in deed.

It’s one that’s been a long time coming, and that started with more healthy choices in my eating. Now I’m committing to more physical activity – more walking, running and playing. More jumping and more stretching. Definitely more sweating. I want to be able, for many, many years more, to tell the world that Jesus lives. Won’t you join me?

If you’re not ready to get off the sofa, I hope that you’re at least wrapping your mind around the issue and asking the Lord to help you to make changes where you know you’re reluctant. And when you’re ready, grab a brother or sister to walk with you on your journey.

God knows, our hearts – both physical and spiritual – could use it.

Embrace Tomorrow

by TaNoah Morgan
Editor, The Vine

There was a day when things were better. There always was -- just ask any old person.

There's something to be said for being fond of the past, but living in it is altogether different.

I suppose for some it’s a natural tendency to think that the past was just the best, if for no other reason than that it came first. It is the golden standard; the way things should be, and the high point to which all should aspire.

Could it be that what we want most from the past is not the supposedly ideal conditions or simplicity, but rather a renewed sense of hope? A great faith and belief that in spite of how wonderful things once were, our future can shine with the brightness of the morning sun?

God's promises to us are always toward better, giving us a hope and a future (Jer. 29:11). PS 27 says, The Lord is my Light. He illuminates what lies ahead. What's behind us is well known -- we lived it. And for as good as it might've been (or that we might now romanticize it to have been), a future in Christ is better.

Eden was an earthly paradise with uninhibited fellowship with God. But even that is nothing compared to being His Bride. The promise of the Marriage Supper of the Lamb is something to really look forward to.

The hope of a Savior is good, especially when the promise comes from God. But the experience of having a savior is so much better, and the assurance of continual victory is praiseworthy.

A promised land is worth the wait; living in a land flowing with milk and honey is sublime.

A kingdom on earth is wonderful; but having The King within our hearts is nothing short of divine.

Tomorrow has something for us, if we are willing embrace our tomorrows. But first, we must shed the past -- all of it. Not bury it. Not supress it. Just release our embrace of it and let it go.

Will you have all the things you used to? No, you won't. You may have better. Will you be the same person that you used to be? No, you won't. You will almost certainly be better. But first you must be willing to embrace God's plans, filled with God's prosperity, God's hope and God's future.

Paul put it this way in Phillipians 3: 13-15: Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind…

The past is quite in place just where it is. But tomorrow can't wait for your embrace.

With Thanksgiving

What can we be thankful for when we obviously stand in need?

We can be thankful for God's faithfulness today tomorrow and forever.

Ps 100 says to "enter his gates with thanksgiving," To "be thankful unto him and bless His name." And then the psalm reveals the reason why: "for the Lord is good, and His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations."

Look at that: He IS good. That's present -- today. This is the character of the Lord right now. Goodness is so much of what he consists of that He defines it. Believe that He is good and it will bring forth thanksgiving.

Next, His mercy is EVERLASTING -- that's tomorrow. Even if you wake up to another day of things not going the way you think they should, He'll still hold back the judgment we deserve, and keep everything else that could fall apart from collapsing in on us. He will always have mercy on us and no matter what we face, that can calm a heart, soothe a spirit, and bring forth an utterance of praise.

Then last: His truth ENDURES TO ALL GENERATIONS -- that's so long, we can count on His goodness and His mercy to impact our children and their children. The truth of God -- that is His word, even the same word that declares Him good -- is persevering and enduring. Regardless of what situations arise for future generations, His truth will endure. It is today and forever, something to count on. Belive on this, and you have an eternal round of thanksgiving.

So while refraining from anxiety, and while praying, give thanks because you recognize Who God is today in spite of the circumstance, Who He will be to you tomorrow and Who He always will be. Give thanks for a need that's yet to be met, and a victory yet to be won.

No matter what circumstance is staring you down, because you know these truths of God, there's nothing stopping your ability to be thankful now.