My soul

 

Casting Crowns – Oh My Soul

 

The soul is the deepest part of myself. It is the part that needs to be reached in order for wholeness to be received. I rarely have access to my soul, but occasionally when I am very quiet, my soul will show up. In my practice of Christian disciplines, I find that one of their main functions is to allow my soul to come out from its secret place, to be then recognized and ultimately restored. The restoration of the soul is fundamental to our redemption.

He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness[b]
for his name’s sake. – Psalm 23:3  ESV

The “path of righteousness” intrigues me for I think they are all here in this Psalm as a path of discipleship. First there is the green grass and quiet waters which provide refreshment. Secondly, there is the valley of the shadow of death. Thirdly, the path that leads to a table full of all sorts of good things for me even though my enemies surround me. The last destination is where discipleship always ends – the house of the Lord or for me today, being in His presence.

You see, that is where I find refreshment that matters. All power and glory in the universe belong to God. He knows everything. Rest leads to trust and trust leads to peace. Peaceful rest is the open door to hearing God and discerning His will.

 

 

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A word from God

 

Robert Morris: A Word from God

 

Is it not amazing that the word could come to Jeremiah but to no one else in his time. Today, the Spirit is poured on all of us and we can all hear God speak to us.

The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord after Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had let him go from Ramah, when he took him bound in chains along with all the captives of Jerusalem and Judah who were being exiled to Babylon. – Jeremiah 40:1  ESV

I think that we do not hear Him today is because we are afraid of the responsibility.

Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. – James 3:1  ESV

This one thing I know, I am blessed to be living in a time, as a disciple of Jesus, where I can hear His voice. I pray that I will always be humble when it comes to listening and I pray that I may hear Him speak to me every morning that we meet.

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Root of a disciple

 

Chris Tomlin – Is He Worthy? (Live)

 

There are times when I worry that my heart could actually become hard and turn God away.

He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God. He stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the Lord, the God of Israel. – 2 Chronicles 36:13  ESV

The “heart” is an unusual description of my emotions. Just like the word “love” the world has changed the meaning of the word “heart.” My heart is the core of my being – it is a mysterious and complex centre in my life where my longings, thinking, motivation and values reside. Out of my heart come my choices, behaviours and emotions. My heart was damaged and I thank God that He has changed it.

That is why I believe God wants to make sure that if our hearts do get hard, He has a way of softening them. As I read further in 2 Chronicles chapter 36 I see the exile was a way for that to happen.

The Lord, the God of their fathers, sent persistently to them by his messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place. But they kept mocking the messengers of God, despising his words and scoffing at his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord rose against his people, until there was no remedy.  Therefore he brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary and had no compassion on young man or virgin, old man or aged. He gave them all into his hand. – 2 Chronicles 36:15-17  ESV

God’s character shows up – holiness, goodness – and the discipline, the core of it was rooted in change and set eyes to the future and to restoration. Is it safe to say that the root of a disciple is discipline?

A hard heart represents a rebellious and sinful person who needs to repent. There are consequences of a hard heart. Some suggest that Old Testament is not relevant as it is the old covenant but look at the calls to repentance throughout the books there. If I forget God, disobey Him and worship anything else but Him my destruction is on me. To abuse grace is to not understand the need for repentance. The root of a disciple is discipline – so true.

 

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Loving my neighbour is loving God

 

Love God, Love Your Neighbor – Dale Sechrest

 

I know that I cannot attack people in the love of God. I also know that I should not withdraw from people either. I am called to accept them, love them. Loving my neighbour is a part of what goes into loving God.

If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot[a] love God whom he has not seen. – 1 John 4:20  ESV

I believe that God actually does love my neighbour, as unlikely as that might seem from time to time. At the same time, I can’t really follow Jesus and not love the church.

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I surrender all

 

All to Jesus I Surrender

 

For me to love God with all my heart is to have my will and my spirit entirely set on the accomplishment of what is good for God.

But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. – Matthew 6:33  ESV

I want to be able to say, “There isn’t anything in my life at this point that I would prefer over what is good for God.”  What is good for God is not that hard to figure out and the basic sense of what is good and right helps me understand that. I want to hang out with people who love God with all their heart and who are totally devoted to what is good for God.

If Jesus and His disciples were kingdom minded then I need to find myself there too. I am not too sure that I am getting too much help in this area from the Church – cannot remember the last time I heard a sermon that taught me how.

I believe I understand what my goals are:

  • Maturity – growing in knowledge and experience
  • Ministry – by means of serving as Jesus did
  • Mission – raising up other disciples
  • Multiplication – reproducing more disciples

I also understand that God did not save me or bless me merely for my own. He did because as His disciples I am to be like an advertising agency of the kingdom of God. I believe He wants me to make the kingdom attractive, not just in the sense of admiration but drawn because of how His disciples look and live as representatives of that kingdom.

This is what makes a disciple from others who think they are disciples – they seek God first. God becomes a priority.

Wealth is definitely an issue here. The first part of Matthew six was about the sincerity of being a disciple and here God is calling me to be single minded.

To give up my possessions does not mean I have to give everything away. Giving them away does mean however that I no longer consider anything as my own. It means that as long as I do not believe that everything I have belongs to Jesus I may not be His disciple.

 

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