Prospering by Renewing Your Mind

Why should we read God’s word every day or even several times a day?

Romans 12:1-2 tells us to offer ourselves to God and not to be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of our minds.

Focusing on This world can drag us down and conform us to itself if we let it. But we can renew our minds by thinking heavenly thoughts while still here on earth.

Philippians 4:8 tells us to think on those things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, worthy of praise.

Let’s face it, there is not a lot of those things in this world.

Romans 8:29 says that those who are born again are predestined to am conformed to the image of Jesus. We can’t do that by looking to the world but instead looking to the WORD!
 
The word tells us who we are in Christ, what God thinks about us, what we are destined for etc.
Great reasons to read God’s word!

Have you renewed your mind today?

Prospering through Suffering like Jesus

During Bible Study this morning, i was sipping my coffee and was reading Romans 8 when i came upon this verse—“The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.” (Romans 8:17)

we like the first part of that verse, but tend to skip that last part—i mean who likes to suffer???  No one!!!  And yet we are told that we must walk as Jesus walked. (1 John 2:6)

So how did Jesus walk?  Sarcastically, we could say He put one foot in front of the other. But realistically, Jesus walked in full dependence upon God the Father. Jesus said that He could do nothing on His own, but only that which He saw the Father do. (John 5:19-47)  And yet we see Jesus doing things that we would never walk into of our own choice. Isaiah 53 describes the suffering Servant and foreshadows the horrible cruelty that Jesus would have to endure on our behalf.

Jesus suffered through betrayal, deceit, rejection, unbelief from others, horrible crucifixion and death, separation (albeit temporary) from the Father, cruelty from others and so much more. All without a word of complaint. And yet we go through one event and cry out that it’s not fair!  We call God cruel and unloving and say He doesn’t care about us.  “What kind of  loving God would allow this!!” we scream out.

And yet none of us have suffered like Jesus. Never once did Jesus doubt the Father’s love and plan for Him. Why?  Because His relationship with the Father superceded any circumstance He endured. He KNEW the Father loved Him. He KNEW that this was God’s plan and He KNEW that greater things were in store for Him after He walked this path. He obeyed the Father, even to the point of death because pleasing the Father was His ultimate goal. He carried His cross, no matter how painful it was, walked the path laid out for Him and came out triumphant!!

The next time our circumstances threaten to overwhelm us and tempt us to question the Father, may we remember Jesus!!

Prospering

Psalm 23:1-6

” A Psalm of David.

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

[2] He makes me lie down in green pastures.

He leads me beside still waters.

[3] He restores my soul.

He leads me in paths of righteousness

for his name’s sake.

[4] Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil,

for you are with me;

your rod and your staff,

they comfort me.

[5] You prepare a table before me

in the presence of my enemies;

you anoint my head with oil;

my cup overflows.

[6] Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

all the days of my life,

and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord

forever.”

It’s amazing the truths that we can find if we will break this passage apart, verse by verse—-

Ÿ  “The Lord is my Shepherd“-that’s relationship (to be connected by blood or marriage)  Mark 15:38

Ÿ  “I shall not be in want”-that’s supply (to furnish or provide)  Philippians 4:19

Ÿ  “He makes me lie down in green pastures”-that’s rest (freedom from activity, to pause) Matthew 11:28

Ÿ  “He leads me beside quiet waters”-that’s refreshment (to give freshness to, to make strong or pure) 1 Corinthians 1:8

Ÿ  “He restores my soul”-that’s healing (to make well or cure) Exodus 15:26

Ÿ  “He guides me in paths of righteousness“- that’s guidance (to lead or show the way) Psalm 48:14

Ÿ  “For His names sake”- that’s purpose (to give meaning to) Philippians 4:13

Ÿ  “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death”- that’s testing (means of trial or proof) Romans 12:2

Ÿ  “I will fear no evil”- that’s protection (to defend or to guard) 2 Thessalonians 3:3

Ÿ  “For You are with me”- that’s faithfulness (loyalty, to keep promises) Jesus said “never will I leave you, never will I forsake you” Hebrews 13:5

Ÿ  “Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me- that’s discipline (training that produces obedience) Revelation 3:19

Ÿ  “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies”- that’s hope (expectation of something desired) Titus 1:2

Ÿ  “You anoint my head with oil”- that’s consecration (to make sacred, or to set apart as holy) 1 Corinthians 1:2-6

Ÿ  “My cup overflows”- that’s abundance (having more than enough)    Matthew 25:29

Ÿ  “Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life”- that’s blessing (to make happy) Ezekiel 34:36

Ÿ  “And I will dwell in the house of the Lord”- that’s security (safe or firmly fixed) Proverbs 14:26

Ÿ  “Forever”- that’s eternity (without beginning or end, everlasting)  Revelation 1:8

This is true prosperity!!

Until next time, Keep Prospering in the Lord!

Prospering in life, in the midst of death

These past 2 months have been a crazy time for me, which is why there has been no posts.

On July 29, my youngest God-daughter, Aprhil, was born. And what a joyous time it was!!  Not only was she named after me, but I got to be in the delivery room when she was born!!  I love babies, so this was a tremendous honor for me!!!

Over the next few weeks, I got to know her, love her, spend time with her and cherish her. What a joy to be with such a wonderful blessing!!!

But that blessing quickly turned to heartache when just 20 days after her birth, she went home to be with Jesus. To say that I was devastated would be an understatement!!   One day I will share more details of that day, but today I wanted to share how in the midst of death, we can still prosper in this life.

“Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.” 3 John 2

Just as your soul prospers….how does my soul prosper when faced with such a horrific tragedy?

First, I must remember that my Redeemer lives!!  (Romans 6:10, Galatians 2:20)  Because HE lives, death is not the end!  So my soul prospers because Aprhil is not really dead, but rather more alive than she would have ever been here on earth. She did not die, but rather her spirit left her body and she passed on to be with Jesus. Her body will be reunited with her spirit at the resurrection of the dead, but right now she lives. (2 Cor 5:8)

Second, I must remember that because I belong to Jesus, I will see her again someday!!  (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18)

Third, I must remember that my God is the God of all peace and comfort and I can cry out to Him to heal my heart. I find that when my heart is broken, God removes the brokenness and fills me up with more of Him. That is true prosperity—-being full of HIM!!  (2 Corinthians 1:3-7)

Now, lest you think this is easy….think again!  It is never easy to go through losing someone you love so much! This isn’t about perfection, but about progress. My soul is prospering in the midst of losing Aprhil, but that doesn’t mean I don’t miss her. It doesn’t mean I don’t cry. It doesn’t mean that I understand why she had to leave this earth so young. It doesn’t mean that I agree with the situation.

But it does mean that my faith in God has not wavered in spite of my many questions. It does mean that I trust that God knows what He is doing as He allows things in His Sovereignty. It does mean that I can draw near to God and allow Him to draw near to me. (James 4:8)

It means that my tears of sadness are not wasted and it also means that this situation will be used for good. (Psalm 56:8, Romans 8:28)

We can truly prosper even in the midst of the saddest situations life has to throw at us.

Until next time, Keep Prospering in Christ!!