Be Filled Today

For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; (Colossians 1:9, KJV)

The Lord searches for saints who will gladly empty themselves, so He might fill them with His Spirit. It is doubtful that God will fill us when our lives are already full and our minds already made up, nor will He lift up a life we will not lay down. Once we put our agenda away, our ideas of ministry and church, our viewpoint, and our need to promote and protect anything of ourselves, God can fill us with His wisdom and understanding.

 

Are you empty enough to be filled?

 

There are liable to be a host of things we believe about God which are not true, because they are not found in His Word. Our systems, doctrines, and convictions about God often have nothing to do with who He really is. The knowledge of His will never rises from our efforts or studies, but it comes down to us in the Person of the Holy Spirit. It is this personal relationship with God in the Spirit that enables a saint to come into the fullness of the stature of Jesus Christ, and that relationship alone.

 

Remember, every good and perfect gift comes down from our Father (James 1:17). So, look up and be filled with the wisdom and understanding He is pouring out. You will not find it anywhere else.

 

Let’s Pray – Dear Lord, my greatest desire is to be filled and overflowing with Your Holy Spirit. I lay down my right to myself and give all to You today. I will be satisfied in Your presence and Your goodness. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Confess Your Faults

Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. (James 5:16)

There is remarkable healing power in talking to a trustworthy friend about our sins, faults, and failures. Confession brings us the freedom that enables us to move forward with our lives, because it brings the hidden things of darkness to light, where they lose their power. Remember, Jesus died for our sins, and if we ask, He forgives us and sets us free from every one of them. Therefore, it is not the sins we commit that are the most grievous, but the sins we do not confess! So, tell someone.

 

Today.

 

Churches are filled with Christians who are still burdened with unconfessed sins. They do not realize their silence is their prison, and they can never be free to lift their hands in victory until they lay their sin-burden down at the feet of Christ. Once we come to realize the power of confession and intercession, we will never again hide the things we should expose. This is the sweet and clean fellowship like-minded believers enjoy.

 

Confession and repentance are gifts from the Lord, and we must open those gifts more often. Our healing awaits!

 

Let’s Pray - Father, I will no longer hide behind shame and fear. I will regularly confess my sins and faults to You and a believer I trust. I want to be healed, free, and clean in You. In Jesus Christ, Amen.

Abide in Me

If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples. (John 15:7-8)

The abiding presence of Jesus Christ is clear and evident in the life of an obedient saint. We are no longer tossed to and fro by every wind of thought and emotion, but we are planted and grafted into the vine which springs from the heart of God. We are called beyond a casual acquaintance and into the confidence of our Lord, who is willing and able to make us holy, because He is holy. This is the hope every child of God clings to — the Father’s abiding love.

 

Where Christ abides, there is peace, and we never truly know if we possess that peace within until there is trouble all around us. Our response in those seasons tell us the truth about our relationship with the Lord. When we are abiding in Him, we will glorify God through it all by our faith. We are fruitful and joyful regardless of the circumstance because of the Spirit who dwells so richly in us. This is how we know we are His, and this is how everyone around us knows.

 

Remember, in His presence is fullness of joy. Abide in His presence and be filled.

 

Let’s pray – Father, fill me with Your Spirit, and abide in my willing heart. I will obey Your every Word, and I will keep my heart pure before You so You will gladly live in me, both now and forever. Amen

Me and My Words

But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.' for whatever is more than these is from the evil one. (Matthew 5:37)

 

Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one. (Colossians 4:6)

 

Your words should be spoken more carefully, for the Lord will judge you by them. Jesus is saying, “If you say it, you must do it . . .” If we do as we say, we are honest. If not, we are liars and hypocrites, and no Spirit-filled saint is either of those things. Be careful, because your speech affirms or betrays you!

 

Our words have more power than we think. Therefore, a mature Christian is a careful talker, who displays that maturity by speaking wisely. There are no frivolous conversations for saints, because others may live or die spiritually by the fruit of our lips. We have been given the profound privilege of speaking in a manner pleasing to the Lord, and we have been given the opportunity to edify those around us with our words.

 

If we are good stewards of our speech, God empowers us to speak life and peace every place He sends us. Those who speak this way are particularly useful and pleasing to Him, for He can trust us with His Word and with souls. Let the Lord be heard through your voice today and take every opportunity to speak words of life and light.

 

Let’s Pray – Father, I want to speak pure and truthful words. I will set a guard at my tongue and choose my words carefully. May my speech reflect a clean heart, and may my tongue edify and encourage others. In Jesus, Amen

Do Not Fear

You will keep him in perfect peace,
Whose mind is stayed on You,
Because he trusts in You.

(Isaiah 26:3)

 

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. (1 John 4:18)

 

In the Bible, the term “perfect” always refers to the Lord. It speaks of completeness, wholeness, health, preparedness, and holiness. None of these things can be done in a saint apart from the Lord, for He is the only One who can do a perfect work in us.

 

When we are walking closely with Him, His abiding presence makes fear impossible. His strength fills and comforts us, and our faith grows in the face of all opposition. We can laugh at the taunts of Satan, because the heart filled with love has no space for fear! That is what Isaiah means by “perfect peace.”

 

Where there is fear, there is an absence of love. Where there is love, there is God, for He is love; and where He is, there can be no fear. The Lord will not share His place in our hearts with the devil, so we either walk with God in the fullness of faith, or we do not walk with Him at all. I am not saying we will not encounter fearful times or situations; what I am saying is the Spirit who dwells in us will defeat that fear every time, and we will walk in the courage and confidence our Savior walked in. That is His will for His children.

 

Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You. (Psalms 56:3) 

 

Let’s Pray – Dear Lord, thank You for the Holy Spirit who shed Your love abroad in our hearts. We give You free reign and residence, so we might be changed daily into the perfect image of Christ, as He is the perfect image of the Father. We ask these things boldly, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

A Right Spirit

Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. (Psalm 51:10)

It is easier than we think to get upside down in spiritual things. Once we begin to lead with our emotions, intellect, will, or flesh, we are immediately out-of-sorts, and only the Spirit of God can correct us. He has the truth at His disposal, and He will use that truth to help us realize our error and to repent. When we are wise, He gets our attention with just a whisper — but when we are foolish, He has to bring correction through difficulty and pain. Let us choose to be wise and obedient.

God desires that you come to Him; and when you draw near to Him, He will draw near to you. He, and only He can make you holy and give you the power to live in a way that glorifies Him — that is why you come. 

So, come and let Him search you and remove anything that does not please Him. Come, and He will cleanse your heart and renew a right spirit within you. Just come!

“Come unto Me . . ."  

Let’s pray - O Lord, open our eyes and give us a new heart and spirit. Help us to be easily entreated and quick to come to Jesus. Thank You for your grace and patience. Amen.

A Living Sacrifice

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. (Romans 12:1)

God is not being unreasonable when he asks us to lay our lives down, and there is great value in doing so. We become a “living sacrifice” when we are willing to die to ourselves and allow Christ to live out His life in our mortal bodies. What an honor, to gladly give our Lord everything we have and everything we are!

 

The laid-down life is the only life the Lord can raise up. He fills empty vessels, not full ones. He lifts up the humble and resists those who promote themselves. 

 

Truly, Jesus is our Example in all good things, and He is the ultimate living sacrifice. As we walk closely with God, we learn not to consider what obedience costs us. We consider what it cost Him, and it cost Him the life of His Son. 

 

Jesus laid down His life and picked it up again in righteousness and resurrection power. If we will lay our lives down, He will lift us up and fill us with that same righteousness and power. 

 

Remember, we must die to ourselves in order to truly live. So, present yourself to Him today. It is your reasonable service. Are you reasonable?

 

Let’s Pray – Lord, we surrender our all today. Set us free from the bondage of selfishness, so we can truly be children of God. You gave everything for us, and we are most like our Savior when we give all for You. Amen.