What God Has Been Teaching Me Lately XIV…

debris of earth reveals heavens light (8-26-13)

Greetings My Friends~

As a humble pilgrim following Jesus through the rainforests and deserts of this earthly life, I would like to humbly share some of what God has been bubbling up in my mind/heart lately.

I pray that these thoughts are cushions in your shoes, balm to your burns, umbrellas for the rain, and shade to the scorching heat as you too follow the Lord Jesus each day.

SoulSpartan

(August 11th-31st, 2013)

(Please click on Bible links below to read the entire passage listed)

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I. God’s Grace

A. G.R.A.C.E.: God Readily Accepts Contrite Enemies. 
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B.  S.A.F.E.: Sincerely Accepting the Forgiveness of Elohim
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C. Spiritual Bowling: Jesus got many strikes so that you could get a spare…
dont throw an eternal gutter ball by rejecting the perfect game 300 that He threw for you.
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D. Verdict: Unwilling humans ignore God and mistreat those who share His love/truth;
Jesus’ Response: He wants to gather those unwilling humans together & love them;
Reality: Unwilling humans refuse Jesus–they won’t let Him love them.
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E. Milk has an expiration date-if it’s not purchased in time it’s thrown out.
Humans also have an expiration date-if we dont allow Jesus to purchase us we’ll be thrown out too.
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Please click HERE if the above seems unfair.
F. We who have received Jesus’ free gift of forgiveness still face problems on earth but not The Problem after earth (eternal separation from God).
We get pebbles in our shoes but wont ever be crushed by a boulder
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G. Jesus is the true&perfect Samaritan Who notices, stops &offers to heal/forgive broken & battered humans who hate Him.
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H. If someone gave you free front-row season tickets to your favorite sports team, would you wait til the last game to attend?
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Please dont wait til your deathbed to receive Jesus’ free forgiveness.
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II. Treat Other Humans With Love & Kindness
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Looking for true works of art?
Dont go to a museum…go to a grocery store, park, restaurant-wherever humans are;
God created us in HIS image!
His finger prints are all over us!
Treat yourselves and others gently–we don’t have the protection of red velvet ropes…
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B. Real men don’t threaten others with the use of big muscles…
real men promise others with the use of big mercy.
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III. God Is ALWAYS With You
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A. You’ve been hurting for a while…& then you begin to get better–you slowly start to sip relief.
What if it was God sending His angels to comfort you, just as He sent angels to comfort Jesus in the desert? WHAT IF?!
You are NEVER alone.
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B. God NEVER wants us to give up (quit), but He ALWAYS wants us to give up (hand our fears/stress/problems over to Him.
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C.  Adam&Eve–though suffering expulsion from Eden, a murdered son (at the hands of his brother!) & the other son’s banishment–didn’t give up…they started a new family together and gave thanks/credit to God (Genesis 4:25)
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D. Developing faith in Jesus requires hardship-we cant get to a mountaintop by going downhill&we cant become who God made us 2b in an easy way.
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IV. God Uses the Pain of Our Lives for Good
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A. The dust and debris of earth reveal the light and love of heaven.
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(please see main picture at beginning of this article)
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B. Earth’s a spiritual Seattle–consistent rain w/moments of bright joy that give glimpses of the eternal Hawaii in store for those who receive Jesus.
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V. A New Life/New Start With Jesus!
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A. Let Jesus “re-boot” you–giving you new shoes, not for running away from Him but for running toward others to share His Gospel of Peace! 
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B. Though a check is made out to you, you cant receive its benefits til you endorse it w/your name.
Jesus’ forgiveness, though also made out to you, requires the same. #faith
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C. L.U.C.K.: Living Under Christ’s Kingship  #Jesus
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D. Being penniless with Jesus on a Monday morning is better than having millions of dollars without Jesus on a Friday night.
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E. After faith in Jesus, begin to then add obedience. 
God will transform the “have-to, should, and must” into the “want-to, get-to, and can.”
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F. Once we accept Jesus’ offer to purchase us & erase our expiration date, He wont leave us in the bottle or on the shelf–He will POUR US OUT to show His love to others. 
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VI. Worshiping God ONLY
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L.O.V.E.: Lifting Our Voices to Elohim
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B. Pass any laws you want, U.S. government…we will NOT bow down to the ungodly statu(t)es you have made.
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C. Marveling at nature while ignoring Jesus is like meticulously caring for Water Lillies paintings in a museum while allowing Monet to be homeless, mistreated, ignored & under-appreciated.
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D. We don’t worship God so we can then enjoy Him, like eating veggies to get dessert or working hard during the week to get to the weekend.
Over time, we learn that worshiping God IS enjoying Him, that a Monday morning with Jesus is better than a Friday night without Him.
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VII. Christians Are On God’s Side (Not Vice Versa)
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A. God isn’t on the “Christian team’s” side;
those of us who have accepted Jesus’ free forgiveness are on HIS side,
we’re on HIS bandwagon,
we’re getting to heaven by riding HIS COATTAILS,
His greatness,
His grace,
His death and return to life.
There is a difference. #notaboutus #allaboutJesus
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B. God didn’t look at the people groups of the world & say, “I choose Christians because they’re so doggone great!”
Christians believe & trust in Jesus because HE is so doggone great…
and we realize that without Him we are so doggone lost.
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C. We Christians do not own God’s Truth anymore than Albert Einstein owns the theory of relativity. He didn’t make up e=mc2; He discovered the truth of that equation which has existed ever since God created it and the universe. Einstein is part of a small group of people who actually understand its significance and so he is qualified to teach and speak on it, but he doesn’t own it and he didn’t make it up—he discovered it. The same is true with Christians: God revealed Himself to the world through His Son Jesus and we who have accepted His Son Jesus–we who by God’s grace realize Jesus’ eternal significance and receive Him–are therefore commanded to introduce Jesus to all the people of this world so that they too have the opportunity to be eternally forgiven and re-born.
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VIII. Becoming A Christian Doesn’t Mean You Have To Become An American
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A. Jesus wants the people of the world to receive HIM & become like HIM,
not to adopt the culture of U.S. Christians & become like us. #bigdifference
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B. Many from other nations are reluctant to “become Christian” because that term is often equated with “white, anglo-saxon, American, Western culture, MTV, rock and roll, etc.,” a way of life that is both different and unappealing.But Jesus isn’t inviting the people of the world to become American…He is inviting them to be His sons and daughters, to be forgiven, to be made new, to be adopted.#bigdifference
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IX. What…WHO…Is Your Treasure?
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As we begin to empty our arms of the trinkets of this world we have room to more fully embrace Him Who created this world.
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B.  Even the murderous/dishonest/bitter/tightfisted and indifferent Cain realized his worst/most painful punishment was being “hidden from the LORD’S presence” (Genesis 4:13-14).
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X. Jesus Is Our Role Model
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May we see as God sees…
may we speak as He speaks…
may we be as He is…
may we do as He does…
may we die as He died…
may we rise as He rose…
may we be where He is.
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B. Do you ever sweat for Jesus?
Ever get sore for Him?
Ever get injured loving Him & others?
Ever get worn out carrying your cross and following Him?
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No?
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Then maybe you’re not running.
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I’m not talking about trying to earn Jesus’ love/forgiveness; that we cannot do and must stop trying to do.
But the Bible often compares following Jesus to a race,
and the races I’ve run in my life, while rewarding, have left me feeling
sore,
tired,
nauseous,
hurt,
and sweaty.
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Feeling good physically at the end of a race shows that the runner didn’t give their all.
Jesus wants our all.
Let’s give it to Him today.
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C. P.U.L.S.E.: People Unashamedly Living for the Savior’s Enjoyment. 🙂
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D. We’ve turned the word “justice” to mean “just us.” You’ve been blessed to be a blessing…your couch should be your least used furniture. Go. In the name of Jesus…GO! 

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XI. Parenting
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A. A house’s walls were made for children’s drawings.
Parents, please frame & hang your kids’ artwork in your home.
By doing so you’ll show them they’re a masterpiece too.
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B.  Enoch “walked with God” in close/personal friendship (Genesis 5:23-24)…Enoch’s dad (Cain) was a murderer. We are NOT cursed by our parents sins.
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XII. The Eternal Vs. the Temporary
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A. Americans spend billions annually on hair though its a DEAD part of our bodies!
Yet we ignore the condition & destination of our immortal souls.
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B. Too much ketchup–or any condiment for that matter–hides/masks the flavor of the burger,
just as too much money/material wealth hides/masks our need for & experience of God.
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XIII. So Long Self…
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S.E.L.F.: Sabotaging the Experience of Life to the Full 
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B. Cars are designed for drivers to constantly look out of the windshield (not at the floor)–forgetting this causes great pain to self and others;Humans are designed to constantly look at God & others (not at ourselves)–forgetting this causes worse pain to self and others.Philippians 2:3-11 NLT
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XIV. Relying On Jesus Daily
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A. Overwhelmed, Jesus-people? GOOD! Carrying a cross is supposed to be impossible for us to do alone…this FORCES us to rely on Jesus.
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B. Jesus-lovers! Don’t seek the easy life on earth! Our ease begins in heaven…and will last forever!
Yet now we are to CHOOSE to willingly SUFFER in order to pass out Jesus’ invitations to others. 
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XV. Small Victories In Daily Life Remind Us of Jesus Huge Victory That Offers Us Eternal Life
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Just finished fixing our lawn mower after many attempts–what a thrill! 
Within His VICTORY over sin&death, Jesus gives us little victories in our lives, like biting into a warm donut & realizing its also filled w/gooey custard. 
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XVI. Our Identity In Christ Jesus
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Breathtaking/inspiring–used to listen to this for hours on end as a teenager…
This score reminds me of humans’ majesty–more than mammals, we are made in HIS image and invited to greatness: the greatness of knowing, loving, and enjoying the LORD forever. 
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B. Lets remember to soak in who we are IN Christ
before we focus on what we are to do FOR Christ.
Identity fuels activity.
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Please click HERE for “The Bell”
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XVII. True Freedom
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True freedom is not being whoever you want, not doing whatever you want…it’s being who you were made to be, doing what you were made to do.
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What is better for your dog: to drop her off in the middle of a city to “set her free” to roam alleys, dodge cars, and endure natures fury?
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Or is it better for your dog to be “restricted” by your loving leash on walks through parks,
to be “confined” in your home by a roaring fire petted by a doting family?
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There is NO freedom apart from Jesus Christ.
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B. The Bible doesn’t give us a list of MORE to do…it warns/encourages us to re-evaluate what we ALREADY do in light of its Truth.
Trimming is often better than adding;
replacing often more productive than piling.
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Category : What God Has Been Teaching Me Lately
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