Sunday, March 11, 2012

The Birth of Spring can be Bittersweet.

There's a touch of spring in the air. A fresh new season is approaching. New life is starting to bud but there are precious souls hurting around us. These souls are stirring with uncomfortable feelings about spring. This coming change in seasons is just another reminder that life moves on. This 'Must" can be emotionally painful for someone that is grieving any kind of loss or change in life. Experiencing the birth of spring can be bittersweet for the brokenhearted. If this is you, please take comfort in knowing, no matter what is going on in your life, God is there.

Be encouraged to get out in the fresh air. Where more than two are gathered there is healing & peace to be found. John 16:20 "Very truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy."

Today's teaching is how to strengthen our spiritual flame. When we feed our spiritual hunger joy trades places with anguish. A rebirth for your life is within you. `*.¸.*.♥.✿´´¯`☼•*❤*•°•❥ℒƠѵℯ & Hugz..☆ . ƸӜƷ¸.☆.

Our Prayer for the Week: God of changing seasons, comfort your children with broken hearts and bring them peace. Lord as You warm the earth unfold this grace onto the hearts of the hurting. Thank you for the melting of winter and your promise of the colors and songs of spring. May all enjoy the beautiful weather and find inspiration, relaxation, and fun in Your world as we stretch and explore with spring fever. Bless all Your creation, Lord, that it may glorify Your name by its beauty, this coming spring like week and always. Root us deeply in You. We pray this in Jesus’ name. ~Amen.

Many Blessing ~Sara

From Pastor Paul’s Stored Treasure Chest
"…brings forth out of his treasure things both old and new" –Matthew 12:35

Today’s Focus:
The twelfth chapter of Romans is rich territory for the Bible student. -- In the very centre of the chapter is a cluster of exhortations, and it is upon one of these that we base our present study, in which we shall emphasize the truth that the Christian life should be characterized by fervency.

The word "fervent" really means "to boil over".
… Moffat translates the whole of this verse: "Never let your zeal flag; maintain the spiritual glow; serve the Lord."
… The Revised Standard Version Bible has it: "Be aglow with the Spirit".

When anyone receives the Lord Jesus Christ and becomes a Christian, a fire is lit within his heart by the Holy Spirit. -- By nature we do not have this fire, for there is no "divine spark" in the heart of the natural man; but at conversion there begins to glow within us the fire of a new life (I John 5:12); the fire of a new love (Romans 5:5), and the fire of a new light (Ephesians 5:8). When we become Christians we obtain the fire of God's life, love and light; but having obtained the fire, the main thing is to maintain it.
… If a fire is neglected it will soon die down, as it did in young Timothy's case, so that Paul wrote to him of the need to stir up the gift of God (II Timothy 1:6).
… We may lose the "flame", the "glow" of our spiritual experience, and we can through neglect or disobedience degenerate into a dull, "smoky" Christian.
… This is something to avoid at all costs. There are many Christians today whose spiritual life is at very low ebb and whose testimony is therefore ineffective.

They are Christians, but they are fruitless, powerless Christians. -- What a tragedy this is!
What, then, are the essential conditions that must be met if we are to maintain the spiritual glow, so that the fire of the Holy Spirit may burn brightly within us? – The conditions are very obvious, but they are essential and are therefore very important.

Message: The Fervent Life
Scripture: Romans 12:11
"Be ... fervent in spirit" (Romans 12:11)

Our Main Points:
There must be regular removal of the ash, slate, dust, clinkers and soot
Even though we are Christians it is possible for these things to be in our lives.
… They are "dead" things which need to be regularly raked out so that the fire does not become lifeless and dull.
… We may add more fuel to the fire, but that will be useless if the fire is choked up with ash, slate, dust, clinkers or soot.

Some Christians are constantly attending conventions and meetings for the deepening of spiritual life, and yet they never seem to grow in grace. -- Why?
… Is it not because they need a thorough "raking out" experience?
… Our lives can never be right while they are choked with sin.
… There can never be any real victory until we have accepted God's verdict concerning our fallen nature and have reckoned ourselves to be crucified with Christ (Romans 6:11).
Now notice that in this twelfth chapter of Romans there are five things which need to be raked out of our hearts if the fire of God is to burn brightly within us:
… The Ash of Pride (verse 3).
It is very easy for us to over-estimate ourselves, but what we are we are only by the grace of God (I Corinthians 15:10).
Pride will never cause the fire of God to burn. -- Pride will deaden any Christian life.
… The Slate of Hypocrisy (verse 9).
Our love must be sincere, without hypocrisy.
Our inward experience must tally with our outward profession (Titus 1:16; I Thessalonians 2:9-12).
… The Dust of Laziness (verse 11), and we must at all costs see that we are not lazy and slothful in the King's business.
Many Christians are lazy and slothful. -- Few really seem to be busy in the task of soul-saving.
When we consider all that our Savior has done for us can we be slack in our service for Him (Matthew 20:3)?
… The Clinker of Disunity (verse 16), and if there is one thing that stunts the lives of Christians and hinders the work of God, it is disunity. -- How stunted are the lives of those Christians who nurse a grudge against their fellow-believers, or who allow themselves to become critical or fault-finding with others!
… The Soot of Dishonesty (verse 17), and it refers to any deceit or falsehood in our lives. -- If these things are present they must be raked out (II Corinthians 7:1; Colossians 3:8-14).
There must be a constant supply of the right kind of fuel
Bad coal will never burn brightly on any fire; and the wrong kind of fuel will never feed, nourish and sustain the child of God.
God's Best House Coal is available in plentiful supply for every Christian, and how it makes the fire burn and glow!
… This is the Word of God (Psalm 119:50).
… When a Christian constantly feeds on the Word of God he soon becomes a brightly-burning, radiant fruitful Christian; but when he neglects the Bible and feeds upon the damp fuel of worldliness (verse 2), or of religious activity that is not inspired by the Holy Spirit that Christian will be an ineffective Christian.

In the life of every child of God there must be regular and prayerful feeding upon the Word of God. -- This is the only way to grow and glow (Luke 24:32).

There are two ways to feed a fire.
… One is to pile the wood which is a quick way; but the other way is to lay the wood on carefully, piece by piece.
… This is much more effective.
Likewise, there are two ways of feeding on the Word of God.
… One way is to attend meetings and to be fed in bulk form; the other way is to get alone with God individually and ask Him through His Word to feed us.
… That is the way to become nourished (II Timothy 2:15), and refuse to be a spoon-fed Christian!
There must be plenty of air and a good draught
The Christian's "native air" and "vital breath" is prayer; and it is prayer that makes a Christian glow.
How vital and attractive are those Christians who have come from the secret place alone and who have been with God in the place of prayer!
… What a blessing they are to us, how the Lord uses them and what glory they bring to Him!
… But there are other Christians who are dull of understanding and perception, whose lives do not seem to count for much; who are careless, carnal, defeated, powerless Christians. -- These are the prayerless Christians.

Our Final Thought: Let us see to it that we are not "smoky" Christians but glowing Christians-- "aglow with the Spirit"; that is, filled with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18).

If during the course of our study a question or comment surfaces and you would want to share it with me, please click on my e-mail address (pastorpaul@willmarag.org) where you can conveniently do so. I always enjoy sharing with others in spiritual kinds of ways. --Pastor Paul


No comments:

Post a Comment