Tag: Food For Growth

¹⁹ Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, ²⁰ but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. ~ Matthew 6:19–21

Don’t waste your time working for fool’s gold. The only thing you will have in eternity is what you send on ahead. If you send nothing on ahead, you will have nothing.

Nothing added to nothing is still nothing.

Well, I’m sure you will have something, but nothing compared to what you could have.

We need to work now; we need to build up our treasure, don’t miss out on the best and most profitable investment ever, YOUR ETERNITY!

Paul understood the gravity of the situation when he told the Corinthian church that he worked harder, was imprisoned more, had more hardships than the other apostles. He was building up lasting treasure.

Paul was sure of what he had done. He did not waste his time with useless things. He did not get distracted with temporal wealth and position. He was hyper-focused on the eternal. Don’t let the deceitful fruit of the world take away your focus on the eternal.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Invest In Your Eternity.

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⁷ I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. ⁸ Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved His appearing. ~ 2 Timothy 4:7–8

He was sure he had run the race successfully, and he had finished the course completely. There was nothing he had left undone. No regrets. Now, I realize that everyone has regrets. Things that they wished they had done, or things that they wished they hadn’t done. Paul didn’t have regrets after he accepted Christ as LORD and Savior, he was laser-focused on what God had called him to do, and he let NOTHING distract him.

He said, “I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also, I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.” He had one thing on his mind, doing God’s will.

Paul didn’t consider salvation to be a one-time thing and done. He understood that it took a lifetime. Every day we wake up and plug away to attain that which we were apprehended by Christ Jesus to apprehend. That is, eternal life and to bring others with us.

In the Old Testament, God said several times, “None shall appear before me empty-handed.” Every time He described or talked about the Feasts, He mentioned it.

None shall appear before me empty-handed.

Do you suppose that was written only for those Feasts that was only a shadow of that which was and is to come? No, it was written about soul-winning as well. When we stand before God, we must have something to show for our labor. Whether it was because of our prayers or because of our witness, we must not stand before the God of the Feasts empty-handed.

We are not saved to go into hibernation. No, we are saved for good works, for winning souls; we are saved to be a blessing to others. It is not about us; it’s about pleasing God by being a blessing to others.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Don’t Waste Your Salvation.

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²⁴ And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’ ~ Luke 16:24

Just a few days earlier, he was ignoring poor Lazarus, who longed for the crumbs that fell from his table. The Bible didn’t say Lazarus ate, but he longed to eat. The rich man probably despised Lazarus. So, it is entirely possible that the rich man was so mean that he refused Lazarus even the crumbs that fell from his table.

Now when he is face to face with eternity, all his riches and all his wealth and the social statuses don’t seem so important anymore. He is now willing for that sorey, dog-licked finger to be dipped in water and to be touched on his tongue. What seems important to us now will not mean a thing one hundred years, ten years, two years, or even a year from now, much less ten seconds into eternity.

LORD God, help us to focus on Eternity rather than on the present world around us. Fill us with Your Holy Presence so that we may be able to live our lives for You. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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²² A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, but the sinner’s wealth is laid up for the righteous. ~ Proverbs 13:22

This Scripture might be talking about a financial inheritance in general, but it can be applied spiritually to spiritual inheritance. A father leaves a Godly inheritance to his children and grandchildren.

A good father teaches his son to be a real man. A masculine man. He teaches him responsibility. He teaches him manners and how to treat other people. How to treat women by being an example for him by showing him how, by the way you treat his mother, your wife.

A good father teaches his daughter what to expect from a man, how she should expect to be treated. You set the bar of expectation for the young man who will eventually date your daughter. So that when she goes out on her date, she knows how she is supposed to be treated and insists on being treated that way.

A good father teaches his children how to love the LORD God with all their heart, mind, and soul. This is the inheritance we men have to leave our children. We have to teach them how to be strong men and women of God.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Leave Your Children An Inheritance.

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⁷ Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. ~ 1 Samuel 3:7

Though Samuel was ministering and growing in the favor of the LORD, he didn’t know Him. Our children may be raised in church. They know Bible story after Bible story, they even share the Bible with others, but unless they have a spiritual relationship with God, they won’t know Him.

We have to make sure, especially in today’s world more than ever before, that our children have their own relationship with God. We can’t bring anyone else in through our own relationship with God. We have to train up our children to love and seek God so that they build their own relationship with Him, according to how we have taught them.

So when the world comes to lead our children astray, and they’re starting your and younger, our children will be able to stand firm. They will be able to hear the voice of the Good Shepherd leading them to living water and everlasting life. So that they will know right from wrong and good from evil in a world that has blurred all lines.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Help Them Build Their Relationship With God.

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¹⁰ She was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly. ~ 1 Samuel 1:10

Oftentimes, in our distress, we go to our friends or family, and we rant. I know because that’s what I do. I do one of two things, I rant and rage when things go wrong. Or I go silent and keep it bottled up inside. Oftentimes, I don’t even take it to God. Why is that? Why don’t we go to God first when things go wrong? Don’t we want a healing? Answered prayers?

I think as humans, we feel comfortable in the dirt. Leaving our comfort zone of self-pity or anger is hard. I think we know that when we bring it before the LORD, He’ll take it from us and clean us. Which in hindsight sounds good, but when we really think about it, it’s hard to be cleaned.

We no longer get to stay in our dirty comfort zone. We now have to put our flesh in check. We have to put our pride, feelings, and sorrow in check. We have to leave them behind and put on humility, love, faith, and hope. Those things sound good, but they’re hard to put on. They’re heavy at first because our flesh is weak, our Spirit Man is starved, but when we begin to start bringing things to the LORD, we will see a change in our lives. We will see a change in us.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Leave the Dirt.

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² And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. ³ And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” ⁴ When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” ~ Exodus 3:2-4

It wasn’t until Moses sought out to know why the bush was not burned that God actually called out to him. If Moses had just kept walking, he would’ve missed out on his call. But because he drew near to God, even though he didn’t know it, God drew near to him. All it took was Moses seeking out the Truth for him to indirectly seek out and find God.

So, many of us miss out on our call because we don’t seek out the Truth; we seek out our truth. Whatever we seek, we will find. When we seek evil, we will find evil. When we seek good, we will find good. When we seek our version of the truth, we will find false truth. When we seek the Truth, we find the Truth. We find God.

LORD God, help us to seek the Truth. Your Truth and not our own. Help us to never seek out what is false simply because it’s easier or because it’s what our flesh desires. Guide us on the path You have laid out for us, that we might abide in Your perfect love. That we might receive every good and perfect gift, You have in store for us. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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³⁸ Then Saul clothed David with his armor. He put a helmet of bronze on his head and clothed him with a coat of mail, ³⁹ and David strapped his sword over his armor. And he tried in vain to go, for he had not tested them. Then David said to Saul, “I cannot go with these, for I have not tested them.” So David put them off. ⁴⁰ Then he took his staff in his hand and chose five smooth stones from the brook and put them in his shepherd’s pouch. His sling was in his hand, and he approached the Philistine. ~ 1 Samuel 17:38-40

Sometimes we lose sight of what we are meant to do. We get caught up in the glamour of things. And I’m not saying that we shouldn’t have nice things or that God doesn’t want us to have nice things. I’m saying that sometimes God wants to use something simple and easy to show how great and powerful He is.

King Saul, out of concern for David’s life, clothed David in his own armor, not realizing that God had something greater in store for David to use. David, because of his quiet time with God, had the Spirit of Discernment. He could discern that that armor wasn’t meant for him. He understood that God had something greater in store for him to use so that God could get all of the glory and praise.

Sometimes God uses large, elaborate things to get His point across, but sometimes He just uses something simple like a rock and a sling. This is the importance of quiet time. The more time you spend with God, the better you know Him and the clearer His subtle voice becomes. Because as you become closer with God, you will be able to discern when to use your sword and when to use your sling.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Ready Your Sling.

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^11b … for they loved not their lives even unto death. ~ Revelation 12:11b

There is a famous quote that is always popular around this time of the year. It says, “All gave some, but some gave all.” Today we remember those who gave all. The fallen, those who loved country more than self. Who loved family and freedom more than their own lives.

We remember and honor those soldiers who kissed their loved ones goodbye as they proudly donned their uniforms, knowing fully well they may never return. Yet through tears and heartache, they tore themselves away to fight a war and pay the price for others to have the right to kneel when the national anthem is played. To chant death to America while enjoying her freedom.

With their own blood, they bought and paid for the right and freedom for others to say how unfair and unequal America is and how they are being kept down while being paid millions of dollars a year and living in mansions.

These were just ordinary men and ordinary women, making an ordinary salary, with ordinary lives that were cut short way too soon. Not given the chance to live, to enjoy the freedom they so desperately fought so hard to preserve, we honor you.

We thank their families for their sacrifice, a sacrifice we do not take for granted. While it may just be a holiday to some, to us, it’s a day of remembrance. A day to call to memory the countless names, the faces, the friends, the fathers, the sons, the daughters. We will never forget their great sacrifice. Greater love hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends.

Father, thank You for freedom. Thank you for the brave soldiers who died to give us the right to live free and without fear of persecution. May we never forget their sacrifice, and may America always remember the blood that was shed for her, including the precious blood of Your Son Jesus. Thank You, Father, in Jesus’ name, we pray, amen.

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¹⁴ What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? ¹⁵ If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, ¹⁶ and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? ¹⁷ So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. ¹⁸ But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. ~ James 2:14-18

James made an earthly/physical comparison with the spiritual. He said that if it is not enough to wish someone well who is starving or freezing to death without doing something about it, then it is not enough just to believe. Therefore, you are saved for good works and not by good works.

Faith without action is dead. Because, once we are saved, that isn’t just the end of it, and we just have a free ticket to Heaven. Instead, we have to continue our spiritual growth. We have to fulfill the great commission. We have to put our faith into action. Unless we live our lives for Christ and become more like Christ, we are not changed. And if we are not changed, then we have no part in Eternal Life.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Change.

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