MySong.

Life By The Spirit

Life by the Spirit

Make fruit.

Thirsty. September 7, 2011

 

¹³ You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh^[a]; rather, serve one another humbly in love. ¹⁴ For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”^[b]15 If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.

¹⁶ So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. ¹⁷ For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever^[c] you want. ¹⁸ But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

¹⁹ The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; ²⁰ idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions ²¹ and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. ²⁴ Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵ Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. ²⁶ Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other. -Galations 5

·       When you are marked by the Holy Spirit you receive a change of heart. (Eph 1:13)

·       Gradual changes, making you more like Jesus.

·       Why fruit?

¹⁷ Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸ A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. ¹⁹ Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰ Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.  -Matthew 7

Love. Joy. Peace. Forbearance. Kindness. Goodness. Faithfulness. Gentleness. Self-control.

 

Good Tidings of Great JOY!

Joy Vs. Happiness

·      Frolic in the rain.

 

 

 

“Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.”
– Luke 2:10-12

 

 

“…This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”

-Nehemiah 8:10

·       A message of Joy from the beginning

·       Read: What Is The Great Joy? –Gilbert Chesterson

 

Ponder this:

·       What causes the beginning of spiritual death and the departing of the joy of the Lord?

·       When have you been filled with joy the most?

 

 

Think through the steps you need to take to put joy into action in a specific instance. Such as a counteracting the attitude of self-pity, or not letting your circumstances get in the way of your joy? Have you allowed Christ to introduce joy to you? Check out Psalm 48 and John 15:11


JOY recognizes that Christ will lift us up in His time; it sees the hope to come and takes delight in the moment even in times of harshness. It must be declared and seen even when it is not visible (James 1:2-4). The joy we are to have is His. It must carry us though all of our experiences and situations. It must rule our character and response, it must set the tone of how we engage and respond to others, whether it is prosperity or adversity, whether we are in the oval office or living in the streets.

In the OT, joy was an expression of excitement that was experienced with personal triumph, or celebrating a good harvest or military victory. Often feasting, the offering of sacrifices or blessings and dancing were tied with joy (Deut 12:12; 1 Sam 18:6; Ps 31:7; 96: 11; Isa. 56:7; 60:15; 61:3 ff; Joel 1:16;). In the NT, Joy comes from the Holy Spirit. It is associated with receiving or the telling of God’s redemptive love. It also is associated with the enjoyment of life such as eating, drinking, feasting and even suffering (Matt 5:11-12; Luke 12:19; Acts 7:41; Gal 5:22; 1 Peter 1:6).

Remember to place Joy in all aspects of you life and expectations. If you are having problems take a serious look at despair and where it will get you, because there can be no delight without joy! You can have no true confidence with out joy. What we suffer through, what we go through, what we give up is in no comparison to what we gain!!!! Christianity and suffering is the ultimate in delayed gratification!

 

 

He Refeshes My Soul.(thirsty)

He Refreshes My Soul.

Finding peace in the valley.

 

 ¹ The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
 ² He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
 ³he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
   for his name’s sake.
⁴ Even though I walk
   through the darkest valley,^[a]
I will fear no evil,
   for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
   they comfort me.

-Psalms 23 

1. God promises rest for your…

            Soul:

·       ²⁸ “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

–Matthew 11

 

·       Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. –John 14:27 

 

Body:

·       “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. –Exodus 20:8

·       “This is what the LORD commanded: ‘Tomorrow is to be a day of sabbath rest, a holy sabbath to the LORD. So bake what you want to bake and boil what you want to boil. Save whatever is left and keep it until morning.’”

–Exodus 16:23

 

Even God rested…

·       For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. –Exodus 20:11

 

ü  Take time to do what you love

ü  Fellowship

ü  Sleep in

ü  Don’t be a work-o-holic

2. God promises strength…

         As you serve:

·       Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky ¹⁶ as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain. ¹⁷ But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you.       -Philippians 2

When you’re weak:

·       ¹⁵ For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. –Hebrews 4

 

·       ⁹ But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. -2 Corinthians 12:9

 

·       ⁵ Blessed are those whose strength is in you,
   whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.
⁶ As they pass through the Valley of *Baka,
   they make it a place of springs;
   the autumn rains also cover it with pools. –Psalms 84

 

* “Valley of the Weeper”

3. God premises His presence…

            Always:

·       ²⁶ But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. -John 14

 

·       ²⁶ In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. ²⁷ And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. ²⁸ And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who^[a] have been called according to his purpose.  –Romans 8

 

 

ü  Faith- Believe that Christ can handle it

ü  Submit- Your burden

ü  Receive- His rest

Wait for the LORD;
   be strong and take heart
   and wait for the LORD.

-Psalms 27:14

 

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

–Romans 15:13

                       

I want to sew.

The Un-Profound.

I try not to rot-

Or let my legs stop.

As the seasons change-

And life is rearranged.

Deep cool springs in my thirsty heart-

Sometimes run dry when We are apart.

I trudge through the desert-

Out on my own.

So thirsty and wanting-

So restless as I sing.

Crying out for the rain-

And a provision of faith.

A rescue not in vain-

I must be re-made.

So again I am saved-

Living water is all that I craved.

Because dirt turns to mud-

Beneath a stormy flood.

And rescue is free-

From the King for me.

So meager are the grounds

From which a blossom is found.

This is just how He is

Blessing the un-profound. 

Every Good & Great Thing

By your great love

I can come into your presence

Filled with reverence I bow down

I am so unworthy of a crown

 -

By your great grace

You invite me in to stay

You welcome me with gentle eyes

In your arms I am alive

 -

Here my cry

I lift my hands to you most high-

What a sacrifice

By the blood of the lamb

You gave the command

That we are the redeemed

And that we should receive

Every good and great thing

 -

By your great mercy

I am free to raise my hands

Sing to the king who rescued me

Who paid my debts on Calvary

-

Here my cry

I lift my hands to you most high-

What a sacrifice

By the blood of the lamb

You gave the command

That we are the redeemed

And that we should receive

Every good and great thing

His heart is to redeem.

As I fell into sleep yesterday, for my third nap, a calm and lucid feeling held me. I could feel a smile slip on my face as I began to dream of the bottomless laughter shared with my parents and brothers over the weekend. My feet occasionally kicked, muscles contracting, as I replayed our continual exchange of memories over the dinner table. Wrapped up in the warm moments shared with my family, I slipped into peace. What a precious gift.

You see, peace has been far from me lately. I have been consumed by loneliness and burdened by future plans, or lack there of. In short, I have doubted my purpose and doubted the many promises that the Lord has given me.

I know that I am fortunate to have such an amazing family. When I say amazing, I truly mean AMAZING. My parents are a sole unit and the rock of our family. They have never once bought into the materialistic, workaholic, tune of our nation. They prayed for us while we were in the womb and pray for us now. Together, they have taught my 3 brothers and I the value of life. They have taught us, by example, to do what we love and do it to the best of our abilities, with excellence. More importantly, they have imparted to us the value of perseverance, especially when things are rough. I believe the heart of what they have taught me can be summed up by the life that is described in John 10:10.

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” John 10:10

Another version of this verse says life abundantly. I believe that there is a definite difference between the lives that many of us lead on a day-to-day basis and the life that Jesus made available to us. He did not bear death on the cross so that we could be swallowed by guilt, worry, greed, anxiety, or grief, yet many of us live as though we are dead. We are wasting such a large portion of what He is offering us. He granted us grace so that we would know freedom and therefore be able to live as His redeemed.

So what does it mean to live redeemed?

I think it looks something like this:

“Our lives are destined to illustrate the reality that we do not belong to ourselves, we are purchased by the blood of Christ Jesus and our lives belong to Him. The Lord has called us to draw near to Him and not only sing and preach with our words, but to sing and preach with our lives to release the message of the cross of Christ Jesus in our generation.”-Billy Byers

 

Isa 43:1 “ …Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine.”

 

Jesus tells us time and time again not to fear because we are His. He has recovered us through His perfect, unfailing, LOVE. Our response to this precious love is to live to the fullest, giving Him all the glory.

Paul describes it perfectly in 2 Corinthians.

2 Corinthians 3:1-6

 ¹ Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you? ² You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everyone. ³ You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.

 ⁴ Such confidence we have through Christ before God. ⁵ Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. ⁶ He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

This idea that we are a walking, living, breathing, letter of recommendation for Christ is so powerful. What would happen if we each lived every day consumed by the life that Christ ultimately desired for us? Christ has granted us the means and the desire to behold a life that is greater than we can fathom. Complete redemption is ours so that we can live life to the fullest. Our reaction to this provision is sole up to us.

May we daily receive life to the full.

Love,

Bethany

((Check out this video))

http://www.worshiphousemedia.com/mini-movies/14764/Redeemed

The Session: A Finite Mind with a Vast Father

Desperate

So I’m praying for truth

I am desperate for you

My God wont you save me

I’m ready for you

I’m seeking a promise

To be free from my flesh

My God wont you save me

I need to be refreshed