Tuesday, January 31, 2012

January 31st 2012

Yesterday we talked about finding a new standard of what it means to live out this walk with Jesus, today we’re going to examine our lives to see if there is anything holding us back.

Read Joshua 24:14-25 and re-write this in your own words

Did you notice a sort of back and forth between Joshua and the nation of Israel? Joshua would tell them to put away their idols, and they’d say that they didn’t have any. Joshua would respond with something like “no seriously, put your idols away, quit it” and time after time the people respond by denying that they have idols. Basically the people are worshipping other idols and Joshua is calling them out on it, but time after time they deny. Now one of two things is happening here. Either the people are lying or they’re completely ignorant and don’t realize that they are worshipping other idols.

This raises the question for us, what other idols do we have in our life that we don’t even know that we have? For the ancient Hebrews, they may not have realized that some of these idols were really bad. For some they were simply a way to be more productive.

For example Ba’al and Asherah were both god’s of fertility. In those days each nation had a different god (the idea of one God was completely foreign). So after Israel has a few terrible seasons with no harvest, maybe they look at what the other nations are doing and begin to do the things that they do. What if they begin to have a good harvest? All of a sudden this idol is a tool for farming.

So what are the idols in our lives that we may not recognize? What are the things that consume our time and devotion?

Today pray that God would reveal the idols in your life that may be easy to overlook.

Monday, January 30, 2012

January 30th 2012

If love is a choice then what is the standard of that choice?

Read Romans 12:2 and journal your thoughts

When we talk about living a lifestyle of love, what do you think of? Seriously write down some of the first things that pop into your head?

Now read Matthew 5:43-48

This isn’t our world’s standard of love, is it? Even for those who proclaim to follow Jesus we have a hard time with this one. It’s easy for us to list off things like feeding the poor, helping the widows and the orphans, maybe even helping the recovering addicts. But loving our enemies and praying for those who persecute us is just pushing it. Jesus in this one command opens us up to a whole new way of thinking (which is something he does continuously throughout his ministry).

You see, we have the choice to either conform to the lifestyle, the habits, the rhythm, and the expectations of this world, or we can turn to Jesus and allow God to transform or alter the way you see everything. No longer will we see our enemies as enemies but as someone who has just as much potential and we do (see Paul). Imagine what other new worlds God will open our eyes to when we choose to follow and trust Him

Today pray that God would open your eyes to new standards and to help you see new worlds of beauty.

Sunday, January 29, 2012

January 29th 2012

Yesterday we talked about how the way of Jesus frees us from a life of religious rites and opens us up into a lifestyle of love. But in our verses from yesterday Paul also warns us in our freedom not to indulge in the flesh (translation: sin). Today we are going to look a little more into the consequences of our actions if we do.

Read Romans 6:20-23 and write down what you think this means

When you read wages of sin, think about it like this; you get what you pay for. If you invest all of your time and energy into things that destroy (sin), then don’t be surprised when you look around at the world you’ve created and it’s filled with only death and destruction. Earlier this week we’ve looked at the love of God, specifically how God loves us so much that He gives us the freedom to choose whether to follow Him or not. When we choose to run from Him and His ways we begin to create a world of destruction.

Remember when we talked about John 10:10 and living abundantly, we also talked about how Jesus shows us how to live a healthy life, the way we were created to live. This is the flip side of that, when we run from Jesus we are no longer stepping into the way we were created to live, we begin to create a life that is against the way we are supposed to life. This way is filled with destruction and death. Here is the catch, the choices we make do not just affect us, but everyone around us. Essentially we create a world of death, by spreading death with our choices.

Today pray that you would begin to see in advance the consequences of your actions, both the good and the bad.

Saturday, January 28, 2012

January 28th 2012

Yesterday we looked at how God gives us a choice. We were not created to be robots who have no say in what we are doing. Instead he loves us enough to give us the opportunity to do things ourselves, to create whatever kind of world we want. Essentially we can choose to follow Jesus or do our own thing.

Read Galatians 5:13-14 and journal your thoughts

We have to begin with freedom. Here Paul isn’t just talking about our freedom to choose, but he is talking about our freedom from. Remember Christianity is born out our Judaism, and so formerly Jewish followers are used to doing a list of rites and Holy acts as a way to be seen as acceptable before God. Instead Paul reminds them that they are free from the rites and Holy acts of the Law.

Instead of being bound to a list of rites and Holy acts, Paul sums up the way of Jesus in a word, “love”. In other words, the way of Jesus isn’t just a giant to-do list. In its place we are supposed to live a lifestyle of love, where we express the love of God through everything that we do.

The difference is key, if following Jesus is just a list of things to do then you also have the freedom to do whatever else we want in the spare time (Example: Amos 5). On the other hand when we life a lifestyle of love in consumes all of your time and energy. So when we choose to follow Jesus we aren’t just signing up for a list of things that we have to do, but we choose to embrace a complete lifestyle change where we change the core of who we are.

Today pray that God would allow you to see the opportunities in your life where you can demonstrate God’s love to the world.

Friday, January 27, 2012

January 27th 2012

Yesterday we talked about how God chose us and believe that we can live lives just like Jesus. Today we are going to look at what we have to say about it.

Read 1 Corinthians 10:23 and journal you initial thoughts

This is one of those verses that can be pretty confusing depending on which Bible translation you are using. So let’s sum this verse up as clearly as we can. Essentially Paul is saying “I’ve heard you say ‘look we have the freedom to do whatever we want’ and that’s true, but not everything you can do is good for you.” Another way of saying it may be like this “You can do it, I just wouldn’t recommend it”.

God didn’t create us to be robots, who simply do what we’re programmed to do. Instead God shows the love that He has for us, as His chosen ones, in freedom. He loves us so deeply that He gives us the freedom to choose whether to follow him or to simply walk away (or run). He loves all of us so much that He gives us that choice. We can choose to live a life that creates His Kingdom here on earth, or not.

Today pray that God would help you to see opportunities to choose to follow him with every choice that you make

Thursday, January 26, 2012

January 26th 2012

This month we are switching gears, and with Valentine’s Day right around the corner we are going to spend some time this month looking at some of the themes of love.

Read John 15:16 and journal what this means to you

When Jesus talks about choosing them, we have to remember that he is specifically talking about when he called them to follow him. Remember, the very act of Jesus recruiting disciples was very counter-cultural for that time. Normally if a kid was super smart and went through their education system which was centered around Torah and the Law, then they would interview with a Rabbi who they would like to learn under. If the interview went well, the Rabbi would ask them to follow him. But Jesus didn’t do that, he didn’t pick the smartest, better established, Ivy League kids. He went for those who weren’t established in the system, those who were used to working with their hands. People who weren’t good enough, smart enough, or even perfect, instead he picked flawed people.

Now read Ephesians 1:4 and journal your thoughts.

The beauty of the Gospel is the same that was true for Jesus’ disciples is true for us. In the same way that Jesus chose his disciples, he chooses us. He sets us apart to be holy and blameless. In other words not only does He choose to love us just as we are, but He also believes that we can change that we can live a life just like he did. After all, the whole purpose of a disciple was to become just like their Rabbi, the same is true for us.

Today pray that you would understand that in spite of your brokenness and flaws that Jesus chooses you warts and all. And that he believes in you, more than you could even believe in yourself.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

January 25th 2012

Back when David was just a shepherd what do you think the vision was for his life?

Now read 2 Samuel 7:16 and write down your thoughts

There is no way that David, the shepherd boy would have ever imagined himself not only growing up to become a king, but that God would carry on his family’s throne forever. Now the Hebrew word for “forever” literally means…forever. Of course we know looking in hindsight that God is ultimately referring to what would be fulfilled through Jesus. But David couldn’t imagine that. Let’s ask ourselves a very honest question right now; what is the ultimate dream for your life?

What do you think David’s ultimate dream was when he was just a shepherd? When you begin to follow Jesus and step into our destiny, God takes our vision and expands it beyond what we could ever imagine. For David it was a kingship, but for us it may look quite different. Think of Willy Wonka’s Wonkavator it doesn’t just go up and down, but “the Wonkavator can go sideways, and slantways, and longways, and backways”. It may take us to the highest mountains village of Gao Shan or the urban streets of Los Angeles, or farm towns that you’ve never heard of before.

Today pray that God would give you the strength to stay the course and the courage to follow Him even in the most uncertain of times, that you may discover a world beyond your wildest dreams

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

January 24th 2012

“There will be a time when we must choose between what is easy and what is right.” –Albus Dumbledore

Read 2 Samuel 11:1-17 and journal your thoughts

We all have a choice, we can chose to step into our destiny and live an extra-ordinary life or we can chose to live a life like everyone else. God isn’t going to force us into a life that we don’t want to live. If we don’t want to step into our destiny, then we don’t have to. If we don’t want to life the dream that God has for us, then that is up to us. We have a choice because that is the very nature of Love. God Loves us so much that He offers us an invitation to follow Him and step into our destiny, or to try to create something ourselves.

For David the easy choice is to give into temptation and sleep with Bathsheba, but every choice has a consequence; some of them are good while others are not. Up to this point in the story David has been following God, but here he decides to go a different route, and because of his choice a series of terrible consequences occur. David then has to make a choice whether to cover up what he's done or not. Then in an attempt to cover up what he's done has to have her husband Uriah killed. David then has a son from Bathsheba, who soon dies afterwards, his family becomes divided and turns on each other. Even his own son Absalon tries to overthrow his father and dies. All of this may seem a bit extreme, but honestly is it surprising to see kids rebelling against their perfect king of a father when they discover that he is a murderer? Honestly how would you respond?

So we all have a choice, we can chose between what is easy and what is right. Between the life of abundance and destiny that God has planned for us, or we can try to create it ourselves and hope it turns out ok. Ultimately, the choice is ours.

Today pray that God would help you to see the importance of every choice you make.

Monday, January 23, 2012

January 23rd, 2012

Monday Jan 23rd

Have you ever just wanted to give up? It’s hard to live that life that God is calling us to live, especially when things get rough, and so there is always that temptation to just give up and be like everyone else. Has there ever been a time in your life when you just wanted to give up?

Read Psalm 13 and write down your thoughts

This is a Psalm of David which was probably written while King Saul was chasing him. Here is a man who is literally at the end of his rope. His enemies are literally trying to kill him. Just like you there were times in David’s life when he just wanted to give up.

This is the other side of the coin, on the one side we have our destiny the person that we were created to become. Yet there is another side to that coin that appears when the path overwhelms us and we give up. We decide to sacrifice our destiny and we choose to become like everyone else, we slip into apathy. Apathy is what happens when you let the world win. You accept that right now could never be better, and give up trying to become that person God created us to be. Have you ever had those moments when you’ve given up? What were they and how did you feel afterwards?

Chances are there are very few times when you have given into apathy and felt proud about it. Why? Because deep down we know and understand that we are created for more. You are better than that.

What would have happened if David would have given up, let Saul take him and probably killed him? What would that have meant for not just David, but Israel as a whole? There may be so many more depending on our destiny than just us.

Today pray that God would give you the strength to get past those times when you are tempted to give in to apathy.

Sunday, January 22, 2012

January 22nd 2012

Sunday Jan 22nd

There will be times when we step into our destiny that things will get rough, sometimes they will get downright scary. There are times when following Jesus will take courage. What’s interesting is that so many see the church as a safe haven, but when you read about the New Testament the church it’s anything but safe. In fact I’d say we are called to live dangerous lives.

Read 1 Samuel 17:1-50 and journal some of your thoughts on David’s courage

Now I want you to write down where God told David to fight Goliath.

Did you find it? Problem is it’s not really there is it? David didn’t have this moment where the clouds parted and God spoke to David and told him that he was the one to fight Goliath. There is no angel telling him that if he fought Goliath that everything would be okay. So why did David stand up and choose to fight Goliath?

Re-read verse 26 and write down why David chose to fight

Remember Thursday, what was God looking for in David? Here in verse 26 we see David’s heart and he is upset that this Philistine was essentially dissing (Note: Disrespecting) God and David knew this wasn’t right. David’s heart was lined up with God’s, and even though he didn’t have any direction orders from God, he knew the heart of God well enough to know what to do.

In our journey to discover our destiny there are going to be moments when we are going to have to be courageous. But sometimes we won’t hear the voice of God or we won’t have an angelic messenger, but we’ll know what the right choice is and we’ll know that we follow a God we can trust.

Today pray that God would help you to be courageous in those moments when we feel overwhelmed.

Saturday, January 21, 2012

January 21st 2012

Saturday Jan 21st

When you think about your destiny have you ever just wanted to get started right now? Seriously, who has time to wait, let’s just get started with it already!

Go ahead and read 1 Samuel 16:14-23 and journal your thoughts

We’ll that’s a bit awkward, isn’t it? The Spirit of the Lord left Saul and went upon David, and then Saul can only be calmed when David plays his harp. Now in these verses there is a ton of deeper questions we can get into, but we need to stay focused.

When we’re talking about our destiny, sometimes we may have to wait. The Spirit of the Lord is on David, and he knew that he was going to be the next king, but he’s not yet. David has to wait. Can you relate to this? When have there been times in your life when you’ve had to wait for something?

When we begin to step into our destiny we need to understand that like David, there are going to be times when we are going to have to wait. Problem is we may not even understand why, and all we can do is wait.

Today pray that God would help you through those times when you are waiting for the next step into your destiny.

Friday, January 20, 2012

January 20th 2012

Friday Jan 20th

Has there ever been a time when you felt completely unworthy of something, maybe someone has asked you to do something that you thought there was no way you could do it?

Go ahead and read 1 Samuel 16:10-13 and journal your thoughts

Something we need to keep in mind when reading this verse first is that he was the youngest in his family (verse 11). In our culture that doesn’t mean a whole lot (aside from being picked on by his older brothers), but in their culture this had a world of significance. For the ancient Hebrews this meant that you were the lowest of the low in your family. You had to do all the chores no one else wanted to do. Highest on that list was taking care of the family herd. David grew up with the understanding that he was the lowest and nothing was going to change that. David was labeled. Have you ever been given a label that you just couldn’t shake?

Now imagine that you are called by God to do something big, bigger than big, to be a king! How would you respond to that? If we’re honest, I think most of us would be a bit terrified. I mean what if God was confused and mixed me up with someone else. I’m the lowest of the low, there is no way I can be a king! Now today, God probably isn’t going to call you to be a king (but if He does, remember I love you), but God maybe calling you to do some pretty big things. Some of them may be pretty intimidating. It’s easy to look back on our past, the things we’ve done, our labels and say there is no way God really wants ME to do this, He must have confused me with someone else. The problem isn’t that God has confused us, but that we’ve confused ourselves with someone less. As we step into our destiny we have to remember that God made us to do big things, maybe bigger things than we could imagine.

Today pray that we would not see ourselves as less than who God sees us as.

Thursday, January 19, 2012

January 19th 2012

Thursday Jan 19th

A few weeks ago we looked at how God has created each one of us with purpose and intent. Last week we looked at how what we say and do in the present matter. When the past meets the present, destiny is formed. Destiny is what happens when we step into abundant life and become that person that God envisions us to be from our very creation. This week we are going to look at this through David’s life.

Read 1 Samuel 16:1-13 and journal your initial thoughts

So many times when we think of destiny we tend to think that only certain people can do big things. As if you have to meet a certain requirement for God to be able to use. But as you read through the Bible we see time and time again how God chooses the least likely person (Moses, Joseph, Gideon, Paul, the disciples). The story of David is no different, God isn’t interested in someone’s list of talents, gifts, their pedigree.

Re-read verse 7, what does God tell Samuel that He is looking for?

One thing: The Heart. God wants to know; do you really care about the things that I care about? Are you longing after the things that I long for? Do you cry about the things I cry about? As we begin this journey and step into our destiny we have to ask ourselves the question; where is my heart at? Do I care about the things God cares about?

This is what Psalm 37:4 is all about. When we delight in God, when things we desire are the same things that God desires, then He will give us those desires. If we are to step into our destiny our hearts, our desires have to line up with the heart and desires of God

Today pray that God would examine and shape your heart in the likeness of His own so that you can begin to discover your destiny.

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

January 18th 2012

Wed Jan 18th

Are you fully present in the present?

Read Luke 24:13-35 and journal your thoughts

While amazing and exciting, this story holds a bit of a tragic message doesn’t it? Here are two disciples of Jesus, people who studied Jesus, who spent all of their time trying to be just like him. Trying to walk, talk, and act just like him. Now this person that they’re trying to emulate comes and walked with them and talked with them, and it’s not until he feeds them that they recognize him, and then he disappears. Have you ever felt like the disciples in this story, so distracted by something that you totally missed what was going on around you?

When we allow ourselves to get distracted by our circumstances we tend to miss what’s happening right now. This is absolutely crucial when it comes to following Jesus and living an abundant life. Are you fully present in the present? Or are you constantly thinking about something else? When we allow ourselves to be distracted, we miss our purpose and what God is doing around us

Today pray that God would remove distractions from your life, and that you could focus on what God is doing around you today.

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

January 17th 2012

Tuesday Jan 17th

Have you ever made the wrong choice? You knew the right choice, you knew what you were supposed to do, but you just couldn’t help yourself, and now you regret it. Maybe you’re mad at yourself; maybe you’re depressed about your choice, maybe you feel like you’re never going to get it right. Good news is you’re not the first to feel this way.

Read Romans 7:14-20 and write down your thoughts

Confused? Basically Paul is talking about how frustrated he is with himself. He knows what he needs to do to live abundantly; to live the way God is calling him to live. Problem is he just keeps making the wrong choices, he can’t help himself. When you begin to live a different lifestyle, it’s normal the way you use to live would keep coming back. It’s natural, your default, the way you’ve always done things. Now you’re doing things different and you’re not supposed to do those old things anymore. But it’s hard, it takes time, effort, and being intentional about change. Go ahead and journal some of those things you keep doing, that you want to change.

Here’s the good news for us, Paul is struggling with this. The same Paul who met Jesus on the Damascus Road, the same Paul who had this radical change in his life when he met Jesus, yet he still struggled. If Paul struggled, we’re going to struggle. And it’s okay, because that all a part of following Jesus, changing from surviving to living abundantly. It is our choices right now that determine whether we are just surviving or whether we are really living

Today pray that God would show you those things you need to change and help you to be intentional about changing them.

Monday, January 16, 2012

January 16th 2012

Monday Jan 16th

Yesterday we talked about the idea that we are one choice away from living a different life, but there is a question we need to address, why is following Jesus? The problem so many have with following Jesus is that they are under the assumption that following Jesus means that you sacrifice a today so that you can get to heaven and have something later.

Now read John 10:10 and journal your thoughts

When you read Jesus talking about “abundant life” did you just assume that he was talking about heaven? What if Jesus is talking about something more? Here’s the catch, in this verse Jesus is talking in the present tense, meaning right now. When he talks about having “abundant life” the word “abundant” isn’t talking about something we need to survive, it’s not an essential to life like water is. Instead “abundant” is talking about something added to our lives to make it enjoyable.

Jesus is essentially showing us what it means to live a healthy life. Just like with food there are some things we were meant to eat and some things we were not. Go ahead and Google “Year old McDonalds Hamburger” and you’ll see an example of what we are not meant to eat. In the same way, Jesus through his life and teachings is showing us how to live a healthy life. When we begin to live a healthy life, we begin to experience abundant life because we aren’t just surviving but we are living exactly how we were created to live.

Take some time and journal what this means to you in your daily life? Does this change the way you see the world? What changes can you make to your life to live abundantly?

Today pray that God show you what it looks like to live a healthy life.

Sunday, January 15, 2012

January 15th 2012

Sunday Jan 15th

Our ability to choose is probably the most important spiritual activity we can engage in. So often we get caught up in the big ones like prayer, going to church, etc. that we forget about the importance of our everyday choices

Read Joshua 2:1-14 and write down your thoughts

How often do we think about the importance of our choices? The interesting thing about Rahab is that she made a choice and that choice completely changed not only her life, but the life of her family. You see, Rahab was a prostitute, and I don’t care which culture you are talking about, that is not a good life. One day she has this encounter with these Hebrews and she has to make a choice. Does she turn them over to the authorities or commit to a decision that will force you to abandon everything you’ve ever known? Looking back the choice is easy, but in that moment it was anything but. Go ahead and journal some of your thoughts. How would you respond? Could you give up everything you have now for a mysterious future?

Just like Rahab we are a single choice from stepping into a different life. But why did she make that choice? Re-read Joshua 2:11 and journal what you think

Did you catch it? Rahab choose to help the Hebrews because she recognizes who God is and chooses to trust this God.

Pray today that you would recognize that you may be a single choice away from a different life, and that God may show you when to step into this moment.

Saturday, January 14, 2012

January 14th 2012

Saturday Jan 14th

Read James 4:13 and journal your initial thoughts

Have you ever spent all of your time working towards some goal in the future? What was it and what affect did it have on everything that was happening around you?

Read James 14 and journal your thoughts

Kind of depressing, right? Our lives are like a vapor. Imagine a breath in the cold of winter, how it lasts for only a moment before it’s gone. James is saying that is like our lives, here for a moment and then gone. Not to go all Dr. Phil on you, but go ahead and journal how that makes you feel.

The question we have to ask is what are you going to do about it? Read James 15 and write down your thoughts

James is telling us that if we are to make the most of the time that we have. If we are to live a potent life, then we need to stop living for ourselves (See verse 13) and step into the life that God is calling us to live. In Verse 13 the motivation for going into town was to make money, for their own gain. This is not living potent lives, but selfish. James is calling us out to a higher standard of living. In order to live a potent life, James is saying that God’s calling needs to be our reason for the decisions we make. Write down some of the areas of your life where you haven’t been allowing God to shape your decisions

Pray that God would reveal the areas of your life that you should give over to Him, no matter how big or small

Friday, January 13, 2012

January 13th 2012

Friday Jan 13th

Have you ever gone past some place hundreds of times, when all of a sudden you notice something and you ask the question; “Has that always been there?” Usually it’s one of those things that have always been there, it’s just that you’ve never noticed it before.

Read Exodus 3:1-6 and journal your initial thoughts

When reading the story of the burning bush, I’ve always wondered what would have happened if Moses just kept walking by? I mean he’s probably been walking in this land for about 40 years. He could have done what we all do, just turn on auto-pilot and do our normal routine. Sometimes we go so stuck in our routines that we miss something greater. Or he could have come up with excuses, like he couldn’t leave his father-in-law’s flock. Sometimes we miss out on something greater simply because we are afraid. But Moses is compelled; he is aware of something different and steps into that moment. This all raises the question how many burning bushes have you missed? Maybe you just didn’t see it? Maybe you weren’t looking for it?

Could it be that we pass burning bushes all the time? Could it be that God is constantly offering opportunities to step into this live that He is calling us to live? Could it be that time after time we miss it because we are too busy, too distracted by all the other things that we “have to get done”?

Today pray that God will make you aware of what He is doing all around you

Thursday, January 12, 2012

January 12th 2012

Thursday Jan 12th

“You are too concerned with what was and with what will be. Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called the present.” – Master Oogway (Kung Fu Panda)

Read Isaiah 43:18-19 and journal your thoughts

Sometimes as we try to get past the things that are in our past we tend to stop there, as if moving beyond our past is enough. But in this verse, we see God pushing us beyond our past into something new that He is doing right now. Problem is if we are not looking for it we are going to miss it. Has there been a time in your life when you missed something that God was doing because you weren’t looking for it?

Verse 19 talks about how God is promising not only to do something, but to do something new. God is going to do something with you that you never saw coming. What is particularly important to note in this verse is when God talks about the “wilderness” and “desert” that these are images of the hard times of live. You see the “wilderness” and “desert” being used to describe their wandering for 40 years. Maybe you are stuck in a hard time right now, maybe you feel like you are in the wilderness of your life. God is telling you to be ready, because he is going to make a path out of that wilderness. He is going to make a stream of water to bring life into that desert. He is going to do something totally new. So forget about the past and get ready.

Today pray that God will help you to see what He is beginning to do in your life around you

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

January 11th 2012

Wed Jan 11th

Have you ever looked at your past and thought to yourself there is no way God could ever use me? It’s not even that you’ve done anything wrong, but that someone has done something to you. Maybe it’s something minor that has snowballed into something greater. Or maybe it is something terrible, something that haunts your days and nights.

Read Romans 8:28 and journal your thoughts

Sometimes it’s easy to get mad at God when bad things happen to us, it’s even easier to blame God. Why did you let this happen? Here’s the problem, God love us. He loves us so much that He gave us the ability to choose. Sometimes we choose to do good, sometimes we don’t, but God is always working with us, our freedom, and other peoples freedom to do what He’s going to do.

What is amazing is that no matter what has happened to us, God is looking at your past, the things that have happened and says, “I can work with this”.

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

January 10th 2012

Tuesday Jan 10th

Have you ever felt like you were just not good enough to even pray to God? Maybe it was something that you did, it was just so bad that you felt like there was no way that God would even listen to you. Perhaps you’ve never even really done anything wrong, but you just feel like you’re not good enough to talk to God. Take a second and write down how you feel when you talk to God

Now read Isaiah 43:25 and write down what sticks out in these verses

Sometimes it can be so hard to talk to God when we’ve messed up. It’s hard to get past things that we’ve done and we get stuck in this mindset that says “you don’t understand what I’ve done”. But that’s just it, God does understand and He chooses to “blot out” those things. Now the phrase “blot out your transgressions” comes from a legal phrase, think about wiping out all your debt. Anyone who has bought a car knows what this is like. All of a sudden you have these payments and then things start going wrong. So now you’re paying monthly for a car that has all these other problems. After a while this car, this debt begins affect other areas of your life. It begins to drag you down. Now imagine if the debt on that car was wiped away. How would you feel?

Blotting out debt isn’t just a relief, but it frees us to do other things. In our example, not having a car payment would free up money to do other things, and the same is true in our lives. Without that debt hanging over our heads we become free to step into the life that God has created us to live!

Today pray that you would not be held back by the things that you’ve done, and understand that you are free to step into the life that God is calling you to live

Monday, January 9, 2012

January 9th 2012

Monday Jan 9th

So far we’ve talked a lot about living a life of purpose, but usually there is this thing that gets in between you and living the life God is calling you to live. Your past.

Read Philippians 3:13-14 and journal your thoughts.

Have you ever had things from your past haunt you? Maybe it’s something you did, maybe it was something that someone else did. Either way there is this thing in your life and its holding you back. The good news is that you are not the only one to have this problem. Paul (writer of most of the New Testament) had this same problem; he had a past that he’d probably like to forget. You see, before he met Jesus, Paul persecuted (killed) Christians. What are those things that haunt your past?

Have you ever noticed that when you are always focusing on your past, you don’t seem to notice where you are going? Verse 13 talks about reaching for what is ahead by not looking backwards. Paul is writing to a Greek area, and in this time the Greeks were big into athletics, races in particular. When you run a race do you run forwards or backwards? Seriously, try running backwards and not running into something. This is what we do when we try to step into the life God is calling us to live while focusing on our past.

Pray that God would begin to help you move past the things that are holding you back

Sunday, January 8, 2012

January 8th 2012

Sunday Jan 8th

Yesterday we talked about not having a big enough vision for what God can do with the gifts He has placed within us. Today think about this, if God’s vision for who we are is that much bigger than we expected, then what else could God be doing in your life that is bigger than you could possibly imagine? Go ahead, brainstorm some things that God could do in your life!

Now read Acts 10:9-22 and journal your thoughts

Was your first thought about food? This is one of those verses that we use to justify not sticking to Jewish kosher laws, which is fine and true. We are not arguing kosher, but it’s so easy to miss the bigger picture. Re-read the verses, what was Peter’s vision for his purpose? In other words what does he think his mission or purpose is? Note it’s not obvious you have to read between the lines a bit.

Did you figure it out? Peter’s vision was limited to Israel! God had something much bigger in mind for Peter. God is essentially telling Peter, why stop with Israel? The world needs you and the same is true for us! The life that God is calling us to live will take us to unexpected places, and you will see things you never thought you’d see. But you have to be willing to go beyond your vision.

Today pray that God would give you eyes to see beyond the things that you see, and the faith to actually go there.

Saturday, January 7, 2012

January 7th 2012

Saturday Jan 7th

Sometimes when we talk about God creating us with a purpose, we pigeon hold ourselves. Anything God related we seem to lump into ways that we do church. Write down some typical things that you think of when you hear that God created you with a purpose?

Here’s the problem, God has a bigger imagination than that, and especially when you consider that He created you with fear and wonder (see January 5th). Since God has a big imagination so must we! Read Genesis 4:20-22 and journal some of your initial thoughts

Now these may seem like random verses, but there is actually quite a bit these verses can teach us about our purpose. In these verses we read about 3 people, Adah and Jubal who were the “father” of different things. Adah was the “father” of tent-making and raising cattle while Jubal was the “father” of playing stringed instruments and pipes. This is the Bible’s way of saying they invented these things. Verse 22 talks about Tubal-Cain and how he forged tools from bronze and iron. Note this is WAY before the Bronze Age. Pretty cool, huh? God created them to invent different things. What are some of the things that you like to do that you never thought about in the context of being used for God’s purpose?

Isn’t that interesting, God used each one of these characters and their different gifts for a purpose. None of these things are what we would call “churchy”, but they have affected the church (Imagine church without stringed instruments) along with human history. Earlier you journaled some things you’d never thought about God using, now journal some ways that you think God may be able to use those things

Today pray that God would begin to reveal the talents and gifts He placed within you, so that you may begin to discover the life God is calling you to life

Friday, January 6, 2012

January 6th 2012

Friday Jan 6th

Read Jeremiah 1:5 and write down some of your initial thoughts.

So many times when we read the Bible we leave these stories right there in the Bible, as if these things could never happen to us. What if God created us with just as much purpose as He created Jeremiah? Maybe we weren’t created to be a prophet (someone who tells people what God wants them to do) to the nations, but maybe something else. Write down some of the things you think God might have created you to do. Be as creative as you can because….

Now read Jeremiah 1:6 and write down some of your initial thoughts.

Jeremiah responds to God call the same way I think a lot of us respond, with disbelief. For Jeremiah he felt like he was too young to be used by God. Some of us can totally relate with that, others feel too old. Some of us don’t feel smart enough or brave enough to be used by God. As you look at your list of things God is calling you to do, think about and write down what things are keeping you from doing what God is calling you to do?

Read Jeremiah 1:7 and once again write down your thoughts

Isn’t this a crazy? God is essentially taking Jeremiah’s weakness (speaking) and turning it into a strength and He’s doing it simply because He is right there with Him. In the same way, when God calls us to step out and do something new He is right there with us. Maybe it is something we feel weak and insecure about, maybe it’s something we’re good at.

Take some time and pray that God will grant you the strength to step into His calling for your life

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

January 5th 2012

Thursday Jan 5th

Read Psalm 139:13-14 and journal your initial thoughts

I love the way the Psalmist describes the way that God created us, first note how verse 13 says that God wove us together in our mother’s womb. Picture someone weaving something, how every stitch has intention. It’s not like someone is just wadding a bunch of twine together, but there is meaning and purpose in every stitch. What are some areas of your life that you’ve always thought were just wadded together without purpose?

Not only that but verse 14 says that we are “fearfully and wonderfully made”. To really understand how awesome you really are let’s look at these words. The word “fearfully” is a word that implies reverence. So you were created as if future depended on you being created just right. Next the word “wonderfully” means “to distinguish”. This means that you are distinguished among all of God’s works. You are not ordinary, average, or normal, instead you are amazing, awe-inspiring, and simply “wonderful”

Now read Psalms 139:15-16 and journal your initial thoughts…

The Psalmist writes that not only was God right there stitching us together in the secret place, the depths of the earth, but that He saw our unformed body. It is said that a sculptor can look at a piece of rock, ice, or whatever they are sculpting and see the end product even before they begin. God saw our unformed body. He knew exactly what we were going to be like even before He started. Sometimes we get caught up with the things we don’t like about ourselves, like God made some sort of mistake. What are those things about you that you feel like are a mistake?

Here’s the best news of all! Not only are those things not a mistake, but God planned on using them to do something amazing! Verse 16 says that “all our days were ordained”, this means that not only did God see you before you were formed, but He knew exactly what He was going to do with you.

Take some time and pray that God would show you the beauty and intention He put within you.