Amazing? What's so amazing? - I hope you know –
Purity 478
Purity 478 07/23/2021 Purity 478 Podcast
Good morning
Today’s photo of a misty morning sunrise over wetlands comes to us from
a friend’s sunrise hike at the Vischer Ferry Nature & Historic Preserve in
Rexford NY. Getting up early to exercise our bodies, minds and spirits have several
benefits one of which is seeing the glory of the beginning of a new day. But
its not just the sights that complete the experience, for our friend reports
that the stillness of the morning environment comes with sounds of nature
coming alive that are “amazing”.
I share this photo because I love the view of the morning sun reflected
on the water and because it’s finally Friday and I am looking forward to ending
the first week back to work since my staycation ended on Monday.
My friend’s use of the word “amazing” makes me think how that word is
sometimes used disparagingly or how it can be overused. I believe my friend’s
use of the word “amazing” was not only sincere but wholly appropriate to their
experience but there are many among us who would fail to see what was “so amazing”
about some stupid hike at the crack of dawn.
Just for the record, amazing is defined as: “causing great surprise or
wonder; astonishing.” My friends use of
amazing expresses their sense of wonder at God’s creation and the peace they
found in the moment. My friend’s
experience could also have been surprising or astonishing to them, depending on
their perspective.
I know this friend has a solid relationship with the Lord through their
faith in Jesus Christ, so I know that they consider the things of God quite
often and make a regular practice of gratitude:, which is the practice of
continually thanking the Lord for all the blessings, and challenges, we experience
in life. That faithful perspective and
attitude of gratitude are foundational practices of the Christian lifestyle that
cultivates the fruit of the Spirit of peace, joy, and love.
But in our society the word “amazing” can also be used to express that sense
of astonishment that is more of a negative emotion. My young adult daughter often uses the word “amazing”
to sarcastically describe things that annoy or frustrate her. While their may
be astonishment, surprise, and some wonder in my daughter’s angsty use of the
word amazing, it is a far cry from the use of “amazing” that describes the
grace that saved a wretch like me.
To borrow my daughter’s sarcasm for a moment, wonder where she got that
from?, I guess you could say I have been having an “amazing” week at work as my
normal routine has been disrupted by the effects of all the rain we have hade
in the past weeks causing me to have to adapt to new challenges, uncertainty,
and stress. So I’m not sure where the
day will take me, but I’ll be sure to lean on the Lord and will rejoice when
its quitting time later this afternoon.
Using the word “amazing”, in this negative context is an indicator that
you may not exactly be familiar with God’s amazing grace or that you may have
forgotten it.
When we look at the world through a disgusted or negative lens we don’t
do ourselves any favors emotional or mentally.
Why would we want to dwell on the bad things in life? How we think
effects how we feel. While I am not
suggesting living in denial of the suffering that surrounds us, I am suggesting
that directing our thoughts to recognizing the good that God has provided in
our lives will brighten your experience emotionally.
So have an amazing day and an amazing weekend. Regardless of the circumstance that surround
you, when you keep walking and talking with God your experience of life can be
one where the word “amazing” describes positive senses of wonder, surprise, and
astonishment instead misusing the word to describe feelings of discontentment,
annoyance, or bitterness.
God invites all of us to know His Amazing Grace every day by putting our
faith in Jesus Christ. Some have of us
have done that but are not living amazing lives because we don’t live in
harmony with God.
God has put a path before you. How
you walk it is up to you. I encourage you to put your best foot forward and
follow the Lord’s lead.
This morning’s meditation
verse is:
John 8:32 (NKJV)
32 And you
shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
Today’s verse is a promise from Christ for every believer to
experience their freedom.
The previous verse that leads to this profound statement
from Jesus states that Christ’s disciples are those who abide in His word. The results of abiding in God’s word is a
knowledge of the truth and freedom.
This world is shrouded in the lies of the enemy and a world
system that has developed philosophies that are independent of God. Our hostile environment seeks to define truth
as worldly wisdom and how things work according to man. The problem is that there are a whole lot of
men and women with their own ideas about what is true and with various opinions
on how to live. While everyone is
entitled to their own opinions about the nature of existence and what is right,
we will all be subject to what the Creator of existence declares as true.
God’s word is a warning and a book of instruction. To ignore the Bible is to disregard truth. Scripture
describes very negative consequences for those outside of God’s will and
grace. Knowing that it is only through
faith in Christ that we can be reconciled to God to avoid God’s wrath is the truth
by which we will all be judged.
When we know that and put our faith in Christ, we are free
from the rightful penalty of God’s wrath. We are free indeed.
But that’s only half the story of knowing the truth in God’s
word. His instruction manual, the Bible, also teaches us to turn from our sin
and live a righteous life. When we do
that we experience the freedom from the bondage of sin. We no longer are compelled to sin because we experientially
know that we are set free because we have applied God’s truth to our
lives.
The amazing news, yes surprising, full of wonder, and astonishment
in a good way, is that as we walk out our Christian lives, there is more of God’s
truth to be revealed to us, in relation to our understanding and its
application to our lives, and that means that there is more freedom for us to
experience!
So act like a disciple of Christ by abiding in His word and
learning His truth with an open hear and an open mind. Seek to know God’s truth
and how it applies to you personally. Endeavor to apply God’s teachings to your
life. When you do that you will not
only experience new dynamic levels of freedom in Christ, but you will undoubtedly
want to help set the captives free around you by sharing the truth and hope
that is found in Christ alone.
As
always, I invite all to go to mt4christ.org where I always share insights from
prominent Christian counselors to assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with
their walk.
Today we continue with Dr. Neil Anderson’s Victory Over the Darkness, continuing Chapter 8.
As always, I share this information for educational purposes
and encourage all to purchase Dr. Anderson’s books for your own private study
and to support his work. If you need this title you can find it online at several
sites for less than $15.00:
Proper
Guidelines Lead to a Proper Walk
6.
Fun. Key Concept: Uninhibited Spontaneity
Fun is uninhibited spontaneity. Have you ever planned a
major fun event? Chances are, the last time you really had fun was spontaneous,
after you threw off your inhibitions. Worldly people know they need to get rid
of their inhibitions to have fun. That is one reason they drink.
The secret to enjoying uninhibited
spontaneity as a Christian is to remove unscriptural inhibitors. Chief among
the inhibitors of Christian fun is our fleshly tendency to keep up appearances.
We don't want to look out of place or be thought less of by others, so we
stifle our spontaneity with a form of false decorum. That is people pleasing,
and Paul suggested that anybody who lives to please people isn't serving Christ
(see Galatians
1:10). The joyless cry, "What will people say?" The liberated in
Christ respond, "Who cares what people say? I care what God says; I
stopped playing for the grandstand a long time ago when I started playing for
the coach."
I love the uninhibited joy of King
David. He was so happy about returning the Ark to Jerusalem that he leaped and
danced before the Lord in celebration. He knew there was joy in the presence of
God. Michal, his party-pooping wife, however, thought his behavior was
unbecoming to a king, and she told him so in no uncertain terms. David said,
"Too bad for you, lady. I'm dancing before the Lord, not before you or
anybody else. And I'm going to keep dancing whether you like it or not"
(see 2 Samuel
6:21). As it turned out, Michal was the person God judged in the incident,
not David (see 2 Samuel
6:23). It is a lot more fun pleasing the Lord than trying to please people.
Victory Over the Darkness: Realizing the Power of Your Identity in Christ.
---------------------------more tomorrow------------------------
God bless
you all!
Join our “Victory
over the Darkness” or “The Bondage Breaker” series of Discipleship Classes via
the mt4christ247 podcast!
at https://mt4christ247.podbean.com, You can also find it on Apple podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mt4christ247s-podcast/id1551615154). The mt4christ247 podcast is also available on Google Podcasts,
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Encouragement for the Path of Christian
Discipleship
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