Things to Keep in Mind – God’s Pathway to Peace
Purity 510 08/30/2021 Purity 510 Podcast
Good morning
Today’s photo of blue skies over Lake Lanier comes to us from a friend
who enjoyed a boating excursion over the weekend with friends near Cumming, Georgia.
As someone who had the opportunity to go boating with friends earlier this
summer I know what great fun and peace can be experienced when you get out upon
the waters.
Reflecting on this photo last night, I thought of Ray Charles’ version
of “Georgia on my Mind” that “old sweet song” that tells of a man who can find “No
peace” but keeps his beloved Georgia on His mind. The song has been interpreted as either a man
reflecting on His home state of Georgia or of a woman named Georgia. I like to cover all the bases and think of
the song being about a woman named Georgia, who also lives in Georgia, the singer’s
home state.
But seriously, the key to the song is that while the singer has “No
peace”, he is comforted by his thoughts of, and his musical homage to,
Georgia. He has no peace but finds some
through his remembrance of Georgia.
I think we all hope the singer of the song will see His beloved Georgia
again. But those of us familiar with heartache, the consequences of the choices
we make, or the circumstances we are forced to accept in life sometimes, know
that returning to Georgia may not be in the cards. The overall tone of the song
isn’t particularly hopeful, and the singer’s lyrics admit that its “just an old
sweet song” that keeps Georgia on his mind.
But the thing I wanted to point out is not how we can be separated from
the things we love and left in a state of depression and nostalgia, I wanted to
point out the power that God has given us to find a measure of peace by
directing our thoughts to determine our emotions.
While we can find some peace in remembering old loves, familiar haunts
of yester year, or things we once had, scripture repeatedly directs us to look
forward, not back, and to look at the Lord and not things of this earth.
Why?
We are to look forward because we can’t change the past. One of the things I stress to people that I
disciple is that “It’s not where you start that matters, it’s how you finish
that counts.” Yeah, things may have gone wrong but how can we find peace in the
days ahead? What can we do now to make a better tomorrow? I advise to look forward, make plans, and
take actions today that will bring you closer to where you want to go.
Also we must be realists, we only have so much time to live our lives so
our greatest concern should be the contemplation of eternity and finding peace
with God. The good news is that I have
done a lot of spiritual legwork in my life, and I can assure you that what
scripture says about Jesus being “the way, the truth, and the life” is true.
John 14:6 is the verse if you want to look it up and see its implications.
Placing your faith in Christ is the key to eternity but it also is the
answer to life here and now. While
thinking back to dear old Georgia may give us some peace, reflecting on and
actively following and communing with God gives an infinite amount of peace
because there are no limits to His wisdom and love for you to receive.
So look ahead and look to the Lord, you will find that when you do that
the depression you have over the tragedies of the past lifts. As you begin to trust the Lord, you discover
He has a purpose for your life and that no matter where your road takes you He
will guide you along on your journey, will bring you to a good place, and will show
you amazing things along the way.
Well it’s Monday again, and its August 30th, I don’t mean to
bum you out, but I hope you accomplished what you were hoping to accomplish
this summer because September is a couple days away and the season is going
fast.
But guess what, you still have time. You can make plans and take action
to create milestone moments for the summer of ’21. Just turn your thoughts from the days gone by
and look forward to the days ahead. Draw close to the Lord and find the peace
and joy of life that He has for you. He
wants you find some happiness in this world and believe me when I tell you that
your happiness is elevated to joy when you continually walk and talk with Him.
This morning’s meditation
verse is:
2 Timothy 1:10 (NKJV)
10 but has now been revealed
by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and
brought life and immortality to light through the gospel,
Today’s verse points to what has been
revealed by Jesus Christ coming to earth, dying for our sins, being raised to
life, and ascending to heaven.
The context of the preceding verses
in this passage refers to the gospel – the good news. What’s the good news? What has been revealed
by Christ’s appearing?
Well, Jesus’ atoning work on the
cross, and the confirmation of His deity through His resurrection has abolished
death and revealed that immortality comes through the “gospel”, the amazing
news about Jesus that tells us that “whoever believes in Him should not perish but
have everlasting life” as Jesus said in John 3:16.
As I often have stated, the most important
question of life is “Who is Jesus to you?”
While we are free to hold what ever
opinions we want and can choose to believe or not, the historicity of Christ can not be denied.
He lived on earth and died on the cross. People testified that He was
resurrected and ascended to heaven. You
can believe that or not.
But whether we “believe” those reports
to be true or not, it doesn’t matter unless you take the next step and
personally put your faith in Christ as your Lord and Savior. We must not only “swallow” the hard to
believe reports that come to us from the pages of scripture, we also must come
into a relationship with God by confessing the truth of those events and by asking
for God’s mercy and grace and proclaiming that we belong to God by placing our
faith in Jesus.
Immortality certainly is worth seriously
investigating and contemplating putting your faith in Christ. For anyone unsure
and who hasn’t made Christ their Lord, I would you to encourage you to honestly
seek the truth concerning Christ. Lee
Strobel’s documentary “The Case for Christ” is good place to start (https://youtu.be/rbTSyqbUz1A)
.
But our faith in Christ isn’t about getting a “ticket to
heaven” it is about coming into a relationship with the living God of all
creation and discovering the new life and purpose that He has for you.
So for those on the path of Christian discipleship already, rejoice
over your salvation, share the good news, and keep walking to where the Lord leads
you.
For those not there yet,
open your eyes, minds, and hearts to the possibility that God is real,
alive, and is calling you to Him. If you seek Him, you will find Him, and I
pray that you find Him today.
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 13.
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:
Designs
for Discipleship
Level
II: Built Up in Christ (Colossians 2:7)
Building up people in Christ begins in the spiritual
dimension by helping them distinguish between walking according to the flesh and
walking according to the Spirit. The more they choose to walk according to the
flesh, the longer they will remain immature. The more they choose to walk
according to the Spirit, the faster they will grow. Fundamental to this truth
is the believers' understanding that outside circumstances do not determine who
they are, how they walk or what they will someday become. Only God and our
response to Him determine that.
Rationally, when Christians buy into
Satan's lies or worldly philosophies, they will not be able to grow (see Col. 2:8, 18, 19). The
battle is for the mind, and we must learn to take "every thought captive
to the obedience of Christ" (2 Cor. 10:5).
Discipleship requires mental discipline. People who will not assume
responsibility for their thoughts cannot be discipled.
Emotions are a product of our
thoughts. If our thoughts and beliefs are wrong, we will struggle with negative
emotions. Persistent anger, anxiety and depression reveal a faulty belief
system. The greatest determinants of mental and emotional health are a true
knowledge of God, an acceptance of His ways and the assurance of His
forgiveness.
Volitionally, Christians need to
exercise the spiritual fruit of self-control instead of succumbing to the
fleshly impulses.
Relationally, forgiveness is the key
to freedom in Christ. It is the glue that holds families and churches together.
Satan uses unforgiveness more than any other human deficiency to stop the
growth of individuals and ministries. The unforgiving person is yoked to the
past and is not free to move on in Christ.
The second goal of discipleship is to
accept God's goal of sanctification and grow in the likeness of Christ. This
entails the following:
- Helping
people learn to walk by faith in the power of the Holy Spirit
- Guiding
them to discipline their minds to believe the truth
- Helping
them get off the emotional roller coaster by focusing their thoughts on
God instead of on their circumstances
- Encouraging
them to develop self-control
- Challenging
them to resolve personal problems by forgiving others and seeking
forgiveness
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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Email me
at mt4christ247@gmail.com to receive the class materials, share your progress, and to be
encouraged.
Encouragement for the Path of Christian
Discipleship
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