FREE by Maria Hartman

Picture this scenario. You have committed a terrible crime; many terrible crimes. None can be defended and all require a substantial punishment......years in jail that will ultimately lead to death. A miracle suddenly takes place. Due to no merit of your own, you have the chance to be released....... someone has come forward on your behalf. They have spoken to the Judge and it has all been arranged. You know you are not eligible for parole, your future is sealed. So why is the warden walking to your cell with a key? WHAT??? This cannot be possible.....how can it be? Has someone really come forward and taken YOUR punishment??

Do you want to leave, or do you want to stay?

You have literally just been set free! The penalty for what you've done has not been erased or forgotten, it has just been transferred to another. The warden comes forth to do what he has been given the authority to do; he takes the key, and begins opening doors that were guaranteed to remain shut . He then unlocks what has been wrapped around your hands and feet. The sound is deafening as the chains fall to the ground and the iron door swings open wide. The warden slowly walks away......amazed himself at the transaction that just took place. Nobody is around. Its just you; free to go........to walk away never to return. No more bars, no more chains. You have been released completely from the awful penalty of your sin.
Do you want to leave, or do you want to stay?
The choice is yours, whereas before, you had no choice.

Now, please carefully read the holy Word of God. Romans 6:1-7 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised form the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin.

Here are some thoughts to ponder, along with the above scenario.

If I am buried with Christ, the flesh and the sin that dominates was buried. By the glory of the Father, I am made new and am alive only in Him. The 'old' me was crucified right with Him; I no longer have to be a SLAVE to sin. My new life is truly IN Him who is alive. And sin, despite its ongoing 'influence' is no longer my only choice.

You see, I have died and am free from sin's ruling power. The prison doors have been opened for me and nobody can close them again. But I must walk out and away.

Have you ever stepped back into your 'cell' even though you knew there was nothing worthwhile there? Jesus Christ has opened the prison doors WIDE for each believer, and has left them that way. They were opened for our freedom, but often the enemy seeks to take us back there, one little step at a time. It is a place I never want to be again; it is a place I no longer belong. My punishment was transferred to my sinless Savior.

But until we die, the battle will continue; daily. We need to be alert to our position; we must 'choose ye this day whom we will serve'. We need to recall the significance of what has taken place on our behalf. God, through Christ, has ENDED our bondage and slavery to sin. The new has replaced the old.

Friends, you and I MUST CHOOSE TO BE LED BY JESUS CHRIST EVERY MOMENT!! He has paid the price in full for all our sin, and we are FREE to go; to live new lives for the glory of God. v's 10-11 tell us that The death Christ died was to sin once for all; the life that He lives, He lives to God. LIKEWISE YOU ALSO. reckon yourself to be DEAD indeed to sin, but ALIVE to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. By the power of the Spirit I can tell this body, "No, I'm dead to 'that'! My chains are gone, and I've been set free by the blood of Jesus! "

For Today: If we truly 'get' this, its magnitude is enormous: In Christ you and I HAVE the power to REMAIN free. Speak out the words of Jesus Himself (John 8:32,36) And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. Do you know the truth? Do you know you are free from the power and deception of sin? If the Son therefore shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.

Talk To Your Soul by Maria Hartman

Psalm 62:5 says this: My soul, wait silently thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him.

Just one verse from the Word of God. Maybe you've read it before, maybe I have. But I haven't remembered it.........could it be because I skimmed over it? Probably. But about 2 weeks ago, I broke that verse down on paper during my quiet time. Since then, God has brought that very verse to my mind many times. I'll share with you what God shared with me.

Many of us talk to ourselves at times, (it's ok we all do). Usually it is silly stuff like, "Oh great, here we go again", or "Come on" (I must confess: that is far too common for me when I am driving!) BUT, the inspired Word of God also has some 'talking to yourself' going on. (of course much more worthwhile than what mine usually is.)

MY SOUL WAIT SILENTLY......here we are instructed to remind ourselves of the importance of waiting.........silently. This is a choice we must make; it won't happen without us acting. I believe it also represents a deep trust in Him. Waiting is not a favorite activity of mine, but then silently is added to it! Oh boy! Waiting silently is self disciplined action; it is not taking matters into our own hands. Watch where this leads.
THOU ONLY.....our soul is spoken to again in the 'thou', but a focal point is given for us in the word 'only', that removes other options...why? because the very best is being offered:
UPON GOD : don't let your soul 'wait silently' upon anyone or anything else...
FOR MY EXPECTATION IS FROM HIM: there it is. HE is to be the expectation, the HOPE of our soul........

For Today: Have you ever hoped in someone else to change? Expected someone else to change? Even if it is for THEIR benefit and God's glory that we do this hoping, the OBJECT of our hope is truly the key here. It can't be in that person to do anything! It must be IN JESUS CHRIST and HIS POWER!!
Friends, here is just one verse, but it contains an incredible amount of instruction for us. I pray that as I daily strive and purpose in my mind to obey all 14 words of this verse, that you too will join me in doing the same. Others will fail you, over and over again. God never will because He can't. Trust Him completely with the needs in your life; He knows them, and He has the means by which to provide for each one.




And remember, you just may need to talk to yourself at times. Go ahead and remind your soul of some very important truth.

Obedience

By: Lauren Beckner

Galatians 2:18
"For if I build again the things which I destroyed,
I make myself a transgressor."

Being a parent is exhausting. I was just talking with a friend about that this afternoon. Sometimes I feel like raising a child is one step forward, three steps back. Or, as a sign in my aunt's kitchen says, "Raising children is like being pecked to death by a chicken." We love our children without condition, but sometimes they just make us tired!

This afternoon I was busy in the kitchen when I saw my 20-month-old headed for the dog food container. She clearly knows this is off limits. I cautioned her, "Savannah, no ma'am. That is for the dog, not you. Do NOT touch it." She stopped and weighed her options. Obedience lost out. She grabbed a handful of dog food and dumped it into the water bowl. Gross. I sighed and stopped what I was doing and went to correct her. I asked her to look at me, and she refused. She knew she was wrong. She got a spanking for choosing to blatantly disobey.

I went back to cooking and reflected on her behavior. I thought to myself… that was so bad… she knows better! We'd been over obedience several times and I know she grasps the concept, which she demonstrated by refusing to make eye contact after she had disobeyed. I was frustrated. And then my thoughts were directed inward.

How often do I model that behavior in my own life? I've grown up under Christian instruction. How often do I know the right thing to do… and rebel against it? Far too often, I'm ashamed to admit. I really have no excuse for it. Sometimes I wonder how God feels. Does He look at me and think, "Okay Lauren, I know you get it. Now align your life with what you know." But instead, I stomp my foot and try to go my own way. Its so juvenile…so ignorant…so senseless.

Obedience is a simple thing. All I have to do is know what I know, and act on it. Why do I make it so complicated?! It would be so much easier to just go back to the basics and know… then live… then share. So clear…so direct… no excuses.

We are commanded to obey when we love Christ.

Know. Live. Share.

Plead Less, Claim More

By: Katie Naff

When my husband and I were dating, we went through a book together entitled The Principles of Spiritual Growth. It's an older book, not very attractive- but filled with good truths. There was a section in there that revolutionized my thinking. I summarize it with this phrase, "Plead Less, Claim More." I often found myself begging God for things He has already spelled out for me in His word. "God, I'm scared!" "God, that person hurt me!"

This is not to say that I don't pour my heart out to God, but rather, instead of spending all my time concentrating on my feelings, I realized that God has already provided the answers to my problems. I just needed to get up and claim the promises found in His Word (which contains everything I need) and rest in Him.

Are you feeling scared? God is watching over you! Are you feeling alone? God is with you! Are you feeling inadequate? God will enable you for His purposes! Are you feeling hurt? Christ weeps with you! And the list goes on.

God has been re-iterating this concept to me this month, telling me to get up, let go of the life lived by untrustworthy emotions, and grasp tightly to the precious truths of the Word that are strong enough to carry me through any storm.

(P.S. I highly recommend the little book entitled God's Promises for Your Every Need. It is straight scripture, organized by topics such as "Fear," "Death," etc. It is nice to be able to find the promises you're looking for very quickly!)

My Old Truck : By Will Wall

Last Saturday morning I woke up a little earlier than normal for a Saturday. I fired up my old red 1986 Dodge pickup and I drove to our old house to get started on a few projects. After a few hours of working it was time for a trip to the hardware store. Grab the keys, lock up the house, start the truck...start the truck...stink I left the lights on. I was going no where quick. In just two short hours my old reliable truck had turned into a useless heap. I had some time to think while I sat there waiting for my wife to come and help me out of a pretty routine mess. When she arrived I was ready with what I thought was a grand revelation..."I am just like my truck.""What do you mean?" Mary asked.I said, "I am just like this old heap; old, beat up, and unreliable. As a matter of fact I usually stop working right in the middle of something important. Sometimes though if you give me a good jump start I usually get myself moving and finish right before it's too late."Mary laughed. She laughed in part because I continually joke about being old even though I'm not, and partly because there was truth to what I had said and like myself she was surprised that I was just putting these pieces together.The question that I am asking myself now, over a week later, "does God want me to live my life as if I'm a red 1986 Dodge pickup." I don't think so...I am called by God to love my wife just as Christ loves the church. I should be leading my family with love, vision. and the attitude of a servant. I should be striving every day to know more, live more and share more. The fact is none of these sound anything like an opportunity to be unreliable, but instead they seem like a responsibility to be quite the opposite. I have no business acting like my old pickup.I know God had transformed me into a new creation, the old has gone. I know that I don't need to be jump started, I've been given the full resources of God's Holy Spirit. I know I'll never be left stranded because Jesus has promised to leave me nor forsake me. I know that I am not an old beat up 1986 Dodge pickup but a brand new 2009 Ford F150. I know what God has done for me and in me...and so...

PROVE IT by Maria Hartman

In my recent study of Romans, I have learned incredible things about how our loving Father instructs His needy children. I finished Chapter 12 this morning but keep thinking about many of the verses. Today I'd like to share some of what the Holy Spirit has taught me regarding the first couple.

Romans 12:1 talks about how we must present to God, our body....in the form of a living sacrifice. This is something that will require much of me. My body is to be holy and acceptable to God; not acceptable to me, or to the world, but to God only. It goes on to say that this is my reasonable service. In light of God's provision for me, this is what is reasonable for me and you. V2 says: And do not be conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God. I have a challenge for you. Don't skim over that verse because you have read it and heard it so many times.

We are receiving instructions from God. He is speaking to YOU about what He wants, and He is telling you HOW and what will happen. He is also giving us very descriptive words that require careful consideration.

When we are conformed to something, we become like it; it is a shared similarity. We conform to all sorts of things, but what pops right into my mind is how teenagers dress. They conform to the dressing styles of their peers.
The definition of 'transformed' is very different: it is to change the nature, function, or condition of. This word is a verb; it is action.......your NATURE, although not done away with fully, it is no longer a dominating factor for every choice (now we can choose Christ instead of sin!), your FUNCTION has been changed, (its no longer about wanting what I want, its about wanting more of HIM!) and so has your CONDITION (death and hell are no longer mine but I am made alive in Jesus now, and will live with Him for all eternity!)
Transformation does not happen overnight; it is a process just like that of a creeping caterpillar on its way to becoming a butterfly. But the process literally requires some work on our part. God begins it at the moment of salvation and enables it to happen by His Spirit, but look and see what YOU and I have to do next. We are told to renew our minds. Here is where I began to get a fresh revelation of God's Word. We renew our minds in and through the Word first; our output will never change unless the input is holy. We renew our minds in prayer, and we renew our minds as we sing praises to God, publicly or privately. We also renew our minds when we choose obedience over sin, and when we place another before ourselves in any situation. These are the characteristics of godliness which are all a part of the renewing process.

Now, get this: when I do that, and when you do that.......we may prove, to the watching world and even to ourselves, what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God!! Friends, God has told us how we can PROVE Him true and real and powerful to another person! It cannot be done any other way, but it can be done this way!!

For Today: After we have clearly made a decision for Christ, we are called to present our bodies a living sacrifice to Him, and we are called to renew our minds.
But notice, without renewing my mind, I won't be transformed. A caterpillar cannot fly, but instead crawls on the ground, and is bound to this earth in a body that is greatly limited, until the time of transformation. And then, it has a new nature, function, and condition! It is NOTHING like what it once was! And we too, unless we renew our minds by the washing of the Word, will not be transformed. We'll work without results and give up in utter frustration, only proving that we are inadequate in our own strength.

If you know Jesus Christ, you are new. If you know Him, you are a 'butterfly' who has been set free; no longer bound by crawling along the earth and looking down at the dirt, but flying high to wherever He leads. And with that, comes the great privilege and responsibility to renew your mind.............you are set free to 'fly' to a position and place where you can PROVE the perfect will of God...........that Jesus Christ is the only One with the power to change anyone, for life.

I'm sure the butterfly is exactly what a discouraged old caterpillar needs every time! What better proof is there than that?

Has your life proved to another something incredible and beautiful about God today?

Have to and Want to by Maria Hartman

I am Italian and I must confess, I love to eat. I do realize that being Italian is not the cause for my love of food, but it sure has contributed to it!! I remember saying to my mom once that I was sure she put pasta in the blender and mixed it in with my milk when I was a baby!

Over the years I have gained some weight and have just not been able to get it off. I haven't tried to gain the weight, but it has come nonetheless. And although I have tried to lose weight, I haven't. I've fluctuated within a few pounds of the same weight for at least 5 years now. My downfall occurs every evening after dinner as I snack too much or on things I shouldn't.

Just a few weeks ago, I went for over 41 hours without eating. Yes I am serious. I had a test done that required a liquid diet the entire day before. My procedure wasn't until 1:30 so by the time I got out of recovery and out of the hospital, it was after 3:00. ( Yes, I did learn that I can say NO to food, even in the evenings!)

I went through this test because I had to. Did I want to? No, I didn't. But there were reasons that this test was necessary and I understood the significance of the doctor's concerns, as well as the issues I had been dealing with for almost 2 months. So, I attached a want to, and was able to do what I'd normally say I couldn't do.

Now if a doctor I didn't know told me I could not eat for 41+ hours because of some isue which did not apply to me, I'd NEVER do it. I wouldn't even do it for half that amount of time!! What is the difference? Well, first of all, I didn't know the doctor, nor did I believe I had a need for the 'have to' given to me. Therefore, there would be absolutely no 'want to' on my part.

As God so often does, He taught me an important lesson through this trial. The same is true with my spiritual walk with Him. He knows me and my needs. He has told me specifically what it is that I need. I know Him, and that His reputation and authority surpasses that of any earthly man or woman. My need has been explained and there is a have to applied to the privilege of being His child. But I must also have the desire to follow the have to; the want to is what motivates me. This is the definition of obedience.

What DOES it take to obey God? Deuteronomy 6:4-9 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And though shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.

There it is. Can we obey out of wanting to alone? Can we obey out of having to alone? No. You and I will serve the Living God with a strong overlap of the two. I believe we must obey with a right heart because we love God. But it is vital that we understand who He is, and that we are the clay; He is the Potter. We are the child, He is the Father. We are the sheep, He is the Shepherd. We were helplessly lost in sin, He paid the ransom at the cost of His only Son.

I am His now, so I have to. He knows me, has saved me, and loves me with an indescribable love, so now, I want to.

For today: Although we may not understand all the 'whys' of His ways, we can know Him and trust His clear directions for what is non-negotiable and required (our 'have to').............But unless out of love and thanksgiving we attach a fervent 'want to' to what He calls us to, our obedience will falter and may become subject to change.

I thank God for the good report on my test, but most especially for His ability to teach me by His Spirit things that I'd never know otherwise.

I pray that you too will consider this for your own life. Do you understand that you have to do what God says, 100% His Way? Do you have a love and devotion for your Savior that gives you the want to? Lets encourage one another with these 2 simple words which give feet to our faith.

Yes, I know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28. Yes, that even includes not eating for almost 2 days!