10 ideas living the fruit of the Spirit

The following link is an excellent article, and one well worth taking some time to meditate on. 10 ideas living the fruit of the Spirit

Romans 8:1-6 (King James Version)

 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
 For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.
 For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

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From “Morning and Evening” by C. H. Spurgeon

“Just, and the justifier of him which believeth.” – Rom_3:26

Being justified by faith, we have peace with God. Conscience accuses no longer. Judgment now decides for the sinner instead of against him. Memory looks back upon past sins, with deep sorrow for the sin, but yet with no dread of any penalty to come; for Christ has paid the debt of his people to the last jot and tittle, and received the divine receipt; and unless God can be so unjust as to demand double payment for one debt, no soul for whom Jesus died as a substitute can ever be cast into hell. It seems to be one of the very principles of our enlightened nature to believe that God is just; we feel that it must be so, and this gives us our terror at first; but is it not marvellous that this very same belief that God is just, becomes afterwards the pillar of our confidence and peace! If God be just, I, a sinner, alone and without a substitute, must be punished; but Jesus stands in my stead and is punished for me; and now, if God be just, I, a sinner, standing in Christ, can never be punished. God must change his nature before one soul, for whom Jesus was a substitute, can ever by any possibility suffer the lash of the law. Therefore, Jesus having taken the place of the believer-having rendered a full equivalent to divine wrath for all that his people ought to have suffered as the result of sin, the believer can shout with glorious triumph, “Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect?” Not God, for he hath justified; not Christ, for he hath died, “yea rather hath risen again.” My hope lives not because I am not a sinner, but because I am a sinner for whom Christ died; my trust is not that I am holy, but that being unholy, he is my righteousness. My faith rests not upon what I am, or shall be, or feel, or know, but in what Christ is, in what he has done, and in what he is now doing for me. On the lion of justice the fair maid of hope rides like a queen.

 

My Prayer to the Father, August 15, 2012

Heavenly Father
My cup overflows with Your love;
You who give me all that
I have keep giving me more.
Father, You have blessed me
Beyond measure.
Father, You have given me
Such a place
Within Your mind and heart
So filled with Your
Love and goodness
That I am overflowing with it,
And it’s strength
And it’s beauty
And it’s purpose
Is something that I cannot
Ignore.

Heavenly Father
You have given me
Streams of living water;
You have made me
A fountain that overflows
With love
& joy
& peace
& strength
& faith
& trust.
You have given me Wisdom
And Knowledge.
You have given me
In my inward parts
Truth!

Heavenly Father
All that is beautiful
I have
Because You have given
It to me.
You have held no good
Honorable
Beautiful
Praise worthy
Thing from me.
You have given me that
Greatest gift;
That most treasured,
And precious gift
That shines upon my soul
Brighter than the
Brightest light
In My beloved
Lord and Savior
Jesus.

Heavenly Father
I come to You tonight
And I ask You
In the name of He who is
Holy and Perfect and True
In the name of Jesus.
Father I ask You
To do only what You can;
Father
I pray for my brothers and sisters
In Christ
Who have stood beneath
The cleansing flood
Of His precious blood,
And I ask You
To give to them what
You have so graciously given
To me.
Father,
I pray that You do whatever
You have to do
To bring them to the point
Where they, too
Can feel the cup of joy
Overflowing within them.
Father
Make their light to shine
In the darkness;
Make their life
A beacon , a lighthouse
That can safely guide
Those who still
Sail upon stormy seas.

Heavenly Father
I see so many of my beloved
Brothers and sisters
Stuck in the quicksand
Of this grasping world
Struggling and in despair
Wanting and wanting to let go
Of sin.
Trying to hold on
And let go
To that which should it
Maintain it’s grasp
Will lead them
Where no one should have
To go.

Heavenly Father
I beg You to send
Those of your children
Who have Your strength
And Your love
And Your truth
Flowing ever onwards
In and through them
To those
Whom You love
To pull them from the
Quagmire.

Heavenly Father
Send Your faithful servants
With their loins girt with Your truth
And their feet shod with the
Preparation of the Gospel of peace,
And wearing the helmet of their salvation
Upon their heads;
With their shields of faith,
With their breastplates of righteousness,
And With their mighty swords,
And let them
Stand before and around
Your little ones,
And let them cut a swathe
Through the clutching hands
Of evil
To clear the path
To where You are ever waiting.

Heavenly Father
Show Your Children
All Your Children
That Love is mighty;
Love is true;
Love seeks not it’s own way
But the way for others;
Show them love
Holds no hand with compromise;
But stands against it
Ever ready with the truth.
Show them love
Is not to embrace or yield
To evil
But to confront it
And to turn from it’s path
Those who walk upon it.

In Jesus name, I pray
Amen.

 

 

Brother, Sister by Wayne Augden

Brother, Sister
As your brother in Christ
I come before you
As the “Word of God” says.
I come to you, bearing you only love,
With a sincere desire to
Show you the love, and truth
That we all must live
If we are to be of any value
To the eternal God
Who has given us every
Good and precious gift.

I come to you, in sadness
For I have some things on my heart
Concerning you that are
Not easy for me to say;
Yet, must be said
For not to say them
Is to not only wrong you,
But the great and almighty God
That has called me with a
Holy calling
Into the service of He,
Who I love most,
Who is faithful and true.
My Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ.

Brother, Sister
I call unto You
Remembrance of that which You have known
And experienced, and in
Time past have lived
Before all men.
You, who have tasted that
Which is most sweet,
That you have embraced
And now call your own.

What has happened to You?
Why have You turned away
From that which you used
To have joy in?
Who has bewitched you
Into thinking that You can claim
And take these things
Into your heart, mind and soul
And believe that He,
Our precious Lord can live
In concert with.
He, who has saved you
With an everlasting love
Is He no longer worthy
Of the honored place
You swore to give Him?

Brother, Sister
Why are you walking upon this path?
Where is He who leads;
Where is He who knows the way;
He who has shown You
To streams of living water;
To where you can find rest,
And partake of daily bread?
Where is his light
That I used to see leading you
Through the darkness
For I no longer see it
Shining so brightly
As once before.

Brother, Sister,
Our Lord who loves you so has
Sent me back to find you,
And has asked me to help lead you
Back to where His light shines
So brightly.
I see brother, and sister your load;
How can you carry such a burden?
Let me help you carry this.
What is this your carrying, brother, sister?
When did you begin to carry this;
And, why?  Why are carrying this?
Have you forgotten that our Lord
Said to leave that behind;
And this?  Did He not say
That He would carry this for you?

Brother, sister,
Let me put you in remembrance
Of what our Lord Jesus said to carry.
These are what
you are to carry:
Carry love.
Carry love for Him,
And for all you meet,
For love shall cover a multitude of sins
And brings light to the darkest
Of paths.
Do you not remember that He said,
Love seeks not it’s own,
But seeks the highest good
For everyone?

And where is your joy?
Have you lost it?
Where has it gone?
You used to have such gladness
No matter your circumstance.
Have you forgotten
That joy comes from
living with what we know
to be true, as a result
Of our belief and obeying
Our glorious God.

And what of your peace?
I don’t see it dear brother, sister
In you.
You do not seem content.
Have you no freedom
From worry and fear
And the troubles of this world
That oppress you.
Have you tried to carry on your own,
What our Lord told You is His
To carry?
Here let me share these with you
Till we see Him again.

You, Brother, Sister,
Who have always shown such goodness,
Who used to be so open-hearted
And generous;
What has happened to you?
You, who used to give to others
Above all they ever wanted
Or deserved.
And what of your faithfulness, dear brother, sister,
You, who are always so
Dependable, loyal, and trustworthy;
You, who were so filled with devotion,
Who were so loyal to your friends,
Who were so dependable
To meet all responsibility.
What has happened to you?
Please dear brother, sister
Share with me and
Let me help you carry
Whatever it is
That weighs you down.

Brother, sister
I pray to my Lord, God, Almighty
Let my gentleness and self-control
Be known by you.
Lord, God,
My blessed Savior and Lord
Make me humble and calm
And no threat
To this dearly beloved brother, sister.
I pray Father
That You will make them see,
That I love them;
That I live in harmony with Your will,
And that I live to do Your will.

Brother, sister
I implore you, I plead with you
Leave these things I see here behind;
Leave your anger and wrath,
And unforgiveness here.
Leave your bitterness, and resentment,
And your shame here.
Leave your longings, and strivings
For that which aren’t for you here.
Then give to me
And allow me to share,
And help carry
Those burdens of sadness and grief,
Those of hurt and disappointment;
Your pain and suffering
And let me share them.
Let me walk beside you
Dear brother, sister
Till we again see His light,
And He knows that
We are on the way.

From “The Word For You Today” by Bruce Christian

WEATHERING THE FINANCIAL SHAKEUP (1)

Writing about a recent conversation, Rich Hamlin says: “Another guy like me said, ‘I dread going to work.  All these layoffs are depressing.  I keep thinking I’m going to be next.  I’ve tons of work, and my clients appreciate what I’m doing, but I start worrying and there’s no stopping.’  Worrying is the worst of it, and the stories are piling up; friends, friends of friends, people from church, neighbors, parents of our kids’ friends.  An early retirement here, a downsizing there, a severance payment, a pink slip…all put faces on the statistics and…that gnawing fear can make every day an agony.”  The chances are, you may be feeling some shots of discouragement yourself-daily arrows of frustration that wear you down and steal your joy.  Satan’s like a terrorist specializing in guerrilla warfare.  He knows he’d lose big time if he went against the forces of heaven, so he singles out individual believers.  The question is, how do you stand firm when “everything that…can be shaken” is shaking?  Well for starters, Isaiah says, “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you” (Isa 26:3 NKJV).  If Moses had focused on his circumstances, he’d never have had peace standing between the Red Sear and the Egyptians.  His peace came from knowing he was where God wanted him to be.  Peace in and of itself isn’t the goal; peace is a by-product of knowing: “How great is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear (honor) you, which you bestow in the sight of men on those who take refuge in you”(Ps 31:19 NIV).

From “The Word For You Today” by Bruce Christian, “Stop Worrying About It”

     Everyone should read this about a hundred times a day.

STOP WORRYING ABOUT IT!

    If you let them, two things will rob you of your peace of mind: (1) The past.  we all make mistakes-even the folks you admire and think never make mistakes.  The Bible says, “Every man shall bear his own burden” (Gal 6:5).  We all struggle in certain areas.  We all say and do things we wish we hadn’t said or done.  “So what can I do?” you ask.  Ask God to forgive you, then trust Him to make it work out all right.  He can do that.  He can help you clean up your mistakes and grow stronger through them.  For example, when you say something you shouldn’t, instead of obsessing about whether or not you offended somebody, ask the Lord to let them know your heart was right even though you put your foot in your mouth.  Trust God to work on them and give you favor.  That way you don’t have to spend the next several days feeling anxious, or cringe when you meet them.  (2)  The future.  God won’t meet tomorrow’s needs until tomorrow comes.  So when you are having an attack of the “what if’s,” stop and consider these words from the lips of Jesus: “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘what shall we eat?’ or ‘what shall we drink?’ or ‘what shall we wear?’  For after all these things the Gentiles seek.  For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.  But first seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Mt 6:31-33 NKJV).  Victor Hugo said, “When you have accomplished your daily task, go to sleep in peace; God is awake!”