Fruit

John 15:5,8 NLT
Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father.

Knowing who we are in Christ is key to walking out our Christian walk. The first step on that walk is believing in Jesus. We become born again asking Jesus into our heart because we believe in who He is and why He came. He becomes Lord of our life and sends Holy Spirit to live in us.

It is key to a fruitful walk that we remain in Him. If we do so, we cannot help but do as Jesus would do in our daily journey. There are many scriptural references to remind us who we are. Here are but a few:

I have been given power and authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing by any means shall hurt me (Luke 10.19). I can rejoice because my name is written in heaven (Luke 10.20). In Him I have life and that Life is Light to all men (John 1.4). I am a child of God (John 1.12). In Him I will never perish, but I have Eternal Life (1 John 3.15-16).

On our own we can do nothing lasting. Sure, with the knowledge we have obtained both in earthly matters and in knowledge of God's Word we can do great things here on earth and even teach others what we have learned in our studies of the Bible.

Real power comes from our walking out in who we are in Christ. In Him we have all the anointing of Jesus because He dwells in us--His spirit and ours are one. As we practice His presence allowing Him to work through us as we reach out and touch others we have His authority and power to do the miraculous things He did and more.

And the more we walk out, the more Holy Spirit teaches us and the more we grow in our relationship with Him. The fruit in our lives will be evident to all we come in contact with and we give all glory to God the Father.

Chasing

Colossians 1:27 NKJV
To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

When the popular music groups are in town many flock to see them. And the same is true when known Christian ministries are nearby. We run to see what God is doing and maybe get closer to Him because of it. We seek the anointing others have. We chase the anointing of God. We chase the people we see as having more of it.

When Jesus walked the earth many chased after Him They wanted to hear Him speak. They wanted to see Him heal the sick. They wanted to witness demons coming out of people because of a touch from Jesus. They wanted to just touch the hem of His garment.

The same happens today. People chase the healers of today. Big ministries command big audiences eager to see God work at today. They flock by the thousands to get a glimpse of the signs and wonders.

Others go from church to church to find the one, the one that has the anointing of God. The one church that God is moving in Power. They want to see and feel God every Sunday. They want more of Him.

But it is not about the church, certain people, or those with gifts of healing, miracles, or prophecy. The Christ they seek, the anointing they seek is within each and every believer. All of the anointing Jesus has is in us. All the power to even raise the dead is in us. Seek that which is in your Spirit. Practice the presence of God every day and let Jesus out to work through your hands and your mouth.

Testify

1 Chronicles 16:8 NLT

Give thanks to the Lord and proclaim his greatness. Let the whole world know what he has done.

Our kids are playing soccer and everyone can tell. We have a bumper sticker on all our vehicles that says so. And we wear adult versions of their soccer shirts. When they win, we tell everyone and post pictures and video all over our Facebook page. We let the whole world know what they have done.

Perhaps this is your story. "Went to a small group last night and God healed me. That pain I had been experiencing all week left just like that! Wow, God is good and I thank Him for those at the group that laid hands on me."

The next day you go to work and do what you always do eight to five. When you leave they know no more about what God had done then they did yesterday when you were in pain. You thanked God when the healing occurred and all the way home in the car. But when you got to work you went on with your day like nothing had happened at all.

I believe Father God wants us to let the whole world know what He did. What about this addition to your story? "I have to tell you what happened to me last evening. I was with a group of friends and complaining about the pain I had been having. They asked if they could lay hands on me and pray. When I said "Yes", they proceeded to pray, in the name of Jesus, and all my pain left immediately! I am still pain free. Isn't Jesus wonderful?"

Our story, the history of our life with Jesus, is His story. The way to tell others about Jesus is to tell them, to testify, about what Jesus has done for us. We tell others how our relationship with Him has changed our lives and ask them if they would like to get to know Him, too.

Testify. Share your story with someone today.

Words

Colossians 3:17 NLT

And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.

Have you ever found yourself with some people you have not seen in a long time and it is like you went back in time? Your mannerisms, your words, your thinking seems to just revert back to who you used to be.

In our conversations with others our words can easily drift back to our old worldly ways. After all we are not yet who we are becoming. We are a work in progress. But when we get that check in our Spirit, we need to stop and evaluate what is coming out of our mouth.

As I understand it, when you represent someone others see you as being that person. What you say and do reflects on the person you are representing. When you are working for a company and representing them in the field others decide to do or not do business with your company based on your words and your behavior.

We tell others we are followers of Jesus. They watch us closely and look to see that our actions line up with their understanding of how a Christian should act. And our words are included in what they watch.

May our words and our actions correctly represent Jesus. And in whatever we do, may we always give glory to God

Next

Colossians 2:6-7 NLT
And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

We live in a country where many proclaim to be Christian. They claim to be a follower of Jesus. And yet, their lifestyle does not live up to the lifestyle we see coming off the pages of our Bibles.

Think about it. If your primary concern is for self and making yourself happy with the latest toys, are you a follower of Jesus or just a name dropper? In this world we get places often because of who we know, whose name we can drop at the right moment.

At the time of your acceptance of Jesus for who He is, you became a believer, but not necessarily a follower. That is the next step in your walk with Jesus, the creator of the universe. You accepted Him as your Lord and He saved you. You have your ticket to eternity with Him. But to live a life filled with the benefit of knowing Him, you have to take the next step.

Jumping right back into the lifestyle you had been living is not taking the next step; it is avoiding it. To be who you are in Christ you need to discover what that is and it is not about being pious. It is about walking with Jesus. He is in you and to discover what that means you have to dig into His Word, your Bible.

Read about the men and women that were in Christ and see what they had to say. As you take that next step and read, the words jump off the page and you begin to understand. You begin to walk with Jesus and everything changes. What was once so important to you in this life takes a backseat to your walk with Him.

Make that choice today. Take the next step and begin to allow your roots in Jesus to go down deeper and deeper each day.

Judging

Luke 6:37 NLT 

Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven.

As I remember when I was in school many years ago we would judge others by how good their grades were, what kind of car they drove, how good they where in sports, how they dressed, etc.

So when I first read this scripture I thought about looking at others and rating them in some way. Kind of like on a scale of 1 to 10. Perhaps about deciding if I wanted to get to know them.

It tells us we are not to judge others and it is easy to assume that has to do with judging their actions, their attitude, their lifestyle. But I do not believe that is what it is about at all. It is about us judging if they are worthy of becoming a believer or not.

No matter where we come from or what kind of lifestyle we lead, no one is worthy. If it were about our worthiness none would be saved. Jesus died for all of us to make us all worthy. He died for us to take on all our sins. He took on all judgement and gave us a clear path to eternity with Him.

The greater a person is in bondage the harder they fall down and praise the King. We are to look past what is in front of us, look past what we hear, and put on our Jesus glasses so we see them as He sees them. Then we tell them how much Jesus loves them.

It is not about being worthy. It is about believing in He who died for us. 

Desires

Proverbs 3:5-6 KJV

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

We grow up learning to set goals for the future, for how we are going to earn a living and live our life. Questions we ask ourselves may include things like what do we want to do when we grow up, what college are we planning for, who are we going to marry and spend our life with, how many children are we going to have, and more.

Where do our answers come from? They come from our parents, our friends, our teachers. They come from our own dreams and desires, perhaps even birthed from a movie we watched, a book we read, or a person whose life and vocation we look up to.

In the end our desires are of this world and of our own imagination. And yet God's word tells us that we are not to lean to our own understanding, but to rely on Him through Holy Spirit to point us in the direction He has for us to take.

Often God's path for us is not the same as our own dreams or desires. As mentioned above, they can be motivated by the circumstances around us and driven by our own understating and even by the desires of those close to us.

We must lean on God and look to where He is pointing us. I am always praying for HIm to make a way for HIS desires to come through me. And for me to recognize them.

Free

Luke 4:18 NLT
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free.

That old saying "The devil made me do it" tells us that all our sinful actions are the result of satan. Well the original sin we were born into this world with may be in us us, but James 1:14 tells us that temptation comes from our own desires. It is our thinking which has been fueled by our past experiences that cause most of the trouble in our lives.

What we need is Jesus first. Then we need new experiences to overshadow those old ones. We need to let Him bring us to new places in this life, to new relationships, and to new ways to practice His presence. With our eyes set on Him, we have someone to help us at every choice point in our life.

The Lord sets us free from the bondage of our own mind. We are free to let Him take over. But we have to let ourselves be free. We have to allow Him to control our thinking instead of relying on all we know--all we have researched and all we have experienced in this earthy life. We have to let him take over and then we will truly be set free. Free to be all he created us to be.

Giving

2 Corinthians 9:7 NLT
You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don't give reluctantly or in response to pressure. "For God loves a person who gives cheerfully."

Most believers understand that giving is to be from the heart and not from a preprogrammed motive. We may go somewhere and have a number in mind, even have it in our pocket ready to give. Holy Spirit brings another number to mind and we fight the thought. We already made that decision we think. If we give out of that early decision, we are giving out of our flesh and our logical mind. If we give in to the Holy Spirit, we are giving out of our heart. Praise God.

Then we see a homeless person and think things like: "I bet he will just buy a bottle of wine or cigarettes or worse." "Let me buy him lunch and then I will know what the money is going for." Giving at all to that homeless person is an act of kindness, but needing to know where the money goes is earthly and not of the heart. Serving others does not give us the right to how decide how others are to use what we give them. As we allow Him, Holy Spirit will show us the who and the how much. Then it is for us to obey.

All of it belongs to God in the first place. Who are we to decide what happens with His money? Even in our giving to the church we attend, we should not be looking to see how they spend our money. It is not ours to begin with. We give what Holy Spirit tells us to give and that is that. The responsibility for what it is used for is now on the church, not us. And once give we do not get to take it back. That would be asking God for a refund.

Thank you Father for allowing me to have an abundance to give to others. Thank you for allowing me and showing me how to be a blessing to them and not hoarding it for my selfish desires. In Jesus name, I pray.

Permissible

Romans 7:19 NLT

I want to do what is good, but I don't. I don't want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway.

A minister friend said recently in a message that when we were not saved everything was permissible and fun. Now that we are saved, everything is still permissible but no longer fun. 

We are not rejected because of what wrong path we take. As a matter of fact, I believe Holy Spirit is constantly attempting to guide us back on the path He has for us to take. In our stubbornness we cling to our soulish desires and our logic to do what we have decided He wants of us. What He really wants is for us to think with the mind of Christ and not our old mind filled with logic and knowledge capable of figuring things out for ourselves--leaning to our own understanding. 

So here we are plodding along trying to take the right road even forcing open doors Holy Spirit is trying to close for us by putting blocks in our way. Instead of understanding what they are we logically find our way through or around the block and call it an answer to prayer. I can just imagine what Holy Spirit thinks then! But it does not stop Him from trying a different approach for us to listen.

I think we make a simple Gospel complicated. His perfect will is in His Word. If what we are doing is not advancing the Kingdom of God, then we should open a new door. Jesus commissioned all of us to preach the Good News to the world we live in to save the lost, and set the captives free by delivering them from demons and healing them. And yet we all look for the part we want to play. All the parts to play that are laid out in the New Testament writings are for Christians in relationship with other Christians. We are all to go outside the church be Jesus. 

In the church we compliment each other in gifting and all the gifts are active in our fellowship no matter how small that fellowship is in bodies. Holy Spirit gives out the gifts as needed and when needed to build up the church, teach the church, and encourage the church.

If you are making a difference in church, then you are where He wants you. If your disciples are going outside the church setting the captives free, then you are doing your job. All too often I believe we get wrapped up in the job and not the results of our work. It is all about setting the captives free so they can set more captives free. It is all about being Jesus to all we encounter.

And waiting is not in the commission Jesus gave to all of us. The action is in the GOing. Growth does not come by waiting. Growth comes through GOing, being corrected and continuing to GO. God deals with all of us so differently. If we have peace that we are doing God's will, we will GO ahead more readily. If not, the checks we get from Holy Spirit will come through loud and clear.

Remember that faith is spelled R I S K. To GO we must step out and take a risk. 

Direction

Matthew 28:19-20 NLT
Go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

When we became born again it was not to just get a ticket on the bus to heaven. And yet, many are just waiting around attempting to be good little Christians until Jesus returns or they reach their expiration date for this part of the journey.

Jesus commissioned us to preach the gospel message, to make believers and then to disciple them.

Many get to church on a weekend and think that plus their good lives is all they are to do. Wrong. Jesus said we would do what He did while He was here on earth and even more. How can that happen if we don’t step outside the church?

Oh, so you tell others what a great church you attend and even invite them? Good for you, but that is like inviting them to a football game or to see a good movie. Jesus did not commission the church to convert the heathen, He commissioned you and I. When they are born again because of what you did, then bring them to church as new believers.

And then disciple them. It is not the pastor’s job to disciple, he/she is the encourager, the teacher, the pastor. We are to bring them alongside us and teach them by our example what it means to walk as Jesus walked--to be Jesus in the marketplace.

Emphasis has been on conversions and not on discipleship. It does not matter much how many say:’Yeah Jesus.” What matters is how many, because of our discipleship learn to “Be Jesus.”

Well, you say, I am waiting for God’s direction before I get off the couch and do anything. He has to tell me what to do next, where to go next, who to get involved with. I need a word from Him before I can do anything.

He gave us His Word so we would know His Will and His ways. He gave us Holy Spirit to encourage us as we go. It is in the GO that we get direction. It is in the GO that we grow. It is in the GO that we see the doors to close and the doors to open.

God does not paint a big sign on a door for us. We are to seek the doors and as we attempt to walk through them Holy Spirit gives us a check in our spirit when our direction is wrong. It is up to us to be aware of those checks and back off if we take a wrong turn.

As we pursue obedience to His Word and therefore His Will, He shows up. When we see a door, we walk to it and if it opens and lines up with His Will as defined in His Word He will give us what we need to fulfil the task He has for us.

If that door you see open is one you cannot go through without His help, then it is probably the door He has for you to pursue. If you can do it on your own then it is probably one you are opening all on your own. For it is through having to trust God that we grow through our experiences in this life.

The GO is easy in hindsight. But as we walk towards it, the way may seem insurmountable and it is only with His help and our complete trust in Him that we can make it. We have to go through the doors together. We have to go through each day together. It is not six days for this life and one day with Him. It is living every day with Him. He is in us and at our side and covering our back and leading the way, every day.

Plumb Line

2 Timothy 3:16-17 ESV

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.

We all know what a plumb line is, right? Nowadays there are electronic gadgets that are used. It used to be a string with a weight pointed at the bottom. When the string was held up with the weight at the bottom the line from the top to the point at the bottom would be perfectly vertical. When used to align a wall being built it would insure the wall to be straight.

That is where we want to be with our Father God-perfectly aligned with Him. When we are out of alignment our life sways back and forth. We try to be right in our thinking, but temptation from our own thinking pulls us off our plumb line.

All scripture is God breathed. For us to breath it we must read it. When we ask Holy Spirit to reveal the Living Word of God to us, the words jump out from the pages and sealed in our heart.

When we find ourselves veering off the plumb line all we need to do is pull out those words of love from deep within--those words He revealed to us as He breathed them into us.

As we walk out staying aligned with God, others see Jesus in us and miracles happen as we allow Him to reach out and touch the lost and the saved. Praise God!

Thinking

Proverbs 23:7 (KJV) 

For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.

One of the worst things to do is immerse yourself in what others say about why you are not moving in your ministry or why you are not fully healed. We get what we think. Jesus heals without qualification. When His anointing is present so is His presence. And the anointing breaks the yoke.

What we read becomes what we think. And our mind is what drives us. The Word should be our primary reading material. We need to klnow how Jesus thinks. We should have the mind of Christ and his mind does not think why I cannot. It only thinks why I can. 

Satan loves to keep us thinking about why we are not healed and the more we dwell on it the further from the mind of Christ we find ourselves. Jesus save. Jesus heals. Period. Thinking any other way is not of God. 

No matter where our physical condition is God has something for us to do to advance His kingdom. We need to seek His face, listen for His voice regardless of what we are dealing with in this physical realm. 

"Thank you Jesus for where I am right now. Thank you for using me in the physical and emotional condition I am in. Continue teaching me all things and advancing me one step at a time. In Jesus' name I pray."

Humble

Philippians 2:3-4 NLT
Don't be selfish; don't try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don't look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.

We have grown up in a society that listens to that old radio station WIFM. You know the one. The letters stand for "what's In it for me." We do something for someone else and expect something in return.

But God's word does not say "do for others because they will do likewise for you." No, it says in Luke 6:31 "Do to others as you would like them to do to you." As you would like not only if you have a guarantee they will do for you.

Sure we do have to watch out for our own interests, but not at the expense of others. We must humble ourselves and look out for others. We are to serve others like it says in Galatians 5:13
"For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don't use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love."

We are to serve out of love, not out of an obligation to God. We serve because He loves us and gave His life for us, for us to be set free. We serve because we want to serve and not to make an impression on others that they may see what we are doing. That would be serving out of a selfish desire to be noticed by others. We serve in secret knowing where our reward comes from.

"Father God, thank you for giving me opportunity after opportunity to serve others as I walk out in the marketplace today. Thank you for opening doors for me to walk through and closing those that I should avoid. Thank you for loving me and giving me an example to follow. In Jesus' name. Amen"

Wisdom

James 3:13 NLT
If you are wise and understand God's ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom.

Wisdom is mentioned 215 times in the NLT Bible. James 3.13 tells us that "If you are wise and understand God's ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom."

Webster defines wisdom as: knowledge that is gained by having many experiences in life, the natural ability to understand things that most other people cannot understand, and knowledge of what is proper or reasonable; good sense or judgment.

Note the difference between the Bible and the dictionary. Wisdom comes from knowing God's ways. His ways are found throughout our Bibles, throughout His Word. The instructions for life are in His Word. As we read His Word and assimilate what He is telling us through it, we acquire wisdom.

Acquiring worldly knowledge and agreeing with the morals of the world makes us wise in a carnal sense. True wisdom comes not from the world and its evil ways, it come from God.

James 1.5 tells us how to get more wisdom: "If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking."

"Father God, thank you for providing your Word to me. Thank you for the wisdom you impart to me as I go and see where you are working so I can join you. Thank you for showing me where I need to discern the difference between worldly wisdom and Your wisdom.. Guide me into all truth. In Jesus' name I pray."

Thoughts

Philippians 4:8 NLT
Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 

What do you do when your smartphone beeps? Do you take it out and see who just texted or messaged you? Most people do that. They are so tuned in to their social network they need to check right away. And yet, how often does Holy Spirit try to beep us and we ignore Him?

Our thoughts, what we think about all day long can determine our actions. When we fix our eyes on the situation we find ourselves in, the situation appears to worsen. All our thoughts go towards finding our solution to that situation. Holy Spirit has a hard time getting through our thoughts to bring us the right solution. We are too caught up in fixing it on our own.

No matter what is going on around us, no matter what troubles we find ourselves immersed in, Holy Spirit is right there ready to teach us all we need to move forward; all we need to move out of the grasp of the evil one into the arms of Jesus.

When we fix our thoughts on what is true all worry leaves because our God has got our back. When we give it to Him we can trust Him to take care of it. We no longer have to think about it. Instead we are filled with peace and able to think on what He has for us to do.

Citizens

Ephesians 2:19 NLT
So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God's holy people. You are members of God's family.

We don't have to become Jewish to be a Christian. We do not have to follow their non-Christian customs and rituals or those from any other religion. Jesus did not say to become a Jew and follow me, He said to just follow Him and then to have faith and believe without doubting. It is the Jew that becomes a Christian just like you and I.

Jesus did not evolve from being jewish to becoming the son of God. He was born already being the son of God into a family that believed in the one true God. We all come as we are to Jesus. The Father sends Holy Spirit to live in us and teach us all things. He teaches us what we can cast off from our old life. He came not to give us a bunch of new rules, but to free us from the bondage the old rules put us in. He came to show us the truth. He came to welcome all as citizens into the Kingdom of God. Thank you, Jesus!

"Holy Spirit, continue to teach me. Show me in God's Word what I need for the each day I walk on this earth. Help me become the person I was made to be regardless of what I have come out of, regardless of what religion I used to follow, regardless of what wrongs I have already been forgiven of, and of what mistakes I will still make while I live in this mortal shell. It is in the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen."

Work

John 6:29, 40 NLT
Jesus told them, "This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent." For it is my Father's will that all who see his Son and believe in him should have eternal life. I will raise them up at the last day."

We grow up in our culture today with the goal of becoming educated in order to obtain a good paying job. We work to earn a living so we can purchase shelter, food, and enjoy life. It is not about how much we make, but rather what we do with what has been allotted to us.

Common sense tells us we cannot live in a two thousand dollar a month home if we only make fifteen hundred a month. But we are tempted by credit card companies to charge what we want in hope that we will make more in the future and pay off our debts. It is good for them, but bad for us. So we often work more than one job to make enough to feed our need to spend more.

I do not think Jesus was talking about this kind of work. No, He was telling me that I do not have to work to retain my relationship with Him. I am saved, born again, a friend of God. All my sins have been forgiven. He is the same today and tomorrow, the same as He was yesterday. There is no work I have to do to keep Him in me. Nothing can change His mind about how much He love me.

Is there work to be done? Yes there is. Our work is sharing the gospel message with all we come in contact with. How can they follow Jesus if they do not know who He is? We are to go in to the world, the places where we live, and share Jesus. We are to be a light in dark places. We are to be Jesus to a needing world. But it does not stop there. When someone accepts Jesus we do not let them go. No, we are to disciple them so they go to their world and share with them what Jesus has done.

How much work we do following Him does not have an affect on our eternity with Jesus. The closer our work with Him, the more rewarding our life here on earth. Out names were written in the book of life the day we asked Jesus into our heart. And that was not done with an erasable pencil.

Thank you Jesus for using me in the world I travel in. Thank you for being in me and working through me. Thank you for my eternal promise to be with you forever.

Cleansing

2 Corinthians 7:1 NLT
Because we have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that can defile our body or spirit. And let us work toward complete holiness because we fear God.

We are a clean people. We wash our cars, our clothes, our teeth, ourselves, and more. The consequences of not doing so may result in a reduced number of friends, loss of a job, loss of teeth, or worse. Living in/with filth has health consequences as well.

God's promises to us are numerous, but the most important one is His promise to save us from death. He sent His son, Jesus to show us the way to eternal life. When we accept Jesus as our Lord and savior we move from a life on earth ending in death to an abundant life here ending in eternal life in Heaven with Jesus.

Now that Jesus lives in me, I want to be the cleanest I have ever been. Sure I clean up on the outside the same way I did before I was saved. It is the inside that is needing a good washing. The way I thought, the selfish ways I approached things, the WIFM attitude I had, the movies I watched, the language I used, the endless supply of innuendos, etc. all had to go.

My list of was longer than that, but I have already listed more than I had planned as it is. You see, when I realized who was in me, I could not be that same person. My mind had to be washed clean by the blood of Jesus. My mind needed to be renewed. I needed to operate out of the mind of Christ and not of my old mindset.

I would love to tell you I am fixed. I am not. There are still things in me that Jesus is working on. Holy Spirit shows me what they are and I work on changing, with His help.

"Father God, show me what needs to change in me. Help me to be the person you designed me to be and not the person satan tried to turn me into when I was tempted to do all those worldly things and hang around with the wrong people. Help me to be where you are working and give me the boldness to allow Holy Spirit to work through me so Jesus can touch lives all around me. Cleanse me. In Jesus name, I pray."

Masterpiece

Ephesians 2:10 NLT
For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

When I think about a masterpiece, I think of an old painting created by a famous artist many years ago and worth a small fortune. Dictionary.com defines masterpiece as, "A person's greatest piece of work, as in an art or anything done with masterly skill". We are God's greatest work.

By going to the cross for us, Jesus canceled out our debts for all time. Our sins are forgiven--past, present, and future. We are covered by the blood of Jesus shed for us at the cross. It gets even better.

When we became a believer and asked Jesus to come into our heart, God heard us. We became born again; born of the spirit with a new birth date. And Father God sent the Holy Spirit to come into us and fill our spirit. Holy Spirit, the spirit of Christ lives in us. Jesus is alive and working through us as we practice His presence each day.

"Thank you, Father for being in my life. Thank you for my being your masterpiece. Thank you for teaching me daily as I step out and minister to others, to those you place in my path. Continue to order my steps and point me to where You are working so I may join you. It is in Jesus name, I pray. Amen."

Tattoos

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NLT 
Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.

Every so often someone asks me what I think about getting a tattoo. I do not have one and have no desire to do so. A number of my friends and family member have them. I know some people come back from battle with one or more. I don't know when that began, but some of my relatives in WWII came back with them as did friends who saw action in other conflicts. In today's younger generation it seems to be the "thing to do". They are placed in hidden places and in obvious spots on their bodies. Women seem to like them on their back in the waist area and you see them as you walk the beaches seeing the bikini clad women. Some are just cute little butterflies or hearts, others large with some implied message. Everyone is doing it, so it must be ok, right? Here is what I find my Bible has to say about it and, if God said it, are we not to obey?

Leviticus 19:28 NLT
Do not cut your bodies for the dead, and do not mark your skin with tattoos. I am the LORD.

Just Do

James 1:22 NLT

But don't just listen to God's word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.

We spend years learning things in school and most of it we never use in our lifetime. Well maybe we call on some of it in trivia games. But we each learned things we needed as we moved on in our lives and we each needed different pieces of that education.

Then we moved on to our next chapter, the one where we found a profession and began to use some of those tools we picked up in our worldly education. Even though we knew some basics from school we did not really get to how to use them until we used them. Doing made it real and allowed us to learn even more. 

As we "do", our knowledge grows as we experience things hands on. This experiential knowledge is more valuable than book knowledge. The book or whatever our method of learning was propelled us into life experiences that allowed us to obtain experiential knowledge and grow in that area of our life.

One way many experience God's word today is by listening to a teaching or sermon at church or on television or even on the Internet. There is a lot of good messages out there to listen to and many use scripture throughout. 

However, this is not digging into God's word for ourselves. I know God may speak to us through those messages, but how much more when we are in His word for ourselves. I believe the most important way He speaks to us today is through His written word, our Bible. When we read it what we "hear" is not filtered through someone else's experiences.

When God reveals His truth to us we are not to just make a note or bookmark the passages. We are to do what it says. And as we do it, we experience if for ourselves and grow to a new level in Christ.

Your God

Isaiah 41:10 NLT 
Don't be afraid, for I am with you. Don't be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.

I was told a long time ago that fear was false evidence appearing real. Fact is fear is not of God. The enemy likes to use it to open a door for worry and then hopelessness.

So when fear tries to sneak in we need to take those thoughts captive casting them out of our mind and think on things of God. Remember who we are in Christ. Speak out those scriptures and fear will dissipate as we allow Holy Spirit to cleanse our mind.

He is our Father God. He loves us and is always with us. Even when we allow circumstances overwhelm us He is right there waiting for us to reach out to Him. Instead we try to fix it on our own. But His word tells us to not lean to our own understanding. When we lean on Him, He is right there to comfort us and bring us out of those circumstances. With Him we can fly above any circumstance the enemy can try to throw at us.

Thank you Jesus for being in my life, in me. For with you nothing is impossible, no mountain too high.

Commandments

 John 15:10 NLT 
When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father's commandments and remain in his love. 

There is much discussion about obeying the law even though we are born again and Christians. Does this scripture say therefore we who follow Jesus are to obey His commandments, the ones Jesus left for us and not the law? Jesus obeyed the law and all of the original commandments. We remain in the Father's love as we do this. Of course, if we truly obey the commandment Jesus left for us, we remain faithful to the ten and the moral codes from the original Mosaic laws. Just thinking...

When we are in God's love, we want to do everything to please Him, but we do it out of gratitude rather than "obeying the law" --- the difference between the letter of the law and the spirit of the law that Paul talks about. Jesus' commandments center around love, love of God and each other. He says those two cover all of it. Yet, He still mentions from time to time in the New Testament the different laws that the Pharisees broke, in a way substantiating their importance to them, the jews. As we die to self, we "obey" the commandments increasingly, automatically.

Ephesians 2:10 NLT 
For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. 

In this scripture verse it states that we are God's masterpiece, His workmanship. That's the major difference between following the Old Testament law and following Jesus. Heart motives are changed by Him as He transforms us. His love increases our love. It's so neat! We have the law to look at to show us the difference between good and evil, but we have God's love to help us obey His commandments. So simple, huh? Even when we mess up, His love gets us back on track.

We don't have to earn His love like the Hebrews under the law did. I guess, to sum it up, the morals are not to be dismissed, we just approach them in a different way, don't you think?

Everyone

2 Peter 3:9 NLT
The Lord isn't really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.

We live in a time where we see what is happening around the world in real time. We expect it and we expect solutions to situations to happen immediately. Patience is something we have little of. We want it now.

We wait for Jesus to return as did the Christians of the first century church. They expected Jesus at any time and yet they did understand they would not know the day or the hour. But He did not return in their lifetime. And He has not returned yet.

But with what we see happening all around us, I believe it may be sooner than later. There is an increase of environmental changes, weather pattern changes, wars, sexual sin, and you know the list. All of it points to nearing the end times as prophesied in Revelation.

Why hasn't Jesus come? He promised He would. Perhaps as it says in this verse He is looking for us to step up and step out to fulfil the commission He gave to each of us. That is the commission to go into all the world, preach the gospel message, and make disciples. He wants everyone to repent and to come into a right relationship with Jesus.

"Father, give me boldness to step out and reach the lost. Give me boldness to pray for them, Give me the words to testify to what a difference in my life a relationship with Jesus has done. Help me to lead them to accept Jesus as their personal Lord and savior. In Jesus name, I pray."

Faithful Guard

2 Thessalonians 3:3 NLT 

But the Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one. 

Faithful is not about having faith, it is defined by Merriam-Webster as being loyal, firm in keeping promises, and true to facts. 

No matter what I do, how I fall in my daily walk, my Jesus is with me to pick me up and remind me of His promises to me. He reminds me that He is in me and I in Him. And in Him: 

I am a doer of the Word and blessed in my actions (James 1:22,25). 
I am a joint-heir with Christ (Romans 8:17). 
I am more than a conqueror through Him Who loves me (Romans 8:37). 
I am an overcomer by the blood of the Lamb and the word of my testimony (Revelation 12:11). 
I am a partaker of His divine nature (II Peter 1:3,4). 
I am an ambassador for Christ (II Corinthians 5:20). * 

The evil one may try to get me to do those things I used to enjoy by tempting me throughout my day, but He who is greater is in me. He gives me strength, He guards me from all temptation and even when I fall into temptation, He is quick to show me the way out. He is in battle with me as I walk out this salvation walk ever learning, ever growing in Him. Thank you, Jesus! 

* See more promises at TheEvans.org 

The Battle

Romans 8:31 NIV 
What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 

There is a battle going on daily for the saved and the yet to be saved. As believers we are in constant battle with temptation. The enemy knows our past and our weaknesses. He finds ways to remind us of those "good times" we had following him in the past. He brings people of our past life across our path to trigger those old memories and tempt us into going back.

The yet to be saved are still listening to the enemy tell them how good they have it. They are lured by the instant pleasures of the flesh and the search to find happiness in this fallen world. And yet all they need is to hear the truth and they, too can be set free from the baggage they have accumulated.

The battle is in the spiritual realm manifested in much around us. Our society is goodly rather than godly. It seems to have turned from purpose driven to pleasure seeking. If only they knew the pleasure in walking with Jesus.

No matter how long the battle wages or how intense it gets one thing is sure. The battle is won and Jesus is the victor. I am so glad I am on the side of truth; so glad I have been born again into victory over my past, present, and future. I can truly say, "If God is for me who can be against me?"

The Shadow

Psalm 91:1 NLT
Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow
of the Almighty.

You may be too young to remember "The Shadow". It was a radio program that was on in the middle of the last century. The opening line to each show was "Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows!"

Although this radio show, perhaps the most famous of all radio history, was a detective story that was aired from 1930 through 1954 the shadow of the Almighty has been with us since the beginning of time and will continue everafter.

As believers we live in the shelter of the Most HIgh. We live in Jesus and He in us. Holy Spirit and our spirit are one. As we allow Him to come forth in our lives others are touched and lives are changed not because of who we are, but because of who He in us is.

Because of Jesus we rest in the shadow of the one larger than all, the maker of all that we know and beyond. We rest with Jesus in the shadow of our Father God.

Thank you Jesus for coming and living among us, for accepting your destiny of being crucified for our sins on the cross, for rising from the dead and showing yourself to witnesses, and for sending Holy Spirit to live forever in each of us, your believers. Thank you for making us right with God through your righteousness.

Stuff

Mark 8:36 NLT
And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?

We live in a society of stuff. The advertisements are all geared to entice us to get the latest and greatest things. When I grew up we had the same telephone for most of my young years. The big rage back then in phones was the Princess Phone. It even came in colors.

And when you talked televisions it was not about how many and if they were flat screens hanging on the wall. No, it was whether you had one or not. And computers were something the government had, not us regular people.

Now we have to get the latest and greatest cell phone even ordering them before they hit the streets. And the larger the screen on the television the better to brag about. We want those make believe stories on the set to look like reality in our living room or even our bedroom. Heck they even have shows now categorized as reality TV. We have pushed realty out of our own lives and into the television screen.

Everyone seems to want the package deals from their local cable company with the 200+ channels most of which they will never watch. Few stick an antenna on their sets and settle for off the air channels for free.

And instead of looking out for others and serving God’s people as our Lord asked of us, they are interested in putting others down for their own benefit. Often it is for gain, for greed. They want what they believe should be theirs without any compassion for others.

We live in the age of Grace, God’s grace in our lives. I believe He wants us to show that same grace to others in all our dealings.

As we allow His Love to flow through us in our deeds and actions miraculous things unfold right before our eyes.

“Thank your Father for allowing me to show Your grace to others. Help me in my compassion for others. I want to be just like You. I want Your love to flow through me in all my dealings, in all my communications be they in person, over the phone, or on the web. It is in Jesus name I pray.”

Coming soon...

Forgive

Colossians 3:13 NLT
Make allowance for each other's faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.

Thank God for His mercy and grace. I am so glad He did not hold any of my past "adventures" against me. Matter of fact He uses all those past things, those experiences to enable me to relate to others as He has me minister to them.

He made allowance for me. And yet it is so easy for us to not forgive others for things they may say or do that offend us. If God was not offended by us, why should we be offended by others? Easy to say, but they hurt my feelings, you say.

There was a time in my life when I expected everyone to think, talk, and act just like me. Of course that was not true, but it caused me to be easily offended when things did not go my way. Others gave me a lot more grace than I gave them.

We may be born again and our spirit and Holy Spirit are one. But our mind and our soul and our emotions are under construction. Our mind need renewing. I pray daily for the mind of Christ. As our mind begins more and more to think like Jesus it becomes easier to look past others words and actions that would offend us in the past.

"Father God, thank you for continuing to help me give more and more to you. Thank you for continuing to change my mind to be more and more Christ like. Thank you for helping me give others grace and for not being offended by anything they may do or say. In Jesus name I pray.'

Go and Grow

Continue in your reading of His Word and know that He, the living Jesus, is in you and working through you. Holy Spirit is your guide, your comforter, and your teacher. Let Him teach you all things. As you walk forth taking a RISK to lay hands on people He will come upon you with the gifting He needs you to have for that moment in time. And when He does they will be touched and healed by Him. And He will teach you new things as you step out like this. There is no special formula or words to say. In Mark 16:18 He tells us to lay hands on the sick and they will be healed. And the same Greek word for healing is also for salvation. As you lay hands on people they will be set free from whatever they are dealing with. Go and Grow!

His Wisdom

Romans 11:33 NLT
Oh, how great are God's riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways!

When I was growing up the wisest person I knew was my dad. Perhaps you felt the same way about your dad or you had someone else. As I grew older I got to a point where I felt that I knew more than either of my parents. I could not believe how old they were in their thinking and how much more I knew than them.

Then I grew older and started to realize how smarter they had gotten over the years. Hahaha. It wasn't them that got smarter. It was me that got back to reality and had my eyes opened to who they really were. I guess this was just a cycle of life for I am sure my children felt I was pretty dumb at that same point in their lives.

Now I am a little older with children and grandchildren and great grandchildren! Wow does time ever fly by! At this chapter in my life others see my white hair and assume I am wise. But whatever wisdom I have is from the Lord. He is the source of all wisdom. There is nothing He does not have the answer for.

That makes sense you say. But how can we get that wisdom from Him to us? The answer is simpler than you may think. It does not require any special words or actions on our pat. We must simply believe.

When we ask Jesus to become Lord of our life and give everything over to God, the Father sends Holy Spirit, the spirit of Christ to live in us. We believe He is in us and we are in Him. Then we have all the answers, all wisdom and all knowledge at our disposal.

All we have to do is ask, in the name of Jesus and all is available to us. Ask and the listen for His answer which may come in many ways, but He will answer. There is power in the name of Jesus!

The Name

Acts 4:9-10 NLT
Do you want to know how he was healed? Let me clearly state to all of you and to all the people of Israel that he was healed by the powerful name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene.

We have often heard that it is not what you know that counts; it is who you know. Know the right person and he or she can open doors that are not open to others. Through your contacts you learn in advance jobs that are open and special sales that are going to be happening. I am not talking about insider trading or anything else that is illegal. Perhaps you are looking for a house to rent and you know a real estate agent that hears first hand about what is going to be available so you can get first shot at renting it.

As believers, Jesus said we could ask anything in His name and it would be done. The story in Acts goes on to tell us that the officials told them they could not use the name of Jesus anymore. Right, like that was going to happen!

WIthout using the name of Jesus we are calling on our own power which is useless. Or we are begging God and leaving it up to His sovereignty, There is nothing more powerful than Jesus' name.

When we come in the Name of Jesus He comes upon us and works miracles through us. Thank you, Jesus for your spirit residing in us. Thank you for using us to be your hands and feet and mouth, for being alive in us.

Who do you know? You know Jesus and with that all the right doors are wide open.

Spring Cleaning

2 Corinthians 3:17 NLT
For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

When I was a young boy living at home my mother would clean the house every week. The home always looked clean.

But once a year as the season changed from the cold of Winter to the warm gentleness of Spring she would do a Spring cleaning. This is when all the furniture was moved and everything was cleaned. Any dirt hiding away was discovered and removed.

We are free in our spirit. Holy Spirit, Christ within lives in us. Therefore because His spirit lives in us there is freedom.

So why are we still bound to things of this world? Why don't we feel free from the burdens of this life? We have Jesus in us and with Him comes freedom.

Yes, that is true. But. There is a "but" and it has to do with our soul and our mind. Our spirit is one with Holy Spirit and perfect in every way. Our soul and mind are still living much of the old life.

Our soul needs cleansing and our mind needs renewing so we have the mind of Christ. Then we will fully experience total freedom.

On the outside we may look clean and free. Our talk is life giving and others are touched by Jesus as we encourage them and pray for them. But to be totally cleansed like that Spring cleaning we must set aside what we are holding on to from this worldly life and give it all to God.

"Father God. Help me to clean house. Show me what I have not turned over to you. I desire the total freedom You have for me to experience. Thank you for sending me Holy Spirit to save my spirit. Help me to become more Christ like each day and to have the mind of Christ. In Jesus name, I pray."

Impossible

Hebrews 11:6 NLT
And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.

We are all given the measure of faith we need to do whatever has to be done. After all, didn't Jesus tell us that all it takes is the faith the size of a mustard seed? With the measure of faith which is the same for everyone, we reach out and ask Jesus into our heart. We become a believer.

Holy Spirit, the spirit of Christ comes and joins our spirit. We have the anointing of Jesus in us. We have His faith. Now we need to get our mind to wrap around that fact. Then we can begin to die to all those things and activities that our soul likes.

As we die to our old self and fill our mind and soul with truth, we begin to see Jesus flowing through us in our words and actions. His love begins to flow through us because He is in us. And as we go forth in his Great Commission and lay hands on the sick, He comes upon us and we see them recover.

"Thank you, Father. Thank You for saving my spirit and for showing me daily how to walk closer to you. For renewing my mind and showing me what of my old life to get rid of as I become more and more like you in my thoughts and my actions. Thank you for making the impossible possible. In Jesus name. Amen"

If God says it

It is not the words we say that count. It is our willingness to say them. Holy Spirit might be prompting us to say something and we hear it, but we hold back the words. The person who should hear them doesn't. And we miss a blessing by not opening our mouth. It is as we go that we grow. If God says it, say it!

Lined Up

When we think that a message given is great ask this question: Does it line up with our theology or with God's word? That leads us to another question. And maybe we need to rethink our theology. Often what we "know" is based more on what we grew up with that we assume is Bible based.

Dead to Sin

1 Peter 2:24 NLT
He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed.

Why do we still worry so much about sin? Worry itself is not of God. So every worrisome thought is out of our own head, perhaps even influenced by the enemy. He would just love it if we spent our time worrying about what we should or should not do. We can get so wrapped up in it that we miss the opportunities God has for us.

When we believed, the Father sent us Holy Spirit, the spirit of Christ to live in us. No longer is our spirit separated from Jesus. No longer is our spirit capable of sin. Our soul and our mind are a different matter.

Holy Spirit was sent to teach us all things as well as to comfort and guide us into all truth. I believe that as we unknowingly step out into sin, Holy Spirit nudges our conscience and we get that feeling down in our gut that says STOP. Or you do NOT want to make that choice. Or even, HEY you should not have done that, said that, or gone down that path.

Because of the Cross, our sins are forgiven--past, present, and future. I believe that as we realize our errors we need to ask Holy Spirit to help us change our ways. He points out our mistakes and points us in the right direction. He may do this through another person or by leading us to scripture that shows us the truth.

"Thank you, Holy Spirit for leading me into all truth. Thank you for removing all my sin that day on the Cross. Holy Spirit continue to teach me through my daily experiences in this life, continuing to bring my soul and mind into alignment with my renewed spirit. Thank you for giving me the mind of Christ. In Jesus name I pray."

Like a Car

1 Corinthians 3:16-17 NLT

Don't you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you? God will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple.

Imagine a group of cars all the same age. Some are expensive and others are lesser models. They all drive well and are brand new. There is something unique about this group of cars. They all have the same high powered engine.

Over the years the owners of these vehicles take care of the them differently. Some make sure the oil is changed regularly. They rotate the tires and keep the inside and out clean and shiny, just like when they were new.

Others pay less attention to the inside. The outside is as clean as the last rain storm and the inside is piled with empty fast food wrappers and coffee cups. They too change the oil on schedule and have all the maintenance items attended to.

An unfortunate few have had accidents. Some took their insurance checks and went on a cruise instead of getting the car fixed, so the dents are still there and the paint is chipping and rusting.

But the engines in all the cars still run like new filled with power and as such stay ahead of the pack on the super highways. When they zoom by other cars on the road the authority their engines have is evident. 

Does this story remind you of anything? As believers we all have Holy Spirit, the spirit of Christ living within. Our engines are all the same. But what about the vehicle He lives in? Are we taking care of it? Is it in bad shape or kept like new?

There is nothing as powerful or having as much authority as that engine in us--Holy Spirit. And Father God is blessed every time we step out and use what He has given us to help His children.

And it does not matter what our vehicle looks like. It does not matter if parts of it are broken or old or ugly or beautiful. When Jesus comes upon us it is He that is doing the work. It is He that is healing the hurts of other. It is Jesus healing their bodies. It is Jesus that brings freedom.

Follow Me

Luke 9:23-24 NLT

Then he said to the crowd, "If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it."

Imagine being a young boy and wanting to be a baseball player when you grew up. This was not unusual for boys in my time. And it was not about money because ball players did not get paid a lot of money back then. Today most desires seems to be centered on making lots of money instead of on the actual vocation.

Back to the baseball dream. To become a player good enough to make the big leagues there were some things that would have to happen. First came the decision to put everything aside and work toward the goal. Then you had to do it. You had to play baseball every opportunity you got and more. You read about the game and followed the teams. You practiced and then practiced more. 

School work and chores still got done because that was part of life, but the game was always on your mind. You no longer hung around with those friend with no interest in baseball. All your friends now talked all the time about the game. The game was your passion.

How similar our walk with Jesus. Saying yes to becoming a follower is not just a simple decision like do you want a piece of cake or a donut. If that is all you did then you are not in the game.

When we become born again everything changes, but not right away. He comes to dwell in us. Our spirit man becomes one with Jesus. Our soul man is still unrenewed, still very worldly. With Holy Spirit's help and our desires to be more and more like Jesus we are transformed into the image and likeness of Christ. And it takes our lifetime to get there.

It is our dying to self, our unrenewed self that we grow. The more we try to hang on to those old ways, those old friends, those old habits, those old TV shows, those old movies, those old things that are of no help to us in our transformation, the longer it takes for our mind to be renewed.

Becoming a Better Golfer

When I was a teenager and knew everything I played golf with a good friend. We would head down to Goddard Park in RI and play 18 holes. It was inexpensive to play a round back then; just a couple bucks each. We had fun and were literally teaching ourselves to play. We did pretty good for guys with no formal training.

Had golf become a passion, I would have had to seek professional training. I would have needed to learn the correct way to stand and how to address the ball. I would have needed to purchase better clubs and understand which to use when. My game was pretty much played with two woods, a nine iron, and a putter!

Once I learned what was right, I would have to remind myself all the time to practice it. It would be easy to fall back into wrong habits. And I would have to stay away from others who still played like I used to or it would be too easy to slip back into the old ways.

After a period of time and great improvement in my game, I would be able to play without thinking about right or wrong. The correct moves would come "naturally". At this mature place in my golf walk I would even be able to play with a few duffers and not lose my edge. As a matter of fact, they would learn new methods just by hanging around with me.

Doesn't this sound like our walk with Jesus? When I was younger and asked if I believed in God, the answer was "of course I do." I had been going to church since I was born and knew that Jesus was always with me. My God walk was all set. I went to church on Sundays and participated in the church in many ways. I gave in the offering and was a "good" person. I was doing my part.

John 14:26 NLT

But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.

Then our life was turned upside down. My wife, Dianne had been very sick suffering for years with an incurable disease called Crohn's. Her testimony is another story, but the end result was that she was miraculously healed and we each asked Jesus into our heart to become our Lord and Savior. Now we had the professional for training to become more like Him.

The Holy Spirit came to live in me and what a change that made in my life life. I now had someone to show me God's plan and His ways for my life. But I liked what I was doing and did not see anything wrong with most of those bad habits I had developed over the years. And the people I knew were the same.

I was trying to improve my game, but trying to apply the old rules and continuing to play with the duffers. The Holy Spirit was encouraging me to change relationships and break old habits. The more I listened to Him, the closer I became to Him and with others on the same God walk.

The more I walk with Jesus allowing the Holy Spirit to point out the direction in my life the more I find my thinking and my reactions changing to be more Christ like. I no longer have to make myself do the right thing all the time. I have changed because of my relationship with the professional instead of with the duffers.

Now I am not perfect by any means. But I am open to the Holy Spirit's direction ever changing my character to become Christ like. And when I spend time with the duffers in life, their habits do not tempt me back into that old life. Actually, my changes seem to have a positive effect on them!

If you want to learn to play the game well you need to line up with the professional. There is only one professional in the game of eternal life and that is Jesus. Accept Him as your Lord and Savior and He will send the Holy Spirit to be your guide and comforter, too.

Copycat

Romans 12:2 NLT
Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

I remember those early copy machines, the ones that came out on what looked like burned yellow paper. We had one at the bank where I worked as a teller. Then the Xerox machine came. And soon nobody said make a copy anymore. Instead they said Xerox it. It became a household word much like Google is today for finding stuff on the Internet.

We grow up in this fast paced world learning to copy those who have gone before us; to be copycats. Few are taught how to think for themselves but learn the behavior and customs of society as blueprints for the right way to live. They grew up hearing if it was good enough for your grandparents it is good enough for you. A new generation copying from a previous generation and on and on. Copycats.

When we become born again we get to start over. We become a new person in Christ Jesus. As we allow Holy Spirit in us to work in and through us we begin to change from the inside out. He changes the way we think transforming our mind into the mind of Christ.

It is time for us to stop being copycats of the world. Time to stop trying to copy others. Time to become who God made us to be before the universe was created.

Holy Spirit, the spirit of Christ is with us to teach us all things, all things good, pleasing, and perfect. I pray daily for the renewing of my mind. Take away all that is old, Lord. I give it all to you. Take away the thoughts and actions of that old man, that person I used to be. Make my nature be like your nature. Give me the mind of Christ. Thank you, Jesus.