Today I relate God’s working in our lives to a contractor remodeling a home. God inspected the house and saw all its flaws, but still paid the highest price and sent the Holy Spirit to remodel it. It might hurt when the carpet gets torn out but we must trust God’s love during this remodel and let go of anything that would deter Him from dwelling in us.
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Today I speak about our pursuit for God’s love. Our walls protect us from the depth of love that can change us. It is time to knock the walls down and receive that God loves us to the uttermost. 1 John 4:7 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.”
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I just came back from visiting my family and church in Niteroi, Brazil. It was a very good time and I was invited to bring a message while I was there. The message will be published in Portuguese but here is the summary: When you look at what Saul and David went through in their lives, one thing becomes evident: …
Today I express the need for us to relate as part of God’s Family. In a family you are always learning something, even when you make mistakes you never stop belonging to God’s family.
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“For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.” (1 Corinthians 13:12, NAS) I want to pick up the thread from the last blog. I’ve been thinking about how we always think we know everything; you see …
Today I bring a communion message which encourages our daily appropriation of Christ’s provision. Christ’s love for us is the same today as it was the day he went to the cross. When we receive communion it is a matter of faith and spirit that deepens our connection with Christ’s love.
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“…but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away. ” (1 Corinthians 13:10, NAS) Last week as I was talking to my daughter the Lord started talking to me about how life is one big and long transition. When you think you have things figured out, there comes the next change in our lives! A baby is born, …
Today I continue teaching out of Luke 11 where Jesus follows the disciple’s prayer with the parable about being persistent for bread. We must keep asking for bread, not to meet our personal needs, but so we can meet the needs of those God places around us.
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If you are in Christ, you are to have abundant life, increasing and overflowing. Why is it then that sometimes we don’t feel the flow of life and joy? A lot of times it is because we simply disconnected from the flow that is in our relationship with Christ. In the book of Zechariah, we read about the vision of …
I convey the difference between knowledge gained through a relationship with Christ and knowledge gained from human efforts. God wants to give us knowledge, but if we are not careful our desire for knowledge will result in the same separation that Adam and Eve experienced. Philipians 4:6-7 “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
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What is God doing now? God is working on you! So the question is, how are you relating to God’s gifts in you? How are you relating to yourself as the temple of the Holy Spirit? How do you relate to the fact that God chose you? God so loved you that He gave His Son in order for you …
As I meditated on the Lord’s Prayer I noticed some deeper truths that sometimes it is easy to forget. The first thing that we must always remember is that prayer is a relationship. It is also important to know that the Father already knows what we need (Matthew 6:8). Prayer is not giving God a to do list. Prayer is daily partaking of the bread from heaven.
We must also remember that Christ is the bread. As Jesus continued talking to His disciples after teaching them to pray, we can see that He was teaching them to not be worried about what to eat or drink (Matthew 6:25-27). And on another occasion He said, “This is the bread which comes down out of heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he shall live forever; and the bread also which I shall give for the life of the world is My flesh” (John 6:50–51).
If God already knows our needs, then why do we pray for bread? In Luke 11, we can read some more details of the context of Christ teaching the disciples to pray. “And He said to them, ‘Suppose one of you shall have a friend, and shall go to him at midnight, and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine has come to me from a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’’” (Luke 11:5–6). We understand that this is teaching about our persistence in prayer, but it is also teaching us that we ask for bread to feed others. We ask for the Bread of heaven to share with those in need around us. As Christians we ask the Father for our daily bread because we want to share the life of Christ that we have received.
Luke 11:2-13
Isaiah 58:6-10
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I connect our Christianity with the example of Love that Christ gave us. If we want to be like Christ, we must study how he related to the world. His life was an expression of Love and forgiveness, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.” John 3:16 & 17
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I started meditating on the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13). Jesus was teaching His disciples to pray. Sometimes it is easy to think about prayer related to the things that we need, things we are looking for, problems that need to be solved, and circumstances that we think that need to change. The Lord’s Prayer starts with an identification of a …
I illuminate Jesus Christ’s desire to include us in His Father’s family. In Matthew 12:50 Jesus was not closing a door on his physical family, he was opening the door for everyone to become part of his spiritual family, “For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother.” We do the will of the Father by loving the Lord with all of our heart, and loving our neighbors as ourselves.
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It may be hard to understand the way that God executes His plans. When Jesus Christ was born, His parents could not find a proper place for His birth. According to our way of thinking, a manger and a simple stable would not be the right place for the Son of God to be born. I think that there is …
I express the passion we must have in our walk with God. We must have a personal drive like Paul and identify with his cry in Philippians 3:12, “Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus.”
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I connect our ability to receive God’s provision of communion with Luke 6: 37 & 38. When we plant seeds of judgment and condemnation that is what we receive, but if we plant seeds of forgiveness, kindness and love, we will receive those blessings from our Father.
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I bring an important message about oneness and worship. There is a synergy when we worship together in oneness which is pleasing to the Lord. God is searching for a people that will continuously worship Him in spirit and in truth.
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I talk about the maturing of God’s sons. Galatians 4:1 compares immature children to slaves under the authority of guardians and managers. It is time for us to mature as sons and grow up into the measure of the fullness of Christ. The key to this maturity is obedience, Christ was diligent to do and speak only that which His Father instructed and it is time for us to do the same.
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When we read the scriptures we see that in Christ we are born again. Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not …
I teach about Gods plan for you. God has a vision for you way bigger than the vision you have for yourself. When he is removing the blocks in your life it may seem unpleasant but it is because he sees you the way he saw you before the foundation of the world. He has predestined you and is working His truth in your life.
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When God created us He put a treasure in our hearts. 2 Corinthians 4:7 reminds us, “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves.” How then can we look at ourselves with disgust or sorrow? You may think you look like a simple earthen vessel but …
I convey our deep desire to return to the Lord and abide in His presence. God jealously desires the spirit He has made to dwell in us and the spirit in us desires to reconnect with Him. His love is the only thing that can satisfy this yearning hunger within us. By faith we open our hearts to receive and reconnect with the pure love of our Father.
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Every year we anticipate our celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles. We always want it to be special and fun for everyone, but especially for the children. The Feast of Tabernacles is a time of remembrance and teaching the next generations about the importance of knowing the Word of God. This week I have been reading about a very interesting …
I link the parable about forgiveness in Matthew 18:21 to the fundamental teaching on love from Luke 6:27. Love your neighbor and relate to them the way you want God to relate to you. By the grace of God we must start relating with compassion and truly forgiving one another.
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The period of the Feast of Tabernacles is very rich and deep in spiritual meaning for us. It is a statute that Moses received from the Lord in the wilderness. “Let them construct a sanctuary for Me, that I may dwell among them.” (Exodus 25:8, NAS) We understand that from the beginning it was God’s plan to have a Tabernacle …
Last week I brought a practical message about why we celebrate the Biblical Feasts. It is not about do’s and don’ts, it is about relationships and God’s Unchanging Love. This will not work in isolation, but in our unity. We need to receive and be a channel of God’s unchanging love to one another.
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I express the need for us to worship. Worship is the most important thing we can do because it is what God is looking for. It is not about engaging in a religious routine, but rather entering into an intimate relationship with our Father. “God is spirit and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” John 4:24
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I believe it is so important for us to always be aware of our spirits and of how we are growing and moving in what God has given us. I often ask myself these questions: “How am I walking with God?” or “Am I applying God’s word in my life in a practical way?”
I would like to share a practical thing we can all do as we grow and mature in our relationship with our Father. Focus your spirit in praising the Lord and being thankful in all things. “Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:16–18). This is a principle that works in all areas of our lives. It will keep our spirits anchored in the word God. When we practice this attitude we create our own immunity, keeping our spirits engaged and in tune with the Holy Spirit.
When we exercise this principle we will avoid complaining, criticism, and the bad habit of giving voice to negativity. Focusing our spirits on expressions of faith and love towards God and our neighbors. We read in Proverbs 16:32 that “He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit, than he who captures a city.” This is a verse I have memorized and it keeps me accountable for watching over how I react to things I hear and see.
One practical way to maintain this control and rule over our spirits is to be careful with what we say. Even if things are not going the way we expect, murmuring and complaining will never solve the issue. Too often our first reactions are negative and can lead us to have regrets, but if we pause and take control of our reactions we can avoid letting simple incidents ruin our day and atmosphere.
Here are some more passages that I read while I was meditating about this. I pray it may help you in a very practical way.
“Like a city that is broken into and without walls is a man who has no control over his spirit” (Proverbs 25:28).
“A fool always loses his temper, but a wise man holds it back” (Proverbs 29:11).
“If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man’s religion is worthless” (James 1:26).
“A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger” (Proverbs 15:1).
James 3:5-12
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