My Heart to Yours

I thought this went along well with the last post. This is from Neil Anderson’s Daily In Christ Devotional. You can check it out here.

The reason so many Christians are not enjoying the maturity and freedom which is their inheritance in Christ is because they hold wrong self-perceptions. They don’t see themselves as they really are in Christ. They don’t understand the dramatic change which occurred in them the moment they trusted in Him. They don’t see themselves the way God sees them, and to that degree they suffer from a poor self-image. They don’t grasp their true identity. They identify themselves with the wrong Adam.

Too many Christians identify only with the first Adam, whose sad story of failure is found in Genesis 1-4. Sure, you inherited physical life from Adam. But if you’re a Christian, that’s where the similarity ends. You are now identified with the last Adam, Jesus Christ. You are not in Adam; you are in Christ. You are seated with Christ in the heavenlies (Ephesians 2:6). The difference between the two Adams in your history is eternally profound. You need to be sure you’re identifying with the right one.

The first thing we notice about Christ, the last Adam, is His complete dependence on God the Father. The first Adam was tempted to live independently of God and chose to believe the serpent’s lie about the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. But Jesus was totally dependent on the Father (John 5:30; 6:57; 8:42; 14:10; 17:7).

A second vital difference between the two Adams relates to spiritual life. Adam was born physically and spiritually alive. But when Adam sinned, he died spiritually. Like the first Adam, Jesus was born spiritually alive as well as physically alive. But unlike the first Adam, Jesus did not forfeit His spiritual life at some point through sin. He kept His spiritual life all the way to the cross. There He died, taking the sins of the world upon Himself. Now in His resurrected, glorified body, Christ lives on today and for all eternity.

Are you identifying with Jesus Christ, the last Adam, today?

Currently in Florida the case for Terry Schiavo is pending to determine whether she has a right to live or not. The courts have taken the position that they have the right to determine whether one has the right to live or die. It is also significant that Terry’s case is taking place in Florida which is a “gate state” in the spirit for the nation. This means what happens here can open doors for the rest of the nation.

Some people believe that this case is tied to the ruling spirit that gives abortion a stronghold in our nation. The parents want to receive guardianship of Terry so they can claim back her right to live. We must pray to turn this case and break the governing powers that would bring death instead of life. Because the same spirit of death is behind abortion and this, many of the unborn may be rescued by our prayers.

Prayer Points

Pray for God’s intervention in the court system to give Terry the right to live.
Pray that guardianship will be given to her parents, Robert & Mary Schindler, so they can spare her life and defeat the spirit of murder.
Pray for her to awaken from this coma as a testimony of God’s intervention.
Pray that the veil of deception the enemy has used to set up abortion in our nation will be brought down.

In another situation in Hutchinson, Kansas, Sarah Scantlin awoke from a coma after being in a vegetative state for twenty years. This is considered to be a medical miracle with no explanation, but it points to the fact that only God gives life and decides when it ends.

Pray for God to send an awakening in America – unlike we have seen before.
Pray for the healing of America between political perspectives and ethnic lines.

Thanks Amanda…. this gives me goosebumps!!! Check it out and be sure your volume is on!

My grandmother (Lillie Mae) makes the absolute best meatloaf in the world! I wish she could make everyone of you one so you would know what I mean. It is awesome!!!! So, grandma, I know you read this and I think you and your meatloaf are out of this world!!!!! I love you!

This is Neil Anderson’s Daily Devotional for today!

SPIRITUAL AND UNSPIRITUAL LEADERS

The Lord knows how . . . to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment, and especially those who indulge the flesh in its corrupt desires and despise authority (2 Peter 2:9, 10).

The apostle Peter reveals two ways by which we can identify false prophets and false teachers who operate within the church. First, they will be involved in immorality of some kind, indulging “the flesh in its corrupt desires.” They may be discovered in illicit activities involving sex and/or money. They may be antinomian, claiming that God is all love and grace so we don’t need to abide by any law. Their immorality may not be easy to spot, but it will eventually surface in their lives (2 Corinthians 11:15).

Second, false prophets and teachers “despise authority” and are “daring, self-willed.” These people have an independent spirit. They do their own thing and won’t answer to anybody. They either won’t submit to the authority of a denomination or board or they will pick their own board which will simply rubber-stamp anything they want to do.

There are historic leadership roles in Scripture: prophet (preaching and teaching), priest (pastoring and shepherding), and king (administration). Only Jesus in His perfection is capable of occupying all three roles simultaneously. I believe we need the checks and balances of a plurality of elders in the church, distributing the three critical roles to more than one person. No one can survive his own unchallenged authority. Every true, committed Christian in a leadership role needs to submit himself and his ideas to other mature believers who will hold him accountable.

We need spiritual leaders like those described by Peter: “Shepherd the flock of God among you, not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness; nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock” (1Peter 5:2, 3). Are you praying for your spiritual leaders to be conformed to God’s standard of leadership or yours?

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Great Shepherd, protect me from irresponsible spiritual leaders, mere “hired hands” who run away in times of crisis, instead of shepherds. Give my pastor a true shepherd’s heart.

I guess that is enough said!

I received this in an e-mail today and thought I would pass it on.

A young man had been to Wednesday night Bible Study. The Pastor had shared about listening to God and obeying the Lord’s voice.

The young man couldn’t help but wonder, “Does God still speak to people?” After service he went out with some friends for coffee and pie and they discussed the message. Several different ones talked about how God had led them in different ways. It was about ten o’clock when the young man started driving home. Sitting in his car, he just began to pray, “God…If you still speak to people speak to me. I will listen. I will do my best to obey.”

As he drove down the main street of his town, he had the strangest thought to stop and buy a gallon of milk. He shook his head and said out loud, “God is that you?” He didn’t get a reply and started on toward home. But again, the thought, buy a gallon of milk. The young man thought about Samuel and how he didn’t recognize the voice of God, and how little Samuel ran to Eli.

“Okay, God, in case that is you, I will buy the milk.” It didn’t seem like too hard a test of obedience. He could always use the milk. He stopped and purchased the gallon of milk and started off toward home.

As he passed Seventh Street, he again felt the urge, “Turn Down that street.” This is crazy he thought and drove on past the intersection.

Again, he felt that he should turn down Seventh Street. At the next intersection, he turned back and headed down Seventh. Half jokingly, he said out loud, “Okay, God, I will”. He drove several blocks, when suddenly, he felt like he should stop. He pulled over to the curb and looked around. He was in semi commercial area of town. It wasn’t the best but it wasn’t the worst of neighborhoods either. The businesses were closed and most of the houses looked dark like the people were already in bed.

Again, he sensed something, “Go and give the milk to the people in the house across the street.” The young man looked at the house. It was dark and it looked like the people were either gone or they were already asleep. He started to open the car door and then sat back in the car seat.
“Lord, this is insane. Those people are asleep and if I wake them up, they are going to be mad and I will look stupid.”

Again, he felt like he should go and give the milk. Finally, he opened the car door, “Okay God, if this is you, I will go to the door and I will give them the milk. If you want me to look like a crazy person, okay. I want to be obedient. I guess that will count for something but if they don’t answer right away, I am out of here.”

He walked across the street and rang the bell. He could hear some noise inside. A man’s voice yelled out, “Who is it? What do you want?” Then the door opened before the young man could get away.

The was a man was standing there in his jeans and T-shirt. He looked like he just got out of bed. He had a strange look on his face and he didn’t seem too happy to have some stranger standing on his doorstep. “What is it?”

The young man thrust out the gallon of milk, “Here, I brought this to you.”

The man took the milk and rushed down a hallway. Then from down the hall came a woman carrying the milk toward the kitchen. The man was following her holding a baby. The baby was crying. The man had tears streaming down his face. The man began speaking and half crying, “We were just praying. We had some big bills this month and we ran out of money. We didn’t have any milk for our baby. I was just praying and asking God to show me how to get some milk.”

His wife in the kitchen yelled out, “I asked God to send an Angel with some. Are you an Angel?”

The young man reached into his wallet and pulled out all the money he had on him and put in the man’s hand. He turned and walked back toward his car and the tears were streaming down his face.

He knew that God still answers prayers.

God Bless

What do you think about when you think of Spring?

One smile can make you feel a million dollars

ALASTAIR JAMIESON
CONSUMER AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT

SEEING a smile can give more pleasure than sex or eating chocolate, according to new research.

Receiving a smile from a friend or relative generates much higher levels of stimulation to the brain and the heart than being given money or having a cigarette, according to clinical tests.

But the amount of pleasure depends on who is smiling: a child’s face or that of a celebrity has a much better effect than a politician or a member of the Royal family. The study found that smiles from Geri Halliwell and Robbie Williams created much greater stimulation and pleasure than those by Tony Blair or Prince William.

The research, carried out by the computer giant Hewlett Packard, suggests simple human interaction is still worth far more than material pleasure. The research found that Scots were among the most likely in Britain to return a smile from a stranger.

Check it out here.