Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the season of Lent. This is the 40 days before the wonderful celebration of Easter or Resurrection Sunday when we celebrate the Lord Jesus overcoming sin for us! Some years ago I discovered how meaningful Easter will is when one also prepares during the season of Lent. Since then its been an amazing journey as God has taught me many truths during this time of prayer,fasting and alms giving.
Today as I begin my personal observance of Lent I am excited to hear from God as I concentrate some extra time in prayer and Bible reading. As I read thru two devotional books God impressed on me two ideas for this year to consider. First the tradition of giving up something for Lent can also be about giving up a particular "sin" or bad habit, something that does not let Jesus shine in our lives! So then Lent becomes a time to think about true repentance,turning from a particular sin or vice and purposing to not do it any more with God's help. I have 40 days to prayerfully consider what God is telling me I need to work on. I am sure there is a huge list of sins that God sees, I expect to hear about that in the coming days!
Secondly is the tradition of alms giving or acts of charity to those around you or far away. What a great tradition and way to show others the love of God because we know Jesus gave the ultimate gift to all of us. Matthew 6:16-18 indicates no one should know what you are doing when you give alms or do acts of charity. That's very humbling isn't it? We all like to do good deeds, give gifts etc and get a nice thank-you in return! Are we willing to do the same during Lent when no one knows its us, and we do not receive thanks? Jesus seldom received a thank-you for all the healings He did while on earth. We certainly can try to follow Jesus' example and do good in spite of not being appreciated at times.
Both turning from sin and doing good deeds for others will let a little bit of Jesus shine thru us to those around us. How about it, want to join the Lenten journey? Ask God what He wants you to learn and do this year on the Lenten Journey. How will you prepare to celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord?
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Sweetness or Bitterness?
Many trials and testings have kept me busy treading the spiritual waters lately. However yesterday I had a huge "aaa-haaa" moment! Lately the children and I have been working our way thru Kay Arthur's Bible study on the names of God.Yesterday's lesson was wonderful yet again and very timely. But what I got out of it was not what Kay was talking about it, its what God showed me! We were to read in Exodus 15 where the people of Israel had just passed over/thru the Red Sea and seen God defeat the Egyptians. Three days later they are out of water and thristy. So they cry out to Moses, who in turns crys out to God. Lesson number one, when you have problems cry out to God in prayers!
They came up to the waters of Marah, which means bitterness. I guess it was a type of oasis in the desert with this bitter water there. Moses is busy asking God what to do as the people are really upset. Then God says, see this tree? Throw it in the water and the water will be sweet.
Several thoughts came to me from this passage. First is that Moses did NOT see the tree prior to God pointing it out. Many times the answers to our prayers are right there, but we don't see it! Pray and ask God to show you the answer He has for you, its probably as visable as Moses' tree! Sometimes the answer is not there yet, and God will show you that too. Who knows if the tree had been there all along or did God place it there suddenly? God also told Moses He could bring water from a rock if He wanted to, seems to me that God is saying I can provide and answer you using anything, anyone or any situation I so choose. So be open to God's leading and obey the voice of God.
Secondly, God says He was testing the people, to see if they would obey Him or not. Be brave and do what God shows you to do and then you will receive the sweetness of God's presence in your life too.When going thru trials and tests we have two choices to make. Either one can look and see God working in the trials and tests and experience the sweetness of God's presence in your life ,or you can decide to be bitter and mad at God for letting them happen. You choose one or the other, its up to you how it ends up. Will you end up feeling bitter,resentful and angry about the trials and testings you are experiencing? Or will you choose to follow God's plans and answers and experience His sweet presence in your life?
Lastly, God was leading them visable day and night, it was not a mistake that they came to Marah! As we follow God there are times we think, oh wow, I made a mistake, I thought I was following God, but now I must not be because look at this mess I'm in. Honestly I think if I've been praying and seeking God and problems come I need to remember, God did led me to this decision, to live my life like this. So the outcome, be it good or bad is also in God's hands! Usually it just looks "bad" for awhile, when I look back I can see God's plan at work, but in the heat of problems, trials and testings it can look like a mess.But here again we must trust God, lean on His understanding and not our own!
So no matter how it "feels" or looks right now, remember I followed God this far, and I will follow Him forever because I want to experience the sweetness of Marah in my own life! Look for your "tree" and be amazed at how God turns bitterness into the sweetness of His presence once again in your life today!
They came up to the waters of Marah, which means bitterness. I guess it was a type of oasis in the desert with this bitter water there. Moses is busy asking God what to do as the people are really upset. Then God says, see this tree? Throw it in the water and the water will be sweet.
Several thoughts came to me from this passage. First is that Moses did NOT see the tree prior to God pointing it out. Many times the answers to our prayers are right there, but we don't see it! Pray and ask God to show you the answer He has for you, its probably as visable as Moses' tree! Sometimes the answer is not there yet, and God will show you that too. Who knows if the tree had been there all along or did God place it there suddenly? God also told Moses He could bring water from a rock if He wanted to, seems to me that God is saying I can provide and answer you using anything, anyone or any situation I so choose. So be open to God's leading and obey the voice of God.
Secondly, God says He was testing the people, to see if they would obey Him or not. Be brave and do what God shows you to do and then you will receive the sweetness of God's presence in your life too.When going thru trials and tests we have two choices to make. Either one can look and see God working in the trials and tests and experience the sweetness of God's presence in your life ,or you can decide to be bitter and mad at God for letting them happen. You choose one or the other, its up to you how it ends up. Will you end up feeling bitter,resentful and angry about the trials and testings you are experiencing? Or will you choose to follow God's plans and answers and experience His sweet presence in your life?
Lastly, God was leading them visable day and night, it was not a mistake that they came to Marah! As we follow God there are times we think, oh wow, I made a mistake, I thought I was following God, but now I must not be because look at this mess I'm in. Honestly I think if I've been praying and seeking God and problems come I need to remember, God did led me to this decision, to live my life like this. So the outcome, be it good or bad is also in God's hands! Usually it just looks "bad" for awhile, when I look back I can see God's plan at work, but in the heat of problems, trials and testings it can look like a mess.But here again we must trust God, lean on His understanding and not our own!
So no matter how it "feels" or looks right now, remember I followed God this far, and I will follow Him forever because I want to experience the sweetness of Marah in my own life! Look for your "tree" and be amazed at how God turns bitterness into the sweetness of His presence once again in your life today!
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
6 Verbs of Praise
Lately I've been impressed to try and praise God more instead of dwelling on problems,people and situations I can not change. As I've changed my focus my stress has reduced as well, thankyou God! I have several favorite Psalms that help me to praise God in all things as Apostle Paul said. Psalms 145 and Psalm 100 are two of my daily prayers. The other day while reading Psalm 100 I saw the 6 verbs of praise, it was so amazing and has totally changed things for me. I hope you enjoy them today too.
(From NKJV, capital words my emphasis)
Psalm 100:1-5
"Make a joyful SHOUT to the Lord, all you lands! SERVE the Lord with gladness;Come before His presence with SINGING.Know that the Lord, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves' We are His pople and the sheep of His pasture. Enter into His gates with THANKSGIVING,and into His courts with PRAISE.Be thankful to Him and BLESS HIS NAME. For the Lord is good;His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations."
SHOUT to the Lord, have you ever been so excited you just wanted to "whoop and holler" with joy? That's what I think of with this verse. Give a joyful shout when God fills you with joy, when He answers and provides for you!
SERVE the Lord with gladness reminds me of waiting on someone with a cheerful spirit.
SINGING truly does bring us into God's presence, think about worship services and how the time of singing prepares your heart to hear from God.Sing along with the radio different worship songs and soon you will be soaring into God's presence also!
THANKSGIVING and PRAISE go together in my mind. Being thankful, giving thanks and praising are all a state of mind or attitude we should have everyday. Some days are harder than others, but I can always praise God for my salvation in Jesus!
BLESS HIS NAME is a bit harder to understand for me. However recently I did a study on the names of God that has made this much easier to think about. The names of God also show His character traits and for those I am thankful and can say bless your name and then name that particular name. Its so cool to see how the different names relate to life! It gives me greater understanding of just who God really is.
Finally acknowledge what David said is true,
"For the Lord is good and His mercy is everlasting and His truth endures to all generations."
Share with your family all God is doing for you, share with the next generation daily so they can grow in their understanding of God. Maybe if we share what we've been learning we can help each other not to struggle thru similar trials and problems!
Above all today, Praise God in all 6 ways and get excited about your faith and then share that with others around you!
(From NKJV, capital words my emphasis)
Psalm 100:1-5
"Make a joyful SHOUT to the Lord, all you lands! SERVE the Lord with gladness;Come before His presence with SINGING.Know that the Lord, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves' We are His pople and the sheep of His pasture. Enter into His gates with THANKSGIVING,and into His courts with PRAISE.Be thankful to Him and BLESS HIS NAME. For the Lord is good;His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations."
SHOUT to the Lord, have you ever been so excited you just wanted to "whoop and holler" with joy? That's what I think of with this verse. Give a joyful shout when God fills you with joy, when He answers and provides for you!
SERVE the Lord with gladness reminds me of waiting on someone with a cheerful spirit.
SINGING truly does bring us into God's presence, think about worship services and how the time of singing prepares your heart to hear from God.Sing along with the radio different worship songs and soon you will be soaring into God's presence also!
THANKSGIVING and PRAISE go together in my mind. Being thankful, giving thanks and praising are all a state of mind or attitude we should have everyday. Some days are harder than others, but I can always praise God for my salvation in Jesus!
BLESS HIS NAME is a bit harder to understand for me. However recently I did a study on the names of God that has made this much easier to think about. The names of God also show His character traits and for those I am thankful and can say bless your name and then name that particular name. Its so cool to see how the different names relate to life! It gives me greater understanding of just who God really is.
Finally acknowledge what David said is true,
"For the Lord is good and His mercy is everlasting and His truth endures to all generations."
Share with your family all God is doing for you, share with the next generation daily so they can grow in their understanding of God. Maybe if we share what we've been learning we can help each other not to struggle thru similar trials and problems!
Above all today, Praise God in all 6 ways and get excited about your faith and then share that with others around you!
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Where is your heart?
Joshua 24:14-24 is our background text, please read and then follow along and see what God shows you today.
This is one of the passages that says "choose you this day whom you will serve" it comes from verse 15;
"And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorities, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my household we will serve the Lord.
Notice that they were being asked to choose which god to serve, the real God or false gods. Thankfully they chose to serve the Lord God!
We all know this passage above and many sermons are preached on it. But have you ever read on to verses 23 and 24? These verses start with "Now therefore" which always refers back to previous verses. In this case its to their choice to serve the true God.Listen to verse 23 again;
"Now therefore, he said, put away the foreign gods which are among you, and incline your heart to the Lord God of Israel."
This is a command to enable us to serve God with our whole life's being.
Most of us don't have idols or other gods that are named as such these days , or do we? I once heard "Anything that takes the place or your time for God is a god to you." Thinking about this reminds me of things that snatch my time for prayer and Bible study with God each day. I'm sure you can think of a few things you do too, that shortens your time. It also makes me realize that I want God to be God in my life today. So therefore I make that choice, now how do I live it out?
The end of verse 23 tells us how to live our lives for God. It says:
" incline your heart to the Lord God of Israel."
Psalms 119:112 says;
"I have inclined my heart to perform Your statutes forever, to the very end."
So how long do we need to read, pray and worship God, FOREVER!
Opening your soul and spirit to let God into your life is what these verse are saying. Where your heart is, is where your allegiance lies. Examples of where your heart is may be the following. What quickens you to action? If anyone upsets my child or husband you will not want to see me respond! Do I have as strong of a reaction when someone attacks my God? I hope so, but to be honest I probably need to work on this! How to incline my heart then? Prayer, read the Bible, meditate, prayer, fellowship with other Christians, prayer, read and study God's word- then repeat!
Spend some time today inclining your heart to God. Get to know God thru His Bible, let Him speak to you in prayer and mediation. You won't be sorry for the time spent! Your day will go much easier!
Consider this thought;
There are 24 hours in a day, to give God 10% of that time is not much, are you doing that? Consider these verses before you decide;
Psalms 34:1-4
" I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make its boast in the Lord, the humble shall hear of it and be glad. Oh,magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together. I south the Lord, and He heard me,and delivered me from all my fears."
May God met you today!
This is one of the passages that says "choose you this day whom you will serve" it comes from verse 15;
"And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorities, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my household we will serve the Lord.
Notice that they were being asked to choose which god to serve, the real God or false gods. Thankfully they chose to serve the Lord God!
We all know this passage above and many sermons are preached on it. But have you ever read on to verses 23 and 24? These verses start with "Now therefore" which always refers back to previous verses. In this case its to their choice to serve the true God.Listen to verse 23 again;
"Now therefore, he said, put away the foreign gods which are among you, and incline your heart to the Lord God of Israel."
This is a command to enable us to serve God with our whole life's being.
Most of us don't have idols or other gods that are named as such these days , or do we? I once heard "Anything that takes the place or your time for God is a god to you." Thinking about this reminds me of things that snatch my time for prayer and Bible study with God each day. I'm sure you can think of a few things you do too, that shortens your time. It also makes me realize that I want God to be God in my life today. So therefore I make that choice, now how do I live it out?
The end of verse 23 tells us how to live our lives for God. It says:
" incline your heart to the Lord God of Israel."
Psalms 119:112 says;
"I have inclined my heart to perform Your statutes forever, to the very end."
So how long do we need to read, pray and worship God, FOREVER!
Opening your soul and spirit to let God into your life is what these verse are saying. Where your heart is, is where your allegiance lies. Examples of where your heart is may be the following. What quickens you to action? If anyone upsets my child or husband you will not want to see me respond! Do I have as strong of a reaction when someone attacks my God? I hope so, but to be honest I probably need to work on this! How to incline my heart then? Prayer, read the Bible, meditate, prayer, fellowship with other Christians, prayer, read and study God's word- then repeat!
Spend some time today inclining your heart to God. Get to know God thru His Bible, let Him speak to you in prayer and mediation. You won't be sorry for the time spent! Your day will go much easier!
Consider this thought;
There are 24 hours in a day, to give God 10% of that time is not much, are you doing that? Consider these verses before you decide;
Psalms 34:1-4
" I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make its boast in the Lord, the humble shall hear of it and be glad. Oh,magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together. I south the Lord, and He heard me,and delivered me from all my fears."
May God met you today!
Friday, August 21, 2009
When God Moves Slowly
Please read Psalm 105 as background to this entry.
Psalm 105 tells the story of the people of Israel saved from Egyptian slavery. It starts with Joseph. Joseph had several dreams of prophecy or what we might call "words of knowledge" from God. What struck me today is the time between these words from God and their fulfillment in Joseph's life. In most cases the fulfillment came years later! What did Joseph do inbetween the vision,dream or word from God and the fulfillment?
Joseph is a hero of the Bible, but he was a human being just like us. He had to wait for God to do as He told him, with TRUST in God! God reveals dreams and words of knowledge to us too and then we must learn to trust as Joseph did. This to me is totally hard to do! I tend to look at my circumstances and scream to God that its NOT happening yet, do you see this God? I say in my some what frustrated prayers to Him. Then today thru this scripture God quietly told me its because I need to TRUST Him for the outcome.
What does this type of trust mean I asked God. Here is the answer in an acronym God gave me.
T= theories of man dispelled and
R= replaced by the word of God which gives us
U= undeserved grace and
S=salvation thru Jesus. Then our lives with God produces
T=treasures in our heart,life and most importantly in heaven!
Trust God today that He will bring to pass what He has spoken into your heart and mind as you have sought after Him thru prayer,Bible reading and worship. Do as God shows you and He WILL bless you with peace in your spirit today as you wait on Him to fulfill all He has promised you!
Psalm 105 tells the story of the people of Israel saved from Egyptian slavery. It starts with Joseph. Joseph had several dreams of prophecy or what we might call "words of knowledge" from God. What struck me today is the time between these words from God and their fulfillment in Joseph's life. In most cases the fulfillment came years later! What did Joseph do inbetween the vision,dream or word from God and the fulfillment?
Joseph is a hero of the Bible, but he was a human being just like us. He had to wait for God to do as He told him, with TRUST in God! God reveals dreams and words of knowledge to us too and then we must learn to trust as Joseph did. This to me is totally hard to do! I tend to look at my circumstances and scream to God that its NOT happening yet, do you see this God? I say in my some what frustrated prayers to Him. Then today thru this scripture God quietly told me its because I need to TRUST Him for the outcome.
What does this type of trust mean I asked God. Here is the answer in an acronym God gave me.
T= theories of man dispelled and
R= replaced by the word of God which gives us
U= undeserved grace and
S=salvation thru Jesus. Then our lives with God produces
T=treasures in our heart,life and most importantly in heaven!
Trust God today that He will bring to pass what He has spoken into your heart and mind as you have sought after Him thru prayer,Bible reading and worship. Do as God shows you and He WILL bless you with peace in your spirit today as you wait on Him to fulfill all He has promised you!
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
God are you still here?
Today I read Judges 6:11-24 and God ministered to me, to let me know He is still here! How exciting this is to be reassured that all is well, God is Large and incharge of my life! Take a minute and read the above passage before continuing so you too can read the story of Gideon.
Listen to verses 12 and 13 again;
"And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him, and said to him, 'The Lord IS with you, you mighty man of valor!'. Gideon said to Him,' O my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying 'Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?' But now the Lord has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites."
Oh, how many times I have felt like Gideon! I remember miracles God has done in the past too, but my present circumstances overwhelm my faith and courage to go on, just like Gideon. I too have felt forsaken by God. Its easy to give in to that concept, but that is from the devil! So what should I do instead?
Gideon's example is great as you read on he is just like us, he is overwhelmed by his situations with the Midianites. In verse 14 God assures him that He is with him. Gideon however does not feel worthy or capable, every feel like that? Next Gideon brings a sacrfrice to "the Angel of the Lord in verses 18-21. What does God do to help Gideon's faith? He brings a fire out of the rock to consume his offering to God! WOW! Fire out of a rock! If that doesn't show that God is in charge what will convince you?! This is just one of the miracles God did for Gideon to encourage Gideon's faith.
As we walk thru the circumstances of our lives God does miracles for us too. We need to remember those times for when we face a new challenge. We need to remember God's promises to never leave us and to always provide for our needs as He did for Gideon. So today be encouraged God is with us as His child I can know this for sure! God is empowering you and I to serve Him, so be bold, take courage and go forward for God today!
Listen to verses 12 and 13 again;
"And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him, and said to him, 'The Lord IS with you, you mighty man of valor!'. Gideon said to Him,' O my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying 'Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?' But now the Lord has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites."
Oh, how many times I have felt like Gideon! I remember miracles God has done in the past too, but my present circumstances overwhelm my faith and courage to go on, just like Gideon. I too have felt forsaken by God. Its easy to give in to that concept, but that is from the devil! So what should I do instead?
Gideon's example is great as you read on he is just like us, he is overwhelmed by his situations with the Midianites. In verse 14 God assures him that He is with him. Gideon however does not feel worthy or capable, every feel like that? Next Gideon brings a sacrfrice to "the Angel of the Lord in verses 18-21. What does God do to help Gideon's faith? He brings a fire out of the rock to consume his offering to God! WOW! Fire out of a rock! If that doesn't show that God is in charge what will convince you?! This is just one of the miracles God did for Gideon to encourage Gideon's faith.
As we walk thru the circumstances of our lives God does miracles for us too. We need to remember those times for when we face a new challenge. We need to remember God's promises to never leave us and to always provide for our needs as He did for Gideon. So today be encouraged God is with us as His child I can know this for sure! God is empowering you and I to serve Him, so be bold, take courage and go forward for God today!
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Discovering gluttony is a sin! Yikes!
In 2002 I began this journey to loose about 200 plus pounds, I was so heavy my scale could not actually weigh me until I'd been on the first diet for about a month. What made me begin my journey was not the fact that I was so hugely over weight, but that I was convicted about the sin of gluttony. Yes, its a sin to over eat, at least that was my initial idea of what gluttony meant. Now I know much more, as God has shown me verse after verse about the sin of gluttony. Do a word search and you will be completely amazed at how much God hates this sin, its one of the 7 deadly sins for good reason! Its going to bring death to you spiritually and physically if you continue to live with a gluttonous behavior! (See the Bible for details, search Biblegateway.com)
So I began to obey God and try very hard, and fail many times, to control myself, not be a glutton, change my eating habits via two diet programs,add regular exercise etc, etc. I did over 7 years to date loose 167 pounds. Praise God, its Him, NOT me!! Fast forward to August 2009, when I began to cry out to God for help with this 18 month plateau of no weight loss. I've tried everything I've learned along this journey to get off this plateau, all to no avail. Oh, I might loose 1-5 pounds, but then back they'd come! Then came Monday August 3 when my daily quiet time with God gave me the following wonderful insights straight from the God of Heaven! I hope it will encourage anyone reading this as it has me, to God be the glory!
Romans 6:12 "Therefore", which refers back to verses 10-11 which says we are dead to former sinful life and former sins (for me gluttony was on my mind), "do NOT LET SIN REIGN in your MORTAL BODY, that you should obey it in its lusts."
What is gluttony but simply obeying the lusts of the flesh!... OH WOW! I thought, what victory this can bring! I use to think "I want to eat_________, so I will eat it!"
The powerful way to overcome this terrible habit of gluttony and sin, is to instead think,
"I am hungry ? What do I have that's good for my body?" This lead me to realizing that many times I am not truly hungry, but just wanting to taste something because its yummy. But what is that? That's giving into my fleshy lusting for food, that's the sin of gluttony! What a revelation this has been for me as daily I go around doing just that! I've caught myself so many times, and actually thrown the food from my mouth to the trash. I hope now that I don't even put it in my mouth!!
Then that same day I read in Numbers 11:4-15 which only confirmed all I'd gotten from Romans 6. Verse 4 in Numbers says they (the children of Israel in the desert now with Moses) "yielded to intense craving..." regarding the foods of Egypt and all their wonderful flavors. (yes, it really says that, look it up!) The result of this yielding was for them to cry to Moses for meat. But notice they YIELDED to the CRAVING= intense fleshly desires just like it says in Romans 6!
I thought OH WOW GOD you've given me the formula to overcome this once and for all with your help!
To receive VICTORY over Gluttony ,which is ANY intensely fleshly desire try the following!
1) IGNORE and PRAY THRU THE CRAVINGS, but TOTALLY NEVER GIVE IN!
2) REBUKE CRAVINGS as they are only flesh/body desires= sin!
We rebuke sickness,evil spirits, all sorts of things, why not rebuke this too?!!
To GOD be the Glory for the victory He will give us all if we can follow these words!
So I began to obey God and try very hard, and fail many times, to control myself, not be a glutton, change my eating habits via two diet programs,add regular exercise etc, etc. I did over 7 years to date loose 167 pounds. Praise God, its Him, NOT me!! Fast forward to August 2009, when I began to cry out to God for help with this 18 month plateau of no weight loss. I've tried everything I've learned along this journey to get off this plateau, all to no avail. Oh, I might loose 1-5 pounds, but then back they'd come! Then came Monday August 3 when my daily quiet time with God gave me the following wonderful insights straight from the God of Heaven! I hope it will encourage anyone reading this as it has me, to God be the glory!
Romans 6:12 "Therefore", which refers back to verses 10-11 which says we are dead to former sinful life and former sins (for me gluttony was on my mind), "do NOT LET SIN REIGN in your MORTAL BODY, that you should obey it in its lusts."
What is gluttony but simply obeying the lusts of the flesh!... OH WOW! I thought, what victory this can bring! I use to think "I want to eat_________, so I will eat it!"
The powerful way to overcome this terrible habit of gluttony and sin, is to instead think,
"I am hungry ? What do I have that's good for my body?" This lead me to realizing that many times I am not truly hungry, but just wanting to taste something because its yummy. But what is that? That's giving into my fleshy lusting for food, that's the sin of gluttony! What a revelation this has been for me as daily I go around doing just that! I've caught myself so many times, and actually thrown the food from my mouth to the trash. I hope now that I don't even put it in my mouth!!
Then that same day I read in Numbers 11:4-15 which only confirmed all I'd gotten from Romans 6. Verse 4 in Numbers says they (the children of Israel in the desert now with Moses) "yielded to intense craving..." regarding the foods of Egypt and all their wonderful flavors. (yes, it really says that, look it up!) The result of this yielding was for them to cry to Moses for meat. But notice they YIELDED to the CRAVING= intense fleshly desires just like it says in Romans 6!
I thought OH WOW GOD you've given me the formula to overcome this once and for all with your help!
To receive VICTORY over Gluttony ,which is ANY intensely fleshly desire try the following!
1) IGNORE and PRAY THRU THE CRAVINGS, but TOTALLY NEVER GIVE IN!
2) REBUKE CRAVINGS as they are only flesh/body desires= sin!
We rebuke sickness,evil spirits, all sorts of things, why not rebuke this too?!!
To GOD be the Glory for the victory He will give us all if we can follow these words!
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