Fight to Follow

Written By: Kirk Peterson

Have you ever sat in the security of your home as you heard a thunderstorm outside?  Some storms are close to your shelter, and some storms are so severe that you can’t help but be anxious by its force and power.  My mind always journeys to thinking about the power of God in those times.  Last night during one of those storms, I pulled up the weather app and watched the storm in radar loop for a while.  Being able to zoom in and out of the world, seeing the weather change and shape in random patterns, made me realize that the weather--indeed the entire earth is alive!  God’s creation is truly something marvelous to behold.

God is Alive

Have you noticed how God is moving throughout His kingdom with the idea of all of us listening to His teachings more and really putting our faith into action in our lives?

Let us as Christians start to walk the walk of what it means to try our best to live like Christ!

And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption. (Ephesians 4:30 NLT)

I believe God is calling His people RIGHT NOW to take His teachings to heart. Every one of us has evil desires when viewed by the standards of God, being saved does not change that! 

But, our God has shown me that when I am willing to sacrifice and choose not to sin, that the life on the other side is something worth fighting for.

The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes, and put on the shining armor of right living. Because we belong to the day, we must live decent lives for all to see. (Romans 13:12-13 NLT)

Hope

I define hope as not losing out to despair, but instead being inspired in your very spirit at the promise of a greater tomorrow. 

My great hope is in the thought of Heaven.  Living a life without sorrow, or pain, or sin.  God’s glory is something I can’t even comprehend, but the Bible tells us that the Holy Spirit gives us a taste of things to come.  What great hope there is my friends in Christ Jesus and God’s eternal Kingdom of Heaven!

Choice

If you imagine putting both your palms out in front of you, on the left and on the right you have a choice. The life on the left secures your identity and self-worth in performance, status & accomplishments. The life on the right secures your identity and self-worth in God the Father, Son & Spirit.

One life tends to produce fruit that is focused on self, drowning in the storms of life, and hardship. While the other life tends to produce fruit of selflessness, weathering the storms of life, and a life of easy burdens.

You have a choice on the kind of life you can have for yourself...so choose wisely my friends!

Sin is a Weed

Have you ever pulled weeds?

Sin is the weed of your heart. Choking out the good growth, always deceiving those that the plant is good.

Go to God and pray for forgiveness. Call on His great hand to triumphantly pull the sin from the soil of your spirit and cultivate a new heart to produce in you a blessed harvest of right living!

Saved by Grace through Faith not Deeds

God has challenged me to put on the new life His Spirit breathed into me when I was saved.  He convicted me to give my best effort at living the way His Son Jesus taught and demonstrated in how to live. 

The only person who can live the perfect life is Christ Jesus.  Though I will fail each and every day, the Holy Spirit inside moves me to try again each and every day to live out my faith with actions, deeds, thoughts, with my body and enduring the temptations of my evil desires—to live in such a way that when I look to heaven above, my eternal Father might be happy with me.  I pray for God to keep my spirit strong and to not lose out to despair, for Christ has already bought my way into heaven with His sacrifice at the cross.  I am secure in Christ! 

Though the way of Christian life can be hard and challenging, the life God has for us in His Bible is the greatest way we can live until the glory of the Day of Salvation comes.  That great day when the redeemed will live in eternal glory with God the Father, Son & Holy Spirit!

21So just as sin ruled over all people and brought them to death, now God’s wonderful grace rules instead, giving us right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Sin’s Power Is Broken

1Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? 2Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? (Romans 5:21-6:1 NLT)

Simple Instructions

Paul gives us simple instructions on how to live a life like Christ.  I pray that God will help me take it to heart. Love.

8Owe nothing to anyone—except for your obligation to love one another. If you love your neighbor, you will fulfill the requirements of God’s law. 9For the commandments say, “You must not commit adultery. You must not murder. You must not steal. You must not covet.” These—and other such commandments—are summed up in this one commandment: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 10Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the requirements of God’s law. (Romans 13:8-10 NLT)

May the peace of Christ guide us all into a brighter tomorrow!  Thank God that He is greater, may He be a shield and a fortress to our beloved land and a bright light to shine in the hearts of all His people.  Amen!

See Hillsong United’s song “Love is War” here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5T1HODe7lqY