Transformation in the New Year

Have you been waiting for your spouse to come to knowledge of Jesus Christ that will transform his life? 

Sometimes that personal revelation takes awhile...  You can read about Thomas in John 20:19-29. I firmly believe in divine appointments. Thomas was not in the room when Jesus met with the disciples on the evening He arose from the grave. Did you ever wonder why Thomas wasn't present with them?

Remember, this was the same Thomas that asked Jesus in John 14:5, "Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way"? Jesus then told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me". "If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him".

Isn't it interesting that we also often don't recognize the Lord. We know through scripture that Thomas knew Him, but he did not believe that the other disciples saw Him that night in the upper room. In John 20:14 Thomas insisted, "Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe".

He was basically giving himself an ultimatum! Proof is often needed, even demanded by the natural man. But Thomas was a spiritual man, one who knew the Lord intimately - face to face. What hampered his ability to "see without proof" what he already knew in his heart? Or did he really believe what he had been told?

John 20:26 says, "And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, "Peace to you!" Do you think Thomas had peace after the other disciples told him he missed seeing Jesus?

In verse 27 we read, "Then He said to Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing." Jesus turned toward Thomas and personally addressed him. Isn't that just like our loving Lord, to meet us at our weakest point with His immeasurable grace and mercy?

Your spouse also needs to have a transforming meeting with Jesus - face to face. His doubts and fears can be overcome when Jesus dialogues with him on his level, just like Thomas!

Seek God while He may be found and reach out to Him for salvation and understanding.  He is waiting with open arms. Jeremiah 29:11-13 says, "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart."

This is a great quote from Oswald Chambers in My Utmost for His Highest:

"The experience of salvation means that in your actual life things are really altered, you no longer look at things as you used to; your desires are new, old things have lost their power. If you are born again, the Spirit of God makes the alteration manifest in your actual life and reasoning, and when the crisis comes you are the most amazed person on earth at the wonderful difference there is in you. There is no possibility of imagining that you did it. It is this complete and amazing alteration that is the evidence that you are a saved soul."

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away, behold, all things have become new. II Corinthians 5:17

There are many people sitting in church who are not spiritually reborn. They do not understand the concept of being "a new creation in Christ." They think God welcomes them with open arms because He "loves everyone."  Here is a post I wrote awhile ago on the difference between religion (works) and a real relationship with Jesus Christ (g

                                                                  Click below:

RELATIONSHIP not RELIGION

Deborah is the author of a Christian non-fiction book titled “Mission Possible”. It was written for women who love the Lord Jesus, but their spouse doesn’t share their passion.  It will encourage and challenge the reader to embrace God’s promises for their spouse and future together. Visit  http://www.spirituallyunevenmarriage.com

If you have been encouraged by this post - please take time to share it with others.

Transformation in the New Year

Hidden Dangers: 3 Ways to Inspect Your Foundation

A foundation is a prepared base or support for a structure to be built on. 

In times past, a  foundation stone was laid with great fanfare, often in a public ceremony. Many times during a ground-breaking ceremony, a local dignitary would symbolically put a shovel into the dirt and pose for a picture to commemorate the event.

The foundation is the most important part of any building. The materials and work on a slab foundation is literally “set in stone”, and has no room for errors. In this type of foundation wooden forms are built which then hold the poured concrete. A footing trench is dug around the perimeter to provide added thickness along the end of the slab. These edges are stress prone and the weakest point of the foundation. Usually sand or gravel is spread below where the concrete is poured. This technique prevents the slab from sinking under the weight of the concrete. A vapor barrier is usually installed above the sand or gravel, and wire mesh is placed in the center of the slab with rebar (steel rods) in the footing areas to add rigidity and prevent cracking.

What about your foundation? Does it show fault lines or signs of stress?

Sometimes before the concrete has thoroughly cured, cracks and other imperfections appear, They can weaken the foundation, preventing adequate under-girding of the intended structure. 

It is periodically necessary to take an honest look at your spiritual foundation. As we grow and mature in Christ - we develop a greater ability to discern and evaluate exactly what we believe as it lines up with Scripture. Isaiah 28:10 says this regarding the learning process: "For precept must be upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little."

Here are (3) things you can examine regarding your spiritual foundation:

1. Our spiritual foundation needs to be built upon the Word of God. 

The Apostle Paul took time in Corinth to teach on the concept of the right foundation. In I Corinthians 3:9-14 Paul explains the importance of a sure and righteous foundation: “For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building. According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. 

For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now, if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one’s work will become manifest; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward.”  

2. Our spiritual foundation needs to have Jesus Christ at its center.

JESUS is the Chief Cornerstone of our faith.

Peter quotes Isaiah in I Peter 2:6-7 stating,“Behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect, precious, and he who believes on Him will be no means be put to shame.” Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient,“The stone which the builders rejected has become the Chief cornerstone.”

Jesus Himself quoted Psalm 118:22-23 and said, “Did you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes?"  The Lord Jesus Christ is the Cornerstone of the church.  He was dismissed and ultimately rejected by the Jews. He came first to the lost sheep of Israel, only to be mocked, insulted and executed by those who heard His message.

3. Our spiritual foundation needs to be grounded in doctrinal truths

Peter preached to the Sanhedrin in boldness and truth in Acts 4:8-12 saying, "...that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole. This is the stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone. Nor is there salvation is any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

Jesus told the parable of the two builders in Matthew 7:24-27: "Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: "and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. Now everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: "and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall."

In closing - here are two past Blog posts I wrote that confirm the importance of "rebooting" 

your mindset as a new Christian, and how to keep your "spiritual muscles" in top condition:

EXTREME MAKEOVER

EXERCISE PROFITS NOTHING

When we examine our own spiritual foundation, 

will we find these important components?

~ Discipleship opportunities and Bible Study

~ Decision making, obedience and submission to God’s leading

~ Discernment, wisdom and stewardship

~ Fellowship, outreach and ministry

~ Charity, hospitality and good works

Deborah is the author of a Christian non-fiction book titled “Mission Possible”. It is written for women who love the Lord Jesus, but their spouse doesn’t share their passion.  It will encourage and challenge the reader to embrace God’s promises for their spouse and future together. 

Visit  http://www.spirituallyunevenmarriage.com

If you have been encouraged by this post - please take time to share it with others.

Hidden Dangers: 3 Ways to Inspect Your Foundation

5 Things to do While You Wait on God...

Waiting... It's not our favorite thing to do.

When you give your life to the Lord, you want everyone else in your household and family to do the same - at least that is how I felt.

I was the first one in my family to accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior in a public setting.  My mother has a deep faith and belief in God, but I never really comprehended what that meant growing up.  My father wasn't interested in church attendance or the things of God. My sister is still resistant to God and religion in general.

When my husband and I married, we were both unbelievers. Seven years later I had a powerful conversion experience that had real consequences. There were immediate changes in my behavior, thoughts and heart. I wrote a blog post about how to tell if the experience is real or not:  A Bona Fide Convert

So - what came next?  WAITING...

Here is an excerpt from my book  MISSION POSSIBLE  -  Chapter 6  "In the Meantime - Serve"
     

During your time of "waiting on the Lord" (Psalm 27:14), you must be courageous. This is not a time for whimpering and whining. This is a time to dig in and serve - and a time to dig trenches and fortify your position in Christ regarding your mate. The enemy is stealthy and clever in distraction regarding your mission. He will try to divert your energy and resources into other areas that might be good, but not GOD's best! Be careful with too many church activities and over commitment. Remember, your spouse does not understand your need to serve the kingdom purposes. They just don't understand it. Balance is crucial when it comes to home, church, and work. Pray that God will prepare your husband's heart and give you that understanding and favor regarding your "God assignments".

5 Things to do While You Wait on God...

1.    Pray for your spouse -
      
        Praying for your spouse is powerful and helps you to see their spiritual darkness as God sees it. One of the Scriptures I pray for my husband is Ephesians 1:17-19 , "...that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power."

Another one is Romans 10:20 , "But Isaiah is very bold and says: 'I was found by those who did not seek Me; I was made manifest to those who did not ask for Me."

2.    Sow seeds for a harvest -

        Go ahead and plant seed.  Share the basics of the Gospel in a loving, sensitive way.  The worst thing you can do is to "preach to them" and point out glaring faults in a legalistic way.  Unless they have had their heart regenerated - it won't make any sense to them.  Remember, they are spiritually blind. I Corinthians 2:14 says "But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."

3.    Remember it is God who draws them -

        You are not "Holy Spirit Jr." - so don't try so hard to make it happen. God is the one who initiates the wooing of their spirit man. Hosea 11:4 says, "I drew them with gentle cords, with bands of love, and I was to them as those who take the yoke from their neck. I stooped and fed them." Jesus says in John 6:44, "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him..."

4.    Live as a witness -

        In order to be a witness, you have to emulate Jesus' characteristics and desire what he desires. The fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23 are the attributes we should be displaying if we are living a life hid in Christ Jesus. He says this in John 15:5, "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing."

5.    Have patience and perseverance -

         Hebrews 11:1 says, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Our faith in God and hope in His Word give us the strength and endurance we need to "keep on keeping on".  God's perfect plan may be an immediate salvation experience or it may be years away. Either way - wouldn't you rejoice in your mate's conversion - even if that meant waiting for the right time, place, and situation? Don't give up... God is moving in the background and arranging things we don't even know about yet.  

Jesus tells us in Luke 18:-8, "Then the Lord said, 'Hear what the unjust judge said, And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?"


Waiting on the Lord can renew your strength and fortify your hope. Rest in Him as you wait...

Deborah is the author of a Christian non-fiction book titled “Mission Possible”. It is written for women who love the Lord Jesus, but their spouse doesn’t share their passion.  It will encourage and challenge the reader to embrace God’s promises for their spouse and future together. 

Visit  http://www.spirituallyunevenmarriage.com

If you have been encouraged by this post - please take time to share it with others.

5 Things to do While You Wait on God...