Truth Will Guide My Steps

In summary of John 16:13, it says "But when the Spirit of truth comes, he will take you by the hand and guide you into all the truth there is.  He won’t draw attention to himself or speak his own words; but instead will speak only what he hears.  He will help you make sense out of what is about to happen and, indeed, out of all that I have done and said."

Bottom Line:
When the Spirit of truth comes into your life, he will guide you into all the truth there is.  He will not speak his own words, instead he will speak only what he hears from the father.  He will help you make sense of it, and what is about to happen.  He will also help you understand all that I have said and done.

What this means to me:
At the time of my confession and commitment to him, God has provided his Spirit of truth.  It is his Spirit within me that guides me into all the truth that exists.  The Spirit is humble, he won’t draw attention to himself or speak his own words; instead he speaks only what the Father has shared with him.  He is present to help me make sense out of what is about to happen and to all the things that Jesus taught and spoke of.  This is truly a gift from God, present within me to guide me deeper and provide direction in his Truth.  He encourages me to take each step of faith in the places where I will face my fears.  When I do face my fears I do so with God’s strength.  God has been revealing to me more about who he is and how he works each day that I study and get his word into my life.  The past few days he has taught me that I don’t need approval from others or need to please them and that he is the only one I should turn to for approval.  He has also reminded me of getting priorities in life straight, not getting caught up in busy work that would make me tired or feed my own desires, but rather take on the things he says are important for me to follow.  He also has warned me to guard what is getting into my heart.  I need to protect what is occupying my time.  What gets in should be the things that are good and peaceful, things I can use to benefit others and not those things that are selfishly for myself.

I Don’t Need To Seek The Approval Of Others Or Please Everyone

In summary of Proverbs 29:25 it says, "It’s dangerous to be concerned with what others think of you, it will prove to be a snare or a trap.  Human opinion of others can disable you.  Instead put your trust in God, he will protect you and provide safety from that."

Bottom Line:
It's dangerous to let what others think of you, control you.  It will prove to be a snare or trap from keeping you from moving forward.  Instead put all of your trust in God and what he thinks of you.  When you do, God provides you with protection and safety from getting caught up in the disabling trap of others opinions.  

What this means to me:
God wants me to look to him for approval and not others.  Letting what others think can paralyze my thinking and progress toward being what He wants me to be (it will be a trap that will hold me back, keep me from what is best.)  God tells me if I only look to him for approval, he will protect and provide safety from the disabling emotional trap of others opinions.  In this world, I don’t have to please everyone.  This is difficult for me, as I’m traditionally a people pleaser and seek approval of others.  However, In reality it would be difficult to please everyone regardless.  What I need to realize is that my happiness does not depend on approval from others.  Even God can’t please everyone since all typically base their decisions on their own gain or selfishness.  So, I don’t need to cave in or squeeze into the worlds mold.  If I feel pressured, controlled or manipulated then its because I’m allowing myself to be pressure, controlled and manipulated.  Instead, it’s ok to stand up for what’s right.  It’s OK to be assertive.  God doesn’t expect me to be a doormat.   Interestingly I find, that when I’m being what God wants me to be, people are usually amazed at my behavior and wonder how I can be patient and kind with others when they are being selfish or difficult.  The key for me will be to not let myself be pressured into being something different from what God intend for me, just to get the approval of someone else.

Getting Priorities Straight

In summary of Matthew 11:28 it says, "Jesus said, ‘Come to me, all of you who are tired from carrying heavy loads/burdens, get away with me and you’ll recover your life and I will show you how to take a real rest.’"

Bottom line:
Jesus tells those who are tired from carrying heavy loads and burdens to come to him.  He will show you how to recover and show you how to take a real rest.

What this means to me:
This scripture tells me that I can find real rest and recovery from day to day life when I come to Jesus and allow him to take control.  I have to admit that my schedule can get real busy most of the time going from one meeting to another and the pressure of constant deadlines or many after work activities. The key for me to is understand when I’m doing too much in life I may be out of the will of God.  One way of telling is to reflect on how tired I am.  Is it constant feeling.  If so, I may be off track and will need to spend some time reflecting and re-evaluating what I’m doing.  I don’t believe God’s intended for me to be constantly busy with a heavy load.  I’ll need to take time to evaluate all the things I’m involved with, perhaps take an inventory.  Am I putting unrealistic burdens and expectations on myself?  Am I attending too many meetings?  Perhaps I need to just block time out in my calendar so that some free time can be obtained.  I must remember that to live in the center of God’s will is a lighter will than to live out of his will.  

Guard What Gets Into Your Heart

In Summary of Proverbs 4:23 it says, “Above all else, guard and keep a vigilant watch over your heart and what you think, for it determines course of everything you do in life, it shapes your thoughts and future actions (it is the starting point.)“

Bottom Line:
You must keep a close guard/watch over your heart and what you think about and take in.  Your heart will determine the course of everything you do and think in life.  

What this means to me:
This scripture warns me to guard and keep a vigilant watch over what I take in and allow to shape my heart and thoughts.  God knows that whatever I dwell and focus on will become part of my life, these things will determine my feelings which in turn end up determining my actions.  So given this I need to be careful what I let into my mind/heart including self talk about how I feel about myself (I can be my own worst self critic - putting myself down.)  I reminded this morning as I study Rick Warren’s Purpose Driven Connection devotional from July 5th that when I put myself down, I’m really in essence pointing to the one who made me, say “God, you blew it with me” which I know is wrong, as God never makes mistakes.  So I need to be careful what I’m allowing into my life.  Philippians 4:8 reminds me to “fix my thoughts on what is true, good and right.”  So when I’m disappointed in myself I should turn those into opportunities to reflect on what I can thank God about and be grateful for it.  Next focus my thoughts on what I want to be and on what God wants me to do in this life.  Then be sure that I continually get into and absorb God’s word each day.  As I do, I need to fully study it, understand what it says to do and then apply it.  Ultimately I need to start believing in what God says about me.

The Truth Will Set You Free

In summary of John 8:31-32 it says, “Jesus said to the people who claimed to believe in him, ‘If you stick with and remain faithful to my teachings, living out what I tell you, you will be my disciples for sure.  Then you will experience for yourselves and know the truth, and this truth will set you free.’”

Bottom Line:
Jesus tells those who claim to believe in him to stick with it, remain faithful to what he is teaching them and living it out.  If you do, then you will be his disciples for sure.  In doing so you will experience for yourselves and know the truth.  It is this truth that will set you free.

What this means to me:
It is the truth that will set me free.  For me to fully understand the truth, I need to follow and remain faithful to what Jesus has taught.  This is more than just listening, I must put it into practice and experience it.  Then I will know first hand the truth.  This is a truth that will change my way of life.  When I follow steadfastly, the truth then lives in me.  When i follow Jesus, I am connected to God through him and his truth enables me to discern and reject the lies of the enemy.  One of the most important things to remind myself of is that your Truth says how I’m forgiven, loved by you, your child.  Knowing the Truth helps me respond to your direction.  It is trustworthy and I know I can follow it wholeheartedly.  So I will do everything I can to leave the interpretation of the facts and the determination of the truth of any situation to you.  I will let your Truth make the decisions, and then I will obey and leave the consequences in your loving, truth-filled hands.  All the decisions are yours to make.  Because you are Truth, I can respond in the Truth in all situations; I will no longer need to be a slave to my emotions.

God Has Much Better Things In Store For Us

In summary of Romans 8:18 it says, "I believe that the present suffering we experience now is nothing compared to the glory he is going to reveal to us."

Bottom Line:
Any suffering we experience now will be nothing compared to the glory that God will reveal to us in time.

What this means to me:
God has so much better things in store for me if just continue to persevere and strive to achieve his will.  He tells me that in the end, when I look back at what I had suffered it will seem so insignificant and will make what he has in store for me all worthwhile.  It’s sometime hard for me to imagine what God ultimately has in store for me.  This life is all about learning to have a relationship with him and preparation for what he will have me do.  It would be worthwhile for me to reflect on this from time to time.  It is a glory that will awesome and beyond any good thing that can happen here.  

An Everlasting Source Of Strength

In summary of Isaiah 40:28-31 it says "Have you never heard, never understood or been listening?  God doesn’t come and go, he is the everlasting God, the creator of all you can see or imagine.  He never grows weak or weary, he won’t get tired.  He knows everything, inside and out, no one can measure the depths of his understanding.  He’ll energize those who are tired, he’ll give power to the weak, and give fresh strength to the powerless.  Even young people will tire, become weak, and fall in exhaustion.  But those who wait and trust in God will find new strength, they will spread their wings and soar like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint or fall behind."

Bottom Line:
If you don’t understand or had not been listening, know that God is the everlasting God, and he is always present (he doesn’t need to sit back and take a break.). He is the creator of all you see or could even imagine is possible.  He will never grow week or become tired.  He knows all and no one can measure the depths of his understanding.  He will energize those who are tired, he will give power to those who are weak he will provide strength to those who are powerless.  Even a young person will eventually tire, and succomb to exhaustion.  But those who decide to trust in and wait for God will find new strength in which they will be able to spread their wings and soar like eagles, they can then run and not grow weary, walk and not get faint.

What this means to me:
God reminds me in this scripture that he is everlasting, nothing will take him off duty or make him tired / exhausted.  He is the creator of all things and as such I cannot even comprehend or measure the depth of his knowledge and understanding.  He does promise me that if I put my faith and complete trust in him that he will provide the energy and the fresh strength I can use to do his will.  I will find such freedom that it will be like flying on the wings of eagles.  And with this I will be able to keep going, even when things seem to be going nowhere.  This is really a key understanding for me to take in.  On my own strength I will get tired, impatient and likely be ready to just give in.  I need to look to Him all the time (the one who never tires or grows weary) for renewed strength to keep going.  When I feel myself starting to tire, I need to look to see if I’m trying to do things on my own strength and then look to God for the energy and strength to face what ever he decides to put in my path for this day.  I need to remind myself that I serve the one who created all things and his knowledge and strength are never ending.  He is a power source that will never be depleted.