This Day With God – A Spiritual Journey

As I resumed my journey through Isaiah this week, the evidences of the Bible’s truth continues to increase as one prophecy after another is fulfilled. In reading Isaiah 34-37, God’s anger devastates but His love in sending Christ has brought His people back. Today, we have the opportunity to look back and see the passion. We can be thankful for Christ and the church, have more desire to honor God, be a blessing, and give our all. 

Christ has given believers a plain and straight path to victory. The plan of God has been set in motion and the powers of darkness have been defeated. Believers can take on challenges, step out of the comfort zone, and give God the glory. As presented in last week’s sermon by Steve Ramsdell at First United Methodist Church Waco, we should be confident and willing to take on the challenge if God calls.  

Sometimes we face tough opponents in life and that’s why we need to encourage one another as we journey through life. Our faith might be tested as it was with King Hezekiah in Isaiah 36. Building faith doesn’t come out of nowhere but requires work and dedication. Keeping faith is a result of diving into God’s word, prayer, and paying attention to God’s power instead of problems. There’s a song called “Dive” by Steven Curtis Chapman that inspires one to have enough faith to dive deep where there may be risk but also glory. In your prayers, ask for the type of faith needed to dive into the deep end; the type of faith that will withstand the true battles that life may bring.

• Send a comment or email any thoughts or prayers to lifetransgroup@live.com
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• Photo of the week
• Take inspiration from this video: Dive by Steven Curtis Chapman

  Thanks for letting me share.

Mark

Throughout the Bible we see that when God was with people, life was good. When they were separated, life was one big unexpected and demoralizing failure. When Isaiah 31-33 was written, the people of Israel relied on Egypt who was a powerful and wealthy nation for help instead of God. Unlike money and power which gives short term security, God has far greater resources. He knows about the future, can put us in a position to succeed, and provides exactly what we need for long term excellence. Think of how God has greater wisdom and strength than any person, group, or nation. In your prayers be thankful and ask for help in making wise choices, working hard, and doing your best.

The people of Israel wanted peace, quiet, and the opportunity to flourish but they went to the wrong place. Instead of going to God, they went to Egypt for help. Loving God more than anything else was the best way back then and continues to be what people need. Take a look at this video: More by Matthew West. The blueprint to building a better you, community, or nation; getting hearts in the right place for ultimate achievement is the resources available in the gospel.

Our desire should be that everyone has a chance to flourish and prosper. Jim Rohn, an American entrepreneur and motivational speaker once said, “It is the set of sails, not the direction of the wind that determines which way we will go”.  As we set sail on each new day, we should begin by opening God’s word. Like a ship’s mast catching the power of wind, use God’s principles to catch energy from His Spirit.  Pray that God is your captain as you set sail for your future destinations.

• Photo of the week
• Send a comment or email any thoughts or prayers to lifetransgroup@live.com
• To receive a weekly email with thoughts from a sermon or if you have thoughts from a sermon, Sunday school lesson, or other thoughts, send an email to the same address

 Thanks for letting me share.

Mark

For me, last week’s reading in Isaiah 26 – 28 was a lesson in how God wants us to be content and at peace. He wants us to be on the right track, to have the right frame of mind, to feel good, and do amazing things. As I continue on my journey through Isaiah 29 – 30 this week, the lesson for me is to understand that faith isn’t something you were born with and can’t change like your fingerprints. It’s something you can acquire by taking action and continuing to work at; believing the results will come. Faith when applied produces peace and joy. We should all pray for ways to apply our faith and be more devoted.

Only God can give true confidence so we should be in awe of the One who has given all we need. Be committed to Him, plan with Him, and focus on taking action on those plans. It always helps to have the chance to focus on that one thing that needs to be done. In today’s busy world, that’s sometimes the hardest decision we have. Take a look at this joke from AhaJokes.com: Age Activated Attention Deficit Disorder. We can try to be organized and use our time well but that doesn’t always protect us from a busy world. Only God can protect us and make our days work out so maybe the solution is to focus more on Him. We should be thankful and let God know in our prayers. Listen for His plans and ideas on how to step ahead. 

Putting God first is a good first step to overcoming the difficulties we face like how to fit all we need to do in the time we have each day. Everyone can use the help only God can give and it’s certainly not wasted time. He provides a solid foundation to help with both our spiritual life and our career. We should pray for patience, listen for direction, and believe more time will be made available to get done all that God wants us to get done.

• Photo of the week 
• Send a comment or email any thoughts or prayers to lifetransgroup@live.com
• To receive a weekly email with thoughts from a sermon or if you have thoughts from a sermon, Sunday school lesson, or other thoughts, send an email to the same address

  Thanks for letting me share.

Mark