Overcoming the Barrier of Inadequacy..... Dr. Charles Stanley

 Overcoming the Barrier of Inadequacy

Dr. Charles Stanley

2 Corinthians 2:14-17

No one likes feelings of inadequacy, but they are something we must learn to handle, as none of us can avoid them permanently. Tragically, though, many people live with a cloud over their head because in their thinking, they never measure up. For some, this may be due to childhood experiences that negatively affected their self-image. For others, the problem stems from a lack of success related to work, relationships, marriage, parenting, or any number of things.

The area Paul deals with in today's passage is our Christian life. He asks a question that points to a common insecurity: "Who is adequate for these things?" (v. 16). Have you ever avoided serving the Lord in ways that challenge your comfort zone? If so, you've probably missed a tremendous opportunity to overcome feelings of inadequacy. He's promised to lead us "in triumph in Christ," (v. 14) but unless we believe Him and step out in faith, we'll never experience the life He has planned for us.

Feeling inadequate is not a sin, but using it as an excuse is. When the Lord challenges you to do something that you feel is beyond your abilities, you have two options. You can focus on Christ and proceed in triumph or focus on yourself and withdraw in defeat.

It's really a matter of faith. God would never ask you to do something without empowering you to accomplish it. This doesn't necessarily mean you will do it perfectly, but each step of obedience is a victory. The alternative is to play it safe, but then you'll miss out on God's best for your life.

The Leading of the Holy Spirit..... Craig Denison

 The Leading of the Holy Spirit

Craig Denison

Weekly Overview:

As believers, we’ve been given the Holy Spirit as a Helper, Teacher, Friend, and seal for the promised inheritance of eternal life with God. His presence, guidance, and wisdom in our lives are our greatest gifts while here on earth. Through him we have access to direct connection with our heavenly Father. Through him we receive spiritual gifts to empower us. And through him we are able to bear the incredible fruit of abundant life. Open your heart and mind to all that the Holy Spirit would give you, show you, and lead you to this week.

Scripture:“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.” - >Romans 8:14

Devotional:

Where do you need leadership in your life? What challenge, decision, or circumstance is weighing on you? Where do you need a word from God today? We have available to us the most perfect guide to lead us throughout the twists, turns, and challenges of this adventurous life. The Bible says in Romans 8:14, “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.” As children of the Most High God, we are granted full access to the leadership of the Holy Spirit who dwells within us. No child of God is exempt from the leadership of the Spirit. We don’t earn access by our own merit. We don’t gain more favor to receive more leadership. God has given us all the gift of the Holy Spirit because he loves us. He has filled us with his Spirit because he longs to lead us into the abundant life he has planned for us. So, let’s learn today how we can better discover and follow this gift of leadership we’ve all been granted through Christ in the Holy Spirit.

First, it’s crucial to acknowledge that the Holy Spirit and the word work perfectly together. One does not contradict the other. Both the Holy Spirit and the word he inspired are vital in living the Christian life. And God’s word says in Galatians 5:16-18, “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.” The leadership of the Spirit is in direct opposition to the lifestyle of the world. His desire is always to lead us away from sin that entangles us in the perspectives and pressures of the world toward a lifestyle of peace, joy, and intimate relationship with our heavenly Father. All of his leadership is purposed toward the goal of abundant life in God, of the fullness of satisfaction in God rather than the weak and fleeting pleasure in things of the world.

So how do we follow this person of the Holy Spirit toward that abundant life? Galatians 5:25 says, “If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.” How do we “keep in step with the Spirit”?It all starts with spending time getting to know what the Holy Spirit is like. He has a personality. He has a voice. His leadership feels a certain way. Just as you get to know a person, you can get to know the Holy Spirit. And the absolute best way to learn about him is one-on-one. Often we wait until we are in public, or right before a highly stressful situation, to ask for the guidance of the Spirit. But it’s in the secret place that we learn what his voice and leading sounds and feels like so that we can discern his guidance out in the rush and stress of the world. It’s in the secret place that we grow in relationship with the Holy Spirit so that we can follow his steps throughout the twists and turns of our day.

John 16:13 says, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.” The Holy Spirit is excited to speak to you what he hears from the heavenly Father. He longs to declare to you God’s plans to love you, provide for you, heal you, transform you, and deliver you. He longs to lead you to the fullness of life available to you here. Spend time getting to know the Holy Spirit in the secret place today. As you pray ask God to reveal himself to you. Spend time in prayer resting in the presence of the God who dwells within you, who is nearer to you than the very ground beneath your feet.

Guided Prayer:

1. Meditate on God’s desire to lead you into abundant life.

“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.” >Romans 8:14

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” >John 10:10

2. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal himself to you. Spend time learning about who he is. Ask him to speak to you and to reveal the way his leadership feels.

“The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.” Romans 8:16

“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.” >John 16:13

“While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’” Acts 13:2   

“For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay on you no greater burden than these requirements.” Acts 15:28

3. Open up your life to the Holy Spirit. Ask him to reveal to you things he wants to lead you away from. Ask him to show you the life he wants to lead you to. And commit to following his leadership today.

“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.” >Galatians 5:16-18

When you have opportunities to indulge in the flesh, choose life in the Spirit instead. When you feel a desire to avenge yourself, promote yourself, slander someone, or engage in a sinful activity, choose life in the Spirit instead. Choose to love God and others. Live in step with the Spirit and discover the amazing life he longs to guide you into today.

Extended Reading: Romans 8

Your Powerhouse Prayer Team..... KAYLA FERRIS

 Your Powerhouse Prayer Team

KAYLA FERRIS

“Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:16 (ESV) 

“Mom! I need help!” my daughter shouted from the kitchen. Sure enough, when I walked in, I found her covered in powdered sugar. I can’t count the times I have turned the mixer on high speed, only to have a cloud of sugar rain down in the kitchen. Chuckling, I told her we could have that mess cleaned up in no time.

I love that my daughter could call for me in confidence, knowing I would understand and be ready to help.

But I admit I haven’t always approached my prayer life with the same level of confidence. There have been times when I haven’t come to God because my mistakes made me afraid. Would God be angry or disappointed with me? I’ve also been timid in prayer because I worried my requests were too small or trivial. Other times, my problems seemed so big and complicated that I didn’t know what to pray or where to begin.

The truth is, we have more understanding and help than we might even realize. In fact, we have a powerhouse prayer team because we have both the Holy Spirit and Jesus Christ approaching God on our behalf.

The Holy Spirit is intimately connected to prayer. Romans 8:26 tells us that even when we don’t know what to pray or say, the Spirit Himself “… intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words” (ESV). Because the Spirit dwells inside of us, He also knows the specifics of our hearts, minds and situations. He fills in where our words fall short. There is nothing too big or too small for the Spirit to cover. We can truly bring everything to God in prayer, through the Spirit’s help.

Yet, this is not the only help we have. Hebrews 7:25 tells us that Jesus Christ also “… lives to make intercession …” for us (ESV). I’m not sure why I have incorrectly pictured Jesus in heaven, twiddling His thumbs while He waits to return. That is not the case. He is quite active. In fact, the Word says He lives to intercede on our behalf.

Jesus has a unique position for doing so as well. We learn in Hebrews 4:15 that because Jesus became a flesh and blood man, He understands us in a unique way. He, too, has suffered, been tempted and felt weak. He not only sympathizes; He also knows how to help. When we walk into God’s presence, Jesus is there, identifying with our struggles and knowing what we need.

What a powerhouse team we have: the Holy Spirit and Jesus Christ, interceding for us every moment of every day. Can you imagine the conversation in heaven? I picture the Trinity of God gathered in big comfy chairs. The Holy Spirit is explaining the details of my situation inside and out. Meanwhile, Jesus leans forward and chimes in, relating to how difficult that can be, listing some ideas that will help. All the while, the Father looks around and smiles, nodding, listening. And they do all of this, every day … for us.

As I draw near to the throne of grace, I can come with confidence, knowing that mercy, grace and friendly faces are waiting for me there. Father, Son and Spirit invite me to pull up a chair and pour out my heart, knowing I am understood and loved beyond measure.

Father God, thank You for Your love and goodness. Holy Spirit, thank You for knowing me so well and for filling in when words fail me. Jesus, thank You for understanding what I face and for knowing what it is I need. Help me to pray with confidence, remembering that You are with me and for me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

TRUTH FOR TODAY:
Hebrews 7:25, “Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.” (ESV)

What it Means to Pray in God’s Will (Matthew 21:22)..... By: Betsy St. Amant Haddox

 What it Means to Pray in God’s Will (Matthew 21:22)

By: Betsy St. Amant Haddox

And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith. - Matthew 21:22 (ESV)

Too many times, well-meaning Christians will read verses like Matthew 21:22 and think it means God is their personal genie, ready to grant their every wish so long as they have enough faith. Obviously, this doesn’t work a lot of the time, which means people then default to thinking they didn’t have enough faith. The lack of answered prayer was “their fault.” 

Prosperity-preaching ministers pounce on this, urging people to donate “in faith” to their ministry or “plant a seed” for their miracle. They effectively teach that with “enough faith” (or enough money, or enough perseverance) a person will receive exactly what they asked for. But that’s not always the case.

It’s easy to see how this mindset can spiral out of control. People going through an unwanted divorce might pray and ask God to change their spouse or heal their marriage. If it doesn’t happen, that deserted spouse is then led to feel like he or she didn’t have enough faith and their spouse didn’t change because of their lack. In their minds, the divorce then becomes their fault. Yikes. Talk about salt in a wound! 

Or someone might beseech God for healing for a family member or for themselves, and if the report doesn’t come back as desired, they think they failed. Now they have the burden of sickness and a burden of feeling like they’re just “not a good Christian.” 

There are unfortunately many damaging, false-prophet-type schemes out there that take advantage of people’s misplaced understanding of Scripture. That’s why it’s crucial that believers understand what these verses are truly saying. For proper context, you must take the Bible as a whole. 

For example, verses such as 1 John 5:14 help clarify Matthew 21:22 with an important distinction. And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.

This verse shows us that in order to have what we are asking for, it must first be a part of God’s will. That certainly changes things, doesn’t it? We must remember that prayer isn’t simply a means of asking for things, but rather, an opportunity to fellowship with our Father. Can you imagine the type of relationship you’d have with your earthly parent or spouse if the only time you talked to them was to ask them for a gift or blessing, or request them to take a particular action? It wouldn’t be a very close-knit relationship, and it would probably feel very empty and one-sided. 

The goal of prayer is to talk to God, and for Him to respond through His Word and the Holy Spirit. We submit our desires and supplications, our thanksgiving and praise to God, and He molds our hearts to more definitely reflect His. That’s how our wills match up. 

Consider James 4:3 (ESV) You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.

Too often, we pray with the wrong motive. Can you imagine how badly it would go, based on our limited understanding and perspective, to be given everything we wanted, every time we asked? It’d be a nightmare! God knows best—we do not. Our flesh and pride and sin get in the way and taint even our best efforts or purest attempts. Isaiah 64:6 tells us, We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall, and our sins sweep us away like the wind.

Prayer isn’t about begging God to change His mind to come around to our side of thinking—it’s about God changing our hearts and minds to come around to His. Then our desires and requests are part of His will.  

To pray with faith, pray sincerely. Pray from a heart eager to please God. Pray with a surrendered mindset that Father knows best. Pray for God’s will to be done and for your desires to match His. Pray without ceasing. Pray fervently. Then watch God work. It might not look the way you wanted—in fact, it often does not. Because thankfully, God isn’t a genie—He’s so much more.  

Mini-Miracles.... by Shawn McEvoy

 Mini-Miracles

by Shawn McEvoy

So they all ate and were filled. Mark 6:42

The title of my devotional today strikes me as oxymoronic. Miracles, after all, are defined as acts of God, amazing and marvelous events, and "seals of a divine mission" (Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary). Generally speaking, there's nothing small about them.

What I'm talking about, then, are instances of heavenly intervention in the lives of believers that impact what we would consider "minor" areas of our existence, the things that cause us to make statements like: "It showed me that God cares about even the small things in our lives," always as if that's a profoundly shocking proclamation. Nobody ever responds by saying, "Well, duh…"

I think that's because it never stops being a mind-blowing concept - the Creator of the universe, who hears the prayers and praises of billions simultaneously and loves each one the same, provided, perhaps, just the right amount of money for a struggling single mom to buy her child a pair of shoes. It's not the parting of the Red Sea to preserve for Himself a people, or the resurrection of His son to purchase the redemption of humanity. It's, for lack of a better term, a mini-miracle.

I remember one time in our Adult Bible Fellowship class my friend Karen stepped in to teach our continuing series in Mark's gospel. We were in Chapter Six, focusing primarily on the Feeding of the 5,000. As she began her lesson, Karen admitted that she'd never quite been able to visualize this scene, or understand exactly what the miracle was meant to show. I mean, there is the lesson of provision, but the human body can go without food for quite some time. Jesus Himself fasted in the wilderness for 40 days (Matthew 4:1-4). So it's not like life and death were hanging in the balance if the people who had followed Him to this "desolate place" went without dinner that night.

It could be, Karen suggested, that Jesus just didn't want the people to go away; He had just suffered the death of His cousin John the Baptist, and recently endured the "amazing unbelief" (Mark 6:6) of those from His hometown of Nazareth. It could be Jesus took immense delight in this multitude foregoing their bodily needs to attend to His Word. It very well could be our Lord simply wanted to do something "just for them."

Maybe, Karen said, that's why she always tended to overlook this miracle a little bit. "You know how sometimes when God does something that you know was 'just for you,' and you tell someone else about it, and they're like, 'That's cool and all,' but it just doesn't carry the same meaning for them?"

I knew exactly what that was like, and I liked where she was going. I could see an even greater personalization in mini-miracles, in God drawing delight from blessing our socks off in ways that speak to our individual hearts. The idea also gave me greater permission to attribute to the Lord all sorts of transpirings that I had chalked up to my own efforts, happenstance, or even worse, had gone without noticing.

If, for instance, I told you about the time we thought we'd lost my wife's keys - including several costly ones - only to find them sitting precariously on a single steel beam of the auto transport behind our moving van, maybe you'd respond the way my friend Scott did: "You got lucky, dude." Yeah, well, I guess that's why Karen says sometimes these events are "just for us." I saw those keys, I knew the bumpy route and wet weather we had traveled, I was astounded, I was humbled. I decided that giving credit to the Lord for things that bless you is never wrong, as suggested by James 1:17.

I just don't do it enough.

I wonder how many mini-miracles I've missed out on by being impatient, angry, or inattentive. In his book Blue Like Jazz, Donald Miller imagines Moses telling those worshipping the golden calf, "Your problem is not that God is not fulfilling, your problem is that you are spoiled" (92). Romans 1:20 would seem to indicate that the Lord's hand is evident everywhere - "people can clearly see His invisible qualities." I like that verse very much, because I like to think of myself as on the lookout for God.

But that brings me to the other ways to miss miracles - by not accepting them or expecting them, by resenting them or wanting to earn them. I quote from Blue Like Jazz again, where Miller admits, "I love to give to charity, but I don't want to be charity. This is why I have so much trouble with grace" (84).

Can we get past the affront of accepting a free gift? If we can, we might see the Lord trying to say through the Feeding of the 5,000 and even today, "Here I Am, stay here, spend more time, no need to go away, please accept this, put yourself in My hands, keep your eyes open, I love you."

After all, says Matthew 7:11, "If you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him?" Mini-miracles are the treats God brings home to His kids, those who seek him with childlike faith, those who consider themselves "the little things in life."

Well, duh…

Intersecting Faith & Life: Try bringing something small to a loved one today to remind yourself of how much joy the Lord gets from giving to those who delight in Him.

A Prayer Against Anxious Thoughts..... By: Chelsey DeMatteis

A Prayer Against Anxious Thoughts
By: Chelsey DeMatteis 

He answered, “Every plant that my Heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up." - Matthew 15:13

All of us at some point in our lives have dealt with anxious thoughts. The kind of thoughts that feel like they come from out of nowhere, they catch us off guard, they make our stomachs ache, and quickly cloud our clarity. Something changed for me when I began diving deeper into Matthew 15:13. The words Jesus spoke reveal two things. 1) Every anxious thought is planted by something not from God. 2) Jesus promises that God will uproot what He has not planted. He made a way for us to overcome this suffering when we lean into Christ.

I woke up to a call from my friend a few weeks ago who was in the throes of this type of thinking. This friend had completely bought the lie that she had been fired from her job, all because she couldn’t log in to her work computer. Confused, I sat there wondering how she went from not being able to log in to her computer to the downward spiral of “they fired me and didn’t tell me”? It pained me to sit on the other end of the phone feeling like I had nothing more to offer than prayer and a reminder of where those lies were coming from.

About 45 minutes later my friend called to tell me that she was able to log in, explaining there had been a blip in the system and all that was needed was a password reset. Her clouded clarity was coming from the one who takes our eyes off the truth. We spoke a few days later and I began pressing into where she felt the anxious thoughts stemmed from, where the lie was sown, and how she was going to hand it over to The Lord and allow Him to root it up from her life!

We found out the lie was sown 10 years ago when she went to work one morning only to find she had been unjustly fired. The enemy saw a foothold and ran with it. As we walked through how to hand this over to The Lord, my friend realized the why behind The Lord telling us to know His word and write it on our hearts. Because, when we know His word and stand firm in His truth are able to withstand the blows of the enemy and stand victorious in Christ over the anxiety-inducing lies.

Today if you’re in this place of anxious thoughts, worries, and fears feeling too heavy… rest in His truth spoke in Matthew 15:13, surrender what you’re walking through to The Lord, and know He will reveal to you He’s uprooting things from your life that were never meant to be there.

Pray with me:

Lord, you are a good God with good intentions behind all the works of your hands. Help me see the areas where I’ve allowed lies to be sewn into my life. Once they are revealed, help me to hand them over to you and allow you to remove them from my life completely. I ask that once they are removed you would then fill the newly freed spaces with the truths of your word. In the midst of anxiety, help me always look to you. In Jesus' name, amen.