The Longing to be Wholehearted..Craig Denison Ministries

 The Longing to be Wholehearted

Craig Denison Ministries

Weekly Overview:

All of us have insatiable longings that can only be satisfied in communion with our heavenly Father. The longing to be enjoyed, fascinated, to gaze upon beauty, and to be someone great are driving forces within each of us. The longing to experience intimacy without shame, to be wholehearted, and to make a deep and lasting impact resound within each of us at the foundation of who we are. God created these longings knowing that they can only be fully satisfied in him—that they would be avenues to deeper relationship with him. As we look at each of these longings individually, I pray your heart would find its fulfillment in the loving nearness of your heavenly Father.

The titles and main concept for this week are all derived from The Seven Longings of the Human Heart by Mike Bickle and Deborah Hiebert.

Scripture:“And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.”Mark 12:30

Devotional:

Wholehearted devotion, love, and purpose captivate us. As a culture we cling to stories like Romeo and Juliet, Gone with the Wind, Don Quixote, The Count of Monte Cristo and Les Miserables for the wholehearted actions of the characters. These stories evoke within each of us a desire to be equally wholehearted in our own lives. We long to give ourselves completely to something or someone that our lives might have true purpose.

Humanity is captivated by wholeheartedness because we were created for it. God created us with a longing to be wholehearted that he might satisfy that longing with his plans. The Bible is the ultimate story of wholeheartedness. It’s the story of God coming down to us and giving himself completely for us to the point of death. Defeating death, he now desires to use us as wholehearted children to lead the whole world to salvation and freedom that our lives would impact eternity.  

You were made to be wholehearted, but oftentimes church is the last place you think of as passionate and wholehearted. So often, we in vocational ministry are scared to lose our volunteers and congregation by asking too much of them, so we never present them with an opportunity to live as passionately as God intends. The truth is that God wants all of you. He's calling you to a life of wholehearted, passionate surrender everywhere you go. He doesn't want to meet you just at church, at a gathering of believers, or even in your personal times; he wants you all day every day. God's calling you to a life of adventure in which the outcome is only known by him. He's calling you to step out of everyday living to a life of staggering surrender so great that this world will no longer feel like home. The call is worthwhile. His presence is worth the cost. God has a story for the ages prepared just for you—a story with real, eternal impact. But it will cost you everything to live it.

If this truth sounds radical to you, it's because it is. So many Christians will never live out the fullness of what God planned for them because of how radical it sounds. Fear grips us; we choose the comfortable path with minimal impact. But if we follow this compromise to its end, we will live passionless, mediocre lives in which we are never fully satisfied. We will live in this gap where one moment we worship God and the next we seek satisfaction in sin. We will live vicariously through the stories we hear in movies, books, and television of people who lived wholeheartedly. And at the end of our lives, we will look back and wish we had another chance to live for what really matters.

But you have a choice today. A radical life of wholehearted love for God awaits you. It's waiting for you right now. It doesn't mean you have to pack your bags and head out on the mission field. It doesn't necessarily mean you have to lead someone to Jesus today. It could be as simple as opening your heart fully to God and allowing him to fill you with his love to overflowing. Commit your life to him in full surrender today. Respond to his leadership with a continual “yes” in your heart. Give yourself to him completely that your life would be marked by a wholehearted pursuit of the perfect, pleasing and powerful plans of your heavenly Father.

Guided Prayer:

1. Take a minute to meditate on Jesus's wholehearted pursuit of you. Think about how he lived and died to make a way for relationship with you.

“In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”1 John 4:9-10

2. Now ask God to reveal to you how he wants you to live wholeheartedly today.He has a plan each day for you; one that will give you joy, passion, and peace on a whole new level you’ve yet to experience. There's more for you everyday.

3. Ask the Spirit to help you live the life God has shown you. Ask him to fill you with a desire to be obedient and wholehearted in response to God's love. Ask him to help you be aware of what he's speaking to you and to walk in full obedience to it. Take time to rest in the presence of God.

You have an enemy that has been lying to you about who you are. Satan tells us we are weak, fearful, and unable to live sold out to anything but comfort. He pinpoints our fears and flaws in attempt to keep us from responding to the call of God. But greater is he that is in you (1 John 4:4)! If God calls you to something, he has and will continue to see you through it. “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6). The Bible is full of stories of men and women who were weak and felt unprepared but chose to believe God at his word rather than give in to reservation. Whatever lie you've been told, trust God and ask him to correct it. Choose to believe God's word over that which contradicts it. And watch as his plans for you come to wholehearted fulfillment.

“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, forhe who promised is faithful.” Hebrews 10:23

Extended Reading: 1 John 4

Receiving God’s Gifts in Others..JASMINE WILLIAMS

 Receiving God’s Gifts in Others

JASMINE WILLIAMS 

“Just as each one has received a gift, use it to serve others, as good stewards of the varied grace of God.” 1 Peter 4:10 (CSB)

Last spring, we found ourselves in a muddy situation — literally.

We had unintentionally created 10 tiny ponds in our backyard and a huge safety hazard for the kids! See, my husband and I had come up with this exciting (and perhaps overly ambitious) idea to start a backyard orchard. On a whim, I ordered 10 fruit trees and started dreaming of picking my own apples.

It was a lovely dream, but in reality, we dug 10 huge holes and then didn't have enough time to finish planting. It rained so much that week that by the time we got back outside, the holes were completely filled with muddy water.

After trying unsuccessfully to scoop the water out with a 5-gallon bucket and use the hose as a siphon, my tired husband was about to head to the hardware store when I suggested he text our neighbor. We both felt a little silly about it. How often do you get a text saying, “Hey, do you have anything I can use to get water out of the huge holes in my yard?”

But he asked anyway, and to our surprise, our neighbor had the perfect solution! He’s into boats and had a pump that’s typically used to get water out of things like … well, boats. Who knew?! We sure didn’t.

For us, this was a wonderful reminder that God designed us to be in community. First Peter 4:10 says, “Just as each one has received a gift, use it to serve others, as good stewards of the varied grace of God.” I often look at verses like this and think only about my responsibility to help, but let’s consider the flip side of it: In community, we also get to be the recipients of God’s gifts in others.

There are skills, crafts and hobbies we simply do not have but someone connected to us just might. While a co-worker’s love for painting or sewing may not come to mind in all situations, it's there for us to tap into when we do need it. That’s the power of community. We don’t have to individually possess every talent or have access to every resource we may need along the way.

And God, being the good Father He is, loves when we do life with others and benefit from the blessings He’s placed in them. If I’m delighted when my kids help each other with schoolwork and chores, then God, who’s an infinitely better parent than I am, surely takes joy when we help one another.

We’re all made better by the exchange of good ideas and resources. Looking at it this way, we see our individual imperfections give us an amazing opportunity. We get to feel more complete when we thrive alongside others, filling each other's gaps when needed.

While my husband and I would’ve eventually found a way to empty those holes, our neighbor helped us do it in peace, with half the effort. In unity, we can strive less. Perhaps this is one reason Jesus said, “Take up my yoke and learn from me … and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:29-30, CSB). Being connected to Him also connects us to the greatness He has put in those who follow Him.

Dear God, show me how I can live in unity with the people You’ve purposefully put into my life. Help me to step out of my comfort zone and be a giver and receiver of the blessings You’ve placed within humanity. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

From Alienation to Reconciliation..Dr. Charles Stanley

 From Alienation to Reconciliation

Dr. Charles Stanley

2 Corinthians 5:14-21

Separation, rejection, and alienation are unpleasant experiences that we usually try to avoid at all costs. But we live in a fallen world, so we cannot totally escape them.

Isolation from other people is bad enough, but what's worse is that many individuals live apart from the heavenly Father. How tragic and futile life must be when it is spent completely detached from its Creator. God planted within each of us a desire to be in relationship with Him, so until we find our connection to Him, we will always feel that something is missing.

And yet as crucial as that relationship is to our well-being, something stands in its way: Whether by our thoughts or actions, we have all violated the Lord's commands (Rom. 3:23), and our pure, holy God cannot be in the presence of sin. Romans 6:23 states that the penalty for sin is death, which is an eternal separation from the Lord. Therefore, we will always have a void.

What a bleak outlook for mankind! But our loving Father solved the dilemma by sending His Son to pay our penalty. Fully God and fully man, Jesus lived the perfect life, took all our iniquity upon Himself, and died a gruesome death on the cross. No longer are we condemned for our wrongs, because Christ took our place. And three days later, He victoriously rose to life.

Salvation is available to anyone who believes and receives this remarkable gift. John 3:16 describes how reconciliation puts an end to our alienation: "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life."

5 Things You Should Know about God's Attributes..Mark Jones

 5 Things You Should Know about God's Attributes

 by Mark Jones

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” –James 1:17

1. God is simple.

What that means is this: God is free from all composition; He is not the sum of his parts. There is not one thing and another in God. Rather, whatever is in God, God is. He is absolute, which means that there are no distinctions within his being.

2. When we speak of his attributes, we must keep in mind that because his essence remains undivided, his goodness is his power.

Or, God’s love is his power is his eternity is his immutability is his omniscience is his goodness, and so forth. In other words, there is technically no such thing as attributes (plural) but only God’s simple, undivided essence. Why is this important? The simplicity of God helps us to understand that perfect consistency exists in God’s attributes.

3. God is infinite.

The infinity of God is sort of like a “meta-attribute,” such as simplicity, in the sense that it qualifies all the other attributes. Infinity means that there is no limit to God’s perfections. When we consider God’s attributes, we must always consider them as infinite. His infinity is a positive concept, so that we must say that his attributes are intensively and qualitatively infinite. God’s infinity is the highest sense of perfection. “Not yet finished” (or “indefinite”) is an improper way to understand infinity with regard to God. Rather, without bounds or limits or degrees, God knows infinitely and is a sphere whose center is everywhere and circumference nowhere. He is as present in our midst as he is farthest from us in the universe. Yet while he is present in one place, he is never confined to any place.

4. God is eternal.

First, his eternality is unlike the eternal state experienced by humans or angels, all of whom were created in time. Time has a beginning with succession of moments, but God has no beginning, succession of moments, or ending. God’s eternality speaks of his timeless and unchangeable (yet not static) nature. As theologians of the past have argued, the statement “Time began with the creature” rings truer than “The creature began with time.”

5. God is unchangeable.

God is what he always was and will be (James 1:17). Because of his simplicity, his eternality demands his immutability. Eternity speaks about the duration of a state, whereas immutability is the state itself. Immutability in God means not only that he does not change but also that he cannot change (Ps. 102:26).

A Prayer for Seemingly Meaningless Tasks..Ashley Moore

 A Prayer for Seemingly Meaningless Tasks

By Ashley Moore

“Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.” - Colossians 3:23, NLT

Do you struggle with believing lies? Is there a particular deceit that entangles you, trapping you on more than one occasion? For me, that lie is that what I do with my time and how I use my talents are insignificant. The things I accomplish day to day are so menial that I am wasting my time. There are more important things to do, and I am missing out on them. Then a full-blown downward spiral strikes…

I am obviously not living up to my true potential, surely a disappointment in God's eyes.
I’ve been slighted and dealt a crummy hand in life. 
My life is a waste of time.
I am a waste of time. 
The things I do don’t matter, therefore, I do not matter. 

As I look at these words in print, it's so very obvious how they contradict the Word of God. But when they float around in my mind or strike like arrows on days when I’m stressed or discouraged, I have a harder time discerning what’s true and what is a lie. Especially if the day is so very mundane, as most days seem to be. Can you relate?

Are your days full of refereeing the kids, washing dirty dishes, and keeping up with laundry? Or perhaps you click away at computer keys handling emails, calendaring events, and other administrative checklist items for someone else. Or maybe you spend your days emptying trash cans, washing windows, and completing other seemingly meaningless and monotonous tasks.

Whatever to-dos fill the minutes of your day, it can be so easy to discount and discredit the value of our contributions. And the enemy often uses this lie to cause us to doubt our value as people made in God’s image. But friend, let’s remember what God’s Word says about our significance. 

In Genesis, when God created the first humans the text says He made them in His image (Genesis 1:26). People, as God saw fit, are the only thing in the entirety of creation that was made in the image of the Almighty Himself. Because this is true, and other passages support the idea such as Psalm 139: 14, where the Psalmist praises God for making him fearfully and wonderfully, we know that before we were even born God saw and made us with great value. 

But does where and how we spend our time matter? This is where most of us can find ourselves hung up. God places less emphasis on what we do, and more on how we do these things. Yes, God cares about our hearts and our attitudes. And Scripture is clear, whatever we do is important because the things we do are an opportunity to worship the One true God. And each act of worship is a great witness to those who see us in our every day, so very normal lives.

 This is great news for us because it means God made it possible for us to proclaim the gospel to those around us while we do ordinary things. While some of us may accomplish more seemingly glamorous and visible service for the Kingdom of God, most of us will spread the good news and disciple people in the everyday moments of life by the way we incorporate an attitude of worship while we complete tasks.

The enemy is very aware of the threat we bring when we complete seemingly meaningless tasks as acts of worship based on who God says we are. So he seeks to lie, discourage, and distract us in any way he can. He convinces us we are insignificant and that the things we do don’t matter. He wants to drag as many souls away from knowing God, so he targets God’s image bearers. But remember the truth as you go about your day. Let your completion of even the most insignificant tasks be sweet offerings to the Lord that God may very well use to draw others to Himself. 

Let’s pray:

Jesus, 
Thank you for your Word that reminds me of who I am. But most importantly thank you for your Word which renews my mind with the truth of who you are and what you’ve done for me! God, you are worthy of my worship. And thank you that the tasks I do daily, from the smallest to the most important, are opportunities to witness and worship! What an honor! Lord, give your people joy in their seemingly meaningless tasks. May their worship bring them joy and draw others to you. In Jesus’ name, amen.

The Example of Christ in Our Marriage..Laura Bailey

 The Example of Christ in Our Marriage

By Laura Bailey

“To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his steps. “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.” When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.” - 1 Peter 2: 21-23 NIV

Arguments between spouses tend to be the worst kind of dispute. Jokes become jabs, slight criticisms morph into full-blown critiques, tempers escalate, and tongues go untamed. In the heat of the moment, it’s really hard to turn the other cheek and maintain our cool, pausing before we speak to ensure we don’t say something we will later regret.

Relationships, even among God’s children, are messy, and often, the more intimate the bond, the more likely we experience strife and discord. Peter understood that relationships are easily strained, especially marital relationships. Hence why he spent time encouraging and outlining how to live a godly life in our marriages, in the church, and among the world to the dispersed Christians he addressed in 1 Peter. 

Peter gives specific directions for wives to subject themselves to their husband's leadership. And husbands to show honor to their wives (1 Peter 3:1-7).  All to utilize our marital relationships as a reflection of how Christ loves broken people. So what does this look like when we are in a heated conversation with our husband or wife? He reminds them to have a marriage that honors the Lord; we should follow Christ’s example ( 1 Peter 2:21-23).

How do we follow the example of Christ in our marriages and other relationships?

1. We don’t retaliate
2. We leave judgment to God.
3. We acknowledge the sin in our lives, ask for forgiveness, and grant grace and mercy to others.

In theory, this seems pretty straightforward, but if you've been married for more than five minutes, you can agree this is easier said than done.

Sometimes, when we're hurting, we can quickly desire vengeance, bang our gavel, pronounce our offender guilty, and dole out consequences, or enact the cold shoulder. We forget to recognize how we have fallen short, been careless with our words, and been the cause of harm and hurt to others. 

Yes, we need to pray that God would work on the hearts and minds of our spouses. It's never wrong to ask the Lord to change another person's life. (That is one reason why spouses are such a gift to one another). But it is rebellion against God for us to ignore the ways we fail God and others.

When we think about the example Christ set for us, He was the Savior of the world, God’s son, yet He humbled himself and was obedient to the will of His Father. He didn’t suffer on behalf of people who deserved saving but sinners! Most of whom actively rejected Him as the Messiah. Still, as they hurled insults, persecuted him, and ultimately crucified Him in His last moments, He asked the Lord to forgive them! 

On our own, it would be impossible to demonstrate Christ’s example! But through the power of the Holy Spirit, we can choose to respond in a Christ-like way.

• We can choose silence instead of reciprocating when we’ve been hurt.
• We can forgive and work to reconcile when we’ve been wronged.
• We can pray for our spouses instead of verbally attacking them when we're in an argument.
• We can acknowledge our mistakes, openly admitting where we’ve fallen short.

Find comfort that God forgives us even when we fail to honor one another, are quick to speak and slow to listen, or judge others unfairly. We can humbly surrender our shortcomings, confess our sins, and He will provide forgiveness. He is longsuffering, His grace abundant, and mercy never-ending. 

Marriage conflicts are inevitable, discussions are necessary, and differing opinions are unavoidable. But, next time, let us keep in mind 1 Peter 4:8, “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.”

Intersecting Faith and Life:
Think about the last time your spouse and you disagreed. Keeping in mind the example of Christ, would you respond differently in the future? Pray for your spouse daily, and ask God to help you see them through His eyes. 

5 Ways to Engage More Deeply With God’s Word This Year..Britnee Bradshaw

 5 Ways to Engage More Deeply With God’s Word This Year

By Britnee Bradshaw

Today's Bible Verse: “Keep my commandments and live, And my teaching as the apple of your eye. Bind them on your fingers; Write them on the tablet of your heart.” – Proverbs 7:2-3

The wonderful thing about God’s word is that it is so powerful in changing everything about our lives! It aligns us more closely with the heart of God because He and His word are one!

I’ve created a list of 5 ways we can engage more deeply with God’s word this year so that our lives can look, feel, and be more like Christ’s. I hope this lists helps you in your personal pursuit of God’s word and that you are encouraged to engage with it more deeply this year than ever before!

1. Prioritize Quiet Time

We can’t sustain a Christian lifestyle on the scraps of a Sunday sermon, or a bible study. Being quiet before the Lord every day deepens our relationship with Him, and in turn, it strengthens our ear to hear Him speak to us. Engaging the Word of God is no good if we don’t prioritize engaging the actual person of God, and doing so on a daily basis.

2. Choose a Scripture a Day to Meditate On

After we’ve had our quiet time with the Lord, it’s very easy to go on about our day without truly meditating on what we’ve studied. To meditate means to think deeply or carefully on, or to rehearse, something for a period of time. The more we surround ourselves with God’s Word, the more it will become embedded in our hearts and the more deeply we will engage it.

3. Talk About the Word in Your Day to Day

This is probably one of my favorite ways to engage the Word of God. Incorporating it into the rhythms of our lives is, essentially, what makes us more like Christ! I love weaving Scripture into my normal routine like cooking dinner, or watching TV. There is no part of our lives that there isn’t a scripture for! We don’t have to be super deep about this either. It can be as simple as asking ourselves, “Am I cooking food that is going to help build my temple (body) and strengthen it, or is this meal going to hurt it or tear it down?” It is so easy to live by the word when we actually apply it to the regularities of our lives.

4. Flip Moments of Frustration or Anger Into Teachable Moments

Our emotions are given to us by God. And most of the time, not all, but most, we are justified in feeling the emotions we feel. What matters is how we interact with those emotions! So, when we feel frustrated or angry, we can take the emotion itself as a sign that we need to bring God’s word into the situation. This is part of being on guard, which Scripture reminds us about, but it also serves as a way to engage Scripture in the hard moments. The hard moments are some of the best times to use Scripture because it strengthens our ability to not submit to our emotions, but to submit to Christ’s lordship over our lives!

5. Invite the Holy Spirit Into Your Prayer

Prayer is our direct communication to our Heavenly Father. It’s through and by prayer that we understand who we are and what God wants us to do. It’s also through prayer that we build a beautiful relationship with Him. Sometimes, our prayers can be convoluted with our own desires for ourselves vs God’s desires for us. There’s nothing wrong with us asking for things in prayer! However, that shouldn’t be the reason we pray. We pray to know God’s will and understand what he desires, so that we can walk in that. One thing that I’ve been working to implement in my prayer life is asking the Holy Spirit to come and be an active participant. To speak to Him, and then to still my heart and mind and allow Him to speak back to me. The Holy Spirit knows all the secrets of Heaven and he reveals all things to us as he is led by the Father (1 Cor 2:10-12). He (the Holy Spirit) knows the mind of God and will help us to pray effectual prayers!

How are you engaging more deeply with God’s Word this year?