Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6

Have you ever stood in a book store and surveyed the number of books that have a number of ways to do most anything? There’s everything from 8 Minute Workouts to 8 Mindful Steps to Happiness to 7 Principles for Making a Marriage and 7 Days to Whiter Teeth. Remember Steven Covey’s,  Seven Habits of Highly Effective People? He put the words ‘proactive‘ and ‘synergize‘ on the map.

Years back, an edition of U.S. News featured on the front cover ’50 Ways to Improve Your Life ‘.  The inclusive list covered everything from flossing your teeth to enjoying a massage to joining a singing group. It seems that everybody writes or reads books that boil anything down to fewer than ten precise steps to accomplish any goal.

We live in a scientific and technological culture where people believe that every problem can be solved by applied techniques (six steps to a better whatever). How much has this way of viewing life shaped you?

Christian bookstores are not immune to this way of thinking. Notice how much it looks like the self-help section of your local secular bookstore. Whether it’s a better marriage or a stronger prayer life, there are numerous books that offer it in six or seven easy steps.

Pastors run to church growth conferences to hear the latest ‘formula‘ in however many steps the speaker may think it takes to grow their church. It all seems so right, so logical, so reasonable. They sell books like 5 Good Minutes to Change Your Spiritual Life and 100 Morning Practices to Help You Stay Calm and Focused All Day Long.

As Christians, we often think there is some magic formula out there to dramatically change us and make all of our problems go away overnight. Well, it isn’t quite that easy. Alot of self-help, spiritual and otherwise, are on the shelves of local book stores. Some contain sound advice and some are marginal, if not outright incorrect. Be careful what you load into your brain and be sure you know the core values of the author and don’t believe that a few steps practiced and applied in your life can remake you.

There is only one way and it is a one step process. Jesus said:, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me‘ (John 14:6). I suggest that if you really want to change your life this year, commit yourself to follow Him and read His Word every day.

In a world that tells us to conform, Jesus tells us to transform and to present ourselves as a living sacrifice.

So, for us all, may this be the year of transformation, the year of presentation, the year we surrender all we have to the one who holds the keys to joy, peace, and contentment. The path to that goal is daily Bible reading, committed worship, not just in church, but in all we do. May this year be the year we renew our pledge to love God more, to seek His face and His plan for our lives more clearly and to draw close to His Word each and every day.

Right now is our most exciting time ever. Last year is history. Next year lies in the future, but this is the only time we will ever have to live right now. So let’s live it to the fullest, changing our lives and changing the lives of others.

Question: What is a goal that you have for the future, and how can your goal be used to honor God?

by John Grant
used by permission

John Grant is a former Florida State Senator and is a practicing attorney

FURTHER READING

What’s on Your Mind?

The Mind of Christ

Renewed Mind

The post Precise Formulas to Fix Anything appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“Lord, you alone are my inheritance, my cup of blessing. You guard all that is mine”. Psalm 16:5

“The man who is content to sit ignorantly by his own fireside, wrapped up in his own private affairs, and has no public eye for what is going on in the church and the world, is a miserable patriot, and a poor style of Christian. Next to our Bibles and our own hearts, our Lord would have us study our own times.” J. C. Ryle, 1879.

How much is enough? When asked, John D. Rockefeller, founder of Standard Oil and one of the world’s richest men said “just a little bit more.” How much is enough money? If John Rockefeller always needed a little more will you ever have enough? And how will you know when you have enough money to make you happy?

What does the Bible say about abundance? Abundance is frequently mentioned in the Bible as something God offers to those who trust in Him. Scripture says that God will provide an abundant life to those who “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.” Abundance in this sense means a life full of everything you need to sustain yourself in joy and purpose.

It is a fatal mistake to assume that God’s goal for your life is material prosperity or popular success, as the world defines it. The abundant life has nothing to do with material abundance, and faithfulness to God does not guarantee success in any endeavour.

Unfortunately we live in a power driven, self-centered materialistic world. Prosperity and abundance is measured by power, position and possessions. On the other hand Jesus said that He came to bring abundant life.

Of course, we all want an abundant life, but what is it? It’s not about materialism. It’s about the more important things like faith, family and friends. The key to an abundant life is satisfaction and satisfaction is knowing and feeling that you have enough. Satisfaction is not always the fulfillment of what you want; it is the realization of how blessed you are for what you have.

To really have abundance and satisfaction, put first things first and the rest will follow. As St. Mathew said, “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”  (Matthew 6:33)

By John Grant
Used by Permission

John Grant is a former Florida State Senator and is a practicing attorney

FURTHER READING

Contentment -by Idelette McVicker

Abundant, Supernatural Life -by Bil Bright

The Spirit Filled Christian Life Explained

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The post The Attitude of Gratitude appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5

We can come to Jesus when we are hurting and He will soothe our pain.

We can come to Him when we are joyful and He will share our joy and multiply it many times over. In all things, at all times, we can come to Him, no matter what. He is all we need when we need it and our deepest desires find fulfillment in Him alone.

While the world says to be self-sufficient, confident and always “look out for number one,” true confidence comes from knowing that we are complete in Him. Apart from Him, we can do nothing.

The world has us looking for fulfillment and completion in all the wrong places for rewards that by comparison are minuscule compared to all he has to offer.

J. Wilbur Chapman often told of the testimony of a man in one of his evangelistic meetings. The man said

“I got off the Pennsylvania depot as a tramp. For a year I begged on the streets for a living. One day I touched a man on the shoulder and said ‘Hey Mister, can you give me a dime.’ As soon as I saw his face, I was shocked to realize that the man was my own father. I said, Father, Father, do you know me? Throwing his arm around me and with tears in his eyes, he said ‘Oh my son, at last I have found you! I’ve found you. You want a dime? Everything I have is yours.’ I was a tramp. I stood begging from my own father for ten cents, when for eighteen years he had been looking for me to give me all he had.”

That is a small picture of what God wants to do for His children. His supreme goal in bringing us to Himself is to make us like Himself by filling us with Himself, with all He is and has.

Without Him, we can do nothing, but the world tells us to look in all the wrong places for the things that ultimately do not matter. We go around begging for dimes while ignoring the riches He offers just a prayer away.

Turn to Jesus and reap riches that surpass anything on this broken and fallen world. Faith that makes a difference is faith that fixes its eyes on the ultimate rather than the immediate. We all need to learn to cultivate the eternal perspective.

By John Grant
Used by Permission
John Grant is a former Florida State Senator and is a practicing attorney

The best way to get to know God is to invite Him into your life to be the director of your life.  He will take care of all your needs. Do you want to do that right now?  You can by sincerely praying this prayer.

Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be.

Does this prayer express the desire of your heart? You can pray it right now, and Jesus Christ will come into your life, just as He promised.

Further Reading

•  Stepping Into a Personal Revival

•  Life’s Lessons can Come from Unexpected Places…

•  Salvation Explained

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The post Come to Him appeared first on Thoughts About God.