A DISCIPLE’S PRAYER
Our Awesome Heavenly Dad:
All glory, honor, and worship belong to you. You are greater than we can even imagine. Our small glimpse of you makes us shudder in how
awesome you truly are. You created everything that is in existence. You keep everything in order throughout the universe. You have a time table that you move history through its pages. You are One Awesome Being.
Let your greatness always be magnified in our life. Help us see your greatness in every aspect of this life. Hide nothing from us. Let us learn about you and teach you to others. Reveal your truths to us. Reveal your creation to us. Reveal your plan of salvation to us. Reveal your glory to us.
Help those who are searching for you. Help them find you. Open the doors to your kingdom for them. Let everyone enter. Let everyone see your awesomeness. Hide nothing from us but let you glory be praised throughout the nations.
Help us be your faithful child in the Lord. Let us be the apple of your eye. Grant us your favorite blessings. Shower upon us your richly treasures. Hold back nothing of you to us. In return, help us share you and your riches with others. Help us always to glorify you before others.
You are our God. You are our Creator. You are our Provider. Thank you for making all this possible Jesus. Amen.
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TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
“Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we witnessed against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.” 1 Corinthians 15:12-19 NAS
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Are You in Good Hands with God’s Plan?
Heaven and earth united for eternity. The Kingdom of God in all its fullness. If there is no resurrection, no future life after death, than have we been a fool in living this way? What assurance do we have that the plain teachings of the Bible are going to happen? What does the future hold?
I think we have all asked ourselves the above questions at one time or another. The answer of course always goes back to the beginning. Is there a God? If there is no God, than let’s party. Let’s live and let live. Anything goes. Who cares about anything but getting what’s best for me now. Anyhow, anyway, anywhere, anything and everything goes IF there is no God.
Or on the other hand, if there is a God, we better fear. We better seek out what He is all about. We better find out what He expects from each one of us. All these thoughts have entered my mind at one time or another. Thankfully, God reveals Himself through the Bible, through creation, through the lives of other people, and through life’s experiences.
If creation was a happen chance, so are we. But on the other hand, if creation was a planned activity, doesn’t that mean you and I are a part of that plan? Which is easier to believe? The bottom line is if creation was a planned activity, than it requires a planner. And that planner must be One Awesome Being to pull it all off. I believe that is what scares those who find it difficult to have faith in a Creator. Because if there is a Creator, than we all are only small dudes with someone larger than ourselves that we may be accountable to in life.
If the Bible is not God’s working manual for mankind, than it’s the second greatest con job of all time (Jesus’ resurrection would be the first). However when you read it, you find quotes from God Himself. And these quotes are challenging us to exercise trust in Him; quotes that are giving us a choice of lifestyle that would benefit us individually and collectively; quotes that are directed to us personally to prove Him. And when you take Him up on His challenge, you begin to experience radical changes in your life that is described throughout the Bible. You begin to realize that God uses the Bible to reveal Himself to us and to help us know Him better. It points us to having a relationship with the Greatest Dad of all; a heavenly Father that is good and wonderful to all; a God who reveals Himself as the Creator of all and cares about His creation.
Doesn’t the Bible already reveal all that we need to know at this time about our future? A future with Christ for all eternity. If there were no other people involved in this adventurous journey of transformation in Christ, than I could easily see doubts arise in my own walk with the Lord. However, when one is a witness to the internal, spiritual transformation in people’s lives, than it reassures me that what we are living through is for real. When I discuss the internal struggles with others and they understand me, than I find it reassuring that I’m not going crazy. That this Christian life is for real, and the experiences, struggles, hopes, and joys are not something strange but the realization of walking with a living God. The bond and unity you experience in sharing yourself in a small group or in a congregational worship service reassures me that God is alive and living in the lives of those that have fully acknowledged Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Likewise, when I read the classical writings of the saints from yesterday and thoroughly relate to their everyday struggles, hopes and faith, it again reassures me that my walk is not something new, but the way it has been from the very beginning. It is the way God reveals Himself to us and builds His masterpiece – the invisible, universal Church.
If my experiences through life were all disappointments, then I probably would question my walk with the Lord. However, there has been much joy in witnessing the power of God in one’s life. From answered prayer, to blessings of joy, God has extended His unmerited grace and favor upon me. Even if I didn’t live in America with all its physical trappings of abundance, 1 believe that God would have still showered upon us His grace and blessings that only a Believer really understands. Yet, I am very thankful that my earthly dad persuaded my mother to come live in America. It makes the Christian walk more challenging in many ways that our brothers and sisters in other countries can’t even phantom. For it allows us to experience facets of the good life and see the abundance of God’s wealth and leads us to a better comparison of the physical wealth with God’s spiritual riches. We are constantly tested to choose between the two. It allows us to practice self-control that people in other countries can’t even imagine.
The Christian in America does have a different challenge than many of our brothers and sisters in third-world countries can’t even imagine. We are privileged to learn how best to manage our wealth for the betterment of others. Many of us are challenged to learn how not to indulge ourselves at every meal. We eventually learn that blessings are not just a physical matter. In many ways, physical blessing could become a curse. The real riches of life are found in the spiritual treasures that God gives to those who truly yield themselves in heartfelt obedience to Him. And to experience the Giver with all His riches is truly the greatest high this life has to offer. I am very thankful that He has included me to live a life as a disciple of His!
What about you?
In Christ,
Dr. Mike
“Many are called” refers to the millions who have heard the message of the kingdom of God and to have an intimate relationship with our Heavenly Dad. “But few are chosen,” means that not all who are called are allowed to take part in the entire Christian celebration because they are not properly clothed with the righteousness of Jesus Christ. The wedding garment pictures the righteousness that comes outside of our keeping the law which includes any work or activity that we do to make ourselves right before God. When we realize what the entire sacrifice of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection truly means, we humbly accept His authority into our life. Yet to totally surrender your life to Jesus, to trust in His salvation takes faith and a personal commitment to keep moving forward no matter what happens in the process. Jesus Himself stated that no person who looks back at what he has given up for the kingdom of God is worthy to accept His calling (Luke 9:62).
