christlike

So You Are Spiritual…Great, Whose Spirit Do You Follow?

Dr. Mike Kingdom Paradigms , , , , ,

One of the most often cultural feedback’s I get now-a-days from those who are seeking God is “I’m not into religion; I’m into spirituality.” When that phrase comes at me look out, I get overly excited. Excited because either the Spirit is working in the mind of the person who communicates that message to me or excited because I have just met someone who understands the limitations of religion and may be open to something much greater.

My first reply is generally a question that goes something like this: “great, so am I; tell me, whose Spirit do you follow?”
Depending on the reply, we have multiple options to choose in the process of developing a relationship with a future adoptive child of God. Generally, we get several different types of responses. We may get anything from “I follow Jesus Christ through the leadership of the Holy Spirit” to “I study the movement of the stars in relationship with my pet snake under a red moon.” Most often the comments come somewhere in between Yet it allows me to start building a relationship that opens an avenue to witness Christ and His Spirit with others.
Also, when over time one learns how to translate scriptures into a modern, practical, everyday message, it allows one to share the gospel in a multitude of non-religious means. For example, when others are open to the spiritual world, it is easier to explain the importance of being influenced by the most powerful Spirit rather than accept any spirit. This is where it is fun to share one’s life that has been transformed from the inside-out by the Holy Spirit and allow the real love, joy, and peace that comes from such a heavenly relationship touch those whom you have a bond in place. By isolating which spirit the other person is attuned too, allows one to boast of the real fruit that the Holy Spirit generates through the Body of Christ. As a believer and faith monger, we all have stories and examples to share of people who have made the transition from a dead spirit to a living, Godly Spirit.

So next time someone says that they are into spirituality, jump at the chance to share with them your walk with the best Spirit of them all: the Holy Spirit.

OUR PRAYER

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Holy Spirit, Holy Lord, and Holy Father – thank you for your consistent involvement in our life. Thank you for your pursuit of us and your desire to abide in us. Help us to share you with others. Help us with witnessing to others and if necessary, help us with the proper words to use. Let you love and joy express itself through us. Help us to desist and you to engage the people we come into contact with each and every day. Let everything we do glorify you and your work in the world today. Amen.

Yours In Christ,

Dr. Mike

Consultant, Coach, Encourager
Author of Great Business Emulates A Good God
Portal: EnjoyLifeInChrist.com

If You Are Seeking a Devotional Study, Check Out My New Book Be Radical…Follow Christ.

How Do Idols Hurt You?

Dr. Mike Kingdom Paradigms , , , , , ,

When God gave the Ten Commandments to Moses He gave specific instructions that would benefit humanity. One of those instructions was to refrain from worshiping idols; or as the Bible emphatically states “You shall have no other gods before me”[Deuteronomy 5:6-8].

Now some of us may think that God is a jealous Being who does not tolerate us worshiping someone more than Him. Some may look at that commandment from a religious aspect which means it is what I have to do to receive blessings from God. Others may look at it strictly from an obedience view which emphasizes we only do it without contemplating the impact toward others. We even search the Bible which demonstrates what happens to a people when these instructions are ignored. In other circles, God is believed to be an ego centrist Being that wants total domination over His creation along with total adherence to all the rules so He may better control us.

The plain truth of the matter is that God realizes if we don’t have a direct relationship with Him, we are then living and pursuing a lie that eventually hurts ourselves and the people around us. Instead of dealing with reality, idols drown us to live in a fantasy that will boomerang and hit us on the side of the head when we least expect it. Typically, it is a false, short term substitute.

For the record, idols are basically anything that comes between you and God. It is what we believe we want now and cannot wait for God’s timetable. It becomes our main focus, drive, and passion that we worship and adore it instead of the living God. Typically it is the false illusion of temporary satisfying our inner desires. It is something that has a hold of our heart and doesn’t allow the Triune God to lead the way. The end result leads to treading outside of His Will. When we live outside of His Will, we are on our own. Yes it may work out for the short term; and yes you may even blossom from it for the short term. But eventually the sour taste of sin and godliness will emerge. The outcome will not be as fully rich and abundant for all stakeholders as you initially thought.

Many of us eventually learn that idols are a poor substitution for the Triune God. We come to the place that the more we seek to walk with the real God, the stronger our faith becomes and the less we need idols in our life to provide the temporary pleasures and escapes that we seek. We become like the Thessalonians that Paul writes about in Chapter 1:9 “… and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God.” Like these Thessalonians, when one places the true God as the center and priority in everything we do, idols lose their luster and sway. The sooner one learns which idols are hurting the self, the sooner one discovers the intimate and enriching personal relationship one has with the Triune God.

So, what idols are preventing you from walking in step with the Spirit? What are you going to do about it?

OUR PRAYER

PRAY 8

Holy Father, Holy Lord, and Holy Spirit: Thank you for revealing yourself to us. Thank you for pursuing us until we caught you. Thank you for opening our minds to understand the riches of your ways. Thank you for everything you do.

Help us to always aim our heart, mind, body, and soul toward you, your church, and your Kingdom. Help us to identify the idols in our lives and eradicate them out of our life. If possible, help us simply to place you ahead of our gods and submit our gods into your hands for your cleansing. You know what brings joy into our life. Bless us with your favor. Bless us for your name’s sake.

Yours In Christ,

Dr. Mike

Consultant, Coach, Encourager
Author of Great Business Emulates A Good God

If You Are Seeking a Devotional Study, Check Out My New Book Be Radical…Follow Christ.

Religiosity

Dr. Mike Kingdom Paradigms , , , , ,

When one reviews the pages of the Bible focusing on relationships, it seems the people who God had the greatest animosity against are “religious people.” From the Old Testament patriarchs to the New Testament saints, people who seemed to get God’s emotions to tilt are religious people preventing others from having an authentic, meaningful relationship with Him.

religion 1

Jesus’ encounter with the Pharisees is a prime example. “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in.” [Matt. 23:13 ESV] Jesus explodes with a verbal assault aimed directly at the Pharisees. They had become so self-righteous that they maintained a form of religion, but lack the power and love of God with it. They blinded themselves with a humanistic show of piety but the heart didn’t know God. They acted the part in form, but lacked the internal substance of genuine love. Whereas King David was a man after God’s own heart [Acts 13:22], the Pharisees were men after their idol’s heart.

The apostle Paul wrote in Romans 16:18 “For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.” Throughout Paul’s ministry the struggle was with people who were deceived into believing an idol rather than the true God. For whatever one set’s their heart after that is not our Triune God is pursuing what the Bible defines as an idol; and idols have their followers and supporters.

Religiosity is simply the idol of mystical performance that looks sacred from the outside-in, but lacks the Spirit-filled heart that knows God and walks with God from the inside-out. Religiosity is the friend of humanism. It is designed to make man feel good, look good, and for a moment experience good. But the end result is another deceptive lie.

Jesus spoke about having a deep, meaningful relationship with Him. He didn’t act religious because God’s way involves being adopted into a family, a community, and a government built from the center of God’s heart, It is about everyday life; not a one-hour religious experience. It is expressing the love of God with your family members, work associates, and neighbors. The unity is not found in a bunch of do’s and don’ts [Col. 2:20], but in the Spirit of God within each person.

At the end of the day, one finds having a relationship with Jesus Christ is an adventurous journey through life with all the excitement of a Hollywood blockbuster movie. The difference though is you are not a spectator but a active participant in the plot and storyline. He assigns you a role that you were specifically designed to live and equips you for its fulfillment. It’s about everyday life: eating, sleeping, working, playing, dancing, singing, writing, loving and yes leading and serving others. When one discovers and experiences it, one quickly understands why Jesus became angry with the religious people of His day. You may want to take a hard look at oneself and ask in prayer: what religious games can I stop playing so we may draw closer to the living God?

OUR PRAYER

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Our Holy Father – Holy Lord – Holy Spirit: thank you for your honest feedback and merciful grace that strips us from our prideful acts of religious superiority. Thank you for making your home in us and patiently opening our eyes to see and ears to hear your wonderful life. Thank you for sharing your creation and your purpose and your plans with us.

Help us always to be authentic, honest, and generous to the people we meet. Help us to desist and you to exhibit your great power and love in us and through us. Let us not become a stumbling block for anyone but help us to lead and serve others in love with you. If they don’t know you, help us to gently and persuasively point them to you. Let your Spirit glow in the lives of your church.

Let everything we say, think, and do be done so in the love of Christ for the glory of Christ by the power of Christ.

Yours In Christ,

Dr. Mike

Consultant, Coach, Encourager
Author of Great Business Emulates A Good God

If You Are Seeking a Devotional Study, Check Out My New Book Be Radical…Follow Christ.