To live in God's will, and be as his deciples you have to hear his will for you.

“For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than a two edged sword, piercing even the division of souls and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is the discerner of the thoughts and of the intents of the heart." Hebrews 4:12

Living by God’s Word is choosing to live daily in His presence and subjecting ourselves to His heart. So often people say, “I don’t’ seem to hear from God. How is it that He speaks to you?” He communicates to us by His written Word the Bible. As we read the Word of God, we can expect Him to speak to our hearts and inspire us. He never fails to offer us something to hold onto, something to take with us. We can expect that He will reveal Himself to us in an extraordinary way.

Living by God’s Word cuts to the deepest parts of our souls, searches our hearts, and transforms us into His Image. His Word is truly living, powerful and full of promise: “So shall My Word be that goes forth from My mouth it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing that I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11 )

God will accomplish great things. His desire is to transform us and bring out the best in us. But in order to do so, we must surrender our lives to Him. As we daily live by His Word the Lords character will be developed in us. As you devote your heart to “Live by His Word.” This will lead to a radical change in our outlook and actions, and we will bear the image of God’s Son Jesus Christ. Lately I have found myself falling into the human dis pair and troubled thoughts, I like everyone will do this from time to time. I get advice from friends and family as well, which in return just add to my confusion and frustration. I have to take a deep breath then I just grab my bible and start to read, and listen to God's will for me and for my life. I have to meditate on his word and know that it isn't my will, or my families will, or my friends will be done, but his. I have to remind myself it is all in "God's" time, Not mine. He knows my hearts desires, and as his child I will listen and follow his will. This is my readings for the week and a break down so to speak to help on this race we all are in, we need to remember we have to finish it only according to his will.

Blessings always,

Misty

Hear and obey his commands

"So the disciples went and did as Jesus commanded them." Matthew 21:6

"Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, 'If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.'" John 8:31-32

"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." John 13:34-35

Follow God's Word and ways

"... seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. Then He opened His mouth and taught them." Matthew 5:1-2

"He spoke a parable to them: 'Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into the ditch? A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher." Luke 6:39-40

"He said to His disciples, 'Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on. Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing." Luke 12:22-23

Know and love Jesus

"He turned and said to them, 'If anyone comes to Me land does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it.... So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple." Luke 14:25-33

"Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him. And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves. But He was asleep. Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, Lord, save us! We are perishing! But He said to them, 'Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?' Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. So the men marveled, saying, 'Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?" Matthew 8:23-27

"He asked His disciples, saying, 'Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?' So they said, 'Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.'
"He said to them, 'But who do you say that I am?' Simon Peter answered and said, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.' Jesus answered and said to him, 'Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.'" Matthew 16:13-17

"Jesus called His disciples to Him and said to them, 'I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat. And if I send them away hungry to their own houses, they will faint on the way; for some of them have come from afar.'..." Mark 8:1-4

"...their scribes and the Pharisees complained against His disciples, saying, 'Why do You eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”
"Jesus answered and said to them, Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance." Luke 5:30-32

Abide in Him

"I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.
"As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full." John 15:5-10

"....according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain." Philippians 1:20-21

"Continue in prayer"

"...we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God." Romans 8:26-27

"Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." Hebrews 4:14-16

"Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him." 1 John 5:14-15

"When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow. Then He said to them, 'Why do you sleep? Rise and spray, lest you enter into temptation.'" Luke 22:45 [More on Prayer]

Are commission to serve wherever He sends them

"...when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, 'Peace be with you.' When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.
"So Jesus said to them again, 'Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.' And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit.'" John 20:19- 23

"I now send you, to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.'" Acts 26:17-18

"Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. And He said to them, 'Take nothing for the journey, neither staffs nor bag nor bread nor money; and do not have two tunics apiece." Luke 9:1-3

"... the word of God spread, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were obedient to the faith." Acts 6:7

Encourage each other in the faith

After he had spent some time there, he departed and went over the region of Galatia and Phrygia in order, strengthening all the disciples." Acts 18:23....

"Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures, came to Ephesus. This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord, though he knew only the baptism of John. So he began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. ... He greatly helped those who had believed through grace; for he vigorously refuted the Jews publicly, showing from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ." Acts 18:24-27

Are prepared for challenges to their faith

"Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves. Therefore watch, and remember that for three years I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with tears." Acts 20:30-31

"He said to the disciples, 'The days will come when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. And they will say to you, ‘Look here!’ or ‘Look there!’ Do not go after them or follow them." Luke 17:22-23

"Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, 'Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?'
"He answered and said to them, 'Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’" Mark 7:4-7

"He began to say to His disciples first of all, 'Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known. ... And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!" Luke 12:1- 5

"He said to His disciples, 'Beware of the scribes, who desire to go around in long robes, love greetings in the marketplaces, the best seats in the synagogues, and the best places at feasts, who devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. These will receive greater condemnation.”" Luke 20:45-47

Speak truth that separate the true disciples from pretenders

"And He said, 'Therefore 'I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father.' From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.
"Then Jesus said to the twelve, 'Do you also want to go away?'
"But Simon Peter answered Him, 'Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.'" John 6:60-68

"His disciples asked Him, saying, 'What does this parable mean?' And He said, 'To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that ‘Seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.'" Luke 8:9-10

"He turned to His disciples and said privately, 'Blessed are the eyes which see the things you see; for I tell you that many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see, and have not seen it, and to hear what you hear, and have not heard it." Luke 10:23-24

Obey their Master

"....to him the Lord said in a vision, 'Ananias.' And he said, 'Here I am, Lord.' So the Lord said to him, 'Arise and go to the street called Straight, and inquire at the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus, for behold, he is praying. 'And in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him, so that he might receive his sight.'
"Then Ananias answered, 'Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on Your name.'
"But the Lord said to him, 'Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name's sake.' And Ananias went his way." Acts 9:10-17

"....the word of the Lord was being spread throughout all the region. But the Jews stirred up the devout and prominent women and the chief men of the city, raised up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region. But they shook off the dust from their feet against them, and came to Iconium. And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit." Acts 13:49-52

"...we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed... perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed — always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body." 2 Corinthians 4:7-10

“But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.“ Acts 20:24

Living For Christ Versus Christ Living Trough Us

It is not your living for God but letting God live trough you that will enable you live a successful Christian life. See more!

Not really perceiving and understanding this fact –that we can’t truly live for God unless we let God live trough us- leads to a mentality based on performance, therefore it is an outward motivation, a legalist thinking and all the constrictions that come along this line.

Let’s take an example of most Christians’ lives today: go to church, sing in the choir, give to the poor, tell about God’s salvation to other people, dress the proper way and so on. All these are not bad things in themselves but have become a habit or a normality that you have to live up to if you want to be accepted in church.

Can an atheist come and do the same? Of course he can! He can be good to the poor he can come to the church every Sunday, can sing in the choir and all that! What then differentiates someone who has learnt to live like this but does not genuinely love God?

Sometimes we don’t even realize that all this church activism is done just to be accepted by other fellows and has nothing to do with the love of God for us. In the back of our minds many of us think "if I do this, God is going to love me more! If I fast more, God is going to accept me more, if I give money God will love me even more" and so on. Well, even if I was taught that salvation is not earn by my good deeds, somehow because I heard that I have to do something for God, to strive to do my best, I did that but it is only after a long time that I realized I have mixed the love for God with a certain duty I had to accomplish and when I did all these things I thought God would say"Well done my child" and this way I would earn more favor with God.

When we think like that the next step is to feel this quilt inside because you did not do more or better as there’s always room for more and there’s always room for improvement. And God knows you could have done better and more! Do you see here the condemning attitude? Well, guess what? Next time you will do more and better but … all this circle does is to improve performance and to create competition. The end of the circle is when you bump your head against the wall and realize that all your best efforts can’t help you live a life of victory.

I did bump my had against this wall, thank God! It was then when I woke up and realized that I was still trusting myself for a certain percentage, trusting that I could live for God. However, in His kindness and love for me, God showed me that it was not a matter of outside rules and sets of principles but it was a heart matter. Did I love God or not?

I understood step by step that I was so legalistic in my approach to people and God that I still have to carefully examine myself to get rid of this because I am sure I have lots of legalistic things in my life. However, I realized that to really live a life for God, the motivation has to come as a response to God’s love for me and me grasping to the best of my ability that God loves me infinitely already regardless of my fasting, my tithing etc. I can’t earn more of His love by doing all this things! He already loves me but when I fast, it is my heart that opens more, it is my heart that comes to a place where I can receive more of God’s infinite love.

An old lady once said:"I think that the people who follow God for fear of hell (and not out of love for Him), they’ll end up in hell anyway." I don’t want to say that this is necessarily so, but I want to point out that it is until recently that I have come to know that Jesus did not just die so that we would have our sins forgiven thus escaping hell. He died to offer us eternal life and eternal life means knowing God and His Son Jesus Christ. It is so much more than a free ticket to Heaven! Of course to go to Heaven is great (may we all get there!) but God offers eternal life now and here in this life! You don’t have to wait to get to Heaven and only then start to know God! He is very much alive here and now!

Therefore don’t wait, read the Bible, let it sink inside your mind and heart, think, meditate on it and apply it every day of your life; know that God’s love is unconditional and you’ll fall in love with God. Once you fall in love with God, nothing else, no other joy can compare to the joy of knowing God. It is like an addiction and you want a bigger and a bigger dose each day.

When you understand how much you are loved, when you let God pour this love upon you it is only than that you can do all the other things (like fasting, praying, going to the church and any other thing) with the right motivation. It is then when you stop comparing your achievements and it is then when you serve God most in every little detail.