January 22, 2019

My Devotion

My Heart

Transformed

Teresa Jenkins

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 2Corinthians 5:17

Transform: verb, make a thorough or dramatic change in the form, appearance or character.

Being created in the womb is like the born again transformation.  The seed entered the egg, for nine months a tiny embryo transforms into a baby, what started out unnoticeable and for weeks sometimes longer no one noticed.  Then at the appointed time the baby is born, and transformation continues.  We don’t reenter our mother’s womb, but we do go through growing pains.  If anyone accepts Christ, he/she is a new creation. 

It took me years to stop expecting the new creation of me to be like God creating the world in six days.  It’s a slow work in progress and sometimes it hurts like pulling a tooth without sedation.  I don’t know about you, but I avoid pain if at all possible which results in frustration when I don’t at all feel like a new creation at all sometimes. 

Transformation takes time, it takes change, and it takes work.  The old person has gone, no longer lost and is a new creation in Christ, but old habits, thoughts, and feelings are hard to get rid of.  They are weaved in like needlepoint threads crossing each other so intricately they knot together making it impossible to take out.  I’ve created a few needlepoint projects and no matter how careful you are when you mess up, but don’t notice it until a few rows later, you might as well get out the scissors and cut out all the thread until you get to the error you made.  No salvaging all that thread to use again, and the chance that the thread store has the exact same color you started with aren’t very good.

The new has come!  Now what? Work.  We stop the process of God’s work in us all the time. The way we think, behave, speak, everything about us has deep roots of a lifetime of doing nothing, like a beautiful garden gets swallows up in weeds, vines, and ugliness when it’s not cared for over a long period of time. 

I wonder if that is why God called His people of the Old Testament, stiff-necked. God took care of them at every turn, but so many times His plan had to wait for them because they didn’t like the new way, they wanted what they complained about for generations in Egypt.  How could they?  God’s way was much better.  We are just like them.  They didn’t understand what God was doing, where they were going, or what He had promised them even looked like.  Neither do we, that’s the reason, we live by faith not by sight.  Some of what is to come won’t be easy and if we knew what that was, would we follow?

Transformation is hard work, in order to be who God created us to be requires us to abandon what we know, how we were before Christ and become like Him in every way possible.  That means self has to be crucified.  Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Galatians 5:24

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.  The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. Galatians 2:20

So now, the work to stop with the old and live in the new…Be transformed.  It’s all in the mind, changing the way we think, get rid of the thoughts that play on automatic replay, a total cleaning of old thoughts and habits and embracing the new, the mind of Christ. Jesus did His part He died on the cross, was resurrected, and reigns at the right hand of the Father.  Romans 12:2 is all about what we must do to crucify self every day.  It won’t be easy, but all things are possible now to those who believe.

The pattern of this world is all about self, the total opposite of Christ who gave Himself for all, and now that we have accepted Him, not only are we His, but His power resides in us and we have no excuse not to be transformed.  Change the way you think, it changes the way you are, the way you live, and the less of you and the more of Christ comes through.

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will.  Romans 12:2

In HIS Time

Teresa

January 20, 2019

My Devotion

My Heart

Pray, and then Keep Praying

Teresa Jenkins

Jesus told His disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.  Luke 18:1

The parable:  In a certain town there was a judge who did not fear God, or cared about men and a widow in that town who kept coming to him with a plea “Grant me justice against my adversary.”  For a long time he refused to help her, but finally he thought, “Even though I don’t fear God or care about men, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see she gets justice so she won’t wear me out with her coming.”  Then the unjust judge said, “Will not God bring about justice for His chosen ones, who cry out to Him day and night?  Will He keep putting them off?  I tell you, He will see that they get justice quickly.” (Luke 18:2-8)

I believe in prayer, I’ve seen it work, I’ve seen God answer prayers, but I confess I have not always understood prayer (and in some ways still don’t).  I’ve been intimidated when it comes to prayer, not sure how to pray, not sure what to ask God for, not sure what to say.  I would evaluate my requests, before I prayed checking for validity in my request, “is what I’m asking for the right thing to ask for?”.  Then there was the other side, believing God would hear or even answer my prayer.  It was so hard to fight off doubt.  Those of us with a pessimist nature, believe and practice, if I don’t get my hopes up I won’t be as disappointed and if the request is granted, then “Hurray!  All is great!”  It’s a never ending cycle that almost every time, silenced me from praying at all. 

Prayer is a very important part of Christianity.  It is a privilege, because it is our direct communication with God.  Jesus all through His ministry modeled prayer, taught His disciples about prayer, and left them instructions to pray about everything.  Mark 9 tells about the time the disciples could not drive out a spirit that made the boy deaf and mute since childhood.  Jesus rebuked the “deaf and mute spirit” and commanded it to come out of him never to enter again.  Later when Jesus had gone indoors, His disciples ask why they couldn’t drive it out.  Jesus replied, “This kind can only come out by prayer.”

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  Philippians 4:4  One of my favorite verses on prayer.  Take away all your questions, your doubts, your fears about praying and just talk to God, turn to Him when you wake up, speak to Him, all day whisper, thanks, help, and peace.  God knows your heart and if there is any unclean thing there, He will wash it away, when we ask for His forgiveness, He is faithful and just to forgive and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  As children of God we have a deep desire to be good, to do good, and God’s grace and mercy helps us where we are weak, it’s in those quiet moments when we come to Him in prayer, pouring out our all our pain, fears, and struggles to Him, He takes them and in HIS time works them all out for good and to His glory.  It is our lives that we reflect His glory through His answers to our prayers.  Those impossible moments in our lives that we literally think we aren’t going to make it through, the anxiety and weight of our situation is going to be the end of us, and then God, when it seemed like it was just in time was actually right on time, answered our prayer exactly as it should have been answered, and even better than we even imagined.

I challenged myself to pray more, not those canned prayers, first say this, then that and then finish, amen.  I’m still working on it and making progress, and pressing on toward the goal:  Be joyful always; pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. …May God Himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through.  May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.  The one who calls you is faithful and He will do it.  1Thessalonians 5:16-18, 23-24

In the most recent (still ongoing) situation, I surrendered to praying, following Jesus’ teaching on how to pray, acknowledging who God is, my Father in Heaven, Hallowed be Your name, Thy will be done…thanking Him for what He would do, all the while knowing it wasn’t going to be easy to watch or endure, but knowing as well the outcome would be good.  From the beginning my prayers started going up with “Thy will be done,” God began to move and I could see His movement.  There was no doubt it was God.  God worked on two people through this situation, the one I prayed for and me.    

Go on, pray, and then keep praying. God is for you. He is a good, good Father.

Prayer Continues

My Devotion

My Heart

Prayer Continues

Teresa Jenkins

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.  1Thessalonians 5:16-18

Rejoice in the Lord always.  I will say it again: Rejoice!  Let your gentleness be evident to all.  The Lord is near.  Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your heart and your minds in Christ Jesus.  Finally, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or worthy of praise—think about such things.  Whatever you have learned from or received or heard from me, or seen in my—put it into practice.  And the God of peace will be with you.  Philippians 4:4-9

Surviving the fire of disappointment, hurt, and bad circumstances, calls for great joy and celebration.  I would like to say that my faith never waivers through the storms, that I am always joyful in trials that come my way. I fall short in the instructions above.  I made it through, prayers were answered, signs of change are appearing dimly at this moment, but God proves His faithfulness once more.  For days and weeks I went through the unknown with only my weak faith to hold on to.  The size of a mustard seed is all I had, packed with all that God has brought me through my whole life.

Be full of joy: When times are hard and the unknown is looming like a cloud over you joyful is non-existent with maybe a little here or there.  That’s when we fight the fear, the anxiety, the doubt and bring to mind thoughts worthy of thinking about, and doing what you know to do.  Think about all the times God has already brought you through, even in those times we barely acknowledge Him.  He was always there working things out for our good, bringing the things into our life to fulfill the plan He has for us.  What about the times we never even knew what He was doing?  Those are the thoughts we begin with, those are the things that helps our joy to grow.

Pray all the time for all things:  Good times or bad times, pray.  When life is going relatively smoothly or even great pray giving thanks.  When the battle is on; pray giving thanks.  Present your requests to God.  With prayer and petition present your need.  Petition, that one always confused me, petition is a request signed by as many people as possible to bring about change or grant any kind of need.  Paul is teaching us here to get other believers, to pray about your need or problem, to agree with us in prayer. “Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven.  For where two or three come together in my name, there I am with them.” Matthew 18:19-20  Which I did, and so many of the people I asked to pray, could empathize because they had been where I am and that gave me peace more than I knew possible.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.  2Corinthians 1:3-4

Though I have been on an emotional roller coaster ride at the end of 2018, this time was different.  Every day tears would wail up and flow down my cheeks not because I didn’t believe, but because my heart hurt so badly for the circumstance I was in.  Even in the tears I felt the peace that passes understanding always with me.  Waking up from a bad dream my first words were “no bad thing.”  My broken heart knew God was with me and right in the middle of the problem working all things together.  I put it all in God’s hands and tearfully let go not knowing the outcome.  God is still at work, and I prayerfully follow His lead, giving thanks for the gifts and blessings I do not even know what they are yet.

God has taught me so much through this most recent trial, all of which He’s tried to teach me before, finally I took that step in faith to learn it.  We don’t have to have God prove His love to us, if He never did anything more than Jesus, that is enough, but God lavishes His love on us every single day. 

I’ve learned how to pray for God’s will, not my will and things turn out so much better than I can imagine. (Ephesians 3:20) I’ve learned to walk in the dark room and let Him lead me out.  (2Corinthians 5:7) I’ve learned that even through the tears there is joy and the benefit to Rejoice in the Lord always. (Psalm 30:5b)  It’s ok, no matter how big or small the need, God wants to be the solution. (Phil. 4:6)  I’ve also learned that the joy of the Lord is my strength.  (Nehemiah 8:10)

God’s life for us is abundant and no matter the season, no matter the trial, no matter the goodness we experience, God’s love and faithfulness to us never ends, but abounds more and more.  With God all things are possible.  Give thanks and praise for what He has done and what He is going to do, then testify so that all may know the gift through Jesus.

In HIS Time
Teresa