Dear Friends,
At this time, myself as well as many others have embarked on a 21 day fast. The purpose of this fast is not merely to go without food, but to set aside the FIRST part of the year to pray, aligning ourselves with God so that we can follow His plans for us in 2024. This is a powerful act of faith. By putting the Lord and His priorities above our own, we in turn receive more of His favor, a deeper contentment, satisfaction and joy in life! And even though we are not exempt from difficulties, the Lord strengthens us and keeps us focused as go through our troubles.
Aligning ourselves with God is what it means to “follow” Him. I assure you there are more benefits in serving the Lord than I could include in these pages! Personally, I think one of my favorite rewards in walking with the Lord is that He eradicates fear from my life. For many years I have enjoyed the kind of peace where I am not tormented by the past, anxious in the present or afraid of tomorrow and beyond. If you’ve ever wrestled with worry or anxiety, you know that having this kind of calm assurance in your heart and mind is PRICELESS. It is beyond the price of pills and potions—it is more precious than all the gold in this world. And it is free to all who will abandon their own (unsuccessful) efforts of trying to hold their lives together! Peace is a precious gift that is given in exchange for relinquishing control of the life that was never working in the first place!
I love the way The Passion Translation describes Jesus’s purpose and mission: He said in John 10:9-10… “I am the Gateway. to enter through me is to experience life, freedom, and satisfaction. A thief has only one thing in mind—he wants to steal, slaughter, and destroy. But I have come to give you everything in abundance, more than you expect—life in its fullness until you overflow!”
Friends, this is what life looks like for the true followers of Jesus! This is what you can expect when you abandon your own opinions and ways of living to follow (emulate and imitate) the behavior and thinking of Jesus! He will uphold your life and fill you to overflowing with His goodness!
In the following pages we’ll look a little deeper into what it means to “Follow the Lord”. I pray these entries will help you in either changing your course in life, or in experiencing greater fruitfulness in your walk with God. As you make it your aim to put God first in your life, may you enjoy all the wonderful things He has planned for you this year!
In His Loving Name,
Life With Father Ministries
WALK WITH ME!
“Can two people walk together without agreeing on the direction?” Amos 3:3 (NLT)
The prophet Amos asks this rhetorical question to which the answer “No” – it’s impossible to walk down the same path with someone else without mutually agreeing on the direction and destination! What this means for us in life is that if we’ve made some wrong decisions, we can always change course and begin doing things HIS WAY, while reaping the wonderful benefits that come from living a life that is pleasing to Him!
You see, everyone desires to live a successful life but most of us don’t know how to get there! So, who knows the way of finding and enjoying real, satisfying LIFE?? Certainly the Author of all Life knows the way! And He is ready, even eager to show it to us if we will but listen and obey Him!
Like Amos 3:3 states, we must agree with Him about some things if we want to move forward into His blessed life. What this means is that if God points out something in our lives such as a bad attitude or character trait, or in the way we treat others that is not pleasing to Him, then we need to repent (change the way we think and act) asking His forgiveness and if necessary, the forgiveness of others.
David prayed in Psalm 139:23-24 saying, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life. (NLT)
The ways of God are not complicated—even children can understand them! It is only when we make excuses for our sins, cover them up or deny they are there that things go poorly for us! The best thing to do is to be open and honest with the Lord! Listen to the Lord pleading with us to change our ways in Isaiah 1:18-19: “Come now, let’s settle this,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool. If you will only obey me, you will have plenty to eat.” (NLT)
What a wonderful future belongs to those who will look to the Lord for help and follow (obey) His directions in life! Proverbs 3:5-8 shares God’s unwavering promise to us: “Trust in the Lord completely, and do not rely on your own opinions. With all your heartRELY ON HIM TO GUIDE YOU, AND HE WILL LEAD YOU in EVERY DECISION you make. Become intimate with him in whatever you do, and he will lead you wherever you go. Don’t think for a moment that you know it all, for wisdom comes when you adore him with undivided devotion and avoid everything that’s wrong. THEN YOU WILL FIND THE HEALING REFRESHMENT YOUR BODY AND SPIRIT LONG FOR.” (TPT)
Take a moment today to read and re-read these passages. Let these words from God sink down and permeate your soul, allowing them bring healing refreshment to your body and spirit!
FOLLOW HIS EXAMPLE
“Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.” 1 Corinthians 11:1 (NCV)
Whether we consider ourselves a leader or not, we are leading others every day through our example and lifestyle. You see, to lead simply means to “influence” and whether or not you are aware of it you are influencing those around you. When we take the initiative to return kindness for rudeness, generosity for selfishness, compassion for anger and rage, we are influencing and showing others the way of the Lord! (1 Peter 3:9)
Paul told Timothy in 1 Timothy, 4:12, “…be an example to the believers with your words, your actions, your love, your faith, and your pure life.” (NCV) Following simply means that we are to mimic or copy the thinking, motives, speech and behavior of Jesus.
Paul said in 1 Peter 2:21-24, “He had never sinned, and he had never lied. People insulted Christ, but he did not insult them in return. Christ suffered, but he did not threaten. He let God, the One who judges rightly, take care of him. Christ carried our sins in his body on the cross so we would stop living for sin and start living for what is right.”
“Following” indicates MOVEMENT and it requires PARTICIPATION on our part. Following means that we gradually become like the person we follow. In this case we become like Jesus—a person of honesty and integrity (which is a personal choice)! PERSONAL INTEGRITY is vital for a solid life. Think of someone who built a bridge or a building with substandard materials and shoddy workmanship—the building will certainly encounter problems!
Many years ago as a child, my dad decided to build a 2-story addition to our house over the carport. He chose the company with the cheapest bid and the construction began. Shortly after the work was completed and after we had moved in, a problem occurred with the plumbing. The shower and tubs were not draining properly. Workmen came out to identify the problem and correct it. The workers determined that the new 2nd story had not been properly reinforced causing it to sag, putting a kink on the pipes underneath. Nothing was ever done to correct the problem! For years we had to shower while standing in 5 inches of dirty water. I didn’t complain about the situation but I was certainly impacted by the result of poor workmanship!
This is exactly what happens when we live haphazard, sloppy lives. We run into all kinds of problems when we lie or deny truth, deceive, betray or take advantage of others or just plain don’t give our best in life. We begin living in the consequences of own bad choices!
The Good News is that we no longer have to ignore our problems and pretend we’re doing great when in reality, we’re standing in 5 inches of filthy water! We can DECIDE TODAY to make a change in the course and direction our lives are going. We can CHOOSE to surrender our poorly constructed lives to the One who created it to begin with! Today, make the best decision of your life—decide to follow and live by the example Jesus set for us! You’ll never regret it! “Everyone who believes in him will never be disappointed.” Romans 10:11 (TPT)
GOD’S PLAN FOR ETERNAL SALVATION
God loves you and wants to have a personal relationship with you forever. The problem is …one thing separates you from a relationship with God—sin. You and I sin whenever we fail to live by the Lord’s holy standard. (Romans 3:23) Furthermore, Romans 6:23 explains that the penalty for sin is death—separation from God in hell forever. No matter how hard we try, we cannot save ourselves or get rid of our sins. We can’t earn our way to heaven by being good, going to church, or being baptized. (Eph. 2:8-9)
Understanding how helpless we are because of our sins, God sent His only Son, Jesus, to save us.Jesus Christ lived a perfect, sinless life, and then died on the Cross to pay the penalty for our sins (Romans 5:8). Three days later, He rose from the dead—showing that He had triumphed over sin and death once and for all.
So how can you know God? It all starts with accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Jesus Christ provides a relationship with the Father and eternal life through His death on the cross and resurrection (Romans 5:10).
Romans 10:9 promises, “If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (NLT)
If you have not yet begun your personal relationship with God, understand that the One who created you loves you no matter who you are or what you’ve done. He wants you to experience the profound depth of His care. Therefore, tell God that you are willing to trust Him for Salvation. You can tell Him in your own words or use this simple prayer:
A PRAYER TO ACCEPT JESUS AS SAVIOR
Dear Heavenly Father, I believe that Jesus died on the Cross to pay for my sins. I believe Jesus died and rose again after death! Romans 4:25 says that “Jesus was handed over to be crucified for the forgiveness of our sins and was raised back to life to prove that he had made us right with God!” I understand that my salvation is not based on my works but on the sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross. I ask you to forgive me of my sins and wash me clean of all evil and filth. I put my faith and trust in Jesus as my only hope for living eternally with you in heaven. I ask Jesus to be my Savior and my Lord. Help me now to live the life that honors you. Thank you for saving me! Amen!