spiritual nourishment

Just like I can't survive without food and water, I can't survive without the living word of God. So many days I go without even pausing to feed my soul with His word. I keep on living but I'm dying on the inside.

 

I recognize I'm desperate for His spirit to flood the deepest parts of me. I won't let myself take a step toward Him. My fear is paralyzing.

 

I fear change, intimacy, conviction.

 

To get past all this fear, I know I need the spiritual nourishment that only come from the word of God.

 

I not only need spiritual nourishment, but I must also ask God for receptivity: to respond to what He is trying to say to me in His word. I put into practice when God reveals what I must do. That leads beyond spiritual nourishment to spiritual action.

a life of believing God

I know I believe in God but do I truly, in the core of who I am, believe God?

I want my life to go beyond the surface of believing in God to believing God.

There is a distinct difference. Beth Moore explains in her devotional Believing God four (4) qualities (or motivations) of a life of believing God:

(1) Incomparable power

               Ephesians 1:19

                          "and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as       the  mighty strength."

                      Since I belong to God, His power lives in me and is executed when I believe that same power is always in me. I live in that power God gives to me.

(2) The pleasure of God

                Hebrews 11:6 (a)

                            "And without faith it is impossible to please God..."

                  Faith is essential for my journey as a follower of Christ. It is impossible for me to live a life of believing God without the existence of faith.

(3) Reward

                 Hebrews 11:6 (b)

                            "...because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him."

Seeking God follows faith. When I come before God in any form: prayer, meditation, solitude, journaling, I must believe He exists. Reward follows when I seek Him relentlessly. But do I? On a daily basis, do I make my number one priority to come before His presence, to seek His guidance, provision, direction, or anything else I might need that given day?

I know how I would answer that previous question and I can't honestly say that seeking God is my number one priority. I get caught up with my job and I have different priorities any given day. and if I don't feel like seeking Him or His heart, I won't. Simple. I need to be honest with myself before God can initiate any change.  God acts according to my level of faith which leads into the last motivation.

(4) God will often act according to our faith

                 Matthew 9:29

                         "Then he touched their eyes and said, 'according to your faith let it be done to you."

 

                 My level of faith influences how God will work in my life, others I am in contact with, and also my future.

 

At any time I can ask God to increase my faith.

In a more simplistic sense, faith is a quality of the fruit of the Spirit (Romans 10:17), and faith comes through hearing the Word of God (Luke 17:1-6)

 

Believing God verses believing in God will be credited to me as righteousness. My goal is to live a life of believing God.

recommended reading

Reading is one of my favorite things to do.

I have compiled a list of some of my favorite books:

Nonfiction:
*Crazy Love
*Forgotten God (both by Francis Chan)
*Boundaries
*Not a Fan
*Radical
*The Ragamuffin Gospel
*The Air I Breathe
*Jesus Calling (devotional)
*Rachel's Tears

Fiction:
*The Help
*Nineteen Minutes
*Safe Haven
*The Time Traveler's Wife
*The Book Thief
*To Kill a Mockingbird
*My Sister's Keeper

Most of the previous titles can be purchased through www.amazon.com

Happy reading! :-)