Who WILL You Serve?

Letting the Will Be the Master of the Heart

 Tozer's Devotional (April 24)

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on the things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. ~Colossians 3:1

Because the will is master of the heart, it is important to realize that the root of all evil in human nature is the corruption of the will!

The thoughts and intents of the heart are wrong and as a consequence the whole life is wrong.  Repentance is primarily a change of moral purpose, a sudden and often violent reversal of the soul's direction.

 

The prodigal son took his first step upward from the pig sty when he said, "I will arise and go to my father." As he had once willed to leave his father's house, now he willed to return.

To love God with all our heart we must first of all will to do so.  We should repent our lack of love and determine from this moment on to make God the object of our devotion.  We should read the Scriptures devotionally and set our affections on things above and aim our hearts toward Christ and heavenly things!

If we do these things we may be sure that we shall experience a wonderful change in our whole inward life. Our emotions will become disciplined and directed. We shall begin to taste the "piercing sweetness" of the love of Christ. The whole life, like a delicate instrument, will be tuned to sing the praises of Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood!
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Speaking of Will Power...(<-- Link)

Holy Machination

But Jesus replied, “My Father is always working, and so am I. ~John 5:17

Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end. ~Ecclesiastes 3:11

"In every age, there is some good. God is ever present, ever eager to be found if men will look." ~Stephen R. Lawhead (Merlin, pg.191)

The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry. It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it. ~Isaiah 55:10-11

After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they know his voice. ~John 10:4

He is my God, and I will praise Him; My father’s God, and I will exalt Him. ~Exodus 15:2

Concluding Comments:

God: Whew! I just created a 24-hour period of alternating light and darkness on Earth.
Angel: What are you going to do now?
God: I think I'll call it a day.

The Fictitious World

"Oh, we struggle against a cunning Adversary. Never doubt it. We move about on our crust of earth and we imagine we see the world as it is. What we see is the world we imagine.

No man sees the world as it is." ~Merlin pg.194

Music, books, TV...all that these timeless works fiction strive to do is bring us to a place where we don't have to deal with what's real. It's the essence of all human arts. Art is an illusion. Free choice, however deceiving, is not. God does not govern our lives as though we are dumb animals. We have a choice and are guided in how to use that freedom, which brings me to my second point.

The most epic historical piece I know of that was intended for growth only is the bible. None of it was ever taken to fictitious or wrongly-inspired authors, and yet it holds such potential for the losing of oneself in all its glory. The word of God moves to such un-proposed desires, motivations, and the Word is always living and striving to win the hearts of men. God's own spirit flows freely through those who surrender their flags to His...often uncertain cause. Thus, while pieces of amazingly crafted fiction can be uplifting in nearly every way, it can also hold opposite. Like anything, fiction has the potential for either taking up the timeless example of scripture, or slighting it; the defining line toward our only true reference to life's (God's) very real calling.

The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shined. ~Isaiah 9:2

It takes some extreme faith to know what's real sometimes, to know what to do (and where God is) in hard situations.

Things may feel strange, like somehow God just isn't there sometimes, but He is. Always. You have only to look for Him. 

Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you?

~1 Corinthians 3:16

 

Those who honor me I will honor, and those who despise me shall be lightly esteemed.

~1 Samuel 2:30

O, Terra Ditty!

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun. It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, like a champion rejoicing to run his course. It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other; nothing is deprived of its warmth. ~Psalm 19:1-6

God did not make beauty, such as nature, for himself (at least directly), but for us, who can experience it and turn around and praise him for it. Praise God for full moons and a cool night breeze! It would not be beautiful if we were not made to experience it.

Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart. ~John 7:38

His song sings on into the night, along the breeze, across the lands of the living, and pierces the hearts of those who care to listen. His song goes on forever! (<-- Go ahead and hit that link)

Perpetual Daven

To think about: Why do the hots and colds of life always seem to pull us closer to God than when we are satisfied with the temp. outside?

 

Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?...Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. ~Romans 7:21-24, 8:1-2

Default Blue

(I Know Nothing Of And Likely Do Not Support The Music)

What a perfect time to bring up the subject of Sin! Because Jesus presented the idea, and ultimately destroyed it, like, 2TYA! (Of course, it was not the actual sin he abolished, but the lasting grip it could have on sinners.) Even today, the world cannot accept the thought of everyone being sinners by default! (or if they do, they love it).

Default blue references an example Pastor Andy gave of a time he wanted to change his desktop background. The default color was blue, and to change that would have been to make it his own and be free of the control of the machine. We can do the same by letting go of the sin we were born with and giving it to Christ for him to take to the cross.

In the same way, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels when even one sinner repents.”  ~Luke 15:10

Got String?

Do not be wise in your own eyes. ~Proverbs 3:7

Here is a WARNING: It is easier to be a two-faced Christian than most Christians are willing to admit. We might try to get the best of our situation when with different crowds, and it is only natural. 

We are cons, we have all the right answers, but when we play life like that, it becomes all social and what others think of us. We take what God has given and we soar beyond what He planned. We rule the world we live in because we don't look to God, pray to Him, converse with Him along the way like it was meant to be.

People ruin their lives by their own foolishness and then are angry at the Lord.

~Proverbs 19:3

This is how it should be: We need to be kites. Our power is limited to the string that allows us to fly, but without it we would not last long before reaching the ground again, back to where we started. Trust in the One who holds us down.

Check out this link for the story!: Kite String

Check out this link for the fun!: Kite Master

But wisdom is shown to be right by the lives of those who follow it. ~Luke 7:35