The New man

"Put on the new man this day. Created in righteousness and true holiness. Even as I have risen, I have resurrected you. I have made you new. Look not to the former things, they don't define you, look to the new you, the resurrected you; washed clean by My own blood, rendered innocent, sincere, secure, and humble. Do not doubt who I have made you, only believe."

From Sunday

Some of my favorite nuggets from Mike Q Daniel at Grace Church:

1) Jesus is not a loan shark, someone who paid your debt then demands you pay him back with interest. He doesn't want my life as payment, but died so I can have His. 2) In a room full of thoughts of who's the greatest, Jesus takes a towel and serves. 3) Jesus showed up not needing to have His needs met from everyone in the room. 4) God wants to deliver us from need based living so we can serve others. 5) Jesus didn't live from the lie of lack. We have the "everything" of God too, but don't know it. 6) We don't have "all things" in this world but we lack for nothing. 7) You have nothing to lose, nothing to earn so what now? You are free to enjoy God, be at peace, serve others, live surrendered, participate with the "everything" of God. 8) Three things (from John 13) Jesus knew that freed Him from needing people so He could serve: * Father had given all things into His hands. * He had come from God. * He was going back to God. 9) I know God loves me but He is still convincing me. 10) What's true of Jesus by merit is true of me by grace! 11) My availability plus His capability = infinite possibility 12) Don't care more about the provision than your Provider. * We say, "Jesus you're enough, now please give me what I really want." Only Jesus satisfies. 13) Grace is not passive, it's running at rest. 14) You can't live beyond what you don't believe. 15) What you do for God speaks of you, what He does thru you speaks of him.

God's Love

"Arise to My song. Hear My heart singing for you. Jesus loves me this I know -- this is no fairy tale song; it is foundational, it is core truth to guide you each day. My steadfast unchanging love keeps your heart anchored in even the most troubled waters. Know My love for you; believe it; never judge yourself unworthy of it! For I have loved you with an everlasting love, I have drawn you with My loving kindness. I don't love you because of what you do, I love you because of who I am. I don't love you because of the purity of your heart, I love you because of the purity of Mine. Know My love each day-- abide in it, feed on it, meditate on it; for My love is food indeed, My love is fuel for living, and My perfect love always casts out all fear."

Wake Up To Who You Are! - 1st Service Word

The Lord gave Nikki Reed a word during 1st service today:

You are not being made into something else...you already ARE! You may continue to be strengthened, but you've already received the transformation. You may continue to be sharpened, and you may learn over time how to use all the tools you've been given..but you DO already possess them. Awaken to that fact. You are NOT a work in progress, but a completed masterpiece and the only thing left for you to do is discover the intricacies that are already woven into your tapestry. Discover the beauty of what has already been created in you. It's all there, and has been there since the very moment you received Me. All along I've known the design of you. You didn't happen by accident. I didn't make things up as I went along fashioning you. Your mistakes, missteps, and so-called "flaws" didn't influence your creation or place stains or tears in the fabric of who you are. The only thing that influenced your design was my purpose for you. And here you are...complete, equipped, and in the place and time I purposed you for. When you realize this, truly take it into your heart and nurture and grow it, fully accept it, then you will be able to be used in the way you were designed and I will be shown powerful. Believe me, and be free.

Peace

"Arise and set your heart. Set your mind. Allow Me to anchor your soul. For I am your Refuge and Fortress. Despite what goes on around you, you have peace. For peace is not the absence of some difficulty, it's the Presence of Someone greater than the difficulty. It's not the absence of fire, it's the Presence of Someone with greater authority than the fire. I did not put out the fire inside Nebuchadnezzar's fiery furnace, I demonstrated My authority and rule over the fire. Because of My Presence, they were yet unharmed, unburned. I am the Greater One and I am present in you."

Who's your sacrifice?

In the Old Testament, when a worshipper brought their sacrifice for sin, no matter how big their sin was, not one time did the priest examine the human being bringing the sacrifice! Every time the priest examined the sacrifice being offered! And if he found the sacrifice pure and acceptable, the worshipper walked away totally free from sin, cleansed, and in right relationship with God! Bring that type & shadow to the New Testament. Do you realize that no matter what you've done, or how many times you've done it; God is not examining your worthiness but rather the worthiness of the ONE who was sacrificed for You -- Jesus Christ. It is in Him alone you are forgiven, cleansed, and made right with God!

Truth

"How delightful to be in this new season. For this is not the end it is just the beginning. Truth shall be your anchor. For it is Truth that ensures you do not get ruled by things that have no bearing on who you really are or your value to Me. No matter how high you fly in experiencing My Presence, it is Truth that grounds you. Emotions are great, tangibly experiencing My Presence is great; but it is Truth that leads you each day and gives you consistency."

Feeding on Christ

"Revel in fullness of joy as you see the fruits of feeding on Me. Let us continue in this season. No longer will you be ruled by things that are no reflection of who you are. What have your circumstances or the opinions of others ever had to do with your value and true identity? No longer are you in survival mode, always in desperate need of love; needing every circumstance to go your way; but you are becoming an expression of My love day in and day out."

Sunday

"Listen intently to My voice as I lead you. There are so many voices out there trying to pull you, distract you, even lure you off of the identity and purpose I have given you. That is why we are cutting off some of what you've been feeding on in the world so you can feed more on Me. For I am your Life, your Bread, and your daily sustenance -- it is written whoever partakes of Me will never hunger. I'm what fulfills. I'm what lasts. I'm what is unshakeable. The world has so little for you. You're too great a creation to be fulfilled by anything but Me."

Sunday is Fathers Day

The Latin word for father is "fundus". It is where we get the English word "foundation." This is because dads are to be the strong base, the undergirding and stabilizing force of the family. Not leading from on top by what he demands but from underneath by what he supplies. My first prayer is that father's will be present in the home again, my second prayer is that those who are present will be present spiritually and emotionally not just physically.

Truth

If truth comes from God (and it does), then why does man continually try and DEFINE HIMSELF by his OWN thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and behaviors as if he knows more about himself than God does? As humans, we do not get to determine the truth about ourselves. As a created being, we simply are afforded the opportunity to DISCOVER the truth (John 8:32), not invent the truth. Only pride would cause a creation to tell it's Creator it knows who & what it is more than the ONE who made him. The truth about us and about how life works was here long before we got here and will be here long after we are gone. Would it be so difficult for us to simply humble ourselves and get our identity, value, and worth from who God says we are? ‪#‎trueYou https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/trueyou?source=feed_text&story_id=10209353462814197

Interesting...

There's a place of ministry in churches where saints serve not out of a sense of duty or religious obligation, nor because some church program needs to be kept afloat, but they simply serve because they are grateful. Grateful to God they've been cleansed, washed, and made right with God by His own hand. They don't serve so God will love them, they serve because of the joy of knowing He already does. They don't serve so their fellow believers will accept them, they serve because they already have. This is a safe place. This is a place of empowerment. This is a place of service that does not burn saints out but builds saints up.

True YOU

The Lord told me once, “Steve, when Christians stop living like they're earning something, and start living like they've received something, they can change the world.” We have been taught to earn our love, our wages, our blessings, and even our grades from God. Yet the person who lives in right relationship with God does it by embracing what God has done for him rather than what he’s done for God. Doing things FOR God to earn points or favors is the opposite of entering into what God has done FOR you. The person who walks closely with God simply believes he has been set right BY GOD – not by his own moral efforts