Colossians 2:6 “As ye have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him.”

The Lord Jesus Christ came to deliver us from complications that Satan could potentially bring into our lives (Colossians 1:13). You are delivered from a complicated life into a simplified life in Christ Jesus (John 10:10). The key to maintain this simplified lifestyle is to “walk in him”; in order words continue to live your life in him. Over and over the scriptures instruct us to walk (conduct our lifestyle) as new creations in Christ Jesus. We are instructed to walk as children of light (Ephesians 5:8) so we do not stumble; to walk in love (Ephesians 5:2) so we are failure proof (1 Corinthians 13:8); to walk in wisdom (Colossians 4:5) so we do act foolishly; to walk in the truth (3 John 1:3), so we are not deceived by the devil; to walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16), so we do not fulfill the lust of the flesh. God wants us to walk worthy of the Lord, so we can be fruitful in every good work (Colossians 1:10). The ultimate is for us to walk in the simplicity that is in Christ Jesus, whom we have received as Lord. If we stop walking in Him, then we will start sinking into sin, carnality, and sadly become subject again to the power of darkness. God forbid!

Luke 9:23 “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves, and take up their cross and follow me”

 

There are undeniable sacrifices we have to make in this life as believers to follow Christ and to serve God acceptably. There are things we have to give up in order to follow Christ completely. We have to give up our own fleshly desires. It is not going to be easy. It may mean giving up your dream job, not going to parties with friends, spending more time in God’s Word and in prayers! Even though some people might think you are strange, you should focus on God more than everything else. No one has ever achieved greatness without sacrifice. What are you willing to give up? What are you willing to sacrifice for God and His kingdom? What are you willing to sacrifice to live free from the torment of Satan?  I know those are touchy questions that might even make you feel uncomfortable a little bit. But sometimes you have to ask yourself some hard questions and see what you are willing to do. There are a lot of different directions to turn in your life, but you have to be careful to make the right one so you do not end up in the way of death (Proverbs 14:12). If your heart’s desire is to follow Christ, there are things you must give up: hanging out with wrong crowd, indulging your flesh, romancing with the “old man” (Ephesians 4:22). There are things you must give up to live the victorious abundant life made available to you by the sacrifice of Christ; you have a choice to make.

 

Mark 16:15 “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”

One thing that both believers and nonbelievers have in common is they are nervous about evangelism. Nonbelievers are nervous about being evangelized, and believers are nervous about evangelizing nonbelievers. However, if we want to grow as Christians, then we must go into all the world and preach the gospel. We call this the Great Commission, and we find two relevant scriptures in the New Testament (Mark 16:15; Matthew 28:19-20). So where is Jesus calling us? He is calling us into the world. He is calling us to go to all people everywhere. Because the primary way people come to Jesus is through hearing the gospel (Romans 10:14;1 Corinthians 1:21). Who is supposed to do this? All of us. Jesus directed these words to all of His followers. Everyone is supposed to do this; not just the so-called professionals such as pastors, evangelists, and missionaries. And what are we supposed to do? We are supposed to preach the gospel. So, here is the question for you: Are you doing your part to fulfill the Great Commission? Jesus commands us as His followers to share our faith. But frankly, for some Christians, this has become the Great Omission instead of the Great Commission. The commission of the church is not to wait for the world to show up. Rather, the commission of the church is to go to the world.

 

Romans 12:2, AMP “Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind…”

The primary purpose of the Word of God, the Bible, is to change the way we think about ourselves, about others, about issues of life, and about God.  The reason why many people today are not happy, the reason they are not enjoying life is simply because they have trained their minds to think and dwell on the wrong things. They have trained their minds to worry, to be anxious, and to be fearful. They have trained their minds to complain. They have trained their minds to blame others for their mistakes. They have trained their minds to see the negative in everything. The truth is that just as we can form these negative mindsets, we can retrain our minds and form positive mindsets. This transformation can happen as we renew our minds to the Word of God and develop positive attitudes. This does not happen instantly. You have to make a conscious effort every single day until a good habit is formed. I encourage you today to choose to have a positive attitude of faith, gratitude, praise, thanksgiving, forgiveness, love, joy, self control, long suffering, contentment, gentleness, obedience, and humility.

 

 

1Jn 4:4 NKJV “He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.”

We all face disappointments in life, and they can cause us to see nothing but negativity in our future. We express hopelessness, belittle our own abilities, refuse to take any risk, say no to personal growth opportunities, complain about the unfairness of life, and say that nothing we do will make a difference in a particular circumstance. But these are all lies of the devil. You are an overcomer in Christ Jesus, and you can develop an overcoming attitude in every situation in life. This is how: (1) Be honest about your mission to conquer pessimism. Give someone you respect the permission to point out when you are being negative. (2) Limit your exposure to negative environment. Since you become like the company you keep, look for people who build up your faith and not feed your fears. “He that walketh with wise men shall be wise” (Proverbs 13:20). (3) Volunteer to serve others who are less fortunate. Serving creates positive feelings and gives you a sense of worth.  (4) Look for the good in every situation and always express faith that the good is there! This is my encouragement to you today: whenever you face a difficulty, see it as an opportunity, because “He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” Do not let the noise of the difficulty you are facing drown the voice of the Holy Spirit (the greater one) in you!