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bluidkiti · 09-10-2013, 10:46 AM

Alive In Christ Part 02 - "L" Light

by Gail Rodgers
The pathway was pitch black. It felt like I was blind as I carefully moved along stumbling now and then. If only I had remembered the flashlight!

As you and I walk our daily pathway we seek to shed light on the way for others in their struggles and questions. But we must be sure we have our flashlight illuminating our own path. We would be quick to easily quote the verse:

“Thy Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”

But stop! What does that really mean on a “Monday” morning when the world is at your door with it’s problems and your own path has plenty of it’s own?
God’s Word as your flashlight… it’s not a new thought! Yet the words sometimes can seem hollow and the reading of the Bible can become mundane. And we can feel ourselves stumble in the dark. We begin to answer those at our door with our own wisdom.
Is your path feeling a little shadowed these days? Perhaps the stones of irritation and impatience are getting in your way. Are the pebbles of worry getting into your shoes? Do you splash through puddles of self pity or twist your ankle in potholes of hurt? Is the mud of doubt clogging up your shoes as you try to move along?
When we engage in ministry to reach troubled souls, the enemy of our own soul will seek to highlight the potholes and the mud puddles in our individual pathways. Weariness and doubt can begin to stick to our shoes making our steps heavy. Sometimes, without even realizing it, we can begin to do ministry in our own strength… and it feels heavy.
God gives us His Word! His Word is so central to who we are and what we believe! His Word is what brings refreshment and encouragement to our hearts! His Word shows us the truth about who our God is. His Word gently corrects. In the process we find the light we need on our daily path.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path”.
Proverbs 3: 5 & 6

Do you find you have been leaning on your own understanding lately? Consider where your Bible is right now. Trusting Him with all your heart can only come as a result of His Word at work in your heart. And yet it can so easily get moved aside and blurred in the busyness of our day.
Sit with your Bible. Ask God to show you what He wants you to learn or re-learn in a new way. When your reading illuminates a truth about God, embrace it. When the light reveals a wrong attitude, action or pattern of thinking, confess it. Stand ready for Him to change you. Self justification in holding on to wrong thinking and attitudes keeps one bumping into the same rocks over and over. God longs to light your path in new ways. He longs for you to pick up the flashlight so He can!
The Spirit of God knows what is in your heart. If you long for Him in new ways, His Word will reveal Him to you. If things in your heart or life cause you to trip as you go through your day, His Word will reveal that too. He does not ask you to fix anything. No, He simply asks you to willingly accept the light He reveals through His Word and allow Him to be at work putting it right.

If your heart hungers for Him in new ways read the book of John and ask for new insight.
If relationships are causing bumps in your life read the book of Proverbs over the next 31 days and ask God to show you what He wants to fix. Then let Him.
If your tongue gets you into trouble, read the little book of James and daily ask Him to set a guard at your lips.
If your heart is weary and doubt is creeping into the secret corners read the book of Ephesians and ask God to refresh your heart with His purpose and power.
If you feel small and insignificant to God read Psalm 139 and embrace what He says about you.
This is what it means to “walk as children of light”.

In order to give out to those who come to us we must be fresh in our journey. When I am walking without His Word central in my life, I find myself doing my own very best thinking about the answers in my life and in my responses to others… and it isn’t enough. My very best thinking falls so far short of the thinking of God as He reveals Himself to my heart and gives me light on my path.
Get into His Word today… ask Him to light your pathway afresh. As He reveals the truth to you about Himself and about yourself, embrace it! It will lighten your step and speed you on your pathway with purpose and joy.

09-10-2013, 10:46 AM	#3
bluidkiti Administrator Join Date: Aug 2013 Posts: 71,049	Alive In Christ Part 02 - "L" Light by Gail Rodgers The pathway was pitch black. It felt like I was blind as I carefully moved along stumbling now and then. If only I had remembered the flashlight! As you and I walk our daily pathway we seek to shed light on the way for others in their struggles and questions. But we must be sure we have our flashlight illuminating our own path. We would be quick to easily quote the verse: “Thy Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” But stop! What does that really mean on a “Monday” morning when the world is at your door with it’s problems and your own path has plenty of it’s own? God’s Word as your flashlight… it’s not a new thought! Yet the words sometimes can seem hollow and the reading of the Bible can become mundane. And we can feel ourselves stumble in the dark. We begin to answer those at our door with our own wisdom. Is your path feeling a little shadowed these days? Perhaps the stones of irritation and impatience are getting in your way. Are the pebbles of worry getting into your shoes? Do you splash through puddles of self pity or twist your ankle in potholes of hurt? Is the mud of doubt clogging up your shoes as you try to move along? When we engage in ministry to reach troubled souls, the enemy of our own soul will seek to highlight the potholes and the mud puddles in our individual pathways. Weariness and doubt can begin to stick to our shoes making our steps heavy. Sometimes, without even realizing it, we can begin to do ministry in our own strength… and it feels heavy. God gives us His Word! His Word is so central to who we are and what we believe! His Word is what brings refreshment and encouragement to our hearts! His Word shows us the truth about who our God is. His Word gently corrects. In the process we find the light we need on our daily path. Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path”. Proverbs 3: 5 & 6 Do you find you have been leaning on your own understanding lately? Consider where your Bible is right now. Trusting Him with all your heart can only come as a result of His Word at work in your heart. And yet it can so easily get moved aside and blurred in the busyness of our day. Sit with your Bible. Ask God to show you what He wants you to learn or re-learn in a new way. When your reading illuminates a truth about God, embrace it. When the light reveals a wrong attitude, action or pattern of thinking, confess it. Stand ready for Him to change you. Self justification in holding on to wrong thinking and attitudes keeps one bumping into the same rocks over and over. God longs to light your path in new ways. He longs for you to pick up the flashlight so He can! The Spirit of God knows what is in your heart. If you long for Him in new ways, His Word will reveal Him to you. If things in your heart or life cause you to trip as you go through your day, His Word will reveal that too. He does not ask you to fix anything. No, He simply asks you to willingly accept the light He reveals through His Word and allow Him to be at work putting it right. If your heart hungers for Him in new ways read the book of John and ask for new insight. If relationships are causing bumps in your life read the book of Proverbs over the next 31 days and ask God to show you what He wants to fix. Then let Him. If your tongue gets you into trouble, read the little book of James and daily ask Him to set a guard at your lips. If your heart is weary and doubt is creeping into the secret corners read the book of Ephesians and ask God to refresh your heart with His purpose and power. If you feel small and insignificant to God read Psalm 139 and embrace what He says about you. This is what it means to “walk as children of light”. In order to give out to those who come to us we must be fresh in our journey. When I am walking without His Word central in my life, I find myself doing my own very best thinking about the answers in my life and in my responses to others… and it isn’t enough. My very best thinking falls so far short of the thinking of God as He reveals Himself to my heart and gives me light on my path. Get into His Word today… ask Him to light your pathway afresh. As He reveals the truth to you about Himself and about yourself, embrace it! It will lighten your step and speed you on your pathway with purpose and joy. __________________ "No matter what you have done up to this moment, you get 24 brand-new hours to spend every single day." --Brian Tracy AA gives us an opportunity to recreate ourselves, with God's help, one day at a time. --Rufus K. When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on. --Franklin D. Roosevelt We stay sober and clean together - one day at a time! God says that each of us is worth loving.