Through pain and suffering, God brings us unto Himself.
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1. Pain. Yes, most people naturally avoid anything that causes pain at all costs. But, it's through pain where we learn very valuable lessons and receive blessings which mature us spiritually: suffering, afflictions, difficulties, set-backs, and hardships hone us, give us stronger backbones, build our character, and ultimately teach us some lessons in wisdom. A person who's been sheltered or has experienced little or no pain most likely will be a person who's not able to look too far out of their own world and be immature in their feelings for others and not exhibit or be able to make the wisest choices You'll probably never in your lifetime experience all the afflictions Paul suffered. He was beaten, shipwrecked, stoned, jailed, he had an eye condition, ,,,,, And it was Paul, by divine inspiration, who penned more New Testament books than anyone else. And to this day, we are still gaining insight, wisdom, and spiritual growth from the lessons learned from his afflictions.
You are so precious that God knows every hair on your head.
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Instead, allow lessons learned from pain, suffering and affliction mature your spirit, deepen your faith, widen your gratitude, and be instrumental in helping you mature into a more humble person. Since you are a precious jewel to God, and in His constant care, He will not abandon you nor forsake you, nor allow more than you can handle. What He allows to happen is for molding and fashioning you into a more mature Christian. Remember, count it all joy- for it is a blessing and for your spiritual well-being.
Question- Why must it take 'pain' in order to learn valuable spiritual lessons?
Answer- Because we are stubborn, hard-headed, selfish, greedy, and we're looking at life through fleshly eyes, we're living for the moment, and we're focusing on temporal things rather than eternal things which really matter.
2. And, tough love. You've heard the term, "tough love". Tough love is the courage to take action to love someone enough by stepping in and not allowing your loved one to continue on their path of harm and destruction. You love them to stop them from hurting themselves. Love wants what is best for a person. Love, is action and when demonstrated with the right motive and intention, never fails. In all you do, do it in love. Stop thinking only of yourself and learn to love unselfishly. Jesus showed His love by dying on the Cross in our place to pay the penalty for our sins. Love extends even to your enemies and the unlovable.
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And, in the spirit of love, extending your heart to seeing to the needs of others, and taking attention off of yourself, you're showing to that person the love of God. In return, you'll receive God's love back, and so much more. God can never be out-given. It was 'Love' embodied in the body of Jesus who hung and died painfully on the Cross. Love prevails, and the 'good' attained is far greater than the pain. He arose, and is in heaven interceding between heaven and earth for the saints!
God is Spirit. It's more important to invest heavier on the growth of your 'inner man' rather than your 'outer earthen vessel' which will die. Placing more emphasis on the growth and beauty of your 'inner spiritual man' will give eternal dividends and rewards. This is the 'true, and real, You', created to exist through all eternity, never to die. You chose where the real you is going to reside. If you made the choice to accept God's gift of Jesus into your heart, your spirit will be heaven-bound.
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This very moment your spirit can become awakened, renewed, strengthened and more fashioned into the image of Christ. The transformation is set into being the very moment you accept the Lord as your Savior. You may not feel any differently, but you are spiritually transformed into a new creation, one with a spirit that is alive, not dead. Your spirit becomes awakened and sensitive to the proddings of the Holy Spirit. But, we remain trapped in our earthly bodies, and most times a constant conflict is going on between what the flesh desires against what our spirit desires. This is when those painful experiences are needed to get the flesh to back down, so we can stop, listen, and obey what the Holy Spirit is communicating to our spirit- this is sanctification, which is spiritual maturing and growth. Remember, tidal waves of temptations in this world pull strong and hard at getting your eyes, your attention, and your focus off godly things to prevent you from being still and listening to that small, still voice of the Holy Spirit. If you trust God through the afflictions and the pain, spiritual lessons learned will be invaluable in your spiritual growth, which is what God is most concerned about.
But, if you're not willing to listen, nor are your desires for the things of God, you're allowed to continue down the path of your choice. God never forces anyone to go against their will. If you're against the things of God, God allows you that choice. But the destination you will meet will be your spiritual death. Nor will God stop the from sun shining upon you, nor your food supply, nor shelter, or air, etc. while you're still breathing. God will love you until your last breath, then you will not be able to change the destination you've chosen for yourself. Turning you back against God, means you can look forward to your spirit existing in a dark and unloving place, never to leave it. You'll be eternally wishing that you'd made a different choice.
In eternity, it will not matter how beautiful your face or hair was, or if you were born in the lowest cast or an influential, wealthy family. It won't matter if you were short or tall. It won't matter if you were a handsome prince, or a homely plumber, or if you'd been on the 'A' list, or not on any list at all. For eternity, you will exist as a spirit-being designed to live eternally. The only thing that will matter is did you ask Jesus into your heart, effectively called your 'second birth', making your spirit alive and qualifying you to receive the promises to all heirs in the family of God. And, the second thing that will matter is what you did to further the kingdom of God. This will determine the number of crowns you will have to present to Jesus. So, greater importance should to be placed on the 'healthy status' of your spirit, rather than on your exterior looks or social status.
That is the measure by which you will be rated- What you did using your talents and gifts to further the kingdom of God which God equips you to do that by passing you through trials and afflictions to mold and hone you making you effective for kingdom work.
His standards are measured in 1) Have you invited His Son, Jesus, into your heart, and 2) have you extended the love of Christ outward from your heart to others and point lost souls to Jesus, the Savior, who wants to be your Savior, because through Him is the ONLY WAY your sins can be forgiven.
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God is Spirit, and He is due our spiritual worship which is
two things- worship Him in spirit and in truth.
Your spirit must be quickened by the Holy Spirit by
inviting God's Son, Jesus, the Christ, into your heart. Then,
a supernatural, spiritual transformation occurs within you.
It's a God thing.
What does it mean to be saved?
Wanna stop being an enemy of God and become at peace with God? (Romans 5:10 )
This video shows how you can pray to get saved today.
God's standards are love. And that 'love' was extended to
every man, woman and child through Jesus.
So, how do you rate according to God's standards?
Get Jesus for an excellent rating!Scripture references- Matthew 10:30
Luke 12:7
Ephesians 3:4; 6:9: Romans 5:10; 8:17-18; 8:29; 16:25
1 Corinthians 2:7; 12:2; 13:2; 14:2
Colossians 1:24
Job 11:7; 37:5
entire books of Daniel, 1Peter, and 2 Timothy
REVIEW God's standards are ---------------------------Jesus, and love.
God sometimes teaches us through-------Pain and 'tough' love
What's important in eternity?------------------Accepting Jesus as your Savior, which ia the way to spiritual re-birth, and then showing the Love that lives within your heart to others, pointing them to Jesus, so they can personally know and choose Jesus as their Savior.
How do you worship God--------------------In your heart,with your spirit, and in truth.
Remember, GOD IS SPIRIT
Remember, GOD IS SPIRIT
Until next time, I remain on the narrow, but brightly lit path, enduring day by day, until I
I'm in the presence of my loving Savior's glorious face.
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