Do it with love

1TI 1:5 NIV The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.

When I do things out of love, I tend to do them well and effortlessly. On the contrary, when I do things begrudgingly or haphazardly, I don`t do a good job and the result is less than spectacular. God expects us to do our best in all that we do no matter the task. I think that is a mark of a godly Christian. Everything they touch is good and they excel even at things they may be inexperienced at as long as they do it from a place of love.

When we love the Lord we know that all we do is for him and we do it faithfully and to the best of our ability without grumbling, no matter the task or job however menial. This opens up ourhearts to be receptive and the Holy Spirit can guide us and help us. Often giving us supernatural results.

So take the menial, laborious task seriously and put your love into it. Watch it blossom into beautiful fruit and have faith that God will  reward you for a job well done. -- Sent from Fast notepad

Power of the Most High

The Holy Spirit is the power of the Most High. 

Many times in the Bible when God wants to do a miracle, the Holy Spirit is there and provides the substance of the miracle. In Luke we read that the Holy Spirit will cover Mary to create Jesus in her womb.

Luke 1:35 (NIV)

³⁵ The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.

Also when our enemies pursue us, the Power of the Most High imbues us to be able to accomplish the will of God. This is seen in 1Kings when the power of the Lord came upon Elijah. Supernaturally Elijah was able to do what he needed to.

1 Kings 18:46 (NIV)

The power of the Lord came on Elijah and, tucking his cloak into his belt, he ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel.

So no matter what you come up against in life, the Holy Spirit is a powerful provision that Lord Jesus
requisitioned to have sent to us from the Father. The Holy Spirit is willing and able to help us through all situations if we only stay submitted to the will of God the Father. The power of the Most High God is available to us! Oh how wonderful is the powerful Spirit of the Most High God!

Thank you Most High God for making your Holy Spirit available to us. Let us never doubt that the Holy Spirit is here to lend us aid in all of our situations no matter how bleak they may look. Never underestimate what miracles the power of the Holy Spirit can do in our lives.

Back on the Holy Spirit - Reveal

Let's get back to the study of the Holy Spirit that we've been doing. 

Ephesians 1:17

¹⁷ I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.

Today I read that the Holy Spirit is wise beyond measure. He has divine wisdom and he is willing to impart that wisdom to us.

When we allow Jesus into our lives and accept him as our Lord and Savior and give our praise and worship to God the Father, one of the provisions, one of the gifts, that he gives is his Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is our adviser and counselor.  He wants us to be dependent upon him for the answers. And all we have to do is ask in a spirit of truth and humbleness for his direction and guidance.

1 Corinthians 2:10

these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.

Holy Spirit thank you for making your wisdom available. How wonderful it is to have you as our adviser! Help us in all of our decisions with your divine guidance and direction.

The Cycle Continues

Check out this article on 5-ways-to-stop-being-lazy

Today I want to write about greatness. We are all capable of greatness with Jesus Christ. But greatness comes with a cost. If you want to live a life that is greater than mediocrity, you have to give the difference. Right now there is a gap between your potential and the level you are living at now. That gap, the effort it takes to jump that gap is what you have to pay and life demands you pay it upfront.

We all want to be greater than we have been. But most of us will never reach that goal. Why? Because to be greater than we are means we have to come out of our comfort zone and begin to live in that new space. It is uncomfortable and it takes a lot of effort and work.

I have been working hard the last 3 weeks, I've quit smoking cigarettes, started using schedules more and ensuring my goals are constantly in front of me. Then I made a mistake. I said "Wow, look at the progress I have made. Ooh, I'm tired and my muscles are sore, I should rest...".

Three days later...
See I wasn't wrong to think I needed or even deserved a rest. But there are things that I should have done to ensure my 'rest' didn't turn into slacking. Here is what I have learned for next time...

1. Set a limit before you take your rest. Saying I'm going to take a rest with out a limit can lead to disastrous effects and 3 days lost. So say for the next 6 hours I am going to rest and relax.

2. Make sure you have something important lined up to do or accomplish. This will give you extra motivation to get back up after your much deserved rest and relaxation.

3. Tell somebody! If you are like me you have an additive personality and even sleep can become an addiction. Let you spouse, friend counselor, anybody know. Ask them to call you in the morning to make sure you are up and back on your grind.

We can all achieve greatness, but it takes work! It takes work that continues on and on. It is a life long commitment.

And don't worry about failures like these, when you sleep away 3 days or get Halo'ed out for the weekend. Forgive yourself, figure out what you could have done better, apply it and get back on your grind.

This failure shows me that there was more to learn from this frequent failing. Learning from this shows me that this particular issue will soon be one of the past. #Learning #Wisdom

Loved

Today I continued my investigation into the Holy Spirit. He has so many divine qualities and his nature is so great, the Holy Spirit is such an interesting part of the Trinity.  So far I have learned that he is the component of God that is here with us now, sent by Jesus, to lead us onto straight paths. He is good and holy. He is also loving.

His love is pure and complete and no matter what I do or what I am going through, I can always depend on the love of the Holy Spirit. Though friends may abandon me and family turn their backs, the Holy Spirit will always be there even when I turn my back on him. His love is unfailing. It is the complete and wonderful love of the living God. If we let go and let the Holy Spirit lead us we never have to worry, for his path is always paved with and leads to Love.

Rom 15:30
I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf,
(ESV)

Thank you God for your Holy Spirit that you sent here through the prayer of Jesus to keep us and comfort us.

Switch Up - Praise

Today I want to switch it up from the normal routine since I am feeling tired and needed some energy this morning. I was listening to Derek Prince Ministries, as I do most mornings and he suggested praise as a means to access GOD. So I decided that I would praise GOD.

But as I begin to open my mouth I realized that I don't really know how to praise GOD. I know how to sing songs of worship. Is that like praise? How do I praise GOD?

I did a quick search to see if the internet knew how to praise GOD and it comes up with these long lists or foreign words. So I was disappointed to say the least. I guess I'm just gonna have to look it up.

First, lets define what praise is. Many times I find that by just defining something we can learn all we need to know. Praise as stated in Merriam-Webster is to say or write good things about, express approval, thanks or love for.

Could it really be so simple? Yeah probably! Man loves to complicate things, like all those resources I found in the internet. If you want to praise GOD, just say something good about GOD. 

'Lord, you are so kind and merciful, your love endures forever.'

Write a poem that expresses your love for Jesus or say aloud how you are thankful for the leading of the Holy Spirit.

If you absolutely cannot think of anything, then read some of the verses of praise from the Bible.

Psalm 48:1 Great is the Lord, and most worthy of praise, in the city of our God, his holy mountain.

Psalm 47:2

For the Lord Most High is awesome, the great King over all the earth.

 Simply praise is an expression of happiness, thanksgiving, approval and love given to GOD. It is pretty amazing because he sees it as a sacrifice. But this simple sacrifice brings with it such wonderful bounty. For me today it brought much needed energy and motivation.

Hebrews 13:15

Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name.

So when you are feeling down and need a lift or are feeling happy and elated, offer your sacrifice of praise and discover for yourself what a difference a little praise offering can make. And remember praise and thanksgiving are the only ways to access GOD.

Psalm 100:4

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.

Some more Holy Spirit

Today I read that the Holy Spirit is Holy.  What does holy even mean? I looked it up.

Holy - sacred, devoted to the service of God, inspiring awe and fear, connected to God

The Holy Spirit is a part of God that is committed to providing service to God's people for the glory of God. He is the component that is here with each and every one of us.

An eternal, ever-present, all-knowing, all-powerful, good and holy part od God exists in each one of us. Let this part lead you and take care of you. Trust in the Holy Spirit.  He is good and holy, sent here by Jesus to help those that believe.

What is there to worry about when you have God here next to you?

More on the Holy Spirit

Today I am reading that the Holy Spirit is good. He leads us to level ground.

Everything he does is good and for our good. The Holy Spirit is the nudging that urges you to do the things that you need to get done when you need to get it done.
So not only does the Holy Spirit do good, he is good and he aids you in being and doing good. Its all good!

You can rest assured and put your faith and trust in the Holy Spirit. He is your advocate and comfort. Let your cares down, relax and just enjoy the day. You are wraped in the power of the spirit of God and it is good!

Psa 143:10
Teach me to do thy will;
for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness.

http://olivetree.com/b3/Psa.143.10.KJV

Monday Morning Motivation

Make your good morning a great morning by taking one, two or better yet all three of these simple steps.

1. Write your top five goals. This helps to keep your eyes on the prize and builds your motivation for today and excitement for the future.

2. Write a list of thanksgiving. Remeber how blessed you are! Keep away from the trap of 'poor me' thinking which de-motivates and focus on the good in your life and how you can make it better.

3. Listen to some motivational, inspiring, uplifting audio. Zig Zigler is my personal favorite but there are so many motivational speakers whose positivity and excitement are contagious. Get some!

Also I find that grace teachers/preachers are great to listen to especially in the morning when you need a boost to get going. I personally enjoy Joseph Prince and Joel Osteen. Give 'em a try!

Try it now. Take 3 minutes to write your goals or your thanksgiving list. And throughout your day today take a few mintues to find some motivational audios.  If you're interested check out my G+ page for a free listen to some of my favorites.

All Knowing...more on the Holy Spirit

Today I read that the Holy Spirit is all knowing. 1 Corinthians 2:11 says For who knows a persons thoughts except their own spirit. No one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.

So since God knows all, the Holy Spirit knows it as well. What a Great advocate we have!

If ever you feel the accusations of the devil remember that our great advocate knows more than our accuser. Lean on the knowledge and understanding and leading of the all knowing Holy Spirit.

Ever Present - more on the Holy Spirit

Continuing on about the Holy Spirit...

Today I learned that the Holy Spirit is ever-present. In Psalms 139 the psalmist considers, where can I hide from your Spirit? If I go up to the heavens you are there and if I hide in the depths still you are there.

And if I rise on the wings of dawn and settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me.

What a beautiful illustration of the ever presence of God. No matter where we run, no matter where we have wondered off to the Holy Spirit is there and he will lead us back to Jesus. What a wonderful caretaker Jesus has sent us.

Thank you Jesus for asking God to send us a comforter in your absence. How great He is, how great you are, how great the Father still...

The Holy Spirit

Often I have difficulty wrapping my mind around the trinity. Especially when it comes to the Holy Spirit. Who is he? What is the role that he plays in my life? I know that he is and has been and will be just like the other 2 figures of the God-head.

Today I read that he is eternal. In John 14:16 Jesus says he will ask the Father to send another advocate, a comforter to be with us forever. This is the Holy Spirit! How wonderful that Jesus cares so much he prayed for another part of God be sent to help us. And how great must the Holy Spirit must be if he is to be the advocate for all of us sinners...Forever!

The Holy Spirit will always be there for God's children so you can rest assured that no matter what is going on, Jesus has already made provisions for us through the eternal presence of the Holy Spirit here with us now. Thank you Father, Son and Holy Spirit!