By George Nielsen - January 4, 2013
Work hard to show the results of your salvation,
obeying God with deep reverence and fear.13 For God is
working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him. Philippians
2: 12b & 13 (New Living Translation)
If through the power of the Spirit you put to death
the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live. 14 For
all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. Romans
8: 13b & 14 (New Living Translation)
My thoughts,
here at the beginning of a new calendar year, are to let these passages from
the Holy Bible sink in – first into my mind, which is the primary battlefield
for attacks from satan, our enemy. Then I want to receive them into my spirit. God declares, through St. Paul ’s writing, that He is giving me –
and you – desire and power to be used in service to Him. What He is giving, I need to receive.
The beginning
of the year is the ideal time to re-focus our life. We are called to serve Jesus, and reminded
in our Scripture reading in Philippians that key aspects of this are deep
reverence for God Almighty, always showing honor to the Father, Jesus
our Savior, and Holy Spirit – and doing so with Godly fear, mindful of God’s
holiness. Without a re-focus,
believers can just be stuck in a routine – serving Jesus, but not moving in the
power He has for us, to reach the destiny He has set for us.
Re-focusing is
an individual task. I can’t tell you
what your focus should be, in the natural realm. But I have these thoughts regarding
re-focusing spiritually. Quotes from
two Christian teachers and leaders, devotional author Oswald Chambers and teacher
and mentor Dr. Mike Brown, have been inspirational to me, and they give
guidance for our spiritual life:
“Surrender
your will to God absolutely and irrevocably.”
“Keep
your life so constant in its contact with God that His surprising power may
break out on the right hand and on the left.
Live in a constant state of expectancy.” Oswald Chambers
“Focusing on the God-inspired Picture of you and your
Destiny attracts the Partnership, Favor, and Wisdom of God”
“Work diligently to develop an intimate relationship
with the Holy Spirit, learning to know His voice and immediately without
hesitation or negotiation follow His every instruction.” Dr. Mike Brown
Take time to apply what these two teachers have said
to yourself – your attitudes, plans and goals, and your actions. Jesus said “Have faith in God.” (Mark 11.22) Be
determined to hear the voice of Holy Spirit, receiving His guidance, so that
you can be led by the Spirit. Expect to
be an overcomer, victorious and achieving your destiny. And expect that this destiny will prove to be
well beyond the routine – beyond what we are seeing now in the Church. Expect to make an impact in our society, for
the Kingdom of God
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If you are a parent, one of your goals should be that
you help your children to apply this to themselves. Work with them in an age-appropriate way to
guide them toward making a firm commitment to God’s will instead of self-will,
positive expectation, and the spiritual disciplines that will help them grow
and help them be led by the Spirit.
I am particularly encouraged and expectant regarding
the preteen and young teen students that I teach, the iGeneration, born after 2000, and the youngest of the Millenials, now age 13 or 14. These students will be the believers who can
bring revival and renewal of the culture to North America . I encourage parents reading this to also
have this same expectation.
