Join Kirk Moose as he talks about how we need to be intentional in our relationship with God to have growth in our spiritual life.
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Life Long Study
Over the last several months I’ve begun the to once again to add another layer. This latest chapter has led me to study Biblical Greek. I’ve been very blessed that my friend and pastor is a student himself and has been able to teach me many of the basics.
I have learned how important it is to understanding verb tenses when it comes to understanding Greek. Without it is hard to understand exactly what the author is saying.
I have never been someone who enjoys learning about languages. However, as I push through this I find a new light given to the word of God.
I really believe if you want to understand the word of God better it’s important to understand the context and the manner that the scripture was written. It’s no different than if you go into someone else’s job and they’re using all kinds of acronyms and proprietary terminology to talk about tools and resources that they use.
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Basics of Biblical Greek Grammar, Fourth Edition By William D. Mounce / Zondervan |
You and I would most likely have to learn that terminology so that we could properly understand what they’re saying. That’s the same for understanding the Bible. Vocabulary has grown so much over the last 2000 years, changing and rearranging itself many times over.
Simply put, think about how drastically different our language has become in just 20 years.
The different meanings that we can give to words. I would encourage you to take a look at this resource here and I pray that it helps you grow as much as it has me!
Press In To Open Your Eyes
Have you ever had a time when no matter how hard you tried you just could not see which way to go?
Have you ever had a season when you thought that God was not answering you?
Well you are not alone! Did you know that the prophet Daniel had the same experience when he was fasting and praying waiting for an answer?
He had waited for 21 days without eating, fasting to the Lord. Very few of us have had a burden for a people so strong that we have fasted and prayed until we got an answer.
Check this out:
Daniel 10:1-9
1 In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a message was revealed to Daniel, who was named Belteshazzar; and the message was true and one of great conflict, but he understood the message and had an understanding of the vision. 2 In those days, I, Daniel, had been mourning for three entire weeks. 3 I did not eat any tasty food, nor did meat or wine enter my mouth, nor did I use any ointment at all until the entire three weeks were completed. 4 On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, while I was by the bank of the great river, that is, the Tigris, 5 I lifted my eyes and looked, and behold, there was a certain man dressed in linen, whose waist was girded with a belt of pure gold of Uphaz. 6 His body also was like beryl, his face had the appearance of lightning, his eyes were like flaming torches, his arms and feet like the gleam of polished bronze, and the sound of his words like the sound of a tumult. 7 Now I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, while the men who were with me did not see the vision; nevertheless, a great dread fell on them, and they ran away to hide themselves. 8 So I was left alone and saw this great vision; yet no strength was left in me, for my natural color turned to a deathly pallor, and I retained no strength. 9 But I heard the sound of his words; and as soon as I heard the sound of his words, I fell into a deep sleep on my face, with my face to the ground.
It was not till after Daniel had sought God, letting go of all that he could control and leaving it all in God’s had that he had breakthrough.
Now it is not that God had not answered. The Angel God sent had a delay. Yet it was the persistent pressing, the perseverance that kept him and brought the answer.
Daniel 10:10-14
10 Then behold, a hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. 11 He said to me, “O Daniel, man of high esteem, understand the words that I am about to tell you and stand upright, for I have now been sent to you.” And when he had spoken this word to me, I stood up trembling. 12 Then he said to me, “Do not be afraid, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart on understanding this and on humbling yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to your words. 13 But the prince of the kingdom of Persia was withstanding me for twenty-one days; then behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left there with the kings of Persia. 14 Now I have come to give you an understanding of what will happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision pertains to the days yet future.”
What gave Daniel the most comfort?
Was it the answer?
Was it the revelation?
Could it have been the answer that came after the sacrifice, a revelation that gave relief in a way that was deeper than just knowing the outcome?
He received an encounter.
People that is what we need…
We need an encounter with our creator.
We need to move beyond our comfort zone and into the presence of God, allowing Him to overwrite the tablets of our hearts. Allowing Him to overcome the situation or stresses in our lives.
It is no wonder that the apostles told us to persevere to the end.
Romans 2:7
7 to those who by perseverance in doing good seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life;
What happens here in this verse when we put it into practice?
When we hold on with all we have, pressing into the presence of our father, not letting go, we open the doors of heaven allowing God to pour out on us an abundance of His presence and His desire.
When we separate ourselves in this way, we also align ourselves with Heaven, allowing our hearts and minds to be more in tune with the channel God is trying o talk to us on.
When we get ourselves out of the way and allow Him to get in our business, then we position ourselves like Christ did before he had to face carvery.
Luke 22:40-46
40 When He arrived at the place, He said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” 41 And He withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and began to pray, 42 saying, “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done.” 43 Now an angel from heaven appeared to Him, strengthening Him. 44 And being in agony He was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground. 45 When He rose from prayer, He came to the disciples and found them sleeping from sorrow, 46 and said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you may not enter into temptation.”
At this point Jesus was so distressed, having to face life just like we do, all the stress, all the heart ache, all the fear of the unknown, yet he pressed beyond himself.
He did not give in to sin, fear, heartache or anything else. He was faced with everything common to us (Hebrews 4:15), yet he knew that by separating himself, pressing into the place with the father, He would gain strength that was not of this earth.
Just like Christ and the Profit Daniel, we can tap into the things of the spirit. We simply need to move beyond ourselves and into a place of pressing, past our self, past or problem, past the fear, and into the arms of the father.
When we do that, we allow Him to give us a supper sight. We are able to see in the spirit, helping us to see the attacks of the enemy before they come. It is like getting the secret communication from the man behind the lines that has the inside scoop, knowing what the enemy is doing and trying to sneak in with.
To have this access we must press into the place where we are a yielded vessel seeking an encounter with our King!
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Raising Godly Children
What does it take to raise children in our modern age? Have you ever wondered if you have what it takes or are ready for children?
News flash!!!
Almost no one is ready, especially financially. The key is to make yourself ready in God. Now, what do I mean by that? Well, you must personally be ready by spending time in God’s presence.
You must take responsibility for your own life, there are no shortcuts!
If you want to be a good parent, raising Godly children, then you must first be a man or woman of God yourself. You will be the largest influencer in your child’s life if you do things right. That does not mean that you will have a perfect child or that they will not have their moments. What it does mean is you will be investing in them intentionally. If you try passive parenting, you will get the results expected, rebellious disobedient children that only want their way.
What steps can you take to keep your children involved with you and the things of God?
Well, this starts again with you. You must, and I mean must set time apart for them! There is no way around this. They must know that they are important to you. You must take time to be not only involved but to be invested. This means that you must put a part of you into them just like investing in a stock or mutual funds. The next thing is not very popular because it gets a lot of kickback and attitude, but you must also when needed…say No.
That is right, you must learn to say no.
No scripture in the Bible says give everything your child wants to them. It does not even say they need to be happy with every choice or rule you make. What it does say is:
Proverbs 22:6
Train up a child in the way he should go;
even when he is old he will not depart from it.
The key phrase here is Train Up Your Child. Training involves work, investment, and sacrifice. There is not any way around that. When we follow God’s principles and invest in our children, then we have already won half the battle.
Now that we have laid that groundwork, we must also understand that we are not to lord over them in a way that causes them to get excessively angry. This means we should not provoke them and stir up their anger. This is not to say that if they get mad at a rule or being corrected that we back down. No, we must always be consistent.
The Word of God says:
Ephesians 6:4
4 Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
The word discipline is not a bad word. Instead, it is, when done in the correct attitude, an act of love.
Proverbs 3:12
12 For whom the Lord loves He reproves, Even as a father corrects the son in whom he delights.
When we love our children, we not only want what is best for them. We also desire for them to avoid every kind of evil or harm that could come against them. We do not want them to end up in any kind of danger, or avoidable problems that could be brought about by not correcting them and guiding them when they are young.
Again, it comes down to investment, we must invest in them just like we would in an investment. When we do, we can expect a return.
The issue that most people face is they are not investing. They simply say no and then get so busy in their lives that the children raise themselves. The problem here is then they are influenced by society without your input. Our brains will inherently believe that whatever we hear first is the truth.
You as a parent, or parent to be, you have the opportunity to be proactive and explain things to your children correctly and biblically.
If we do not invest in our children, then they can believe the lie of the devil. The last thing any of us want is to have our children lost. We must be proactive and invest not only our money but also our time and attention into our children.
If you are an expecting parent or know someone that is, check out our prayer guide for praying for your children.
Has this article helped you? Please make a join the conversation below.
Submission And Spiritual Alignment
Have you ever had a time when you moved out and did something that others disagreed with? Have you ever felt that you are alone, and no one cares about your passions, desires, and dreams of the future other than you?
You are not alone!
Many of us, especially in the church, feel alone and like we are the lone ranger fighting to fulfill our role in the great scheme of things. We feel that no one wants to help us or join us in the fight. That we are isolated. Well, this is just not true. Where you indeed feel this way, what is false is the lie you have believed that you are alone, and no one cares.
Many times, we take a no or a not now as a rejection.
But others too have passions, dreams, and visions that they are fighting to see come to pass. We must as believers look more to Christ than to the approval of others and the opinions of man.
That being said:
God did set up a line of authority in His kingdom here on earth. We are not to go against this government that He established.
We need to, first of all, be following Godly men and women that have the proper fear of the Lord.
Then everything is in order. That is unless you are in rebellion to your pastor. See many times we think just because we have a disagreement that we must be right.
Let me tell you,
you can be 100% right and at the same time be 100% wrong.
If you are in the wrong spirit, being led by rebellion, then you are out of line. The word of God says that rebellion is like the spirit of witchcraft.
1 Samuel 15:23
23 For rebellion is as the sin of divination,
and presumption is as iniquity and idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the Lord,
he has also rejected you from being king.”
Lets define the word Presumption:
Oxford: presumption noun
BrE /prɪˈzʌmpʃn/ ; NAmE /prɪˈzʌmpʃn/
- [countable] something that is thought to be true or probable
- [uncountable] (formal) behavior that is too confident and shows a lack of respect for other people
Now you may say that this is out of context, and yes, it is not the exact context of what we are studying in this writing.
However, we do see the heart and character of God.
By this, we know that he desires for us to not act in rebellion. As we study His word not the commentaries of the great theologians, BUT TRULY STUDY HIS WORD, we can see that God Himself does not speak of rebellion in a positive light. He tells us to submit to our leaders.
Hebrews 13:17
17 Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.
An example:
If you are being asked by your pastor why you have been talking about someone. He could even ask you why you have been dating a non-believer. Maybe you need to ask yourself, were you talking about them as a friend or as an excuse to gossip? This is only something you can ask yourself and truly search your soul on, and many times be productive. With the relationship you should pray about what he is saying and look at the word of God. Someone that flows in discernment may be able to tell if you are telling the truth, however, if you are self-deceived, you will not be open to hearing from someone else. The truth is, we all need to examine our hearts and not be so quick to point the finger at our pastor or other spiritual leaders in the church.
We are all people, flesh and blood, working our faith in fear and trembling before God.
We must come to the place where we are in a submitted place to God. We must allow our pastor and spiritual leaders to speak freely into our lives. We should then through prayer and consideration, not guilt, take things to God and allow the Holy Spirit to guide us as we hear and consider what they are asking us.
Many times, Pastors themselves have been hurt so often that if they seem hurt or bothered, they could be navigating wounds inflicted by their fellow labors or sheep.
It is no wonder the devil has the church-going around in circles. We are so hurt and responding to hurt that we keep going around facing the same issues. We need to cast aside every weight as we come before the throne of our King and allow His peace and life to reign in us as we hear the words from our leaders and move beyond offense.
It does not matter how you perceive their attitude or tone.
Too many times we complain about why did he say that to me or why did he speak to me like that. Well sorry to say it but toughen up!
We are at war and the devil is not playing fair. He takes no prisoners and wants to end us all. His only care is to make God pay for already winning the war.
We tend to have the same problem many times. We allow our hurt to blind us.
We allow ourselves to blame the person that is asking us the hard questions or what we don’t want to hear.
We turn a deaf ear to the Holy Spirit and don’t listen as He tells us to pay attention as our leader speaks.
We must move away from a victim mentality and be aware that the devil is at his prime game doing manipulation through suggestive thought.
He is playing PSYOPS with us all.
If we let him he will have every one of us at each other’s necks and offended at everything each one has done. How better to defeat an enemy but from within?
We must be smarter, we must be wiser! God already gave us the instructions and warned us ahead of time.
He is rooting for us all to operate in Love.
That means you and I must take all that our leadership brings to us and pray over it.
We must consider it. We must look at it as an important part of our walk. Yes, we are all fallible, but if you are truly under an abusive church why are you still there? If you are still in your church, you must believe that God has you there and that you are assigned and called to serve in that house.
In this case, you should submit in all humility before God and to the governance, He has you under.
I am not telling you to be a doormat. Yet you should in humility approach your leader, talk to them, pray with them, and be respectful with them.
After all, they are fighting the same battle you are. We are all walking the walk of faith. If you have struggles about if your pastor is really after God, it’s simple, look at his fruits. You should not be in that church if they are not modeling Christ for you. At the same time don’t start throwing stones just because you don’t like what you are being asked or what Your leader is telling you.
I truly hope that this post has helped you.
Help With Anxiety
Have you ever wanted help dealing with anxiety? Have you ever wondered if you could deal with it on your own or if you need professional help?
The first answer to the question: Do I need help dealing with this type of stress is yes.
However, this is not a short and quick answerable topic. There are multiple causes of anxiety and no on stop fix all except one, that being Christ. Even then, you must be open to the options that are available to help you treat and get over anxiety. Most people go through a process even when God gives them the strength. It is not that He is not able, the problem for most of us not getting complete immediate deliverance is our inability to let go.
That being said you must understand, even after you kick it to the curb it will try and raise its ugly head again.
You will have a choice to deal with it through the tools you have learned or to bow your knee to it again, allowing it to gain the victory over your life. This is a continual WORK. It is not something that never comes back. The good news is you can and will have victory over it if you follow these steps and keep moving forward.
First off, how do you find help fighting anxiety?
A quick way is physical exercise. Where this is not a fix-all, it is well documented that physical exercise is critical for good mental health. Interesting enough God tells us we are to care for our body as a temple.
1 Corinthians 6:18-20
18 Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. 19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
Not only are we to act in a way that is honorable to our body before God, but we are also to live in a way that is holy and honorable.
We are called a temple. Have you seen or heard of anyone taking poor care of a temple in any religion?
Not at all, it is kept in honor. Many even would do without food or costly things to make sure it was kept holy, pure and clean.
We too are supposed to keep ourselves set apart and clean before Him as a temple for Him to dwell in.
How does this relate to anxiety? Well, the best place to find the cure is in the Word of God. I know many people stop right here and say this is a religious thing and move on.
However, this should be the first step not the second.
When anyone does shut out God’s word they will limit their ability to grow in themselves.
The very word religion depicts something we do regularly. So, we cannot have such a dogmatic view of words and the ideas that are behind them.
If any one of us stop and fail to listen just because there is a different point of view, how do we truly know who we are?
If we truly understand who we are and where we stand then we can listen, talk, and learn from anyone we have the opportunity to speak to.
That being said, God teaches us that He is the author of life and bringer of peace. His very nature is that of Love. With Him being the very embodiment of love. He desires for you and I to live a life of victory over the trials of life and all that is brought against us.
Why do non-Christian and many times Christian have trouble fighting off anxiety?
Many times they both have one thing in common:
Ephesians 4:17-19
17 So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. 18 They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. 19 Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed.
When we do not fully surrender our hearts and minds to God, allowing Him full access to speak, move, and give direction, we do not allow Him to have the access rights needed to help us in our time of need.
This is no different than if you are asked to take care of your parents’ house while they are on vacation and they fail to give you the keys to the house. Because you have no access, you cannot care for their house, their dog, plants, or anything else. You are locked out.
When we do not allow God access to our heart, we have locked Him out not allowing Him the access needed to help us fight off the anxiety or fear that is trying to control.
We must recognize that He has already made a way before we were ever born. He decided to send Jesus to die and be raised again so we can not only live but have peace. Paul tells us that we have been provided weapons and armor to protect us from the ever-present attacks of life the devil.
Ephesians 6:10-20
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. 19 Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.
What are we waiting for? We must take action to stop the attacks!
It is not a matter of if you believe it or not. We are all in a world where the natural and super natural are at work. We must start to take a stand and be active in our physical life alongside our spiritual life.
First off, we need to pray that God opens the eyes of our hearts to see the truth of what is at the root of fear and anxiety. The reason I have mentioned fear a few times it is a base root of anxiety. Even when we do not think we are afraid of anything, fear is at the root of this. We must look for the root cause.
If this is something you are dealing with pray this prayer:
Lord God forgive me for not taking a proactive role in dealing with fear and anxiety in my life. Help me to see the truth about what is attacking me and not allow myself to be satisfied with just making it day by day. Help me to use the tools you have provided. Help me to have the understanding to discern what is at the root of this attack and know not only how to pray but also how to stand against it. Help me to be filled with your peace. Thank you, God, Amen!
If you do not know God, you can accept Him in your life. Salvation only requires you to believe in your heart, confess with your mouth:
Romans 10:9-10
9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
You can pray:
Lord, forgive me of my sins, I believe that you are the son of God and were raised again the third day. Come into my life and be my Lord and savior.
That’s it, if you prayed that prayer and believed in your heart you are saved. You should now find a bible teaching church and get involved so you can grow and learn and grow.
Stick around I have more articles about fighting anxiety.
Please, if you prayed ether of these prayers, drop me a line or leave a comment. I would love to join you in prayer!