To Whom Will You Surrender?

Another Newlife devotional...

To Whom Will You Surrender?

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Matthew 11:28

Does it seem as if everyone wants something from you or expects you to do something? Pressure has become a regular part of our lives today. And these will be times when you're forced to choose between surrendering to the pressure of others and doing the will of God. 

Scripture remembers Saul as a man who didn't choose well. Israel was at war. In the midst of battle it was customary to have a priest offer sacrifices. Samuel had promised Saul that he would come at an appointed time to do this. Saul waited for a while but began to feel pressured because his troops were leaving him. He knew that it was against God's law for him to offer the sacrifices because he was not a priest. But Saul decided he couldn't take the pressure any longer. He offered the sacrifices himself. 

Just as he finished, Samuel arrived. "'How foolish!' he said. 'You have disobeyed the command of the Lord your God. Had you obeyed, the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But now your dynasty must end, for the Lord has sought out a man after his own heart.'" (1 Samuel 13:13-14)

If Saul had waited just one more hour, he would have kept his kingdom. Surrendering to God means that you resist surrendering to those who pressure you to disobey His commands. When you surrender to ungodly pressure, you pay the consequences. When you surrender to God, you benefit, and your family benefits for generations to come.

- Steve Arterburn

"You're born. You suffer. You die. Fortunately, there's a loophole." - Billy Graham

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Why Do We Experience Setbacks In Life

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Hope in the Midst of Tragedy

Click here for another great message from New Life Ministries.

Spiritual Gifts

Spiritual Gifts

There's a real danger in thinking your spiritual gifts are blessings God has given you for your own benefit. The problem with this selfish viewpoint is that you see your use of these as an option or luxury that you neglect or use according to your will alone. That's a far cry from a biblical understanding, which sees your spiritual gifts as expressions of gratitude God wills for you to use in service to others. 

The Bible teaches that God gives us spiritual gifts so we can give to others. We use our gifts to continue Christ's work on earth. The apostle Paul wrote: A spiritual gift is given to each of us as a means of helping the entire church. His point: your gifts aren't your possessions. Yes, they've been entrusted to you, but actually, they belong to the community of believers. The truth we need to think about is that God has woven a unique design into each of our hearts. And our spiritual gifts are part of that fabric.

So, what are your spiritual gifts? Not sure? Read the Bible's teaching on spiritual gifts in Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, and Ephesians 4. Then ask yourself where you've felt the greatest satisfaction serving the Lord. Carefully thinking through that question will go a very long way in clarifying this issue; because when you do what you love in order to show God's love, you'll find spiritual fulfillment and renewal. 

- Steve Arterburn 

"When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, I used everything you gave me."- Erma Bombeck

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Relevance

Cindee, my wonderful wife, and I recently joined a casual choir at Elam United Methodist Church.  We have received the words for our first several songs that we will sing, one per month, to a professionally recorded music track.

We had a guest at our house recently who started looking through the three ring notebook that had these words.  She began to read the words out load.  She didn't recognize the songs but did say with delight and amazement "Wow!  These words are so relevant to life!  They really touch me where I am these days!"

What made this statement all the more powerful was her earlier conversation with us of a new activity that her church was doing that she didn't understand and seemed to have no place in her life.

Once again, as they so often do, my Dad's words came back to me:

“We need to set our sights high, 

but all of our labor will be in vain unless 

we begin each new effort on our knees before God’s altar.

A worshiping community -

A community in which the sacramental life is central, 

is the strong and powerful one. 

The Lord Jesus Christ must be at the center of the lives of the laborers 

if this church is to make the transition, grow, 

and meet the real and essential 

needs of the people coming into this community.”

Relevance in the life of a church is defined in large part as meeting the real and essential needs of the people in its community.

I am thankful for a Church such as Elam that is doing so with such joy...

Taming the Monster (A Newlife Ministries Devotional)

Taming the Monster

It teaches us to say NO to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age. - Titus 2:12 

Are you aware that the vast majority of American homes are inhabited by a monster? It's true. In fact, most homes now have several. Family rooms, bedrooms, and basements are their favorite spots. The older, larger, ones sometimes have four legs; and some of the younger ones hang on walls. Have you guessed? I'm talking about your televisions. And make no mistake about it: they are monsters. 

Like many things in life, your television isn't inherently bad. It has the potential to provide education and entertainment. The problem is, for most of us, the television has transgressed all proper and constructive boundaries in our homes and lives. Consequently, our conversations, our meals, our study time, our attention spans, our sleep-even our sex lives-have been invaded by this household monster.

 You don't need to throw the baby out with the bath water, but it wouldn't hurt to set some boundaries for our TV use, both for us and for our kids.

- Steve Arterburn

"If it weren't for Philo T. Farnsworth, inventor of television, we'd still be eating frozen radio dinners." - Johnny Carson (1925-2005)

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Burn Out

Burnout

Are you burned out, or in danger of burn out? Has your life gotten so busy that it takes every ounce of energy on a daily basis simply to keep from falling behind? And you're not doing a very good job of that? 

If so, I understand-it's not a good feeling. Like the dilemma of having a tiger by the tail: let it go and it'll gobble you up; hold on and you're in for a wild ride. According to recent polls, the American workforce is burdened by a great deal of stress; 77 percent reported feeling occasional burnout, which, by the way doesn't discriminate by age, gender, or other common groupings. 

The first thing I would recommend this week if you're feeling burnt out is that you honor that commandment about the Sabbath. Take a day where you spend time worshipping God and the rest of the day away from anything close to your daily grind. Take a walk. Go to a park or the beach. Stop receiving input and give your mind a rest. 

- Steve Arterburn 

"Until a man has found God, he begins at no beginning and works to no end." - H. G. Wells (1866-1946)
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