Acts 20 Study - Day 7 "Finish the Race and Complete the Task"

Hello Everyone,

Keep praying for the makeover we discussed on day 6.  Watch for to change you from the inside out.  

Let's begin day 7.

"Finish the Race and Complete the Task"

SCRIPTURE

Acts 20:22-24

New International Version (NIV)

22 “And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. 23 I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. 24 However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.

OBSERVATION

There is so much to pull out of these three verses.  We will go over a few points but I encourage you to study on your own and meditate on the word.

1.  Paul says that he was compelled by the spirit to go to Jerusalem.  Back in Acts 20:2, 3 and 19, Paul says that he was being plotted against by the Jews and he was trying to avoid them, so you know it had to be the Holy Spirit that was compelling him to go to Jerusalem because he was not going to go.  Let's take a moment to look at Paul's obedience to God. The very place Paul was trying to avoid going to God said go!  Do we obey God when he wants us to do something we have purposely avoided or feared doing?  Paul's obedience when he doesn't know what will happen to him is amazing to me.  For those of us who are planners at heart, we struggle with not being able to know what is to happen next. (We have to rest in Jeremiah 29:11)

2.  Paul then talks about how the Holy Spirit warns him of what is to come.  (Acts 20:23) The Holy Spirit will warn you as well.  How you ask?  All I can say is that He will and you will defiantly know it is Him.  You must stay plugged into God through prayer and fasting to keep the lines of communication open between you and God.

3.  Knowing full well the dangers before him, Paul said his life is worth nothing as long as he, "may finish the race and complete the task..." (Acts 20:24)  WOW!!! Are we that committed to God and the task that He has given us to do? Regardless of the dangers, ridicules and misunderstandings we have a job to do.  The task Paul had, we still have to this very day, we are to "testify of the gospel of God's grace." (Acts 20:24)

If you are not sure of how to describe grace to someone here is an acronym by the late Pastor Adrian Rogers;

G - gifts

R - received

A - at 

C - Christ 

E - expense 

When we testify of God's grace we are testifying of the gifts of redemption, salvation and eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

APPLICATION

We know that all Believers in Jesus Christ have the purpose of sharing the gospel of God's grace.  Also each one of us has an individual task that God created us for.  Ask God to reveal yours to you.    

Look for opportunities to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with someone each day. Let them know that if they repent of their sins God will forgive them.  Then they confess that Jesus is Lord and that God raised Him from the dead. Then they can ask Jesus to come into their hearts to be their Lord and Savior and they will be saved.  Hallelujah!

PRAYER

Dear God our Father, thank You for Your Son Jesus Christ.  Thank You for sending Him to save us through His death, burial and resurrection.  God help us to live for You and witness to others about Your grace.  Help us to be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit. God, help us to "finish the race and complete the task." (Acts 20:24) In Jesus' Name.  Amen. Thank You God. 

The Lord is Close

Hello Everyone,

I am so sorry the I allowed February to go by without one post.  So I am wanting to start March off on the right foot.

For the month of March the memory verse comes from the book of Psalms.

"The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." 
Psalm 34:18 NIV

So many people are brokenhearted and crushed in spirit.  Maybe you feel like that right now.  But what is so amazing about this verse, written thousands of years ago by the psalmist David, are the first four (4) words, "The Lord is close...".

My dear friend the Lord is close.  He has not left you alone.  He has not forgotten that you are there.  He knew everything that would happen to you before you were even born.  He knows what is going to happen to you tomorrow, next week, next year and 20 years from now.  Our Heavenly Father is close to us.  Nothing is a surprise to Him.

You may fill weak right now but He will be your strength.  You maybe be crying right now but He is bottling up your tears.  You maybe be feeling completely alone right now but He already said in His Word that He is close to you.

I know how it feels to get news your were not expecting.  It feels like the breath was just knocked out of you.  Your heart begins to race and your stomach begins to churn and your eyes begin to feel the burn of tears welling up in your eyes.  Dear Ones, the Lord is close.  He is close.  He Is Close.  HE IS CLOSE!!!

Father,  I come to You now thanking You for being close to the brokenhearted and those crushed in spirit.  Thank You Father for being our strength and for bottling our tears.  Thank You for giving us love when we feel all love is gone.  Thank You for giving us courage to face another day.  Thank you for peace and calm in the middle of our life storms.  Most of all thank You for Jesus, who died and rose again for us all.  In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth I pray.  Amen.

PS. Thank you Chaquita!

All Things New!!!

"Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature: behold old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." 2 Corinthians 5:17

Happy New Year!!!

Before I go any further in this post let me ask you a question.  Do you know Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior?  What better way to start 2013 then by asking Jesus Christ into your heart at this very moment.  You can simply say this prayer.

"Dear Heavenly Father, I come to you in the name of Jesus Christ, your Son.  I believe He died on the cross for my sins.  I repent of my sins, and ask you to forgive me.  I believe You raised Jesus from the dead, and I receive Him now as my personal Lord and Savior.  Thank you that my name is now written in the Lambs Book of Life, and I know that when I die, I will be with you in Heaven for all eternity. In Jesus name I pray.  Amen"

If you just prayed this pray we believe you are saved.   You are now my brother or sister in Jesus Christ.  Here are a few steps for you to get closer to God as a new believer in Jesus Christ.

Get baptized as commanded by Jesus Christ.

Tell someone else about your new faith in Jesus Christ.

Spend time with God each day through daily prayer and reading the Bible.

Seek fellowship and friendships with other followers of Jesus Christ.

Find a Bible believing church to attend regularly.

Wow!  There is no better way to start 2013 then as a new believer in Jesus Christ.  Praise God!  Can you believe that we are now in 2013?  Where did the time go?  The beginning of a new year is a special time.  You start the new year with a blank page ready to be written on.  What will your 2013 story consist of.  Maybe God put on your heart a task to do in 2012 (or 2011) that you have been waiting or hesitating to start.  What better time then now to get started!

My advice to you (and to myself) is to ask God what does He want you to do this year and then follow His leading.  Proverbs tells us to commit our plans to the Lord.  Yes we can make plans for this new year but we must commit them to God so that ultimately His will is done. 

May God bless you this year.  And may those blessings be exceedingly and abundantly more then you could ever ask or think.  In Jesus name I pray.  Amen. 

Much Love,

Jamison

Putting Your Feet To Your Faith

Hello Everyone,

I wanted to take a quick moment over lunch to share this thought with you.

This week at my church we are having revival services.  For those of you who don't know what that is, revival is a service were Christian's come together to hear the Word of God, be encouraged in our faith and rededicate ourselves to doing God work. (I had someone ask me what is revival yesterday.)

Last night the speaker talked about faith.  She quoted Matthew 9:29 which says, "...according to your faith be it unto you."  You can read the entire chapter to get a clear understanding of the scripture text.  This chapter in Matthew tells the story of the blind men who were following Jesus asking to be healed of their blindness.  Jesus lays His hands on their eyes and then says according to your faith be it unto you and instantly they received their sight.

So how did feet come into the picture?  Well the speaker really talked about how the blind men followed Jesus although they could not see him.  Then it hit me... they put their feet to their faith.  They believed with all of there hearts that Jesus could and would heal them.  They began to walk in the direction of were their faith which was in Jesus.  So many times we have faith in people and things and therefore we begin to follow them.  Place your faith in Jesus Christ and follow after Him.

Okay, I hope you get this with me.  If you are believing God to do something in your life.  If you have been praying, asking God, seeking God and knocking on God's door for something put your feet to your faith!!! Follow Jesus and begin walking in the direction that you are wanting to go.

If you have been asking for a job, begin get your feet in line with your faith and go after the job you want.  Have you been asking for God to help with financial provision? Begin to put you feet to your faith and look for ways to earn income while you keep faith that He will pour down a blessing upon you.

Now for my single Sisters seeking a spouse.  Do not, I repeat do not take this to mean that you are to hunt down a man like a tiger hunts down its prey.  It is up to the man to look for the woman.  "He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord." Proverbs 18:22 NIV.  Putting your feet to faith in this area is to begin to prepare yourself to be a wife.  Ask yourself, do you need to improve your relationship with Jesus Christ so that you can be a true blessing to your husband, do you need to work on being a better housekeeper, better at managing your finances or becoming a better cook.  If the answer is yes to any of those questions then put your feet to faith in those areas and follow Jesus Christ as you prepare yourself.

What a revelation?!?!  I so love God.  He just blows my mind!

Asking God to bless each of you in a mighty way.

Much Love,
Jamison