•12:24 PM
"What Controls You?"
By: Tom Smith, Wooddale Church of Christ
One of the most incredible challenges we have each day is what controls us.
The ultimate goal of every Christian is to controlled at all times by the Spirit of God, instead of the spirit of this world. It is when we are controlled by the Lord, that we are able to fulfill our purpose in life, enjoy the peace, joy, and abundance of this life, and know God's richest blessings.
When we allow ourselves to be contolled by the things of this world, we distance ourselves from the Lord, whatever pleasure we enjoy is temporary followed by much pain, and we miss God's best for our life.
What controls our lives becomes the ultimate battle we fight each day.
I say each day, because you choose daily what will control you...God or this world.
The choice on what should control us is an obvious one. Making it happen is not so easy to accomplish.
Before we became Christians, it was never an issue. There was no choice. We simply lived our life the way the world lived. Our lives were totally controlled by the spirit of the world. Once we accept Jesus and obey the Gospel, we are now confronted with a choice each day. Continue to live the way the world lives, the way we are used to living, or live under the control of our new master, Jesus Christ.
How do we do it?
It starts with our daily relationship with the Lord - praying and reading the Word each day. We need to be part of a local fellowship and finding ways to serve the Lord. As this becomes our daily life and focus, as we are more in touch with God throughout the day, we get used to the Holy Spirit controlling our life as opposed to the things of this world controlling us. We learn how to be controlled by the Spirit of the living God. The critical key becomes having our lives controlled by the Lord consistently, day afer day.
Never get so comfortable that you aren't aware that you have to work to maintain that daily walk, since it is from that daily walk with the Lord, that we allow our lives to be controlled by Him.
When we stop praying each day, stop reading the Word each day, stop going to church and stop finding ways to serve God, that is when we become open to having the things of this world take control over our lives.
So this becomes a daily challenge that we must take seriously, since it is pleasing to God. It is this principle of allowing the Holy Spirit to control your life each and every day that allows us as Christians to make a difference in this world.
It is when we are being controlled by the Spirit of God that God can work through us, giving us the power to do those things necessary to advance His plan and touch the lives of people.
It is when the Holy Spirit is controlling us that we are fulfilling our purpose in serving and glorifying God with our lives.
By: Tom Smith, Wooddale Church of Christ
One of the most incredible challenges we have each day is what controls us.
The ultimate goal of every Christian is to controlled at all times by the Spirit of God, instead of the spirit of this world. It is when we are controlled by the Lord, that we are able to fulfill our purpose in life, enjoy the peace, joy, and abundance of this life, and know God's richest blessings.
When we allow ourselves to be contolled by the things of this world, we distance ourselves from the Lord, whatever pleasure we enjoy is temporary followed by much pain, and we miss God's best for our life.
What controls our lives becomes the ultimate battle we fight each day.
I say each day, because you choose daily what will control you...God or this world.
The choice on what should control us is an obvious one. Making it happen is not so easy to accomplish.
Before we became Christians, it was never an issue. There was no choice. We simply lived our life the way the world lived. Our lives were totally controlled by the spirit of the world. Once we accept Jesus and obey the Gospel, we are now confronted with a choice each day. Continue to live the way the world lives, the way we are used to living, or live under the control of our new master, Jesus Christ.
How do we do it?
It starts with our daily relationship with the Lord - praying and reading the Word each day. We need to be part of a local fellowship and finding ways to serve the Lord. As this becomes our daily life and focus, as we are more in touch with God throughout the day, we get used to the Holy Spirit controlling our life as opposed to the things of this world controlling us. We learn how to be controlled by the Spirit of the living God. The critical key becomes having our lives controlled by the Lord consistently, day afer day.
Never get so comfortable that you aren't aware that you have to work to maintain that daily walk, since it is from that daily walk with the Lord, that we allow our lives to be controlled by Him.
When we stop praying each day, stop reading the Word each day, stop going to church and stop finding ways to serve God, that is when we become open to having the things of this world take control over our lives.
So this becomes a daily challenge that we must take seriously, since it is pleasing to God. It is this principle of allowing the Holy Spirit to control your life each and every day that allows us as Christians to make a difference in this world.
It is when we are being controlled by the Spirit of God that God can work through us, giving us the power to do those things necessary to advance His plan and touch the lives of people.
It is when the Holy Spirit is controlling us that we are fulfilling our purpose in serving and glorifying God with our lives.
