4-24-18 The First 15

Facebook ShareForward to a Friend
The Weekly Overview
In response to knowing the heart of God we are called to share the wonders of his invisible nature with a world in desperate need of him. God has chosen to use us to reveal himself. He’s filled us with the Spirit and empowered us to proclaim the good news of salvation and restored relationship with our Creator. May you discover this week that you were made to share God’s heart. And may you find joy and passion in God’s longing to use you in powerful and unique ways.
The Scripture
“It is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”
-  Philippians 2:13
The Worship Experience
Artist: Leeland
Song: Lion And The Lamb
The Devotional
God is calling you and me to a lifestyle of joining him where he is already at work. Foundational to co-laboring with God is acknowledging that he is in constant pursuit of humanity. There is nowhere you can go that God won’t be. There is no one you could talk to whom God doesn’t already see, love relentlessly, and have amazing plans for.

Sharing God’s heart begins and ends with his grace. His grace empowers us to step outside of ourselves and love others. In grace he pursues us, even in our sin. Grace sent Jesus to die for us that we might have salvation through him. And it’s by grace we receive that free gift of salvation.

It’s important to understand God’s grace because without it we work in vain. If we operate under the perspective that salvation, healing, deliverance, and freedom for others hinges on our ability or our mercy, we will achieve nothing. But when we understand that we are merely carriers of God’s heart and fellow recipients of God’s lavish grace, we work from a place of power and truth.

1 Timothy 2:3-4 says, “This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” And Philippians 2:13 says, “It is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” You are not called to go off on your own into the darkness. God doesn’t just meet you when you read Scripture or spend time with him and then send you off to do his will. He is always with you. He is always available to you. And he always longs to empower you.

Cultivate a lifestyle of seeing where God is at work that you might co-labor with him. Ask the Holy Spirit for eyes to see the way he is pursuing people. Ask him for his heart for your friends, family, co-workers, and those you might only encounter once. God’s most likely not asking you to drop everything and move to an unreached people group right this moment. Instead, he’s asking you to be used by him to minister to others you encounter in your daily rhythms of life.

Meet God where he’s already at work today and seek to share his heart with a world that desperately needs to know a God who passionately pursues them.
The Prayer
1. Meditate on the truth that God is already at work. Allow Scripture to change the way you see co-laboring with God.

“This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” 1 Timothy 2:3-4

“It is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” Philippians 2:13

2. Ask God where he is already at work around you. Ask him to bring to mind a person or a group of people whom you can minister to today.

3. Ask him how he is already at work. Ask him for a revelation of what you can do to see his kingdom advanced through your life today. Ask him for specific ways you can love others well. Journal his response and pray to receive courage and empowerment by the Holy Spirit.
Healing didn’t happen in Scripture because a disciple had a greater level of mercy or compassion, but because a disciple chose to co-labor with God where he was already at work. God is constantly loving, beckoning, and drawing everyone you know to himself. And he will work through you if you seek to join with him in his purposes. If you want to live a life of purpose that has eternal value, you need not look any further than the faces of those you see every day. May you love others as God does. May you show mercy and compassion in response to God’s mercy and compassion. And may God’s kingdom come to earth around you today as you minister with God.
Extended Reading: Philippians 2

Craig DenisonCRAIG DENISON is the author and founder of First15, a daily devotional guiding tens of thousands of believers into a fresh experience with God's presence every day. He writes, speaks, and he and his wife, Rachel, lead worship to help believers establish a more tangible, meaningful connection with God.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

9-17-23 Not in a Billion Years

Not In A Million Billion Years :: By Dave Hubley Published on: December 24, 2022 by RR10 Category:General Articles (There is a special message at the end of this article for those who might happen to read this and do not have Jesus in their life and are looking for peace and a way to better understand the present-day insanity and confusion.) Several years ago, I had a conversation with a guy in a waiting room while getting an oil change (in the car, not me). I don’t recall exactly how the conversation originated or how it progressed, but I have never forgotten it. As I recall, it had something to do with evolution and an article that was contained in a “waiting room magazine” that was available there. He made the observation that God was “something that man had made up.” I can’t recall the exact reason he used to justify his opinion, but it had something to do with the usual reasons people give: Weak-willed people needing a crutch, and blah, blah, blah. I engaged him in a “witness,
Read more

9-16-23 Santa Staleness

Santa Staleness :: By Edwin Tan Published on: December 24, 2022 by RR10 Category:General Articles My one and only trip to Israel had more than a profound effect on my present-day psyche. It might have been three decades ago, but there is more than a lingering aftertaste. It happened smack in the last fortnight of the year. Surprisingly absent were the familiar sights and sounds of the Christmas most people are accustomed to. Hardly any Christmas decorations in downtown Tel Aviv, if not any of the shopping thoroughfares across the Holy Land. Hanukah was a breath of fresh air – not anything resembling a Christmas carol most people grew up with did surface. The Christmas Eve service in a small Protestant church not far away from Jerusalem’s Old City was awesome; songs that truly celebrated the virgin birth of our Lord, which though seemingly unheard of, were a welcome inspiration to many a soul. There was even one sung in Arabic! So it began, my overt disdain for the secular Christmas t
Read more

9-15-23 Miracles 2

Miracles 2 :: By Jim Towers Published on: December 21, 2022 by RR10 Category:General Articles This story is a continuation of the exciting things God continues doing in my life. I was supposed to have died a while back, and sometimes I feel as though I may do so soon. But since I’m ready to meet my maker, I have no fear of death. In fact, my evangelistic zeal has only increased, especially as I see the fast approaching of the “Tribulation period” mentioned in the book of Revelation. Insofar as my acting career is concerned, I just finished filming a soliloquy featuring Melchior, one of the three Magi who followed the star to Christ lying in the manger, and am preparing to portray a Jewish Priest on stage. Like I said, God is working overtime in my life, and I will be appearing on stage singing Broadway show tunes sometime in March, so I have a lot of rehearsing to do. In the meantime, I will be signing Christmas carols acapella at a park here in Naples. Since it is a spontaneous th
Read more