JUST DO IT!
"I'm not a morning person. I can't get out of bed in the morning to be in the Word."
"I'm too tired at night to be in the Word. It's just not effective!"
"I don't have the time to be in the Word. I don't want to do it just because someone tells me I HAVE to."
"There's nowhere in the Bible that tells me I HAVE to do it a certain way..."
"I don't want to do it if my heart isn't in it."
What would have happened if Jesus had looked at His Father and said:
"I'm not really a "cross person"...those nails may not be comfortable!"
"You know, moving from heaven to earth to live like those people do, and be rejected and persecuted and treated like dirt by a bunch of ungrateful people won't be very fun...I'm not really an 'earth person'!"
"So what if I am going to be raised from the dead in three days, I'll still have to be tortured and then laid in a tomb for 3 days...I'm not really a 'tomb person'!"
"I don't know how effective it will be for me to stay up and pray all night, while my disciples fall asleep, in order to get through what You have called me to do. I'm not really a 'night person'!"
"I know, Father, that you say that this is the only way that Your people will be saved from eternal death, but I'm not so sure that I want to go to earth just because You say that it is the only way. Do I have to do it just because You say I HAVE to?"
This doesn't look like very much fun to me...
But He did it!
He had to.
His heart was in it.
He was willing to be inconvenienced.
He lost a whole lot more than a little sleep.
He was willing to suffer.
He was willing to discipline Himself and choose the hard road....
FOR US!
Why is it that we are so quick to sit around and analyze and argue whether or not we HAVE to be in the Word--and WHEN we're "supposed" to do it?
Why do we come up with so many excuses? WHY isn't our heart in it? Why are we not willing to be uncomfortable and inconvenienced in order to get alone on a daily basis with our Lord? Not because we HAVE to...but because we owe it to Him. Because we NEED to. Because we can't function without it. Because it's really the ONLY way to get to know our God and what He desires for us.
Because we want to KNOW HIM!
Because we are so grateful for what He has done for us and all He had to go through...far more than we will ever have to experience.
We need to stop waiting until we feel like it, until it's convenient, until we've had enough sleep or enough time. We need to MAKE time, we need to CHOOSE to do it, we need to BE WILLING to be inconvenienced.
We need to discipline ourselves for the purpose of godliness.
(1 Timothy 4:7)
We need to CHOOSE to present our bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.
(Romans 12:1)
We need to look at the cross--see all He went through for us--and stop making excuses!
We need to stop sitting around and making each other feel better for not doing it.
Just do it!
I think it's the VERY LEAST we can do.
Don't you?
You can visit Gina at her personal blog "CHATS WITH AN 'OLD LADY"
"I'm too tired at night to be in the Word. It's just not effective!"
"I don't have the time to be in the Word. I don't want to do it just because someone tells me I HAVE to."
"There's nowhere in the Bible that tells me I HAVE to do it a certain way..."
"I don't want to do it if my heart isn't in it."
What would have happened if Jesus had looked at His Father and said:
"I'm not really a "cross person"...those nails may not be comfortable!"
"You know, moving from heaven to earth to live like those people do, and be rejected and persecuted and treated like dirt by a bunch of ungrateful people won't be very fun...I'm not really an 'earth person'!"
"So what if I am going to be raised from the dead in three days, I'll still have to be tortured and then laid in a tomb for 3 days...I'm not really a 'tomb person'!"
"I don't know how effective it will be for me to stay up and pray all night, while my disciples fall asleep, in order to get through what You have called me to do. I'm not really a 'night person'!"
"I know, Father, that you say that this is the only way that Your people will be saved from eternal death, but I'm not so sure that I want to go to earth just because You say that it is the only way. Do I have to do it just because You say I HAVE to?"
This doesn't look like very much fun to me...But He did it!
He had to.
His heart was in it.
He was willing to be inconvenienced.
He lost a whole lot more than a little sleep.
He was willing to suffer.
He was willing to discipline Himself and choose the hard road....
FOR US!
Why is it that we are so quick to sit around and analyze and argue whether or not we HAVE to be in the Word--and WHEN we're "supposed" to do it?
Why do we come up with so many excuses? WHY isn't our heart in it? Why are we not willing to be uncomfortable and inconvenienced in order to get alone on a daily basis with our Lord? Not because we HAVE to...but because we owe it to Him. Because we NEED to. Because we can't function without it. Because it's really the ONLY way to get to know our God and what He desires for us.
Because we want to KNOW HIM!
Because we are so grateful for what He has done for us and all He had to go through...far more than we will ever have to experience.
We need to stop waiting until we feel like it, until it's convenient, until we've had enough sleep or enough time. We need to MAKE time, we need to CHOOSE to do it, we need to BE WILLING to be inconvenienced.
We need to discipline ourselves for the purpose of godliness.
(1 Timothy 4:7)
We need to CHOOSE to present our bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.
(Romans 12:1)
We need to look at the cross--see all He went through for us--and stop making excuses!
We need to stop sitting around and making each other feel better for not doing it.
Just do it!
I think it's the VERY LEAST we can do.
Don't you?
You can visit Gina at her personal blog "CHATS WITH AN 'OLD LADY"
andBearing One Another's Burdens
Labels: Gina's articles
posted by Unknown @ 12:42 AM
12 Comments:
Amen.
Wonderfully put! We live in a lazy society where it's all about our comfort zone.
Great post!
Kim
Wow - SO powerful. An amazing truth that we all need to take to heart, eloquently presented. We DO owe Him. Thank you.
Very true. Our flesh has a way of screaming louder than our spirit doesn't it? It's a choice.
Thanks friend!
Sue
Amen. Yes, the very very least I can do...
amen!
very true.. . and it's very timely.. .well for me.. thanks for being God's vessel!
oh Gina! This was so much for me... and some of my friends.. thank-you!
Thanks ~ I really needed that!
I wonder if I could use this in our church newsletter?? Our website is faithcommunity.net if you'd like to visit before making a decision.
Well said.
God Bless
Marie,
Feel free to use it! They are God's words! Not mine!!
God Bless!
Gina
AMEN! Yesterday I didn't spend any time at all in the Word because I was "too busy" and I paid a price in terms of being unsettled and unhappy all day but I hadn't even given thought to how it must have saddened my Father.
We look for ways that we can still call ourselves "Christian" without actually being Christlike.
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