Spending Time With God…Intentionally

“In these days he went out to the mountain to pray, and all night he continued in prayer to God.” ‭‭Luke‬ ‭6‬:‭12‬ ‭ESV‬‬ “And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone,” ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭14‬:‭23‬ ‭ESV‬‬ “But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray.” ‭‭Luke‬ ‭5‬:‭16‬ ‭ESV‬‬ Jesus was intentional and disciplined in seeking time with God, His Father. This practice was apparent to the apostles, and it needs to be a parent to us, that spending time with God should be intentional and regular. The first thing Adam and Eve did after disobeying God, was to hide themselves from God. if we intentionally distance ourselves from God, He does not abandon us. As he demonstrated with Adam and Eve, he seeks us out and waits for our response. God is a God of restoration and redemption. He has given us the Bible, the Holy Spirit, and prayer as gifts to open and include in our daily walk. He is always with us, and if we are intentional in our desire to be near Him, He is with us.

Commandment #9…”You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”

 Commandment #9…”You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”

In other words don’t lie to them, slander them, or lie about them.   As I watch TV during this election season I see Satan with a huge grin, as political parties are spending millions of dollars to break this Commandment.  Politicians today don’t have to lie face to face on the political stump, where they may be held accountable.  Now they can lie to the camera and lie to millions without facing them. 

As Christians we have to seek wisdom before we vote.  We cannot allow Satan to influence us through lies and deception just because we hear words that align with our thinking. We better start by acknowledging that “ His thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, says the Lord.”  Isaiah 55: 8.

Walking With God

“He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”

‭‭Micah‬ ‭6‬:‭8‬ ‭ESV‬‬

As many of my friends know. I take morning walks frequently as part of my devotional time and at the same time I pick up trash along the roadways. I am very intentional to remind myself that my walk is a walk with God first and trash gathering is secondary. I really want the time to be an act of worship. Frequently, as I’m walking, I will notice something along the tree line that I think may be a piece of trash and when I walk over to it, I find that it’s just a leaf or a tree branch. But then as I look beyond or around that area, I do find trash that I had not noticed before.  It always makes me smile because I believe that is what God is doing in my life daily. I may not know the trash and the junk in my life that is not apparent to me, but God will see it and clean it up as I walk with him.  If we acknowledge that God is walking with us throughout the day, every day, we may find ourselves in situations and places where we can do acts of kindness and service as acts of worship.