#discipling

Scripture Of The Day – June 18, 2024

John 11:44  -  "And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes:  and his face was bound about with a napkin.  Jesus said unto them, 'Loose him, and let him go.'"

As you come to understand your Christ calling you start to develop vision.  You start to see yourself bearing fruit that remains for God’s Kingdom.  This becomes the most important thing in your life as it displaces other goals and agendas, you have developed for yourself in the past.

You begin to instinctively reject everything else for Christ and advance His Kingdom.

It is the responsibility of the people of God who witness spiritual resurrection to loose those who get saved by the power of God so that they can go.  God wants us to fly like eagles as we endeavor to disciple new Believers out of the old grave clothes of their old life and lack of TEACHING into an understanding of their Christ identity.

Who will teach these new believers?

Isaiah 6:8 – “Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”

PREPARING FOR REVIVAL

The outpouring of the Spirit is likened in Scripture to a deluge of rain on a dry and thirsty land. But if that deluge is to result in a harvest, then the soil must first be prepared. "Break up your fallow ground," cries the prophet Hosea, " for it is time to seek the Lord, that He may come and rain righteousness upon you.." (Hosea 10:12)

What is fallow ground? It is land which now lies idle through lack of cultivation -- hearts of many who profess the name of Christ but are spiritually unproductive and void of spiritual growth. Fallow ground is hard; that is why it needs to be broken up. Hardness is not confined to those who have denied the faith or fallen into deep sin. There are believers today sitting under the finest ministry year after year without giving any evidence of spiritual growth. Their state of heart has deprived them of spiritual understanding, though their minds are being filled with biblical information. The insensitive heart does not hear. There are burdens God wants to share, but He cannot do that if we are out of touch.

Fallow ground is weed-bound. If we are not diligently cultivating the garden of our soul, we may be sure that spiritual weeds are flourishing.

Fallow ground is unfruitful. The ultimate purpose of the Lord's dealings with us is that we may be fruitful (John 15:16). Nothing short of fruit that remains will satisfy Him. It is possible to be religiously active, ever zealous in our service to God, yet when a hungry Savior comes to us, as to the fig tree, looking for fruit, He finds nothing but the leaves of our busyness. And so He goes His way as hungry as when He came, and deeply disappointed.

What then is to be done with this unproductive fallow ground? We are to break it up, says the prophet. Noticed, it is not primarily a question of God breaking us, but of us breaking ourselves. We must be careful to not put the obligation of breaking ourselves upon God -- "Please break me" -- we He has already put the obligation on us by saying, "You break your own fallow ground" (Hosea 10:12). Of course we cannot do this without Him. But when He sees us responding to His command in obedience and faith, He will do His part, working in us by His Spirit.

PRESSING TOWARD THE MARK

"The most important thing is that I complete my mission, the work that the Lord Jesus gave me." - Acts 20:24

There are no shortcuts and there are no other paths. There is only your CALLING in Christ and it is this path:

If you stay on it, it will lead you straight to the top of the mountain; and to make the climb, you have to lay down all your baggage.  It will also change you from the inside out. This journey will do a work of humility within. If you stay steady in the midst of the steep climb, it will produce diligence and endurance for your next season.

You are CALLED to serve God.  Regardless of your job or career, you are called to full-time Christian service.

"We must run with patience the particular race that God has set before us." - Hebrews 12:1

As we ascend to the very top of the magnificent Mountain - as few men and women actually endure the climb. 

Those who lay it all down cry out Psalm 24:7: "Lift up your heads, O you gates! And be lifted up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in."

They stand in a place of great authority. This is the place where we have the authority to cry out, "Lift up your heads, O you gates!"

STEADFASTNESS IS THE KEY

Many people get this invitation, but few make the whole journey (into God's DESTINY for their lives). For many start the climb yet want to keep their baggage and are unable to continue up the Mountain. Some people wander off the trodden path for other adventures that looked better to the eyes but were worthless to the soul.

"We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."  -  Ephesians 2:10

There are no shortcuts to the top of this Mountain. It is easier to stay on the PATHWAY of your CALLING in Christ. It is easier to keep walking. This Mountain, this climb, is an invitation of the Lord to climb His Holy Mountain with clean hands and a pure heart, and all the while embracing humility which produces great authority. Though some people start with baggage, or offenses, or unforgiveness – we all have the occasion to lay it down. In order to continue upward, you have to lay everything down, otherwise it is impossible to make the climb, for the weight of these will make the climb too burdensome.

You are commanded to serve God.  Jesus came "to serve" and "to give" -- and this should define our life on earth, too.  We are to serve others by helping them develop their spiritual lives in Christ (their Christ identity)and help them find God's purpose for their life.

"Jesus said. "Your attitude must be like my own, for I, the Messiah, did not come to be served, but to serve and to give my life." - Matthew 20:28

THE INWARD LIFE

This PATHWAY produces an inward life, a steadiness that you can only get if you stay on the path. This trek is a place of great gain, living from the inside out...and if you can make it to the very peak, it's a place of new authority.

Where are you in this climb?

Is the pathway too steep and hard because you need to lay down some baggage?

Do you find yourself looking for easier paths, easier ways to reach the peak?

Maybe you have become distracted with the pleasures of this age, they might have caught your eye.

For we are all invited. We all receive the invitation to lay down our baggage, to stay on the pathway. We all get to be a part of this great climb up the Mountain of the Lord.

"Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of Himself." - Philippians 2:5

This is the season to lay it all down and to stay on the path: Lay down offenses, lay down unforgiveness, lay down any distractions, lay it all down and stay steady for the journey of a lifetime.

"Always think about Jesus Christ." - 2 Timothy 2:8

"Fix your thoughts on Jesus." - Hebrews 3:1

Daily Meditations And Affirmations - December 24, 2025

Isaiah 54:2 - “Enlarge the place of your tent, and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out; do not hold back; lengthen your ropes and strengthen your stakes."

When you don't think there is more to where you currently are in God's purpose for your life, you become limited. You think this right here -- all I see -- is it. This type of thinking keeps you from exploring and discovering. It keeps you from stretching yourself and dreaming about other possibilities.

If you want to meet God's calling in Christ on your life, you're going to have to believe there is more than what meets the eyes. You begin to choose to live like there is more by expecting more and praying for more wisdom and revelation (Ephesians 1:17,18). Kingdom destiny followers know that more is beyond, and they commit to scaling barriers or other walls put up by their minds -- or by others.

1 Corinthians 2:9 - "it is written: What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived -- the things God has prepared for those who love him…" If you could see through your eyes what you were created to be, you'd change your life.

Affirmations:

Each day I seek to draw ever nearer to Christ, seeking to yield, ever deeper into His will for my Christ calling to bear fruit that remains for His advancing Kingdom. (2 Corinthians 3:18)

I walk worthy of the Lord - I am fruitful as I equip new Believers into an understanding of their Christ identity, and I increase in the knowledge and wisdom of the Lord. (Colossians 1:9-12)

I Arise! Arise! Arise! for my provision will come from level to level and height to height.