We are mighty warriors

Judges 6:12-15 NIV

When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.”   “Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our ancestors told us about when they said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.”   The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?”   “Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.”

Gideon sees himself as weak.
Why?
1. Because of other's opinions. They see him as weak. "My clan is the weakest and I am the least in the family. "
2. Because of circumstances. His whole experience for years has been one of being down trodden. Of being pushed around, being robbed and having to hide.

And yet God had big plans for Gideon's life. He wanted to use Gideon to change the world. To advance God's Kingdom on the earth. To see people return to Him.

And so in order to achieve His plans He starts with Gideon's self image.
He knew that Gideon was capable of leading an army. He knew that Gideon was a mighty and powerful man. He knew the truth for God always sees us as we really are.

And the truth is we are all mighty warriors. Strong and powerful because of the Spirit of God that dwells within us. We are all capable of changing the world. So often we don't think so because we experience bad circumstances or we believe the opinions of others.

But the only opinion that truly counts is Jesus'. We can do all things through Him who gives us strength. We are mighty warriors with a world changing Spirit in us. We bring light wherever we go.

Seeing ourselves as God sees us is one of the first keys in unlocking our full potential in advancing God's Kingdom. As we do this we open up a truly exciting future in Christ.

Go! And make disciples.

Jesus said 'Go and make disciples,' and a huge part of this is in the mindset, in how we see. So often I go thru life and survive. Go thru each day wondering what I'd like to do or think about the tasks that have to be completed. But to fulfil the great commission requires us to see beyond the here and now and look to prioritise God's work ahead of all else. So when I walk around do I set my mind on God, listen out for His promptings, His voice or do I do what I want? One way is a way of purpose, one way is aimless drifting. What is required? A ' proactive, front footed, seeking opportunities to build the church' mindset. Each person is hugely important to God. Each person has their own set of needs and hurts and all need Jesus. So as u go thru life look at every person and remain open to God, asking Him how to give, to love, to bless each person. It may be as simple as a prayer, it may be a smile, a kind word. Whatever always be on your look out to bless. And let God work thru u.

Life is an adventure.

There is a glorious future that God has in store for each and every one of us. It is a future that has Him at the centre and has us fulfilling our true potential for His Kingdom. It is one that will see the most impact for eternity. It is one that sees His Kingdom come and His will done. It has the most incredible blessings where our lives are satisfied with Jesus and peace and love and joy are abundant.

To inherit this future is in our hands. The promises of God are inherited by faith and patience. Keep trusting, keep believing, keep persevering. Let us dream for the supernatural to break out.  Let us believe for huge things from God.  

And never let fear rob us of what is possible. Never listen to it for a second. Never worry about other's opinions. Let us not make our choices out of fear but faith.

Fear is the opposite of faith. It will drain us of our belief. Let us not be afraid because The Lord is with us. He never leaves us nor forsakes us. His love will kick out fear. If we come to Him in our weakness He makes strong. He will turn fear to boldness.

Renewing the mind

Romans 12v2 tells us to no longer be conformed to the world's way but transformed by the renewing of our minds.
How does this happen? We choose what to think about. What to reflect on. What to focus on. The default in life is always to focus on the things that shout the loudest. That demand our attention the most. Or to get distracted from the truly important things to more trivial. Often as a way of escape from the mundane or the stress.

Thinking like this won't renew our minds and so we will not be transformed. The only way is to get God's Word as our focus, base our thought patterns on, to be thinking on Him and His message day and night.

Josh 1 v 8
  This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it; for then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall have good success.

Thinking, meditating on God's word doesn't happen by accident, nor can we get much from it by pure will power. We trust Jesus - the Word Himself - to open up the Word to us, to give us revelation,  to give us focus when all around is loud.

So let us try this wherever we are. To bring a verse to mind and go over it again and again asking for meaning. Often when I wake up in the morning I bring a verse to mind and as soon as I do I experience an energy flooding my body and mind. It literally wakes me up. Do it throughout the day. The more we do it the more God's words fill our minds and we are transformed. The more energy fills us. The Word brings life.  Life to our souls, spirits and bodies. After all, the Word created all things and everything begins with Him. (John1 v1)

Allowing Jesus to deal with our temptation

We often hear about how Jesus deals with sin (which is good) but little about how He can deal with our temptation. It is easy to feel that we have to use our own strength to deal with it.
Temptation is a hard fight on our own. However, the good news is that Jesus wants to help us overcome our temptations. If we allow Him access He deals with them much better.  Simply  ask God and trust Him with them.  By letting Him know about them is enough ( He knows already). It brings the struggle into the light where it can be dealt with.  Let us not be ashamed in doing so. For in living like this we struggle less and live in freedom more.

Removing fear - knowing His presence, remaining honest with God

In hundreds of verses the people of God are instructed not to fear. The reason for this is usually given straight afterwards - because God is with us. It is the presence of God - an awareness that He is always present with us, always helping us, always loving us that removes fear.

However, the fantastic news is that God always meets us where we are. So if we still feel afraid in spite of these promises God will still help - He knows us inside out and will give us all the encouragement we need to do His will.

Judges 7:9-11 NIV

During that night the Lord said to Gideon, “Get up, go down against the camp, because I am going to give it into your hands. If you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah and listen to what they are saying. Afterward, you will be encouraged to attack the camp.” So he and Purah his servant went down to the outposts of the camp.

Gideon needed an extra help to remove fear. God knew and met Him where He was. All this is available to us as well as we are honest with Him and tell Him what we need. So whatever we are sensing God's purpose for our lives is, there is no need to fear. He is with us in everything He calls us to do and will provide the encouragement to conquer all of our fears.

Living in the Spirit - a definition

Living according to the Spirit brings much fruit. Galatians 5 states that living in this way produces love, peace, joy, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility and self-control. But what does it actually mean to live according to the Spirit?

Living connected to God, to His life strengthening Spirit.

It is living open to Him, listening to Him, trusting in Him and responding to Him.
An inner dialogue where His Spirit flows through us and inspires and empowers.

This is the life we are called to. A life constantly open to every prompt. A life of trust.