Taking Care Of Self

Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own.
[1 Corinthians 6:19, NIV]

It is amazing how many Christians out there are not taking care of themselves, and clearly feel terrible for it. Anyone can see this in a person who does not take good care of him/herself from the way they look and the way they carry themselves. You cannot look great if you do not feel great, how you feel will show up somewhere; in your body language, the dull look in your eyes, or even the tone of your skin. Often times it seems people plan to take care of themselves some other day.

There are many reasons why a person will not take good care of him/herself.

- Some do not know how to take care of their physical bodies; bad diets, misinformation and easy access to junk food can jeopardize a person's physical body.
- Poor self Image can cause a person to give up on taking care of him/herself. By setting standards of the perfect person in one's mind, it is easy to constantly feel short of that standard. There's need to reset that internal picture of what an ideal self image looks like.
- Some have become pathologically selfless, thereby become addicted to being selfless even at the detriment of one's well being. It makes the person feel important and valued. Being selfless is not bad but when it begins to take the toll of suffering it is no longer virtue.
- When a person loses support, by not having a good social network or godly foundation to keep the spirit high, it becomes easy to slip into boredom, loneliness and depression. Maintaining a good support network is an important way to prevent bad habits.

Today we are reminded that God dwells in those who believe in Him. Our bodies is our God-given instrument for experiencing life on Earth and for doing God's work. It is the home of your spirit where God dwells and to do the work you were meant to do, you need to keep it in shape. If you let your body get too shabby or sick, it will be a constant distraction as you will not be able to experience the presence of God, His joy and peace in fullness without being pulled aside by the condition of your body. God calls us to cast all our cares upon Him and take good care of His temple.

Prayer: Dear Lord, grant me the motivation and understanding always to take care of my body and not ignore it like I tend to do. Open my eyes to more wisdom on how to take care of my body, and make me fit for your purpose here on it. Dear Lord apply me to all you have called me to do here on earth in full health I pray in Jesus name.

One Year Bible Reading Plan: Nov. 2, 2010 - Psalm 15-16 (OT) , Revelations 14 (NT)

Kept In Perfect Peace

You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace 

whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, 

because he commits himself to You, 

leans on You, and hopes confidently in You.

[Isaiah 26:3, AMP]

There are those decisions that we know can change our lives for good or bad, those situations that could make or break us as individuals. We scheme and plan and fret, constantly aware that one wrong move or bad choice can harm us.

When Life causes us to loose our peace of mind, its time for us to shift focus. God calls us to a life of partnership and dependence on Him,  cos when we lean on Him, we would be 

Guarded: God promises to watch over us, in other words, when we make Him our center of focus, we are assured that we would constantly be safe in His wings no matter what may come. We are never left on our own but we are kept under the surveillance of the most High....what comfort.

Kept In perfect and Constant Peace: The bible assures us of ...tribulation and trials and distress and frustration(John 16:33), but we are assured of peace because of He who has overcome the world. No matter the challenge, no matter how daunting it may seem, nothing matches the awesomeness of our God, so linked to Him, we walk as victors, therefore we need not worry, but rather we remain in perfect peace, assured that faithful is He who called us who also would do it (1Thess 5:24).

Its not enough to declare total faith and trust in God by words alone, we need to be sure our words, our thoughts and our actions, all align with our profession, we cannot have faith only in words, it is a lifestyle. Our hope should be a confident hope, one that understands that the potential of our God exceeds the things we have seen or even heard. A hope that does not waver but clings the more dearly to God in the face of looming confusion. We let go of trying to use our reasoning and logic, and embrace a more excellent way, The mind of Christ. Trust in the Lord forever for the Lord, the Lord Himself is the Rock eternal (Isiah 26:4)

Prayer:  Lord, I open up my heart to You and ask that You teach me through Your spirit to constantly depend solely on You, help me understand that on my own I would constantly struggle, but leaning on You, I would walk in peace and be guarded. I receive grace to live continuously in perfect peace. In Jesus Name

  

One Year Bible Reading Plan:  Nov. 1, 2010  - Psalm 13-14  (OT) , Revelations 13  (NT)

Ultimate Salvation

Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling
[Philippians 2:12, NIV]

In Revelation 3:1, God says 'I know thy works'. He knows everything we have done in the past, and He is aware of every detail of what we are presently doing. He also knows what we are planning to do, our dreams, ambitions and thoughts. He is one who can't be deceived.

There are three types of salvation. The first being Instant Salvation, the second, Progressive Salvation and the third, Ultimate Salvation. The first kind of salvation takes place the day we give our lives to Christ and this gives us the ticket to get to the stage of final salvation, In Philippians 2:12 we are told to work out our salvation with fear and trembling, this is the Progressive Salvation. It is the second step and the longest. It entails doing everything we can to retain our first salvation, and most of Satan's attempts are targeted at making us lose our salvation at this point. Be encouraged to resist, fight, avoid, run sometimes and hold tight to your Progressive Salvation, in order to reach the finishing line.

Matthew 24:13 says of all who have received salvation, only those who endure to the end shall be saved. This is the Ultimate Salvation. It is the third and final step in the salvation process. It is this salvation that receives the gift of eternal life with Christ Jesus our Lord. Hold onto your salvation, not allowing anything or anyone rob you of this priceless treasure, your eternity depends on it.

Prayer: Dear Lord, please give me the grace to continue in your salvation to the end. Uphold me with your victorious right hand of righteousness, help me to hold fast to your salvation in my life. Thank you Lord Jesus for giving me this privilege of Salvation and counting me amongst those who are yours. Let my life glorify you Lord I pray in Jesus name.

One-Year Daily Bible Reading Plan - Oct. 31 2010 - Psalms 11-12 (OT), Revelations 12 (NT).