GLORIOUS IMPACT: Biblical encouragement & edification

Encouragement, edification, and empowerment from a biblical perspective for true transformation.

The Pinching

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20160421_192851One addiction has been conquered and another rises to the service. When things begin to drop off – when you start dropping the baggage in your walk with Christ – what remains rises to the service. The pinching begins as God calls us to raise our standard to the way of life he has ordained for us as believers. It is a call to draw you even closer to Him and to walk worthy of the calling.

Ephesians 4 – “I, therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

Things become more challenging as He calls us back to making Him the center and the first priority again. It is amazing to me how many layers are uncovered as I strive to give everything to God. The flesh will always rise to contend with your spirit to glorify God. This is a very real and true aspect of the spiritual battle that we face every day. You have to resolve in your heart and mind to put God first. I haven’t always been successful in this area, however, I will never give up but continue to strive to fight the good fight of faith.

Timothy 6:12 “Fight the good fight of faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”

Eternity, eternal life with Jesus and our heavenly Father, is certainly worth it. He has already given us everything we need. The victory was won on the Day of Pentecost after Jesus died on the cross.

Going from glory to glory in the Lord is our life on earth, though definitely not our permanent home.

2nd Corinthians 3:11 – “For if what was brought to an end came with glory, much more will what is permanent have glory.”

As I write, I find that the focus needs to change from self to the Lord. Not our circumstances or what is going on around us, but what the will of the Father is for us. Jesus came to do the will of His Father, God the creator of heaven and earth. Can we not strive to be obedient to Christ because He was obedient unto death?

4 responses to “The Pinching”

  1. Barbara Fisher – California – Hello there. My name is Barbara Fisher and I am a new on the blogosphere. I have thought about doing this for sometime as I can be very opinionated about things and sometimes too much for Facebook. I am a married and the mother of two adult children, and the grandmother of seven. I am a Christian and have recently just moved my membership to a Reformed Baptist Church. I retired December 2012, and that has afforded me this opportunity to not overwhelm Facebook with my thoughts. I hope you find my blog – thought provoking, engaging, and interesting. Please let me know what you think. This is one venue where your feedback is the juice craved to keep going and going.
    Barbara Fisher

    Amen! As we behold Jesus, we are being transformed into to his image, from glory to glory. San, this is exactly what I will be speaking on at our upcoming ladies retreat. II Corinthians 3:18. Obedience is key!

  2. Barbara Fisher – California – Hello there. My name is Barbara Fisher and I am a new on the blogosphere. I have thought about doing this for sometime as I can be very opinionated about things and sometimes too much for Facebook. I am a married and the mother of two adult children, and the grandmother of seven. I am a Christian and have recently just moved my membership to a Reformed Baptist Church. I retired December 2012, and that has afforded me this opportunity to not overwhelm Facebook with my thoughts. I hope you find my blog – thought provoking, engaging, and interesting. Please let me know what you think. This is one venue where your feedback is the juice craved to keep going and going.
    Barbara Fisher

    Amen! As we behold Jesus, we are being transformed into to his image, from glory to glory. San, this is exactly what I will be speaking on at our upcoming ladies retreat. II Corinthians 3:18. Obedience is key!

  3. David Ettinger – Orlando, Florida – Born and raised Jewish in New York, I moved to New Mexico in 1979. I got married in 1980, earned my BA in English in 1981, became a father in 1983, earned my MA in English in 1985, got divorced in 1986, and gave my life to Jesus Christ that same year. I have been walking with the Lord ever since. I began my journalism career in 1980, writing for The Roundup, the school paper of New Mexico State University. In 1981, I became a sportswriter for the Las Cruces (New Mexico) Sun-News, and eventually became an editor. I worked at the El Paso (Texas) Herald-Post as an editor/writer from 1987-1997. I worked at the El Paso Times in the same capacity from 1997-2001. In 2001, I moved to Orlando, FL, where I was the writer/editor at The Holy Land Experience until 2005. I served as writer/editor at First Baptist Church of Orlando from 2005-2010. I currently work at Zion's Hope, Inc. in Winter Garden, Florida. I also taught English Comp at Valencia College in Orlando from 2010-2012. I have been published in various Lifeway publications, Single Parent magazine (Focus on the Family), Zion's Fire magazine, and Real Life magazine. Additionally, I served as managing editor for Zion's Fire and Real Life. In all, I have written more than 800 articles, about 300 of which are Christian-related. My book, "Overcomers: 30 Stories of Triumph from the Bible", was released in May 2015.
    dettinger47

    Well said. What you wrote applies to all believers: “The flesh will always rise to contend with your spirit to glorify God.” This is something we must always contend with, but as you also wrote, “You have to resolve in your heart and mind to put God first. I haven’t always been successful in this area, however, I will never give up but continue to strive to fight the good fight of faith.”

    I’ve been a Christian for more than 31 years now, and no matter how many times I fail, I echo this desire you expressed so well, to never give up.

    Encouraging post … much thanks and God bless.

  4. Vernon – Vernon loves to reflect on life and God's word. He's an inspiring motivating speaker and writer who uses his painful truths to help others. With this blog his hope is to share with you those experiences and possibly influence those without direction to take another look at themselves through biblical principles.
    Vernon

    Those layers you mentioned is like peeling off an onion. More is always being revealed.
    But He have a plan for us!
    Thanks and great post!

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