Prayer...where you get food for the Soul

Praying at all times. Ephesians 6:18 ESV

What a multitude of prayers we have offered up from the moment we learned to pray! Our first prayer was a prayer for ourselves—we asked that God would have mercy on us and blot out our sin. He heard us. But when He had wiped away our sins like mist on a window, then we had more prayers for ourselves. We have had to pray for sanctifying grace, for constraining and restraining grace; we have been led to crave a fresh assurance of faith, the comfortable application of the promise, deliverance in the hour of temptation, help in the time of duty, and relief in the day of trial. We have been compelled to go to God for our souls, as constant beggars asking for everything. Bear witness, children of God: you have never been able to get anything for your souls anywhere else. All the bread your soul has eaten has come down from heaven, and all the water it has drunk has flowed from the living rock—Christ Jesus the Lord. Your soul has never grown rich in itself; it has always been dependent on the daily bounty of God, so your prayers have ascended to heaven for an infinite range of spiritual mercies. Your wants were innumerable, and therefore the supplies have been infinitely great. Your prayers have been as varied as the mercies have been countless. So don’t you have cause to say, “I love the LORD, because He has heard My voice and my supplications” (Psalm 116:1 NKJV)? As your prayers have been many, so also have been God’s answers to them. He has heard you in the day of trouble. He has strengthened you and helped you, even when you dishonored Him by trembling and doubting at the mercy seat. Remember this, and let it fill your heart with gratitude to God, who has graciously heard your poor, weak prayers. “Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits” (Psalm 103:2 ESV). C.H. Spurgeon Morning and Evening 

Read this second post well.  I had been so busy writing the other that I almost missed this one.  

I am asking a trusted friend and Pastor about just what is a fervent prayer.  Hopefully it will be in a form that I can share here.  

Prayer is essential and important. Yet there's plenty that it is not.  It's not a regurgitation of things you haven't gotten yet. It's not a grocery list of wants.  It's not about your will being done in this life. 

The Plan of God is about telling others how to find Jesus.  It's not about your career your property nor your bank account.  It isn't certificates on a wall about your education.  It's not about how long you had a job.  It isn't about which team you are idolizing. It's not about which celebrities you have met or have put up on a pedestal. 

People who die go one of two places. Heaven or Hell. 

What their life consists of means nothing if they don't know that Jesus came, lived a sinless life, was brutalized and murdered on a cross to take their place.  He became the substitute for the penalty of sin for them. He arose from the dead 3 days later to make it possible to be saved from that death penalty. But you have to ask for it. You must ask Jesus to save you. To become your Savior and Lord. Then your life is safe in Him. But it's now to be lived for God.  You become the next to share with others how they can be saved.  It's not at all that you get saved then live for yourself. 

All who die today either open their eyes in Heaven or Hell.  They either are shouting the joy of being in the presence of Jesus or they are screaming to Him for a second chance while they are in torment.  

That's the truth of that single decision that means everything to everyone in this life. 

Prayer begins with asking Jesus to come into your life and save you.  It progresses to your dependence upon Him daily until He calls you home to be with Him.   

If fear and anxiety, hatred and selfishness define your life then it's not going to take much to realize your next breath could be in Hell.  Nobody who died today expected to nor really wanted to. They wanted to live.

Come to Christ while you still can. Just as it was in the days of Noah, there came a day when they were told to be in the Ark. For Jesus was going to close the door. 

You are being told, if you haven't come to Christ, to come before the door is closed. 

See what Jesus sees by Him stepping into Your Shoes

See What Jesus sees by Him Stepping into Your Shoes 

Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. MATTHEW 6:10 

It is a helpless, hopeless feeling to be caught in a whirlpool in which other people and their priorities are sucking you under. I know that my priorities are God first, my wife next, my children next, and my vocation and ministry last. What a joy it is to go to God in prayer each day and pray what I have learned from the Lord’s Prayer: “Lord, Your kingdom come, Your will be done. By the grace of God, with all that I have within me, Lord, help me this day to make Your will manifest in my life.” I have to keep praying that every day. I pray those priorities back to God, not only because I want God to hear them, but because I want me to hear them, so I don’t ever forget. God changes us through prayer—when we pray, we get on the same wavelength with God. And as we pray, if we pray according to the will of God, little by little He takes all the things that are out of sync in our lives and puts them into sync so that we can take this big deep breath and say, “Oh, yes, that’s the way it’s supposed to be!”-  Dr. David Jeremiah Morning and Evening 

Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Hebrews 12:1b (NIV ) 

Sin is our most persistent, determined, and pernicious enemy. Sin seeks to rob us of every good thing God has designed for us. Paul tells us that sin brings death (Rom. 7:11) . Yet it is very subtle. Sin creeps into our lives when and where we least expect it. It packages itself so attractively that we are lulled into thinking that it cannot really harm us (2 Cor. 11:14–15). Sin stealthily and relentlessly entangles our lives. We will never be able to run the race marked out for us as long as we are entrapped in sin. We can free ourselves from sin's bondage only if we recognize it for what it is. If we call sin a “mistake,” a “bad habit,” or a “weakness,” we will never escape its grasp. We must not blame our sins on others. We must not allow pride to convince us it is too humiliating to admit the sin in our lives. Sin can blind us to its presence. It does not always command our attention but rather, it subtly and pervasively robs us of the spiritual power and victory that could be ours. The good news is that there is no extent to which sin can entangle us that God's grace does not abound still more to free us (Rom. 5:20). Has sin robbed your joy? Has it prevented you from being the best husband, wife, son, daughter, or friend you could be? Is it keeping you from spiritual maturity? If you have become entangled with sin, God can release you immediately, no matter how desperately entangled you may have become! - Blackaby Experiencing God Day by Day 

We often make the critical mistake of believing what we see.

We see shortcomings and panic.

We see things that produce anxiety and we panic.

We see but...then again...we don't see. 

Read those two devotionals together again. 

Starting off with the right priorities is essential to getting on the right path towards your destination.  A foot pointed the wrong way means endless detours to get back on track sometimes.  

Do you at all begin your day with Jesus?

Do you ever separate yourself from the world to be alone with God? No? Then tell me, how do you expect God to direct your life when you won't come to Christ for directions?  Are you in the place of God in your life that you know more than Him as to how your life should play out?

Look at the other devotional.  Look at the attractiveness of sin.  Go ahead.  Look at it.  It's everything you think you wanted out of life.  Self gratification, self pride, self centeredness. Self self self.  Me, me, me.

How do I make me stand out in the crowd. How do I get people to look at me and like me. How do I get the satisfaction that I deserve.  All...all...all...attributes of sin.

All of that is attention upon self.  It's a life that obviously doesn't include God. How do I create the career that gets me the most money.  

Where in the gospel message is it about us? 

Thy kingdom come, thy will be done. On Earth as it is in Heaven.   Hmm...anywhere in there about self?

Where are your priorities when you wake up?  Do you rush out into the day without Christ?

"The Difference"

I got up early one morning and rushed right into the day. I had so much to accomplish that I didn't have time to pray. Problems just tumbled about me, and heavier came each task. "Why doesn't God help me?" I wondered. He answered, You didn't ask," I wanted to see joy and beauty, but the day toiled on, gray and bleak. I wondered why God didn't show me. He said, "But you didn't seek. I tried to come into God's presence. I used all my keys at the lock. God gently and lovingly chided, "My child, you didn't knock." I woke up early this morning and paused before enter the day. I had so much to accomplish that I had to take time to pray.

Author: Alan Grant

Let Jesus step into your life. Let Him direct your steps. See the world through His eyes, see people as He sees people.  

Your life as a believer isn't about you nor your bank account.  It's about living for Jesus.  Get your priorities right. Spend time with Jesus. 

Your sadness, My sadness.

Your sadness, My sadness. 

I will turn their mourning to joy, will comfort them, and make them rejoice rather than sorrow. JEREMIAH 31:13 

Sadness is an everyday truth in this life, and one we have to reckon with. But just as a day can bring sadness with it, it is also true that the day of sadness passes. We can be accused of being trite or trivial when we say it, but it is true that “things are going to get better; just hang on; you’ll get through this.” That’s the truth. Sadness does turn to joy. I don’t know how many times I have faced a group of family and friends who have lost a loved one unexpectedly—a funeral can be the saddest day of our lives. Looking at people’s faces, we wonder if they will ever smile again. And yet, I will see those same people in a matter of weeks or months and the joy has returned. It’s just the process of life. We weep and then we rejoice. God gives us the grace to move from one phase to the next, from one day to the next. Dr. David Jeremiah Morning and Evening 

Last evening was a struggle for me.  Even having slept on it, as a graceful blessing that that was, only marginally helped.  There is still a sense of sadness for me.  

Life changes direction sometimes faster than we like.  Sometimes we see it coming, sometimes we don't.  

For you, depending on how you take it, it will be somewhere between taken in silence or in a crying out of the heart. 

I am one to internalize most of my feelings.  It takes quite a bit sometimes to let out what I truly feel, not the little bit that people see.  

The truth that was whispered last night to me is the same that I hear this morning from Jesus.  "I am still here. I am still with you. Even in this."

Jobs change, where we live can change. What we do can change.  Our health can change.  Look at the types of people that Jesus healed. Some had been in the state He had come upon with them since before His earthly birth.  They had been in that place in their lives, in some cases, for decades. Until Jesus had arrived they had lost all hope. Sadness was a way of life. 

I have dozens of thoughts and feelings to deal with. Oh how I often wish it were fewer.  Not understanding something often gets under my skin unlike many other things. 

I go through things probably differently than you do. Feel things differently than you do.  Handle sadness, pain, joy, differently than you do. It doesn't make your way any less valid than mine.  If you are a Christian, our anchor remains the same.  Jesus is still there, still with us. Still on the Throne.  

Change happens, and it's going to until the end of the book of Revelation. 

My hope is in Christ Jesus.

In my circumstances today, I don't want a repeat of 2013. I am clinging to my Rock, which is Jesus. My hope is that for you.  The unknown is a scary land.  But in Christ I don't walk into it alone. As Blackaby wrote this morning as well, Peter was a seeker of sorts for Christ. Once Andrew introduced him to Jesus, Peter was always looking to be with Jesus. He wanted to always be were Jesus was. After the Holy Spirit came wherever Peter was Jesus was there. Wherever I am Jesus is there. If you are a Christian, wherever you are Jesus is there.

Your sadness, my sadness might be different or the same, in Christ, through the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, we will never be alone. 

Can You say it?

Can You say it?

“. . . the love of the LORD . . .” Hosea 3:1 NKJV 

Believer, look back through all your experiences and think of the ways in which the Lord your God led you in your wilderness, as He led His people in the days of the Exodus—how He fed and clothed you every day, how He bore with your rudeness, how He put up with all your complaining and your longing for the meats of Egypt, how He opened the rock to supply you and fed you with manna that came down from heaven. Think of how His grace has been sufficient for you in all your troubles, how His blood has meant pardon to you in all your sins, how His rod and His staff have comforted you. After you have looked back on the “love of the LORD” in this way, let your faith look ahead to His love in the future—remember that Christ’s covenant and blood have more in them than the past. He who has loved and pardoned you will never stop loving and pardoning. He is Alpha, and he will be Omega; he is first, and he will be last. So think—when you have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death, you don’t need to fear evil, for He is with you. When you stand in the cold flood of the Jordan, you don’t need to fear, for death cannot separate you from His love. When you come into the mysteries of eternity, you don’t need to tremble, “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38–39 ESV). Now, Christian, isn’t your love refreshed? Doesn’t this make you love Jesus? Doesn’t a flight through the unlimited skies of love inflame your heart and compel you to delight yourself in the Lord your God? Surely as we meditate on “the love of the LORD,” our hearts will burn within us—and we will long to love Him more. - C.H. Spurgeon Morning and Evening 

The question to ask yourself, an even more important question than are you trying to obey Christ, is can you proclaim with your lips that you love Jesus?

Can you say it outloud?  Have you, do you, utter the words "I love you Jesus"?  If you claim to be a Christian, you SHOULD be able to do this freely and willingly. Eagerly even. 

I read that devotional this morning, was reading in Exodus, reading in Matthew.  Between the two, Moses remaking the two stone tablets, the reactions of the people while he had been away with Jesus a second time for 40 days, compared to Pharisees and Sadducees in Matthew.  The people between the first set of tablets and the second set were very subdued and reverent.  A few thousand years later, they were stiff necked and blinded by sin. Stubbornly refusing to believe by faith. 

What does it say of people in the last days? The love of most will grow cold.  

What is said of one of the Churches in Revelation?  They had apparent zeal and fervor yet what was it that Jesus accused them of?  Forgetting their first love. 

So ask yourself, are you becoming a Bible bookworm, just memorizing what is read, or are you asking for more?  I can't memorize like I would love to be able to do.  If I am jealous of other people's abilities those who can do that, well that's a big one for me.  I read an try to understand what I am reading in my daily time in my Bible.  Going to Bible studies n classes but doing nothing with it is like going to college to be a Chef yet upon graduation you become a Secretary who eats tv dinners all the time. 

When was the last time you honestly stopped and told Jesus "I love you"? 

All the lessons of the Gospels START with that.  Your stewardship, your service, your giving, your family life, your personal life, your public life all MUST start with "I love you Jesus!"  Nothing about life matters until you can honestly say "I love you" to Jesus and mean it.  He forgave your sin.  It's punishment ended at the cross for you.  Read Exodus. Punishment for sin could go on for generations. Not for the Christian. Your slate was wiped clean and the words "Paid in full" appear over the bill we owed for our sin. Isn't that a reason to say "I love you!" to Jesus?

Your problems may abound each day, but His love never fails. Reminding yourself that you love Jesus is an anchor to the rock of hope. 

It's the beginning of honesty between you and Jesus.  

Every knee shall bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.  

There's only two kinds of people in that moment.  Those who gladly go to the knee in love for their Savior, and those who are forced to do so.  The first out of love, the second out of compliance. 

Do you love Jesus or is it for show?  Is salvation real in your life or are you, have you, been fooling yourself?

When the pains of life hit are you crawling into a hole or are you crying out to the one who loves you?

If you love Jesus if Salvation is true of you.  You SHOULD be able to tell Him that you love Him. 

Sorrow, Fear, what we have in Christ

Sorrow, Fear, What We have in Christ 

My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials. JAMES 1:2

Persecution was the most common trial among Jewish believers in James’s time. Today, a trial can be a number of things: the loss of a job, a divorce, trouble with our children, severe financial strain, illness or death in the family, or relational problems over which we seem to have little control. Though our trials may not seem as severe as the persecution of James’s day, note that James does not say “if” we encounter trials, but “when” we encounter trials. And when these trials come, our first strategy, according to James, is to “count it all joy.” To count, or consider, it all joy in the midst of our trials is to respond with a deliberate, intelligent appraisal of our situation. We must learn to look at our situation from God’s perspective and recognize that, though the trial is not a happy experience in itself, it is God’s way of producing something of great value. The word count means “to think in terms of the future.” James is not saying we are to rejoice over pain, but we are to rejoice because God’s purposes are being accomplished in our lives. Dr. David Jeremiah Morning and Evening 

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7 

The only fear that God encourages in a Christian's life is the fear of God (2 Cor. 5:10–11; Heb. 10:31). 

Fear of people does not come from God. The problem is that many Christians fear people more than they fear God. Their fear hinders them from pleasing God because they waste their efforts appeasing other people. Timothy was a young man, timid by nature, and probably not strong physically (1 Tim. 5:23). He knew of Paul's frequent trials and persecutions. He knew that he, too, might suffer those same persecutions. Paul reminded his young colleague that fear of others does not come from God. Fear causes us to stop and question what God has clearly told us to do. Perhaps we were confident in our obedience until persecution came; now we doubt whether we heard God correctly. Most fear is fear of the unknown. We do not know what lies ahead of us, so we become apprehensive. Our imaginations can magnify problems until they seem insurmountable. We need a sound mind to see things in proper perspective. That is why God gave us His Holy Spirit, to enable us to see things as God sees them. Fear is no excuse to disobey God. There is no reason to live in fear when you have the mighty presence of the Holy Spirit within you. Fear will enslave you, but Christ has come to set you free. Ask God to free you from any fear you are experiencing and to open your eyes. As He reveals the reality of your situation, He will enable you to continue in obedience. - Blackaby Experiencing God Day by Day 

Christian, pause and ponder for a moment: what a debtor you are to divine sovereignty! Consider how much you owe to His impartial love, for He gave His own Son to die for you. Consider how much you owe to His forgiving grace, that after ten thousand insults He loves you as infinitely as ever. Consider what you owe to His power—how He has raised you from your death in sin; how He has preserved your spiritual life; how He has kept you from falling; and how, though a thousand enemies have surrounded your path, you have been able to progress on your way. Consider what you owe to God’s immutability—though you have changed a thousand times, He has not changed once. You are as deep in debt as you can be to every attribute of God. To God you owe yourself and all you have. Give Him yourself as a living sacrifice, which is your “true and proper worship” (Romans 12:1). C.H. Spurgeon Morning and Evening 

This morning I read, and last night as well, notes by people whom I know who are in various states of emotional distress.  

Fears of others in this world, sorrow over losses,  and the forgetfulness of who they are in Christ. 

I will be among the first to admit that when life hits a pothole, I don't react the right way the first time.  The deep invasive nature of change at times isn't always pleasant.  It's how we act and react is just how much we show the world Christ in us.

It's not easy to have the mindset of considering it all joy when life isn't going your way.  

This does tie in with the next devotional part...fear. Fear of people. Fear of loss. Fear of...well that list is longer than my arm.  We fear speaking out or even speaking up. We fear repercussions. 

Spurgeon's list of things to consider wraps up today's thoughts.  When faced with sorrow or fear...it's what we have in Christ Jesus that matters.  We don't have an empty or vain hope.  We don't speak our hearts out to the air that goes nowhere.  

We may not even have the ability to speak what's on our hearts and minds because of how crushing the moment is.  But in Christ Jesus we have an Advocate. The Holy Spirit has sealed us. Is within us. Who knows our hearts and can come up with the words to say to our Father in Heaven.  Who knows what words need to come out of our mouths when the time is right to confront or speak out against sin.

Who knows sorrow as deep as Christ experienced in His separation from His Father on the cross. A Man of sorrows well acquainted with grief. 

We in much of this world have never tasted relentless persecution like the Jewish people have.  Going on for centuries. We are only beginning to taste the same persecution as the beginning of the Church went through.  As the day draws closer for Christ to return, things are going to get worse in this world. What occurred in Sodom and Gehmorrah is what the whole world will be like.  Sexual immorality will be rampant and the world will try to force its acceptance.  In Revelation it is stated that the world will refuse to repent of their sexual immorality.  

Our experiences now are the beginnings of the many birth pangs before Christ stands up from His Throne with but one purpose. To come and claim those who are saved in His Name.  It's not always easy to look to that joyous moment when experiencing sorrows.  It's not always easy to think on that in the face of sinful people who have a hatred for those who belong to Christ Jesus.  It's not always the first thing that comes to mind when facing even peaceful times to keep focused on who and what we are in Christ. 

Wherever you are in this moment of time, look to the Author and Perfecter of your faith.  In the midst of uncertainty, pray. In the midst of fear, pray. In the midst of sorrows that wrack your soul, pray.  

We have not a Savior who doesn't relate to what we are going through.  Jesus has been through it all and yet did not sin. 

Our fears, our anger, our rage, compares not to what God's purpose and desires are for us and this world. It's His Kingdom come, His Will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven. 

Have You Missed It?

Have You Missed It?

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. MATTHEW 6:21 

A certain Muslim lived in a cottage on a hill. Every week he rode his camel to a little stream. And every week as the camel stopped to drink, it nosed up the pebbles in order to make a deeper place for drinking. Again and again, the Muslim picked up the bright stones the animal uncovered and took them home with him. One day a traveler told the Muslim of the easy comfort and riches that certain men in the city enjoyed; the traveler filled the Muslim’s eyes and heart with discontent. So he sold his cottage and wandered the earth looking for money. Finally he died in rags and poverty, and was buried. The man who bought the cottage found the stones and preserved them. One day a merchant came to his home and discovered that these well-preserved stones were diamonds. The owner of the diamonds immediately became a millionaire. The first man had great wealth but, being ignorant of it, sold it and traveled the world looking for it. The second man simply made use of what he had. All people have eternal life at their disposal. Some respond to this treasure like the first man, some like the second.- Dr. David Jeremiah Morning and Evening 

It is often said some people can't see the point of something even if it were on the tip of their nose. 

So many miss out on the truths of this life because they are caught up in the bells n whistles, the bling and lights of advertised sin. 

They don't see what God says is truth. 

Adam and Eve listened to Satan's lie of what truth was. They saw exactly what he wanted them to see.

We are chips off that old block. We see what we want to see because of the sin which so easily entangles.  

We are quick to follow in Adam and Eve's footsteps in believing what feels good or might be beneficial.  

We can even be like that man who completely missed the treasure at his home that he didn't know he had.  All because we thought we wanted more than what was right before us.

There are all kinds of people in this world. Every one with their own ideas as to what is right and wrong.  With no standard to go by people do whatever.  Believe whatever they are told because they see no reason to question those whom they have always trusted, be it the news on television or political parties.  Trust is only rightly placed in the truths of God's Word.  All men and women can lie to you about what constitutes truth, but not God.  

Men and women strive for treasures here on Earth.  Truth is that's pointless. You die they stay here.  But they lived well while they had those riches!  You might say.  On the contrary, if they lived not for Christ as a believer in Jesus, that infinitesimal life of theirs in that ease and splendor is the best their eternity is going to be like.  Gold is asphalt in Heaven. It's pavement. It's of no value other than to be walked on.

Seeking a vibrant here and now life, but not having Salvation will leave you empty when you die.  You will still end up in Hell. 

Consider this, for all her accolades in her life. Of all who tried to be like her.  If even Mother Theresa wasn't truly saved she would end up in Hell.  If for all anyone's good deeds that are fantastic in their eyes that they think mean something to God, look again.  In Revelation it's clear that any and all works done by anyone in history that are done without being found in the Lamb's Book of Life, they are summarily found guilty.  Cast into the Lake of Fire. 

Not being saved, not knowing the treasure that you have the potential of knowing is as bad as the story of this man.  He was a millionaire and didn't realize it. Had he known the truth his eyes would have been opened.  

You, my Friend, have the opportunity to learn to live by coming to Christ for Salvation. You can finally see with eyes because of the light of Christ. Until you do you are wandering around in the dark.

Open your eyes by coming to Christ. 

Find out what you have been missing. 

All the treasures of this world are meaningless without knowing what real treasure is. 

Even an avalanche is started by something small

Even an avalanche is started by something small 

The little foxes that spoil the vines . . . SONG OF SOLOMON 2:15 According to Psychology Today, 70 percent of high school students and nearly half of college students confess to cheating. USA Today reported that 91 percent of Americans lie routinely. Our culture says, “If you want to get ahead, you have to break a few rules.” But the Bible warns that “little sins” can be just as damaging as the big ones—or more so. Commentator Matthew Henry wrote, “Adam’s eating forbidden fruit seemed but a little sin, but it opened the door to the greatest.” Are you being tempted to compromise your integrity? Tempted to cheat at school? Pressured to be dishonest at work? Drawn into an “innocent little relationship”? We must live by biblical principles, faithful to the standards of a holy God. As evangelist Charles Finney put it, “A person who is dishonest in little things isn’t really honest in anything.” On the other hand, Jesus rewards those who are “faithful over a little” (Matthew 25:21 ESV). Make sure the little, hidden areas of your life are governed by your convictions, not corrupted by your compromises. Dr. David Jeremiah Morning and Evening 

Oh my Dear Reader, oh how the human race delves into self justification. 

Oh how we talk ourselves into just about anything.  

Especially when it comes to sin.  

Look really good at the comment in the middle of that devotional.  “Adam’s eating forbidden fruit seemed but a little sin, but it opened the door to the greatest.”

We are given daily opportunities, as long as God permits our use of His air, permits our hearts to beat, to do the right thing in all aspects of our lives. 

From the greatest choice to the smallest. The opportunity to do right or wrong by God's standards is always before you. 

You can come up with the craftiest of arguments to justify your desires.  Eve did. Then Adam did.  What was God to do?  Disobedience on any scale opens the door to disobedience on every scale. 

We justify the idolatry in our lives.  Don't sit in denial, my Friend, because nobody is really immune from it entirely.  We choose where our love and devotion go. We choose what excites us. We choose who gets our time, energy and effort.  We decide.  Getting any clearer?  We justify our spending hours watching sports with all forms of enthusiasm, yet walk by our Bible as it gathers dust. 

The Church today indeed most of the professing Church has indeed forgotten her first love.  They have to make accommodations to work around Super Bowl Sunday.  They laughingly excuse those who stayed up the night before because of "the game".

My Friend do you at ALL value your time with Jesus? 

My Friend have you slowly let your love for Jesus grow cold?  No excitement, no enthusiasm, nothing.  Have you instead given that excitement, that enthusiasm, that passion and desire to someone or something in this world?

Jesus said in the last days that the love of most would grow cold.  Was He describing you?

In His triumphant entry over 2,000 years ago the people cried out in joy at Jesus coming.  If He entered your city today would you know enough to recognize Him and to do the same? 

Are things like family and sports, celebrities or fame, more important to you than your relationship with Jesus?

An avalanche is started by something small.  Sin began with a simple disobedience to not touch.  Which became taking.  Which became eating.  

Work does need to be done.  Jesus told Adam and Eve that because of sin the ground would not yield its best anymore.  That by the sweat of his brow he would have to work at surviving and living.  

Idle minds are the devil's playground. 

We so easily talk ourselves into sin as well as staying out of it.   

What pebbles are on the move in your life?  It's not too late to cease a life of sin and to return or turn to Jesus. 

Jesus said of true faith: 

Now in the early morning, when He was returning to the city, He became hungry. And seeing a lone fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it except leaves alone; and He *said to it, “No longer shall there ever be any fruit from you.” And at once the fig tree withered.

Seeing this, the disciples were amazed and asked, “How did the fig tree wither all at once?” And Jesus answered and said to them, “Truly I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ it will happen. And whatever you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive it all.” Matthew 21:18-22

The state of the Church today is showing just how much compromise and justification has been allowed to creep in.

Revival is being called out for from God yet people don't see their lives as He does, with the need to turn away from the sin they have grown accustomed to liking. 

Revival begins when hearts are aligned with God. 

Where is your heart aligned with?