authentic e-news (Intimacy)

God has designed us as our Creator and is changing, shaping, molding us to become more like Christ. Scripture tells us to work out our salvation…not that we have to work FOR our salvation, but now that we are saved we have to WORK to become His disciples. The role of the church is to help you in that process of becoming a mature and complete disciple. That is why I feel God leading me to guide you (and me) in that process.

Our desire is for you to grow in your relationship with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. My prayer is that through these devotionals and your study time with God, He will speak to your hearts and continue to shape you into the disciple that He is calling you to be.

To start our study this week we will look at the first mark of a disciple, Intimacy. A Disciple of Jesus loves God by pursuing the knowledge of God and intimacy with God. A disciple of Christ also is eagerly and regularly involved in prayer, the study of God’s Word and other spiritual disciplines, leading to a close personal relationship with Jesus Christ which is growing ever deeper.

Devotions
Below is a break down of scripture and some questions that relate to the scripture. I recommend reading the scripture and then asking your self the questions that follow. Think about your responses or jot them down, and read the scripture again. After this you can think about what other questions come to mind. Let God lead you from there and go where He wants to take you.

Monday – Psalm 27 – Apply this Psalm to your life and make it your prayer this week.

Tuesday – Exodus 33: 12-23 – How can you relate this intimate experience Moses had with God to your life? Pray that God may reveal Himself to you in an intimate and personal way this week.

Wednesday – Philippians 3:4-11 – Where is your confidence? Think about who Paul was and what exactly he means when he considers it a loss for the sake of Christ? Who are you? Do you consider who you are a loss for the sake of Christ? (Surrender)

Thursday – Romans 12:1-8 – Are you being conformed to this world or are you being transformed by the renewing of your mind? What are your gifts and how are you using them for God’s glory?

Friday – Ephesians 1:3-14 – What does this tell you about God choosing you? What is His good and pleasing will for you? Are you fulfilling that will He predestined you for?

Saturday – John 17:20-27 – I know that we have done this twice last week, but it is the perfect place to end for this week. What is Jesus praying that you will do in this prayer? Will you do it? How?

Sunday – Spend your devotional time in prayer. There’s no such thing as too much prayer.

Challenge
The challenge section of this e-newsletter will be an area that I will encourage/challenge you to do something that maybe you wouldn’t normally do. It will almost always apply to the devotions for the week and taking something that we read and actually applying it to our lives. Application is extremely important in our growth to become more like Christ. If we claim to follow Him, then our actions need to resemble His. It’s not enough to just learn about Christ and gain head knowledge, but we need to imitate Christ in our words and deeds as well.

Most of us are great at praying when in a time of need. This week, try turning everything over to Christ in prayer…for things you normally can “handle” on your own. Be challenged to seek His input on every action and every breath of your life.

Please respond to me with anything that you would like to share about these devotionals or the challenge for the week. I would love to hear how these may be making a difference in your life. Also, forward these on to friends/family who may also enjoy them. If you would like to be added or removed from the mailing list please send an email to jhoppa@lighthouse-ministries.org

God Bless