Getting Right with God Archives - My Manna

Iceberg!

MyManna — Thu, 16 Nov 2017 22:00:09 +0000

“Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts” (Psalm 51:6).
A honest look at what is going on beneath the surface of your life-
– can contribute greatly to your spiritual health,
Think of your life as an iceberg!
We are told that the visible part of an iceberg-
– that is, the part we see above the water – is about one-tenth of its total size.
Its bulk lies beneath the surface and is revealed only to those who are equipped to go down below the waterline.
Our lives are like that!
There is much more to them than we see on the surface.
Think of the visible part above the waterline as representing-
– the things you do, the thoughts you consciously think, and the feelings you sense going on within you.
Let the mass below the waterline represent the things that go on inside you that cannot be clearly seen or understood, such as motives, attitudes, impulses, and so on.
Facing what goes on above the waterline – our visible behaviours and actions-
– is a whole lot easier than delving below the surface.
And this is why many Christians (not all, of course) concern themselves only with what they can see, know, and understand.
These people can be described as “surface copers!”
They cope with life by dealing with whatever they can see and ignoring all the rest.
We are to enjoy a deeper relationship with God!
Then we will do so only as we come to grips with the tough issues that lie beneath the surface of our lives.
May God help you this day to stand in complete and utter honesty;
– save you from becoming a “surface coper,” and
– give you the grace you need to face the things that you would normally avoid.
(PA)

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Deeper dependence

MyManna — Mon, 02 Nov 2015 16:00:58 +0000

Before we can dwell on the heights-
– we must be prepared to take an honest look at what is going on beneath the surface of our lives.
Doing this, of course, can be dangerous unless it is approached in the right attitude.
Some Christians use the process of self-examination-
– as a means of avoiding rather than assuming responsibility.
They look at what is going on inside themselves and allow what they discover there to develop into a cynical negativism-
– which hinders rather than helps their Christian life.
Those who do this fail to understand the purpose of godly self-examination:
– to bring what is discovered to the Lord so that He can deal with it.
The Israelites in the wilderness were bitten by the snakes.
When they looked at themselves and recognized their condition, they were then highly motivated to look to the brass serpent for help.Numbers 21:4-9.
The purpose of taking such an honest look at what is going on beneath the surface of our lives is-
– to promote a deeper dependence on the Lord and thus contribute to our spiritual effectiveness.
Recognition of our true condition provides-
– a strong motivation to look away from ourselves and
– turn in simple faith to the Lord Jesus Christ.
As you take this journey into the core of your being-
– be willing to face yourself in a way that you have never done before.
I cannot promise you it will be painless!
But I can promise you it will be profitable!
(PR)

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Any holes in your life?

MyManna — Wed, 09 Sep 2015 16:00:00 +0000

“Catch the foxes for us, The little foxes that are ruining the vineyards, While our vineyards are in blossom” (Song of Solomon 2:15).
Researchers who had made repeated dives to the wreckage of the Titanic-
– challenged the accepted theory that an iceberg tore a 300-foot gash in the side of the ship.
The ship’s bow is mired in mud, but the team ‘looked’ at the hull using sound waves.
They concluded that the damage is ‘astonishingly small’-
– just six small gashes along the starboard hull.
Unfortunately-
– the openings were made at the worst possible place, along six watertight holds.
Little things can do great damage:
– a little lie here,
– a little cheating there,
– a little stealing,
– a little gossip, and/or
– a little unresolved conflict
– like a little gash in a mighty ship can open a floodgate of damage somewhere down the track.
Any holes in your life?
Let’s not neglect them.
Let’s get smart and, with God’s help, take care of them today before they sink us.
May God help us see the ‘little’ things in our life that-
– if we fail to resolve them now, they may ‘burn out of control’ farther down the line.
(PR)

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Switching off Jesus?

MyManna — Sat, 01 Aug 2015 16:00:47 +0000

“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined. For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given…” (Isaiah 9:2, 6).
The Sunday school children were making their annual presentation of the Christmas story.
Parents were proud.
Grandparents were sentimental as they reminisced about Christmases past.
All had gone well until.
There is always an “until” in a children’s Christmas presentation.
All had gone well until they reached that time to show the holiness of the newborn Saviour.
Mary and Joseph looked suitably significant.
The shepherds had hit their marks and were on their knees in a position of worship.
At the right moment-
– the student who controlled the lights was to throw all the switches but one
– that single switch controlled a small light bulb placed in the manger.
The light from that single source would be most impressive for the folks watching, at least, that’s what was supposed to happen.
Unfortunately-
– the boy who was to turn off all the lights but one got rattled.
He hit all the switches.
The congregation, thrown into pitch-blackness, sat in stunned silence.
That’s when one of the shepherds, a third-grader, said in a whisper that carried through the entire church:
“Hey! You switched off Jesus!”
For that boy, “switching off Jesus” was an accident!
In Jesus’ day there were many people who “switched off the light” Jesus wished to give them.
The inn keeper, Herod, scribes…
Today there are also those who willfully turn off the light the Saviour brings.
In their ignorance, they deliberately deny and disregard the Lord Jesus who has come so they might have joy and peace.
They keep the light turned off.
They cannot say, “You are my Saviour and my Lord.”
It is the Lord’s wish and will that you walk in the light of the Saviour.
If Jesus had been born one thousand times in Bethlehem, yet has never been born in your heart, then you will, on Judgment Day, still be lost.
That would be a terrible and unnecessary tragedy-unnecessary because Jesus came into this world to save you from such a sorry ending.
Jesus was born so that you might live in the light and not grope in the darkness of sin and Satan.
So you could be in the light, Jesus spent His entire life doing what you could not.
Switching off Jesus?
Or walking in His light?
(PR)

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Iceberg!

MyManna — Thu, 28 May 2015 16:00:57 +0000

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The point of return

MyManna — Wed, 06 May 2015 16:00:11 +0000

You can say all you want about getting right with God-
– but if you don’t get right with God in your finances,
– you are not right with God.
The kind of repentance-
– that does not reach the bank account
– has never reached the heart.
In Malachi 3:7, God says:
“Return unto me, and I will return unto you.”
And the people said, “Wherein shall we return?”
God’s answer in verse 8 reveals that they were to return-
– in tithes and offerings.
The point of return is-
– the point of departure.
If you’re going to come back to God and if you’re going to renew your fellowship-
– you’re going to have to begin with the tithe.
It’s time to put the good book to the checkbook!
How are you doing in the area of your tithes and offerings to the Lord?
“Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in Mine house, and prove Me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it” (Malachi 3:10).
(PR)

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