Tag: Abundant Life

Friday Notes: Living Quietly and Abundantly

The Apostles, in their letters, wrote both doctrine and practical instructions. Many instructions were to counter problems within a newly established group of believers.

These new believers were coming out of a hedonistic, idolatrous, pagan social structure and, while doing fairly well, needed some further encouragement in various matters, both spiritual and physical.

“The basic desire for each of us should be to please God. That’s the key to the Christian life,” wrote Pastor Chuck Smith in a sermon on this chapter (1 Thessalonians 4) of Paul’s epistle. This overarching principle provides a wonderful framework for all believers. It was taught to the believers directly by Apostle Paul in his first visit there. It was reemphasized in his letter to them. Pastor Smith said it’s “the key to the Christian life.” Not just a key. It is “the key.”

One could ask: “What exactly is the Christian life? What does it look like?” The way Apostle Paul puts it: we are to “. . .aspire to live quietly, and to mind” our “own affairs, and to work with” our “hands so that” we “may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.” —1 Thessalonians 4:11.12. 

Pastor Smith put it this way: “Now this means to live sort of a quiet life. You know, with some people everything is a crisis, and they live from one crisis to the next. But he says, ‘Study to be . . . just live a quiet life.’ And that really is a simple life, and we need to learn to just live a simple life, a quiet life.”

Jesus spoke about living an abundant life, for which He came to give those who would believe in Him. When I think of abundance, I think first off of having more than enough of something. Food comes to mind immediately. I like food, mostly. Brussel sprouts might be an exception, but with enough hot sauce . . . 

That’s as far as I got. It’s not from a scrap of paper; it’s from an unfinished post I’d saved to a flash drive a few years ago. Calmer times, those were. I hardly recall now, as things had not yet fallen apart; there was a “center” holding together this world. It was but a short time ago, yet like a dream those days fade into oblivion.

The other day I listened to a sermon by David Wilkerson given at Times Square Church a few years after America’s 911 wake up call. He spoke of more, and worse, disasters coming upon America. One of the things he reiterated is that our focus in times such as these should not be on physical preparations, for the answer is Spiritual.

Our quiet and abundant life isn’t necessarily in the physical world in which we live. It is in our right standing with our Father in Heaven through our Savior Jesus, Son of GOD and Son of Man. Proven through history, recorded to show us, GOD saves His People. Those who have their names written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. That Life is the life that will be calm and filled abundantly. We partake in it today, amid pending chaos in America, in a very unique Spiritual way, by the power of GOD’s Spirit dwelling within us in fullness.

John the Immerser called us to repentance; now the Living GOD calls us to a Baptism of His Spirit through which we may lead that quiet and abundant life despite storms that devastate, plagues that sicken, and conflicts that wound. . . or kill.

LORD Bless, Keep, Shine. . .

Why do you stand looking into space?

Ever been at work and seen a co-worker standing there staring off into space? Perhaps instructions have been given for a particular task and one of the staffers just sits there gazing off into space as if lost. There’s lots of work to do, and he or she is doing? N O T H I N G!

I like the way Memphis Applegate, the host of Memphis Monday, a wood working show I like, opens his video blogs. He sits in a chair, briefly explains what he’s going to do that day, puts his hands down to push himself out of the chair, and says:

” Let’s get crackin’ ”

So it was like that a couple thousand years ago, and provides a great principle for us today. Yeshua had given some instructions to his followers.

“. . .stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” (Luke 24:49)

But after Yeshua ascended to Heaven, His followers simply stood there. Perhaps their mouths gapped open. Perhaps they were simply struck with the full weight of the grief for losing their Teacher. An angel appears to snap them out of it.

“Why do you stand looking into heaven? Yeshua, who was taken up from you into Heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” (Acts 1:11)

There is a kindness in the Angel’s words. There is comfort in immediate reassurance that they’ll see Yeshua again. But there is also a bit of a chiding, too, “Why do you stand” there? The implication, as I interpret it, is that to get back to doing something, for even in waiting, there are things to do. And that’s exactly what those followers did.

They returned to Jerusalem and gathered together in “one accord. . .devoting themselves to prayer. . .” (Acts 1:14)

Finally the promise of Yeshua to cloth His followers in power came about. ”

“. . . there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. . .” Acts 2:2-4)

Once the followers were clothed in power, they now could get on with their primary task. They were to declare repentance for the forgiveness of sins in the Name of Yeshua to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. (Luke 24:47)

Every thing that they would do, essentially building a community of followers of Yeshua within the larger Jewish community, was aimed at bringing the G-D of Israel to all peoples of the world.

I see principles here that are applicable for us, for today, for tomorrow. We find ourselves overwhelmed or over burdened. We stare at a blank wall. We look up toward some hill as if someone would come to help us in our situation—whatever the issue. But our help isn’t coming from a out in space, from a wall, from a hill.

We simply need to begin to talk to G-D the Father, through the mediation of Yeshua Messiah. We must accept our misguided nature, turn to G-D, and seek Him with all our being.

The problem isn’t necessarily going to simply disappear. But if we continue to develop a friendship with G-D, we will find in increasing measure, the Spirit’s influence until at some time we are completely clothed in the Power of the Spirit of G-D.

Along the way we will be drawn into a community of followers of Yeshua, find our place within a new community, draw away from the old world in which we were born, raised, lived, and failed. Yes. The old world doesn’t encourage us to succeed, to have inner peace and joy. It simple traps us into a false notion of happiness based on external devices that fail us, and we fail.

Please understand. It’s not about joining a church, going to some classes and learning. It’s about turning from who we’ve been, turning to the only hope for a truthful, full, abundant life.

L-RD Bless, Keep, Shine. . .