GREENE STREET LETTERS: DYING TO SELF

Sunday, September 4, 2022

DYING TO SELF

II Corinthians 5:9
Therefore, also we have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him (God)

No thought to my own selfish desires that have gotten me in trouble. No thought to my own selfish desires that have brought about destruction in my life. My focus now is on pleasing God. Turning away from the darkness of addiction to the light of surrender and receiving this new life in Christ, I have a single purpose ....to please Him. That my life might reflect the goodness that has been given to me.

Ephesians 5:8 & 10
For you were formerly darkness, but now you are light in the Lord: Walk as children of light.
Trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord.
Here again the focus of my life should be going about my daily activities, but allowing God's Holy Spirit to direct me each moment. With every decision made, our aim should be to please God. How can I know what pleases God? Get in the book....a.k.a the Bible. Read it. Study it. Digest it. You might be surprised at what happens.

John 8:29
"And He who sent Me is with Me. He has not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him."
Why should I live my life to please God? Because when Jesus walked this earth, that was His goal. To be pleasing to His Father. To do only those things that He knew would please Him. What things actually please God. Well, for starters.........how about Obedience. Simply doing what we are told to do. Wow! I could have had a V-8!!!!

Luke 9:23
And He said to them all, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me."
Pleasing God begins with dying to self. Realizing that this new relationship we have with Christ, began with the act of us dying. Now we are resurrected to a new way of living. One that has no place for selfish, self-centered thoughts and desires. This is so opposite of the way the world system operates, but it is the economy of heaven. I can only cease to be selfish when I truly trust God that He will meet my needs and has my best interest at heart. Then and only then can I truly walk out a life that is pleasing to Him. All of this that I have wrote of this morning is a process. It is growth and learning and messing up and being forgiven. But it truly is the heart of God.

God on you......
mb

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Looking At The World Through Cracked Lens

As ol' Paul wrote in his Corinthian letters.."We see in part and we know in part." Now what piece of this bit of wisdom do we not get? I wish to not run around acting and trying to be some sort of Biblical G00-Ru (I meant to spell it wrong). Or a sage of sages.

I simply want to be able to communicate some of what God has given to me. Why? Do I think what I get is better than what you may have received from Him? Nope. But I do think encouragement comes when we share our daily story of struggle and victory in an effort to encourage each other.

Thanks for letting me share.

Time to soldier on..

mbb

Our Statement of Faith

We believe that God is the eternal king. He is an infinite, unchangeable Spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, goodness, justice, power and love. From all eternity He exists as the One Living and True God in three persons of one substance, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit equal in power and glory. we believe that God created mankind in His image, male and female, for relationship with Himself and to govern the earth. Under the temptation of Satan, our original parents fell from grace, bringing sin, sickness and God's judgment of death to the earth. Through the fall, Satan and his demonic hosts gained access to God's good creation. Creation now experiences the consequences and effects of Adam's original sin. Human beings are born into sin, subject to God's judgment of death and captive to Satan's kingdom of darkness. We believe that Jesus, God's Son, was sent to this world, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin, Mary, fully God and fully man in one person. He is humanity as God intended us to be. Jesus was anointed as God's Messiah and empowered by the Holy Spirit, ushering in God's kingdom reign on earth, overpowering the reign of Satan by resisting temptation, preaching the good news of salvation, healing the sick, casting out demons and raising the dead. Jesus' atoning death on the cross took God's judgment for sin which we deserved as law-breakers. Jesus' resurrection and ascent back to heaven opened the door for those who received salvation to begin a relationship with God.

Little Nets Into Deep Waters

Fishing nets were designed for one purpose only. To catch fish. Nets are no good if they stay on the boat. Nets serve no purpose if they are never used. I think maybe God sees us this way. We are all created for a purpose (by the way, the creator gets to define what our purpose is). Any other use besides the one we were created for does us no good. But when the creator places His hands upon us, casting us out into those scary, dark places with deep waters, it is then we can see the reality of our purpose. He knew there would be a catch waiting for us. I think I will be the net God has called me to be.

The Twelve Steps

As a community of people in recovery, we affirm that our higher power is Jesus Christ. He did for us what we could not do for ourselves. Just as God told the children of Israel He was going to give them a promised land, He has revealed to us that He desires to give us a "Promised Life." When Israel got to the promised land, God instructed them to go and in a possess it, fight for it and claim it. In recovery, the 12 Steps are the directions given to us on how to fight, possess and claim this promised life.

Sunday, September 4, 2022

DYING TO SELF

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THE REALITY OF THE NAME OF GOD