FORGIVEN TO LOVE INTERNATIONAL MINISTRIES is proud to announce "A Spiritual Vitamin" page.
This page will give you a daily dose of "medicine" with an orange juice back to help build your Spirit in the LORD!
Time to take your MEDS!
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 2/6/15
"Like newborn babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation. Cry out for this nourishment"
Looking through old pictures to current ones, a person can see the development process from child to adulthood. It is clearly displayed over time that change is happening and growth occurring. This made me wonder; "What pictures do we have of our spiritual growth?"
When we started as babes in Christ, we were still on milk. Not ready to eat full meals which require more digestion activity. However the bigger meals provide us the nutrients we need in an ever changing and ever increasingly difficult world.
Let us begin to look around ourselves and see if we are still drinking milk or have moved to eating meat. Your spiritual development depends upon it!
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 2/5/15
The LORD says, "I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you. (Psalms 32:8 NLT)
There are many things which come to govern our lives. Family and friend will always tell you what you should do. A job and money will always try to rule your actions and consume your time. Today even Social Media will demand from you time effort and accountability.
Often times we get caught up in our everyday movement and need to meet deadlines and approvals, we tend to neglect the small still voice of the LORD. But the Word of God lets us know He's not the author of confusion, nor chaos, but one of Love, Peace, and a Sound Mind. (1 Corinthians 14:33) Isn't this what we all want along the pathway of life?
Starting and ending your day with Him is a good way to stay in his path; the only One which promises to be the best path for You!
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 2/4/15
"He answered their prayers, because they trusted in Him. (1 Chronicles 5:20)
Prayer has the supernatural ability to create miracles! Worry, on the other hand. has the natural ability to keep you focused on the problem instead of the One who can provide all your needs!
Life is full of ups and downs; Valleys and mountain tops. This is not theory, this is experience talking.
The key throughout your entire journey is to keep focused on God and spend time with Him in prayer. Share your heart with Him, speak honestly with Him, cry out to Him in prayer and watch your worries drift away.
I don't remember one time in the Bible when Jesus worried, but I can remember hundreds of times that He prayed! Let Him be your example. Pray about EVERYTHING and worry about nothing!
Prayer causes miracles, worry causes stress!!!
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 2/3/15
"No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it." (1 Corinthians 10:13)
The other day, after many days of thought and driving by the place, I broke down, gave into my urges, and stopped at the donut shop to get a cinnamon roll with glazed icing! A total "sin", especially given the nutritional plan I am on currently.
Before I even walked in, the aroma filled my nose! There was a line from the counter all the way to the door. As I stood waiting to be served, I began to think, about the consequences of my sin of eating this treat. My Mom would always say, "A moment on the lips, a lifetime on the hips!" The more I pondered this, the more I felt guilty. I soon walked out of the donut shop not getting any of their tasty treats.
It is the same with worldly sin. When we think about it too long, we break down and give in to the urge. We rush in, without thinking about the consequences. But what if we had the time to wait, and to ponder those consequences? Would we see the weight of our actions and turn and walk away?
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 2/2/15
"He made the One who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." (2 Corinthians 5:21)
We often get trapped in the endless cycle of worrying about what other people think of us. We begin to go out of our way, and act in ways which are not normal to our true nature, all in an effort to change the belief someone else has of us.
The Bible sets us free from this mental stress. Numerous times we are told we are the righteousness of God. Even though we have and will sin, we are made whole by His blood washed sacrifice!
This does not preclude us from growing up in it, and becoming better in Christ. We must continue to mature in Him and His Word! However we should not be held in mental condemnation, just because one person feels you should be certain way.
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 1/30/15
Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28 KJV)
When you were ill a doctor prescribes an antibiotic. He gives a specific dosage amount dependent upon your level of illness. This dosage is intended to kill the infection that is within you. And we are always instructed to take the entire dosage.
We as Christians are infected with all kinds of things. Divorce, mental and emotional scars, past abuse and pains, and our general sinful nature are all things which infect us. Yet there is a dosage that will heal all that ails us.
Could it be if we are still infected with a certain thing, we are not getting enough dosage of Jesus and his word?
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 1/29/15
And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand. (Acts 28:3)
When Paul was first bitten by the snake, the people assumed he was a murderer and stood in anticipation, waiting for him to die. When he didn't die, the very same people who called him a murderer then began to call him a god! The very same people both crowned him, and crucified him!
People will swing around on you fast based on their perception of what they see of you. One thing you must know for sure, you are only governed by what God has given you! Stay the course. Know He is with you!
The sign of a true Christian is not escaping fires. When your whole life is on fire and you are still not consumed, it's a sign God is with you. Is there a part of your life which is on fire right now? Do you know God is with you?
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 1/28/15
And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand. (Acts 28:3)
Paul has just gone through a "shipwreck" in his life. He is beginning to recover and starts to gather himself collecting the items which will help him survive. As he gathers, a viper "fastens itself to him".
Throughout life, trouble will often come as we gather ourselves, and attach to us in an effort to continue filling us with venom. But we don't have to settle for this. Simply drag the "viper" over to the "Fire of the LORD" and shake it off. He will not only consume what tries to kill us but He also won’t allow the venom to affect us!
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 1/27/15
And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand. (Acts 28:3)
Here Paul has found himself shipwrecked and has barely made it to shore with his life. Sound like some of the "shipwrecks" in our life's we have come through: divorce, deaths, and public displays of our shortcomings.
God sends the barbarians, the very ones who would normally be against Paul, down to help him and build a fire. Now it would be one thing for them to let him at the fire, and Paul had every right to sit and warm himself as he recovered from his "wounds" of the "ship wrecking". God was providing for him.
Take note at what Paul did. He did not sit at the fire, eat, belch and get up and leave. He began to gather wood to add to the blessing which God had given him. So often we sit back and expect God to provide no matter what, and we don't add to His blessing.
The parable of the Talents is a prime example. We are to take what He gives us and add to it. What has He given you, which maybe you could add to, today?
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 1/26/15
And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand. (Acts 28:3)
There will be many "vipers" in this journey of life, which will bite you and fasten themselves to you. Some will be public, some will be private. A divorce, a loss of a job, even those you thought were you friend, lying on you and dragging your reputation through the mud.
When a viper bites, the venom spreads quickly to the vital organs. The heart and brain take a majority of the venom. If the poison can get the heart and brain to shut down, it is insured to conquer its victim. Often times the viper fastens itself to its victim so it can continue to inject venom until death is achieved.
The same holds true for the things in our lives which come to bite us. A divorce, a drug or alcohol addiction, the loss of a loved one, a bankruptcy, a job loss, all can be vipers in our journey of life. Some will be public and some will be private, but their motives are the same; to inject venom and make you poisonous or even cause you to die.
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 1/23/15
". . . We want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up." (Daniel 3:18)
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego had achieved career success, so they had nothing to gain by challenging the king of Babylon. So, why did they? Because he ordered them to disobey God and violate their convictions by bowing down in worship before a pagan image.
No doubt they could have reasoned, "Better a live dog than a dead lion. If we stay alive, maybe we can do good for God and for others." That philosophy would have convinced many of us, so why not them? Because they realized that Nebuchadnezzar was not the reason for their success. He may have been an instrument God used to promote them, but he was not the source of either their significance or their security. Those two things came from God - and they understood that you can't abandon the principles of God and walk in the blessings of God
You don't grieve the One who controls everything, just to get along with those who think they control everything. There will always be those who think they know what you should do. But these three Hebrew boys knew better: ". . . the God we serve is able. . ." (Daniel 3:17). Able to do what? ". . . Able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think . . ." (Ephesians 3:20 NKJV).
By refusing to bow, when bowing seemed like the expedient thing to do, they turned the hearts of a nation to God. Now, your influence may not be that widespread, but one thing you can count on: others are watching who will be influenced by the stand you take.
Ask God to strengthen you, and do the right thing!
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 1/22/15
". . . We want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up." (Daniel 3:18)
The higher you climb in life, the more certain people will try to assert control over you. Their threats can sound real, and the consequences of ignoring them, intimidating. Look at Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Their commitment to God landed them in a fiery furnace heated seven times over. But it also promoted them to a place of great blessing and influence.
Their story teaches us that for something to be an authentic test of character, it must be a situation in which the outcome is not in your hands. You simply make the choice to do what is right before God and leave the consequences to Him. It's a trial by fire, but it's a fire of refinement, and on the other side of it you come out stronger . . . And as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego discovered, three things happen:
You are set free from the "Nebuchadnezzars" who claim to have control over the outcome of your life.
You are set free to say "no" to those who would try to use and manipulate you.
You are set free to serve your all powerful King and say "no" to all the other pretenders who really have no power over you at all.
In that moment you not only gain insight into who you are, but more importantly, Whose you are. And God will do one of two things: develop you in the fiery furnace or deliver you from it. Indeed, He may do both!
Each time you do the right thing, choosing to embrace rather than escape the path God has called you to walk, you enter a new level of freedom.
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 1/21/15
"Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back." (Luke 6:38 NLT)
A tree pools nutrients from the ground through its roots. This allows a tree to grow mature and then eventually produce fruit on its branches. This for becomes nutrients for those who come along and passed by. What's not taken any eventually falls to the ground and rots. However the journey does not in there.
What the tree is doing is obeying the law of reciprocity. It's not allowed to pull from the ground all of its nutrients and then not give back to the ground. The rotten fruit dissolves and becomes nutrients for other living things for them to grow also.
The same holds true for us also. We are to become givers of those things that we have received. Our time our talent our money and our gifts of love are to be given back to others just as we have received. The question is, are you holding on to everything you've been given because you don't want to feel the pain of possible loss? If so recall what the Bible says, "Give..."
What are you giving from all you have received?
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 1/20/15
Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. (1 John 4:4)
How do I overcome something I am still in?
The Bible tells us, "Greater is He that is in me, than He that is in the world!" But what does this mean?
Throughout the course of life, we often find ourselves in a battle. This is not a battle of who's right or wrong, republican or democrat, black or white, nor of my way versus your way; but one of the struggle within us to overcome the world and the things there in. To be governed by our "moral compass".
You can't draw strength to overcome an argument, from the argument itself. You can't draw the strength to overcome a stronghold, from the stronghold itself. The source of your strength cannot stem from the thing you are trying to overcome. It must come from something stronger!
We must learn to pull our strength from the Word of God. Realizing He told and showed us He has overcome the world and we shall do greater things than He.
As you face life’s battles today, are you attempting to gain strength from the very thing you are trying to overcome? Or are you tapped into a Higher power; The One who was, is and is to come!
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 1/19/15
"For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God." (1 Corinthians 1:18 KJV)
Recently someone told me, "All I ever see you in are workout clothes!" In the next breath they also said, "Keep up the work, I'm liking the progress!"
The background? I used to weigh over 250lbs! The present? I'm down to about 190. The Future? I want to be lean and mean in the next few months.
The reason I share this? It is a mirror image of our walk with Christ. The background? We were once sinners unfit for His Kingdom. The present? We have been accepted through Grace, by Faith into His Holy Kingdom! The future? We shall grow to be more like Him, making us fit to do His work in our lives!
Moral: Just because you see someone one way, doesn't mean this is where they will stay nor end up. Passionately pursue and push people who process to an expected product in Him!
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 1/16/15
For a just man falls seven times, and rises up again. (Proverbs 24:16)
During the course of life, many things come and knock us down. They can be a death of a loved one, the end of a marriage, or even events stemming from our childhood, to which we feel cheated, unfairly given, or mistreated even.
We often carry these feelings with us through life, and misplace them on the ones we love the most! This only causes us to have repeated failed relationships and broken hearts in the end.
The key to winning is not just getting back up, but how we get back up. We must rise towards Christ, in the power of His Word, and get back in line. Though we may be bleeding, and sometimes gravely wounded, the true soldier places his hand over his bleeding side and picks up his sword to fight on in valor!
Today is the day you can get back up and get back in line! However it is only through Christ, whom you can fully erase the pains of the past, and move forward in liberty. Won't you give yourself to Him today!
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 1/15/15
"Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat." (Isaiah 55:1 ESV)
Sometimes people discard household items by leaving them on the curb with a "Free" sign attached. Anyone happening by can take what is left lying there. But for those going by, there is a dilemma - Are the items left on the curb worth picking up? Does that TV still work? Are there broken springs in this easy chair? If these items are so good, why are they being discarded?
"You get what you pay for" is a maxim most people believe in. If something is available for free, then it can't be worth much. There must be something wrong. Tragically, this mind-set can even be applied to the love and grace of God. If He offers it for free, then it can't be worth much. Our fallen nature desires to earn the good things there are to be had.
God gives us His grace and forgiveness for free, not because they are worthless, but because they are so priceless that none of us could even begin to afford them. He gives them to us because He loves us. He offers us the priceless riches of His love and mercy because Jesus paid for them in full on the cross. We need only look to Jesus to see what God's grace is really worth!
Dear God, thank You for giving me Your love and mercy for free. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 1/14/15
Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:13-14)
A person who reaches their destiny looks back over their past and sees why they went through various stages in life. It then all makes sense. But they would never have reached their destiny had they become stuck in the mire of their troubles.
It may be a fight now, but the only way to get to the goal is you must go through the fire!
Grandma would say, "If you are going through hell, and you stop, you already know where you are going to end up! Might as well keep on keepin on, baby!"
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 1/13/15
When Jesus had been resurrected, He came unto the Disciples and spoke with Thomas, saying, "Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe." (John 20:27)
He allowed then to touch His infirmities, the very thing where His pain was great.
Yet often times we hide our pain from others. We crouch down thinking we are the only ones dealing with... . Never realizing there are countless others who struggle with and are pained by the very same thing.
Share your story! Just spending five minutes with someone, who may be going through the same thing you are, is often times better than writing a check to them!
Your history is tied to your destiny!
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN 1/12/15
Matthew 13:3-9
While taking my Puppy on a run each day, we pass by a Maple Tree. At this time of year, it has shed many acorns to the ground in hopes one of them will grow up to be just like the tree.
In each of these acorn lays the potential to be a great tree: Mighty, tall and proud, producing shade, shelter, and oxygen for all living things. There is no lack in to be what it was created to be! Yet, sadly many of the acorns will never come to this fruition.
Some fry up on the sidewalk in the coming summer's heat. Some are eaten by squirrels. And sadly, some of them I step on and crush in my hurry to get to where I'm going. Of the few who do grow up to be trees, we have to bury them in dirt first.
This made me think. How many of us are eaten up by predators? How many potential trees have you walked by, skipped over, and crushed in an attempt to get to where you want to be? How many of us will dry up and waste in the coming summer sun? How many of us will be buried in dirt?
Notice: Its only in the burial, that there is resurrection!
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN
"He answered their prayers, because they trusted in Him." (1 Chronicles 5:20)
Prayer has the supernatural ability to create miracles! Worry, on the other hand. has the natural ability to keep you focused on the problem instead of the One who can provide all your needs!
Life is full of ups and downs: Valleys and mountain tops. This is not theory, this is experience talking.
The key throughout your entire journey is to keep focused on God and spend time with Him in prayer. Share your heart with Him, speak honestly with Him, cry out to Him in prayer and watch your worries drift away.
I don't remember one time in the Bible when Jesus worried, but I can remember hundreds of times that He prayed! Let Him be your example. Pray about EVERYTHING and worry about nothing!
Prayer causes miracles, worry causes stress!!!
SPIRITUAL VITAMIN
"The Lord Himself goes before you and will be with you." (Deuteronomy 31:8)
Once many years ago when I was going through a dark period, I prayed and prayed, but the heavens seemed to be brass. I felt as though God had disappeared and that I was alone with my trial and burden. It was a dark night for my soul.
I wrote my mother about the experience and will never forget her reply: "Son, there are many times when God withdraws to test your faith. He wants you to trust Him in the darkness. Now, Son, reach up by faith in the fog and you will find that His hand will be there." In tears I knelt by my bed and experienced an overwhelming sense of God's presence.
Whether or not we feel God's presence when our way seems dark, by faith we know He is there.
You can stake your life on His promise: "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you" (Hebrews 13:5).
Spiritual Vitamin
"Do not be misled: 'Bad company corrupts good character.'" (1 Corinthians 15:33)
"We'll be Friends Forever, won't we, Pooh?" asked Piglet in one of A. A. Milne's timeless children's stories, to which Pooh responded, "Even longer."
The Lord wants us to have friendships that last forever, and even longer. Christians only part to meet again (while the unsaved only meet to part again). Yes, we'll know our loved ones in heaven and our relationships there will pick up where they've left off on earth.
The Resurrection Chapter of the Bible - 1 Corinthians 15 - is packed with encouragement about our eternal destiny. But right in the middle of this chapter is verse 33, warning us, "Bad company corrupts good character." The apostle Paul said that without the hope of the resurrection, all that's left is an attitude of: "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die" (verse 32). This godless, secular attitude can spread to our hearts very quickly, doing great damage. God created us to be in relationships with each other, but we must choose our close friends wisely. Be with those who build you up; flee from those who tear you down.
True friends . . . face in the same direction, toward common projects, interests, goals. - C. S. Lewis
Spiritual Vitamin
"Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." (Isaiah 1:18)
Steve finished a load of white laundry and he noticed that everything had turned pink. In haste he had put a new beach towel in with the other items. The towel "bled" and left everything with a decisively pink tint.
"Honey, what should I do," Steve lamented to his wife. "I can't wear pink underwear. What will the guys at the gym say?" "Don't worry," his wife consoled. "I'll run the pink items through with some bleach. They will be as white as new."
How are your "whites" doing? Sin can ruin your fellowship with God. Confess your sins and ask God to bleach them away through the blood of Jesus. You will notice the difference in your relationship with God. Maybe the people at the gym will too!
As the floor is swept everyday, so is the soul cleansed everyday by confession.
