LEARNINGS TO SHARE…

Well, we are almost halfway through these 21 days of fasting everybody.  I hope you are experiencing incredible things.  By now, your bodies have gone through some radical changes and cleansings.  This time is sometimes the hardest b/c of all the poisions and toxins in our bodies.  There is something purifying about the discipline of fasting, not just for soul and mind, but also for our temples, the body.

I want to encourage you to persevere.  As we approach the last half of this time of fasting, my experience has taught me, that the most clear direction comes from the Lord during this time.  Remain disciplined.  God will show up in a big way as some people say (I struggle sometimes with that statement, God will show up, b/c He is Omnipresent, right, but as a figure of speach I think we all get the point).  God will do great and mighty things in our lives and through our lives if we are willing to remain focussed and not get off track.  “Stay full of Holy Spirit and you will not fulfill the desires of the flesh”, Galatians says, even those desires of the flesh to EAT!!  Hang in there!

When you and I are full of Holy Spirit, do you think we can see Him?  Do you think others can see Him?  In today’s reading in Genesis, the presence of God’s Spirit upon Joseph was clear and obvious.  In verse 38, Pharoah said, “Can we find anyone else like this man so obviously filled with the Spirit of God”.  God’s presence was obvious in Joseph.  So much that God exalted Him to second in command in Egypt.  Other Scriptures tell us that “those who humble themselves will be exalted but those who exalt themselves will be brought low”. The presence of God’s Spirit in our lives should be obvious.  In fact, we are told in Galatians 5 that His filling will produce attributes in you and me that look like love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, and self-control.  The opposite is true as well.  The lack of God’s presence in our lives will look like sexual immorality, impurity, lust, idolatry, anger, fighting, arguing, lack of unity, jealousy, envy, drinking & partying.

A pagan king (Pharoah) recognized the Spirit of God.  I believe this was because of the striking difference he saw in Joseph compared to others.  Holy Spirit made Joseph humble and wise.  Those two attributes go together by the way.  Joseph stood out because of the presence of God in his life.  Do you stand out?  Make sure when you get ready to go out, whether to work, or anywhere, that you not only focus on the externals of your temple but more importantly the internals of your temple.  Let God be seen!!

Love you all, praying for you too.

Mike

This entry was posted on January 20, 2010 at 3:18 pm and is filed under Daniel Fast 2010. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.