Purpose Archives - Page 4 of 6

The Danger of Pride.

October 26, 2012 By: Sarah Leff2 Comments

Hello, Hello and Happy Friday! It is a chilly morning here, and I am loving it. I’ve been feeling a little homesick over the past few days, but this weather reminds me of Michigan fall, so it’s helping…a little bit at least. I was going to go ahead and do a list of Friday Favorites for the week, but as I was reading my Bible this morning, I came across a passage I thought I should share.

“Master,” said John, “we saw a man driving out demons in your name and we tried to stop him, because he is not one of us.”

“Do not stop him,” Jesus said, “for whoever is not against you is for you.”

Luke 9:49-50

So, the disciples ran into a man who was driving out a group of demons from another person in Jesus’ name, and they told him to stop. They were under the impression that only they—the twelve disciples—were able to drive out such demons. They were being prideful, and they didn’t want this ‘nobody’ getting in the way of what they were doing.

But, Jesus told them that they were wrong in telling the man to stop—anyone who was sincere in following him could drive out demons in his name. If they weren’t against him, then they were for him. Simple as that.

You see, the disciples had just come from a situation where nine of them had tried to drive out a single demon from a child, and because of their lack of faith they had failed in doing so. When they saw this ‘nobody’ successfully driving out a group of demons, their pride was hurt. This man was succeeding at the very thing they had only just failed in doing, and they allowed their pride to get in the way of accomplishing God’s work.

We should never be so prideful that we allow something like this to get in the way of doing God’s work. We all have different gifts, strengths, and talents, and God has a purpose for each of us. There is no use in allowing our pride to be hurt if someone succeeds in a place where we were unsuccessful. Instead, we should focus on the good that was accomplished, and encourage our fellow believers in the work they are doing to further God’s kingdom.

Don’t let pride get in the way of what you are doing for God here on earth.

Anyways, hope you all are having a great Friday so far, and have an excellent weekend planned! Stay warm with these cooler temperatures coming our way, and God Bless!

The Desert.

October 23, 2012 By: Sarah Leffcomment

Hello Friends! Hope you all are having an excellent Tuesday so far. I woke up this morning with a swollen eyelid, so it’s been an interesting morning, but the swelling is starting to go down—I think at least! Still kind of looks like I got punched in the eye, but oh well I guess.

I was reading in Luke this morning, and this verse really stuck out to me…

“Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil.”

Luke 4:1-2a

What really stuck out to me today was the “led by the Spirit into the desert” part of the verse. For some reason, when I think of the Holy Spirit leading and guiding me I only ever picture myself being led into beautiful, nice and welcoming places. The word ‘desert’ doesn’t generally come to mind. But, that is exactly where the Holy Spirit led Jesus. And he didn’t lead him there to go on a vacation. No. Luke tells us that he led Jesus into the desert to be TEMPTED. He led him there to be tested and tried—not to be comfortable.

In the same way, sometimes the Holy Spirit may lead us into our own ‘desert’ situations, where our purpose in being led there is to be tested and tried. Living the Christian life does not come without its trials, and definitely not without temptations from the devil. Although difficult, we don’t need to be afraid of facing tests and trials.

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

James 1:2-4

According to James, the testing of our faith develops perseverance, which in turn leads to spiritual maturity. If we never had to face any trials or challenges, then we would never have the opportunity to grow in our faith. God has a plan and a purpose for every trial or test that we face in this life. It may seem difficult at the time, but once its over, you’ll be able to look back on that time in your life and see how much you’ve grown because of it. When times are tough, remember these scriptures, and know that God has a plan and a purpose—far bigger than we could ever imagine!

Hope you all are having a great week so far! God bless:)

Amazing Faith.

October 22, 2012 By: Sarah Leffcomment

Hello and Happy Monday! Hope you all had a great weekend. We did some unpacking, built a desk for our office, and did some exploring around the area…not too bad of a weekend:) It was really warm, which is still so weird to me, but overall had a relaxing weekend. It’s nice to be able to actually enjoy our apartment now that we have furniture and the like.

I started reading the gospel of Luke this morning. First, did you guys know that Luke was a physician? I read that in the footnotes of my Bible this morning…I had no idea. You all probably knew that, but I thought it was really interesting. His account of Jesus’ life is very detailed, which I guess makes sense seeing that he was a doctor, and doctors need to be precise. Random fact for the day.

Anyways, this morning I read about Mary. I’m sure most of you are familiar with her story, but just in case you’re not, I’ll give a little background info. Mary was a virgin, about to married to Joseph, when an angel of the Lord came to her and told her she would give birth to a son—Jesus. Now, this must have sounded very strange to her. I mean, she was a virgin—how exactly was this going to work out? Back in her time, a woman who became pregnant outside of marriage was generally shunned by society, and usually remained unmarried for the rest of her life. It was completely unacceptable, and looked down upon quite strongly. Now, knowing this, I have to imagine that Mary was terrified. The implications of such a pregnancy would most likely ruin her life. But, instead of being afraid, Mary was willing and eager to do what God called her to do, and agreed to become the mother of Jesus.

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.”

Luke 1:38

May it be to me as you have said. That’s it. Mary didn’t need any reassurances or promises that everything would work out okay in the end. No. She simply trusted God, and willingly obeyed him even though the task she was given didn’t seem to make a lot of sense.

Mary had real faith. Even when faced with a difficult situation, she chose to willingly obey God. How often do we skip out on God’s plan for our lives because we are too scared, or the situation just doesn’t seem to make sense to us? I Know I am guilt of doing this. It’s hard to trust God when things are difficult, or when they don’t make sense, but that is when doing so is the most important. If we could approach every situation in our lives—good or bad—with faith like that of Mary, think about how much more God could accomplish through us. I’m sure the results would be amazing.

What about you? Is there something in your life that just doesn’t seem to make sense right now? Trust God, and willingly obey what he is telling you—even if you can’t make sense of it right now, it will all become clear in the end, and the results will be worth it!

Hope you all are having a great day so far! God Bless:)

God’s Will First.

October 18, 2012 By: Sarah Leffcomment

Hello! Hope you all are having a great Thursday so far! It’s a beautiful day here, although it still seems strange for the weather to be so warm in October. I won’t complain. We are officially moved in to the new place…as in I finished unpacking all the boxes yesterday afternoon! Praise the Lord. Seriously, it finally is starting to feel like home around here, and I love it:)

I know I’ve been talking about prayer a lot lately, but it is something God has been laying on my heart. He keeps bringing up different scripture on the topic, and when that happens it is usually a silent queue for me to pay attention, and learn something. So, here is something I read this morning…

“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”

Mark 11:24

Whatever I ask for? Well, not exactly. See, so often we ask God for the things that WE want, and expect him just to drop it into our laps. We ask for different things out of our own selfish desires, and are then surprised and angry when we don’t receive. I mean the Bible tells us to ask and receive, right? Actually, we are forgetting one key component. Jesus talks about this component later in Mark on the night he is to be crucified. He asks God to take his cup from him (or to take his suffering away), but then he backs up a step and say, “Yet not what I will, but what you will.”

We may think we have a pretty good idea of the things that we want and need, but in reality, we don’t—only God does. He knows what we need, and he wants his will to be done in our lives. Instead of asking him for whatever our selfish hearts desire, we need to first ask that his will be done in our lives. Then, when our will lines up with his will for our lives, we can ask him for the things he wants to give us (according to his will), and expect to receive them through faith.

Let me put it this way. We can ask for anything we want, but if it doesn’t line up with what we need to fulfill his will in our lives, we won’t receive it. This is where a lot of people become frustrated, and start to believe that God doesn’t answer their prayers. He does answer them—in his perfect timing, and in accordance with his will in our lives. If we are diligently and honestly seeking his will to be done in our lives, then he will grant us the things that we ask for, because those things will be within his perfect will.

On the night he was to be crucified, Jesus would probably have liked to have the suffering and pain taken away. It would have been easy for him to ask God to take him from the scene. But, he knew that leaving was not God’s will, and that he had to follow through with his imminent death so that later he could be resurrected, and in doing so save us from death by our own sinful nature. The point? Seek God’s will to be done first in your life before you ask him for the things you think you need—you might be surprised by what he shows you.

Hope that makes sense—it’s just what God has been really speaking to me about this week. Hope you are having a great day! God Bless:)

Just Believe.

October 15, 2012 By: Sarah Leffcomment

Hello and Happy Monday! Hope you all (y’all?) had a great weekend. James and I took it pretty easy and did a bit of sight seeing and exploring. We were supposed to get our furniture yesterday, but it was delayed until this evening…only a few more hours! I seriously never knew how much I could miss a bed. Anyways. I finished Matthew and started Mark over the weekend, and this morning I came across a short but impactful verse…

“Don’t be afraid; just believe.”

Mark 5:36b

Like I said—short and sweet. Let me give you a little bit of background information so you understand the context. Jesus was on his way to heal the daughter of Jarius, on of the synagogue rulers, when word reached them that Jarius’ daughter had already died. Assuming they were too late, Jarius became sad and afraid. But, Jesus told him, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.” I don’t know about you, but I think if I were Jarius I would have found it rather hard to believe anything right then. I would have been thinking about how my child had just died—not that there was still any hope left. But with Jesus all things are possible—even bringing the dead back to life. They carried on towards Jarius’ house, and when they reached it Jesus told all who were there that the daughter was not dead but merely sleeping. Onlookers laughed, but Jesus had other plans. He went to the child, held her hands, and brought her back to life. Amazing.

“Don’t be afraid; just believe.” It sounds so simple, yet it can be so difficult at times. When times are tough, fear and doubt seem like the easiest places to turn. So often we fall into fear, when what we really need to do is trust and believe. When tempted to be afraid, we must remember these words spoken by Jesus. No matter what the circumstance may be, Jesus is much bigger, and able to overcome it. We don’t need to be afraid. Instead, we need to believe in him and in his perfect will for our lives. When we begin to feel hopeless and afraid, remember that Jesus is king of all, and that his ways are higher and better than ours.

Is there something that you are struggling with today? Perhaps it is something that is causing you to live in fear. I challenge you to remember the words of Jesus, “Don’t be afraid; just believe,” and let him guide you through whatever it is that you are going through.

Hope you all are having a great day so far—God bless!

Use It.

October 11, 2012 By: Sarah Leffcomment

Hello and Happy Thursday!

Throughout the past couple of weeks, I have been reading the book of Matthew. One of the things I love about this book, along with the other gospels, is the large amount of parables included within.

One parable I read this morning was entitled, “The Parable of the Loaned Money”. In this parable, there is a master and his three servants. The master decides to go away one day, and leaves each of his servants with some money to invest with while he is away. The first servant receives 5 talents, the second 2, and the third 1. The first and second servant make use of the money while their master is away, and end up being able to double the amount they were originally given. The third servant however, takes the 1 talent he was given and hides it in the ground because he was afraid of what his master would do when he returned. When the master returned, he was very pleased with the first two servants, placing them in charge of much since they were faithful with the little that he gave them. But, when he found out what the third servant did, he became very angry. He punished him for not being a good steward of what was given him, and for hiding it away when he could have invested it and used it for gain.

“So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.”

Matthew 25:25

The cool thing about parables is that they can be related to real life circumstances. In this case, we are like those servants in the story, and God is the master. He gives each of us unique gifts, talents and abilities for a purpose—to use them in furthering his kingdom on Earth. His desire for us is to behave like the first two servants—using our talents for the greater good, and multiplying what has been entrusted to us. But, so often we behave like the third servant. We see the gifts and talents that we have, and instead of using them to glorify God, we use them for personal gain—or maybe we don’t even use them at all. We become selfish with our talents and abilities, and choose to ‘hide’ them from the kingdom of God. When we do this, we are not able to fulfill our true purpose and calling in life. Instead, we end up living a half-life—full of selfishness and bitterness. God has given each of us special and unique abilities for a reason. It’s our job to use them in ways that are glorifying to him, and assist in furthering his kingdom here on Earth.

What about you? Do you have a God-given talent that is being used only for personal gain? OR maybe you have a talent that isn’t being used at all. God wants to use you and your talents to further his kingdom, and reach the lost—are you ready and willing to let him in?

Hope you all are having a great week so far! God Bless:)

Letting Go.

October 10, 2012 By: Sarah Leffcomment

So. Big news. James and I have just added a new addition to the family…we adopted a little baby kitten yesterday! He is seriously the cutest thing ever. And he is so tiny! So far he likes climbing up my clothes, sitting on my shoulder, and then falling asleep on my lap. I will try and post some pictures tomorrow:) Oh, and his name is Sampson. He must know his name is biblical, because as I was doing my devotions this morning, he fell asleep on my Bible. Precious.

Anyways, while I was trying to read around baby Sampson sleeping on my Bible, I came across this verse…

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often have I longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing.”

Matthew 23:37

Jesus continually tried to gather the people of Jerusalem to him. He wanted to protect them, like a hen protects her young, but they rejected him. In the same way, he longs to wrap each of us in his arms and protect us from the sinful world we live in. Unfortunately, just as the Israelites, we tend to reject him. We think we can do everything on our own—and that we don’t need his help. How wrong we are.

When we let him in and allow him to help us, we can never fail. We should learn a lesson from Jerusalem. When things in life become difficult—even when things are easy—the most important thing we can do is relinquish our own personal control, and let him in. He wants so badly to help, guide and protect us. We need to let go of our pride, our idols, and anything else that is getting in his way, and let him overtake us with his perfect love and peace.

This is something that I have been dealing with a lot lately. I try so hard to do things on my own. I think that I can plan every detail of my life on my own, and I tend to think I know what’s best for me. Generally, I end up failing. It’s difficult for me, but I am learning day by day how to give up my own plans, worries, stresses, fears and anxieties, and turn everything over to God. His plan is perfect, and he wants to protect me, just as he wanted to, and still wants to, protect Jerusalem. Letting go can be scary, but the peace that accompanies it makes everything worth it. Is there anything you need to let go of today? Let Jesus in, and allow him to hold and protect you. It may seem hard at first, but it will be more than worth it in the end.

Hope you all are having a great week so far! God Bless:)

New Wineskins.

October 4, 2012 By: Sarah Leff2 Comments

Hello and happy Thursday! This week is really flying by…well actually the last month has really flown by. Is it seriously October already?? Craziness I tell you. Well, I’ll get right down to it. This morning I was reading in Matthew again, and came across this verse…

“Neither do men pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.”

Matthew 9:17

I love the way Jesus speaks to us using examples, parables and short stories—it makes his message very easy for me to relate to. Maybe it’s the writer in me, but I LOVE the way the gospels are written:) Here, Jesus is using wineskins to describe our lives, and the way in which we respond to his message.

The message of Christ is like new wine, while our sinful nature causes us to be like old wineskins. When we hear the message, our lives should be changed—significantly. Although we are not perfect, we should strive to live above sin, and flee from the evil desires of this world. However, if we go about living our lives in the same sinful ways, and don’t change our lifestyle, we are like new wine in old wineskins. We can’t contain the truth and the message inside our old sinful shell, so we burst. In order to accommodate the new wine, we need to become like new wineskins—strong, sturdy and able to receive and apply the message of Christ to our daily lives. In order to contain it, we need to make the necessary like or lifestyle changes so that our lives match up with the word and will of God. If we refuse to give up old sinful habits, we remain like old wineskins, and are unable to experience the joy, peace and purpose that comes from the new wine. Make the changes that are necessary; experience true freedom in Christ.

This is something that I have dealt with throughout the years. When I rededicated my life to Christ, I had to give up a lot of the old habits that kept me bound in sin. But, once I did, I was able to experience the true freedom found only in Christ and the “new wine”.

Is there anything in your life that is keeping you from experiencing this freedom? Let it go. I promise you, no matter how difficult it may seem to let go of; it will be worth it in the end.

Hope you all are having an excellent week so far! God Bless:)

Never Give Up.

October 3, 2012 By: Sarah Leff1 Comment

It’s another beautiful day here in Texas—I’m still missing my Michigan Fall quite a bit, but the sunshine is definitely nice:) We have an awesome deck/patio area in our new apartment, which I have been thoroughly enjoying at all times of day. Our location is quite close to the massive DFW Airport, but the constant planes flying overhead haven’t been too annoying—they are actually kind of soothing in a weird way, and are contributing to the little travel bug growing inside of me. I mean, how could you not think about traveling when you live underneath a flight path? Just saying. Anyways. I was reading again in Matthew this morning, and came across a favorite passage of mine…

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.”

Matthew 7:7-8

It’s comforting to know that when we diligently seek the Lord, and our wills line up with his own, he will grant us the desires of our hearts. However, a lot of people [myself included at times] never experience the desires of their heart. Why? Because they give up to easily. Have you ever asked God for something? I mean, really asked God for something? How persistent were you? So often we ask God for the desires of our hearts a few half-hearted times, only to be disappointed and give up when things don’t ‘magically’ turn your way. When you think about it, the word ‘seeking’ does not mean instant gratification. It means to search long and hard for something in order to receive or find it in the end. Our world is so fast. We thrive on speed, and on getting things done instantaneously. Unfortunately for our culturally programmed brains, God doesn’t always work instantaneously. In fact, some times he is downright slow in our mind. But, he always makes everything work out according to his perfect will and in his precise timing. We need to patiently seek his face, and ask him—with the right heart and motives—for the things we need. He will always be faithful to us when we are faithful to him. If things don’t change the way you want them to right away, keep asking and praying to God about them. Don’t give up—God always hears us. Sometimes it may take longer and require more faith than we had originally planned.

This is something I am learning more and more each day. Some times its hard to be patient—I just want everything to happen right when I ask. But, God is teaching me to be patient and wait upon his perfect timing. If this is something you struggle with as well, ask God today to help you in overcoming it.

Hope you are all having a great day! I’ll try and post some pictures of the area soon:)

No Worries.

October 2, 2012 By: Sarah Leff1 Comment

Hello and Happy Tuesday from Grapevine, TX! We are slowly getting a little more familiar with the area, and starting to settle in to our new apartment. I am missing fall in the Midwest, but the weather here has been pretty nice so far so I can’t really complain. I started reading the New Testament on Monday (yay). It’s slightly easier to read than the Old Testament, which is nice:) Anyways, I was reading in Matthew this morning, and this verse really stuck out to me…

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of it’s own.”

Matthew 6:34

Needless to say, this was a good reminder for me this morning. Often, I find myself worrying WAY to easily. Not to say that moving half way across the country with less than two weeks notice comes without worry and stress—because it does—but sometimes I worry too much. I’ve mentioned previously that I am a planner my nature, and always like to know what is going to happen next. Planning is not a bad thing, but the point that our plans turn into worry is when we need to take a step back and reevaluate. The footnotes in my Bible said it well…

“Planning for tomorrow is time well spent; worrying about tomorrow is time wasted.”

Again, planning is not a bad thing—it is actually a good thing, and when done correctly can alleviate a lot of stress. But, planning goes wrong when we allow worry to creep into the picture. If we trust God with our plans in the first place, then there is no need to worry. I know this is much easier said than done—I’m living proof of that. But, overtime I have figured out that worrying really doesn’t get you anywhere—its only makes things worse. When we trust God with our plans and our problems, he is faithful to work things out in our favor.

Lord, help me to trust you with my plans, and not to worry about anything. I’ve let worry and stress get in the way of our relationship, and I’m sorry. Forgive me for worrying and stressing. Help me to trust you in all that I do today and always. Amen.

Hope you all are having a fabulous week! God Bless:)

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