Willpower has no defense against the careless word, the unguarded moment~

So...I have been referred by JP Moreland to a Celebration of Discipline book that has been on my shelf for a while now. I had ordered it because it had been recommended to me by a friend who seems to have it pretty together. It sort of ties in with what I am trying to accomplish...........: "To become Full" -To have a certain weight on my feet that does not allow the wind of circumstance or trouble to knock me even to the side a bit.

~I wear a scripture bracelet around my left arm to remind me of Proverbs 4:23, "Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life." I figure memorizing scripture will remind me of the goodness I long for. It does, of course, BUT there is so much more to it.


The reason I know this to be true is because I have been and still am greatly a "WILL" person. I WILL do that because I have discipline etc. So today I read that in the book of Colossians, Paul
tells of the self-imposed worship that this "will" can be. You see, we are so self-centered that any kind of dominion over a bad habit or success in say....... a diet or exercise and we think we are the bomb. We rock. We feel good. BUT what about when I scream at my little girl? Or when I get frustrated at my friend who is depressed and I just want to slap her?


Foster explains in his book how Jesus described this condition when He speaks of the external righteousness of the Pharisees. "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks......I tell you, on the day of judgement men will render account for every careless word they utter" (Matt. 12:34-36.) So by my will it works for a while but sooner or later out comes my "Mood" to reveal the true condition of my heart. Sooner or later What We Are comes out.

Can we get a PMS waiver? Please??


"Willpower has no defense against the careless word, the unguarded moment. The will has the same deficiency as the law--it can deal only with externals. It is incapable of bringing about the necessary transformation of the inner spirit." (Richard Foster)


Does anybody wonder why we "feel" better while on a Beth Moore study? The discipline necessary to follow through her workbook is approx 45 minutes of bible study per day!! Amazing learning and revelation happens!! Ahhhh.......the possibilities are endless..............
~I know it is the external power of God that does the transformation. How can I love someone I used to hate? Stop drinking like a lush? Forgive what I thought was unforgivable? Build a bridge and get over it? Now I am hooked --

"...but be transformed by the renewing of your mind..."

How we can strengthen our belief in God, Jesus Christ and all He told His apostles? His resurrection power and the fact that this power is available to us? I have to say that I am heavily influenced by the "world" view. It is easy to believe after a great sermon by my awesome pastor, a super inspirational movie or during a great worship concert~ THEN I go to work,-- I get busy, --I go shopping, --read my e-mail, --grab a magazine and my mind goes into passive mode-- A few days later I am having doubts or worse yet I am taken over by frustation and anger over something I have no control of.

~But I haven't yet aquired the discipline of spending enough time alone with My God.

~Enough discipline to finish this book and read it again to really let it sink in.

~Time to lay hands on my children, pray for them and bless them each morning as they go off to school or summer camp.

Today's challenge is going to be: "Working on THE Discipline" ~It needs to be intentional. Like getting to the gym and having something good and organic for breakfast.

" In any human endeavor, repetitive excercise and practice bring skill and excellence. The same thing is true of study. We often correctly approach study specifically for some direct end- preparing a lesson or learning a topic covered in a book. But study should also be approached as a set of training activities, as SPIRITUAL and INTELLECTUAL excercises. Study is a discipline that strengthens the mind and enriches the soul." ....................................."If all you do is read simple books or those that overemphazise stories or practical application, you'll never learn to think for yourself as a mature Christian, nor will you develop a trained mind." (J.P. Moreland Quote)

"THIS guy is HEAVY DUTY!!" (My Quote)

Prepare your Mind for Action

I thought we could start a "study" blog-- I soooo miss our Friday morning Bible study fellowship and thelogical discussions!! Since we can't always meet and talk on the phone YET we are all searching for some truth and a better life, LET'S blog our minds to knowledge and revelation!!

I am totally basing this blog on my book of the moment Love Your God With All Your Mind (J.P.Moreland) and will TOTALLY be quoting him here-- I encourage you to do the same with whatever you are reading at the time ALONG with your own thoughts, ideas and revelations.

My life has been completely transformed since I started reading/studying the word of God six years ago. I call myself a recovering catholic who never knew what was really going on-- I just kind of wore the tradition crown and God help those who even dared question it !! Going throught the bible, church history, apologetics etc.. has FREED my mind of religious/legalistic views and transformed my heart in an amazing way. YET I feel I have so many questions and doubts still and this book meets these thoughts with the challenge to, "hello.........." s t u d y.

"The mind plays an important role in Christianity. Unfortunately, many of us leave our minds behind when it comes to our faith. JP Moreland presents a logical case for the role of the mind in spiritual transforamtion. Like they say in Mexico, "Que no le digan, que no le cuenten........" (Translation- Don't let them tell you- find out for yourself) ;)

So- let's CHALLENGE ourselves to develop a Christian mind and to use our intellect to further God's Kingdom through evangelism, apologetics, worship and vocation.

It might hurt and be hard at first- like going back to working out. BUT I always get excited when I begin to see resutls. Let's work out our doubts, bring on some discipline and use our minds for great discussions..............

Radical--
Love,
LaGris