Invitation

Romans 12:1-2 - I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

The apostle Paul in Romans 12:1-2 makes a deep appeal to his reads to present their lives before God. He knew that as we spiritually and sometimes physically prostrate ourselves before God that transformation takes place. In verse two, Paul speaks of renewing the mind, our thoughts impact our emotions and our desires. What we allow into our minds impact our attitudes and our actions. We are a vessel and we slowly and consistently feel up our lives with thoughts. These thoughts come from conversations, books, articles, events, movies and videos and the like. The collection of these various inputs into our lives shape who we are. If the inputs lead to good thoughts, God honoring thoughts then, the outcome will be that we walk in the spirit more closely to our Savior, but if the various inputs are negative or evil then we will walk according to the flesh. This is the basic idea of what we sow we will reap.

Followers of Jesus for centuries have sought ways to grow spiritually. One of the ways that has been beneficial to believers before us is called Spiritual Disciplines. These include ideas such as Bible reading, Prayer, Fasting, Confession and Service to name a few. This is not a program that produces a particular outcome as much as it is a means to humbly place ourselves before the Almighty God who transforms us from the inside out. This process of placing our self repeatedly before God, asking for Him to work in us and to root out any unwanted characteristic or thoughts in our lives slowly over time begins to transform us. The process of reading our bible in and of itself does not change us but places us in a position for God to speak to our hearts and change us. This is true of the other disciplines mentioned as well.

If the idea of growing spiritually by humbling yourself in the presence of God speaks to your heart, then I have an offer for you. Starting Wednesday October 27 @ 630 -730 we will begin this journey together. We will talk about many of the disciplines and each week spend time applying them to our lives. When we get together again, we can share our experience with the group. The desired outcome is not so much increased knowledge but life transformation and application. If you are interested and/or have questions, please contact the Church Office 770-887-9482.