The Plumbline

But the Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one. And we are confident in the Lord that you are doing and will continue to do the things we commanded you. May the Lord lead your hearts into a full understanding and expression of the love of God and the patient endurance that comes from Christ. (2 Thessalonians 3:3-5 NLT) If we are to be engaged with Jesus, we are also engaged with the enemy of our souls - engaged in a battle in which he desires nothing more than to have us 'disengage' from our relationship with Jesus. A cog in a wheel 'engages' with the cogs in a different wheel and the device turns. As long as we continue to engage with Jesus, our lives continue to grow. This is exactly what our enemy doesn't want to happen. He wants us to 'quit' on Jesus, while Jesus wants us to commit even deeper to the relationship. Always remember that we are both guarded from the evil one and strengthened in our continued walk with Jesu...

Flip Wilson used to quip, "You can't expect to hit the jackpot if you don't put a few nickels in the machine." This could be said of our 'investment' into our spiritual growth, as well. We need to 'put something into it' if we are to get as much out of it as Jesus intends! We aren't going to grow by osmosis or just by hearing a once-a-week sermon. We must put forth the effort to glean God's message to us from his Word, listen intently during times of worship and prayer, and then act upon what he brings to our attention.  You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. (Matthew 22:37 NLT) Heart, soul, and mind all engaged - no part of us left out in this pursuit. Devotion to God does indeed engage one's mind, but it also engages one's heart. In turn, one's actions begin to be changed - little by little, until we see an overwhelming transformation in our character. The change we might just be lon...