Be holy: Confess your sins, consecrate yourself; follow me!

   

Silence

1.   Put on your “brakes” and stop for a moment of silence

2.   Wait for God. Breathe deep for God's peace and feel His presence. Exhale your worries.

Praise and Thanksgiving

1.   Think through your day, all the times that made you smile

2.   Thank God for all those moments, and for all those people

3.   Sing a song to praise God (you are welcome to use "Father, I adore you" which I have been singing every morning for the past 20 years or your own choice to praise God)

          Father, I adore You, lay my life before You, how I love You.

          Jesus, I adore You, lay my life before You, how I love You.

          Spirit, I adore You, lay my life before You, how I love You.

      

Confession and Repentance (Subjective Shifting Devotion Method https://bishopsilas.blogspot.com/2009/08/count-down-5-subject-shifting-devotion.html

1.  Pray for the Holy Spirit to shine on you that you are able to discover your sins and be willing to repent:

     “Dear Holy Spirit, shine your light into the places of darkness in my life. Show me my sins, everything that blocks me from encountering God and having Jesus as my Lord. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.”

2.  Through the Holy Spirit, examine yourself for a short silence and then pray:

     "Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for dying on the cross for our sins and being victorious over death and sin. I confess my sins to you(pause, to tell Jesus what the Holy Spirit has shown you). Forgive my sins by your blood and help me follow you. Holy Spirit, fill me that I may be able to receive your gifts to love God and His people. In Jesus Name I pray, Amen."

3.  John Stott's daily prayer of Christlikeness (Christopher J.H. Wright, Cultivating the fruit of the Spirit. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2017, 13)

(Please click this link to see how God used John Stott to change my life:https://bishopsilas.blogspot.com/2009/07/

           "Heavenly Father, I pray that this day I may live in your presence and please you more and more.

             Lord Jesus, I pray that this day I may take up my cross and follow you.

             Holy Spirit, I pray that this day you will fill me with yourself and cause your fruit to ripen in my life: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control."

    

    The link to today's Time with Abba passages:   http://api.pastoralcareschool.org/twa/

    Time with Abba passages: (Psalm 32:1-5, Leviticus 19:1-20:21; Mark  8:11-38; Proverbs 10:17)

    Today's key passage:

    7 “‘Consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am the Lord your God. 8 Keep my decrees and follow them. I am the Lord, who makes you holy.

   
         Leviticus 20:7-8

Let's have a time to be still and give the Holy Spirit space to speak through the passage we have just read. Offer this time to Jesus as you listen to him. 

   

     My Listening

    The topic I received today from Jesus is: Be holy: Confess your sins, consecrate yourself; follow me!

     Today's four passages give us the "why" of so many people cannot follow Jesus:

    1. Be holy

         

         The Lord said to Moses,  “Speak to the entire assembly of Israel and say to them: ‘Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy.          Leviticus 19:1-2

                 

          The reason for us not able to follow Jesus is because we are not holy! 

         2. Confess your sins

            When I kept silent,
             my bones wasted away   through my groaning all day long.
               For day and night
              your hand was heavy on me;
             my strength was sapped   as in the heat of summer.
               Then I acknowledged my sin to you
               and did not cover up my iniquity.
          I said, “I will confess
                my transgressions to the Lord.”
          And you forgave    the guilt of my sin.          Psalm 32: 3-5 

         So far as I know, all the big spiritual revival of this world in the past one hundred years started from a big flow of confession.

              Without knowing our sins, confess and repent, we cannot be holy, not being holy, we cannot see God and have a good relationship with Him, not being able to follow the Lord!                                  

         3. Consecrate yourself

        “‘Consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am the Lord your God.  Keep my decrees and follow them. I am the Lord, who makes you holy.

                                                                             Leviticus 20: 7-8

        Whoever heeds discipline shows the way to life,
                       but whoever ignores correction leads others astray.                                                                 Proverbs 10:17

   When we know our sins, confess and repent, the blood of Christ cleanses us, we experience Jesus is Lord, being filled with the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit anoints us to be able to consecrate ourselves so that we won't be lost again, being lost in this world of confusion and darkness, trying all the best to get everything. Instead, we will try our best to give everything! 

        4.  Follow me

         But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. “Get behind me, Satan!” he said. “You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”  Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.  For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it.  What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?  Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?            Mark 8:33-37

    Dear Lord Jesus, 

   Help us to experience "Confess our sins, consecrate ourself" so that we can be holy and willing to bear our own cross to follow you.  In Jesus name we pray. Amen.  

      Reflect on these questions:

     1. What inspiration have you received from today's catch and what have you heard from Jesus now?

      

      2.  What is your next step to be more closer to Jesus?

    

      Family Corner:

     Find an opportunity to share with your family the importance of today's message. 

     

Please click this link for the video version of this blog: 

 https://youtu.be/UrGo304UhlU

     To know, learn and practice the method of Time with Abba, please click this link: https://www.pastoralcareschool.org