Our women's Sunday school class is doing a Bible study on Heaven. A few weeks ago we discussed "who" is a Christian and how can we know for sure we will be in Heaven.
We decided to read the book of Acts where the church actually begins and see what they did to become Christians. This book is FULL of exciting events that happened over a period of history as the Holy Spirit came to be with God's people in the absence of Jesus who had died, been resurrected, and then ascended to Heaven. As I was reading this morning, my heart stopped on the healing of a paralyzed man in Acts 9. I kept reading the same verse over and over. When Peter healed the man in the name of Jesus, he told him, "Get up and take care of your mat."
Wow! I just kept reading this over and over and thinking of how many of us, including me, have been transformed by Jesus' power and been "healed" of so many past mistakes, hurts, and disappointments and yet we NEVER TOOK CARE OF OUR MAT!
I could just hear this being preached.
GET UP AND TAKE CARE OF YOUR MAT!!
Peter could have just said, "Get up and get on with your life," but he knew that taking care of the mat was an important step in healing.
So I guess my question this morning is what has been transformed in your life? What has God saved you from or brought you out of? What "mat" is holding you back, because you didn't take care of it after your transformation?
Taking care of it might mean counseling or a tough but honest conversation with someone or selling something or moving away from something or simply "letting something go!"
I don't know. I just know that when Jesus heals us of ANYTHING, we are told through this great example that we must......................
TAKE CARE OF OUR MAT!
Today I am praying that God will reveal to me any "mats" that have not yet been dealt with. I am praying that for you too!
Have a wonderful day....and oh, Nick's website has exceeded its daily limit two days in a row, so I can't do any more uploading of pictures until this problem is solved. So God must want me here more than there!
I love you all so much!
Have a wonderful day!
We decided to read the book of Acts where the church actually begins and see what they did to become Christians. This book is FULL of exciting events that happened over a period of history as the Holy Spirit came to be with God's people in the absence of Jesus who had died, been resurrected, and then ascended to Heaven. As I was reading this morning, my heart stopped on the healing of a paralyzed man in Acts 9. I kept reading the same verse over and over. When Peter healed the man in the name of Jesus, he told him, "Get up and take care of your mat."
Wow! I just kept reading this over and over and thinking of how many of us, including me, have been transformed by Jesus' power and been "healed" of so many past mistakes, hurts, and disappointments and yet we NEVER TOOK CARE OF OUR MAT!
I could just hear this being preached.
GET UP AND TAKE CARE OF YOUR MAT!!
Peter could have just said, "Get up and get on with your life," but he knew that taking care of the mat was an important step in healing.
So I guess my question this morning is what has been transformed in your life? What has God saved you from or brought you out of? What "mat" is holding you back, because you didn't take care of it after your transformation?
Taking care of it might mean counseling or a tough but honest conversation with someone or selling something or moving away from something or simply "letting something go!"
I don't know. I just know that when Jesus heals us of ANYTHING, we are told through this great example that we must......................
TAKE CARE OF OUR MAT!
Today I am praying that God will reveal to me any "mats" that have not yet been dealt with. I am praying that for you too!
Have a wonderful day....and oh, Nick's website has exceeded its daily limit two days in a row, so I can't do any more uploading of pictures until this problem is solved. So God must want me here more than there!
I love you all so much!
Have a wonderful day!
3 Comments:
You have given much to ponder and chew on. He's taking care of a mat in me right now with the broken marriage and broken heart. I'll have to seek Him for any other mats I'm not seeing.
Love ya,
Paula
Isn't amazing how you can read a Bible account/story so many times and still get something new from it. I have never really thought about the mat....but how easy is it to "lay right back down" after God has done something so wonderful - if we aren't careful to "get rid of the mat" that held us where we were! What an insightful post, Tammy. Thanks.
Praying for you guys tomorrow. Love ya much, Jennifer
I ran across this quote in my Streams in the Desert devotional. I had just read your email update on Nick--and I immediately thought of you and your family.
"Difficulty is actually the atmosphere surrounding a miracle, or a miracle in its initial stage. Yet if it is to be a great miracle, the surrounding condition will be not simply a difficulty but an utter impossibility. And it is the clinging hand of His child that makes a desperate situation a delight to God."
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