Wholly Following God--Part 1

The world is watching.  We need to live the life we say we do.

Need to use our free will to give our will to God so we can do His Will (with His help) :)

We are to be dependent on Him.  Cannot do anything on our own.

If you want to do something bad enough, you WILL.  Not "I can't help myself."

Everyone has the same amount of time.  It's a matter of what those people choose to do with it.

Need to make a decision we are not going to live a half-baked life.  Stop making excuses.  Don't ook at what you don't have, look at what you DO have.

Need to look at what God can do, not just what has been done to us.  Everything in the Bible is for our good.  If you won't let God use you, He'll find SOMEBODY.

Romans 12:1--"Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship."

He's not looking for sacrifices, He's looking for obedience.

Everything God does, there is a reason.  There is NO injustice in God.  Just because we don't understand it doesn't make it not right.

Saul--did not do all God had told him to do, and THEN built a statue of himself because he thought he did so well!

1 Samuel 15:12--"Early in the morning Samuel got up and went to meet Saul, but he was told, “Saul has gone to Carmel. There he has set up a monument in his own honor and has turned and gone on down to Gilgal.”

We often let our mind get too involved in spiritual matters.  We often think it can't be God talking because it might be uncomfortable or sacrificial.  Let us not have fat heads and lean hearts.

To be led by the Spirit, you need to be able to take some risks.  Take a chance on being wrong to find out if you're right.

[Joyce was being told by God to quit her full time job to stay home and study the Word for the "ministry" she was going to begin.  She for a long time held onto her jobknowing they were comfortable financially.  Then she got so miserable, she finally quit only then to get a part-time job to help pay bills.  She wanted to trust, but could not fully commit to Him just yet.]