A Departure from Real Life – The Way of Joy in Sorrow - Purity 1799

Welcome to the MT for Christ 24/7 podcast. I am M.t. Clark, and this is today's photo. Good morning. Today's photo of the silhouettes of trees and a pair of houses set against the backdrop of a spectacular multicolored twilight sunset sky comes to us from an unknown Facebook friend who shared this dazzling sight on social media back on November 13th, 2020. This magical memory is yours. Let me know and I'll photo credit you on the blog after the fact. Well, it's Tuesday and I am rejoicing this morning because I am riding the high of a single day of repentance victory, and I'm looking forward to a day that I intend to be dedicated to seeking and serving the Lord. After overeating for the past several days, I fasted breakfast and dinner yesterday, kept the door shut on eating after 6 PM, and stayed on plan for the first day in about a week. My Fitness Pal app revealed to me that I didn't fully document my food intake since last Monday, and I am happy to come back to the realm of self-control and higher awareness. Doesn't take long to go astray, but it's always good to find your way back home, and I'm looking forward to another day of victory over my flesh. Yesterday I had meetings with my clients, uh, with coaching clients, where I was reminded of the fact that even when we are in encouraging and ministering to others, we are still vulnerable to the natural slippage towards negativity and fleshly living. I got the bad news that I had some home improvements to make last week, and I wasn't happy about it. Not only did the prospect of spending thousands of dollars leave me feeling overwhelmed, but it also momentarily stole my peace with the Lord and caused me to abandon my efforts at healthy living. And of course, that decision resulted in negative physical and emotional consequences. But the Lord is gracious to me and was gracious to me in my pity party and pulled me out of it by remembering his faithfulness in the past and motivating me to make arrangements to solve the problems before me. Now that I have a vague sense of direction and the solutions figured out, I can rest and wait on the Lord to direct time and space to lead me to the other side. One of my clients, in the midst of his own difficult season, shared his insights about the difficulty of walking in the Spirit. He said that the teachings and examples of Jesus, along with the truth about our lives and identity in Christ, are a departure, quote unquote, are a departure from real life, meaning that the truth of our faith is difficult to grasp and even harder to walk in when we are faced with life's problems. I agreed, of course. Walking in the Spirit is a complete departure from real life, but that's the whole point. Secular real life, where there is essentially no God, no place for prayer, and no considerations of the spiritual aspects of our lives, where man is virtually alone and has to figure out all of life's problems on our own, can't really make sense of Jesus and his way of living. That's why we have to abandon the world and its ways, because they are completely hopeless, and we have to intentionally choose to be disciples of Jesus Christ with the way we live. We are to draw into the truth and hope of our salvation every day by connecting to God's word and by speaking to God in prayer. We practice gratitude, remind ourselves of our identity in Christ, and seek to live in God's presence as a response to real life's natural tendency to lead us into sin and despair. Christianity, when properly practiced, is just what my client said, a departure from real life, and it's an entrance into the unseen realm of the kingdom of God, where God is with us and helping us to overcome the problems of life and death itself. Disciples depart a life of confusion and hopelessness and enter into the abundant life that God wants us to know. Where we recognize the sorrows of life but still experience the joy of a life that has been quickened by the Holy Spirit. Speaking of the big questions of life and death, joy and sorrow, the Turning Point with Dr. David Jeremiah devotion for today speaks on these things, and I'm sharing it on the blog today to encourage us all to find the joy in the sorrow of real life. Dr. David Jeremiah writes, "Joy and sorrow," and he references 2 Samuel 12:23. He shares that, which says, "But now he is dead. Why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me." And David Jeremiah writes, "When Jesus wept by the tomb of Lazarus, he signaled to all of us, to all of us, that it's appropriate to grieve when a loved one dies. But Paul advises us not to sorrow as others who have no hope. Our loved one has made it to heaven before us, but we're still on earth for a little while to continue serving the Lord. When David's child died, he got up and ate and worshiped God because he worshiped God, because he knew he would be reunited with his child in heaven. God gives us these biblical stories so we can know his compassion and goodness. But by studying the subject of heaven in the Bible, we're fill— we're filling our hearts with the land of the living, with the home of our dear ones in Christ who have gone before. Take time each day to spend in the word so you might find comfort in sorrow and perseverance in your current labors. That was from David Jeremiah, and he also shares a quote from H. Norman Wright, which says, when a Christian or a young child dies, those who are left behind have to say goodbye, but the one who died is able to say hello to the Lord. Amen. Amen. And that's just some really good, you know, that quote from H. Norman Wright, saying goodbye. That's the way to close your guys when you, when you grieve someone. The whole process of grieving is saying goodbye to the loved one who's departed and goodbye to the that you had with them, and goodbye to the hopes and dreams you had for the future with them on this earth. So when we say goodbye, we, we can find healing and move forward in life after, even when we have to grieve the loss of someone we love. So that's my two cents on that. And but other than that, I say amen. You know, in the midst of every life there is pain and suffering. In our busy lives, there are enough problems and concerns that can seem like all we do is go from one trial to next. The concerns and pain of living can be enough to overwhelm us. But then, if we ever think that we have more than enough on our plates from day to day, death comes in to remind us that there is a bigger story happening all around us that is more, that is more than our daily grind. The people we know and love have an expiration date. We have an expiration date. Or so it would seem. The world tells us everyone dies after all. But Jesus came to wake us up and to tell us something different. His teachings clarify what is good and evil and show us a higher truth than the facts of life taught to us by the world. Jesus died for us on the cross, but more than being a good example of someone who lived a sinless life and was wrongly killed way too soon, Jesus's story tells us of life beyond the grave. And of a kingdom that remains unseen. Jesus' resurrection confirmed what the Old Testament said about life, death, and God's judgment. Those who sin and don't repent are punished and perish, but those who put their faith in the Lord are forgiven and are welcomed into an eternal realm of peace and joy where the Lord lives. For the believer, to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. Jesus' resurrection confirms that there is life everlasting for those who believe. The world's hard truth about everybody dying isn't the whole story. Everybody dies, but those who put their faith in Jesus will never die. While we mourn those who pass into death, we are comforted by the fact that those who believe are safe from suffering and live in peace with God. If we believe in Jesus, we will one day see other believers in eternity again. This revelation helps us to mourn the loss of loved ones in Christ. It also gives us the courage to face all the challenges of life, including our own mortality. So reaffirm your faith and identity in Christ every day, because you are a citizen of heaven. And knowing that God has, has made a way beyond death takes away our fears and gives us a hope that never dies. Today's Bible verses come to us from the Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling by John G. Cruis. This morning's meditations come from— verses come from the section on persecution. And today's verses are Genesis 4:2-7, where the word of God says, and again she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep and Cain a worker of the ground. In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground. And Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry and his face fell. The Lord said to Cain, why are you angry? Why is your face fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you. But you must rule over it. Today's verses are the first of two passages of Scripture that fall under the second point of our Counseling Reference Guide's resource section on persecution, and that second point is Cain persecuted his brother Abel because his own works were evil while Abel's were righteous. Today's Bible verses set up the story for the first person martyred for their faith. Abel. This passage of scripture tells us that Abel worshiped the Lord in the proper manner. Abel gave the Lord a sacrifice, an offering that cost him something, the lives of the firstborn of his flock, that mirrored the sacrifice the Lord made for Adam and Eve. Blood was spilled for Adam and Eve to, to, to cover that, so they could be covered with animal skins. And Abel, informed in his spirit, did likewise in his attempt to worship the Lord. Abel did well. Cain did not. And instead of taking the Lord's lesson to heart, Cain's heart was filled with bitterness and hatred for his brother and killed him. Cain's story tells us of the danger of jealousy and sin, but it also tells— shows us the hard truth that people separated from God are more likely to persecute those who do believe than to come under God's lordship. So give an offering of honor, praise, and worship to the Lord. But remember that those who don't believe are just as likely to persecute you for your faith than they are to learn from your example. As always, we encourage everyone to go to mtforchrist.com, where we always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to assist our brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk. And today we continue sharing from Day by Day Along the Way by J.E. Adams. It's a 365-day devotional And we're on day 298 where Adam shares a portion of Acts 8:21 which says, "You have no part or share in the proclamation of this message." And J.E. Adams writes, "How come? Because as Peter said, your heart isn't right before God. What was wrong with Simon's heart? He wanted to buy the power to lay hands on people in order to give them the Holy Spirit. He wanted this once He wanted this once he discovered that the apostle's power is greater than his magic. It was all about power. Whether Simon's request for prayer after the stinging rebuke by Peter was answered affirmatively, we do not know. Church history claims not. He is said to have caused much trouble in the church in the days that followed. Peter told him to repent and pray. It appears that he didn't, but asked Peter to pray for him. Did he still view the power of the apostles mechanically? Once, one, once, one thing is certain, the power of God cannot be bought, not even by money spent on elaborate churches and grandiose programs. The Spirit is a person, not a product, and must be dealt with as such. Amen. Yes. And we have to remember that, especially in some church settings where it's all about the power. You know, the word and the power, and people act like they're, they're wizards wielding the power of the Holy Spirit. Um, that is a false system that you don't want to follow. The Holy Spirit is a person, and it's a relationship with him, and he'll work through us according to God's will, not our own. And that's always important to remember. And that's why we always ask the question: have you fully surrendered to God? Are you trying to do things in your own strength? Are you trying to twist God's arm to make him do your Well, if you are, that's the wrong way. We're trying to point you to the right way, and that's a life surrendered to God's will, and that reflects the goodness of Jesus and the practices of Jesus for living. Our faith is a departure from quote-unquote real life, but it should be empowered by the spiritual disciplines that reflect the fact that we are indeed following the Lord, and that's why we recommend a daily spiritual practice, a lifestyle of faith and the departure from the things of this world for the things of God. We've discovered a measure of peace, even though we still struggle at times, because we follow the Lord, and we found freedom and victory in many ways because we did so. So we encourage people to find their peace and purpose in Christ. Part of my purpose, besides encouraging people and myself on the blog and podcast, is to encourage them in real life, in real life, at the real church, at Starpoint Church, on Wednesday evenings at 6:30 PM. You can come to the church 6:30 PM tomorrow, it's Wednesday, to join us in the K-3rd grade classroom for the Celebrate Freedom support group. It's for Christian recovery and discipleship, so if you have any hurt, habit, or hang-up that you want to bring under the Lord's dominion, come to Celebrate Freedom and we'll show you how to ask the Lord for help and hopefully receive it. And he'll— he's so faithful to help us when we ask. Speaking of Celebrate Freedom, did you know I wrote a couple of books with Celebrate Freedom in the title? I did. Uh, the first one is Celebrate Freedom: 7 Steps of Discipleship, which is my long 300-page-plus, um, explanation of what I believe is missing from the 12-step format of Christian recovery. And what is that? It's 7 lessons on discipleship. And so I created a separate book just with those lessons called Celebrate Freedom Discipleship Course, which highlights the 7 lessons that are discussed in Celebrate Freedom: 7 Steps of Discipleship. Both of those books are available now at amazon.com, so you can go there and search for M.t. Clark and Celebrate Freedom, and hopefully both those books will show up and you can purchase them today. They're available on Kindle, and this leader's guide is available in paperback, so check them out. Um, beyond that, if you didn't want to just read the books I wrote and wanted to, you know, be discipled by me, or at least walk beside me in a discipleship course, um, you can do that by going to mt4christ.com, our group coaching events page, to sign up for the Grace Course. It's a teaching from Steve Goss and the people of Freedom in Christ Ministries. We give you access to the videos, and we do a meeting each week to discuss what's discussed in the course. So we come alongside one another in online Tuesday nights from 6:30 to 8:30 from November 4th to December 23rd. Sign up today. Beyond that, if you don't have time for the discipleship course or to read my books, you can still be encouraged by going to our, our pod— you know, subscribing to our podcast. You can do that on YouTube, or you can do it on any other, you know, audio podcast that's out there. And if you wanted to dive deeper, you can jump into the playlist that we've created We list all our playlists on YouTube and on mt4christ.com, so go there and check out what playlists we've made today. Um, yeah, beyond that, uh, we always, uh, you know, if you appreciate what we're trying to do here at the, uh, on the podcast, our ministries and, uh, whatnot, we would appreciate your support. You can go to mt4christ.com, give a donation today on our donations page. We greatly appreciate it. All right, and that brings us to the end of this message, which where we always ask the question, are you empty for Christ too? What does that mean? Well, it just means, are you trying to empty yourself of the things of this world and be filled with the things of God and the Holy Spirit? We hope the answer to that question is yes, and if it is, we say, great, keep on walking and talking with God. If not, we encourage you to pray and seek the Lord, because we know if you seek the Lord, you'll find him. And we know that prayer works, and that's why we pray every day, like right now. Lord God, Heavenly Father, thank you for another day in your kingdom. Lord, we thank you so much for the single day of victory that we have over the flesh. Lord, you kept us on, uh, on, on course, and, uh, you gave us great rest yesterday. And so, Lord, let us press into your, into your presence today. Lord, um, show me the things that I should be doing instead of the things I I have been doing, um, and lead me in the way I should go. Lord, we also pray that you would bless anyone reading, listening, or watching today's message, that you bless them and their prayer requests, their walk of faith. We all want to follow you, Lord, but we all need your help, and we're asking. Lord, we thank you, we praise you, and we love you, and we pray all these things in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.