Drawing Near to God

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Submit yourselves, then, to God.  Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. (James 4:7-8)

Read more of James 4

Let’s break down the four elements of this passage:  (1) Submitting to God (2) Resisting the devil (3) Drawing near to God; and all of this is made possible through number (4) cleansing our hearts and making our way right with the Lord.  It’s time to dive in deeper to all that God has for us.

“Submit yourselves, then, to God.”

Some people do not like to hear the word submit.  They want control over their own lives because somehow they think they can do better than God can.  I know I can’t.  I see the beginning of this passage and I recognize my complete need to surrender my life before the Lord.  He is the One with the answers, the One who knows the plans He has for my life, and He alone will be my strength through all things I face.  It is my true delight to simply surrender to the One who gives me life.

“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” (Psalm 139:14)

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Where’s the Spotlight?

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What leads to [the unending] quarrels and conflicts among you? Do they not come from your [hedonistic] desires that wage war in your [bodily] members [fighting for control over you]? (James 4:1, AMP)

Through this passage, I have come to understand that most conflicts can be avoided if I recognize the source.  The source being my selfish desires and struggle to have what I want in life.

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Fresh Water

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With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness.  Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water. (James 3:9-12)

I saw a great example of this passage of Scripture the other day when I was walking with a friend, let’s just call her “Charlie”.  Charlie has often mentioned the grace of God and all that she’s been given.  But on this particular walk, my friend decided to take the complaining route.  Charlie launched into a whole discussion about what she doesn’t have and how unfair it is.  Just as Charlie was getting to the tip of her feelings, we walked by a little boy crying.  This was great!  I turned to Charlie and said, “That’s how you sound to God right now!”  We both got a good laugh out of it and enjoyed the rest of our walk.

Unfortunately, many of us take the route of complaining and often sound like the little boy crying because his sister is beating him on a race with her bike.  We cry, we complain, and we crowd out the grace of God by our whining.  Our mouths are filled with fresh water and salt water on a daily basis.  We choose to daily surrender our desires and our hopes to the Lord.  We choose to be fresh water or salt water every day.

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A Rare Jewel

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In the same sense, the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things. See [by comparison] how great a forest is set on fire by a small spark! And the tongue is [in a sense] a fire, the very world of injustice and unrighteousness; the tongue is set among our members as that which contaminates the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life [the cycle of man’s existence], and is itself set on fire by hell (Gehenna). (James 3:5-6)

What do a bit, rudder, spark, and tongue have in common?  Well, James 3 shows us that each is small but powerful and effective as a controller.  The bit in a horse’s mouth helps him obey his master.  The rudder on a ship is small but steers the boat wherever the captain wants it to go.  A small spark can start a forest fire.  And our tongue can set the whole course of our lives on fire, if we do not learn how to control it.

My tongue is definitely full of poison and has the power to start many forest fires in a day.  I tend to see that I have the power to stop a small forest fire or ignite it.  Every conversation is a new opportunity to breathe life or destroy life.  I want so badly to breathe life into others through my words.  I pray that every word I speak will come under the full authority of my Lord and Savior.

“A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.” (Proverbs 25:11)

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Tongue Tied

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For we all stumble and sin in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says [never saying the wrong thing], he is a perfect man [fully developed in character, without serious flaws], able to bridle his whole body and rein in his entire nature [taming his human faults and weaknesses]. (James 3:2, AMP)

Let’s take a look at James 3 this week.  Please try to find time to read it, so that you can get even more out of the devotionals this week.

I will be giving you a daily verse with a picture.  Please feel free to choose one to memorize.  You are welcome to drag any picture to your desktop and use it as a tool to memorize Scripture.

Let’s talk about James 3:2…

“We all stumble in many ways.  If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check.”

This passage of Scripture hits the nail on the head.  We ALL stumble in many ways!  None of us has this down yet, but God continues to give us instructions on how to be better at this thing called life.  The tongue is the most difficult member of the body to control.  It wants to have it’s own way.  It often says things without thinking through them.  It is loose.  Let’s take time to train our tongues this week!

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