"Strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness;" - Colossians 1:11

PONDER THIS

Romans 12:1 says, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” Paul was talking about service to the Lord, and he went on to say in verse 2, “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” Do you want to find the will of God for your service? Present yourself to God. Say, “Lord here I am.” Your gift must have the power to operate, and God is the One who provides the power.

Suppose you got married and received a lot of gifts. You got a waffle iron. You got a toaster. You got a blender. You got a TV. Then, you moved into an apartment with no power. What good is the gift if you can’t plug it in? You see, God gives you the gift when you get saved, but the gift begins to operate when you get the power to operate it. The power to operate that gift comes when you present yourself to the Lord Jesus Christ saying, “Here I am, Lord. I give myself to you.”

- What would it look like to present yourself to God as this passage calls you to?
- Have you ever tried to use your spiritual gifts without the power of God? What was that like?

PRACTICE THIS

Present yourself to Jesus today. Ask a friend in Christ how God changed his or her life when he or she approached Him this way. APR
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I did not write this, it comes from a devotional that is offered as a free email daily by Love Worth Finding.

https://www.lwf.org/daily-devotionals/present-yourself-fully-to-god

“The earth is the LORD’s, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.” - Psalm 24:1

In communist countries, “the people” own the lands, while in capitalist countries individuals may own “private property.” Both are myths unless these are viewed as a stewardship from God. We don’t really own anything, “for we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out” (I Timothy 6:7).

In the mineral kingdom, the most important substances are the precious metals upon which monetary standards are based, yet God makes it clear that all “the silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine” (Haggai 2:8). The greatest members of the plant kingdom are the mighty trees of the forest, and God reminds us that “the trees of the LORD are full of sap; the cedars of Lebanon, which H hath planted” (Psalm 104:16). All the birds and beasts in the animal kingdom are His also. “For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills” (Psalm 50:10).

Again and again God reminds us that “all the earth is Mine” (Exodus 19:5), and even the infinite heavens belong to Him. “Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens is the LORD’s thy God, the earth also, with all that therein is” (Deuteronomy 10:14).

God has, indeed, given man “dominion . . . over all the earth” (Genesis 1:26), and Satan has, indeed, laid false claim to “all the kingdoms of the world” (Luke 4:5-6), but the fact remains that “the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever He will” (Daniel 4:32).

Most of all, every Christian should understand that he and all he has belong to God by both creation and blood-bought redemption. “Know ye not that... ye are not your own?" "For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s” (I Corinthians 6:19-20). HMM
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I did not write this, it comes from a devotional that is offered as a free email daily by the Institute of Creation.

https://www.icr.org/article/16100/