Devotion

by John S. Oliver

I exhort you to work on improving our devotion during the coming weeks, months and years.

CONTEXT

God gave humans free will.

He has given us the freedom to make choices.

But each choice has consequences.

All the consequences are not always know before the choice is made.

Often we do not know what is best for others or ourselves.

The God of the Bible is knows what is best.

He will not force us to make the best choice.

What is best may not be the most painless.

What is best may not bring instant results.

What is best may require that we mature spiritually along the way.

God understands the selfish and stubborn nature of humans.

He will not violate our free will.

But if through devotion we had submitted an area to Him then He can use it.

God is committed to conforming His children to the image of His Son.

The process of becoming Christ like can involve unpleasant divine discipline

Thus it would be wise to include genuine devotion as part of the habit of prayer.

As a believer you are a priest unto your God.

Through the righteousness of Christ imputed to you now to have access to God.

You can enter behind the torn veil into the Holy of Holy.

You are welcomed into the very presence of God.

There you can do business with God.

Like the priests of the Old Testament you need to pray for yourself first.

Effectiveness in praying for others and ministering to them relates to your devotion.

SYNONYMS

Devotion is a term that is like many related terms.

Each term has unique a meaning and application.

Each term represents a powerful concept that is in many books and sermons.

All of these concepts need to be woven into our prayer life.

Consider these terms submit, commit, surrender, turn over, yield, etc.

Also there are terms like consecrate and set apart.

METAPHORS

These words can be more than a list to be prayed over one time quickly.

These can be sparks that God uses to lead you much more prayer.

These can be searchlights that uncover areas of darkness.

These can be alarm clocks that alter you to areas for surrender to His Lordship.

These can be a brush to keep the channels clean between you and Christ.

These can be anything else that the Holy Spirit chooses.

ADAPT

You are free to adapt the introduction or parts in any way that works for you.

In the name of Jesus

right here and right now

I choose to completely and entirely

submit/commit/surrender/consecrate/devote

unto the Lord Jesus Christ the following:

ALL I am/was/hope to become

ALL my body/soul/spirit

ALL my past/present/future

ALL my time/money/energy

ALL my needs/wants/desires

ALL my hurts/pains/stresses

ALL my hopes/dreams/expectations

ALL my values/priorities/standards

ALL my visions/game plans/ To Do Lists

ALL my morals/ethics/character

ALL my problems/challenges/difficulties

ALL my commitments/responsibilities/obligations

ALL my assets/liabilities/resources

ALL my cash/credit/debts

ALL my skills/talents/gifts

ALL my education/experiences/contacts

ALL my decisions/choices/preferences

ALL my willingness/unwillingness/indecision

ALL my relationships/friendships/associations

ALL my health/wealth/happiness

ALL my submissiveness/unsubmissiveness/rebellion

ALL my thoughts/word/deeds

ALL my plans/preparations/precautions

ALL my strengths/weaknesses/lacks

ALL my goals/objectives/projects

ALL my food/clothes/shelter

ALL my vehicles/computers/residence

ALL my job/career/ministry

ALL my worries/fears/concerns

ALL my reputation/status/self image

PROCESS

Devotion is a process, it does not happen just one time for a lifetime.

You can add other items as God brings them to mind.

Maybe a few of these items were not easy to totally surrender to the Lord Jesus.

That is okay for right now.

But remember that you need to begin to work on those very soon.

Perhaps you cannot completely submit in your own strength.

Pray and ask God to help you in the process.

Ultimately this gets back to how much you trust God.

How much you trust God depends on what you believe about Him in your gut.

What you believe about God in your gut improves as you walk follow Jesus.

In order to motivate you to follow Jesus 100% read missionary biographies.

In order to motivate you to follow Jesus 100% notice those to trusted God in the Bible.

In order to motivate you to follow Jesus 100% consider those martyred for the faith.

Voice of the Martyrs has testimonies of those being martyred currently and historically.

Here is a link to the web site for Voice of the Martyrs www.persecution.com

Here is the link to Prayeraphrases www.prayeraphrases.org there you will find hundreds of short prayers.