Family of God: Re: [Awake4HisReturn] Recreating the Masterpiece

Amen! What an awesome god.

On Tue Apr 5th, 2011 7:11 AM CDT Michael J. Knight wrote:

>
>Recreating the Masterpiece
>
>
>Philippians 3:8, 13-14 says, "What is more, I consider everything a loss
>compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord,
>for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I
>may gain Christ. . . .Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have
>taken hold of it. But one thing I do: forgetting what is behind and
>straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the
>prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."
>
>The chances are pretty fair that if you've been a Christian for some
>length of time, you have probably read this verse. And if you have even
>the slightest love for Jesus, those words evoke a retort in your heart
>-- something like a teenager at a rock concert. The Spirit of God inside
>you is leaping in untamed exhilaration at having identified with the
>very heart of God that beats in Jesus. The Spirit inside you testifies
>to the truth. I don't care who you are. I don't care what your
>denominational slant on things might be. I don't even care what version
>of the Bible you trust the most. There is something inside every
>believer that, when you read this verse, you can't help but cry out,
>"Yes Lord, that's what I want!"
>
>But what happened from the time you first read that verse till now? Why
>doesn't every believer live like that? Why did the colors of that
>picture run together like finger paints in the rain? Ask yourself, "What
>took place in my life that caused that picture of Jesus to become
>blurred beyond recognition?" I believe the answer is all around you.
>
>Paul said, "But one thing I do . . ." There was nothing else for him.
>But life isn't set up that way. The whole system of the world and the
>entire plan of the enemy are deliberately intended to keep you from the
>one thing. From there to here you have gotten caught up in many things.
>Your life has splintered into a million tiny pieces. The beautiful
>magnum opus Jesus painted on your heart the very first day you
>surrendered to Him was slowly torn to shreds until all that remains is a
>shattered, fruitless existence. You find you have traded the
>magnificence of that work of art for old, washed-out snapshots of your
>own mundane life.
>
>But take heart, friend. All is not lost. Jesus is the great Master
>Artist, and He can always start again to create a masterpiece in you.
>With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible. He
>can gather the fragmented pieces of your life and begin to reconstruct
>them together again for His glory.
>
>I am on this journey with you. I have found that I had lost that fervor,
>that desire to press beyond the gossamer veil of accomplishment, in
>order to find the excellence of the knowledge of Christ. It's a
>challenge to forget those things. But I am realizing that, one day at a
>time, as I lie on my face before the Lord, the passion is returning
>quickly. It is mental and spiritual warfare to put aside the accolades,
>as well as the disasters, and fasten myself to the one thing. God is
>faithful, and for each thing I have laid aside, for each trophy that I
>now count as rubbish, I find another portion of that work of genius.
>With the Lord's help, I am piecing the "Mona Lisa" back together again
>and rediscovering the glory of God.
>
>I want to encourage you today. Wherever you are right now, if you read
>that passage from Philippians and your heart still cries in youthful
>exuberance, "Yes, Lord, that's the hunger for You I want," there is
>still time. You haven't gone too far. You haven't blown your last
>chance. Get down on your knees right now and ask God to help you regain
>that passion for Him. Let the Lord put His brush to the canvas of your
>heart and paint something new and fresh in you today. Little by little
>you will see the image of Jesus begin to take shape in you. And before
>you know it, you'll be right back where God wants you, pressing into Him
>and reveling in the all-surpassing excellent knowledge of Jesus.
>
>Remember
>Only one life, will soon be past,
>Only what is done, for Christ will last.
>
>The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the
>communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen. (2 Corinthians
>13:14)
>
>Love & Prayers,
>
>Michael J. Knight.
>
>http://groups.yahoo.com/group/A-C-T-S/
><http://groups.yahoo.com/group/A-C-T-S/>
>
>What we are is God's gift to us. What we become is our gift to God.
>