Christianity Oasis Forum

[Sylvia]

"none of us liveth to himself" (Romans 14:7)

"Has it ever dawned on you that you are responsible for other souls spiritually before God? For instance, if I allow any private deflection from God in my life, everyone about me suffers. We "sit together in heavenly places" "Whether one member suffers, all the members suffer with it."
When once you allow physical selfishness, mental slovenliness, moral obtuseness, spiritual density, everyone belonging to your crowd will suffer. "But" you say, "who is sufficient for these things if you erect a standard like that?" "Our sufficiency is of God." and of Him alone.
"Ye shall be my witnesses" How many of us are willing to spend every once of nervous energy, of mental, moral and spiritual energy we have for Jesus Christ? That is the meaning of a witness in God's sense of the word. It takes time, be patient with yourself. God has left us on the earth-what for? to be saved and sanctified? No, to be at it for Him. Am I willing to be broken bread and poured out wine for Him? To be spoilt for this age, for this life, to be spoilt from every standpoint but one-saving as I can disciple men and women to the Lord Jesus Christ. My life as a worker is the way I say "thank you" to God for His unspeakable salvation.
(Oswald Chambers 1935)

My thoughts are this is going along with what we talked about yesterday.
If we don't go to the Lord first then those around us suffer too.
That really touches my heart because in times of darkness I have a bad habit of shutting down and you don't see me in Oasis any more. I don't go to church regularly like I should. And I get depressed.
But God is always there to lift me out of the pit. He has never left me and is waiting for me to ask Him that His will be done and to use this darkness that I might be a testimony to others.
Luv You
Sylvia

[mlg]

Hi sylvia,

Shutting down often seems like the easy path when we are going through so much...seems like if we just hide ourselves away everything will get better and easier...but in reality everything doesn't go away and we have resorted to trying to fight the battle alone when we close ourself off. But...God will be there as you shared...to pull us back up and push us back out...not letting us sit alone and in woe...but showing us that we have to continue living the life He wants us to have...and not hiding in the darkness of shadows.

Thanks for sharing this morning sis.

luv ya

[Lionhearted]

Thats very kewl ladies ... i'm think of the story in the Bible when the prophet Elijah went and hid under the juniper tree.

I've a new perspective on this one. I don't think that Elijah was really "scared" in the sense of terror ... but more just not himself spiritually. Let's face it, he just pulled a major coo for God's kingdom. He needed to rest ...

And don't we all think that when we come to stressful "cross road" ... believing its the end; when really, its just a change of direction or a beginning of something else.

People are too rushed in life, they don't stop enough to refresh themselves spiritually ... but God has a way of making us stop! Just like He did with Elijah.

We go, go, go; and then fall flat and think we are spiritually inept. All Elijah needed was a little rest, encouragement and food!!

I think that sometimes we do get "down" and there is nothing wrong with it; as long as it doesn't become a permanent home for living.

Oswald Chambers is very prolific; I like his writings.

The kewl thing for me about this post is that when he said:

everyone belonging to your crowd will suffer.

Yesterday I saw a bridge that was broken down. And the Lord showed me that, just as Jesus was a bridge for us to get back to God; so are we bridges for the lost AND for our brothers and sisters ... and .... "if you continually allow yourself (your spirit and emotions) to be broken down and not healed and fixed by ME ... then no one will be able to "cross" over on you"

It was one of those AHUH moments

[Mackenaw]

Wooooooooohoooooooo!!!

I hear the Judds singing "Love can build a bridge". Awesome lyrics, by the way.

Thank you all for these awesome heartfelt words.

God bless you.
Love,
Mack

[Dora]

Amen!

Good to see you back at it Sylvia.