Live in God's WillSample

                                   Part One: What is God’s Will for Us to Become?

DAY 2: Live in God’s will by becoming more in love with Him. 

What is our focus in life? What are our goals, and why do we have them? Do we live our lives trying to keep up with the Joneses? Do we work hard to play hard? Do we make money to spend money? Do we want the newest of everything? Do we strive for success at the cost of our health and relationships? 

If we resonate with even a few of these questions, we probably love the things of this world more than we are loving God. We are focused on the temporal things of life that will just fade away and die. Unfortunately, we do not live in a culture that values God and His ways. Our worldly culture tries to entice us with our desires of the flesh, our greedy eyes, and our longing for more possessions. The desires of the flesh are things like food, lust, drugs, alcohol, laziness, and comfort. The desires of the eyes are things like jealousy, envy, coveting, wanting bigger and better things. The pride in possessions is shown in our house, car, jewelry, the latest technology, bank accounts, net worth, and excess shopping. In each of these areas, we are encouraged to explore, experience, and validate. 

Here’s the hard truth: We cannot love the world and be in the will of God. It’s that simple. That means our lives will need to look drastically different than the world. We must daily live a life not trying to "blend in" with the world, but instead, living according to God's Word. The love of the world will be a constant battle. We must watch out for what our eyes and flesh desire and make sure we aren’t prideful in what we possess. We must evaluate our lives to see how much time, focus, and money we invest in things that have no real eternal value. When our eyes are focused on the temporal, we cannot make an impact on the eternal. Only three things are eternal: God, His Word, and people. These are the three areas to focus on to be in His will.

God wants us to abide in Him. He wants us to rest and find comfort and satisfaction in a relationship with Him, not the things of this world. They cannot bring lasting fulfillment. Let’s choose today to surrender these things to Him and choose to trust that abiding in Him is what will truly satisfy. 

· Which of the three loves of the world entice you most? Why? 

· What does it look like for you to abide in Christ and not the world?

PRAYER:

Holy Spirit, please evaluate my heart. May I confess and repent of things You bring to my mind. I surrender to You, areas where I have loved the world more than You. May I receive Your forgiveness. Help me to experience the Father’s love for me in a profound way. Help me to control my passions for the things of this world that distract me from intimacy with You. Amen.