Steve Simms's Blog, page 26

It’s Hard to Say Goodbye to a Life of Self-Focus

Daily writing promptDescribe a phase in life that was difficult to say goodbye to.View all responses

Although self-focus is painful, it’s popular. Instead of being a phase of life that most people eventually outgrow, it has become the definition of life in our Western, materialistic worldview. It has become a life-consuming, life-long obsession. However, our Western culture continues to demonstrate that self-focus isn’t good for our mental health.

Personally, I was never very happy when I was focused on myself. My happiness has come from self-abandonment. Jesus Christ put it this way: “Whoever wants to be My disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow Me.” That kind of self-abandonment and total surrender to King Jesus, to His will, and to His kingdom has brought me amazing peace and happiness. (Google: The Joy of Early Christianity.)

As Jesus bled and died on the Cross, He demonstrated and testified of God’s love for the world by laying down His life and completely surrendering His spirit to God. The early Christians fully committed their spirit (their innermost being) to Jesus as their King, Lord, and example. Then they overcame the devil “by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.” (Revelation 12:11)

The King of Kings and Lord of Lord now wants to manifest and demonstrate His kingdom by living inside of His true followers and by directing, leading, and guiding them from within. Into His hands will you exclusively surrender your spirit — the depths of your being — to follow and obey “Christ in you,” as your only King and Lord?

The kingdom (inner government) of God isn’t about dead people. It consists of people who are eternally alive and whose first priority is seeking, serving and obeying King Jesus. When a group of people is entirely submitted to King Jesus and actively allowing His Spirit to lead them, there is amazing order and unity in their midst.

The kingdom of God is not about the country you live in. It’s about letting Christ live in, direct, and control you as your King and absolute Master.

Ask not what the kingdom of God can do for you. Ask how you can fully surrender to and obey the risen King Jesus. If King Jesus doesn’t have your full allegiance and obedience, you are working against His kingdom.

The government of the kingdom of God is “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” King Jesus has a personal relationship and direct communication with all of His subjects, so He has no need for a hierarchy. The kingdom of God is an absolute monarchy. It has no voting and no parliament. King Jesus is the sovereign Lord. To disobey Him and refuse to be led by His Spirit is to reject God’s kingdom.

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The New Me

Daily writing promptIf you could be someone else for a day, who would you be, and why?View all responses

I’m learning to be a new me, not just for a day, but forever. “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” (Ephesians 4:22-24)

I represent another government than the country I reside in. I serve as an ambassador for a King and a government that isn’t the government where I live. The government is the kingdom of God, and the King is Jesus. I’m an ambassador for Christ. My commission is stated in 2 Corinthians 5:20.

When people have been born from above (born again), they have the ability to see beyond human governments and to recognize and surrender to the invisible inner government of God. (John 3:3) They can say that God “has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom” (government) of King Jesus.” (Colossians 1:13) Their “citizenship is in Heaven.” (Philippians 3:20) Regardless of what their passport says, Christians are called to stay focused on and obedient to the kingdom of God (God’s invisible inner government).

When the government of God is allowed to actively operate in and through people’s lives, it’s often called a revival or a great awakening. In reality it is people surrendering their daily lives to the Kingship and direct inner governance of the risen Jesus. Jesus calls it “the kingdom of God.” When God’s government is allowed to fully rule in human hearts, it will work its way like yeast through all their thoughts, desires, feelings, and behaviors, transforming them into contagious carriers of Christ’s presence, salt, and light. (Matthew 5:13-16)

Christians who are scared when God the Holy Spirit begins to take control of a meeting and disrupt the religious program will probably be very uncomfortable in Heaven where God is in full control! Now is the time to get used to be led by the Spirit (Romans 8:14) and to learn to overflow with the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 4:22-23) and the gifts of the Spirit. (1 Corinthians 14:1)

“He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all—how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:32)

Gifts of the Spirit

Let Christ in you
Begin to do
What He wants to
To make you new
And to lead you
By His Spirit.

Look beyond your routine
And behold the unseen.
Begin to daily lean
And rely on Jesus.
Let Him make your heart clean
And your spirit pristine.

The World’s Toughest Do-It-Yourself Project

Throughout each day I’m actively working on a lifetime do-it-yourself (DIY) project. It’s my ambition to give up my ambitions and to lay down my pride. My spirit (the inner me) wants freedom from ambition and pride, but my human desires, instincts, and nature all want to achieve great success and self-exaltation. (Galatians 5:17)

Every day, I seek the to be inwardly governed by the kingdom of God and His righteousness, (Matthew 6:33) not by my thoughts, feelings, and wants. Jesus put it this way: “Whoever wants to be My disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow Me.” (Luke:923) Now that’s quite the project. John the Baptist described it this way: “Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for Him.” (Luke 3:4) To make room for the Lord, we must humble ourselves. (James 4:10)

One of the most difficult ways to deny yourself is in the area of forgiveness. Jesus said: “If you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (Matthew 6:14-15) Now that’s a serious project. How can you forgive?

First realize that forgiveness has nothing to do with your feelings. When you have been deeply hurt you won’t be having sweet feelings about the person who hurt you and you can’t directly change those feelings. However, you can still obey Jesus and forgive.

Forgiveness is giving up your right to hold someone’s wrongs against them. It is blessing those who curse you and praying for those who despitefully use you. (Luke 6:28) You can do that even when you have bad feelings toward someone. Do it now. Think of someone you have bad feelings toward. Now ask God to do good things for them. (You may not feel it, but you can still ask God to do good to them.) Every time that person comes to your mind, pray God’s blessings for him or her. Keep doing that and eventually you will notice that your anger and hatred will gradually diminish. Do it. This DIY project works. It has kept bitterness out of my heart and it will work for you.

Forgiveness Matters

Jesus wants your entire heart
And daily obedience.
Jesus tells us to forgive.
If you sing a holy song,
But still have not forgiven
Everyone who’s done you wrong,
You might trust in religion
But you’re disobeying Christ.

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It’s Not Fine to Use the Word “Mine”

Daily writing promptIf you could permanently ban a word from general usage, which one would it be? Why?View all responses

No person, place, or thing is really mine. It’s meaningless for a slave to say, “This is mine.” Everything a slave has belongs to the one who owns him. We humans are slaves to time. In reality, we own nothing. Soon we will be gone away and the stuff that we talk about by saying, “This is mine,” will still be here. We will take no things with us.

So why wait for time to claim everything we think that we own? Why not admit the truth that all we have is only temporarily loaned to us? A young man, J.W. Van DeVenter, was struggling with that issue during the 1890s. After 5 years, he finally surrendered all to Jesus Christ and in 1896 he wrote the famous hymn, “I Surrender All.” Here are some of the lyrics:

All to Jesus, I surrender
All to Him, I freely give
I will ever love and trust Him
In His presence daily live.

All to Jesus, I surrender
Humbly at His feet, I bow
Worldly pleasures all forsaken
Take me, Jesus, take me now.

I surrender all.
I surrender all.
All to Thee, my blessed Saviour
I surrender all.

Embrace God’s Will and God’s Ways

Spirit-led ways
Will release
God’s inner waves
Of living water
And empower you
To surrender all!

The Spirit’s willing
But the flesh is weak.
Don’t let temptation
Compel you to seek
The things that you want
Instead of God’s will.
Be humble and meek.
Diligently seek
To follow Jesus.
Whatever you do
Listen to Him speak
Directly to you.

Be someone who prays
In Spirit-led ways.
Rejoice in the Lord
And give Him the praise.
Obey Him always.
Look beyond earth’s haze
And let your heart gaze
On Christ all your days.
Bask in the bright rays
Of His inner light.
Let Spirit-led ways
Release God’s great waves
Of living water
Within and through you.

Jesus didn’t die and rise from the dead so you can put your faith in and rely on a religious organization. Surrender all. Trust and rely on Him alone!

True success isn’t about accumulating things. It’s about inner peace, contentment, gratitude, mental health, and lasting happiness. The risen Jesus empowers people for that kind of success. Surrender and see!

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The Challenge of Escaping Self-Focus

Daily writing promptWhat is the biggest challenge you will face in the next six months?View all responses

My biggest challenge has always been escaping from self-focus. My thoughts, feelings, and desires continually clamor for my attention. However, one day the person who was the focus of the most shocking week in human history shocked me by stepping in to grab my focus. Although myself still clamors for my attention, the presence and glory of the God-man keeps drawing my attention and awareness to Him.

The God-man (John 1:1 & 14) was cheered like a king as He rode into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey. A few days later He was crucified because the religious leaders didn’t like the things He said and did. Then to end the week and begin a new one, He rose from the dead to live forevermore.

Before He was taken to be condemned to death and crucified, Jesus prayed this shocking prayer: “Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify Your name!”

About 1,920 years later, the God-man shocked me by riding into my heart and capturing me with the dazzling beauty of His presence and love. Ever since then He has been leading me and empowering me to take up my cross, to deny my own thoughts, feelings, and desires, and to follow and obey Him instead. I am continually in awe at the glorious journey Jesus has me on as I seek to surrender my all to Him as my Lord, King, and Master, day by day.

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I’d Tell Teenage Me How to Effectively Learn a Language

Daily writing promptWhat advice would you give to your teenage self?View all responses

The most effective way to learn a language is by immersion into the language, not by forcing yourself to study it, memorize vocabulary, and obey grammar rules. That’s how we learned our mother tongue. We first caught it by hearing it over and over. Then a few years later we were taught in school what we had already caught.

There’s a grammar that my teenage self needed to know. It’s God’s grammar. That grammar is better absorbed when it’s heart-caught by lots of exposure than when it’s head-taught by tedious, analytical lecture. Immerse your heart in Scripture in an open, humble, and tender way. Read the Bible every single day as a love letter written personally to you. Absorb it with your heart, don’t analyze it with your mind.

When Jesus is allowed to indwell and to take full control of a human heart He inspires, and He empowers. He implants and grows an abundance of the fruit and character of His Spirit. (Galatians 5:22-23) Surrender your all to Him and begin to listen to and obey Him in all you think, say, and do.

Hang around people who are filled with exuberance for Jesus–who talk about and celebrate Him day and night — who radiate His love, humility, holiness, and presence. Ask God to lead you to those kinds of people (because they can be difficult to find). Immerse yourself in their presence, no matter where or whether they go to church. Make them your very best friends. Gradually you will catch their exuberant love for Christ.

The language of Spirit-produced exuberance is beyond words. God often produces such exuberance in me that I “ooh” and “aah” with glee and amazement in His presence. (Romans 8:26)

The exuberant “joy unspeakable and fully of glory” (1 Peter 1:8) that the Bible talks about is supernaturally produced by Christ in you. (Colossians 1:27) It’s not memorized by your mind. It’s soaked up by your heart. When you begin to sense God’s exuberant presence, go with Him — don’t hold back. (1 Thessalonians 5:19)

Spirit-produced exuberance made visible through people’s unrestrained surrender and obedience to Christ’s inner promptings powerfully demonstrates His reality. (Acts 1:8) Exuberance for Jesus will fill your life with joy and delight. Let the Holy Spirit make you aware of His amazing wonders and release Christ’s exuberance in and through you. (Psalm 47:1)

Most Christians have experienced an exuberant moment, but Jesus wants to empower His followers to live a joyfully exuberant lifestyle even in difficult times. (Matthew 5:12) He wants to make your life a holy, pure, enduring, and exuberant expression of His Spirit living in and through you.

Jesus keeps me exuberant. My heart overflows with His unrestrained joy. (John 7:38). I spontaneously wave my arms, (1 Timothy 2:8) dance around, (2 Samuel 6:21) and make joyful sounds. (Psalm 100:1) His grammar freely flows from within me.

(Back to language learning: I took 2 years of French in high school and learned nothing (although I tried) but a very few random words. Two years ago, at 71, I began to listen to Spanish videos for an hour or two every day and to read the New Testament in Spanish each day. After two years I can have nice spontaneous conversations with Spanish speakers.)

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Things That Don’t Have Heart-Healing Impact Bore Me

Daily writing promptWhat bores you?View all responses

I want to feel good and to overflow with inner peace, love, and joy. However, daily life often hurts. It tries to break my heart and to make it as hard as stone. My self-focused life seeks to steal and destroy my peace and happiness by filling me with such things as anxiety, worry, guilt, and fear.

I want much more than to merely be temporarily distracted from the pain in my life only to have it come roaring back again and again. I want to be completely healed and delivered from it. Therefore, I don’t have time for things that don’t impact my heart with hope and healing. Those empty and temporary distractions bore me. However, the things that heal my hurting heart excite and restore me. I love to go beyond boredom to heart healing.

To experience heart-healing impact:
* Listen to and obey your conscience. It’s there to heal and protect you, not to condemn you.
* Embrace humility. Let it set you free from the heart-chains of pride, comparison, and self-focus.
* Whenever you mistreat anyone, apologize to them. Then ask for their forgiveness. If they say they forgive you, receive it. If they won’t, at least you did your part.
* Forgive everyone who has ever done you wrong. Pray for God to bless them. Refuse to accuse them anymore in your mind. Forgive and you will be forgiven with amazing heart-healing impact.
* Talk to Jesus and let Him talk to you. Let Him lead you by His Spirit and direct you day and night.
* Read the Book that Jesus inspired. Read it like a love letter, not like a textbook. Let it burn in your heart until you begin to consistently do what it says instead of obeying your own thoughts, feelings, and desires.
* Gather with other Christ-followers in a Spirit-led support group to open your heart to each other and obey the 50+ Bible one another commands.

Everybody is wanting something that or someone who can make a heart-healing impact on their life. That impact is available to all. Sell out to the risen Jesus. He can direct, manage, and lead your life better than you or anybody else or any government or organization can. Let Him!

Refuse to be distracted by things that only offer temporary relief. As ambassadors for Christ, Christians are called to focus on, obey, proclaim, and demonstrate God’s inner invisible government. True relief is spelled: J-E-S-U-S.

Let the “New Wine” Flow Freely

Daily writing promptWhat is your favorite drink?View all responses

Religious traditions can easily become old wineskins that refuse to bend and be moved by the Holy Spirit who wants flexible new wineskins that will allow people to be led by His “new wine.” (Matthew 9:17) People gathered to be religious spectators aren’t a community. They’re just isolated individuals sitting in the same location.

Be a branch connected to Christ the vine. (John 15:5) Stay ever close and always surrendered to His presence (John 15:5-7-8) and His will. Let Him prune you (John 15:1-2) and remove everything that hinders His will. Then you will begin to overflow with His new wine and bear the fruit of His Spirit. (Galatians 5:22-23)

“Father, glorify Your name.” –Jesus

Lay down your life. Die to your own desires, feelings, thoughts, and opinions so that you can follow and obey the risen King Jesus instead of what you want Let Christ’s Spirit (His presence in you which is the hope of glory) lead and direct you day and night so the Father can glorify His name and demonstrate His eternal kingdom in and through all you say and do. Then He can use you for “even greater things”

If you won’t allow God’s Spirit to work inside of you to confront, challenge, and change you, you’ll stay stuck the way you are. Sincerely and humbly pray this prayer throughout each day.

Father “”Yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory.” No other kingdom, power, or glory is sufficient. Forgive me, Lord, for wanting my kingdom, my power, and my glory.

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Agape Lovers Are My Favorite People

Daily writing promptWho are your favorite people to be around?View all responses

Agape lovers: “Come forth!” and love with Christ’s great supernatural love. “The great secret behind the great power of prayer is the power of great love.” –Jd Walt

Agape love comes from God. Everyone who agapes — loves with God’s supernatural love that flows from within them as rivers of living water (John 7:38) — has been born of God and knows God. (1 John 4:7)

Let God overflow you with His agape love. If you have ears, hear what the Spirit is saying (Revelation 3:22) to Christ’s sheep. (John 10:27) Open your heart (Revelation 3:20) to recognize and obey His inner voice. Let the Spirit lead you (Romans 8:14) closer and closer to the risen Jesus and bring you into an ever growing, fully heart-surrendered relationship with Him. (Matthew 11:28-30)

Perhaps we are asleep to the greater works of God because we aren’t receiving the direct revelation from Him that deeply moves us, troubles our spirit, (John 11:33) floods our heart with His supernatural love, and gives us the keys of the kingdom. (Matthew 16:13-19) Seeing the glory of God begins within you. (John 11:40 & Colossians 1:27) Have and show agape love for one another deeply and fervently from the heart. (1 Peter 1 22) Begin to passionately obey the 50+ one another commands in the New Testament.

The government that Christians are supposed to make and keep as their first priority is the inner government of God and His supernatural agape love in their heart. (Matthew 6:33) The way to the kingdom of God isn’t a map, a blueprint, or a religious program. Jesus, Himself, is the way! (John 14:6) If Jesus isn’t your King, you’re missing out on the kingdom of God.

I believe that the first Christians gathered to worship God and to minister to one another as prompted by King Jesus, not to sit through a programmed church service. (1 Corinthians 14:26.) The important question for a Christian isn’t “Where do you go to church?” It’s “In what ways are you being discipled (trained to daily hear, follow, and obey the risen Jesus with agape love)?” (Mt. 28:19)

God’s greater things come from agape. got AGAPE?

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The Shoes I Am Unworthy Of

Daily writing promptTell us about your favorite pair of shoes, and where they’ve taken you.View all responses

Shoes that I am unworthy of lead me to true prosperity. Those are the shoes of the world’s greatest foot washer who humbled himself and removed his disciples’ sandals to do the servant’s job of washing their feet. My favorite pair of shoes is to walk in this man’s sandals–the God-man, Jesus Christ.

True prosperity is a life fully surrendered moment-by-moment to the risen Jesus. It is an, ever growing, heart-to-heart relationship with Him as your King, Master, and Lord.

Would you like to truly prosper? Prosper in the Spirit who gives life. (Romans 8:2) Prosper in the fruit of the Spirit. (Galatians 5:22-23) Prosper in the gifts of the Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:1-11) Prosper in the presence of the Spirit. (Romans 8:9) Prosper in being fully surrendered and obedient to the kingdom of God within you. (Colossians 1:27)

Prosperity is Christ’s way of living and thinking. It is His presence ever leading and directing you from within. (Galatians 2:20) Prosperity isn’t about having money and things. It’s about Christ having all your love and obedience. The way to spiritually prosper is to always stay focused on hearing and obeying the living Jesus who is “the way, the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6)

True prosperity is to abound in the wonderful things that no amount of money can buy: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” Exterior prosperity, no matter how far the money reaches, is fragile, shallow, and thin, but interior, Spirit-produced prosperity is deep, unshakable bedrock.

The only prosperity that will last forever is prospering in ever-growing love for, surrender to, and obedience to Jesus. (2 Corinthians 3:18) That is spiritual prosperity and it grows in a humble heart that is lovingly and continually surrendered and obedient to the risen Jesus. (James 4:6)

Genuine wealth is a deep ongoing burning desire to daily follow and obey the living Jesus. (Matthew 5:6) That’s the “pearl of great price.” (Matthew 13:45-46) The more you allow your heart to be attracted and drawn closer to Jesus, the more you’ll experience the great wealth of His presence. (Matthew 11:28-29)

The first step in spiritual prosperity is to seek first the kingdom of God. (Matthew 6:33) The prosperity of the kingdom of God isn’t theological, analytical, financial, or political. It’s practical. It’s the actual direct government of God’s Spirit inside of human hearts that are fully surrendered to consistently obey Him instead of their own thoughts, feelings, desires, or opinions.

Your best life is to be continually led by the Holy Spirit. Live it now. (Joel 2:28-29)

To be truly wealthy
Is to have a healthy
And rich relationship
With the risen Jesus
And heart-to-heart friendship
With His faithful followers.

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