Steve Simms's Blog, page 30

The Beauty of Nature Amazes Me

Daily writing promptDo you ever see wild animals?View all responses

The beauty of nature (both plants and animals) amazes me! However, there is another beauty that amazes me even more. That’s the beauty of seeing the reality of Jesus Christ living in and flowing through everyday people.

When people are filled with awe and wonder in the presence of the living Jesus Christ, they can’t stop exuberantly talking about Him and how He wows them. That is contagious Christianity and it’s a super-spreader!

I believe (and the book of Acts seems to indicate) that overwhelming awe that causes people to daily live undone and surrendered to the presence of the risen Jesus is the missing ingredient in contemporary Christianity. That lack of awe often keeps Christ-followers from openly and enthusiastically proclaiming and demonstrating the presence, power, and love of Jesus.

When the risen Jesus
Is the one true Header
Christianity is
A super-spreader
And a doubt shredder
That wakes people up
To the presence of Christ.

When Christianity
Shifted from mystical
(From being Spirit-led
With Jesus as the Head)
To analytical
And statistical,
It became logistical
And egotistical.

Set your pride
To the side
So that Christ
Can reside
Within you
And be your
Inner Guide.

For joy unspeakable:
Let God be your inner Guide.
Live in rhythm with Jesus.
Stay in step with the Spirit.

A dead God needs a religious organization to speak for him, but the risen Jesus can speak for Himself. “My sheep hear My voice.”

The Place a Special Book Takes Me

Daily writing promptDo you have a favorite place you have visited? Where is it?View all responses

There is a book that is very special to me. When I read it, it inspires me and transports me to my favorite place. Reading it with my heart wide open fills my consciousness with the awareness of God and places me in the presence of the living Jesus Christ.

The Bible can overpower your doubt and release God’s wonder and awe within you. “Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.”

Sometimes, when I feel prompted to tell a group of people about the importance of the Bible, I’ll have it hidden close to me. Then I begin to talk and suddenly I start to shake, squirm, and stammer as I excitedly say, “It’s alive! It’s alive! My God, it’s alive!”

Then I quickly pull out the Bible, hold it up for all to see, and say: “It’s the Word of God and it’s alive!” People are a bit stunned, so I say, “The living words in this book can burn in your heart and make you aware of the presence of God.”

Jesus told His disciples that the Holy Spirit “will remind you of everything I have said to you.” I’ve discovered that the Holy Spirit often reminds me of a Bible verse. There is a big difference between me trying to remember a Scripture (like trying to remember someone’s name) and God bringing a Bible verse to my mind.

When the Holy Spirit reminds me of a Scripture, I hear the miraculous. It goes beyond my human understanding and speaks directly and profoundly to my heart. That isn’t supposed to be something rare. It should be a common experience for a Christ-follower.

So how can you experience the Holy Spirit bringing a Bible verse to your remembrance? Well, first you have to have read or heard something from the Bible. (You can’t remember something you’ve never read, heard, or experienced.) The more you read the Bible the more of it the Holy Spirit can remind you about.

Next, ask God to remind you of a Bible verse. (“You have not because you ask not.” So, ask.) Then don’t try to use your mind to come up with a Scripture. Instead, simply quiet your mind and wait for one to appear. When a Scripture comes to you, refuse to analyze it with your brain. Rather let it touch your heart. Then you will notice that when an unanalyzed Bible verse is allowed to go deep into your heart it will have an amazing impact on you. Try it and see for yourself!

Asking the Holy Spirit to prompt you with Scriptures will revolutionize your life. Doubting the Spirit’s ability to do that (and only reading the Bible with your own understanding or with the analysis of a Bible commentary) will confuse you. Because we modern day Christians have been trained to merely read and analyze the Bible with our mind (or listen to a preacher’s analysis of it) and not to open up and surrender our heart to it, we tend to be “silent and not able to speak” from our heart about what Jesus has done and is doing within us and through us.

A closed heart closes the door on the power of Scripture and the Spirit’s ability to bring it to our remembrance. Then we can’t see the wonder that is staring at us when we read or hear the Bible speaking deep within us.

Perhaps it’s time to let God prophesy over you directly from His Word. Don’t dissect the Bible verses that come to your mind. Savor them! Obey them!

The Bible can overpower your doubt and release God’s wonder and awe within you. “Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.”

Sometimes, when I feel prompted to tell a group of people about the importance of the Bible, I’ll have it hidden close to me. Then I begin to talk and suddenly I start to shake, squirm, and stammer as I excitedly say, “It’s alive! It’s alive! My God, it’s alive!”

Then I quickly pull out the Bible, hold it up for all to see, and say: “It’s the Word of God and it’s alive!” People are a bit stunned, so I say, “The living words in this book can burn in your heart and make you aware of the presence of God.”

Jesus told His disciples that the Holy Spirit “will remind you of everything I have said to you.” I’ve discovered that the Holy Spirit often reminds me of a Bible verse. There is a big difference between me trying to remember a Scripture (like trying to remember someone’s name) and God bringing a Bible verse to my mind.

When the Holy Spirit reminds me of a Scripture, I hear the miraculous. It goes beyond my human understanding and speaks directly and profoundly to my heart. That isn’t supposed to be something rare. It should be a common experience for a Christ-follower.

So how can you experience the Holy Spirit bringing a Bible verse to your remembrance? Well, first you have to have read or heard something from the Bible. (You can’t remember something you’ve never read, heard, or experienced.) The more you read the Bible the more of it the Holy Spirit can remind you about.

Next, ask God to remind you of a Bible verse. (“You have not because you ask not.” So, ask.) Then don’t try to use your mind to come up with a Scripture. Instead, simply quiet your mind and wait for one to appear. When a Scripture comes to you, refuse to analyze it with your brain. Rather let it touch your heart. Then you will notice that when an unanalyzed Bible verse is allowed to go deep into your heart it will have an amazing impact on you. Try it and see for yourself!

Asking the Holy Spirit to prompt you with Scriptures will revolutionize your life. Doubting the Spirit’s ability to do that (and only reading the Bible with your own understanding or with the analysis of a Bible commentary) will confuse you. Because we modern day Christians have been trained to merely read and analyze the Bible with our mind (or listen to a preacher’s analysis of it) and not to open up and surrender our heart to it, we tend to be “silent and not able to speak” from our heart about what Jesus has done and is doing within us and through us.

A closed heart closes the door on the power of Scripture and the Spirit’s ability to bring it to our remembrance. Then we can’t see the wonder that is staring at us when we read or hear the Bible speaking deep within us.

Perhaps it’s time to let God prophesy over you directly from His Word. Don’t dissect the Bible verses that come to your mind. Savor them! Obey them!

(I don’t believe that God intended for Christianity to become a non-prophet organization. He wants it to be the Spirit-led body of Christ where “you can all prophesy in turn so that everyone may be instructed and encouraged.” See 1 Corinthians 14:31. True worship isn’t a “service,” a sermon, or a Bible study. It’s a human heart overflowing with honest sincere adoration of God. “A time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.” See John 4:23.)

[image error]Pexels.com" data-medium-file="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." data-large-file="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." src="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." alt="" class="wp-image-41836" />Photo by Rafael Cosquiere on Pexels.com

Fact: Throughout history multitudes of people have been w...

Fact: Throughout history multitudes of people have been willing to kill and be killed in the name of their country, but very few have been willing to love their enemies in the name of Jesus. Perhaps we should listen to Christ and begin to honor, recruit, train, and send huge armies of nonviolent peacemakers to love their enemies in the world’s troubled places.

[image error]Pexels.com" data-medium-file="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." data-large-file="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." src="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." alt="" class="wp-image-41825" />Photo by Nothing Ahead on Pexels.com

Fact: Throughout history multitudes of people have been willing to kill and be killed in the name of their country, but very few have been willing to love their enemies in the name of Jesus. Perhaps we should listen to Christ and begin to honor, recruit, t

[image error]Pexels.com" data-medium-file="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." data-large-file="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." src="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." alt="" class="wp-image-41825" />Photo by Nothing Ahead on Pexels.com

Find Your Marvels

Daily writing promptShare five things you’re good at.View all responses

I’m good at:

Getting out of the box.Leaving my comfort zone.Being unscripted.Speaking spontaneously from my heart. Finding marvels.

Because Jesus is alive, present, and living within His Spirit-led followers they are free to live outside the box of ordinary days and routine religion. Every day will overflow with extraordinary revelation, God-sightings, and God-winks if they will keep their heart fully open, surrendered, and obedient to the risen Christ.

Small children see life as full of marvels, but far too many adults have lost their marvels. Kind, unscripted words that flow from the heart of an innocent child are inspiring. When the children of God (who have been truly made clean and righteous by the blood of Jesus) gather for worship, the meeting will overflow with joy if people will courageously and spontaneously share with one another the beautiful, Spirit-prompted words that God puts on their heart.

The best texts aren’t on your phone, they’re in the Bible. The more we allow biblical words and the voice of “Christ in you,” to ignite His glory within us and cause our heart to continuously marvel, the more we will reap the spiritual awakening that we have been praying and sowing for. While you wait, daily marvel with your heart and keep it ever abounding with awe.

Scripted Christianity
Without the Holy Spirit’s
Living spontaneity
Is just empty liturgy.

[image error]Pexels.com" data-medium-file="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." data-large-file="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." src="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." alt="" class="wp-image-41817" />Photo by Bruno Scramgnon on Pexels.com

I’m Fighting to be More Child-Like

Daily writing promptWhat is one thing you would change about yourself?View all responses

Small children often abandon self-focus and the expectations of other people to allow themselves to become freely captivated by the mystery and wonder of being alive. They radiate humble innocence, healthy curiosity, enthusiastic creativity, joyful spontaneity, and non-competitive playfulness. That’s the beauty of a child-like spirit.

However, if adults continually manifest those characteristics, they are considered to be naive and childish. It’s taxing to maintain robust child-like innocence in tough and tumble judgmental world. It’s arduous to “receive the kingdom of God like a child” (to surrender to God’s inner government and be led by the Spirit).

As children grow toward adulthood, life fights to steal their innocence and entrap them in self-focus and pride, in guilt, and shame. Jesus put it this way: “Whoever wants to be My disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow Me.” To be childlike requires a life-long fight.

The most important fight you can fight is the fight of faith. Fight to fully believe in and unceasingly rely on God like a tiny child relies on his parents. Faithfully fight to bring your every thought, feeling, and desire into obedience to Christ. Fight to be spontaneously led by the Spirit. Fight for God’s supernatural might and spiritual insight to persistently think, say, and do what’s right. Fight to always be honest and to boldly live in God’s light. Fight to ever soar to new heights in your relationship with God. Fight to hunger and thirst for righteousness and to always delight in the Lord! Let your first priority ever be to seek first the kingdom of God and to allow His Spirit to directly rule and govern you from within so that the risen Jesus can always be your Lord.

And don’t fight alone, keeping your heart isolated from other Christians (even when you are sitting beside them in a church service). I believe that the body of Christ met differently in the first century than Christians meet today. Today church is about passively hearing a sermon that was developed through systematic study and analysis, but I believe that the first Christians met support-group-style with lots of passionate Spirit-prompted sharing and singing that overflowed with the fruit and the gifts of the Spirit and with the openness and innocence of little children.

[image error]Pexels.com" data-medium-file="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." data-large-file="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." src="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." alt="" class="wp-image-41805" />Photo by Ketut Subiyanto on Pexels.com

“The Bright and Morning Star”

Daily writing promptAre you more of a night or morning person?View all responses

Ponder This!

Emmanuel
Has come to be
An inner well.
O taste and see,
Ponder and enjoy
Jesus gems,
Christ in you!
Jesus puts
His gems
In your heart.
Don’t miss them.
Jesus calls
Inside you.
Hear Him.
Jesus comforts.
Jesus guides.
Jesus nudges.
Jesus teaches.
Jesus prompts.
Jesus abides.
Hear Him speak
Within you.

Your mind and your heart receive direct communication from God that often gets overlooked in the flood of all your mental and emotional activity. Begin to notice the poetry of His inner gems. Jesus is called “the Bright and Morning Star.” Let Him freely shine in your heart and mind.

The biggest problem in hearing from God is the false belief that He isn’t talking to you. If God can hear you when you pray, then surely, He can speak to you when you pray. Listen! Regularly hearing God speak directly to you is a skill you can learn if you are willing to work at it. To ask God to listen to you when you are unwilling to listen to Him seems unfair.

Direct communication with God is the bridge that leads from draining discouragement to high hope. A personal relationship with Jesus begins with humble listening to and responding to His inner voice and grows by sincere obedience to the Holy Spirit. Hearing and obeying God is essential for spiritual growth.

The world’s biggest communication problem is the human unwillingness to directly hear heart-to-heart from God. We can’t ponder, treasure, and obey communication that comes straight from God to our heart, if we won’t notice it and recognize it. If being attentive to God’s direct communication to you isn’t your top priority, you probably won’t even notice it.

Direct communication from God is ongoing to those who “quench not the Spirit.” One way to receive direct communication from God is to ask Him to give you the language of Spirit and then begin to speak as the Spirit gives utterance and/or write as the Holy Spirit prompts and directs you.

Humbly receiving and obeying heart-to-heart communication directly from God is the key to 1) the fruit of the Spirit, 2) discipleship, and 3) the gifts of the Spirit. It takes Christianity beyond religion and demonstrates it as daily reality.

Be a believer,
But also be
A receiver
And perceiver
Of what Jesus
Is saying
And doing
Within you.
Let Him be
The weaver
Who holds you
Together,
The lever
Who lifts you up
To soar with
Eagle wings.

Milk or Meat?

Daily writing promptWhat are your feelings about eating meat?View all responses

“Though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!” (Hebrews 5:12.) “I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready.” (1 Corinthians 3:2.)

Too many Christians are not ready for and hungry for spiritual meat. It’s easy to stay stuck on and comfortable with milk that is produced for babies. It takes courage to begin to consume, digest, and implement the meat that the Holy Spirit wants to serve us.

The Holy Spirit prompts. Like the wind God’s Spirit prompts where He pleases. Everyone born of the Spirit can hear the inner sound of “Christ in you” blowing in their heart — nudging them, guiding them, directing them. We’re all called to be led by the Spirit and to follow by faith even though we don’t know where obeying God’s Spirit is going to take us.

Jesus loves me this I know because He lives in, empowers, and leads me by His Spirit throughout each day. Will you listen to and obey the thoughts and heart-nudges that God puts in you?

Spirit-prompted assembly creates an astonishing worship gathering. “When you come together, each of you has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation . . .” See 1 Corinthians 14:26.

Christians will learn to be more freely led by the Spirit:
* When the pastor begins to follow John the Baptist’s example, “He (Jesus) must increase. but I must decrease.”
* When the pastor steps to the side and lets Jesus directly guide the meeting.
* When the people are freed up and encouraged to be aware of and to obey the Holy Spirit’s inner promptings.

One way God leads people into the meat of His spiritual pomptings is through the language of the Spirit. The language of God’s Spirit isn’t learned with the mind. It’s a gift from God that supernaturally flows from the heart like rivers of living water. I pray in the Spirit’s miraculous language numerous times throughout each day, and it always stirs my heart with a wonderful awareness of God’s presence. I believe that the Spirit’s language is a gift of spiritual meat that is available to anyone who will humbly receive it and consistently use it.

* When I don’t know what to pray with my mind, I pray with the language of God’s Spirit (sometimes silently and sometimes out loud).

* When I’m struggling with my emotions, I pray with the language of the Spirit.

* When I’m confused and don’t know what to do, I pray with the language of the Spirit.

* When I’m tempted to think, say, or do wrong, I pray with the Spirit’s language.

* When I want to sense God’s presence, I pray with the language of His Spirit.

* When I can’t sleep at night, I pray with the language of God’s Spirit.

* When I’m worshipping God, I pray with the language of the Spirit.

* When I’m driving in my car, I pray with the Spirit’s language.

* I’m praying with the language of the Spirit as I write this.

* When I pray with the Spirit’s language my mind doesn’t understand, but my heart overflows.

* Anytime at all, I pray with the language of God’s Spirit.

* That’s one reason I stay so excited about the risen Jesus!

Physically I am a vegetarian (by preference, not by legalism). However, I devour all the spiritual meat that God grills in my heart!

[image error]Pexels.com" data-medium-file="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." data-large-file="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." src="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." alt="" class="wp-image-41778" />Photo by Min An on Pexels.com

Church Can Be More–Wearing the Presence of Christ and the Armor of God

“Cloth yourself with the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 13:14.) “Put on the full armor of God.” (Ephesians 6:11.) Church can be more that it normally is.

Because of Christ’s blood
Church can truly be
“The tent of meeting”
Heart-to-heart with God,
A love assembly
To display Jesus’
Presence among us
And living in us.

Church can be more.
O come let us
Actively adore
From our heart’s core
The glorious One,
Our Creator.

Church can be more
Than a program
It can be a door
To encounter
The great I AM!

Take the chance
To dance, dance, dance
Heart to heart
With God.
Be Spirit-led
With Christ as your Head.
Rejoice in the Lord
Always.

Church can be more
Than requirement.
It can be members
Of Christ’s body
Expressing hope
And encouragement
Directly to
One another.

Church can be more than
Routine religion.
People can gather
To open their heart
To God-given vision.

Church can be more than
A Sunday meeting.
It can be people
Eagerly seeking
To surrender all
To the risen Christ.

Church can be more than
Ceremony, songs,
And religious words
That fly like birds
Into one ear
And out the other.
It can train people
To actually hear
And fully obey
The voice of God.

Church can be more than
Sitting through a talk
About religion.
It can train people
To daily walk
And be led by
God’s Spirit.

Church can be more
Than the same person
Taking the floor.
All the members
Of a congregation
Can testify in turn
Without hesitation
As God’s Spirit
Leads them to
Show and tell
What they have
Seen and heard
Jesus say and do.

God wants to do
More in churches
Than He’s allowed to.
Lord, give us a clue
About what You
Truly want to do
When we gather
In Your name.

Churches can be more
Than holy buildings.
They can be places
To train God’s people
To always adore
The risen Jesus
And bravely obey
His inner promptings.

Churches can be more
Than sermon centers.
They can be meetings
Where Jesus enters
And takes full control.

Church services tend
To be pastor-led,
But God wants people
To be Spirit-led.
(See Romans 14:18.)

Yes, church can be more!
Isn’t it now the time
To stop being a mime
And start to verbally
Pour out true heart-felt love
And pure adoration
To Jesus Christ the Lord?
It is necessary
For believers to use words.
Let the Holy Spirit
Train you how to speak
With humble narration
And Christ-led oration.
(The Spirit can train us
To all speak like JD.)

[image error]Pexels.com" data-medium-file="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." data-large-file="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." src="https://hopethoughts.com/wp-content/u..." alt="" class="wp-image-41763" />Photo by Efrem Efre on Pexels.com

I’d Be Better Off Without the Technology of Religion

Week after week, year after year, routine religion repeats and circles through the same rigid, technology-like cycles. Jesus, however, wants to lead His people past their prepackaged programs and into the refreshing newness of glory after glory.

Routine religion seldom produces radiant faces. It prefers to mask them with a veil. When religion repeatedly follows a regular pattern, it tends to quench the freedom to be led by the Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit’s control is curtailed and crowded out human control takes charge. Where faith is stagnant Christ’s inner rivers of living water are no longer flowing.

To let the living Jesus change your life you have to begin to let go of some of your cozy and comfortable criteria. The secret to spiritual lukewarmness is to stay rigidly stuck in systematic religion. Routine religion can easily become spiritual paralysis. Jesus told the Pharisees: “You nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down.”

Biblical Christianity is about living your daily life on God’s schedule, not your own. Look beyond religious routine. Throughout each day behold the unseen presence of Jesus.

A relationship with the risen Jesus is far from the same ole same ole. It’s rigorous yet refreshingly renewing. I relish my relationship with Him.

When there’s a crack in your routine, God’s light can come in. When God slips us out of our religious patterns, too many people jump right back in. Christians have been trained to rely on church routine rather than on a relationship with Christ.

When the risen Jesus is humbly experienced without the veil and trappings of religion, He awakens the awareness of His glorious presence. When people won’t interact with the risen Jesus beyond the veil of religion, they tend to overlook His reality. The stone was rolled away! Look unto the living Jesus.

Jesus is best encountered beyond the complacent comfort of ritual. You have the ability to break out of your religious patterns and to relate to Christ in a fresh beautiful way today. Religious routine repeats over and over but spiritual progress presses “toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” (See Philippians 3:14.)

All it takes for a church to experience revival is to break out of the veil of routine and to step into the spontaneity of God’s Spirit. The greater the spiritual awakening, the less people and churches are reliant on religious procedures.

Some people think
Being led by
The Spirit of
The Lord Jesus
Is frightening,
But I find it
Wonderfully
Empowering,
CHRIST IN YOU the
Hope of glory.

If you pray
And listen
To the thoughts
God deposits
In your mind,
He’ll disrupt
You today
And show you
A better way.

There’s nothing routine
About the unseen
Spirit of God.

Christianity
That becomes routine
Ignores the unseen
Reality of
The risen Jesus.

If your faith
Doesn’t move
You deeply
From your gut
You may be stuck
In a religious rut.

Let yourself frequently burst into praise and thanksgiving. (Today is Thanksgiving Day in the USA so go for it today!)