Forgive and Forget

Capture that forgiveness is not only an act performed by the MIND…but also by the HEART.

Understand that when you forgive from the mind, you make a deliberate decision to give up resentment and your claim to requital for the wrong deeds done against you, EVEN IF YOU DO NOT FEEL LIKE IT.  This is good; however, Jesus requires MORE!  Jesus requires you to also forgive FROM YOUR HEART.

FORGIVE YOUR BROTHER FROM YOUR HEART
(Matthew 18:35).

Blessed One, know that if you forgive from your mind, you will only be able to give up your resentment partially, because the rest of it will still be lodged in your heart.  However, if you also involve your heart during the process of forgiveness, you have the opportunity to experience a miracle.  If you invite Me, Jesus, into your heart to deal with the heartache caused by wrongful deeds committed against you, I will heal your heart.  In turn, not only will you be able to let go of your resentment, but the resentment will let go of you, too. Because the pain in your heart will be gone, you will be able to FORGET the wrongs committed against you.

IT IS FOR FREEDOM THAT CHRIST HAS SET US FREE
(Galatians 5:1).

Know that forgiveness from your heart requires your heart to be involved…to be engaged…to participate.  To forgive from your heart I need you to FEEL the effects of the wrongful deeds committed against you—the rejection, the abandonment, the shame, and the condemnation. Then, submit your heart to Me, just the way it is, so I may set it free from the PAIN.

Only then you will be able to FORGIVE and FORGET.

Is there someone is your life whom you have forgiven from your MIND, but not from your HEART, yet?

I urge you to speak to God about this person and the pain she or he has caused in your heart. Submit each piece of heartache to God, along with the underlying feelings of abandonment, condemnation, rejection, and shame. Let the Lord Jesus mend your heart completely, even if it takes a long time. Then, you will finally be free to forget.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, I invite Your Presence and Participation into my broken heart to deal with the heartache caused by wrongful deeds committed against me.  Lord Jesus, heal my heart, so I will be able to let go of my resentment, and the resentment will let go of me.  Then, I will be able to FORGIVE the wrongs done against me…and also FORGET, for it is for freedom that You have set me free.

Maintain an Awareness

This must be the hardest of all lessons to learn: to keep our eyes on the Eternal God during difficult circumstances, and trust that His everlasting arms are underneath us, holding us and keeping us safe.

The Two Counsels

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To Be Approved

THEREFORE DO NOT LET SIN REIGN IN YOUR MORTAL BODY SO THAT YOU OBEY ITS EVIL DESIRES. DO NOT OFFER ANY PART OF YOURSELF TO SIN AS AN INSTRUMENT OF WICKEDNESS, BUT RATHER OFFER YOURSELVES TO GOD AS THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN BROUGHT FROM DEATH TO LIFE; AND OFFER EVERY PART OF YOURSELF TO HIM AS AN INSTRUMENT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS
(Romans 6:11-14).

There have been times in my life when I felt extremely ashamed of myself.  I WAS ASHAMED OF MY REACTIONS—for how I behaved when other people accused me, abused me, or attacked me. Because of what others did to me, I allowed the negative, destructive beliefs of the father-of-lies—the origin of sin—to reign in my thoughts and in my emotions; then, to carry over to my deeds. I offered my spirit, soul, and body to the father-of-lies as an instrument of wickedness. I did to others what was wrong, because others did to me what was wrong.

DO YOUR BEST TO PRESENT YOURSELF TO GOD AS ONE APPROVED, A WORKER WHO DOES NOT NEED TO BE ASHAMED AND WHO CORRECTLY HANDLES THE WORD OF TRUTH
(2 Timothy 2:15).

How relieved I was when I discovered that God sent His Son into my world to overcome the principle of sin—the negative, destructive beliefs of the father-of-lies and their effects on my thoughts, emotions, and deeds. However, in order to become an instrument of His Righteousness, I had to choose Him as the Master of my thoughts, my emotions, and my subsequent deeds, moment-by-moment. Each time I chose the right Master, I was able to present myself to God as one approved, someone who does to others what is right, after others did to me what was wrong.

BE NOT OVERCOME OF EVIL, BUT OVERCOME EVIL WITH GOOD
(Romans 12:21).

I bless you to overcome evil with good, during this Christmas season, even when someone accuses you, abuses you, or attacks you. Do not offer your thoughts, your emotions, and your deeds to the father-of-lies as an instrument of wickedness to obey his evil desires, but offer every part of yourself to God to be used as an instrument of His Righteousness. Do this, so that you do not have to be ashamed of your deeds, but be someone who is approved, all the time.

Who is your moment-by-moment master? Who reigns in your thoughts, emotions, and deeds, this Christmas season?

PRAYER: Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming into my world to overcome the principle of sin in my life. Because of what You have done for me, I now have the choice to be an instrument of Your Righteousness.

Maintain an Awareness

If you would turn to the Desire of All Nations and receive the Love, Righteousness, and Purpose He has stored up for you in His Presence, you will be satisfied.

The Two Counsels

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The Gift of Eternal Life

FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD THAT HE GAVE HIS ONE AND ONLY SON, THAT WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM SHALL NOT PERISH BUT HAVE ETERNAL LIFE
(John 3:16).

For You a Child is born.  To You a Son is given. Whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have Life, even now. God gave His Son to YOU, too.  You are not the exception…the excluded one…the one shut out. Even though your past is different than those of others, God did not single you out to hate you…to punish you…to reject you.  He wants you to believe and receive His Gift to you, even today.

FOR GOD DID NOT SEND HIS SON INTO THE WORLD TO CONDEMN THE WORLD, BUT TO SAVE THE WORLD THROUGH HIM
(John 3:17).

Beloved, I want you to know that I, the Most High God, did not send My Son into the world to condemn you for who you are and for what you have done. On the contrary, I sent Him as a Gift to rescue you from your Self. He came to deliver you from your guilt and condemnation, so you would not have to perish under the belief that everything is your fault.

IT IS THE SPIRIT THAT QUICKENETH; THE FLESH PROFITETH NOTHING: THE WORDS THAT I SPEAK UNTO YOU, THEY ARE SPIRIT, AND THEY ARE LIFE
(John 6:63).

If you only look at your Self and your circumstances through your natural eyes, during this Christmas season, you will only see what the father-of-lies wants to show you: guilt…condemnation…punishment.  But if you would allow Jesus, My Gift to you, to quicken your spirit, you would see the reason I sent Him to you: Grace…Mercy…a New Beginning. But, in order for the natural to be changed into the spiritual, you need to submit the natural to My Son. The Words He will speak to you will bring you Eternal Life…even now.

GOD’S PERFECT WILL WAS FOR THE NATURAL TO BE CHANGED INTO THE SPIRITUAL THROUGH OBEDIENCE.  SIN IS WHAT MADE IT NECESSARY FOR THE NATURAL TO BE SACRIFICED
(Oswald Chambers).

What picture do you see when you look at your Self and your circumstances through your natural eyes?

Surrender this picture to the Lord Jesus, and ask Him to quicken your spirit. Listen to His Words for you. Then, see the natural being changed into the spiritual.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, quicken my spirit. Turn the natural into the spiritual, so I may see the Eternal Life You are offering me, even now.

Maintain an Awareness

Regardless of which pain you have, the determining question is, WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WITH IT?

The Two Counsels

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Your Perfect Father

EVERY GOOD AND PERFECT GIFT IS FROM ABOVE, COMING DOWN FROM THE FATHER OF THE HEAVENLY LIGHTS, WHO DOES NOT CHANGE LIKE SHIFTING SHADOWS
(James 1:17).

Your Everlasting Father is perfect.  He is not like your earthly father, but is entirely without fault and defect, satisfying all requirements and corresponding to an ideal standard…and He wants to be YOUR Father, this Christmas season. Through the Gift of His Son, the Perfect Father has access to your heart to comfort you in all your troubles, even in the unfair treatment of your own earthly father, even in the unrighteousness that happened during your childhood, even in your current circumstances, no matter how hard.

PRAISE BE TO THE GOD AND FATHER OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, THE FATHER OF COMPASSION AND THE GOD OF ALL COMFORT, WHO COMFORTS US IN ALL OUR TROUBLES, SO THAT WE CAN COMFORT THOSE IN ANY TROUBLE WITH THE COMFORT WE OURSELVES HAVE RECEIVED FROM GOD
(2 Corinthians 1:3-4).

Invite the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ to become YOUR Perfect Father, during this season of celebration.  Allow the Father of Compassion and the God of all Comfort to comfort your heart of the sadness that has been living there all these years, so you may turn around and comfort those who live in sadness, this season, with the same Comfort. Allow the Perfect Father to be the One in your life who never changes.

YOUR FATHER KNOWS WHAT YOU NEED BEFORE YOU ASK HIM
(Matthew 6:8).

Remember, the Father of the Heavenly Lights knows what you need, even before you ask Him. Allow Him to satisfy your desires with HIS gifts, this Christmas. You will find that all His gifts are good and perfect, just like the Gift of His Son…for He is the Perfect Father.

YOUR HEAVENLY FATHER IS PERFECT
(Matthew 5:48).

In what ways might your life change, if you invite the Perfect Father to become YOUR Father, today, and allow Him to satisfy your desires with His good and perfect gifts?

PRAYER: Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, I invite You to become MY Father, during this season of celebration. Thank you for the good and perfect Gift of Your Son, through whom You supply everything I need. May I turn around and comfort those around me with the same Comfort with which You, Father, are comforting me.

Maintain an Awareness

The goal of the father-of-lies is to fill us with a system of beliefs, so that we would fill our Selves with another system of beliefs that would correct the first system of beliefs.

The Two Counsels

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Servants of Righteousness

NOW THE MIND OF THE FLESH [WHICH IS SENSE AND REASON WITHOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT] IS DEATH [DEATH THAT COMPRISES ALL THE MISERIES ARISING FROM SIN, BOTH HERE AND HEREAFTER]. BUT THE MIND OF THE [HOLY] SPIRIT IS LIFE AND [SOUL] PEACE [BOTH NOW AND FOREVER]
(Romans 8:6 AMP).

Capture that the human mind loves to reason without the Holy Spirit. However, reasoning without the Holy Spirit causes you to become a servant of unrighteousness, in your thoughts, in your actions, and in your purpose.

AND HAVING BEEN SET FREE FROM SIN, YOU HAVE BECOME THE SERVANTS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS (OF CONFORMITY TO THE DIVINE WILL IN THOUGHT, PURPOSE, AND ACTION)
(Romans 6:18 AMP).

 The Perfect Father is calling you with a holy calling, this glorious season, to become a servant of Righteousness—to conform to His Divine Will in your thoughts, your actions, and your purpose.

IN THE SAME WAY, THE SPIRIT HELPS US IN OUR WEAKNESS. WE DO NOT KNOW WHAT WE OUGHT TO PRAY FOR, BUT THE SPIRIT HIMSELF INTERCEDES FOR US THROUGH WORDLESS GROANS. AND HE WHO SEARCHES OUR HEARTS KNOWS THE MIND OF THE SPIRIT, BECAUSE THE SPIRIT INTERCEDES FOR GOD’S PEOPLE IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE WILL OF GOD
(Romans 8:26-27).

Beautiful One, to become a servant of My Righteousness in your thoughts, actions, and purpose, you need to allow the Holy Spirit to have His way in you. Listen carefully to the Voice of the Holy Spirit inside you and find out how He is praying for you, because the Holy Spirit intercedes for you, in you, and through you in accordance with My Will for you. Then, adapt your thoughts, actions, and purpose according to His prayer for you.

How might you become a servant of Righteousness in your thoughts, purpose, and actions, this Christmas Season?

PRAYER: Lord God, I desire to become a servant of Righteousness in my thoughts, actions, and purpose. Help me in my weakness to become sensitive to the reasoning of the Holy Spirit in me, so I may adapt my thoughts, actions, and purpose in accordance with Your Will. Help me to hear the Voice of the Holy Spirit when He intercedes for me, so I may adapt my prayers to match His and pray according to Your Will, as well.

Maintain an Awareness

Therefore, do not despair of the evil done against you: the insincerity…the depravity…the immorality.  They might have meant evil against you; BUT GOD will cancel the effects of any evil done against you, in the past, in the present, and in the future, if you submit to His discipline.

The Two Counsels

Start Where You Are

NOW THE MIND OF THE FLESH [WHICH IS SENSE AND REASON WITHOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT] IS DEATH [DEATH THAT COMPRISES ALL THE MISERIES ARISING FROM SIN, BOTH HERE AND HEREAFTER]. BUT THE MIND OF THE [HOLY] SPIRIT IS LIFE AND [SOUL] PEACE [BOTH NOW AND FOREVER]
(Romans 8:6 AMP).

Capture that the human mind loves to reason without the Holy Spirit.  However, reasoning without the Holy Spirit leads to sin and death, both here and hereafter.  Reasoning without the Holy Spirit causes us to reject God’s intimate Presence and Participation in the innermost parts of our beings.

The Father lived IN the Lord Jesus, while He was here on earth. They shared the intimate Glory of Oneness. And then the Lord Jesus passed this Glory of Oneness on to us—to live in us and through us, while the Father lives in Him and through Him. Imagine that! The very same Oneness that Jesus enjoyed with His Father has been made available to us. To receive this Oneness, all you need to do is invite the reasoning of the Holy Spirit into your daily, moment-by-moment tasks, wherever you are, whatever you are doing.

THAT THEY ALL MAY BE ONE; AS THOU, FATHER, ART IN ME, AND I IN THEE, THAT THEY ALSO MAY BE ONE IN US…AND THE GLORY WHICH THOU GAVEST ME I HAVE GIVEN THEM; THAT THEY MAY BE ONE, EVEN AS WE ARE ONE
(John 17:20-22).

Blessed One, cultivate Oneness with Me. Start where you are.  Do not go and look for something big or different to do for Me.  Invite the reasoning of the Holy Spirit into the conclusions of your current situations and problems.  Do you have a child?  Invite the reasoning of the Holy Spirit into your frustration, when your child becomes irritable, during your Christmas shopping.  Do you have a husband or friend?  Invite the reasoning of the Holy Spirit into your feelings of abandonment, when your husband or friend ignores you, during this busy time of the year.  Do you have a co-worker?  Invite the reasoning of the Holy Spirit into your feelings of shame and condemnation, when your co-worker ridicules you for your mistakes.  Do you have an enemy?  Invite the reasoning of the Holy Spirit into your feelings of rejection, when your enemy accuses you.  You will find that this is no easy task.  But, this cultivates ONENESS WITH ME. This allows Jesus to live HIS LIFE in you, while I, the Father, live in Him.

THIS IS HOW GOD SHOWED HIS LOVE AMONG US: HE SENT HIS ONE AND ONLY SON INTO THE WORLD THAT WE MIGHT LIVE THROUGH HIM
(1 John 4:9).

How does this message of ONENESS with God challenge and change your thinking, this Christmas season?

PRAYER: Lord God, I want to receive Your Gift of Oneness; therefore, I lay down my own reasoning to allow the reasoning of Your Holy Spirit in me and through me, this Christmas season.

Maintain an Awareness

Truth is not something logical we can produce from our own minds; instead, Truth is the supernatural reasoning of the Holy Spirit in our minds.

The Two Counsels

Enter His Courts with Thanksgiving

NOW THE MIND OF THE FLESH [WHICH IS SENSE AND REASON WITHOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT] IS DEATH [DEATH THAT COMPRISES ALL THE MISERIES ARISING FROM SIN, BOTH HERE AND HEREAFTER]. BUT THE MIND OF THE [HOLY] SPIRIT IS LIFE AND [SOUL] PEACE [BOTH NOW AND FOREVER]
(Romans 8:6 AMP).

Capture that the human mind loves to reason without the Holy Spirit.  However, reasoning without the Holy Spirit leads to sin and death, both here and hereafter.  Reasoning without the Holy Spirit causes you to become anxious about your circumstances, because deep inside, you know you have rebelled against God’s Will that wants to take care of every aspect of your life.

The Most High wants you to submit your life to Him, completely. He wants you to subject your will to Him, entirely. When you become willing to allow God to take care of every aspect of your life, you will receive Peace for your anxiety, for the mind of the Holy Spirit is Life and Peace.

CASTING THE WHOLE OF YOUR CARE [ALL YOUR ANXIETIES, ALL YOUR WORRIES, ALL YOUR CONCERNS, ONCE AND FOR ALL] ON HIM, FOR HE CARES FOR YOU AFFECTIONATELY AND CARES ABOUT YOU WATCHFULLY
(1 Peter 5:7).

You might ask: “How do I show God that I am willing to let go of my rebellion and submit to His Will? How do I enter into His Presence, so I might be led by the mind of His Spirit? How do I show God that I am ready for Him to take care of every aspect of my life?”

ENTER INTO HIS GATES WITH THANKSGIVING, AND INTO HIS COURTS WITH PRAISE: BE THANKFUL UNTO HIM, AND BLESS HIS NAME
(Psalm 100:4).

Be thankful unto Him and bless His name. Praise Him for every aspect of your life, good or bad, every moment of every day. This will allow your spirit to enter into His courts—His Presence. This will submit your mind to the reasoning of the Holy Spirit, who will lead you according to His Purpose. This will establish His Faith in your heart, enabling you to believe that He cares for you, affectionately. This will root you in Christ Jesus, continually building you up in Him. Try it…every day, this whole season. You will be amazed at the results.

ROOTED AND BUILT UP IN HIM, AND STABLISHED IN THE FAITH, AS YE HAVE BEEN TAUGHT, ABOUNDING THEREIN WITH THANKSGIVING
(Colossians 2:7)

How will you show YOUR willingness to God to submit to His Will?

PRAYER: Everlasting Father, instead of submitting to the reasoning of my own mind, I choose to be willing to submit my whole life to You, this Christmas.  Therefore, I thank You for every aspect of my life, just the way it is, right now…good or bad. I thank You for my past. I thank You for my future, for You care for me, affectionately.

Maintain an Awareness

If you surrender your pain to the father-of-lies, he will coax you into sinful solutions of hiding, blaming, and running. He will take you down that broad road of destruction where he will kill you from the inside out.

The Two Counsels

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Allow the Veil to Lift

NOW THE MIND OF THE FLESH [WHICH IS SENSE AND REASON WITHOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT] IS DEATH [DEATH THAT COMPRISES ALL THE MISERIES ARISING FROM SIN, BOTH HERE AND HEREAFTER]. BUT THE MIND OF THE [HOLY] SPIRIT IS LIFE AND [SOUL] PEACE [BOTH NOW AND FOREVER]
(Romans 8:6 AMP).

Capture that the human mind loves to reason without the Holy Spirit.  However, reasoning without the Holy Spirit leads to sin and death, both here and hereafter.  Reasoning without the Holy Spirit causes your mind to grow dull, hard, and calloused, so that you lose the power of understanding—of knowing the Truth. It causes a veil to cover your heart, so that you become trapped in your own perturbing perceptions of abandonment, shame, rejection, and condemnation.

IN FACT, THEIR MINDS WERE GROWN HARD AND CALLOUSED [THEY HAD BECOME DULL AND HAD LOST THE POWER OF UNDERSTANDING]; FOR UNTIL THIS PRESENT DAY, WHEN THE OLD TESTAMENT (THE OLD COVENANT) IS BEING READ, THAT SAME VEIL STILL LIES [ON THEIR HEARTS]
(2 Corinthians 3:14 AMP).

Dearest Child, how often have you wanted to save yourself from feeling forsaken, but you could not carry it out? How often have you wanted to rescue yourself from feeling condemned, but you could not perform it? How often have you wanted to free yourself from shame, but you could not succeed?

Know that you could not save yourself, because you were not able to experience My Presence. You were unable to perceive My Love for you. You could not see the Truth. Reasoning without the Holy Spirit places you in the grip of the OLD MAN deception—under the management of the father-of-lies.

THAT SAME VEIL STILL LIES [ON THEIR HEARTS] NOT BEING LIFTED [TO REVEAL] THAT IN CHRIST IT IS MADE VOID AND DONE AWAY. BUT WHENEVER A PERSON TURNS [IN REPENTANCE] TO THE LORD, THE VEIL IS STRIPPED OFF AND TAKEN AWAY
(2 Corinthians 3:14, 16 AMP).

But, there is a way out, Child. Whenever you turn to Me, Jesus Christ, when your heart feels forsaken, shamed, rejected, or condemned, the veil that covers your heart will lift. Whenever you turn to the reasoning of the Holy Spirit, the veil of deception—of not knowing the Truth—is stripped off and taken away.  During this moment, you will have a window through which you will experience My Presence and perceive My Love for you. You will know the Truth.

Will you allow the veil to lift from your heart, during this glorious season?

PRAYER: Savior, I wish to turn to You, this Christmas season, whenever I feel forsaken, shamed, rejected, or condemned, so You could lift the veil that covers my heart and dulls my understanding. May I look at myself, my family, and my circumstances, during this season, through Your window of Truth—through the reasoning of Your Holy Spirit.

Maintain an Awareness

The defense mechanism of blaming has been with us since the beginning of time.

The Two Counsels

Alive in Christ Jesus

Don’t ask yourself what the world needs: ask yourself what makes you come alive. Then go and do that. Because what the world needs are people who have come alive.
Harold Whitman

Are you alive with the Life of Christ, this Christmas season?

Capture that the human mind loves to reason without the Holy Spirit.  However, reasoning without the Holy Spirit leads to sin and death, both here and hereafter.  Reasoning without the Holy Spirit allows the OLD MAN to reason through you, and this OLD MAN reasoning causes CONDEMNATION to reign in your mind, heart, and body. This CONDEMNATION brings on a dead spirit of despair and defeat and a body filled with illnesses.

NOW THE MIND OF THE FLESH [WHICH IS SENSE AND REASON WITHOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT] IS DEATH [DEATH THAT COMPRISES ALL THE MISERIES ARISING FROM SIN, BOTH HERE AND HEREAFTER]. BUT THE MIND OF THE [HOLY] SPIRIT IS LIFE AND [SOUL] PEACE [BOTH NOW AND FOREVER]
(Romans 8:6 AMP).

The Lord Jesus took your OLD MAN to the cross with Himself. When He died, your OLD MAN died with Him. When He was resurrected on the third day, He rose without the OLD MAN to come and reign in you as the NEW MAN. He became your Exchange. There is now no condemnation to them who allow the Exchange to live in them—-who do not live according to the OLD MAN reasoning, but the reasoning of the NEW MAN.

THERE IS THEREFORE NOW NO CONDEMNATION TO THEM WHICH ARE IN CHRIST JESUS, WHO WALK NOT AFTER THE FLESH, BUT AFTER THE SPIRIT.  FOR THE LAW OF THE SPIRIT OF LIFE IN CHRIST JESUS HATH MADE ME FREE FROM THE LAW OF SIN AND DEATH
(Romans 8:1-2).

Instead of living according to the reasoning of the OLD MAN and allowing condemnation to ruin your Christmas season, start living according to the reasoning of the Holy Spirit, through the Exchange. You will find that your condemnation will leave, bringing new Life into your spirit, mind, and each cell of your body.

FOR AS IN ADAM ALL DIE, EVEN SO IN CHRIST SHALL ALL BE MADE ALIVE
(1 Corinthians 15:22).

Are you alive, this holiday season, or has condemnation killed your spirit, mind, and body? What are you going to do about this?

PRAYER: Thank you for the GOOD NEWS, Lord Jesus. I invite You to be my NEW MAN in the place of my OLD MAN reasoning. Live Your Life in me. Reign in my mind, my heart, and my body through the reasoning of the Holy Spirit.

Maintain an Awareness

Truth comes to us when we speak to God…and when God speaks to us.

The Two Counsels

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Led by the Spirit of God

NOW THE MIND OF THE FLESH [WHICH IS SENSE AND REASON WITHOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT] IS DEATH [DEATH THAT COMPRISES ALL THE MISERIES ARISING FROM SIN, BOTH HERE AND HEREAFTER]. BUT THE MIND OF THE [HOLY] SPIRIT IS LIFE AND [SOUL] PEACE [BOTH NOW AND FOREVER]
(Romans 8:6 AMP).

Capture that the human mind loves to reason without the Holy Spirit.  However, reasoning without the Holy Spirit leads to sin and death, BOTH HERE and HEREAFTER.  Reasoning without the Holy Spirit causes hopelessness, powerlessness, and helplessness, which lead to sinful habits and patterns of escape. If you continually surrender to your own reasoning, you will become a slave to your own mind…your own conclusions…your own irrational interpretations.

DO YOU NOT KNOW THAT IF YOU CONTINUALLY SURRENDER YOURSELVES TO ANYONE TO DO HIS WILL, YOU ARE THE SLAVES OF HIM WHOM YOU OBEY, WHETHER THAT BE TO SIN, WHICH LEADS TO DEATH, OR TO OBEDIENCE WHICH LEADS TO RIGHTEOUSNESS?
(Romans 6:16 AMP).

The reasoning of the Holy Spirit is Life and Peace, BOTH NOW and FOREVER.  If you are willing to give up your own reasoning and allow the Holy Spirit to reason through you, He will lead you out of the places of powerlessness, hopelessness, and helplessness into Life and Peace. You will have no need for sinful habits and patterns of escape. You will be called a son of God, instead of a slave.

FOR IF YOU LIVE ACCORDING TO [THE DICTATES OF] THE FLESH, YOU WILL SURELY DIE. BUT IF THROUGH THE POWER OF THE [HOLY] SPIRIT YOU ARE [HABITUALLY] PUTTING TO DEATH (MAKING EXTINCT, DEADENING) THE [EVIL] DEEDS PROMPTED BY THE BODY, YOU SHALL [REALLY AND GENUINELY] LIVE FOREVER
(Romans 8:13 AMP).

This Christmas season, I encourage you to start a new tradition. Instead of living according to your own reasoning…your own conclusions…your own irrational interpretations, start living according to the reasoning of the Holy Spirit, who directs and controls the sons of God. This decision will change your life, during this season…and forever.

FOR ALL WHO ARE LED BY THE SPIRIT OF GOD ARE SONS OF GOD
(Romans 8:14).

Ponder your choices. Then, decide whether you are going to live according to your own reasoning…or the Holy Spirit in you.

PRAYER: Most High, remind me, daily, to surrender my own conclusions to You, so the Holy Spirit may lead me into Life and Peace, continually.

Maintain an Awareness

Temptations give us many opportunities to be trained in God’s Holiness.

The Two Counsels

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