REFUSING COMMITMENT (JONAH CHAPTERS 1 - 4)

 

REFUSING COMMITMENT

JONAH chapters 1 – 4

Lesson prepared by: krisha of Solomon Wisdom FB page

Lesson ideas taken from: RevCharles Stanley Lesson

Scheduled Teacher: Sis. Roxanne V. Velena

Lesson Update Frm:Jan.29,2018

JANUARY 29, 2023

 

MEMORY VERSE

But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I WILL PAY THAT I HAVE VOWED. Salvation is of the Lord.

(JONAH 2:9)

 

INTRODUCTION:

Do you believe that God wants the best for us? (Let the audience raise their hands or say “Amen.”) If that so, why many of us in any circumstances refuse being committed whatever what God has called us to be or to do? When knowing God’s will in our lives, why we willfully refuse God. Why we do that? For us to give an example, let’s look the life of Jonah. Jonah is the perfect example of man who knew what God was calling him to do, yet resisted God call anyway. We often do that, too, don’t we? What is it that you know right now that God is requiring of you but you’re holding it off? What is God challenging you to give up? What area of our life God wants us to alter (change)?  What relationship he said to you “settle that?” What challenges in your business that He asks you commit to Him? Is it your money, your faithfulness? What’s that God keeps bringing up to you? If you pray, God keeps bringing it up and this cause us to cease praying; either we deal with it or stop praying. Let’s see Jonah’s life; let’s read the few beginning verses.

1 Now the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying,

² Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.

³ But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.

 

Let’s take a look in verse 3: went down to Joppa, went down to it. A pastor said using this verse, “Every time we run away from God’s presence, we’re going down.” Let’s read Jonah 1: 4-15.

You know what why there is raging on in the inside of us; we’ve got Jonah aboard. Something in our life we don’t want to surrender, something we don’t want to give up, something we won’t face or deal with it and the storm keeps raging on inside.  And we think somehow that we’ll get the storm to cease and keep on holding of what is not of God. It will never happen because that’s not the way God operates; throw him overboard.

In Jonah chapter 2, he prayed unto the Lord. We can see in here a man in true distress.  Let’s read verses   1-7 and we can see in verse 8, at the point of dying, he remembered the Lord. “When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord: and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple.” In verse 9 says, But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord. This verse tells that Jonah made a vow before to the Lord; He made a vow to go to Nineveh. He made a commitment but failed doing it. This scene is like Jonah was in desperate situation and says, “I will do my commitment Lord just get me out of here.”

What have we seen in this lesson? Don’t wait till God has you in the crouches of pressure until you are willingly said, “Yes, Lord I’ll do Your will”

LESSON POINTS:

1) WE ARE AFRAID

We become fearful suppose we fail afraid of failure, afraid of criticism – afraid of people, what they’ll say what if I don’t measure up the people’s expectation and afraid of exposure. They’ll see my weaknesses, they’ll see my faults, they’ll see that I’m not good as they see in me, they’ll see that I’m not capable and they’ll see others capable than I am. That’s why we’re afraid of exposure, afraid of failing and afraid of the unknown. Suppose you’ll do what God says to do, what will happen? The act of faith is being willingly place your trust in the wisdom and the will of God without knowing the outcome. One of the reasons of not obeying is we don’t know the results of the circumstances. We’re willing to obey if we know the outcome, is that we call faith? People will follow by sight and not by faith. It’s like you’re trying to put God in your own will and not trusting God.

Another question we need to answer, how many blessings we have missed in our lives because we’re afraid to trust God? How many blessings we have missed in our business life because we’re afraid to trust God? What have we missed in our relationship to others because we don’t open or become transparent. We miss deep abiding friendship and fellowship. What have we missed because we’re afraid to give the 10% of our money? You think how many have left in your salary and think more of our bills. We need to start giving to God first. We’re afraid of failure, afraid of criticism-what people may say, afraid of exposure and afraid of unknown trouble us and these are the reasons of not fulfilling our commitment to God. These speak of our ourselves – our selfishness.

 

2)  OUR SELFISHNESS (JONAH 4:1-6)

We fail to follow our commitment and that is purely selfishness. Most often than not of what God is requiring of us doesn’t fit our plan, doesn’t fit what we want, doesn’t fit our schedule, doesn’t fit where we go and what we do then we say, “That’s I don’t want to do.” We don’t say that, but we casually and quietly go and do our own thing. And you say, “Lord your plan doesn’t fit my plan.” What we do is to rebel against God, God’s plan doesn’t

What do you think Jonah’s reason why he didn’t want to follow God? Nineveh is 500 miles in Jerusalem; he was prejudice against Ninevites. And why? Because Nineveh was a big treat in Jerusalem, to the people of God. He didn’t them to repent; he wanted them to be destroyed.

  

But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry.

² And he prayed unto the Lord, and said, I pray thee, O Lord, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore, I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil.

³ Therefore now, O Lord, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.

⁴ Then said the Lord, Doest thou well to be angry?

⁵ So Jonah went out of the city, and sat on the east side of the city, and there made him a booth, and sat under it in the shadow, till he might see what would become of the city.

⁶ And the Lord God prepared a gourd, and made it to come up over Jonah, that it might be a shadow over his head, to deliver him from his grief. So Jonah was exceeding glad of the gourd.

 

If you see that in verse 6, Jonah was exceedingly glad of the gourd but not happy in God’s plan. What have you seen in Jonah’s attitude? Where were Jonah’s priorities? Is that what we feel sometimes?  He was just like a Christian being unhappy with the revival meeting, evangelism and other Christian gatherings but he was happy with things not spiritual. He was totally unconcerned about spiritual things and concern something with no lifetime value at all. God saw his attitude and God prepared a worm to smite the gourd.

Let’s read verses 7-11

⁷ But God prepared a worm when the morning rose the next day, and it smote the gourd that it withered.

⁸ And it came to pass, when the sun did arise, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and wished in himself to die, and said, It is better for me to die than to live.

⁹ And God said to Jonah, Doest thou well to be angry for the gourd? And he said, I do well to be angry, even unto death.

¹⁰ Then said the Lord, Thou hast had pity on the gourd, for the which thou hast not laboured, neither madest it grow; which came up in a night, and perished in a night:

¹¹ And should not I spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than sixscore thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand; and also much cattle?

 

Sometimes the reason we disobey God because we have His plan disfigure His plan. We act   like with Jonah, we see the plan like as if we see better than God. Let’s be reminded based on the bible that whatever God wants us to do, let’s put in mind that He sees the beginning, the middle, the end and the ultimate results and he has the divine reason that’s why we need to obey. Selfishness destroys us. We should commit and live in submission without our convenience.

 

3)  POOR SELF IMAGE (Judges 6)

When there’s a call we say, “Oh God not me.” And sometimes we give prospect people who we think will fit in the position rather than us. Remember Gideon’s call and says to him in verse 12, “thou mighty man of valour.” The angel told him that he would save the Israel from Midianiates. And he answered in verse 15,

 

^15, And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house. ¹⁶ And the Lord said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.

¹⁷ And he said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, then shew me a sign that thou talkest with me.

Have you seen the lesson in these verses? Most of us have many excuses in getting into the ministry or make a commitment. We may say, “me” and it might not be me; there are others there who are better than me. Though Gideon was assured by the angel that God will be with him, he still asked for a sign.

 

CONCLUSION:

Personally, we can learn so many things in the life of Jonah: he made a vow and refuse to fulfill it, and he met troubles in his life. It’s scary to make commitment and refuse to do it but it’s not okay not to commit which you know that God has first gave his commitment to you. The final thing we see in Jonah’s life was when he was unhappy to God’s will and happy to the things not spiritual. His life is the same with us. We commit and resist later on. Don’t wait for God’s hand to warn us before we say, “Okay Lord, I’ll do it.”

 

ARE YOU THROUGH (ISAIAH 43:18-19)

 

ARE YOU THROUGH?

BIBLE PASSAGE: ISAIAH 43:18-19

Picture taken from Google

Lesson Prepared by: Krisha of Solomon’s Wisdom FB page

JANUARY 23, 2022

 

MEMORY VERSE

 Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.

ISAIAH 43:19

 

INTRODUCTION:

When you were a child, you had no responsibilities to think about, you had no duties to fulfill, no deadlines need to pass, no bills need to pay, no relationship to work on it and no future to think more about but now you’ve a lot of responsibilities and thoughts and dreams need to fulfill. Sometimes these are some of the reasons why you raise the red flag indicating of surrender. These reasons make you set aside spiritual matters and do the work to fulfill your responsibilities. The question for today in your spiritual life is, “ARE YOU THROUGH?”

There are Christians thinking that when they were young, they did their best in the ministry and now in their middle age, letting others serve and thinking others can do that; I’M DONE! ARE YOU REALLY THROUGH IN THE MINISTRY?

Others think, when they are in senior years, there are no ministries for them because they are already weak and have bad memory. Of course, you cannot do the Bible Study in highlands, you cannot teach kids in the field that requires strong and big voice but there are some other ways. You can be a prayer partner; get involved in prayer ministry. Don’t say, “I CAN’T” COMMON! You mean you cannot talk to GOD? Be an encourager (huwag maging pasaway), that’s a great personal ministry in the body of Christ. Come to church and don’t be late in the ministry even in your senior years; that would be a great testimony to the young ones. Also, this is a great opportunity to apply God’s word in your life; be a wisdom seeker (pray for it). Just don’t live your life like you are through in the ministry.

Other scenario in Christian life wherein you are tired of the hectic schedules and your tiredness seems like above your head. Then you’ll say, “I’m tired of this, I’m done. It’s over!” Is the question, “Are you through?” fits you?

The passage tells that this was the time they were in captivity. Remember their situations, they were not at peace. Like Israelites, we are in captives of so many things, the work, relationship, and situations in life. Our work holds us back, relationship makes us to be a double-minded person; we consider their feelings and the time we spent with them, and this is the reason we don’t like to spend much on spiritual matters. Also, the situation in life, like financial issue - trouble in budgeting or no budget at all and a lot more. You know what, if we don’t fight for it; we’ll keep on troubling by these. The enemy will keep on giving us reasons not to involved in the ministry UNTIL WE ARE USED TO IT.  Whatever circumstances we are involved in, you are in pain right now, something troubles you, you have anxiety, and you want to give up, always remember… GOD’S NOT THROUGH WITH YOU YET! AMEN!

There are things holding us back from everything God wants to do to fulfill His desires for us. However, He promises great and marvelous works; doing ways we can’t even imagine but we need to discern the path to take with a God’s setting mindset by…

 

LESSON OUTLINE:

1.  SHIFTING YOUR FOCUS (ISAIAH 43:18)

Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old.

The children of Israel had failed God miserably, though God had been good to them, they return to evil ways. God gave a temple, but they gave Him idols worship, He gave the truth, but they live in proclaimed lie, he gave them wealth, but they used them to abuse. The Israelites did not deserve to receive anything from God, yet He still loved them; yet he earnestly wanted to help them and transform their lives. God charged Israel to do the exact same thing to telling us to do today: Forget about your past hurts, your pains, disappointment, the rejection, the shame, the memory; God wants us to be free. God wants to be free by shifting our focus by forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:13-14). We have to shift our focus. The long as we’ve been a slave to the past, focusing less to the future. It’s good to have future with God. It will be greater; Job 8:7 says, “Though thy beginning was small, yet thy latter end should greatly increase.”

2.  SHARPENING YOUR FOCUS (ISAIAH 43:19a)

 Once we shift our focus, we must sharpen our focus. Verse 19a says, “Behold, I will do a new thing…” The word, “behold” is an interesting word; it means to perceive, it means to know by see. God required the children of Israel to see it before they see it. Look I will do a new thing in your life; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? Though God will do a new thing, we can’t see it. In our journey of life, do you see the possibilities, or do you see your problems? We are not able to sharpen our focus.

 

Some of us or most of us have eye problem. I have a problem seeing in a distance; it’s blurry. According to Google, “A nearsighted person sees near objects clearly, while objects in the distance are blurred. Farsightedness is the result of the visual image being focused behind the retina rather than directly on it.” Others here have the same with mine or some are worse. I have searched that there’s a medical procedure to correct the eyes. We call it Laser Eye Surgery. What is it? Laser eye surgery is a medical procedure that involves the use of a laser to reshape the surface of the eye. This is done to improve or correct short-sightedness, long-sightedness and astigmatism. It can also be helpful in overcoming presbyopia (difficulty seeing up close as we get older). With this, we can see a 20/20 vision. But because we can’t afford that, we use eyeglasses. Using this, it eliminates all medium of obstructions that will hinder you from seeing what it’s really there (put glasses on). We’re talking here, not just on natural but spiritual. In order for us to see the bright future in our lives, which mentioned in Jeremiah 29:11, ^“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end,” we need to sharpen our focus. So that we may be able to see what to see. Sometimes you cannot see the need to minister because you have to do a lot of things. We need to remove the obstructions that cause us not able to see clearly; remove everything contrary to the plan of God. “I want to see.”

3.  STRUCTURING YOUR FOCUS (ISAIAH 43:19a)

Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.

The land of blessings, God promised Israel. God wanted them to shift, sharpen and also structure their focus. Bible said that He will even make a way in the wilderness and even in the desert- “I’ll bless you.” But no matter what situation you find yourself in, God is still able to bless you. Do what God is offering. If they refuse God’s leading, they would have been doomed to remain in their captivity. At any point, if Israel refused to be led by GOD to draw in the direction on which God was leading them, then they would have remained in their condition. That’s why there must be structure focus. Structure focus requires TRUST; it requires complete trust. Knowing that even in the wilderness, even in the desperate situation, even when it doesn’t make sense that GOD COULD STILL BLESS ME. GOD CAN STILL USE ME even when it doesn’t make sense.

 

CONCLUSION:

There is no greater example of the structure focus in our humanity than our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was in the garden of Gethsemane. His wet so hard and his pores poured blood.

Jesus said, “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me:” Three times; not one time, not two time but three times (Matthew 26:36-46) he prayed this prayer. The Father didn’t answer verbally; he answered with a silence then Jesus ultimately said, “NEVERTHELESS NOT AS I WILL, BUT AS THOU WILT.” (NEVERTHELESS, NOT MY WILL BUT THY WILL BE DONE.)

As the soldiers marched Him to the Calvary, He trusted God with His future. As they hang Jesus on high on the cross, He trusted God with his future. As before he died, he said, “Father into Your Hands I Commend My Spirit” (Luke 23:46) then He gave up the Ghost. Glad He didn’t stop right there; all day on the first day, he was on the grave and all day on the second day, he was on the grave but early on the third day, HE’S ALIVE. He can say, “I still have a plan for your life.” If he has power to raise from the grave, then he has all the power to do something great for you and me God declares, “I AM NOT THROUGH WITH YOU YET.” 

YOUR FIRST STEP

 

YOUR FIRST STEP

BIBLE PASSAGE: Psalm 51: 1-12; Rev.2:5; 3:3; MARK 15:19-20, 33-39

 

SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON

APRIL 28, 2019

Lesson prepared by: krisha of Solomon FB page

 

MEMORY VERSE

2 Corinthians 13:5 (KJV)

Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?

 

INTRODUCTION:

If we were in a situation where we deeply need spiritual revival, and I’ll ask some of you today, “Do you find yourselves easy going back to your spiritual ministry?” (Allow responses) Why there are some we say Christians, we have known for so long, yet they’re having a very hard time going back or getting revived? What do you think the reasons?

 

I have been in the church for 28 years and personally I see people come and go. Some people left for economic purposes, some for spiritual decline, money issue (debts), relationship problem with other members and others personal reasons. I see that their desire of coming back are there, but they are entangled with the issues of life that they can’t move and stand all over again.

Some people say that it would be easy, just go to church. One example: one woman was in a relationship with her co-member in a certain church. They have been in relationship for six years and suddenly, he decided to break up with this woman. One day the woman heard the man he loved for six years has been dating a new member. If you were to place yourself in her situations, what would you do? Aren’t you affected? This is easy to say but hard to do. We can’t move on with our own; we need God, but we need to make our first step.  In our lesson for today is titled “YOUR FIRST STEP.”

 

LESSON PROPER:

1 1) YOUR FIRST STEP SHOULD BE TO HAVE THE RIGHT SPIRIT WITHIN YOU (Psalm 51:10; 2 CORINTHIANS 13:5)

There are several things involved in keeping a right spirit within us. David found that his sin had scarred and soiled his innermost being. He observed how an evil heart affected King Saul. He never wanted his life to become empty and meaningless. He never wanted the Holy Spirit to withdraw from his life. After you deal with the guilt in your life, you have to live a life that is free from offense. At one time David had lived with everything right between him and God. David would play his harp and the Spirit of God would come. He knew the peace, joy, power, and presence of God. When he sinned, David lost that and was filled with a guilt that he attempted to hide. David had been living with the pain of guilt for almost a year. He could find no way to suppress the mental image of his sin. Although he did not speak of his guilt, it was always present. He was covering up his sin. He knew he had transgressed the law and love of the Lord His God. Then came the day when Nathan confronted the guilty King of Israel. All of a sudden, everything he had been trying to cover up was exposed. David had taken Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah. He had committed adultery with her. Then to complicate everything, he tried to cover his sin by ordering Uriah to be killed. David was exposed. He had a reputation of being a man after God’s own heart. Yet, now, he stood guilty before the man of God. Psalms 51 is David’s prayer for forgiveness.

“Oh, God renew a right spirit within me.”

What are the affects of a renewed spirit?    

A renewed spirit is a spirit after God.

It is easy to become stagnant. We need our spirit stirred. We need our spirit renewed with a passion for Christ. A renewed spirit is a spirit of faith. Doubt, fear, guilt, and unbelief get into one’s spirit. We need faith renewed in our spirit to accomplish the things God has for us. Without a vital living faith we cannot please God. A renewed spirit is a spirit of compassion. The world and sin have a way of hardening us. If we live with the spirit of the world in us, we can become indifferent to the suffering of others. We need to be renewed in our spirit with the love of Jesus Christ. A renewed spirit is a spirit of holiness. The salvation that God provides through faith in Jesus Christ is the only solution for a heart and spirit that is defiled by sin. Holiness is to the soul what health is to the body. Holiness cannot be possessed if you are controlled by sin. The Holy Spirit’s within us changes the evil nature and gives holiness and righteousness. A renewed spirit is a spirit of joy. No one can experience true joy when their inner man is burdened and stained with sin. Only God, by Jesus Christ, can give you joy. How do you keep a right spirit in you? Follow these steps to keeping what you have gained.

-        First, maintain fellowship with God. Our spirit needs constant fellowship with God. Part of David’s prayer that dealt with the guilt of his sin said: “Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.”

David recognized the need to be with God. If you are going to keep what you have gained, you must stay in fellowship with God. At one point in David’s life, he became so wrapped up in the guilt of his sin that his conscience was completely eaten up by it. He had been engaged in lust over Bathsheba. Gradually temptation gained control of his life. He was drawn away by lust. His spirit and soul were darkened by sin. James 1:14-15 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin when it is finished, bringeth forth death. It is impossible to maintain fellowship with God and live in sin. Psalm 16: Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

Have you lost the joy of His presence?

If the joy is gone, there is only one way to get it back into your life.

 

Acts 3:19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord

Refreshing comes from the presence of the Lord. Most of us could stand some refreshing. God’s desire is for His people to be refreshed. He wants us to go from strength to strength. He wants to transform valleys of weeping into springs of rejoicing.

He wants to increase your strength from Him. David had been blinded by his sin. Sin can have that effect on your life. When Nathan told David what he had done, his eyes were opened. David did not become defensive. He recognized his need for refreshing. He knew he had lost his joy. He knew he had strayed from the presence of God. How do you keep a right spirit in you? First, maintain fellowship with God.

-         Second, you need the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is God’s gift to help you keep things right. Jesus knew that we would need the Holy Spirit’s help in our lives.

Acts 1:8 “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses...” Most of us in the church need some help in our daily lives. The Holy Spirit is God the Helper, Comforter, and Guide. We need His power to keep what we have gained. We need His power to live the life. We need the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives. When the Holy Spirit comes upon you, He will demonstrate the power of God that changes the way you live. Many people are trying to do it on their own. They try to keep the joy. They try to keep the peace. They try to keep the love. They try to keep the kindness They try…Have you been trying? It is the work of the Holy Spirit that gives us the fruit, and the power. The Holy Spirit is God’s gift that maintains and sustains us. David knew he could not make it without the Holy Spirit. He had seen the effect of a life that was devoid of the Holy Spirit.  He witnessed the effect of the Holy Spirit leaving King Saul. Sin had robbed Saul of the presence and power of the Spirit of God. Have you noticed that the guilt of sin robs you of the evidence of the Holy Spirit? Life cannot be full, rich, or joyful without the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit brings peace, joy and love into your life. Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness. This is the natural product of the Holy Spirit in your life. Romans 15:13 Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.

Romans 14:17 For the kingdom of God is… righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit God wants that to be the expression of your life in the Spirit.

He wants to establish you in that fruitfulness. Sin will rob you of that. Sin will deplete your joy, peace, and love. Sin will take the life out of you. Sin will take you farther than you want to go Sin will cost you more than you are willing to pay The Holy Spirit in our lives maintains the nature and character that is consistent with Jesus Christ. David knew that without the Holy Spirit, life would be miserable. When faced with his guilt David knew the answer to the sin in his life. With tear-stained brokenness before God, he repented of his sin. He repented for violating God and God’s nature. He cried out for pardon and purity. He wanted acquittal and acceptance. He wanted comfort and cleansing. He was willing to pay the cost. From a heart that was crushed by shame and sorrow over sin, he pleaded for God’s mercy and forgiveness. If he was going to maintain a life that was free from guilt, he needed restoration. He had known the darkness and void of a spirit that was depleted and devastated by sin and guilt. He needed God’s joy. He needed God’s presence He needed God’s Holy Spirit.

-        Third, keep control of your thought life.

          How can we control what we think?

We must learn how to apply a filter to the things that stimulate our thoughts. Before action come thoughts. It starts with our thought life. We all have good and bad thoughts. We must learn how to guard and control our thoughts. Some thoughts are negative thoughts, and some are destructive. Some thoughts are positive and constructive. We must learn how to control our thought life. Every thought must be controlled. This was David’s downfall. He allowed his carnal mind to run free. He was drawn away by his own lust.

How do you keep a right spirit?

We must bring every thought and purpose captive to the obedience of Christ. Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. This is preemptive aggressive action. Before negative thoughts take root…change your thinking. Before evil thoughts bring you into captivity… change your thinking. Make every thought conform to this rule. Your thoughts must be true. Think what is noble. Think what is right. Think what is pure. Think what is lovely. Think what is admirable. Think what is excellent and Think what is praiseworthy. If you do this, the God of peace will be with you. God’s desire for your life is joy and peace 

 

2 2) YOUR FIRST STEP SHOULD BE TO GET CONNECTED TO SPIRITUAL THINGS (REV.3:3)

Do you know how to revive yourself spiritually? If you are feeling depleted, you might be feeling disconnected and disempowered. Moving on from a state of disconnection and disempowerment is easiest when you have treated yourself well during your times of connection and empowerment. It is simple matter of learning the tricks – like how to revive yourself spiritually – and practicing them, so they are ready to go when you need them.

There are many ways to revive yourself when you are feeling depleted, but taking the spiritual route is one of my favorites. Connecting with your spirituality allows you to quickly access a strong, internal power source and bring your focus to what is most important for you. Strengthening this direct line to your inner core is a great way to decrease your “revival time” when you are feeling depleted.

It is important to remember that spirituality is a process more than a goal. Sometimes, even if you know how to revive yourself spirituality, the reality of feeling totally depleted and overwhelmed can make it hard to put this into action. If you find yourself in such a situation, try these easy steps to revive yourself spiritually, even when you’re feeling totally depleted.

 

Reconnecting with your spiritual self is a challenge in and of itself, but the work pays off when you know how to revive yourself spiritually, even when you feel completely depleted. By practicing pausing, breathing, and doing something small to connect with your spirituality, you will strengthen this connection, preparing you for a final step:

 

   3) YOUR FIRST STEP SHOULD BE TO REPENT FROM ALL THINGS THAT YOU HAVE DONE (1 SAMUEL 7; REV.2:5)

√ How does Samuel tell the people to return to the Lord?  (With all of their hearts.)  What does that mean?  This is what Samuel had been waiting for.  Only God can change the heart.  We make a move toward God and He will hear us and forgive us and change our hearts to be totally His. Why are our hearts so important to God? How do our hearts get divided?   What did Samuel ask them to “put away?”  (foreign gods) (Ashtoroth is the Canaanite goddess who was the wife of Baal.) Samuel knows that the people of Israel have accepted the Canaanite lifestyle and have allowed their worship of idols to seep into their home and hearts.  They need to put away or get rid of all these things. What did Samuel ask them to prepare?  (their hearts) How do you prepare your heart? How do you serve God only?  This speaks of whole-hearted love for God and to serve Him only!  No one else can be in the picture. When our hearts are right – what was the promise that God will do?  (He will deliver you from the Philistines.) Did the children of Israel “house clean?”  (1 Samuel 7:4) The children of Israel choose to obey God.  They choose to put God first and serve Him only.  That was a choice that they made.  For 20 years they had not obeyed God…this is an important moment in the life of Israel. 1 Thessalonians 1:9-10, says, “…how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.”

 

CONCLUSION:

Revival is not a scheduled event wherein for sure we experience revival. There are sermons preach but sometimes people don’t change the way we expect. Revival starts in us; we need the desire to be revived. Psalm 119:25 says My soul cleaveth unto the dust: quicken thou me according to thy word. We see in psalmist situation that he’s in desperate situation, he asks to be revived by God’s word. We need God’s word to be revived. If we don’t take our first step, we will be caught unaware; we don’t know how much time we have left on earth.