Be encouraged in Heart
My most sincere apology to all you faithful ones who read. My schedule has been very unusual these past few days, so I have not had my regular writing time. I am back to it this morning, so we will try to adjust the schedule to make room for my blogging. It is so good for me and I trust the Lord is using it to bless, heal and instruct. His Word is alive and He so loves to bless us with His breath through His word. He loves you and so do I. So here we go....
So here we are encouraged to think well in order to walk encouraged. This will open a door for something further here. We order our thinking and we order our feelings. So as we order our thinking according to the fullness of Christ in us, we then are able to be united with others in love. To be united in love implies that several are living this way in relationship. However, we can do both of these items as we live, regardless of how others respond. We are not left as victims to receive from the Lord only what others will enable. We, in our living with and among others, can do both of these items in and with our relationship in our Lord Jesus. In fact, if we depend upon others for the ability to do this, we will be forever living by the responses of others. Instead, we set our hearts in love through the encouragement in the Holy Spirit. We choose not to let any circumstance derail or delay our choices in this area and we live in the uplifting of Jesus Christ Himself.
What an absolute joy! More tomorrow, Lord willing. By the way, Sunday evening I was privileged to be in a meeting where Roy Fields was ministering, both in leading worship and in preaching. I was deeply blessed. Our Lord is truly awesome!
"My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." Colossians 2:2-3 TNIVThe first thing I notice in this passage is the "so that" and the "in order that." This gives us a step-by-step process in the reception of its totality. First the Holy Spirit through Paul, wanted these beloved believers to be encouraged in heart. He wanted them to know the fullness of the previous verses (1:24-29), and thereby to be encouraged in their life's core - their "heart." To the people of the day, the "heart" was the operational portion of the individual. It was where one thought and felt. They did not work in their understanding of mind and emotion the same way we do today. Their heart was where they thought and where their feelings originated. It has been proved that we do indeed feel what we think about. The only way to keep a control on the emotional responses we have is to think the thoughts that will lead them correctly. Our emotions follow what we think about.
So here we are encouraged to think well in order to walk encouraged. This will open a door for something further here. We order our thinking and we order our feelings. So as we order our thinking according to the fullness of Christ in us, we then are able to be united with others in love. To be united in love implies that several are living this way in relationship. However, we can do both of these items as we live, regardless of how others respond. We are not left as victims to receive from the Lord only what others will enable. We, in our living with and among others, can do both of these items in and with our relationship in our Lord Jesus. In fact, if we depend upon others for the ability to do this, we will be forever living by the responses of others. Instead, we set our hearts in love through the encouragement in the Holy Spirit. We choose not to let any circumstance derail or delay our choices in this area and we live in the uplifting of Jesus Christ Himself.
What an absolute joy! More tomorrow, Lord willing. By the way, Sunday evening I was privileged to be in a meeting where Roy Fields was ministering, both in leading worship and in preaching. I was deeply blessed. Our Lord is truly awesome!
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