Manna for Your Morning

“Stop imitating the ideals and opinions of the culture around you, but be inwardly transformed by the Holy Spirit through a total reformation of how you think. This will empower you to discern God’s will as you live a beautiful life, satisfying and perfect in his eyes.” — Romans 12:2 (TPT) Do not love the world [of sin that opposes God and His precepts], nor the things that are in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  (1 John 2:15 AMP) Therefore become imitators of God [copy Him and follow His example], as well-beloved children [imitate their father]; (Ephesians 5:1 AMP) Our heavenly Father is loving, patient, kind, compassionate and generous. May we be like Him.

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Give the following instructions to the people of Israel. I am the LORD your God. So do not act like the people in Egypt, where you used to live, or like the people of Canaan, where I am taking you. You must not imitate their way of life.” — Leviticus 18:1-3 (NLT) God's people were never to imitate the world and the culture around us. Romans 12:2 (AMP) says: And do not be conformed to this world [any longer with its superficial values and customs], but be transformed and progressively changed [as you mature spiritually] by the renewing of your mind [focusing on godly values and ethical attitudes], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His plan and purpose for you]. We are members of God's family and citizens of the Kingdom of God. As ambassadors, may all we do and say reflect the nature of our heavenly Father, and the culture of His Kingdom.

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. — 2 Corinthians 5:20 (NASB) As ambassadors for Christ, we are sent out as representatives for the Kingdom of God. We are not to copy the behavior and customs of this world. Instead we are to conform to the culture of God’s Kingdom, one of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. (See Romans 14:17) We have been given the ministry of reconciliation to bring others to Christ. May we not be infected by the world, but instead, affect the world for the Kingdom of God. But all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ [making us acceptable to Him] and gave us the ministry of reconciliation [so that by our example we might bring others to Him], — 2 Corinthians 5:18 (AMP)

for in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we also are His children.’ — Acts 17:28 (NASB) I have heard it said many times, “When God is all you have, you realize God is all you need.” God gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need. (Acts 17:25 NLT) He determined our appointed times and the boundaries of our habitation, (Acts 17:26). His purpose in all this was that people of every culture and religion would search for this ultimate God, grope for Him in the darkness, as it were, hoping to find Him. Yet, in truth, God is not far from any of us. (Acts 17:27 VOICE) Seek the LORD while He may be found; Call upon Him while He is near.  — Isaiah 55:6 (NASB)

The LORD is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes. He is close to those who trust in him. — Nahum 1:7 (NLT) Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track. Don’t assume that you know it all. Run to God! Run from evil! Your body will glow with health, your very bones will vibrate with life! (Proverbs 3:5-8 MSG) Do not rely on your own understanding, nor the opinions of our current culture. Totally Trust in the Lord. He is our Helper, our Healer, our Provider our Protector, etc.

Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. — Romans 12:2 (MSG) Instead of copying the ways of this world, let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. May we fix our attention on God and renew our minds, with His Word. This will elevate our thoughts, because His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. As our minds are renewed, we will be able to recognize His perfect will and respond to it, with a sense of urgency. Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts.  — Proverbs 4:23 (GNT)

Do not be shaped by this world; instead be changed within by a new way of thinking. Then you will be able to decide what God wants for you; you will know what is good and pleasing to him and what is perfect. — Romans 12:2 (NCV) So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. (Romans 12:1-2  MSG) Instead of being shaped by this world, let us be ambassadors for Christ who influence the worl...

O Israel, return to the LORD your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity; — Hosea 14:1 (NKJV) This morning, as I read Hosea 14:1, the cry of my heart was for America to return to the LORD our God. For there is no savior besides the LORD (Hosea 13:4). There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death. (Proverbs 14:12)  Our culture has so many distractions, that steal our affections away from our heavenly Father, but He is always calling us back to Him, with His loving arms wide open. Let us prioritize His Presence, and treasure His Word in our hearts. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:9)

  Wait for and confidently expect the LORD; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for and confidently expect the LORD. — Psalm 27:14 (AMP) Our culture has taught us to expect things to happen at the click of a button. As children of God, we are to wait patiently for God’s perfect timing. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God (Romans 8:14 NLT). Once instructed to go, we can go in peace and in His strength, knowing that His Presence is with us to guide us in the right direction at the right time. There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven. (Ecclesiastes 3:1-3 NASB)

Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. — Romans 12:2 (MSG) As we focus on our heavenly Father and all His wonderful attributes, we will become more like Him (loving, kind, gentle, etc.). When we pay close attention to His Word, we allow God to transform us by changing the way we think. He will mold us and shape us and bring the best out of us. May we be captivated by His love and thankful for all that He is doing in our lives here and now.

So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. — Romans 121-:2 (The Message) Fix your attention on God, and embrace all that He does for you. Readily recognize what His desire is for you and quickly respond to it. Then, you will be changed from the inside out and God will bring the best out of you. It all starts with us taking our eyes off of ourselves and putting them on God.