Beats From Your Pastor’s Heart
Mark 1:35, “And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.”
It is encouraging to realize that the early-rising life has been received by us with much grace (1 Cor. 15:10).
This means that spending time with the Lord by rising early is a matter of depending upon the energizing work of the resurrected Christ within us, and then cooperating with that grace by choosing morning by morning to rise up early to spend time with Him.
Watchman Nee’s testimony, in his book A Living Sacrifice, is very helpful.
He says, “Let me quote the words of Miss Groves, a co-worker of Miss M. E. Barber, who has helped us greatly.
She stated that the first choice giving evidence of one’s love towards the Lord is the choice between one’s bed and the Lord.
If one chooses to love his bed more, he sleeps longer; but if he chooses to love his Lord more, he will rise up a little earlier.
She spoke these words to me in 1921, but I still sense the freshness of them today.
Yes, a man has to choose between the bed and the Lord.
If you love your bed more, sleep on longer; but if you love the Lord more, you must rise up earlier.”
We must accept the fact that the Lord’s life within us is stated as being “our life,” according to Colossians 3:4.
Regardless of how we feel about it, when we received Christ we received an early-rising life (Mark 1:35), a prayer life (Heb. 7:16, 25), a love-life (Gal. 4:6), a fellowshipping life (1 John 1:3), and a feasting-upon-the-Word life (1 Pet. 2:2-3).
These are the main features of this life which has now become “our life.”
If we follow this life every morning by rising a little earlier, we will discover that there is a special capacity early in the morning to enjoy the Lord.
Until Tomorrow
With A Shepherd’s Love,
Pastor Jackson
MONDAY’S PRAYER REQUESTS
Dan Haines
Terrell Loyd
Jodi Bateman
David Burnette
Dwight Byrd
Daniel Cooper
Sandy Paschal
Amy Garner
Lamar Knight
Jim Mabe
Charlene Palmer
Lorraine Elliott
Eric Ward
Dr. and Mrs. Davis
Sandra Graham
Dan Haines
Doris Loyd
Linda Alexander
June Cronan
Jillian Gray
Amy Garner’s Mom & Dad
Brandon’s Dad
Darlene Thaxton
David Harrison
Denise Hulsey – Jordan’s G’mother
Easton Fielder
Erik Magusson
Freddie May’s Mom
George & Linda Alexander
James Burnette
June Cronan’s Sister
John Austin
John McClain
Lillanna Magnusson’s Mom
Linda Hodges’ Sister
Michael Stanley
Ricky Gipson – Ashley’s Brother
Rose Fuller
Scott Nix
Terrell Loyd
Tom Witcher
James Garner’s Friend
Kim McClain’s Mother
Lonzo Christin
Ashely Burn’s Sisters
Coly/Connor – Allison’s G’sons
Larry Barker
Linda Breedlove’s Sister – Sarah
Mary Sims
Marynell Ford
Pastor & Mrs. Driskell
Ricky Stubbs
Roseleigh Osborn
Scott Lanier