APRIL THEME – “SEEING THE RESURRECTION FROM GOD’S PERSPECTIVE”
BEATS FROM YOUR PASTOR’S HEART
WHEN GOD IS CALLING YOU DEEPER, NOT JUST FORWARD
James 4:8 — “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.”
There are moments in your walk with God that feel powerful—moments at the altar, moments of surrender, moments where something breaks and you sense real freedom. But God never intended for those moments to be destinations. They are invitations. Invitations to go deeper. Because there is a difference between visiting freedom and living in it. You can step into a moment of release and still walk away and return to the same patterns if you do not go deeper. God is not just calling you forward into another experience—He is calling you deeper into a transformed life.
DEEPER MEANS DAILY, NOT OCCASIONAL
Drawing near to God is not a one-time event—it is a daily pursuit. James 4:8 is not a momentary invitation; it is a continual call. Many believers draw near in crisis but drift in comfort. They come close when they feel pressure, but they do not remain close when life settles down. But the deeper life is not built in moments—it is built in consistency. It is choosing daily to stay near, to stay aware, and to stay dependent on Him. When you live this way, freedom is no longer something you revisit—it becomes something you remain in.
DEEPER MEANS STOP REVISITING WHAT GOD REMOVED
One of the greatest hindrances to going deeper is the habit of going backward. God removes something, but we revisit it. God forgives it, but we relive it. God breaks it, but we rehearse it in our minds. The deeper call is the decision to stop going back to what God has already taken away. You are not called to manage your past—you are called to walk free from it. Going deeper means you refuse to respond from what used to define you and instead begin responding from who you now are in Christ. That shift is where transformation begins to take root.
DEEPER MEANS LIVING FROM YOUR IDENTITY, NOT YOUR HISTORY
You will never live free consistently if you continue to see yourself through your history instead of your identity. The deeper life is not about trying harder—it is about seeing differently. It is waking up each day and choosing to live from who God says you are, not what you have been. When your identity becomes your starting point, your decisions begin to change. Your responses begin to change. Your direction begins to change. You stop reacting out of old patterns and start living out of new life. This is where freedom stops being something you feel occasionally and becomes something you walk in consistently.
Imagine standing at the shoreline, letting the water touch your feet. You feel it, you experience it, but you are still standing on the sand. You can step out at any moment and remain unchanged. That is where many believers live—touching the presence of God, experiencing moments of freedom, but never stepping in far enough for it to transform how they live. But when you go deeper—when you step in beyond where you can control, beyond where you can easily step back—you begin to experience something different. The water begins to carry you. The environment begins to shape you. And what you once just visited becomes where you now live.
GOD IS CALLING YOU INTO A LIFESTYLE
God is not inviting you into another emotional moment—He is inviting you into a lifestyle. A lifestyle where you no longer revisit what was removed, where you no longer respond from your past, and where you begin to walk daily in what He has already given you. This is where freedom becomes your normal. This is where your life begins to reflect the reality of what God has done in you. The call is deeper—not just forward. And the difference is not in what God has done, but in how you choose to live from it.
WARFARE PRAYER
Father, in the name of Jesus, I come into agreement with Your call to go deeper. I refuse to live in cycles of returning to what You have already removed. I break every pattern of revisiting the past, every mindset that keeps me tied to who I used to be, and every lie that tells me I cannot walk in consistent freedom. Draw me near to You daily. Anchor my heart in Your truth. Strengthen me to live from my identity in Christ and not from my history. I surrender my habits, my thoughts, and my responses to You, and I declare that from this day forward I will walk in the freedom You have already given me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
DAILY CHALLENGE
Today, take one intentional step that reflects living free—not just feeling free. Identify one area where you are tempted to revisit the past, and instead of responding the old way, pause and choose to respond from your identity in Christ. Let today be the day you move from visiting freedom to living in it.
WEDNESDAY’S PRAYER REQUESTS
Jean Muehlfelt
Ann Stanley
Britany Smith ~ Breast Cancer
Christopher & Yting Kelley
Danny Jarrard
David Franklin
Dinay Rodriguez
Ellen Boyd
Jillian Gray
Susan Bankston
Kim McClain’s Daughter, Amanda
Mary Williams
Mateen – Kim McClain’s Sister
Mike And Paula Ferris And Family
Nancy Riley
Phillip Roach
Theresa Bain
Wes Knight
Amy Garner’s Dad
Andrea Nix– Friend of the Shelnutt’s
Angela Bryan’s Sisters
Annette Ford
Brando Echarte
Carol Lawhead – Riverside in Conyers
Darlene Kelley – Cancer Treatment
Darlene Wiggins
Debbie Foskey
Deon Lotter
Don And Carol Franklin – Mae’s Cousins
Don Franklin’s Son, David
Doris Loyd
Dr. and Mrs. Davis
Ed Adkins – Friend of Brian Edwards
Ed Franklin’s Son In Law – Heart Surgery
Eric Magnusson’s Mother
Eric Ward
Friend of Linda Hodge
Gayle Sparks
Gloria Young
Jake Jenkins
James Burnette
Jean Partee
Jean Partee’s Sister
Jessica Headrick
John McClain’s Mother
Joni Oberhage
June Cronan
June Cronan’s Sister
June Davis
Kailey Bateman
Kim McClain’s Mother
Kim’s Sisters – Ann & Brenda & Mateen
Lillianna Magnusson’s Mom
Linda Mays
Lonzo Christian
Lori Blount’s Mother
Mary Williamson – Dana Jackson’s Mom
Mrs. Franklin
Nancy Brown
Nora Allison
Paul Bateman
Ron And Johnnie Barry – Friends Of Ashton & Glenda Bateman
Rose Fuller – Pruitt-Monroe Nursing Home, Forsyth GA
Roy Roach
Sandra Mitchell
Scott Lanier
Scotty Nix
Stephanie Seivers – Friend of the Shelnutt’s
Steve Michaels
Tammy Shelnutt
Tom Witcher