Worship and Will #130

Romans 12:1-2
1 I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.
2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. (NAS)

What is your heart's desire as a follower of Jesus Christ? The Bible tells of two very important aspects of our walk in Him. One of those is worship and the other is the doing of the will of God. In Romans, the Apostle Paul encourages your spiritual service of worship through surrender of your body to God.

Paul begs the believers in Rome to be totally yielded to God by presenting their bodies a living sacrifice. The condition of a sacrifice is dead, but in this cse Paul urges a livng sacrifice. Though the bod is alive it is not to be alive to sin. The sacrifice is made by GOd's mercy and results in holkiness. This living and holy sacrifice God accepts. As you yield yourself to God in surrender and submission, the body that contains your flesh and the sin that indwells you is under the control of the Spirit of God. The least you can logically do is submit to God. God accepts this sacrifice as worship. In fact the beginning of worship is the bowing down of your life before a Holy and Righteous God who has given you the grace and the mercy to be a living sacrifice. Your God is an awesome God. He seeks and urges you to be surrendered to Him. Our purpose for life is discovered in the act of surrender.

The second aspect of your walk with God is to do His will. The good, acceptable and perfect will of God is discovered as you are transformed by the renewing of your mind by God's Holy Spirit. The admonishment of the Bible is to refrain from conformity to the world and its systems. The will of God is accomplished as you are not conformed but are transformed. Today why not discover the wonderful experience of worship and the knowledge of His good, acceptable and perfect will.

__________________Today's personal note from Dennis

Greetings from Starbucks in Tempe, AZ

Praise the Lord. I asked all of you to pray for the liver tube exchange. It happened on Tuesday with good results. Probably the most exciting part was that the liver enzymes are in the normal range for the first time in over four years. God is good.

Our family will be celebrating our grandson, Burke's 10th birthday on Sunday. He actually turned 10 on Tuesday. Hard to believe the kids all grow so fast. Our newest grandson is expected on May 21st. Continue to pray for Mandy and John and the baby.

Sandy and I are home for a while now. It's kind of good to be home and be with family. Pray for opportunities for us to do ministry in the Phoenix area.

Appreciate your prayers. I think the thing I most get excited about is the realization that God is not finished with me yet. There are still those who need to hear about how great God is.

Love all of you. ~ DGW