Adjustments

I am the vine; you are the branches. He who abides in Me and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. John 15:5 (NKJV)

Abiding in Christ truly is a requirement for those wanting to enlarge their borders. You see, I maintain our borders are more of our own making than that of God's! It is the truth:

I can do everything through him who gives me strength. Philippians 4:13 (NIV)

So, why are we held captive by these borders? Why do these borders seem so difficult to overcome? Think about what John is saying. If Christ is the vine, then we as branches must adjust our mindset to conform to that principle. The branch can't do anything apart from the vine. Where the vine goes, the branch must follow.

Do you see the problem? We, Christians, do not adjust and abide in Christ in all we do! Therefore, the borders not only remain; they become reinforced by our own actions.

Quite the conundrum isn't it!

So what do we do? Blackaby and King have good insight into this dilemma and I suggest you read or reread their book, Experiencing God. In this, they posit seven realities of experiencing God in your life. One of those truly addresses the need let God expand and use you according to his will. "You must make major adjustment in your life to join God in what He is doing." Blackaby and King go on to say, "You can't stay where you are and go with God." I maintain this ideal is as much spiritual as it is physical.

We need to adjust our lives and lifestyles to God's! Our natural response to things begin with changing the external, but God wants to change the internal. Maybe the borders that need expanding are within us, not around us. If we want to enlarge our borders, then we must become more Christ-like in our daily habits!

Here is the way I see it...The enlarging of our borders begins with us. It is not a physical move, but it is a major move just the same. We are new creations, but in reality we don't change that much! He needs to expand our faith, our trust, our belief, our knowledge, our heart, our prayer, our worship, our...You get the point! We first go with God and let him change us; then, our circumstances begin to change as well.

Blackaby and King suggest that "the adjustment requires moving from doing God's work according to your abilities, your gifts, your likes and dislikes and your goals to being totally dependent on God and His working and His resources."

That is powerful! Totally dependent on God and His resources. Now, that is abiding. Make those adjustments and depend on God in your...

• circumstances (job, home, finances)
• relationships (family, friends, peers)
• thinking (biases, methods, potential)
• commitments (family, church, traditions)
• actions (prayer, giving, service)
• beliefs (God's ability, purposes, ways)

Paul is the quintessential model for these adjustments. Conduct a google search on Paul's life and see where he made adjustments to remain in Christ -- even unto death.

As you reflect on that, see where God began the work in Paul. It was not with his knowledge, but with his heart. The rest is quite clear to me! Paul, the Christian killer, became the new creation he was meant to be, a Christian leader. That map at the top of the page certainly becomes clearer doesn't it.

Now that is enlarging one's borders...

Be Blessed

Expanding

Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, "Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so I will be free from pain." And God granted his request. 1 Chronicles 4:10 (NIV)

Funny, isn't it; we hear no more of Jabez.

• What territory was enlarged?
• What pain was relieved?
• What blessings did God bestow upon this honorable man?

If God won't tell us the rest of the story, how are we expected to apply it to our lives? It doesn't make much sense when I think about it. Yet, maybe we should just take it at face value. Perhaps we are analyzing a bit too much.

Let's take a look at this from our perspective. We live a life defined by borders we place around us, which ultimately dictate who and what we are, and how we deal with things around us.

Borders that limit:

• Pride
• Anger
• Doubt
• Envy

And the list could go on and on. In fact, take a moment or two and write down some of your borders -- be honest and forthright!

Now here is the relevance of these borders. People know us by these borders; we are comfortable within these borders; and, we make our decisions based on these borders. Yet, we get perplexed when things don't go our way and these borders remain intact. We ask again and again;

• "God, why does this happen to me?
• "How can I go on when you never change things?"
• "Why, why don't you listen to me?"

Unfortunately, despair and anxiety become our guideposts as we attempt to manuever through the maze of uncertainty we find ourselves. Why operate in despair and anxiety? God certainly does not intend that for you. Let me have you start this study by examining some scripture that may speak to you and your circumstance...

"But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed." 2 Corinthians 4:7-9 (NIV)

Now, look at this from a different perspective --> God's...Christians always begin with hard pressed and end with not destroyed. However, I think they forget one very, very important thing. Verses 8 and 9 are preceeded by "treasure in jars of clay." That treausre is Christ in us...

Therefore, let me ask this of you -- exactly how have you shown Christ in you as you go forward in your circumstance?

The next three posts will provide you some ways to make this a priority in your life as you let God expand your borders.

Be Blessed