Good Morning Saints!

Paul said in Colossians 2:6-7, “So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.”

As I read this morning’s devotion in Our Daily Bread, I’m reminded of the necessity of being grounded in Christ by striving for consistency in our relationship with God! As with an oak tree, the roots of our faith must grow larger than our own physical stature, and this can only occur by walking consistently in our faith with Christ even when our flesh doesn’t want to! Our roots will never grow as large as an oak tree if we don’t nourish our roots in the meditation of God’s Word day and night, gather together as like minded believers, attend Bible study on a consistent basis (which CWM has 3 weekly bible studies if you want to attend), take advantage of the free biblical resources available online (www.biblicaltraining.org), exercise the spiritual gifts and talents God has freely given you, beseech God in your prayers the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit, seek out the ministers of your church to help pour into you, and to put into practice your faith and His Word so we can be like trees planted along the river, which yields fruit in its season whose leaf does not wither! 

Unfortunately, the problem many believers have is that they want to grow in Christ mentally without making the necessary efforts and sacrifices to nourish their roots, and thus, they become stagnant, dry, lukewarm, and spiritually frustrated. This is where the enemy loves to creep in and sow seeds of doubt to cause dissension, division, and disruption into your spiritual process of maturation. As Paul said in 1 Corinthians 9:27, we must bring under subjection our flesh, deny ourselves, understand the spiritual race you’re up against, and capture every thought and make them obedient to Christ! 

Remember, the devil doesn’t want you to nourish your spiritual roots, your faith, nor your relationship with God. So, don’t be surprised at the many distractions, negative influences, and doubt that you encounter on a daily basis! Satan is at WAR against the saints, and it’s imperative that we remain connected to The Vine of Christ so our roots can grow larger inside us in order for us to stand the test of times, withstand the wiles of the devil, bear fruit that will last, and so that we can manifest the nine fruits of the spirit during times if trouble. 

Today’s Devotional Challenge:

Are you manifesting the fruits of the spirit; love, joy, peace, perseverance, faithfulness, kindness, gentleness, goodness, and self-control during your times of rest and test? These fruits of the spirit are a reflection of Christ’s character himself! If you’re not exhibiting all of these fruits, how are you going to nourish your roots moving forward so that your character and your life can be more like our Lord? 

Let us pray:

Father God,

We thank you for who are; the loving, patient, gracious, and compassionate God who knows us by name! We thank you for your precious Son, Jesus Christ who sacrificed His life on the cross for our sins so that we may have life more abundantly. We also thank you that you sent us your Holy Spirit and preserved your Word to help nourish our roots so we can be like trees planted by the river. Help us become more like you and help us balance our priorities in our busy schedules where we place you first over our own life, over our own family, over our own careers, over our own flesh, and over our own desires. Replace our heart of stone with a heart of flesh and make us a new creation in Christ rooted and established on His foundation, 

In Jesus name we pray,

Amen!