Preface to my Decision

Last night I decided to listen to a sermon by Eric Ludy titled "Spiritual Athlete." The plan was to listen to the sermon and then watch some TV. I figured I'd throw some Facebook in the mix, as usual. The sermon was 2 hours long! It was challenging and encouraging and inspiring.

There are three basic ideas I got from the message:

1. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. Unfortunately, we forget that the Spirit - that is, God's Spirit - is also willing to help us get through whatever we're dealing with. I don't need to (nor should I) lean on my own strength. I must allow God to be who He says He is! That does not mean I get to sit back and do nothing.

2. Ekkakeo is the Greek word for "lose heart" in 2 Corinthians 4:1, 16, 1 Thessalonians 5:17. It also means empty of the fighting spirit, exhausted, wearied, tired, faint. It basically means spiritual flab, and we should have none of it.

3. Athleo Stehano means "contending for the crown" in Greek. See 2 Timothy 2:1-7. Our Christian walk is a battle. We must always be ready and alert to obey our Commander's instructions. Disciples of Jesus Christ do not get downtime. The battle is right now! The enemy looks for breaches, weakness in us, and we cannot allow him even the slightest foothold.

At one point, Eric Ludy said, "I cannot stand in the way of my God's agenda." And then later he asked, "What is it that you allow to supply your needs other than God?"

Immediately, "facebook" popped in my head. And then I felt God prodding my heart, "would you give it up for Me?" I wouldn't say that I was addicted to facebook, but I spent A LOT of time on it. A lot of brainless, wasted time. It's not like I was doing anything harmful. I just wasn't spending my time as God would have me spend it. There are more important things that I should be doing.

1. Focus on my children. Josie plays so well by herself, I find myself taking advantage of that. And Deuce is such a good baby. They need me to interact with them throughout the day, and not just when she asks me to read her a book or he cries. I need to be the best mom I can be for my kids.

2. Read the Word and pray. This is a no-brainer, considering that it was the Holy Spirit that suggested I give up facebook in the first place. It only makes sense to spend more time with Him on a daily basis.

3. Be productive. I am really hoping that I can keep the house in a little better order if I focus a little less on updating my status and more time on doing my chores. Plus, I'm pretty sure I'll need to keep myself busy to avoid the desire to automatically hop online when I get a bit bored.

Anyway, this all really boils down to Philippians 3:7-11. In a nutshell, NOTHING compares to knowing Jesus. Everything else is rubbish, and I count it as loss.

Lord, You are faithful, and as silly as it sounds, I know that You will give me the strength I need to be obedient. Thank You for loving me and pursuing me. Amen.

PS. I did go on FB to announce my sabbatical, and I didn't watch TV, if anyone was wondering. 80)