The Seven Devotions As Seven Joys- Experiencing The Kingdom Together In Christ Jesus
We talk about "The Seven Devotion", but let's look at them as "joys", ALL of which point to and draw us to the greatest Joy, which is to know and love Jesus Christ.
The seven devotions are experienced as joys when we seek them in our lives deliberately, not as some "to do list" but as a blessed experience we can have as servants of Jesus. We can only experience them if we are Christ followers, citizens of HIS Kingdom, so, in a way, we can say we are PRIVILEGED to be able to have these things in our life!
These joys include
1. the joy of loving God in our whole being, knowing that through Jesus Christ we are able to be in fellowship with God and experience HIS love- we focus on who Jesus Christ is, on God as our Father, and we walk in the Holy Spirit
2. the joy of loving our neighbors as we love ourselves, which is how Jesus' love flows through us, and which often results in His love flowing through others to us
3. the joy of making disciples of the nations through our witness, being salt and light, which often results in the power and presence of God flowing through us to reach others in the Name of Jesus
4. the joy of prayer, being in communion with God through Jesus Christ, having access to the throne of God, being in His presence, not only as an individual, but in agreement with fellow Believers
5. the joy of breaking of bread in communion with others, in remembrance of the Lord's death, and in sharing our lives together in Christ Jesus
6. the joy of fellowship with one another in a common union that glorifies God, draws us each to Jesus Christ, and allows us to affirm and mutually support one another in our shared and individual callings
7. the joy of the Apostles' teaching, being not only hearers but doers of the Word, letting the truth of the Gospel permeate our thought life and our conversation, and growing in grace as His Word renews our mind
Who can say, if they are a follower of Christ, that experiencing all of these things is not a joy?
I want to ENCOURAGE you- don't miss out on the full measure of Jesus Christ's joy which He wants you to experience through Him with Christians around you in your house, on the job, at your place of worship, with your family and friends, and the like.
Make a real connection with at least ONE Christian brother or sister to experience all of these devotions AS JOYS this next week together. Don't see "The Seven Devotions" as "The Seven Duties" or "The Seven LAWS", the letter is death but the spirit is life, experiencing the seven devotion as JOYS is a manifestation of experiencing Kingdom Living TOGETHER in Christ Jesus.
Will you step into living the Kingdom together in Christ Jesus?
Replies
Mark
I VERY much agree! When we do these things ~ this is what produces true joy!
Mark Francis Marinucci said:
I do like this article, since so many times we begin to feel it a duty to love our neighbor, to pray without ceasing, instead of it being a Joy. Christ should be our Joy, and not only when we are down and need His Love and Strength, but when we doing well also. Christ did tell us that the one great Law is to love our God with all of our Heart and Soul, and to Love our neighbor, but we at times fail to realize to Joy it can bring. The unbelievable Joy and Peace these Devotions bring is priceless. Thanks for your insight.
Mark Marinucci