Love you all, praying for you,
Praying that you will take time today to do PiVAT Monthly for the coming month – and spend that time with God. – First so you can review His faithfulness to you this entire month, and be sure you completed everything He assigned for your joy and your good. Second, so you will know what He has for you this coming month! Everything He chooses to reveal so far. Praying that you’ll review PiVAT Monthly – for a refresher on why its so important. I just felt God wanted me to share this morning the FAQ’s on PiVAT Monthly and the final thoughts. PiVAT Monthly seems a little redundant. If I’m faithful with PiVAT before dinner and PiVAT Weekly, isn’t that enough? PiVAT monthly is a wonderful protection against the tyranny of the urgent. It forces you to seek God for His longer term perspective. In fact, you may wish to get away each quarter, and every December to seek God's plan for the year (PiVAT Yearly). Double entry is so minimal that it pales in comparison to the perspective God wants you to have through your PiVAT Monthly conversations with Him. Remember, He's trying to lift your eyes to eternal priorities - not temporal. As we learn to follow him Daily, Weekly and Monthly - Yearly also... the URGENT things - that seem like mountains in our life - take their proper perspective. He promised that His Word (Logos & Rhema) what He tells us - both through The Holy Bible, and the still small voice of the Holy Spirit, is a Lamp to our Feet (PiVAT) and a Light to our Path (PiVAT Weekly & PiVAT Monthly). God's longer term plan ensures that we are not so narrowly focused on the urgent daily tasks - that we neglect the daily steady plodding required for His greater purpose for our character this month. He truly wants us to be conformed to His image. Salvation comes the moment we believe, but it's effects are worked out over time through our surrender to His complete will. Both short term daily tasks, and longer term character results come from steady plodding at His direction. What if the month is almost over, and I just didn’t do one of the things He told me? (and it required steady plodding – so I can’t just do it today.) FIRST ask God again - was this one You or was this me? Sometimes, especially at first, we may confuse some of our own monthly plans with God's will for us this month. Maybe God didn't say "build a new house," "lose 100 pounds," "raise $100k for the homeless," and "learn a second language" in 30 days. Sometimes in our desire to accomplish things - even to please God, we confuse His will with our own. But God will lovingly reveal this too, and the more PiVAT Monthly's we do, the better we will discern His voice versus our own. SECOND ask for forgiveness. If God said to do something 3 days a week this month, and it's already the 3rd week, ask God to forgive you for not fully obeying in this area. Then, know for sure that you are forgiven. I John 1:9 - "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Wait a minute. That sounds a little religious and legalistic. You’re saying I need to ask forgiveness for this? It’s not like I robbed a bank, or cussed somebody out. That depends if God told you to do it or not. "But that’s not like sinning… bad sinning…" Hmm… What is sin? (Greek: hamartano) to miss the mark (and so not to share in the prize) - to fall short. If God told us to do something, and we fell short – missed the mark, the target He wanted for us - that’s what the definition of sin is. We typically ask forgiveness only for things God told us not to do - but we did them anyway (the 10 commandments kind of stuff). These are sins of commission; things we did wrong, sins we committed that we knew were not pleasing to God. But God’s desire for obedience, is not a list of do’s and don’ts – it’s a path. Walking in the Spirit always takes us somewhere – the path He has for us. God's love always takes us from where we are to the first step forward from here. James 1:5 - If anyone of you lacks wisdom let him ask of God who gives liberally, without finding fault, and it will be given him. Great news! If you're still breathing, you can be faithful from this point forward, from this day forward! As we grow in our understanding of His loving Lordship over our lives, sometimes we need to ask His forgiveness for things He told us to do, but we just didn't fully obey. Not Ten Commandments, but rather Jesus specific “commands to us” - by the Holy Spirit. These are sins of omission, things we omitted or failed to do that He told us to. His Word is still his Word, whether Genesis through Revelation - revealed by His Holy Spirit - or His specific will and direction for us - revealed by His Holy Spirit. Sin - means falling short. Just confess where you have fallen short, and ask Him to forgive you. He will. (Done Deal). Now, He wants you to Move Forward! Just start obeying from here! His GRACE is there to help you! All Praise to God! Third, ask God, “Now What?” Don't just double up the activities for the remaining days this month. Ask Him, "Now What?" Maybe this TO DO was God's to do for you - but you got carried away and tried to do it your own way instead of His way. God is realistic, we aren’t. Even good things - He wants us to do at His pace - not ours. So Ask Him - from this day forward for the rest of the month - what would you have me do in this area? Then ask Him Daily for His Grace and DO IT! Share on your Daily Call. God's two by two principle is a powerful thing - because prayer is a powerful weapon. Loving accountability alone sometimes helps us be faithful where we wouldn't otherwise - even when God told us to. I'm embarrassed and ashamed to say this, but there have been times I did what God told me to do this month - not because I love Him so much, but because my Daily Call is coming at 7:30 a.m. and I will have to share with my brother... "Did I fully obey this month?” Be encouraged dear friend, God knows we are but dust. He will always "dust us off," and set us on the right track again. He loves you so much that He gave us the principle of Two by Two: Walking with another to help us learn to obey him fully so we can walk in the joy of the LORD. (See the 3-Day-Challenge) Final thoughts on PiVAT Monthly – Guard against fear, and guard against selfish ambition. Remember, PiVAT is a change of direction: From man’s way to God’s Way! Guard against fear. Fear can cloud God's voice for your PiVAT Monthly. Just because you fear something doesn't mean God is giving you a To Do for the month. Just because everyone at the office is convinced layoffs are coming - doesn't mean God is telling you to look for another job, sell the house, sell the car, or sell the dog and the kids. That job-looking could keep from doing your best on the job you have. Guard against selfish ambition. PiVAT Monthly is most susceptible to Goal Driven Christianity. Financial Goals, Career Goals, Ministry Goals: are not always God. In fact, it's surprising how often our goals can become more us than God, or even not God at all. Christians these days are big on setting goals. We are driven to accomplish things that we want- or things we think that God wants for us. But consider this: How many goals did Jesus set? Did Jesus give the disciples a seminar on Goal Setting? "Plan your work and work your plan." "If you do what you've always done - you'll get what you've always got." These are not Jesus' words, they are man-made wisdom. Not that there is no element of truth to them, but the most dangerous lies are always part truth. God's ways are different than man's ways - especially man's ways of "doing church" or doing Christianity. John 6:38 - Jesus said: "for I have come from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me." 2 Cor 5:9 - "For we make it our goal to please him..." James 4:13-15, "Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, according to the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that. God doesn't need you to be rich so you can give more money. He already owns all the money! - and can direct it like a leaf blowing in the wind - wherever He chooses. God doesn't need you to get a promotion for you to have a greater impact at work. He may have these things for you in time, but learn to obey daily, weekly & monthly first. Seek Him, and be faithful in the little things. The more PRISM time you spend in His WORD, the more your thinking and perspective will change. Man's goals are temporal-minded, God's plans for you are eternal, and "His Goal" is that you will Hear Well Done! Pursuing your goals will not accomplish this, only hearing and obeying what God has for you today, this week, and this month - will yield reward and joy on this earth and reward and joy in heaven. Matthew 25:21 - "His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the Joy of your Lord." PiVAT Monthly will help you understand the larger things God wants you to walk in. Just obey daily, He will help you. Joy is there! Love you all, dad
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