I have heard when a couple has been together for a long time, they begin to resemble one another. I’m not sure if you can really start to look like someone over time, but have you ever been around an older married couple (like my husband and myself!) who finishes each other’s sentences? As a Christian, that question, “Who do you favor?” no longer irritates me, but challenges me to become more and more like my Heavenly Father. I have a long way to go, but I am believing that the more time I spend with Him, the more I will “favor” Him. Of course, I can spend time with Him because, unlike my natural father, my Heavenly Daddy is ALWAYS available!

All of us, intentionally or not, reflect someone or something. Wouldn’t it stand to reason, then, for us to make a conscious choice as to who or what that is? I choose to strive to be more like my Heavenly Daddy!

As I continue to spend time with Him, I am changing my D.N.A. to stand for “Daddy Now Available!”

~Connie Robinson

Next, the graphic is sent to a cutter that cuts the design into the vinyl; once we were designed, God created us. The design has to be weeded out of the vinyl, starting with the outline which sets the borders.

Then each small piece of excess vinyl must be picked out in order to get the perfect, desired decal. In our lives, there is always excess vinyl that must be removed in order to achieve the desired design of God. Through praying, fasting and seeking God, any excess baggage, down to the most minute detail, can be removed. We as Christians should strive to get as much of the excess vinyl removed from our lives so that we can be as close to God’s perfect design for each of us.

~Barry Duncan

 That simple choice has led me to where I am now.  I’m doing more than ever thought possible a few years ago.  For example, I’m continuing to write articles for church magazine, transcribe sermons into books, all while maintaining my courses in communication at college. It’s in His strength and grace that I’m able to do all these things. What excuses have you let creep into your life? Whether you realize it or not, these excuses slowly eat away at the passion you once had for life. You may have been a vibrant person, and after you let the weight and cares of this life weigh you down, your friends and family may not even recognize the depressed person you’ve become.

It’s not too late to make a change, though! Humble yourself before God and ask him to let his thoughts about you be your thoughts about yourself. When you start to see yourself as God sees you, you will realize his grace has always been there. You just have to reach out and grab it! After you recommit yourself to God, do something! You’ve heard it said time and time again that actions speak louder than words. If your passion is children, go where they are. Spend time teaching them how to read through the school system. You’ll be surprised at the opportunities that will come your way as a result of your decision to quit making excuses!

 ~Madison Sanders

 

Even though I didn’t do all that I had set out to do this last week, I still managed to do more than I was doing before seeking time. There has been this great peace not to condemn myself for not doing all that I had purposed to do. I spent a lot of time condemning myself in previous years, but not this time. Not that I feel it’s ok that I didn’t do what I set out to do last week, but I know I don’t need to beat myself down because I have tomorrow to try and get it right. I know this new perspective comes from me understanding that God knows my heart, not just my actions. I also have been more sensitive to those checks in my spirit. Knowing myself the way I do, this is really proof that God is already working on me, even though it’s just been a few days!

I am more excited than I have ever been in any other seeking time that I have participated in, and I can’t wait to see all that God has for me and for Gateway!!!  Don’t waste time condemning yourself for falling off the wagon or comparing your seeking time to someone else’s, but as soon as you get that check in your spirit just pick up from there. That’s all God needs is for you to be sensitive to your spirit. Obey your spirit and the changing process can begin.

~Michelle Parrish

Why am I in this condition? Because I have allowed my flesh to have control over my life instead of my spirit man. So this seeking time, I have purposed to attack the rule of my flesh in all aspects of my being: spirit, soul and body. I’ve committed to spend time each day towards developing myself spiritually, intellectually, and physically.

I wanted to share this with everyone because sometimes we think that mortifying our flesh can only be accomplished via abstaining from something we enjoy. However, if apathy or laziness is your tendency of the flesh, getting up and doing something you haven’t been doing can bring just as much mortification to your “lumpy, fat and lazy” self! So let Holy Spirit come in and ups-a daisy! Let the mortification begin!

~Dr. Matt

Isaiah 53:5 “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,  And by His stripes we are healed.”

“That’s mine and you cannot have it!”

How many of you have every said those selfish words when you were growing up? How many of us were taught by our parents that we needed to share? I am sure we all were. God has been dealing with me a lot this past year about ownership. What do I own? What do I SAY is MINE? He is constantly checking me on my words. It is so easy to say, “That is mine” and still not really be aware of what I am trying to own. I have done a lot of listening to how people talk this year, and I have noticed how many times people refer to the negative things going on in their lives as being theirs.

Take sickness, for example. I often hear people talk about THEIR disease or sickness. The first thought that crosses my mind is, “You have taken ownership of something that is not even yours!” They talk about their disease or sickness as if it were their friend. They focus their whole lives around it. Over the years, I have had some bad reports from doctors. I usually don’t talk about them, and when I do, I try really hard not to take ownership of them because I DO NOT WANT THEM! I do not have to settle for what the doctor’s say.

I know I often feel like I’m chipping away at my circumstance with my faith and I get to where I can just begin to see a light at the end on the other side, then WHAM! I am hit with something else! Of course, that’s the way the devil wants me to think life is, but I know better. The Word says I always triumph in Christ, regardless of my circumstances! When you get bombarded, you can loose your focus. You have to be watchful, because you can end up shifting your focus from God and His Kingdom to yourself.  Before you know it, you have taken ownership of your bad circumstances. You eat, drink, sleep, and live your circumstances. What you don’t realize is that you don’t own those circumstances because Christ redeemed you from them, but you sure are letting those circumstances OWN you!

During this seeking time, my focus is to meditate more on His Word, to spend more time in fellowship with Him, and to spend more time in worship so that my focus gets realigned in all the areas that it needs to. I am going to pay close attention to the words I speak and take the thoughts that are not of God captive. I refuse to give up and give in! Our words are POWERFUL! God spoke and it WAS! We will all eventually walk in whatever we speak. My suggestion to you is that you make a list of what you want to own this year and throw out anything that is not of God. Take ownership of what God says about you and your circumstances. The last time I looked, the Word says that WE WIN!

~Ronda  Sullivan

For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.  – Romans 8:29

We must be conformed or fashioned into the image of Christ that is deposited in our new nature when we are born again.  Be honest with yourself and take a moment to pinpoint the things in your life that you know are not conformed to this image. What is it in you that is not Christ-like?  These things are called the “works of the flesh” (Galatians 5:19-21) and must be addressed in order for the image of Christ to come forth in you.

For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the spirit you mortify the deeds of the body, you will live.  – Romans 8:13

By definition, mortification is the process by which you become dead.  Of course, we are not literally killing ourselves in order to be conformed to the image of Christ.  Instead, we are recognizing what we call “positional truth.”  By Christ’s death, burial and resurrection, we have been given certain truths positionally in the spirit.  For example, Ephesians 2:6 tells us that Christ has “raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.”  We are not physically sitting in heavenly places, but we are positioned there in that place of authority by Christ’s work.  By the same token, when the Apostle Paul says in Galatians 2:20 that he is “crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live” he is talking about the positional truth that is accomplished by identifying with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. He was simply saying that he had died to his own desires so that the will, plan, and purpose of God would take the forefront in his life.  So often, we say we want God’s plan in our lives, but we are not willing to let go of our own. In order to do this, we must surrender our carnal desires by dying to our own will. When we do this, His will becomes the driving force of our lives.

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.- Romans 12:1

I affirm, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily. – 1 Corinthians 15:31

And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. – Galatians 5:24

In order to identify with Christ’s death in a positional way, we submit ourselves to the process of becoming dead to the flesh.  This is accomplished through fasting.  We know that speaking in tongues for edification builds our spirit man up and begins to address the sins or handles that are present in our soulish realm.  By adding fasting, we accelerate the process by which we are conformed to the image of Christ because we are also identifying with His physical death. This “one-two punch” of tongues for edification plus fasting makes up the foundation for the Mortification Process. This process causes the image of Christ to be revealed in us. Is there something keeping you from victory in every area of your life? Are there parts of you that do not look like Jesus? What is hindering God’s plan for your life from coming to pass? What keeps God’s power, anointing, and miracles from flowing through you? Now is the time to find the answers to these questions. Now is the time to SEEK God through prayer and fasting.

WELCOME TO SEEKING TIME 2012!!!

~Linda Frederick