Staying Connected Part 5
Sharable notes for the February 21, 2021 message. You can post these notes on your social platform!
Scriptures used: Philippians 3:14; Galatians 5:22-25; John 10:10; Hebrews 12:2, 4:12; 1 Corinthians 9:24-27; 2 Timothy 2:5, 3:16-17; Romans 10:17; 1 Peter 2:2-3; Matthew 4:4; James 1:22
The ultimate fruit we can bear is the fruit of the Holy Spirit. Staying connected to Christ is what produces this fruit in us.
We must live our life with the same focus and determination as if we were running a race to win. At the same time we must live with integrity. We can't live aimlessly.
If we want to live connected to Christ, we must not live according to the directives of the world. Instead we must live by God’s Word that points us to the resurrected Jesus.
Connection to the Word and the power of the Holy Spirit leads us to run our race correctly, with passion, with hope, with joy and with our eyes on our eternal reward.
Questions to ask for spiritual introspection: Am I always pressing forward in my relationship with Christ? Am I daily seeking God’s word and Holy Spirit to guide me? Are my eyes on the end prize of eternity with Him? Am I living in distraction? Am I living in apathy? Am I focused on the finish line like Jesus? Am I living as one with others or am I living divisively and in division? Am I in Jesus?
Reflect or meet with someone to discuss:
We can't be perfect, but on a scale of 1-5 how is your production of the fruit of the Spirit in your life? If it's low on the scale, what can you do to make production better?
How has distraction generally caused problems in your life before?
Do you get distracted in your spiritual life? How so, and why do you think that is? How can you guard against that distraction?
How often are you reading God's word? Who can you start being accountable with to help you or them in stay focused on His word?
Click the image to start a new 5 day devotion in YouVersion:
The same way winning a marathon requires a high level of physical fitness, we must be spiritually fit in order to run well the life God has set before us. Over the next 5 days, you’ll be conditioned to run this race to win. We’ll face the hurdle of hopelessness head on. We’ll discover how to stay encouraged and keep our fires burning for God no matter what challenges await.