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ShareFirst Love
- Sun, Dec 13, 2009
- Permalink
Do you remember a time when your passion for Jesus was greater than it is right now? While it may be common for our intimacy and devotion to Jesus to wane, it’s not inevitable! This issue of Revive will help you identify the root causes of spiritual complacency and coldness, and reconnect to Jesus and all that He is.
Articles In This Issue
Article- Byron Paulus
- Mon, Dec 7, 2009
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A recent Northwest flight carrying 144 passengers from San Diego to Minneapolis overflew the airport by 150 miles. The pilots remained unresponsive to air traffic controllers and airline officials who were desperately trying to make contact. White House officials were closely monitoring the event, and four fighter jets were preparing to intercept the aircraft.
The plane finally turned around after a stewardess got the pilots' attention by pounding on the cockpit door. What went wrong? The seasoned pilots had apparently become so absorbed with a new software program on their laptops that they had lost track of their destination!
The ...
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- Del Fehsenfeld
- Mon, Dec 7, 2009
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I am notorious at my house for being physically present but hopelessly lost in thought. It's so bad that my young son once jokingly asked me if he could drive my car...and I absentmindedly gave him the keys!
Fortunately, my wife and kids can usually laugh with me (and at me!) about my tendency to "zone out." But habitual inattentiveness is no laughing matter, because attention is a critical building block for any relationship, including our relationship with God.
What about you? Do you pay attention to Jesus? Does He occupy your thoughts and fuel your passions? Can ...
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- David Bryant
- Mon, Dec 7, 2009
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I attended a high school that is football-crazy. It boasted a stadium seating 20,000 and produced nearly twenty-five state championship teams. The team is called the Massillon Tigers. Our mascot requires a taller student to dress up like a tiger-I mean, wearing a real tiger skin! He inherits a name of affection: Obie the Tiger.
Here's how a mascot works. At times in the midst of a game, if we're falling behind, the coach signals time-out. Because the crowd needs to be stirred to cheer more enthusiastically for the team's victory, the uniformed tiger runs his ...
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- Nathan McLaurin
- Mon, Dec 7, 2009
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While rehearsing for a surge of fifty concerts this summer, rock star Michael Jackson collapsed and was pronounced dead at the age of 50. Counseling hotlines were overwhelmed with despondent fans. At least twelve suicides were directly linked to hysteria over Jackson's death. Their idol was dead, and for many, life lost its meaning.
As misguided as it may seem to put hope in an aging rock star, each of us is wired to invest time, energy, and passion in what we believe will truly satisfy our hearts. Put another way, we all choose "saviors" in life—the things ...
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- Nancy Leigh DeMoss
- Mon, Dec 7, 2009
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There is a simplicity and purity about devotion to Christ that can easily be lost as we become more "sophisticated" in our faith. We know more about Jesus, and we're doing more for Him; but in the process, we often leave Jesus Himself behind. Jesus has a simple but earnest message for us, as He did for the first-century church in Ephesus: "You have forsaken your first love" (Rev. 2:4).
Jesus says in effect, "Your theology is straight. You are busy serving Me. You have lots of activity going on. But you're missing the pulse. You're ...
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- Wilson Green
- Mon, Dec 7, 2009
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No matter how far we've wandered, Jesus invites us to return. That's just the way He is...He longs for us to rediscover the love that once defined our experience with Him.
I know. There was a time in my life as a pastor when I shipwrecked my relationship with Jesus by allowing busyness to dominate. In one particular month, I remember 28 days with activities that kept me away from home. Living on the run was the pattern of my ministry.
Needless to say, I had ignored the biblical priority of relationship in the midst of activity ...
- Article
- Life Action
- Mon, Dec 7, 2009
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One of the best ways to get to know Jesus better is to ask someone who already knows Jesus well. Dennis Kinlaw certainly fits that category. He has joyfully radiated passionate love for the King for decades, and his lifetime of scholarly work has focused on Jesus as the center of biblical theology. Revive had the chance to sit down with Dr. Kinlaw and ask him about the ingredients of white-hot love for Jesus.
Who is Jesus?
Dr. Kinlaw: There are two watershed events in human history. One was Moses' experience with God at the burning bush, when God told ...
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- Bill Elliff
- Mon, Dec 7, 2009
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What if you could turn a corner and find a million dollars? Or a new house or car? If you're like me, you couldn't wait to make that turn!
But here's a staggering spiritual truth: Jesus is the way that leads us into the presence of God. In Him we find wisdom and knowledge...supply for every need...love that fills our deepest heart-longings...perspective that gives meaning to every circumstance...adventure that takes us places we could never go on our own.
Everything worth having flows from Him. That's why there is nothing more important ...
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- Kevin Adams
- Mon, Dec 7, 2009
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The teenager was on a tour of European cities when he happened to visit the art gallery at Dusseldorf, where he noticed a portrait that would transform his life. The year was 1719, and having spent some years at Wittenberg University, the young man was still undecided on his life's calling.
Born into an aristocratic family, Count Zinzendorf had the influence of a godly grandmother, who herself had been influenced by the new Pietist movement. She passed on to her grandson a desire for a devotional and experiential walk with God.
After 200 years, Lutheranism had remained orthodox, yet ...
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- Dr. Richard Fisher
- Mon, Dec 7, 2009
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Would the Lord Jesus actually remove the lampstand of one of His churches? Or fight against them as if they were an enemy? Or blot someone's name from the book of Life? How should the warnings of Jesus be understood by those of us who have put our confidence in His grace and mercy? First, the warnings of Jesus get to the heart of what we mean when we say that Jesus is "Lord." When many of us think of Jesus, the picture that rightly comes to mind is of a loving Savior who died for our sins. Yet ...
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- Life Action
- Mon, Dec 7, 2009
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I've traveled this road before. Sin, repent, change. Sin, repent, change. Love God, love the world. Love God, love the world. Why will this time be any different?
The Scenario
It's been way too long since I've said this, God: I love You. Yeah, I know it doesn't seem like it. Honestly, I've let You get out of sight, and as a result You've been out of mind for quite some time. Now that I'm in need, I'm coming back. But You see right through that, don't You? I want to ...
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- Daniel Henderson
- Mon, Dec 7, 2009
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The love of Jesus is one of the most amazing themes of the Bible. In fact, Scripture tells us, "We love because he first loved us" (1 John 4:19). But have you ever wondered how we could possibly express to the Lord how much we love Him in response?
In a recent prayer summit where I led 120 men at a beautiful camp 6,000 feet above sea level in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, I asked, "If the Lord were to write a personal letter to you today, recounting His amazing love throughout your earthly journey, what would that ...
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- Life Action
- Mon, Dec 7, 2009
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Download this Making It Personal worksheet to help personalize this topic of encouraging relationships. Download PDF
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- Dan Jarvis
- Mon, Dec 7, 2009
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This issue of Revive has been very challenging to me. If you've felt the conviction of God's Spirit reading articles about the need to love God wholeheartedly, imagine having to comb through the words again and again! So what "next step" might God want us to take? If we've repented of our sins and refocused our passion on Jesus, what else is there? As I asked myself that question, I remembered that Jesus actually told us what comes next. After giving us the first and greatest command, to love God with all that we are, He went ...
Additional Online Resources
Is it possible to fully describe Jesus Christ, our King? As many words as we have in the English language, there are still not enough to adequately describe the character and goodness of Jesus Christ. However, one of the best attempts to describe our King came from Dr. S.M. Lockridge.
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The Real Jesus
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Podcast Episode
There are things or people in which we tend to place our worth and security. These become our "functional saviors." Nate McLaurin reminds us that Jesus must be the focus of our worship. Nate serves as the Director for Discipleship and Leadership Development at Christ's Covenant Church in Winona Lake, IN
The Bible tells us that certain behaviors make Jesus so upset that He wants to spit. It's not a pleasant thought, but it's crucial to find out what these behaviors are. Nancy will explain, in this powerful series. Listen to this radio series from Revive Our Hearts.
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The Door to Intimacy
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Podcast Episode
Remember the excitment you had on the day of your salvation? Unfortunately, often over time we tend to lose our passion for Jesus. Bill Elliff, pastor of The Summit Church in Little Rock, Arkansas, will show us how to renew that first love through the doorway of intimacy.
Download this practical list of truths from John Ortberg that will help you cultivate the practice of God's presence.
Download this helpful resource by Nancy Leigh DeMoss. 40 Evidences That You May Have. Left Your First Love. 1. You can go hours or days without having more than a passing thought of Him...
Byron Paulus is the Executive Director of Life Action Ministries. His passion for revival in our nation is evident whether you're reading ministry updates, thoughts on current events, or helpful content on personal revival. We invite you to interact by posting your thoughts and comments.
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