What is our purpose in life and how do we fulfill this purpose?
Over the years, we (Ricky and Mandy) have found that nominal Christianity (a.k.a. Sunday morning/Easter/Christmas Christianity) is not cutting it. Our society is in 'self-destruct mode'. You name any destructive element and we, as a society, possess it: wars, gang violence, poverty, pollution, greed, a thriving sex-saturated media, broken homes, broken marriages, deception, genocide, ethnic tension, hate, murder, theft, drug and alcohol abuse. You name it, it's there! The list goes on and on. Go to a news website right now... http://www.cnn.com/ , http://www.foxnews.com/ , http://www.msnbc.com/ , http://www.cbsnews.com/ and look at the headlines. Why are there never any encouraging and uplifting news stories? Because the Body is not working the way it should be. Do not get us wrong, there are a lot of great things happening out there by a lot of great people, but the overwhelming truth is that this society is becoming more corrupt and destructive as the days go on. The Body of Christ is called to a HIGHER standard!
We (Ricky and Mandy) recently moved to Charleston, South Carolina in an effort to follow after God's call for our hearts. We received a lot of criticism (and some support) for this move, but we knew in our hearts that we must ultimately listen to our Father and do as He says.
We married on June 18, 2011 and by July 1, we were in our new place. We have been beyond blessed through connections we have made with our church, our new friends, and our work places. By relying upon one another solely in this transition, our marriage has been significantly strengthened and we find ourselves loving one another more each day.
Not only have we gained these wonderful things, but our relationship with our Heavenly Father has been brought to a whole new level. After about a month of on-and-off prayer time/Bible study, we decided that we would forever end this ebb and flow of a relaxed Christian lifestyle. On August 15, 2011, we began what we termed "Jesus P90X". You may be thinking "what a cheesy name," but the 'p' and the 'x' in P90X stands for 'power' and 'extreme'. THAT is what we are looking for in our relationship with God...extreme power! Just as it is important for us to strengthen our outer man (physical body), it is imperative that we strengthen our inner man (spiritual body).
Over the past month, we have learned some wonderful things and through it, have grown closer to our Creator. We want to challenge everyone around us to join us on this journey as we draw closer to Heaven and Heaven draws closer to us. Through it, you will not be disappointed, but rather, you will grow in power, strengthen, resistance, and ultimately COMPLETE freedom!
Can you imagine a world without bondage? We can, but it will only happen with our sincere hearts turned back to the Father. (Malachi 4:6, Joel 1:13-14)
We call this blog "Letters from His Beloved" because that is what we are. We are HIS BELOVED!! The postings on this blog are to encourage you to begin your OWN pursuing relationship with the Lord. Wake up a little earlier each morning and begin your day with Him in prayer, worship, and Bible study...watch your life transform and watch your society be changed.
Beloved, you are seen as a beautiful created being in the eyes of your Maker. Rejoice today, for the King is alive!
Our Challenge to you is this:
-Begin a regimen. Set a time aside EACH day to spend with the Lord. Do not take it flippantly. See it as a meeting with the King. If the president or a leader of a nation called you up and asked to meet with you immediately, would you not drop everything you were doing and get there? We always put things aside for job interviews, meetings with friends, and time on the internet or playing video games. Why don’t we set aside time each day to meet with God?
-Find a study and stick to it. Take a book from the Bible and find a commentary. Currently, Mandy is doing a study by Beth Moore entitled “Stepping Up: The Psalms of Ascent” and Ricky is doing a study on the Book of Revelation by Mike Bickle. There are a lot of great resources out there to help you on this journey. (We recommend www.mikebickle.org for a ton of GREAT and FREE studies.) Dive deep in the Word and set challenges for yourself.
-Take time apart to pray. Make a prayer list of things you want to see changed (lives, cities, nations, etc.). There is a great book by Dutch Sheets entitled "Intercessory Prayer" and a follow-up entitled "Authority in Prayer" that we highly recommend if you are in need of strengthening this area of your life.
-Finally, create an account on YouTube or iTunes and download some worship music that will connect your heart to the Father’s. We highly recommend Misty Edwards, Corey Asbury, Jay Thomas, Kim Walker, or anyone from IHOP or Jesus Culture. *Also, check out the 24/7 Prayer Room at http://www.ihop.org/ -- this prayer room has been praying and worshipping for 24/7/365 without cease since 1999!
-By incorporating these three elements (Word, Worship, and Prayer), you will be guaranteed to meet God in His highest courts!
Note: You don’t have to have the same EXACT time each day (i.e. 5:30 a.m. to 7:30 a.m.), but by doing this, it helps you make it a pattern in your life.
-His Beloved
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