Overcoming Adversity to Make God’s Dream for You Come True

This video is for you or someone you know who has had Pain roar into their lives – emotional and/or physical pain. Pain is one of the ways Satan steals our lives (our days), kills our dreams, and destroys our destinies. This video reveals the process God gave me to rise above the pain in my life. That process will work for you too!

 00:00 My Story

1:04 God’s Promise: Psalm 40:1-3

3:16 God Lifted me above my pain

6:05Activation

I returned after 15 years in China and Hong Kong. I was in a wheel chair. I didn’t know I would have screaming pain in my back, hips and legs for the next ten years. I didn’t know I would have 4 surgeries, multiple injections in my spine, and take opioids for years, yet still live a very limited life – sharp, crippling nerve pain setting boundaries on everything I tried to do.

While in Hong Kong, I led two prayer meetings in a large church there. I had prayed for hundreds of people and seen many miraculous healings. Yet, here I was. Many people prayed for me. I prayed for myself. But the nightmare continued.

Shortly after returning to the America, God gave me this scripture. It was His promise to me!

 Psalm 40:1-3 NIV

 I waited patiently for the Lord;
     he turned to me and heard my cry.
 2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
     out of the mud and mire;
 he set my feet on a rock
     and gave me a firm place to stand.
 3 He put a new song in my mouth,
     a hymn of praise to our God.
 Many will see and fear the Lord
     and put their trust in him.

How precious this was to me. God turned to me.  He looked at me. He knew. He understood what I was going through. And He cared. This scripture promised He would lift me out of the muck and mire I was stuck in. I knew I couldn’t get out on my own. Then He put a new song in my mouth. Many of the Old Testament songs were stories -what God had done for them. Yes, Lord. Write a new song in my life. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord. I felt so loved and so grateful for this timely promise.

The next morning, I woke up in pain, as usual. This pain wasn’t just discomfort. It was volcano-level pain, pain that left me in a fog where I couldn’t think or do anything but hurt. 

I opened my Journal and read God’s promise to me in Psalm 40:1-3. But as I read and declared this scripture over myself, my faith grew. I began to praise God while in the pit of my pain and despair. I put on anointed praise and worship music. After a while I found myself singing along – and meaning it. 

 Then God did something truly amazing. He lifted me above the pain! 

The pain was still there, but my mind was at peace and, although limited physically, I was able to enjoy life that day. Every morning I woke up in pain, often exhausted from a fitful sleep. Fogged in, I grabbed a cup of coffee and went into my study to be with God. I literally had to fight for each day. 

As I met with God every morning to put this pain under my feet, He did. He set my feet on the firm foundation of His love and the truth of His Word. I spent 1-2 hours praising, worshiping and letting God speak to me through His Word. These turned into precious times. And morning after morning Jesus lifted me out of the mud and mire of pain and thoughts of discouragement and despair. He brought me to Him, where joy, peace, and love awaited.

What God did for me he will do for you. My prayer is that my story will increase your faith to reach out and take hold of his hand. He will lift you out of the pit of despair and pain you’ve fallen into. This could be emotional pain as well as physical pain. Take His hand and be healed, in Jesus name!

What distinguishes you and every Christian from all the other people of the earth? This was Moses' question to God and it's our question today.

00:00 Moses’ Question to God

3:36 Moses’ Question is Our Question Today.

4:18 Beginning tomorrow, I will do daily videos called 2 Minute transformations. They are daily devotionals 

4:44 Activation: As You Look at Jesus, Holy Spirit With Make You Like Him

6:05 3 steps to launch you on a journey of transformation each morning

6:07 1. Decide to give your time, your energy, and your heart to passionately pursue God throughout this day.

6:37 2. Renew Your Mind 

7:31 3. Do What God Reveals. Daily Applying God’s Word Prepares Us For the Hard Times

After the Golden Calf

We begin with Moses’ response to God’s rejection of Israel after the people made and worshipped a golden calf idol. Moses interceded until God agreed to go with them. Why was this so important to Moses?

Exodus 33:14-17 NLT

14 The Lord replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”

15 Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. 16 How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”

Moses’ Question is Our Question Today.

“What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”

What distinguishes you, a Christian, from all the other people and all the other belief systems of the world? Only God’s presence in you and on you.

 Beginning tomorrow, I will do daily videos called 2 Minute transformations. They are daily devotionals - sparks to light the fire of your passionate pursuit of God every morning. My goal is that you will meet God through these scriptures and stories and be filled with His presence, His power, and His purpose for your day. It is in meeting Jesus we are changed to become more like Him. And it is through His presence and power on us that others recognize Christ in Us.

Activation: As You Look at Jesus, Holy Spirit Will Make You Like Him (See the Activation!!)

2 Corinthians 3:18

Jesus is the glory we gaze upon.

Hebrews 1:3 NIV

Holy Spirit is the one who changes us, who transforms us, to become like Jesus. (See 1 Corinthians 6:11, Romans 15:16) 

Take These 3 steps to launch you on a journey of transformation each morning:

 1. Decide to Give your time, your energy, and your heart to passionately pursue God throughout this day.
Romans 12:1 EASY

2. Renew Your Mind 

Romans12:2 NLT

3. Do What God Reveals. Daily Applying God’s Word Prepares Us For the Hard Times

Matthew 7:24-27 (Parable of house built on rock (applying God’s word) and sand (listening but not doing it).

Doing what God says strengthens us and prepares us for the storms of life. We become someone who not only survives our own storms, but can help others being tossed around mercilessly by life’s many difficulties.

Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to get so filled with the presence, the love, and the power of the Holy Spirit every day that you splash everyone around you and leave a trail of Holy Spirit wherever you go. 

071 How to Take Off the Old You and Put on Christ  Romans 13:14    

This video will give you practical steps to “take off” old ungodly thoughts, attitudes, desires, and sins and put on Christ - His character, His authority, and His victory over sin, self, and Satan. It’s as easy as taking off your old dirty clothes and putting on new, clean clothes – once you know how.

00:0 Surrounded

1:51 Desperate for Answers

2:41 God replaces our ungodly thoughts, attitudes, and desires with Himself

3:21 Desires Drive Us to Do What We Do

4:34 God made us with desires that only He can fill.

5:16 ACTIVATION: Take Off the Old You and Put On Christ

5:53 Step 1. Take off your filthy old rags. 

6:53 Step 2. Wash in the Water of the Word of God.

7:46 Step 3. Put on Christ. 

God’s ways of changing our thoughts, our attitudes, and our desires is to replace them – with Himself. 

Desires Drive Us to Do What We Do

Romans 13:14 ESV

But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.

Desires are what drive us. All conscious human behavior is driven by desires. God made each of us with the same basic human desires. Everyone wants Approval, belonging, freedom, joy, justice, love, significance, recognition, justice, security, peace, etc.  

Philippians 2:13 NLT, Psalm 37:4 ESV, See Romans 8:32 and Philippians 4:19 NIV

God made us with desires that only he can fill. When we try to fill these desires ourselves, we get away from God and quickly get in trouble. 

ACTIVATION: Take Off the Old You and Put On Christ

Ephesians 4:21-24 NLT

21 Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, 22 throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. 23 Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. 24 Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.

Taking off and putting on is a pattern taught throughout the New Testament. How do we do that?

Step 1. Take off your filthy old rags. 

*Your filthy rags are the ungodly thoughts, attitudes, desires and sin you have allowed into your life. You have a new nature and are a new creation in Christ, but the past still calls out to you. It tries to lure you back into your old ways of thinking and doing things. See Isaiah 64:6 NIV

 *Ask Holy Spirit to show you the filthy rags you are wearing.  (See John 14:17 and John 16:13) 

*Repent. Ask God’s forgiveness if you have sinned and ask God to help you remove those thoughts, attitudes, & desires that keep coming into your mind. 

Step 2. Wash in the Water of the Word of God.

The Word of God is more powerful than we can grasp or even imagine. It cleanses us. It makes us Holy.  John 15:3 NIV, Ephesians 5:25-27 NIV

Find scripture that deal with the ungodly thoughts, attitudes, desires and sin that you are struggling with. Read these several times. Meditate on them. Let them wash over you. Let them cleanse you.

Step 3. Put on Christ. 

Put on the character and power of Jesus by putting on His thoughts, His attitudes, His desires, and His actions. 

*Declare scripture (God’s answer to your problem) out loud.

*Write it down and Memorize it so you will have it when the thoughts, attitudes or desires to sin attack. God’s Word will be your defense and your victory.

James 1:21, NLT So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls.

 *Take action steps to activate the Word in your everyday life. James 1:22, NLT

The greatest thing you will ever do with your life is to co-labor with God to save others. This is the story of Ah Tong, a Triad gang leader, who came to Christ and the life lessons God reveals for us to use with those we love the most - our family and friends.


00:00 The Kowloon Walled City
1:43   Ah Tong’s Story
4:23   How God Saved Ah Tong – A Biblical Pattern
5:23   PRAYER, CARE, SHARE TO SAVE THOSE YOU LOVE
6:59   Activation – Care to Save Those You Love

This video begins with the story of a triad boss and heroin addict in the Kowloon Walled City in the 1960’s. It’s the story of God reaching out to those in one of the darkest places on earth. The story is from “Chasing the Dragon”, by Jackie Pullinger 
https://amzn.to/3wvFXCI This is an affiliate link. (You pay the same price, but I receive a small commission on each sale. It helps support this podcast. Thanks.)

Look at How God Saved Ah Tong. There is a Biblical pattern here:

1st. God got Jackie Pullinger’s attention when Ah Tong, evil as he was, saved Ah Sor, the young man Jackie cared about deeply. She now cared about Ah Tong. She prayed for him to live and he had a miraculous recovery from what could have been a fatal knife wound.

2nd. Ah Tong knew that he almost died. And he believed Jackie’s prayers had saved his life. He sent people to thank her. He didn’t thank her himself because in Chinese culture bad people don’t directly approach good people. But he was grateful that she and her God cared. And he was grateful she prayed.

3rd. Jackie didn’t have a chance to share the Gospel with Ah Tong until he came to her for help with his out-of-control heroin addiction. Then, she didn’t preach him a sermon. She took him to people he knew who God had set free from heroin addiction and one of Ah Tong’s friends shared his testimony with Ah Tong. God often shares with others using the stories of our lives and what He has done for us. Ah Tong now had faith to be saved. 
Care, Prayer, and Share. That is the Biblical pattern for reaching others with the Gospel in a way that compels them to receive salvation and live for God.


The people you love need 3 things before they will give their lives for God:

1. CARE. They need to know God’s love. Love is what draws all men to Christ and to repentance. God often loves others through us – we are his hand and feet in this world. (See Romans 2:4 NLT, Jeremiah 31:3)

2. PRAYER. And they need prayer. Satan blinds unbelievers so they literally can’t see the truth. (See 2 Corinthians 4:4) Prayer removes spiritual blindness and prepares hearts to receive and believe God’s word and bring it to life.

3. SHARE. They need to hear the Gospel of Jesus which will save and transform them into sons and daughters of God. 

Romans 10:14  NLT
But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them?

John 8:32 NIV
Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.
This is the first in a series of videos that will show you how to apply care, prayer, and sharing the gospel to set your friends and family free. 

***Activation – Care to Save Those You Love
Think of someone you love who you really want to see believe in and follow Jesus. 

Ask God how you can express His care and love for them. Think of small practical things you can do today! Do whatever comes to mind. Pursue them with God’s love and no agenda. Just love and serve them as God directs.

This video reveals 3 Reasons it’s important to have A Teachable Heart: 

1st every spiritual truth must be revealed to us by God.

2nd not everyone is given the same ability to understand God’s Word. 

3rd the measure of your desire for God, pursuit of God, and obedience to God will determine how much God reveals Spiritual Truth to you.

00:00 Philip’s Story

1:49  3 Reasons It’s Important for you to Have a Teachable Heart

2:12  Why Jesus Taught in Parables

3:10   The Human Mind Cannot Understand Spiritual Things.

3:54   God Gives Us The Ability To Understand When We Are Willing To Do What He Says. 

4:49  The Measure Of Your Desire For God, Pursuit Of God, And Obedience To God Will Determine How Much God Reveals Spiritual Truth To You.

6:26  Use it or Lose It

7:51  Activation

Why Jesus Taught in Parables

Luke 8:10 NKJV

10 And He said, “To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that ‘Seeing they may not see, And hearing they may not understand.’

What? Jesus didn’t want them to understand? 

The Human Mind Cannot Understand Spiritual Things. See 1 Corinthians 2:14 NASB

No one understand the Bible with his mind. Holy Sprit is given to us and lives in us to lead and guide us into spiritual truth. That is the only way a man can understand God or the Bible – when Holy Spirit reveals it to us. See John 16:13. 

 God Gives Us The Ability To Understand When We Are Willing To Do What He Says. 

Bill Johnson explains Jesus’ reason for using parables (Luke 8:10 above): 

[Jesus] hides truth in parables so those who are not ready to obey will understand. Because if He increases the knowledge of those who are not ready to obey he just increased their accountability. It’s the mercy of God for Him to conceal truth and then make it to where only the hungry can find it. 

Jesus revealed the parables to his disciples because they were ready to understand and obey. They were teachable. Those in the crowds who were seeking truth and ready to obey would understand.

That’s true for us. Holy Spirit reveals things to us only when we are ready to change or to do them. Otherwise, we would be in sin – not doing what we knew we should – James 4:17.

The Measure Of Your Desire For , Pursuit Of , And Obedience To God Will Determine How Much Spiritual Truth God Reveals To You. See Mark 4:24 AMP

Use it or Lose It

Have you ever been in church and heard a teaching that literally rocked your world? You thought, that is life changing. Wow! So good. You left church uplifted and believed you were changed.

Two weeks later, a friend asks you what the sermon was because she was out of town and couldn’t attend church. You think for a while, but can’t remember.

What happened? You were given a spiritual truth God meant to change your life, you felt that when you heard it. But you did nothing with it. You didn’t take notes. You didn’t pursue more understanding through scripture and prayer. And you didn’t take an action step to apply that life-changing truth to your life. The result: you lost it.  See Mark 4:25AMP

Having a teachable heart means you desire, you yearn for more of God – more relationship, more truth – just more. And you open your Bible to meet God and to learn and be transformed into a new person. And what you learn, you treasure. You journal it. And you take action to make it part of your life.

If you do that, God will give you a greater ability to hear Him, to know Him, and to understand and live out spiritual truths that will transform your life and your nation.

This video reveals a simple, but powerful tool to reveal veils of deception in your life and the source of the deception. You can do this in a few minutes each day.

 Satan deceives us, but we deceive ourselves without any help from him. 

Jeremiah 17:9 NIV

 2 Corinthians 3:14 describes Satan’s ability to blind man as a veil.

 Only faith in Jesus removes the veil of deception over all of us.

 2 Corinthians 3:18 (NLT)

So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.

The ONE THING Needed to Root Out and Destroy Veils of Deception in Your Life

Things that are veiled are things that we cannot see. Holy Spirit will reveal them, but only when we are ready to change.

Luke 8:10 TPT

The one thing is your willingness to change. If you are willing, Holy Spirit will reveal veils of deception and show you how to break free from them.

 The 4 Influences On Your Heart

 Mark 4:3-9 TPT  FN

“The four kinds of soils speak of four kinds of hearts: hard hearts, hollow hearts, half hearts, and whole hearts. With the first soil we see the activity of Satan, the second, that of the flesh, and the third, that of the world. Bearing fruit is never a problem with what is sown but with the soil it falls upon.”

***ACTIVATION: Copy this and use it daily. You’ll be surprised how sensitive you become to ungodly influences on your heart. This is a great compass to keep you on course with God and for Holy Spirit to unveil deception in your life.

Step 1 Ask Holy Spirit to reveal to you the true condition of your heart. Pray: Psalm 139:23-24 NLT

Step 2 Examine Which of the 4 Influences are Affecting Your Heart Now

1. Are you “hard hearted?”

Hard-hearted means you are being influenced by Satan.

Sources of hard-heartedness: sin, offense, anger, unforgiveness, ingratitude, defeat, failure and pain in life – anything that separates you from God and makes your heart hard, cold, indifferent or unloving toward God or people. 

2. Are you “Hollow Hearted?”

Are you influenced by self-ish desires? 

Do you have Sexual lust, greed (for money, power, possessions, achievements and awards, fame or reputation, legacy, etc); jealousy, the desire for what others have, the need to compare yourself to others, to compete and best them? These make you “hollow hearted” because they never satisfy. They are hollow, empty things that you can waste your life on. They have no significance in eternity – none.

3. Are you “Half hearted?”

Half-hearted people are distracted by the things of the world. These can even be good things, like sports, games, entertainment, even good works God didn’t tell you to do. But if they interfere with your passionate pursuit of God and His plans and purposes for your life, you must remove them and refocus your attention, time and effort on God.

Hebrews 12:1 ERV

“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith” 

4. Are You Whole Hearted?

Mark 12:28-29

28 “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

29 “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 

Note that even for those who are wholehearted there is a difference in yield from the truth God plants in us. We can yield 30, 60, 100 times what was planted.

Satan causes us to be deceived and to deceive ourselves. This video will show you how the Holy Spirit is God’s answer to Satan’s ability to deceive mankind, and this video will launch you on your way to removing veils of deception in your life.

0:00 My Story

3:00 Satan Can Blind Us to Truth and Reality

5:01 God Knows Your Heart

5:43Transformation Begins When Veils of Deception are Removed

6:12 How Holy Spirit Changes Us

7:56 Practical Steps to Be Transformed

9:42 Activation

Satan Can Blind Us So We Can’t See Truth or Reality

2 Corinthians 4:4 (NLT)

Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ...

I was a believer. But I couldn’t see my character flaws. I couldn’t see the darkness that was still in my heart and had not yet been removed by God.

2 Corinthians 3:14 describes Satan’s ability to blind man as a veil.

But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away.

***I told a story about 2 friends who tell 2 totally different stories about an argument they had.

Jeremiah 17:9 NLT

“The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?”

Only God knows the depths of the human heart. And only God can unravel our twisted thoughts and emotions.

Psalm 139:2-4

Luke 16:13-15, 

Transformation begins when the veil of deception is removed. 

Only faith in Jesus removes the veil of deception over all of us. When the veil is removed, we can see.

2 Corinthians 3:18 (NLT)

So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.

How Does Holy Spirit Change Us?

Jesus showed me Ezekiel 36:26 (NIV)

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

What does that look like? 

Romans 12:2 (NLT), Philippians 2:13 (AMP)

Practical Steps to Let Holy Spirit Transform You Into a New Person

Step 1 Holy Spirit reveals false beliefs, emotional wounds, and character flaws Satan, sin, and self have created in us.

Step 2 Our false beliefs, emotional wounds, and character flaws often are sources of great pain in our lives. God identifies the source of our pain. And asks us to surrender the source of our pain. 

Step 3 As we surrender and do what Holy Spirit shows us to do, we will be healed and restored in that area of our lives.  Accepting the truth about yourself can be painful and hard, but it will set you free. See John 8:32

Activation

Pray with me the prayer David prayed: 

Search me, God, and know my heart;
     test me and know my anxious thoughts.
 24 See if there is any offensive way in me,
     and lead me in the way everlasting.

Psalm 139:23-34

John 16:13:

But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.

John 14:17  “The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.”

Holy Spirit, reveal and remove every veil of deception in my life. Lead me into all the truth and create Jesus’ character in me.

In Jesus name, amen.

How can you forgive yourself and leave the pain of your past behind?
This video will show you a proven process to change the way you feel about yourself and silence your thoughts that condemn you. This forgiveness process is in the Bible. But you may not realize it is there.

It will work for anyone. But it’s not a pill or a quick fix, it is a Biblical process that requires your active involvement, some grit, and some perseverance. But God will help you. 

Watch the whole video and do the step-by-step activation at the end. Just listening to this is not enough. Nothing in your life will change until you change something you do.

Index
0:00 How can you forgive yourself and leave the pain of your past behind?
1:30 A Battle is Raging inside You.  
2:16 Satan’s weapon is deception.
4:12 Dr. Gary Chapman’s Breakthrough Solution to Forgiving Yourself
8:08 Activation to Empower You to Forgive Yourself and others

Dr. Gary Chapman, author of "The 5 Love Languages" had a revelation about love that will enable you to forgive yourself. 

In Matthew 5:43-44, Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you…”

Dr. Gary Chapman, author of The 5 Love Languages, had a difficult marriage counseling session with Ann, whose husband (Glenn) was abusive and cruel to her. She had long ago lost any love or respect for him. But she was a Christian and refused to get a divorce. She asked Dr. Chapman how she could love her husband – she just didn’t have any love for him. 

in Matthew 5:43-44, Jesus said to love your enemies. Dr. Chapman suggested Ann try doing acts of love to Glenn and see what happened next. Jesus said to love your enemies and Glenn had become an enemy. 
Over the next six months, Ann made daily decisions to love Glenn and did loving acts toward him. It wasn’t easy, especially at first. But she persevered. And she began to love Glenn again. Over time, Glenn changed how he treated Ann and he began to love her too.  

Dr. Chapman had just received an important revelation of God’s love: love is not primarily an emotion. Love is a decision, followed by an action, which results in a feeling. 

God commands us to love others, knowing that if we make the decision and act on it, the feeling of love will follow.

Dr. Chapman has used that approach again in again in his counseling practice and shared it in books and teachings. It works in all relationships – parents, children, friends, etc.  

Would That Process Work for Forgiving Yourself or Others?

Forgiving is hard. Painful memories can be overwhelming. And your feelings of grief, shame, and guilt can be very strong. 
But what does God say?
1 Corinthians 13:5 NIV
“love keeps no record of wrongs”

In other words, Love forgives. Forgiving is an act of love. Yes, this process works for forgiveness. This is your breakthrough! This is the answer you’ve been looking for. This is how you can finally forgive yourself and others.

Forgiveness is a Decision, followed by an Action, which results in a Feeling

Activation: Go to my community and see the complete activation written out for you to use daily. https://www.youtube.com/@10MinuteTransformation/community

When I was 32, I quit my job as an attorney in Tallahassee, Florida, and left my townhouse-on-a-golf-course life and went to China to share Jesus. 

 I wanted deeper relationship with Jesus. I studied the Bible. I taught Bible studies. People began to come to me to help them understand the Bible and Christian life. 

Fast forward to over a decade later, I was in in Hong Kong, and I was floundering. When I thought about myself all I could see was my weaknesses and failures. I was insecure and defensive. 

And when I looked at others what I noticed first was their flaws and mistakes. I struggled with relationships and was ashamed of my behavior. This wasn’t what Christianity was supposed to be. Where was my love? Why was I so negative? Why couldn’t I just enjoy people? Why couldn’t I enjoy my own life? 

I was eating from the wrong tree.

God Placed Two Trees in the Garden of Eden 

Genesis 2:8-9 (NLT) There were many trees in the garden, but only two are named: the tree of life and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. 

Did you notice that they were both in the center of the garden? hese two trees represent the two the two basic paradigms for looking at and living life. Our choice will determine how we see, understand, feel, think and act. 

The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil 

Genesis 3:1-8

Adam and Eve died that day – spiritually. And they discovered that: Life doesn’t come from knowledge. Life comes only from a relationship with God. 

The Tree of Life 

John 17:3 (TPT), Isaiah 59:2 (EXB), Ephesians 2:1 (NLT)

Our tree of life is the Cross of Jesus. Through the cross we enter into life-giving relationship with God through Jesus, the way to God, the only way. John 14:6 (NIV) 

Acts 5:30 (NKJV), Galatians 3:13 (NLT) 

Back to My Story

Remember, I was in Hong Kong and floundering. Where was my love? Why was I so judgmental? Why couldn’t I just enjoy people? Why couldn’t I enjoy my own life? 

In my zeal, I had made knowledge of the Bible my paradigm. 

I was a born-again Christian. But I had chosen the tree of knowledge as my worldview. I saw Christianity first and foremost as a search for truth.

Everyone and everything was evaluated through this lens. I evaluated every sermon. Was it right or wrong? I judged people. And myself. I was constantly looking to find what was wrong with myself, with family, friends, my church, etc. 

Finally, I Learned about grace.

Jesus initiates relationship with us by forgiving us. By Grace. The cross, the tree of life, made that possible. 

I finally understood. God’s grace is greater than any failure, any weakness, any sin I or anyone else will ever commit. Grace is Jesus saying, “you’re weak, here take my My strength. You sinned. Here is my blood to wash away your sin.” 

James 2:13 But mercy triumphs over justice.

Truth is important, but love is more important. 

Grace is undeserved, unmerited favor. Grace is forgiveness – again and again. Grace is loving people in their brokenness and in their sin. Grace is loving people who don’t deserve love and won’t love you in return. 

Activation: practice giving grace to the difficult people in your life.

It’s important for you to grow spiritually.

Spiritual Growth is God’s process to restore to you everything Satan, sin, and self have stolen from you. 

2nd. God has amazing plans for your life! You don’t want to miss the adventures He has planned for you. 

And 3rd. This life is preparation for heaven. Jesus will reward you for what you do for God after you are born again.  

When I was born again, I wanted to run after God. But I didn’t know what to do. And I kept tripping over things from my alcoholic past that hurt me. I finally realized that God has priorities. When I did the most important things first, everything else began to fall in place.

These are the 7 keys to spiritual growth I found most helpful in my Christian journey and while helping others with their journey as a homegroup leader, intercessor, teacher, Christian life coach, and friend. I pray these 7 keys will accelerate your spiritual growth.

1st Key. Passion - It is our daily desire and pursuit of God that empowers our spiritual growth. 

2nd Key. Perspective – VISION - You need vision to see and think like Jesus.  Jesus' vision came from knowing His Identity and His Purpose.  Yours will too. 

3rd Key. Process – The Biblical name for Spiritual Growth is Transformation. You aren’t transformed by trying harder. It is a supernatural process.  Holy Spirit  forms Jesus’ supernatural character in you as you renew your mind with God’s word and obey God. Romans 12:2 

4th Key. Produce – Spiritual fruit. If we are truly growing spiritually, there must be outward evidence of change. As God changes who we are, our behavior naturally reflects that change. Matthew 7:17, 20 NLT

Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions.

5th Key. Pain to Overcome – Recognize that your old self was broken. And unless healed, much of that brokenness can come into your new life. We must deal with old sin habits, ungodly beliefs, and emotional and psychological wounds that keep us from connecting our hearts to people and to God.

6th Key. People – We have brokenness. People at church have brokenness. It would be easy to leave church and go your own way. God warns you not to. (Hebrews 10:25) There are people at church that have what you need (Ephesians 4:16). And God says in learning to love others His love for us is made complete in us.    (1 John 4:12) We need other Christians and they need us.

7th Key. Plan -Do you have goals for spiritual growth? Most Christians don’t.  What is your spiritual condition right now? How can you measure that? Where are you going? And what is the next step? 

I will be creating videos dealing with each of the 7 keys. 

1st Key to Spiritual Growth: Passion

 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NIV

Passionate Love and Obedience is our proper response to God’s love.

1 John 4:10-12 NIV, 1 John 4:19 KJV, 
2 Corinthians 5:14-15 NLT

Christ... died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them.

Your Life Belongs to God

You do not belong to yourself,  for God bought you with a high price. 

1 Corinthians 6:19-20. 

Lay Down Your Life for Your Friends

John 15:12-13 NIV

God asks us to do that. He asks us to lay down our lives for our families, our friends, our neighbors... 

Unlike Jesus, our sacrifice is not giving up our lives all at once. Our sacrifice is to live for God one moment at a time. God calls us to be “living sacrifices.”  Romans 12:1 ERV

Do the Activation: