The Greatest Example Of The Christian Life

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL SUNDAY NOVEMBER 10, 2002
(Matthew 26:39)

He went forward a little, and fell face downward on the ground, and prayed, "My Father! If it is possible, let this cup be taken away from me. But I want your will, not mine."

The greatest example of the Christian life. On Good Friday, the day that we celebrate the Last Supper of our Lord, it is also the day Christ gave us the greatest example there is of what the Christian life is all about. The whole Christian journey for those who accept Christ as their Savior can be boiled down to one prayer. It was that prayer Jesus prayed in the Garden after eating with his disciples for the last time. At the end of his prayer, He said these words. "Not my will, but thy will be done". My dear friend, in our day-to-day walk with Christ, those 8 words sum up what our life in Christ is all about. Not our will, but HIS will.

You see, the fact is when we accept Christ into our hearts by faith, the Bible says that it is no longer our life any longer. We have surrendered our life to Him. It doesn't belong to us any more, it belongs to Him. It is no longer our life to do with as we please, but is now HIS life to do with as HE pleases. This is the one big element of the Christian journey so many never understand, and it is why so many Christians live unfulfilled lives. This is also the reason why so many, after coming to Christ by faith, backslide and end up in the same traps, the same bondage as before they were saved.

When a person acknowledges Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, there is not only a spiritual work that is done, but that spiritual work than must translate into the real day to day life of that person. That is why discipleship is so vitally important. A newly saved person needs a seasoned Christian to help them understand that their life is now different, to walk with them in those early days of their Christian journey, to help them in their new walk with Christ. Whereas before they did exactly what they wanted, how they wanted, when they wanted, that was no longer the case. Their lives now belong to the Lord. It was no longer what they want to do, but what God wants them to do.

Of course this change does not come overnight. It is a process. Day by day, week by week, month by month, year by year. That is why I constantly remind you of how important your daily walk with Christ is. Spending time in the Word, in prayer. The act of dying to self is something we all must do daily. We can never forget whose life it now is. Each day we must be open to what God is wanting to do in our life. He has a plan and purpose for each one of us. However, we can block that plan and purpose by imposing our will over His. That is our God-given freewill choice. But in doing that, we not only miss out on so many blessings, but forfeit the peace, joy and abundance this life can offer since that is only known when we are in His perfect will.

I love you, and care about you very much. God, came to this earth as a mere man sacrificing His life on the cross for the sins of the world. God confirming all Christ said and did by raising Him from the dead after 3 days. It is truly a time of celebration. From the night prior to His death, we get the greatest example of all about what the Christian life is all about. Being totally yielded to the will of God in our life. Setting aside our will for God's will. I pray today, that no matter what you are facing in your life, you will pray that prayer today. Simply tell God, that you are surrendering your will, for His will is. My friend, there is no better place to be than in the will of God.

He loves you. He cares about you. This is where our faith is put to the test. Faith is believing God can and will do exactly what He promised in His Word. We spend so much of our life trying never to have to see if it really works. But there will come times when you have nothing else but your faith in the Lord. Those are the special times in life when we HAVE to put our faith to the test. He won't let you down. He loves you too much.

I want to encourage you today to pray each morning before you even get out of bed, "Father, today, let your will, not my will be done". Christ, throughout His life was the perfect example of how to live this life. Just hours before His life was to end, he gave us this incredible lesson that really sums up our life as Christians. The surrender of our will for God's will. I have to admit, it is by far the hardest lesson to learn. We become so good throughout our life in doing it "our way". It is the ultimate act of surrender. However, let me assure you that your way will never be better than His way. Today, let this be the Lord's gift to you. This simple 8 word prayer. Make it your prayer today...."not my will, but thy will be done"!!!!

As we move forward into our 3rd year of ministry, with so many incredible opportunities of ministry, now more than ever I need you to stand with me. Keeping up with our monthly budget of $30,000 is critical. It is your gifts each month that make that possible. Please sit down today, and give the best gift you possibly can to help us start out our third year of ministry on the Internet in good financial shape. As you know, you can give on your major credit card at the website, www.liveprayer.com under the "Donation" button, or you can mail your gift to:
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***A DEAR READER OF MY DEVOTIONALS STOPPED BY SATURDAY EVENING, AND BROUGHT A BOX OF 100 CUSTOM LIVEPRAYER.COM LICENSE PLATES WITH OUR PRAYING HANDS LOGO...COMPLETE WITH BRACKET AND BOLTS. HE SHARED HOW LIVEPRAYER HAS BEEN SUCH A BLESSING TO HIM AND HIS FAMILY THESE LAST 3 YEARS THIS WAS SOMETHING THAT HE WANTED TO BLESS US WITH FOR OUR 3rd ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION. I PRAYED LAST NIGHT ABOUT THE BEST WAY TO USE THIS GIFT, AND HERE IS WHAT THE LORD PUT ON MY HEART. THERE ARE ONLY 50. I WILL SEND ONE TO THE FIRST 50 PEOPLE WHO EMAIL AT BKELLER@LIVEPRAYER.COM WITH A PLEDGE OF $100 OR BETTER. AGAIN, SINCE THERE ARE ONLY 50, THE ONLY FAIR WAY I THOUGHT TO DO THIS, WAS THE FIRST 50 EMAILS I RECEIVE WILL GET ONE. YOU MUST PLEDGE $100 OR MORE AND INCLUDE YOUR MAILING ADDRESS. THIS IS A VERY UNIQUE AND WONDERFUL ITEM THAT I AM SO PROUD TO MAKE AVAILABLE TO OUR FRIENDS WHO CAN HELP US DURING OUR 3rd ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION. EMAIL ME YOUR PLEDGE IMMEDIATELY TO INSURE YOU GET ONE OF THESE VERY SPECIAL LIVEPRAYER.COM CUSTOM LICENSE PLATES. OF COURSE, YOUR GIFT GOES TO MAKE LIVEPRAYER.COM AVAILABLE AT NO CHARGE TO OVER 1.5 MILLION PEOPLE WORLDWIDE EACH AND EVERY DAY.

In His love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller

If I can help you in any way you can contact me through my personal email at bkeller@liveprayer.com.

***I am excited to let you know that the Liveprayer Daily Devotional is now available via audio each day. Simply go to http://www.liveprayer.com/DailyDevotionalAudio.html. Click on "Search by Category", then locate DAILY DEVOTIONAL. I want to thank Ed Morando for making this service available for FREE to Liveprayer.com.

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