Relying on God's resources (not the worlds)

I want you to think for a minute of things that we can physically put into our body that can bring us harm?

Some things that I just randomly thought of were
Diet Coke has nutrasweet – it has been known to cause cancer
Sugar – too much of it can cause diabetes and it ruins teeth
Cigarettes – cause various forms of cancer
Alcohol – ruins your liver

All these things bring in harm to our bodies – especially when we have too much of it. Those are easy targets as to things that we inject in our bodies that can cause harm. What else, other than things that we physically “inject” into our lives that can bring us harm?

Well, how about these – when you hear a song on the radio - can that cause harm to you? Why or why not? What about when you watch your favorite Family Guy or OC episode. Can that cause harm to you? Why or why not?

Listen, I’m not picking on these shows, but I watched 90210 (the 1st OC) and I would argue yes, they do bring harm to you because of the messages they send you about how life should be lived and what you should do. They are small subtle messages involving pre-marital sex, dating, friendships, drinking, cigarette use, family life. You get a small dose here and another small dose there, you begin to believe that this lifestyle is right.

The point I’m trying to get across now is that the things we inject into our lives/our bodies shape who we are and what we do.

Over the next few weeks we are going to look at what God has to offer you compared to the world and how relying on His resources helps us have a better, more complete life.

The 1st resource we are going to look at is how to rely on God’s Spirit and how He alone can help you. Let’s look at what the Bible has to say about this.

1 Corinthians 3:16 – “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you?”

2 things here:

1. We are God’s Temple
What does that mean?
Think of all the temples you know of. How do they look? Are they clean or dirty? Are they elegant or trashy?
All the temples ever create are these beautiful masterpieces built with the best materials, covered in marble and gold. Why are they created that way? It is to show honor and glory to God – it is a sacred institution and God deserves the best.
Well, in the same way, you are God’s temple – you are God’s sacred institution. You were perfectly created as you are and you need to treat yourself that way. By that I mean that you need to be careful what you put into your body as it can either give you life or cause harm to you. Because….

2. God’s spirit lives in you
Just like every temple dedicated to God, God’s spirit lives in us. He is there waiting to make an impact in our lives.
The question is…HOW DO YOU USE GOD’S SPIRIT and start living a better, more complete life?

We need to inject ourselves with some life giving resources
* Prayer - John 15:7 - "If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you."
* Studying God’s word - Joshua 1:8 - "Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful."
* Right Friendships. We surrounding ourselves with the right friends to sharpen us and push us towards Christ will only benefit us down the road. Proverbs 27:17 – “As iron sharpens iron, a friend sharpens a friend”
* Being Obedient to God’s plan Most of us know in our heart of hearts the right path to take. We just have to look beyond ourselves and make those right decisions and go down the right path. It takes obedience to God’s plan, knowing that He has the right way, not us.

Challenge

By putting these things in our body, God’s spirit will dwell in us and will help us through life. We will be putting the right things in our life to help us instead of all the destructive things we talked about earlier.

So, what are you putting in your life?
What part of God can you put into your life this week?

An activity for you to do - Write on a note card what life giving resource you can inject in your life as a reminder for the week so you can start building into a healthy lifestyle that brings honor to God’s temple

It is a difference between life and death. What you should have rather than what you are having now. Don’t get me wrong, your life may be “good” right now. But it can always be better. Better begins with tapping into the life giving resources of Christ.