"[God's] sacred intent for you and me is nothing short of absolute abandonment to Jesus Christ, entire searation from the pollution of the world, and ardent worship of our King with every breath we take" ~Leslie Ludy

"we who love our Lord and whose affections are set on Heavenly things voluntarily and gladly lay aside the things that charm and ravish the world, that, for our part, our hearts may be ravished with the things of Heaven, that our whole being may be poured forth in constant and unreserved devotion in the service of the Lord who died to save us!!!" ~Amy Carmichael

"It is a tremendous freedom to get rid of all self-consideration and learn to care about only one thing-the relationship between Christ and ourselves!" ~Oswald Chambers

"Yet indeed I count all things loss for the excellence of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord, for whom I have suffered loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ" ~ Philippians 3:8

"His divine power has given to us ALL THINGS that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of HIM who called us by glory and virtue, by which we have been given exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust." ~2 Peter 1:3-4

"Since then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth." ~Col 3:1-2

What a beautiful thing it is to know Christ. I am constantly amazed, astounded that we, wretched, mortal us, can know Jesus in all His holiness and perfect beauty and glory and perfection. Not only so, but we are partakers of His very nature! And knowing Him, knowing Him leads to freedom. Knowing Him reminds us that we are not bound to this world or anything it holds!!!! This week, my tests for my health were postponed a month. At first, this was hard. The pain and fatigue can be so overwhelming. And further, our finances are in a rut which is not helped, even worsened, by my not being able to work. *sigh* But then, I look to Christ. I pause life and all it's burdens, I look to Him and forget. In order to look at something, we must tear our gaze away from all else. It is the same with Christ. We cannot look to Him and this world at the same time. When I see His face, I realize that I am not bound to this world, nor this checking account, NOR THIS BODY!!!! What can man or finances or pain do to me? If God be for us, tell me friend, who or what can be against us?!!? I have had many tell me that I can't make it another month, but my God knows. I am not bound to this body, which means even in this trial I can know my Jesus more and more and I can count this body, tests, dr's, meds, ALL THINGS loss for the excellence of knowing Christ. Yes, we must live in this world. But we must NOT let our hearts and minds and hopes be entangled with it in such a way that there be anything we cannot live awhile longer, or forever, without! Even pain can only push us deeper into the arms of Christ. Even fatigue can show that it is His strength, not mine, that is my life' breath. Even this, Lord, even this. Whatever your trial today, know that you are not bound by it. You may see it, you may feel it....but look to Jesus, friend. Let His face and His glory cause all else to fade away. And as these trials press in our lives, let's allow them to only push us deeper into Him, remembering that we are called to a higher Kingdom!
"that we may know Him"