The dark tried to hide You And steal You away Death tried to keep You Inside of the grave The enemy fought You He tried but he lost You cannot be stopped When we cried for freedom You tore down the walls The weight of our burdens You carried it all Our fears and our failures Hang dead on the cross You cannot be stopped Mover of mountains Breaker of chains Jesus has triumphed over the grave Sing hallelujah The battle is won Nothing can stand against our God We stand on Your victory We shout out Your praise Miracle maker You’re mighty to save Awesome in power Relentless in love You cannot be stopped Mover of mountains Breaker of chains Jesus has triumphed over the grave Sing hallelujah The battle is won Nothing can stand against our God There’s nothing that can stop our God There’s nothing that can stop our God There’s nothing that can stop our God There is nothing there is nothing There’s nothing that can stop our God There’s nothing that can stop our God There’s nothing that can stop our God There is nothing Mover of mountains Breaker of chains Jesus has triumphed over the grave Sing hallelujah The battle is won Nothing can stand against our God You’re the mover of mountains The breaker of chains Jesus has triumphed over the grave We sing hallelujah The battle is won Nothing can stand against our God Oh nothing can stand against our God
O artista Guillaume Legros (mais conhecido como SAYPE), recebeu elogios internacionais pelas suas enormes obras de arte encontradas no cruzamento entre arte da terra e arte de rua. O último trabalho de Saype, intitulado BEYOND CRISIS (PARA ALÉM DA CRISE), foi criado no topo de uma colina perto da cidade turística de Leysin, no oeste da Suíça e mede mais de 3000 m2 (32.200 pés quadrados). # Artist Guillaume Legros (more commonly known as SAYPE), has garnered international acclaim for his massive artworks found at the intersection of land art and street art. Saype’s latest work, entitled BEYOND CRISIS, was created atop a hillside near the resort town of Leysin, in western Switzerland and measures over 3000 m2 (32,200 sq ft).
Vivemos num mundo muito egoísta. De facto, somos todos naturalmente egoístas. Pensa nisto: nunca precisas de ensinar um bebé a querer o que ele quer, quando ele quer! O egoísmo é o resultado do homem caído que remonta a Adão e Eva, a quererem o que não deveriam ter.
Quando uma pessoa percebe que realmente está presa na situação desesperada do pecado e do egoísmo, começa a busca por um salvador. Este salvador, no entanto, não é encontrado numa lista de boas obras ou em mais auto-disciplina. O Único neste mundo que é capaz de preencher a lacuna entre o homem pecador e um Deus Santo é o Filho Unigénito de Deus, Jesus. Pois Jesus, perfeito e sem pecado, porque Ele é Deus em carne, carregou o nosso pecado sobre Si para pagar a pena pelos nossos pecados de uma vez por todas.
O pecado ainda existirá na vida de um novo crente, mas o novo desejo na nossa vida é ser cada vez mais parecido com Jesus nas nossas palavras e acções. À medida que confiamos Nele e aprendemos a andar com Ele na fé, a nossa vida começa a mudar. Nós entregamos a nossa vontade à Sua vontade, pois queremos agradar-Lhe mais do que a nós mesmos.
Existe este elemento de "vontade" novamente. As escrituras descrevem o coração de Jesus enquanto Ele orava naquela noite antes da Sua crucificação. Ele sabia o que estava para vir e, no entanto, confiava no Pai Deus completamente. Ele submeteu a Sua vontade natural à do Pai.
Tu e eu somos confrontados com decisões entre o egoísmo e a bondade todos os dias. É difícil desistir do que queremos ou desejamos de uma perspectiva mundana ou até mesmo de um prazer, mas essa ainda pequena voz do Espírito Santo estará sempre a levar-nos a submeter-nos à vontade do Pai versus a nossa.
~ Lucas 22:42
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We live in a very selfish world. In fact, we’re all naturally selfish. Think about it, you never have to teach a baby how to want what they want, when they want it! Selfishness is a result of fallen man that goes all the way back to Adam and Eve wanting what they were not supposed to have.
When a person comes to the realization that he or she really is trapped in the hopelessness of sin and selfishness, the search for a savior begins. That savior, however, isn’t found in a list of good works or in more self-discipline. The only One in this world who is able to bridge the gap between sinful man and a Holy God is God’s only Son, Jesus. For Jesus, perfect and without sin because He is God in the flesh, took our sin upon Himself to pay the penalty for our sins once and for all.
Sin will still exist in the life of a new believer, but the new desire in our life is to be more and more like Jesus in our words and deeds. As we trust Him and learn to walk with Him in faith, our lives begin to change. We surrender our will for His will as we want to please Him more than ourselves.
There’s that element of "will" again. The scripture captures the heart of Jesus as He was praying that night before His crucifixion. He knew what was to come, and yet, He trusted Father God completely. He submitted His natural will to that of His Father’s.
You and I are faced with decisions between selfishness and goodness every day. It’s hard to give up what we want or desire from a worldly or even a pleasure perspective, but that still small voice of the Holy Spirit will always be prompting us to submit to the will of the Father versus our own.
I’m a traveler far from home I get lost but I press on I’ve got a mansion, streets of gold Where I belong There’s a day, coming soon Where the old will be made new And Heaven’s glory shines like the morning Before our eyes When we all see Jesus When we all see Jesus No more sickness No more madness No more pain When we all see Jesus Face to face We will sing with the angel voices There will be a great rejoicing Holy holy, worthy worthy Is the Lamb When we all see Jesus When we all see Jesus No more sickness No more madness No more pain When we all see Jesus Face to face When we all see Jesus Face to face
Pergunta: Procuras agradar a Deus ou simplesmente confias Nele? Acredito que muitos diriam que desejam fazer as duas coisas, mas se tivesses que escolher ou concentrar-te num ou noutro, qual seria?
Ao agradar a Deus, parece que nos colocamos mais no estado de espírito "o que devo fazer?" Requer um esforço considerável para fazer as coisas que são "boas e aceitáveis aos olhos do Senhor". O nosso caminho então torna-se pavimentado com boas intenções. Realmente esforçamos-nos para agradar a Deus, apesar dos obstáculos e desvios que encontramos constantemente.
Esta mesma palavra, esforço, significa "lutar contra a oposição" e isto realmente resume tudo. Lutamos contra o pecado nas nossas próprias vidas, para não mencionar os pecados na vida dos outros. Não somos perfeitos, e estas imperfeições e deficiências continuarão a seguir-nos enquanto vivermos. "Agradar", por si só, parece ser um desafio contínuo.
Mas as Escrituras também dizem para "deixar de esforçar-nos"... para ficarmos quietos e sabermos que Deus é Deus. Em vez de todo o esforço fabricado, talvez devêssemos descansar mais em aceitar a graça de Deus. Afinal, é um dom gratuito para nós. Embora o nosso pecado ainda esteja lá, é coberto pelo sangue da Graça de Cristo. Quando a nossa fé e confiança estão em Jesus, Ele está entre o nosso pecado e nós diante de um Santo Pai. Talvez devêssemos considerar substituir o nosso esforço egoísta, embora bem-intencionado, por uma humildade rendida e confiante. Citando o livro de liderança, Truefaced: "O esforço nascido de lutar para agradar a Deus nunca deixa de cansar-nos. O esforço nascido de descansar no Seu prazer nunca deixa de renovar-nos."
Porque sabes, agradar a Deus é um subproduto da confiança em Deus. Quando confiamos plenamente em Deus, Ele está completamente satisfeito. Por isso, pára de te esforçares. Começa a confiar.
~ 2 Coríntios 5:9
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Question: Do you seek to please God or simply trust Him? I believe many of us would say that we desire to do both, but if you had to choose or focus on one or the other, which would it be?
In pleasing God, we seem to put ourselves in more of a "what must I do" frame of mind. It requires considerable effort to do those things that are "good and acceptable in the sight of the Lord." Our way then becomes paved with good intentions. We really do strive to please God, despite the obstacles and detours we constantly encounter.
That very word, strive, means "struggling in opposition" and that really sums it up. We struggle against the sin in our own lives, not to mention the sins in the lives of others. We are not perfect, and those imperfections and shortcomings will continue to follow us as long as we live. "Pleasing", in and of itself, seems to be an ongoing challenge.
But Scripture also says to "cease striving"... to be still and know that God is God. Instead of all the manufactured effort, perhaps we should rest more in accepting God’s grace. After all, it’s His free gift to us. Though our sin is still there, it’s covered by the Grace of Christ’s blood. When our faith and trust is in Jesus, He is standing between our sin and us before a Holy Father. Perhaps we should consider replacing our selfish, although well-intentioned, effort with a yielded and trusting humility. Quoting from the leadership book, Truefaced: "Effort born out of striving to please God never ceases to tire us. Effort born out of resting in His pleasure never ceases to renew us."
For you see, pleasing God is a by-product of trusting God. When we trust God wholly, He is nothing but pleased. So, stop striving. Start trusting.
