What Does It Mean to Abide?

Abide

What does it mean to abide?

Well, let’s look at what the Merriam-Webster dictionary says.

transitive verb

1: to wait for : await

2a : to endure without yielding : withstand

intransitive verb

1: to remain stable or fixed in a state

2: to continue in a place : sojourn

Now let’s look it up in the Strong’s and see what the Greek meaning is.

# 3306 --- I remain, abide, stay, wait; 

I looked into some of the verses that mention ‘abide’ and found that the word meant –  To be equivalent to not depart, not leave, to continue to be present, to maintain unbroken fellowship with one.

To dwell as it were within him, to be continually operative in him by his divine influence and energy, John 14:10; Christians are said to be rooted as it were in him, knit to him by the spirit they have received from him, something has established itself permanently within my soul, and always exerts its power   

 

John 8:31    Then said Jesus to those Jews who believed on him, If you continue in my word, then are you my disciples indeed;   

So Jesus was saying to the Jews that believed IF they continue (or abide) – not depart, not leave, continue to be present and to maintain unbroken fellowship with Him – then they would be His disciples.

 

John 14:16    And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever; 

I love this passage because Jesus is telling us that we shall have the ‘Comforter’ abiding with us forever – I love to see this as an unbroken fellowship, then the comforter will never leave.

Let’s take a moment to look at ‘comforter’

‘Comforter’ #3875 (Helper)  an advocate - properly, a legal advocate who makes the right judgment-call because close enough to the situation.

This is the Holy Spirit, it’s not a oh poor baby let me wipe your tears. The comfort is in knowing the Holy Spirit makes the right judgment call and there is ‘comfort’ In knowing everything will work out as we abide in Him and listen and follow our ‘Comforter’.

 

John 15:4    Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can you, except you abide in me.

So what is the fruit here? According to Strong’s Greek #2590 it can be a fruit we eat (apple, orange, etc)  but I believe it’s the second choice -  deed, action, result.

By definition, fruit (2590 /karpós) results from two life-streams – the Lord living His life through ours – to yield what is eternal

 Our fruit that comes from abiding in Him is the Lord living in and through us and that will produce eternal results.

 

John 15:9    As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you: continue you in my love.

The ‘love’ in this verse – Strong’s Greek #25    - properly, to prefer, to love; for the believer, preferring to "live through Christ" - embracing God's will (choosing His choices) and obeying them through His power - preeminently refers to what God prefers as He "is love"    (all are a form of AGAPE)

 

I Corinthians 7:20    Let every man abide in the same calling in which he was called. 

‘calling’ Strong’s #2821 - of the divine invitation to embrace salvation of God

 

The Lord has wanted me to study the word ‘abide’ and I found this to be a long study that involved lots of prayer and sitting and listening to the Holy Spirit.

I was beginning to feel my flesh rise up, questions and fear subtly entering and I could not figure out why. I was doing everything the Lord had placed on my heart. I was following my passions and breaking the chains that had held me in the past.

When fear began to return I knew something was wrong so I took God’s direction and began to really study abide. This is not all of the Scriptures just the ones the Lord used to speak to me.

I found that I was not abiding in Him as His Word tells me. Somewhere along the line I stepped off the path and had put the focus on ‘me’. I was worrying more about what man thought of me than God. 

How did I get back on this path?  You know I’m really not sure where I stepped off the path, that is how subtle satan and your flesh can be. But Praise God He got my attention and I've repented!

So to sum up what I've learned through this study on abide:

I need to make sure I am so immersed in Him, in His Word that I maintain unbroken fellowship with Him so it’s His divine influence and energy pouring out of me.

 I have the Comforter, He is my legal advocate and He knows the right moves, the right words and the right attitude to approach everything.  

When my focus wanted to please man because I didn't want to lose their friendship or disagree with a teaching because I feared being shut out or ridiculed…..my focus was off God I was no longer abiding in God. I should never fear man but should always ALWAYS fear God. 

When you have the Holy Spirit living in you and you are abiding in God you clearly hear from Him and it’s in the Scriptures to validate it. I like what a guy at church did today when he was giving his Discipleship message. He would read a passage and then pause and say now it’s our choice – some would just rip the page out, ignore it and move on. To me that is getting off the path and no longer abiding, it is broken fellowship. It is when we receive and obey; when we take action and glorify the Father; that we are abiding.

We can quote Scripture, give advice, pray, speak in tongues, be baptized, hold a position in the church…..but what we do outside those walls during the week….that shows if we are really abiding -------

Do you yell at your spouse and belittle them? Do you provoke your children? Do you set aside time with the Lord to watch a program you know causes you to lust, be it food or something else? Do you gossip to others? Do you promote yourself when talking to others? Do you show agape/charity to others – believers and nonbelievers alike? Are you honest when the cashier gives you back too much change or didn't charge you for every item? Are you rude to the hostess at the restaurant? Do you think you are the only one right and that’s the end of the story?

Or maybe you’re afraid to give your opinion or share what the Lord has told you because you don’t want that person to get angry at you. Or you really are ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ and will not speak to someone when you know the Lord wants you to say or do something that will show His goodness.  I could go on and on but I’m sure you get the picture.

Pride

Jeremiah 13:1-11 

1 This is what the Lord said to me: “Go and buy a linen belt and put it around your waist, but do not let it touch water.” 2 So I bought a belt, as the Lord directed, and put it around my waist. 3 Then the word of the Lord came to me a second time: 4 “Take the belt you bought and are wearing around your waist, and go now to Peratha and hide it there in a crevice in the rocks.” 5 So I went and hid it at Perath, as the Lord told me. 6 Many days later the Lord said to me, “Go now to Perath and get the belt I told you to hide there.” 7 So I went to Perath and dug up the belt and took it from the place where I had hidden it, but now it was ruined and completely useless.

                Okay, now stop and read verses 1 – 7 again. Can you see how the Lord is using an illustration to help Jeremiah, to help us understand better? You know He is getting ready to open our eyes to Truth, something we need to learn from so we don’t make the same mistake.

Now read on with an open heart, one ready to receive what it is the Lord wants to speak to you.

8 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 9“This is what the Lord says: ‘In the same way I will ruin the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem.

                What is pride?

                Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary says – “The quality or state of being proud; inordinate self-esteem; an unreasonable conceit of one's own superiority in talents, beauty, wealth, rank, etc., which manifests itself in lofty airs, distance, reserve, and often in contempt of others.

                I believe it is an attitude of the heart, a choice we make and it takes away God’s glory, leaves Him out.

                Continue reading to see what happens when we allow pride to come in.

10These wicked people, who refuse to listen to my words, who follow the stubbornness of their hearts and go after other gods to serve and worship them, will be like this belt—completely useless!

                He calls those with pride – wicked people. They refuse to listen to God’s Word, they think they know better than God! They are stubborn and go after other gods to serve and worship them. Do you have ‘other gods’? Are you too stubborn to give up a video game, tv program, a book you’re reading, the clothes or shoes you are buying when your closet is already full?? Whatever you put before God’s Word, whatever you put before your time with God, whatever you put before doing what He has instructed you to do…..that is your god.

                I don’t know about you but I don’t want to be COMPLETELY useless!

11For as a belt is bound around the waist, so I bound all the people of Israel and all the people of Judah to me,’ declares the Lord, ‘to be my people for my renown and praise and honor. But they have not listened.’

                Ephesians 6:14 says “Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist”

                This is the first piece of armor we are to put on, it is the belt of truth.

                If we are so full of pride that we will not listen to God, will  not do what He has commanded us to do, will not put him first over the tv, book, game, etc – then we think too highly of ourselves and not enough of God. We have made ‘gods’ out of our ‘things’. We are not learning ‘Truth’ from the one that loves us and wants to direct our steps. We are not wearing our armor which protects us from the schemes of the devil,  (vs 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes) – we haven’t even put on the first piece mentioned so how can we wear the ‘full’ armor?

                He says we were bound to Him—to be His people for His renown. Renown means - The condition of being known or talked about by many people.

                We are to KNOW Him and talk about Him. We are to give Him praise and honor.

                I looked up ‘praise’ and in Hebrew Strong’s #3034 it is Yadah.  It means ‘thanks, giving praise, or to confess’!!

                So, if we know Him and talk about Him, we should be doing it by confession of who He is, giving Him thanks and giving Him the praise.

                Now what is honor? “Regard with great respect”

                So, let’s put this last part together……..He bound us to Him, put the belt of Truth on us so we can KNOW Him, talk about Him, give thanks to Him, praise Him and do this with great respect.

                But we lose this when we allow pride to come in and put God off on a shelf to collect dust. I don’t know about you but I’d rather give my time, my honor to a God who loves me so much that He provides the armor, starting with the belt of Truth, to overcome the evil one.  Pride will not last, you will fall, and you will become useless.

                The good news is God loves you and He is waiting for you to lay these gods down, to let go of pride and return to Him. He will put that belt of Truth on you again and you will begin to wear the armor, giving God all the glory, honor and praise!

                When you begin to see God’s power in your life, when you begin to know it’s Him working in and through you, when you receive your healing, your protection, etc – you want to give Him thanks, praise Him and honor Him! You won’t want any other God but Him!! So lay pride down, get rid of the ‘gods’ you've placed above the Heavenly Father that loves you so much he sent His Son to die for you. 

Deuteronomy 9:1-5 Consuming Fire and Righteousness

“Hear, O Israel: you are to cross over the Jordan today, to go in to dispossess nations greater and mightier than you, cities great and fortified up to heaven, a people great and tall, the sons of the Anakim, whom you know, and of whom you have heard it said, ‘Who can stand before the sons of Anak?’  Know therefore today that he who goes over before you as a consuming fire is the Lord your God. He will destroy them and subdue them before you. So you shall drive them out and make them perish quickly, as the Lord has promised you.

“Do not say in your heart, after the Lord your God has thrust them out before you, ‘It is because of my righteousness that the Lord has brought me in to possess this land,’ whereas it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is driving them out before you. Not because of your righteousness or the uprightness of your heart are you going in to possess their land, but because of the wickedness of these nations the Lord your God is driving them out from before you, and that he may confirm the word that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.

Deuteronomy 9:1-5

When my husband read this today, two things jumped out at me.

One was 'he who goes over before you as a consuming fire is the Lord your God.' 

It reminded me that no evil can stand up against my God. I do not need to fear because He goes before me.

Now with that said, we cannot expect God to go before us as this consuming fire if we have not been spending time in His Word, in prayer, in listening and inquiring of Him. God does expect us to seek Him and His wisdom in all things. So if you went running into something just because it was bothering 'you' and you haven't been to church/fellowship, have not been in His Word, you have not been praying according to His Word and you have not been listening to the Spirit but listening to your flesh or the world......or maybe you go to church for show or because it's a habit but you don't do anything with what you are learning, you leave it at the door.......don't be surprised when you feel the 'fire', when you don't see the Lord doing what you think He should.

It is very important that we know our Father, we know His ways and we KNOW that His Word is His protection over us; it is not to harm us.  We want His fire to go before us, He makes the path.

I fought this for a long time. I did not want to change my ways because I felt God was never there for me, especially in my childhood/teen years. The only way I knew God was from people that had 'religion' and from 'men' that abused me. So it was a journey for me to even be able to call God my Father.  

I'm so thankful He is a patient God, wanting none to perish. I'm grateful for those that were praying for me and loving me even at my dirtiest. And I rejoice that I can now call Him my Father and I know His love for me.

I know that as I obey Him when things come up all I have to do is pray, listen and then obey because then -- that he who goes over before you as a consuming fire is the Lord your God – will go before me and give me the victory.

The second thing in this passage is - “Do not say in your heart, after the Lord your God has thrust them out before you, ‘It is because of my righteousness that the Lord has brought me in to possess this land,’ whereas it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is driving them out before you. Not because of your righteousness or the uprightness of your heart..

When the Consuming Fire has gone before you and destroyed the resistance, the evil before you – do NOT take credit for it. Be careful that you don’t say, ‘well I did this and that, yes I heard God but “I” did it. Watch out for pride that says ‘I’m so upright and righteous that all this took place’. NO it is always God and His righteousness that defeats the enemy.  It is because of the wickedness that God moves through them and makes a path for us. He is fulfilling His promises.

So when you know, hear and obey God; you see Him going forward as the Consuming Fire, erasing your debt; healing your body; giving you the money to pay your mortgage; blessing  you on your job; opening doors of opportunity that people said would never happen……..don’t take any credit for it !

Give God all the glory, honor and praise!

(c) Has Breath Publishing LLC                                                                                                     Christena Hammes

Praise Shout With Joy

Praise

Praise is mentioned about 596 times in the Bible. I’m just going to use Psalm 66.

Shout with joy to God, all the earth!

Sing the glory of his name;

make his praise glorious!

Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!

So great is your power

that your enemies cringe before you.

All the earth bows down to you;

they sing praise to you,

they sing praise to your name.”       Selah  Psalm 66:1-4

So we are told to (a) shout with joy, (b) sing the glory of His name, (c) make His praise glorious, (d) sing praise.

David and the whole house of Israel were celebrating with all their might before the LORD, with songs and with harps, lyres, tambourines, sistrums and cymbals. 2 Samuel 6:5

They were celebrating getting the ark of God back to the city of David.

So when did we stop giving God the praise He deserves? Isn't He doing wonderful things in our lives, in the lives of our family and friends that we should be celebrating?

Shouldn't we be celebrating His magnificence? His glory? His faithfulness? His forgiveness? His healing? His protection? And the list can go on and on.

In my opinion not only has ‘going to church’ become a habit, a religion; but so has the time of praise. We finally arrive at church after arguing with our flesh or spouse or children….that did not want to get up, it’s the only day they get to sleep…..or we are still thinking on the work we left on our desk Friday….or maybe we are dwelling on some gossip we heard and can’t wait to see if so and so shows up today. You name it, our minds; our desires are elsewhere so we go in and go through the motions. We sing the songs but are we really noticing the words and the meanings? Are we really singing these songs to God? Can you close your eyes and feel His presence and if you hear Him to tell you to lift your arms in worship to Him, will you do it or are you concerned about someone seeing you and ‘gossiping’ about you?

 

I know we are to do all things to glorify God, but when you read about how they praised Him in the Bible; it seems we have lost exuberance.

God has done so much for me that I want to make sure I’m giving Him all the glory every day of my life and when I come together with the body of believers I worship with – I want to be able to put our praises together and welcome His presence in our midst.

One day I was asking God why it felt heavy, like no one was really singing to Him, it was ‘habit’. And I heard Him ask me, ‘What do you want?’ And I told Him (while praise was still going on I stopped to write this down so I’d remember it).

     I want to go into a place of worship and if even one ounce of flesh is on me…..it falls off! There is so much passion for God and for His people that nothing else can come in – we leave our pride, selfishness, fear, sickness, gossip, etc at the door.

Then I heard the Lord clearly say to me, ‘If we don’t come really seeking Him we squelch the Spirit. If we can’t find and rest in His joy we are losing the Light. We are to praise Him with all our might, to know what we are singing and why, it is beautiful to Him.

I believe if you want to see a move of God’s power, we need to know what we are singing, why we are singing it and make sure we focus on giving God the praise.

(c)Has Breath Publishing LLC

Believe in God - Don't Believe in God??

Why Do People That Don’t Believe In God …..

……….hate Him; feel like they have to bash those that do believe; need to feel superior; and the list goes on……….

In my opinion and this is just my opinion

………..they are angry about something that has happened in their lives; they are hurt and deep inside there is fear, they may not even recognize the fear yet. Maybe they have gotten themselves so deep into a relationship/lifestyle that they do not know how to get out, their pride gets in the way.

I’m sure there are other reasons.

What I don’t understand is they want us to listen to them BUT they don’t want to listen to us – what are they afraid of? Maybe their spirit is crying out and they don’t like that feeling…..I really don’t know on that one.

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Now for those of us that call ourselves  ‘Christians’ – do you really put Christ first, do you have a relationship or a religion?

I can tell you in today’s world it’s very easy to have a religion, especially when you are first learning about God. Too much of the world has come into the churches – my daughters tried to tell me this early on in our walk but I thought they just wanted out of the ‘Sunday School’ program. Most children are only going to Sunday School (which I do not believe is in the Bible, it’s something the world started with schools, separating ages) because they want the treats and play time. Some people go to church for the ‘fellowship’ only, not to hear what God is saying through the Pastor; not to make the changes they need to make in their lives; they want it to be about them or they go to church so they feel better about themselves kind of ease their conscience from a wild week. From my past experiences with church it’s a Sunday religion – you only need to fill up on Sundays then go back and live like you were. This is not what God teaches us in His Word.

He tells us there will be tests and trials.

I have had to let one of our daughters go and trust God with the situation, it was a decision she and her husband made after the birth of their first baby. This baby was born with health problems, we do not know anymore as the day after she was born is when they made a demand we could not accept. That was almost 3 years ago. They told us to not contact them and we have honored that request, there have been many times I wanted to knock on their door but at that would just cause more anger in them – is this painful – you bet cha!!  But through this God has shown me who He really is. I trust Him to protect our daughter and her family. And we pray for them daily. I post on my Facebook – Happy Birthday’s, Anniversary, etc. Because I hope they will see there is no animosity only love.

I say all that to let you know we’ve been through our fair share of pain and still have our faith in God. We are still seeing Him move in our lives. I had to take my eyes off what the world says and what my flesh wants and really learn who God is and take Him at His Word (faith). That is another testimony in itself and I hope to get the opportunity to share it soon, just waiting on Kenneth and Gloria Copeland or Joyce Meyer, etc to send me an invite  ;-)   dream big – you bet I am because I know there are others that need to hear what I’ve been through and how God has always been there even when I looked down instead of up – that pit was awfully dark.

Ok off topic…..sort of…..but that’s me ;-)  I begin to write and my brain goes down other avenues, then comes back and takes off again….there’s just so much to share.

So if we are to be the light in this world, we as ‘Christians’ need to watch what we say and how we treat other people. Are we really different from non-believers? Do they see a difference in our work ethic, in the way we treat others, in the way we treat animals, in the way we treat our spouse or our children? Do you really do things for Christ to be glorified or for your own fleshly desires? If they put us in a room with a non-believer would they see and hear a difference?

I use to be a ‘fleshly desire’ Christian and it got me nowhere except into a pit of depression and lies. I was a fake……trying to find truth…..in churches that did not teach all of God’s Word. Then one day I heard the Lord ask me – if they looked at you, watched you; would they want to know Me?  Ouch, at that time I had to say – no, they would not want to know You. My life did not show victory, it did not show joy or patience or faith in the One I said I believe in.

I believe this is why some hatred is out there among ‘unbelievers’ because a lot of us don’t know God therefore we can’t live the life He has for us – a life which will show others just how much He loves us, that shows He is still a God of miracles

 Do you think one of the reasons people do not want anything to do with God is because so much of the world has entered the church and people do not see a difference – there’s child molestation, un-forgiveness, pride, divorce, adultery…..and the list goes on. If we live no differently than the world how can we expect people to want to come to church and get to know God? Why would they want to give up their Saturday night out or have to get up early on Sunday morning, that’s their only day to sleep…?

 If you have been into religion and lived like the world know this -  God is a restorer, He can take all I did wrong and make it right. All we have to do is drop our pride and tell Him we are sorry, we sinned, please forgive us and He will.

 I know God is real, no one else could have given me the peace, the healing, the forgiveness and the joy He has in these times of testing’s and trials. Learning who God is and having a relationship with Him will draw others to Him as they see the difference in your life.

We need to get back to the Word. To know it for ourselves so we are not deceived. When we, as individuals and families, know the Word of God and go into a church where the Pastor is preaching Truth and still seeking God to learn more, gain wisdom (which we all should be doing until the day we die) we have genuine ‘fellowship’ with the Father and each other. You leave the gossip, the complaining, the fear, the jealousy, etc out and truly come together as a body where we pray for each other, encourage each other, correct each other, love each other and grow up in Christ together, having testimonies of His goodness. God does require change and obedience, for some of us that is where we back off and say no way. But I can tell you He does this to improve our lives here on earth and ready us for heaven. It may be difficult and even hurt in the beginning to make some changes ….but God…..is there with you and gives you everything you need to make it to the end results which brings a joy unspeakable.

And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. Romans 5:5

Consider Abraham: "He believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness."  Understand, then, that those who believe are children of Abraham.  The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: "All nations will be blessed through you."  So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith. Galatians 3:6-9

 "I tell you, whoever acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man will also acknowledge him before the angels of God.  But he who disowns me before men will be disowned before the angels of God.  And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. Luke 12:8-10

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' Mark 12:30

Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind.  Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,  now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.  As you come to him, the living Stone--rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him--  you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. I Peter 2:1-5

If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.  Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.  I Peter 4:11-12

Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey--whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? Romans 6:16

The LORD is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father's God, and I will exalt him. Exodus 15:2

Lies Something to Think About

This is an older video but I felt the Lord wanted me to post it - so I'm obeying.
I hope it blesses you, helps you repent and return to your family or friend - that it shows you love conquers all. Or that it gives you hope to hang in there while you wait for the person to see how much forgiveness and love really is in your heart. I know we are waiting on someone to return to the family and it's not always been easy but our love has never died!

Pride

Yes I am very proud of Benjamin Mosier and my husband Rob Hammes !!

Why you ask......

Their first CD is on iTunes !!!!

I (Christena with Has Breath Publishing LLC), asked Benjamin Mosier how he came up with the lyrics for one of the songs on this CD.  'Come Let Your Fire Fall' and this is his reply: " The inspiration for "Come Let Your Fire Fall" came from meditating on the Life of Jesus. I was just thinking about His word and the Holy Spirit dropped those lyrics in my heart. For me that song is truly my hearts cry. I want God's love and power to explode out of me onto the world around me." Benjamin Mosier and this is what Rob Hammes (robhammessongwriter.com) added:  "Ben has never sung for anybody and was pretty nervous about showing me the song (with lyrics and melody) to me.  After some encouragement he sang the song into my computer, and we discovered a very natural sense of pitch and timing that even Ben didn't realize he has.  The astonishing thing was that in putting harmonies and chords to his melody, I found that the chorus was not in a "normal" time signature.  Since Ben kept singing it the same way every time he sang it, this must have been God's time, not Ben's.  While the rest of the song is in "four-four" time, the chorus uses a "six-four" time signature."  Rob Hammes http://www.reverbnation.com/robhammes Benjamin Mosier is the Youth Pastor and the drummer on the worship team at LIFE Church and Training Center in Indianapolis, IN Rob Hammes is guitarist on the worship team at LIFE Church and Training Center in Indianapolis, IN LIFE Church and Training Center