Tag: recognize

Recognizing God

Published on by amylinneaLeave a comment

And when he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and fell down before him. Mark 5:6

That man? He was severely under the enemy’s thumb.

Filled with many demons, this man was completely controlled by them.

As soon as Jesus stepped out of the boat, this man ran to Jesus.

Actually the demons ran to Jesus as this man was not in control.

The demons immediately recognized Jesus and what was their response?

To cower and run?

No. They immediately went to Jesus.

They begged for mercy.

So Jesus sent them into the pigs, which caused the pigs to drown themselves in the sea.

The man was left completely calm in the absence of enemy control.

I wonder why the demons response was to run to Jesus instead of run from Him?

Clearly the demons had gained control of this man for quite awhile as verses 1-5 describe.

Yet when the Son of God was in view, the demons ran to Him.

They instantly recognized the power of God over them.

So they begged for mercy.

What about us?

Do we recognize the power of God over us?

God’s absolute authority? His soverignty?

If God saw what you did yesterday, would you fall on your knees for mercy?

Or would you justify your actions?

Honestly never thought we’d learn a thing from a demon, yet here we are.

God is the author of life.

He’s the beginning and ending of time.

He created all things.

He has all authority on heaven and earth, yet we seem to forget.

We live like we’re the boss. Like we are in control. Like we can do better.

We even live like we think we are listening to God when we clearly sometimes we do not.

We must do the hard things.

We must forgive. We must love. We must live under the authority of Almighty God.

Ask God to help you as we all have much to learn when recognizing God.

Photos by Annie Spratt, Adrian Infernus, Humble Lamb, & Ben White on Unsplash

Recognizing Jesus

Published on by amylinnea2 Comments

Would you have believed?

When Jesus walked the earth, would you have believed He was the Messiah?

Or would you have looked the other way?

Or, even worse, cast a stone in His direction?

We shudder at the thought, yes?

But we are here, over 2,000 years later, looking back.

We know who He was.

The Savior of the World.

Back then, the Jewish people had been looking for generations.

Yet their hearts were hard towards Jesus.

It was more of a miracle for Him to change their hearts then perform physical healing.

Immediate reactions included blasphemy.

Immediate reactions.

Thinking about the Jewish people, some of them believed.

Some saw miracles and believed, some saw Jesus teach and it touched their hearts.

But the majority seemed to not.

Jesus’ own home synagogue threw Him out.

So again, I wonder: what would have been our reaction to the Son of God walking among us?

I like to think we would have been forever changed, following Him to the ends of the earth.

But you never know. We’ll never know.

Jesus was not what the Jewish people were expecting.

Thinking about today, does Jesus’ plan for you look different than what you thought should happen?

Does His purpose for your life match your heart?

When He shows up in your life, do you recognize Him?

The more you become like Jesus, the more you will see His influence in your life.

Look for Him.

Ask Him to align your heart with the great purpose He has just for you.

Photos by Nighthawk Shoots,  Hugo Fergusson, Jon Tyson, & Ben White on Unsplash