Our flesh will not let us reach perfection. However, we continue to change by allowing the Holy Spirit to work in us. He makes us more like Jesus, and the more we become like Him the better life we experience. Therefore, in 1997 I desire to become a doer of God's word, and not a doer of any private interpretation of His word, a rendition which comes by temporal thinking.

This brings us to something that must be addressed. There exist differences concerning the interpretation of God's word. Too often this causes division among "God's people," and division is the result of pride. This is not a part of the kingdom of God! However, when people have the love of God within them they can have different levels of understanding without division. (Please stop here and read Romans 14:1-13)

Now continue, and focus on the fact that the God's word is engrafted in us. It is not a condition of ones carnal mind. Wherefore my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God, Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfiuity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, ... But by ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like a man beholding his natural face in a glass. For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway he forgetteth what manner of man he was. (James 1:19-24)

This causes one to think about the anointing of God and how Spirit filled people are living under His glory. It also makes one think about how a christian should not allow fleshly desires to steel from them, or cause destruction to come upon them. Today, there are teachers that say that God is a good God. This is true but, they also say He never causes destruction to come upon a Christian. This could be misunderstood. Read the following and then remember that God allowed destruction to come upon the disobedient children of Israel.

The Apostle Paul wrote about our example, He said, Moreover, brethren (Christians), I would that ye should not be ignorant, how all our fathers were under the cloud. ... They did all eat the same spiritual meat; And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drink of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. But with many of them God was not well pleased for they were overthrown in the wilderness (relating to the world). Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted. Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; ... Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand. Neither let us temp Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of the serpent (the devil). Neither murmur ye as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed by the destroyer (the devil). Now all these things happened unto them as examples. ... (1 Cor. 10:1-11)

I will guard against ungodly things that try to occupy the mind and not spend too much time on things of this world. It is obvious that one must live and work in the world but, this must never prevent us from daily spending time with the LORD and His word. God's anointing, His glory, must never be to us like a bright light trying to shine through a dirty window, a condition which prevents God's gifts from working through us, and prevents Him from working on our behalf.