The Path of Life

MIND MANAGEMENT… Hey brothers. For those who have the time, I’m sharing a message I preached at my home church recently, MIND MANAGEMENT. It focuses on the truth that we have been empowered and equipped by the Holy Spirit to manage the way we think, living successfully and victoriously over temptation. It helps us to think about what it really means to walk in the Spirit. Hope it blesses you. Walk well, Jeff Walthers

A QUICK WORD: BROKEN OR BROKEN HEARTED? The LORD is near to the brokenhearted And saves those who are crushed in spirit. -Psalm 34:18 Walk well, Jeff Walthers

Accountability to God and a trusted brother in the Lord is of vital importance to our spiritual well-being and growth. Being intentionally accountable is the primary way we learn to walk in holiness and purity.

For several years I have given certain men permission to speak into my life and ask personal questions. God never intended for us to walk out this life alone but in the context of a brotherhood.

We are to be one another’s keeper. As the writer of Ecclesiastes says,

A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken. ( Ecclesiastes 4:12)

I learned the hard way that isolation is not a trick of the devil, isolation is the devil. But accountability is its polar opposite and the way we guard our hearts and protect our testimonies.

I encourage you to give your closest and most trusted brothers permission to ask you the following 10 questions at their discretion.

1. Have you spent daily time in God’s Word and in prayer?
2. Have you flirted, or had lustful attitudes, tempting thoughts, or exposed yourself to any explicit materials which would not glorify God?
3.Have you been completely above reproach in your financial dealings?
4. Have you pursued the hearts of your wife and kids?
5. Have you done your 100% best in your job, school, etc.?
6. Have you told any half truths or outright lies, putting yourself in a better light to those around you?
7. Have you shared the Gospel with an unbeliever this week?
8. Have you taken care of your body through daily physical exercise and proper eating/sleeping habits?
9. Have you allowed any person or circumstance to rob you of your joy?
10. Have you lied on any of your answers?

(Below is a link to the article about Accountability and includes the questions.)

To ignore the NEED to be accountable is to set ourselves up for moral failure.

Let us remember to,

Put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires. (Romans 13:14)

Blessings to the brotherhood.

Walk well,
Jeff Walthers

https://blog.lifeway.com/leadingmen/2016/03/02/accountability/#.W-m9F4pMGfA

I praise your Name Heavenly Father!
For this is the day You have made and
I do rejoice and am glad in it.

Father, give me the peace that surpasses understanding in every challenge and adversity. Give me a serene calmness in the storms of life, an assured confidence that this too shall pass.

Teach me to slow down and not be inundated with busyness, but cognizant of the value and joy of every waking moment.

Endow me with the wisdom of perspective to gauge every trial, that I not be overcome with worry, but resting in conscious awareness of the change you are working within me.

Grant me the grace of acceptance that I peacefully live in this fallen world with the knowledge that because of Christ’s redemption, I am deeply loved, completely forgiven, fully pleasing, totally accepted by You, and absolutely complete in Jesus!

I trust in You today, believing You will right every wrong within me and without as I surrender to Your will.

Amen
Walk well,
Jeff Walthers

When a man recognizes that the object of his anger is not the source of his anger, healing begins.

In prayer I was thinking about the hearts of men and praying specifically for the men I work with, serve alongside, minister to, and for that matter, every man hiding and harboring deep wounds of the heart that restrict him from walking in the freedom purchased for him by the Blood of Jesus.

In Colossians 3:8 Paul wrote,
But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.

How do you “rid yourselves” of such things?

We have to realize that most if not all human behavior, good or bad, mine or yours, is rooted in life experiences.

Traumatic events, disappointments, rejection, abuse, abandonment, betrayal and the like, when left unaddressed cause deep wounds in our hearts that often fester and affect every aspect of our lives including and especially relationships.

Read carefully Proverbs 4:20-24 below:

My son, pay attention to what I say;
turn your ear to my words.
Do not let them out of your sight,
keep them within your heart;
for they are life to those who find them
and health to one’s whole body.
Above all else, guard your heart,
for everything you do flows from it.

Efforts at behavior modification without turning to God for a heart transformation will always prove futile and produce frustration.

Our hearts need healing. There are things that must be removed from and things that must be added to our hearts.

When we express anger, rage, malice, or even when we hear from our own lips slander and filthy language, take note that the targets of such expressions are probably not your real issue.

It’s a heart issue. Jesus said,
“…out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.”
-Luke 6:45

So what do we do?

Let’s go back to Proverbs 4:20-23. God is telling us to use our senses he created us with and endowed us with. Our human senses are what differentiates us from all other creation. So it’s no surprise that it is our senses that the devil seeks to alter.

When our senses are off kilter our lives are off balanced. God will give us grace to recalibrate them. Here’s how:

First He says “pay attention to what I say.” (Proverbs 4:20)

We have to become intentional and cognizant about our feelings and rather than reacting to those feelings we become attentive to what the Word of God says about those feelings. Truth begins to replace lies that experiences impressed upon our souls.

Next He says, “turn your ear to my words.” (Proverbs 4:21)

For too long we have been listening to the wrong voices, often within our own minds and sometimes from other people. Now we must tune out those voices and tune in to what the Spirit is saying to us. What the Spirit says will always be edifying and will give you instruction that always aligns with the written word of God.

And finally He says, “Do not let them out of your sight”. (Proverbs 4:22)

When we stay focused on the Word, the way we see our world changes. Our perspective changes, we see through a new lens.

Paul said in Ephesians 1:8,
I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened….

Let us pray this day for every brother walking in woundedness of heart, that they recognize it and allow the light of God to flood every dark place and bring healing, wholeness, and freedom.

Blessings to the brotherhood.

Walk well,
Jeff Walthers

The Bible says,
When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a standard against him. -Isaiah 59:19

Indeed, the enemy floods our minds with thoughts that tempt, provoke, and offend.
While we are not responsible for the thoughts that occur to us, how we respond to these thoughts will determine whether we stand or fall.

Winning a spiritual battle is not a mindset. It is, in truth, a HEARTSET. A made up mind without a made up heart is just a feeble attempt at mind over matter and is destined to fail.

But David said,
My HEART IS SET on keeping your decrees to the very end……and because I consider all your precepts right, I hate every wrong path. -Psalm 129:112, 128

David had a “heartset” or conviction that was based on his persuasion that God’s Word, His decrees and precepts, were true, perfect and clearly higher than any other way.

To be prepared for your battle, the impending temptations and trials that happen upon all men, we must answer the following questions in advance of the hour of our temptation.

1. Are my core convictions based on the Word of God and settled in my heart?
2. Are my standards now clearly and firmly established?
3. Is my mind, on the strength of my convictions, standards, and trust in the Lord, now made up?

Our core convictions are based on the words or the Word we have believed, internalized, and settled in our hearts.

Our standards that establish our values and boundaries in our lives are based solely on our core convictions.

Our mindsets are the sum total of our standards and values that consciously declare our boundaries.

In Ephesians 6:11, the apostle Paul states,
Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.

How do we put on the FULL ARMOR of God?

When our answers to those questions become a resolute yes, we put on the armor, we become aware of the enemy’s tactics and we are now equipped to stand firm when temptation comes.

The way the Lord lifts up a standard against the enemy’s attempt to overwhelm you is the Holy Spirit taking the Word of God hidden in your heart and bringing it to the forefront of your conscious mind. In this way the Truth transferred from your heart to your mind replaces the lies of the enemy and frees you from the deception.

This is why David wrote,
Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. -Psalm 119:11

When we have established our standards and core convictions in accordance and alignment with the Word and will of God we are ANOINTED to stand against any avalanche of adversity the devil intends to inflict!

Know Who and what you believe. Make your standards and boundaries clear and emphatic. And know that your made up mind is an expression of your made up heart.

We stand. We overcome. We prevail. We win!

Walk well,
Jeff Walthers

By (1)MERCY and (2)TRUTH iniquity is purged. And by the (3)FEAR OF THE LORD men depart from evil. (Proverbs 16:6)

It’s when we maintain a healthy balance of these 3 elements of change that we increasingly walk well in holiness and purity, pleasing the Father and relating to His people. 

When we’re merciful we obtain the big doses of mercy we desperately need from God and people. 

When we possess the Truth about our past, present, and future, we increasingly walk in the freedom the Blood of Jesus purchased for us. 

As we maintain and nurture a deep reverence for the Lord, He endows us with Heavenly wisdom in our earthly challenges. 

1. Mercy 

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. -Matthew 5:7

2. Truth 

You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. -John 8:32

3. Fear of The Lord 

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight. -Proverbs 9:10

Walk well,

Jeff Walthers

1. Eat 1-2 slices of humble pie daily.
2. Purge yourself with a daily dose of repentance.
3. Pray daily specifically for all those who have used or hurt you.
4. Inject acts of love and kindness to others you know don’t love you, as often as needed.

A man’s pride will bring him low, But a humble spirit will obtain honor.
-Proverbs 29:3

For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. -Romans 12:3

Walk Well,                                                                                                                                               Jeff Walthers

Proverbs 23:23 says,
Buy truth, and do not sell it; buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding.

How do you buy truth, wisdom, instruction, and understanding?

Not with the dollars in our wallets but with the currency of our time. Like money in the natural world, our time has value in God’s spiritual kingdom.

Be intentional to invest your time every day in reading the word of God. Only the currency of your time and attention can gain the truth, wisdom, instruction, and understanding God wants you to possess.

Give God your first time and your best time and know that He is with you all the time.

‘I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me.’ -Proverbs 8:17

Read the word, study the word, ingest the word, obey the word, live the word, pray the word.

Love the brotherhood deeply. Walk as the men of God He is calling us to be.

Walk well,
Jeff Walthers

He died FOR us so we could live FOR him, not FOR ourselves!

…He died FOR all, that those who live should no longer live FOR themselves but FOR him who died FOR them and was raised again.  -2 Corinthians 5:15