John the Baptist’s assigned calling, the purpose for his life, was to be the “forerunner” of Jesus. John was six months older than Jesus and he was Jesus’ cousin. Before Jesus began his public ministry, John’s job was to point the people to the coming Messiah. He had been preparing them and baptizing them, calling them to repent of their sins. Once Jesus stepped on the scene, John’s job would decrease while Jesus’ job was increase. However, for a time, their ministries overlapped. Then some of John’s disciples came to him and said that people were going to Jesus to get baptized. John was quick to respond that he was not the Christ and to point people to Jesus as the Christ. Because Jesus is Christ the people should be going to Him to be baptized. John then said that he must decrease so that Christ would increase.
This same statement is true for us today. As we surrender more and more of our lives to Christ, growing spiritually, we should be decreasing and Christ should increasing. As Christ increases in our lives than our lives should be reflecting more and more of Him and less and less of us. If Christ is increasing in our lives, then our old sinful nature should become less noticeable as Christ transforms us into a new person. This means that old habits (such as cursing, lying, drinking, abusing drugs, stealing, etc.) are put away while new habits (such as attending church, worshipping, singing praise songs, Bible study and prayer) replace the old. As Jesus increases in our lives then our lives should take more and more shape from Him. His characteristics will become evident in our lives. We will begin to forgive like He forgives and love unconditionally like He loves. We would enjoy spending time in His Word, studying it and applying it to our lives. We would spend time in prayer, not as a requirement, but as the opportunity to talk to our Savior.
Take a moment to reflect on your own life. Would you say that you are decreasing and Christ is increasing in your life? How has your life changed since you became a Christian so that Jesus is reflected in your life? What areas still need work? Would you confess those to God now and surrender them to Him?
God, Love and Marshmallow Wars: This book contains 365 daily challenges for couples to strengthen their relationships to each other and with God. Couples will complete activities such as Scripture memory, conversation starters, relationship builders, learning about Biblical marriage, romance builders, personal reflections, and date ideas. Click here to purchase your copy. (This link will open a new widow and take you to Westbow Press’ bookstore.) It is also available at Christian Book Distributors, Amazon, and Barnes & Nobel
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Looking for a speaker for your next ministry event? Julia is now booking for 2019 and 2020 Christian events for women’s and couples’ ministries for both small and large events.
Book with us now.
Julia is CEO of Wellspring Christian Ministries, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping people and couples develop a passionate relationship with God. A public speaker, conference trainer, event planner, and blog writer, Julia is a two-time graduate from Grand Canyon University with a bachelor in Psychology and a masters in Professional Counseling. Saved as a child and raised in church and in a Christian home and private Christian School as a Pastor’s kid, Julia has taught Sunday school, led music, played the piano, served as Children’s Director, and engaged her gifts in many other areas of church life. Previously employed with the Florida Baptist Convention, Julia organized events and led conferences for church ministry assistants.
Julia enjoys sharing her journey as a growing Christian with others looking for a deeper connection with God. Through Bible study and her own life experiences, God has given Julia a passion to help couples understand God’s design for marriage while they learn to place God first in their marriage, cultivate meaningful relationships, build intimacy, and address the tougher issues that come in every marriage so that they can experience a marriage that honors and glorifies God. Julia also loves mentoring, teaching, and working with women to help them learn to live as Godly women.
With her history and experience growing up in both small and large churches, Julia enjoys bringing top level quality events to churches of all sizes. Her father largely pastored small churches and therefore she understands that these vital parts of the believing community need to be good stewards of the resources God provides them with. This knowledge inspires her passion for being available with a fresh perspective for those who want to provide their congregations with meaningful spiritual growth opportunities.
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