God showed Ezekiel a vision of a flow of water that builds in intensity as it flows from the temple and out throughout the city. The flow that started in the temple grows with force and power until it reached the dead sea. It speaks of the abundance of God; of His power and resources. God's power is not a trickle. It is a torrent. Like water over a water fall, God's spirit has no end and flows continually and with a strong current. The current in the river of God never goes down, it always increases. He is a God of plenty and overflow. Everywhere this water flowed was changed. In the flow came growth and increase and life.

Three separate times, the bible tells us that the water flowed to the east. This is symbolic of a new day. God's power will propel us to new beginnings; point us to a new direction and move us toward a promise. When God's spirit begins to move, it carries us from darkness into light. The river flowed down to the sea. God is never afraid to come down to our level. No matter how low, wicked, or sinful we may be, God is not afraid to come down to our life to lift us out. The water flowed toward the Dead Sea. The dead sea is 3800 feet below Jerusalem. The distance from Jerusalem to the dead sea is about 15 miles. Water flowing down hill at that rate is not just flowing, it is rushing. His spirit rushes to the lowest places. It reaches to the lowest place and it heals.

God showed this vision to Ezekiel. There is a river flowing. If we can get ourselves to the place where that river is flowing, we will experience life, rejuvenation and healing. This river can lift and move us to where we need to go.

God showed Ezekiel a vision of a flow of water that builds in intensity as it flows from the temple and out throughout the city. The flow that started in the temple grows with force and power until it reached the dead sea. It speaks of the abundance of God; of His power and resources. God's power is not a trickle. It is a torrent. Like water over a water fall, God's spirit has no end and flows continually and with a strong current. The current in the river of God never goes down, it always increases. He is a God of plenty and overflow. Everywhere this water flowed was changed. In the flow came growth and increase and life.

Three separate times, the bible tells us that the water flowed to the east. This is symbolic of a new day. God's power will propel us to new beginnings; point us to a new direction and move us toward a promise. When God's spirit begins to move, it carries us from darkness into light. The river flowed down to the sea. God is never afraid to come down to our level. No matter how low, wicked, or sinful we may be, God is not afraid to come down to our life to lift us out. The water flowed toward the Dead Sea. The dead sea is 3800 feet below Jerusalem. The distance from Jerusalem to the dead sea is about 15 miles. Water flowing down hill at that rate is not just flowing, it is rushing. His spirit rushes to the lowest places. It reaches to the lowest place and it heals.

God showed this vision to Ezekiel. There is a river flowing. If we can get ourselves to the place where that river is flowing, we will experience life, rejuvenation and healing. This river can lift and move us to where we need to go.

All of me sounds so simplistic, but the difficulty in life is to get us to see the real us. Not the person we project our selves to be, but the real us. The hidden, real us is the one that God wants. We do a lot to make ourselves presentable. We should all put our best foot forward, but sometimes in life we are tempted to try to take something that we are not in the spirit world. He wants the real us, and all of us. In life we have to partition our selves: giving some time to this, and some time to that. It is tempting to do this spiritually, but God wants all of us. In our text, Peter is promising to follow Jesus even to death. We know that before the morning, Peter would deny Him three times. Peter was unable to see himself. God wants to convert all of us. Baptism by immersion is giving all to God. The devil does not need all of us, all he needs is one little part that is not given to God. The devil can manipulate that one unbaptized thing to work against us. It might be a temper, it might be an unruly tongue. Whatever it is, we must give it to all to Him. We may ask "what is wrong with my life? " It might simply be that we have not given all of us to God and been truly converted. What part of us is ruining our future? What needs to be converted? Where do we need a change in thinking? In stead of fighting it, we need to turn our attitude, our desire, our thinking and surrender all to God. In all of our lives, there is something that we need to pull back under the blood! We may be afraid that God will be embarrassed by what we have to hide, but grace is sufficient. His grace is greater than all our sin. Whatever is wrong in our life, the power of His spirit can bring life back to it. We must surrender all!

All of me sounds so simplistic, but the difficulty in life is to get us to see the real us. Not the person we project our selves to be, but the real us. The hidden, real us is the one that God wants. We do a lot to make ourselves presentable. We should all put our best foot forward, but sometimes in life we are tempted to try to take something that we are not in the spirit world. He wants the real us, and all of us. In life we have to partition our selves: giving some time to this, and some time to that. It is tempting to do this spiritually, but God wants all of us. In our text, Peter is promising to follow Jesus even to death. We know that before the morning, Peter would deny Him three times. Peter was unable to see himself. God wants to convert all of us. Baptism by immersion is giving all to God. The devil does not need all of us, all he needs is one little part that is not given to God. The devil can manipulate that one unbaptized thing to work against us. It might be a temper, it might be an unruly tongue. Whatever it is, we must give it to all to Him. We may ask "what is wrong with my life? " It might simply be that we have not given all of us to God and been truly converted. What part of us is ruining our future? What needs to be converted? Where do we need a change in thinking? In stead of fighting it, we need to turn our attitude, our desire, our thinking and surrender all to God. In all of our lives, there is something that we need to pull back under the blood! We may be afraid that God will be embarrassed by what we have to hide, but grace is sufficient. His grace is greater than all our sin. Whatever is wrong in our life, the power of His spirit can bring life back to it. We must surrender all!

Some of the most profound wisdom of life is found in the writing of Job. It is superior to any other behavior and psychological text you can read. The question ask in our text from Job cuts through to the very essence of life. Can the rush grow without mire? Mire is dirty, sticky and smelly. Our text implies that the rush cannot grow without mire. We can rightfully ask the question if life is not possible without some dirty, smelly and sticky situations? Life is not fair. Some people seem to be born with a silver spoon in their mouth, while others have to take a harder path. Does our environment determine our outcome? It is easy to play what if in life: What if I had a different upbringing? What if I had been born on the right side of the tracks. Is where we are born, and how we are raised the determining factor in our success or failure in living for God? Bro. Hughes answers the question by saying that where we are born, who our parent are, or to whom we are married does NOT determine our life. it is what is inside us. It is in us to determine what we are going to be. Will be be overcome, or will we overcome? The decision is up to us. If we make up our mind and make the best of our situation and be the best person we can be, we will find favor with God. Mire will be in everyone's life. We are tempted to think that others have it better than we do. Trouble does not lies in our surroundings, it lies within us. The sun above shines on the just and the unjust. God's word is the same for all. Our surroundings may be different, but the God above is the same for all of us. God will not judge me because of our environment, He will judge by the life that we live within our environment. The greater power is within, not without. Will we be a victim or a victor? Will we be a whiner or a worshiper? If we cannot serve God in our current situation, how can we serve God in a different situation. Our life is not consumed by circumstance, it is formed by the decisions and determinations that we make every day.

Some of the most profound wisdom of life is found in the writing of Job. It is superior to any other behavior and psychological text you can read. The question ask in our text from Job cuts through to the very essence of life. Can the rush grow without mire? Mire is dirty, sticky and smelly. Our text implies that the rush cannot grow without mire. We can rightfully ask the question if life is not possible without some dirty, smelly and sticky situations? Life is not fair. Some people seem to be born with a silver spoon in their mouth, while others have to take a harder path. Does our environment determine our outcome? It is easy to play what if in life: What if I had a different upbringing? What if I had been born on the right side of the tracks. Is where we are born, and how we are raised the determining factor in our success or failure in living for God? Bro. Hughes answers the question by saying that where we are born, who our parent are, or to whom we are married does NOT determine our life. it is what is inside us. It is in us to determine what we are going to be. Will be be overcome, or will we overcome? The decision is up to us. If we make up our mind and make the best of our situation and be the best person we can be, we will find favor with God. Mire will be in everyone's life. We are tempted to think that others have it better than we do. Trouble does not lies in our surroundings, it lies within us. The sun above shines on the just and the unjust. God's word is the same for all. Our surroundings may be different, but the God above is the same for all of us. God will not judge me because of our environment, He will judge by the life that we live within our environment. The greater power is within, not without. Will we be a victim or a victor? Will we be a whiner or a worshiper? If we cannot serve God in our current situation, how can we serve God in a different situation. Our life is not consumed by circumstance, it is formed by the decisions and determinations that we make every day.

The greatest compliment that God can ever pay humanity is expressed in this text. It is evidence that God is interested us; who we are and what we are. In all the ways God could have chosen to manifest Himself, he chose to do it in the human body. He honors us so that he had declared that our body is the dwelling place of His holy spirit. Our body is a reflection of God's glory. If God honors the body, it is a sin for us to dis-honor our body. How does God honor the body? He formed it. He didn't speak it into existence as he did with the world and the animals. He formed the body from the dust of the earth. The bible tells us that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. Our body came from God's handiwork and craftsmanship. Secondly, God honors the body through His own carnation. God came to earth in a human body in the form of Jesus. God chose to reveal himself in the same kind of body in which we live. God honors the body by purchasing it. Our text tells us that we were purchased for a price. Our body is so valuable that He paid the ultimate price to come into possession of it. Calvary is the price that He had to pay to purchase our body and bring it back from destruction. Our body is not ours, it has been bought. We must take care of our body because it does not belong to us. God is the owner, and He is responsible for the upkeep and repairs. God honors the body by healing it. He honors the body by sanctifying it. God honors the body by someday raising it. He will not leave our body in the grave, but will raise it up to take to heaven. God places a high value on our body. The question is then: What have we done with our body. Why should we fill it with filth? Why should we dress it with ungodliness? Does our body groan under the burden of sin? Does our body falter under the weight of failure? Contrary to the lies of the devil, our body is not ours to do with as we please. Our body was not made for drink or drugs. Our body was not made for immoral relationships. Our body was not made for the things that our world counts as normal. He made our body to be a temple and we need to make sure that we take care of God's temple. The more that our body is in tune with God, the better it functions.

The greatest compliment that God can ever pay humanity is expressed in this text. It is evidence that God is interested us; who we are and what we are. In all the ways God could have chosen to manifest Himself, he chose to do it in the human body. He honors us so that he had declared that our body is the dwelling place of His holy spirit. Our body is a reflection of God's glory. If God honors the body, it is a sin for us to dis-honor our body. How does God honor the body? He formed it. He didn't speak it into existence as he did with the world and the animals. He formed the body from the dust of the earth. The bible tells us that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. Our body came from God's handiwork and craftsmanship. Secondly, God honors the body through His own carnation. God came to earth in a human body in the form of Jesus. God chose to reveal himself in the same kind of body in which we live. God honors the body by purchasing it. Our text tells us that we were purchased for a price. Our body is so valuable that He paid the ultimate price to come into possession of it. Calvary is the price that He had to pay to purchase our body and bring it back from destruction. Our body is not ours, it has been bought. We must take care of our body because it does not belong to us. God is the owner, and He is responsible for the upkeep and repairs. God honors the body by healing it. He honors the body by sanctifying it. God honors the body by someday raising it. He will not leave our body in the grave, but will raise it up to take to heaven. God places a high value on our body. The question is then: What have we done with our body. Why should we fill it with filth? Why should we dress it with ungodliness? Does our body groan under the burden of sin? Does our body falter under the weight of failure? Contrary to the lies of the devil, our body is not ours to do with as we please. Our body was not made for drink or drugs. Our body was not made for immoral relationships. Our body was not made for the things that our world counts as normal. He made our body to be a temple and we need to make sure that we take care of God's temple. The more that our body is in tune with God, the better it functions.

In our text, Paul portrays himself as a soldier dressed appropriately for battle. He indicates that we as Christians, should also prepare for battle. In this brief bit of scripture, Paul paints a full length picture of a soldier prepared for battle. Most of the things mentioned are defensive in nature. They are for the protection of the body so that we can survive the battles of life. His image of the armor is instructive. Bro. Hughes is stirred by what each piece of equipment mentioned is protecting and what spiritual concept Paul tied to the piece of equipment. In verse 15, he talks about having our feet shod with the gospel of peace. The sandals worn by soldiers of the time protected the feet, ankles and legs. They were made of brass and leather and had nails embedded in them for traction during battle. They were designed to protect the legs and feet from the knees down. They were designed to keep the soldier standing and on his feet. The enemy's tactic is to place obstacles in our path to cripple us and cause us to fall. The protection of the feet was essential for the soldier to do battle. Our feet are very important and hold clues to many aspects of human health. So back to Paul, he encourages us to protect our feet with the gospel of peace. How will our feet play into the success or failure in our spiritual journey? The feet represent the foundation that hold the rest of the body. It does not matter what may be in our hearts, of our feet are not capable of taking us there, we will never make it. If we are unprepared in our spiritual foundation, we will be easy prey for the enemy. If our feet are unprepared for battle, we are unprepared for battle. Paul tells us that God has given us the gospel of peace to keep us on our feet and ready to do battle with the enemy. The gospel is what allow us to handle the hard things in life. The gospel is what keeps us standing. When we read God's word we are reminded that God is for us; that God Loves us; that Greater is He that is in me, than what is in the world. It tells that we are love. That we are redeemed. It tells us that we are blood bought. I tells us that we are an overcomer, that we are covered. God's word tells us that we are protected.

In our text, Paul portrays himself as a soldier dressed appropriately for battle. He indicates that we as Christians, should also prepare for battle. In this brief bit of scripture, Paul paints a full length picture of a soldier prepared for battle. Most of the things mentioned are defensive in nature. They are for the protection of the body so that we can survive the battles of life. His image of the armor is instructive. Bro. Hughes is stirred by what each piece of equipment mentioned is protecting and what spiritual concept Paul tied to the piece of equipment. In verse 15, he talks about having our feet shod with the gospel of peace. The sandals worn by soldiers of the time protected the feet, ankles and legs. They were made of brass and leather and had nails embedded in them for traction during battle. They were designed to protect the legs and feet from the knees down. They were designed to keep the soldier standing and on his feet. The enemy's tactic is to place obstacles in our path to cripple us and cause us to fall. The protection of the feet was essential for the soldier to do battle. Our feet are very important and hold clues to many aspects of human health. So back to Paul, he encourages us to protect our feet with the gospel of peace. How will our feet play into the success or failure in our spiritual journey? The feet represent the foundation that hold the rest of the body. It does not matter what may be in our hearts, of our feet are not capable of taking us there, we will never make it. If we are unprepared in our spiritual foundation, we will be easy prey for the enemy. If our feet are unprepared for battle, we are unprepared for battle. Paul tells us that God has given us the gospel of peace to keep us on our feet and ready to do battle with the enemy. The gospel is what allow us to handle the hard things in life. The gospel is what keeps us standing. When we read God's word we are reminded that God is for us; that God Loves us; that Greater is He that is in me, than what is in the world. It tells that we are love. That we are redeemed. It tells us that we are blood bought. I tells us that we are an overcomer, that we are covered. God's word tells us that we are protected.