[00:00:00] Let us pray, pray together on our knees
[00:00:07] Let us pray, pray together on our knees
[00:00:14] When I fall on my knees with my face to the rising sun
[00:00:21] Oh Lord, never see all the need
[00:00:27] Welcome to the Bible Speaks with Elgin Carelock
[00:00:30] The Bible Speaks is a weekly ministry of Harvest International
[00:00:33] Our prayer is that the Bible Speaks will encourage you in your study of God's Word
[00:00:38] You will be able to contact Elgin at the address given at the end of this broadcast
[00:00:44] And now, here's Elgin
[00:00:46] Brothers and sisters, I welcome you in the name of our risen Savior Jesus Christ
[00:00:51] To another edition of Words of Inspiration
[00:00:55] And this week we are continuing in the discussion from Sunday
[00:01:00] That came from Deuteronomy chapter 1 verses 6 through 7a
[00:01:06] That reads, you've been here long enough
[00:01:10] Turn and take your journey
[00:01:14] And today we want to expound on that
[00:01:18] And the next few days we're going to talk about the attributes and what it takes to turn and take that journey
[00:01:26] So today, we are going to speak on the topic of Fix Your Focus
[00:01:34] The inspirational scripture coming from Romans chapter 8 verse 5
[00:01:41] Which reads, for those who live according to the flesh set their minds on things of the flesh
[00:01:49] But those who live according to the spirit set their minds on things of the spirit
[00:01:57] As I reference back in the anchor scripture from Sunday
[00:02:02] Deuteronomy 1 verse 6 through 7a reads, turn and take your journey
[00:02:09] It establishes that the turn is about repentance and the journey is your path to the purpose God has for your life
[00:02:17] An integral part of reaching any destination is knowing where you're headed
[00:02:23] And following that path as God leads you through the Holy Spirit
[00:02:28] Therefore, it is very important that we live according to God's word as directed by the Holy Spirit
[00:02:35] I often share how the Holy Spirit gets involved in some of the smallest things in my life
[00:02:40] Such as what I will wear on any particular day
[00:02:44] I can only imagine he's just checking to see that I still have an ear to hear what he's saying
[00:02:52] Sending your mind on the things of the spirit means engaging in activities that foster spiritual growth such as prayer, Bible study, worship and Christian fellowship
[00:03:05] It also means being mindful of how your environment, habits and entertainment choices affect your spiritual health and decision
[00:03:15] My pastor once said that we take the Holy Spirit with us everywhere we go
[00:03:21] So where are you taking him? You should not take the Holy Spirit anywhere you would not be willing to take your mother or your grandmother
[00:03:30] Setting your mind on the things of the spirit means engaging in activities that foster spiritual growth
[00:03:37] In my studying, fixing your focus had two meanings
[00:03:42] First, we must fix our focus with fix referring to where we place our eyes
[00:03:49] Mark 8 verse 25 recounts the story of Jesus healing a blind man
[00:03:55] And he reads, then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again
[00:03:59] And he opened his eyes, his sight was restored and he saw everything clearly
[00:04:05] If you'll remember, Jesus touched the man's eyes the first time and he said he saw men as trees
[00:04:11] To me this is an example of when we do believe but aren't clear on what we're supposed to be doing or seeing
[00:04:20] As we fix our eyes on Jesus and are led by the Holy Spirit, we too will see everything clearly
[00:04:28] Fixing your focus can also mean to fix as in repair your focus
[00:04:34] There are times when we go through trials and we focus more on the trial than on the one who can solve the issue
[00:04:42] We allow circumstances to become bigger than God
[00:04:46] Psalm 121 verse 1 reads, I will lift up my eyes unto the hills from whence cometh my help
[00:04:56] So brothers and sisters, living according to the spirit implies that one's desire begins to align with God's desires
[00:05:05] The thing that the spirit's values, holiness, justice, mercy, humility and love become increasingly important to the believer
[00:05:16] This transformation of desires is the work of the spirit that gradually occurs as individuals continually choose to set their mind on spiritual truths
[00:05:29] And fix their focus on Jesus Christ
[00:05:33] I look forward to our next conversation on tomorrow and until then God bless
[00:06:03] I look forward to our next conversation on tomorrow and until then God bless you