MONDAY MOTIVATION

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Welcome to Monday Motivation—a devotional blog to keep you encouraged throughout the week! My name is Pastor Guy Deckard and I am incredibly excited for you to join in every Monday.
 
Below, you will find the most recent Monday Motivation post and if you continue scrolling, you will find an archive of blog posts by date. If you’d like to get a better understanding as to how this blog came about, click HERE to read the first Monday Motivation post. 
 
I invite you to follow along with me every Monday! And if you would like to dive even deeper into your study of God’s Word, purchase the same daily study that this blog is based, just click HERE.
#mondaymotivation

Letting Go

Letting Go
From the April 23 reading
 
What has God called you to let go of? What are you holding onto that is keeping you from all that He has for you?
 
SCRIPTURE:
Matthew 10:37-38
“Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me.” (NIV)
 
 OBSERVATIONS:
  • We are not to love anything more than Him
  • If we do we are not worthy of Him
  • We must take up our cross daily and follow Him
  • Jesus said this long before His crucifixion

APPLICATION:

  • We need to love Jesus more than anyone or anything
  • We shouldn’t even put our children or our spouse before Him!
  • We should want to be found worthy
  • We need to take up our cross every day
          – crucify my will and my wants
          – take up His goals and His mission
 
MOTIVATION:

Everywhere he went, the man carried brightly colored balloons. It was easy to hold the string in his hand or wrap it around his wrist and take his colorful balloons wherever he went. One day he went to the fair and had a great time. Blending into the atmosphere of the rides and lights and noise. Oh, sometimes people tried to buy his balloons, thinking he was a vendor, but of course he wouldn’t sell even one. At one of the booths he filled in a ticket to see if he could win a free ocean cruise. Two weeks later a telegram came—he had won! He would enjoy great entertainment and the world’s finest chef providing his meals. On the morning of the big day, he called a taxi and had the driver take him to the dock very slowly because the balloons wouldn’t all fit in the taxi and he had to hold some of them out the window. At the dock he was welcomed by the officials who had planned his trip. Sailing on a big ocean liner was really refreshing. It also made him very hungry. When they rang the bell for dinner. The aroma of the food was so enticing. There was one problem, though. There wasn’t enough room for a man with a handful of balloons to get down the passageway. He could do it if he released some of the balloons, but the he just couldn’t do that. He had seen some crackers and cheese on the upper deck earlier, so he went back and ate that instead. It wasn’t great, but he had his balloons. Later that night he went to his cabin. It was beautiful. They had given him one of the classiest rooms on the ship. He could see that the interior decorating was the best, and the bed looked inviting. Unfortunately, the door to the cabin was so designed that he couldn’t get all the balloons in without breaking some. He tried, but it just wouldn’t work. Back on deck he found some blankets and a deck chair. He tied the balloons around his wrist and the arm of the chair and tried to sleep. The next morning the balloon man received an engraved invitation from the captain of the ship inviting him to sit at the captain’s table and enjoy the specialty of the world famous chef, prepared especially for the balloon man. All that day he waited patiently for the evening banquet and at 8:00 p.m. the ship’s bell rang and the passengers began to go to the dining room as before. The aroma of the food was so enticing. Yet he stood at the end of the passageway for some time not able to enter. Finally he walked to the back of the ship. He could still hear the dinner in progress. He reached in his pocket and felt the engraved invitation. He knew there was a special place reserved for him at the captain’s table. Then he looked up at his balloons. It was hard to do, but slowly—very, very slowly (he hadn’t unclenched his hand for years)—one at a time he uncurled his fingers. One by one the balloons began to drift away. As he watched, the wind caught them and blew them out of sight. The man turned and walked down the passageway. That night, as a guest at the captain’s table, he enjoyed the finest meal and the best companionship he’d ever known. [i]

What balloons are you holding onto? God wants us to come and enjoy His great banquet, but many times we are holding onto something that prevents us from entering in. Following Him means letting go, and some times that means sacrifice.
 
In Matthew 10:36 Jesus calls us to a life of sacrifice and of devotion to Him. We are challenged to put our love for Him above everything else. One author said, “Each believer must make the decision once and for all to love Christ supremely and take up his cross and follow Christ.”[ii] I find this difficult when I consider how much I love my family and my life with them, or when I consider my own wants and dreams. But this is the kind of sacrificial love that God has called us to.
 
Jesus takes it one step further in verse 38 when He says, “Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me.” This word “worthy” (axios), means worthy or deserving in the original Greek. If we are to be found worthy or deserving of following Him, then we need to take up our cross daily. One author put it this way, “A true disciple must take his cross and follow Jesus (cf. Matt. 16:24). He must be willing to face not only family hatred, but also death, like a criminal carrying his cross to his own execution.”[iii] Jesus is calling us to something much higher than a passing fad or to a life of convenience. He is calling us to a life of devotion, like never seen before.
 
Warren Wiersbe said it this way, “To “carry the cross” does not mean to wear a pin on our lapel or put a sticker on our automobile. It means to confess Christ and obey Him in spite of shame and suffering. It means to die to self daily. If the Lord went to a cross for us, the least we can do is carry a cross for Him”[iv]
 
Many times we consider it an inconvenience to help another or even to attend church. We approach our Christianity as a fad and the cross as a token or good luck charm. Most of us, including myself, have become guilty of watering down our Christianity. We have softened it and made it easier for ourselves and for others to swallow. But as we can see from this passage, it is much more than this.
 
Who or what do you love more than Him? What is it that God has called you to die to? Is there a sin or temptation in your life that God wants you to let go of? Take up your cross daily and live for Him!
 
PRAYER:
Ask God this week to reveal your true heart. How much do you truly love Him? Who or what have you placed in front of Him? Then, give it over to Him.
 
If you would like help in growing in your faith, or if you would like to know how to have faith in Him, then please contact us at (928)636-2949 or email me at pastorguy@cvgrace.com
 
 
 
[i] Taken from Youth Specialties: Hot Illustrations
[ii] Warren Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary (Vol. 1, p. 38). 
[iii] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 39). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[iv] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 39). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
 



 Devotionals by Date

 January 2018

 
 
 
 

MONDAY MOTIVATION INTRODUCTION

 
 
 
  
 
 

THE GREAT SHEPHERD

 
January 1, 2018
 
 
  
 
 

THE GREAT PLANNER 

 
January 8, 2018
 
 
 
 
 

PROTECTING YOUR ROOTS

January 15, 2018
 
 
 
 
 

FACING YOUR GIANTS

January 22, 2018
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 

February 2018

 
 
 

PLEASE STAND

February 5, 2018
 
 
 
  
 
 
 

BE A GAME CHANGER

February 12, 2018
 
  
 
 
 

FINISH STRONG

February 19, 2018
 
 
 

STRETCHER BEARERS

February 26, 2018
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 

March 2018

 
 
 

DIGGING YOUR WAY OUT

March 5, 2018
 
 
 
 
 
 

REAL PEARLS

March 12, 2018
 
  
 
 
 

HIDDEN IDENTITY

March 19, 2018

 
 
 

MYSTERY GARDEN
March 26, 2018

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
April 2018
 
 

THE TEST!

April 2, 2018
 
 
 
 
 
 

PASS IT ON!

April 9, 2018
 
  
 
 
 

CRACKED POTS!

April 16, 2018

 
 
 

LAY THEM DOWN!

April 23, 2018
 
 
 
 
 
 

LETTING GO 

April 30, 2018
  
May 2018
 
 
 

IDOL WORSHIP OR IDLE WORSHIP?

May 7, 2018
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

WATCH AND PRAY!

May 14, 2018
  
 
 
 

DON’T SAY GOODBYE

May 21, 2018

 

 
 
 

TRAPPED

May 28, 2018
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 

 

June 2018
 
 
 

GOT A MATCH?

June 4, 2018
 
 
 
 
 
 

CHOSEN?

June 11, 2018
 
 
  
 
 

I’M THIRD!

June 18, 2018

 

 
 
 

CHANGED LIVES MATTER

      June 25, 2018
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
July 2018
 
 
 

MADE FOR MORE THAN THIS

      July 2, 2018
 
 
 
 
 
 

SET FREE!

       July 9, 2018
 
 
 
 
 
 

   HEAVENLY PLACES       July 15, 2018

 
 
 

LOOKING IN THE MIRROR

July 2, 2018

 
 
 
 
 

NO SURPRISES HERE

July 2, 2018

 
 
 
August 2018
 
 
 

INSTRUCTIONS INCLUDED

August 6, 2018

 
 
 
 
 

THE PEOPLE PLEASER

August 13, 2018

 
 
 
 
 
 

ONE CHURCH

      August 20, 2018

 
 
 

BROTHERLY LOVE

August 27, 2018

 
 
September 2018
 
 
 

NEWLYWEDS!

September 3, 2018

 
 
 
 
 

WHEN GOD SPANKS US!

September 10, 2018

 
 
 
 

TAKING A STAND

September 17, 2018

 
 
 

NO PLACE LIKE HOME

September 24, 2018

 
 
October 2018
 
 
 

FROM ORDINARY TO EXTRAORDINARY

October 1, 2018

 
 
 
 
 

STAND YOUR GROUND!

October 8, 2018

 
 

 

 

FAITH UNDER FIRE

October 15, 2018

 
 
 
 

HOMELESS FOR A DAY

October 22, 2018

 
 
 
 
November 2018
 
 
 

A HEAVENLY MARRIAGE?

November 5, 2018

 
 
 
 
 

HOLY SMOKE!

November 12, 2018

 
 
 
 

MIRROR, MIRROR…

November 19, 2018

 
 
 
 

SECRET AGENT

November 26, 2018

 
 
 
 
December 2018
 
 
 

INNOCENT

December 3, 2018

 
 
 
 
 

HOPE?

December 10, 2018

 
 
 
 

FREEDOM

December 17, 2018

 
 
 
 

MORE THAN A MANGER

December 24, 2018