The Power of Perception

The Power of Perception
“The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" – Matthew 6:23-24
Jesus said that that the eye is the lamp of the body.
Jesus said our eyes are like lamps or lanterns, something that gives light. I would have thought that he would compared eyes to windows, something through which we view the world around us.
Using the word “lamp” is very strong because he is saying that we literally cast our own light or perception on things around us. We are not only taking in what we see, we are also shaping our perception of the reality of what we see. 
So we can say, if your perception are healthy, your life will be full of light. But if your perception is unhealthy, your life will be full of darkness
We don’t actually change things by how to see it, but learn to respond to things by how we see it. There things in life that we can and cannot control. Our perception and reaction is one of the things we can control.
Perception is powerful and we sometimes see the same things differently
There things in life that we can and cannot control. Our perception and reaction are two things we can control. 
We all know what it is like to be around people who are always negative, or find something wrong with everything and everyone. It’s like the sun got covered by clouds, or like someone turned out all the light in the room. 
Stephen Covey, the author of the Habits of Successful people wrote, “We do not see the world as the world is. We see the world as we are.” 
(Ryan Holiday, the author of The Obstacle is the Way, wrote, ”Perception is how we see and understand what occurs around us—and what we decide those events will mean. Our perceptions can be a source of strength or of great weakness. Faulty perceptions lead to misdirection & disconnection. We participate in creation and destruction of our obstacles. So what are your perceptions today?"
We want to have "healthy eyes," which is seeing things as they are and through the Word of God. Bad perception taints our world and our reality. As Jesus said, when your eyes are healthy, your whole body (life) is full of light. On the other hand, when you eyes are unhealthy, your body is full of darkness.
One key to healthy perception is to be objective: 
Definition: not influenced by personal feelings, interpretations, or prejudice; based on facts; unbiased. Intent upon or dealing with things external to the mind rather than with thoughts or feelings, as a person or a book.
Unhealthy perception often comes from being subjective:
Based on feelings or opinions rather than facts; Pacing emphasis on one's own feeling, mood, attitude, and opinions.
In a scene from Remember the Titans, Coach Bill Yoast and Coach Herman Boone show their objective and subjective perceptions based on each one knowledge and life experience. 
To survive and thrive in life, you sometimes have to focus on things that cannot be seen. This is where knowing the Lord, knowing the Bible, and having the power of the Holy Spirit in your life makes all the difference.
Moses endured by seeing Him who is Unseen. Hebrews 11:27, By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured, as seeing Him who is unseen.
Jesus said that Faith in God can move mountains. Your mountains are obstacles that must first be moved in your mind before they are moved in your life and cirsumstances.
Mark 11:22 So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God. 23 For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.
Noah had to do it,  Heb 11:7 By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.
Abraham had to do it,  Heb 11:8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. 10 for he looked for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

The Hub of Grace

The Hub of Grace
1 Corinthians 15:9 For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. 11 Therefore, whether it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.
 
A hub is the central part of a wheel, as that part into which the spokes are inserted.
A center around which other things revolve or from which they radiate; a focus of activity, authority, commerce, transportation, etc.
Grace enables, empowers, and gathers everything else. Grace is the hub of all fruitful and authentic Christian activity. God’s grace is not just a nice word. Grace is a virtue and a power at work on the inside of believers in Christ.
Grace is intrinsic, not extrinsic. Intrinsic means: Belonging to the essential nature of a thing: occurring as a natural part of something.
The various insights, mandates, and blessings mentioned in this text are all connected through the Grace of God.
Grace is multi-facited. It is multi-functional. It has variety within unified purpose. Grace is a hub for your life
Psalms 46:1 reads, “God is our refuge and strength, avery present help in trouble.”
The Apostle Paul discovered grace as a hub and learned to live by it.
2 Corinthians 12:7, And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. 8 Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. 9 And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
What Paul learned and taught us:
We all have burdens and weakness that keep us humble
Grace is sufficient. God does not say “no” to help. He trains us to find help His way
Strength comes out of weakness. If you cannot admit to your weakness, you will not become stronger.
Embrace the trouble or weakness, then receive God’s answer and strength
“For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

The Grace of Becoming

Colossians 2:6 As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving….9 For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; 10 and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.
Colossians 2:10, (Berean Literal Bible) And you are complete in Him, who is the head of all rule and authority,
Romans 12:3 For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.
Becoming begins with knowing what you already have. Every advanced course starts with something called prerequisites. As believers in Christ and adults, we don’t start from scratch. We are new creations in Christ.
You are complete in Christ. Just like every person is born with DNA that carries instructions about our bodies and minds, you were born again with New Creation DNA. You have the prerequisites. What you need now is recognition and development.
Philemon 6 That the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgment of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.

The Master Key: Part 9, "The Prayer of Agreement"

Matthew 18:19, Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven

The Master Key: Part 8, "The Power of Agreement"

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Matthew 18:19 Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in 19] Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. 20] For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.
MASTER KEY: Agreement is the most basic and powerful principle of action. It reflects the Godhead. "Let us make man in our image and likeness.”
With agreement comes spiritual authority through the Name of Jesus. This is the power that God delegates to his servants to perform His will in the earth. Jesus promised to give His disciples authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. (Luke 10:19)
Spiritual authority is authentic and can be trusted when rooted in Christ and the Word of God Colossians 3:17, And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

The Master Key: Part 7, Your Mind & the Mind of Christ

The Master Key
Part 7, Your Mind & The Mind of Christ
We all know it is important to have a good mindset. For believers, Jesus is our Alpha to Omega. As it relates to our mindset, Jesus is Lord over our minds. This is a spiritual reality that brings real everyday benefits such as joy, success, and fruitful living, not only for yourself, but for others.
Mark 12:30, ’And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.' This is the first commandment. 31"And the second, like it, is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these.: 
1 Corinthians 2:12, Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. 13 These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14 But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15 But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. 16 For "Who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?" But we have the mind of Christ.
MASTER KEY: You can choose your thoughts and think things on purpose. You don’t have to just think about whatever falls into your mind.
In a world full confusion and mental anguish, believers in Christ share a unique advantage. Not only do we have access to the word of God, which provides us the plan for life and explains to us the meaning of life, we also have the person and the presence a Jesus Christ in our lives.
We have both the foundation and the reality of God’s presence in Christ. Many times in our society, people must rely on theories and models in order to learn. Most religions in our world ask people to trust in concepts and high ideas. 
However, in the Christian faith we also have concepts and lofty ideals, but we also have the reality of a spiritual and firm foundation on which to build our concepts and ideals.
Prov. 14:12, There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.  (Show bridge falling apart)
MASTER KEY: Life’s most important questions cannot be answered solely from our own understanding. 
In Matthew 16:13-20 Jesus asked the question, "Who do men say that I am?" From their understanding, His disciples got it wrong. Peter got it right when he sought the Lord's insight, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 
Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven."
This kind of information is lost to us when we live only in our feelings, opinions, and understanding.
We don’t only have to rely on opinion or our intellectual ability and capacity to figure out the meaning of everything. We serve a living God who will make his way clear.
“Confusion leads to becoming lost. We are not lost because we are going to wind up in the wrong place. We are going to wind up in the wrong place because we are lost.” (Dallas Willard)
MASTER KEY: The Mind of Christ with our mind is wisdom, insight, and understanding that come from our relationship with Jesus Christ. It comes in the form of thoughts and understanding inspired of God.
Confessions of Faith:
1. Mortify my mind | Romans 8:5-8,12-14
“Carnality does not control my lifestyle. My mind is the property of Jesus. Satan, keep your hands off! I am dead to sin and alive to God. I am dead to things carnal and alive to things spiritual. I am a debtor to the Holy Spirit who gave me life.”
2. Clear my mind | 1 John 3:11-12
“I clear from my mind of thoughts of anger, envy and disappointment at others. I give place for the peace of God to flood my mind. Jesus, you are my peace. I dig up seeds of bitterness and cast them away. I have the mind of Christ.” (Heb. 12:14-15; 1 Cor. 2:16)
3. Renew my mind | Ephesians 4:23
“I have the power through my Lord Jesus Christ to replace wrong thought patterns with thoughts that please God. I can root out, pluck down, throw down and destroy anything in me that is not of God. I can build and plant anything that is of God.” (Jer. 1:10)
4. Set my mind | Colossians 3:1-4
“I am a decisive person by the grace of God. My mind taps into to riches of God’s wisdom, knowledge and understanding. My mind is innovative, creative and productive in every purpose of God. I and disciplined in my thought life and repel every fiery dart from Satan.”
5. Focus my mind | Romans 6:16-18
“I see clearly what I must do. There is no cloud of confusion in me. My mind will grasp everything I need to know. I cast down imaginations and opinions born of pride. My mind is the tool and servant of my Lord Jesus Christ!”
6. Guard my mind | Proverbs 4:10-26
“I guard my mind from the seeds of Satan. My mind is the gateway to my heart and I will protect the treasure of God’s Word in me. The cares of this world; the deceitfulness of riches; and the lusts of other things will not choke the Word in me. God’s healing power dominates my body and mind. The forces of the life of God flows out of me to bless others.” (Mark 4:19)
 
 
 

The Master Key: What God Has Prepared For You

The Master Key: The Things God Has Prepared For Your
1 Corinthians 2:6 (NLT) Yet when I am among mature believers, I do speak with words of wisdom, but not the kind of wisdom that belongs to this world or to the rulers of this world, who are soon forgotten. 7 No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God—his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began. 8 But the rulers of this world have not understood it; if they had, they would not have crucified our glorious Lord. 9 That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.” 
10 But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. 11 No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit. 12 And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us. 
13 When we tell you these things, we do not use words that come from human wisdom. Instead, we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit’s words to explain spiritual truths. 14 But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means. 15 Those who are spiritual can evaluate all things, but they themselves cannot be evaluated by others. 16 For, “Who can know the Lord’s thoughts? Who knows enough to teach him?” But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.
God always opertates on plans and purposes. In this world, people usually operate on self-gratification and selfish ambition.
When the text speaks of God’s “plan,” it can only be understood in light of His plans and purposes. The plan that was previously hidden and now revealed is God plan of redemption through Christ birth, life, death, burial, and resurrection.
The purpose of the plan is stated: “He made it for our ultimate glory before the world began”
MASTER KEY: Your relationship with the Lord is the key to knowing the wonderful things God has freely given us.

Fathers in 3D: Our Design, Our Destiny, Our Duty

Fathers in 3D 
Our Destiny, Our Design, Our Duty
 
Psalm 103:13 ESV As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.
 
Proverbs 17:6, Children's children are the crown of old men, and the glory of children is their father.
Proverbs 1:8, My son, hear the instruction of your father, and do not forsake the law of your mother;
 
A. A Father’s Destiny (Purpose)
Fathers instruct, mothers impart the law of God. Instructions and principles form the basic tools for building anything, including a life. “Law” speaks of what to do. “Instruction” speaks of how to do.
 
1. He is destined to bring correction and Instruction. Correction from a father prepares children to accept God’s correction
Hebrews 12:9, “Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live?”
 
2. He is destined to be admired by his children and grandchildren.
 
B. A Father’s Design
Fathers, like Adam, the “father” of Eden, are developed by divine instruction and maximized (brought to fullness) through action in divine purpose.  Gen. 1:26, 2:8-15
 
1. He is designed to reflect Father God’s: 
Image (Character)
Likeness (Manner)
Dominion (Action)
 
2. He is designed to cultivate (tend and keep) the purpose of God in sons and daughters
Ephesians 6:4, And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.
 
3. He is designed to Reflect Christlikeness and Remove any curse
Galatians 3:13, Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree"[2] ), 14that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. 
 
 
C. A Father’s Duty
Fathers are gateways to provision, protection and power. “In the gates…”
Jeremiach 17:19, Thus the LORD said to me: "Go and stand in the gate of the children of the people, by which the kings of Judah come in and by which they go out, and in all the gates of Jerusalem; 20and say to them, "Hear the word of the LORD, you kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, who enter by these gates.
 
1. His duty is to lead the way (Not like Samuel 1 Sam. 8:1-3 “Our father which art inactive”)
 
2. His duty is to overcome obstacles and build for the future 
Nehemiah 4:14,  “And I looked, and arose and said to the nobles, to the leaders, and to the rest of the people, "Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, great and awesome, and fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses."
 
3. His duty is to set standards that children and others should follow
    PRO 22:28  Do not remove the ancient landmark which your fathers have set.
 
Our responsibility to our Fathers is to:
 
Listen to him
Learn from him
Lean on him
Love him

The Master Key: The Great Exchange

Isaiah 40:31  But those who hope in the Lord will renew [exchange] their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. 
Exchange is a part of life. We all need renewal and refreshing on a regular basis. One of the best examples of that principle is sleep. Isn’t it interesting that we have to sleep 5-8 hours out of every 24 hours.  (Watch Video, "What Happens When You Sleep: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTgNgGO_bLs)
Sleep is involuntary, but there are exchanges that we should make voluntary.
The normal activities and challenges of life take a toll. There are also circumstances that require exchange for us to cope and make progress in life. Situations like the passing of loved ones or unexpected setbacks on life are among the biggest examples.
 
Whatever the situation, God has made a provision through His grace. The grace of God is everything He has that He makes available to us. And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. (John 1:16)
An Exchange was the basis of our Salvation
1 John 2:2 And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.
MASTER KEY: “The Great Exchange” is God’s method for our renewal of strength.
This is nothing new. It is a very old and biblical understanding of our God works in our lives. We cannot change ourselves using our own strength. We can make superficial adjustments, but deep and lasting change much come from our Creator. 
Sometimes an exchange is necessary to undo a bad exchange.
Matthew 16:25 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. 26 For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? 
MASTER KEY: PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR EXCHANGES
We are always giving up one thing for another. That’s a part of life, but be mindful of what you are exchanging.
Romans 1:24, Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, 25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever.

The Master Key: Love Never Fails

1 Corinthians 13:4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; 6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never fails.
Galatians 5:13 For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
MASTER KEY: Love never fails because the love walk is consistent.
We underestimate or fail to understand the power of the God kind of love. Love is one of the most commonly used, but least understood words in our language. Love has a lot of meanings and is used and defined in many different ways.
John 3:16 is the best definition of love, “For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life.”
This is what we call the “God kind of love.”