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Getting
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& Links
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Experiencing
Christ, Copyright © 2008, Sheila Cragg, All rights reserved.
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Fruit of the Spirit
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Lord, fill me with the wisdom that comes from heaven, which is first
of all pure, then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy
and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Enable me to live by the fruit
of Your SpiritÛby love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Make me a peacemaker who
sows in peace in order to raise a harvest of righteousness. Then I
will be filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through
You, Jesus Christ, and to Your glory, honor, and praise, O God. (James
3:17; Gal. 5:22-23a; James 3:18; Phil. 1:11, all paraphrased, A Woman's
Walk with God, 44) |
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Becoming
Mature in Christ
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Lord Jesus, help ___________________ to become mature people, growing
until they become like You and have Your perfection. Then they will
no longer be spiritual babies. Secure them in their faith, Lord, so
they will not be tossed about like ships that the waves carry one
way and then another. Deliver them from ever being drunk with wine,
which will ruin them, but fill them with Your Spirit. Protect them
from being influenced by every new teaching they hear from people
who will try to fool them. Rather, I pray ___________________ will
grow up in every way into You, Christ, who are the head. (Eph. 4:13b-14a;
5:18; 4:14b; 4:15b, all ncv paraphrased) |
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Behold His Glory
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Father, the first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is You,
Lord, from heaven. And as I have borne the image of the earthy, I
shall also bear Your heavenly image. And may I, with open face behold
as in a glass Your glory, Lord, and be changed into Your same image
from glory to glory; for this comes from You, Holy Spirit. Take this
weak mortal body of mine and change it into a glorious body like Your
own, using the same mighty power that You will use to conquer everything,
everywhere. (1 Cor. 15:47, 49 kjv; 2 Cor. 3:18 kjv, rsv; Phil. 3:21
nlt, all paraphrased, A Woman's Journey Toward Holiness, 21) |
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Pursue
Godliness
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God, You have called me to be holy. You made me holy by means of Christ
Jesus, just as You did all Christians everywhereÛwhoever calls upon
Your name, Jesus Christ, my Lord and theirs. I believe this and will
keep myself pure, just as You are pure, Lord. I will love what is
good, be self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined. I will pursue
righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness.
(1 Cor. 1:2b nlt; 1 John 3:3 nlt; Titus 1:8; 1 Tim. 6:11b, all paraphrase,
A Woman's Journey Toward Holiness, 22) |
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Songs of Thanksgiving
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I will sing to You, Lord; O saints of His, give thanks at the remembrance
of His holiness. Surely the righteous shall give thanks to Your name,
O God; the upright shall dwell in Your presence. We are Your people
and the sheep of Your pasture; we will give thanks to You forever;
we will show forth Your praise to all generations. We come into Your
city with songs of thanksgiving and into Your courtyards with songs
of praise. We thank You and praise Your name. (Ps. 30:4 kjv; 140:13
kjv; 79:13 kjv; 100:4 ncv, all paraphrased) |
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Wholly
Consecrated
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God of grace and mercy, cleanse me from all my impurities and from
all my idols. Sanctify me through and through; separate me from profane
things; make me pure and wholly consecrated to You. And may my spirit
and soul and body be preserved sound and complete and found blameless
at Your coming, Lord Jesus Christ. For faithful are You who have called
me to Yourself, and utterly trustworthy, and You will also fulfill
Your call by hallowing and keeping me. (Ezek. 36:25b; 1 Thess. 5:23-24
amp, all paraphrased, A Woman's Journey Toward Holiness, 24) |
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His
Glorious Name
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I will stand up and bless You, O Lord my God, forever and ever: blessed
be Your glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise.
Father God, strengthen and confirm and establish my heart faultlessly
pure and unblameable in holiness in Your sight, at the coming of my
Lord Jesus Christ, the Messiah, with all His saints, the holy and
glorified people of God! Amen, so be it! (Neh. 9:5b kjv; 1 Thess.
3:13 amp, all paraphrased, A Woman's Journey Toward Holiness, 25)
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Boast
in Christ's Cross
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Holy God, deliver me all day and all night long from greedy coveting.
Free me from having the soul and life of the wicked who craves and
seeks evil and who gives no favor or mercy to others. May I never
boast of the cravings of my heart or bless the greedy, for in doing
so I would revile You, Lord. May I never boast except in Your cross,
Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me,
and I to the world. (Prov. 21:26a kjv; Prov. 21:10 amp; Ps. 10:3;
Gal. 6:14, all paraphrased, A Woman's Journey Toward Holiness, 35) |
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The Light of His Presence
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Almighty Ruler of heaven and earth, "You rule the mighty sea and calm
the stormy waves." "The skies and the earth belong to you. You made
the world and everything in it." "Your arm has great power. Your hand
is strong; your right hand is lifted up. Your kingdom is built on
what is right and fair. Love and truth are in all you do." O Lord,
let me live in the light of Your presence. In Your name I rejoice
and continually praise Your goodness. For You are my glorious strength.
(Ps. 89:9, 11, 13-14 not paraphrased; Ps. 89:15b-17a paraphrased;
all NCV) |
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Made Right in God's Sight
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in Adam I will die, even so in You, Jesus, I shall be made alive.
You were handed over to die because of my sins, and You were raised
from the dead to make me right with God. Therefore, since I have been
made right in Your sight, O God, I have peace with You because of
what You have done for me. Because of my faith, Jesus, You have brought
me into this place of highest privilege where I now stand, and I confidently
and joyfully look forward to sharing in Your glory. Until that day,
may Your grace be poured out on me abundantly, along with faith and
love for You, Christ Jesus. (1 Cor. 15:22 kjv; Rom. 4:25 nlt; 5:1-2
nlt; 1 Tim. 1:14, all paraphrased, A Woman's Journey Toward Holiness,
37) |
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Freed
from All Guilt
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Jesus, because I believe in You, I am freed from all guilt and declared
right with God, something the Jewish law could not do for me. Therefore,
sin shall not be my master, because I am not under law but under
grace. What then? Shall I sin because I am not under law but under
grace? By no means! I will not set aside Your grace, for if righteousness
could be gained through the law, Jesus, You died for nothing! (Acts
13:39 nlt; Rom. 6:14-15; Gal. 2:21, all paraphrased, A Woman's Journey
Toward Holiness, 38)
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Act Justly and Love Mercy
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O my Savior, by Your grace, by Your unmerited favor given to me, I
will not esteem or think of myself more highly than I ought. I will
not have an exaggerated opinion of my own importance, but I will rate
my ability with sober judgment, according to the degree of faith You
apportioned to me. For You have shown me what is good and what You
require of meÛto act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with
You, Lord. (Rom. 12:3 amp; Mic. 6:8, all paraphrased, A Woman's Journey
Toward Holiness, 39) |
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Strengthen Me in Every Good Deed
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the beginning, O God, You chose me to be saved through the sanctifying
work of Your Spirit and through belief in the truth. You called me
to this through the Gospel that I might share in Your glory, Jesus.
So then I will stand firm and hold to the teachings that were passed
on to me. Lord Jesus Christ, may You and God my Father, who loves
me and by Your grace gives me eternal encouragement and good hope,
encourage my heart and strengthen me in every good deed and word.
(2 Thess. 2:13b-17 paraphrased, A Woman's Journey Toward Holiness,
40) |
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Foolish
Things of the World
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O God, Your foolishness is wiser than my wisdom, and Your weakness
is stronger than my strength. I will remember what I was when I was
called. I was not wise by human standards, nor influential and powerful,
nor of high and noble birth. For You chose the foolish things of the
world to shame the wise; You chose the weak things of the world to
shame the strong. You chose the lowly things of this world and the
despised thingsÛand the things that are not to nullify the things
that are, so that I may not boast before You. It is because of You
that I am in Christ, who has become for me wisdom from You, O God
that is, my righteousness, holiness, and redemption. (1 Cor. 1:25-30
paraphrased, A Woman's Journey Toward Holiness, 41) |
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Put On the New Self
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Spirit of holiness, strengthen me to kill, deaden, and deprive of
power the evil desires lurking in my members, those animal impulses
and all that is earthly in me that is sinful: sexual vice, impurity,
sensual appetites, unholy desires, and all greed and covetousness,
for that is idolatry and the lifting up of self and other created
things instead of You, God. I will now rid myself of all these things:
anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language. I will not lie
to others, since I have taken off my old self with its practices and
have put on my new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in Your
image, O my Creator. (Col. 3:5 amp; Col. 3:8-10, all paraphrased,
Woman's Journey Toward Holiness, 51) |
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Tenderhearted
Compassion
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Merciful and loving Lord, I will clothe myself, as Your chosen one,
who is purified and holy and well beloved by You. I'll put on behavior
marked by tenderhearted compassion and mercy, kindness, a lowly opinion
of myself, gentle ways, and patience (which is tireless, long-suffering,
and has the power to endure whatever comes with good temper). I will
be gentle and forbearing with others, and if I have a complaint, difference,
or grievance against someone, I will readily pardon that person. Even
as You, Lord, freely forgave me, so I must also forgive. And the most
important piece of clothing I must wear is love. Love is what binds
me with others in perfect harmony. (Col. 3:12-13 amp; Col. 3:14 nlt,
all paraphrased, A Woman's Journey Toward Holiness, 52) |
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Armor
of Light
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Light of the world, I will put aside the deeds of darkness and put
on the armor of light. For though my heart was once full of darkness,
now I am full of light from You, Lord, and my behavior should show
it. For this light within me produces only what is good and right
and true. I will try to find out what is pleasing to You. I will take
no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, I'll
rebuke and expose them. True instruction will be in my mouth, and
nothing false will be found on my lips. I will walk with You in peace
and uprightness and turn many from sin. (Rom. 13:12b; Eph. 5:8-11
nlt; Mal. 2:6, all paraphrased, A Woman's Journey Toward Holiness,
53) |
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Walk
in His Spirit
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O Holy God, though I was indeed called to freedom, I will not let
my freedom be an incentive to my flesh or an excuse for selfishness.
I will walk and live habitually in Your Spirit, responsive to and
guided by Your Spirit; then I will certainly not gratify the cravings
and desires of my flesh. For my sinful nature desires what is contrary
to Your Spirit, and Your Spirit desires what is contrary to my sinful
nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that I do not do
what I want. Rather, I will clothe myself with You, Lord Jesus; I
will not think about how to gratify the desires of my sinful nature.
(Gal. 5:13a, 16 amp; Gal. 5:17; Rom. 13:14, all paraphrased, A Woman's
Journey Toward Holiness, 54) |
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Healed
by Christ's Wounds
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Jesus, You said that You rebuke and discipline those whom You love.
For You bore my sins in Your body on the tree, so that I might die
to sins and live for righteousness; by Your wounds I have been healed.
Therefore, Christ, since You suffered in Your body, I will arm myself
with the same attitude, because as I suffer in my body, it helps me
to be done with sin. For You saved me and called me to live a holy
lifeÛnot because of anything I have done but because of Your own purpose
and grace. By Your divine power, You have given me everything I need
for life and godliness through my knowledge of You, Lord, who called
me by Your own glory and goodness. (Rev. 3:19a; 1 Peter 2:24; 4:1;
2 Tim. 1:9a; 2 Peter 1:3, all paraphrased, A Woman's Walk with God,
96) |
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Christ's
Great Power
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God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, I pray You will
give ___________________ a spirit of wisdom and revelation so they
will know You better. I pray also that they will have greater understanding
in their hearts so they will know the hope to which You have called
them, and they will know how rich and glorious are Your blessings,
God, that You promised Your holy people. And let them know that Your
power is very great for us who believe. That power is the same as
the great strength You used to raise Christ from the dead and put
Him at Your right side in the heavenly world. (Eph 1:17-20 ncv paraphrased)
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Pure Heart
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Lord of Righteousness, I pray that I may have a pure heart, for to
the pure, all things are pure, but if I am corrupted and do not believe,
nothing is pure. In fact, both my mind and my conscience would be
corrupted. I will not claim to know You, God, if my actions deny that
I know You. For then I would be disobedient and unfit for doing anything
good. I will not flatter You with my mouth or lie to You with my tongue;
for if I did, my heart would not be loyal to You; nor would I be faithful
to Your covenant. I will not swear falsely by Your name and so profane
Your name, O God. You are the Lord! (Titus 1:15-16; Ps. 78:36-37;
Lev. 19:12, all paraphrased, A Woman's Journey Toward Holiness, 57)
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Christ Died for Me
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Heavenly Father, You demonstrated Your own love to me in this: While
I was still a sinner, Christ died for me. For, God, You so greatly
loved and dearly prized me that You gave up Your only begotten Son.
I believe in, trust in, cling to, and rely on You, Jesus, so that
I shall not perish and be lost, but have eternal life. For, God, You
did not send Your Son in order to reject and condemn me, but that
I might find salvation and be made safe through Jesus my Savior. This
is how I know what love is: Jesus Christ, You laid down Your life
for me. And I ought to lay down my life for others. I will love others
as You have loved me. (Rom. 5:8; John 3:16-17 amp; 1 John 3:16; John
15:12b, all paraphrased, A Woman's Journey Toward Holiness, 67) |
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Shout to God with Joy
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"Clap your hands, all you people. Shout to God with joy. The Lord
Most High is wonderful. He is the great King over all the earth! He
defeated nations for us and put them under our control. He chose the
land we would inherit." "God has risen with a shout of joy; the Lord
has risen as the trumpets sounded. Sing praises to God. Sing praises.
Sing praises to our King. Sing praises. God is King of all the earth,
so sing a song of praise to him. God is King over the nations. God
sits on his holy throne. The leaders of the nations meet with the
people of the God of Abraham, because the leaders of the earth belong
to God. He is supreme." (Ps. 47:1-4a, 5-9 ncv) |
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His
Good Work in Me
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Author and Perfecter of my faith, Your way is perfect; Your Word is
flawless. You are my shield, and I will take refuge in You. For who
is God besides You, Lord? Who is the rock except You? You arm me with
strength and make my way perfect. Therefore, I am convinced that You
who began a good work in me will continue developing that good work,
perfecting and bringing it to full completion. And I pray, O God,
that I may stand perfect and complete in all Your will. (2 Sam. 22:31-33;
Phil. 1:6 amp; Col. 4:12b kjv, all paraphrased, A Woman's Journey
Toward Holiness, 69) |
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His Plans Stand Firm Forever
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Lord, the One who never changes, Your plans stand firm forever, the
purposes of Your heart through all generations. "In the beginning
you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work
of your hands. They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear
out like a garment. Like clothing you will change them, and they will
be discarded. But you remain the same, and your years will never end."
(Ps. 33:11 paraphrased; Ps. 102:25-27 not paraphrased, A Woman's Journey
Toward Holiness, 70) |
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Pardon My Iniquity
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O merciful Lord, remember Your tender mercies and Your lovingkindnesses,
for they have been from everlasting. Remember not the sins of my youth
nor my transgressions; according to Your mercy remember me for Your
goodness' sake. For Your name's sake, O Lord, pardon my iniquity and
my guilt, for they are great. Rebuke me not in Your anger, nor chasten
me in Your hot displeasure. Have mercy upon me, for I am weak and
faint. My soul is also sorely troubled. Return, O Lord, deliver my
soul; oh, save me for Your mercies' sake and Your steadfast love.
(Ps. 25:6-7, 11 kjv, rsv; 6:1, 2a, 3a, 4 kjv and rsv, all paraphrased,
A Woman's Journey Toward Holiness, 71) |
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God Sees My Every Step
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Great are You, Lord, and of great power; Your understanding is inexhaustible
and boundless. Your eyes are in every place, keeping watch upon the
evil and the good. Your eyes are also on my ways; You see my every
step. My ways are directly before Your eyes, and YouÛwho would have
me live soberly, chastely, and godlyÛcarefully weigh all my goings.
"Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God; let Your good Spirit
lead me into a plain country and into the land of uprightness." (Ps.
147:5 ; Prov. 15:3 ; Job 34:21 ; Prov. 5:21 paraphrased; Ps. 143:10
not paraphrased, all amp, A Woman's Journey Toward Holiness, 72)
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Giving
in Secret
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of the poor and needy, I will be careful not to do "acts of righteousness"
before people, to be seen by them. If I do, I will have no reward
from You, Father in heaven. So when I give to the needy, I will not
announce it as the hypocrites do in the churches and on the streets,
to be honored by people. The truth is, they have received their reward
in full. But when I give to the needy, I will not let my left hand
know what my right hand is doing, so that my giving may be in secret.
Then, Father, You who see what is done in secret will reward me. For,
Son of Man, You are going to come in Your Father's glory with Your
angels, and then You will reward me according to what I have done.
(Matt. 6:1-4; 16:27 paraphrased, A Woman's Journey Toward Holiness,
73) |
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On Wings of the Dawn
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Ever-watchful God, "if I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I
make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of
the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your
hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast." You will lead
me when I cannot see, by ways I have not known; along unfamiliar paths
You will guide me; You will turn the darkness into light before me
and make the rough places smooth. These are the things You will do;
You will not forsake me. (Ps. 139:8-10 not paraphrased; Isa. 42:16
paraphrased, A Woman's Journey Toward Holiness, 83) |
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An Understanding Heart
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God, as I go through these difficult changes in my life, may I have
an understanding heart that seeks knowledge, and not the mouth of
a fool that feeds on foolishness and folly. May I be a person of wisdom
who hears and increases my learning, a person of understanding who
attains wise counsel. May I trust in You, Lord, and do good; then
I will dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. And this is my prayer:
that my love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight,
so that I may be able to discern what is best. (Prov. 15:14; 1:5 kjv;
Ps. 37:3; Phil. 1:9-10a, all paraphrased, A Woman's Journey Toward
Holiness, 84) |
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