Category: Drawing Closer to God

Bible Verse of The Day – 6-13-13

(Hebrews 5:13-14 NKJV)  For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. {14} But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.

It is never a good thing to stay in one place too long with regard to spiritual growth.

As believers and followers of Christ, God wants us to constantly be learning and growing, getting a better understanding of who He is and what He wants for our lives.

Some of us have been Christians for a very long time, while others may have just recently recognized their lost condition and gotten saved. There may still be others reading this who are seeking God and trying to figure out how to reach Him.

One thing we have learned over the years is that the length of time that a person has been a believer doesn’t always correlate with their spiritual age or maturity. Some people grow quickly, while others might take some time. It all depends on the person, their personality and their circumstances.

Today, we’d like to challenge everyone!

We’d like to challenge you to take some new steps in your walk with God and make a choice to pursue Him more diligently. A strong relationship with anyone doesn’t just happen. It takes constant effort on the part of both people.

And so it is with God. If we desire to be close to Him and know Him well, we have to put forth the effort.

So, starting today, make an effort to set aside a little time each day to do a little something extra to build your relationship with God. Read His word. Talk to Him. Listen for His voice.

If you’re sincere in doing this, you will begin to see a difference in your relationship with our Father, the Creator of all we see, in a very short time.

Go ahead. We dare you!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-315-0902

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Bible Verse of The Day – 6-7-13

(1 Peter 2:11-12 NKJV)  Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, {12} having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.

We are in a war daily with fleshly lusts against our soul.

Have you ever noticed at times, even after being a Christian or child of God for some time, that we still get tempted to act out in a way that we know God would not approve of?

This is because our flesh lusts after things and it is up to us to shut it down. No matter what comes our way, we have the final say; we are in charge of what we do.

That is why it’s so important that we keep ourselves close to God; the closer we are, the more sensitive we are to Him. When we mess up we stop what we are doing, and right then and there, we repent.

It is never too late to stop the flesh, even if we don’t realize until we are in the middle of it. God makes a way for us to get out and fix things because He loves us.

It is our good works that many will observe and by this we will glorify God!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-315-0902

If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!

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Bible Verse of The Day – 11-7-12

(Mat 5:8 NKJV)  Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God.

The pure in heart…what does that mean? How do we become “pure in heart” in God’s eyes?

There are two aspects to this. There is the spiritual side, the things that aren’t tangible. And there is the natural side, the things that are tangible.

I will try to keep this brief, so please bear with me as we walk through this together.

When we become followers of Christ, when we accept Him in faith as our savior, we become pure in heart (in a spiritual sense) simply because we’re washed in the blood of Jesus.

But in the natural, we can still be very impure in our hearts. This is where we need God to help us clean ourselves up. This is where it takes God’s spirit, God’s teaching and God’s correction to help us see the things in our lives that need to be changed, so we become pure in heart in a natural sense.

So what does this mean, and how do we do it?

We do it one little step at a time! It starts with little things, like maybe watching what comes out of our mouths. God helps us clean up our language and the way we talk. This would include things like swearing, gossiping, etc.

Then He might show us something else that He wants to help us with, like the things that we take in with our eyes and our ears. Movies, TV & Music play a huge part in our lives these days. TV and movies are no longer family-friendly and most of it isn’t God-friendly.

I know these are touchy subjects with a lot of people, but the impact that these things have on our lives is incredibly huge. And many of us don’t fully realize how big the impact is. We also don’t realize what we’re subjecting ourselves to.

Now think about this and take this very seriously, because it’s vital to us becoming pure in heart! If we have accepted Christ as our savior, this means that we have the Holy Spirit (God’s Spirit) living in us. He is with us everywhere we go. He sees everything we see and He hears everything we hear.

So we need to understand fully that if we watch a movie or a TV show with immoral images, we’re subjecting God to this. If we hear or listen to things in a movie, a TV show or in music that are contrary to God’s word or are not pleasing to God, we are subjecting God to it too.

Once we really start to get understanding in this, and we truly want to please God, we will start being more careful about what we watch and what we listen to.

Now don’t take this wrong. We are not saying that Christians shouldn’t watch movies or listen to music artists that aren’t Christians, but it does mean that we need to use discernment and let God guide us when it comes to what we choose to watch or listen to.

Our choices in these areas will go a very long way toward helping us to become pure in heart, even in the natural!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

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Bible Verse of The Day – 11-3-12

(John 13:23 NKJV)  Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved.

Could you just imagine laying your head on Jesus’ bosom?

When I was a child I would often sit on the couch and lay my head on my mom or dads chest. Sometimes I would just listen to the beat of their heart; it was so fascinating to me as a child to hear it beat.

Now that I am older, I lay my head on my husband’s chest and listen to his heart beat. It is an amazing thing and I still get fascinated by it.

One morning, as I was praying, I remembered this verse and I thought to myself that disciple that had his head on Jesus’ chest could have actually heard the heart beat of the Messiah if he wanted to. That’s how close he was; the heartbeat of God in the flesh! He was that close to Him. What an awesome relationship to be that close to His heart.

I prayed that morning, as I was pondering on this scripture, how I want my relationship with the Messiah to be that close. I may not be able to hear His heartbeat from laying my head on His chest. But, I want to know the sound of His heart by reading His Word and meditating on it day and night.

God’s heart is revealed through His Words

Let us all know the heart of God today, for our family, for our children, for our world and let us pray.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

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Bible Verse of The Day – 11-1-12

(3 John 1:2 NKJV)  Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.

We just wanted you all to know how much you bless us.

Each night as we sit and prepare the Bible Verse of The Day to go out to thousands of people all across this world, we think of the one. The one that is hurting, the one that is lonely, the one that may be suffering in any way, the one that is struggling to know and feel God’s love.

It is only by the Spirit of God that each need is met and each heart is touched. We get letters and emails from all over… of how God touched that ONE; How He is changing their lives, changing their hearts, healing their bodies, and opening doors for huge opportunities!  It is God!

He loves you, and He wants you to prosper in ALL things!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

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Bible Verse of The Day – 8-2-12

(Deu 6:5 NKJV)  “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart. This is the foundation to living a life that honors God in every possible way.

After yesterday’s Bible Verse of The Day about “casual Christians”, we had some people write to us and ask how to go beyond being lukewarm, or what it means not to be a casual Christian.

The best way to explain it is this: “Being so in love with God that every aspect of your life exemplifies Christ and brings honor to His name.”

It’s not something that we do just by following rules or a set of laws. As we grow closer to God, our lives are transformed a little at a time, and before we know it, so much about us changes; the things we say, the way we treat others, the entertainment that we take in… it all changes. Why? Because we love God and want to please Him.

So how do we get so close to God that this happens? We make a conscious effort to know Him. We can’t just know about Him. We have to know Him. We get to know Him by spending time in His word, learning everything that we can about who He wants us to be and how He wants to interact in our lives. And we learn to listen for His voice and obey it!

It all boils down to the condition of our heart. As we allow God to change our heart, we will become closer to Him. A hard heart will always keep God at a distance. A heart that has been touched and softened by God will want to be as close as possible to Him.

We challenge you to let God change your heart and draw you close to Him!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

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Bible Verse of The Day – 8-1-12

(1 Cor 6:20 NKJV)  For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

Jesus paid the ultimate price for our sins. He bought us with His very own blood and His life.

As I was out for a walk in the evening, God impressed upon my heart to share a message with you today about casual Christianity. There are hundreds of thousands… possibly even millions of “casual Christians” across the globe.

These would be the people who have made a confession of faith at some point in their life, accepting Christ as their savior. But for one reason or another, they have never gone beyond a casual relationship with Him, keeping Him at arm’s length.

I want to speak to you today if you are a casual Christian. This is not to condemn anyone in any way whatsoever. But it is to urge you to move beyond where you are at right now and give Jesus your WHOLE being. He is worthy of our entire life. After all, He bought it with His own life!

If there is something stopping you from surrendering, give it to God and let Him have it. Try to understand how much God paid for you and that He wants 100% of you. He deserves to have 100% of you.

Give yourself over to Him. Let Him sit on the throne of your heart. There is nothing in your life that’s too big for Him to handle.

You will never know true peace until He is your everything.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!

 

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Bible Verse of The Day – 7-19-12

(Mat 15:18 KJV)  But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.

What comes out of the heart is what defiles a man. That is where it all starts… in the heart.

You see, by the time it comes out of the mouth the damage was already done. It was the heart that passed it through. We shouldn’t just repent for the words we have spoken, but for our heart’s condition. That is the root of it.

Have you ever heard someone say, “we need to get right to the root of the problem”? The root is where something starts growing and grows deeper if it remains in place. No matter what changes you make, if those changes aren’t at the root, it will keep coming back.

This year I planted a garden and when I go out to weed it, the weeds look so little compared to the plants themselves. However, when I pull them up they are strong and they like to break off right at the ground. But, the root of them is beneath the ground and if I don’t rip it out, that same weed will come back.

Our heart is the root of a lot of our problems. It’s a hard thing to admit to some of the things that are in there. But once we see them, they’ve been exposed to us and there is no hiding it any longer.

The first thing we need to do is ask God to help us get it out of there. It won’t go away on its own. It takes work and, like anything else, it takes sacrifice. It takes giving some things up that mean a lot to us; letting go of things that make us feel comfortable and making adjustments.

It might not be comfortable or pleasant at first, but it’s a necessity if we want to grow as a believer.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

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Bible Verse of The Day – 6-22-12

(Mat 6:19-21 NKJV)  “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; {20} “but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. {21} “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Where are our hearts? What do we treasure?

The answers to these two questions can tell us a lot about ourselves and where we are at in our walk with God.

What makes us happy and puts a smile on our faces will be dictated by what we value the most. Is it a shiny new car, a big house with lots of extra rooms, a new wardrobe, a new job or a raise on our current job?

Or is it seeing someone receive a breakthrough in their life, helping someone through a tough time, giving someone money when they’re in a tough financial situation or helping someone to have strength when they feel like they just can’t take another thing happening to them?

Don’t get me wrong. It’s not terrible to enjoy stuff. Believe me… I enjoy stuff too. But we need to make sure that God and His desires for us come before that stuff. We need to take pleasure in the things that give God pleasure.

When we press into God and begin to get His heart, then we will start to see the things that make us happy begin to change.

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

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Bible Verse of The Day – 6-20-12

(Psa 51:10 NKJV)  Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Oh, a CLEAN heart.

Think of how beautiful and clean God is. Nothing about Him is bad or wrong; He is perfect in every way. Wow, how I long to just have one minute go by where everything I do is right within that minute.

Sometimes it seems so hard to do and say the right thing even in just a short period of time. It can be so discouraging at times. It makes me feel so awful and weak at times.

But I know that God is doing a work within all of us and it doesn’t happen overnight. Sometimes it takes time for things to get changed and other times it happens quickly. Cleaning the heart is one of the biggest and longest processes there is; everything comes from our hearts.

(Prov 22:15 NKJV)  Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; The rod of correction will drive it far from him.

Understand that we are God’s children and if we want this stuff driven far from us, we must let Him correct us, teach us, mold us and train us.

The heart is what we need to focus on. The love of God will help us clean things up and get things right if we go to Him, and those that He leads us to, to get counsel and advice from.

It’s a process and it can take some time, so don’t get discouraged…but be encouraged as we embrace God’s correction for us!!

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

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Bible Verse of The Day – 6-4-12

(Mat 5:8 NKJV)  Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God.

How do we get pure in our hearts?  By receiving, believing and following Christ, and then repenting and turning from our ways of doing things and following His commandments.

Jesus’ blood cleanses us as we receive Him as our Lord and Savior. Do you know the song, “What can wash me white as SNOW, Nothing but the BLOOD of Jesus!!”?  That song says it all, it’s the blood of Jesus that has given us the freedom to go to God and have a relationship with Him. Thank God for Jesus and His blood that was so pure, so clean, and so perfect.

Reading God’s Word will allow us to get to know Him, the person that He is, the things He loves, the things He hates, and so forth.

As we allow God to cleanse us, and we work to keep the junk out on a daily basis, we will see more and more of God in our lives. (James 4:8) God wants to draw near to us…we just have to want to draw near to Him.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!

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