Discernment

The other day, I was telling Eric how overwhelmed I felt with all the responsibilities I have on my plate.

He had me review my tasks, and then he helped me see that 99% of the things I was worried about were not that big of a deal.

Then we had a talk about discernment, and how each of us needs to be able to discern correctly which things are important and which things are not.

This is done by the power of the Spirit.

I was reading in 1 Corinthians 2:14 this morning.  "But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."

Then I looked at verse 16: "For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ."

That's an interesting phrase.  How do I have the mind of Christ?

The footnote took me to 1 John 3:24  "And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him.  And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us."

When we are trying to keep the commandments and invite the Spirit to be with us, we will know things by that Spirit.

John 6:56 is linked to that scripture in the footnotes.   It tells that if we partake of the sacrament, the Lord will dwell in us. 

Romans 8:9 is also connected to the scripture in 1 John.  We are not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.  It's by overcoming the natural man/woman that we can focus on the Spirit which is in us, as covenant children of God.

So how am I going to apply this to my life today?

I have a lot on my task list right now.  Big projects are waiting for me, Christmas is a few weeks away, and my quiet hours are few and far between.

I am going to take some time to pray and ask the Lord to help me focus on what is most important and will yield the most lasting results.  Then I will work as hard as I can to accomplish these things.

I don't want to feel stressed and worried.  I want to feel relaxed, empowered, focused, and supported by my God--because my only desire is to serve Him.  Of course He will help me to have the gift of discernment when I am simply trying to care for His children.  I only need to ask.