1,700 TIMES

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life.

John 6:63

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Today I was thinking about things that I may have done in life 1,700 times or more.

I’ve definitely gone to asleep and awakened that many times.

I’ve gone to work that many times.

I’ve driven my car and opened and closed my garage door in the process that many times.

I’ve eaten meals, worked out, taken showers, and brushed my teeth that many times.

I’ve definitely had 1,700 heartbeats and breathed in and out that many times in life.

I could go on and on and on as I am sure you could but what’s with the obsession with the number “1,700”.

Well, it’s been 1,700 times, counting today that the Lord has called me to write down words He has presented to me through the scriptures and His Holy Spirit, words that have formed the devotions found in The Christian Walk ministry. That’s a lot of words. That’s a lot of discernment and typing. And I pray that has been a lot of encouragement, conviction, and wisdom imparted on readers since this ministry launched in 2007. I also hold the hope that more than a few people have found their way to salvation through Jesus Christ and started their own Christian walk as a result of what the Lord has said through me.

Yes, the Lord has granted me the gift to write for Him and used me 1,700 times to that purpose. We begin with a blank Word document and a scripture each day. He speaks to me from that point on and I first transcribe and then share with anyone who is led to read what He had to say that day. In the end, I can’t help but think that results in abounding blessing because that’s what the Lord does. He blesses those who invest in His words and ways. Through them, people find Spirit and life as the verse for today from the Gospel of John proclaims:

The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life. John 6:63

Friends, the Lord transforms us and shows us that we have nothing in the flesh but everything through the work of His Spirit that convicts us, guides us, directs us, instructs us, and allows us to feel the warmth of the Lord’s deep love for us. We have life because of Him as He made us and brought us into His creation. We have life abundantly through Him as we seek to serve Him and others by carrying out His will and way through each day He gives us. And we have the opportunity for eternal life through our belief that God loved us so much that He sent His only Son Jesus to die and pay the price for our sins, bearing the penalty that we deserved, perishing that we might live.

Thanks be to the Lord for His gifts of life and love and learning. I pray that He uses me to write another 1,700 times to share His Spirit with others and guide them to be the people He longs for them to be, people who seek to be a reflection of Him in the way they think, speak, and act.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.

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