Archives for January 2016

God Loves Jesus More Than He Loves Us, Right?

If we compare the perfect trust and obedience of Jesus to our own, our immediate conclusion is that God the Father loves Jesus infinitely more than He loves us. It is difficult to believe it’s possible that we are in the same league as Jesus when it comes to who God loves. I mean, who do many parents tend to love or favor the most, the child who is the most obedient or the child who is disobedient?

Most Christians are unconvinced that our Father loves them apart from their behavior, attitudes etc. It’s easy for them to believe in the deep recesses of their minds that God is keeping score, doling out His love more when they obey and withholding it when they don’t. I was once one of them. Though I could recite to you the fact that God loved me unconditionally, I still functioned as if I could get God’s attention through my obedience so He would love me more.

Jesus turned this thinking on its head when He prayed an amazing prayer for His present disciples and the ones who would come later. It’s found in John 17:26 “I have made Your name known to them, and will make it known, so that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”

Jesus says that He has made the name of the Father known to these who followed Him while on the earth. To make known the name of the Father is to reveal Who the Father is, which results in Christ followers knowing how much they are loved.

Can you receive this today? Can you receive that our Father loves you as much as He loves Jesus, regardless of your good or bad performance? Jesus prayed for this and I am confident that Father always answers Jesus’ prayers.

Here is a prayer of faith I challenge you to pray, even if you don’t feel or believe you deserve it.

Father, because Jesus prayed for me that You would love me just as much as You loved Him, I believe that right now. Please deepen my understanding and experience of Your love for me. Remind me of this on my good days when life is good and on my bad days when life is bad. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Rest in God’s love!

Warmly in Christ,

Mark Maulding, President and Founder

www.GraceLifeInternational.com All Content Copyright © 2016 Mark Maulding but feel free to pass it on!

Why You Should Always Ask "So What?"

So what? That question should be asked every time we are taught the New Covenant. But first, we need to know the basics of the New Covenant. Jeremiah 31:33‐34 tells us that it holds us up by three pillars. 33 “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the Lord, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”

1. Pillar One – God gave us a new identity. Years ago, a lady told me she was praying God would write His law on her heart. He had already answered her prayer the day she was saved. But what does that mean? The Law is based on the character of God, meaning He has placed His character in our new heart in Christ. So what? We are not defined by our past, parents, possessions or peer. God alone defines us as holy, righteous, blameless, loving and more. It’s who we are in the deepest core of our being.

2. Pillar Two – God united Himself to us. The word “know” in verse 34 is the same Hebrew word used in Genesis 4:1 where Adam and Eve’s amazing intimacy of their physical union is written about. Similarly, God united Himself to us spiritually. So what? He wants to enjoy us and for us to enjoy Him as He loves us from the inside and lives through us the very life of Christ.

3. Pillar Three – God forgave us completely. God forgave us so thoroughly that it not only includes our past but our future, too. Not remembering our sins any more means He doesn’t hold them against us even when we do sin. So what? We never need to feel compelled to “run away” from our Father when we sin. We can run to Him and be honest about what we have done and confident we are forgiven. And then ask Jesus to live through us in us to overcome the next time (That’s repentance.)

There is so much more I’d like to tell you about the “So what?” for every one of these, but space prohibits it. A lot of this will be in the book I am writing; but, you don’t have to wait for it to come out. You can hear it taught NOW in one of our offices in person or online. The next opportunity for this in Charlotte and Asheville is our Grace Life Conference. The next opportunity for women only is our Women of Grace one morning a week. See the sidebar for more info.

May you enjoy Jesus and the blessings you already have in the New Covenant in Him this week.

Live Free In Christ,

Mark Maulding, President and Founder

www.GraceLifeInternational.com All Content Copyright © 2015 Mark Maulding but feel free to pass it on!

You Can Stop Trying to Be Like Jesus

The cause of great guilt, gnawing shame and grandiose failure in the Christian life is often from trying to be like Jesus. It sounds spiritual and noble to pursue this. Yet, it is actually the curse of many Christ-followers. Some keep trying harder. Some give up. Others settle into the mentality that guilt and failure are the normal Christian life.

My good friend, Diane Bumgardner, tells her own story of how God reversed this curse in her well written testimony below.

By Diane Bumgardner

Good morning! Another beautiful, cold morning! I so love the sunshine!! Just makes me smile to look out and see the sun smiling back at me!

I was a Christian for many years before I “crashed n burned” and learned the meaning of the verse below! I tried for years to “imitate” Jesus. I prayed for and received the power of the Holy Spirit yet I continued to live out of my flesh trying really hard to be a GREAT Christian woman!! But I couldn’t do it!! Despite all my great efforts — I failed! Over and over! I failed! On my bedroom floor one morning, desperate for relief from guilt and shame for all my failures, I cried out to God: “I can’t take it anymore!!! I cannot live the Christian life and bring you honor! I just want to die!” God spoke so softly to my heart: “Finally! You are right where you need to be”! Then He spoke this verse into my heart: “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life I now live in the flesh (in this body), I now live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me.” From that moment, nearly 30 years ago to this day, God has been teaching me how that works; this “Jesus living in me, thru me, as me” truth! I am and will ever be a work-in-progress! So are we all! BUT GOD!! Yes, but God is faithful!! He will “restore my soul…guide me in paths of righteousness”! It is His WORD of promise to us! Makes me wanna shout: “SHINE ON!!” On this new day filled with promise! Blessings to all of you!!

I hope Diane’s story encourages you today that you are not alone in this journey wherever you may find yourself in life. And that God’s answer is Christ in you!

Healing for Your Hurts

Do you ever find yourself experiencing a hurt that seems stuck inside you? Maybe you’ve tried to pray it away. Maybe you’ve hoped a friend could help you get over it. Maybe you’ve searched the Scriptures in hopes they would cure it. Maybe you’ve even tried counseling. Yet, it’s still there.

The cause of the pain may be a mystery to you or it may be right in front of your nose. Regardless, I am writing today to assure you that there is healing for you in Christ! And we can help you discover how the life of Christ within you can be your personal or marital healing.

I’m sure you’ve heard the quip, “Hurt people, hurt people.” But have you also heard, “Healed people, heal people?” It’s very true and the longer you live in a place of hurt, the more you will hurt yourself and people you care about. However, you can be one of those whom God heals who becomes an agent of healing to others. It’s like 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 tells us. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

If you are a Christian and just can’t get rid of the pain inside from the reoccurring thoughts, and/or the conflict on the outside, I encourage you to give us a call at GLI and set up a consultation. In the consultation, we will listen with the love of Jesus and will show you that there is hope in God’s grace just like we have for 20 years. Then you can decide if we are the right counseling place for you.

Our counseling is probably going to be very different than any other counseling you may have experienced – in a very good and freeing way. One person told us that they went to 10 different counselors, Christian and otherwise. Many were able to show this person their problems more clearly but could not give a lasting solution which could bring the healing so desperately needed. Then God moved powerfully to bring that healing when this person came for counseling at Grace Life International.

If you live close enough, you can come to one of our three locations – Charlotte, Asheville, or Albemarle. If you can’t make it to one of our offices, we offer Skype counseling which more and more people are enjoying. We also have affiliate offices in some other parts of the USA and Europe. You may also want to ask about our 2-5 day intensive counseling.

James 5:16 tells us, Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. I often tell people, when you are ready to tell the deepest secrets of your struggles or failures, you better be careful who you confess them to. You want someone who has these characteristics: listens well, understands, shows compassion, isn’t judgmental, can keep a confidence, has experienced personal healing from God, and is willing to walk along with you to share His solution. This is what you will experience with one of our 40 wonderful counselors.

Give us a call today and let us share with you how we can help.

Charlotte (704)522-9026/Asheville (828) 545-1425/Albemarle (704) 807-1294/Online (704) 522-9026