Daily Renewal — Jim Cymbala

I did an interview yesterday on the most popular listened to Christian quote-unquote radio program in Canada I was told. It was set up by Zondervan, my publisher, and so on and so forth. And this was one of many, but this one I knew was gonna be different just by the intro, and thankfully the Lord had prepared me.

Maybe I'll tell you about that more later. But as I was doing the interview, they were asking questions way off the point of the book, and the host was letting it be known that, you know, he had some questions about God and this and that.

So he said, so, you know, Pastor, you're not giving answers like a typical mega-pastor, and you're giving me a headache, is what he said, actually. But in a good way, I think, a headache. And I said, I'm sorry, you have a headache, but I'm just answering them truthfully.

Honest Conversations About Discouragement

So he says, let's talk about the dark night of the soul. Let's talk about discouragement. Let's talk about those times that you go through that you wonder if there is a God, or that you wanna quit. You know, don't try to tell me you've never had those times.

So let's talk, let's talk real. Don't do the pastor thing and the preacher thing. Let's talk real. So I said, yeah, well, there was a time in college where I started questioning and doubting things. What, way back in college?

That's the last time I said, relax, let me answer your question here. But in terms of discouragement, oh, I know what discouragement is. A couple times in the early years of being in the ministry, I tried to leave the ministry twice.

God knows that. I tried, I couldn't take it. So I tried to make arrangements and have a meeting where I could do something else. Discouragement is a killer. So then other times, not leave the ministry, but being so discouraged, and then, because they were kind of agnostic in a way, he and the gentleman who was a religious leader, not agnostic, but I don't know what word to use, and not mocking, but it was somewhere inside there, I was able to share about some of the miracles God has done to help me at my lowest moments, especially bearing the financial load, along with the pastors and the prayer band and people that we face, moving from site to site, because with an inner city church, but many times you have a lot of people, but they're not billionaires, millionaires, and yet the price of things in downtown Brooklyn now, in New York City, is high.

So how do you do that? The offerings aren't gonna cover it, not if you're gonna surge ahead and take on huge, multiply dozens and dozens of millions of dollars project. So I told them about how God had come through and helped, but I also was honest and told them, yeah, I know what discouragement is.

And a lot of us hide discouragement, don't we? We don't wanna talk about it. We hide it, we put a smile on our face, and someone comes up to us and says, God is good all the time, and do the bump and all of that, but secretly inside we're saying, man, this is hard.

It can be hard because of your kid who departs from the Lord, isn't serving God. It can be financial pressure. It can be disappointment with yourself. It can be living in a way that you know, talking, acting in a way that you know is not the way you should be doing that.

There's so many, you get discouraged with yourself, you get discouraged with people. People make promises and we're gonna do this or that, and then that doesn't happen, and you go, why, where? We've all faced that, haven't we?

We all know what discouragement is. How many have ever been, even if you're just in college age or high school, how many have ever battled with discouragement? Just honestly, lift up your hand, okay? Discouraged financially, discouraged by what it was I created for, I should be doing something more for the Lord or whatever.

Discouragement, in the New Testament, there's sometimes a word that's used there which actually means loss of heart, disheartened, discouraged, meaning you lose your courage. It's almost linked to the word fear, but it's different than that, although it can encompass fear, but it's discouraged, down, losing your vitality, your faith affected, and this, thankfully, is discussed in the Bible very openly, and we know that people battled with discouragement, and yet, we have the Apostle Paul in the New Testament saying the most amazing thing.

The Inner Person Is Renewed Daily

So let's look up at the screens. We're gonna have a new screen here in the front very soon, like the screens on the left and right. For this reason, we never become discouraged. You know, what is that about?

How do you live a life where you never get discouraged? How do you do that? Even though our physical being is gradually decaying, yet our spiritual being, the inner person, is renewed, made new, day after day or daily, and this small and temporary trouble that we suffer will bring us a tremendous and eternal glory, much greater than the trouble.

He's comparing now inner man, outer man, now momentary light trouble compared with tremendous and eternal glory. Go to verse, next verse. For we fix our attention, we have an inner vision, we're able to look at things not with the physical eye, for we fix our attention not on things that are seen.

This is obviously, has nothing to do with your ocular capacity, has nothing to do with these eyes. He's talking about a different kind of seeing which was affected by him being renewed every day. So what did it mean?

He said we fix our eyes not on things that are seen but on things that are unseen. How do you see things that are unseen? That's these eyes, the eyes of your heart. For what can be seen lasts only for a time.

It's transient, it's temporary, but what cannot be seen lasts forever, it's eternal. So notice the comparisons here. He says we never get discouraged. Though our outward person is going through a lot of stuff, our inward person is being made new every single day.

And then he says because our light, now suddenly what seemed so big before, he calls it now light, temporary, it's for a second. It cannot be compared with the eternal, huge weight of glory that's gonna come to us because we go through those things.

The light transient things that you and I go through and fight off by faith in Christ, that's gonna bring about an even greater weight of glory. And then one other contrast, he says, and we don't look at things that are seen.

We don't live by these eyes alone because if you live by these eyes alone, you're gonna be one depressed little puppy, am I correct? Just turn on the news, just turn on the news. What's your choice? CNN, Fox, whatever, ABC, NBC, just turn it on.

Pick up the paper tomorrow, read about Ebola, read about ISIS, read about the economy, read about every kind of thing. If you go by those eyes, he says, we don't go by those eyes. Now what we see is something else.

Because what you see with this eye, he said, is only for now, it's physical. But with these eyes, it's invisible and it lasts forever. Now just in case you think your life is tougher than Paul's, Paul says something else in this chapter which is kind of a famous passage where he talks about his ministry and what he went through as he traveled around preaching the gospel.

Look up at it here for a second, okay? Where are we? Yet we who have this spiritual treasure are like common clay pots. Someone once said we're like crack pots. In order to show that the supreme power belongs to God, not to us, so we who are ministering, we who are Christians, we have this treasure that no one in the world has except for a Christian.

We have the spirit of God living inside of us. But even though that spirit is inside of us, our bodies are not changed, they're clay pots. They can crack, they can give in to pressure. They get old, they get tired.

Why does God do it that way? To show that he's the one who keeps us keeping on. We are often troubled but not crushed. Sometimes in doubt but never in despair. There are many enemies but we are never without a friend.

And though badly hurt at times, we are not destroyed. You know how one translation has? We're knocked down but we're not knocked out. We've taken some shots but we get up. Come on, let me see what you have.

Paul's Suffering and Victory Over Discouragement

So Paul, the man who's talking about we're never discouraged, I'm never discouraged, he knew what it was to get beat, put in prison, shipwrecked. How'd you like to have your back open? 39 lashes, 40 minus one.

They wouldn't allow the 40th because it killed too many people in the end. But sometimes the 39 would open up enough wounds that a person would bleed out and die. Tossed in prison with vermin running all over him.

Left forsaken, people not helping him who promised they'd be there. And yet he says, never discouraged. Man, I want to know that secret. How many want to learn today the secret of being victorious over discouragement?

Every day, come on, lift your hand. Because discouragement hurts your children. It hurts your marriage. When a husband or a wife lives in discouragement, it's very hard to live with them. You love them and you help them and you try to encourage them.

But that constant weight of someone always negative and down and discouraged, you're not to be angry with them but it's hard, it's hard. And then children pick that up. Children pick up the unbelief of discouragement.

Just that's all they hear is discouraging words, negative words. You know, this is never gonna work. I'll never get that job. And the children drink that in. And that affects their personality. Of course it does.

Everything that children hear affects them one way or the other. And then you can't be what God wants you to be because God doesn't use discouraged people. If you're discouraged and can't make it yourself, how are you gonna be a blessing to someone else?

Most people are discouraged. What if I started the meeting today and I said, listen everybody, it's great to see you. Welcome to First Time Visitors. But listen, dude and dudette or whatever the female of dude is.

I had a bad week this week. Been doing all these radio interviews. Man, this one wise guy had this one interview and then this and then, you know, I was walking. I stepped off a curb and I maybe twisted my ankle.

And I went to this restaurant, paid a lot of money, got a bad meal. What a bummer that one was. And then, you know what? I can't really preach to you today because I'm down myself. I'm rather discouraged.

I'm depressed, in fact. And so, what should we do? I don't know. You're all laughing because what you would say is, no, Pastor Semble, you can't be discouraged. You're not allowed. That's why we're here.

We're discouraged. We came so that you could lift us up. What in the world are you down about? Am I right or wrong? We tell the choir members, when you come to practice and you get up here to sing, you're not allowed to be discouraged.

Oh yes, do we not have that meeting? Do we not talk about that? No, no, because this is different select group than the folks in the pews. We have a double standard. Of course we do. This is ministry here.

Tyron's not allowed to be discouraged. I don't care what he's going through. He's gotta sing for the glory of God. He's gotta put all himself into that thing. He's gotta get up at 3 .30, quarter to four.

What time do you get up in the morning from that job? 3 .30 in the morning. We don't care. Suck it up. No, and pray with somebody, but you gotta get up there and encourage because there's somebody up in the balcony that maybe just tested positive HIV and they think their life's over and you're gonna be depressed.

Oh no, that can't happen. Same thing with the pastors. Pastor Johnson can't come up here, pray for the offering and say, God, you know, man, I don't even wanna pray for the offering, God, because it just hasn't been working out for me lately.

No, you're not allowed to do that. How can you encourage people if you're discouraged? And most people are fighting discouragement. Choir, am I right or wrong about that talk we all had? There's nobody ever came into this choir that hasn't had a last talk with me and that's one of the things we talk.

We don't allow moods, depression, or discouragement here. We'll pray for you, you can talk about it, tell your leader about it. We'll stop everything and pray for you, but when you get up there, you're gonna sing for the glory of God and you're gonna be happy because we have Jesus.

Come on, let's say amen to all of that. Now, I wanna know, I wanna know Paul's secret because he got beat down. He got a beat down, Paul did. Paul got beat downs. Forget your problems, my problems. He got a beat down, many of them.

And he said, I'm never discouraged. Why? He said, because every day my inner person is renewed or made brand new. So let's just talk terms for just a second as we bring this to completion. So he's saying, the outward person, notice Paul says there's a dichotomy to human life.

There's the outer person, which your body, your physical body, and also in this sense, your mind and some of your emotions and that outer person. He said that is the clay pot and that can give in to stress and strain.

Always remember this about your mind and your nerves. Even if you're a Christian, you stretch them too much. That rubber band will break even if it's a Christian rubber band. So he said that outer person is affected by aging and stress and getting tossed in jail.

Well, of course. And your emotions and your mind can get affected by that. And he says that's the way it is. But he said, there's another part to me. That's the inner person, the spiritual tyrant, the spirit that he has inside of him, which is the part where God lives.

God doesn't live in your head so much as in your heart, your spirit. He that is joined to the Lord, look, is one spirit with the Lord. So he says, in my inner person, I'm being renewed every day. That word renewed doesn't mean like just don't let it sag too much.

It means being made brand new, like top flight, efficiency and strength and energy. He said, every day, I have that happen. We'll get to how that happens. But he said, that's what keeps me going. Why do I don't lose heart?

Because inside, every single day, God makes me like I just got saved. He energizes me. He builds up my faith. So what's the result of that? Notice. Notice when you're renewed in the inner person. You know, most of us are just outer person people.

Physical Fitness Cannot Sustain the Inner Life

How do I look? Do you like my dress? Do you like my tie? I've been working out, you know? I gotta do my reps and I gotta be in shape and I'm not eating that. No, get those Oreos away from me. I rebuke you, Oreo.

I'm not eating that. And most of us are physical people. How do we look? What's in? What's the fashion? Skinny jeans. Everyone's wearing skinny jeans. It's the uniform. It's the new uniform. So Paul says, that's one side.

But he said, the most important part that keeps you going in tough times is not your physical body because you can be in perfect shape and commit suicide. Do you know that four people in America every hour commit suicide?

Every hour. And they're middle class, some well-to-do, black, white, everything, for an hour. An hour. And how did it all begin to get to that spot? You get discouraged. You contract some disease or you learn something and you say, I can't live anymore.

You're married to someone for 60 years and then they die and you say, I don't wanna go on. I can't. I'm out. I'm checking out. So Paul says, the inner person is different than the outer person. Your inner person can keep totally strong like whatever the peak age of you can be spiritually.

You can be that all the time, according to Paul. Now your body, I don't care who you are. Your body, you're gonna lose strength. You're gonna lose range of motion. From all the years of playing basketball, from seven billion jump shots that I took as a basketball player and high school, college player, playing the NCAA tournament, practicing, getting pushed, shoved, whatever, and then holding a microphone before these things for years, and then softball and then tennis and paddle ball and using this right arm.

A doctor looked at my right arm a few years ago and said, what have you done all your life? Like, dude, what is in that shoulder? And I went, well, whatever. So he said, you need a shoulder transplant.

I said, well, guess what? I'm not having a shoulder transplant. I'm not transplanting anything if I can avoid it. Well, I got a rotator cuff problem. This hand, like when you shoot a basketball, I have to do it lefty.

You have to go like this and follow through. You can't just shoot it like that. To really shoot well, you have to follow through. Well, all of that, my range of motion up here, can't do it. I can still play tennis and paddle ball with my friends here in the church, but it's just, there's a pain going on there.

They don't know. Well, that's what happens. Your body breaks down. How many have noticed your old house ain't what it used to be? Lift your hand if you know what I'm talking about. Oh, yeah. Did I see some hands here?

Yeah, all right. So, but Paul says, no, not your spirit. Listen, not your spirit. He said, no, the body, that's gonna give in to a lot of stuff, but not your spirit. And he says, I can get renewed every day.

Eternal Perspective on Temporary Suffering

Now, notice what happens with that renewal. Number one, you get this new perspective, which you don't have when your spirit's not renewed. When you're discouraged, when you're just walking according to your own human strength, you will not see what I'm about to tell you.

And to some of you right now, you're gonna go like, what's up with that? I don't even know what he's talking about. But when your mind is, your spirit is renewed, the inner person is renewed, Paul suddenly says this.

Yeah, I get renewed every day. And then I realize that what I'm going through now, it ain't no big thing. You know, we make a point when we preach and when we share with others, listen, your riches and your pleasures and that house and that car, you can't take it with you when you go.

Don't we say that? And it's true, not only does it not satisfy, you can't take it with you. It's only temporary, right? Don't we all know that? It's just for a little season. Guess what? So are problems.

So is pain. So is heartache. It's very real, but it's only for a season. It's just a few little years. So Paul says, with being renewed, I have this perspective that what I go through, you know, all that stuff I told you about earlier in the chapter, all that stuff I get through, knocked down but not knocked out, not knowing what to do and yet not abandoned, feeling alone sometimes, but there's always a friend named Jesus.

All that stuff I go through, it's light and it's transitory. Notice that when your spirit is renewed, it's not like, how am I gonna get through this? Paul says, no, it ain't no big thing. It's light, it's light, and it only lasts for what, a couple years?

Oh, but it's storing up for me a glory that goes on forever and ever. Now, that word glory is a hard word. We use it, but we really never think of what it means. It has the connotation in the New Testament Greek of the concept of weight.

This sentence here, the Greek scholars say, it's a superlative kind of sentence in that Paul is trying to describe something that he says, you can't describe what I'm about to describe, but I'm gonna give it a shot.

Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, I want Tyron to know that whatever he goes through for Jesus Christ, it's momentary, it's light. It might seem big, but if you get your heart renewed, you'll see that it's just so light, compared, relative, it's compared to the weight of glory.

That word glory means splendor, magnificence, happiness. There's a glory waiting for us when we get to see Jesus, when we're in heaven with him, which has no end. There's a weight of glory, of joy. In fact, Paul says he was lifted up into the third heaven, and he saw things and heard things.

He said they were so beyond the pale. He said, you're not even allowed to talk about it. I can't tell you how incredible it is up there. So Paul says, when you're renewed, you don't see the problem, he says, what am I gonna do?

You go, all right, this is not easy, but God's gonna help me, but ooh, waiting for me. Ooh, waiting for me. That's a shame they're not writing songs about heaven anymore. It's a shame. Everything is now.

Bless me now, help me now, and I'm all for that. But early Christians have always sung songs, and Christians of previous generations have sung songs like, what a day that will be. Sing. When my Jesus I shall see.

When I look upon his face, the one who saved me by his grace. Sing. When he takes me by the hand and leads me to the promised land, what a day, glorious day. Paul is saying, when your heart is renewed, when your inner person's renewed, you start seeing things in a divine perspective.

You don't let the world and its problems overwhelm you. I don't know what I can do. You see it, but beyond the problem, you see, oh, the finish line is coming real soon. You know, someone died today. A whole bunch of people died today.

And you could die tomorrow. But that's not the end of anything. That's not fatalism. I'm not being melodramatic. I'm being statistical. People died today. Someone's died while I've been preaching. And we could die tomorrow, but that's for the Christian.

That's not the end. That's our hope. The great hope is that we're gonna get out of here and be with Jesus. How many can put your hands together and say, that's my hope today? But some of you can't clap real loud, can you?

Because it's all about here, isn't it? It's all about here. It's all about your little life and how you look and your plans. And you know, because you're intelligent, it could be snatched in a 10th of a second.

It's all gone. And now with this stuff, somebody could just sneeze on you or something. And that's why the world is so panicking, right? No, I didn't mean that as a joke. That's serious. And the world is like, no, that's the end.

And for the Christian, it's like, no, that's the beginning. No, it's not the end of anything. It's the beginning. But if your heart is not renewed, your inner person is not renewed, you don't even know what I'm talking about.

Some of you are looking at me and saying, I don't even get it. That's escapism. That's pie in the sky and the by and by. No, it's with Jesus in heaven. Don't let your hearts be troubled. Neither let them be afraid.

For I go to prepare a place for you that where I am, you may be also. If I leave you, I'm gonna come back and get you. How many are know he's coming back to get us here? Either by death or by him returning.

But Paul says, you see, without that, you'd just be knocked over. You'd get discouraged in a second. Because you got your problems and nothing could compare it to. Nothing to endure through. Like I was telling you when I went through plea here at the Naval Academy in Annapolis.

You know, you had to keep your mind on that this has an end. Because what you were going through, the hazing back then, that was no joke. Guys up in your grill, I mean, making life ugly for you. And not a moment's rest.

And no fraternity, you know, hazing, that kind of stuff. This is way more serious. But you said, there's a finish line. How many are gonna make it to that finish line by the grace of God? That's where the reward is.

Don't believe these preachers who tell you it's all about here. If it's all about here, Paul says, we're of all people the most miserable. Because we're going through trials and denying ourselves and resisting temptation.

And if it's only in this life that we have hope, then of all people, it's like, that's sad. Last thing, Paul says, that when you're renewed in the inner person on a daily basis, he said you not only get a different perspective, but you begin to see things supernaturally and spiritually.

Seeing Eternal Realities With the Eyes of the Heart

You don't just use these eyes. See, when you're not renewed, when God hasn't given you that daily renewal through no fault of his, all you see is physical things. Microphones, your wallet, your money or lack thereof, your credit cards.

And then everything is up and down based on what you see. I was trying to help this drug addict about 15 years ago in our previous facility. I had him work at the church, try to help him. He wasn't there really yet though, but I just, I love this guy and I want to help him.

He's a crack addict. And my wife started having things disappear from her office. She lost a boom box, which she needed for her music. And she came to me and she said, you know who took that boom box?

Jose took that boom box. I said, no, Carol, don't be judgmental now. That's my friend, Jose. She said, friend or not, you know he took that. And he sold that to get money. No, he's a diamond in the rough.

You gotta work with him here a little bit. So she got a new boom box, sure enough, three weeks later, that boom box was gone out of her office. So now she's up in my office real close and personal and saying, what are you gonna do?

I know the boom box. Don't tell me anybody else took it. Pastor Hammond did not steal that boom box. I know that. She put in a word for you, brother. And I said, well, whatever. So within two days, we're having staff prayer in the mezzanine lobby, back in that building.

And we're praying. And at that time, I used to carry this little leather case that I bought in Argentina, and it kept my glasses, my wallet, a New Testament pencil, pen, underliner, whatever, and I would just kind of carry it around like a little mail purse kind of thing.

And I come back and something happened that I need to get my wallet. And I thought of it now as I just took my wallet out and I look in my wallet and all the money's gone and every credit card is gone.

That's a bad feeling, right? And suddenly, I lost my patience with Jose. I don't know why. Where's Jose? Get Jose in here now. No, Jose was gone. He charged something at Triangle Sports Store on Flatbush within 15 minutes, and then he went to Macy's and laid an $800 number on me there.

But thank God my life isn't hung up with this. Because if your joy and your peace depends on this, lots of luck, you're in for a long ride. Paul says, no, I don't look at things that are visible anymore.

I mean, I deal with them. I'm in the real world. But my eyes are on things that are invisible because only invisible things are eternal. So if you and I don't see invisible things with the eyes of our heart, we don't live for those things.

You're not only gonna have an up and down life, but you're just concentrating on stuff that's gonna, gone. You know the old saying about, that rich guy died. How much did he leave? Everything. That's what all of us leave, everything.

God's gonna have the last word on everybody. And you could be here smirking at what I'm saying and saying, I'm not buying into that. Doesn't matter. God will have the last word on you and the last word on me.

Heaven and earth will pass away, but his word is not gonna pass away. So that leaves us with this question. If I end the sermon now, it's helpful, but it's really not. Now my question is this. How did you get renewed every day?

He said, my outward person is perishing. I gives in to stress and strain, don't we all? And I know what it is to break down a little in my mind and cry tears, but I don't get discouraged. So now the question is, how are you renewed every day?

Daily Renewal Through the Means of Grace

Let me ask you this question as I close, Jason. Let's just sing Lord Your Grace, it's so amazing. I love that song. Let me ask this question. Do you think everybody gets renewed? Do you think every Christian gets their inner person renewed every day?

I don't think so. No, there wouldn't be so many spiritual basket cases. There wouldn't be so many people walking around year after year, month after month, pray for me, I'm gonna burn out, I can't make it.

I just can't make it. No, and yet Paul went through way more and he's like, yeah, come on, let's roll. What are we gonna do for Jesus today? Where are we gonna go? Where are we gonna travel? Where is He gonna lead me?

I know, but if we go back there, remember what happened? They stoned you, dude, back there. I know, but you know what? Praise God, this is only momentary. This is light. You know, to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.

All they can do is kill me and that ain't no big thing. See, when you have this, this is what's now these lone wolves, terrorists, this is what's striking fear in America because they don't care if they live.

Started with the Kamikazes in World War II. Americans didn't know on those ships and other countries in the Pacific, Australia, British ships. How do you defeat someone who wants to blow up their airplane on your boat, on your ship?

They don't wanna live. They don't wanna hit you and then escape. They wanna die. Very difficult. And now Paul is telling us that you can be renewed every single day so that your inner person strength will be like brand new.

So let me just leave you this. Number one, when your body is run down, you can't function if you don't eat. Before every basketball game, there was a training meal, which was picked by a nutritionist.

It was a certain amount of hours before the game. Proteins still haven't come out. College teams haven't. If UConn or Duke or North Carolina or anybody travels, they don't eat when they wanna eat. They don't eat what they'd like to eat.

They eat a training meal because food and what you take in has an effect on how your body functions. You eat Hostess Twinkies all day, it will tell in the long run. You'll get a sugar rush, but it'll cost you.

So Paul is telling us, everybody does not have their spirit renewed because everyone doesn't take advantage of what is called by the theologians, the means of grace. God has saved me, wretched person that I am.

He has washed away all my sins. How many have had the same experience? Say amen. And now he wants me to live here on earth and he says, I'm not gonna leave you. I'm gonna give you food to eat and I'm gonna give you water to drink because just like your body can't live without food and water, your spirit can't be strong without food and water.

Nourishment Through Scripture

Listen to me because this will explain a lot about your life right now if you'll just listen. This is the word which is bread and you can eat it by reading it and meditating on it. Thy words were found, Jeremiah.

Thy words were found and I did eat them and they became to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart. Without the Bible every day, reading and meditating on it, you will run down. End of story. But I love the Lord.

You will run down. You will get weak. But I have this gift of singing. That's good, sing. But eat every day before you sing. But I'm in the choir for 14 years. Doesn't matter, you will run down. Am I right, choir?

Without this word every day. But I'm so busy. If you're too busy to eat spiritual food, you're too busy, change your schedule. Look at me, listen to me. Change your schedule. Those watching on the webcast, change your schedule because how can you risk letting your inner person run down and get weak?

Some of us here right this Sunday, we're looking good and strong and well-dressed and you look handsome and beautiful, everyone, but I wonder what the x-ray would show of your inner person. What are you eating every day?

What are you reading? What are you meditating on? That's gonna determine your inner person. If you got just junk food that pleases your senses, then you're gonna be weak. When the enemy comes and when temptation comes and you need to be strong in the Lord, you're gonna be weak because your inner person has been being starved.

It's anorexic. So Paul says, no, every day I'm renewed. Notice how Paul lived a day at a time. Do not think about next week, this next Sunday, this from now, don't think about it because you don't know if you'll live it.

Paul said the Christian life can only be lived one way, every day. Does anybody sit down for a meal and say, you know what, I wanna eat such a good meal, I don't have to eat for the next 10, 11 days? No one does that.

You need food every day. You need this word every day. How many say amen? You need every day to not only eat this word, you need every day to have a good drink of water because without water, you can't live.

I'm telling you something that, I'm telling you practical, right, from my own mistakes, from my own wrong concepts, things I've learned from God's word, you gotta learn to sit every day with that book.

Prayer, the Spirit, and Daily Dependence

Satan will fight you tooth and nail if you follow what I say. Come back and tell me if you didn't have a battle, tell me, tell me if I'm talking smack or talking real to you. You gotta fight to get in a chair and say, Jesus, talk to me through your word.

Make those promises real to me, I wanna meditate on them. Apply those commands to me, love one another even as I have loved you, oh Lord. And then after you chew and meditate on that, just open your heart and say, Spirit of the living God, come like a river in me because I'm dry.