Recognizing the Victory

Discovering and walking out our Purpose can be difficult, especially if we take our eyes off Jesus. One way to ensure we stay focused is to find and celebrate the first fruits of our efforts. God is faithful to give us strategies for success, but we must engage with Him and receive.

Celebrate every time something happens that is a victory for God’s Kingdom. Let God know how you recognize His hand in your life and that you are eternally grateful. Give God the first ten minutes of your good news before calling your friends and family. He wants to tell you how proud and excited He is that you are seeing positive activity in your life.

And above all God wants you to know and understand how much He loves you. Here are some verses to get started:

Proverbs 3:9-10 Amplified Bible (AMP)

Honor the Lord with your wealth. And with the first fruits of all your crops (income); Then your barns will be abundantly filled, And your vats will overflow with new wine.

Exodus 34:22 Amplified Bible (AMP)

You shall observe and celebrate the Feast of Weeks (Harvest, First Fruits, or Pentecost), the first fruits of the wheat harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering (Booths or Tabernacles) at the year’s end.

Exodus 34:26 Amplified Bible (AMP)

“You shall bring the very first of the first fruits of your ground to the house of the Lord your God….

Leviticus 2:12 Amplified Bible (AMP)

As an offering of first fruits you may offer them [leaven and honey] to the Lord, but they shall not go up [in smoke] on the altar as a sweet and soothing aroma.

Leviticus 23:10 Amplified Bible (AMP)

“Speak to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘When you enter the land which I am giving you and reap its harvest, you shall bring the [a]sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest.

Nehemiah 12:44 Amplified Bible (AMP)

On that day men were appointed over the chambers for the stores, the contributions, the first fruits, and the tithes, to gather into them from the fields of the cities the portions required by the law for the priests and the Levites; for Judah rejoiced over the priests and Levites who served.

James 1:18 Amplified Bible (AMP)

It was of His own will that He gave us birth [as His children] by the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits of His creatures [a prime example of what He created to be set apart to Himself—sanctified, made holy for His divine purposes].

1 Corinthians 15:20 Amplified Bible (AMP)

The Order of Resurrection: But now [as things really are] Christ has in fact been raised from the dead, [and He became] the first fruits [that is, the first to be resurrected with an incorruptible, immortal body, foreshadowing the resurrection] of those who have fallen asleep [in death].

Romans 11:16 Amplified Bible (AMP)

If the first portion [of dough offered as the first fruits] is holy, so is the whole batch; and if the root (Abraham, the patriarchs) is holy, so are the branches (the Israelites).

Romans 8:23 Amplified Bible (AMP)

And not only this, but we too, who have the first fruits of the Spirit [a joyful indication of the blessings to come], even we groan inwardly, as we wait eagerly for [the sign of] our adoption as sons—the redemption and transformation of our body [at the resurrection]. ♥

† By God’s grace.

Excerpt from the Foundations of Love Online Course by Hardwired for Worship School of the He.Arts.

Made in God’s Image

We are all creative whether we believe it or not. We are made in God’s image as creative beings capable of engaging in the phenomenon of making something new and valuable. We are creative at our jobs whether we are mechanics, waiters, painters, or physicians. We can develop new solutions to old problems, if we are willing to apply ourselves to the Creative Process.

When we want to create any change or solve any problem in our life and our relationships, we can use the Creative Process to do it. We can seek to better understand the problem and work through it with a simple step-by-step formula to find solutions. Change is within reach and we are hardwired to learn and grow in Christ Jesus.

We can take the Creative Process further when we work through it with others, such as family. They say that two heads are better than one, and five are better than that and we agree. Teamwork in the right environment is a powerful tool to amplify our creativity. Our solutions will have more depth for more solid foundations. This is how the Kingdom of God and the Body of Christ is designed to work.

The basic Creative Process includes:

• Exploration and Analysis
• Ideation and Brainstorming
• Designing and Planning
• Developing and Producing
• Evaluating the Solution for Improvement

Note: Each step of the process is enriched by using imagination and play.

We are hardwired to use our sanctified and righteous imagination to create effective solutions.

The imagination is a powerful, lifegiving tool given to humans to go higher and farther than we ever knew possible. We can launch ourselves into far away galaxies, sail through the stars, dive the oceans’ depths, and fly through forests unknown. And, when we use our imagination, we can feel like we are playing like children in God’s immeasurable Kingdom.

We are called to be like children in Scripture and we are designed to play. We are healed by the laughter and we are lifted by the joy. We are hardwired to play and do so with healthy competition and the fulfillment of community as we engage with others. Play activates our imagination and God’s Creative Spirit to pour out everything we need to address the challenges of our day. ♥

† By God’s grace.