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Life Around "The Fire"
Life Around "The Fire"
The Power of Persistence and Consistency on Your Spiritual Journey
Have you ever considered what makes the Bible truly different from any other book? Beyond just sacred text, it stands as a unique collection of 66 books written across centuries that somehow speaks with remarkable relevance to our modern lives.
This episode dives deep into the transformative message of 2 Peter 1:3-11, where we discover the pathway to spiritual maturity outlined by one of Jesus' closest disciples. Peter, writing to severely persecuted believers, offers timeless wisdom about growing in faith before we grow old. His prescription for spiritual growth remains as powerful today as when first penned 2,000 years ago.
At the heart of Peter's message, we uncover two essential Kingdom qualities that function as keys not only to spiritual maturity but to success in every area of life: persistence and consistency. Like plowing a field before planting, these virtues aren't glamorous, but they're absolutely necessary for harvest. We explore how persistence carries us through seasons without visible results and how consistency in character reflects God's own nature.
Whether you're building a business, leading in ministry, raising a family, or simply trying to grow in your faith journey, these twin principles unlock doors that talent alone cannot open. You don't need to be the most brilliant or gifted person—persistent, consistent effort will ultimately outperform sporadic excellence.
Ready to discover how ancient wisdom can transform your modern life? Join us as we unpack practical insights that will encourage you to keep going when you're tempted to quit, right before your breakthrough might come. Subscribe now and let's grow together in faith and purpose!
Loving Yeshua/Jesus, Loving people... Come as you are and you will be loved!
Feel free to check out our website by typing in lifearoundthefire.com or Life Around The Fire ... We think you'll find some beneficial stuff to look at and apply to your life.
Shalom to you and your home.
I was just thinking recently on how the Bible is the most unique book I've ever read and am still reading. In fact, I'm captivated by what I read most often. There are sometimes and this is just truth in advertising here, so to speak there are some times where it's a discipline to read. It's kind of like just plowing a field. There's nothing too glamorous about plowing, but it's a work that needs to be done if you're going to plant and if you're going to have a harvest. Well, sometimes it's like that when I read from the scriptures. But most often and almost always, if I read long enough, at least one thing is going to be highlighted from what I'm reading and just speak directly to my heart, and then a unique thing also takes place. I begin to see how the scriptures can be communicated so that it will impact other people's lives as well.
Speaker 1:That of and by itself is actually a gift the gift of teaching or preaching or prophesying. It's not something that comes naturally Now. There are natural things that a person can do to prepare to teach and preach and all that goes along with that, and that would be the ability to put together homiletics or homilies, and there's a benefit to that to communicate things and have other people critique them, because we learn from the input that other people give to us, but sometimes, in fact I'm going to say for myself all the time when it comes to preaching or teaching or prophesying, speaking the oracle of the Lord from the scriptures, it comes with a supernatural anointing. It's an unction Indescribable. I can't put words to it exactly, except it's a power that comes from within, and when it's released it has an impact on the world around me. So I was thinking, though, considering the scriptures, there's not one person or one group of people that can take credit for putting together the 66 books that I have in the can of scriptures that I read from. There's not one group that can say I've put all of them together, or one person saying I have put all of them together. And we have a collection of 66 books, and God has uniquely overseen the process for quite some time, and what we have in front of us is hands down, without a doubt, the written Word of God, and from this collection of 66 books 39 in the Old Testament, 27 in the New Testament Peter, one of the disciples, then one who became an apostle of Jesus, is credited in writing two of the 27 letters or books that we have making up the New Testament.
Speaker 1:The New Testament and 2 Peter, chapter 1, is a portion of Scripture that I want to read from because it carries with it a unique message to us today, even though it was penned 2,000 years ago. It carries with it the ability to speak to our hearts today. And so, from 2 Peter, his second letter, chapter 1, he's writing to a group of people that were really under some pretty heavy persecution. They were being treated harshly, poorly, as a result of their belief, their faith in Jesus. They were being ostracized from the community that they lived in, and community life in that context, in that time, in that setting, was very important, because that's where commerce took place and produce was exchanged and people were able to buy and sell and eat and be clothed and have built in All the things that go along with having a life and having interaction and relationships with other people. Having interaction, relationships with other people, the people that were believers in Jesus were experiencing persecution, because that sometimes goes with being a believer in Christ. The powers of darkness look to lash out against the person and they use people to do it, oftentimes in conjunction with their own oppression. They use people and the fallen nature of people also does not want to necessarily hear about the light, because they love the darkness and when you turn the light on, it exposes things, and they don't want things exposed. And so they were persecuting this group of people in the area that Peter was addressing and he wrote them this letter and through the course of 2,000 years, we still have that letter translated into countless dialects and we have it in the English language. So I'm going to be reading from 2 Peter 1, verses 3 through 11.
Speaker 1:And again, peter's addressing this group of people that are being persecuted. He's talking about growing up before we grow old, growing up in our Christian faith and our walk with Jesus becoming mature. And there are certain qualities that he's pointing out. And as he's pointing them out, he's providing, with the words that he's saying, the spiritual life to water that garden of faith so that growth can take place. And it's relevant to you and I today.
Speaker 1:So he writes his divine power, meaning the power of God, his divine power, has given us everything we need for life and godliness, and that word godliness means God likeness like God. He's given us everything we need for life and to be like God. He's done this through our knowledge of him, who calls us by his own glory and goodness. Through these, he has given us his very great and precious promises. God makes promises and when he does, he's going to keep them, and he's made some promises to you, he's made some promises to me and he intends on keeping them. However, there are certain things that we need to be aware of concerning the fulfillment of those promises. So Peter goes on to say so that through them, the precious promises, through them, you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in this world caused by evil desires. Isn't that true? Anytime you have a desire that is contrary to the things that you know are right, they are evil. Things don't end up well when we follow those things. And so Peter wants this group of people, and he wants them to really know that there's a way of escape. But Holy Spirit wants you and I to know the same thing, because it's God who's giving Peter this insight. So he goes on to say this man, he goes.
Speaker 1:So, for this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness and to goodness. Knowledge and to knowledge. Self-control and to self-control. Perseverance and to perseverance, godliness and to godliness, brotherly kindness and to brotherly kindness, love. For if we possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins. Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure, for if you do these things, you will never fall and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior, jesus Christ Powerful.
Speaker 1:He's telling us that there is a way in which we can grow and mature, and it's by seeing things added to our initial belief in Jesus, that initial faith of saying Lord, I believe. And that moment when that takes place, we become a new creation. But we don't stay, or it's not the intention of God for us to stay, in that infant stage. He wants us to grow and mature as we move on in our walk with the Lord. We grow up before we grow old, and there are certain things that he highlights at different times so that we can focus our attention in on those things, and two of the things that come to mind that I want to pass along in this podcast episode are persistence and consistency. Persistence and consistency, persistence and consistency.
Speaker 1:We need to be people that have persistence in the way that we do things, meaning we don't give up or we don't lose sight of what it is that we started doing when we said God has given me this to do. We are persistent, we don't let the powers of darkness thwart or sidetrack us from us fulfilling the commission that God has on our lives, and it takes persistence, and persistence will eventually prevail. That's a real good word right there. Persistence will actually prevail in your life if you are persistent. If you are weak and you go back and forth, you really can't expect anything to take place. If you're hot one day, cold the next, if you are focused one day and then next you are just totally without focus at all, we give up. We say, ah, that's just too hard. I mean those are all real things that face us and some of you, some of you right now, need to know that your persistence is really actually a very important part of your walk with the Lord.
Speaker 1:Maybe not the most glamorous Persistence, not necessarily the most glamorous part of walking with Jesus. I mean we like to see the results. I love to see some of the breakthroughs, but between the breakthroughs and some of the great results, there's persistence. Persistence in the times where things are just kind of like plowing the ground. There's not much glamour to them and it seems like it's taking longer than it should.
Speaker 1:Persistence Believing when it's not always easy to believe. Staying with something even when there's opposition or there's not really any results to speak of right away, or even after a period of time, but if you know that it's God that's given something for you to do, something, that is important. Persistence. Persistence is absolutely vital. Sometimes we quit right before things actually become fruitful can be avoided if we are encouraged in our faith and we learn how to encourage others when they are going through a time of persistence. Not being judgmental or critical, but actually being encouraging, saying I'm with you in your journey. Sometimes that's all it takes. It doesn't take a big long speech Just knowing that someone is saying I'm praying for you, I'm with you. I see what's going on. I want to let you know I love you, I'm with you. Is there anything I can do? Wow, wow. That's something that we can all learn from.
Speaker 1:Consistency. There's persistence right, just staying with it, being persistent and consistency being consistent in what you say, what you think, what you do. Being consistent Even when it's easy to say, well, I think that that part's not really working so well, I'm going to change things up a little bit. Or nah, that's really not working so well, I'm just going to quit. I don't know, the fellowship that I'm part of, I don't know, it's kind of dry. I think I'm just going to quit. Or things got kind of rough, I'm just going. I think I'm just going to quit. Or things got kind of rough, I'm just going to quit, I'm just going to quit. There's something about being consistent where your word means something and the consistency that you have in providing what it was that you said you're going to provide. And the quality is consistent, regardless of whether a person is rich or poor. What they get is consistent. What we say, how we handle things, the integrity of our life is consistent.
Speaker 1:Persistence and consistency Two things that go into our lives, that make up a mature person, and also they are the keys to success. If you have a business, persistence and consistency are two key elements of the kingdom of God that will unlock your ability to generate income from what you do. If you are persistent and you're consistent, you don't even have to be the best at what you do, but if you're persistent and consistent, the payoff will come. It's a principle that works in all areas. If you're a teacher, if you're a spiritual leader, if you're a teacher, if you're a spiritual leader, if you're a community leader, if you work in the area of government, persistence and consistency are kingdom qualities. When I say kingdom, I mean kingdom of God qualities. They make up the quality of the kingdom of God.
Speaker 1:The word of God is persistent and consistent.
Speaker 1:Check that out.
Speaker 1:God's word is persistent and consistent.
Speaker 1:His word outlasts things that oppose it and consistently, the quality is pure and good.
Speaker 1:We're called to that life.
Speaker 1:Let's allow God to develop that life within us, and he does it by empowering us with his spirit, and we are filled with his spirit and we are filled with his word. Let's pray. Father, thank you that you give to us the ability to be persistent and consistent, the godliness, the godlikeness, the divine nature that you've given to us, that you've imparted into our lives, your life, holy Spirit. I ask that you just enliven that and cause it to grow and develop in all these areas that we've looked at, all the areas that you caused Peter to highlight, and now you're highlighting them in our lives as well. Take these words and illuminate them, give revelation to them and give the ability for us, please Lord, to act upon them so we become more like Jesus by the actions that we live out. And it's in his name we pray and say amen, amen, amen, amen.
Speaker 1:All right, folks, I love you. If you have any thoughts, questions, concerns, please feel free to drop us a line at lifearoundthefire, at gmailcom, or you can type in lifearoundthefire and look us up on the web. We would love to hear from you In the meantime. God bless you. Adios amigos.