“As I promised, I am going to make you into the likeness of My Son, Jesus. The challenges before you will be death to your flesh. Sometimes they will cause you to despair if you don’t understand that I am truly rebuilding you. While We are working together and you are being prepared, I have some suggestions to help you along the way. As you go, I will convict your heart and help you with other thoughts for your journey.

"Start here. Let’s delight in the journey together. Love passionately. Have more fun, knowing that you are in My hands. Sell or give away at least one third of all you own. Eliminate everything in your life that “owns” you. (Get rid of your TV and video games - they own you.) Do not walk closely with fools who talk of foolish ideas that are not in My Word. Eat right. Take long walks alone or with a friend. Decide to love people through My Son. Determine to see others as Jesus sees them. Smile a lot. Smile some more. Become a study of your mate’s needs.

"Love your mate passionately. Go on dates with your mate. Pray with your mate. (If you don’t have a mate, focus your love on Me.) Study your children as the gifts that they are. Love your children passionately with holy love. Spend time with your children or help someone with theirs. Find some way to honestly compliment everyone. Take more time to do everything; slow down. Be at peace with your relationship with Jesus. Sing more. Rest more. Sit and talk with Me anytime you can. Come to Me more often, simply to be together. Cultivate biblical reasons to be hopeful.

"Get your eyes off yourself and your own needs. Learn to devote yourselves to the needs of others. Tell others that they are valuable. Forgive. Forgive. Forgive some more. Seek to make new friends. Remember that this life is not a trial run; it is the real thing. Remember why you are living this life. Live it as Jesus would live it. He, in fact, desires to live His life through you. Be blessed in your comings and goings. I love you!”

2 Cor. 2:14-16a AMP 

14) But thanks be to God, Who in Christ always leads us in triumph [as trophies of Christ’s victory] and through us spreads and makes evident the fragrance of the knowledge of God everywhere.

15) For we are the sweet fragrance of Christ [which exhales] unto God, [discernible alike] among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing:

16a) To the latter it is an aroma [wafted] from death to death [a fatal odor, the smell of doom]; to the former it is an aroma from life to life [a vital fragrance, living and fresh].

Jesus endured the cross because of the joy of what it was accomplishing.  So many of us walk around prune-faced because God is doing some carving of our flesh. During those times, most people would not desire to serve the Lord because of us, no matter what we said. Our countenance would drive them away.

Why wouldn’t we approach this incredible walk with God - not only from a spiritual aspect, but from the physical also - so that we can be a proper witness all the time? We prepare for everything else we do. Why wouldn’t we take some logical steps to insure that things that hinder us from accomplishing our journey are eliminated? Why wouldn’t we add anything to our lives that would help us be a better witness?

Things that have no bearing on a proper relationship with our Lord get in the way. They are like rocks in our backpack. Why would we give notice to them, much less carry them?

This relationship that we have entered into because of Jesus is the most astounding life that anyone could live. Our future is bright. We need to do what it takes to eliminate anything that clouds our perspective of the inner joy we should be having in the journey, even in rough times.

Show me the rocks, Lord. Let me get rid of them now!!

Jim Corbett