June.12.01: Light For The Day - "Are You Fresh for Everything?" -- John 3:3  “Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Most assuredly,  I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot  see the kingdom of God’ ”. ------------------------------------------- Sometimes we are fresh and eager to attend a prayer  meeting, but do we feel that same freshness for such  mundane tasks as polishing shoes? Being born again by the Spirit is an unmistakable work  of God, as mysterious as the wind, and as surprising  as God Himself. We don’t know where it begins— it is hidden away in the depths of our soul. Being born  again from above is an enduring, perpetual, and eternal  beginning. It provides a freshness all the time in thinking,  talking, and living—a continual surprise of the life of  God. Staleness is an indication that something in our  lives is out of step with God. We say to ourselves,  “I have to do this thing or it will never get done.”  That is the first sign of staleness. Do we feel fresh this  very moment or are we stale, frantically searching our  minds for something to do?  Freshness is not the result of obedience; it comes from  the Holy Spirit. Obedience keeps us “in the light as He  is in the light ” (1 John 1:7).  Jealously guard your relationship with God. Jesus prayed  “that they may be one just as We are one”—with nothing  in between (John 17:22). Keep your whole life continually  open to Jesus Christ. Don’t pretend to be open with Him.  Are you drawing your life from any source other than  God Himself? If you are depending on something else as  your source of freshness and strength, you will not realize  when His power is gone. Being born of the Spirit means much more than we usually  think. It gives us new vision and keeps us absolutely fresh  for everything through the never-ending supply of the life  of God. -- Oswald Chambers ------------------------------- -- John 3:3-8 (NLT) "Jesus replied, "I assure you, unless you are born again,  you can never see the Kingdom of God." 4 "What do you mean?" exclaimed Nicodemus. "How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?" 5 Jesus replied, "The truth is, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. 6 Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives new life from heaven. 7 So don’t be surprised at my statement that you must be born again. 8 Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit."