~band.of.brothers~htbc.weekly.mens.devotion My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.

And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world. By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. The one who says, I have come to know Him, and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: the one who says he abides in Him out himself to walk in the same manner as Jesus walked. 1 John 2:1-6 What does it mean to walk in the same manner as Jesus walked? I think this is not a simple question to answer, but it is a question that should drive our motivations, aspirations, and desires. Every one of us, if we have truly accepted Jesus completed work on our behalf, should be ready to make every effort to understand what we need to do to be more like our Master. It starts with knowing Him. To know Him goes beyond confessing Him. We study Him, we examine how He lived, we absorb what He tells us, and we put it into practice. To know Him is much more than confessing Him. To know Him means our lives are shaped and impacted by His influence on our lives. Knowing Him requires action. It requires knowing what He desires of us. Jesus made it very clear what he desires from His followers. Keeping His commandments is part and parcel of knowing Him. If it is our desire to do as He desires we grow closer to His heart. As we grow closer to His heart we begin to understand who He truly is and what it means to follow Him. I say this to you often, brothers, but I cannot stress how important it is to be in His word. We can only know His desires and know what He commands us to do by immersing ourselves in the Bible. What He desires from us is not veiled or hidden. It is obvious to those whose passion it is to know Him more. The path is clear before us. Christ does not camouflage the trail. If we study Him our eyes can see with clarity the way that we should go. We will be looking at how Jesus walked next week. My prayer is that it will become obvious to all of us what course corrections we should be making. We should not be hesitant or afraid to seek His help. It is becoming more and more apparent to me that I desperately need to follow His lead. If I dont I become rudderless and unable to safely navigate my way through the trials, follies, and tribulations of this life. I cannot truly know purpose and fulfillment until I surrender my way to His, until I honestly recognize that His way is the best wayHis Way is the Only Way. If I walk in any other manner I will never know victory or satisfaction in this life. To Stand and Not Fall, Ric ***GET IN THE WORD!!! JOIN US ON TUES. NIGHTS AT 6:30 PM OR SAT. MORNINGS AT 7AM FOR OUR MENS BIBLE STUDY THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST***

***STILL TIME TO SIGN UP FOR THE FATHER/SON RETREAT$10/PERSON, PITCH A TENT OR SLEEP IN A CABINALL MEALS PROVIDED. LEAVE THE CHURCH AT 5:30PM, FRIDAY, 10/7, RETURN ON SATURDAY, 10/8 BY 6PMSIGN UP IN THE CONNECT***