Josh Foliart did visit my church a while back. To be totally honest I don't remember him at all, I do remember buying his book. Of which I just spent the last week or so reading. I normally review my read books on a separate blog, but feel the nature of this one should be here instead. AND there is a lot of it I want to revisit. Sooooo, forewarning, MOST of what I'm going to share is word for word from the book. There are 7 sections in the book, so this will be multi-part posting. I will be posting here what I took from the book and the stuff I want to revisit, any quotes that are not specified from other sources, are quoted from the book Rooted by Josh Foliart.
Section 5
Each section of the book starts out with a portion of scripture from Matthew (Sermon on the Mount) and this section has verses that really hit home with me. And I want to share them here.
Take care! Don't do your good deeds publicly, to be admired, because then you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven. (Matthew 6:1)
I personally think a lot of people forget this today, if you get your accolades and admiration today, then your what is left for you tomorrow?
When you pray, don't babble on and on as people of other religions do. They think their prayers are answered only by repeating their words again and again. Don't be like them, because your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him! (Matthew 6: 7-8)
Yes, exactly, he knows what you need, HE KNOWS what your going to ask, and He knows if and when HE's going to grant your request. So there is no need to ramble about on and on and on, say your request and be done, ramble in your thanks, ramble in your Praise to Him, but not in your requests.
"Like a tree's roots beneath the soil, it's what you can't see that matters most in God's Kingdom."
"Praying, giving and fasting deepen our roots and prepare us trees for a more beautiful harvest."
"We've all heard that money is the root of all evil. But is it? Scripture says, "Love of money is the root of all evil" (1 Timothy 6:10). If we could change the allegiance of our love, we could change the effects of our money. maybe it could be read like this: "The money that's rooted in love is the root of much good." I want to suggest that our pursuit of time, money, and energy must be rooted in a deeper love for it to be beneficial for the Kingdom of Heaven."
"Clearly, evil forces have manipulated the God-given resources of time, energy, and money."
"I will introduce three antibodies that fight against the viruses of corrupt money, corrupt time, and corrupt energy."
"Time is, arguably, man's most precious and fleeting jewel, and it is truly one of heaven's secret weapons."
H.D. McCarty stated that he had done 358 weddings and 423 funerals in his life. His next statement was one of those that you make sure you write down. He said, "There is always more wisdom at a funeral than at a wedding."
"When you take time to pray, you say, "Father, I trust you with my time.""
"Prayer is the antibody that fights the deadly virus of corrupted time."
A.W. Tozer said: "God never hurries. There are no deadlines against which he must work. Only to know this is to quiet our spirits and relax our nerves."
"At first, the practice of prayer feels like a gross waste of time, and we even experience feelings of loss as we grieve the ticking away of "unproductive" moments. Just as it is awkward to wear new clothing until the clothes become familiar, lour prayer lives start off awkward. As a growing practitioner of prayer, you sense not only the reward that Jesus promised would come, but also the peace that accompanies His promise. Prayer becomes addictive at a high level as you begin to "taste and see that the Lord is good" (Psalm 34:8, KJV)"
"In his marvelous book Secrets of the Secret Place, Bob Sorge says, "Hell will do everything in its power to misrepresent and distort the exuberant delight of this dynamic reality; this present world system is strategically designed to squeeze out your time and energy for the secret place..."
"In ancient time, well-to-do harvesters were commanded to leave the edges of their fields unharvested, so that poor and needy people could come and glean from the harvest as well. Pastor Steve made this statement, which is right in line with what Jesus says in His sermon: "It's not the size of your fields that counts it's the size of your edges." What a powerful statement."
Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay him for his deed. (Proverbs 19:17)
When you are obedient in giving, you say to God, "Father, I trust you with my money." (And thus the antibody for the virus of corrupted money)
In reference to Matthew 6:16-18 "He says, "When you fast," rather than, "If you fast." It is as if He actually assumed we would fast. He expected anyone who would claim to follow Him to practice this command of secret fasting."
"Jesus implied that embracing voluntary weakness is a healthy discipline. Indeed, it is a powerful way of growing our capacity to receive the things of God. It increases our ability to love and lead others. For many, fasting is a lost discipline"
"We need to uproot our love affair with food and root ourselves in a covenant with God's word."
"We must learn that food is neither the primary source of pleasure nor the primary source of energy."
"Embracing the call to fast, pray, and give is birthed from an intense hunger and thirst for righteousness. In Jesus' book, righteousness equals love. The exact opposite of the lifestyle of "wasting" time, money, and energy (of praying, giving and fasting) is the vain and meaningless lifestyle that the book of Ecclesiastes talks about. If we aren't rooted, we "eat, drink, and be merry," for tomorrow we die. These two paradigms --the rooted lifestyle and the worldly lifestyle -- represent the two worldviews that are exercised in the earth today."
I know I have been doing two sections at once, but this was an important section in my opinion. I will conclude tomorrow with the final two sections. Thanks for staying with me.
