Category: Maturing As a Believer

Bible Verse of The Day – 2-26-25

2 Corinthians 5:7 (NKJV) 7 For we walk by faith, not by sight.

Everything about our walk with God is based on faith.

There is nothing about it that is based on intellect, intelligence, or human knowledge.

I might even go as far as stating that it is not even based on understanding. And that would be true apart from the fact that we must understand our need for redemption.

As we begin walking out our relationship with Yahweh, our Creator and Redeemer, we take each little step by faith.

Sometimes this can be a scary proposition as we navigate this thing we call faith.

It can be fascinating and terrifying at the same time.

Why?

Because we want so badly to pursue God with our whole heart, but our human understanding continually tries to interfere, reminding us repeatedly that some things about this walk with God make no sense to our minds.

And in the bigger scheme of things, this is truly where the rubber meets the road.

This is where we begin to divide what we understand with our minds from what seems unfathomable; intellect versus faith.

This is where spiritual immaturity slowly gives way to maturity, and we begin to spread our wings, so to speak, no longer simply sitting in the nest with our jaws open, waiting for someone to drop our food into our mouths.

You see, as we blossom, and we mature, we develop into Spirit-led beings instead of living and walking by carnal understanding.

And it is this that separates us from those who know nothing of God and His ways; those who consider the things of God to be foolishness.

And perhaps we were like them at some point.

But God desires for us to move beyond our past, laying aside the things of the world that once ensnared us, looking instead to Him for our understanding, our nourishment, and our sustenance.

And it is in Him that we find our purpose, knowing that as we grow, we live unto Him, and the ways of the world become a distant memory.

So, let us learn to live and walk by faith, that our lives would no longer be tossed about like a ship in the waves of the sea, but anchored by our faith in Him.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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Bible Verse of The Day – 1-1-25

Acts 4:13 (NKJV) 13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus.

There are many things we can glean from this verse when it comes to the effects of our relationship with God on our lives.

This relationship with our Creator and Redeemer is not benign. It is not without consequence or impact. Or at least it should not be as such.

Spending time with Jesus brings change.

Jesus impacted the lives of untold numbers of people during the brief time He walked the earth and ministered to those who came to hear Him speak and teach.

He changes the lives of those whom He touched, physically and spiritually.

Jesus spent three years with His disciples, teaching and shaping them for what was to come after His ascension.

And based on the verse above, He was wildly successful in doing so.

The disciples were uneducated, untrained, and unrefined in the eyes of the world.

But in the eyes of God, they were powerful; mighty men that He used to attack and break down the powers of darkness on a global scale.

How does our own relationship with Jesus affect us or impact others?

Do they see and hear the effects of this heavenly relationship in our lives?

This is not about intellect or knowledge in the earthly sense.

How has Jesus changed us spiritually, in ways that impact the kingdom of God?

How does our presence in places affect the atmosphere?

These are the questions we need to ask ourselves.

Do people around us know that we have been with Jesus?

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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Bible Verse of The Day – 12-20-24

Ecclesiastes 1:14 (NKJV) 14 I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and indeed, all is vanity and grasping for the wind.

Life.

We live each day. We follow our routines. We do what is necessary. We go through the motions.

And we try to find things that we can enjoy or be enthusiastic about.

And for a while it works. We get excited and find happiness and joy in the things we do.

Decades pass by. And we eventually lose our enthusiasm for those things that once meant so much to us.

Sometimes we try desperately to hold onto things that we were once so passionate about. But the joy we once felt seems to be gone. These things no longer satisfy us or get us excited.

We are no longer passionate or zealous about them. And we wonder why.

This is more common than most people realize. As children of God, as we grow and mature, the things of the world begin to fall off, one by one. They no longer hold the place in our heart that they used to hold.

Our passion for God and His kingdom grows as we mature in Christ. In turn, our passion for worldly activities and possessions slowly loses its hold on us.

This does not mean that if we are a child of God, we must suddenly withdraw from everything we used to do.

But, over time, as God changes our heart, we will find ourselves letting go of things voluntarily.

So, if we are struggling to try to understand why earthly life holds less of a grip on us than it used to, this is typically why that happens.

There is nothing wrong with us. In fact, if we are losing our zeal for the things of this world, and our focus is more toward God, everything is right with us.

Our priorities have simply been transformed by the Holy Spirit working in us.

That, my friends, is exactly what the Holy Spirit does as we allow the blood of Christ to permeate our very being.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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Bible Verse of The Day – 11-22-24

Colossians 1:9 (NKJV) 9 For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding;

As Paul was writing to the Colossian believers, he commended them for their faith, and the fruit that it was producing in their midst.

Paul ran down a list of things that he had heard about them as they grew in their walk with God. They were maturing in Christ!

This is where verse 9, above, comes in, as Paul stated that this was the reason he prayed fervently for them; that they may be filled with knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.

So, if Paul thought it important to pray for these things regarding the Colossians, how much more we should realize that these are the things we also should be concerned with in our own walks with God.

Being filled with the knowledge of the will of God will strengthen our faith, push back fear and doubt, and give us the peace He desires for us to have as we walk through various trials and difficulties in our lives.

And as we gain spiritual understanding, we question God’s ways less frequently.

We are no longer blown about by the wind, tossed like ships on a stormy sea. But our faith acts as an anchor that holds us fast even in the tempests that threaten to capsize us and steal us away from our faith.

May we continually learn and grow in the knowledge of Him in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.

Amen.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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Bible Verse of The Day – 11-8-24

Ephesians 4:14 (NKJV) 14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting,

As Paul wrote to the believers at Ephesus, he exhorted them, encouraging them to walk the walk of faith in a way that glorified God and demonstrated maturity in Christ.

The entire fourth chapter was dedicated to this.

As part of his efforts to steer the Ephesians in the right direction, he taught them about spiritual gifts given by God for the edification of the body.

He reminded them that God has given leaders in the body to teach believers in the ways of righteousness and coming-of-age as Christians.

He listed 5 specific “offices” for this purpose; apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers (Ephesians 4:11).

Paul’s purpose in sharing this was to lead believers to a stronger relationship with Christ, that they would not stumble and wallow in immaturity, being tossed to and fro as a ship on the sea.

And in the verses above, he warned them to heed the words and the instructions of those whom God had placed among them to teach them and raise them up, that they would not be tossed about with every wind of doctrine.

You see, God has sufficiently equipped us as a body, not leaving us as orphans to wander blindly and fend for ourselves. But as children with sound leadership, and the discernment of the Holy Spirit.

And He has given His word; a handbook for life, supplying us with what we need so that we would know Him and gain spiritual understanding, and be quick to recognize the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting.

And that we run far from it under the leading of His Spirit.

Amen

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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Bible Verse of The Day – 9-12-24

1 Corinthians 3:1 (NKJV) 1 And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ.

God wants to speak to us as spiritual people. But we may still be walking as a carnal person even after calling ourself a child of God for a very long time.

Are we still babes who can have only milk, when God wants to feed us solid food?

How do we know if we fall into this “milk babes” category?”

If we are still envious of others, fighting and causing division, we are acting as what Paul would call, “mere men”, and we need to recognize it as sinful behavior.

1 Corinthians 3:2 (NKJV) 2 I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able; 3 for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?

Here, Paul is saying we must get past this if we want to be able to go deeper with God.

Paul wanted to teach them much more, but because of where they were in their hearts, they couldn’t receive more.

We determine how much we want to learn individually; how close we want to get to God by our willingness to change in our heart.

We decide how disciplined we want to become in our walk. We determine if we are milk babies or solid food eaters.

You see, if we continue to walk in carnal ways, and not allow our heart to be taught, we will remain as babes in Christ, knowing just the basics; just getting by, and never growing.

We will continue to only be able to have “milk”, or light and easy basic teachings, just coasting as a believer.

But if we step it up in our walk and focus on trying to honor God with everything in us, pushing harder to go the extra mile, well then, we are on another level of growth.

For instance, if there is an argument, and you are the one willing to humble your heart, turn your cheek and walk away in love, putting aside all you emotions, you truly want God’s best for that situation.

God will guide us and give us the strength and discipline if we are set on seeking unity, working things out and leaving peace where we have walked.

The most important thing to remember when faced with controversy is that kindness and respect will be your best friend. Amen.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries 
49 N Lamplighters Walk 
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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Bible Verse of The Day – 7-3-24

2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV) 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

Many of us may have heard Christians state that they are just a sinner saved by grace.

Most times this is referring to the fact that we occasionally slip up and are not perfect in our walk with God.

While there may be some truth to that, this phrase fails to account for the scripture above, which states that if we are in Christ, washed by His blood, we are a NEW creation!

No, we are not expected to be perfect. God knows that we will sin.

But this is never an excuse for us to sin. It does not give us a license to willfully, freely sin and expect God to simply forgive us because of His grace and the blood of Christ.

Romans 6:15 (NKJV) 15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not!

You see, sin does not just happen involuntarily. It comes by the choices we make.

To brush it off, sometimes jokingly, saying that we are just a sinner saved by grace, we are dangerously close to making light of what Christ did on the cross.

This is not to scold anyone. It is meant to give us a gentle nudge, a soft reminder, that we do not forget the seriousness of our commitment to Christ.

The key to this is to change the perspective with which we look at this topic.

Before Christ, we were sinners, dirty and unwashed.

After Christ, we are new creations, made clean by the washing of His blood.

We are no longer that same person.

We are each a new creation. God’s word says so!

When the blood of Jesus is applied, the old things have passed away.

His blood is better than the most powerful soap. It does not simply remove the dirt and stains, dressing us up and making us look better.

It brings us from a past life of sin and darkness into a new life in Him.

He is worthy of the effort that we must make if we wish to honor Him with our lives.

Let us walk each day as the new creations that He died to save.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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Bible Verse of The Day – 4-26-23

Philippians 3:10 (NKJV) 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death,

As I have grown and matured as a believer, this verse has become very personal for me.

As the apostle Paul penned these words, he was sharing the deepest possible expressions of His love for and dedication to his Savior, Jesus Christ.

Paul, having previously been a persecutor of “followers of The Way”, was now a Christian himself.

The zeal with which he had pursued and persecuted Christians was now being funneled into his newfound faith in Christ.

Paul was an all-or-nothing kind of person. When he did something, he did it with everything in him.

So, as He worked out his relationship with the Savior, he wanted to know Christ in every aspect. He wanted to know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings.

Paul didn’t just want to know the power that had raised Christ from the dead. He also wanted to know and understand the pain and struggles that Jesus had walked through to get to His ultimate goal; crucifixion and death on the cross.

Paul undoubtedly knew that his faith in Christ might eventually cost him his life. And ultimately it did.

So, this leads me to ask the question, “do we also want to know the fellowship of His sufferings?”.

Are we (you and I) willing to do whatever it takes to walk out our faith, even if it means suffering for it?

This is a question that we need to ask ourselves and give an honest answer to.

Let us seek God and the leading of the Holy Spirit on this most serious topic.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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Bible Verse of The Day – 8-31-22

Ephesians 4:11-12 (NKJV) 11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ…

God has created and given us everything and everyone we need to thrive as the body of Christ.

Above, He listed the people who equip the body, raising her up and teaching her everything that’s needed to live a life that’s worthy of the name of Jesus and that’s strong for the kingdom of God.

These five “offices” are responsible for training up and equipping the saints of God from the moment they put their faith in Christ until they breathe their last breath here on earth.

Thinking about this reminds me of a parent raising a child, trying to strike that delicate balance between love, discipline, nurturing, exhorting, edifying, etc.

Sometimes this requires saying or teaching things that might not necessarily be popular or easy to say but are required for “proper nutrition” of those who hear.

Most of us would much rather hear something that’s joyful and uplifting vs. something that’s serious and somber.

This is akin to trying to get your children to eat their fruits and vegetables when there is a freshly prepared dessert right in from of them!

But God is faithful, and He guides each of us every day as we seek to serve Him and worship Him in Spirit and in truth.

And as we learn to “eat” those things that are harder to swallow, along with the things that are more pleasant, we will be balanced, strong and ready to answer the call when God places something in front of us that He wants us to do.

So, let’s be prepared to eat what God serves to us, whether it’s a platter of spinach, kale and broccoli or a plateful of brownies and chocolate cake (or whatever our favorite dessert might be).

We may or may not like it at that moment, but if God is serving it, we know that it’s beneficial for us.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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Bible Verse of The Day – 11-15-21

John 13:9 (NKJV) 9 Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!”

As Jesus was spending His last hours with the disciples, He shocked them by washing their feet. This is something that only servants did during that time period.

The fact that their Master would lower Himself to wash their feet was beyond their comprehension.

What’s more, though, is that Peter flat out refused to let Jesus do so. He didn’t feel worthy to have Jesus perform such a seemingly menial task on his behalf.

When Peter refused, Jesus rebuked him, telling Peter that if he wouldn’t allow Jesus to wash his feet, then he couldn’t have any part with Him.

At that, Peter proclaimed, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!”.

And so it should be with you and I.

Not that Jesus is standing in front of us offering to wash our feet, but that we would allow Jesus to “wash” our whole selves, cleansing us and making us vessels that are worthy of His name, by the power of His Spirit and through our complete submission to Him.

This is the only way we will ever fully develop our relationship with Him, allowing us to grow into mature believers who serve God wholeheartedly, shining His light brightly to bring glory and honor to Him.

Jesus, wash all of me.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-315-0902

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Bible Verse of The Day – 10-29-21

1 Corinthians 13:11 (NKJV) 11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.

There is something very important implied here for all believers to pay close attention to.

That something is our growth and maturity in Christ.

When we first put our faith in Christ, we are mere children in our relationship with Him.

But as time goes by, we need to make sure that we’re doing our part to mature and grow.

Everyone grows at different rates. This is a given. The important thing is that we do grow!

Thankfully, God is patient, and He gives us grace as we learn to crawl, then move on to walking and, ultimately, running.

Some of us might get stuck at crawling. There are usually a couple of reasons for this.

1. A lack of time and effort put into it on our part.

2. A lack of understanding.

There is a solution for both of these. Let’s take a look.

For the first problem, we need to be sure we’re disciplined enough to set aside the time needed to build and grow our relationship with God. It’s critical to growth as a believer.

If we’re not doing this, many times it’s because we haven’t taken the relationship seriously enough. The cure for that is to grasp and understand what Christ did for us on the cross, literally taking our place, dying as a substitute for you and for me.

To fix the lack of understanding, there are usually two different issues we need to look at.

The first would be making sure that we’re spending the time needed in God’s word to get that understanding. And if we’re having trouble understanding what we’re reading, it’s a great idea to get some help from someone who can help us understand it better.

Lastly, if we are already learning from someone else, but we’re still having difficulty, we may need to sit under a different teacher or organization in order to get taught in a way that helps us. This can sometimes make a major difference in how well we learn!

So, remember that we need to be growing as believers. But remember, also, that we are not on our own as we do learn and grow.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-315-0902

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