Devotions - Prayer
Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts, to sexual impurity, for the degrading of their bodies with one another. Romans 1:24 (read Read the Scripture: Romans 1:18-32)
The wickedness at work among human beings follows a process which is identified in this passage by the three time repeated phrase, “God gave them over.”
This phrase identifies what is going on in our culture.
The first mark of wickedness in a godless society is widespread sexual immorality — the degrading, or the dishonoring, of the body.
Because men run after other gods and refuse the testimony of their own hearts and do not glorify or thank the true God, God removes his restraints from society so that what is done in secret is allowed to break out into openness and acceptability.
That is the mark of the wrath of God at work.
The first sign of wickedness in a civilization is that sexual immorality becomes widely accepted.
You may ask, “Why is it that sex always seems to be singled out as the sign of God’s judgment”?
Romans passage above begins with sexual impurity and proceeds to sexual perversity.
But, the final result is not sexual sins, but sins of the spirit.
We all have witnessed how our current society has switched the labels that believers call sin to make sin seem less sinful.
• We call lying, exaggeration.
• We call fornication, safe sex.
• We call murder, a right to choose.
• We call drunkenness, illness.
• We call jealousy, ambition.
• We call pride, self-esteem.
• We call humility, weakness.
• We call money happiness.
• We call entertainment relaxing
People really want a sense of total fulfillment, a oneness, an identity.
- Only God can give that fulfillment.
- Only God can satisfy that deep sense of longing for complete identity and unity with another person.
That is why the highest description of the relationship with God possible to a believer is found in the words of Jesus in John 14-15, “You in me, and I in you” (John 14:20).
When people think that they are going to find that fulfillment in sex, God says to them,
“Look, it won’t work. But you won’t believe that until you try it out.”
So he removes the restraints and allows immoral sexual practices to become widely accepted, understanding that men indulging in these things will finally find themselves just as dissatisfied, empty and hopeless as they were when they started.
Thus they will learn that worshiping God is the only way by which people find fulfillment.
Worship is the submission of all of my nature (conscience, mind, imagination, heart & will) to God.
Father, thank you that You have not forsaken this world, and that the message of Truth and Light is still as available as ever. Help us all see, hear and know that YOU are the only Way, the only Truth and the only Life. Let us all Worship you! Amen
Read More We need to be willing to walk God’s Way of Agape, even if our circumstances never change.
* “Though the fig tree should not blossom, and there be no fruit on the vines…Yet I will exult in the Lord, I will rejoice in the God of my salvation.”
Habakkuk 3:17-18
It is important that we understand the motive out of which our obedience
springs, because if the spring is not pure, everything that flows out of it
will be polluted.
The sad truth is that many Christians in these last days obey God only because they are afraid of going to hell.
* They fear their Father’s wrath and their obedience to Him is “legal” only.
*They have no genuine desire to please Him.
Hebrews 5: 8 Even though Jesus was God’s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered.
* If we persevere in this pain, daily and even hourly submitting ourselves to God obedience is born. Obedience is needed to live a clean and righteous life before God. No one will be perfect. But we must each run the race that is set before us without stopping.
Jesus did everything out of love and a desire to bring pleasure to His heavenly Father:
“Then Jesus said to them, When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things. And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him” (John 8:28-29).
*This was the rock, the foundation upon which Jesus built His life of obedience.
*It was the spring, the motive, out of which the flow of His obedience came. It is to be our rock, as well.
“For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me” (John 6:38).
Jesus shut Himself up in prayer on the mountaintops, in quiet places, often all
night long in fellowship with His Father. Jesus one great prayer was, “Father, what do You want? What will bring You pleasure? What can I do to fulfill the desire of Your heart?”
That is the attitude of a person who has the Spirit of Christ and that should be our attitude—that we might be one who builds on the rock.
* The foundational motive of all our obedience must be: “I do all things because I want to please my Lord; I want to bring Him great pleasure!”
“In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa was afflicted with a disease in his feet. Though his disease was severe, even in his illness he did not seek help from the LORD, but only from the physicians. Then in the forty-first year of his reign Asa died and rested with his fathers” (2 Chron 16:12-14).
What we learn from Asa is that whenever we place our trust and obedience in the Lord, God becomes our source for security and prosperity. However, when we move away from trusting God, that security is removed and we fail to receive those things God intended us to have.
We can’t give away what we don’t possess. We need to personally know the love of Christ in an experiential way before we try to share it with others. Let Him love you, and let His love flow through you to others. The world is hungry for love, real love.
Lord, Fill my cup of love to over-filling with Your Love– so I have some love to give to others. Amen
Read More All our flowery words about Jesus are not enough. Our actions must match our words in order for it to become Truth.
* “Even so you too outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.”
Matthew 23:28
2 Corinthians 1:4 He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. 5 For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ.
* Whether we are suffering by the hands of another or simply as a consequence to our own bad choices – if we turn to the Lord for comfort and view our sufferings as loving discipline from the master potter who is simply using the circumstances of our life to soften our heart so that HE can mold our character- then we will learn how to praise him even in the storms of life and attain the peace of God that surpasses all worldly understanding.
Thus with this peace and joy in our hearts we will then be used by God to come alongside of others who are experiencing hardship and share with them our testimony and point them home to Jesus so that they too can experience the comfort we have received from God.
*Anxieties keep us from hearing God …like a wall between his voice and our ears.
The word of God is all you need for every circumstance in your life, you need to listen to it and take Action.
Man (Mankind, Man or woman) shall not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.
In the passage Mark 4:1-20 you will find what happens when a Christian hears the word of God.
* You will see who bears fruit (who applies the word of God in every situation and wins), and who does not bear fruit (who just reads and forgets about whose word he/she is reading and forgets that it is powerful to guide that person through anything).
*Don’t be like the person who just looks at the mirror and forgets what the mirror has shown him/her. Be a person who studies the word of God (2 Timothy2:15).
*If you seek God diligently He will help you produce thirty, sixty, or one hundred fold. Let us have a form of relationship with God that actually produces testimony so that others can see that our God is actually involved with our daily lives and praise God.
*Let us Not deny the power and authority of the word of God. God’s word is the lamp unto our feet and a light to our paths.
Seeking God diligently everyday, staying silent in His presence, singing to Him, studying His word and praying the word back to God is a great way to build a relationship with God and actually get results.
Many Christians don’t get results or don’t understand God because they don’t spend enough TIME with Him and His word (Mark 4:1-20). God welcomes you. Test and see that the Lord is Good!
Today. Millions of church people are trying to live holy lives, but they do not have a true faith in Jesus as their Savior.
If they were to stand before God and He was to ask them – “what they had done to deserve salvation”, they would immediately start recounting all their acts of holiness such as church attendance, giving receipts, etc.
Regardless of how good our actions are compared to others, they always come short of the perfect standard of God.
The only response to this kind of question that would grant us entrance to heaven is to say, “my only claim to salvation is faith in Jesus as my Savior.”
Let JESUS be the object of your faith today. He is all you need
All too often, as Christians endure the trials of life, this is the message
they believe. They see no hope beyond their difficult situation. All they can see is a stone permanently rolled into place separating them from hope.
* Yet they are seeing things from this side of the stone. If only they knew what God is doing for them on the other side of the stone.
Maybe life has presented you with a hard, impassable situation. As you read this do you wonder, “Is God at work in my circumstance? Is Jesus really triumphant — in me? Can He really save me from this situation? I just don’t see a way forward.”
I tell you, God is on the move in your life at this very moment. The stone isbeing rolled away. Light is breaking forth and your Hope stands there in thedoorway: Jesus! He has triumphed over all the powers of darkness and Hisvictory is yours by faith.
Hebrews 11:1 Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.
*Refuse to give up. Your walk in the Spirit will prepare and cause
you to overcome the flesh, the world, and the devil.
* Let us keep sharing our burdens and keep encouraging and lifting others up–giving all praise and Glory to our Heavenly Father!
Lord, show me today if I have had convictions for things that are meaningless and not important. And help me to make convictions for things that matter most and give You the Glory! Help me share your perfect Love with others. In Jesus Name, Amen.
Read MoreWhat is Vision? It is discovery of your God ordained assignment on earth.
The book of Daniel mentions several benefits for those who have a repentant
heart.
Indeed, for all who acknowledge their sin, God does the miraculous.
Col 2:2 – My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, CHRIST.
One such benefit is a New and Clearer Vision of Jesus. Read what happened after Daniel’s repentance prayer in Daniel 9-10
“Then I lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a certain man clothed in
linen, whose loins were girded with fine gold of Uphaz: His body also was like
the beryl, and his face as the appearance of lightning, and his eyes as lamps of fire, and his arms and his feet like in colour to polished brass, and the
voice of his words like the voice of a multitude. And I Daniel alone saw the
vision . . .” (Daniel 10:5-7).
Who do you think Daniel saw in this vision?
It was Jesus!
What a wonderful benefit the Holy Spirit opened to Daniel when he confessed his sin. He was given a clear vision of Christ in all His glory!
*The strength that God demands us comes from understanding that god loves us. We are highly esteemed by the creator of the universe, and his desires for us are much better than anything we can imagine!
* The whole Bible is meant to magnify and glorify the Christ, not just the Gospels. This means that digging deeper into the Word of God will yield great riches and treasures for us.
Please understand that Daniel was not praying for this vision. All he was doing was repenting—confessing and mourning over sin.
* Jesus took it upon Himself to come to Daniel in this revelation—He initiated it.
You see, when we repent and make all things right with God and others, we do not have to seek a revelation. Jesus will manifest Himself to us.
* Our REPENTANCE prepares for His COMING.
* REPENTANCE means to CHANGE our thinking.
* REPENTANCE brings FORGIVENESS.
* The SPIRIT moves into those who REPENT and BELIEVE in Jesus.
Daniel had friends who were also godly, because he walked only among the
righteous. Yet Scripture tells us none of them saw the vision Daniel received:
“The men that were with me saw not the vision; but a great quaking fell upon
them, so that they fled to hide themselves. Therefore I was left alone” (Daniel 10: 7-8).
A truly repentant heart never has to hide from the Lord because there is no
longer any fear of judgment.
If you acknowledge your sins with godly sorrow and make restitution, you can look confidently into the Master’s face.
You do not have to shake with fear when you hear the thundering word of reproof because you will see Christ in His glory.
*Everyone born of God is born to fulfill a particular purpose on earth.
*God is a God of Plans, Purpose and Divine objectivity.
What is Vision?
** It is discovery of your God ordained assignment on earth.
* There is no assignment that is inferior to the other. You are not everybody, you are somebody very special.
How to prove your Vision?
1. The Word.
2. Peace.
3. Discover the content of the vision.
4. Learn the timing of the vision.
Father God, as I begin a journey toward a closer relationship with you, I thank you for reminding me that You have already paved the way. You’ve been patiently waiting for me to humble myself & have heard the prayer of my heart. I’m ready, Lord, to listen & obey. Help me see the vision more clearly each day that You have laid before me to give You Glory, Honor and Praise. Amen.
Read More God’s Love has two distinct sides to it. One is a long-suffering, merciful love, and the other a firm and disciplinary love.
* “For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines…” Hebrews 12:6
*Are you being God led or do you keep going and going?
*Who is driving your bus?
*Are we giving God our all?
*Are we really being faithful to God?
Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.
Most Christians don’t listen to God. They go to Him only to talk!
* Yet the Scriptures reveal that any person who was ever used of God learned to remain in His presence until hearing from Him through His Word.
Scripture makes it clear that the Lord wants to talk to every one of us:
“Your own ears will hear him. Right behind you a voice will say, “This is the way you should go,” whether to the right or to the left.” (Isaiah 30:21).
*Reading this passage meant so much to me! God is telling us to get rid of our frustrations and get with Him. We ought to rely on Him because He knows the end result and what will happens for us in our lives.
I read of a little girl suffering from leukemia who was struggling with the
thought of dying. One morning when her mother came into her room, the girl was all aglow and happy. “What has happened to you?” her mother asked.
The little girl answered, “An angel came to me and said I was going on a trip.
God came and took my hand and walked with me through a beautiful garden. He told me, ‘You’re coming here tomorrow to be with Me.'”
*God spoke to that little child and took all the pain and fear from her heart.
*When she left to be with Him the next day, she had total peace.
When you are intimate with Jesus, do you receive direction from Him? Does He tell you what to do and when and how to do it?
Some Christians don’t believe God does this but Jesus says, “My sheep hear my voice . . . and they follow me”
(John 10:27).
In your trial, get alone with Jesus and cry, “Lord, You’re the only One who can
help me. Only You know the way through this trial, so I’m going to stay here till You tell me what to do.”
This is the kind of praying that is pleasing to God. It means stopping
everything, all activity. Only then will you hear Him speak clearly to your
heart: “You must make things right with this person” Or, “Just stand still
till next week. Don’t get in a hurry. Sit in My presence and trust Me.” He will
give you clear directions.
Hebrew 5: 8 Even though Jesus was God’s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered.
Whenever God brings you through a time of great adversity, you can expect to come out of that experience with great possessions, if you have been faithful through the trial.
* This is a universal truth. Wisdom comes from obedience, not knowledge.
When we have been tested and proven, the reality of our faith results in possessions from God that we would never receive if we had not gone through those trials.
*God kept the people ofIsrael enslaved 400 years, but when the time came to free them from the bondage of slavery, they came out with great possessions.
*These physical possessions symbolize the spiritual possessions we receive when we come out of being enslaved to those things that have hindered us all our lives.
* These possessions are to be shared with others so that they also can know how they might become free. (2 Corinthians 1:4-5)
What has God freed you from that allows you to share your possessions with others?
Share what God has done in your life with someone you know. It may be the possession they need most in their life. (Your Testimony Revelation 12:11)
God has big plans and he knows what’s coming. Why is it hard to follow Jesus when we don’t know what’s coming next? Cause those later steps could be really scary an if you saw it now you wouldn’t be ready.
Like in Hebrews 12: 1-3 “Fix your eyes on Jesus.” God will give us direction as we take the next step.
If we are going his way we won’t mess it up. He isn’t waiting for you to mess up, he is rooting for you.
* So what’s God’s will for your life?
I don’t know but we do know that he will show you compassion and he is ready to help you, root for you, and whether you go left or right he will say this is the way walk it!
*What does God want for you? Take the next step! And after that take the next step!
Proverbs 5:22 An evil man is held captive by his own sins; they are ropes that catch and hold him.
*We are one decision away from death. We must exercise self control and keep the Faith and Move Forward and take the next step, then the next etc.
*How amazing it is to have the Holy Spirit guiding our every step….. whether to the left or to the right!
If we are mindful to listen to the whisper of the Holy Spirit…….. our steps will be ordered!
My dearest Lord, thank you for letting me know you are here… don’t hide from me , don’t hide your will and your revelation, please… Father.
Show me your face, show me your way.. I can’t live without your words…
Show me the path that you want me to take..cut any rope holding me up. Praise you Lord, I should be patient to wait. I pray in Jesus name, Amen!
DO WE HAVE CONFIDENCE IN THE WORD OF GOD?
In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God”. John 1:1
God’s Love for us is unstoppable, unshakable and eternal.
* “For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38-39
Christ is the living Word of God and when you are shut in with Him in prayer, the Holy Spirit will always lead you to God’s revealed Word. He will build up your faith by feeding you from the Bible, even while you are in the secret closet!
We are commanded: “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. . . . Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand in the evil day. . . . And take . . . the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Ephesians 6:11, 13, 17).
Often when you receive specific instructions from the Lord, His Spirit will
whisper, “Now turn to . . .” and you will be directed to a passage of Scripture.
God’s Word will speak to you directly, telling you how to get through your crisis.
Many Christians reading this message simply must hear a word from the Lord.
Nobody on earth can help them. The only way for them to get through their trial is by staying in Christ’s presence until He gives them direction from His Holy Spirit inspired Word.
God must tell them the way through—what to do and when and how to act.
God’s exclusive direction to them, through the Word, will not come one minute too early or too late. It will all be in the Holy Spirit’s timing!
*Jesus is “meek and lowly in heart,” and wins us by love. Jesus pulls more than His “share” of the load; therefore, our burden is light.
The most loving father in the world cannot compare with the love our Heavenly Father has for us. And yet, many times we find it easier to believe in the willingness of a father or mother or mate to help us than in the willingness of God to use His power on our behalf.
Relatively few people really doubt God’s ability, but rather, it is our doubt of His willingness to use His ability on our behalf that causes most people to do without.
*Jesus assures us that God’s love, and His willingness to demonstrate that love, is far greater than we can ever experience in any human relationship. *Not only does He want our love, but wants you to let Him love you today.
Today, there is no need for you to worry about your trial. God is faithful to
respond to your every need and request. Simply pray, “Lord, I come now not just to have my needs met but I come also to meet Your need!”
We were made for fellowship with Him even in our heaviest times. I ask you: Do you love to be with Him? Let your heart cry out, “Jesus, You are my everything!
You are my soul’s great pleasure and I love Your company!”
*It is important, though, for our own personal benefit that we be aware that the children of the Wicked One are placed among the true believers.
*Our best defense is to preach and teach the Word of God without watering it down. False brethren will not endure sound doctrine. They leave when the Word, which is sharper than any two-edged sword, begins to expose the thoughts and intents of the heart. Stick to the Word!
Father, help us to listen closely to Your Spirit and put all our confidence in
Your revealed Word. Amen
“ All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
Read More
If you think you’re not qualified to be used by God, start changing the way you think!
“The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for He founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters.” – Psalm 24:1-2
I belong to the Lord. The earth is His. There is nothing anybody/anything can do without having His divine permission. He is Omnipotent. All power comes from Him. He IS Lord!
HE is JESUS CHRIST! THE KING OF GLORY.
As Christian believers, God calls us to view Him as the owner of everything.
We are to be stewards of all that He entrusts to us.
*This is one of the hardest of all commandments to follow for the Christian believer because, if we work hard, we receive all the benefits of that work.
It appears as though all that we have achieved was through our hand. Yet God says that it is by His hand that we are able to make wealth (see Deut. 8).
*God is the source of that ability.
*As soon as WE become owners and not managers, we fall into trouble with God.
Joseph understood that he was a steward of all the resources of Egypt. God promoted him to affect an entire region of the world. Joseph had more power, prestige, and wealth than any 30-year-old who ever lived before him.
The temptation for him in this newfound role in life must have been great. Many a man has not been able to handle material success.
Many of God’s choicest servants began well in their calling and service to God only to fail at the end.
*Consider Hezekiah, the great king who achieved many great things but failed to acknowledge God’s blessing at the end of his reign. His reign was cut short due to pride.
*Gideon’s fate was similar. Success can lead to pride if we are not careful.
“Not every man can carry a full cup. Sudden elevation frequently leads to prideand a fall. The most exacting test of all to survive is prosperity” [Oswald Chambers].
Ask the Lord today if you are living as a steward or an owner. Put whatever skills and resources you possess on His altar. Then you can expect God to do great things through you.
Here is my question to you: What do you do when everything you try brings no result?
*Where do you turn when every effort you put forth does not accomplish
its purpose?
There comes a time when we have no resource but Jesus alone.
In this story, Elisha is a type of Christ. He went to that Shunammite family and stretched himself out over the body of the dead boy. When he was face to face, foot to foot, hand to hand over the child, he breathed into him.
What happened then? Scripture says the boy sneezed seven times (v. 35). He was alive!
What brought about this life? Jesus Himself breathed into the situation.
When we have no hope, no resources, no ability, Christ breathes His supernatural life into our circumstances.
Refuse to listen to the useless chatter of the enemy when he tries to convince you that you are flawed or worthless. The Lord has not and will not condemn you. You are His special treasure, chosen for His own purposes. Satan is against you because he is against the Lord, and these lies are weapons formed against you. Do not believe them.
Psalms 139:14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well.
You are God’s Masterpiece. Eph. 2:10
Make this your prayer: “Lord, I have nothing– but You have everything and I need You now. If you do not breathe into my problem, I won’t make it. I can’t do it, but YOU can, Lord!”
God, please forgive me for not always acknowledging how great You are. Help me to see everything around me as yours. Help me to praise more and question less. ALL is YOURS! God, thank you for sending Jesus your Son to stand in our place. Send now your Holy Spirit to walk alongside us, to empower us that we may live clean-handed and pure-hearted. Help us to live in right relationship with those on your claimed Earth. Amen. Amen.
Psalms 68:19 Praise the Lord; praise God our savior! For each day he carries us in his arms.
If we are not loving with God’s Love, we are spiritually dead.
“If we love our Christian brothers and sisters, it proves that we have passed from death to life. But a person who has no love is still dead.”. 1 John 3:14
All Christians have God’s Love within them, but not all Christians are willing to set themselves aside and become a free-flowing stream of Divine Love.
* “I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost.” Revelation 21:6
The longer I walk with Jesus, the more I am convinced that repentance is not
just for sinners, but also for believers.
It is not simply a one-time thing, but something God’s people are called to do until Jesus returns.
Every Christian who maintains a repentant attitude brings upon his life God’s special attention.
Indeed, repentance opens up something to us that nothing else can.
* If we walk before the Lord with a repentant heart, we will be inundated with incredible blessings!
A repentant heart is soft, tender and pliable, is and easily molded by the Holy
Spirit. It responds to and acts upon godly reproof.
The number-one characteristic of a repentant heart is a readiness to
acknowledge GUILT.
* It is a willingness to accept blame for wrongdoing, to say,
“I am the one, Lord. I have sinned!”
If there is no admitting to sin, there can be no repentance:
“For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience leads us away from sin and results in salvation. There’s no regret for that kind of sorrow. But worldly sorrow, which lacks repentance, results in spiritual death. ” (2 Corinthians 7:10).
“God whispers in our pleasures, speaks in our consciences, and shouts in our pains.” -C.S. Lewis
If you are not willing to acknowledge you are never wrong, you are saying you don’t need to repent.
Before Pilate released Jesus into the hands of murderous priests and elders, he wanted the world to know it wasn’t his fault. He called for a basin of water,
dipped his hands into it and declared himself innocent of Christ’s blood before
the angry mob:
“When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was
made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it” (Matthew 27:24).
The phrase, “See ye to it” here means, “Make sure you all know my hands are
clean. I have done nothing wrong and I am clean from all guilt.”
Pilate’s hands were not clean, of course; he was about to hand over the Son of
God to murderers. This kind of thinking shuts a person off from any possibility
of repentance.
* Had a prophet approached Pilate the next day, preaching, “Repent
or perish!” the ruler would have been aghast. “Who, me?” he would have asked.
“I’ve done nothing wrong. How can I repent when I haven’t sinned?”
John writes: “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the
truth is not in us. . . . If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a
liar, and his word is not in us” (1 John 1:8, 10).
Repentance: 3 movements
1) Change of Mind:
* Pause and reflect on your life Ps 145:8-9. Be slow to anger. Have compassion in all like what our God is like. God is a God of love.
2) Change of Heart:
* Do not just deny any wrongdoing. Repentance requires humility and contribution. Accept responsibility. Integrity.
3) Change of Life:
* Changed minds and hearts lead to change in our life.
Repentance is costly.
‘Costly Grace’ it calls us to discipleship to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly to God because it cost Him the life of His Son.
Biblical discipleship must affect the way we live our lives– So that we do not repeat our sin or wrongdoing.
Repentance:
1. Dictionary meaning: to regret, resolve not to continue wrongdoing.
2. OT: Turning away from sin to righteousness, from idolatry to true true worship from sin to moral behaviour.
3. NT: Change of mind and change of behaviour.
U-turn is a good vision of what Repentance looks like:
Biblically the word repent has to do with making a deliberate decision from sin, idolatry or moral wrongdoing.
*When we do wrong and God shows us our sin it leads us to repentance through Jesus.
* I will be thankful for the Godly sorrow that I encounter because it does lead to salvation.
Father, thank you for correcting my character even when it hurts. Lord help me see and be truly sorrow for my mistakes and not blame other people or circumstance…… And I ask You Jesus for forgiveness… This way, by faith, I know I will change my life….It may hurt but it leads to healing!
Psalms 139:23 Search me, OGod, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. 24 Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life. Amen
Have you been through fire in your life?
*If God allows you to go through anything in your life, there is a reason.
*God has a purpose and a plan.
Fire, as defined in Malachi 3:2. When God allows you to go through something, he’s working in your life.
If we genuinely want to be all that God wants us to be, we have to allow Him to take the impurities out of our lives. We have to be grateful for the fire.
Knowing the result and purpose of the refining process empowers us to “count it all joy” and to keep pressing on with hope and in expectancy!
“But who will be able to endure it when he comes? Who will be able to stand and face him when he appears? For he will be like a blazing fire that refines metal, or like a strong soap that bleaches clothes.” – Malachi 3:2.
Soap cleanses the outside, FIRE cleanses the inside. And the Spirit of God does both!
*When you sin, repent!
* In-depth repentance brings in-depth cleansing. Don’t feel bad about feeling bad, feel good about it. Be glad your conscience is still sensitive and responsive to God.
*What you never want to hear God say is what He said about Ephraim: ‘Ephraim is joined to idols, let him alone’ .
The fact that God is convicting you of sin is proof of His love for you.
*God can forgive your sin but He cannot overlook it.
*Unconfessed sin disrupts your fellowship with Him.
*Forgiveness is about more than just escaping the penalty of sin, it’s about restoring your fellowship with God.
You say, ‘Won’t God get tired of me sinning and repenting?’
*If Jesus told Peter to forgive his brother ‘seventy times seven’ would He do less for you?
The Bible says: ‘”Come now, and let us reason together,” says the Lord, “though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool’.
When you sin and try to hide from God you only prolong your misery.
*So the moment you become aware of your sin, confess it, then leave His presence confident that He has forgiven you.
You’re not a loser, you’re a learner.
Alexander Pope said: ‘A man should never be ashamed to own he has been wrong, which is but saying in other words, that he is wiser today than he was yesterday.’
As difficult and painful as it may be to go through at the time, it remains truth that whenever Father sets to work on refining us, it is always for our own good.
In His unfailing love and mercy He carefully and attentively refines us that we may remain in right relationship with Him and be able to draw ever nearer to Him (continually presenting ourselves to our Father as living sacrifices).
Oh how He loves us! Oh He loves us!
The Lord has a specific manner of preparing His people for useful service.
*God desires to turn His children from rough, hard-edged stones into gems of gold and silver.
“He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; He will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the Lord will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the Lord, as in days gone by, as in former years” (Malachi 3:3-4).
The refiner’s fire can only accomplish its purposes when the heat is turned up to extraordinary temperatures.
*It breaks down the metal in order for it to become moldable and shapeable. Only when the temperatures reach this level can the work be fully accomplished.
So it is in our lives.
Until the Lord completes His refining process, the offerings we make are not made in righteousness and cannot be acceptable.
Thank God that Jesus is our righteousness and that there is no righteousness apart from Him.
*Still, the Lord continues to purge all that is not of His righteousness out of our lives.
This comes through trials that bring each of us to the end of ourselves in order that He may only reflect that which is Himself.
When God takes you through the refiner’s fire, be encouraged because it is His overriding commitment to turn you from a rough, hard-edged stone to a precious metal.
*God will do this through certain events in your relationships, and other circumstances in your life.
*Our job is to avoid trying to blow out the fire.
With God, it’s a simple choice. You can let Him clean HEARTS now, or clean HOUSE later.
Let us each be encouraged: though weeping may endure for a night, JOY COMETH IN THE MORNING, FOR HE MAKES ALL THINGS BEAUTIFUL IN HIS TIME…
*This is a time when you have to continue to press through stubborn difficulties.
* This is an opportunity to persevere and still stay strong in your faith. It may
seem like breakthrough will never come, but I’m telling you that it will. Don’t give up. Continue to trust the Lord for the answer to your prayers. The Lord sees what you’re going through, and He hears you. Be strong and courageous.
Isaiah 59:1 Behold, the LORD’S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; nor
His ear heavy, that it cannot hear.
You have entered a season of blessing in which the doors will open for opportunities to advance spiritually and naturally. You will be surprised and delighted as you progress through this extraordinary time in fires.
It is a time of revelation and resolution as things that have seemed to be beyond your ability to grasp will now be within your reach and will create a sense of freedom that you have longed for.
Draw near to the Lord, for He will give light, discernment, and truth where things have seemed to be murky.
John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
Let us each be encouraged: though weeping may endure for a night, JOY COMETH IN THE MORNING, FOR HE MAKES ALL THINGS BEAUTIFUL IN HIS TIME… Thank You Jesus for Loving US SO SO much! Lord as I have come through the fires, I look back and praise You for them. I Praise You for all that You have brought me through, for every impurity You took out of my life and for every blessing I have. Lord, Thank you for being in control! Amen
Read MoreTo experience the “fullness of God” is to have his supernatural Love. Wisdom and Power flowing into and out of our lives.
* “But I have received everything in full, and have an abundance…” Philippians 4:18
It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up… (Ephesians 4:11-12).
Bless the Lord by blessing someone less fortunate today through Your……Time, Talent & Treasures
* “And if you give yourself to the hungry, and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then your light will rise in darkness…and you will be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water whose waters do not fail.”
Isaiah 58:10-11
Your gift may fall in one of the two major divisions within the body.
*There are certain gifts that might be called General Support Ministries, from which the whole body receives benefit.
* Then there is another division of gifts, which might be called Working Gifts.
The support ministries exist for the equipment of the saints for the work of the ministry (that is contact with the world) and for the building up of the body of Christ (that is maintaining the health of the church).
*Who is to do these two things?
*The saints, the people!
That is God’s intention. It is not the job of the pastors. (Acts 6)
Their work is something different. Pastor’s are to train and equip, and motivate the people to do this work.
It is the people who are to do the work of the church.
Anything less than this is a distortion of what God intended the church to be like.
* Many churches have become identified with buildings, great massive cathedrals and imposing structures, and these were referred to as the church.
*The popular thinking fastened upon the building as the identifying symbol of the church, instead of the PEOPLE.
Along with that idea there came a gradual transfer of responsibility from the people to the clergy to do the work of the ministry.
Soon Christianity became a spectator sport, very much akin to the definition I recently heard of football—eleven men down on the field, desperately in need of rest, and forty thousand people up in the grandstand desperately in need of exercise!
How do you find the gift that you have?
*The answer is you find spiritual gifts just as you find natural talents.
*You musicians, how do you know that you have the gift of music?
*What you enjoy doing is usually what God gives you the privilege of doing, for the exercise of spiritual gifts is a joyful thing to do. People take great pleasure in exercising these gifts.
One important indication is to see if others recognize the gift in you and encourage you to use it. It is important that others recognize your gift.
Open Your Gift!
But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. (Ephesians 4:7).
* The apostle suggests clearly that the power of the church lies in all Christians discovering and intelligently exercising the spiritual gift that was given to them when they became a member of the body of Christ.
In so many places the Church has forgotten it is a body and has tried to operate as another human organization; therefore, it has no more power than any other human organization at work in the world.
But Paul reminds us that the secret of the operation of the church is that each Christian has a gift.
It is our responsibility to recognize and fulfill that gift we each have.
If you are a Christian, if you have new life by the Spirit of God by faith in Jesus Christ, you have a spiritual gift.
*The church begins to live and exercise its impact and influence upon society when you begin to exercise your gift.
Do you know what your gift is? Have you ever asked yourself this question:
“What is the gift God has given to me since I am a Christian? What does He want me to do as a general area of ministry?” Do you know how to recognize a gift? Do you know how to develop it once you know what it is?
*The impact on the church in this area is directly related to how you answer those questions.
*Your own joy and fulfillment as a Christian depends on how you answer those questions.
All our flowery words about Jesus are not enough. Our Actions must match our words in order for it to become truth.
* “Even so you too outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.” Matthew 23:28
As believers we tend to measure our success on whether we have achieved a certain position or stature in life.
Even as Christians the temptation to believe that someone is blessed if they have achieved prominence is always confronting us.
In His discussion with Peter, Jesus was getting at the very heart of the matter of a person’s calling.
Peter was worried about whether his friend John was going to get the same lot in life as he was.
Jesus told him it should not be his concern.
* He was to concern himself only with one thing: his own calling before God.
Are you tempted to compare yourself with where others are in their life? Are you dissatisfied with where God has you right now?
Be of good cheer-“[be] confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 1:6)
Salvation is not a reformation, but rather a regeneration, a new birth, a new creation, that can only be accomplished by a creative miracle of the Holy Spirit. Because of the new birth, He sees us through Jesus. Celebrate Life!
Remember we cannot do everything. God never intended it to be this way. We must stick close to His purpose in our life while encouraging others to discover their purpose and to use it in the Kingdom.
Lord, I am grateful to be a part of Your body and to partner with You in Your Kingdom work. Help me Lord, to encourage others to step out in faith and to walk in the purpose You have given them. Father, what a magnificent plan and program for this world to be helped, changed, and delivered in its utter need. God, grant that I catch something of the excitement and the challenge of using my gift/gifts. Lord thank You for the spiritual gifts you have given me. Let me not only discover them but use them to edify Your body and glorify Your Son in the power of the Spirit for Your Glory. Amen
Read More*Some things must die in order to be productive.
“I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.” – John 12:24
Death and Birth of a Vision–Almost every significant thing God births He allows to die before the vision is fulfilled in His own way.
*Abraham had a vision of being the father of a great nation (birth). Sarah was barren and became too old to have children (death). God gave Abraham and Sarah a son in their old age. He became the father of a great nation (fulfillment).
*Joseph had a vision that he would be a great leader and that many would bow down to him (birth).
Joseph’s brothers sold him to some merchants and he became a slave. Later he was falsely condemned to spend his years in prison (death). God allowed Joseph to interpret the dreams of the butler and baker and later the king, whereupon, he was made a ruler in the land (fulfillment).
*Moses had a vision of leading his people out of the bondage of Egypt (birth). Pharaoh as well as his own people drove Moses out of Egypt after Moses’ first attempt to relieve their bondage (death). God gave Moses signs and wonders to convince Pharaoh to free the people and bring them out of Egypt and into the Promised Land (fulfillment).
*The disciples had a vision of establishing the Kingdom of God with Jesus (birth). The very ones He came to save killed Jesus, and the disciples saw Him buried in a tomb (death). God raised Jesus from the dead, and the disciples performed great miracles until the gospel had spread through all the world (fulfillment).
*A grain of wheat has a “vision” of reproducing itself and many more grains of wheat (birth). The grain dies in the ground (death). A harvest springs up out of the very process of “death” in the ground (fulfillment).
Romans 13: 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
Has God given you a vision that is yet unfulfilled?
*If that vision is born of God, He will raise it up in His own way.
*Do not try to raise the vision in your own strength.
Like Moses, who tried to fulfill the vision of freeing the Hebrews by killing the Egyptian, it will only fail. But wait on your heavenly Father to fulfill the vision.
*Then you will know that it was His vision when He fulfills it in the way only He can do.
Be on guard and remain fully and solidly positioned in the Lord’s presence.
For, the enemy has released an attack to get you off track and to scatter you to the wind. His strategy is to cause you to get emotionally invested in things you have no control over. Yours is not to try to control but to trust God in those things.
Refuse to allow the devil and his plans to get you off balance. Stand strong
and resolute in the Lord’s purposes. God is with you and for you.
Nahum 2:1 He who scatters has come up before your face. Man the fort! Watch the road! Strengthen your flanks! Fortify your power mightily.
Holy Father, let us come often into your presence, so that your light and goodness will protect us from temptation to sinful activity. When we focus on your goodness and love and try to walk the paths you have for us, such things will seem unappealing and out of place, But help us to Stand Strong with and for You, Jesus for Your Glory. Give us thankful joyful hearts that want to serve others and share Your LOVE. Amen.
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God’s Way of Agape is the only way that leads to life, but are you wiling to walk it?
* “For the gate is small, and the way is narrow that leads to life, and few are those who find it.” Matthew 7:14
Will you lay down your life so that God’s Love can be released through you to others?
* “I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God…” Romans 12:1
“Praise be to the Lord my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle.” Psalm 144:1
David learned to be a skillful warrior. How does one become a skillful warrior?
The only way one can become a skillful warrior is to be trained and placed in the middle of the battle.
It is only when we are placed in the furnace of battle that we truly learn to fight the real battles.
*Practice doesn’t make you battle ready.
*War games won’t prepare you for facing your real enemy in the battlefield.
**The stark reality of being in the midst of the battle makes us effective warriors.
*Simply reading your Bible will not make you a warrior for the Kingdom. *Knowledge without experience is mere folly.
* Only when you are placed in situations where there is nothing or no one who can save you but God will you learn the lessons of warrior faith.
*This is the training ground of God, which will make you into a soldier for Christ.
* Consider it to be suicidal faith – faith that says I want to be dead to anything that keeps me from fulfilling God’s purposes for my life.
* It is when your efforts can do nothing to change your circumstance and you are at the mercy of God.
*These are the Real training grounds of God.
I know, it’s true. God has already won the victory for us. Satan is defeated.
*However, until satan’s sentence is executed, he’s trying to take down with him as many as he can!
That’s why we need to be ever prepared for battle.
This chapter of Psalm 144 makes me think about how God was preparing Israel for battle.
* He had already told them that they will be victorious.
* He had already given them the land He promised to them.
*But they still had to fight and take it over. Not on their own strength, but God’s.
I see in these verses that God wanted to make sure that His presence -“the tent of meeting’ was at the center of the camp.
* So when God is at the Center of our lives we are victorious.
* Also he was giving them precise instructions and strategies.
* In the same way is the daily guidance of the Holy Spirit and our willing obedience that guarantees the victory that God wants to pass on to us.
What a great picture and insight on how to fight our present spiritual battles.
Do not shrink back from the battle that God may be leading you to today.
* It may be a training ground that is necessary for the calling He has on your life.
If you can trust Him in these times, you’ll know that you have gained a faith that will move mountains and will sustain you in the most difficult of circumstances. “Praise be to the Lord my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle.
Jesus chose to lay down His Life so God’s Love could be poured forth from Him to us.
* “I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His Life for the sheep…No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative.” John 10:11, 18
Refuse to listen to the useless chatter of the enemy when he tries to convince
you that you are flawed or worthless. The Lord has not and does not condemn you. You are His special treasure, chosen for His own purposes. Satan is against you because he is against the Lord, and these lies are weapons formed against you. Do not believe them.
*Psalms 139:14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous
are Your works, and that my soul knows very well.
We are in war against the forces of darkness in this age. It is a battle for the hearts and minds of people, but the only one who can win this war, is the man or woman who accepts the victory of the Lord.
If you will take up your weapons and your cross and follow Jesus, you will be given the plan of how you can win your battles. The Word of God is the most powerful natural and supernatural tool we have been give, second only to what Jesus did on the cross.
Lord, give me the spirit of your martyrs, to go to battle ready to give it all up for your glory. Dear Father, I don’t praise you enough for what you’ve done in my life. You’ve given me peace and you’ve provided for me. Thank you. Lord allow everyone else to receive this same peace in You that you’ve given me. Thank you again for all that you’ve done for us. Amen
Let’s us have this boldness to believe and ask Jesus to heal those that are sick!
Jesus chose to lay down His Life so God’s Love could be poured forth from Him to us.
* “I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His Life for the sheep…No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative.” John 10:11, 18
THE PERFECT EXAMPLE OF HOW TO ASK JESUS FOR SOMETHING:
Matthew 8:2, ” And behold, a leper came and worshiped Him, saying, Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean. 3 Then Jesus put out His hand and touched him, saying, I am willing; be cleansed. Immediately his leprosy was cleansed.”
*This leper had it right — it is up to God whether or not to give us what we ask in prayer. If Jesus was willing to heal the leper, it would happen.
*Faith, is trusting His will, knowing he cares so much.
*Faith begins where the will of God is known.
John 4:46-54
*Crisis faith– man in need because his son is dying. Crisis is sometimes what we need to come to a real trust in God.
*Confident faith- confident that Jesus had the ability and will heal his son. We need to know that God has the power, and that He is not afraid to use it for us.
*Confirmed faith– Jesus confirms his faith. “He is healed, go home.” Keep record. Remember what God has done for you, and if He said no, look back later and recognize that He knew what He was doing when you didn’t.
*Contagious faith– whole family converts. When you can testify to God and His grace and mercy, faith spreads like wildfire.
When all four of these things come together, you have something that destroys barriers and walls that people set up to keep God out.
Leprosy was a hated disease and its symptoms are described in detail in Leviticus 13:1-46.
This leper believed Jesus could heal him, But Doubted His willingness to heal him. (Sound familiar?)
Jesus showed him His willingness to heal, and since He is no respecter of persons, He established a precedent for us (Rom. 2:11 For there is no partiality with God).
This leper did not know God’s will concerning healing, But this is not the case with us.
*The Word of God is the will of God, and it reveals that it is always God’s will to heal.
Isaiah 53:5, makes it clear that when Isaiah said “with his stripes we are healed”, he was speaking of the physical healing of our bodies.
*Jesus provided for physical healing as well as forgiveness of sins.
*Jesus has already healed us of the greatest disease of all, that of SIN, giving us the medication of redemption and forgiveness. How much more easily then will He heal us of our physical pain and illness.
Jesus paid the price for our healing Amen.
Jesus Physical healings:
*Matthew 9:22 But Jesus turned around, and when He saw her He said, Be of good cheer, daughter; your faith has made you well. And the woman was made well from that hour.
*Mark 5:34 And He said to her, Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.
* Luke 8:48 And He said to her, Daughter, be of good cheer; your faith has made you well. Go in peace.
James 5:15 And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.
*Many scriptures mention the healing of our bodies in conjunction with the forgiveness of our sins.
*Healing is a part of our salvation, just as much as the forgiveness of our sins.
Nowhere do we find Jesus refusing to heal anyone. In light of Jesus’ statement that He could do nothing of Himself, but only what He saw the Father do (Jn. 5:19 and 8:28-29), His actions are proof enough that it is always God’s will to heal.
There are certain things Jesus suffered for us that we should not suffer.
*Jesus died for our sins so that we would not have to pay for them (Rom. 6:23). *Jesus took our sicknesses and diseases so that we could walk in health (Mt. 8:17; 1 Pet. 2:24).
*Jesus became poor so that we, through His poverty, might be rich (2 Cor. 8:9).
If God be for us, then no one can successfully be against us.
The Lord has made every provision for you to walk in all He has provided for you today. Don’t put it off a minute longer.
*Take time to evaluate where you’ve been and to remember the things that you learned through your experiences.
*Do not give in to the temptations that come for you to be a victim of the difficulties you have endured, but rather use those lessons as a platform and a launching pad into greater wisdom and spiritual effectiveness.
Those things have made you stronger and have the potential to increase your faith if you maintain a proper perspective.
Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.
Father in heaven, I yield myself to You today. Search me and know my heart. Use me for Your glory. Let me be a beacon of Your love and light everywhere I go. Show me who to pray for and let Your healing virtue flow through me in Jesus’ name. Amen.
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This devotion (part 2) is Dedicated to my Best Friends that have lost a dear Nephew in his 20’s and to all the rest of us that have lost a young person in our lives.
The greatest “WHY” in the Bible was uttered by the Lord Jesus Christ on the Cross when He said “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Matthew 27:46
*Because Jesus gave himself on the Cross, we can trust Him to have answers to ALL our other “WHY’S”.
We left off yesterday with this Question.
Where will you go when it’s your time to die?
In the passage, Jesus said to Mary and Martha in John 11: 25-26: “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies. Do you believe this?”
Jesus didn’t merely say that there is a resurrection. Jesus claimed that HE IS the resurrection. The fact that He would rise from the dead was the guarantee that others would too. We often think that this is the land of the living, and that when we die we go the land of the dead.
The opposite is really true – this is the land of the dying, when our life here is over, we are transferred into the land of the living – either to a place of eternal joy or to a place of eternal torment. There are really only two possible destinations.
There’s only one requirement for entrance into resurrection life — it’s not a matter of trying to be good or even going to church — the only requirement is that you personally believe that Jesus exchanged his life for yours by absorbing your sins on a cross and that He rose again so that at the moment of your death you will rise too. (Ponder this. It’s Easter this weekend-He Has Risen!)
“To KNOW Jesus is to have eternal Life! (John 17:3)
Romans 8:1 So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.
*It states that Jesus took the form of a human, meaning He is fully human and fully God, and defeated sin and took our place. Which is why we have no worry of hell or God’s wrath because Jesus paid it all.
* When trouble comes, remember that, God has not forgotten about you!
*When trouble comes, remember that, God still loves you!
*Feelings of insecurities: Helplessness-Isolation-Fear of the future-Pessimism.
Help us Lord to: Let GO & Let God!!
God uses all things (even illness) for His glory. (Romans 8:28)
But even though my condition tempted you to reject me, you did not despise me or turn me away. No, you took me in and cared for me as though I were an angel from God or even Christ Jesus himself. (Galatians 4: 14)
*Paul was struck with an illness that is undescribed in Scripture. We can guess that they would have prayed for his healing, but he was not healed. God used that illness for Paul to preach to the Galatians.
*As joint heir with Christ, I want to live in freedom. I want to be able to stand firm in Christ and not be burdened by the yoke of slavery (sin). I want to live my life by the fruit of the spirit –Knowing I will face temptation on every side.
I know that God loves me and that my flesh is not always obedient. BUT GRACE!
Jude 24 Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into his glorious presence without a single fault. 25 All glory to him who alone is God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord. All glory, majesty, power, and authority are his before all time, and in the present, and beyond all time! Amen.
*When we get to Heaven and stand in His glorious presence, it will be joy unspeakable.
Isaiah :55:6 Seek the LORD while you can find him. Call on him now while he is near.
*Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. “For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak!”. (Matthew 26:41)
*Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. (Colossians 4:2)
*Never stop praying. (1 Thessalonians 5:17)
Look up, says the Lord. Again, I say, look up! You have been looking too close to yourself and your own concerns so that you have not discerned what the Lord is doing.
You must see and know what the Lord is doing as well as what the enemy’s plans are against you. This is a time when the Lord will again bring you to new heights spiritually so that you can see and discern with greater clarity. He also is releasing an anointing that will increase your ingenuity, the power of your creative imagination. Position yourself to make the most of this next move.
Psalms 5:3 My voice You shall hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up.
Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes (Ephesians 6:11).
* Paul says the battle is not against flesh and blood; it lies deeper than that.
*The basic problem is that this is a battle between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan and that people themselves are the battlefield.
* The battle is visible not only in the wars, revolutions, and crime waves that fill our newspapers, but it is also seen in the inner tensions and fears of individual lives, in the neurotic problems, all addictions to sin, and mental illnesses that afflict us today, in family fights and church struggles. It is even visible in nature, where all of life competes in a ruthless, deadly struggle to survive.
The whole race has fallen under the control of satanic forces, which Paul calls, “the world rulers of this present darkness” (6:12).
*We are not set free to live unto ourselves. We are set free in order to battle.
*That is the call that comes to all Christians.
*We are not set free in order to enjoy ourselves.
*We are set free to do battle, to engage in the fight, to overcome in our own lives, and to become the Channels by which Others are Set Free.
How do you do this? Paul’s answer is in one phrase:
“Put on the whole armor of God.” Full provision has been made that you might win in this battle. This is the amazing thing we must learn.
God has made full provision for us to fight these forces that hold the world in their grip.
Remember: We Fight From Victory not For Victory! (1 John 4:4).
We need to be Praying(talking to Jesus) through our circumstance which means simply this:
*The strength, power and encouragement we receive from the Lord while shut in with Him must see us through the trials ahead.
* The Victory you get in the secret closet, with the Lord, has to give us Victory on the battlefield. (Life)
*What exactly do you get from our time of prayer if not something that can see Us through the battle?
* “Praying through” means waiting for the total completion of your prayer. *Many of us Christians see only half-answered prayers because we do not allow what we received from the Lord in prayer and Word to carry us through our current trial.
Let us Never Forget, prayer is not finished—it is not “completed prayer”—until it sees us through to the other side of our trial.
*We have not “prayed it through “until we have “lived it through” our trials by the strength we received in God’s presence.
Under the control of satanic forces human beings are uncomfortable and unhappy but also completely unable to escape by any wisdom or power of their own.
*But the good news is that some have been set free through the coming of that “stronger one,” Jesus Himself, who came, as John tells us, “to destroy the devil’s work” (1 John 3:8b).
Through Jesus- deliverance is obtained. Through the amazing mystery of the Cross and the Resurrection, Jesus has broken the power and bondage of Satan over human lives.
*Us who individually receive and acknowledge this (totally God’s Grace and Gift) are set free to live in the freedom and liberty of the children of God. Praise God for the ones that make it.
But through the years of personal experience and the years of listening to others; the Battle is a daily-hourly Struggle and we really don’t totally HEAL until we Grieve properly and then start giving away to Others in NEED– the Knowledge, Truth, Love and Discernment we experienced through it all. This is Called “Our Testimony” of what Jesus has Done for “ME”!
*Revelation 12:11 And they have defeated him(satan) by the blood of the Lamb and by their testimony.
*Jesus has broken Satan’s power over us.
It is not enough to only seek God when we face our troubles. The victory for you and me WAS WON when Jesus took our place on the Cross.
2 Corinthians 1:4 He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. 5 For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ.
Father, tear away the delusive veils by which I have allowed myself to be rendered powerless in this great battle. Help me to understand that I would have no possibility of fighting were it not for the delivering work of the Lord Jesus, who has come to bind the power of darkness.
Lord, You are worthy of a mind that meditates on You daily; a heart that loves You steadfastly, and a will that follows Yours. When You call, help me respond according to who I know You to be: Faithful.
I would truly be nothing and nowhere without you Lord. Thank you for restoration. Thank you for restoring and renewing me. Thank you for rest and peace and love and joy and comfort. I will position myself Lord so that you can work through me to bring yourself glory honor and praise.
Thank You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
End of part 2 see part 3 tomorrow
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Without God’s Love flowing from our hearts, good works and sacrificial giving are of no benefit.
“And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not love [Agape], it profiteth me nothing.” 1 Corinthians 13:3
Dealing with the Pride of Life
1 John 2:16 For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world.
In this Verse we see some specific references to “Pitfalls” we should be avoiding in our lives:
1. “the lust of the flesh”.
2. “The lust of the eyes”.
3. “The boastful pride of life”.
4. With the added warning that such tendencies are “not from the Father, but…from the world.”
In fact, we see the “boastful pride of life” running rampant in society—in people’s insistence upon “doing their own thing” in their own strength.
“I Did It My Way” seems to be the theme song of choice for so many.
*One of the greatest indictments of this kind of behavior in the Old Testament is God’s chilling statement to His people in Jeremiah 2:13: “For My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, to hew for themselves cisterns, broken cisterns that can hold no water.”
**What a grave error: deliberately rejecting God’s provision (something which actually works) in favor of a contrivance made by our own devices (something which doesn’t work)!
Over the years, I have been convicted about so many areas of my life in which I have engaged in the fool’s errand of refusing God’s ways to build things my way instead.
*That has resulted in the necessity to ask the Lord for help in correcting the errors, cleaning up the messes and unsnarling the tangles caused by my own misguided humanistic efforts.
Have you had to endure some similar experiences?
His Strength, Not Ours—If the Lord truly intends to use us, it is absolutely necessary for us to learn and relearn the very basic lesson of operating in His strength rather than in our own.
Everybody should want to be like God.
Do you know what the essence of the temptation was? (This is very important.)
* The desire to be independent of God. That’s the essence of sin.
* As long as you are desiring in your heart to be independent of God, you are in a dangerous position.
Nothing in this universe has any right to be independent of the Creator.
**The way that they thought they could get independence was by knowledge.
*The way we take or receive an anxious thought is by speaking it. Doubtful thoughts will come, but we do not sin until we entertain them.
It is imperative that we watch the words we say.
*Begin to speak words in faith that line up with God’s Word, then Positive Results will follow.
*If we speak words of doubt, we will eventually believe them and have the Negative things that these words produce.
*There are no such things as “idle” words which will not work for or against us.
*Death or life is in the power of every word we speak (Prov. 18:21).
*Please understand: the desire to know wasn’t wrong.
**But the desire to be independent of God was the essence of their problem.
Obadiah 1: 3 You have been deceived by your own pride because you live in a rock fortress and make your home high in the mountains. ‘Who can ever reach us way up here?’ you ask boastfully.
I know many Christians who have not dealt with this root desire to be independent of God.
** This is the pride of life: “I can manage my life without God. If I’m in a real emergency, I’ll pray; but generally speaking I can handle the situation.”
*That was my thoughts in the past-But God hit me hard with this verse in
Galatians 6: 3 If you think you are too important to help someone, you are only fooling yourself. You are not that important.
For some people, the Holy Spirit is like an emergency vehicle. When there’s nothing else they can do, they pray. That’s not the way we were designed to live.
We were designed to live in hour by hour and moment by moment dependence on the Spirit of God.
Dear Lord, I confess my tendency to operate in my own strength. I ask Your forgiveness for the many times when my first response to a problem or a crisis in my life, instead of relying upon You, has been to turn to my own resources. Lord, I acknowledge before You that my strength is totally inadequate for anything I have to face.
Standing in Your presence now, Lord, I turn actively from my own strength, and I express my utter reliance upon You and Your power. Any action I take, I will take in Your empowerment and not my own. Thank You for opening my eyes to the folly of operating under my own steam. Kneeling before Your throne, I call this tendency what it is: the sin of independence from You. And I call upon You to set me free from that tendency, in order that from this day forward, I may walk in complete reliance upon You and Your strength operating through me. Amen