God's Will

So many times we go to God in search of His will as if it is some unattainable mystery. Make no mistake, if we aren’t walking with Him daily, His will CAN be an unattainable mystery. But, if we are spending time with God in His word and in prayer, seeking HIM and not just seeking His voice, His direction or His power, then that is when we delight in Him. Psalm 37:4 says, “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” Often we look at this promise and believe that it means He will give us everything we want. I think what He’s saying is that if we delight ourselves in Him (seek Him for HIM and not for what He will give us) then He’ll impart His will into our desires.

 

In his book, The Power of Positive Praying, John Bisagno says, “You may be confident that if something is necessary for the carrying out of His will in your life, God is ready to give it. The fulfillment of desires may be granted on this condition. If they are not mere whims to bring only momentary satisfaction or glory to us but are rather true desires to accomplish more good and live more fully to His glory, then it will be in accordance with His will.”

 

We are told in Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.” In Isaiah 30:21 He tells us, “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’” Jeremiah 29:13 says, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” In Romans 8:5&9 we’re told that, “Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires…You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you…”

 

Yes, there may be times when we are uncertain and we need to ask God for direction and believe that He will confirm the answer knowing that God does not mislead, God is not the author of confusion and God does not contradict His word. But, what if, just what if by pressing ourselves into His word and allowing ourselves to be led by the Spirit, He’s been whispering His will to us all along?

Releasing Forgiveness

And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.--Mark 11:25

Last night at the Alabama Baptist Pastors' Conference, Thom Rainer preached on the Book of Philemon. His message was that in ministry we ought to:

• Do ministry from a heart of love.
• Witness from a heart of love.
• Forgive from a heart of love.

He mentioned that, especially in ministry, harboring unforgiveness and bitterness can be a major hindrance to how the Holy Spirit moves through us. I've been feeling convicted of harboring unforgiveness toward someone in my ministry for weeks now. It is time to give it to the Lord, beg forgiveness for my unforgiveness and move on to complete the tasks God gives. Help me Lord.

At Your Word

"When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon, “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” But Simon answered and said to Him, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at Your word I will let down the net.” And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking."--Luke 5:4-6

As believers, we love the stories of Scripture because in some way we relate. Or we love the stories because the ending is so great that it inspires our faith and increases our hope in God!

The verse above helps us see why Peter cast the net in faith. He says, "Nevertheless at Your word..." There's our answer, at God's Word. Take His Word for truth because it is. Act on His Word because God does. Celebrate His Word because it is living and active. Share His Word because it is life!

God is Already There

“This covenantal relationship is understood to be obtained between God and future generations of Israelites, not yet born at the time the covenant was established. God, being eternal, has the ability to enter into a relationship which transcends the time limits of individual human lives, or even of whole generations.”--Louis Newman (In reference to the covenant given in Exodus 19:1-9)

God entered into a covenantal relationship with us BEFORE our lifetimes on this earth. That's HUGE! He pledged His Son before our fall. We're told in Revelation 13:8 that Christ is the "lamb slain from the foundation of the world."

"Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear."--Isaiah 65:24

He provides before we're in need, atones before we sin, loves before we're born, answers before we ask, knows before we see, hears before we speak.

So, "Fear not tomorrow, God is already there."

Things That Bring Me Joy #7296

I love looking beside my desk and seeing Scriptures that make my heart beat faster!

On the left: A piece of art I made that features Revelation 19:11-13
I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called FAITHFUL and TRUE. With justice He judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on His head are many crowns. He has a name written on Him that no one knows but He Himself. He is dressed in a robe DIPPED IN BLOOD, and His name is the WORD OF GOD.

On the right: Exodus 14:14 in Hebrew
The LORD will fight for you, you need only to be still.

Gather the Manna

“The Israelites did as they were told; some gathered much [manna], some little. And when they measured it by the omer, he who gathered much did not have too much, and he who gathered little did not have too little. Each one gathered as much as he needed.”—Exodus 16:17-18

I was listening to a Bible study on the way to work this morning and was amazed at two things:

1) It was a study that I picked up within the first few weeks of working at the State Board of Missions. I knew I would have a long commute and so I began buying audio Bible studies for the road. I listened to the first two sessions and then put it aside. No particular reason I put it aside, I just did. Then today, I picked back up on lesson three. Wow! For such a time as this. 2) The passage of focus is contained in the context of my exegesis paper focus. So, I’m very intimately familiar with it. But, like I’ve said before, the Word of God is living and active and you can read the same passage every day and find something new every time.

So many times we see someone going through a trial in life and we think to ourselves and say to God, “I could never survive something like that.” Even recently I’ve had someone say that to me, “Lydia, if I were in your shoes, I don’t know that I would have survived.” Well, the point is, we’re meant to stay faithful and trust God in our OWN trials, not in someone else’s. In the passage above we see God giving grace according to each one’s needs. My needs are very different from your needs. Your needs are very different from my needs. But, the answer is always the same: Grace given by God in the person of Jesus Christ.

“So they asked Him, ‘What miraculous sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? Our forefathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’’ Jesus said to them, ‘I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.’ ‘Sir,’ they said, ‘from now on give us this bread.’ Then Jesus declared, ‘I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.’”—John 6:30-35

God still gives us our daily bread. Even in the desert in the book of Exodus, God provided the daily bread. But, the bread appeared on the ground, not on the table. God provided, but the Israelites were required to gather it. God will provide not only our physical food, but He provides our spiritual nourishment as well. But, we have to be willing to go out in the morning and glean in His field. Open the Word and have your fill! THAT’S where you turn. That’s where I turn. He has provided all we need in the person of Jesus Christ revealed in the Word of God.

“For no matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘Yes’ in Christ. And so through Him the ‘Amen’ is spoken by us to the glory of God.”—2 Corinthians 1:20

Resistance in the Midst of Trials

“For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.”—2 Timothy 4:3-4

Last night’s sermon was a tough one to hear. Sometimes we can get so caught up in something that is contrary to what we know to be God’s plan. If instead of leading us closer to God and encouraging us to be faithful to His call, it distracts us and causes us to forget His tasks then we know it is not of the Lord. It can be hard to determine when something IS His will, but it can be simpler to determine when something is NOT. But, we don’t want to hear “no.” Do we?

Maybe you know something isn’t His plan. Maybe you’re watching someone walk down a path and you hardly recognize the person they’ve become. “Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.”—2 Timothy 2:25-26. Last night I was reminded that when we allow ourselves to fall to temptation, we become imposters of the faith, “having a form of godliness but denying its power.”—2 Timothy 3:5. So convicting. I needed to hear that word of warning!

 

It’s so tempting when you’re going through a trial to let it eat at you, let it steal your joy or let it lead you to a path of rebellion and destruction. Been there. Even now, fighting. But if God has made a promise, He keeps it. Hold on to it. If Satan is whispering, enticing you to give up on the impossible, shut him up with the WORD. “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”—Ephesians 6:12.

“The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought and make it obedient to Christ.”—2 Corinthians 10:4-5

Resist the devil, hold on to hope, fight for faith. Trust in the Lord, He delivers!

In Constant Pursuit of Holiness

“Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.”—2 Corinthians 7:1

So convicting. I’m definitely aware of some things that are contaminating my spirit and it needs to go. Kristy Kennedy spoke at chapel yesterday morning and she was talking about a time of rebellion in her past. She said, “I knew better. I loved the Lord. But most of you know, you can’t taste of the Lord’s love and still dip your toes in the world. It’s conflicting, and miserable.” AMEN! Even to be aware of a small area of disobedience in my life is miserable. It reminds me of Galatians 5:17—“For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want.”

The opportunity for repentance is one of the most beautiful gifts God has given us. I guarantee you I’m not going to get it right the first try on this one, but I’m going to be in constant pursuit and try to remember to put on the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. I’m praying for God’s strength, because none of us can demonstrate these in our own strength. It all comes from Him!
 
And the greatest reason we have for a life of constant pursuit of holiness is found in 2 Corinthians 7:1 above and echoed in 1 Peter 1:15-16—“But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.’”