| ............ | A Word In Due Season July 2022 7/1/22 UNTROUBLED HEART IN A TROUBLED WORLD Scripture: John 14:1 "Do not let your heart be troubled: You believe in God, believe also in Me." We are very acquainted with living in a troubled world, for it seems that the news reports get worse every day. In our nation there is division and strife, but trouble is not reserved for the national level, for many times our personal lives are also troubled. Even though it is not our desire, there are problems in our private homes, our financial situations, and misunderstandings in our personal relationships. Jesus foresaw this time in history concerning the world and also the disturbing seasons of our own individual lives. Yet He told us even in these times of unrest, not to allow our heart to be troubled. He said, "Trust in God and trust in Me." Jesus must have felt that it was important to get this one thought across because He repeated His words in verse twenty-seven. He desperately wanted us to understand that we could have an untroubled heart in the midst of a troubled world. How do we go about having an untroubled heart? The first thing we must do is to recognize the presence of the Lord in our life. Jesus said that He would never leave us or forsake us. He plans to bring us through every situation and be with us until the very end. You cannot be in God's presence without experiencing peace, and you cannot have peace without His presence. The two are bonded together as the Lord’s very being drives away fear and anxiety. Another thing that we can do to obtain and maintain peace is to start consulting God about everything that we do. Wisdom that comes down from above is peaceable (James 3:17). When we allow the Lord to direct us in our decisions, we find peace because we know that we are following after His will and His wisdom will bring us the very best. Finally, we must be a worshipper of God regardless of our current situation or our future outcome. Whatever happens in our life, we should be grateful and trust God with all of our heart and not lean upon our own understanding. We must leave all things in His hands, knowing that He is sovereign and that all things are going to work together for our good. Many times we are so troubled and consumed by what we do not have that we cannot appreciate and live in peace with what we do have. When Jesus said, "Do not let your heart be troubled," He put the responsibility of guarding our heart upon our own shoulders. God has provided peace, but obtaining it is an individual choice. We personally decide if we are going to put our trust in God in every situation or if we are going to allow our heart to become overburdened, troubled, and fearful. We have a choice concerning our reactions to the things that we hear and the things that we observe about us. When we really stop and think about it, how can anything go wrong in our lives if we have our Father God and the Lord Jesus Christ on our side? I encourage you to make a decision to trust both of Them, which will enable you to live an untroubled life in a troubled world. +++ 7/4/22 BLESSED NATION Scripture: Psalms 33:12 "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord." The fifty-six men who signed our Declaration of Independence, which was approved on July 4, 1776, committed an act of treason against the British Crown. As they signed this incredible Declaration, they mutually pledged to each other their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor. Of those who signed, two became Presidents of the United States, three became Vice Presidents, and several others became either State Governors or U. S. Senators. However, there were many signers who suffered greatly. Four died of wounds from the war and five were imprisoned. Several lost their wives and children as their homes were attacked. The oldest signer of the Declaration was 70 year old Benjamin Franklin, whose faith was strong in God. Speaking of God, He said: "Have we now forgotten this powerful Friend? Or do we imagine we no longer need His assistance? I have lived, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth -- that God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid? We have been assured, Sir, in the Sacred Writings, that 'except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it.' I firmly believe this." Benjamin Franklin was convinced that all was vain unless the Lord was God and Builder of this nation. The freedom we enjoy has been purchased with tears and blood. We have reaped the noble sacrifice of these brave men, and every American life has been touched by the document they signed. Because of their sacrifice, we have experienced a "Blessed nation whose God is the Lord ... And we are STILL one nation, under God. +++ 7/6/22 SEPARATED FROM DARKNESS Scripture: Genesis 1:3-4 "And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness." This scripture declares that in the beginning God did three things; God said, God saw, and God divided. When God spoke light into existence, it traveled at 186,000 miles per second in an effort to reach the earth and to obey God's command. When God saw the light, He was pleased, and said that it was good. He then divided and separated the light from the darkness. He did not allow the two to mingle together and form one shade of gray. The Apostle John said, "God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all" (I John 1:5). When God created you, He created you to be in the likeness of His image, and your image should manifest the light that He is. When you were reborn into His likeness, He said, "Let there be light." In that moment, possibly at 186,000 miles per second, like the speed of natural light, His Light illuminated your spirit and gave life to your soul. In an instant, God’s Spirit transformed you and called you "out of darkness and into His marvelous light" (I Peter 2:9). God's light on the inside of you is a glorious miracle. He does not allow your soul to mingle with the darkness of the world or become a shade of gray. So when you are filled with His Light, you feel uncomfortable in the midst of spiritual darkness. Likewise, those who entertain themselves in the deeds of darkness feel uncomfortable in or around your light. They recognize the separation because the Light of God that is within you becomes a witness to their darkness and a conviction to their soul. Because darkness cannot overcome light or put it out, they separate from you. Do not be discouraged or feel rejected, for this is God's work. His light separates you from the world. Jesus declares that you are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. You are as a city that is set on a hill and you are not to allow anything to quench your light or destroy its purpose, which is to glorify God (Matthew 5:14-16). In every area of your life, yield to God's marvelous work of division and separation. When He says, "Let there be light," allow His Light to shine within you and through you so that you can be an instrument of His glory that will pierce the darkness of the world that is around you. +++ 7/7/22 THE ACCUSER Scripture: Revelation 12:10 "For the accuser of our brothers is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night." The enemy of our soul works overtime in the department of accusations. He is at our heart's door continually reminding of us of our present sins and past failures regardless of how little or how great they may be. He leaves nothing undone because he knows the negative effect that his words of condemnation will have upon us. He does not speak with truth, but the thoughts that he plants in our minds become mental hurdles that we have to overcome. His reminders become heavy weights and burdens as we attempt to run the race that God has set before us. Several times in my life, I have had a recurring memory of an incident that happened when I was a child. I was walking home from school and I took a strawberry from the garden that was near the road. It was not a sudden thing. My actions were premeditated. I had to go out of my way and walk around the block slowly so that everyone else would be gone and not see me when I came back to take the strawberry. Taking the strawberry sounds so much better than stealing it. That memory became a stronghold in my mind because I had never dealt with my deed. Even though it happened many decades ago, the memory still grieved my spirit. It is true that I have done many other things that are far worst since then, but I have always been quick to confess my sins and find forgiveness in the eyes of the Lord. When I have confessed my sins, God has always been faithful to forgive me and to cleanse me from all unrighteousness. He washes me whiter than snow and I am never plagued with guilt. I did not know this truth when I was a young child. I now realize that I was having this recurring memory because, in all of these years, I had never confessed this sin, nor asked forgiveness for it. When I realize this, I confess my sin to God and He washed the guilt from my soul. The devil was always there to remind me because he knew that my transgression was not covered by the blood of Jesus. He still had an open door to accuse me and to make me feel guilty. You may ask, "Does God hold us that tight to the law?" I would say, "No". We would all be in big trouble if He did. But I do believe that the Lord saved this particular incident in my mind so that it could be used as an example for this season to remind us that God wants all of us free from the evil spirit of condemnation. He wants us to know that we can be released from the devil's accusations by simply asking forgiveness for our sins. If you have a recurring memory that brings condemnation, simply confess it to the Lord. Call the sin out by name, ask for forgiveness, and then allow God to wash away the stain with the precious blood of Jesus. You will be amazed at the sweet release that you will feel in your spirit when you get God involved in forgiving your transgressions. Remember that the devil is the one who seeks to keep you in bondage but God is faithful to deliver. God's Word declares that the accuser has been cast down and that you can overcome him and his accusations "By the blood of the Lamb and by the word of your testimony" (Revelation 12:11). +++ 7/8/22 MAKING PRAYER THE PRIORITY Scripture: I Thessalonians 5:17 "Pray without ceasing." The Apostle Paul was a very busy person. He went on missionary journeys, evangelized the nations, wrote nearly three fourths of the New Testament, and even made tents to supplement his income. Yet, he was never too busy to pray. He made prayer a priority in his life, and because he was aware of the necessity of prayer in his own life, he instructed us to do the same. Prayer is not just a few words that are spoken to our Father as we ask Him to bless our meals, our day, and our night seasons. It is a continual communion with God where we acknowledge His presence with us and our utter dependence upon Him. God not only waits for the times of prayer that we put things aside, enter our closet places, and bow our knees before Him, He also waits for us to simply speak to Him informally. The Apostle Paul told us to pray without ceasing. Even though we are busy with the demands of life, we can still stay focused on God and whisper a prayer along the way. As our spirits praise and seek God throughout the busyness of the day, we will hear His still small voice speaking to us in return. This is communion. We not only speak, but we listen. We not only ask for the things that we desire but we hear God's Words in our ears and act with obedience to fulfill His desires. However, many times we get so busy that our prayers become only petitions for our immediate needs. Someone made the comment that we treat God like the "Burger King" instead of "The King." We pray, "I'll take - two healings, one forgiveness, and a large order of blessings." We do not even check the bag before we drive off or leave His presence. Later, we find out that we did not get all of the things that we ordered from God and we wonder what happened. The words of our prayers were there but our connection with God was not. Our communion with God was lost in the busyness of life. We must connect with God to receive from God. Jesus had great confidence when He spoke to the Father in prayer. He told the Father, "I know that You hear Me always" and Jesus then raised Lazarus from the dead (John 11:42). That was a power packed prayer. However, the power was not established in these few words, but through Jesus' continual prayer life and communion with the Father. Scriptures declare that Jesus arose early before dawn to meet God in prayer and He also prayed all night. He stayed in communication with the Father and made no decisions on His own, but did only that which the Father showed Him. Prayer was a priority with Jesus and communion with God was His way of life. Let us seek to follow the Lord's example, and like Paul's instructions, pray without ceasing. +++ 7/11/22 YOU ARE IN GOD'S HANDS Scripture: Jeremiah 18:6 "... as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are you in My hand." This scripture sounds so inviting and it gives us a sense of security, for what better place to be than in the hands of a loving God? We desire to be in this special place so we yield ourselves to God. Yet, too soon we learn the first part of this verse where God says, "Cannot I do with you as this potter?" God is sovereign and He is in control of our lives just as the potter is in control of the clay that is on the potter's wheel. We are in the hands of a creative genius and He can do as He pleases with our lives. God does not look at our weaknesses and failures but instead sees our potential and makes it His business to form us into the vessel that He wants us to become. At times, this may become a very hard process for us because there are no perfect lumps of clay. Each one of us has to be dealt with in a special way and sometimes this is not easy for us to endure. God has to carefully remove the hard places and eliminate the bubbles to make us into stronger vessels. We often struggle with this process because like the potter who works with the clay, it often becomes necessary for the Lord to allow us to be totally crushed so that He can start the process anew. God is not only our Creator; He is creative and imaginative in all of His work. When we are created, the mark of God is upon us for we are made in His image. Yet He delights in the differences of each individual. Every vessel that He creates is unique in appearance and purpose. He personally works with each vessel and is able to turn sinners into saints and mortals into eternal beings. God takes extreme pride in His work and each time that He creates, there is a resounding echo of the words that He spoke in Genesis over His creation, "God saw that it was good." Never allow yourself to settle for second best. Remember that each detail of your life is fitting into God's big picture. Like the vessel on the potter's wheel, your life is revolving around God's purpose. As your life turns, focus your attention upon Him and never forget that as the clay is in the potter's hands so you are in God's hands. As you yield to God and allow Him to work with you as He pleases, you will become an exhibition and trophy of His grace and creativity. +++ 7/12/22 COME UNTO ME AND REST Scripture: Matthew 11:28-30 "Come unto me all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me ... and you shall find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light." What a great invitation that Jesus gives to us as we labor in today's busy and hectic world. When you become tired of carrying your heavy burdens of any sort, all that you need to do is to go to the Lord. You do not have to struggle with your work, healing, finances, relationships, or even your ministry. When you join yourself to Jesus, your burdens will become lighter, for He will pull all of the weight as you walk along side of Him. His awesome presence will bring rest right in the midst of your labors and His wisdom will cause things to work together in your life. Speaking very plainly, Jesus gave us an example of how to find rest and that was by taking His yoke upon ourselves. A yoke is a devise that fits around the necks of animals to join them together so that they can work as one unit. The yoke that binds two together forces them to go in the same direction and work at the same pace. The stronger animal pulls the greater weight and determines the course. When one stops, they both must stop. Sometimes, Jesus just wants us to stop and rest. That is the purpose of the Sabbath. God showed us by example to labor six days and then rest on the seventh. Yet, we tend to get confused if we are not constantly busy doing something. Then as we continually work without rest, our burden becomes heavy and overwhelming. We eventually find ourselves forcing every issue and wondering what is wrong, when all that we need is a simple season of rest for our bodies and a time in God's presence to restore our soul. Jesus said, "Come to Me, take My yoke, and learn of Me." When two are joined together with a yoke for any length of time, they begin to learn the habits and know the desires of the other. So it is with our joining with Jesus. As we wait in His presence, we learn of Him and our strength is renewed. After a while, we know the direction He is leading because we can feel His gentle nudging and can sense the subtle pull of His yoke as He walks beside us. Our burdens get lighter and become easier because we do not try to go our own way or pull in the opposite direction. We begin to understand that Jesus knows what is best for us. He knows what is to the left and what is to the right and will lead us in the right direction. To find the rest that Jesus promised, all we have to do is to come to Him. His Spirit will be our helper and will lighten our load. As we yield to Him, the power of His anointing will accomplish the work that He has designed for our lives. +++ 7/13/22 APPOINTMENT WITH GOD Scripture: Psalms 55:1718 "Evening, and morning, and at noon will I pray and cry aloud: and He shall hear my voice. He has delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me..." King David determined to spend time with God and declared that he would pray to God three times a day. In his heart, David actually made an appointment to meet with God, morning, noon, and at night. He understood the secret to life's success. He knew that our battles were not won at the battlefront, but on our knees before a mighty God. David knew these prayer appointments would make a difference between victory and defeat in his life. Because he gained confidence with God in prayer, David had peace in the midst of the battle and had no doubt that God would deliver him. Someone once said, "You are never so tall as when you are on your knees." It is as you wait in the presence of God that your strength is renewed and His instructions are made plain. As you commune with the Lord, you begin to understand His purposes and gain a clear vision of His will. With a clear vision of God's purposes and will, confidence springs up within your inner being. You know that the Lord will fight your battles for you and you are assured that He will deliver you when your enemy pursues. In His presence, you recognize that your sufficiency is not in yourself, but in the Christ that lives within you (II Corinthians 3:5). Appointments are not made to be broken. Very few of us make appointments in life that we do not plan to keep. When it comes to prayer, however, we often make a heartfelt commitment only to disappoint God and ourselves when we fail to follow through. In the morning, we are too sleepy. At noon, the day has become too busy for us to stop and talk with God. Then at night, we are just too tired. The prospect of starting over tomorrow when we are fresh sounds like a better idea. We allow our weary bodies to dictate and control our lives. Before we know it, we have missed our appointment and precious time with God again. "Our spirit was willing, but our flesh was weak" (Matthew 26:41). God draws us into His presence and gives us a desire to seek His face, but we are the ones who have to overcome and break the pattern of our weak flesh. Corrie ten Boom said, "A man is powerful on his knees ... Don't pray when you feel like it. Have an appointment with the Lord and keep it." +++ 7/14/22 REACHING THE OTHER SIDE Scripture: Mark 4:35 "Let us go over to the other side of the Lake." These instructions seemed very simple to Jesus' Disciples at the beginning because several of them were fishermen who were used to the water and knew quite well how to handle a ship. Besides that, it probably did not even look like it was going to rain, much less storm when they started out on their obedient journey across the lake. They thought that crossing the lake would be easy and had no idea of the challenge that they were to face. However, they were just about to experience a great teaching from the Master concerning prayer, faith, and the power and authority of His Word. As they journeyed across the lake, their peace soon turned to turmoil and fear gripped their hearts as a great storm formed. The winds began to blow, the waves beat against the ship, and the ship began to fill with water. In desperation, they cried out to Jesus who was asleep on the ship. They said, "Master, do You not care that we are about to die?" Jesus arose, rebuked the wind, and spoke to the sea. His words were simple, "Peace, be still." The winds obeyed His words, the waters became still, and there was a great calm! We have much to learn from this story. When God gives us a promise, there will be a challenge. It may thunder and it may rain. The storm may get fierce and our ship may be tossed about with the waves. It may be a very fearful, painful, and uncomfortable situation. We may even think that we are facing the end and speak as the Disciples did, "Master, do you not care that I am about to perish? I am about to go under. There is no way that my ship is going to make it to the other side. I just cannot hold on any longer." However, the Lord's words come back to us, "Let us go to the other side." His words, "Let us", show us that He is journeying with us through the rough waters. Sometimes we may feel that the Lord is asleep, but in reality His presence is always there to deliver. His promises are true regardless of the adversity that we are facing, and He shows us that prayer can be made concerning our troubling circumstances. He also lets us know that our faith will draw answers from God and that in the midst of the waves and wind, we can exercise authority over the forces of evil just like He did. Although we should have enough faith to make it through the storm, the Lord shows us that if our faith is lacking, He will still come through for us just like He did for His Disciples. He will arise and rebuke the storm, and speak "Peace" to the situation. When we get to the other side, we will find that our prayer life has been intensified and our faith strengthened. Let these thoughts reign in your heart, "God told you to get into the boat and go to the other side. Yes, you may be facing a great storm, but when Jesus is in the boat with you, you will make it to the other side." +++ 7/15/22 IN GOD'S STRENGTH Scripture: Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." The Amplified Bible says: "I have strength for all things. I am ready for anything. I am equal to anything." Every change in life brings new levels of responsibility and presents new challenges. Yet, the Apostle Paul was convinced that in all things, Christ would strengthen him. He felt that Christ could make him ready for anything and equal to anything. We can draw strength from Paul's faith filled words. Whatever the case may be, whether it is a new job, a new baby in the home, or a new area of ministry, God is able to give us strength for each and every occasion. Through His life giving power, He miraculously makes us fit. The fifteenth chapter of John tells us that Jesus is the vine and we are the branches. As branches, when we abide in Jesus and draw our life from Him, He infuses us with inner strength. When we are filled with His life and energy, we produce fruit. We do not have to be anxious about the fruit or try to force it to happen. It just happens. The life of Christ flowing through us produces strength and causes fruit to come forth. Philippians 4:13 is always quoted in the sense that Christ will strengthen us in every great and noble thing that comes our way. However, in verse twelve, Paul speaks of not only knowing how to live when things are going good, but also of knowing how to be abased and live humbly when circumstances are poor and meager. He said, "I have learned in any and all circumstances, the secret of facing every situation, whether well-fed or going hungry, having sufficiency and to spare or going without and being in want." He learned the secret of the sufficiency of God's grace. When Paul was in need, God told him, "My grace is sufficient for you" (II Cor.12:9). God made it clear that He was all that Paul needed and that when Paul was weak, God would be there to perfect his strength. Just as in Paul's situation, Christ does not strengthen us just for the great and mighty challenges in our lives, but also for those times that we face struggle and defeat. Whatever the challenge, good or bad, Christ gives us strength, makes us ready for anything, and also makes us equal to anything. All that we must do is to make sure that we stay attached to the vine, Jesus, because if we abide in Him, His grace will always, always, always be sufficient. +++ 7/18/22 DON'T GET WEARY Scripture: Galatians 6:9 "Let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not." Weariness and discouragement are two of Satan's strongest devises. He may not succeed in tempting you to do something evil, but he knows that if he can discourage you long enough, he will wear you out and that will cause you to give up. If you give up, then you will fail to reap what God has ordained for you. Daniel 7:25 says, "The devil shall speak great words against the most High and shall wear out the saints of the most High." Because you are a child of the most High, Satan's goal is to wear you out by speaking great words contrary to what God has spoken to you. It is the same method that he used on Adam and Eve. He comes to you with discouraging thoughts and words that plant questions in your mind, "Hath God said?" He tried the same thing on Jesus, questioning Him, "If you be the Son of God..." The devil continued tempting Jesus until he saw that he could not wear Jesus out. He then left Jesus for a season. Satan does not give up easily. His plan was to come back at a more opportune time. The devil uses the same strategy on us. However, Paul told us to put on the whole armor of God and stand against the wiles or strategies of the devil. This word 'stand' in this instance means to stand and get ready for the next battle. Our conflict with Satan will not be over until Jesus returns and takes us home. Jeremiah 12:5 says, "If you have run with footmen, and they have wearied you, then how can you contend with the horses?" In other words, if you cannot make it when things are easy, how do you expect to make it when things get really tough? Life is not always going to be easy. With every assignment that God appoints to you, there comes a challenge. You can either faint and give up or finish the course. The choice is yours, but if you intend to reap God's rewards you must complete the season. You must run the last step if you expect to finish the race. +++ 7/19/22 WAIT AND BE RENEWED Scripture: Isaiah 40:31 "They that wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." The Prophet Isaiah did not say there is a fifty-fifty chance that you will be stronger if you wait upon the Lord. He declares that you will definitely be stronger. The time that you spend alone in God’s presence determines the strength you will have to mount up with spiritual wings and soar above the storms that come into your life. Others may be able to counsel you, pray for you, and teach or instruct you, but only you can wait upon the Lord for yourself. Strength is conceived when you spend solitude moments with God. As you wait in God’s presence, you exchange your weakness and lack of might for His power and renewed strength. When you are with Him, you learn to let go of your desires and you yield to His will. As you abide in the shadow of His presence, His voice hushes the turmoil in your mind and brings peace to your soul. You begin to see your dreams as the Lord sees them and you become more sensitive to the heartbeat of His timing. Isaiah 40:30 tells us that even the young men who do not wait upon the Lord will faint, be weary, and fall. This is because true strength does not come by natural might or power, but by the Spirit of the Lord (Zechariah 4:6). The eagle stands on the edge of the cliff, spreads its wings, and then waits for the wind. It stands there alone for as long as the season demands. The eagle will not allow time or circumstances to pressure it into soaring off the cliff ahead of its time. It knows that its strength is not in itself, but in the wind, and it waits on this unseen force. When the wind comes, a mysterious thing happens. As the eagle yields to the wind, it exchanges its weakness for the power to soar. It is the same in your life with the Spirit of the Living God. You do not have to understand how the Holy Spirit works. You just need to be still and wait upon the Lord for as long as the season last. When you sense His presence, yield yourself to Him. As you yield yourself to the Lord He will replace your weakness with His strength. He is forever faithful. He will cause you to mount up with wings as the eagles, to run and not be weary, and to walk and not faint. +++ 7/20/22 IN THEE DO I TRUST Scripture: Psalm 71:1 "In Thee, O Lord, do I put my trust: let me never be put to confusion." There are many voices in these last days that will confuse us if we do not keep our minds upon Jesus. We are already experiencing wars, rumors of wars, famine, violence, and earthquakes that are spoken of in the gospel of Matthew and which precede the End Times. Each day the news media has another bit of frightening information to offer us. Yet, as we hear of these alarming circumstances, we must face them with courage and place our trust in the Lord God Almighty. God spoke some encouraging words through the Prophet Isaiah and told us not to fear. He said, "I have redeemed you and even called you by name." God said that we belong to Him, that we are precious in His sight, and that He loves us. In Isaiah 43:2 (NLT) the Lord made a comforting promise to us. He said, "When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you." God is our Lord and beside Him there is no Savior. In every situation God is able to do a new thing. He is not limited by any circumstance that life has to offer. He can even make a way in the wilderness or a river in the desert, for He is supreme and rules over all. Do not be confused about life and its circumstances, for God has a plan. The Psalmist asked God for deliverance and petitioned Him to be his strong place of habitation and a fortress where he could dwell continually. He said, "Never let me be put to confusion." Keep this same prayer in your spirit as you see the dark clouds approaching and changes that are beginning to occur in your nation and in your personal lives, for God is concerned about it all. He showed His ultimate love by sacrificing His only Son, Jesus. So you can be assured that He is still watching over you. Continually dwell in God's presence and make Him your defense. Place all of your trust in Him, for there can be no confusion when God's Spirit fills your heart. +++ 7/21/22 ENDEAVOR TO STAY IN UNITY Scripture: John 17:21 "'That they all may be one; as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they may be one in Us." Jesus prayed this simple but profound prayer for us just before His crucifixion. He prayed that we would be one with Him and the Father just as He and the Father were one. He also wanted us to be in unity with the other believers. Five times in this prayer Jesus prayed that we would be in absolute unity and declared that our perfect unity would be a witness to the world. Our greatest asset is to have the presence of the almighty God in our lives and to be in union with Him. In Psalms 133, King David says, "Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for the brethren to dwell together in unity." He then describes two things that happen when we are in unity. First, unity is like the "precious ointment upon the head". Unity allows the anointing of God to be manifested in our lives, whereas strife destroys it. The Holy Spirit is peaceful and gentle like a dove and will not rest where there is contention. We have experienced those times when we felt God's anointing and presence leading us to do some work in the ministry. Yet, before we could finish, disagreement and strife broke out and caused us to lose all initiative to complete the assignment. The anointing was gone because disunity prevailed. Second, David says that when there is unity "the Lord commands the blessing." When we are in unity with God and other believers, God commands blessings in our lives. We have experienced this with our own children. We are more inclined to do things for them when they are in unity with their brothers and sisters or their friends that are visiting. In fact, very often we will refuse to reward them when they are in strife with one another. Unity is pleasant and has its rewards. It is comforting to know that Jesus prayed for us concerning this matter. However, we need to support His prayers with our cooperation, endeavoring to do our part in the natural. We may have to overlook some things in love, bite our tongues, go the second mile, and possibly turn our other cheek, but our unity will be a witness to the world. Remaining in unity in all situations may not always be easy, but it will be worth the effort when we experience God's supernatural anointing and blessings in our lives. +++ 7/22/22 THE SEARCH FOR WISDOM Scripture: Proverbs 2:7 (Amplified) "God hides away sound and godly Wisdom and stores it for the righteous - those who are upright and in right standing with Him." God appeared to King Solomon in a dream and asked, "What would you like for me to give to you?" Solomon responded to God and asked for a wise and understanding heart. God granted his request and I Kings 3:12 tells us that there was never anyone as wise as Solomon. Yet with this gift of God upon his life, Solomon still had to apply himself to acquire the wisdom that God had stored up for him. Solomon said, "I gave my heart to seek and search out wisdom concerning all things" (Ecclesiastes 1:13). The gift of wisdom is no different than any other gift. If you have been given the gift of a musician, you still must study and practice your music. In the same manner, wisdom does not come automatically because of age or position and cannot be measured by the number of gray hairs that may have been acquired along the way. It comes by a diligent search and application of the natural and godly laws and reasoning. Proverbs 2:4 tells us that we have to seek for wisdom as though we were seeking for silver, and we have to search for it as though we were searching for gold. Our search for silver and gold causes us to spend many years seeking an education to gain knowledge so that we can obtain lucrative positions in our field of study. Then, for the rest of our lives we schedule our days to seek for the silver we deserve, making our professions our priority. We rise early, come home late, work extra hours, and make tremendous sacrifices to obtain the financial status that we desire. Solomon said that if we desire godly wisdom, we are going to have to seek for it in the same manner as we would seek for silver and gold. Our quest for wisdom must become a priority in our lives and will demand sacrifice. In order to obtain wisdom, we must search for it like a prospector panning for gold or an adventurer on a treasure hunt. They separate themselves from the normal to focus on their search and are not satisfied until they lay claim to the expected treasure. Regardless of the hardships they have to endure, they continue to search in faith and hope until their diligence is rewarded. When they finally discover the hidden treasure, they recover every ounce and guard it carefully. Wisdom is a hidden treasure of the Lord, which He has stored up and has given us the capacity to receive. Yet, wisdom only comes to us as we diligently search for it as though it was as precious as silver and gold. When God sees that we place such a high value on His wisdom, He will allow us to find it. +++ 7/25/22 TRUSTING GOD IN THE HARD PLACES Scripture: Exodus 14:1-2 "The Lord spoke to Moses saying, "Speak to the Israelites to turn back and camp between Migdol and the sea." This direct word from God seemed to lead the Israelites right into a trap. When they obeyed God's instructions, they found themselves in a very hard place. They had the Red Sea in front of them and the Egyptians at their back. The Israelites had no hope of deliverance. In and in their dilemma, they forgot the power of the Almighty God in whom they served. When they saw their enemy marching towards them, they became afraid and cried out to Moses saying, "It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness." Sometimes we react in a similar manner when faced with a fearful situation. We get very excited about a word from God and we venture out on that word. For a short time, God may do amazing things in our lives but eventually the trials and tests come, and like the Israelites, we find ourselves between the enemy and a sea of difficulty. There seems to be no way out of our dilemma. When the impossible circumstances present themselves, fear attacks and we begin to complain. Our faith is challenged. We wonder if we really did hear from God and if we are supposed to be in this place. We even think about returning to the safe place although it means bondage of one kind or another. What the Israelites failed to understand and what we fail to understand is that if God leads us into an impossible situation, He has a plan to get us out. He does not lead us so far and then forsake us, for He promised to be with us always and give us a way of escape. It is in the hard places, as we stand between our spiritual enemy and our natural sea of circumstances, that we discover the power of God and come to know the integrity of His Word. All we must do is focus on the sufficiency of God, Himself. We must remember that we serve a God who can part the Red Sea. He will then use that same dry ground that we walk through to drown our enemy and set us completely free. When we have a problem that has no solution and questions that have no answers, we are on the edge of a miracle because we serve a God that specializes in hard places. We must trust Him. +++ 7/26/22 YOU HEAR ME ALWAYS Scripture: John 11:41-42 "Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. And I know that You hear Me always. Jesus prayed these words as He stood at the tomb where Lazarus had been buried for four days. If ever there needed to be a miracle from God, it seemed that it would be at this moment. Yet, Jesus was not the least bit anxious about the situation, even though He was surrounded by many unbelievers. Instead, Jesus had great confidence when He spoke to the Father. He believed with all of His heart that the Father was listening to His words and that He would respond. Jesus never doubted that Lazarus would be raised from the dead even though his body, which had been in a sealed tomb for four days, had started to decay and was beginning to smell. Jesus knew that God was the creator of all life and that He was not limited by natural circumstances. What were the secrets to Jesus' incredible prayer audience with God? I believe that He followed His own guidelines in prayer, which He gave to His Disciples in Matthew 6:9-13. When Jesus prayed, He reverenced God and approached Him as His Father in Heaven. His prayer was also in agreement with God's Kingdom. He took dominion and commanded God's will to be done on Earth as it is was in Heaven. He used the keys of the Kingdom to bind death and loose life. He asked for the current need or daily provision to be met. Lazarus did not need his financial needs met, healing, or a multitude of other things. He needed to be raised from the dead so Jesus commanded him to come out of the grave and be loosed from his grave clothes. Jesus also came to the Father with a clean heart, for there was never any sin in Him. Sin separates us from the presence of God and prevents God from granting our petitions. Jesus did not allow Himself to be led into temptation. He only did what the Father spoke to Him to do. He may have wanted to go to Lazarus immediately, but He waited four days for God's perfect timing. Jesus also made sure that God received the glory, for He told Lazarus' sister, Martha, that if she would only believe that she would see the glory of God (John 11:40). We would like to be able to say the words that Jesus said to the Father? "I know that You hear me always." Yet, there are many times, we wonder if God is listening to us because our prayers produce little results. We need to realize that our faith in God and our confidence in prayer will bring about mighty answers. God is waiting to show us His glory. Jesus' words to the Father are powerful and we too need to find that place where we know that God hears us always. It is time for us to ask God if there is anything that is separating us from Him. If there is something keeping God from hearing us then we need to correct it so that we can receive the great and mighty things that He has promised. +++ 7/27/22 FROM SADNESS TO JOY Scripture: Psalms 30:11 "You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy." Dealing with those who are sad, disappointed, and depressed can be discouraging. Most of us, at some point, have been down this path with those whom we loved and desperately wanted to help, but unfortunately our efforts to rescue them out of the pit did not work. We empathized with them but instead of drawing them out of their sorrow and grief, we have fallen into the pit with them. We allowed their negative situation to dominate our atmosphere. I remember that my dad had a better remedy for these kinds of situations. Instead of joining the darkness, he always brought light. He created a victory in the midst of defeat. My problems as a child were minor, but there were times that I became sad or would pout when things were not going my way. When my dad saw me entertaining a negative mood of this sort, he would begin to tease me. He would say funny things, make ridiculous faces, and often physically tickle me in order to draw me out of my self-imposed doom and gloom. It usually only took a few minutes for him to have me in good spirits and laughing hysterically. His positive response to my needs turned my mourning into joy and caused me to forget the sadness that was in my heart. My dad passed away many years ago, but I still have someone who can successfully turn my mourning into joy. His name is Jesus. He understands all of my heart aches and pains. He listens to my problems as I rehearsed them over and over again, but He never crawls into the pit with me. Jesus does not make funny noises or ridiculous faces like my dad did and He certainly never tickles me. Yet, He is very present in my life and He knows what will strengthen and encourage me. He will direct me to a scripture, which will be a personal Word of encouragement or cause a song of deliverance to suddenly spring up in my heart that will give me joy. Jesus is present in your life as well. You just need to recognize that He is near and receive His personal ministry to you. As you focus on His goodness and call out to Him, He will change your darkness into light and bring happiness back into your life. Trust in Him because He knows you better than you know yourself. Isaiah 61:1-3 tells us how the Lord ministers to all of us when we are down and discouraged. Jesus is anointed by God to speak good news into our lives. He knows how to bind up our broken heart and to set us free from the things that hold us in bondage and captivity. He will give us beauty for our ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, and the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. The Lord does this so that we can have and enjoy life, but we must be willing to receive His love and ministry to us. We must believe in Him and ask Him to bring us the restoration and joy that we need in our lives. As we yield to His Spirit, He will turn our mourning into joyful dancing and we will not only be blessed but He will be glorified in our lives. +++ Copyright © 2022 Mary Padgett Ministries. All Rights Reserved www.widsonline.com |
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