Now, Lord!

Then King David went in and sat before the LORD, and he said: “Who am I, LORD God, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far?And as if this were not enough in your sight, my God, you have spoken about the future of the house of your servant. You, LORD God, have looked on me as though I were the most exalted of men. “What more can David say to you for honoring your servant? For you know your servant, LORD. For the sake of your servant and according to your will, you have done this great thing and made known all these great promises. “There is no one like you, LORD, and there is no God but you, as we have heard with our own ears. And who is like your people Israel—the one nation on earth whose God went out to redeem a people for himself, and to make a name for yourself, and to perform great and awesome wonders by driving out nations from before your people, whom you redeemed from Egypt? You made your people Israel your very own forever, and you, LORD, have become their God. “And now, LORD, let the promise you have made concerning your servant and his house be established forever. Do as you promised, so that it will be established and that your name will be great forever. Then people will say, ‘The LORD Almighty, the God over Israel, is Israel’s God!’ And the house of your servant David will be established before you. “You, my God, have revealed to your servant that you will build a house for him. So your servant has found courage to pray to you. You, LORD, are God! You have promised these good things to your servant. Now you have been pleased to bless the house of your servant, that it may continue forever in your sight; for you, LORD, have blessed it, and it will be blessed forever.” I Chronicles 17:16-27 NIV

It is time for all those who believe God more than the politicians to put themselves in position to think and do as David did--accepting God's promise as His Will for our lives, and walking in the favor He provides.

We cannot allow ourselves to be bogged down in the negativity targeted against us, nor can we waddle in self-pity doing nothing to change the landscape around us. When we pray, we must get up and do--to see how God works in our lives.

Now is not the time for a pity party because of the GOP Terrorist Act. Now, is the time to get deeply embroiled in the political arena, seeking and supporting a person who will live as God desires us to live and do all that Jesus commanded of us--Loving God, and Loving our neighbors as ourselves.

We cannot sit and watch those who proclaim to know Jesus and yet, ignore His commandment to love. For love does not ignore or abandon the poor, needy and vulnerable. Love embraces and lifts those from the depths of poverty and provides them avenues to soar like eagles. Love has no personal agenda, but always looks after others. Love has no allegiance to political partisanship, but because of our allegiance and relationship with Jesus Christ--we love all, unconditionally.

Now, is the time to rise up from our prayer positions, fully engaged and replenished by Holy Spirit to march into the battle ahead--armed and ready to defeat the enemy within the White House and on Capitol Hill.

Now, is the time to research and gather and analyze all information we can in order to truthfully respond to all the nonsense that is pouring forth from the incompetence of those who will not read with understanding. Sadly, it has become public knowledge that many of the Republicans who voted in favor of the GOP Terrorist Act (AHCA), never read it and simply went along with the party--some bribed or bullied by the liar-in-chief (who doesn't have a clue either).

I am asserting myself into The Word and believing that whatever God promised David out of his obedience, I am also in line to receive. Therefore the passage above--applies to me and I will see all that God has shown me and nothing the enemy attempts to do to keep me from receiving all God has for me--will prosper. The enemy's plans will fizzle against the shield of love it hits at every turn, everywhere I go. I declare it all done, in Jesus' name, right now, Lord!

In order to expect to receive God's promises, we must know what they are and they can only be found in His Word! Now, Lord!

"You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised." (Hebrews 10:36 NIV)

The difference between those who succeed at one level than those who barely succeed--doing anything--is the level of commitment to keep going, keep refining, keep fine-tuning, keep revising, and keep believing that success is theirs. We know that true success is not achieved by a level of intelligent, but by a level of determination that no matter what happens, the focus is forward, not backwards.

But can there be success without failures in the interim? No--it is the failures that drive true success. We have but to look at Thomas Edison, Stephen King, Benjamin Franklin and so many more. We tend to believe that the success enjoyed by some occurred overnight because we only focus on the final result--not the journey to get there. So, for those who are weary and feel like giving up, today is not the day.

When God gives us a vision it is because He knows our capabilities beyond our doubts.

When we have obeyed Him in all things to please Him, He promised to give us the desires of our hearts and we must remain focused on the prize in order to receive the promise.

When things don't go the way we expected, we take a critical look at what happened, analyze the whys and gear up to keep going.

When we think we have reached the end of our rope and all hope is gone, we tie a knot before we get to the end of the rope, and hold on, expecting help because He said He'd never leave us alone.

Every ministry poured into us will succeed as long as we keep our eyes on Him, not people, always seeking His wisdom for direction and guidance.

Every dream we have will come to pass, if we just keep the dream in front of us and are willing to navigate every challenge that confronts us.

Every promise of God will be fulfilled, if we just listen to His still small voice and are willing to do things His way and not our own.

We were not told that we COULD do all things through Him who strengthens us just to fill words on a page.

We were not told that with God all things are possible because those who wrote the words just had a little time on their hands.

We were not told that no weapon formed against us would prosper for us to sit on our duffs, waiting for something to happen, without doing anything.

We were not told that with His going before us, He is more than the world against us for us hide behind shame and embarrassment with our first failure.

We serve an awesome God--One who created the universe from nothing and His arm is not shortened when it comes to the success of His children! Surely, goodness and mercy will follow us from each failed attempt to the promised success, by reminding us--we belong to Him and every good and perfect--those gifts He has poured into us--comes from above and all things--especially the failures--work together for our good!

In Him and through Him, we have what it takes to accomplish all things as long as we are determined to reach the goal and refuse to allow the failures to stop us at the starting gate. We are more than conquerors, victorious in all things, now let's act like it and get it done--persevering through every obstacle to make it happen!

To See The Promises, We Must Meet The Conditions!

 I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” If you say, “The LORD is my refuge,” and you make the Most High your dwelling, no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent." (Psalm 91:2,9, 10 NIV)

Before God can make a move to fulfill His part of the promise, we must fulfill our part of the promise. When we don't, He won't. And we see the truth of this in a number of places in scripture. Even though the qualifier to receive, the "if" is always there, we must see the "if" and then get mad at God because we refuse to obey.

Remember what was told to Joshua? "If you keep my commandments, then whatever you put your hands to shall prosper and you'll have good success." (Joshua 1)
Jesus said, "If you love me, keep my commands." (John 14)

In the NIV translation, the word "if" appears 1640 times--and much of it to do with God's promises to us.

A covenant--an agreement between two people--is a promise to do something and if both sides keep their word, then both sides will enjoy the conclusion of the matter. Within the covenant of God's Word, He promises to do certain things if we keep our part of the agreement to keep His commands. His commands, as summarized by Jesus are very simple--love Him and love others. If we love Him, we will do nothing to oppose Him; if we love others, we will do nothing to harm them.

Have we kept our part of the covenant? If not, why are we so surprised at the constantly unfolding consequences in our lives? Instead of blaming God, as the naysayers who claim they don't even believe in God, we should look to ourselves--under a microscope--and see if we are truly keeping the covenant.  Are we obeying God in all that we do or say?

From the looks of things--on a daily basis--as they are reported in the media, I would venture to say we have a long way to go to get into agreement with God before we can start to think we can receive the promises. We are out of agreement with God when we promote or encourage others to live in opposition to His Word. We are out of agreement with God when we waste our time debating His Word with those who have no relationship with Him. He never tells us to "debate" with others what He means. God said what He meant and He meant what He said. That is the totality of the matter.

In fact, He tell us through Paul not to engage in strife over The Word, debating genealogy (the ancestry of our Lord) with those who are simply looking for opportunity to stir up strife. When we are promoting the Gospel of Jesus Christ--the good news about repentance, the Work on the Cross, and salvation, we are told if people won't receive it--to shake the dust off our feet and keep it moving. I find this to particularly true of instigators in online forums. The naysayers will randomly select a person talking about Jesus and interact with a seemingly innocuous question to engage our attention. DON'T ENGAGE! They hope to get people rattled and then sit back and laugh at the confusion they start and they garner assistance from others who think the way they think.

Hmmm! Confusion stirred in the minds of Believers--doesn't that sound like the devil at work since we know that God is not the author of confusion? If we are truly in Christ, we have the mind of Christ, and we have the discernment of Him who guides us and we can know when the enemy is at work.

The bottom line for us is this--if we are not seeing God's promises fulfilled in our lives, we need to do a thorough investigation of self--to see where we may be falling short and we may discover--we are in agreement in all things and it is simply a matter of being in God's timing to receive. Hallelujah! Let's choose to dwell with Him and say, "He is my refuge."

Divine Power Results!

"Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires." (2 Peter 1:4 NIV)

God's Divine Power--within us through Holy Spirit--puts us in position to receive and benefit from His promises. What does that mean? We have the power within us to live right, talk right, and stay on the path God designed for us.

How do we do this? When we allow Holy Spirit to guide us on a daily basis, we escape giving into fleshly desires which can distract and deter us from the path God would have us take. But we have to allow Him to do what He does best--hear from the Father and speak to us.

When we get angry--Holy Spirit reminds us of the Word--be angry and sin not.

When we get vengeful--Holy Spirit reminds us of the Word--Vengeance is mine says the Lord.

When we allow flesh to get in our way--Holy Spirit reminds us of the Word--neither fornicators, adulterers, or liars, shall not have any place in heaven.

When we allow our eyes to stray--Holy Spirit reminds us of the Word--every man should sex only with his own wife and every wife, with her own husband.

When children are rebellious and disobedient (and we are sometimes)--Holy Spirit reminds us of the Word--Honor our mother and father so our days will be long on the earth.

When we are tempted to hate for any reason--Holy Spirit reminds us of the Word--Love God first and our neighbors as ourselves.

If we love God, we will obey Him and will not allow the influence of the enemy to guide us in doing anything because we allow Holy Spirit to do His job. That's the benefit of Divine Power operating within us.

Notice--we must allow Holy Spirit to speak to us and we hear Him--He will not force us to do anything. The devil cannot force us to do anything either--we must allow him to influence us.

So our decision must hinge on whether we want to see His promises manifested in our lives or the consequences of the enemy's influence in our lives. It is our choice. And we have the power to make the right decision because of the Divine Power, who resides within us.

Heirs To The Promises of Abraham!

"If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise." (Galatians 3:29 NIV)

An heir is a person who has legal claims to an inheritance of someone's property after they have died. In this passage, Paul reminds us that since we are descendants of Abraham by faith, we have a right to everything he was promised in Genesis 12:1-3.

God promised Abraham that He would make him a great nation, he would be blessed to be a blessing, anyone who blessed him would be blessed and anyone who cursed him would be cursed and in him, all the families of the earth would be blessed. These were the promises made to Abraham "if" he obeyed God.

Whenever we look at the promises in the bible, many of us wait to receive them and even get angry with God if we don't, but we tend to overlook that one little word, "if" we do, then He will do.

To God--obedience is better than sacrifice. If we're not willing to obey Him, in all things, then none of the rituals we do will matter.

We can sing praises until our vocal chords are stripped, but if we do not obey Him, it is all for nothing.

We can pray from the time we rise to the time we go to bed, but if we do not obey Him, we've wasted our time.

We can tell others how good God is and all about His love, but if we do not obey Him, our words are empty sounds.

Nothing we do--in an attempt to convince others about who God is and what they can have in Him--will matter if we do not obey Him.

When we are waiting to see promises fulfilled in our lives, perhaps we need to stop and think to make sure we are obeying Him. The promises are manifested out of our obedience to God, just like they were to Abraham, when he "got up out of the country of his people" and not before. If we are not descendants of Abraham by faith, we have no promises to claim from God.

Perhaps, it truly is time for reflection rather than frustration with God. It is we who hinder our ability to receive what God has for us, not Him. If we allow the enemy to influence what we think and do, then we can expect nothing from God.

So, who are you obeying and what do you expect to receive from it?

When We'll Know!

"To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31, 32 NIV).

What Jesus said to those who believed Him, those who followed Him, when He was here in the form of physical man, still holds true today. "If" we hold to His teaching (what the Father said to Him), we are really His disciples and "then" we will know the truth and the truth will set us free.

This "if, then" proposition is simply one of many we find in The Word. If we do, then God does. There is no mystery, no magic, just understanding of obedience and how God's principles work in our lives. We must do, then He will do--everything He promised--no matter whether the consequences are good or bad.

God's promise to us through Joshua--"If you keep my commandments, then whatever you put your hands to will prosper."

God's promises to us through Deuteronomy 28--If we keep His commandments and obey, then blessings will overtake us. If we do not obey, then all of the curses will come upon us, even to those not yet named.

Moving forward--"If you love, keep my commandments. If my Word abides in you and you abide in my Word, then, ask what you will and it will be done for you."

We'll know we have a right relationship with God, when we keep His commandments and see His promises fulfilled in our lives. Then we'll know the power we have over the enemy and know we have been set free from submitting to his temptation. When we have a relationship with God, then He can speak to our hearts and guide us in all things, knowing we are His children and He only wants only what is best for His children. When we know we have obeyed and know we have that relationship, then we can be assured of receiving His guidance and cementing the promise of eternal life.

Father, in the name of Jesus, help us to understand what we must do in order to be in Your perfect Will, receiving all You have for us to do and enjoy. Help us to receive Truth and be set free from the snares of the enemy and know without a doubt that we will spend eternity with You.

My Mansion!

"In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you" (John 14:2).

There is so much that I could say about the entire Gospel of John, but there would not be room enough for me to write it. The most personal account of Jesus we have, from one who was closer to Him than any other; reveals His persona, character, and promises that we can hold onto for all eternity.

But let me move on to what I wanted to say about this verse. This has always inspired to live right before man and God because I do not want to lose my mansion--it already has my name on it! Now, some would debate whether this was meant to be taken literally or figuratively, but it really doesn't matter. What matters is that I know, a place in heaven has been reserved for me and I have determined not to allow anyone to cheat me out of it!

And because I have a very vivid imagination, I see the front door with my platinum nameplate on it--inscribed in calligraphy, the staircase leading to my upper room, and everything glows softly against a pale background of gold and silver. I would tell you the rest, but I pray you can envision your own mansion.

The bottom line for me in this passage of scripture, is that it is a promise that I know has been kept. Because I love people indiscriminately, I pray all I know and those I don't, have come into knowledge as to who He is, what He has done for us, have accepted Jesus into their hearts, are determined to live for Him, and will know that their place in heaven has been reserved, just for them. 

By the way, my mansion is not a particularly large one, but it's sized just right for me. Big mansions need a lot of maintenance and trust me, my Father knows my limitations with housework.

Have a wonderfully blessed day in the Lord!

Faith In The Vision!

"Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness" (Genesis 15:6 NIV).

In the first verses of this chapter, Abram has a vision and in the vision, he has a conversation with God and is informed by God that he will have an heir, which was a concern to Abram. God told him that his descendants would number more than the stars in the sky. Once convinced of what God was saying, Abram believed what he saw and heard in the vision.

In the book of Hebrews, we know that Abraham was credited with acknowledged for his faith in God. Faith--having no ability to see what God has promised, but believing what God says and acting on it.
God has given many of us visions--with specific instructions as to how to see the vision come to pass.  The reason many do not see the vision come to pass is because they do nothing, but sit and wait for God to come down from heaven to get the job done. In order to see the visions become reality, we must exercise wisdom.  If we lack wisdom, we must ask Him, who gives it liberally.

If we know what we have seen and heard from God, our faith in Him, should be enough for us to move--get into action--to see the vision come to fruition. If we do nothing, God cannot do anything.  Faith--is not only believing what we do not see--but acting like we already have it.  Jesus said, when we pray, we should believe and receive and then we shall have it.

Now, we know that Abram and Sarah tried to help God's vision come to pass when Sarah thought she was too old to be the recipient of the grace of God. And we know how that turned out--with envy and jealousy reigning in the aftermath. It took thirteen years for the son of promise to appear after Abram helped God. When God gives us a vision and promises something will happen, it will happen in His timing, not ours. We prepare for the vision to come and with patience do we wait, working while we have opportunity to do so.

I am convinced that when we get busy--doing what must done in all those things that honor God, the vision will be fulfilled at a time we may least expect it, but it's coming.
When we know what we have seen and heard, we have to trust God to get it done. Do your part in preparing to receive it. If God said it, it will come to pass. If we try to force things to happen, we could end up like Abram, having to wait that much longer to see it happen. If we start doubting God, we may never see His promises toward us fulfilled in our lives.

Lord, help us to be people of unerring faith--trusting totally in You, Your Word and the visions You give us. Help us to be people of integrity, honoring You in all that we do, so we will not bring shame to self, others, or You. In Jesus' name, I pray and thank You, Amen!

What He's Done For Me!

I woke up this morning with my mind on Jesus and what He's done for me.

He came into my life, showed me a better path than the one I was taking, and loved me enough to keep me on it, even when I strayed.

He comforted my heart when loved ones passed away from this earthly realm and healed my body of pain and sickness. Even when the devil tried His best to take me out, Jesus was right there, speaking to my heart, and giving me the boldness needed to tell the devil, "not yet."

In moments of weakness, Jesus reminds me of who I am and what I have in Him and with Him.

Though the enemy tries to discourage, His love keeps me encouraged.

When I think there is nothing else I can do to resolve a situation, He reminds me that the battle is not mine, but His and He will reign victoriously over every adverse situation that comes into my life.

When the enemy tries to bring my past to the forefront and make me feel guilty, Jesus reminds me that all confessed sin has been forgiven and I am a new creation in Him. "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."

When I went back to college (at nearly 50 years old), He strengthened my mind and resolve to accomplish all I needed, with His help and direction.  I began teaching at 50, obtained my Masters Degree, past 50 and then went on to complete the coursework for a Ph.D. He is truly awesome in my life. 

He has directed me, by His Spirit, in what I write and how to bring it to others. I claim no knowledge of technology, but He has led me in what I do and now I can reap the rewards of being obedient. "Obedience is better than sacrifice."

"Weeping may endure for a night (and sometimes the nights are long), but joy comes in the morning." He gives us so much joy that we can forget about what made us weep.

This list could go on for a while, but I don't want to bore you.  I want to encourage you to hold on to your faith in Jesus and remind yourself of what He has already done and know that He is not finished with you, yet.  It's not over, until God says it is over. Look to Him, the author and finisher of our faith and know that He loves you and listen when He speaks to encourage your heart.  He did not promise us an easy life, but He did promise to never leave us or forsake us.

Father, help us to hear You when You speak words of comfort and encouragement.  Help us to remember that we have power over anything the enemy attempts to do in Christ Jesus. Thank You for touching bodies, relieving pain in joints, nerves, muscles, and emotions. Thank You for touching and comforting hearts of all that has created the hurt. Thank You for loving us enough to never leave us to our own devices, and for reminding us to lean on You. Open eyes, spiritually and naturally, so all might see Your goodness and determine this day to invite You into lives and allow You free reign over all that is done. I pray and thank You in Jesus' name, Amen!

He Will Do It!

"God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?" (Numbers 23:19 NIV)

I'm beginning to think that the reason many people do not believe God or in His existence is because they tend to think of Him in "human" terms.  They try to bring God down to man's level of thinking, giving Him some of man's attributes, and then thinking God will respond to situations like man will. They do not understand that God is Spirit and therefore not subject to the limitations of man--physically, emotionally, or mentally. Hallelujah!  I'm so glad He is not like us!  We are so fickle-minded, we change what we do and think in a heartbeat.  We lie to one another, seldom keep promises; especially to children and then we wonder why our lives are such a mess.

God won't lie to us because truth and integrity are part of His attributes.  He won't change His mind because He has no need to do so.  He can see far beyond what we can even think and He has already determined how things should be and the consequences of our actions. What He does, is for our good.  Every good parent wants only the best for their children and they plan for their children's future. God is my "Daddy" and I know that His plans for me are designed to prosper me and not to harm me that I have a future with hope and a promise fulfilled (Jeremiah 29:11 paraphrased).  What He says, He means--He will not change His mind about what He speaks.  What He promises, He will make sure it happens.  When we receive His promises is entirely up to us--when we obey!

God is love!  Love has no desire to harm or disappoint or discourage.  Love comforts, chastises, encourages, motivates, inspires, and holds onto us even when we don't deserve it.  That's love!
Hold onto His promises, obey His Word, and watch how He works.  Whatever He has promised, He will bring it pass.  He will do it!  Hallelujah! 

His Timing is Not Ours!

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"The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance"(2 Peter 3:9 NIV).

Isn't it good to know that God's timing is not measured by our timing?  Hallelujah!  If His timing was calculated based upon how "we determine time," most of us would be in trouble. 

The Word tells us that Jesus is coming back--does not specify time--but for those who truly believe, we know He's coming back.  Many people have doubted The Word because they do not understand God's timing.  We are told in The Word that with God, "a thousand years is like one day and one day like a thousand years".  This is how God measures time.  If we, as human beings, could ever get past the notion that we can--define, demonstrate, illustrate, or explain God based on our own finite knowledge of anything--God would have a better chance of accomplishing some things through us.  As it is, we miss God's best for our lives because we attempt to bring Him down to our level of thinking instead of allowing Him to bring us up to His level of thinking and doing. 

He also reminds us that, "His thoughts are not our thoughts and His ways are not our ways".  Why? Because He's God--the omniscient One, all-knowing God--the One who created us and not the other way around.  Once we accept this simple fact, we put ourselves in position to receive His best--in His timing, not ours.  Think about it!  If we truly thought and acted like God, the world would be in a much better place because all we would do is "love one another" as He has commanded us to do.

So, the next time you get a little frustrated waiting to see God's promises fulfilled in your life--know this!  His timing is not ours, but He is not a man that He should lie. If He promised it, He will bring it to pass!  Hallelujah!

The Promise to Generations

"For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, [even] as many as the Lord our God shall call" (Acts 2:39)

What promise is to us, our children and all who have not even been born, for anyone that God shall call?

The promise of the gift--The Holy Spirit and abundant life is accessible to all who believe and receive (read vs 38).  There are two things here that should be brought back to our remembrance.  First, Jesus promises us the gift of the Holy Spirit (upon His return to heaven) who will remind us of all we have been taught and show us things to come.  It is with the remembrance of what we have been taught--no weapon formed against us shall prosper, God's Word will be fulfilled in our lives, by His stripes we are healed, we are more than conquerors, we are victorious in all things, we are loved and never alone (this list could go on, and on).  Secondly, the Holy Spirit (by divine design) can show us those things to come (giving us insight) if we are open and willing to allow Him to do so.  Nothing that ever happens--good or bad--should ever surprise a believer who has a strong relationship with God.  He does not intend for us to live our lives--unaware--which is why He has forewarned us through His Word of all we can expect. When we do as we are told, we can have the abundant life that Jesus promises.

Is the promise for just a few?  No, the promise is for anyone who believes that He is and He will do all He said He will do.  The promise is for our children who have been trained up in the way they should go and do not depart from their training.  The promise is for anyone God chooses to call unto Himself--no matter their gender, their nationality, or ethnicity--it is God's choice.

He chooses whom He will call and we choose whether we accept His call into our lives.  I choose to receive the promise and to make sure that others who come behind me, know that the promise is also theirs.