Saturday, August 28, 2010

Our Unmet Needs

God didn't answer your prayer. You still have needs and concerns. When are you needs going to be fulfilled.

God promised to supply all your needs and yet sometimes fulfillment is slow in coming. What could be the problem?

Perhaps you are.

When our Father fails to meet our expectations, we generally look outside ourselves for the reasons. But while the Lord's love is unconditional, many of His promises are not.

For example, Philippians 4:19 is a "family promise" - it can be claimed only by those who rightly call the soverign of the universe "my father."

His unlimited resources are not available to men and women who reject salvatoin through Jesus Christ.

Philippians 4:16 says this, "And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus." Every one's needs will not be met. Taking a promise out of its biblical context is dangerous.

Expecting God to keep a conditional pledge when we aren't meeting its requirements is even more unwise. The Lord keeps His word but rightfully expects us to do our part.

God's yoke is light --- to love, honor, and obey Him.

Moreover, when we look at the whole framework of Scripture, we see that the Lord makes our obedience a condition for His fulfilling needs. Psalm 81:10 states, "I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt, open wide your mouth and I will fill it." This was a promise made to the Jewish people who God saved from a life of slavery in Egypt. As Christians, this promise also applies to us.

God will not condone sin by blessing us while we rebel against Him. He demands and expects obedience to His word.

Our wilful disobedience allows Satan to cut our supply line from the Lord. Restoring that connection is a matter of repentance. We must repent and not sin again. Once we are saved, we have a responsibility to stop sinning. God does not reward sinners who refuse to stop bad behavior and keep living in sin. We will have to be accountable for our sins.

Yes, the bible says that our sins are forgiven and God will not look at them again. But He doesn't expect us to continue the same lifestyle we had before we were saved. When we are saved, we desire to change our life and the Holy Spirit lives in us and helps us to turn from our wayward ways.

Those who walk in God's way are protected, provided for, and satisfied.
"If my people would but listen to me, if Israel would follow my ways, how quickly would I subdue their enemies and turn my hand against their foes!" (Psalm 81:13)

Thought for Today: Obedience will help your needs to be met.

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Why Worry?

We all are living in perilous times; people are committing suicide or wanting to commit suicide because they can't find jobs or pay their bills or just having a rough time. Suicide is not an option. It is self-murder and it offends God.

In the book of Phillippians 4:6 it says, "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God."

This is a promise of God. If you have prayed, keep praying!

Believe me, I know it is hard to not worry, but every time I start worrying, I go pray. God says we have victory in Jesus. We must take this to heart.

This is what Satan wants for you to give up. Don't give up! Satan goal is to destroy people, not give them hope.

The Apostle Paul admonishes believers in the book of Philippians, telling them not to worry. We are to "be careful for nothing." God has it all under control. Paul was addressing anxious concern based on apprehension regarding potential or real harm or adversity. The admonition covers (but is not limited to) worry about food, clothing, length of life, and the future.

We can't control the future. We don't know when we are going to die. We can't control the length of our life.

Christ told His disciples (we all are his disciples today) not to worry about these things. The Lord cares for us because we are of more value than the birds of the heavens and the flowers of the fields, which He also feeds and clothes
(Luke 12:22-29).

Further, Christ said that we cannot add a single hour to our lives (Matthew 6:27)

As for the future, attention to tomorrow's concerns is to be given when tomorrow comes. We are to give attention to today's concerns today!

Instead of being anxious, believers should engage in prayer. Prayer is God's cure for worry, for it dispels worry about anything, but believers are to pray about everything.

First, prayer is communicating with God. I tell my children often, don't get on the phone with your friends, go to the throne of God first. Your friends can't solve your problems; their problems may be greater than yours.

When we pray, we are addressing God Himself. When a believer prays, he "enters into the very presence of God, realizing that nothing is too great for His power to accomplish nor too small for His love to be concerned about."

Second, prayer is making supplication, or petition, to God. It is to humbly make a specific plea in reliance on Him. Supplicatin is casting all those concerns that could cause anxiety upon God for His tending (1 Peter 5:7). Third, prayer is to be joined and undergirded with thanksgiving. God should be thanked for the very privilege of approaching Him with our petitions.

Fourth, prayer is making specific requests (in contrast to generalities). While God knows all about our needs and concerns (Luke 12:30), our definite requests to Him express our dependence upon Him.

Thought for Today: Take your concerns to God; don't let Satan win. God will hear you when you pray.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

7 Keys to Spiritual Growth

In Mature Living, an article entitled Seven Keys to Spiritual Growth was written by Pam Eason. I found some very and simple ways to grow spiritually and I will share them with you. Think of yourself in the Garden of Eden. God is the Master Gardener, and He has a perfect garden plan.

He knows how eye-catching his garden will look when each plant grows to maturity as it should. He knows how beautiful we will be full grown and He has arranged the perfect space in His garden for us. God did the hard part. Our part is easy. All we have do is----grow!

Here are seven steps to spiritual growth from the Master Gardener:

1. Root yourself in Christ. The apostle, Paul, in Colossians 2:6-8 reminds us, that to grow strong in faith, we must continue to follow Christ's example. We are reminded to get rid of ideas that are contrary to God's teachings.

2. Surround yourself with fertile soil. In Philippians 4:8, we are told that we will do best when we fill our minds with, and meditate on, things that are true, noble, just, lovely, good, and praiseworthy. You can do this by surrounding yourself with mature Christian friends.

3. Get plenty of light. The psalmist in Psalm 119:130 says, "the unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple." The principles in God's word are always right and God gives tips in His Word on how to survive in today's world.

4. Rejoice in the rain. In 1 Peter 5:10, we are reminded that "although you will be uncomfortable for awhile, after the rain God himself will restore you and make you grown stronger, firmer, and more steadfast." When you find yourself struggling, thank God and trust Him by understanding that God loves you and wants what is best for your growth.

5 Pull up the weeds and thorns. Get rid of the thing sin your life that are crowding you in and choking the life out of you. Hebrews 12:1 says "to thrown off everything that hinders and entangles you." Make a list of the worries and see what God has to say about each one. Believe God, grow, and produce.

6. Get pruned. Carefully rid yourself of your injured parts. Don't hold on to hurtful memories just ecause you have become comfortable with them. Lamentations 3:19-20 says that remembering the bad things that have happened to you will cause your soul to be downcast.

7. Drop some seeds. In Joshua 4:21-24, Joshua commanded the children of Israel to leave a memorial so that their children would know what God had done for them. Think of ways to drop some seeds of remembrance to let others know what God has done for you. Get rid of your pride and let the word of God speak truth through you.

On the other hand, the psalmist in Psalm 77 was in distress, he remembered what God had done for his people and it gave him comfort. In Isaiah 17:10-11, when God is forgotten and troubles come, even though we have put forth our best effort to solve our own problems, we will only gain grief and pain from the experience.

Use these 7 guidelines for optimal growth to mature where God has placed you. Remember, you are the perfect person for the place you're in. God planned for you to be where you are in advance. He knows just how beautiful you will look full-grown!

Thought for Today: Your spiritual growth is important to God.

Monday, August 16, 2010

A Prayer for You

Romans 8:28 in the Word of God says, "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Everyone, of course, is not called. As my Pastor said this past Sunday, he knows that he was called to preach the Word of God.

The rest of us must be called and when we are called, we are called for God's purpose and plan.

I came across this prayer and would like to share it with you.

"Father, I'm so delighted that You are both loving and sovereign, and that You cause all things to work together for good to those who love You, to those who are called according to Your purpose. So I thank You for each disturbing or humbling situation in my life, for each breaking or cleansing process You are allowing, for each problem or hindrance, for each thing that triggers in me anxiety or pain. And I thank You in advance for each disappointment, each demanding duty, each pressure, each interruption that may arise in the coming hours and days."

Could you pray this prayer? A prayer thanking God for things you don't want and yet you may be subjected in the course of a day or a week or month. Funny, how we are thank God for both good and bad things that come into our lives.

When we thank God for each difficulty in our lives, we get an opportunity to see Him work. When God exposes our weaknesses and needs, and hidden sins, our self-centeredness, and especially our pride, we see how God uses trials to humble us and perfect our faith. An opportunity in endurance that is preparing us for a fresh new growth in godliness.

God sees past our superficial desire for a trouble free life, and instead we can fulfill a desire to please and glorify God for all that He has done in our lives. A life that says to God, "thank you in spite of my trials and tests. James 1:2-4 says, "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." Our faith in God is being tested, not just our lives here on earth, but our faith! We can't really see the depth of our character until we see how we react under pressure.

God is awesome. He is the creator of all things living and breathing on this earth. All we have to do is to worship and give Him the glory. His mercy and grace overflows. Each day we wake up, it is because of God's grace and mercy. Not because of anything that we, ourselves, did. Sometimes we can't see it because we are only focus on ourselves instead of being focus on God.

Thought for Today: Live your life for God, in way that will please Him.

Thursday, August 12, 2010

Why Is Having Faith Important?

Hebrews 11:1 tells us that faith is "being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." There is no other component of the Christian life that is more important than faith.

The Holy Spirit continues to bring this issue of faith to me, even today, it keeps presenting itself. So I will talk a little about faith and why it is so very important.

First, of all, we cannot purchase it, or sell it or give it to our family or friends. The dictionary defines faith as "belief in, devotion to, or trust in somebody or something, especially without logical proof. It also defines faith as "belief in and devotion to God."

The Bible has a lot to say about faith and how important it is. It is so important that without faith we have no place with God, and it is impossible to please Him (Hebrews 11:6).

Faith is belief in the one, true God without actually seeing Him. I will say that again, "faith is belief in the one, true God without actually seeing Him."

So while we are walking on this earthly plane, we must be all our hope and trust in the one true and living God. The only time we will actually see God is when we die.

Faith is a gift from God, not because we deserve it or have earned it, or are even worthy to have it. It is not from ourselves. It is from God. It is not obtained by our power or our free will. It is simply given to us by God, along with His grace and mercy, according to His holy plan and purpose, and because of that, He gets all the glory.

Failure to have faith means we don't trust God and we don't believe that He is who He says He is, nor do we believe that He will do all that He has promised in His holy Word.

Without demonstrating faith and trust in God, we have no place with Him. We believe in God's existence by faith.

How do we have faith? Romans 10:17 says that "faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.

You can only hear the Word of God if you study the Bible or attend a church that teaches the Bible. The careful study of God's Word is of primary importance in developing a strong faith. God wants us to know Him and completely rely on His direction in ours lives. It is through the hearing, reading and meditation on the Scriptures that we begin to experience a strong confident faith that excludes worry and fear.

God wants and desires a relationship with Him. It is not our religion that strengthens our faith but a relationship with God!

There was a woman who had suffered from hemorrhages for twelve years. She had sought physicians and she had money but could not get cured. She had heard about Jesus, and came up behind him in a crowd and touched his cloak, for she said, "If I but touch his clothes, I will be made well." Immediately her hemorrhage stopped and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. Jesus turned about in the crowd and asked who had touched him and the woman responded that it was she. Christ said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace , and be healed of your disease." (Mark 5:25-34)

This is a lesson in approaching God with humility and putting our confidence and trust in Him instead of of in worldly things. Our faith will enable our spiritual healing and salvation.

I could continue on and on about examples in the Bible of those whose faith was so strong and how they relied on God to fulfill all His promises. You will have to read it for yourself..

Thought for Today: Keep Christ as the Center of your Life; trust God to do what He says He is going to do.

Saturday, August 7, 2010

What is a Forgiving Spirit?

I want to talk a little about forgiveness. Most times, however, forgiveness is a slow process. We are a sensitive people with a lot of pride and when we forgive, we let our guard down so we think. Actually, when we forgive, we are doing what God commands. What God wants from us is obedience.

A forgiving spirit is not just a person who says I forgive you for the sake of saying I forgive you, but a forgiving spirit is a person who lets the incident go. It is a person who trusts God to handle the situation.

The best reason to forgive is because Jesus commanded us to forgive. We learn from the Scripture, if we don't forgive, neither will we be forgiven. Matthew 6:14-16 says, "For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father (God) will not forgive your sins."

Maybe we don't care if our sins are forgiven. For me, I do care. I guess I am blessed that I don't hold grudges. I may get upset for a couple of days, but I am fortunate that I can let it go. Letting go is crucial because when you can't forgive, you harbor bitterness and anger. Both are very bad for you. It not only offends God, but it will make you sick!

When you can't forgive, you might try praying for that person you need to forgive. We can pray for God to deal with the injustices, for God to judge the person's life, and then we can leave that prayer at the altar.

For almost forty years of my life, I could not forgive a person for what they had done to me. I stayed very sick and had nightmares. I just couldn't let it go, but when Jesus came into my life, I gave it to him because He said I could.

Luke 6:37 says "Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven." The Scriptures are replete with wisdom about the necessity of forgiveness.

Even though forgiveness is not easy for us, it is good for us. It's not a one time choice and then we automatically live in a state of forgiveness. Forgiveness may require a lifetime of forgiving, but it is important to the Lord. We must continue forgiving until the matter is settled in our heart.

Thought for Today: God knows our heart. Forgive and mean it! Live it.

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Make God the Center of Your Life

I have been reading a column by the Evangelist, Billy Graham lately, a man of great wisdom. A question was posed of him about is it wrong to want to be rich and successful.

I found his answer interesting and I believe this is true. In the book of Jeremiah, chapter 29, verse 11 (Jeremiah 29:11), God says this: "For I know the plans I have you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." What an awesome promise of God. And we know that God does not lie, so if He promises it, He will have to deliver it!

Mr. Graham's response to the question asked of him, was this: "No, God is not necessarily opposed to wealth or financial success; some of the most outstanding and godly people in the bible were also people of great wealth, men like Abraham or Job in the Old Testament. But the Bible does warn us about the dangers of wealth.

First, I want to point out that God does want for us to prosper in life, but the word of God does not tell you that it is material wealth, He promises that He has plans for us to prosper. The problem with desiring wealth can take the place of God in our lives. Instead of loving the one who provides for us and putting Him first in our life, we lust for money and all that it stands for --- usually greed, and more greed, envy, selfishness, only thinking about making more money until we live a life that is void of compassion for others.

In Matthew 6:24, the word of God makes it clear that "No one can serve two masters...You cannot serve both God and Money."

The second problem is we try to make money our goal instead of serving God.
When this happens, we lose sight of the desires of God and the needs of others.

Money then becomes our master instead of our servant, and we begin using people for our own selfish ends. This is how slavery started. Men believed that their money entitled them to enslave other people. They were only concerned with their power and the privileges they derived from that power. Money, in America, does give some people standing and it makes them feel more superior to others. It also makes than think they are superior to God.

God is the author of money and all wealth comes from God! 1 Timothy 6:10 warns that "For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil." I have already mentioned what kind of evil that is. Don't allow this to happen to you, but instead keep your focus on God, making Christ the center and foundation of your life.

From God comes peace and security, things that money cannot buy. If God gives you wealth, commit it to Him to help others because He has blessed you and expects you to bless others.

Thought for Today: Use your life to be a blessing to other! Remember that keeps his promise of prospering you.