Yes God DOES Keep His Promises

God's Promise Fulfilled

This blog is a follow-up to my previous blog titled "Does God Keep His Promises?"  In that blog I talked about how God promised me a son.  Well the day has come.  He is 8 days old today and is very happy and healthy.  After a bit of trouble on his birth day, he arrived healthy and squirmy.  He is a true miracle in every sense of the word.  He did not arrive easily like you would expect.  He came with some hard stressful times.  But that is usually the way God's promises are fulfilled.  I have learned that when God fulfills His promise it will happen in a way that only He could make happen, and it never happens the way you imagined it.  To sum it all up, I have put it this way:

When God makes a promise you can be sure He will come through in ways that far exceed your expectations or imaginings.

Lessons learned from the Feline persuasion

This may seem silly, but I have a cat that has taught me a thing or two that has helped in my spiritual life, and I pray that these insights help readers.

The first observation  I noticed was this:  my cat love being near me, sometimes on my lap, sometimes on the couch next to me, and other times just in the same room.  The lesson I learned is that this is the way we should view our relationship with God.  We should desire to be in His presence and close to Him as much as possible.  This is what we were made for.  How many times in the Bible do we read that God is jealous for us, that He longs for His children to be close to Him?  Sometimes we read it in story form and sometimes we read it in plain language that God desires for us to be near Him and wish for us to be obedient to His voice and Word above all other things.

Another observation I have made is this:  my daughter had a string that she using to play with the cat.  It was actually quite hilarious.  An 8 year old cat playing like an 8 wk old kitten.  After a while, she placed on my bedside table when she was finished.  After a couple days, the cat found it and dragged it out and dropped it and looked at it like she wanted to play, so we did.  Then I put it in a drawer so she would not see it, thinking that maybe out of sight might mean out of mind.  But no, she saw where we put it and would, and actually still does, will go that drawer and either look it and meow or paw it and meow.  She will do this until I take it out and play with her.  If  I don't, she will look at me and give me a pathetic meow as if to say "Can't we play?"   The lesson I learned is that she asked and kept on asking, she sought and kept on seeking, she knocked and kept on knocking (Mathew 7:7-8).  She is like the persistent widow in her asking.  She doesn't give up until she gets an answer to her plea.  Many times we are not like that.  We ask God once and if our plea does not get answered, we sulk away and never ask.  I am not saying we are like that, but I know many who are.  I have even done it.  Let's try and be more like my cat, and be persistent when we enter Gods throne room until we get an answer.  Sometimes God delays in answering because it's not the right time or because he wants to see if we will keep asking.  Sometimes He does answer but our ears are clogged with our life circumstances.  Ask and keep on asking, seek and keep on seeking, knock and keep on knocking.

The final observation I will make here is the fact that my cat is so sure that I will meet her needs (i.e. feed her, clean the litter box, keep her safe, etc.).  She never worries about food or water or even attention and love from us human folk.  If a cat, who is a creature, does not worry about those things because we take care of them, how much more will our God take care of our needs?  Many times we worry needlessly about things.  Jesus even taught us about this in these words:

         "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink, nor about your body, what you shall put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?   Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?  And which of you by being anxious can add one cubit to his span of life?  And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O men of little faith?   Therefore do not be anxious, saying, `What shall we eat?' or `What shall we drink?' or `What shall we wear?'   For the Gentiles seek all these things; and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.   But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well.   Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Let the day's own trouble be sufficient for the day." (Matthew 6:25-34) 

God is our provider, not our efforts.  At any time God can allow circumstances to allow you to discover that it is not your efforts, your intelligence, your hard work that provides for you.  That may be needed, but God is the ultimate provider.  So if  we know how to take care of our pets and those under our care, how much more can God, the creator and sustainer of all things, take care of all of us.

I pray that as you have read this, you take some comfort in what God can do and does when we seek Him.  I also pray that if you struggle with any of these areas, that you learn how to fully depend on God our Savior, friend, provider, and Lord.  The most important of these lessons is found in Matthew 6:33 which states: "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well."

Two Wave Vision

The other day I had a vision while worshipping God.  In the vision I was standing on what appeared to be a sand bar, but only drier.  Behind me and in front of me was a wave, both coming towards me.  In the vision I was holding out my hand and yelling at one of the waves to stop coming after me, my attention 100% on it.  The other wave was bigger and coming just as fast.  I knew immediately what they represented.  The one I was yelling at represented the past;  the good, the bad, and the ugly.  It represented where I had come from, spiritually, my heritage, where I have worked, where i have went to school, etc.  It also represented past sins or habits that I had dealt with and gotten rid of.  The other represented the future and what God has for me there.  This included spiritually, financially, occupation, family, everything about the future. 

What surprised me was that I was focused on the past, and not on the future.  The past threatened to crash back over me, especially those areas that I would never choose to revisit, and my attention was on the parts of the past that I liked as well, wishing for them again.  I realized that I was in the in between no mans land that was no fun for anyone.  I know this was an accurate picture of me since currently I am unemployed and have been looking for work for some time with no success and the old habits from the past due to stress wanted to overwhelm me.

 As I looked at the picture, I was reminded of the Israelites in the wilderness.  Where was there attention focused?   It was focused on Egypt, where they had come from and the bondage and hard life it represented.  They rarely focused on the Promised Land, or the future where God was leading them.

Lots of people are like this.  They find themselves in a hard place and discover it isn't where they want to be, they say they want the future where God is taking them but their thoughts and emotions are looking back to what they had, the comfortable life (although it may not have been easy, it was something familiar).  They know that a better future could be in store, but they long for the past.  They are tired of the hard place and think it best to go back. So they yell at the wave tell it to stop and are even tempted to go back all at the same time.  Sounds confusing, but it is true.  I have been there.  If you find yourself in this place, you might feel that you have done something wrong or that God has abandoned you or is [playing games.  You listen to your emotions more than the words of God in your heart and in His word.  You may even feel that you are the only person to have ever gone through this.  I have good news for you.  You are not the first nor will you be the last.  God took you out of your past into no man's land so that He could both prepare you for the future coming and prepare the future for you.  In faith we must believe and trust in God that what He is doing is the right thing and that He is not playing games.  We must look to the future and not focus on where we have been.  Paul puts it this way:

" But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.  What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ-- the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.  I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.  Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.  Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,  I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." (Phil. 3:7-14).

So what does this all mean?  Look toward Jesus and what he has ahead for you.  Do what you can to know Him more and more and become more conformed to His image.  This will not be easy because everything within you will want to turn back and return to the comfortable past life of things you know.  So be strong and courageous and allow God to do the work in you that He desires.  When the future promises come, you will be glad that you endured the sandbar of difficulties.

God's Promises

I have a question to ask you as I start. Do you believe that when God promises something that it will be kept?  I can hear many of you saying "Well, of course He does."  But many times we do not live as if we believe it.  As with anything, the believing comes in the action not the word.  For example:  You can say all day long that you believe a chair will hold you up when you sit on it, but until you actually sit on it, you are not acting on that belief and proving to yourself and others that you believe it.

I ran into a situation recently and found myself in a rough spot.  Suddenly a verse came to mind: "When the enemy comes in like a flood, The Spirit of the LORD will lift up a standard against him." (Isa. 59:19, NKJV).  I remember praying and reminding God that His word says that when the enemy comes against us, You will come against him.  I also said that I needed God to do this for me right now.  I was desperate.  As soon as I did, I felt the presence of God sweep by me and the onslaught of the enemy was gone.  My thoughts cleared up and returned to normal.  I was amazed to say the least.  I remembered thinking that "God's promises really work."  I didn't do anything special, all I did was prayed that scripture and believed and the situation was gone. 

To digress just a little, this verse in the Hebrew has no punctuation in the original writings.  All punctuation has been added later.  So, that verse can also be read this way: "When the enemy comes in, like a flood The Spirit of the LORD will lift up a standard against him."  As I meditated on it, it seems the 'like a flood' phrase can refer to either side of the equation.  It could also be rendered: "When the enemy comes in like a flood,  like a flood The Spirit of the LORD will lift up a standard against him."  This seems very accurate in my opinion.  And why not?  God is always able to come against the enemy with a bigger flood than the one the enemy produces.  And this thought also ran through my mind as well, if God is all powerful, just a lift of His pinkie will be enough to come against any flood the enemy can produce.

So what did I learn?  I learned that just because I can quote a scripture and tell others about it, does not mean I truly believe it until I put it into action.  That is why James says that faith without works is dead (James 2:26).  You must put action to your faith in order for it to be alive.  If you don't, it can be argued that you don't really believe it anyway.  So, all this to say, put feet to your actions so that you can be counted a person of faith.  Don't just say you believe something, action follow through with action.  Try it; you might just be surprised how willing God is to keep His promises.

Your Identity

Have you ever wondered who you are?  What you are here for?  If I was a betting man, I would say yes you have.  Many of you would describe yourself by what you do. For example:  "I am a father," "I am a teacher," or whatever your occupation happens to be.  A person is not defined by what they do.  We are not things and therefore cannot be identified by what we do.  If we are a follower of Jesus Christ, our identity must be found in what He says about us.  Many of us get trapped in thinking we are what we do.  If we are to live up to our fullest potential, we must change our mindset to that of who God says we are.  He says many things about us that are contrary to what we think about ourselves. Even Jesus did not define himself or identify himself by what He did.  His identity was found in who God said He was.  Jesus only repeated what God was saying about Him.  In John 8, He tells those criticizing him that He is not boasting about Himself, but God is saying the things He is saying.  If we are to be like God, and be like Jesus, shouldn't we identify ourselves by what God says about us?

 But you may say "That's easy, I know I am not identified by what I do."  Then I challenge you.  Describe yourself by not using phrases that describe what you do.  You may find that quite difficult.  I have learned that I cannot identify myself by what I do.  If I do, and I lose my job, or career, than I start feeling bad about myself.  If I try and identify myself as such and such a career, and I try to find that career, then I might feel rejected if employers don't hire me.  It is not easy to change your mind set to believe that who you are is not what you do or what you enjoy.

God recently made it clear to me that I was to quit the profession I was in.  So without question, I did.  It was not easy.  It was like stepping off a cliff not knowing if something was there to catch me.  I found that I was identifying myself by what I did.  As I searched for a new job (which at the time of this writing I am still searching) I started to get numerous rejection letters and no interviews.  I started feeling bad about who I am.  I started thinking I was a failure and that I went to school for all the wrong things and that all my past job experience was worth nothing.  I can tell you that is a pretty devastating feeling.  But in the middle of that, God quite clearly told me that my identity is not found in what I do or what education I have.  My identity is found in God alone.  I told Him I know that, but then as I reflected on my feelings and how I reacted to rejection after rejection, not able to find a job, I realized that I have been defining myself by what I do.  I started realizing that I am not that person.  Instead I am who He says I am; nothing more and nothing less.  When I realized that (and it's still sinking in) I discovered that as long as I had Jesus and listened to what He said about me, I could do ANY job and be satisfied.  Do I think I will be digging ditches for a living?  No, I believe God is preparing a job that is perfect for all my education, all my experiences, and my personality.  That is a great relief.  It takes the weight off my shoulders.  I AM WHO HE SAYS I AM!!

Below is a list of who we are if we are a follower of Christ. It includes a scripture for each trait.  Read through them. They just might change your life.

(As a side note, if you click the scripture, it should open a new screen with the reference so you can read what God says about you.  Also, this list can be found at http://www.ficm.org/index.php?command=textwhoamiinchrist )

I am Accepted...
John 1:12	I am God's child.
John 15:15	As a disciple, I am a friend of Jesus Christ.
Romans 5:1	I have been justified.
1 Corinthians 6:17	I am united with the Lord, and I am one with Him in spirit.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20	I have been bought with a price and I belong to God.
1 Corinthians 12:27	I am a member of Christ's body.
Ephesians 1:3-8	I have been chosen by God and adopted as His child.
Colossians 1:13-14	I have been redeemed and forgiven of all my sins.
Colossians 2:9-10	I am complete in Christ.
Hebrews 4:14-16	I have direct access to the throne of grace through Jesus Christ.
	I am secure...
Romans 8:1-2	I am free from condemnation.
Romans 8:28	I am assured that God works for my good in all circumstances.
Romans 8:31-39	I am free from any condemnation brought against me and I cannot be separated from the love of God.
2 Corinthians 1:21-22	I have been established, anointed and sealed by God.
Colossians 3:1-4	I am hidden with Christ in God.
Philippians 1:6	I am confident that God will complete the good work He started in me.
Philippians 3:20	I am a citizen of heaven.
2 Timothy 1:7	I have not been given a spirit of fear but of power, love and a sound mind.
1 John 5:18	I am born of God and the evil one cannot touch me.
	I am significant...
John 15:5	I am a branch of Jesus Christ, the true vine, and a channel of His life.
John 15:16	I have been chosen and appointed to bear fruit.
1 Corinthians 3:16	I am God's temple.
2 Corinthians 5:17-21	I am a minister of reconciliation for God.
Ephesians 2:6	I am seated with Jesus Christ in the heavenly realm.
Ephesians 2:10	I am God's workmanship.
Ephesians 3:12	I may approach God with freedom and confidence.
Philippians 4:13	I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.

God is doing something new

Have you felt what feels like a desert around you lately?  I am not talking about a physical desert, but that may also be the case.  I am speaking of a spiritual desert; a time when it feels like you are dry in your spirit, church feels dull, you don't want to read your Bible, you don't want to do anything spiritual.    It's not a pleasant feeling, is it?  It feels like you have been forgotten or that God has decided to skip over you and go move somewhere else.  You might even hear of other places where God is moving in power and incredible glory.  You might also feel that everything around you is falling apart.  Your job is gone or is no longer enjoyable.  Everyday feels like drudgery.  I have been there too.  But recently, it suddenly feels different.  Something is beginning to happen.  I can't explain it other than something new is on its way.

A few months ago, God showed me a vision.  I was standing on a beach.  The waves were coming in and lapping at my feet. It felt nice, like a day in paradise.  Suddenly the waves stopped rolling in and I saw the ocean receding quickly away from me.  At first I my thoughts were "What did I do? Where is it going?  Why are you leaving God?"  Then I looked farther out into the ocean.  I saw a giant swell racing for the beach, right for me.  As I watched, a giant wave formed, a tsunami headed towards the shore.  Then it hit, and it kept coming.  Wave after wave it kept rolling into shore.  I asked what this was.  The answer came this way:  "Just like when a natural tsunami comes and the water pulls out to sea, so will it seem with my presence.  It will seem like everything has stopped, but in reality it has not, it is just preparing for a new season, a season of inundation, a deluge, of Gods glory and presence."

I was again reminded of this scene recently.  It has felt like a sudden waste land, like God was pulling away.  But in reality, He was preparing to come in like a flood.  The purpose for the pulling away was to build our hunger for what He is about to do.  God is about to do something that we see as new.  But is there anything new under heaven?  According to Ecclesiastes 1:9 nothing is truly new.  Just because we have not seen it before does not mean it is new.  But at the same time it is new, not as in something that has never happened before, but new as in greater, something that hasn't been seen for a long time, something that can only be read about in history books. 

Jesus Himself said before he left:  "The truth is, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father." (John 14:12).  That is what the new thing is.  It will be greater things, a greater presence, something we have not even thought possible.  God is on the move.  He has already started the new thing.  Look for it. As Isaiah 43:9 says:  "Have you not seen it?"  That means we can miss it if we are not looking for it.  For example, there are many things as you travel down the road that you can miss if you are not looking.  You can miss great and wonderful things. 

Does this mean that everything is about to get better politically and economically?  Maybe, maybe not.  But those are not the important things.  The important thing is God is on the move.  God wants to do miraculous things.  If you are not looking, you will miss them.  Even if you know they are coming you have look for them.  You have to expect the new things, the greater things.  It is easy to miss the beauty of God if you are not looking in the right place and your heart and spirit are not ready. 

How do we do spot them?  We must look.  We must prepare our hearts and spirits for the new things, the greater things, the tsunami.  Get ready, look around, look at your own spirit.  Do not miss what God is about to do.  It will be easy to explain it away if you are not prepared.  Here it comes, the new thing God is already doing.

Be Careful What You Say Before God

Have you ever said something and God took you up on what you said, whether it be in prayer or to another person?  Be careful, He just may take you up on it and it may not end up like you thought.

A few months ago I remember telling someone that I would like to have the faith of George Mueller and Smith Wigglesworth.  If you are not familiar with these gentlemen, here is a short synopsis:

George Müller, a Christian evangelist and Director of the Ashley Down orphanage in Bristol, England, cared for 10,024 orphans in his life (1805-1898).  He would often have no money or food for his orphans he was caring for.  They would often sit down to eat with no food, and would pray that God would bless their meal, and shortly after that someone would knock on his door with a basket of food, or money to go buy food, or a delivery driver would break down in front of the orphanage and instead of letting the food spoil would give it to Mueller and the orphans.  Everything he did was based on faith and asking God for the provision.

Smith Wigglesworth (1859-1947), often referred to as ‘the Apostle of Faith,’ was one of the pioneers of the Pentecostal revival that occurred a century ago.  Without human refinement and education he was able to tap into the infinite resources of God to bring divine grace to multitudes.  Thousands came to Christian faith in his meetings, hundreds were healed of serious illnesses and diseases as supernatural signs followed his ministry.  A deep intimacy with his heavenly Father and an unquestioning faith in God’s Word brought spectacular results and provided an example for all true believers of the Gospel. (smithwigglesworth.com). 

Recently I felt God had directed my wife and I to quit our teaching positions at our school with no sign of a job afterward.  My wife had recently discovered she was pregnant.  We finished our contract out and I started looking for a job, whether that be ministry, or secular, I wasn't picky.  After 2 months of coast to coast job searches and rejection letter after rejection letter and only one interview (I didn't get that job either), I started to ask God what I did wrong, or if maybe I had heard wrong about quitting our positions.  The reply back was "Remember when you said you wanted to have the faith of George Mueller and Smith Wigglesworth?"  That stopped me in my tracks.  I did remember.  I never dreamed the road would be so difficult.  Part of me wants to tell God I take it back, but another part wants to see what God has for us on this road.  It has not been easy, but we have seen God supply when we didn't see a way.  I am still looking for a job, lots of good leads, but no answer or reply from anyone.  Our car is starting to fall apart and no paychecks in the future.  Does that mean I heard wrong or spoke out of turn?  I do not believe so.  I believe God is at work but it has yet to manifest itself in the physical realm.

I said all of the above to say this.  Be careful when you say something.  God may take you up on it and when he does, it may not turn out the way you expect or picture it.  Its times like this that our faith might go through tough times.  We may be tempted to do it our way and not wait for God. You must remember  “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts." (Isaiah 55:9).

The other morning, my wife woke up before I did and spotted a full rainbow over our house.  We live in the desert and rainbows are pretty rare and a full rainbow is even rarer.  That was a sign to us that God still knows and will keep His promise.  Not only that, we have watched it rain in the valley, on the mountains, and in town for weeks, with not a drop of rain at our house.  Recently we have had not just a nice rain but a downpour.  Some might even call it a deluge.  I believe this is also a sign from God of things to come.  I am getting excited.

If you are in a tough situation and felt God has directed you to do something and as a result you have said some things, don't give up when times get hard.  Don't give in.  Don't do it your own way.  Abraham did, and he moved before God was ready.  Be careful what you say and keep your eyes focused on Jesus.  He is greater than the promises we make or the things we way.  His ways are perfect and He has plans to prosper you and not to harm you.  It may not feel like it in the moment, but be patient; God is working and waiting for the perfect time.

I have seen God prove in miraculous ways, I have seen God heal others through my prayers.  Does that make me a superhero?  I don't believe so.  I have just positioned myself to allow God to work His miracles in and through me and around me.  I challenge you to find that place as well.  God has something great for you, and the struggle right now is just the preliminary.  The Blessings of God will come in His way and in a way that makes His name famous to those around you and that has a ripple effect spreading out from you so that others may come to know His power because of your obedience. "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go." (Joshua 1:9).  "So be strong and take courage, all you who put your hope in the LORD!" (Psalm 31:24)

Does God Keep His Promises?

Have you ever felt like God promised you something and you still have not seen it?  Did it seem impossible when He made the promise?  Many of us have those kind of thoughts that run through our heads when it comes to the promises of God.  We all have had someone make a promise and then break it or tell us they made that promise.  We all have heard politicians from every political circle and persuasion make promises to get elected and then turn around and do the opposite of what they promised.

The good news is that God is different.  Numbers 23:19 tells us "God is not a man, that he should lie. He is not a human, that he should change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?" Again in 1 Samuel 15:29 we find "And he who is the Glory of Israel will not lie, nor will he change his mind, for he is not human that he should change his mind!" God also says of Himself in Psalm 89:33-35 "But I will never stop loving him, nor let my promise to him fail. No, I will not break my covenant; I will not take back a single word I said.  I have sworn an oath to David, and in my holiness I cannot lie:"  Then again in Hebrews 6:18: "it is impossible for God to lie."

Many may say that because God does not immediately fulfill His promises He is a liar, but God also says that His ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55:8).  Sometimes God takes weeks, even years or decades to fulfill His promises.  He told Abraham that he would have a son, and after a long time, he took matters into his own hands and had a son, but it wasn't the way God intended.  It wasn't till about 16 years later that God fulfilled His promise and at 100, Abraham had a son through Sarah, who was 90.  That was the fulfillment of God's promise.  He told Hannah she would have a son and she did.  He promised destruction on Israel and it came.  He promised blessings on people in the bible and it came.

But you may say, that was then, this is me.  How do I know God made a promise to me and that He will keep it?  Believe me, I know it's hard to fathom God promising something and then not trusting yourself that it was God.  Let me bring you to my point.  A little over a year ago, I felt God had promised me I would have a son, and that it would be  a sign of what He is doing in my life and in my family.  I laughed because at the time we had an 11 year old daughter.  We had at least 2 miscarriages and had seen doctors to find out the reason why.  Still no luck. At the time God made the promise, it was rather unlikely if not impossible for it to happen.  In a word, we had given up.  When He told me this, He also told me not to tell anyone, so I didn't.  I wasn't sure if I believed it anyway but I thought why should I tell anyone if it seems so absurd and impossible.  Fast forward to today.  Almost a year after I felt God had promised me a son, my wife said she thought she might be pregnant.  I suddenly remembered the promise and I couldn't help but smile.  When it was confirmed, I finally felt the release to tell my wife and others about the promise.  Because of the promise, we were sure it was a boy.  Now my thoughts went crazy and I began to think that maybe I heard wrong.  Then logic set in and I thought, the pregnancy part was right, then why not the rest of it?  I suddenly wondered if the son part of the promise was just wishful thinking.  Yesterday, we had our 21 week ultrasound.  And guess what.  Its a boy.  My heart swelled and I am so excited.  Not only are we having another child, but I heard the entire promise from God correctly.  Was I holding my son a year after the promise?  No, in fact I won't be able to hold him until December, almost 2 years after God made the promise.  Does that mean God lied? No, He said in about a year I would have a son.  My interpretation of that was that I would be holding my son in about a year and not just finding out he was on his way. 

God's promises are always true.  They may not happen the way we imagine them, but they will happen.  Although we have a 13 year old daughter, we are proud to say that God kept His promise and it happened just as He said.  Not like I expected, but just as He said.  So if God has made you a promise or you read a promise from His word, you can rest assured it will happen.  You just have to remember that His ways are not our ways and so it may not be fulfilled the way your mind pictures it.  But you can trust the promises of God.  He ALWAYS keeps His promises.

Are Wolves Attacking You?

Wolves are the ultimate wild dog and can be found all over the world. They may not look the same, but wolves are universally known to be one of the bad boys of nature. They travel in family packs and are organized ranking order from the Alpha wolf to the Omega wolf. The Alpha Wolf is the leader of the pack and is normally a male wolf. When they hunt, they hunt for the weak animals. If the lesser ranked wolves can track and kill the prey, the older ones wait and watch. If it's a bigger prey, the older higher ranked wolves do the hunting. The Alpha wolf is the wisest in the pack and rules. What he wants goes. Where he goes, the rest of the pack follows. He is not used to losing battles, losing means losing his place as Alpha wolf and possible death or banishment from the pack.  Wolf packs are also territorial. They stake their claim on a plot of ground and do not allow competitors into their domain.

One thing I have noticed in my studying of wolves is that if the prey stands its ground, and looks the wolves in the eyes, they have a better chance of surviving. But if the prey turns tail and runs, they are more than likely doomed.

They sound scary, but are one of nature's teachers. They teach their prey how to fear and how to watch their backs and young. They teach them that they must be vigilant when the scent of wolf is detected. They teach other animals how to live life in fear and trembling.

Wolves are the pinnacle of pagan/Wiccan animal symbols and are known as the teacher in Wiccan meaning. Also, in the Narnia series, "The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe", the wolf was the police force for Jadis, the White Witch. They prowled around doing her bidding and taking out and taught lessons to other creatures that were holding out for Aslan to return. The sheriff was a large black wolf, Morgrim, otherwise known as the alpha wolf of his pack. He ruled alongside Jadis keeping Narnia in the cold and in fear.

A while back on a prayer walk, I thought that I was hearing a big dog behind me panting. I looked back several times and saw nothing. I did hear little yapping dogs in the distance and for a while I thought that what I was hearing might have been those little dogs and just thought it was a big wolf. But I kept hearing it. Finally when I turned around, I 'saw' with my spiritual eyes, a huge black wolf following me. It was head high at the shoulders and stalking. I turned around and kept walking.

This started a whole series of events that has opened my eyes to how the spiritual realm works. The wolf was an alpha male pursuing me.  Just like in the natural, spiritual wolves have the same attack patterns and structure.  They are territorial and travel in packs.  They send the omega wolf first trying to get your attention away from Jesus.  If that doesn't work, more aggressive powerful wolves come against you.  If that doesn't work, the Alpha wolf will eventually come against you. 

How do you come against them?  Never be a lone ranger Christian.  If you do, your chances of getting attack by wolves are MUCH higher.  Always stand your ground against an attacking wolf.  If it is to strong for you, ask for help.  Look it in the eye and show it you are not afraid.  Always be willing to ask others to fight with you in your battle against the wolves.  They have no authority to win, except for what we give them.  If we curl up and pretend it's not there to run, they attack with vengeance.  Let your alpha wolf attach them (that is Jesus).  He will willingly come and fight for you and vanquish the wolf pack on your tail.  The more you fight, the stronger you get and the higher wolf that will attack.  At times they leave you alone waiting for you to put your guard down or have a bad day and then they come at you with all the viciousness they can.  I have at times looked theses wolves in the eye and yelled at them in Jesus name to leave me alone and while staring them down, I have asked Jesus to come and take care of the attacker for me. 

Just as in Wiccan and pagan circles, the wolves do teach us things.  They teach us where our weaknesses are, they teach us that we cannot live our Christian life alone.  They also get upset when we go after Jesus with everything that we have in us and help others to do the same.  If you are not being attacked periodically by wolves, you may need to check your spiritual walk.

How do they attack?  They always attack your weaknesses, those places in your life that you are most susceptible.  Have you struggled with a particular sin in the past?  Expect attacks there.  Do you struggle with depression or worries?  Expect attacks there.  Are you concerned with your finances?  Expect attacks through major setbacks. 

The goal of the wolf is to steal, kill and destroy you.  Their goal is to get you side tracked in your spiritual walk.  They want you to focus on their attack and not on Jesus.  They want you to think you are weak and cannot fight against them and therefore give up.  I want to encourage you to NEVER give up and be willing to be honest with someone you can trust with what you are struggling and fighting against.  Allow others to fight with you, the more that fight with you the more strength you have to defeat it.  They often try and make you feel like your spiritual walk is gone, but in fact the exact opposite is true.  You really are growing if you are actively fighting back.  But if you give up, they will destroy your spiritual walk.  I am going to say this again, be willing to be totally honest with a trusted person who can walk through the attack with you and help you restore your spiritual health and heal the wounds the wolves have given you.  Be encouraged, when you are being attacked, it can lead to a stronger spiritual walk and a closer relationship with others and a closer walk with Jesus.

The Ultimate Victory

I just read Romans 16:20 and came away with a HUGE truth that I feel I need to share.  The last few days I have been under some major spiritual warfare.  It was awful, I felt like I was being shredded emotionally and spiritually.  Then I read this verse.  It states: "The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you."  It was as if it leaped off the page at me.  So I did what comes naturally to me.  I studied it, ripped the verse apart and put it back together and a peace flooded my heart.


 From the Greek, this verse literally means that the God of Peace, or the God where peace comes from, will do the crushing of Satan under your feet.  In ancient times, when a king defeated another king, he would symbolically place his foot on the neck of the king he defeated.  It symbolizes the  complete subjugation and possession and defeat of the captured king.  This can be seen in Joshua 10:24 and Psalm 110:1.  This was an act meant to humiliate the king or defeated foe. 

If you notice the Romans 16 passage says God will crush Satan under your feet.  This is a picture of God the King of peace, defeating Satan, and then instead of Him placing His foot on the neck of the enemy, he allows His son or daughter (and ultimately the Church, the bride of Christ) to place their foot on the neck of the enemy as a sign of victory.  But who did the fighting?  I am sure we can all say we have done our fair share of spiritual warfare, but the majority of the credit for fighting does not go to us, it goes to the God of peace.    It is then after he has won, he allows us to place our foot on the enemies' neck, and not only place it there, God will crush him under your foot.  The picture that comes to mind is of a person placing his foot on Satan's neck and then God placing His foot on top of ours as a symbol of who really defeated him.  We may do what we think is a lot of warfare in fighting the enemy and even refusing to follow the wicked schemes he throws at us.  But the picture here is not us doing the majority of the fighting.  God does.  We may help, but God does the fighting and God places Satan under our feet so that He can crush him, or destroy the work that he attempted to destroy us with.

That is good news to me.  I have felt many times that I was the only one fighting and had to put all my effort into fighting and God just watched to see what the outcome would be.  But Paul reminds us with his word picture that God did the fighting for us and we just got to have the privilege of being there when it happened.  This did not happen in recent times, it happened when Jesus went to the cross.  Jesus died, descended to hell and rose again in order that we might be free from the curse that Satan attempts to throw at us. 

Even further, the Greek word for crush is even more intense.  It does not mean crush like you step on a bug, it literally means to destroy, to shatter.  It is in the 3rd person singular which means that God Himself will shatter, destroy, crush Satan under your feet.  To make it even more intense, the word 'soon' literally means 'with quickness, with speed, and without delay.  It is also singular meaning one person will do the crushing, meaning God Himself will do the crushing immediately.  It was done a long time ago. 

'But (I can hear you think) it sure doesn't feel like he is crushed.  He fights me a lot and attempts to destroy me'.  You have to understand something; Satan wants you to think he is still able to defeat you.  If he can make you think he can defeat you he can.  Satan is the ultimate deceiver. He loves to psych us out and make us think he is more powerful than he really is.  Jesus has won the battle for us along time ago.  All we have to do is remind that deceiver who has really won and then allow God to crush him once again under our feet.  Get angry at the enemy; remind him of his crushing that he received from the God of peace.  If you feel the enemy coming against you, call out to Jesus.  Stand firm, but do not cower and let him win the battle of wits.  You have won through Jesus.  You have the victory through the God of peace.  Why can I be confident of this?  Because God's word tells us in 1 John 3:7 that "the Son of God came to destroy these works of the Devil."  So when the enemy comes at you to try and tell you otherwise, you can say with confidence that the works of Devil are destroyed once and for all.  It is something you can be sure of even when your circumstances and your thoughts and feelings tell you otherwise.

God, Where Are You?

Have you ever felt like God was nowhere to be found?  You look and look and yet it feels like you can't find him.  You look inside (in your heart), you look outside.  You know the Bible says "And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:20).  But yet it seems like He has moved to the next galaxy?  Why does God seem to run away from us?  Is He lying when he says He will never leave us?

Lately I have been having a few of these experiences that it feels like God is nowhere to be found.  It feels lonely.  It feels like I am abandoned.  Today was another of those days.  I could tell God was there, my physical senses could feel Him, but my heart, spirit, and mind could not seem to find Him.  It seemed He had decided to take up residence in another place.  But today I got bold.  I asked God where he was and why I couldn't seem to sense His presence.  Immediately I get a response back that nearly dropped me to my knees and brought tears to my eyes.  I heard God clearly say "I am here, you can't sense my presence or feel me because I am so close to you that you cannot see Me."  He was there, hiding in plain sight; hiding in me, and around me.  It was a comfort to know.  From that moment on it seemed God became clear again.  I so much needed to know He was there.  I so needed to hear His still small voice. 

But what these experiences have done for me was to give me a greater passion to pursue Him even when I can't 'feel' Him.  My heart burns to know him more, and those moments (or days) when it feels He isn't to be found drives me to pursue Him even harder.  My heart desires to know Him even more.  I know it may sound strange, but the more I seek Him the more real He is when I find Him. 

We so often think that God is only there if we can sense Him with our senses.  As a Pentecostal, it is easy to know when God comes near.  There is a tangible feeling.  Sometimes that feeling gives way to a physical reaction.  It may bring tears, it may force me to my knees, or cause me to shake, or even fall under the weight of His presence. There can be a danger in allowing the physical way we respond to God dictate to our soul and spirit where God is a is not.  We need to learn that God also comes to us in quiet ways, sometimes even invisible ways.  So do not get caught up in the physical responses or reactions.  Just because our physical senses do not seem to feel God does not mean He is not there.  It may be that He wants you to pursue Him.  Just like in a romantic relationship, to make it work and be worth it, both man and woman must pursue each other.  Sometimes it is done together, and sometimes the man pursues the woman and she tries to get away, and sometimes it's the woman pursuing the man.  In either of these situations it requires a pursuing.  God made us and desires to be in relationship with us and sometimes He is the pursuer and other times He 'hides' to see how serious we are about our relationship with Him so that we either forget Him or seek Him.  God wants to be pursued by us just as much as we want God to pursue us.  So when you feel that moment or day or week or year when God seems distant, seek after Him.  He is never far away and is often hiding in plain sight.  He loves us so passionately that He will never leave us alone, never turn His back on us.  You can never do anything that will stop Him from loving you.  Over and over the scriptures say He desires to gather us to Himself, but we have to be willing.  So I say to you be willing.  Let Him draw you to Him. The way He may do that is to 'withdraw' from you to fuel your passion and desire for Him.

Father, for those people reading this that cannot seem to find you and they feel like you have abandoned them, I ask that you do not stop calling to them.  I ask that you would show your face to them as they pursue You, as they go after You with all that they have.  As they pursue You Father, I ask that You would open their eyes to see that You are also pursuing them and You have not let them go.  When they ask where You are, I ask that that cry in their heart would serve to propel them to seek after you like never before, that they would have a burning desire in their spirit to seek You and to find You wherever You may be found.  Do not stop pursuing us oh God.  Pull us ever closer to your heart.

The Idolatry and Adultry Connection

Have you ever stopped to think about the difference between idolatry and adultery?  You may think they are not even in the same ball park.  You might think one is worshipping something other than God and the other cheating on your spouse.  They seem at first look to be very different.  But if you take a closer look they are very similar.  Psalm 106:34-40 says "Israel failed to destroy the nations in the land, as the LORD had told them to. Instead, they mingled among the pagans and adopted their evil customs. They worshiped their idols, and this led to their downfall. They even sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons. They shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters. By sacrificing them to the idols of Canaan, they polluted the land with murder.  They defiled themselves by their evil deeds, and their love of idols was adultery in the LORD's sight.  That is why the LORD's anger burned against his people, and he abhorred his own special possession."

So what is the similarity you may ask?  They both are taking the love and devotion meant for one, and given to another.  Idolatry is taking the love and adoration that is God's and God's alone and given to something else such as a piece of wood, metal, or stone, or to another object such as an animal, money, job, car, etc.  God and God alone should be the only place we direct our worship.  When we direct it to something else, it is idolatry.  Adultery is taking the love and affection meant for one's spouse and given to another person.  If you are giving that love and affection through an affair, you are not properly giving it to your spouse.  You may think you can, but you are not.  When God calls the love for idols adultery, then they are the same root cause. 

We were made to worship God and God alone.  And when once we are married, we are to love, honor, and cherish our spouse alone.  When we give it to another, God becomes angry with us (see verse above) just as a spouse burns with anger and jealousy when their partner commits adultery. 

Paul tells us that we are to love our spouse as Christ loves the Church (Ephesians 5).  That is a tall order, but if God didn't think we could do it, then He wouldn't have asked.  God asked us to worship Him and Him alone (Exodus 20:4-5). 

The roots of both are the same, a wandering heart.  I can just hear your argument "But I can't help it."  Yes you can.  When your heart truly belongs to God, and to your spouse, it will not wander.  If you keep any part for yourself, it will wander and take the rest with it.  How can you keep your way pure?  How can you keep this root from developing in your life?  The answer can be found in Psalm 119:9: "How can a young person stay pure? By obeying your word and following its rules."  And if you don't know how to do this James1:5 tells us: "If you need wisdom -- if you want to know what God wants you to do -- ask him, and he will gladly tell you. He will not resent your asking."

So what's the bottom line? Keep your heart and mind pure and keep your affections and worship in check, that way you will not be guilty of giving away your worship or adoration to any other than the one it was meant to go to, that being God and your spouse only. 

Psalm 51:5-13 would an excellent example of a prayer to model your prayer life after "For I was born a sinner -- yes, from the moment my mother conceived me. But you desire honesty from the heart, so you can teach me to be wise in my inmost being.  Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Oh, give me back my joy again; you have broken me -- now let me rejoice. Don't keep looking at my sins. Remove the stain of my guilt. Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a right spirit within me. Do not banish me from your presence, and don't take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me again the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you.  Then I will teach your ways to sinners, and they will return to you."

Trying to Hide the Trash

I recently saw a house with a nice neat and tidy yard. The occupants were not wealthy but they kept their yard looking nice.  The yard was surrounded by a rock wall, but if you looked over the wall in the back of the property, you would see mountains of garbage.  It was left there to rot and for someone else to pick up.  It was stinky and looked very bad.

Many people try to do the same thing in their own life.  You meet them, they look great on the outside and the parts of them that you see and get to know seem very well kept and free from clutter.  But inside they have put up a wall over which they have thrown the trash that they wish no one to see.  This trash might consist of past hurts, past abuse, a secret sin, a bad attitude, etc.  The problem is that eventually this trash will begin to stink or pile up so much that it flows over into the neat and tidy areas.  Some of these people are just trying to hide the junk, and expect others to clean it up for them.  They hope that no one ever sees it or looks over that wall.  But you can only pile up so much trash before it is visible to everyone and can no longer be hidden.

The good news is that there is someone that can clean it up or help us clean it up.  No matter how neat and tidy we try and make ourselves look, this person can see through that wall to the trash behind it.  Jesus is that person. He wants to clean us up.  He doesn't ask us to take out the garbage before He comes to us, He says that He will accept us as we are and help us clean out the trash.  He has a giant trash bin waiting to fill up with our trash.  1 John 1:9 tells us: "But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong."  He will take our trash away from us.  But firs we have to let Him and be willing to let him see behind the wall. 

This does not just apply to unbelievers; it applies equally to believers as well.  Many believers try and hide their trash and often do a great job of it.  But eventually, if we want to move forward in God and grow past the stage we are at, we have to confess that sin to Jesus and allow Him to take the trash out from behind the wall.  It makes no difference what the outside looks like if we are filled with trash on the inside.  God's desire is that we be filled with Him, with His Holy Spirit, not with the trash from our past or the sins that we want to hang on to.  God calls us to be Holy.  1 Peter 1:14-17 tells us: "Obey God because you are his children. Don't slip back into your old ways of doing evil; you didn't know any better then. But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God -- who chose you to be his children -- is holy.  For he himself has said, "You must be holy because I am holy."  And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites when he judges. He will judge or reward you according to what you do. So you must live in reverent fear of him during your time as foreigners here on earth."  The good news is that He is the one the helps us to clean out the garbage and He is the one that makes us holy. (Leviticus 22:32, as well as many other places).

I challenge you to look behind that wall you have erected and look and see if you have trash hidden there while trying to make every other area of your life look nice and neat.  It doesn't matter what is there.  God promises to make us holy and to make us holy.  He promises to forgive us.  Then just like the woman caught in adultery, He will say to you "'Where are your accusers? Didn't even one of them condemn you?'  'No, Lord,' she said. And Jesus said, 'Neither do I. Go and sin no more.'  Jesus said to the people, "I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won't be stumbling through the darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life."  (John 8:10-12).

Jesus I ask that the one reading this will have the courage to look behind their wall and allow You to remove the garbage and make them holy.  Shine your light into their heart so that they can live a life worthy of Your calling and a life that reflects You and not their own efforts."

Stepping off the Cliff


Faith is something we often do not quite


understand or wish we had more of.  My wife and I teach at a Christian school but recently we have felt that God has been asking us to leave the security of that job to step off the cliff and watch what God would do.  No job prospects, a baby on the way, and more and more people at our house needing a safe place to live.  To the natural mind leaving the security of a paid job to a place of not knowing seems crazy.  Believe me it feels crazy.  But at the same time, not following God's leading seems even crazier.  We have had many confirmations that lead us to believe that we truly are hearing God's voice in the matter.  I would venture a guess that most people would not do this.  Yesterday we talked to our principal about the reasons we were not coming back in the fall.  She has been wondering when we would break this news and how she would react because she has seen it coming as well.  Today we told the school administrator of our intentions of not coming back and why and what was next.  He was in total agreement though sad with our decision.



The pipe of blessing as seen on my walk today.

Right after that I went for my morning prayer walk along an irrigation canal.  It has always been dry with no hint of water.  Today as I walked, I saw a trickle of water coming down the canal towards me and I wondered where it was coming from.  As I rounded a corner, I came to a gate that was supposed to stop the water but it was allowing a small trickle through to the other side.  Still further around the corner I suddenly heard the sound of rushing water.  I saw a water pipe approximately 12 inches in diameter gushing water into the ditch from a well a long side the canal.  Suddenly God spoke clearly.  "Now that you have stepped off the cliff, this represents the flow of provision that I have for you.  This flow of provision is not just financial and job related but also many other things.  Not only that, the trickle coming from the other side represented the overflow to others.  Because you have been obedient, you will be taken care of from My well and be able to bless others from the trickle, which will be in a different direction from where I have called you to."

My first thought was one of awe and wonder.  Had I gone down the canal earlier I would have missed this picture.  But the fact that I saw this right after stepping off the cliff has huge spiritual meaning.  Now I can't say that I am any less anxious, but I know I can say with confidence that God will provide.  It may not be in my time, but in His time.  People will call us crazy for leaving the security of a job that supports us, but when God speaks we MUST follow.  It might not always look like the sane thing to do but it is even more insane to tell God no. 

You may be wondering why I have just told you this.  My point is that when God says go, do not hesitate.  Follow His leading and do what he says when he says it.  In this way you will receive a blessing that far outweighs the fear of stepping off that cliff.  Be brave.  Be strong. "For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a hope and a future." (Jeremiah 29:11).  Take that step off the cliff if that is what God is asking you to do.  Just do it, and see what God will do. 

Priorities

Recently I heard a young person say this: "My Priorities are Jesus, Dorito Tacos, and homework."  As soon as this was said I knew it wasn't true.  How?  I know this person well enough to know by how they live.  This person said this in the middle of a group of leaders at youth group at church.  My first thought was "Hmmmm, well how you live your life sure doesn't show that.  You do all sorts of things that counteract that statement.  It might be your deep desire, but your desires and your actions do not match."

After pondering this awhile, I wondered how many of us are like this.  We say one thing, but our actions do not line up.  They did in the Old Testament.  Many times the Israelites said that they would give up everything to follow God and do exactly what he says.  But then you look at the very next chapter and sometimes the next verse and you see something different.  They turned their backs on God and did evil, worshipped other gods, offered their children as sacrifices to these gods.

This makes me wonder why we are like that.  What makes us say one thing and do another?  Why don't our actions and words match up?  To be honest, there is  no easy answer.  We can see God at work in our lives, see miracles and healings and still go out and turn our backs against God and His perfect way.  Our hearts want both the power of God and the things this world offers.  Jesus himself tells us "No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other..." (Matthew 6:26).  We can tell this by looking at the example of Israel.  They tried to serve God and Idols and themselves, but in the end they served only themselves offering only lip service to God and the idols.

So what is the solution?  WE MUST STORE OUR TREASURE UP IN GOD, IN JESUS!  If we don't, we will end up serving our own fleshly desires.  We must allow the Holy Spirit to change our desires to match God's.  This is not easy and does not lead to an easy life.  It is very difficult and sometimes lonely.  But we if we want to serve God and God alone, and allow Jesus to the center of our lives, me must allow Him to change our hearts to resemble His.  We must also recognize that God will not make us want to love Him, that would make us robots and free will is lost.  We must freely choose to offer our lives, our words, our actions to Him and allow Him to transform us no matter the cost. 

Yes there is a cost involved.  It might cost us what we want.  It might cost us friends, money, fame, power, and even family, and could quite possibly be a lonely life.  But the rewards of following wholly after Jesus are well worth it.  We trade in a few years of ease and comfort for an eternity in His presence and the opportunity to speak with Him face to face one day.  Some say their priorities are Jesus, then other things, but what do their life choices show?  Look at your own life.  Do your choices reflect a desire to follow after Jesus 100%?  Or do they reflect a desire to follow your own desires?  It is a struggle we all have to face.  Count the cost.  What are you willing to pay to truly rearrange your priorities to put Jesus as #1?  Are you willing to lay down your life and desires and plans for the perfect plan that comes from God?  I pray that you choose Jesus, but will also respect your choice not to if the cost is too high.  I just ask that you are not like the individual at the opening of this piece that says Jesus is their number one priority when in fact it is obvious from how your life that it is not. 

Jesus help us all to follow you by laying down our rights and our freedom to pick up Your plan.  Help us to lay down our fear, our selfishness, selfish ambitions and blindness to truly take up our cross and follow you.  I pray that you will not have to say to any of us when we see you face to face to go away because You never knew us."

The God of Me?

  After watching a video regarding "Wrong Worship"  I have a few thoughts.  The YouTube video entitled "Wrong Worship" which was a pre-sermon illustration, while funny, hits the nail squarely on the head.  It is a commentary on many of us during worship.   After watching it several times, it seems that the attitudes the skit was portraying was one that is common to all of us.  It is focused on "ME."  If we were able to get into the thoughts of people as they worship on Sunday morning, night, or whenever we worship, the thoughts that would be heard would often times have a self-centeredness about them. Such as, thinking about lunch, or the horrid voice behind us, or the way the new clothes  or haircut we are wearing and wondering if others are noticing us.  Now before you get to critical of this, we have all done it.  Yes, even I have.  I catch myself all the time thinking about me, how am I sounding?  Is someone noticing that I am raising my hands or seem to know the songs well?   Oops I hope no one heard that terrible note I just sang.  Does that person in front of me think I sound great? 
     Where does this come from? Why is it all too common?  If we look at history, even Adam and Eve where guilty of this.  Eve, when tempted with the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, was thinking about herself, and what she could get out of it if she ate the fruit and what would the snake think if she didn't?  Adam thought of himself and blamed Eve for thinking of himself.  Now I know the Bible does not say this specifically, but isn't that what all of us would do?  Then we read a little further in Genesis and we find Cain and Abel offering their sacrifices.  Cain was angry at God and his brother because he did not do what was asked of God.  (Genesis 4 implies that God had given them specific instructions for bringing offerings to Him).  God even warned Cain but his thoughts remained on himself and so he killed his brother out of anger.  When God pronounced punishment on him, he said "It is too much for ME to bear."  King David looked at Bathsheba and wanted her for himself, not thinking of his other wives or of Uriah, Bathsheba's husband.  Peter was thinking about himself when he denied Jesus.  I can imagine him thinking "What would these people think if I say I know Jesus and say I am his follower?"  What is it that made Lucifer fall from heaven?  It was thinking about himself and trying to get ahead by becoming like God or trying to surpass Him.
     Don't we all fall in that trap now and then?  Look around you.  That car just cut you off at the light or who sped around you not caring.  Someone grabbed that last package off the shelf from behind you as you were reaching for it.  You watch as someone at the restaurant complains that their food is not just perfect for them.  You over hear someone say they earned it so why not?
     Jesus asked us to die to ourselves.  Luke 9:23 says “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me."  This means that we cannot put ourselves in front.  We must think about what God wants from of and how we can serve and honor Him.  That is what we are made for.  But it is that free will, given to us by God that does not make it easy to do so.
     So back to worship.  God wants our worship and even craves our worship.  But when we sing a song that is worshipful and our hearts are not in it, we are not truly worshipping, but just singing a song.  As Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well, "Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” (John 4:23-24).  This verse is a not so subtle reminder that only true worship is that which is not about me.  Easy to do?  From my own personal experience, not always, and most of the time, not at all.  Hebrews 13:15 says" Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name."  It is through Jesus that I can truly offer praise and our worship to God. And it is truly a sacrifice on my part most of the time.  When I do offer that sacrifice of praise, I get more than I expect and God comes near.  It is when God comes near that I am truly blessed and fulfilled, and it had nothing to do with me at all.  It has been and always will be all about the God of the universe who made me.

Louie Giglio - Nature Singing to God

This video is so amazing I had to share it here.  After I finished watching, I started wondering what rocks sound like.  You will understand after watching.

The Phoenix Part 2

Almost every legend that speaks of the Phoenix describes the Phoenix with a gold head.  Gold represents holiness, tried in the fire, praise, and blessing.  It is interesting that this all in the head. 

If you think about it, holiness has to start in our head, or our thought life.  All action seems to flow from that.  If our thoughts are holy, then our actions will follow suit.  At the same time all our temptations and all of our trials (unless it is an illness) originate in our head.  And also when we praise others or pronounce a blessing over anyone or something, it comes from our mind, our head. 

Our thoughts must remain holy.  Our words must be full of praise and blessing, not because it makes us look good, but because God asks us to be.  Leviticus 20:26 says "You must be holy because I, the LORD, am holy. I have set you apart from all other people to be my very own." 

What does it mean to be holy?  It is defined as spiritually whole or sound; of unimpaired innocence and virtue; free from sinful affections; pure in heart; godly; pious; irreproachable; guiltless; acceptable to God.  That is a tall order when you put your mind to it.  It is not an easy thing to be pure in heart, or even spiritually whole for that matter.  If you notice the definition also says that to be holy is to be free from sinful affections.  In other words free from the want to sin, or the desire to sin,  a very tall order for anyone.  Since Adam we all are born into sin and even have the desire to sin.   It is not natural for us to be pure and guiltless, but yet something deep inside us wish and long for that kind of life.

In thinking of a pure or holy thought life, a few thoughts came to mind.  First if we are careful what our eyes see, for they can feed us a wrong, impure, unholy thought.  For example, we can hardly go anywhere without our eyes falling on something that feeds our mind for the impure.  I am particularly thinking about a particular store I was at recently.  Since it is spring and summer is fast approaching, this store prominently displays summer swimwear in high traffic areas.  You cannot go to any place in the store that you need to go to without passing by this display.  This store also places undergarments for both men and women in high traffic places.  They not only place it there but they make sure that the ones that are most eye appealing and most lustfully appealing to us.  What God showed me about this part of the store, unholy spirits hang out there and tempt people to think about impure things.  While they look appealing to our eyes, if we could see the spirits that hangout there, we would see a different scenario.  These spirits are not beautiful and would repel us if we could see them, but they are masters at seducing people into thinking unholy thoughts that remain in our minds long after we leave that section and even leave the store.  What I saw was the seductive finger that we often see in Hollywood movies except that finger was bony, gray, and very ugly.  There was also a cackling laugh associated with it, much like what we think of when we think of wicked witches in fairy tales.  We must be on guard as followers of Jesus to keep our minds free from those seductive spirits that attempt to make us be unholy. 

If you read my post on protecting the anointing, this is along those same lines.  We have to protect our minds from the influence of these images.  Once they lodge in our mind, they are difficult to erase.  Just like I have heard many times, you can't keep a bird from flying over your head, but you can keep it from building a nest in your hair.  We must protect our mind.  If we desire to be holy, even if the thoughts go through our mind, or our eyes see something that is impure or causes impure thoughts, we MUST purge it out of our mind through prayer and by turning from those things that can cause those impurities to flood. us.  It may feel like we are being tried in the fire when we purge our minds from such things, it is necessary in order to be holy and pure before God.

Also, as part of the gold, praise and blessings must become a natural part of our speech which also comes from our head, our mind.  While it is natural for harsh words to come from us, it should not happen.  James 3 speaks of the tongue and the damage or the good it does.  He tells us in verses 9 and 10: "Sometimes it praises our Lord and Father, and sometimes it breaks out into curses against those who have been made in the image of God. And so blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters, this is not right!" So as part of being holy, we must also watch our tongues, being careful of what we say and how we say it. 

In order for the church to rise up like the Phoenix, we must have a gold head, protecting what goes in and goes out.  Father, I ask that all who read this will be spurred on to holiness that starts in the head and mind.  Convict where conviction needs to come, and encourage where encouragement is needed.  I also ask that You would make us holy.  You yourself even said in 22:32 "It is I, the LORD, who makes you holy." and again in 2 Thessalonians 2:13 "a salvation that came through the Spirit who makes you holy and by your belief in the truth."  I thank you Father that You desire holiness from us, and from that holiness flows true freedom to live as we ought, and not as we want.