Month: March 2018
Thy Word Have I Hid in My Heart – Ask of Me!
Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. ~ Psalms 2:8
This is God’s truth and promise for you and for me. All we need to do to be mighty for God throughout the nations of this world is to “ask” Him.
Before we can even ask though, we need a vision and a desire for the nations. Many of us have little to no burden or concern, love or interest in the lost of our own country let alone the nations of the world. Our lives tend to focus on ourselves and our immediate family. But if we grow as faithful followers of Jesus Christ, we will begin to see our neighbors through God’s eyes and begin to take pleasure in knowing this generation of all colors and creeds and sharing with them the Gospel.
Jesus loves the nations. We were all created by God, in the image of God (Genesis 5:1-2). I believe that every man living today will one day see that when God made Adam, you were and we really are related to all mankind. According to Genesis 10:32 all the nations come from Noah. And so because Noah is your forefather too, you also have a connection to every single one of the nations. Abraham, who is your spiritual father, is the father of many nations (Genesis 17:4). So you are related also to many nations and each other by the Spirit of God.
We live in the day when no nations are a far off. Anyone can be reached in just a few minutes. Every nation affects another nation. Something happening in the most remote people group can affect many lives in many nations in just a few hours. Even very small countries can shake kingdoms.
Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest. ~ John 4:35
Lift up your eyes and heart and look on the nations. Love the people. The treasures of heaven are all of the beautiful people of the world. Jesus wants nations, but He wants to bring each one individually of those nations into a relationship with Himself, just like He brought you in, before His return.
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. ~ 2 Peter 3:9-10
So go to them now. Love them now. Pray for them now. Ask God to give you the nations now. They can be your possessions – if you so desire.
You can have all that your heart desires: the mountains of Switzerland, the canals and tulip fields of Holland, the manufacturers of China, deserts of the Sahara, the cities of America, paddy fields of Taiwan, the oil wells of the Middle East and Russia, the farms of New Zealand, fisheries of Greenland, coal mines of Wales, the castles of England, fashion houses of France, gemstones of India, the cattle ranches of Argentina and the gold of South Africa.
It can all be yours and it can be mine…because it is HIS! And He says, “Ask of Me!”
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Father, today would you give me a greater burden, a clearer vision, and increasing love for the nations of the world and the people that live in each one that You love and died for. Would You show me how to reach those You have called me to reach whether at home, in my community, or across the world. In Jesus Name! Amen!!!
2 Corinthians 3:18
Dream of 3/20/2018
We were on a cruise ship. Half way through the journey it was planned that we would change ships to reach our final destination. When it came time to transfer, Dan was sick so it was determined he couldn’t go the second leg. He told me to go on and he would catch up with me later.
I was barefoot and had to go back to our room to get shoes only to find they had been packed and the porter had taken the bags already. To continue I would have to go barefoot until my luggage arrived.
“A” broke her lap top because she dropped it intentionally. There were little shards of glass everywhere. I reached down to pick her laptop up and set it aside so no one would cut themselves but then I cut my fingers and blood was all over my clothes.
I met a young couple I once went to church with. She ignored me completely. He told me how much I had meant to him because I sat with him one day and got to know him. Honestly, he intrigued me because the week before I met him I saw an angel bowing at the altar at church and the next week there he was in the same place…also bowing. I never told him of the angel. In my dream I thought of that…but my thoughts were more…I had no idea they were even a couple.
I got up and started to walk toward the second ship. A woman I went to college with was urging me to hurry down the gang plank because it was to time to set sail. It was hard as I was running as fast as I could run.
I saw my pastor run onto the second ship and have a seat at a beautiful round dinner table. She was dressed very elegantly, her hair perfect, and she glowed. She definitely looked like she belonged at this dinner.
There was a mirror in the corridor and I stopped to catch my breath. Looking at myself I thought there is no way I can be a part of that dinner. They usually require appropriate dress in the dining rooms. I didn’t have shoes, a hairbrush or toothbrush. I had nothing except my clothes and they were bloody.
I turned to go back thinking I would wait with Dan and I saw everyone’s bags in a huge heap. But then I looked back toward the second ship and saw a large sign that said – ALL INCLUSIVE – Leave behind all of your bags. Board just as you are and bring nothing. Everything will be provided.
And I woke up!
Psalm 63:3-4
Thy Word Have I Hid in My Heart – Philippians 4:7
The Holy Spirit offers a means of letting us know the will of God. He guides us through His peace. Philippians 4:7 says:
And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Peace – a state of mutual harmony between people or groups; cessation of or freedom from any strife or dissension; freedom of the mind from annoyance, distraction, anxiety, obsession
Keep – to hold or retain in one’s possession
The Greek word that is translated “keep” is “phroureo.” It is used in the New Testament in a literal sense of a military guard stationed at the gates of a city to prevent invasion or to keep the inhabitants from fleeing in fear and being captured and killed by the enemy.
“Phroureo” is also used to describe the activity of the Holy Spirit in watching over and guarding believers to preserve them so that they may attain the blessings by doing the will of the Father. That is how it is being used in this verse. It is a “spiritual warfare” kind of word.
Before I became a Christian, I would describe my inner condition as fearful (or full of fear). I was generally scared of almost everything. People, finances, family, and my future. I was afraid of what was, what ifs, what could be. I was never at peace and had no idea what peace was like. I knew others who did not live that way, but I felt this was who I was meant to be and I needed to just come to terms with it.
Some people are bound by spirits of fear and will not be at peace until they are free. Deliverance from spirits of fear seems necessary for some to be able to really know the peace of God. I was one of those. The day I received Jesus Christ as my Savior, was delivered of fear, and baptized in the Holy Spirit, everything changed instantly. At 46 years old, I was at perfect peace for the first time in my life, and it did surpass all of my understanding. I could not even explain peace, but I knew it immediately. It was a brand-new experience for me.
Within a few years of experiencing peace, I became somewhat adjusted and familiar with the peace of God, so I didn’t think a lot about it unless it disappeared. I don’t mean that I necessarily became over-anxious again. I just became aware that I was not feeling the peace of God at that moment. When that happened, I would stop what I was doing and pay serious attention to the Lord who would then show me what to do or what not to do. The guiding and the peace always hinged on the attention I gave.
Over the years, there have been quite a few decisions that I made as the Holy Spirit “guarded” me with His peace. For that reason, I truly have come to trust His peace. I wish I could say I have always stopped in my tracks and given my full attention when my peace disappeared. I can’t say that at all…but I can say that I have always regretted not heeding the peace of God. Thankfully, we can learn from mistakes and forgiveness is real. Thank you so much, Jesus!
Psalm 62:5-8
Psalms 61:5
Thy Word Have I Hid in My Heart – Psalm 37:23-24
“The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand.” ~ Psalms 37:23-24
Just like a giraffe has a higher vantage point than the turtle, our Father whom we trust in has the ability to see farther and beyond our present vision and circumstances. God sees where we are, what we need, and where He wants to take us. When we fall He picks us up and makes a way for our restoration. He is a God that loves us so much that He sent His only begotten Son, Jesus, to die for you and for me. He gave us the Holy Ghost to be our counselor and mentor. He gave us His Word so that His will and plan could be always before us to guide our lives. He gave us prayer so that we always have direct access to Him.
His ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts though we should desire they be, looking more and more like Jesus every day. His ways, thoughts, plans and view are eternal. Through relationship with Jesus Christ given to us by our surrender to and confession of Jesus as our Lord and Savior we too can have life eternal. We too can be guided step by step, hour by hour, day by day….knowing this – ordered steps are eternal steps.
Order our steps today, Lord, and help us to see things from Your eternal point of view.
Thy Word Have I Hid in My Heart – John 17:3
“And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” -John 17:3
know – to perceive or understand as fact or truth; to apprehend clearly and with certainty. To have established or fixed in the mind or memory. To understand from experience or attainment. To be able to distinguish, as one from another.
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Whether we have been saved and following Jesus for years or just this day decided to surrender to Christ as Lord and Savior, that decision was the start of a brand new life!
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. – 2 Corinthians 5:17
When Jesus called His disciples, He called them to leave everything they knew and to follow Him. In much the same way, He calls us to follow Him with every part of our lives. The original disciples gave up family, work, friends… Their entire worlds changed because of their relationship with Jesus Christ and this new life.
As a new Christian, our relationship with the Lord is like the seedling of a tree that has just been planted. We have to learn the areas where we must nurture our relationship like a gardener would nurture a new seedling. We must also protect it. Sometimes that involves watering and feeding, other times pruning, and every now and then even covering it up to protect from harsh elements…but it will always require attention if the relationship is to continue to bud and produce fruit. As we mature our roots get stronger and we become more comfortable with what is required. We can handle the harsh elements better, however, the need for attention does not lessen or change. One of the added dangers in this stage is that what is required can become so familiar and comfortable that instead of giving attention we do things by rote.
Really knowing Jesus Christ and having that intimate relationship with Him takes attention but it also takes action – hard work. Prayer, fasting, reading and studying the Word, giving, sharing the Gospel, worshiping, loving and caring for others. Many times we are called to make sacrifices, to give up things that distract and cause us to take our eyes off of our Savior. We read in Matthew 10:38 that knowing is nothing without the following!
“And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.” – Matthew 10:38
I am sure it wasn’t easy for the disciples to give up all they had and all they knew to follow Jesus. They were real men living real lives just like each of us. And it won’t always be easy for us either. Every day we must make a choice to fully follow Jesus Christ and live with Him and for Him no matter the costs. We must choose to give up what is necessary to gain life eternal and to really know the one true God.
“And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” -John 17:3
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Jesus, show us the things in our hearts that hinder our relationship with You. Show us the path to take and help us to truly be a follower and one that loves You above all others and not someone with just knowledge of you. We want to really know You, Jesus…and not just know things about You. Help us to seek You with our whole heart and to die daily to our own will and plan that we might be in Yours…in Jesus Name. Amen!
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