I want like many of us more of God's glory in my life (2 Cor. 3:18). I have fasted, prayed, worshiped crying out for more of Him and yet I don't see much of a difference, I am in a place of holy frustration. We have entered into a new season, celebrating Rosh Hashanah in early September, and into the day of Atonement in med September where we examine our hearts letting go of any sin that we have not confessed or unforgiveness we have held onto from the previous year. This week we have just finished celebrating the feast of tabernacles, where we reflect on what it means to be His permanent dwelling place and believe through prayer to receive a greater glory for the new year.
God has been speaking to me to have more of His glory is more than just prophesying, preaching, healing, and evangelizing more effectively but to walk in His ways all of the day. Meaning to allow Him to order my footsteps (Ps. 17:5), acknowledging Him in everything so that He directs my path (Pr. 3:6). I can say I have allowed Him to do that primarily in a church setting, but not so much in every other part of my life. I can be so lazy, so loose. Is God glorified in my finances, is He glorified in how I treat my wife and children, is He glorified in the condition of my vehicle, or the condition of my yard, or home, is He glorified when I am alone, in what I watch on television?
God is not glorified in the things I neglect, He has called me to be a faithful steward (Lk. 14:2) over all that He has entrusted into my care. God cares about each area of my life and I cannot expect Him to be glorified in some areas and not in others. Being too busy is not an excuse He will except. The reason there is neglect in our lives is because He is not directing our path (Luke 11:42). When God is in control everything that is His brings Him glory (1 Chr. 29:11).
We have taken grace and cheapened it (Gal. 2:21). We have taken what Jesus did on the cross and made it as just a way to get away with sin (1 Cor. 1:17). Jesus said He didn't come to do away with the law but to fulfill it (Matt. 5:17). We see in the book of Leviticus God taught the children of Israel what it meant to be set apart, to be holy. The law involved all aspects of life. God is leading me on a journey to understand what it means to be holy, what it means to be a temple that is filled with His glory, what it means to benefit from His grace, what it means to be a citizen of His kingdom. The children of Israel had the law on stone, we have the law written in our hearts (Ro. 2:17) . They were bound to fail in the flesh, we are able to succeed through the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:23) .
Over the next few months I will be digging into the book of Leviticus hoping to discover what it means to have my life ordered by God. I pray that you take this journey along with me.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
The Greatness of God!
I am tired of having areas of my life that don't show how great God is. I don't want things to just be good I want them to be great. I want what I do to be better than the world and not 2nd class. We are not perfect but like Paul we are to strive after perfection (Phil. 3:12), for we serve a perfect God.
It is one thing to want something it is another to do what it takes to achieve it. How do I continue to perfect what I do? First of all am I really taking the time to examine my failures and shortcomings so I don't repeat them. Next am I choosing now to take what I learned and apply it. I do not want to continue to repeat the same mistakes over and over again living in an unending cycle.
It is not just the big things I am talking about but the little things, that which others don't notice or don't think much about. The bible says we must first be faithful over the little before we will be given the more (Matt. 25:21). How faithful am I to what He has given me? When one is unfaithful it usually means they are not satisfied with what they presently have and they desire more. I must trust that God's timing is best. I must be willing to wait on Him and be thankful for whatever has been given. God knows what I can handle and He only gives me what I can be responsible for. I should not blame God or others for what lack I have or what desires are not yet fulfilled but just trust God that when I am ready it will be given.
Why some areas of my life are not right is because I am ahead of myself, doing to much, trying to achieve beyond the grace that has been given. God is not after my achievements but after my faithfulness. God wants me to perfect first what He has put before me and not jump ahead. My primary purpose in life is to walk with God, to be intimate with Him, and to work with Him to accomplish His will. Nothing I do apart from Him therefore amounts to any good. As soon as frustration sets in, disappointments amount, confusion, chaos, feelings of being overwhelmed, lack of understanding, unsolvable problems, then I can count that God is not with me.
I serve a God of order. It is His perfect timing and His perfect ways I am after. To do things right. God is calling His church to advance His kingdom, we must stop pursuing all things, for they will be only added when we are seeking His kingdom and righteousness first. We have been in a season of shaking and whatever has been shaken off our lives is not of the kingdom, for the kingdom can not be shaken. We need to now take whatever remains in our life and allow Him to perfect it. He must have complete order of every area of our life if His greatness is going to be seen. What I am seeking God for is what am I to do with my time. A book I am reading to help me is called Re-ordering your Day by Chuck Pierce. I would encourage anyone who is in the same place as me to get this book.
It is one thing to want something it is another to do what it takes to achieve it. How do I continue to perfect what I do? First of all am I really taking the time to examine my failures and shortcomings so I don't repeat them. Next am I choosing now to take what I learned and apply it. I do not want to continue to repeat the same mistakes over and over again living in an unending cycle.
It is not just the big things I am talking about but the little things, that which others don't notice or don't think much about. The bible says we must first be faithful over the little before we will be given the more (Matt. 25:21). How faithful am I to what He has given me? When one is unfaithful it usually means they are not satisfied with what they presently have and they desire more. I must trust that God's timing is best. I must be willing to wait on Him and be thankful for whatever has been given. God knows what I can handle and He only gives me what I can be responsible for. I should not blame God or others for what lack I have or what desires are not yet fulfilled but just trust God that when I am ready it will be given.
Why some areas of my life are not right is because I am ahead of myself, doing to much, trying to achieve beyond the grace that has been given. God is not after my achievements but after my faithfulness. God wants me to perfect first what He has put before me and not jump ahead. My primary purpose in life is to walk with God, to be intimate with Him, and to work with Him to accomplish His will. Nothing I do apart from Him therefore amounts to any good. As soon as frustration sets in, disappointments amount, confusion, chaos, feelings of being overwhelmed, lack of understanding, unsolvable problems, then I can count that God is not with me.
I serve a God of order. It is His perfect timing and His perfect ways I am after. To do things right. God is calling His church to advance His kingdom, we must stop pursuing all things, for they will be only added when we are seeking His kingdom and righteousness first. We have been in a season of shaking and whatever has been shaken off our lives is not of the kingdom, for the kingdom can not be shaken. We need to now take whatever remains in our life and allow Him to perfect it. He must have complete order of every area of our life if His greatness is going to be seen. What I am seeking God for is what am I to do with my time. A book I am reading to help me is called Re-ordering your Day by Chuck Pierce. I would encourage anyone who is in the same place as me to get this book.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
From Pressing to Possessing
How bad someone really wants something will be determined by what they are willing to go through to get it. We ask God for many things and have no idea what we are really asking for. We pray we want more of Him, we want more love, we want to go deeper, we want to step into our calling, but it is one thing to want it is another thing to achieve. For many of our prayers to be answered it takes going through the fire. Something in us must die to have more of Him! The bible says to count the cost (Lk. 14:28). We spend so much time blaming others for our misfortunes when it was our own prayers that brought our situations to being.
For one to receive promotion from one grade to the next it takes passing tests. Are we passing the tests of life? This is determined by what comes out of our mouths, until we can Praise God in everything we are not fit for the next level. It is our heart that God is after. He wants a people that have a heart after Him. So when He gives us what we ask for we will use it for Him and not for ourselves.
We have gone through a time like Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 1: 8-9 "we were crushed and overwhelmed beyond our ability to endure, and we thought we would never live through it. In fact, we expected to die. But as a result. we stopped relying on ourselves and learned to rely on God, who raises the dead. He is manifested in our transparency, when we have nothing left to hide, have allowed Him to expose and remove all darkness, then He can be now fully seen. All of the earth is moaning and groaning for the manifestation of the sons and daughters of God, and we believers are looking forward to being fully delivered from sin and suffering. We are getting closer to that day but we can begin seeing a foretaste even now through the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:22-23).
We are in transition from the wilderness to the Promised Land. God is calling us to put away childish things (1 Cor. 13:11), to stop complaining and start Praising, to remove fear and walk by faith, to no longer wrestle with flesh and blood but to be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power, to be clothed in the armor of God and take our rightful authority in Christ Jesus until the enemies of God have become His footstool (Eph. 6:10-13, Heb. 10:13). We must put off the grasshopper mentality and now believe God we can go forth and slay the giants of our land (Numbers 13), until earth and heaven are one, His will has completely been done (Matt. 6:10).
For one to receive promotion from one grade to the next it takes passing tests. Are we passing the tests of life? This is determined by what comes out of our mouths, until we can Praise God in everything we are not fit for the next level. It is our heart that God is after. He wants a people that have a heart after Him. So when He gives us what we ask for we will use it for Him and not for ourselves.
We have gone through a time like Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 1: 8-9 "we were crushed and overwhelmed beyond our ability to endure, and we thought we would never live through it. In fact, we expected to die. But as a result. we stopped relying on ourselves and learned to rely on God, who raises the dead. He is manifested in our transparency, when we have nothing left to hide, have allowed Him to expose and remove all darkness, then He can be now fully seen. All of the earth is moaning and groaning for the manifestation of the sons and daughters of God, and we believers are looking forward to being fully delivered from sin and suffering. We are getting closer to that day but we can begin seeing a foretaste even now through the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:22-23).
We are in transition from the wilderness to the Promised Land. God is calling us to put away childish things (1 Cor. 13:11), to stop complaining and start Praising, to remove fear and walk by faith, to no longer wrestle with flesh and blood but to be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power, to be clothed in the armor of God and take our rightful authority in Christ Jesus until the enemies of God have become His footstool (Eph. 6:10-13, Heb. 10:13). We must put off the grasshopper mentality and now believe God we can go forth and slay the giants of our land (Numbers 13), until earth and heaven are one, His will has completely been done (Matt. 6:10).
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
In the Press
The news is good for one thing informing us of the problems that is in the world. Those who listen often to the news usually have a negative slant on the things in life they are facing. If I look at my life over the past few months I can see many things that a news reporter could broadcast on. On the surface things have not looked very good, and it has been so easy to complain. God promises He will never give me more than I can handle, but boy things have sure been close lately.
What has helped me the most through these difficult times has been His whisper in my ear, His understanding that He has given me of the times we are in. First of all I have discovered I am not alone most if not all believers I talk to seem to be dealing with similar stuff. So I have others who can relate with me! Second there is something positive God is doing in the midst of what seems negative. He is maturing His bride. He is taking us out of adolescents. Removing our childish, selfish, complaining, whining, critical attitudes with His character as true sons and daughters that reflect Him right.
So I am being pressed on every side to squeeze all the world out of me until there is nothing left but Him. He wants a people that are strong in Him and in the power of His might who will go forth and do great exploits for the glory of His name. Strength is seen when nothing can move us but the hand of God. That means even if the state of the economy has effected us, or loved ones have turned against us, whatever it may be we still offer God nothing but praise.
The bible says out of the abundance of heart the mouth speaks. So when we are being squeezed what comes out of our mouth is the condition of our heart. If we are not praising God in everything then we have issues in our heart that need to be taken to the cross.
The Children of Israel were taken on a journey from Egypt to the Promised Land via the wilderness. God took them on an extended journey not to just physically deliver them from Egypt but to deliver Egypt from their hearts. He could not entrust them to represent Him as a nation if they were not yet set apart from the world. A whole generation died in the wilderness never experiencing what God had promised them because they never got beyond complaining. When our complaining becomes Praising we have the weapons now in hand to take the land He has promised us. Our greatest weapon is praise! We can not face the giants before us if we are not able to be delivered from the giants within us.
God's will is that His kingdom come, His will be done, here on earth as it is in heaven. The kingdom is within us, for it to manifest through us, it is determined by what comes out of our mouth. Until we are praying to God about everything and praising God through it all, we are not yet ready to enter into what He has promised us. The call of God in this hour is to take the land, advance His kingdom, until the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdom of our God.
Over the next few weeks I will seek God for devotions that go along with this theme from complaining to Praising. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to be in this journey with me.
Scriptures to meditate on this week: (Matt. 16:3, 1 Cor 13:11, 2 Cor 1, Eph. 6:10, Luke 6:45, Numbers 13 Matt. 6:10, 1 Thess. 5:17, Psalm 34)
What has helped me the most through these difficult times has been His whisper in my ear, His understanding that He has given me of the times we are in. First of all I have discovered I am not alone most if not all believers I talk to seem to be dealing with similar stuff. So I have others who can relate with me! Second there is something positive God is doing in the midst of what seems negative. He is maturing His bride. He is taking us out of adolescents. Removing our childish, selfish, complaining, whining, critical attitudes with His character as true sons and daughters that reflect Him right.
So I am being pressed on every side to squeeze all the world out of me until there is nothing left but Him. He wants a people that are strong in Him and in the power of His might who will go forth and do great exploits for the glory of His name. Strength is seen when nothing can move us but the hand of God. That means even if the state of the economy has effected us, or loved ones have turned against us, whatever it may be we still offer God nothing but praise.
The bible says out of the abundance of heart the mouth speaks. So when we are being squeezed what comes out of our mouth is the condition of our heart. If we are not praising God in everything then we have issues in our heart that need to be taken to the cross.
The Children of Israel were taken on a journey from Egypt to the Promised Land via the wilderness. God took them on an extended journey not to just physically deliver them from Egypt but to deliver Egypt from their hearts. He could not entrust them to represent Him as a nation if they were not yet set apart from the world. A whole generation died in the wilderness never experiencing what God had promised them because they never got beyond complaining. When our complaining becomes Praising we have the weapons now in hand to take the land He has promised us. Our greatest weapon is praise! We can not face the giants before us if we are not able to be delivered from the giants within us.
God's will is that His kingdom come, His will be done, here on earth as it is in heaven. The kingdom is within us, for it to manifest through us, it is determined by what comes out of our mouth. Until we are praying to God about everything and praising God through it all, we are not yet ready to enter into what He has promised us. The call of God in this hour is to take the land, advance His kingdom, until the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdom of our God.
Over the next few weeks I will seek God for devotions that go along with this theme from complaining to Praising. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to be in this journey with me.
Scriptures to meditate on this week: (Matt. 16:3, 1 Cor 13:11, 2 Cor 1, Eph. 6:10, Luke 6:45, Numbers 13 Matt. 6:10, 1 Thess. 5:17, Psalm 34)
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