Are you God's servant, or is He yours?
Thinking on the things of earth and focusing on material goals is being
earthly minded. However, Kingdom thinking seeks God's will and
purpose, aside from the cost to self!
There can be a subtle difference
between seeing God as a means of obtaining our will and pleasures and
seeing ourselves as a means of accomplishing God's Kingdom will. The
latter is filled with eternal rewards and elevates God to His rightful
place in our lives.
Today I ask you, are you God's servant or
is He yours? Does your view of God lean toward the temporal side or are
you thinking on the eternal side and wanting to fulfill the purposes of
God?
If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things
which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set
your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and
your life is hidden with Christ in God (Col 3:1-3).
Stop protecting the enemy's work in your life!
Our thought patterns are greatly influenced by the way we are raised,
our personal experiences and our culture. A little boy raised in a home
with a stifling, overbearing mother may in turn have struggles trusting women. Likewise, a woman who lives with an abusive husband may fear men and shun the love of God.
These experiences, and the resulting thought patterns, are open doors
for the devil to wreak havoc and chaos in our lives. He blinds us from
seeing the way God would lead and drags us through dangerous and
destructive doors by establishing strongholds in our thinking through
unfortunate experiences and cultural norms.
Prejudices, hatred,
unforgiveness...these are the result of strongholds. These are often
means of self defense-but the defense is really protecting the
stronghold and not the person-it's a protection of satan's territory in
our lives. God is able to re-program and cleanse our thought processes
by means of the washing of the water of the word (Eph 5:26). Even if we
do not realize we have a stronghold, God will remove it if we are
faithful to abide in Him and His word abides in us (John 15).
If we continually see relationships end in bitterness, get easily
angered, feel as though we have to exhaust ourselves in an effort to win
friendships.....these may be signs that there is something askew in our
thinking process. These are just a few examples, but God can
illuminate the root and resulting effect of a stronghold.
Bring
your heart and mind as an open book before the Lord. Let the Lord
examine you and release you from chains of the stronghold that has been
established.
2Co 10:4-5a "For the weapons of our warfare are
not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down
arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge
of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of
Christ..."
Time: a seed in your hands!
"There
is a time to every purpose under heaven" (Ecc 3:1). Seasons change and
time marches on, however, time does not simply march on until, "PRESTO",
an event occurs. Events and fulfillment of seasons generally
take effort. As an example, weddings have a specific date on which they
occur, but the preparation leading up to that event requires planning
and finances to support it (in a typical American wedding).
If
we spend our lives waiting for events or fulfillment of promises, we
miss the purpose of waiting. Yes, there are periods where we need to be
still, but there are also periods where we need to plow and work and
grow before we reap the fulfillment of the promise in its season. These
are times where God is preparing us to handle the promise once it
manifests.
Additionally, looking only to an end result is like
missing the joy of the journey and this can cause us to take the wrong
road to get to a result. God is interested in perfecting and purifying
us in the journey, but keeping our eyes focused only on the end result
can leave a trail of destruction as we step over, or on top of, everything
in our way to get to that end result.
God's purposes in bringing His
promise include learning to be patient and do things His way, especially
as it relates to the lives of other people who we meet on the road to
fulfillment.
Time is a seed which we plant. That seed dies to
itself and is given over to God so that each day and week and month are
allowed the proper actions and heart attitude to bring about God's
fulfilled promise in His way. There is a season to work, a season to
wait, a season to reap, a season to give....but cooperation with God is a
necessity for the proper fulfillment of each season.
Gal 6:9
And let us not lose heart and grow weary and faint in acting nobly and
doing right, for in due time and at the appointed season we shall reap,
if we do not loosen and relax our courage and faint.
Circumstances: Vehicles for the Gospel
There are times when a situation comes up that we have no control over.
We're minding our own business, serving God and BAM!, we find
ourselves in a prison of circumstances.
Paul knew how to get through
this type of circumstance: he kept his eyes focused on God. He
actually used these circumstances to advance the Kingdom of God by
preaching the Gospel when he was in a tight spot. He had an 'eye' for
those in need of salvation, healing, deliverance and love!
People thought they were putting chains on him to keep him imprisoned,
but he was already chained to Christ as His eternal prisoner. There
was no shipwreck or imprisonment or beating that could come to him
without opening a door for the furtherance of the Gospel and the glory
of God. Paul understood that the true prisoners were those who didn't
know Christ so he allowed every circumstance to become an opportunity.
Prison guards got saved, remote islands became mission fields and his
beatings furthered the Truth of the Word as he miraculously rose from
the pile of stones through God's healing power!
Paul's
circumstances were simply vehicles which took him from one person who
needed Christ to the next. They became his 'ride' to the next
assignment. He is the ultimate example of serving God in turmoil yet in
prayer and fastings and joy-keeping His eye on the prize!
God will further His purpose and His power and love cannot be contained!
He came to Paul in Paul's most dire circumstances and delivered much
of what we now call the New Testament. Allow your circumstances to be
the vehicle for God's purposes to be accomplished!
Php 1:12 Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel.
Here is a telling statement from the Word: Thus, whenever you give to
the poor, do not blow a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites in the
synagogues and in the streets like to do, that they may be recognized and honored and praised by men. Truly I tell you, they have their reward in full already (Matt 6:2).
This concept, of showmanship stealing a reward, is repeated in Matt 6:5
and 6:16 concerning fasting and praying. What this speaks to is the
motive of one's heart-are we doing the works of God for an 'atta boy'
from man or in obedience to God for His glory? Those who 'performed' in
this manner often carried horns with them which were blown at the
accomplishment of their good deeds to draw accolades. Perhaps this is
the source of the phrase "toot your own horn."
And what is this
reward? That is the Lord's choice, but He has given many examples of
possible rewards: a good measure will be poured into your bosom (Luke
6:38); you'll be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous (Luke
14:14); you shall receive an inheritance in the Lord.
Ultimately, the child of God seeks to please God and advance His Kingdom
in love and generosity. We are given and in return are able to give
and provide for others as a testimony of our God's great love and
provision.
A perfectly placed stone!
We all live
on the same time continuum-the line of time on which God has laid out
the history of the World with its seasons and events. Knowing what was
ordained beforehand and what would come to pass before time on earth began, He put you in just the right spot at just the right time. (Acts 17:26)
You have an assignment here and a connection to other members of the
Body of Christ. You may be a support person for another or you may be a
Paul in the Kingdom, but you are one of the living stones that
strengthens the wall and enables the entire Body to function properly.
With this in mind we must move past jealousy and competitiveness. The
Body cannot be climbing over itself to accomplish the purposes of God.
Each of us will be fulfilled to the greatest degree of contentment when
we are aligned with purpose of God and work to build up the rest of the
Body.
Jealousy involves guarding what God has given, it walks
in envy and rivalry and finds ways to draw attention to itself. Since
God has put His anointing inside of each person, jealousy of anothers
gift is equal to being jealous of God. How ridiculous does that
sound?!?!
Advance the Kingdom of God both by developing God in
you and encouraging and helping others move forward in their assignment.
Be the living stone He made YOU to be-with Him as the Chief
Cornerstone.
"Keeping" you in prayer?
We are a
society with many freedoms, one of which is speech. We talk with varied
people throughout the day and can reach a multitude of other cultures
simply by phone or internet.
As I've pondered this recently there have been a few thoughts that have stuck with me as conviction concerning my words:
1. Agreeing to 'keep you in prayer' is a serious commitment. To keep
means to protect, preserve, watch over and guard. This phrase is not a
cliche`
2. If angels hearken to the voice which speaks the word of
God (Ps 103:21) what happens when words are spoken which are inspired by
the devil?
3. Since Jesus was perfect and He spoke only what the
Father told him to speak (Jn 12:50), how much does listening have to do
with righteous speech?
Col 4:6 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.
God gives us
purpose in life and the zeal and grace to fulfill it. Sometimes we see
that zeal being used for a misguided purpose-in both the saved and
unsaved.
Paul said in Gal 1:13 You have heard of my earlier career
and former manner of life in the Jewish religion (Judaism), how I
persecuted and abused the church of God furiously and extensively, and
[with fanatical zeal did my best] to make havoc of it and destroy it.
Paul's zeal led him to fanatically destroy the Church of Jesus Christ,
persecuting His followers, all the while genuinely believing he was
doing God's work.
Misapplied zeal turns into fanaticism, has
hyper-focus, pinpoints people for destruction and justifies the means,
is unreasonable, has no desire for reconciliation and exalts self.
The zeal of the Lord is Spirit led-displaying the fruits of the spirit
in love and grace yet with passion and endurance given by the Lord for
His glory. Consider Paul's 'before' and 'after' zeal: immediately after
his encounter with Jesus he began preaching the 'Good News' in the zeal
of God!
Discern for yourself (and in yourself) between the zeal
of the Lord and the zeal of the flesh through the enemy - is the "Good
News" being spoken in all sincerity and grace?
Paul
said he had an 'open door of opportunity' to minister in Ephesus, but
immediately following that statement he said 'and there are many
adversaries.' An open door is not a guarantee of 'happily ever after'
in your life and work for the Lord!
When Nehemiah was ordained
by God to rebuild the wall in Jerusalem there were adversaries all
around. The builders carried a sword in one hand and worked on the wall
with the other. Those who were not working on rebuilding served as
armed guards. Nehemiah gave them the tools to both do the Lord's work
and fight their enemies as they worked: "I said to the ...people, do
not be afraid of the enemy; remember the Lord and imprint Him [on your
minds], great and terrible, and [take from Him courage to] fight for
your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes."
Neh 4:14
In this life we will have trouble-that includes
adversaries prompted by the enemy of our souls and things within
ourselves that keep the road from being smooth, even if the door of
opportunity is wide open. Moving forward in God's plans will draw the
adversaries attention.
Take courage! Fight for your brethren,
your sons, your daughters, your wives, your homes! HE is greater in us
than the enemy is in this world!
Missing peace!
2Co 13:11 Finally,
brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage
one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and
peace will be with you.
I find this to be an interesting scripture
in light of Jesus words in John 14:27 :"my peace I leave you, my peace I
give you." Can't we simply call for peace and have it come to us?
What Paul is saying, however, is somewhat progressive. First he tell
us to be fully restored-to be complete and perfected in the knowledge
and life of Christ. Following this he calls for encouragement (building
up and strengthening the Body) and unity in Christ. This unity cannot
come about without being in agreement in doctrine and having great love,
patience and grace toward the other members of the Body.
Paul then gives the command to live in peace! How many of us look for
peace and feel it has drifted away and we cannot find it? Here we are
commanded to actively live peaceably: make the choice to put aside those
things which create havoc and bring stress in relationships and life in
general. This is the peace Jesus left us!
After all this Paul
says that the "God of love and peace will be with you (accompany and
participate)." If you want to draw the presence of God, cultivate and
pursue peace! Peace is the fruit of righteousness-it comes as a result
of actively living the righteous life of God as Paul directed:
restoration, encouragement and unity.
All for His glory-the fruit of righteousness is peace!
The battle rages! Is it Us and Them?
Are you on our side or theirs? This was Joshua's question to the 'man
with a sword' who stood before him shortly before the battle of Jericho
(Josh 5:13-14). And the angel of the Lord replied to him "NEITHER, I have come as the commander of the army of the Lord."
Though the Lord had guided the Israelites through the wilderness and
was now taking them into the promised land, this was a reminder that the
Lord was not following them, but they were following Him and His plan.
We know that God is 'for' us, however, in the bigger scheme
of life, God's plan is what's being carried out and we are participants
in it. Here is where we need to take care in the Lord not to choose
people and sides of battles over seeking and serving God. Humans have a
tendency to see disputes and battles as 'us and them' where God looks at
the eternal perspective.
In the everyday life of the
Christian we are not battling against flesh and blood-the battle is
against principalities and powers behind flesh and blood which come
against the Spirit of God in us (Eph 6). The way God directs us into
battle is to arm ourselves entirely with His word, will and way-be
completely aligned with Him!
Set your mind on eternal
perspectives: be FOR God and focus on His eternal purposes rather than
AGAINST flesh and blood. He will then have an open door to guide you
into all righteousness and give you His victory-that is the only true
victory!
Pride, motives and relationships!
The
Bible is the ultimate guide to relationships! As much as God desires
for us to have undisturbed, faithful and pure relationship with Him, He
also desires that we have the same with one another.
So what happens when difficulties trouble our relationships and strife puts a wedge between us?
This post has little space for a long discussion, but I believe there
is one major key to the beginning of restoration in these situations:
examining one's self before the Lord through the Holy Spirit!
Allow the Lord to show where strongholds in thinking processes have
taken place in you. Let Him guide your own heart into all Truth,
revealing pride and motives within you. Where these sins exist they
separate us from God-these must be removed before clear understanding
can come.
Pride-proof your heart in the Lord, then He can freely direct the healing of your relationships as much as it depends on you.
Psa 26:2 Examine (test and investigate) me, O Lord, and prove me; test my heart and my mind.
Choosing God is rejecting the way of the flesh
and it's often a severe battle. Reading the Old Testament shows us that
man is unable to control himself to righteous living...Jesus is the one
person on earth that did it! We need the help of the Spirit-every day all day long-to live for the Lord from the inside out.
Paul said he reached forth (stretched himself) and pressed toward
(fleeing the past and passionately pursuing) Godliness (Php 3:13-14)!
What's needed is a violent rejection of the ways of the enemy of our
souls and a forceful breakthrough into the ways of God-coming from the
Spirit within us.
Determine to leave no Spirit-directed weapon
unused in your arsenal: prayer, fasting, worship, giving, fellowship,
self-sacrifice...in forcefully pursuing and following God.
Mat
11:12 Since the days of John the Baptist, the kingdom of heaven has
been advancing with force. And forceful people are taking hold of it.
Kids who throw
temper tantrums in Walmart seem to be crying out for a parent's guidance
and even if I'm not the parent it's hard to resist putting things in
order. For the most part, all I can do is walk away because those children are not under my authority.
Paul was told to walk away when he wanted to preach the word in Asia
(Acts 16:6) and women are told to be subject only to their OWN husbands
(Eph 5:22). A common thread in these scriptures is boundaries: staying
within our God given sphere of authority (or influence).
Paul
speaks of this in 2 Cor 10: in the Lord he was given a sphere of
influence or domain, and he was not to step out of that domain because
that is where his God given authority was to be used. Inside the domain
God's given you are your assignments and God's provision, fellowship and
reward. Know your domain-this will also protect you from conflicts and
exhausting yourself on behalf of someone elses assignment.
The body in which we live is the physical tool
on earth for the work of the Lord and His glory. Take care of it, but
see it as it is: the bus that takes us through this life for the
purposes of God.
This is the same for wealth and fame
and abilities-they are tools to use on this earth for the glory of God.
Take care to keep this focus because our culture has this completely
upside down-seeing these things as the measure of a man and giving glory
to each man accordingly.
Php 3:3 For we [Christians]...
worship God in spirit and by the Spirit of God and exult and glory and
pride ourselves in Jesus Christ, and put no confidence or dependence [on
what we are] in the flesh and on outward privileges and physical
advantages and external appearances.
