Year: 2016

I will NEVER be _______ before God

“I will NEVER be _________ before God.”

The voices that fill in this blank in our heads will tell us a lot.

Are we complacent in our answer to this because we really don’t believe that’s for anyone but the religious fools to contemplate and meditate on?

Are we unnecessarily holding ourselves under the chains of guilt and shame before a perfect God?

Are we afraid to believe Him when He says that we are more than conquerors in Christ Jesus?

Are we proudly making much of our obvious blessings, favor and honor amongst men?

Won’t our answer tell us something?

What does the Psalmist, that man who it is said was after God’s heart, fill his sentence with?

​I wait quietly before God, 

for my victory comes from him. 

He alone is my rock and my salvation, 

my fortress where I will never be shaken.

So many enemies against one man— 

all of them trying to kill me. 

To them I’m just a broken-down wall or a tottering fence. 

They plan to topple me from my high position. 

They delight in telling lies about me. 

They praise me to my face but curse me in their hearts. 

Let all that I am wait quietly before God, 

for my hope is in him. 

He alone is my rock and my salvation, 

my fortress where I will not be shaken. 

My victory and honor come from God alone. 

He is my refuge, a rock 

where no enemy can reach me. 

O my people, trust in him at all times. 

Pour out your heart to him, 

for God is our refuge. 

Common people are as worthless as a puff of wind, 

and the powerful are not what they appear to be. 

If you weigh them on the scales, 

together they are lighter than a breath of air. 

Don’t make your living by extortion 

or put your hope in stealing. 

And if your wealth increases, 

don’t make it the center of your life. 

God has spoken plainly, 

and I have heard it many times: 

Power, O God, belongs to you; 

unfailing love, O Lord, is yours. 

Surely you repay all people 

according to what they have done.

Psalms 62:1‭-‬12 NLT

http://bible.com/116/psa.62.1-12.NLT

Whether you need hope in the darkness…
Whether you need a reminder that He died for your sin…
Whether you need that encouragement as you read along through the trials and struggles…
Whether you need to be humbled and chastened and restored to a heart of loving, grateful, obedience…

He is Faithful and True.

Confess “Jesus is Lord”, believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead.

Let’s not build a religious system and tradition from the childlike faith that delivered you from bondage to sin and death!

Let’s not tear down the work that has begun upon the solid foundation of Christ alone, our cornerstone!

Let’s not turn from our promised freedom to a life of slavery, because he who Christ has set free is free indeed!

See your sin cast as far as the east is from the west by the aiming power of the blood of the Lamb. Your sin is forgiven! Go and sin no more.

Come before Him with confidence.

IN HIS PRESENCE, I WILL NEVER BE SHAKEN.

PEACE, BE QUIET, BE STILL.

Thus says the Word of God.

This is for you, Child of God, for those who have ears to hear.

Peace, be still.

Waiting and Hoping

​I wait for the Lord , my soul waits, and in his word I hope; – Psalms 130:5 ESV

My daughter is watching the classic Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer this morning. It’s a tale about this peculiar reindeer who is shunned by those around him because he is different. They don’t see his unique nose as a gift but as a curse. A peculiar little elf that wants to be a dentist joins him and they wonder,  “Why am I such a misfit?”

There are times in our lives where we may ask ourselves,  why am I like this? Why can’t I be more like ________? Or we might ask ourselves,  why am I failing at this? 

There are a few problems with this direction of thinking that will cause us trouble. First off, we aren’t trusting that God has a special purpose,  even in our uniqueness.Second, we aren’t waiting with wonder at how the Lord might use even our being “different” or our being “weak” or or being “imperfect” to, bring glory and honor to Him in the testimony of our life. And third, we can fall into the desire of the eyes (covetousness, envy,  and jealousy) and the pride of life (shame and condemnation) when we are truly the Children of God, set free by the Blood of the Lamb, those who are more than conquerers in Christ Jesus. 

You say,  “But it’s hard to believe it when I can’t yet see the evidence in my life.” And I say,  cast off your doubts and rest in the Word of God. Meditate upon the Word of God and seek His face in prayer. Wait upon the Lord because He is the only one that is faithful and true and worthy of all praise. He will use your imperfections, your peculiar ways for something amazing that will confound the “wise”, the “normal”, the “common” man – but you are set aside for a special purpose,  for His Holy use. 

Rudolf and Hermit have to make it through their adventures and find an island of broken toys before their greater purpose begins to be realized. There are people out there that the Lord can use your testimony to reach that those “common” vessels could never reach. You are unique,  you are a peculiar people, you are precious to the Lord.

Remember this as you are waiting. Remember this when the storm comes. Remember where your strength comes from and your unique story might just provide the light that leads others to safety,  to joy,  to Christ.