Finally

Ephesians 6:10, Finally my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might.

Every day I pray this verse specifically over my household.  However, it’s fruitless to declare this without first acknowledging that it comes on the tail end of instruction that certainly can’t be carried out without the strength and power of might that can only come from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Obedience to parents, honoring our fathers and mothers, raising our children with the nurture and admonition of the Lord, servitude with reverence and singleness of heart as unto Christ, doing the will of God from the heart as unto the Lord and not unto men, leading without respect of persons….

These are the instructions laid out for us. The big word here is FINALLY.  He said, “Here’s how…”

There is no way, in our own power and strength that we can be the children, parents, servants and leaders that God desires us to be without our full reliance on Him.  In fact, as this passage continues, He tells us to put on the whole armor of God.  This eludes that these are the areas we will be attacked the most.

Father, thank You for the revelation of this today.  I desire to be strong in my parenting skills today, as well as in my service to my family, the church body, and my employer.  Empower me to do, not just better, but Your best, in Jesus Name, Amen.

The Touchstone of a Good God

Isaiah 26:3 “You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.”

What is your mind stayed on? To where do your thoughts always return? The one who continually comes back to the touchstone of a kind and merciful God will rest secure. This believer will not fear life or its daily surprises because he finds comfort in his trustworthy God. Your thoughts may wander and flit in and out of dangerous territory. Like the psalmist, you may find yourself in the valley of the shadow of death. However, the one who has trained his mind to return to the surety of a good God – he knows perfect peace.

Heavenly Father,
You have never failed my trust. Though at times my trust has faltered, You have never disappointed me. Even though I have hoped against hope, Your loving kindness has surprised me time and again. I know perfect peace because You have loved me unfailingly. Perfect peace has also eluded me at times whenever I have forgotten Your faithfulness. Today, I remind myself of the perfection of Your love and I bask in the peace Your love gives.

Wisdom From Above

“But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.” James 3:17

The third chapter of James weaves together two scriptural principles, giving us a standard by which we can discern the source of our “wisdom”. The passage ties together words and wisdom. The descriptive words in verse 17 likely do not fit into the list we would commonly use when identifying true wisdom. Generally, when we think of wisdom, words like pure, peaceable, and gentle don’t come to mind. The verse seems to suggest that we can discern whether the wisdom we see in ourselves is from above or from the earth and our carnal nature (vs. 15), by carefully studying; not only what we say, but how we say it.

It’s possible to be right in principle and wrong in delivery. This disconnect shows a lack of wisdom. Like the pastor who spends the majority of a eulogy referencing scriptures on hell when the person in the casket was not known to have a saving relationship with Christ. Hell may be a reality that needs to be spoken of… but it’s too late for the person in the casket, and it brings no comfort to those left with their grief.

Placing too much emphasis on knowledge through correct information can cause us to neglect true wisdom. Carefully read verse 17 again, and search your life for the purity, gentleness, mercy, and good fruits it speaks of. When the knowledge you carry is delivered rightly with these gifts, you can be assured you have received wisdom from above.

Heavenly Father, grant me the ability, by Your Holy Spirit, to walk in wisdom from above. I invite this wisdom into my life, that it may be seen not only in the things that I “know” but the fruit of the Spirit that is clearly seen in my life in choosing, when, where, and with whom I share what I know. Amen.

Divine Measures in Place

1 Peter 5:7 “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

These words of Peter’s echo both the Old Testament Psalmist and Christ. The message is simple and relevant to believers in every age. The God of the universe has each of us in His gaze. Every need that may arise will always be addressed by His tender loving-kindness. Whenever we expect lack, anxiety floods our being. The one fully dependent on God rather than human means, however, has learned that Father never fails to provide.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:25-26
Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?

The Psalmist wrote in Psalm 55:22
Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.

I know you have needs. We all do. Take no further thought to whether you will be cared for. You already are.

Heavenly Father,
Every need I have you are fully aware of. Provision has already been made and resources are in motion. No longer will I anxiously fret over what I will eat, drink, wear or how I will feed my family. My name is not on the line, here. Father you have taken full responsibility for the righteous. There are divine measures in place to ensure that we are not forsaken. My heart is full of hope and not fear. I love you and thank you in advance for all of the answers you provide.

Love in the Last Days

“Let brotherly love continue.” Hebrews 13:1

Brotherly love. It is the quintessential character of mature Christians. The Bible says “faith worketh by love”. In 1 Corinthians 13, which has been called the “love chapter”, Paul summarizes his treatise on love with these words: “and now abideth faith, hope, and love, these three, but the greatest of these is love.”

Real Christian love is practical, powerful, and promising. It is clearly our highest goal in Christian living. Unfortunately for many Christians, it is still just that, an unrealized goal. With overwhelming scriptural encouragement to “live out love”, one would think that love, as the height of spiritual maturity, would be regularly practiced by every Christian.

I’m convinced we are living in the last of the last days. The Bible clearly teaches that evil and sin will abound in these times, and Jesus said in Matthew 24…“Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of many will grow cold”. You see, the rise of immorality in America may not produce immorality within the church, but it can certainly cause the love that we should be offering a sinful people to grow cold. In the last days, we will see an increasing trend of Christians living moral and ethical lives, but lacking love. Let us not be part of this return to an old covenant way of living; but with forgiveness, grace, and mercy on our lips, let brotherly love continue.

Heavenly Father, fill me with Your Holy Spirit again today, it is the only way I can produce the fruit of love from within. Reveal to me the areas of my life that are hindering the flow of Your love through my thoughts, words, and actions. I make myself available to be used as a vessel of Your love in these last days. Amen.

Faith to Forgive

Ephesians 4:32, And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.

Jesus has gone to great lengths to forgive our sins.  Together, as children of God, we are to experience the height, breadth, width and length to which He has loved us.  He has removed our sins from us as far as the east is from the west. Can you measure that?

Our finite vision cannot encompass such a forgiveness, yet we long for it and embrace it when we are in need of it.  By faith, we see it!

Friend it takes the same kind of faith to receive forgiveness, as it does to give it.  In our worst moment, when we have been at our most vile and repulsive, we cling to the promise that if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.  We receive what is available to us.  Our life depends on it.

It’s the same when forgiving one another. Even when we “feel” like we can’t do it, Jesus has!  With the same faith that we believe for our forgiveness, we receive for another what is available to them, through our Lord Jesus Christ. And the same peace should flood our hearts.

Father, You are so kind and tenderhearted, forgiving me again and again. Not because I deserve it but because You have provided it.  Create in me that same character Lord.  My faith truly does make me whole and others as well.  In Jesus Name, Amen.

Where Love Comes From

1 John 4:7 “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.”

One thing we do makes us more God-like than anything else. Love. The fact that we can and do love is a testimony to the God-nature within each one of us. Regardless of if we believe in God, we carry His capacity for loving, reciprocated or not. Sure, we understand how it’s possible to love someone who loves us back. But why does love allow us to lavish affection on those who fail to respond? The abuse, pain, and/or neglect that love is willing to take in spite of its affections is indicative of a higher nature at work in our hearts.

Love comes from God. Any who loves has known a side of God Who is willing to love without receiving in return. If you are dealing with rejection or hateful treatment – Father sees and knows. Receive MORE of His love and lavish it on yourself as well as those you come in contact with. You have been born of Him and know Him in ways that only the loving soul can.

Father,
I identify with your hearth today. Thank you for loving me when I failed to receive it or to love you back. Teach me to stay filled with your love that I might be a love-dispenser in my world. Please forgive me for expecting those whom I love to reciprocate in kind. Broken as some are, they cannot give back what I need. Only you can keep me saturated in the light of your love.

Heaven’s Perspective

“Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you, He will never let the righteous fall” Psalm 55:22

If we are perfectly honest, the joy one might gain from the second portion of this verse is clouded by it’s supposed questionability. While the Bible says, “He will never let the righteous fall”, our experience might seem to tell a different story. However, we must be careful to remember that our perception is our reality, and our perception of every experience is equally important to the experience itself. For example, God clearly stated that Job was a righteous man. Upon reviewing Job’s story, some might say that his “fall” was proof that the psalmist view of God expressed in this verse is unworthy of our faith and trust. Some might say, “Job was righteous, and he fell…”

Enter, the unparalleled importance of perception amidst the reality of suffering. Behold the cross in your imagination. Behold a bloody, beaten, suffering Savior. The disciples certainly considered this the worst failure they could’ve anticipated. But the apostle Paul later writes this about what the disciples surely considered the fall of Christ: “In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.” (Colossians 2:15 NLT) The cross did indeed bring public shame… to satan and his legions!

Be diligent to walk righteously, and He will never let you fall. Remember the importance of perception and perspective in your most difficult times, what might feel like a “fall” is likely a divinely orchestrated “victory” written into the grand story of your life.

Heavenly Father, help me to gain heaven’s perspective on every single detail of my life. May Your Holy Spirit peel back the scales from my eyes and allow me to see things through the lens of eternity. I trust this will bring death to many temporal desires and renewed spiritual zeal for advancing Your kingdom. Amen.

Loving His Name

Psalm 5:11 But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; Let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them; Let those also who love Your name Be joyful in You.

Behind every name, is a person. One who can be uniquely identified, unlike any other.  And typically, that name has great meaning behind it, thus revealing even more about the purpose and plans for that person’s life.

When naming a child, one would hope that time is spent studying the name, finding out its meaning, in hopes that he or she will become what they are called.

It’s a powerful thing to discover your name.  And what’s even more beautiful is that the Word tells us that God has given us a new name, by which the family in both heaven and earth is named. (Ephesians 3:15)  And that name is Jesus.

God’s not unlike any other parent in that He too named His Son.  He didn’t just pick a name.  He chose a promise.

Jesus means, “Jehovah is salvation”.  And He is called “the Christ”, meaning anointed or furnished with every necessary power to administrate God’s plan.

Father, thank You for saving us in the Name of Jesus. There is no other Name by which we can be saved and there is no other Name that we would rather bear as a family Name.  You’ve anointed us and furnished us with every necessary power to administrate Your plan of salvation, continuing the work of the ministry.  We love You Lord. Amen.

Within His Walls

Psalm 31:21 “Blessed [be] the LORD, For He has shown me His marvelous kindness in a strong city!”

David, the warrior, knew the benefits of dwelling in a strong or fortified city. One could sleep in peace, knowing a guarded wall kept him safe. In this passage, David conveys how the kindness of God spared his life and wellbeing, either in a physical strong city or a place of absolute divine protection. Imagine how easily David could have succumbed to paranoia! For years, his life was imperiled by Saul and the many who would have betrayed him for advantage. However, the kindness of the Lord became to him a strong city of safety.

Perhaps you have suffered betrayal at the hands of someone you trusted? Or has someone sought your demise for their own gain? The marvelous kindness of the Lord will protect you, and give you rest – as though you are protected within the high walls of His strong city.

Heavenly Father,
You see all things. You know my comings and goings, and what evil plans the enemy has had to thwart my destiny. I rest in Your marvelous kindness. Nothing can separate me from Your love or Your providential protection. The rest I seek is in Your blessed presence. You are my peace and my sanity. In You I can rejoice always.
Amen.