Do Not Worry

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God, and the peace which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6, 7)

Jesus was so resolutely connected to His Father by obedience and faith that He never wavered or lost sight of His mission – to bring many souls to glory. Men who loved Him one day would cry, “Crucify Him!” the next - yet He was not moved. Jesus often armored Himself for the onslaught of opposition with hours alone in the closet of prayer. When he came down from the mountaintop of communion with God, He was filled with the Spirit’s confidence and ready to step victoriously into the demon possessed valley.

Worry is a sure sign of spiritual laziness. God calls us away from wallowing in uncertainty to the sweet communion of prayer and worship – the same fellowship our Lord Jesus enjoyed. A saint cannot pray and worry – cannot truly thank God without trusting in His love and concern. Once we’ve touched the heart of God and received His Spirit afresh, we cannot dream He would ever leave or disappoint us.

For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: "In returning and rest you shall be saved; In quietness and confidence shall be your strength." (Isaiah 30:15)

Shake off your doldrums and exercise your faith in Jesus. Your peace awaits!

 

Love and peace.

 

Understanding the Lord

Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word. (John 8:43)

 No matter how long or closely we walk with God, we must guard against the danger of misunderstanding Him. We are apt to cast the Lord into the cramped mold of our perceptions –

             For now we see in a mirror, dimly . . . (1 Corinthians 13:12a).

We create a god that reflects our own deficiencies and excesses. We are liable to mistake a forgiving God for harsh, a loving God as angry, or a merciful Lord as condemning. Why is this?

 Mostly, we misjudge the depravity of our own hearts and our need for communion with Him. We must be determined to refresh our perspective and renew our minds. We must doggedly guard our hearts against the relentless bombardment of worldly and fleshly voices! The Word of the Lord must dwell richly in our heart, lifting us above the din of the devil and his cohorts. Only then do we come to know God, not just about Him. And when He reveals Himself, we won’t misunderstand Him, ignore Him, or simply miss Him. Lord, help us!!

The God of Our Mistakes

 

For the Lord will not forsake His people, for His great name's sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you His people. Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you; but I will teach you the good and the right way.  (1 Sam 12:22-23)

 

The children of Israel had sinned greatly in asking for an earthly king and rejecting the Heavenly King. They looked away from God and looked to the world, and if we are not careful, we are sure to do the same. Yet the Lord did not use Israel’s disobedience against them, but He lovingly rebuked them and set Himself to bless them still. As such, He is not only our God when we make right choices, but also when our choices are poor. He is our God, even of our mistakes.

 

God chose us as members of His body and church, and He knew what He was doing. He did not choose us because we were righteous and able (we were not), but out of His love and His sovereign right as God, He made us who we are by His grace. Our goodness did not qualify us, nor will our shortcomings disqualify us, because His mind is already made up about us;

 

Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. (Romans 8:33)

 

Therefore, the children God chooses must operate with a deeply–rooted confidence in the God who knows us best, and we follow Him with boldness and assurance even in precarious times. Even our good deeds and good intentions are not the point – they are simply the overflow of the life hidden with God in Christ. So, stay hidden, and go forward with the God Who sees you in the secret place and rewards you openly. He will never leave nor forsake you – even when you blow it!

God is Good

“Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things? Or is your eye evil because I am good?” (Matthew 20:15)

 

God’s word has gone out into the entire world, and the world has largely rejected His call. Jesus came to the Jews, and they largely rejected Him. He reached out to the Gentiles, and they, too, largely reject the Savior. Men go about their way in futility, seeking to gain what they cannot keep, and turning away from that which will keep them forever. The church, however, is the clearest indication on earth that the Lord is good, and His goodness is beyond the wildest dreams of man. It is born out of a love we cannot contain or explain, and we do well to be counted among those who choose the One who has chosen us! Welcome to the family of God!

Prayers and Answers

 

Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. ¹⁵ And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him. (1 John 5:14, 15)

 

There are some prayers God is guaranteed to answer. There are some petitions He will always grant, supplication that turns His head, and request He is anxious to fulfill. The prayer warrior is not contending with a stingy and reluctant God, nor is he wrestling blessing out of a tight fist – but he rests His cares at the feet of his Father, Who already know what he needs. He is not looking for the answer only, but looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of his faith, and the One who fills all his every need.

 

Truly, there is not a good question for which Jesus is not the answer, and no human need He Himself does not fill. The intercessor prays the prayers he heard Jesus pray, and Jesus never offered a prayer the Father did not answer and honor . . .

"Father, I thank You that You have heard Me.  And I know that You always hear Me.” (John 11:41b, 42a)

 

Jesus prioritized His relationship to the Father, always honoring, praising, emulating, and abiding in Him. Therefore, His prayers fit perfectly with the will of the Father Who already knows and sees all. All His Words were salt and light, and all His prayers were conceived and offered in the agreement with the will of the Father. The saint who increases in abiding with Him and lives in His presence will know His heart, and he will lift up prayers God is ever willing to receive and answer. Do you pray like that?

Seeing the Hidden Things

In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. (Luke 10:21)

 

The knowledge of God is not an intellectual accomplishment, nor is it a matter of merit, but one of privilege – a sovereign choice of God to reveal Himself as He sees fit and to whom He wills. No amount of effort or study can prepare you for this epiphany, no money can purchase it, nor can pedigree or degree fetch it. In fact God uses that which we consider foolish to confound the wise, and He prefers the lowly and humble to the exalted. He values the meek and gentle over the forceful, and He reserves His best for those who approach Him as paupers rather than princes . . .

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Matt 5:3

 

We rise to the highest estate when we fall to our knees, and we know the most when we forsake all we’ve learned and simply hear Him. It is God’s good pleasure to give us the Holy Spirit when we simply ask, seek and knock. And when we seek Him first, all we would work for is given to us. This is the peace beyond understanding only the children of the King enjoy. Are you simple and small enough to be blessed? Are you insignificant enough to be great? Empty enough to be filled? This is what God requires before He reveals Himself to you.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.

Matt 5:6

Resist the devil

Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.  

(James 4:7)

Resistance through humility is the most aggressive posture a saint can take against the wily tactics of Satan. Humility is a most formidable weapon that the devil has no answer for, because he cannot humble himself. A decisive blow is delivered to the darkness around us when we fall to our knees and submit ourselves to our Father’s will. The saint who is bowed low in worship and prayer cannot be touched by the lies of the accuser, the lust of the flesh, nor the lures of the world. Down at His feet is the most high place!

 

Satan will offer you a great number of options, but none of them will involve humility. He will convince you to offer lip service without truly serving another – to feel sorry for your actions, yet fall short of godly sorrow which leads to repentance – to establish your own kingdom and call it  ministry. Yet, our Lord tells us to humble ourselves in the sight of God and men, because He resists the proud and lifts up the humble. What an honor it is to respond to His call to be like Jesus, Who laid aside His glory to serve us and die for us! Listen closely and you’ll hear Him calling you to a point of humility. Will you answer the call?

Capture Every Thought

. . . casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. (2 Corinthians 10:5)

 

Thoughts are strange things. They can come at any time, from any source, and lodge themselves in our consciousness without invitation or permission. Therefore, we must take the responsibility to steward our thought life all the more seriously. In a day when there are so many voices and images vying for our attention, it takes a great deal of effort and discipline to renew our minds and cleanse our hearts for the Master’s abiding presence – for He cannot and will not abide with an unholy thought life.

 

Our thoughts will become our god unless we learn to immediately capture and test them by the Word. It amazes me how many Christians worship the “god of their understanding” instead of the God of the Word (and they don’t even realize it). Yet, the Holy Spirit takes the unfathomable riches of God and showers the Mind of Christ upon all who are willing to receive Him.

 

Truly, the knowledge of the Lord and His will are greater than we can imagine - and how wonderful He is to humble Himself and speak to our minds and hearts in a love language we can understand! So, let Jesus be God of your thought life and your thoughts subject to His counsel. There you will find peace and refreshment. Don’t just think about it - pray about it.