I’m reminded of the pastor During Prohibition who was having a baptismal service at the river, and he chose to preach on the evils of alcoholic beverages to all the candidates who were new Christians. He shouted, "If I had all the beer in the world, I’d take it and throw it into the river." The congregation cried, "Amen!""And if I had all the wine in the world, I’d take it and throw it in the river." The congregation shouted, "Amen!"
"And if I had all the whiskey and the rum in the world, I’d take it all and throw it in the river." And the congregation cried, "Amen!"
After the sermon the preacher stepped into the water, with his words hanging in the air, to the shouts and applause of the congregation. The song leader stood and announced, “We will now join together and sing, Shall we gather at the river”....
Let me invite you to gather at the river today as we begin by seeing some references to this river topic in some inspiredscriptures given by Holy Spirit to some of God’s river people in scripture...
Isaiah 43:2 “When you pass through the waters, I will be with youand through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.”
Ezekiel 47:9 “And it shall come to pass, that every thing,wherever the rivers shall come, shall live, and there shall be abundance, because these waters shall come, and they shall be healed and everything shall live where the river flows.
Psalm 36:8 “They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of Your house Oh God, and You shalt cause them drink of the river of Your pleasures”.
John 7:37-39 “Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his center will flow rivers of living water.’” Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified”.
Hallelujah, Whenever, and wherever Jesus is glorified, when He is high and lifted up, the river is released to flow.....
I want us to unwrap some of God’s promises about the Riverwhich is mentioned so often in scripture.
God is looking for a people who can see what no one else is seeing. That kind of people are called watchmen in the bible.... They are not watching people, they are not called to watch the enemy... they are called to watch God!
They are called to see His character, to see His nature, and to see His power.
When folks begin to focus on these things and speak them out to others, we call it revelation or prophecy...
It’s how Peter was able to say in Acts 3:6 “Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have I give unto you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk”.
Peter tapped into God’s river....
The disciples had boldness, spiritual insight, and power, because they were flowing in the river of God...
That river was released by staying in the presence of Jesus. They had a boldness of speech and authority that did not come from being simply religious. Religion may provide boundaries, but those boundaries can’t handle the surge of the river of God. It will overflow religion every time. Religion will always bow the knee to the river of God.
God wants to overwhelm what we have known and experienced, and show us what it looks like in the overflow....
I love this item called “The Fellowship of the Unashamed”
I am part of the "Fellowship of the Unashamed." The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I won't look back, let up, slow down,back away, or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure. I am finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, limp hands, colorless dreams, chintzy giving, and dwarfed goals. I no longer need pre-eminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I now live by presence, lean by faith, love by patience,lift by prayer, and labor by power. My pace is set, my stride is fast, my goal is Heaven, my road is narrow, my way is rough, my companions few, my Guide reliable, and my mission clear. I cannot be bought, compromised, deterred, lured away, turned back, diluted, or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of adversity, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity. I am a disciple of Jesus. I will keep going untilHeaven returns, give until I drop, preach until all know, and work until He comes. And when He comes to get His own, He will have no problem recognizing me. My beliefs will be clear, my hope will be strong and my stand unshakable. I am not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ . . . WHEW!
It's time that we must learn the ways of God’s river once again....
As we do, we become one, with the purpose of the river.....
To Be a vehicle of Life
To sweep away and dislodge every work of the enemy
To cause everything that is stagnant, to become fresh and vibrant again
To see lack and insufficiency be swept away by His abundance
To see weakness and weariness give way to strength.
To exalt Jesus in all His greatness and power.
Ezekiel saw what others could not see... Ezekiel 47:3 “The angel walked to the east with a measuring tape and measured off fifteen hundred feet, leading me through water that was ankle-deep. 4 He measured off another fifteen hundred feet, leading me through water that was knee-deep.
He measured off another fifteen hundred feet, leading me through water waist-deep. 5 He measured off another fifteen hundred feet. By now it was a river over my head, water to swim in, water no one could possibly walk through”.
It's time for that which is invisible to become very visible in the physical realm where we all live. It’s not enough to be satisfied that the things of God are spiritual not physical... It’s time for faith to become sight. It’s time to touch the untouchable, hear the inaudible and see the invisible..
Jesus came in the flesh so that all might see the reality of the God head. He came in the flesh so that we could touch the untouchable, hear the inaudible and see the invisible.... Jesus commanded His disciples to show the people, that the sick could be healed, the bound and oppressed could be delivered, the dead could be raised, and all manner of disease and infirmity was no match for the river of God!
You start ankle deep, but then He calls us waist deep, and armpit deep, then you find yourself swimming in that river...
LAUNCH OUT INTO THE DEEP, LET THE SHORELINE GO... LAUNCH OUT, LAUNCH OUT, IN THE RIVER OF GOD!!
Wherever you are, there’s more!
Wherever you’ve been, there’s more!
Whatever you’ve seen, there’s more!
Whatever you’ve dreamed, there’s more!
It’s time to go deeper and believe something is happening even though we don’t see it or feel it.
4 words declare a truth that we cannot see or most of the time even feel, but if God has it for us, I want to receive it.
“THERE IS A RIVER.” Psalm 46:4
David the Psalmist in Psalm 1 said we need to be like a tree planted by rivers of water and our roots constantly drawing from and getting constantly renewed from the river.
Everyone say out loud. “THERE IS A RIVER! “
Notice also that David says “God is in the midst of her” Psalm46:5
It’s where the will of God, the intentions and purposes of God are... and the empowerment and authorization which enable us to accomplish His will, intentions and purposes, wherever it flows.
Tell someone, “JUST GO AHEAD AND GET IN THE FLOW”
The waters of a river are always going somewhere, it is always moving and flowing.
It may upset some folks that there’s a lot of debris that is swept along in the current of the river. Because a river breaks things free, and it loosens and carries away things that are not in God’s purposes and intentions. Don’t get so focused on the debris, that you forget why you’re in the river. There will always be debris. There will always be a lot of stuff that people are being set free of, and released from, but GOD IS IN THE MIDST OF THE RIVER. That’s what matters... Leave the debris with Him. It’s being carried away.
Trust Him, that when the river is flowing, it will all be resolved in the river. The temptation is to get distracted by the stuff, and get out of the river.... Stay, and go deeper, but keep moving with the river of God....
The river of life will remove all the debris from people’s lives, from their mind, from their eyes, from their heart and their soul. It will wash emotions clean, memories clean. Bitterness, andunforgiveness get washed away.
In every great revival movement, there is a lot of stuff that get’scaught in the current of the river. Often, those who are spectators, or who are content to be ankle deep, like to point out the mess, instead of the bigger cleansing, freeing purpose of the river....There are always critics and religious folks who fear that the river may change things, and shake up things. I say, Let it shake....let it rock and roll, baby!
God’s river is an instrument of fresh, new Life
It comes to sweep away and dislodge every work of the enemy
It causes everything that is stagnant, to become fresh and vibrant again
It causes lack and insufficiency be swept away by abundance
It causes weakness and weariness give way to strength and power.
OK, check out this.... . Proverbs 21:1 “The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, AS RIVERS OF WATER; HE TURNS IT TO ANY PLACE HE WILLS.”
I shared last week about some spiritual principles I have learned from Gold Rush. Something else I learned on Gold Rush.... Sometimes the gold they are looking for is under the river bedwhich is providing their water source for the wash plant. There have been some episodes, that they have had to divert the river, in order to get at the gold. They do this by digging out a new channel for the river to flow in, then breaking through the artificial dam they have created, to let the river be diverted in a new direction which allows them to mine the gold.
Don’t miss this.... Keep preparing your channel, because God is always looking for a new channel for His river to flow through. You may think that God could never use you like “so and so”.... You could never be that or do that.... But are you willing to be the channel and let God decide what can and will happen when you do!!!
God diverts the river and someone like Nickie Cruse who was a gang leader, becomes an international evangelist, leading thousands to Christ, Some like Saul of Tarsus, who went about murdering Christians, becomes Paul the Apostle out of season and the Apostle to the gentiles.
Can you just be the channel and let the river do the rest?
Paul said “it is not me, but it is Christ in me”.....
If you say, “I can’t do that.” YOU’RE RIGHT!
If you say, “I’m not up to that.”.. YOU’RE RIGHT!
He only asks, “Will you be the channel?” ....”Are you willing?”
If you are, He will divert the river and choose the channel you provide Him....
Every move of God lasted until man tried to control it....
Every move of God lasted until man got distracted by something else.
Every move of God lasted until it became inconvenient and God found a new stream.....
Did you know that the ark that God told Noah to build, did not have a rudder. God steered it, and God brought it through the flood.
When God finds a person who will let Him steer the boat, there is no limit with what He can do!
God wants to take us into new places we don’t even know exist! He wants to give us experiences that we don’t even know how to ask for, in the time and place we are now! But to get there we will have to allow Him to take us where He wants our lives to go.
Don’t despise small beginnings...... The mighty Mississippi river finds it’s source as a small tributary flowing out of Lake Itasca, in northern Minnesota. It flows 2,552 miles, across 32 states and a sliver of 2 Canadian provinces, until it empties into the ocean at New Orleans. It enter the gulf with such force that the fresh water pushes back the salt water for 7 miles. With all it’s twists and turns it is 3,710 miles long, the fourth longest river in the world. And it all began as a spill over from Lake Itasca.
God often chooses little places, little things, little people to show His greatness and bring His glory. God chose a virgin in an obscure little village called Bethlehem to give birth to the savior of the world.... He chose some fishermen on the sea of Galilee, who were doing what unnamed generations before them had doneto reach the world with the gospel.... He chose a young Jewish maid named Esther, to redeem a nation doomed for genocide by Haman... we would not even know about these nobodies, except God chose to let His river flow through them and do some big history changing things thru their surrendered lives.
The river of God is about a relationship not an assignment..... Most people want to fill a need in the world,and that’s not a bad thing, but the truth is, the needs of the world are endless. If managers and planners could do it, it would be done! We want assignments from God and God will give those from time to time. The answer to “what does God want me to do with my life”, is not an assignment. The answer to what God wants me to do with my life is a relationship.
The river of God is about a moment by moment relationship! It is not event driven, it is Spirit driven. “My spirit bears witness with His spirit”.
If God gave you a life assignment without a relationship, you would run off and do it without Him.
Instead, the life He has planned for you is always about flowing with Him and doing what He is doing now and saying the same thing He is saying.
When people get frustrated over not know what God would have them do with their life – the best thing for them to do is just get alone with God. After they have spent time alone in worship and being emersed in how much God loves them or how good God has been to them - - - then they can begin to hear God talk about what is next for their life.
When you flow with God’s river inside of you, leading you step by step and day by day, you are fulfilling your destiny and pleasing God. He will make all the divine connections for you.
Our identity is not tied to what we do – our work does not define us.
Our identity is becoming a river bed so the HS river can flow through every part of my life and bring that life wherever He leads me. Break up those dams and barriers of resistance. Stop telling God what He needs to do and surrender to His will and let Him open up and release His river within you..
I just came here today to tell you 4 words.
There IS a river! Won’t you plunge in today.... Lord, let Your river flow!
Song.... There is a river....
Prayer.....Father, You are the Source of all Living Water, and we yearn to go so much deeper in the river of God. Lord, for times of refreshing, healing, and deliverance, keep us all in the river.Thank you for flowing all across this land with the river of God.
Today, we declare over our lives a new beginning, and a deeper walk, as deep calls unto deep. Holy Spirit our Comforter and Friend, we thirst for the rivers of mercy, let the rivers of grace keep pouring down over us. Holy Spirit flow through our day. Show us things we have never seen before. Forgetting those things that lay behind us we press on towards the high calling in Christ Jesus. Give us the wisdom and discernment to know the how, when, where, and to whom of the river’s purpose. Let us never be the same, as we leave the dry parched places behind us, and we open ourselves to Your divine flow.
Let us never be the same as Your spirit fills us again and again.Release those Living Waters You have placed inside of us and may the river of God's power flow mightily through us. We long to be used more and more for Your Glory, in Jesus name....Amen.
If you have children, you will have no trouble with my title.... They have a question for everything. I believe God wants us all to go back to that time in our childhood when we had a question for everything and we weren’t afraid to ask...
A friend once asked Isidor Rabi, a Nobel prize winner in science, how he became a scientist. Rabi replied that every day after school his mother would talk to him about his school day. She wasn't so much interested in what he had learned that day, but she always inquired, "Did you ask a good question today?" Rabi said "Asking good questions, is what made me decide to become a scientist."
Let me begin with a global statistic 139 million babies are born each day, and 62 million people die every day. Which is an increase in the world population of 77 million people every day.
The population of the world as of May 10th, when I checked, is 7 billion, 900 million, 800 thousand. That means, there are 7 billion, 900 million, 800 thousand people asking “Why” every day.
Of course this is taking into consideration that there are three kinds of people in the world, those who watch everything happen, those who make everything happen, and those who are always asking “why things happen”....People have a lot of questions....
Why do they put Braille at the drive through ATM? Why are there interstate highways in Hawaii? Why is the time of day with the slowest traffic called rush hour? Why don't Psychics always Win the lottery"? Why isn't there a special name for the tops of your feet? Why is "abbreviated" such a long word?
God created the “Why” and put it in every human being. Hecreated a desire in mankind to search and discover.... as a matter of fact, in the gospel of Luke alone, Jesus answered a question with a question 89 times. In the gospel of Mark, there are only a few occasions when Jesus did not answer a question with a question. Jesus developed a questioning community with the disciples. He wanted them to seek deeper understandings of what they thought and believed as individuals and as a community.
Jesus asked some penetrating questions.......that demand an answer...
What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet lose their own soul? (Matthew 16:26)
Can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? If then you are not able to do so small a thing as that, why do you worry about the rest? (Luke 12:26)
Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Are you not of more value than the birds of the air? (Matthew 6:25-26)
If God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, why won’t He take care of you—oh, you of little faith? (Luke 11:11-13)
So, we should never be afraid to ask, “WHY?” Because if we always settle for the easy answers we stop growing. Our relationship with God becomes stale. Our worship becomes predictable and routine and we get religious. (Yuuck) and the fellowship in our church community withers away to just mundane, idle chatter. It is imperative that we ask questions.God desires for us to ask questions as we come together. Questions about faith, hope, and His workings in our tests and trials.
1 Peter 3:15 always be prepared to give an answer to anyone who asks you about the hope that is in you, and do it with gentleness and respect,
Jesus, in His humanity... fully man, yet fully God... spent every evening alone with the Father, receiving answers to the “why”, of each day of his ministry and the “why” of the day ahead, so that He could fulfill the will of God in His life.
John 5:30 I can do nothing on my own. I judge as the Father tells me. Therefore, my judgment is just, because I carry out the will of the one who sent me, not my own will.
To ask why, is not a sign of unbelief, it is a sign that we are healthy as Christians and are open for fresh revelation and new insight from the Lord. God put the “Why” inside of all of us, and that need to know comes from His spirit in us.
"Why?" -- Why is this terrible thing happening to me? -Why did I lose my job? -Why did I get sick? -Why is my family member sick? -Why did that wreck happen? -Why did they die so soon? -Why is my family so messed up? Didn’t Jesus say “Ask and it shall be given, seek and you shall find, knock and the door shall open.”
We must ask from a position of trust. Not every question will get the answer we want or expected. So it’s vitally important that we ask from a position of trust in God.
When I don’t understand, I need to trust, until the answer is revealed.
Satan loves to take advantage of the answers that are delayed. His first attack is always to undermine our trust in God, and cast aspersions against him. Where was God when my child died? Where was he when my marriage was destroyed. Why has He let my family fall apart. In the midst of delays, I need to remember....
Isaiah 26:3-4 “You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock”.
Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths”.
Let me give you one more....Jeremiah 17:7-8 “But blessed are those who trust in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes and never fails to bear fruit”. Ask your “Why’s” from a position of trust!
So my belief system says that Jesus has already been there ahead of me and he knows the way that I take. He’s prepared for my arrival, so that where he is, I may be also. That’s how Peter walked on the water. He simply went to where Jesus already was. He walked upon trust.
The answer to my “Why” is not always for me. It may be for someone else. It may be for the wife who is about to give up, or the child who is questioning their faith, the pastor who is ready to call it quits, or a soul that’s about to go into eternity unprepared.
Holy Spirit may be preparing us to encounter someone at their divine tipping point, and in that defining moment we were the one He chose to change a destiny, and in so doing, redefine their eternity.
My cousin James, was on his way to open his restaurant, when God told him to go to the hospital and see my adopted, atheist dad who was dying of cancer instead. He questioned the impracticality of not opening the restaurant on time, but he trusted that the answer was in his obedience. Did anyone hear that..... The answer was in his obedience..... And because his “why” was based on his trust in God, he led my dad in the sinner’s prayer and gave him a bible, which Bill Elliott was clutching in his hands when he passed into eternity. James 1:6-10 But let us ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways”.
We ask in faith.....and sometimes your “Why” will take you over into the realm of miracles. You will have to step over into the supernatural to find some answers. Because the answer lies outside the explainable and can only be found in the impossible. That leap into what made the sun and moon to stand still for Joshua, and the Red Sea to part for Moses, and Philip to be transported into the desert to meat an Ethopian Eunuch... might be where your answer will be found.
Listen to what Paul wrote to the Colossian Christians.... Colossians 1:27 “For God was pleased to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory”.
Christ in you is the answer. As you grow in knowledge and wisdom by asking all the “why’s”, you become the answer looking for a question. So never stop asking in simple faith, believing that what Paul said to the Corinthians is true of each of us....
2 Corinthians 3:2 You are living epistle, for He has written upon your hearts, so that you may be known and read of all men.”
Your family, your friends, your coworkers and neighbors are reading your epistle that has been written through your own searching, and your own times of discovery. they are looking for some answers. So when God’s Spirit responds, are we willing to be the answer they can read from the pages of our lives?
For 7 years the Israelites were at the mercy of the Midianites.They would come and destroy their crops and treat them like slaves. Gideon, was threshing wheat by the wine press, so he could hide if the enemy showed up. Gideon was a man of God, and he asked in Judges 6:13, "If the Lord is with us, why then has all this befallen us?" God did not say to the “Why” of Gideon... “Who dares to question my providence”. Instead, hechose this very man to be the answer and the one to set Israel free. The man with enough gumption to ask why, was the very man with enough motivation to do something about it, because he asked from a place of faith and trust. In Exodus 5:22 Moses cries out, "O Lord, why have You done this evil to Your people? Why did You ever send me?" God chose a man who asked “Why, and was ready for action, and ready to be part of the answer, because he asked, believing God had the solution.
If God can’t do it, then it must be bigger than God. But nothing is bigger than God. That tells me that there is nothing that my God can’t do. But He still reserves the right to do it His way, in His time. Trust Him, all things are still possible to those who will trust and believe.
In the midst of our asking “why” we don’t have to ask “how”, because Jesus said “I am the way, the truth and the life”
He is always working on your behalf, even behind the scenes where you can’t fully see. In that place where you see no way out, in that struggle where you see no solution, in that problem where you have no answer, lay it before Him. Every worry. Every care. Be reminded that He is with you today, He knows your way, and has a plan. Trust Him right now.
Luke 2:48, Is where Mary, after three frantic days of searching, finds Jesus in the temple. Her first words are this question: "Son, why have you treated me so?" Jesus responded to that question with, "Did you not know that I must be about my Father's business?" The next verse says they did not understand the explanation. What we see here is that it was perfectly legitimate for Mary to ask why, but the asking is no guarantee you will get an answer that you understand. The answer was there, but it took time, and growth in her understanding before it became meaningful to her.
We should ask why, but we should also be patient, and recognize that the answer may not be easy to comprehend. Therefore, there is a need for patience and persistence in pursuing the answer until a foundation of meaning and proper application is established.
Hannah could not have children. She was baren and she went to the temple daily to pray that God would give her a child. She promised God that if He would give her a son, she would give him back to God. Well, she found out that she was pregnant after all those years, and when Samuel was 12, she brought him to the temple, to be raised for the service of God.
People must have asked Hannah why?.... Certainly God doesn’t require that of you. You’ve been childless so long, and now God would expect that of you!
Listen, no one else can walk your path of obedience for you. No one else can surrender for you, or even understand what you must do in obedience. But because Hannah did not lose her trust in God, and she remained faithful, Samuel became one of the greatest prophets God ever raised up for the nation of Israel.Because one woman questioned from a place of trust in God, her question became the answer for a nation of people.
A young boy traveling by airplane to visit his grandparents sat beside a man who happened to be a seminary professor. The boy was reading a Sunday school take-home paper, and the professor thought he would have some fun with the lad. “Young man,” said the professor, “if you can tell me something God can do, I will give you a crisp, new dollar.” The boy thought for a moment and then replied, “Mister, if you can tell me something God can’t do, I’ll give you a whole stack of dollars!” (come on church)
You’ll get some amazing answers when you ask your questions from a place of fullness and not emptiness.
Ephesians 5:18 “Be filled with the Spirit.” The Greek term used here is (keep being filled, or stay filled) with the spirit. Or remain in a state of being filled.
The disciples of Jesus faced many problems, many unresolved issues... betrayal, injustice, rejection, and false accusations.... but because they kept filled with the spirit, prison doors were opened, accusers were silenced, God’s power was revealed, and the gospel was preached throughout the land. Oh, stay full, of the spirit. Ephesians 6:18 “Pray in the Spirit at all times, with every kind of prayer and petition. To this end, stay alert with all perseverance in your prayers for all the saints”. I’ve often wondered how many of my “Why’s” have been answered while I pray to God in mysteries of my spirit. Paul said “Our spirit prays in mysteries, that our mind does not understand.... He also said “our spirit bears witness with God’s spirit” ....
Let me suggest some answers God might be saying to our Why’s ...... 1. Trust Me. I have My reasons but you’re not ready yet. 2. I have allowed this, so you will grow. 3. You weren’t willing to listen. 4. You’re asking for the wrong reasons. 5. I allowed it so you would rely on Me. 6. Just Wait, I’m bringing everything together. 7. I have something better in mind than you would have chosen. 8. I’m protecting you from yourself. 9. It’s time to grow in your walk with Me. 10. Because I love you.
One of the final moments of Jesus, in his physical body, was a “Why” moment.
Matthew 27:46 "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?'' The greater your nearness to God, the greater will be your anguish in his absence. No one but Jesus couldplummet to the depths of His “why”, on the cross. This was the ultimate “why” of absence, for in that window of time, we see Jesus experiencing our hell. Hell is the absence of God, and Jesus was there, to take the keys of death, hell and the grave and deliver them unto the church.
Something is wrong with a believer who does not ask why, when he feels the absence of God, who does not agonize over the absence of the stirrings and moving of the Spirit in their life. I don’t understand those who call themselves Christian, who immerse themselves in the world and never open the scriptures, or bow in prayer and worship and who never witness to others, that they might find the answer to the deep “Why” in their own soul...
Oh, God, Wake up a divine “Why”.... and let it cry out in the depth of our soul and spirit!
We will probably never know the answer to all of our “why’s”this side of heaven. But, what we can know and cling to are these truths: God is good. God is love. God is perfect.God is in control. And God never makes a mistake.
Prayer.....Lord, thank You that in spite of your “no” or Your “wait” or even Your silence, You know what is very best for me and You promise to work for my eternal good, not just my temporary satisfaction. Thank You that in every situation, in all the pain and pressure and circumstances beyond my control, You are making me more like Yourself, as I give up my will and surrender to Yours. I understand that I may ask why, with a humble heart as I am ready to receive whatever answer You provide. Thank you for helping me to see that it is not the question that creates obstacles in my relationship to You. Rather, it is the manner in which I present myself to You. Lord, You have given, and I have received the Holy Spirit. Please help me to be open to His counsel so I may continue to know You more and I may become the person You created me to be. Thank you also for the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, as He intercedes for me in prayer. He knows my heart better than I do. I may yearn to know why, but it is You who knows me best.
When I approach You with an attitude of gratitude in my question of why, I demonstrate my trust in You. Your word says “without faith it is impossible to please You”, so I choose to believe that You have it all under control. Thank You for being a good, loving, all-knowing and ever-present God who will not let anything touch me that hasn’t first passed through Your handsfirst. In the name of Jesus, I give you praise and honor.... Amen
Thank God for all the moms and the treasure they are to our lives. Before I begin, I want to read this poem I wrote to my mom, who has been with the Lord for many years now....
I call it…. “The Mother Inside of You”
Your Mother is the place you came from, your first home here on earth...
She's the guide you follow, as your life takes shape and you discover your values and worth. She's the first love you experienced, the first heart entwined with yours,
no one can take that special place, In the eyes of a child, so adored. As time goes by, with it’s shifts and turns, your love continues strong and true, And the mother who carried you inside, Now, you carry inside of you...
My message today is…”Woman, Be Free”…. It’s taken from….
Luke 13:10-16 (The Message Bible) He was teaching in the temple on the Sabbath. v11 There was a woman present, so twisted and bent over with arthritis that she couldn't even look up. She had been afflicted with this condition for eighteen years. v12 When Jesus saw her, he called her over. "Woman, today you are free!" *.......v13 He laid hands on her and suddenly she was standing straight and tall, giving glory to God. v14 Thehead of the temple, furious because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, said to the congregation, "Six days have been defined as work days. Come on one of those six days if you want to be healed, but not on the Sabbath."(sounds just like the devil talking)
v15 But Jesus responded, "You frauds! Each Sabbath every one of you regularly unties your cow or donkey from its stall, leads it out for water, and thinks nothing of it. v16 So why isn't it OK, for me to free this daughter of Abraham and loose her from the infirmity which Satan has oppressed her with these eighteen years?" Webster’s New World College Dictionary,fourth edition, defines the word “infirmed”: as, unsound,physically weak, dysfunctional in mind or purpose, not resolute, vacillating, unstable, shaky, not secure, disabled or defective.
The scripture text today, is the account of a remarkable recovery from a great infirmity, which had held this woman bent over and bowed down for eighteen years, so that her look and her life was downward instead of upward. Being bowed down, is not only physical, but moves into the attitude, and into a person’s spirit. She was powerless to help herself and we can be sure that she had tried again and again to lift herself up. She had been unable to turn her eyes upward to see the stars, her vision had been centered on things below and in this way, she is like many are attempting to find satisfactionwith earthly things without ever looking up to God who alone can straighten out their lives, and the maze they’re caught in. The Scriptures declare that she could in no wise lift up herself, but she found her way to church, and as she presses in with hope, that her condition can be changed,
she encounters Jesus in church. (that’s always a wonderful surprise!) As far as we know, by Jesus referring to her as a “daughter of Abraham”, or (Heir of Abraham). She has been going to church faithfully for 18 years…with no change. She would enter bowed down, and leave bowed down, week after week. But this week, Oh, BUT THIS WEEK...she encounters Jesus, not religion, not form, not ritual or tradition…. BUT JESUS, and her condition is loosed from her, as He speaks the words her body, soul and spirit need to hear…. Woman, today you are free!!!!... Immediately, her oppression is lifted off, as that word enters her spirit and pours through her body… and she stands straight and tall, in the eyes of everyone praising and glorifying God. Since today is Mother’s day, let’s bring this thing all the way forward from the first mom mentioned in the Bible.
Genesis 3:20 “And Adam called his wife's name Eve; because she was the mother of all living”.
We’re going to look at what the name “Mother” actually means…..I’m convinced that many women have a misguided understanding of what the name mother, fully means….
Pattie, who worked as a supervisor for the telephone company, was introduced to a district manager who was new to the company. He introduced himself as Ken, and Ken misunderstood her name and said, "Nice to meet you, Peggy." She decided not to embarrass him, in front of everyone and planned to correct him later. However, an opportunity never arose. So, finally she went into his office. "Ken," she said, "I've been meaning to tell you this for almost two months now. My name isn't Peggy. It's Patti." After a long pause, he replied, "Well, thank you, Pattie, and my name is Ben, not Ken….. If we’re confused about who we are, we will also be confused about who others are that we interact and relate with!Mom, your name means something important! In the original Hebrew, thename Mother, is “Chavah”. This name embodies both the essence of life itself and the creative ability to grant that life to others. The idea of “mother of all life” expresses not only the ability to physically give birth, but also to create, nourish, and enhance all facets of life. This is the ability of a mother - to take something from it’srough undeveloped state, nurture and develop it, and bring it to it’s full potential through her God given abilities.
Another Hebrew word which is used for the wordmother, is Chayah . This word means to experience life…. this is not merely the idea of physical birth, but has to do with the healthy enjoyment of life, and the ability to process the things of life, while keeping an attitude of joy and a positive sense of well-being. In 1Thessalonians chapter 5, there is a scripture that gives us a great formula for the healthy processing of all the things that life will throw at you, so that you may keep a healthy outlook of thankfulness, joy and positive well-being…. (Hear me Moms, God has your formula for happiness, fulfillment and contentment)
1 Thessalonians 5:15 follow (focus on) that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all people. Verse 16 Rejoice evermore (at all times in everything).
Verse 17 Pray without ceasing (at all times in everything). Verse 18 In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
Verse 19 Quench not the Spirit (acknowledge and be aware of the Holy Spirit working in and througheverything).
Verse 20 Despise not prophesying (be yielded to the Holy Spirit to hear what He is saying as He brings you revelation).
Verse 21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good(test everything by the Word of God, and good Godly council, from those who are sound and solid in the faith and in ministering the word of God).
Verse 22 Abstain from all appearance of evil. (Leave those things alone, which pollute the well of your spirit and diminish the power of God in your life)
Verse 23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. (God can only sanctify what we consecrate and separate unto Him)….Your tongue, your ears, your eyes, your activities, your relationships and friendships, your life patterns, and all the things that you dwell on and give a place of importance….
So this is about “Chayah”… experiencing a healthy life, keeping a positive attitude and doing life well…. by the way let’s remember that all failure is first a failure in values and basic life principals ….Don’t let grass grow on your God path, and don’t let the spiders of distraction weave their web around your spirit. The third Hebrew word for the name of Mother, is “Yech-aveh.” This word is found in Job (36:2)"Wait for me a little while, and I will show you (or I will Yechaveh)." This wordmeans, to cause to understand by expression, by revelation, by insight, or by manifestation…..Let me explain with this little story…. A daughter began to cry because she had lost her contact lens, and asked her mom to help her find it….the mom immediately began searching and in moments *…..found the lens. Her daughter said, “I have been searching for ½ hour, how could you find it so quick?” The mom told her she found it so quickly because they weren’t looking for the same thing…the daughter was looking for a contact lens, the Mom was looking for $200.00!!!.....that’s insight, understanding and revelation!!!! When you put all of this Hebrew stuff together, you have a mother, who through experience bringsexpression, revelation, and manifestation into the earth and she shapes and develops formless matter, carrying it within her until it is ready to be born. Then she continues to nurse this life, feeding, nurturing and sustaining it physically emotionally, and spiritually. And throughout its life, she helps to bring forth it’s undeveloped potential and guides and encourages this life to grow and experience its greatest and fullest manifestation. And by doing this, she is constantly giving birth to new levels of ability, potential and insight into the life experience, both within herself and within all those around her, earning her the title “MOTHER.” We desperately need Moms today, who are yielded to the Chavah, the Chayah and the Yech-aveh of God’s calling! The Civil war, between the North and the South, was fought over the issue of slavery. It’s bottom line was whether or not to allow an entire race of people to live their lives in bondage. Lincoln was assassinated because he dared to stand against a society which promoted this form of bondage. 620,000 of our country’s brothers, sons and fathers died in that conflict. Two years before Lincoln was assassinated in 1865, it became illegal to have slaves, the law was called the Emancipation Proclamation. The news rang out far and wide across the nation. The newspapers everywhere carried the headline…. “Slavery Legally Abolished! And yet something amazing happened....most of the slaves in the South went right on living as though they had never been emancipated…they continued in bondage and servitude. Slaves chose to remain slaves, though they were legally freed. Even though they were emancipated, they kept serving the same master throughout their lives and on into their children’s lives. It would be another 100 years, before segregation would end with “The Civil Rights Act of 1964! Sadly, what was true of slavery in this country, can be said of a multitude of sincere believers. All the official documents have been signed, all the legal matters have been taken care of (it’s called the word covenant of God). And God has accepted the “emancipation proclamation” presented to Him by Jesus on Calvary, when He said, “It is finished”…. In Christ, we have been set free forever! Heaven has declared that it is illegal for Satan to hold us in bondage to our sins, and condemn us for our past, our guilt, or anything else that we might name. Our Civil Rights Act, has declared that it is illegal for Satan to make any man or woman, feel less or be less than any other….Yet, so many of us still live in bondage because we will not accept the freedom available to us in Jesus. And sadder still, we pass that mentality on to our children, to experience it in their lives as well.
Getting back to this woman who was bowed down, whom Jesus released from bondage. I want you to notice that She was at the Right Place at the right time. The woman was aware of her spiritual infirmity and she did not go to the club, or the liquor store to drink her problems away and try to forget about her infirmity. Cause if you have a spiritual infirmity you need a spiritual “right place and right time”, where your spiritual infirmity will get spiritual attention and spiritual help. This woman decided that the temple was the right place for someone with an infirmity. There are over 2900 different people mentioned in the scriptures. Most of them are there, because they were at the right place at the right time. How many times have we prayed that prayer for our children…”Lord, let them be in the right place at the right time”… What a tremendous blessing that is….and what an awful curse to constantly be at the wrong place at the wrong time, which Satan will do his best to make that happen….! Satan wants to get us to buy into His bad news, so we will miss out on God’s good news that’s coming our way....I’ve come to tell you that God will still have the last say, if we give Him half a chance!
A well known artist asked the gallery owner, if there had been any interest in his paintings. "I've got good news and bad news," the owner replied. "The good news is that a gentleman inquired about your work and wondered if it would increase very much in value after your death. When I told him it would greatly increase, he bought all of your paintings at above what you’re asking." "That's wonderful!" the artist was overjoyed, so "What's the bad news?". With some hesitation, the owner said, "The guy that bought them was your doctor."… And yet, if you really think about it, since Jesus came on the scene, and brought His redemption power into our lives, any time can be the right time, any place can be the right place, and any situation can be filled with possibilities! The truth is that it is all a matter of our God consciousness and being God-inside-minded! I want to repeat a story I shared years ago.... Some may remember it.... The ship log tells the story….The year was 1820 and Peter Richleywas a very grateful man. He had survived one of the strangest and most harrowing events known to mankind. The story is true…..and The ship which he had been traveling on sank. He was rescued, however, and this ship sank. He was rescued again. But, this third ship sank. He was rescued for a third time, buthis fourth ship soon sank. And unbelievably, he was rescued for a fifth time, but the fifth ship sank as well.
On the high seas, however, he managed to stay afloat, and sure enough, as if on cue, another ship came by and answered his call for help.
This ocean liner was bound from England to Australia and traveled the same sea lane as Peter Richley’ssunken ships. The crew hoisted Peter aboard. Dry clothing was provided. The ship’s doctor gave him an exam, and pronounced him fit, and then the Captain asked an unusual favor. “There’s a lady on board who booked passage to Australia,” he explained. “She’s looking for her son who disappeared many years ago. She’s dying and she’s asking to see her son. She already knows everyone on board and since you’re the only newcomer, would you pretend to be her son, in her condition she won't be able to tell?”
Peter agreed. After all, his life had now been saved five times. He followed the Captain below deck and entered into a cabin.
There on a bed lay a frail woman with silver-hair. She was suffering from a very high fever. She was delusionaland she was crying out. “Please God. Let me see myson before I die. I must see my son!”
The ship’s Captain gently pushed the young man toward the bed. But soon, Peter knew why God has spared him. For lying there on that bed was the reason that he couldn’t seem to die. Here in front of him was the lifeline that had kept him from drowning five times. For lying on that bed was none other than Sarah Richley— who had prayed for ten years to be reconciled to her son, Peter.
The ship’s Captain stood in amazement as the young man rejoiced and embraced the sick woman. “I’m here mom! I’m here. It’s me!” Within days the fever had subsided and his mother awakened to find an answered prayer seated on the edge of her bed. God cannot ignore the heart of a praying mom!
In verse 12, it says “And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him.. I believe the bible story is telling each of us to position ourselves with desire, and expectancy for our“set free” moment. When God puts you in the right place at the right time, you can't help but get blessed and He specializes in turning the wrong place into the right place. Nahum 1:3 “The LORD has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet. v7 The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and He knows those that put their trust in Him”.
You will meet the right people, do the right things and even escape Satan’s hit team that are out to destroy you, and God does it simply by putting desires in your heart to go somewhere or do something, at a certain time and place, so that you end up being dead center at the place of blessing. The more you sit at His feet and just enjoy His presence, the more He fills your days with divine appointments!
Notice that When Jesus showed up, the woman’sPosture Was Changed. The scripture explains that the woman with a spiritual infirmity was affected in a way that crippled her physically for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. Her posture was downward and down cast. Jesus saw her and did something about it. He called her name and His words corrected her posture and launched her into her new freedom.
Jesus has good news for women, mothers, and sisters and daughters...to give them the right posture, to look up and move forward with self-confidence, self-esteem and self-worth…. Those five words are… “Woman, you are set free.” Those Jesus’ words break the chains that bind you and all the things that push you down. Those words straighten not only your physical body but your mind, emotions, spirit and outlook. Jesus did something else, He touched her with the touch of compassion. There are many women who are bent over and crippled spiritually around us. They need the affirming, faith building words and the touch of Jesus that flow through those who have themselves been set free…..So they can do freedom’s dance and sing freedom’s song together. Isaiah 42:22 “But this is a people robbed and spoiled; they are all of them snared in traps, and they are hiddenin prison houses: they are for a prey, and no one delivers, they are spoiled, and no one says, Restore. (it’s time for restoration!!!)
Ladies, you need to position yourself. If you get your identity from those who take you for granted, use you, and are only takers…. that’s will be the biggest influence in your life and you will become a reflection of that…you don’t need them, or their attitude! (Listen ladies, you need patience, but not a that much)!
A woman was out with her lady friends having a girlsnight out, when the most handsome man she had ever seen comes in and is seated at the next table. She can’t help staring, and noticing this, he comes over and says “I am willing to be yours for the evening”…for only $100.00. She agrees and presses the $100 in his palm and seals the deal, then when they got to the home she said, now, clean my entire house!
It’s time to position yourself for the master’s touch! He will also grow you, increase you, develop and equip you and you will not be the same person who first encounters Him. You will receive your God-ordained, upright position as He invades your life with the Holy Spirit. Keep it out of the ditches and he will get you there.
Jeremiah 30:17 The Lord, speaks clearly with his guarantee….”For I will restore health unto you, and I will heal you of your wounds, says the LORD; even though they called you an Outcast, saying, no one wants you or seeks after you”. Notice also that The Woman Stepped Over Into jubilant Praise…. This woman’s crooked back wasn’t her only problem…Her praise was broken and pressed down within her, just like her body was pressed down….She needed her praise to be set free, so she could be a jubilant praiser!.
The spirit of infirmity was replaced by the new spirit of praise. The spiritual bondage in her mind and soul and on her body was replaced by the set free spirit. Her spirit of infirmity of sadness and depression was replaced by the joyous spirit. That eighteen year spirit of hopelessness, was replaced by the hopeful spirit. Praises brought into her life, strength, security, purpose, stability, soundness, principals and values. BELIEVE THAT……WHAT HE’S DONE FOR OTHERS, HE’LL DO FOR YOU!!!!
I'm going to say something that may surprise you, but it is a fact. The Bible actually says more about praise than it does about prayer. And we all know the importance of prayer. Praise can cause walls and obstacles to falldown… (Ask Joshua…)
Praise can stop the fury of the fire that has come to consume you… (Ask 3 Hebrew Boys…) Praise can quench the appetite of the devourer… (Ask Daniel…)
The meaning of the name of the tribe of Judah is “Praise”….they were the praisers…..Judah had a son…his name was “Perez”…His name means “the breaker or to break forth”…When you praise, the breaker, eruptsthrough for you….
We have all heard the statement, “Let go and let God.” Well, I found out where this phrase originated…. A college student back in the nineteenth century took 6postcards and wrote a large letter on each one of the postcards: L–E–T---G-O-D. He then put them on the mantelpiece in his apartment where he was living. One evening a draft blew through the window and the “D” blew away. As he picked it up, what he saw on the mantle was a message from God, and the secret of the Christian life. Only by letting go can you let God and carry out His will in your life.
Jesus declared to the woman…. “Woman, Let Go, You Are Free”…
It’s amazing how the Lord is able to bring peace from our shattered pieces and fill up the hole in us with His wholeness. We will dare to believe that even with our shattered lives, we can still be used mightily and effectively by Him. Thank God for all the woman, who are bruised, but not broken, bowed but not destroyed, they may be down, but they are far from out! Through Christ, they dare to gather up the ashes of the past and trade them in for beauty, the agony of their spirit, have been replaced with the oil of joy and the spirit of heaviness has been replaced by the garments of praise.
Isaiah 42:3 “A bruised reed shall He not break, and the smoking flax shall He not quench: He shall bring forth judgment unto truth. (I like the message bible version)
Isaiah 42:3 (The Message) He won't brush aside the bruised and the hurt neither will He disregard the small and insignificant, but he'll steadily and firmly set things right.
If you are still struggling with some bitterness and unforgiveness that may have wedged itself into your heart? Maybe you just need to come to Him and let Him speak those glorious, liberating words into you….”Freedom belongs to you!!!!. Free to try again, Free to take the risk, free to be who God made you to be… Free to rejoice, Free to care, Free to love again…..
Redeemed Mom, you are stronger than those spirits that want to destroy your home, your marriage, your children, and your roll as Mom! Sometimes, just an ounce of mother is worth more than a pound of preacher!
1 Corinthians 7:14 (King James) “For the unbelieving husband is sanctified (Greek word ang'-koo-rah…to be an anchor, to restrain, to hold back) by the wife, or else your children would be unprotected, but now are they holy (hag-ee-ad'-zo… separated and consecrated).
We see this same force of action in 2Thesselonians 2:7 “For the mystery of iniquity is already working: only he who now lets (controls, restrains, holds back) will let, until he be taken out of the way”.
When Jesus told the woman, “Woman you are free”….another version says...”Woman you are loosed”…. So Jesus bound the spirit that was empowering the infirmity which had cause her to be bowed down, and then He cast it out of her body, mind and spirit! Stop coming against the symptoms and attack the roots!
Is the root, a broken heart. Or a wounded spirit, or a deception in the mind, or maybe your soul is weighted down and discouragement has knocked you down.... Has the battle lasted so long, it has worn you out depleted your faith and your hope...
Well, Hallelujah, if Jesus says you can be free, that settles it…and Jesus has already made the first move, He’s done His part, now we just need to receive it….
We’re going to pray….and As we do…..Be set free in Jesus Name….
I especially would like all the moms to come as we agree together…let’s gather around these wonderful gifts, God has given us….our moms….
Heavenly Father, as a mother gives life and nourishment to her children,
even so you watch over your Church to nourish it and give it life. You have entrusted moms with the care of every precious human life from its very beginning in the womb. You have given to women the capacity of participating with You in the creation of new life. Grant that every woman may come to understand the full meaning of that blessing, which gives her an unlimited capacity for unselfish
love for every child she may be privileged to bear, and for all Your children. Give her courage in times of fear or pain, understanding in times of uncertainty and doubt, and hope in times of trouble. As a child’s first teacher and guide, grant that our moms may be given the wisdom and council to nurture the faith of God, within their children, following the example of Mary, Elizabeth, and other holy women of God. Help these moms to grow daily in knowledge and understanding of Christ, not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
Release in them the gifts, to impart this knowledge faithfully to their children, and to all who depend upon them. We speak blessing upon "spiritual mothers", those who, though they may have no children of their own, nevertheless selflessly care for the children of others -- of every age and place in life. Grant that they may know the joy of fulfilling this motherly calling of women, whether in teaching, nursing, religious life, or in other work which recognizes and fosters the true dignity of every human being created in Your image and likeness.
Send Your Holy Spirit, the Comforter, to all mothers who sorrow for children that are ill or estranged from their families, or who are in trouble or danger of any kind. We ask your blessing on all those to whom You have entrusted motherhood. May Your Holy Spirit constantly inspire, enlarge, refresh and strengthen these as the supernatural mothers You designed them to be. Let the example of their faith and love shine forth.
Lord, Grant that we, the sons and daughters, may honor them always with a spirit of profound respect, honor, and appreciation. May our mothers, receive Your Grace abundantly in this earthly life, and may they look forward to eternal joy in Your presence in the life to come. We ask this through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns, world without end…..AMEN.
Matthew 10:7-8 And proclaim as you go, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons..Freely You have received, freely give”.
Of course the most popular and most well known place where Jesus mentions the Kingdom is in the “Disciple’s Prayer”.....Where Jesus instructs us to ask the Father for “Thy Kingdom Come in earth as it is in heaven”....So what does that look like, and exactly what is that we ask the Father for, when we pray the prayer Jesus asked us to pray. Jesus grew up under the oppressive rule of the Roman Empire whose founder and ruler was Julius Caesar followed by Mark Anthony and then Caesar Augustus. There have been 61 monarchs who have ruled over England and it’s tribute territories. America had to break away from that type of government, in order to find its own sovereign path and destiny.
We who have not grown up in areas where the rule of a King or a Queen is the way a society functions, really don’t have an accurate view of what a “Kingdom” is... In a kingdom, the ruler’s word is the law of the land.
An Arch Bishop was to do the wedding service for a certain King and Queen to be. He noticed the bride was very stressed out, so he asked what was wrong. She replied that she was awfully nervous that she would not remember what to do. The Archbishop told her that she only needed to remember 3 things.
First the aisle, cause that’s what she’d be walking down.
Second was, the alter because that is where you will meet.
And third, was the hymn because that is the song when they arrive.
Simple... The aisle, the altar, and the hymn. But while the bride was walking down the aisle, thefamily and friends of the king were horrified to hear her repeating those 3 words in order to remember them and stay calm...
Aisle, alter, hymn (I'll alter him) What made her calm, stressed them out like you just wouldn’t believe!
The modern version of Christianity has altered the true meaning of what it is to be part of a kingdom. We’ve become feel good, seeker friendly, happy hour, I’ll do it my way, instant blessing junkies! Bosses are having to be retrained so they don’t ask someone to do something in a way that might offend them, or so it’s not racial, or politically incorrect or incorrectly gender specific.... (What?)That’s not a kingdom....
So if we are told to pray “Thy Kingdom Come”, shouldn’t it be important to understand what we are asking... I think you know what I’m saying...
Revelation 19:16 “And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”
A ‘Kingdom’ as “a very real place, ruled by a King who influences and oversees his Kingdom with His personality, His values, his morality, His lifestyle, his standards for living and His decrees, so that the people begin to reflect and live those things out as part of their belief system.
The Prophet Isaiah says that “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” When Adam sinned, he did not lose his religion, he lost dominion over the earth.
Jesus came to restore the Kingdom dominion on earth that Adam lost. The belief system of Jesus, is that He is bringing His kingdom into the earth to be the solution to earth’s problems. The Bible is about a king, His Kingdom and His Royal Family who are committed to His rulership.
The Kingdom of Heaven is a real place, with a culture where there is peace, joy, daily bread for all, forgiveness, love, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, selflessness, respect for all, healing, gentleness, and self-control.
God’s divine passion is to bring the influence of heaven’s culture into the earth by spreading His kingdom throughout the earth. In every home, every business, the marketplace, the streets and byways, every county and state, every country and island of the sea!
Psalm 33:5 “He loves righteousness and justice and the whole earth is full of the lovingkindness of the Lord”.
Isaiah 6:3 “And one angel called out to another and said, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory.”
You will see what you’re looking for, what you focus on..... If you look for evil, wickedness, debauchery, the curse, and evidence of the depravity of mankind... you will surely find it....Every kingdom is constantly attacked by other kings who wish to invade it, take it over and subjugate the people.
But what if we look for and hold fast to God’s righteousness, His justice, His lovingkindness, and His grace and mercy.... Cause it’s everywhere....
Psalm 108:5 “Be exalted, O God, above the heavens, And Your glory over all the earth”. If that’s what you’re looking for, you’ll find it!
When God placed Adam in the garden, He gave Adam a lot of responsibility, but there was accountability. That meant Adam had to give an account for how he handled that responsibility. Being in a kingdom clearly means that we must account to the King, his statutes, his life values, rules and laws which bring order and purpose to the lives of all those under the king’s rule. “God told Adam [to] guard the garden and keep it, not just the material and physical things, but the laws and principals by which it functions. If I follow the King’s requirements, then the garden, (the worldwhich is filled with His glory) will meet my needs and pour out blessings on my path each and every day.
The Kingdom of God is one of the key elements of the teachings of Jesus in the New Testament. Drawing on Old Testament teachings, it describes the relationship between God and those who receive Christ in the context of a King and His bride.
The bride gives herself to her husband at the betrothal ceremony, which is what we call receiving Christ as Lord and Savior.
The public event which seals this is our baptism in water, where we publicly proclaim that we belong to Jesus for the rest of our lives.
After the betrothal ceremony, the husband goes away to prepare the house (this is usually a year) that they will live in while the bride prepares herself to be pleasing to him when he returns. She spends this time becoming the wife He will want when he comes back to receive her. She never knows when he will return so she stays ready and prepared.
But he gives her a betrothal gift to bind their promise. Jesus gave us the gift of the Holy Spirit to be with us and in us until He returned.
If I want the king’s protection and provision, then I must obey what the king desires of me. A portion of everything I have and my gifts and abilities belong to the King and the kingdom which He represents.
Listen to Paul as He describes this...
Romans 12:1–8 “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. 3 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. 4 For just as each of us has one body with many members,
and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ (our king) we, though many, form one body, (the kingdom) and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully”.
Paul even stated that he didn’t own anything in this world, but he was only the steward, who was using things to glorify the King.
I lease my car, it belongs to someone else, but I am required to return it in as good a shape as I got it. It’s a blessing, but it is also a responsibility which requires me to be accountable for every scratch and dent.
I rent a condo, but it is required of me that I present it back at the end of my lease in good a condition that the owner will approve of.Our bodies are on loan from God and one day they will be turned in because they have an expiration date.
1 Corinthians 6:20 “For you are bought with a price: (God is the owner) therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.”
What if we see our bodies, our abilities and talents, and all that we have, as on loan from Him, and we are accountable for what we do with it all, knowing that there will be a final inspection.
I mean, I may be able to hide things and have secrets from you, but nothing is hidden from Him, before whom all things are revealed.
Jesus gave us careful instructions to follow until He returns, and He gave us Holy Spirit to show us all things and help us in our preparations while He’s away. We are to manage the spiritual kingdom in His behalf, until the kingdom comes physically to this earth. So that the physical is ruled by the spiritual and not the other way around.
The owner of the company gave a brief speech to the employees then introduced the CEO. The CEO stated that he had started out sweeping floors and cleaning toilets, then went to the mail room, from there he went on the line, and then into management, before becoming a CEO. He then stated that if everyone would be diligent and be good managers of the job they’re given, there is no limit to what they can achieve. He turned it back over to the owner who complimented him on a great speech. The CEO then said “Thanks Dad”....
You are the owner’s children and he has destined you for management.
You see, we don’t have a blessing problem, we have a management problem. God didn’t send rain in the garden, until Adam was in the garden to manage what grew. He placed Adam in the garden to manage the garden of Eden which was supposed to be a global prototype.
Management is the primary reason He put people on the earth.”
God will not give you what you pray for, He will only give you what you can manage. God has heard everyone’s prayers, but when He doesn’t seem to answer, He is protecting us from things we cannot manage.
Why would God give me 10 million dollars, if I can’t manage to tithe
on what I already have? God trusts you and blesses you based on management, not your prayer requests. You fast and pray and wonder why God’s not responding but Jesus gave us a law of the kingdom.... it’s called seed time and harvest. Sowing and reaping... He said “He who is faithful in little shall be given much”.
God gave you a job to see how you manage other people’s property, so He can give you your own. God is watching to see if you pay your bills on time, and called in sick on the job but you weren’t, or didn’t keep a promise, or only did what you had to but never went the second mile...
We were placed in the kingdom to solve problems.
Joseph was the answer, going to Egypt to solve a problem that didn’t even exist yet.... David thought he was taking lunch to his brothers, but didn’t know he was the solution to a problem named Goliath.... Moses was brought into the kingdom to solve a problem that existed 400 years before he was born.
You are the solution in search of a problem to solve. “You exist because you are the fulfillment of God’s desires. That’s your assignment, and right now the problem is coming your way for a solution. You were not born just to make a living, get a pay check, work, eat, sleep, pay bills, and repeat the cycle, until you die. People get paid for the problems they solve, they don’t work for money really, but they get paid for solutions, that’s what people pay for. Doctors, lawyers, mechanics, cooks, teachers, firemen, cops, farmers and on and on.... make their money solving problems.
The graveyard is filled with people who never solved the problem they were born to solve, so their life had no depth of meaning. The problems you encounter, show up to introduce you to yourself, to your giftedness, to your value. If there was no Goliath there would be no King David — that giant problem was the ticket to his greatness. Stop trying to run away from the key to your greatness. David was not important until he killed Goliath. Your value goes up when the problems are solved. When you see difficulties on your job, don’t run from them embrace them. You are never remembered for the things you avoided. You are remembered for the problems you solved.
You don’t have to look for money because money is looking for you, if you are the solution. Money follows solutions.
Bill Gates is one of the richest men alive because he found a solution, called a computer for the average guy. IBM turned him away and now IBM is using his software. “Fast food businesses are so successful because they solve a problem. You don’t have to get dressed up, spend an hour waiting, no, it’s paper plates, napkins and let’s eat and go.... then they added drive through so you don’t even have to get out of the car... and we give them money non stop because they solved a problem.
“We get so busy trying to pay light bills and water bills, we walk past the problem every day that was designed to make us great. Jesus solved the problem of death, that’s why he’s so famous. He solved the most important problem on earth...The number one fear of humans is death, and Jesus gave you the solution to share with everyone you meet. Provision will follow solutions. You were born to solve the greatest problem mankind has. You’ve been given the keys to the kingdom. Believe me when you give people the solution to the greatest problem of mankind, God will make sure that provision will follow you. You were not saved to go to heaven, you were saved to give everyone you can, the keys to the kingdom, so they too can solve the problems of the world.
God calls all of us to manage the harvest. God’s kingdom is about life and growth. Everyone of us has the seeds of life and growth within us, we just need to find the right soil to be planted in so we can achieve and unlock our potential.
Every barren place, every needy area, is the soil that is calling your name so that you can plant the seed that is in you and see life and growth take place. 90 percent of success is in a person’s head, so find yourself, step into the barren place and be the life that is needed there.
Don’t be trapped by what you have already done or not done so that it makes you question what you can do. Don’t be so preoccupied with what has happened that you can’t embrace all that God has created you for. What is keeping you from being the answer right where you are. Don’t let the things you’ve done, keep you from the great things you are created to accomplish.
Paul says, Philippians 3:13-14” “This one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, I’m pressing forward unto those things which are still ahead. I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”
It’s time to stop grave digging.. God doesn’t care what you have done if you are willing to do what he still wants you to do.
You have to get out of the graveyard of the past, in order to accomplish your future destiny. Negative, toxic memories don’t go away, you have to send them away. Their shelf life has expired, they have no place in your new life....
God says, Isaiah 43:18 “Do not call to mind the former things, pay no attention to the things of old. 19 Behold, I am about to do something new; even now it is coming”.
God wants your future to be greater than your past. He cancelsout your sins because he wants to bring forth your righteousness... He forgets your failure because he wants to see your success.... He is more interested in what you are born to do, than He is in what you have done. He doesn’t hold our past against our future and He doesn’t measure our future by our past.
Ephesians 2:1-4 “But God, who is rich in mercy, with His great love wherewith He loved us, 5 Even when we were dead in sins, He has quickened us together with Christ, (by grace you are saved;) 6 And has raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: 7 That in the ages to come He might shew the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus”.
I have an announcement... Change is coming! Our lives are in a constant state of transition. Life is always moving forward; nothing ever remains the same. We are continually being transported--whether suddenly or gradually--into the new, the different, the unexpected, or the untried. God wants you to use change for your benefit, so that it enables you to accomplish your God-given purpose in life. Change will bring problems which you are there to solve. We can still experience security, confidence, and freedom in the uncertainty of our changing world if we know who we are and that wherever we are in whatever circumstances, we bring solutions to problems around us. Determine that you won’t be the victim but the solution. Let those waves of change sweep you forward into what God has designed for this time and this place!
Prayer......Lord Jesus, Help me to remember the reason I began this journey with You. Help me to see the purpose behind Your plan and provide me with the necessary grace and perspective. Keep my focus set upon Your high calling, as I find strength for the next step, and discover faith to keep moving forth and to believe that miracles are possible today and in everykind of circumstances.
Lord, I know that You are ready and willing to answer and to release Your power and might. As I stay grounded in Your word and focused on the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen, Yoursolutions shall be revealed. You are my source of love and life and the giver of a sound mind and receptive spirit. I know that You are the controller of everything and that nothing escapes Your attention.You have given me all that I require to walk in joy and peace. I rest in Your promises, and when life gets crazy, You give me sweet rest and having done all, I stand and give you all the praise and glory in Jesus name.
Declare.... God has put me in the right place at the right time to bring the solution to the problems in my path. They will release my blessing and the resources which I have prayed for. I will praise the Lord that changes which are coming are not the enemy but the messenger from God for my good.
