"God's All Seeing Eye"

"His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof." (Psalms 19:6) When talking about the sun, this verse speaks of scientific facts that were not yet known at the time of it's writing; but when speaking of God's mighty power, there is every bit of truth in this verse that has been known of Him since the beginning of time. If we were to try and hid from God, there is no place that He will not find us; let alone the things that we think that we can hide from Him, they are in plan sight to Him, and we should know that. As I was thinking about some of the stupid things that I have done over the years, I had to wonder what blacked out my common sense and made me think that God was not watching, or was not paying attention to those things that I was doing. There is nowhere that God can not see those things that we do, or the thoughts that we think, or even the dreams that we make come to life in our minds; He can see it all, every last bit of it, and we know that! That is the hardest thing for me to understand, and to wrap my mind around; us doing what we know that He can see, and yet we go ahead and do it anyways. Yes, I know; David is speaking about the sun; as he was also in the previous verse; but don't you think that God speaks more through His own word than the person that wrote it? After all; Who put these words in David's heart? We have so many things available to us to remind us that He is watching us, some of which are more available than others. I know of something that most of us have that has ten reasons to let them be reminders to God's all seeing eye, and that is our two hands. That kind of gives meaning to the "Lift Up Holy Hands" way of honoring God; whereby we use our hands as reminders of His ever-present Spirit that is watching every move that we make and knows every thought that we think. As I have been trying to look for God's love to be evident in my life and in this world, I have noticed that God has opened up my eyes to more things that I feel led to pray about; things like hurting families, and children that do not know what real love is; our brothers and sisters that let the stupidest things bring a wedge between them, and then that wedge becomes a place and a thing that the devil rules; and something that I feel the enemy is taking from us all, and that is our ability to communicate to one another. Sure, our avenues of communication have expanded to the ends of the earth, where people can chat, tweet, and facebook each other all the way across the globe; but it breaks my heart when I see a young couple sitting at a restaurant booth, both busy texting or posting, while their young child fidgets in boredom. More and more this new freedom of expression that we have in technology is shutting down our communication with one another. More and more it is becoming the cause for divorce and separations among couples all across every sort, both those that are believers and those that are not; because they are communicating more in cyberspace than they are with each other. Go ahead and scoff at what I am saying, because I know that there are some who will; but if we don't start talking to each other, especially to our spouses and our children, then we are going to be throwing precious time away; time that is meant to be expressing love to one another, not entertaining ourselves in our virtual worlds...

"God's Personhood" -2

"Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race." (Psalms 19:5) I really love the way David thinks; his way of describing what is experienced in the heart has a deep richness that borders on the edge of simplicity and complexity. Two very confident areas of trust are portrayed in this verse above; one involves love and the other involves strength. The first of which portrays the heart of a bridegroom as he exits from his chamber, having consecrated the marriage, and now his marriage is sealed and the affinity of the marriage has been contracted. The main point to this way of examining how trust might play a part in this, is that the bridegroom now knows the bride, for they have consecrated the marriage on their nuptial bed, and are now one flesh. The nuptial bed is one that portrays the first experience of sexual relations between a husband and wife, and in many cultures, is not too far from the place where the wedding ceremony had taken place. The second portrait that is of a strong man to run a race, portrays the heart within the one who is fit to win the race that he is about to begin. He you have ever been in a race, especially one that is based upon endurance, then you might have experienced this feeling if you had prepared to win that race. It is a feeling of hunger for the victory that you feel you are about to win, and it creates a sense of joy for the opportunity to express that which you have put many hours of training and preparation into. Now, what happens after the race starts might be a different story, but prior to that race, their is a trust which has been established in the strength built up to the race which is about to begin. Both of these illustrations are given life in God's creation, and are part of the sacred tent of Jehovah God, our God of creation, of life, and of our salvation. The difference between us and God, is that God will not fail; His ways are sure and true, and what He has established to happen will happen, this we can be assured of. If you really take the time to think about this concept of how our trust is established, you will discover that God has portrayed His personhood in all of creation, and that with each new day that He brings around to us, He brings another opportunity to experience His nuptial bed, and another opportunity to run the race set before us...

"God's Personhood"

"Their line is gone out through all the earth, their words to the end of the world. In them hath He set a tabernacle for the sun," (Psalms 19:4) Trusting God is based upon a relationship that has been established with Him; for how can a man trust in He who he does not know? I am of the opinion that fellowship with God is something that we must hold as our greatest treasure of all, because that is really what it is all about; what God has done to redeem us unto Himself, He did so that we might have fellowship with Him. This truly is a relationship that is based upon love! At the end of the prayer that Jesus prayed in the garden before He was arrested, He said, "O righteous Father, the world hath not known Thee: but I have known Thee, and these have known that Thou hast sent me. And I have declared unto them Thy name, and will declare it; that the love wherewith Thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them". (John 17:25 & 26) As you begin to think about what kind of love Jesus is speaking about within this statement, remember that Jesus had come from glory to show forth the love of the Father; as that famous song would say, "Light of the world You stepped down into darkness, opened my eyes let me see, beauty that makes this heart adore You, hope of a life spent with you". A declaration of God's love for us was about to be made, as Jesus was about to be placed upon that cross for our sins, so that we might have fellowship restored with the Father; for Jesus had declared the Father's name in words and signs and wonders, now He was about to declare the Father's name in the act of sacrifice; showing forth the love that Jesus declared of the Father when He had spoken to Nicodemus one night, and said, "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life". Now then, since we have placed some context into what it is to know Him who you trust, we can begin to understand what I believe that David is saying within this verse; something that is based upon God's order which has been established for all of His creation, and how secure we have become in them. Hollywood has a great way of making ways to show failure in God's order of His creation; with movies that show asteroids destroying the earth, or our sun growing to hot for earth's existence. But we have more of a threat of being smashed and burned by our own space junk, then we do of getting destroyed by God's creation. That is trust based upon His order of this which He has established; otherwise, we all would be looking up each day and looking for our world to be coming to an end... The sky is not falling...yet!

"God's Existence" -2

"There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard." (Psalms 19:3) If you ever wanted to know how it was that God could let everyone know that He does exist, then herein is found the answer. We have within us the desire to know how we exist; it is something that we all think about some time within our days here, as we ponder how we got here and where it is that we go from here. Unfortunately, not all of us come to the same conclusion, and we have some really creative minds that tend to try and make something that suits our own pleasure. Couple that with a heart that is desperately wicked, and you have what could be a recipe for disaster. However, if we know that God loves us, and that His desire for us is to experience that love for us, then we stand a pretty good chance of getting it right. That is one of the most important things about our faith, in that our faith is based upon the fact that God loves us! We cannot even begin to believe in His promises towards us, if we first have not accepted the most important fact that He loves us. Do you honestly believe that God loves you? I know; that is a stupid question to ask; because we would have had to believed that He loved us in order in accept His Son into our heart; Right? You would think so; but I do believe that there are some among us who have not yet made it personal, and who have come into a relationship based upon the notion that God loves the world as a whole and tolerates them personally. This is just not the case of how love is meant to be! We must come to place where we see God's love intended for us, as if He is making a personal invitation to us as a person, not as member of a group of people, but as a individual person that He is reaching out to express His love to. Our God is big enough to love each and every one of us independently and as a whole; He has that capacity to do so, and He does so! Here is a quest that I lay before anyone that might read this posting: Try to look for God's love to be displayed in your life today, and every day here out! Received or given out, it just does not matter; but try to find the evidence of His love by looking for His love to be evident in your life; whether that is by what you perceive taking place around you, or by what you experience within your own heart; but look for His love to be evident in each and every day... WE REALLY DO NOT KNOW HOW MUCH HE LOVES US!!!

"God's Existence"

"Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge." (Psalms 19:2) Not everything has a beginning and an end, that we shall soon find out; but God has established the day and the night for us, that we might experience a new beginning each and every day. Try to imagine how it is that this rotation is kept in motion, and how it is, that by His grace we are kept the proper distance from the sun, which continues to give us light and warmth as it usurers in a new day. Sure, science will show how cause and effect and the laws of gravity are what keeps us in this proper place, but who is it that has established such an order in the first place? I have always been amazed by the way our earth continues turning and orbiting around it's sun; always ending up in the same rotation, day after day, and season after season. Who can seriously try and put that to chance? Only someone who pretends to convince themselves that God does not exist, that's who! Of one thing I am sure, that it is a whole lot harder to prove that God does not exist than it is to prove that He does. The problem that we have within our world, is that those who wish to deny the God does exist, are the ones who push the hardest to try and prove that they are right; and for good reason, because they are on the side of the losing argument. Besides that; no one needs to speak for God, because He is very capable to speak for Himself!!! That is the meaning of this verse, if you were looking for what it was trying to say. The word "speech" is a word that means an utterance, a word, as in a decree, or a command; a plan, or a purpose, that brings with it a promise, such as a promise from God. Each new day is another day to live out what God has blessed us to experience on this revolving ball; and each new day is another chance that we have to get it right. Those that have a deep relationship with God, will come to the end of each day and reflect upon those things that they might have learned from it;  taking the time to reflect upon God's goodness that they made it through, and His grace that they may have another chance tomorrow. The night shows forth great knowledge of God's existence, as we gaze upon the heavens to get a glimpse of just how not alone that we are. Oh yes; God is very capable of speaking for Himself; whether or not a man will listen, that is a whole other matter...

"God's Creation" -2

"The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth His handiwork." (Psalms 19:1) If any of you personally know someone who thinks that they are an atheist, then you might ask them to take a deeper look into the heavens and ponder their existence; not only that of the heavens, but to place themselves into that vastness, and then ask themselves, How do I exist? It really takes more creativity to deny God's existence than it does to accept the fact that He does exist; if for no other reason than to explain our existence. From the time I was in about third grade, I can remember the introduction of the 'Big Bang' theory into the classroom; how they would make us watch these films that gave the secular humanist point of view to creation, and how it was to try and prove that God was not the cause of all of this. More than once I was taken out of the classroom for being disruptive during a presentation, and for making my voice of disagreement known. Even though I might have been raised in a cult, it was a cult that believed in the existence of God and that He was the reason for our existence. What changed my life, was being shown the fact that Jesus Christ is that Creator; and once I was shown that, I saw the cross in a whole new light. It was the most powerful thing that I had ever felt; to see the one who hung upon that cross as the the one who was responsible for my existence: that my Creator would sacrifice His life on the cross to give me eternal life, was enough to make my heart feel like it was going to burst. Did you know that is how He died? He died from a broken heart! Some might speculate that it was from the weight of sin that was placed upon Him, or that for the very first time He was to be separated from the Father; I on the other hand think it might have been from His own act of forgiveness, and how He had forgiven the world for nailing Him to the cross. If you really want to explore the glory of God's creation, explore how it was that God created a way for us to receive unwarranted forgiveness, and how Jesus forgave us of our sins, before we even had a chance to ask Him to...

"God's Creation"

[To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.] "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth His handiwork." (Psalms 19:1) Now that I have spent almost two months challenging myself with several different things that God has called me on, I can take a few days and relax in God's spender. However, I do not believe that is how it works! Time and time again, I have experienced a great move of God upon my life, when I had just come to relax and be feed. I remember about twelve years ago, as I sat in middle back of about eight hundred men at a Saturday morning Men's Conference, I had just come to relax and be feed. The pastor took to the stage after about four worship songs, and he told us to turn in our Bibles to Hebrews chapter twelve; as I opened up the word and eyed the text, the word "seeing" literally jumped up off the page and knocked me off guard. Then, as the pastor began to read, "Wherefore, seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doeth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us", I was shaken to my very core; as a matter of fact, I was in tears before he had even gotten to the second word, and just the word "wherefore" had shot an arrow to my heart. We can try as hard as we want to think that we are just fine with God, and to make ourselves believe that we really do not need anything else but to just enjoy His presence; but that line of thinking will no doubt get you into a place that will require you to be knocked down, maybe even so far down that you have nothing left to do but lay prostrate upon the floor. You have no doubt heard the phrase "Seeing is believing", and have most likely thought to yourself how that might compare to faith, because faith is the substance of things not seen; however, when we gaze upon the heavens, there is no doubting the awesomeness of God, and how we could even begin to compare with the holiness and majesty of who He is. Yet, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ has given us a way that we can enter into that holiness and majesty, if we would just surrender our lives over to Him. Believing is one thing, but acting upon that which we believe is what is required for us to see the proof of our belief... "Wherefore lift up the hands that hang down, and the feeble knees; and make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed." (Hebrews 12:12 & 13)

"God's Fingerprint"

Coming now to this amazing Psalm which depicts not only God's fingerprint upon His creation and within His Holy Word, but also upon the man and the woman that would realize them and walk accordingly. Psalms Nineteen is the first of many Psalms that are in my Bible which have a title at the beginning and another title within the Psalm. I have discovered that not every one's Bible has the same titles, and that it might depend upon the type of Bible you are reading whether there are even any titles at all. As for me, I have chosen the original King James, Zodhiates' Hebrew-Greek Key Study Bible; mostly because I discovered a long time ago that if you want to be able to study the Scriptures using the original Hebrew and Greek writings, then you must have the original King James version of the Bible, as almost every source of reference is based upon the original translation. I choose Zodhiates' because I loved his book "Was Christ God?", which was based  upon the first eighteen verses in the Gospel of John; a book I highly recommend for anyone who doubts the Deity of Jesus Christ, or needs to prove it to someone else; although, I have found that it is hard to convince someone who does not posses the Holy Spirit within them, and if they do have the Holy Spirit in them, then it only confirms what they already know. Anyhow; as I was saying, this Psalm is the first one in my Bible that has two titles: one for verses one though six, which is "God's Creation", and one for verses seven through fourteen, which is "God's Law". Psalms Nineteen is put forth in two parts the depict God's fingerprint upon all of creation with the evidence of His handiwork, and His fingerprint upon His law that governs everything that is in existence. But, within these separate two parts are interwoven the proof of God's fingerprint upon our hearts, and the results of a heart that not only realizes that they are there, but that then cherishes them with all of their might. This is a great example of the parables that Jesus gave regarding the 'Buried Treasure' and the 'Very Beautiful Pearl' that we find in Matthew 13:44-46. Once that we discover God's existence, His requirements, His judgement, and then His great forgiveness, we must do nothing else but give everything for Him... "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for the joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchantman, seeking goodly pearls: who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it." (Matthew 13:44-46)

"Touched By God"

Before moving forward I needed to pause and reflect on a few things that God had spoken to my heart about in that "victory lap" taken over the last 55 days. I think the main point that I gathered from that fun little run down memory lane, is that we should never think that we have arrived, or that we have somehow been able to come to a place where we are no longer affected by temptation or sin; as if we have reached the point where we have crucified that old man once and for all, and therefore are now free to move around the planet without any fear of being stumbled. Our victory over temptation and sin is only found in Christ Jesus our Lord, and is only made possible by abiding in Him. As soon as we take on the character of being the victor, we are going to find out just how vulnerable we are to falling into a pit. It's really not to hard to see the resemblance in how many great men of the Bible have been taken to a place where they are subject to defeat and the fear that comes with it; due mostly to putting some confidence in their own abilities instead of trusting completely upon the strength of God. Just as with the closing Scriptures from yesterday, we need to understand the difference between being stumbled by sin and living in sin; because the difference is worlds apart. If we have the illusion that we are saved because we have been touched by God, and that we are therefore now a child of His just by the mere fact that He has reached out to us, then I do believe we are going to be in for a great awakening; because He reaches out to everyone and touches them in one way or another, but only those that surrender their lives over to Him are going to be accepted as His children. I have never felt so sure about anything before, that we are living in a time of great awakening where the world is being given one last call before the door is closed. The sad part in all of this, is that those that have assurance in themselves are found in great numbers within the church, for they have based their salvation upon the encounter that they had with Jesus instead of a life that is surrendered, and that is abiding in Jesus as Lord of their life. How many people do you know that think they are a Christian based upon association? Those that say with great confidence that they know Jesus, go to church every Sunday, or read the Bible regularly, and then base their salvation upon those things as if that is proof of what it means to be a Christian. This was the greatest difference between David and Saul; because they were both touched by God, but only one truly surrendered his life to Him... "For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous." (1 John 3:11 & 12)

"The God Who Saved Us" -3

"Great deliverance giveth He to His king; and showeth mercy to His anointed, to David, and to his seed forevermore." (Psalms 18:50) Just in case you were wondering if I had lost it, and I was being consumed by some kind of thought on forgiveness, let me assure you that I am pretty sure that victory is something that God gives us over every area of our life. I have seen more than enough examples of believers in Christ who have been robbed of the victory that they have in Him, only because they have bought into this false acceptance that it is okay to hold onto sin. Somehow the notion of 'God is not through with me yet' has been changed into 'God has not given up on me yet', and then settled upon as the new slogan for making it through another day. David was a man after God's own heart because he saw the deliverance for what it really was, and that it was more than enough to provide for us the victory that we need to have in every area of our life; if we would just allow Him to deliver us! As so we read in Romans chapter Six, that we must die to sin, because we have new life in Christ that has been made void of sin; not because we have not the means to commit sin any longer, but because we have been given the ability to not serve sin any longer; which in case you did not know, any longer means, from here on out! Therefore; if we are still struggling to have victory in our life, it is very important that we take every possible area of our life and evaluate what it is that we might not have been delivered of yet because we have not yet given it over to God. Forgiveness is pretty much the most overlooked area; mostly because it usually involves things that we would rather not have to think about. But God has a plan for each and every one of His children, which is a plan that is based upon the victory that He has provided for us to walk in, that we might be able to walk out the promises He has established for our lives. Yes, He will not give up on us, but let's make sure that we have not given up on Him and the plan that He has for our life. David saw God's plan for him, and he looked forward with all of his heart to it being carried out; believing that God was not through with him yet, because he knew what salvation looked like...The God Who Saved Us... "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as He is pure. Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. And ye know that He was manifested to take away our sins; and in Him is no sin. Whosoever abideth in Him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen Him, neither known Him. Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as He is righteous. He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for His seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. In this the children of God are manifested, and the chidren of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother." (1 John 3:2-10)

"The God Who Saved Us" -2

"Therefore will I give thanks unto Thee, O LORD, among the heathen, and sing praises unto Thy name." (Psalms 18:49) The "Therefore" is here because of deliverance has taken place, and therefore we are to give thanks! When we give thanks, we are to do so with a thankful heart; which means that we have a heart that is truly thankful for the deliverance that we have been given. The main reason that someone might be considered a heathen is because they are separated from God, or outside of the family of God; such as a Gentile would be outside the people of Israel. When it comes to God's purpose for the people of Israel, His purpose was that through His chosen people all the nations of the world would be blessed; meaning those that are considered heathen also, (Genesis 12:1-3). Everyone that is born upon this earth is born in bondage to judgement of sin, and is condemned from birth to a spiritual separation from God; this is the curse of the sin that was committed in the Garden. To be set free from the bondage of sin, is to be delivered from all that which is associated with sin; including that thing called judgement. If you understand what judgement requires to be removed from any situation, it requires reconciliation to take place, whereby the judgement has been settled and then healing can happen. Paul speaks of this act of being reconciled in Romans 5:8-11, and gives us the reason why healing is a key ingredient to the proof of being reconciled to God. The healing that we are to look for is not a physical healing, but a spiritual healing that has given life to something that was previously without life and separated from God. Paul starts out speaking about how we have peace with God, and how that we have the love of God shed abroad in our hearts because of what Jesus Christ has done for us on the cross. The requirement for the judgement of the sin in our lives was satisfied by the blood of Jesus Christ; thereby, the reconciliation was established by the debt for that sin being paid. Now that we have been reconciled unto God, the healing has been granted to our spiritual lives; whereby, the spiritual death that was once separating from God has been made alive in us, and the Holy Spirit now is residing in us. Now then; we have this life that has been established in us, which has at it's core a spirit of reconciliation; because it is alive because it has been reconciled unto God, it is therefore alive unto God to spread reconciliation in every area of our life. When we honestly take a hard look at our lives and consider what it is that we have been given and what it is that we are to give out, we find that there is no comparison, and that there is so much more that we need to give; because in reality, we could never give enough. It is this new life that has been reconciled to God that requires reconciliation in our life on every level, including those that have hurt us or have offended us in any way. If we do not be reconciled with those that we have grievance against, then we have not satisfied the judgement, and forgiveness has not taken place; and if forgiveness has not taken place in life here amongst each other, then we are still in the bondage of sin because judgement still remains... "But God commanded His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son; much more, being reconciled we shall be saved by His life. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement." (Romans 8:8-11)    

"The God Who Saved Us"

"He delivered me from mine enemies: yea, Thou liftest me up above those that rise up against me: Thou hast delivered me from the violent man." (Psalms 18:48) You know what I think; I think that Hell is way over rated! It's just that there is so much glory given to a place that will be filled with so much misery, and where love will not exist at all; only shame and regret will be felt in that place, yet so many movies and songs have been written to portray it as just an alternative place for those that refuse to worship God. As I was waking up this morning, I could not help but think of the story of 'The Rich Man and Lazarus' from Luke 16:19-31, and how the Rich Man begs to have Lazarus sent back to his father's house to tell his five brothers about the fate that will await them in that place of torment. It was because he was not expecting that place to be so terrible, and needed to let those he cared about know just how bad it was. When it comes to giving God glory for all that He has done for us, let us not forget the most important deliverance of all, which is that He has broken those chains that kept us condemned to Hell!!! Immediately after Jesus told this story of 'The Rich Man and Lazarus', He went on to speak about "offenses" and our obligation to forgive others, no matter how many times they sin against us. Why do you think Hell might have anything to do with unforgiveness? Could it be that they are both associated with torment? One of the qualities of being delivered from those that might have come against us, is to have forgiven them from having done so; otherwise, we are still bound to their offense by unforgiveness. In other words; we take the shackles that they would of bound us with and use them on ourselves; binding our hearts in an area that is void of God's love and forgiveness; an area that is very much filled with misery and darkness, which is the opposite of being set free from the bondage of sin. Why do you think that unforgiveness can have such hold on our hearts? Let's see; maybe it could have something to do with God's unconditional love, and how He has expressed that love in His forgiveness for us. If we truly know the God who saved us, then we must know how much He has forgiven us, and if we know how much He has forgiven us, the we are naturally obligated to forgive others; otherwise we have not yet been delivered... 

"To Bless The LORD" -2

"It is God that avengeth me, and subdueth the people under me." (Psalms 18:47) The one thing about being conformed into the image of Jesus Christ is that we are brought into a closer relationship with the Father in the process. There is not anyone who is closer to the Father than the Son, for the Son came from and returned to the bosom of the Father, (John 1:18). To begin to understand what it is that God has chosen for our lives we must allow Him to conform us into the image that He has envisioned for us to be; a task that does not really require a whole lot of work, but one that is hard, because it requires us to surrender our lives completely over to His Son, Jesus Christ. Every time I think that I have surrendered all, I find more garbage hiding in my closets; and every time I think there is nothing more I must deal with, I get hit upon the head with something that will literally knock me to the ground. As David was writing this Psalm, there were many issues that were entering his mind and heart about the various trials of his life; of this I am very confident in assuming, because of the timeline of when it was written. He had written the first song that we see in 2 Samuel 22 after having sinned against God with Bethsheba, having gone through the revolt with Absalom, having dealt with the sins of Saul against the Gibeonites, and then finally having taken out the final giant of Gath by the hand of his nephew Jonathon; yet he had not yet taken the census. The point that I am trying to make is about God not being finished with us yet, and how we are always going to need conforming as long as we are dwelling in the broken world. Being that as it may, God had needed to deal with David's pride; which was brought out through David taking the census, and made apparent to David as soon as he had taken it, (2 Samuel 24:10). After having repented in his heart, David asked for God to take away the iniquity from him, for he had felt very bad for what he had done against God. If you know the story, then you know that many of the people of Israel died of pestilence because of the sin that David committed; to the tune of about seventy thousand men, and many more women and children. So, as we can see, even though our heart might say one thing, it is really harboring something else. Even though we may think that we have it all together, God will prove to us differently; because it is not for our glory that God conforms us into His image, but it is for His, that He would receive the Glory...

"To Bless The LORD"

"The LORD liveth, and blessed be my Rock, and let the God of my salvation be exalted." (Psalms 18:46) If we try really really hard, we might just start to see things the way that God wants us to see them; that is with Him wanting to bless us with a life that is so rich and full of pleasure, that is not room for anything else! You know that saying about the glass half full or half empty? well that is our problem in so many areas of our life; looking for more to happen, and not experiencing what we have been given. If we are called of God, and if we are given eternal life in Jesus Christ, what more do we need to be given? And yet, God wants to surround us with His love, fill us with His Spirit, and place on a road that is specific to the call that He has upon our lives. And yet, we are so accustom to setting ourselves up for failure, because we gage our life by others and by what we think that God has called us into or to be about; when really, He just wants us to be what He has made us to be, which is obedient to His voice. To put this another way that might be easier to understand, we could look at a familiar passage of Scripture that everyone loves to quote when things don't seem to be going the way that they should, which is Romans 8:28, and says, "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose". We love quoting this verse as a answer for things that seem discouraging to the abundant life that we have been promised; hoping instead to see a greater good to come forth from whatever it is that we are going through. But, what we fail to realize in this effort to experience abundant life, is that God's main goal is to mold us into the image of His Son; a task that sometimes requires us to be broken and reshaped according to His design for us, not according to what we see ourselves to be. That is something that I think we get so distracted by, and place so much of our energy on trying to be someone else, instead of just letting God mold us into the image that He has prepared for us; because if we continue on in Romans 8:29, Paul completes his statement by saying, "For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren". So then; to what good do all things work together for? And how are we assured that they are all good? All things work together to conform us into the image of Jesus Christ, and be that which God has already established in His own sight. Think of it as a sculpture being made, and the one who is making the sculpture envisions what he is making, then takes away all that is not what he has envisioned...

"And Be Set Free"

"The strangers shall fade away, and be afraid out of their close places." (Psalms 18:45) There is really nothing stranger that not being in the place you thought that you were in; wouldn't you agree? This is a very interesting verse, in that it portrays a life that becomes accustom to a certain environment or surrounding, to which that life then builds upon itself based upon those surroundings. I was reminded this morning of a little thing called 'Abiding in Jesus'; although not that little of an issue, it really is a little thing that we must do; it is not a lot of work to do, it's just hard. What makes it hard, is not the way that we must do it, it is the direction that we must face; placing all of our concerns, burdens, problems, inadequacies, sins and even our stupidity, totally and firmly into the care of Jesus Christ. It's not our concern any longer once we have given it over to Him; for He is more than willing to take it from us and replace it with something that more resembles Him. The thing that causes strangers to fade away, is that they are no longer strangers, and have been transformed into the current community; thereby making them to be strangers no more, but part of the fabric within that community. However; what makes them to be afraid out of their close places, is that, they are what they are, and have built a fortress around themselves that they might hide within. It is this that I have been reminded of this morning, and how it is that we find ourselves have taken refuge in our own personal fortified cites, instead of taking refuge in Christ. It truly does come back to pride, and how we just can hardly ever seem to stop from thinking that we must make that place in which we are to abide; putting our trust in our own abilities, will do nothing but create a place where Christ will not abide, and a very unsecured place outside of abiding in Him. Without getting all philosophical and trying to find blame for the reason that we are prone to such stupidity, I must go back to the whole reason for Saul having been placed in the position of King, and how it was that the children of Israel wanted a king to rule over them, instead of being ruled by God; not because they wanted to be ruled by any man, because that is really not what they wanted; but because they wanted to have someone to display as their king, and to be a representation to who they were as a people. Saul was that representative, but David was the representative of who they needed to be, which were broken lives that are dependent upon God...

"To Be Blessed..." -2

"As soon as they hear of me, they shall obey me: the strangers shall submit themselves unto me." (Psalms 18:44) There are some things that need to be lived in order to properly understand what they mean, or to even begin to know how they are lived out in our daily lives; and even then, they are things that must be held onto in order to continue to properly understand them. For example; David's life was very much a type of picture of the coming King of Kings, who, for the sake of His kingdom was willing to sacrifice Himself for those that would be subject to Him. If you could have anything in the world, what would it be? Would you consider to be loved and admired as something that you would want most of all? That is the thing that comes with putting others first, and with making serving others more important than serving yourself. David's rein in Israel brought a peace to the kingdom and established a place where the heir to his throne did not need to be concerned with war, but could instead focus on worshipping God. As short lived as that was, it was a picture of what was done for us as subjects of the Lord's kingdom, where we do not need to fight battles anymore to secure the blessing of God, but need to just focus on worshipping Him. There is a place that is made available for us, by which we can actually enter into His rest; a rest that He has provided by the battle that He has won for us, and that He has made available to us by providing a kingdom for us to worship Him in. Being that as it has been established, there is only the problem of us finding it; something of a quest that is a battle of it's own; not because there are still battles to be fought out there, but the battle that we face is the one within ourselves, where we are constantly trying to hold onto His rest, instead of resting in Him... "Come unto Me all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me: for I and meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30)

"To Be Blessed..."

"Thou hast delivered me from the strivings of the people; and Thou hast made me the head of the heathen: a people whom I have not known shall serve me." (Psalms 18:43) As with so many other verses in the Bible that speak of God's deliverance from whatever it is that binds us, in the midst of His deliverance there is a blessing that springs forth from it; sometimes there are multiple blessings, that will actually multiply as we move forward in the deliverance. The bottom line, is that God really does want to bless our lives beyond measure; but in order to do that, He needs us to be walking in obedience to that which He has called us into, and to be walking away from that which He has delivered us from. Going back to that little gig about being a master craftsman; there are some things that must be birthed in a man before he can become great in that which he does, and the primary thing that must happen is that he will put great effort into making whatever he does something that can be witnessed as excellence. In other words; that which he does matters to him as something that others will observe as excellence, and he therefore makes excellence part of his work. When Paul says in 1 Corinthians 9:25, "And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things", he is making a point of how those that strive to be the very best at what they do, do so with great self-control and self-governance; such as an athlete who prepares to win a competition must push himself to train well, and must put worth every effort to avoid those things which will hinder his training. To those that might be of a particular craft, what they do is very similar, in that they make every effort to create something that others will marvel at, and to do so by removing every flaw that might exist in whatever they are making. I have a little problem when it comes to paying people for their service or merchandise, in that I seldom ever complain if they over charge me, but I am quick to complain if they under charge me. For example, I hardly will ever add up the bill before paying for my meal at a restaurant, unless I think that they might have left off something that I ordered. Or if paying for merchandise, and I feel that they might have forgotten an item, I make sure that they check and make sure that it is correct. The reason that this sometimes gets me into trouble, is that every one's first natural reaction is to think that I am looking for a mistake to my favor instead of looking for one that is to theirs, and they immediately get offensive when I want to dispute the bill. But I never get tired of the reaction on their faces when they discover that I refuse to be under charged; it makes anything spent, worth every cent not saved. The point that I am trying to make, is that what we exemplify to others in our lives really matters, and is something that will be counted for or against us in the end; therefore, we strive for that which is incorruptible, and which displays the commands of Him that we serve...

"Fight Hard for Holiness..."

"Then I beat them small as the dust before the wind: I did cast them out as the dirt in the streets." (Psalms 18:42) Understandably a very odd way to describe what you might do to your enemies, but there are some things that must be totally destroyed and gotten rid of, once and for all! I see two very important points in this that pertain to what God has been putting upon my heart, and that are things which I know that I must deal with in my own life, and within my very own house. The first of which has to do with those things that I allow into my life which are compromising to a life of holiness before God; and I say this with some slight hesitation, but they may have more of an impact upon me personally, then they ever will on God. God already knows all there is to know about me; He even knows more about me, than I even know about myself. So how can I do something that will cause Him to be more ashamed of me than I am of myself? It is God who only wants the very best for our lives; He wants us to thrive in His mighty love for us, and really know the peace and the joy that He has to offer; yet, it is impossible to experience that total peace and joy, when there are things that hinder us from that experience. I must be careful when speaking of this subject, because there are many people who take something like this that I am talking about and turn it into some kind of legalism. This is not about how God views us in the way that we live our lives, but more about how we view ourselves in the light of His Holiness, and whether or not we are living out the victory that He has established for us to walk in. The thing that I feel God speaking into my heart is about taking things down to the smallest degree possible, and then anything that is left must be swept up and cast out of my house as dirt that has blown in from the street. I know that might sound rather radical and is probably not something that you might look forward to doing yourself; but if we have things that are around us that we know cause us to stumble, then by all means, we need to get them out of our house. The Lord has put it upon my heart to start with my movie collection; and believe you me, there is a lot of them! I have chosen the first order of removal by anything that I could not feel good about watching with all my brothers from church being here and watching them with me. I feel that God wants us to take a hard stand for Him; especially in this time right now, where His very existence is being mocked almost daily in our schools, public life, and even by our government. The second thing that God is making me see in this, has to do with how we portray ourselves to others, and how God's Holiness is visible or invisible to others in our lives: we really need to punch out that desire of the flesh... "Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: but I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway." (1 Corinthians 9:24-27)

"When All Else Fails..."

"They cried, but there was none to save them: even unto the LORD, but He answered them not." (Psalms 18:41) When there is something that is to be considered as dead, there really is no saving it; plain and simple! Yet, how often do we try to resurrect the flesh after having reckoned it dead?  The apostle James had something to say about this thing we call the flesh, and how we are prone to be deceived by trying to satisfy it, sometimes even when we think that we are trying to keep it down. In James 4:3, he says, "Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts". It is the flesh that causes us to ask amiss; hoping to be satisfied regardless of what it might cost us in the end. Paul explains this need that is there for us to establish God's law in our hearts; not because we have got to do it or else, but because we need to do it. In Romans 3:30 & 31, Paul puts our responsibility to the law in a manor that puts things in perspective to this need, by saying, "Seeing it is one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and the uncircumcision through faith. Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law". Therefore, we cannot ask for something that contradicts God's law or standards for our life; and in trying to do so, we are not going to be answered. God does not change, and what He held true to His word then is still true to His word now; so rather, it is we that must change and be changed within. Talk about spiritualizing the text; I think that we can all agree that I have that covered; but when it comes to what David is saying here, he is being led by the Spirit of God to write what God puts upon his heart; how that relates to us is totally up to God. What we must do, if we are so incline, is to ask God to speak to us where it counts, and then to make our choice what to do based upon what He reveals to us through His word. The main question that we must ask, and that which is detrimental to our faith, is whether or not God's word is relevant to where we are and to what we might be going through. I believe that it is! And having said that, I believe that His word is meant to be spiritualized to our particular lives; whether they be lives that are living out His promises, or lives that are waiting to be taken to the next level in our walk with Him; whatever it is that God is working in us, He does so to draw us closer and closer to Him. Really; that main thing that we must remember and hold dear to our hearts, is that God does not want to burden us down with heavy laws or requirements; but He is a Holy, Righteous, and a Loving God, that wants us to be captured by His great love for us, that we might be willing to do whatever it takes to be as close as possible to Him. After all; He has already done the same for us...

"Sharing In The Victory" -2

"Thou hast also given me the necks of mine enemies; that I might destroy them that hate me." (Psalms 18:40) I am sure that there are some of you who might have wondered about me closing with Romans 1:1-6, and how that even relates to the point I was trying to make; but if you know what point Paul was trying to make in his opening statement to those Christians that were spread throughout the Roman empire, then you know how it relates. If however you do not know, let me try and make his point by saying that the letter Paul had written to the Romans is considered by many to be 'the most profound work in existance', and is by far Paul's most comprehensive statement of the full meaning of the cross of Christ; therefore, he opens his master work with the introduction that contains the basis by which we are 'justified in Christ', and how we are called to the obedience of that justification. To some, that might sound as though we are set free and bound in the same action; however, there are two actions that are put forth: one is the action of Christ who has set us free, and the other is the reaction of us who submit to Him as Lord. In this way of looking at what it takes for a man to submit his life to the Lord, it is much the same as becoming a bond servant to Christ, and maybe even more importantly, to the cross of Christ. And how are we then 'justified' in Christ? This is something that must be understood above everything else: God is the one who declares us justified, and not only does He declare us justified, but He makes us justified! So, what is our reaction to that? It is to latch onto that justification with all of our might, and don't let go! However; we are not always so good at not letting go, and are prone to be creatures of habit, not always doing those things which strengthen our grip, but more likely doing those things that weaken it. Therefore; our answer to that issue of weakness is to crucify the flesh, thereby counting it to have been dead in the death of Jesus on the cross, and now alive in the Risen Lord Jesus from the grave. In so doing, we have established our new life to be one that is not under the law any longer, for the law was established for the old man which is no longer in existence; but we have a new law by which we are bound to, that being the law of love, and by which we are justified before God. What does that mean that we must do? LOVE!!! Now, just in case you were wondering how it is that 'Love' has anything to do with David's seemingly aggressive pursuit of his enemies; anything that comes between David and his relationship with God is something that he would consider as his enemy; as so should we! If there is something that is coming between our relationship with God, and that is causing our love to be obscured in any way, then it must be taken out! It must be hunted down and destroyed, which is the passion of our love for God that makes us want to make it happen! Now then; who do you think might be our number one enemy in all of this? "Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ, if so be that we suffer with Him, that we may be also glorified together." (Romans 8:12-17)

"Sharing In The Victory"

"For Thou girded me with strength unto the battle: Thou hast subdued under me those that rose up against me." (Psalms 18:39) Now, just in case you were thinking that I had been taken off track, and that I might have just been reaching for something to blog, let me assure you that the little gig on being a master craftsman is real. I truly believe that there is inner strength that we are given to resist temptation, if we are so incline to do so; there in lies the problem: Are we so incline to resist being tempted? I am not talking about the Holy Spirit being given to help us in our weaknesses; for that He will do, based upon our desire to be helped. I am talking about an inner strength that God has placed within us that is the result of His love for us and our mutual love for Him. The Holy Spirit is a Gentleman, and He will not force us to do what is right, but will assist us in making the right choices, and then helping to overcome those things which are too hard for us, by moving them out of the way; but again, He will only be able to assist us to the point the we desire to be assisted! The point that I am trying to make in all of this, is that the desire within us to have the victory over those things which cause us to stumble, is predicated upon the love that we have for God. It is kind of like God is saying, "Do You Love Me? Then Keep My Commands"; whereas the ability that He gives us to press forward is based upon the love we share with Him. In this way of looking at what He has done for us, we are in a sense sharing in the victory! This is also the magical power that is breed into the heart of a son that continues in his fathers craft or workmanship; where the desire to be the very best that he can be, comes from a shared passion to make it happen; a passion that is only available through the father's gift becoming the son's gift, and then that son then lets that gift open up before him. We really need to understand where David's heart was when it came to knowing God's ability to strengthen him for the battle; because as far as David was concerned, God was unbeatable in any battle, and if he was fighting for God, and God was with him, then guess what... "Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, which He had promised afore by His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; and declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead: by whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for His name: among whom are ye also the called of Jesus Christ:" (Romans 1:1-6)

"The Pure of Heart" -2

"I have wounded them that they were not able to rise: they are fallen under my feet." (Psalms 18:38) When we are talking about the pure of heart, we are really talking about those that have a pure love for God in their heart; which causes them to desire to do whatever it takes that they might get it right. More than likely, David is speaking about the tens of thousands that were slain by him on the battlefields, and there really is not any spiritual meaning to what is being said; then again, as we examine the opening verse of this Psalm and remember, this is 'A Song of Victory', and the first verse was added to this song which is also recorded in 2 Samuel 22, the first verse saying, "I will love Thee, O LORD, my strength". I am not one to limit what God has intended for His word represent; nor do I hold to the doctrine of some that His word is not alive, but rather it is only by His Spirit that His word brings forth life. Sure, we need His Holy Spirit to speak to us through His words that are written in this book that we call the Bible, but these words that are written have been written and inspired by God; therefore, as far as I am concerned, these words within this book are alive! Being that His word is alive, He can speak beyond the message of the writer, just as I believe He is speaking beyond the message that David has written within his song of victory; and furthermore, that even David was speaking beyond the message of what he had actually written. Therefore; when it comes to our ability to be holy, as He is Holy, that ability is governed by our own hearts! It is God who will give us the ability to do that which He has instructed us in, even those things that might seem impossible to do; but it is our hearts that must be willing to do whatever it takes, and to desire whatever it takes that God can do, that we are made holy. That willingness of our heart is produced by our love for God, and it is our love for God that governs to what extent we will go that we should achieve holiness. God would have us go all the way to the end, till there is no more unholiness within us at all; which really will not happen until we are glorified in heaven; but until then, we are to continue seeking to be Holy... "Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before. I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:12-14)

"The Pure of Heart"

"I have pursued mine enemies, and overtaken them: neither did I turn again till they were consumed." (Psalms 18:37) After having been teased with the whole master craftsman gig from yesterday, we might have a little better understanding what is required to be pure of heart, and to pursue excellence; it is something that is part of the fiber within the man or woman who wishes to be the very best that they can be. God will not ask us to do something that we cannot do, because He knows very well, that if we do not have what it takes to do it, then He will provide us with whatever we need to get it done. It is really just that simple! In other words; if God has brought you to something, then God will bring you through it! And more importantly; if you have been instructed to do something by God, then He will supply everything you need to get it done! Having said that, there is this matter of holiness; which God has instructed each and everyone of us, saying, "Be ye Holy, for I am Holy". If God has so instructed us, and knowing how impossible it is for us to achieve holiness, then He must have the means to equip us to be Holy; Right? Okay; I might need to come at this from another direction, and say what I feel that many of us accept; in that we accept the fact that we are incapable of achieving holiness, therefore we do not even try. Oh, we might move towards holiness in some areas, especially those that other people can plainly see; but when it comes to obtaining pure holiness, we fall extremely short in achieving it, because we don't even try to pursue it. Much like the desire within someone who wishes to be the very best at whatever they do, there is not only the need to stretch forth in doing what is necessary to achieve greatness, but there is also a greater need to overtake anything that will defeat your progress. This is where those that wish to pursue holiness must have a pure heart; because there are things that stand in the way of holiness that must be overtaken, and we can't just stop at the ones that make us have an appearance of holiness, but we must continue to pursue all that is unholy...

"Ruled of God" -2

"Thou hast enlarged my steps under me, that my feet did not slip." (Psalms 18:36) I have been known to sometimes 'spiritualize the text', or so I have been told; but as far as I am concerned, the Bible is the Word of God, and His Spirit lives within each and every word of it! If you wanted to provide the most secure life for your children, without having to take away from them their ability to provide for themselves, then how would you go about it? When I think about this long enough, it can really make my head start to swirl. Again; we are talking about those that are in love with God; they love God because they realize just how much that He loves them. I have been looking for a movie that is about Sushi, and it is based upon the art being handed down from a father to his son. As with many family owned businesses, especially those that are involved with a craft, part of the ability to perform well in that craft is based upon the craft being a part of who you are; your father being a master craftsman has somehow rubbed off on you! Part of the problem that we have in this modern day culture, is that families are not structured the way that they once were. Everyone is living as if they are all in it for themselves, instead of caring for each other the way that God has intended us to do. This may very well be the fault of government, and how they somehow have taken on the responsibility of providing for people on so many levels, that who needs to depend on each other anymore, if there is government there to do it. The reason that this idea of caring for each other is even relevant to teaching a child something like a craft, is because they go together in the manner of living out what it means to care about what you are doing. For example; a master craftsman is such because he takes great care in that which he creates or the work that he performs. As with that Sushi movie that I am looking for, the son must learn more than how to roll up sushi, he must learn how to make it an art; making it his art is based upon the quality that was in his father and how his father made it his art too. Even if the son may do sushi different from the way that his father did, if he has made it his art, then he too will be a master craftsman at making sushi. The way that God enlarges our steps before us, is by making those steps that which is something dear to us. As with many family run businesses, the thing that makes many successful, is how the business is actually a part of the family; it is as though there are generations of trials and triumphs that have made it into something that lives, and is part of each and everyone that still works it; as long as they have the same care for it as did those that were before them... "A man's gift maketh room for him, and bringeth him before great men." (Proverbs 18:16)

"Ruled of God"

"Thou hast given me the shield of Thy salvation: and Thy right hand hath holden me up, and Thy gentleness hath made me great." (Psalms 18:35) As I was pondering all the reasons that God's greatness makes me so in awe of Him, I could not help but think of all that He has done to ensure that I am well cared for. I am not talking about the cares of this world, such as food, clothing and a place to sleep; although He has always provided those things for us, and we have never gone hungry or had to sleep on the streets; but it's all that He has provided for me to grow up strong in Him. From the time that I was just a babe in Christ, He has taken me by the hand and has taught me to listen, how to walk, and how I must chew my food. When it comes to our salvation that we have in Christ Jesus, we are automatically put in a position where we are ruled of God; right from the start, we are taken from the place of being ruled of this world, and are brought to the place where we are ruled of God. Primarily it is because we are now His children, and being that we are His children, He dresses us, feeds us, and provides all that we need for our spiritual life; but more than just being His children, He has placed His Holy Spirit within us, and has given us new source of direction in our lives. Prior to my new life in Christ I had always lived for the satisfaction of the flesh; always doing whatever it took to try and satisfy everything that this flesh wanted or thought that it needed. The biggest change that I noticed from the day that I accepted Christ in my heart, was how God replaced that desire to feed the flesh, with a new desire to feed the Spirit that now dwelt inside of me. With that new desire, God's gentleness was made very clear in the way that He raised me up by His Spirit; not forcing me to move in this direction or that, and defiantly not scolding me for not getting something right; but taking the time to show me not only how to move, but why it was important to move in such a direction. Looking back over these last thirty plus years of walking with the Lord, I can see how He has allowed me to move out in my own direction, yet He was always right there to prevent me from going too far; allowing me to understand why I must always try and follow His direction and not my own. Looking at this verse from the perspective of a child that is cared for by a loving Father, we see three very significant aspects of how He cares so very much for the way that we grow up in Him. The first of which, is that He has given us the shield of His salvation; taking us out of the care and righteous doings of ourselves, and placing us in the care of His righteousness, so that we are secure in Him. Then, as to assure that we are kept in that place, well secure from all that might come against us, or knock us to the ground, He holds us up in His right hand; making sure that we are not only secure, but that we know that He has a hold on us. And then, as only a loving Father can achieve; He fashions us into that which He wants us to be; gently and tenderly showing us how to pick ourselves back up, and then He gently guides back on our way...

"Ruled By God" -3

"He teacheth my hands to war, so that the bow of steel is broken by mine arms." (Psalms 18:34) When we truly love God and make Him our reason to live, there are certain things that God brings to life in us. Let's say that you wanted to overcome something that has afflicted your walk for many years, maybe even decades; how would you go about making it happen? I am not talking about something that is just hanging around with you, but something that you have surrendered over to God time and time again, and it just keeps coming back to fight it again. As I was sharing about yesterday, we really have to want God to work out these things in our lives, and He is faithful to make it happen; but we have to want it to happen!!! Therein lays most of our problem; not that we don't want to surrender all the ugliness of sin, because I believe we truly are sincere about doing that; but that we want to hold onto what we like about the sin, which is that which gives us pleasure doing it. There are two forces at work here: one is the Spirit, and the other is the flesh. I see this verse as a two part fight to defeat the flesh, where there is strategy and maneuvering, and then there is brute strength and extraordinary power. Both of these are things which we are equipped by God with to do battle, and both are brought about by being taught; which means that there is a learning phase involved with having hands to war and arms that break the bow of steel. As I was saying yesterday, when God gives us the ability to see the enemy coming and the ability to flee, there is really only one thing that can stop us from being overcome, and that is us. Most of the time we blame too much of our problems on the devil; it's that old "The devil made me do it" saying, which was first said by Eve before God; when in reality, it is really just us fulfilling the desire of our flesh, and then wanting someone to blame it on. If we truly want to be ruled by God, then we will take seriously what is required of us in order to put down this thing called the flesh; there is a strategy and a force that is involved, and it really requires us to participate in the fight. If we look at David's defeat of Goliath, the initial thing that brought him strength in that situation was his hearing that man speak out against his God. That sparked a reaction within his heart, which then caused him to want to do something about it. The beginning of our strength in overcoming something in our lives, is seeing that it is something that is offensive to our God, and then having the desire to take it out. It is our love for God that makes this possible, and it is our love for God that will cause us to be equipped with everything that we need to accomplish whatever it takes to get it done. God will do extraordinary things in ordinary people; but those ordinary people must be willing to do those extraordinary things...

"Ruled By God" -2

"He maketh my feet like hinds feet, and setteth me upon my high places." (Psalms 18:33) Here we have two characteristics of what is required to be far removed from sin. Now I know that David may well be speaking of battlefield maneuvers that God had gifted him with, but seriously, is it not a battle that we are in? Both of these characteristics require us to have a deep desire to obey God and to serve Him; yet, they are gifts that God gives us to ensure that our desire is met. The first gift that David is referring to is that of quick feet; the actual definition for 'hinds' is that that of a female dear or a doe, which is quick to spring into any direction, and is able to avoid that which is threatening it. I know it might seem a little odd, but you may have heard the term, "Curiosity killed the cat", well this is not a characteristic that you find in deer, they are not the curious type. Numerous times Paul tells us to flee from those things that will tear us apart: fornication, idolatry, the love of money, and youthful lusts. But here is the thing about fleeing from these things that Paul mentions, you have to want to flee them! Yes, it is a desire that takes on this characteristic, by which we are quick to respond to that which a threat to our relationship with God, and we are equip with the ability to escape the temptation. Which brings us to this next gift that God will give, and that is that of a watchman; which is a gift in and of itself; for by this gift, not only does God give us the heart of discernment, but He will give us the vantage point to see what is coming and to be ready. But again, this is something else that we have to want to have the equipping for; we have to desire to be on guard, to be vigilant and ready; and if that is our desire, God will gift us with the ability to see the enemy coming and to know when it is time to run...

"Ruled By God"

"It is God that girdeth me with strength, and maketh my way perfect." (Psalms 18:32) For the next five verses, and beyond, David reflects on the many ways that God had given him victory over his enemies. David was not naturally a man of war, at least not in the way that he had become; but he was naturally a lover of God, and spent many nights in field worshipping and proclaiming his deep love for God. As said before, we cannot naturally love God, but once we see His great love for us, it is hard not to love Him back. For David, his life of being a man of war started when he took down Goliath, and then grew from that into a battlefield hero where he was praised for taking down tens of thousands. It was his trust in God that guided his life, but it was his love for God that gave him strength. If you ever need to find strength to overcome something that keeps causing you to stumble, then by all means, love God with all of your might! When we love God with all that is within us, we naturally will fight for Him when His majesty is being disgraced; and His majesty is disgraced when He is defiled in any way. We see this in the attitude of David as he first noticed Goliath spewing words against God and His chosen people. David was pricked in the heart and immediately his desire was to come against that uncircumcised Philistine that would defy the armies of the living God. It is our love for God that causes us to become offended when He is put down in any way; which includes our own thoughts and actions, and those things that cause us to stumble. To put this another way; our strength is a product of our love for God! We can see this given as an example by Jesus when tempted by the devil in the wilderness and while praying in the garden the night He was arrested. It was His love for the Father that enabled Him to overcome temptation, and it was the love He shared with the Father that gave Him the strength to complete what He was sent to do. When Jesus spoke about no man being able to serve two masters, He was speaking about being ruled by one or the other. In order to be a servant to anyone or anything, that person or thing must rule over us, and when something rules over us because we allow it, we naturally hold to that which we serve the most. Now guess what happens when we hold to that which we serve the most: we love that which we hold onto, and we despise the other... "No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon." (Matthew 2:24)

"Our Mighty God"

"For who is God save the LORD? or who is a rock save our God?" (Psalms 18:31) When it comes to putting our trust in God, there is one thing that must be understood: God can pretty much do whatever He wants to do! When you are All Powerful, All Knowing, and All Encompassing, you can pretty much make things happen that suit your desire and your will. Yesterday I was working on a message for church today, and I had made a comment to our pastor earlier in the week about where to start, and said, Maybe I should start in Genesis 1:1. The message is about Acts 5:12-20, and is primarily on verses 19 & 20; which is where the angel comes at night and takes the apostles out of prison, and then gives them a charge: "Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life". As I was gathering verses to help make the point about what it means to stand, and what "this Life" really means, I was struck by what Peter said in 1Peter 2:9 & 10; and after pondering on those two verses for several minutes, I flipped over to Genesis 1:1-3. As I began to read the account of God's initial creation, I saw a similarity within a couple points that were made by Peter. Genesis 1:1-3 says, "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light." Then, as we look at what Peter is writing to Christians that were under heavy persecution, he was encouraging them about who they are in Christ, and that they were chosen by God, from the beginning of time; and in 1 Peter 2:9-10, Peter tells them , "But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people; that you should show forth the praises of Him who hath called out of darkness into His marvelous light: which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy". Now, maybe it's just me, but don't you see a similarity in a couple of points that Peter is making and the beginning of creation? I don't think I will be sharing this in church today; I will have enough trying to make the miraculous deliverance of the apostles from that prison, come to life and speak about our miraculous delivery from death to life; but I thought I would share it with you. God is God because He can do whatever is His desire to do! He can create something from nothing, and He can surely transform darkness into Light...

"God's Mighty Hand" -3

"As for God, His way is perfect: the word of the LORD is tried: He is a buckler to all those that trust in Him." (Psalms 18:30) Usually when it comes to trusting in God, we think of His promises and the benefits that come from knowing that He is the Giver of all good gifts, and that He knows what is best for us, as He bestows those gifts upon us. This is no doubt a given for all of us that follow the doctrine that proclaims the saving grace which comes with giving our lives to Jesus Christ, and then trusting in that saving knowledge that comes with making Jesus the Lord of our lives. This kind of trust is needed for our life that we live in Christ; making every life choice based upon the knowledge that God knows best, and that we need to trust Him with all of our cares in this life; but what about in death? Death is the final act that we will be performing here upon this earth; the curtain comes down on the final act, so where does our trust go when we face that final curtain? Is that even anything that matters to how we measure what our trust is? No doubt, we are meant to be trusting God in every area of our lives, for His word has given us many reasons to place our trust in Him for our livelihood and the provisions of this life; but in death we have our greatest trust of all, which carries with it the promise of a new life, free from all of the cares of this world, including those that involve trying to live out God's commands. This is the kind of trust that takes refuge in God's mighty hand, not just for this life, but in death also we continue to stand in that refuge; which is a dwelling place, and a place in which we take that final act upon this earth; a place that continues to carry us beyond this life and all that is associated with it. When we look at the meaning of the word "buckler", it is a term that speaks of a smaller shield, much like one that would be held in the hand of a man, verses the shield of protection that is provided by God's hand. This kind of shield speaks more to the identification of the shield, much like a crest or the symbol that is represented by the shield, and what is made known by the man that holds such a shield within his hand. In this we are given a view of what it means to trust in what we have been given as an individual who abides in the hand of God, verses a man that will just trust that he is protected by God's hand. In other words; we are in the hand of God, and God holds our shield because He is holding us; our personal shield that is meant for us individually, is not only for our protection, but is the identification of our trust in that protection. I see this by a vision of a mighty vessel which is set out sea, with it's way charted, and it's charting is unmovable by any force whatsoever; and upon this vessel, I see myself standing towards the front and holding onto this shield that's base is resting on the deck of the ship. This shield, although it may provide for me some protection, is meant to display that I am part of that mighty indestructible ship, and where it goes, I go, and nothing can change that... "No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgement thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of Me, saith the LORD." (Isaiah 54:17)