Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Christmas Ushered In Kingdom Hope!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCh-cLHJJjE&feature=fvsr
There Is A Place For Us!

This song has encouraged me more than ever. We, The Bride Of Christ were made for so much more! This season of my life has been hard, I have not done well with all its changes, trying to adjust my focus and stay in a Holy Alignment with God and His Kingdom purposes.
I realize I have to give up more of what I thought makes me, me in this world and gain more of what God wants me to be for His Kingdom. God Shaped! I was made for so much more. It is difficult letting go of what you know, a way of life you have lived and are comfortable with.
My American life-style in its creature comforts of home has been rooted deeply in my soul. I feel God is tearing up my roots and transplanting them in His Kingdom. Ouch It Hurts! But It Is For My Good! The construction industry hit the road years ago, no more were we working in our home towns, we had to go where the work was. It has been hard going with my husband who is a traveling superintendent. We go from job to job, leaving my home, all I know and loved behind. I go into a new community, I make friends and I try to get settled for the short while I will be there. I try to bloom where God plants me and be His encouragement, pointing people to Him. Life is hard this way, the many challenges of it overwhelm me at times. Many times I cry out to God asking Him if He is sure I am up for this. LOL! Can you imagine little old me asking HUGE Sovereign God if what He did was right? Oh My!
Letting go of all I know that has brought joy to my heart, my family, my family home and my community and being transient, never settling down very long in one place, makes me know more and more I don't belong here in this world. I was made for more than this!  Now this year, we may even have to take it one step further and either pack up, sell some of our belongings in order to rent our family home, or up and sell it all together! Either way, I have to part with furniture and things I have had for years, sentimental things that are attached to my heart memories and sometimes I wonder: Why me?  Why me Lord? A simple person who has not wanted much, just security and a place called home. What are you trying to teach me Lord? What Godly characteristic are you molding in me, and in what way is this making me more like You?
You, Jesus, the King of all, Who came to earth the 1st Christmas to save me; You, the creator of all Who walked the earth homeless, with nowhere to lay Your head! You, Jesus because of Your Great, Infinite Love, because of Your mission to save the world, gave it all. You were ALL in and completely for me. I, in retrospect, I am a sorry example of what You are and have been.
I am sorry Jesus, please forgive me that I am so attached to my home and to a few things that stir my sentimental heart, that I complain when You ask me to leave them behind. Please forgive my human condition, Oh King of heaven, the ONE Who did leave behind everything, and laid down all rights so I could have a future in the Kingdom of God, a place where I do belong; a great future and an awesome hope!
Jesus! Please forgive me for holding on so tightly to things that don't matter, stuff that has no eternal value. I pray you give me a second chance to learn how to let go and be completely YOURS. I desire to be used by YOU to make an eternal difference, just like YOU did. Nothing in this world mattered to YOU, except for us…. not even YOUR life; You where ALL in with us and did not tuck yourself comfortably in this world at night, but worked to bring forth a new morning light. You did not hold tightly to things, You held tightly to the hope of our salvation. Jesus! I want to be like You. Please help me. Change my human condition, change my heart; make me like YOU, ALL in with the Kingdom of God.
I listen to this song today http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCh-cLHJJjE&feature=fvsr and I know I was made for more than the "keeping of a home here"; I was made for more than what my heart can even begin to desire. I do have a home, it is not here. I do have a place I belong, it is not here; yet here I was made to be YOURS and exactly Who I am and what You bring me through is enough, because my faith is in YOU! My hope in You and my future home will make me strong in the all of my life God Adventures.
Jesus! Thank you! This is what YOU want for me in this season of my life, it makes me very uncomfortable, yet much comfort is to be found in YOU as I exchange my focus from here to there with You. What a paradox life is as I let go and let God, I find freedom in my soul! The harder I hold on to me and what I want, the weaker I become!
Change me Jesus, change my heart, align it with Your Perfect Will for me. I pray that I will be able to stay in Holy Alliance with Your Sovereign Will for me, as I cling tightly to Your Infinite Love. I desire to be YOURS 1st before I seek to be comfortable here. I am called to YOU 1st and Your Kingdom mission. Jesus!
 

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Where Do I Belong?

Where Do I Belong? I Belong To Jesus And In His Kingdom!

John 14 Jesus Comforts His Disciples

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God[a]; believe also in me. 2 My Father's house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going." Jesus the Way to the Father 5 Thomas said to him, "Lord, we don't know where you are going, so how can we know the way?" 6 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really know me, you will know[b] my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him." Listen To This Verse Here:

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%2014&version=NIV

This God Adventure has not been a fun one, because no matter what we do here, even though it is all new and the experience of it has been fun and a good one, I can't get past what I feel matters most, what we left behind in Ft. Benning. I miss the Military Ministry; I miss the eternal difference we were making in the lives of the soldiers. Our lives are nothing, really don't matter much when we are not sharing God with others. I feel isolated here and can't seem to find out why God brought us here and took us out of a ministry where we were sharing HIM and seeing people come to HIM. Lord, I don't belong here, I am tired, frustrated and lonely and I can't find my place. Why am I here? Why am I away from my home in the mountains? What is the purpose of all this? Please answer me. I feel stuck in despair this week, I can't seem to get free. Please help me Jesus!

God's Answer To Me Came By Way Of An Email From Moonlite987 Who I Follow On Youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8i4G6KKev7s&feature=uploademail

Where I belong by Switchfoot

My Response To God's Touch Of Care And Deliverance:

Father forgive me for trying to fit in where I don't belong. My home is in YOU. Jesus! You are my place. I belong to Your Kingdom. Help me to shine in the place you have set me. Help me to dig my roots deeply in YOUR Kingdom and bloom here where YOU have planted me.

Matthew 5:14-16 The Message

"Here's another way to put it: You're here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We're going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don't think I'm going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I'm putting you on a light stand. Now that I've put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.

Jesus went to prepare a home for me in a world where I belong. This world is not my home. I need to stop trying to belong here, stop trying to make sense of everything here. I have a world where I belong, it is not here. Thank You Lord for waking me up to the truth! I let some doubts into my mind a few days ago and they tormented me for days, because I chased after them until I hit a dead end of despair! Truth has set me free and I realize, I have a home where I belong. I won't ever fit here and trying to is only going to frustrate me and disappoint me. I won't find my place here. But I can do my best for YOU, until we meet in Your world. Help me to be an encourager that sheds the light of truth on our human search to belong. This season in our lives is only temporary. We have a world where we belong and this truth and hope will help us to do our best for YOU now until we see You there, in the Kingdom of God, where we do belong! The Kingdom of God is worth waiting for so wait in hope and waiting with an impacting faith that is actively drawing-pointing people to God and to His Kingdom!

Hebrews 11: 1-2 Faith in What We Don't See

The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith, is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living. It's our handle on what we can't see. The act of faith is what distinguished our ancestors, set them above the crowd.

The Message (MSG) Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

Hebrews 11:1

NOW FAITH is the assurance (the confirmation, [a]the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses].

Amplified Bible

I ended up in a pit of despair because I received a phone call and an email that caused fear to rise up in my thoughts. I gave audience to these fearful lies, I turned up the sound of them in my mind and it churned with anxiety, that spun into hopeless thoughts and weaved a web of despair that I got caught up in this week. Jesus, Your truth woke me up and freed me through this song sent to me by an angel! Thank you Lord! I pray for all of us in this season of time, in a generation for a time such as this:

MY PRAYER:

Father God wake us up in this generation. Wake us up Jesus from the inside to the outside and draw us to YOU, to a place in YOU, in a position of YOUR Kingdom purpose flow. We belong to YOU, we belong to YOUR Kingdom. Answer the question that our hearts cry out:

Where Is My Place In This World?

I have struggled all week, being pummeled by the enemy in my mind. I have tried so hard to figure out why I am here in Pinehurst, why God has moved us here. Things have happened that have put fear in me, that this was not God moving us here, that we were going to lose this employment and end up homeless. I have listened to lies; I have bought into the despair of the world this week. Loneliness is my companion, not of choice but of human condition. I try to shake it off by focusing on the things God has already called me too, this is my Kingdom focus. But when I focus on trying to find my place here, confusion brings a fog to my soul and I can't see with clarity towards my real home. I am fighting a fight daily, yet I realized today, the fight had the wrong purpose. I listened to this song and it was the answer I was seeking. I need to make an alignment focus on my perspective! I have to stop fighting to belong here, to fit in here in this world. I will never fit here, nor find my place in this world. My fight needs to be for the Kingdom of God where I do belong. I have a home there, I belong there and I belong to The King of the Kingdom, Jesus Christ. He is with me always and unto forever. I cling to HIM today, I dig my roots deeply into HIS Kingdom! AWE-GOD!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8i4G6KKev7s&feature=uploademail

Where I belong by Switchfoot

I don't belong here, this is not my home. I won't find my place here as hard as I try, this will never be my home. I belong to The Kingdom of God, to the home where Jesus left to make a place for me. I don't belong here. I listened to this song, and I watched the beautiful video, just as inspiring as the song and I feel God has answered my cry to know why I am here! Thank you, Lord. I needed it today! I realize I have to stop trying to find my place here, I don't belong, never will. It is a waste of time and energy to try to belong here, to try to live without loneliness. Loneliness it is a human condition, it is a thorn that You have not lifted from me because it keeps me seeking YOU and desiring YOUR Kingdom more and most. I will never feel right here, I will always feel lonely in this world, I don't belong here, I belong in The Kingdom of God. I need to serve God, bloom here with Kingdom purpose until I go to the world I do belong. I have a world, the Kingdom of God where I belong and that is simply-significantly enough for me. I will trust God here, I will wait on God here and I will serve God here until He calls me home, home the place I do belong, the place HE prepared for me, The Kingdom of my God!

I gotta let YOUR Light shine through me, no matter what I feel, I gotta, I gotta, I gotta let YOUR Light Shine!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B07iK9uh9qY

We Are By Kari Jobe

I have a home where I belong. This is just a season and in this season God has called me to HIM 1st and asked me to be His "exhorter" and to write down everything He says to me, to share it and encourage others, pointing them to Him and His Kingdom. Let it be so!

Revelations 21:3-5

I heard a voice thunder from the Throne: "Look! Look! God has moved into the neighborhood, making his home with men and women! They're his people, he's their God. He'll wipe every tear from their eyes. Death is gone for good—tears gone, crying gone, pain gone—all the first order of things gone." The Enthroned continued, "Look! I'm making everything new. Write it all down—each word dependable and accurate."

The Message (MSG) Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

Check Out My Website For Further Encouragement-Exhortations From God! Enjoy!

The Bridegroom's Café http://thebridegroomscafe.com

Currently Posted Menu

AUTHOR TABLE****************** Twas The Night Before Christmas

BREAKFAST TABLE*************** Christmas Grace Candle!    

FAMILY TABLE******************* True-Thanks

LISTENER TABLE*****************Christmas Champion

MILITARY TABLE*****************Merry Christmas    

SERVANT TABLE******************Christmas Bling-Bling    

SMORGASBORD TABLE ***********Christmas! Point Is?

Follow Me On Twitter @kmac4him

I have written an amazing book, actually God wrote it to His Bride and I penned it. It will be an incredible journey for you with AWE-GOD. It will be available in 2012 online. If you are interested email me your email address at kmac4him@maxforcepublishing.com I will make sure you get notified when the Bridegroom's Voice is ready to be purchased online. God Bless You Huge!

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

We Gotta Shine! We Gotta… We Gotta…

Matthew 5:14-16 The Message

"Here's another way to put it: You're here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We're going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don't think I'm going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I'm putting you on a light stand. Now that I've put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.

 

Nothing makes sense anymore in this world, everything and everyone is flip-flopped from being to doing, from growing to just going through and from caring to isolation. I went out yesterday to run a bunch of errands and people are so unattached to each other. No one truly cares. I had a full day of it, experiencing the world where there is no compassion, no forbearance, just angry, harried, frustrated, mean, ugly people who are not sharing the love, compassion, life, hope and peace of Jesus Christ. No one goes above and beyond anymore to help anyone.

 

Everyone does just what is expected of them and does it with no heart, no care for their fellow human beings. People have lost the idea of a servant's heart, they have abandoned their care, their compassion and isolation from heart to heart communication seems to be the norm. No servant's hearts, just doing the motion from their will and not being a part of the flow of it from their soul. I had horns blown at me, people grouch me because I stepped too close to the line in the wrong place, people not wanting to help me even though it was their job, wanting me to fix something that was in the realm of their service, people just don't care anymore. It makes my heart cry out for heaven, for Jesus to come on earth as HE is in heaven.

 

This is supposed to be the Christmas Season, but now more than ever, more than any season thus far it is Xmas and this is what it feels like when Christ is taken out of Christmas. So more than ever, we gotta, we gotta, we gotta let HIS LIGHT Shine. We can't give up, we have to SHINE in this darkness.

 

Listen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B07iK9uh9qY

"We Are Children Of The Day, So Wake Up Sleeper, We Were Made For More Than This- Fight The Shadows- Make The Most Of The Time We Have Left. We Are The Light Of The World And We Gotta Let The Light Shine." Kari Jobe

 

We Gotta Shine!

Nothing makes sense anymore in this world, everything and everyone is flip-flopped from being to doing, from growing to just going through and from caring to isolation. I went out yesterday to run a bunch of errands and people are so unattached to each other. No one truly cares. I had a full day of it, experiencing the world where there is no compassion, no forbearance, just angry, harried, frustrated, mean, ugly people who are not sharing the love, compassion, life, hope and peace of Jesus Christ. No one goes above and beyond anymore to help anyone.

 

Everyone does just what is expected of them and does it with no heart, no care for their fellow human beings. People have lost the idea of a servant's heart, they have abandoned their care, their compassion and isolation from heart to heart communication seems to be the norm. No servant's hearts, just doing the motion from their will and not being a part of the flow of it from their soul. I had horns blown at me, people grouch me because I stepped too close to the line in the wrong place, people not wanting to help me even though it was their job, wanting me to fix something that was in the realm of their service, people just don't care anymore. It makes my heart cry out for heaven, for Jesus to come on earth as HE is in heaven.

 

This is supposed to be the Christmas Season, but now more than ever, more than any season thus far it is Xmas and this is what it feels like when Christ is taken out of Christmas. So more than ever, we gotta, we gotta, we gotta let HIS LIGHT Shine. We can't give up, we have to SHINE in this darkness.

 

Listen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B07iK9uh9qY

"We Are Children Of The Day, So Wake Up Sleeper, We Were Made For More Than This- Fight The Shadows- Make The Most Of The Time We Have Left. We Are The Light Of The World And We Gotta Let The Light Shine." Kari Jobe

Monday, December 5, 2011

Constant Conversation W/God 12-2 Friday

AWE- ALMIGHTY GOD!

Friday, December 2nd

Isaiah 61:10

I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul will exult in my God; for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

Amplified Bible

Thank You For The Songs That Speak God's Truth-Hope-Love Into My Heart

God Of My Days – Gateway Worship

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsEkw-KGdZE

Hope of the daybreak as the son slowly rises. God of days, awaken me to Your hope today. Be the prince of our praise today.

You never leave us-You are our faithful God of today. Open our eyes, help us to see YOU as our constant companion. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsEkw-KGdZE

#tworship

Awaken me to YOUR Omnipresence. I trust YOU, God of my DAY, every moment is in Your Mighty Hands. #AWE-GOD http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsEkw-KGdZE

#tworship

God of my day, my eyes are on YOU, my hope is in YOU, my faith is in YOU today. Fully Focused- ALL IN with YOU

You, Lord God are the love of our lives! Awaken our souls to YOU today in #tworship - God of our day! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsEkw-KGdZE

You Are Good – Kari Jobe

Everyday I will awaken my praise and pour out a song of worship from my heart. Awaken my praise in YOU today!

Your Goodness Draws me to your side

Your mercy calls me to be like you

Your Favor is my delight

Every day I'll awaken my praise and pour out a song from my heart! OH AWE-GOD Awaken our praise in 2012! Jesus!

You are good, You are good… AWE-GOD! Your mercy is forever! Infinitely so! Jesus!

We worship YOU, AWE-GOD! Awaken our souls in worship today Lord Jesus!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLY8wnsEtTQ

Mercy of God call us to be like YOU today! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLY8wnsEtTQ

Awaken our souls in #Tworship today! You Are Good!

Exhortation- The Shepherd's Communicated Love-Wisdom!

I totally have been there, full out in ministry, working on staff and in ministry, there seem to be not enough minutes in a day. But what I learned might help you, take a good look at your inner life and make sure you are not compartmentalizing God. This may not even apply to you, but I was.

I felt I needed God more in ministry than at home, so I shut down when I was home, I was compartmentalizing His Presence, therefore having less JOY and less strength at home. God wants to break down the walls of compartment, He wants to simply-significantly flow throughout your whole day, to HIM there is not signification between your job, ministry, home - His power and presence are the same, yet somehow when we are at home after a very long day of work-ministry, we shut down, even on HIM, the very ONE who is the rest for our soul. When you "go" home after a long day of work-ministry, try to keep the common denominator of your life equation, Jesus, on the platform-position yourself so that never moves. So you have: Work/Jesus Ministry/Jesus Family/Jesus... Jesus makes all things ONE in the same because you are called to HIM 1st. You are not called to your ministry, to your occupation, you are called to JESUS!

I found in all my years of ministry that I felt "I" had to step up higher in "ministry-work" God always had me full out, yet when I came home, I stepped down a notch, began "doing life" instead of being found in God. I had a different level of intensity in my relationship to God at home then I did at work-ministry because I compartmentalized my life... Whewwww I am home, don't need so much of God's help here, this is my safe place, so you let down, step down and the equation becomes unbalanced without God as the common denominator. I had to learn not to compartmentalize God. He just is, He is being throughout my day, throughout my titles and even though I changed hats (administrative secretary, mom, wife, youth counselor, youth ministry, pastor's wife, daughter, sister, tape ministry, staff member and the list goes on…) so many times during the day, my feet were not always shod with the shoes of the gospel. Throughout the waking of each day till and through your sleeping, your common denominator is Jesus and HE makes every minute of your life a miracle-memory. So when you change your hat, don't change your shoes, make the common denominator of every titled equation JESUS and be called to HIM 1st and foremost throughout the whole of your day.

Am I compartmentalizing? You can prove this by your thought life. I always thought: " OMGosh I worked over 70 hours this week, but you don't ever say: "OMGosh, I was at home 28 hours this week" you count up your ministry/work hours, but not your home hours.... You compartmentalize and the hard part is, even though you are in "ministry" unto God, compartmentalizing leads to an undivided heart. You take God out of the equation at home, soon you will be taking Him out of the equation in other areas.

When I started my job on a staff in Florida, I could tell you how many hours I worked and "ministered" at the church, now, my life just runs together and I am wholly HIS. I don't know how much time I "give" to God for ministry, I just give to "GOD" all of my life, my whole day! Everyday, I am called to HIM 1st, everywhere I go and with everyone I am with. My life is in HIM, all of it. Play, Work, Ministry, Hobbie, Family, Church, Home, all of it runs the course with His Kingdom Purpose for me; every day I step into His Kingdom purpose flow and my life position is never compartmentalized, always pointing to HIM and for His Kingdom. At one point in my "ministry" when I was compartmentalizing my life, I completely burned out, emotionally-physically-spiritually. It was not pretty. I hit bottom and when I did, I found out that God was not the common denominator of my "whole life". I had compartmentalized my life by what I felt was "more important" to God's Kingdom and to those areas, the intensity of my relationship with God was stepped up. I used to say and feel when I got home: "I have nothing left". God put His spotlight on that and said to me: "How can it be? I AM the same power, at the same intensity, I do not change. So who changed?" I did! The one scripture He gave me that changed my life was in:

Isaiah 50: 10-11

Who is among you who [reverently] fears the Lord, who obeys the voice of His Servant, yet who walks in darkness and deep trouble and has no shining splendor [in his heart]? Let him rely on, trust in, and be confident in the name of the Lord, and let him lean upon and be supported by his God. 11Behold, all you [enemies of your own selves] who attempt to kindle your own fires [and work out your own plans of salvation], who surround and gird yourselves with momentary sparks, darts, and firebrands that you set aflame!--walk by the light of your self-made fire and of the sparks that you have kindled [for yourself, if you will]! But this shall you have from My hand: you shall lie down in grief and in torment.

I compartmentalized my home life from my ministry life, when truly in God's eyes, they were the same life, with the same common denominator. I let down and stepped into my own strength at home. I can do this Lord, thanks for all your help today, but I've got this, this is my home, whewwwww I can relax and let down... So you kindle your own home fire, and you walk by the light of a man made fire and it torments your soul...

Kindling my own fire, walking by the light of a man made fire. I did this at times in all areas of my life, I would put my different hats on and I would step off the top of the platform, walking away from my common denominator in the areas I felt I did not need God, "you know, give you a break God, I can do this, this is easy compared to my last few hours." Warning: Just be so careful you don't compartmentalize God, it is so easy to do being in full time ministry, to leave the home out of the "full" to be completely called to God in one, but not the other. As a married couple, you need to hold each other accountable... Bob and I learned so much over the many years, and we together, tore down the walls of compartmentalizing, opening the door wide to God, keeping Him as our common denominator and in the many, many hats we wore, our shoes stayed the same, our feet shod with the Gospel, the Power and Presence of our AWE-GOD!

So, to stay accountable to each other, we used the term: "Omnipresent Reality Check"! Yes, I am home from work, switched hats, same God is here, same intensity, same power flow, same shoes, positioned the same and HE and all HIS provision is available to me here as it was at the youth rally I just taught at. When you compartmentalize, you change your position with every title you wear, think about it... you should be fully facing Your God, always... called to HIM 1st and positioned in HIM, He is the common denominator of your life and when you step off this platform, the solution does not equate, you can't solve it and it torments your soul. It is so easy to do being in ministry, compartmentalize… thinking, I can find rest for my soul at home, but not at work-ministry; I can work-ministry full out for God, fully facing God, positioned in Him, but don't need that same intensity at home.

God's Intensity, God's Sweet Soul Rest, God's Mighty Power, God's Incredible Wisdom, God's Amazing Joy, God's Unyielding Strength, God's Plenteous Provision, God's Perfect Purpose they are ALL in the EVERYTHING of our lives, we damn up the flow by compartmentalizing our lives, and He asks us this one thing: "Precious One, Be ALL IN with ME, keep me as the Common Denominator of Your every minute to your every choice and you will look back with heavenly hindsight at all the miracle moments you are leaving behind as a living legacy, in the whole of your life."

Selah! Think on this: Your life legacy cannot pay forward the fullness of God's life if you compartmentalize your time. Make sure your life is not compartmentalized, it chains you, it divides your heart focus. Let your heart be free, tear down the walls of compartmentalization, no chains on YOU, be free in Christ! Always…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzu3m9M03sc&feature=related

No Chains By Chris Tomlin

This is my song, the one God gave me about staying FULL-OUT And FULL IN With Him! It is called Always by Martin Chalk, I have it posted at my site here:

Always….

Always I will worship, my life will be one of Worship… Always… no compartmentalizing… just being…always!

http://thebridegroomscafe.com/llliveit777.htm

Always: FULL OUT- ALL IN With My AWE-GOD!

QUOTES THAT ENCOURAGE-INSPIRE GROWTH-CHANGE ME

Behold! I have engraved you on the palms of My hands!" Isaiah 49:16 "Behold," says Immutable One, "I have engraved you on the palms of My hands." Not on the mountains, colossal as they are, for they shall depart; on no page of nature's vast volume, for the last fires shall scorch them; not on blazing sun, for he shall grow dim with age; not on glorious heavens, for they shall be folded together as a scroll. But on... the hand which made the worlds, the hand which was transfixed on Calvary, the hand of might and love; I have engraved you there! No corroding power can efface the writing, or obliterate your name!
Quote By: John MacDuff

40 Day Spiritual Journey To A Generous Life! http://www.generouslife.org/book.pdf

By Brian Kluth

 

Day Four:

The LORD watches your giving. By Brian Kuth

Mark 12:41 Jesus watched the crowd put the money into the temple treasury. Does you pastor know how much you give? People would be offended by that. Jesus watches our giving, every time there is an opportunity to give. Pastor know everything about our lives except our giving. They know so many things about people, but what they give. It is okay to know everything else, but not about money. Luke 21:11 Jesus saw them put gifts into the temple treasury. God knows everything you have to live on, feed your kids, everything you need and that is why tithing is given in a spirit of trust to God, because He knows all. Once in a church: All tithers stand and we will bless your giving, all others stand and we will pray you repent.

Mark 12:41-44 Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny. Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything-- all she had to live on."

Luke 21:1 Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury.

2 Corinthians 8:12 For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have.

Exodus 35:22,27,29 All who were willing, men and women alike, came and brought gold jewelry of all kinds: brooches, earrings, rings and ornaments. They all presented their gold as a wave offering to the LORD…The leaders brought onyx stones and other gems… All the Israelite men and women who were willing brought to the LORD freewill offerings for all the work the LORD through Moses had commanded them to do.

2 Chronicles 24:10-11 All the officials and all the people brought their contributions gladly, dropping them into the chest until it was full.

Your bank and credit card statements are theological documents. They tell who and what you worship. Brian Kluth

With the price of everything else going up these days, aren't you glad the Lord hasn't increased the tithe to 15%? Brian Kluth

Practical Advice about Giving

By Brian Kluth, Pastor and Founder of www.MAXIMUMgenerosity.org

Here is some practical advice for people who have questions, doubts or

fears about giving to the Lord's work.

If you are NOT a Christian: Don't focus on giving to God. Instead,

realize and accept what God wants to give to you—complete forgiveness,

a brand new start, the power to be good and to do good for others, help for

your problems, the ability to forgive, and a home in heaven. If you recognize

your need for these things, pray and invite Jesus Christ to bring these things

into your life.

For all Christians: Always make it a priority to faithfully support the work

of your local church first. Then give special gifts and offerings to other

Christian causes, projects, missions or the needy as God leads you.

If you're fearful about giving 10% or more of your income to the Lord,

try a 90-day test:

In Malachi 3:10 God invites people to "test Him" in the

matter of tithing (giving the first 10% of your income to God's work).

Therefore, I encourage people to try a 90-day test. Begin giving 10% of

your income to the Lord's work and watch and see if God does not begin

working in your life in ways you haven't previously experienced. If you

regret that decision OR if you feel you never experienced God's divine help

in your finances during this time period, then discontinue the test. However,

if you experience God's help, joyfully continue giving 10% or more to the

Lord's work.

If you want to begin to actively give to God FIRST:

Here are four

different ideas to choose from:

1) Whenever you get any money, set aside 10% or more to

give as the Lord directs.

2) Whenever you put a deposit in your

checkbook, write out the first check(s) to God's

work for 10% or more.

3) If you track your finances through a bookkeeping

system or computer program, set

up a category for church giving and another

one for other Christian causes. Then begin

to faithfully set aside 10% or more of your

income into these accounts.

4) If you like to handle your finances electronically, consider using

www.networkforgood.org or the electronic giving option from your

church (if available) to faithfully give 10% or more to the Lord.

If you are married to a Christian, but the two of you do not agree on

how much you should give to the Lord's work:

See if your spouse will read through this material and/or listen to some of the internet messages

at www.MAXIMUMgenerosity.org. Then talk and pray together about a

mutually agreeable "testing period" concerning your giving 10% or more.

If you are married and your spouse is not a Christian:

Identify any money you have freedom to spend (read Luke 8:3) and set aside 10% or

more of this money to give to the Lord's work AN D/OR show this material

to your spouse and see if you can try the 90-day testing period.

If you are deciding whether to give off the gross or the net of your

income:

Pray and ask God what He wants you to do. If He prompts you

in your heart to give off the gross amount, go ahead and do this, trusting

Him with the results. If you don't have a peace about this, begin giving

10% off the net amount for a few months and see what happens. After a

few months, if you experience God's creative care in your life, then begin

to give 10% or more off of your gross income.

If you're wondering about how much to give to your church and how

much to give to other places:

A good practice I have used is to give 10% of my main source of income to my local church (i.e. my main income

goes to support the work of my main source of Christian fellowship

and teaching). Then, I use 10% or more of all other incomes sources and

unexpected blessings to help fund other Christian needs and opportunities

that God brings into my life (see pages 23-24).

If you have children at home:

Help your children set up a place

where they can set aside "God's portion" of any money they receive

(i.e., allowances, work projects, gifts of money, etc.). Have them give at

church, to missions, and/or to help people in need.

If you have "fallen behind" in your giving to God's work:

If you knowingly or accidentally have fallen behind in your giving to God's work,

you will never regret the decision to "get right" in this area. Review your

financial records from the past several months and pray about "making

up" the amount you have fallen behind. One elderly lady in her 90's I heard

about sent a tithe check to the church office with the note, "I want to be

prayed up, paid up, and ready to go!"

© Brian Kluth www.MAXIMUMgenerosity.org

My Thoughts About This:

This is so true, every single bit of it. We have faithfully tithed for lots and lots of years and God has always provided for us in every and all situations we found ourselves in. When the truck broke down in November and it took all of our savings to fix it, I got upset with God and I stopped tithing, I was tempted to not tithe because why should I, I rationalized? All of our savings were gone and I needed to get money back into our accounts… when I stopped tithing all hell broke loose on us in so many ways… So, I am going to make up the money a little bit at a time, like it said above and I started tithing again. Thank God for others who encourage you to do the right thing, even when it feels wrong to you.

A Seasoned Servant Of God Has Encouraged Me Today

Debbie Ray

Exodus 33 ~ The Message Bible

11 And God spoke with Moses face-to-face, as neighbors speak to one another. When he would return to the camp, his attendant, the young man Joshua, stayed—he didn't leave the Tent. 12-13 Moses said to God, "Look, you tell me, 'Lead this people,' but you don't let me know whom you're going to send with me. You tell me, 'I know you well and you are special to me.' If I am so special to you, let me in on your plans. That way, I will continue being special to you. Don't forget, this is your people, your responsibility." 14 God said, "My presence will go with you. I'll see the journey to the end."

My Thoughts About This:

Oh my gosh! How perfect is that for me in what I am "growing" through. God will see the journey to the end!! Oh I needed to hear that! Thank you Jesus!

Deb, God moved us so quickly in the middle of November, to a very rural place it is like living in the old south, very pretty. Bob was working on this project in Ft Benning and we were supposed to be there another year to build the same Gym on a different part of the base, we were set in the Military Ministry, serving every weekend, teaching in four services a day, encouraging soldiers, leading soldiers to Christ and this move makes absolutely no sense to me… The company we are working for needed Bob right away at this new job they got at Ft. Bragg, it is a high security clearance job and he was the only one who the company could clear. He goes to work, can't tell what he is doing or who he is with. He is assigned to a security team each day he is there. It is the weirdest job. I am working no where with no one doing something! LOL… He can't use a phone with a camera, can't call while on the project, can't use the internet… So here I am, knowing no one and doing what God has already given me to do, but not knowing the WHY I am here. It has been a growing time for me. So this really spoke to me today… thanks…

Here is a little bit of what God is doing in me here:

http://www.youversion.com/notes/3250133/attending-god-s-purposes

http://wisdomhunters.com/ Boyd Bailey

God's Messenger

David said to Abigail, "Praise be to the LORD, the God of Israel, who has sent you today to meet me. May you be blessed for your good judgment..."
I Samuel 25: 32-33a

   

God dispatches His messengers daily. You can expect a regular word from the Lord through others. They may represent His envoy of much-needed encouragement, or they may engage you with a regiment of rebuke. Whether He sends His messengers with a positive or a negative word, it is critical that you concur with their instruction. Your emotions may be driving you in one direction because you have been treated unfairly, even inflicted by a gross indiscretion. But God's messenger is imploring you to take the more reasonable road of understanding and forgiveness. Just because you have been wronged, does not mean you are to wrong. Anybody can do that; it takes strength of character to not retaliate.
God is in control. So leave your transgressors in His hand. Let the Lord deal with them in His timing. God's messenger may be telling you to wait. This opportunity staring you down does not deserve your acceptance. Your pride and ego have nominated you to the task, but you know in your heart it is not the wise thing to do. Listen to God's messenger and avoid a year of regret. Money and status are not worth jeopardizing your marriage and your health. There will be other opportunities, much better ones that will fit in your next season of life. It is easy to ignore, reject, or argue with God's messenger, but think twice before you debate with Deity's representative. They are ambassadors of heaven, reaching out to you on earth. He has things under control and desires His very best for your life.
Many times, God's messenger comes in the form of a friend who knows you all too well and has seen some of your destructive patterns over the years. He has your best interests in mind. Their desire is for you to learn from your unwise decisions of the past and flourish in the future. They are taking a risk with their friendship because they care. If they were self-serving, they would shut up. So, listen to God speaking through your friend, especially when it is not what you want to hear. He also speaks, frequently, through your spouse. They love you, and yes they may be fearful and insecure, but it is because they don't want you to miss God's very best.
Do not allow ego and pride to blind you to their warnings and concerns. They may not understand all of the ins and outs of business, but they do understand the Holy Spirit's promptings. This is a level of discernment, which God has wisely given to them as your gift. Make sure you receive it and use it well.
Lastly, reward God's messengers. This is behavior that deserves recognition and appreciation. You reward the behavior you want repeated, and you rebuke or ignore the behavior that you want to cease. Do more than say you agree. Instead, make a big deal over their determination to deliver the truth. Instead of blowing off the messenger of good will, invite them into your circle of influence. Promote those who persist in pitching the facts. God's messengers can be trusted because they bear news from your heavenly Father. Therefore, take seriously their words, and act accordingly. Listen actively to God's messengers, and in turn, become one.
The Bible says, "He who listens to a life-giving rebuke will be at home among the wise" (Proverbs 15:31).

My Thoughts About This:

Wow that was amazing! Thank you Lord for Boyd Bailey, He truly hears from YOUR heart and speaks with Your wisdom. Pride is a big stumbling block to hearing what God has to say through others. Pride automatically tunes out God's wisdom if it steps on your toes. I have a hard time when God uses my spouse to be His messenger. I admit that. God does not want me to miss His best, or be as best as I can be and my ears need to be opened to HIM and His messengers whenever, however and who ever. AWE-GOD! Don't crucify the messenger, because so many other before us did!!

A Minute With Maxwell

Listen! The great leaders have a three step process of leading: Listen-Learn-Lead Leaders do not have a biased opinion and move out with that. Most effective leaders get their wisdom about those they lead from leadership clues they got from listening to people as they walk through the crowds. Great leaders do not ask people to come to them, they go to where their people are, they find them and then they take them to where they should go. The only way to find anyone is by giving to them a listening ear.

My Thoughts About This:

For me, I have found listening is about laying down "your rights" to walk in what you know, what you have learned in wisdom through your life perspective experience. It is your right to talk up the wisdom you have "grown through", but not at the expense of your leadership relationships. I did that so much as a young leader, never really listened, but was thinking about what to say next out of the great wealth of "wisdom" I had to share. I interrupted people all the time with "my valuable wisdom" I mean… how rude is that?! But as I became a "seasoned servant of God", I realized leadership is mostly about the proper use of "rights". It was my right to share with my team, I had earned it from all the wisdom I had gained through all the hard work put in by me. BUT, Jesus, He laid down His rights and He listened, even when He was on the cross, dying for our sins, He listened!! I too am learning to listen more, by laying down my right to speak and honoring their right to be heard 1st, truly heard and through this, my leadership has had much favor and God has been given much glory!

Denise Joy Roos

Listening is so much more than just hearing words. Listening is about loving and respecting the speaker enough to pay attention to their views, their emotions and reasoning. The times that you disagree yet still truly listen, the message you give is, "You matter!"

Gregg Stone · Top Commenter · GRADUATED FROM THE SCHOOL OF HARD KNOCKS

He that hath an ear, let him "HEAR." Maybe God gave us two ears, because sometimes it's twice as important to listen as it is to speak. When you listen, you learn, you understand, you realize what people need in their life and then when you speak, your words make sense and can bring healing and hope to the one's that you listened too. Many times we want to speak into people's lives and our words are misguided simply because we have not listened to that person, therfore, we do not know what they truly need to hear.

sangansi Asangansi Effiong · Subscribe · C. E. O at Elegpra Co. Ltd

It takes humility to listen; our innate pride makes us interrupt discussions in expressioon of our "intelligence" which is a show of ignorance in fact.

Mark Roozen · Strength and Conditioning Coach at Cleveland Browns

In this day and age of facebook, twitter, LinkedIn and other modes of social media - we have to be careful that we don't just pass words back and forth as communication and listening to what our folks want and need, but as you say John - we need to GO TO those that we want to lead, mentor and make an impact on their lives! Nothing like looking someone face to face, giving them your ear - and then FOLLOW THROUGH on the coversation - which shows we didn't just hear the words, but we listened to the thoughts, the passion and the desires behind those words.

Paul Simkins Jr · Owner/Trainer/Consultant at Ah-Ha! Moments Learning

So many "leaders" just want to jump in and run, but they forget the people they are leading. You have to connect with them and care for them. That starts by simply listening to them. Who they are, what they care about, what do they think, what kinds of ideas they have. Listen to lead.

Narendra Man Pradhan · Subscribe · Top Commenter · Shanti nikunja

You cannot learn without listening and you cannot lead without learning.As a leader you have got to know what people want, what they need, and what they are.And the way to know what people WANT, NEED and ARE is simply LISTEN to them.

King] David certainly was aware that his lust for power had

become a barrier to inwardness. Careers, even religious careers, may become little more than forums for our own advancement. But how are we to deal with such ambition? Our longing after Christ must exceed our need for status in the world.

Quote By -- Calvin Miller

Check Out My Website For Further Encouragement-Exhortations From God! Enjoy!

The Bridegroom's Café http://thebridegroomscafe.com

Currently Posted Menu

AUTHOR TABLE****************** Twas The Night Before Christmas

BREAKFAST TABLE*************** Foundation Of Thanks!    

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LISTENER TABLE*****************Christmas Champion

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SERVANT TABLE******************Christmas Bling-Bling    

SMORGASBORD TABLE ***********Christmas! Point Is?

Follow Me On Twitter @kmac4him

I have written an amazing book, actually God wrote it to His Bride and I penned it. It will be an incredible journey for you with AWE-GOD. It will be available in 2012 online. If you are interested email me your email address at kmac4him@maxforcepublishing.com I will make sure you get notified when the Bridegroom's Voice is ready to be purchased online. God Bless You Huge!

Friday, December 2, 2011

Constant Conversation W/God Dec 1st

AWE- ALMIGHTY GOD!

Thursday, December 01, 2011

Proverbs 29: 18 

If people can't see what God is doing, they stumble all over themselves; But when they attend to what HE reveals, they are most blessed.

2 Kings 20:5 Thus Says The Lord, The God Of David Your [Forefather]:

I Have Heard Your Prayer. I Have Seen Your Tears; Behold, I Will Heal You!

God Will Heal You!

Father God, I pray for Sandy, heal her body from this cancer, strengthen her soul and saturate her spirit in YOUR courage. Jesus.

Father touch Melinda's dad, heal his body, strengthen him and draw him to YOU

Jesus touch Sarah today, renew her health, heal her body, restore her vitality and strength. Heal her surgery and give her physical strength! Jesus!

Father God be with Mark, grant his hearts desire, give him favor in his job application in NC

Father God comfort

Jesus touch Julie, comfort her mother's heart with faith and courage and give her the tenacity to stand firmly in the gap for her son Kenneth. So be it Jesus!

Jesus be with Alejandra, make a way for her son to be able to come home for Christmas

talk it up! twitter-facebook

Be Reminded Today: God Is For You! He Will Never Forsake You! Take Huge Hope In This Today! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Ffdbo9Hypo

#tworship

AWE-GOD! RT @sojourner5: "How Deep The Fathers Love For Us" by Fernando Ortega http://youtu.be/24spuXYeFKY #Tworship

Psalm 56: 8 You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book. 9 My enemies will retreat when I call to you for help. This I know: God is on my side!

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.[NLT at Tyndale] [Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.]

I Trust In Jesus By Third Day

I Trust In Jesus! My Great Deliverer-My Strong Defender-Blessed Redeemer-The Holy One! The SON OF GOD! Join Me! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BtaCeJYqZA&feature=feedrec_grec_index #tworship

40 Day Spiritual Journey To A Generous Life! http://www.generouslife.org/book.pdf

By Brian Kluth

Your role is to be the trustee, manager and steward of 100% of what God entrusts to you during your lifetime. Brian Kluth

Teaching By Brian Kluth:

Mission Impossible! Role is to be the trustee manager steward of 100 percent of what God has entrusted you during your life time. God is the provider- source we are the manager… Matthew 25: Well done my good and faithful servant, you have been faithful in handling the small amount, so you will be given more. Surrender to God's calling, what He calls for, He provides. God I don't understand how You will do this and how it will work out but at the end of my life I want to hear, well done good and faithful servant, come and share in Your Master's future. My only role is to be a servant of the Lord Jesus Christ! God it is whatever YOU want! All of our lives are to be managed under the Lordship of Jesus. What would Jesus have me do and live. We live as a steward, manager, trustee with one goal in mind to hear: Well done good and faithful servant. 1 Cor 4:2 A man should be found faithful. We are accountable to what God has called us to and entrusted to us. We are loaned what God gives us for a time and we need to be accountable to God for all He has given us. We are free to use the things He gives us, but there will be an accounting that goes on. We can live for the wrong things and have the wrong focus. My good and faithful servant, come and share in Your Master's happiness. WE can acknowledge things in our head but miss it in our heart. We must receive Christ and respond to Him. Conversion of our head and our hearts and our resources, all that God entrusts to us. 18 inches from our head to our heart could be the 18 inches that keeps us from the Kingdom of God.

The truth is--every one of us in America is rich when you compare us to the rest of the world. What each of us needs to learn is how to become more generous with whatever God entrusts to us. Brian Kuth

Colossians 3:17, 23-24 Whatever you do or say, let it be as a representative of the Lord Jesus….Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

Romans 14:7-8 None of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord.

Matthew 25:19-21, 24-26 "After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money. The servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of gold said, `Sir, you gave me five bags of gold to invest, and I have doubled the amount.' The master was full of praise. `Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let's celebrate together!'… "Then the servant with the one bag of gold came and said, `Sir, I know you are a hard man, harvesting crops you didn't plant and gathering crops you didn't cultivate. I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth and here it is.' "But the master replied, `You wicked and lazy servant!"

1 Corinthians 4:2 It is required in stewards that a man be found faithful.

My Thoughts About This:

Ouch that hit me hard today because I have not been faithful over the years with financial choices, I have been impulsive, not following after God, not obeying but getting what I wanted because I wanted to give. Jesus, today I make a mark in the sand of my life, I will obey YOU in my finances. I will live in my means, I will no longer charge when I can't afford things, I will follow after YOU in my finances and I will let my husband lead.

A Seasoned Servant Of God Has Encouraged Me Today

1 Corinthians 9: 19-23 Even though I am free of the demands and expectations of everyone, I have voluntarily become a servant to any and all in order to reach a wide range of people: religious, nonreligious, meticulous moralists, loose-living immoralists, the defeated, the demoralized—whoever. I didn't take on their way of life. I kept my bearings in Christ—but I entered their world and tried to experience things from their point of view. I've become just about every sort of servant there is in my attempts to lead those I meet into a God-saved life. I did all this because of the Message. I didn't just want to talk about it; I wanted to be in on it!

~ The Message Bible

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVLHTqdkwZ0&ob=av2e

Live Outloud By Steven Curtis Chapman

Satan loves to distract church goers with a plethora of activity that produces little results in Kingdom-building. Quote By Ron Edmonson

A Seasoned Servant Of God Has Encouraged Me Today

Psalm 77:19 "Your path led through the sea, your way through the mighty waters, though your footprints were not seen."

Dear Bob and Kim,

Do you get weary, like I do, walking this journey with God?  For those called to serve Him, whether as a lay leader or in vocational ministry, it is especially hard sometimes because we tend to give all of ourselves in ministry to the people God puts in our path and, as a result, we can feel drained of our physical and spiritual "energy".

Your pastor works tirelessly to meet the needs and to serve people through his preaching, counseling, leading, and administrating, among many duties.  

I was reminded by another pastor today that, "even though when we can't see God working or don't think He is working, yet, He is working. Jesus said it best: '…My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.'"

"God is always at work around us (Henry Blackaby, "Experiencing God"). Because God's work is spiritual work, sometimes we just can't see what He doing. As a result, we can become weary and, yes, sometimes even frustrated. Because we don't see Him at work, sometimes we don't think He is at work."

If you find yourself wondering where God is today, I want to encourage you to trust Him and know that He is working in your life even if you don't think He is.

Remember Psalm 77:19 "Your path led through the sea, your way through the mighty waters, though your footprints were not seen."

Pastor Elliott

My Thoughts About This:

This hits home today because I don't have a clue what God is doing or why He moved us to Pinehurst, but I am believing that He is working, He is setting up something and I am feeling better, as I trust HIM, believe in HIM and know He has a plan for us being here.

http://wisdomhunters.com/ Boyd Bailey

Delayed Understanding

Jesus replied, "You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand." John 13:7

God's will is not always understood in the moment, but in retrospect it becomes clear. This is the design of the faith walk: remain faithful today, even though understanding may not come until tomorrow. Delays in the comprehension of circumstances seem like a divine detour, but it is a fruitful path for the Lord to show Himself trustworthy and wise.

Be comforted for Christ is doing a deeper work—even if on the surface it seems shallow, insignificant and unnecessary. The details of how He takes the time to prepare us for His next assignment may seem redundant, but counter intuitive actions are not learned in one lesson. The idea that greatness comes from being a servant to all takes time to transform a heart. Jesus does not allow us to move on until humility truly moves in.

"Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble" (Daniel 4:37).

A delayed understanding of God's ways is not meant to delay our action in opportunities to serve. For example, we can't immediately see the bigger meaning in the scare of an inconclusive blood test that leads to more invasive physical exams, but later we grow in our love for the physicians and nurses who care for us. Delays are God's parenthesis for Him to produce good fruit in and through us. So we serve well while we wait to know.

Do you feel trapped or caught in a no win situation? If so, what is the Lord trying to say? How can you grow as a student in Jesus' school of unselfish service? Ask Him to convert your counterproductive frustrations into fuel for focus on the well being of others. You may have it hard, but someone else has it worse. Turn to the all knowing one in the middle of the unknown. The Holy Spirit will reveal His ways when you are ready.

"Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD" (Psalm 27:14).

Therefore, stand today in the security of your Savior Jesus, as He is your rock and reassurance. Understanding may not come until after your window of obedience. His love is not delayed, only your ability to totally comprehend His grander plan in the larger landscape of life. God's delays are designed to accelerate your love for and trust in Jesus.

"Yes, LORD, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you; your name and renown are the desire of our hearts" (Isaiah 26:8).

Where do I need to remain faithful in the middle of a season of delayed understanding?

Related Readings: Lamentations 3:24-26; Micah 7:7; 1 Corinthians 1:7; 1 John 5:20

My Thoughts About This:

I read the title and thought uhohhhhh better cover up my toes. Then as I began to read it, I knew it was written just for me. Delayed Understanding! Yes I know what it feels like! I have no idea why I am here in Pinehurst. Everything seemed to be going well and I was making friends and the Military ministry was going very well. This makes no sense, this move. So, I need to do everything I can do to walk in obedience during this transition and I need to do everything I know God has already asked me to do and focus on that and hope that when the door of God's purpose opens here, I will see it and walk into it. Why am I here? Why did I get moved? Not sure, but I am sure it opened up my heart more, gave me a look inside of it and I did not like what I saw, so cleansing happened and I am thankful for that. God has a plan and a purpose, I may not see it, but He does. This has to be enough for now. Not my will but YOURS Lord.

A Minute With Maxwell

Results! We all want good results when we put forth the effort. We can work hard but if we con't work smart we don't get the results we want. When the day is done there are certain things thatr are important to us. At the end of the day what would we like to see accomplished, make this list and then go through your day saying, I will do now what will give me these results.

charles spurgeon devotional

"Thou hast made summer and winter."

Psalm 74:17

My soul begin this wintry month with thy God. The cold snows and the piercing winds all remind thee that he keeps his covenant with day and night, and tend to assure thee that he will also keep that glorious covenant which he has made with thee in the person of Christ Jesus. He who is true to his Word in the revolutions of the seasons of this poor sin-polluted world, will not prove unfaithful in his dealings with his own well-beloved Son.

Winter in the soul is by no means a comfortable season, and if it be upon thee just now it will be very painful to thee: but there is this comfort, namely, that the Lord makes it. He sends the sharp blasts of adversity to nip the buds of expectation: he scattereth the hoarfrost like ashes over the once verdant meadows of our joy: he casteth forth his ice like morsels freezing the streams of our delight. He does it all, he is the great Winter King, and rules in the realms of frost, and therefore thou canst not murmur. Losses, crosses, heaviness, sickness, poverty, and a thousand other ills, are of the Lord's sending, and come to us with wise design. Frosts kill noxious insects, and put a bound to raging diseases; they break up the clods, and sweeten the soil. O that such good results would always follow our winters of affliction!

How we prize the fire just now! how pleasant is its cheerful glow! Let us in the same manner prize our Lord, who is the constant source of warmth and comfort in every time of trouble. Let us draw nigh to him, and in him find joy and peace in believing. Let us wrap ourselves in the warm garments of his promises, and go forth to labours which befit the season, for it were ill to be as the sluggard who will not plough by reason of the cold; for he shall beg in summer and have nothing.

Joyce Meyer: Promises for Your Everyday Life - a Daily Devotional

John 13: 35 This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples-when they see the love you have for each other."

Love in Action By Joyce Meyer

As Christians, we are called to show others love. Jesus told His disciples, "By this shall all [men] know that you are My disciples, if you love one another [if you keep on showing love among yourselves]" (John 13:35).

So many people see love as 'just a feeling,' but it's so much more than that. True love shows itself through action.

And this action doesn't have to be impossible and overwhelming. One of the best ways to show the love of Jesus is through simple, everyday action,

- Like giving a small gift to someone or striking up a conversation with a downcast individual who needs a friend.

- Or giving a bag of groceries to the single mom who lives down the street and is struggling to put food on the table.

- Showing love can even be as simple as smiling and saying hello to a person you pass on the street, in the hall, or at the store.

There are many ways to demonstrate the love of Christ. When you show His love to someone else, it can soften that person's heart, and before you know it, they'll be finding ways to reach out and show love to others, and so on and so on. So celebrate God's love and let Him lead you. Is He putting someone on your heart right now?

I want my love for Jesus to be reflected in the way I show love for others, even those who may be difficult to love. If I can soften one hard heart with the love of God, maybe that person will soften another's heart with love, then that one will reach out to others, and so on and so on... And soon we'll have a love revolution!

Prayer Starter: God, I want my love for You to be reflected in the way I show love for others. Show me ways to demonstrate love to anyone and everyone that You bring across my path.

My Thoughts About This:

I can't agree with that more! Love shows itself through action and sometimes I wonder if love is true if there is no action behind it.

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