Sowing and Reaping!

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You cannot fool God, so don't make a fool of yourself! You will harvest what you plant. If you follow your selfish desires, you will harvest destruction, but if you follow the Spirit, you will harvest eternal life.

Galatians 6:7-8

A farmer who plants corn and expects to harvest beans is really quite foolish. You will reap what you sow. When it comes to putting seeds in the ground everyone knows that this is true. But many, maybe most people expect to reap a wonderful harvest in their lives without sowing good seed.

When you live a life that is dedicated to the pursuit of your own happiness and the fulfillment of your selfish desires you will harvest destruction. But if you follow the Holy Spirit and live your life dedicated to daily obedience then you will harvest eternal life!
In a real sense every word you speak, every thought you think, and every deed you do is a seed that will produce a harvest.

Your life becomes a field in which all of the things you have planted are growing. Even after you turn your heart to Jesus and He forgives you of your sins, there are still things you will harvest from your past.

So as you walk through this day remember that you are planting seeds that will grow, and you will receive the harvest in time. When you are tempted to sin remember that you will be really planting a seed. When you obey the leading of the Holy Spirit you are also planting a seed that will produce a harvest in Heaven! Spend your time today planting seeds of righteousness and not seeds of destruction.

"Lord Jesus, help me to plant only seeds of life and not seeds of death in my life. And Lord I look forward to that Eternal day of Harvest in Heaven because of Your Blood which was shed for me! Thank You Jesus. Amen."

Butterfly Believer!

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I will fiercely attack.

Then every god on this earth

will shrink to nothing,

and everyone of every nation

will bow down to me,

right where they are.

Zephaniah 2:11 

If you somehow think that you need to defend the Name and Honor of God, you are terribly mistaken. God will defend and vindicate Himself and in the End His victory will be all encompassing and complete!

My job is not to send the men and women who have joined with the Enemies of God to their doom. I am rather to snatch them from the hand of Satan by proclaiming the Saving message of Jesus Christ.

The transformation of a sinner into a saint is more amazing than a caterpillar becoming a butterfly. God surely created that process to show us how He changes ordinary men into men who are empowered by and filled with the Holy Spirit.

If you spend your time trying to promote, facilitate or otherwise push along the process of becoming like Jesus in any way other than filling yourself with His Word and walking in daily fellowship with Him you are like a caterpillar trying to become a butterfly.

As you live the life that God has given you, and live it in faith and fellowship with Jesus you will be changed. And everyone will be amazed at the way God's Grace will give Wings to your Faith!

"Lord Jesus, I want to fly with You in the beauty that You have created me to become. I hold on to You today and wait for that Day. And may You be praised forever. Amen."

No Power in Prayer

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Our God, you deserve praise

in Zion, where we keep

our promises to you.

 

Everyone will come to you

because you answer prayer.

When our sins get us down,

you forgive us.

 

You bless your chosen ones,

and you invite them

to live near you

in your temple.

We will enjoy your house,

the sacred temple.

 

Our God, you save us,

and your fearsome deeds answer

our prayers for justice!

You give hope to people

everywhere on earth,

even those across the sea.

Psalm 65:1-5

There was a man who prayed every day, and he prayed often, but he was not a follower of Jesus Christ. Then the man heard about Jesus and decided to let Jesus be the Lord of his life. When I asked him how his praying had changed since he became a Christian his answer was simple and maybe a little unsettling as well. He said (these are not his exact words), "Before I became a follower of Jesus my prayers were never answered, but after I became a Christian my prayers were always answered!"

The promise of answered prayer is for those who come to God in the name of Jesus. If you come to God through anyone else, or even in your own name there is no promise that God will answer your prayer or even hear it! But when you come to God in the name of Jesus as His disciple amazing things happen in the wake of your prayers!

Some people talk about the "power of prayer," but there is no power in prayer. All the power rests in God and when mountains are thrown into the sea because of your prayer it is God's power that did the impossible.

If as a Christian you pray and nothing happens what is the problem? As your Heavenly Father, God does not withhold things you pray for just to punish you. When you pray for things to simply satisfy your fleshly desire is it any wonder that God would withhold those "blessings?" When you seek and know His will for your life the answers to prayer will flow like a rushing river because you will ask for the best He has to offer.

"Lord Jesus, I want to see Your power work in, around and through my life as I turn my will over to You and pray according to Your will not mine. Thank You Jesus. Amen."

A Whisper from Jesus!

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God gives peace, and he raised our Lord Jesus Christ from death. Now Jesus is like a Great Shepherd whose blood was used to make God's eternal agreement with his flock. I pray God will make you ready to obey him and that you will always be eager to do right. May Jesus help you do what pleases God. To Jesus Christ be glory forever and ever! Amen.

My friends, I have written only a short letter to encourage you, and I beg you to pay close attention to what I have said.

By now you surely must know that our friend Timothy is out of jail. If he gets here in time, I will bring him with me when I come to visit you.

Hebrews 13:20-23

Why did so many of the early Christian leaders spend time in jail? It was not because they were suffering for their sins. And really it was not because they were simply targeted by the government because of their faith. Jail time for Christians comes because life as a follower of Jesus Christ often finds itself at odds with the culture. Regulations about where you can and cannot proclaim the message of Jesus must be ignored. Rules about where you can or cannot pray have to be broken. And of course Christians will not fall down and worship anyone except Jesus Christ!

Of course you must obey the laws of your land. But if Jesus tells you to do something that causes you to break a law, then you must break it and trust Jesus to be with you no matter what the consequences. That is why it is so very important that you practice listening to the voice of Jesus. If you think "maybe, it might be Jesus" calling you to do something with great consequence, it won't be long until you question the wisdom of what you have done! It is only when you know His voice with certainty that you can courageously step out of the boat and walk on water like Peter did.

Small children and members of the military learn that when their mother or commanding officer gives an order it is to be obeyed without question! There is no praise for a soldier who refuses to obey because he doesn't understand why the order was given. Understanding may be wonderful, but obedience is better.

So my job today is not to understand theology, but rather to hear the voice of Jesus and obey. Will I understand more and more about what God is doing in the world? Of course I will! But my first responsibility is to obey the Lord even if I go to jail as a consequence!

"Lord Jesus, I do want to know more, but I also want to obey more. Help me to clearly hear Your voice today so I can walk in obedience even to a whisper from You! And may You be praised forever. Amen."

Faith and Hope!

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God's people had faith, and when they had walked around the city of Jericho for seven days, its walls fell down.

Rahab had been a prostitute, but she had faith and welcomed the spies. So she wasn't killed with the people who disobeyed.

What else can I say? There isn't enough time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets. Their faith helped them conquer kingdoms, and because they did right, God made promises to them. They closed the jaws of lions  and put out raging fires and escaped from the swords of their enemies. Although they were weak, they were given the strength and power to chase foreign armies away.

Some women received their loved ones back from death. Many of these people were tortured, but they refused to be released. They were sure they would get a better reward when the dead are raised to life.  Others were made fun of and beaten with whips, and some were chained in jail.  Still others were stoned to death or sawed in two or killed with swords. Some had nothing but sheep skins or goat skins to wear. They were poor, mistreated, and tortured. The world did not deserve these good people, who had to wander in deserts and on mountains and had to live in caves and holes in the ground.

All of them pleased God because of their faith! But still they died without being given what had been promised. This was because God had something better in store for us. And he did not want them to reach the goal of their faith without us.

Hebrews 11:30-40

"Tell me about when were you saved?" That question usually prompts a Christian to speak of how he came to know Jesus as his Lord. And I suppose that answer is appropriate, but it might also be accurate for us to say "I was saved when Jesus died for my sins, but when Jesus returns, that's what I am waiting for!" You see, God has something better in store for us than this life and even the great men and women of faith will not "reach the goal" of their faith without us!

"Hope" is the often forgotten one third of the "faith, hope and love" trio mentioned in 1 Corinthians 13. Love and faith are greater than hope, but it is hope that fuels love and faith and keeps them alive and well even in the most difficult times. It is hard to keep faith and even love alive when all hope is lost!

The hope of what God has planned and what He has promised is like a warm rain for the flowers of spring! Let your faith in and love for God be strengthened by the promises He has given us.

"Lord, I want to be remembered as a "man of faith," and I know that does not mean an easy life of comfort and peace. But may the hope of Heaven keep me strong in faith until I see Your face on that glorious day. And may that day be soon. Amen."

Love Jesus More

A Pharisee invited Jesus to have dinner with him. So Jesus went to the Pharisee's home and got ready to eat.

When a sinful woman in that town found out that Jesus was there, she bought an expensive bottle of perfume. Then she came and stood behind Jesus. She cried and started washing his feet with her tears and drying them with her hair. The woman kissed his feet and poured the perfume on them.

The Pharisee who had invited Jesus saw this and said to himself, “If this man really were a prophet, he would know what kind of woman is touching him! He would know that she is a sinner.”

Jesus said to the Pharisee, “Simon, I have something to say to you.”

“Teacher, what is it?” Simon replied.

Jesus told him, “Two people were in debt to a moneylender. One of them owed him 500 silver coins, and the other owed him 50.  Since neither of them could pay him back, the moneylender said that they didn't have to pay him anything. Which one of them will like him more?”

He answered, “I suppose it would be the one who had owed more and didn't have to pay it back.”

“You are right,” Jesus said.

Luke 7:36-43

There is a great disadvantage for those who turned to Jesus before there were any "great sins" of which to repent. When you believe that Jesus has forgiven you of only a few small sins, your love for Jesus is small as well. You know you need the Blood of Jesus, but not so much as other men! That love may of course grow as you come to realize that without the sacrifice of Jesus you would spend eternity in Hell even though your sins were not "significant." But believing that you are a "pretty good person" will hold your love for Jesus in check.

A way to fertilize your love for Jesus is to ask Him to show you the enormity of your sin! It is foolish to assume that your sin is not so bad. It is also foolish to think that your sin is so bad that Jesus can't save you.

When you begin to see just how heinous your sin is in the eyes of God, your love for Jesus will grow as well. So must I go out and sin some more so I can have more love for Jesus. Oh no not at all. You have already sinned enough. The problem is totally one of perception. You simply don't know how bad your sin is. Ask Jesus to let you see your sin through His eyes. When you do your love for Him will begin to swell like the tide before a storm. Truthfully, Jesus sees my sin the same as any murderer. It was my sin that drove the nails in His hands and stuck the spear in His side.

"Lord Jesus, I want to love You more. I want to know what You have done for me. And I want to know You better today than ever before. May my love for You grow today. Amen."

Obedience Based Discipleship!

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Obey God's message! Don't fool yourselves by just listening to it.  If you hear the message and don't obey it, you are like people who stare at themselves in a mirror and forget what they look like as soon as they leave. But you must never stop looking at the perfect law that sets you free. God will bless you in everything you do, if you listen and obey, and don't just hear and forget.

If you think you are being religious, but can't control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is useless. Religion that pleases God the Father must be pure and spotless. You must help needy orphans and widows and not let this world make you evil.

James 1:22-27

There is a well established practice in the field of medicine for educating those who will one day be doctors. It is "see one, do one, teach one." First, you observe a medical procedure, then you perform that procedure yourself, and finally you teach someone else how to do it.

Many Christians try to skip the obedience step in their walk with Jesus. They hear the Word and even see others living in obedience, but they move on to teaching others without walking in that truth for themselves. It is the basis of the hypocrite accusation that is directed toward many Christians. They hear and teach others, but they don't obey the truth themselves.

Some call the process that God wants for us, "Obedience Based Discipleship." It is easy to rest in "Knowledge Based Discipleship" and skip the obedience part. Some even warn others not to obey until they understand what their obedience means.

There is an old church song titled, "Trust and Obey," there is not one call "Understand and Obey."

So we must sharpen our hearing skills before being concerned with understanding the reason God speaks this or that to our lives. Obedience is simply doing what God tells us to do. It is no more complicated than that. So listen for God's voice even in the small things like "speak to that person," or "pray for someone you don't even know." Then you will know it is the voice of God when He says "go to Africa and preach to the lost there!"

"Lord, I am so thankful that when I know the sound of Your voice I don't need to understanding everything You tell me to do! But Lord I do need to recognize Your voice today and every day. I need to know You better and better, every day. Speak Lord, today and I will obey. Amen."