The King's Heart and Mine

We make our own plans, but the Lord decides where we will go.  Proverbs 16:9

It is hard to understand how human beings have "free will" and yet the Lord is in charge of everything that happens. Your free will and the Sovereignty of God are both declared truths in the Bible. In our human minds they seem to be in opposition to each other, but to God they both make perfect sense. 

Pharoah, in Egypt was a good example of someone who was not a follower of God, or even a believer at any level, and yet God "hardened his heart" more than once. The decisions Pharaoh made about whether or not to let the Israelites leave Egypt were his own, but God was in charge. You have the freedom to make decisions in your life, but God is free to move on your heart and soften it or harden it as He chooses! And frankly, you are almost never aware of what He is doing.

 

You can be certain that God is working on the heart of every world leader so that God's Sovereign Will comes to fulfillment. He will harden their hearts or soften them depending on His own plan. 

Proverbs 21:1 says "The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes."

 

Your heart as well is in the hand of the Lord. Willingly submit your heart to His Will and trust Him today.  

"Lord Jesus, hold my heart in Your hand and move my life in the direction that pleases You. Praise Your Holy Name now and forever. Amen."

 

 

Spiritual Selfie

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.

James 1:22-25

When you listen to the Word of God, you are looking at yourself in God’s mirror. When have you taken a “selfie” with your cell phone camera and not seen an imperfection that needs attention?

When a mother or a father says, in a stern voice, “Did you hear me?” The child is jolted into the realization that what comes next will not be pleasant if he or she does not obey the will of their parents.

Exposing yourself to the Word of God is like looking in God’s mirror of the soul. God will let you see what you need to do to align yourself more perfectly with His Will!

Remember, “God will bless you in everything you do, if you listen and obey, and don’t just hear and forget.”

So today, take a Spiritual Selfie by reading the Bible to see yourself in the eyes of God. Then, obey what the Holy Spirit speaks to your heart. The Bible says when you do that, you will be set free!

“Lord Jesus, thank You for loving us enough to let us see ourselves in Your Word. Help me today to obey everything I see in it. Praise Your Holy Name, now and forever. Amen.”

Ever Sweeter Blessings

 

The Scriptures say, “Humans wither like grass, and their glory fades like wild flowers. Grass dries up, and flowers fall to the ground. But what the Lord has said will stand forever.” Our good news to you is what the Lord has said.

1 Peter 1:24-25

I heard his voice, and it was the same. But then I saw his face, and it had changed. Voices age much more slowly than faces. My friend sounded the same as he did when we were young, but he appeared to be an old man. Of course, that is what he was.

Every man and woman grows old if they live long enough on this earth. But the Word of God never changes. It never becomes outdated or irrelevant. However, your understanding of God’s Word does change as you move on through the seasons of life. That is why you must expose your heart to His Word repeatedly as you walk through life. A verse you memorize as a child will mean more to you when you are an adult. In your sunset years, the Holy Spirit will pour out even sweeter blessings of understanding.

“Lord Jesus, keep speaking Your Words to my heart again and again. Let them wash me with Your blessings that only You can give! Praise Your Holy Name, now and forever. Amen.”

When to Hide From God

 

Go inside and lock the doors, my people. Hide there for a little while, until the Lord is no longer angry. The Lord will come out to punish everyone on earth for their sins. And when he does, those who did violent crimes will be known and punished.

Isaiah 26:20-21

Every human feeling and emotion originates in God, who made us in His own image. Even the ability to feel and express anger comes from our likeness to the Creator! When God gets angry, it is time to “Go inside and lock the doors.”

The reason you are angry about seeing mothers, little children, and even babies slaughtered in television reports is simple. You are made in the image of God.

God will punish all those who reject Jesus and His blood poured out on the ground beneath the Cross. God never asks His followers to take vengeance on those who sin. But God says He will repay.

You can be certain that the evil you see will not go unpunished. Either the Blood of Jesus will cover those sins, or the men who committed the crimes will suffer forever for them.

“Lord Jesus, help me trust You will deliver justice to everyone who sins. You either punish those who sin or cover them with Your Blood. Praise Your Holy Name now and forever. Amen!”

Walk with Jesus

 

 

Israel, give up your idols! I will answer your prayers and take care of you. I am that glorious tree, the source of your fruit. If you are wise, you will know and understand what I mean. I am the Lord, and I lead you along the right path. If you obey me, we will walk together, but if you are wicked, you will stumble.

Hosea 14:8-9

 

When the road is rough each step is a display of how careful you must be to keep from falling. But when the road is smooth, a single stone can send you sprawling on the pavement. 

 

Hiking in the woods is a glorious experience on a warm Spring day unless you step on a poisonous snake! 

 

When you are on the right road, there is no guarantee of a smooth surface with no "stumbling stones." Also being on the path of life that God chose does not mean there will be no snakes!

Obeying Jesus and walking with Him on the Road of Life will protect you from all the dangers along the way. And there will be dangers. With Jesus at your side you can always grab His arm, hold His hand, or let Jesus put you on His shoulders and carry across the really dangerous sections of the path. He can also warn you of something you don't have eyes to see. 

"Lord Jesus, show me the way that I should go today, and then walk with me as I obey You in everything I do. Praise Your Holy Name, now and forever. Amen."

It is All About the Tree

Here is my warning for everyone who hears the prophecies in this book: If you add anything to them, God will make you suffer all the terrible troubles written in this book. If you take anything away from these prophecies, God will not let you have part in the life-giving tree and in the holy city described in this book.

Revelation 22:18-19

The secret to Eternal Life is having access to the Tree of Life in Heaven. Adam and Eve could eat of any tree in the Garden of Eden except the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. The Bible does not say how long the First Couple had been in Eden when Eve and then Adam sinned, but it says that eating of the Tree of Life after they sinned was not acceptable to God.

The story of the Bible is very simple. Adam and Eve lost the right to eat of the Tree of Life when they sinned. Then Jesus restored that right for anyone who follows Him in Faith. 

In a very genuine sense, the Word of God is fruit from the Tree of Life. Jesus said in Matthew 4:4 that “man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word that comes from the mouth of God!”

So when you study, meditate on, or memorize the Word of God, you are feeding your soul with the fruit that will keep you alive forever. When you arrive in Heaven, you will have continual and complete access to the Word of God!

The Word of God in your heart will keep you alive forever! 

“Lord Jesus, let me hear Your Word today. By that Word I will grow and become strong for the battles of this life. And with Your Words ringing in my ear, I will live forever in Heaven! Praise Your Holy Name, now and forever. Amen!”

When You Walk With Jesus

 

 

 

“But I rejoice in the Lord greatly, that now at length you have revived your thought for me; in which you did indeed take thought, but you lacked opportunity. Not that I speak because of lack, for I have learned in whatever state I am to be content in it. I know how to be humbled, and I also know how to abound. In everything and in all ways, I have learned the secret both to be filled and to be hungry, both to abound and to be in need. I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.”

Philippians 4:10-13

 Who is Jesus Christ? Does He sit in the stands and cheer us on in the “Game of Life?” Perhaps you even think of Jesus as the Coach? You think of Him as one who trains you and explains the intricacies of the contest that you face every day. Jesus is all those things, but He is more.

In Matthew 11:29, Jesus says: “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me...” Jesus wants us to be yoked to Him like two oxen pulling a plow. They both provide strength to pull the load, but Jesus can carry the entire load for you if you need. 

There is no task, there is no challenge that is too difficult or too big for followers of Jesus Christ! When you see the need and say, “It is too great! I cannot accomplish it,” Jesus says, “Walk with Me, and watch Me do it.”

Nothing is impossible for Jesus. Put your hand on the plow in a field that is too rocky or too hard to ever prepare for planting. That field can be ready for the Word of God to take root and bring forth fruit for God when Jesus yokes Himself to you and you learn from Him. When Jesus has His hand on your plow, nothing is impossible for you as well.

“Lord Jesus, help me today to keep my eyes on You and not on the tasks that are too hard for me to accomplish! You, Lord, are the strength I need today and every day! Praise Your Holy Name, now and always! Amen.”