Awakened in my Faith!

“Aroused by faith, Moses, when he had grown to maturity and became great…”  Hebrews 11:24

It is interesting that Moses had to be aroused by faith.  The word “arouse” means to be awakened; to be stirred up and awakened from slumbering.  We can get so consumed and overwhelmed with the struggles of life that we become discouraged to the point that our spirit slumbers, or shuts down and sleeps.

When you give in and are overcome by discouragement, you have a slumbering spirit.  An awakened spirit keeps you focused on what God is doing; even in the midst of trouble, you see the light.

There is so much bad news today that many are overtaken with discouragement. We need to ask God to awaken our spirit. All those who are called to be a modern day “Moses” need to wake up. Those who are called to be a modern day “Elisha” or “David” all need to wake up and take their post. It is not a time for some to sleep and some to work; it is a time for everyone to wake up and do what they were born to do. We were born in this time in history for a reason. It is time for everyone to face this reality and embrace who they are, and what they were called to do. (Romans 13:11)

Prayer: Wake me up Lord – I want to discover my divine calling, and know what I am to do in the work of the Kingdom.”

Are you Stressed, Tired, and Burnt-out?

“Oh God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land…”   Psalm 63:1

Life can be very difficult at times.   The stresses that we face each day can often be overwhelming and leave us exhausted and frustrated.  There is a deep well within us that must be filled up daily. When this well has not been filled, you will find yourself dry and thirsty.

Jesus said, “If any man thirst let him come to me and drink.” (John 7:37) Jesus is the fountain where we go to drink; He  is a fountain that will never run dry. When we spend time with Him praying and reading His Word, we are drinking from the “living water”. The Word brings life and refreshing to our spirit just as a drink of natural water refreshes us when we are dry and thirsty.

Are you stressed, tired, and burned out from the pressures of life? IF so, I would like to encourage you to get up early in the morning, and spend some extra time drinking from the Word of God. Drink until you are filled up with a renewed strength. As you spend time in the Word, you will also experience a renewed hope that everything is going to  be all right.

What is my purpose in life?

“I will cry to God Most High …who brings to pass His purposes for me and surely completes them.”   Psalm 57:2  (AMP)

 

Do you desire to know what your purpose is in life?   Are you lacking fulfillment and joy in what you do each day?  Does it feel like you are just spinning you wheels and never gaining ground?

Finding those things which gives our life purpose and meaning is important.  God has given each of us our own unique blend of talents and skills that will enable us to fulfill our purpose in life.  We are beautifully created and are special in every way.

So, how do you find your purpose?  How do you seek God’s purpose for your life?  You may be wondering, “why am I here and what am I supposed to do with my life?”  So many times we run here and there pursuing this idea or that idea trying to discover God’s purpose for our life.

We read in Psalm 57:2 that God has established His purposes for each of us and He will bring them to pass.  All we do is continue pursuing Him.  We must stop imagining castles in the sky and pursuing our own foolish lofty plans, and big ideas, so our soul can find rest and peace in the Lord.  Our main purpose is to pursue God, to love Him, to worship Him and enjoy fellowship with Him. Then our purpose will be revealed out of an overflow of our relationship with Him.

He created you with a unique design and purpose, and he will reveal that purpose in you as you seek Him.

Prayer:

Dear Lord, I am very weary, I have tried so many things in search of my purpose.  Lord, I ask You to forgive me for imagining castles in the sky and pursuing my own lofty ideas.  Lord, help me to cease from my own plans and ideas and simply pursue a relationship with You.  Lord, I ask You to reveal Your purpose for my life and give me Your peace.                                                                                                                                                          

In Jesus’ Name,  

Amen  

Help for the Brokenhearted

“He heals the brokenhearted and bindeth up their wounds.” Psalms 147:3

God has made full provision for healing the pain of the past so you can trust again.  Have you ever trusted someone to love you that did not know how to love or how to receive your love?  In both cases you will experience rejection.  This type of rejection is very painful, especially when it comes from someone whom you really trusted.  The pain from being hurt by someone you trust is much greater than being hurt by a casual friend.  It takes years to build trust, but it only takes a moment of rejection to tear trust down.  This is because when you trust someone, you open your heart up to him or her.  When they reject you, the natural tendency is to close your heart to them in order to avoid being hurt again.  The pain that comes from rejection creates a big wound that must be healed in order to be able to trust that person again.

Jesus made a complete provision for our physical and emotional healing.  But many people are stuck, “locked in time”, desperately needing to be set free from the pain of the past.  One way many people try to get rid of pain is to just forget what happened and forget about the person who hurt them.  You can tear that person out of your address book and you may even be able to forget what happened, but if healing did not occur, the pain is still there though tucked away inside.  The pain that lingers from the past keeps you tied to the past.  Isaiah, the prophet, said in Isaiah 1:4-6 that those people who have not been healed will go backwards.  Like taking one step forward and then two steps backward; you aren’t getting anywhere.

Another way many people deal with pain is to run from it or pretend it really isn’t there.  Pain is like a shadow, you look around and it is still there no matter how fast you run.  That is why so many people are walking around with the shadow of the past still on them.  Pain must be faced and dealt with in order for it to be put away for good.  Pain must be faced and dealt with in order for it to be put away.  Instead of running from pain, stop, turn around, and face it.  Pain must be faced to be healed.

You may be one who has received some healing, but the pain still remains.  Jeremiah 6:14 also says that when a person has only been healed slightly, they say peace, peace, but there is no peace.  The amount of peace you are having can be a good indicator of how much healing you have received.  Once you are healed and the pain is gone, you will be able to hold your heart open again and trust.  Healing produces trust in you.  Then wait on the Lord to give you peace.  However, if the person that hurt you proves over and over not to be trustworthy, he or she also needs to receive healing.

Do You Know God’s Will For Your Life?

Learning to Trust AgainHave you ever questioned what God’s will for your life is?  God’s Kingdom is distinct and a different way of life. Phil 2:13 says, “It is God in you that works to will and to act according to His excellent pleasure”.

I have actually discovered that I can pray the Lord’s Prayer, “Thy will be done”, and afterwards resist the work of Christ in me. “Col 1: 27 says, To whom God would make understood exactly what is the riches of the glory of this secret among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory”. I had to find out the difference between my will and His. My will includes doing whatever I wish to do, as much as I wish to do it. If I live according to my will, then I will consume all the food I want, invest all the cash I want, then whine since I am overweight and broke. When I abide and submit by His will, then I have criteria and borders. When I surrender my life to Christ and ask Him to be in charge, I am doing exactly what He desires me to do.

Your life will not be complicated if you surrender to God’s plan and will for your life. It is Christ working inside of you, changing your will to do the Fathers will. Take time to read His Word and you will quickly see who you are.

JOSEPH REPORT:  INSIGHTS ON PREPAREDNESS

You are His kid and a beneficiary. You are to live as a successor, a joint successor with Christ. It will alter your plan for the day when you get a look that you are here on planet earth as a beneficiary to develop and keep your Fathers kingdom.

Pray this easy prayer, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in paradise.” Journal as you ask Him to reveal you His will. What does it appear like?

Have you ever questioned exactly what God’s will for your life is? God’s Kingdom is distinct and a different method of life. I am doing exactly what He desires me to do when I surrender my life to Christ and ask Him to be in charge.

Your life will not be complicated if you surrender to God’s strategy and will for your life.

In Difficult Times, God Hears Our Weeping

Featured

The Lord has heard my cry for mercy;  the Lord accepts my prayer.  Psalm 6: 9

It seems that everywhere you go now people are discouraged, hurting, and afraid.  The news media gives us a steady flow of painful reports that often overwhelm us with concern, and attempt to steal our hope.

Unfortunately, in our cluttered and hyper-paced lifestyles we often rush through our challenges and attempt to control the outcomes ourselves.  We sometimes get drawn-in to the painful reports and feel overwhelmed with the difficulties.

It is important to recognize that in our times of difficulty, we have a resource we can turn to for comfort and guidance.  As the times become more difficult, we must discipline ourselves to spend more time He Who is our refuge in times of trouble.  In Him we will find peace during the storms.

Consider what David shared in Psalm 6.

1 Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger
or discipline me in your wrath.

2 Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am faint;
heal me, Lord, for my bones are in agony.

3 My soul is in deep anguish.
How long, Lord, how long?

4 Turn, Lord, and deliver me;
save me because of your unfailing love.

5 Among the dead no one proclaims your name.
Who praises you from the grave?

6 I am worn out from my groaning. 

All night long I flood my bed with weeping
and drench my couch with tears.

7 My eyes grow weak with sorrow;
they fail because of all my foes.

8 Away from me, all you who do evil,
for the Lord has heard my weeping.

9 The Lord has heard my cry for mercy;
the Lord accepts my prayer.

10 All my enemies will be overwhelmed with shame and anguish;
they will turn back and suddenly be put to shame.

Where Can I Go to Find Safety?

“It is better to trust and take refuge in the Lord than to put confidence in man.”  Psalm 118:8

In the days we are living, there is troubling news on every side.  There are wars and rumors of wars, famines, and earthquakes in various places. Everywhere you turn, you hear of devastation. Many are like the man who called our office today from another country asking: Where do I go where it is safe? I couldn’t tell him whether or not he should leave his country, but I could tell him to take refuge in the Lord and He would lead him to safety.

In Ps 91:2, the psalmist David says the “Place of Refuge” or safety is the secret place where you go to spend time with God.  In the secret place, your quite time, all voices are silenced and you can focus on hearing the voice of God.

God is your refuge. He is the only one who knows the answer to your present problems.  Take refuge in Him and the answer will quickly come. In the refuge of the Lord, the enemy cannot touch you, taunt you, or discourage you.  You are safe under the shadow of His wings.  Find the secret place every day.  There you can find rest for your soul and strength to overcome the trials of these difficult days.

Psalm 112:7, “He shall not be afraid of evil tidings, his heart is firmly fixed.”

This is the way, so now walk in it

Whether you turn to the right or the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, “This is the way; walk ye in it”  Isaiah 30:21 

Path of GodWhen we have decisions to make and doubts are flooding our soul and others suggest courses of action that are conflicting, when caution dictates one approach but faith the other, it is the time to stop and be still.  The scripture says, “Be still and know, I am God” (Psalm 46:10).  This gives us the permission that it is “ok” to quiet the intruding opinion of others around us and then calm ourselves into the stillness of God’s presence and wait to hear His gentile voice.

It sometimes takes courage to wait in silence trusting that He will not be silent. It takes courage to bypass all the words of well meaning friends.  It takes courage to not be pulled by those who are insisting on an immediate decision or action.  It takes courage to wait on, trust in, and rely on the Lord to direct you in those difficult decisions.

God is ever present in times of trouble.  When important decisions need to be made, you will hear His voice behind you saying, “This is the way, walk ye in it.” Once you hear clearly and the decision is made, a friend may then be used by the Lord to give confirmation and support. So be still and wait on the Lord, He is not silent.

“Unto you do I cry, O Lord my rock, be not deaf and silent to me…”  Psalm 28:1

The Right Path: Lord, as I still myself before You, help me to block out all intruding thoughts and opinions. I pray as David did that You will not be silent, I ask You to speak to me and give me direction in each decision I am making today. I desire to hear You say: “This is the way, walk in it.”

Our God is With Us

“I cried to the Lord with my voice, and he heard me out of His holy hill. I laid me down and slept; I awaked; for the Lord sustained me.”  Psalms 3:4-5

Resting Place of GodThere is turmoil and difficulties in our world that continually confront us.  We are challenged every day, and it is often hard to keep our minds and hearts set on God.  We know He is with us, but we often neglect to acknowledge and recognize His blessing in our lives.  He Loves us so much that even as we sometimes ignore Him, He is always there to hear our cries gives us peace in our slumber, and greets us as we rise.

“How precious also are they thoughts unto me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee.” Psalms 139: 17-18

God’s thoughts towards you are so vast they are more in number than the sand.  The best time to receive His thoughts is when you wake up early in the morning.  His thoughts are higher than your thoughts, so listen to hear His thoughts before you start thinking your own.  When you wake up early you will be able to hear Him speak to you clearly.  Your thoughts are in your soul but your spirit receives God’s thoughts.  Your spirit needs to hear what God is speaking before your own thoughts begin.

Ask God to show you how He sees you and your situation and He will lift you up above it, so you can look from a higher viewpoint and see it clearly.  As you hear what His thoughts are towards you, write them down.

Write down in a Journal what you hear Him saying, and then wait on Him to confirm it.

The Path: Pray asking God to tell you what He thinks about you.

 

God’s Purpose for Your Life

“I will cry to God Most High …who brings to pass His purposes for me and surely completes them.”  Psalms 57:2 AMP

what is my purposeDo you seek and desire to know what is your purpose?  You may be wondering, “Why am I here and what am I suppose to do with my life?”

So many times we run here and there pursuing this idea or that idea trying to discover God’s purpose for our life.

We read in Psalms 57:2 that God has established His purpose for each of us and He will bring it to pass. All we do is continue pursuing Him.

We must stop imagining castles in the sky and pursuing our own foolish, lofty ideas so our soul can find rest and peace in the Lord. Our purpose is to pursue God, to love Him, to worship Him and enjoy fellowship with Him. Then our purpose will be an overflow of our relationship with Him.