Strong Tower of Safety

Strong Tower of Safety

Proverbs 18:10

The name of the LORD [is] a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.

               Our middle son was almost to turn two years old, as he lay limp in his crib, his body feverish and alarmingly ill.  It was a time in our lives when we were walking and trusting God for divine health and healing.  We were full of concern as we held and watched this little lethargic body.  It was at critical time that I remember one evening Sharon calling upon other brothers and sisters in the Lord to pray.  I remember going through the Word of God and reading the promises concerning healing from God’s Word over this little one.  I was reminding God of His Word, of His Promises and of His faithfulness.  The Lord so mercifully heard our petitions and in His faithfulness He turned the tide in little Jonathan’s illness.  The fever began to lift and strength began to come back into his body.  The Lord restored him to health and gave him back to us. 

               There are many stories in our lives of how we have seen God’s faithfulness, healing and provision in our lives.  There are also times when God didn’t respond like we believed for or thought that He should have.  Did that make Him any less God or any less faithful?  I’m sure Job must have wondered why God didn’t respond to him as he held fast his faith in the midst of the total devastation of his life.  After he had lost his family, his wealth and his health, his wife comes to him in Job 2:9-10, “Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die. But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.”  Job had come to know God in a way that many haven’t.  He knew that God is God come rain or shine, light or dark, good or evil.  We are not always going to understand God’s timing, His ways or why things always go as they do, especially when we have tried so hard to stand in faith.  We have the advantage as readers to be privy behind the scenes of what was taking place in Job’s life and the dialogue between God and satan.  Most of the time we are like Job we don’t know all the whys and wherefores of why things happen as they do, so can we still trust God?  The fire that God allowed in Job’s life simply served to bring forth and reveal the purity of the gold that was within him.  We always think in terms of what preserves or blesses our flesh.  God thinks in terms of what will reveal His nature and character in us.  God’s desire is not to preserve our flesh but to bring forth the likeness of His Son.  “Jesus, though he was a Son, learned obedience through the things that he suffered. (Hebrews 5:8).”  When we walk the way of the cross it is not going to always be sunshine and lollipops, there are going to be times of darkness and trial.

               King David became quite familiar with these times as he fled Saul and his efforts to kill him. In those times, did he get mad at God or blame God for his troubles?  No, it only served to drive him deeper into faith and reliance upon the Lord.  These are a couple of the things David wrote as he went through these threatening times.  In Psalm 18:2 he writes, “The LORD [is] my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, [and] my high tower.”  In Psalms 144:2 he writes, “My goodness, and my fortress; my high tower, and my deliverer; my shield, and [he] in whom I trust; who subdueth my people under me.”  It is easy for us to believe when we do see the mighty hand of God move and we see our miracles and our deliverance. The question is, ‘what does it do in us when God is silent, and seemingly fails to show up in the way that we have prayed and believed?’  These are the times that our faith is really tried.  Do we truly love God for who He is, or do we only love Him for what He can do for us and give to us? 

Is He still our high tower, our defender, our trust and our salvation?  Our trust is not in our prayers but in God’s sovereignty, love, divine wisdom and His plan. 

               I have often questioned God about why things did or didn’t take place after I have prayed and believed, but I still have to know that He is the Potter and I am the clay.  He shapes and molds our lives and He commands our destiny.  We must rest in His hands and trust them to shape our lives in the way that pleases Him. 

               He is still our high tower of safety and the One in whom we place our trust.  He is still God and He still loves us.

Blessings,

#kent

Dare We Trust Him

Dare We Trust Him

Psalms 9:10

And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.

               Often, we talk about faith and trust as if they were just clichés of our religion rather than the substance and foundation of it.  When we are faced with circumstances beyond our reasoning and abilities, we are often forced to step out in these words that we talked a lot about, but haven’t really had to experience in practice.  Yes, we took a step of faith when we received Christ into our hearts and that may have been a big step for many of us.  There are times in our lives when we come to circumstances and crisis where we can no longer just talk the talk.  We have to walk the walk.  As we step out into those unknown and yet to be explored dimensions of faith, often fear will start to grip our hearts and our mind begins to race with all of these “what ifs”.   What we have learned is that fear is the greatest enemy of faith.  The Lord says, “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God [is] with thee whithersoever thou goest (Joshua 1:9).”  It is in our hour of need that we are seeking out Jesus.  We know that He alone has the power and the abilities to do what no man can do.  He is our only hope and we are desperately trying to get His attention and have Him hurry and meet our need.  Then perhaps we get the devastating news that it is too late.  “No sense in bothering Jesus anymore, it’s beyond Him now.”  These are the words that maybe you have heard in your life and circumstances.  These are the words that were spoken to the ruler of the synagogue, Jairus, as he was desperately trying to get Jesus to come to his house and touch his daughter who was dying.  Can you imagine how his heart sank as he was brought the message that it was too late, his daughter was dead?  He may have been thinking, “if only that woman with the issue of blood hadn’t distracted him, if only He had hurried a little faster and acted a little more quickly.”  One thing most of us come to know about God is that He seldom gets in a hurry.  Our panic doesn’t usually move Him any faster.  You can almost hear the cynicism from the messenger that came with the news of his daughter’s death, “While he yet spake, there came from the ruler of the synagogue’s [house certain] which said, Thy daughter is dead: why troublest thou the Master any further? (Mark 5:35)” What was the response of Jesus to this news?  “As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe (Mark 5:36).”  Let your faith take the place of your fear.  Don’t embrace the evil report; embrace your faith in your God.  The Lord seldom moves and does exactly what we think He should, in the time frame that we think He should do it.  That’s because He is God and we are not.  That doesn’t mean we don’t try to coerce, manipulate and put God in our box.  The truth is He just doesn’t fit.  Our God is as diverse in His ways as He is faithful and while we may think that He has waited too long or failed us in our crisis, it may be that we just don’t understand the timing and the ways of God.  Jesus is telling us the same thing today that He told Jairus,  “Be not afraid, only believe.”  His Word is the “light unto our feet and the lamp unto our pathway (Psalms 119:105).”  We dare to trust God because we know that His Word is true and that He cannot lie.  Hebrews 6:17-18 says, “Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed [it] by an oath: That by two immutable (unchangable) things, in which [it was] impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us.”  Christ is that Hope that has gone on before us and entered into that which is within the veil.  Where He has gone He has called us to follow and the only way to follow is by the full assurance of faith. 

               There is a song whose words I’ve quoted before and now share from memory so please forgive me if they are not perfect, but this is pretty close.  “God is too great to be mistaken, God is too good to be unkind, so when you don’t know His plan, when you can’t trace His hand, Trust His Heart.”  Our faith is about trusting in One who is greater and far more infinite than we are and the One who has loved us with an everlasting love.  We won’t always comprehend and understand His ways at the time, but He tells us to do one thing, “Don’t be afraid, only believe.”

Blessings,

#kent

Blessings

Blessings

Ephesians 1:3

Blessed [be] the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly [places] in Christ:

               Being blessed or receiving a blessing carries with it the connotation of bounty, provision and benefit.  We who have experienced God’s goodness and grace, have tasted of the rich blessing and benefit we have in Christ.   We have been blessed with the greatest blessing that heaven or earth could offer, the adoption as God’s children and heirs with Christ.  Romans 8: 14-18 gives us a glimpse of the blessing that is ours in Christ, but that we haven’t yet fully tasted of: “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with [him], that we may be also glorified together. For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time [are] not worthy [to be compared] with the glory which shall be revealed in us.”  We are blessed with His very Life and Spirit abiding in us in this present life and everyday we can give thanks because of the marvelous workings of His grace and love toward us.  Our blessings are so much greater than those of the world’s, because theirs’ is perishable and doesn’t bring forth life.  God’s blessings are eternal and life giving.  We come to know that in Christ, the more we possess of His presence and fellowship the more blessed we are, because there is nothing richer in this world than experiencing Him. 

               Ephesians gives us a special glimpse into the blessing we have in Christ in Chapter 2:4-10,  “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised [us] up together, and made [us] sit together in heavenly [places] in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in [his] kindness toward us through Christ Jesus

 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: [it is] the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast  that we should walk in them.”   We are spiritually in a place of blessing with God whether we see this world’s blessings or not.  We are rich in Him and through Him.  We have to realize and learn that we no longer operate out this world’s economy, but out of the economy of the kingdom of God.  We must learn to operate out of kingdom principles in this economy based on the promises and instructions of God’s Word.  We learn that as we operate in the blessing of God through obedience to His Word, we in turn become a blessing to those around us.  We learn that as we pour out to others the spiritual blessing and goodness He has given to us we are never emptied, because God makes us a perpetual fountain of blessing as His life blessing flows through us.  God is rich towards us in this world, but this world’s goods are not the focus of where our heart is unless it becomes the means of fulfilling His will and purpose and then it is only as directed by Him.  He is always the one we look to for our blessing, our portion and our supply.  It is wonderful how David expresses the Lord’s blessing and goodness in Psalm 103, “Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, [bless] his holy name. Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies; Who satisfieth thy mouth with good [things; so that] thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s. The LORD executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.  He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.

The LORD [is] merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.  He will not always chide: neither will he keep [his anger] for ever. He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, [so] great is his mercy toward them that fear him.

 As far as the east is from the west, [so] far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

 Like as a father pitieth [his] children, [so] the LORD pitieth them that fear him.

 For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we [are] dust. [As for] man, his days [are] as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more.

 But the mercy of the LORD [is] from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.” 

               Our spiritual blessing and benefits are sealed in Him.  As we are faithful to walk in His ways, He is faithful to continually pour out His benefits and blessings upon us.  Many of us have found that even when we least deserved it, God was still rich in His love and blessing toward us.  As He has so richly blessed us in Christ Jesus may our lives in turn be lived as a blessing toward Him to the praise, glory and honor of His name. 

Blessings,

#kent

Faith that Separates Us unto God

Faith That Separates Us unto God

Hebrews 11:24-29

24By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. 25He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. 26He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. 27By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. 28By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel.

29By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned.

               There is something in most of us that causes us to shrink back from the rejected, the unacceptable or unpopular ones of our society.  We may even have a compassion for them, but we don’t want to be identified with them because by association we fear the same rejection, ridicule and reproach they are suffering.  Our inclination is to be among the acceptable, the popular and well regarded of people.  We have seen this type of social behavior from the time we were little children all the way through into adulthood.  Think how Jesus’ life might have been different had He not chose to associate with sinners and tax collectors, if he would have just hob-knobbed and got in good with the upper religious class of His day.  Perhaps life would have not turned out so harsh for Him and perhaps we would still be perishing in our sins because we would have had no Redeemer of all of mankind.  If our Lord had been a respecter of persons, where would that have left many of us?

               In this passage in Hebrews 11 we view an example of an individual whose whole life was a diadem of faith.  Often, we associate Moses with the law and legalism, but his life was an Old Testament parallel of Christ.  Moses, even like Christ, had it all, authority, power, riches, might and dominion concerning earthly kingdoms.   Even like Christ he chose to be identified with the slaves and downcast people of God rather ‘than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season.’  It says, “accounting the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt.”  Egypt was a representation of the world and all that it has to offer us.  Many of us spend our whole lives trying to gain what Moses already had and gave up. 

               Moses was a man of vision.  If we have no vision then we will only pursue that which is directly in front of us.  Faith gives us vision to see with the mind and heart of God in order that we may pursue that which is eternal, but which is often ludicrous to natural minded men.  When by faith we begin to gain a God perspective of our world, our values and our goals change.  We begin losing our fear of what men think, what is popular or what will get us into the right social circles.  All of that becomes shallow, empty and hollow in the light of God’s vision.  By faith, we too, can begin accounting the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt.  The world is caught up in the lie that life is all about our personal success and us, when nothing could be further from the real truth.  Moses truly discovered life when he discovered a relationship with All Mighty God.  The world could have never given him, what he gained and experienced in God, but it personally cost him everything.  He bore the reproach of men, even the people of God, but the favor of the hand of God rested upon him.  He knew a relationship and friendship with God, that most men can only dream of, but Christ has made it possible for each of us through the Cross. 

               Today God’s call upon our lives is not to pursue the world or the things of the world, but to pursue Him and seek first the kingdom of God with all of our heart.  Jesus tells us in John 15:18-25, “18“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. 19If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. 20Remember the words I spoke to you: ‘No servant is greater than his master.’^[b] If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. 21They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the One who sent me. 22If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin. Now, however, they have no excuse for their sin. 23He who hates me hates my Father as well. 24If I had not done among them what no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin. But now they have seen these miracles, and yet they have hated both me and my Father. 25But this is to fulfill what is written in their Law: ‘They hated me without reason.’

That badge of rejection and shame in the world is a badge of honor in the kingdom of God, for it declares that we love and care more of the praise and approval of God than we do of men. 

               Faith has the vision to bear the reproach and separation with the world that it might be identified with Christ and His eternal kingdom.  Our faith must not be one duplicity, but singleness of heart and purpose.  He bought us with the price of His blood.  We are no longer our own, but His.  Draw near in full assurance of faith, despising the shame and looking unto the ‘recompense of reward’ even as Moses.

Blessings,

#kent

From Fear to Faith

From Fear to Faith

2 Timothy 1:7

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

            After being away a good part of the day, that night we brought a couple of our grandkids home with us to spend the night.  Before I had finished getting everything out of the car, the wife was telling me the back door was unlocked and open.  She said she was sure that she had locked it.  On the way into the house I grabbed a trusty little aluminum bat and went into to secure the perimeter.  As the grandkids followed we walked all through the house and did a search to make sure no one was there.  Everything was in tact and nothing was disturbed so it appeared to be just an oversight on our part that the door was open.  As the grandkids followed me talking. I could hear the apprehension and a degree of fearfulness in their voices as they wanted us to set the alarm.  Now these grandkids are about six and nine years old.  As we got them ready to put to bed I began to talk with them about fear and the author of fear.  I explained about the One who is our life and security, the One who has His hand upon our lives and all that touches us can only be by His permission.  We talked about “Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world”; how we are “more than conquerors through Christ that loved us” and how God has “not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”  As I began to speak these things to them, faith began to rise in their hearts as they began to remember and realize that even though they were just children, Someone, much greater, resided in them and watched over them.  I began to recount Bible stories of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, of Hezekiah when great armies came up against Jerusalem and the Lord told Him to send the praise team and worshippers out first.  I asked them how they would like to go out in the frontlines of battle with just a tambourine or a horn or just their voice.  We talked about how that praise and worship of faith and obedience released God to discomfit and utterly destroy those great armies so that by the time they reached them all there was to do was gather the spoil they left behind.  We talked about the story of Paul and Silas, beaten for their faith and thrown into dark dirty jail, their hands in chains as they began to sing hymns and songs unto the Lord.  Through that praise and worship, in the midst of such discouraging circumstances, God sent an earthquake that opened the cells and freed everybody, but nobody escaped.  As the distraught jailer thought everyone had fled he drew his sword to kill himself, Paul stopped him and assured him all of them were there.  We saw how what had seemed to be a day of utter defeat and failure had been turned by God to result in the salvation of this jailer and his household. 

            The kids wanted to hear more and more stories, but finally I said it is time for us to go to bed.  Now there was no more fear or apprehension as we turned in.  It was as the scripture says in Romans 10:17, “So then faith [cometh] by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”  Are you fearful today about some circumstance in your life?  Don’t look at how great the problem or the circumstances are, rather look to the Word of God and see how great your God is.  Look at all the times He delivered His people, because they put their faith and trust in Him.  Don’t look to how great the name is of the disease or burden that you bear, look to the Name above every name that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that He is Lord to the glory of God ( Philippians 2:9-11).  Our God can take us from fear to faith as we read and meditate upon His Word; remembering how great and mighty our God is, how He loved us and gave himself for us and how if we fear anything let us fear the Lord and trust Him.

The Psalmist David says it so well in Psalms 56:11, “In God have I put my trust: I will not be afraid what man can do unto me.”

Blessings,

#kent

Praying for Others

James 5:16

Confess [your] faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Praying for Others

               Something many of us may overlook is the need for body ministry and prayer.  As a functioning body of Christ our participation in the function of the body has relatively little to do with what we do in church and a whole lot more to do in our daily lives and relationships. 

               James brings forth the point that we are all about ministering and praying for one another.  We are one another’s confidants and encouragers.  The power of our ministry within the body of Christ is seen through prayer.  Christ gave the mandate to pray and believe with all confidence, because He has imparted His power and authority unto us.  In Luke 10:19 Jesus says, “Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.”  The body of Christ grows strong not because we are all individual islands struggling upon our own journey.  We grow strong because we have one another’s backs.  We should be able to rely upon one another, go to each other for prayer and council and encourage one another in the Lord.  We should be able to confess our sins to one another without the fear of judgement and condemnation, but knowing that we are all weak in our flesh and we reinforce one another in the fear and obedience to Christ. 

               Let us build those relationships with our brothers and sisters in Christ where we are a continual support and encouragement for one another.  We are a body, a family and functioning unit interlocked and inter-working with the other members of the body that in all things Christ is lifted up and the body of Christ is built up.  It is in our ministry to others that we receive our needs and our healing.  We all must continually be flowing and moving in His life and His truth, so that He can fill us with all that He is.  Each one of us walking in the Spirit, is an expression of the life and attributes of Christ.  He is among us, ministering to us and through us because we all manifest various aspects, gifts and abilities that He has imparted through us for ministry.  We are all ministers of His grace.  Be sensitive to your place in functioning and operating out of His life.  You are an essential and critical part of His body. 

Blessings,

#kent

The Lamb of God

The Lamb of God

Revelations 7:17

For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.

            The redeemed of the Lord are in the midst of the Lamb even as Christ is in the midst of the throne.  The Lamb is the Shepherd whose nature is imparted into His sheep.  There is a redeemed of God sealed with the mark and nature of God in their forehead.  They have put on the mind of Christ that whether in life or death their purpose is to glorify the Lamb and follow Him wherever He goes. 

          “⁹After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. ¹⁰And they cried out in a loud voice:

   “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” ¹¹All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, ¹²saying: “Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!”

    ¹³Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?”

¹⁴I answered, “Sir, you know.”

   And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. ¹⁵Therefore, “they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them. ¹⁶Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat. ¹⁷For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. (Revelations 7:9-17)”

               Some of you have known great tribulation in your lives, more than many of us could understand or possibly endure.  In the beginning of our walk with Christ sometimes we have this glorious vision of being transformed into a super Christian and changing the world for Christ.  As God begins the processing and purifying in our lives, we don’t always see and comprehend the work that He is accomplishing in us.  Outwardly there are times when there seems nothing is left but ashes and cinders of a life we once knew.  One thing is required of us, “Follow the Lamb wherever He goes.”  Even as the Lamb was slain, many of us will share in the suffering, the shame and the stigma the world has placed on many Christians.  What we must never let go of and never loose is our vision of who we are in Christ.  Out of the ashes many will rise to proclaim His name and profess in demonstration His works.  Many of you are wounded and fainting in weakness.  Be encouraged, lifted up and know that the Lord has not forsaken you, rather you are the apple of His eye, the ones He has entrusted with such faithfulness.  Your reward is just before you.  “¹⁷Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. ¹⁸I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. ¹⁹The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed.” (Romans 8:17-19) 

               What is God saying to us?  Prepare our hearts, not for the rewards we receive in this life, but in that which is to come.  We, His people must see and discern life from an eternal perspective.   What some of you have gone through and what we are yet to go through is nothing to be compared to the glory that shall be revealed in us who hold fast the faith and refuse to sell out our calling and election in Christ.  In order to do that you must have more than a passing knowledge and acceptance of the Savior.  You must fully possess Him and He must fully possess you.  The mentality of our faith must not be to simply escape and fly away, but to persevere and overcome.  The Promise Land was not possessed by the children of Israel being raptured into it.  There were battles and the enemy had to be dispossessed that the Children of God might possess their inheritance.  So it is in the heavenlies.  We must dispossess the enemy who now possesses our inheritance and our promise.  We do not fight these battles alone.  The Lamb of God upon His white horse rides into battle before us leading us from victory to victory, from glory to glory.  Follow the Lamb!  Follow Him wherever He goes.  Follow Him in the hard places as well as the easy ones.  The Passover lamb had to be eaten in its entirety; the bitter and the sweet, so it is with the Lamb of God.  It won’t always be glory and blessing on the way, but the end shall be sweet and so worth the journey.  Press in and endure.  Hold fast to the Lamb upon the throne and never loose your vision.

Blessings,

#kent

Joy Cometh in the Morning

Psalms 30:5

For his anger [endureth but] a moment; in his favour [is] life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy [cometh] in the morning.

              Where is your life spiritually today?  Would you characterize it as nighttime or daytime?  Most all of us, who have been walking in Christ for a time, know that we go through seasons in a spiritual sense.  There are times we go through such close intimate times with our Lord and sense His presence and love in such a wonderful way and then there are those nighttime experiences.  It may come as a result of allowing sin to come into our lives.  It may be the result of God’s chastening or dealings in our lives.  It may be through persecution or tribulation.   Whatever the reason it is nighttime experience, one in which we fail to sense God’s presence in our soul.  Our prayers may seem hollow and of none effect.  These are times when spiritually we cry out for God, perhaps it is in these times we really begin to seek God’s help, His presence, His deliverance through a trial or tribulation we are facing.  There are times our lives can feel pretty bleak.  Our circumstances are overtaking us.  Where is God? 

              King David experienced this nighttime ordeal before He became King.  Psalm 30:7-9 says, “

LORD, by thy favour thou hast made my mountain to stand strong: thou didst hide thy face, [and] I was troubled. I cried to thee, O LORD; and unto the LORD I made supplication.  What profit [is there] in my blood, when I go down to the pit? Shall the dust praise thee? shall it declare thy truth? Hear, O LORD, and have mercy upon me: LORD, be thou my helper.”  Perhaps you and I have prayed prayers similar to this.  One thing that is so admirable about David and I think a spiritual key to us overcoming in these dark times is that David, no matter how low, remembered the goodness and the faithfulness of God.  He continually brought God’s promises and His benefits before the Lord in his prayers and psalms.   And he never ceased to praise and thank God even in those dark times.  He was quite honest with God about what he was going through and the emotions that wanted to overtake him, but he always brought his thoughts and focus back to a place of faith in the faithfulness of God.  We may go through some long nights that may go for years, but learn those principles that David learned.  They will sustain you in those times. David even says an interesting thing in this passage, he says, ” by thy favour thou hast made my mountain to stand strong: thou didst hide thy face.”  Have you ever thought of your mountain as favor from God?  Remember that what God is allowing in your life is designed to press you into Him.  He wants us to learn and trust Him for who He is, not what He can do for us.  This is the place of maturing faith where the rubber meets the road.  God has to become very real to us or we give up and turn away.  God is processing us through the hardships of our life.   “The trial of your faith is much more precious than Gold” (1 Peter 1:7a)

              In this scripture David says “joy does come in the morning”, our trials, darkness and seeming separation from God won’t last forever.  He is faithful to bring us through if we faithfully hold fast to Him.  David’s next expression after talking of how severe the trial says, “Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness; To the end that [my] glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.”

              If you are in your night season, don’t be discouraged, have hope, God has not forsaken you.  He is proving you and bringing you into whom you really are in Him.  Stand the test, stay the course, for joy comes in the morning.

Blessings,

#kent

A Day with the Lord

A Day with the Lord

 

1 Corinthians 1:9

God [is] faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

 

 

 

The sun strikes the peaks with pinkish hue,

As I rise to start my day with You.

Soft, back lit clouds streak across the eastern sky,

As the day dawns and You are nigh.

 

With sleepy eyes I step out into the newborn day,

With praise and worship, I begin to pray.

Lord You are faithful, good and so kind,

You are the treasure I seek and the wisdom I find.

 

In the fresh clean morning air,

I step out and sense You are there.

A dove coos nearby as Holy Spirit says I’m here.

A fragrant breeze passes saying God is near.

 

Outward signs remind me of our inward chat,

A dialogue where we can talk about this and that,

Where God listens intently as I pray,

And I so want to hear what He has to say.

 

Often it is quiet when I listen for Him

With patience in prayer, I seek Him again.

He doesn’t always respond like I think He should

But often He speaks in other ways than man normally would.

 

Sometimes it is in the day that He is speaking to me,

Even through my wife, a friend or someone I meet.

I must learn to listen and see with spiritual ears and eyes,

Or I’ll miss what He is saying as my life goes whizzing by.

 

God often speaks when we’ve ceased to pray,

He talks to us often in such little ways.

He gives us opportunities to respond in His love,

He allows those tests to see what our hearts are made of.

 

No, He doesn’t speak audibly to me,

But He is speaking in ways that are setting me free.

He is not constantly condemning my sin,

But He is teaching me the liberty of the righteousness in Him.

 

Let us always start our day with prayer and praise,

Let us bask in His love, rising above earthly haze.

Let us learn to carefully listen and look for Him.

Walking in the Spirit, is knowing our dearest Friend.

Kent Stuck

 

Blessings,

#kent

 

Kingdom Principle of Power and Provision

 

Matthew 10:6-20

These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. 6Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. 7As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ 8Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. 9Do not take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts; 10take no bag for the journey, or extra tunic, or sandals or a staff; for the worker is worth his keep. 

11″Whatever town or village you enter, search for some worthy person there and stay at his house until you leave. 12As you enter the home, give it your greeting. 13If the home is deserving, let your peace rest on it; if it is not, let your peace return to you. 14If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that home or town. 15I tell you the truth, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town. 16I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. 

17″Be on your guard against men; they will hand you over to the local councils and flog you in their synagogues. 18On my account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles. 19But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, 20for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. 

Kingdom Principle of Power and Provision

One of the principles that Christ taught His disciple in this exercise and that He would have us to learn is that your power and your provision are in your assignment and commission.  What God has called you to do He will enable you to do and provide for you to do.  Along with these provisions is the responsibility to walk in obedience and the direction of your calling and assignment.  

I pray we are all getting a revelation in this hour that God is through with the time of segregation between “Ministry”  and “Laity”.  God has called us all in one capacity or another to “Ministry”.  It may not look like what it traditionally has, but the body of Christ has been crippled so long by the paradigm that the congregation or general church body is only to be preached at and often members have set in pews and heard the same message of salvation spoon fed to them a thousand different ways.  That is like repeating the first grade a thousand different times.  God doesn’t want us to be content with remaining on the milk of the Word and the foundational principles.  We each have a calling of ministry in our lives that we need to grow up in and be empowered to act upon.  Hebrews 5:11-14 gives us somewhat of a rebuke in this area when it says, “We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. 12In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! 13Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. 14But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.”  The Word of God is exhorting us, “Body of Christ it is time to grow up and become of full age and maturity.”  We, as the body, have often been quite content to sit back, pay our tithes and relegate the spiritual responsibilities to those in “Ministry”.  If we are to move into the things of God and the calling He has upon our lives in this hour then our free pass is over.  Let’s grow up and find what it is that God has called us too.   Ministry leadership’s responsibility is to help you through their gift and calling to come into yours.  The body of Christ has been lethargic far too long.  It is time we become activated.  When we do and we act upon what the Holy Spirit is directing and calling us to do our power and provision will be in  our obedience to respond to that calling and direction.  

Jesus didn’t tell the disciples to take anything extra with them on their assignment, for a workman is worthy of his hire.  Many of God’s people may be lacking because we are not responding to meeting the needs in one another.  We may often rob the servants of God because of our selfishness and unwillingness to see our responsibility in adequately providing for those who are operating in their calling.  For the body of Christ to be whole it has to operate in unity and oneness under the headship of Christ and the direction of the Holy Spirit.   We are no longer about “us four and no more”.  We are our brother’s keeper, his provision and his blessing.  Likewise, he should be ours.  Let us arise from our complacency and come into our function in the body.  Do not worry that you don’t feel worthy or able.  Christ is your worthiness and the Holy Spirit is well able to help you fulfill the assignment He has given you.  Just be faithful and obedient and He will empower and provide.  Like I heard one dear Christian lady say, “His will, His bill.”  First of all, let us get in His will.

Blessings,

#kent