Category: Encouragement

Memo to God

Memo: (Short for memorandum. meaning: to jot down by note something to be remembered and acted upon in the future, a reminder.)

Every day I am saddened by people I come in contact with who don’t know God… some who don’t know him at all and some who don’t know him well. They may know he exists, but they don’t take the time to get to know him and build a relationship with him. I am saddened by those who live in confusion and heartache; those who are lonely, depressed, and searching for something to fill a void in their lives. They are searching for something, and they settle for substitutes… Substitutes of relationships, jobs, hobbies, status, cars, clothes, houses, busyness, drugs, alcohol; anything that will give them temporary happiness. Then there are those who are so steeped in misery that they cannot recognize joy, because they have lived in a ‘poor me’ mentality for so long.

I also see people who think they know God, but to them he is only someone they call on when they need something — times when they’re ill or when something breaks down. Then they pray in memo fashion or they ask others who they feel ‘have a connection’ to God to pray for them. They don’t have a day-to-day relationship. When they are desperate and their substitutions don’t satisfy, they write God a memo, because they have a desire. Yes, they have desires and longings, but the true longing in everyone’s soul is fellowship with God. (Psalm 84:2) They have a one-way relationship to make requests, write notes to God, or to remind him of their desires. If they developed this into a two-way relationship, they would quit making demands and truly know fulfillment. It is only God who can fulfill all our needs.

And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus. -Philippians 4:19     You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it! -John 14:13-14

Yes, we can go to God when we have a need and he will answer, but it is far better to build a relationship with God. God wants a relationship with us. He sings songs over us with songs of joy!! (Zephaniah 3:17)  He bends down to listen to us. (Psalm 116:2) God so wanted to restore his relationship with man, that he sent Christ to redeem us. He sent us a tangible person to show us who he is, he sent a perfect man, without sin. Christ is God, in the form of man, He is a visible person for us to see and believe in an Almighty God. (Colossians 1:15)

“Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.” -Revelation 3:20 /// So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God. -Romans 5:11 /// You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete. And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.” He was even called the friend of God. James 2:22-23

Open the door to God today, make a new start and follow God. Share a meal with him today by getting to know him and his deep, deep love for you. Then you can rejoice in your relationship and call him friend, because he already made provision for you to have an intimate relationship with him. Be the Friend of God! I pray this for your life today.

 

Working For or With?

Many people work For God, but very few work With God. I believe the reason there are so many fractions in the church today, is because people, even ministers, are working For God & not With Him. He has called everyone one of us to work With Him and until we get that mindset, there will be division. If I cannot work with another Christian, no matter their doctrinal differences, then I have missed the mark! There will be no Unity in the Faith, Until we learn to work With God!

Matthew 12:28-30 But if I am casting out demons by the Spirit of God, then the Kingdom of God has arrived among you. For who is powerful enough to enter the house of a strong man like Satan and plunder his goods? Only someone even stronger-someone who could tie him up and then plunder his house. “Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working WITH me is actually working against me.

Heretics and false prophets may claim to work For God, but they are definitely Not working With God.

Philippians 2:1-2 Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly WITH each other, LOVING one another, and working together WITH ONE MIND and purpose.

It all comes down to LOVE, the LOVE of God, which far surpasses any human love!

John 14:12-14 “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it!

We sell God short by working for Him, out of good hearts, and by not working With Him. It shouldn’t matter who does the work, as Paul says, but Whether God’s work, not Our work, is done…

1 Corinthians 15:10-11 But whatever I am now, it is all because God poured out his special favor on me— and not without results. For I have worked harder than any of the other apostles; yet it was NOT I, but God who was working THROUGH me by his grace. So it makes no difference whether I preach or they preach, for we all preach the same message you have already believed.

2 Corinthians 10:13-17 We will not boast about things done outside our area of authority. We will boast only about what has happened within the boundaries of the work God has GIVEN us, which includes our working with you. We are not reaching beyond these boundaries when we claim authority over you, as if we had never visited you. For we were the first to travel all the way to Corinth with the Good News of Christ. Nor do we boast and claim credit for the work someone else has done. Instead, we hope that your faith will grow so that the boundaries of our work among you will be extended. Then we will be able to go and preach the Good News in other places far beyond you, where no one else is working. Then there will be no question of our boasting about work done in someone else’s territory. As the Scriptures say, “If you want to boast, boast only about the Lord.”

Hebrews 12:14-17 Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord. Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many. Make sure that no one is immoral or godless like Esau, who traded his birthright as the firstborn son for a single meal. You know that afterward, when he wanted his father’s blessing, he was rejected. It was too late for repentance, even though he begged with bitter tears.

We can Only attain this holy life, by working With God. When we try to do it on our own, we are sacrificing our own birthright.

James 3:13-18 If you are wise and understand God’s ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your heart, don’t cover up the truth with boasting and lying. For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic. For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind. But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and the fruit of good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere. And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness.

When we are working With God, he lavishes on us His Wisdom. There are so many things we cannot do without God, so why do we even try? I exhort you to call on God to work through you, so you may work With God and not just For Him. I pray that you are able to put aside anything you may be doing, even out of a caring heart, if it is not what God would have for you to do. Start each day by asking God how you could work with Him to bring about His plan for your life, and in essence, His plan for all.

Prayer: Father, I pray you will quicken me to your Spirit, so that I may work With you and in doing so, bring your Love and your hope to others. Help me know your will, and give me the courage even to walk on water, because I can only do this, by believing in you. Help me to face any calamity and any obstacle by knowing that you are working through me by your Holy Spirit. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

(My emphases in capitalization of Scripture.)

I leave you with this thought… when we are working With God, and come to maturity, we will have peace. We will be able to work alongside others, each doing the work that God intends for us to do, because we will all work together with God, accomplishing His will.

Ephesians 4:16 He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.

Whose Hands are Holding your Life?

Then Jesus shouted, “Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands!” And with those words he breathed his last. Luke 23:46 NLT

As Jesus hung on the cross, he spoke to his Father and told him that he was committing his life (his spirit) into his hands, he was placing his trust in the Father to take care of him. He was making that final statement that he trusted him to keep the promise that even in death, his life was not over. As I thought about this, I thought how many times we put our life in the hands of others… and many times ill-placed. Every day we have to trust other people to do what’s right. We also must forgive them when they don’t do what is best for us.

We put our lives and the lives of the ones we love in the hands of teachers and professors. We trust what they are teaching us is factual. I won’t go into how much false information has been given in education, that could be an entirely different blog… or how vulnerable our children are… We put our lives in the hands of other drivers when we get in our cars, when we drive in traffic, or as a passenger, or especially when we ride on public transportation. We put our lives in the hands of chefs or anyone who prepares our food when we eat in restaurants. We put our lives in the hands of our government by the laws that are passed and the people who run it. While some of these may seem fairly innocuous, one of the riskiest is how we put our lives in the hands of doctors and nurses by allowing them to treat us for illnesses or by having surgeries. This is probably one of the ways we give up the most control of what happens to us in our life; but I’m speaking of dally life. Our ultimate decision in giving up control and the most important one is allowing God to have control of our life. Truly committing our life to him and putting our life in his hands, so that he may direct it in the way that is best for us.

Prayer: Father, into your hands, I commit my life. Help me forgive others when they put themselves first. Help me to put others before myself. Show me your ways, so that I am following the correct path. Thank you for your mercy and help me to show mercy to others. Through Jesus’ name I pray. Amen

Hebrews 4:14-16 NLT So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.