“HE GAVE!”

Ephesians 4:11-16                    (ESV)

“11 And “HE GAVE” the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers,

12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of CHRIST,

13 until we all attain to the UNITY OF THE FAITH and of the knowledge of the SON of GOD, to MATURE MANHOOD, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of CHRIST,

14 so that we may NO LONGER BE CHILDREN, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.

15 Rather, SPEAKING THE TRUTH IN LOVE, WE ARE TO GROW up in every way into HIM WHO is the HEAD, into CHRIST,

16 from WHOM the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.”

Admiring the writings of the Apostle Paul, I’ve often desired to have his abilities to articulate things the way he could.  He could paint things so clearly and beautifully that previously were felt in my spirit, but I just don’t have the ability to arrange the words adequately to express my thoughts.  I used to have, what I thought, a better command of the English language, but when GOD delivered me from the Brain Hemorrhage HE chose not to fully restore that function.  

We ALL are BLESSED with exactly what GOD has determined to be what we need to accomplish HIS Purpose for our time on this earth.  “HE GAVE” us the things we need to complete our assignment that HE created us for.  We don’t attain those things by our good works, but “HE GAVE” them to us!  Just like John 3:16 says “"For GOD so loved the world, that HE GAVE his only SON, that whoever believes in HIM should not perish but have eternal life”, the ability to save our souls is TOTALLY completed by CHRIST, WE DON’T HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH IT!!!

Do you think “HE GAVE” us the words that we use to tear others down?  What about the schemes we conjure up in our minds for personal gain?  Scripture instructs us to “GROW UP in every way into HIM WHO is the HEAD, into CHRIST”!  We WILL have to give an account to HIM one day, and I shudder to think about what I will have to answer for?  

Sometimes HE uses “trials and tribulations” to “direct our paths” to where we will grow into MATURE MANHOOD .......for HIS GLORY?  For the Apostle Paul, GOD used a blinding LIGHT on the road to Damascus.  For me, HE used a “massive Brain Hemorrhage” to adjust my focus.  GOD uses different happenings in our lives to accomplish HIS Plan for us.  Are you SEEING HIM in your “trials and tribulations”?  Or are you still immature and seeing “naturally”?  Remember, “HE GAVE” us our circumstances to transform us into HIS IMAGE.  Don’t think you have done it on your own.  

“Chief Priests and rulers of the people!”

Luke 23:13-21                                    (ESV)

“13 Pilate then called together the “Chief Priests and the rulers and the people”,

14 and said to them, "You brought me this MAN as one who was misleading the people. And after examining HIM before you, behold, I DID NOT find this MAN GUILTY OF ANY OF YOUR CHARGES against HIM.

15 NEITHER DID HEROD, for he sent HIM back to us. Look, NOTHING deserving death has been done by HIM.

16 I will therefore punish and release HIM."

18 But they (the Chief Priests and rulers of the people) all cried out together, "Away with this MAN, and release to us Barabbas"-

19 a man who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection started in the city and for murder.

20 Pilate addressed them once more, desiring to release JESUS,

21 but THEY (the Chief Priests and rulers of the people) kept shouting, "Crucify, crucify HIM!"

Having a TITLE before one’s name is thought by most to be a sign of respect, maybe even honor. To some, however, the title they have can be a burden, such a any politician these days!  The “Chief Priests and rulers of the people” might have been thought of very highly by some, but having JESUS crucified was not a popular thing according to Luke 23:48. There Scripture records “And all the crowds that had assembled for this spectacle, when they saw what had taken place, RETURNED HOME BEATING THEIR BREASTS”!  However, the “Chief Priests and rulers of the people” got their way as GOD IN THE FLESH was sacrificed for the sins of all mankind, including their sins of having HIM crucified!

The “Chief Priests and rulers of the people” thought they were eliminating their nemesis.  But JESUS defeated death, Hell and the grave and turned the tables on them and accomplished the WILL OF THE FATHER, providing Salvation for all Who the FATHER chose to Believe.  Psalms 7:14-16 says “Behold, the wicked man conceives evil and is pregnant with mischief and gives birth to lies.  He makes a pit, digging it out, and falls into the hole that he has made.  His mischief returns upon his own head, and on his own skull his violence descends.”  Don’t you think the “Chief Priests and rulers of the people” heard that verse ringing in their ears as JESUS rose from the dead on that first Easter morning???

There is no person who can escape the consequences of their actions.  Numbers 32:23 concludes with “....be sure YOUR SIN WILL FIND YOU OUT”.  “Chief Priests and rulers of the people” found out about this with an EVERLASTING consequence.  Although “this world” may have seen them as elite, eternity will reveal TRUTH, and that will be more than some want revealed.  

Being a “Chief Priests and rulers of the people” will never be something that I have to contend with, but that is fine with me because the Righteousness of JESUS has been imputed upon me.  Knowing that JESUS paid a tremendous debt for us should cause us to celebrate that we are NOT a “Chief Priests and rulers of the people”!!!

“I CHOSE YOU!”

John 15:16                                          (ESV)

“You did not CHOOSE ME, but “I CHOSE YOU” and APPOINTED you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the FATHER in MY name, HE may give it to you.”

John 6:44                                            (ESV)

“No one can come to ME unless the FATHER WHO sent ME draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.”

Perhaps we should be praying for ALMIGHTY GOD to “CHOOSE” a few more people rather than for “them” to start living and acting right??? As I continue to grow in THE LORD, I become more and more humbled that our CREATOR selected me before the foundations of the world to be used as a part of HIS APPOINTED.  ALMIGHTY GOD MUST call them for there to be a HEART TRANSFORMATION, a TRUE “changing of the guard”!  

We should always remember that nobody CHOOSES to become a Believer.  ALMIGHTY GOD, and ONLY HIM, does!  Preachers can’t “save” you.  Sunday School teachers can’t “save” you.  In the ninth chapter of Acts, Saul was on his way to persecute members of ‘the Way’.  In verses three through six, Scripture records “Now as he (Saul) went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him.  And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?"  And he said, "WHO are YOU, LORD?" And HE said, "I am JESUS, WHOM you are persecuting.  But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do."  Saul’s heart was changed, and likewise his name was changed to Paul.  There was more “evidence”, like his actions following his encounter with JESUS.  

Now I probably wouldn’t have been one who would have been praying for Saul, as he was known to be a HUGE thorn in the side of “the Way”.  But JESUS had a Plan as HE told Ananias in Acts 9:15 “..."Go, for he is a CHOSEN instrument of MINE to carry MY name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.”  Who would have thought that a persecutor of “the Way” would be CHOSEN to be used by GOD?  

Our desires to see others change for HIS Glory is NOT enough.  We can (and have) built the most ornate structures known to man, only to see them close to empty when Worship is scheduled.  Unless, and until, we recognize that we are only part of “the Way” because “I CHOSE YOU”, hearts will NOT be changed.  We Believers are NOT better than the lost, “I CHOSE YOU” is the ONLY reason we have HOPE!!!

“STRONG DELUSION!”

2 Thessalonians 2:5-12                         (ESV)

“5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things?

6 And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time.

7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way.

8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the LORD JESUS will kill with the breath of HIS mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of HIS coming.

9 The coming of the LAWLESS one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders,

10 and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the TRUTH and so be saved.

11 Therefore GOD sends them a “STRONG DELUSION”, so that they may believe what is false,

12 in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the TRUTH but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”

Observing so much LAWLESS activity flourishing in the society of “this world” is down right despicable.  However, we must Believe that when JESUS said in John 18:36 “MY KINGDOM is not of THIS WORLD....” HE was talking about Heaven, not anything about “this world”.  As long as “this world” is run by “the prince of this world” (1 John 5:19), he will continue to deceive folks who have been blinded by him.  He has been a murderer and a liar since the beginning (John 8:44) and “does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him”!  JESUS said it is the natural response for the enemy to LIE, “because he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies”!

Although it may dismay, even shock us, we should KNOW that times are going get a LOT worse before they get better!  And by getting better I am talking about the Second Coming of the LORD JESUS CHRIST.  We Believers SHOULD know this, but we constantly have to remind ourselves, THROUGH DILIGENT STUDYING OF SCRIPTURE, that the JUDGEMENT DAY is coming!  The enemy, and all who fail to recognize JESUS as the SON OF GOD, will be cast into the lake of fire that is NEVER quenched!  Money, fame, social standing, success in the business world, none of these things will matter.  

2 Thessalonians 2:11 says “Therefore GOD sends them a “STRONG DELUSION”, so that they may believe what is false”.  That they will believe what is false takes into account that they may actually believe that they are absolutely correct in their decisions, but the price they will be required to pay for being wrong will be unimaginable.  Eternity with the WRATH of ALMIGHTY GOD being poured out on you cannot be described.  John 3:36 SHOULD BE one of the most feared verses in Scripture.  It reads “Whoever believes in the SON has eternal life; whoever does not obey the SON shall not see life, BUT THE WRATH OF GOD REMAINS ON HIM.”  It doesn’t read that all who live a good life and put a few dollars in the collection plate at church will get off a little easier, “BUT THE WRATH OF GOD REMAINS ON HIM”!!

There is NOTHING that I can do, nor anyone else can do, to help you into Heaven.  Even though the enemy has sent a “STRONG DELUSION” won’t alleviate the punishment received by those deceived.  GOD can’t fellowship sin, as was witnessed by those on earth when JESUS was crucified (Mark 16:33) when the entire earth went dark AT NOON, and was prophesied in Amos 8:9.  Making SURE that I am IN THE TRUTH is paramount in my life.  Having the CREATOR OF THE UNIVERSES SHOWER HIS WRATH UPON ME doesn’t intrigue me in the least.  To be sent a “STRONG DELUSION” by ALMIGHTY GOD isn’t something that anyone should be relishing.  Are you being sent a “STRONG DELUSION”?  Do you recognize TRUTH???

“WHAT IS TRUTH?”

John 18:33-38                                       (ESV)

“33 So Pilate entered his headquarters again and called JESUS and said to HIM, "Are you the King of THE JEWS?"

34 JESUS answered, "Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about ME?"

35 Pilate answered, "Am I a Jew? YOUR own nation and the chief priests have delivered YOU over to me. What have you done?"

36 JESUS answered, "MY KINGDOM is not of THIS WORLD. If my kingdom were of THIS WORLD, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to THE JEWS. But MY KINGDOM is not from THE WORLD."

37 Then Pilate said to HIM, "So you are a king?" JESUS answered, "You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world-to bear witness to THE TRUTH. Everyone who is of THE TRUTH listens to MY voice."

38 Pilate said to HIM, "WHAT IS TRUTH?" After he had said this, he went back outside to THE JEWS and told them, "I find no guilt in HIM.”

Seeing that Pilate had the apparent authority to release JESUS from the shackles of sin manifested by THE JEWS, I used to be angry with Pilate for being a weasel and not standing up for what was THE TRUTH.  But Pilate was simply a tool in ALMIGHTY GOD’s Perfect Plan to redeem mankind......at least those who were CHOSEN by HIM to be used for HIS Glory!  

Pilate had questions about WHO this JESUS really was, for in John 19:33 he inquired from JESUS "Are you the King of THE JEWS?"  Evidently, Pilate knew that we ALL have a choice of who gets elevated to the throne of our own lives?  Being a JEW didn’t SET APART nearly as much as Belief that GOD is WHO HE says HE is.   The ones who were SET APART were the CHOSEN people who on a strategic mission in the battle between GOOD and evil.  Being an physical heir of Abraham wasn’t the thing that drew resistance from this world, but being a SPIRITUAL HEIR would definitely SET you APART.  

We have to be able to delineate between the “things of this world” and “the things of the Spirit” (1 John 2:15). Even Pilate was attempting to do this when he ask “WHAT IS TRUTH”?  Pilate didn’t have Knowledge that JESUS said in “I am the way, and THE TRUTH, and the life. No one comes to the FATHER except through me”!  JESUS IS/WAS/FOREVER WILL BE THE TRUTH, but Pilate’s eyes couldn’t SEE TRUTH.  

Why do you think that Pilate wasn’t able to SEE that JESUS WAS TRUTH?  There are MANY things in this life that I do not have the answer to, many things that simply don’t make sense to me. Like WHY ALMIGHTY GOD would sacrifice HIS ONE and ONLY Perfect SON just so I can be CHOSEN?  And why HE doesn’t strike me dead when I continually make sinful choices in my life.  Why did GOD “choose” a sinful example to be used for HIS Glory?

As Scripture is being played out before our very eyes, I need to proclaim HIS Goodness to the top of your lungs to those who cannot SEE “WHAT IS TRUTH”!!!

“GOD IN HEAVEN!”

2 Chronicles 20:5-9                                  (ESV)

“5 And Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the LORD, before the new court,

6 and said, "O LORD, GOD of our fathers, ARE YOU NOT “GOD IN HEAVEN?” YOU rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. In YOUR hand are power and might, so that none is able to withstand YOU.

7 Did YOU not, our GOD, drive out the inhabitants of this land before YOUR people Israel, and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham YOUR friend?

8 And they have lived in it and have built for YOU in it a sanctuary for YOUR name, saying,

9 'IF DISASTER COMES UPON US, THE SWORD, JUDGMENT, OR PESTILENCE, OR FAMINE, WE WILL STAND before this house and before YOU-for YOUR name is in this house-and cry out to YOU in our affliction, and YOU will hear and save.'”

This is a message to ALL who support one political leader over another, who chose any other way of life over the way ALMIGHTY GOD has directed, and those who think that there is no god and HE is just an tired, old being WHO cannot keep up with “this world”.  HE IS STILL IN CONTROL!  GOD hasn’t lost any abilities to be patient with the wicked, and HE hasn’t lost the might to punish any that doubt HE exists!  

ALMIGHTY GOD never promised us a fancy automobile, a plush earthly house, a huge bank account, or an easy go of it.   As a matter of fact, life is short AND FULL OF TROUBLE is the theme of the book of Job!  JESUS said in John 16:33 “....In the world YOU WILL HAVE TRIBULATION. But take heart; I have overcome the world."   Hebrews 11:6 instructs is that WITHOUT FAITH in GOD it is IMPOSSIBLE to please HIM.  

Since we have a “GOD IN HEAVEN” that we always SHOULD trust in, why do we fret about anything in life?  Not being “in control” is the hardest thing that I had to learn, AND STILL AM LEARNING!  July 09, 2007 I awoke and could not even control the words that I was speaking!  The word “FRUSTRATING” doesn’t begin to describe the feeling I was experiencing.  Even though “DISASTER COMES UPON US, THE SWORD, JUDGMENT, OR PESTILENCE, OR FAMINE, WE WILL STAND”!  GOD made the Children of Israel WAIT on the banks of the Red Sea until the Egyptians caught up with them.  Then GOD got “GLORY over Pharaoh and he all his hosts”!!!  So we don’t need to fret when we are having to WAIT, GOD might be waiting for our enemies to catch up to us!

Accepting that GOD Created us, and our paths are directed by HIM, is the only way to please GOD.  We can place our trust in man and his devices, or we can TRUST that ALMIGHTY GOD is in control.  Trusting in my abilities and knowledge has gotten me into SEVERAL messes, some of them rather embarrassing!  My desire is to trust in the “GOD OF HEAVEN” and give HIM all the Glory for everything that happens in my life.   

“I AM GUILTY!”

Luke 23:39-43                                  (ESV)

“39 ONE OF THE CRIMINALS who were hanged railed at HIM, saying, "Are you not the CHRIST? Save YOURSELF and us!"

40 But the other rebuked him, saying, "Do you not fear GOD, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?

41 And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the DUE REWARD of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong."

42 And he said, "JESUS, remember me when YOU come into YOUR kingdom."

43 And HE said to him, "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with ME in paradise." 

“I AM GUILTY!”

My normal protocol is to locate a word or two in the focal Scripture of the day and entitle the Devotional with them.   However today all that is on my mind is “I AM GUILTY!”  The CRIMINALS being crucified on either side of JESUS WERE guilty of crimes, according to the thief who begged forgiveness in verse 42.  And he knew that JESUS had done nothing wrong.  (v.41).  After reading the passage of Scripture over and over again yesterday, I HAD to revisit it to share some thoughts that wouldn’t leave me alone!  

The CRIMINAL had already been nailed to the cross.  He knew his time was limited.  So often we act as though we are going to “live forever”, that we will never die.  However Scripture says in Hebrews 9:27 “...it is appointed for man to die once, and after 

that comes judgment,...!” 

Shouldn’t I then make the most of every day that I am blessed to be on earth?  Getting so engrossed with the happenings of “this world” is one of the favorite lies the devil uses to convince us NOT to follow CHRIST!  We say and think that we have plenty of time time to get our lives in order, but Scripture says EVERY BREATH comes from GOD (Isaiah 42:5) and HE has been known to cause those breaths to cease rather abruptly!  

We can be deceived by the enemy, or we can say “I AM GUILTY” like the criminal on the cross and beg for mercy.  There may not be time to sow a few wild oats, because we always reap what we sow and that might be unpleasant on earth, but it will certainly be HELL in eternity (Luke 12:38)!  We only have the breath we are breathing.  It’s best to declare “I AM GUILTY” before it is everlastingly too late!!!

“THE CRIMINALS!”

Luke 23:39-43                                  (ESV)

“39 ONE OF “THE CRIMINALS” who were hanged railed at HIM, saying, "Are you not the CHRIST? Save YOURSELF and us!"

40 But the other rebuked him, saying, "Do you not fear GOD, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?

41 And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong."

42 And he said, "JESUS, remember me when YOU come into YOUR kingdom."

43 And HE said to him, "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with ME in paradise." 

Most people who are familiar with the crucifixion of JESUS know that there were two CRIMINALS (some translations call them thieves) crucified on either side of JESUS.  Never giving much thought to “THE CRIMINALS”, one might be curious why one of them REJECTED the message of JESUS, and the other one requested to be remembered by HIM when HE came into HIS Kingdom?  

Evidently both were convicted CRIMINALS as they were suffering the consequences of the choices they had made in life.   However, one EYES were OPENED and he could SEE that JESUS was WHO HE said HE was.  In Mark 23:42 he said "JESUS, remember me when YOU come into YOUR kingdom."  Now ALL of them were about to experience a certain demise from everything that could be seen IN THE PHYSICAL, but IN THE SPIRITUAL, things were going to be totally different.  

For the most part, we don’t want to look outside of the PHYSICAL, because we cannot prove anything SPIRITUAL, as those matters require FAITH.  Looking at the history of the two CRIMINALS, both were judged by “this world” to not be worthy of living.  Neither of them would be someone who would garner an invite to dinner with your family.  But when JESUS entered Paradise that later that day, HE welcomed the one CRIMINAL into eternal life to live forever.  The other CRIMINAL experienced eternal torment and death.  And the only difference in “THE CRIMINALS” was one could SEE WHO JESUS was/is, and the other could not.  

Why did “THE CRIMINALS” get crucified at the same time as JESUS?  One might suggest that ALMIGHTY GOD was, once and for all, exhibiting that BELIEF IN/ON HIM is what gets us our reward.  Hebrews 11:6 says “And WITHOUT FAITH it is IMPOSSIBLE to please HIM, for whoever would draw near to GOD MUST BELIEVE that HE exists and that HE REWARDS those who seek HIM.”  Genesis 15:6 says “And he (Abraham) believed the LORD, and HE (GOD) COUNTED IT TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.”

Don’t allow what “this world” brands you as determine who you are.   One of “THE CRIMINALS” was saved by JESUS in the midst of his fatal earthly punishment.  HIS perfect life is the ONLY thing that could have saved “THE CRIMINALS”,  and it is the ONLY thing that can save me as well!!!

“THEM ALL!”

Psalms 34:18-19                              (ESV)

“18 The LORD is NEAR TO THE BROKENHEARTED and saves the CRUSHED in SPIRIT. 

19 MANY are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of “THEM ALL”.”

Seeing so many people who experience seemingly catastrophic events in their lives causes me to wonder how they get through these difficulties.  It seems that we sometimes have a tendency to magnify the pain of a BROKEN HEART or CRUSHED SPIRIT and almost allow GOD’s Blessings to go unnoticed.  Of course, we celebrate “monumental” blessings, such as weddings, births, and other occasions, but we MUST understand that ALMIGHTY GOD delivers us from our difficulties, from “THEM ALL”!

Looking at my own life, there are numerous times that HE had delivered me from “THEM ALL”, but delivering the one HE gave me to complete me is something that I am most grateful for.  In July 2007 I experienced the Brain Hemorrhage that slowed my life down, and TREMENDOUSLY!  In October 2007 a dear friend of mine was killed riding a bicycle.  My wife had to break the news to me the next morning.  In February 2008 my mom was diagnosed with cancer and died the same month.  In March 2008 my mother-in-law, the mold for my wife, died following surgery.  And all this time I was “brain damaged” from the Hemorrhage and was functioning at about half of what I needed to be for her!  The thing is, I didn’t even realize that I wasn’t 100%.  I thought that I was “okay-fine”!  GOD displayed to me (over time) that HE was the ONE in control, and no matter how much I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE HELPED, HE didn’t/ doesn’t need or require my assistance!  

My point is, GOD ALMIGHTY has a way of displaying HIS Omnipotence in a way that we can’t always SEE HIM, but HE is still there!  Being able to SEE HIM when we are BROKENHEARTED or our SPIRIT is CRUSHED cannot be accomplished by our physical eyes.  It requires SPIRITUAL EYESIGHT to be able to identify HIM and HIS Presence!  HE is everywhere, we just need to identify and Worship HIM.  

My mind has been on an interview with Dr. Charles Stanley published in 2011 where Dr. Stanley says GOD was speaking to him during a dark time in his life and said “you have to SEE it all as coming from ME”!  We (mainly I) become so emotionally attached to difficulties in our lives that we can allow them to take on their own identity.  If we SEE “THEM ALL” as coming from GOD, we can GROW from our “lessons” and may not have to experience the lesson again!  

“I AM GOD ALMIGHTY!”

Genesis 15:4-6                                 (ESV )

“4 And behold, the word of the LORD came to him: "This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir."

5 And HE brought him outside and said, "Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them." Then HE said to him, "So shall your offspring be."

6 And he (Abram) believed the LORD, and HE (GOD) counted IT TO HIM (Abram) AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.”

Genesis 16:15—17:21

“15 And Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael.

16 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.

1 WHEN ABRAM WAS NINETY-NINE YEARS OLD the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “"I AM GOD ALMIGHTY”; walk before ME, and be blameless,

2 that I may make my covenant between ME and you, and may multiply you greatly."

3 Then Abram fell on his face. And GOD said to him,

4 "Behold, MY covenant is with you, and you shall be the FATHER OF A MULTITUDE OF NATIONS.

5 No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations.

6 I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make you into nations, and kings shall come from you.

7 And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be GOD to you and to your offspring after you.

8 And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their GOD."

9 And GOD said to Abraham, "As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations.

10 This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised.

11 You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you.

12 He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised. Every male throughout your generations, whether born in your house or bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring,

13 both he who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money, shall surely be circumcised. So shall my covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant.

14 Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant."

15 And GOD said to Abraham, "As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name.

16 I will bless her, and moreover, I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall become nations; kings of peoples shall come from her."

17 Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed and said to himself, "Shall a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?"

18 And Abraham said to GOD, "Oh that Ishmael might live before you!"

19 GOD said, "No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him.

20 As for Ishmael, I have heard you; behold, I have blessed him and will make him fruitful and multiply him greatly. He shall father twelve princes, and I will make him into a great nation.

21 But I WILL ESTABLISH MY COVENANT WITH ISAAC, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this time next year."”

Genesis 21:1; 5

“1 The LORD visited Sarah as HE had said, and THE LORD DID TO SARAH AS HE HAD PROMISED. 

5 Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.” 

Since the Scriptures being shared today are quite lengthy, I will try to keep my comments abbreviated.  

The are times in my life, a LOT more than I care to admit, that I have to be reminded that “I AM GOD ALMIGHTY” does NOT require, NOR REQUEST, my assistance in keeping HIS Promises.  Abram, eventually known as Abraham, listened to Sarai, eventually known as Sarah, and accepted her reasoning before GOD’s Promise.  

GOD’s Covenant was established with HIS Promise, Isaac, although GOD promised to bless Ishmael, who was born when Abram was 86 years old when the plan of Sarai was fulfilled.  When Abram was 99 years old, “I AM GOD ALMIGHTY” visited him and said that his name was being changed to Abraham, and Sarai’s name to Sarah, and he would be the FATHER OF A MULTITUDE OF NATIONS!  

Was it because Abraham and Sarah was so obedient to GOD that HE blessed them so abundantly?  Was it because of Abraham’s great wealth?  No, Genesis 15: 4-6 says “And behold, the word of the LORD came to him: "This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir."  And HE brought him outside and said, "Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them." Then HE said to him, "So shall your offspring be."  And he (Abram) believed the LORD, and HE (GOD) counted it to him (Abram) as righteousness.”

Hebrews 11:6 says “AND WITHOUT FAITH it is IMPOSSIBLE to please HIM, for whoever would draw near to GOD MUST BELIEVE THAT HE EXISTS and that he rewards those who seek HIM.”  ALMIGHTY GOD does NOT share HIS Glory with anyone nor anything (Isaiah 42:8)!  “I AM GOD ALMIGHTY” has a Plan, and we cannot improve upon it!  

“THE LIGHT!”

Psalms 119:105                  (ESV)

“YOUR word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”

D.L. Moody, famed preacher of the 19th century, has been quoted as saying "The Bible was not given for our information but for our transformation.”  Applying Psalms 119:105 to “our walk”, if we do NOT stay in the SCRIPTURES, our actions are telling THE ALMIGHTY that we don’t need HIS LAMP or LIGHT to guide us!  We can’t expect a preacher to keep us in “THE LIGHT”.  We must take personal responsibility for staying in HIS guiding LIGHT!

LORD HELP ME!!!

“LOOK CAREFULLY!”

Ephesians 5:15-18                            (ESV)

“15 “LOOK CAREFULLY” THEN HOW YOU WALK, not as unwise but as wise,

16 MAKING THE BEST USE OF THE TIME, because the days are evil.

17 Therefore do not be foolish, but UNDERSTAND WHAT THE WILL OF THE LORD IS.

18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the SPIRIT,”

Listening to GOD can be an extremely easy thing to accomplish, while at the same time be one of the most difficult things we ever attempt.  Keeping JESUS at the center of our thoughts is one of the most IMPORTANT things we can do. From personal experience, electing to follow our own “heart” can turn out disastrous.  “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? “I the LORD search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds” according to Jeremiah 17:9-10.  

There are times when our hectic schedule and the busyness of “this world” can attempt to “SUPERIMPOSE” itself on our lives, delegating our time and resources to things we really prefer not to be doing.  Why do we (mainly I) allow the enemy to deceive us (me) when my eyes have been opened to TRUTH?  UNDERSTANDING WHAT THE WILL OF THE LORD IS should be something we desire IF we have intentions of acting as Believers.  Acting the “way we were born” is a demonstration of living a life that has not been regenerated, or BORN AGAIN (John 3:3)!  When we “LOOK CAREFULLY” THEN HOW WE WALK, we should be exhibiting characteristics of a NEW MAN (Ephesians 4:20-24), created in righteousness and holiness of the TRUTH! 

Scripture says in many places that we MUST experience a CHANGE in our lifestyle when we are “drawn” to HIM.  John 8:31 (KJV) says “Then said JESUS to those Jews that Believed on HIM, “IF he continue in MY Word, THEN are ye my disciples indeed;”!  Matthew 7:21-23 “Not every one that saith unto ME, LORD, LORD, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of MY FATHER which is in Heaven.  Many will say to ME in that day, LORD, LORD, have we not prophesied in THY name? and in THY name have cast out devils? and in THY name done many WONDERFUL WORKS?  And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from ME, YE THAT WORK INIQUITY.”  The WORKS we perform are only an indication that we have been BORN AGAIN.  They are NOT meant as a payment for our sins!  That would indicate that we are assisting HIM with HIS FINISHED WORK!  

Upon the Exodus from Egypt, the Children of Israel were provided a PILLAR OF CLOUD by day, and a PILLAR OF FIRE by night to guide them in the way they should be going.  They didn’t have to “LOOK CAREFULLY” to discover when they got outside of their cover.  The intense heat of the desert would let them know!!  When we become accustomed to our own PILLAR OF CLOUD, the HOLY SPIRIT, leading our lives, we should also become very uncomfortable when we step outside of HIS protection.  How about you?  Do you “LOOK

 CAREFULLY” at your FRUITS???

“THE HEART OF MAN IMAGINED!”

1 Corinthians 2:9                            (ESV)

“But, as it is written, "What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor “THE HEART OF MAN IMAGINED”, what GOD has prepared for those who love HIM".

Recently I was BLESSED to see a friend  I have known for longer than I care to admit.  She has been diagnosed with a cancer that doctors have said will more than likely win the battle for her physical life before the end of the year.  Seeing her husband do whatever he can for her as her ability to live life slips from her grieves me to my core.  It seems that she is losing a treacherous battle, that is until I remember something said to me in 1996.

My younger sister was 33 years old when she was diagnosed with Gastric Carcinoma, or Stomach Cancer for us lay people.   She died 3 days after her 34th birthday.   One day following her diagnosis, while talking with her about what Heaven was going to be like, I was talking about seeing our “Grandma” and other relatives who had gone on before.  My sister said in an almost joyous sounding voice, “I want to see JESUS”!  My tears begin to flow as I thought of her apparent priorities and my limited vision of what Heaven was really all about!  All I was SEEING was from a natural persons perspective, while she had a viewpoint of a grounded Spiritual Warrior who was about to graduate to Glory!  

The Apostle Paul had a much better knowledge of what to expect than most of us.  In 2 Corinthians 12 he writes “I know a man in CHRIST who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, GOD knows.”  Most believe he was referring to himself.  Yet in his first letter to the church at Corinth he recalled what Isaiah 64 said, "What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor “THE HEART OF MAN IMAGINED”, what GOD has prepared for those who love HIM"!  

Why then do we do so much to delay our exodus from “this world”?  Many of us understand that Heaven is our Home, we are just passing through “this world”.  But others DON’T KNOW and probably don’t want to think about the future beyond their earthly life.  The closer I get to my eternal destination, the more I look forward to "What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor “THE HEART OF MAN IMAGINED”!  Physical Death doesn’t “scare” me in the least!  Just like a child who is going to their grandparents home, I am longing to see what is beyond all that “THE HEART OF MAN IMAGINED”!!!

“URGENT!”

Exodus 12:33-36                      (ESV)

“33 The Egyptians were “URGENT” with the people to send them out of the land in haste. For they said, "We shall all be dead."

34 So the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading bowls being bound up in their cloaks on their shoulders.

35 The people of Israel had also done as Moses told them, for they had asked the Egyptians for SILVER and GOLD JEWELRY and for clothing.

36 And THE LORD HAD GIVEN THE PEOPLE FAVOR in the sight of the Egyptians, so that THEY LET THEM HAVE WHAT THEY ASKED. Thus they plundered the Egyptians.”

In April 2017 I went to an “URGENT” Care Facility.  My reason for going was a suspected pulled muscle in my upper chest area and the Emergency Room at the hospital was swamped.  The “URGENT” Care Facility saw me in two minutes and had me admitted to a hospital within a couple of hours.  My suspected “pulled muscle” wound up being a blockage in a coronary artery and bypass surgery was performed to correct my problem.  Going to the “URGENT” Care Facility wound up being one of the smartest moves of my life!  

The Children of Israel were being “made” to leave Egyptian soil in an “URGENT” manner because “they said, "We shall all be dead".  GOD had SO caused their hearts to be grieved because of the firstborn son of every household being slaughtered that they WERE GIVING SILVER and GOLD JEWELRY, even letting them HAVE WHAT THEY ASKED!  When ALMIGHTY GOD is guiding your footsteps, and ultimately the footsteps of those opposing us, whether slow and methodically or “URGENTLY”, HIS Plan WILL BE FULFILLED!  

My bypass surgery was performed in Little Rock Arkansas.  Was that part of GOD’s Plan?  The results speak for themselves as I was TOTALLY released from the surgeons care at my THREE WEEK checkup!  No Cardio-Rehab, less blood pressure medication, feel great, and better Blood Pressure readings!  Trying to operate outside of GOD’s Plan will cause frustration and heartache.  Experiencing GOD’s PEACE through being in HIS Plan, even when things don’t come as rapidly as I prefer, is a JOY that is unexplainable.  

The thing that really excites me is that ALMIGHTY GOD isn’t through with me YET!  HE has displayed to me that just because I think everything is “URGENT” doesn’t make it “URGENT” in HIS Book!  It was “URGENT” for the Children of Israel leaving Egypt, but GOD changed the Egyptians hearts to accommodate the Exodus.  HE is allowing me to help others in a way that might seem insignificant to others, but doing what ALMIGHTY GOD leads me to do is anything but insignificant to me!  Following HIS Plan is exactly where I want to be, and whether it is “URGENT” or not makes me no difference, as long as I am used by HIM!!!

“BE STILL!”

Mark 4:35-41                         (ESV)

“35 On that day, when evening had come, HE said to them, "Let us go across to the other side."

36 And leaving the crowd, they took HIM with them in the boat, just as HE was. And other boats were with HIM.

37 And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling.

38 But HE was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke HIM and said to HIM, "TEACHER , do YOU not care that we are perishing?"

39 And HE awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, "Peace! “BE STILL“!" And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.

40 HE said to them, "Why are you so afraid? Have you still no FAITH?"

41 And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, "WHO then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey HIM?" 

As I was “scrolling” this morning, I saw a meme with the words to the chorus of a song named “Till the storm passes by”.  It seemed my mind was stuck on this theme, so I researched and discovered the “HIS”tory of ONE OF THE storms in Scripture listed in Mark 4.  As I was going to Mark 4:35-41, I passed by NUMEROUS “parables”  in Mark chapter four that were spoken to those who heard.   When asked why HE spoke in parables, JESUS replied in Mark 4:11-12 “To you has been GIVEN the secret of the kingdom of GOD, but for those outside everything is in parables, so that "'they may indeed see but not perceive, and may indeed hear but not understand, lest they should turn and be forgiven.'”  

Not everyone who “hears” words spoken are moved by those words.  Regrettably, I was in that scenario many times, and sometimes still am.  The words “BE STILL” grabbed my attention around 2009 following the Brain Hemorrhage of 2007, mainly because I had been in a coma for seventeen days and for Psalms 46:10 Ministries.   But here JESUS is speaking to the wind, a force of nature, and it obeyed HIM without question!  Yet most of us want to understand WHY GOD is asking us to do something, or how HE is going to accomplish something, or anything else we can think of to avoid doing what HE is leading us to do.  We want to “figure out” a way to escape our predicament when GOD maybe trying to grow us through our difficulties?  

The words “BE STILL” could also be stated “LET GO AND LET GOD BE GOD”.  Although we want to think that we are Spiritually mature enough to guide ourselves through the “valley of the shadow of death, we DON’T HAVE all the answers to life’s problems.  As a matter of fact, I am finding more and more that I am a TERRIBLE captain whose life navigational skills are severely inadequate, maybe even catastrophic.  

Psalms 46:10 in the King James Version and English Standard Version says to “BE STILL”, but in the NASB version says to “CEASE STRIVING”, and know that I am GOD!  Since HE is GOD and HE is in control, we don’t have to know the outcome to every situation we face in our lives, we just need to TRUST in HIM!  The disciples wanted the storm to dissipate, but JESUS wasn’t “worried” about the storm, HE was asleep in the stern of the boat. Maybe I need to REST IN HIM more and “LET GO AND LET GOD BE GOD”?  

It was if JESUS was telling HIS disciples to don’t worry about the storms that we have no control over in the first place.  We are only on earth for a brief time and then we are called HOME.  We might be placed directly into a storm so HE can be Glorified by delivering us from that storm.  Or that storm may be HIS instrument to bring us HOME!  If the winds of the seas HAVE to obey THE CREATOR, why shouldn’t I “BE STILL” and LET GOD BE GOD???