WHAT NOW?

“From now on I will tell you of new things,
    of hidden things unknown to you.
⁷ They are created now, and not long ago;
    you have not heard of them before today.
So you cannot say,
    ‘Yes, I knew of them.’
Isaiah 48:6-7

I can truly say "I didn't know." I didn't see this coming. Life had lots of twists and turns to get me here. The path I planned to take just kind of disappeared in the fog of despair as I wallowed in self-pity after each broken dream. But, I have found that all things do work for good if we love God and we are called to His purpose.

Nevertheless, the road to God's purpose is often filled with obstacles that may not be meant to stop us, but rather to redirect us. How often do we believe that we are in God's will, yet, nothing seems to go right?  Well, our gaffes can be our greatest gifts. It just depends on how we receive it as it is true that our mess can definitely morph into an amazing message of hope for many. 

The suddenlies of God catch us off guard and then we are in a "new thing". It may be way out of our comfort zone and quite a stretch. So, What now? From now on, our lives will never be the same. God is creating something new in our lives. This may be painful process, but it is not without purpose. We are moving into a new position and getting a different perspective. We can never say that we knew this was going to happen.  Actually, this was never in our plans, but God had His way. 

NOTHING

I have nothing,

But, Jesus is everything I need

I have no money,

But, my God will meet all my needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus

I have no food,

But, the offspring of the righteous man will not go begging for bread, and I am the child of the most righteous Heavenly Father

I don’t have my own house,

But, I dwell in the shelter of the Most High

I have no car,

But, it is the Holy Spirit who moves me

I don’t have many friends,

But, Abraham wasn’t the only friend of God, so am I

I feel like my life is going out of control,

But, my God holds the whole world in His hands

I feel like I can do nothing,

But, I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength

I feel like I am nothing,

But, I am specially designed by the Creator, and out of nothing, He makes me something, beautifully designed for His purpose

You may see me as nothing,

But, Jesus sees me as everything - someone worth dying for.

What Do You Expect?

Their visions are false and their divinations a lie. They say, “The LORD declares,” when the LORD has not sent them; yet they expect their words to be fulfilled. Ezekiel 13:6

This verse is pertaining to false prophets, but I recognize it is extremely profound just reading it by itself. How often do we see things the way we want to see it, creating a false vision? Have we ever looked into the future conjuring up a life that we want, then manipulate our present to make what we "foresee" be what you want it to be?  That's nothing less than creating and living a lie.  But, we don't only create false visions and live a lie, we try to make ourselves feel better by saying that it is "of the Lord." And since "it is of the Lord," then we expect all that our visions will be fulfilled and our lies will be made true.

Our unrealistic expectations, gives way to living in a manner that is not pleasing to God.  We put our expectations on others and believe that they should be what we want them to be.  But really, they aren't.  Some folks may want to please us and they will try to be what we want them to be, however it can be quite difficult to keep up the facade and at some point the facade comes down and both parties are hurt.  One is angry because he or she feels that the person has changed for the worse.  While the other, breaks under the pressure of being what he or she wasn't meant to be.

Manipulations, lies and unfair expectations lead only to trouble. The fact is we are all broken and we somehow want to feel more together through love and acceptance. Furthermore, we desire the other person to show us love and acceptance through our own lens, which is often shaped by our experiences.  This is unreasonable as each person has their own experiences that have given them a different perspective on life.  

So, what do you expect?  It's time to have a reality check. No one can fit all our expectations. We need to give them a break and we need to give ourselves a break. We miss out on the uniqueness and beauty of others when we try to make them fit into our mold.  Let's just let people be who they were meant to be and support them to be the best person they were created to be. Step back and see them for who they really are.    Sometimes we may not like this realistic look, but then that's when we need to take a good look at ourselves. We may not like the person we are either. The things we hate in others are often what is wrong with us.  Once we know the truth about ourselves then bring it to God.  He will enlighten us and show us the way.

Read more about unrealistic expectations at  http://www.rechargerelationships.com/Expectations_Chapter.pdf

Dying for Christ

According to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. Philippians 1:20-21

We often talk about living for Christ.  But, are we ready to die for Christ?  Are we ready to die to self?  Too frequently we say this is the way we are and we can't change.  However, if we say that we can't change, as Christians we are denying the power of the Holy Spirit.  We are in essence stating that our flesh is more powerful than the precious blood of the Lamb.

We are to put ourselves on the altar, presenting ourselves as living sacrifices holy and acceptable to God. This requires death.  Something has to die for life to occur.  A seed dies in the earth and is buried away for new life to spurt that is abundant and fresh.  

Trying to cheat death to self, we remain egotistical and can never fully accomplish our God given purpose.  Sometimes it is our humiliation which humbles us after it helps to kill our flesh. Our shame is a necessary part of living for Christ and it enables us to better encourage others in their Christian walk as we remember that Jesus too suffered the "shame of the cross."  He did this so that we could have life more abundantly.  

It is not just about us, God is thinking about how much we can accomplish when he helps to murder our flesh and annihilate our ego. This is all a part of dying for Christ, so that the world will have much to gain.  

Where Has All The Love Gone

I opened for my lover, but my lover had left; he was gone. My heart sank at his departure. I looked for him but did not find him. I called him but he did not answer. Song of Songs 5:6 

Why did the Lover leave? The Beloved was sleeping and was too lazy to get up at the knock of her Lover. All the Beloved did was to think about herself. She didn't want to put her robe back on again and she didn't want to soil her washed feet. 

The Beloved Church is asleep as her Lover Jesus knocks at the door of her heart. The Church is too comfortable to get up and move towards Jesus' call. She doesn't want to rise up from her soporific state. The Church refuses to put on the robe of righteousness, yet proudly wraps herself in self-righteousness. Feeling clean, she doesn't want to mix with the "unclean" and walk a path that may get her feet dirty. However, the path Jesus walked was lined with sinners who needed his healing touch. The Church too is called to walk the path of her Lover. 

Any disciple who follows Jesus will get dirty feet. But, being in Jesus means the disciple is clean, no matter what mess those feet trod through. 

It is time for the Church to stop worrying about dirty feet as she arises from her lethargy. She must open the door to her first Love without hesitating or else it may be too late. It is time for the Beloved to love as the Lover and forget about herself to seek the lost and hurting. 

Unfortunately, when people look at the Church they are asking, "Where has all the love gone?" 

The time has come for the Church to wake up, get up and open up the door for her Lover. She has locked out not only the Lover, but also those who need to be loved. 

“Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you." Ephesians 5:14

Pure Joy

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does." James 1:2-7

This is pretty tough.  Having joy when facing difficult situations can be quite challenging.  However, the passage never said these circumstances make us happy. Being happy and having "pure joy" are two different things.

Joy does not come from external happenings, whether good or bad, but comes from the Lord no matter what is taking place.

Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength. Nehemiah 8:10

We know that when we face these trials we are getting stronger and stronger in the Lord and that in itself should give us "pure joy".

Lately, I have been trying to encourage myself, just like David. But, it hasn't been working.  I feel more like the Israelites in the desert who were going no where fast because they were murmuring and complaining.  Life may not be getting better. Problems seem to be heating up and going forward may not seem to be the best prospect. We see that this promised land of milk and honey is occupied by some fierce looking giants who make us fearful.

We run to man to try and figure out the giant problem, but man has no answers, no matter how astute he is.  His wisdom cannot match that of God's, yet we keep going back to him and keep hitting into that brick wall.  God knows how to break down that wall, but it just doesn't make sense to us.  We want to get through the wall, however God defies human wisdom and tells us to walk around it and then make a shout.  How odd? Surely, those watching us will think we are fools.  Instead, we return to man for a better answer and needless to say the wall stays up and seems to get thicker and higher.

We cannot believe God.  His wisdom makes no sense.  We forget that His ways are not our ways, resulting in us wavering and doubting.  We want to enter the promised land, but we listen to man rather than God.  

The Lord knows about the giants.  He also knows that He is going to use those giants to build our faith, but we need to persevere.  We can't give up. Our ideas to get out of our mess don't always work and some are just temporary fixes.  The giants are there to build us, not kills us.  God is our refuge and our fortress. When we rest in His shadow, He guards us from the heat of the problem.  No doubt, the problem is still there, but with God for us, who or what can be against us?  

The problem is not the problem itself, but how we react to the problem.  Do we believe man or God? And do we have "pure joy" in spite of it all?

Back Off!!!

I really want to be control and so it scares me to just back off to let God and let God.  However, I know this would be my best stance. For so long I have lived on my might and my power, even though I know it is wrong.

So he said to me, "This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: 'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the LORD Almighty. Zechariah 4:6 (NIV)

Easier said than done?  Maybe not.  Moving in the Spirit of God is supposed to be easy and simple, if we recognize that God's grace is enough.

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. Corinthians 12:9 (NIV)

We have to stop feeling that we have to do things our way and in our strength, but instead we should let God take over.  It can be quite difficult backing off of situations that we want to get worked out quickly.  Yet, our quick fixes and trying to work things out in our own strength usually leaves us in a quagmire.  If only we would rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him. Psalm 37:7 (NASB)

Where does our hope come from?  If it comes from anything or anyone besides God, then we will always be in a quandary.

Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from Him. Psalms 62:5 (NIV)

Our hope should be in God.  We should find rest in Him, as we let go of all we have - everything of our own making.  God wants to build us up in Him, but first we have to break away from all we have built without Him. We must give up everything.

In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple. Luke 14:33 (NIV)

We like to think of this verse as referring more to material possessions, but it is so much more than that.  It is our pride, our self-pity, even our desires. Yes, I know - Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4 (NIV) But if we examine this verse closely, we will discover that the word "delight" means "pliable".  We can only be pliable in God's hands if we rest in Him.  If we don't rest, we will break and then we cannot be molded by Him into an image which will reflect His heart and His desires.  

So, it is time to trust God by placing ourselves in His hands and hoping in Him alone. And, when we do this and back off from our own strength and plans, then we will recognize His grace is more than enough.

But

GET REAL!!!

Too many of us hide behind facades that feigns fantasy. We pretend perfection with pretentious yet precarious lies, making us feel important wanting to be impervious. Creating an illusion, we live illusive lives with delusive expectations. It's just all a deception. Through it all the deceiver becomes the deceived, losing self in machinations. 

We lie and do not live by the truth. 1 John 1:6

All these years, I have been living a lie one way or the other.  I lost my identity in college doing what other people thought I should do and then on becoming a Christian, I started saying the things people wanted me to say – the “good” Christian things. But, God can’t work with that. That is the devil’s territory – lies.  God is Truth and until I start living in Truth, I can’t walk the Way or in the Light.

"God can give me as many children as He wants?"

"Oh it doesn't matter when I get married.  Whenever God wants, even if it is 80?"

"I will marry whoever God wants me to marry?"

Seriously, this is dangerous ground - a minefield of lies ready to explode.  However, righteous these may sound, these are not what God wants to hear unless it comes from a truthful heart. Frankly, these have been misguided statements coming from a need of acceptance.

What I need though is to get real. I don't want a lot of children, right now I am not ready for any children.  As, for getting married at 80....helloooo....how is sex at 80? Yes, Christian girls do think about sex. Well at least I do, no lie.  If I do get married I would rather to get married at an age where I can enjoy being intimate with my husband. Probably, I need to check with an 80 year old to see how the sensual senses are at that age before I come to a verdict.

Okay, marrying anyone who God wants me to marry....all I can think of is Hosea. Don't get me wrong, I really want to be in God's will, but I am hoping His will doesn't include a man who will cheat on me or disrespect me. I would go for sense of humor, good looking, has a good job, nice physique and a man who is real and knows who he is in Christ. Yes, I mix shallow with sainthood and I know, I know I need to go find my own identity in Christ.  That's why right now I am not ready for a husband.  I need to get real first.

Getting into a relationship would be a disaster waiting to happen if I don't find out who I truly am. I need to be me, who I was made to be.  First things, first - tell the truth.

"I don't want a husband and children!"

There I said it. Now that's off my chest, let me quickly follow up with this.  Before I became a Christian, I did not like children. I felt they were put on earth to upset me. Mothers would give me their children forcing them into my arms ignoring my resistance, to show me how cute their child is. Inevitably the child would puke, pee or poop while in my arms. The baby would know to wait until firmly placed in my arms to be "free". However, still with a dislike for children, God put me in a position where I was asked to work with children at a summer camp. My class was "Kids gone wild," yet it was my experience with these "energetic" children that made me start loving children.  Now, I relish the thought of working with kids...you see, they are real, no pretense about them.  I like that!!!

This is why I know I should come to God like little children - in truth. That's what He work's with.  Not my "good" Christian girl act. The fact is I am selfish.  I like my space, doing things in my time and having my things. And for all those who think how awful I am, get real!  I know you prefer my lies and would rather ignore the fact they are lies - because that makes you more comfortable. Sorry, I can't go there anymore.  If you are in dis-ease because of what I say and who I really am, I hope you get better. But, I know that God can finally work with me and bring me to the place where He wants me to be, because I am now telling Him the truth, no matter how disturbing it may sound. I have been in darkness for too long, time to walk in the Light.

If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth.  1 John 1:6 

Isn't that the truth? Simply, it's time to get real and start living in Truth.
 

God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth. John 4:24

I Am Not What I Am

But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 1 Corinthians 15:10

Have you ever felt that you just keep on doing and doing yet not accomplishing anything, or going and going, but reaching nowhere?  I know, I have felt like this and it brings an overwhelming despair.  However, I have figured out that when I am overcome by despair, I am doing and going in my own strength.  And, through it all, I have lost the very essence of who I am.

Paul could say with confidence that by the grace of God "I am who I am." I, on the other hand, frequently ask, "Who am I?"  Suffering from a lost identity, I fall into a crisis. I don't rest in God's grace, but rather work to fulfill the law.  I like the law, because then I can have something to conform to. I want to look like everyone and be like everyone.  Leaving me behind, I embrace what others think I should be.  

Consequently, I don't know me.  I talk like someone I don't know.  Looking in the mirror, I don't see me.  I am someone else.  Who?  I don't really know. The person I see, I don't like.  How could this person be me? I am not what I am. 

But, who am I? That question still lingers. I no longer can be who they want me to be. I can't follow their rules and live by their laws.  

Grace has been waiting for me to be her friend, yet, somehow I have felt uncomfortable around her. She is amazing, she wants to walk with me and show me a whole new world, but I resist her as she is not a conformist and she doesn't look like everyone else. I don't need that rejection from hanging with her. But, I know...I know if I go with Grace, she will show me who I am.  She will show me the real me and reveal my heart.  Then, I can say "I am what I am."

I'll Do it My Way

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD. Isaiah 55:8

I have been taking more time to just sit with God to know Him more and understand His heart. This has sometimes been a painful process as I have come to realize that my thoughts are definitely not His thoughts and His ways are that of grace, while mine are bent towards the law.  

I have tried so hard to be a good Christian, and that's where I went wrong. I did my best to follow the rules, some weren't even from God, but these man-made doctrines did sound "godly". So, in order to please man by looking "godly"  I submitted to laws that God didn't even intend. Paul understood that the law didn't make us righteous, but rather it made us sin conscious.

Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin. Romans 3:20

This is no different than when we try so hard to be safe that we imprison ourselves. I think of so many people who die in fires in Jamaica because the firemen can't get them out of a burning build as there is much difficulty and loss of precious time breaking through the burglar bars. The very thing that was to keep them safe caused their death.

The laws that I have tried to follow have entrapped me and I have lost the freedom which being in Christ offers me.  It seems the more I try not to sin, I commit several more. It is unending torture.  

These days, I have been yearning to spend more time with Christ and the more I spend time with Him, the more I comprehend my insanity.  I have been trying to accomplish the impossible by attempting to be good through the law. In so doing, I have not flowed in God's grace by accepting His love.  My faith was diminishing rather than growing, since I persisted in doing things in my own strength. hence, making God small in my own eyes.

Detachment from who I really was in Christ became inevitable. Lost and living in a reality based on a legal system not of God, my identity was easily stolen.  It was almost as if I gave it away.

But, now I am getting my identity in Christ back. This person who I am becoming though, may not be to the liking of the religious majority, as I look less and less at the law as a mirror to dress myself.  I no longer put on my spiritual clothing.  

I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness. Isaiah 61:10

Worn and weary I have tried to please the masses, but now I find rest in God and this is where my hope comes from.

Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him.  Psalm 62:5

Furthermore, when we reach this place of rest we get to inherit the "Promised Land" that God wants to give us.  

You are not to do as we do here today, everyone as he sees fit, since you have not yet reached the resting place and the inheritance the LORD your God is giving you. But you will cross the Jordan and settle in the land the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, and he will give you rest from all your enemies around you so that you will live in safety.  Deuteronomy 12:9-10

We all want to sing "I'll do it my way,"  doing what we think we should do. Nevertheless, we must move beyond our thoughts and come to a point were we do not rely on our understanding, but instead look to God for His heart on the matter.  

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:4-6

One Way Jesus

Live The Word

Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Joshua 1:7-8

After being in the desert for 40 years, God knew that His chosen people would be tested by the devil as they contested for their Promised Land. He also knew that the best way to combat the attack of this foe was for them to know the Word and live the Word.

While in the desert for 40 days and being tested by the devil with Scriptures, Jesus passed the test as He knew His purpose, He knew the Word and He lived the Word. Moreover, He is the Word.

When I think of the deviling approaching Jesus in the desert, I recognize how frightening it is that the Word can be twisted to the advantage of those who give the Word. The devil did the same thing in the garden of Eden with Eve, but Jesus had the Word in His heart in the desert.

I desire to do your will, my God; your law is within my heart. Psalm 40:8

David wrote these words and Jesus lived by them. We must always have the Word in our hearts, asking God for His Spirit to give us deeper insight so that we can discern the heart behind the words that come from the Word. Motives aren't always right. We can use Bible verse to underpin just about any of our opinions. For this reason we must be careful where our opinions come from and make sure our heart is pleasing to God.

Jesus knew loving His Father, meant obeying His Word and hence fulfilling His purpose. Because of the disobedience in the garden, there had to be obedience in the wilderness. He was preordained to be tested in the wilderness from the beginning. Both He and God knew He would pass the test – He had to for our sake.

We too will have our own wilderness experience. That too was preordained. We will be tested over and over again, and we must pass the test for our sake and for the souls of others. God has set us apart to do His work, but in order to understand His plan for our lives we must do as Jesus did.

At daybreak, Jesus went out to a solitary place. The people were looking for him and when they came to where he was, they tried to keep him from leaving them. But he said, “I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.” Luke 4:42-43

Like Jesus, we must get alone with God and block out all distractions to who why and where God is sending us. Even those who love us will try to stop us because they care so much and want us to be with them. But, they must let us go to walk into our destiny to "proclaim the good news" in the manner God has designed specifically for us. But in order to be bold enough to walk away to "proclaim the good news", we must know the Word and live the Word. 

God has prepared us to possess His promises, prophecies and plans, but we have to be strong and courageous by obeying Him as we live the Word.

How God Sees Us

“You are altogether beautiful, my darling;
   there is no flaw in you." Solomon 4:7

Many of us do not understand how much God loves us, how He thinks of us and how He sees us. Since we don’t see ourselves from God’s perspective, we can easily be lied to and manipulated by the enemy. We are robbed of our joy - the joy which we need to give to those around us who have no joy.  When our joy is taken from us, our strength also goes.  

God created each of us for a specific purpose that only we can do. He has brought us through paths that we did not want to go through, but we needed to go through to see His glory and to share His glory with others.  They were never meant to rob us of our joy. Our trials can become triumphant, if we have God guide us through them. Troubles are not without reason, they are intended to bring us to a new level in Christ.  We should not define ourselves by our troubles, but we should learn from them to redirect our thinking on the truths of God.  Then, we will be able to recognize the lies of the enemy and come into an understanding of how much God loves each of us. There is nothing that can separate us from the love of God.  He loves us even when we don't love ourselves.

The love of God builds us and gives us joy.  We need to be careful that we are not ministering to people with our feelings of being lost and lonely.  Sometimes we help people out of our need to feel better about ourselves in order to have temporary happiness. It is our pride and our wanting to boost our self-worth that serve as an impetus for us to go out to serve those in need. Right action, but wrong motive.   

With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith. 2 Thessalonians 1:11

The difficult situations in our lives aids us in identifying with hurting people as we can empathize with them.  However, sometimes we are helping out of our own personal hurt, instead of our healing and our faith. We may look like we are spiritually strong because we can quote the right Bible verses, but we are actually weak because we don't live these scriptures.  Our strength is a façade to hide our weakness. 

There are many reasons we are weak - the negative words spoken over us; our need to be "someone" in our own eyes and the eyes of others; our good deeds that are not in God's will; our unforgiveness of ourselves and others; and our lack of eternal joy as we seek out temporary happiness.  We lack faith as we block the work of the Holy Spirit to empower us to fulfill the purposes of God.

We really need to know how loved and beautiful we are. We need to see ourselves from God's perspective. God sees us as worthy, not because of our works, but because of the work of His Son on the cross.  When we truly get this, then we can show others how much God loves them. They need to know.  God wants them to know and that will bring about a new level of healing and restoration in their lives. Then, they in turn will be able to go out and minister to others in a more powerful way.

But, first it begins with us. God must transform our minds and give us a new vision of ourselves and those around us.  We need to know the wonderful truths about us - How God sees us, so that He can use us to tell others how He sees them.  The truth is we are His joy and He delights in us, and He needs to be our joy and we need to delight in Him, that is the source of our strength.  

The Heart of the Matter

The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? Jeremiah 17:9

I am concerned about my heart. Jeremiah wrote of its deceit. It seems there is no remedy for a deceitful heart. How often do we look around at those around us and wonder why they do what they do. The fact is we have to get to the heart of the matter.

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I have been writing this post for over a week now, but I didn't seem quite to be getting to the heart of the matter. It didn't seem that I had learned all I had to about the heart that I needed to before completing this post. By no means am I an expert now, but I have learned more during the last week.

One of my favorite Bible verses is:

Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4

This verse always excited me as I anticipated God giving me all I wanted. Unfortunately, that did not happen. I have come to realize that my heart was not in the place where it needed to be. My desires never lined up with God's desires.  James said:

When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.  James 4:3

King Solomon understood this all too well. He spent his life fulfilling all his cravings. Later, when he looked back at his life he admitted that all his self-gratifying works were meaningless. Far too often, we too are seeking to fulfill our desires, with all the good things in life. We seek out a nice house, a nice car,  a good looking spouse and even a church that makes us comfortable. Yet, these wants may not be what God intends  for us.  

Psalm 37 advises us to wait patiently for the Lord.  However, our yearnings lead us to move ahead of God.  We do what we want and then ask Him to bless it.  Our heart's motives are wrong as we strive to please ourselves and then we wonder why God isn't blessing us.  It is because He knows our hearts, and our hearts are not yielded to His will and His way.

Our pride gets in the way.  Second Chronicles outlines the rise and fall of King Hezekiah.  

But Hezekiah’s heart was proud and he did not respond to the kindness shown him; therefore the LORD’s wrath was on him and on Judah and Jerusalem. Then Hezekiah repented of the pride of his heart, as did the people of Jerusalem; therefore the LORD’s wrath did not come upon them during the days of Hezekiah. 2 Chronicles 32:25-26

Leaders who succumb to their pride will fall.  Regrettably, those who are under their authority also most times follow the leaders' decline. We need to repent when we have given way to pride. Repentance, however, is not just saying we are sorry, but our actions must prove that we have turned away from prideful actions, such as proving ourselves to others, or believing we should be better off because we are so gifted, or seeking people's gratitude and praise, or always being concerned about our reputation.    

Rick Elias' lyrics in his song, "Man of No Reputation" says:

It was said this man was of no reputation
Yet He could stop the rising storm
With a gesture of His hand
But He chose to use His hands to heal
Hearts of darkness, hearts of stone Just like mine would be revealed 

Jesus was a man of no reputation. Nevertheless, we his followers are so concerned about ours. We need to have Jesus reveal what is in our hearts. We should not be self-pleasing or man pleasing, but rather our aim should always be to please our Heavenly father by walking in faith and trusting Him. He will show us the heart of the matter so that we can have His heart.  

Am I God's Will?

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

Sometimes I wonder why God won't give me more info on the plans He has for me. Frequently, we are faced with a myriad of choices and sometimes these choices are good. As Christians, though, our underlying question is usually, "Is this God's will for my life?"

On the other hand, we imprison ourselves by focusing on this question instead of the Person who has the answer.  We become encumbered and consumed with doing the right thing, rather than just flowing in the Spirit of God.  If we keep in mind that God's ways are not our ways, then we let God out of the box to be God and the mystery begins.  The excitement we get from putting the pieces of our life's puzzle together is simply exhilarating when we let God lead us into the unknown.  

Our life is simply miraculous when we have God reign in every aspect of our being and we are transformed more and more into His image.  This comes from spending time with Him which deepens our intimacy. When this happens, I become His will. The question then is more profound it is no longer just, "Is this God's will for my life?", but it is "Am I God's will?"

God's Kindness

But do you suppose this, O man, when you pass judgment on those who practice such things and do the same yourself, that you will escape the judgment of God? Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and tolerance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance? But because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God. Romans 2:3-5

When I think of how fallible I am, I get an overwhelming sense of awe because of how kind God has been to me, in spite of all my faults. God has been so kind, so tolerant and so patient with me, even when I wasn't kind, tolerant or patient with myself.  This is God's grace.

I need to constantly check myself to make sure I am as gracious with others as God has been with me, keeping in mind all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).  This doesn't mean I don't correct someone who I believe is not following Biblical principles. Indeed, I must do this or else I will face God's wrath for the fall of a brother. Furthermore, it would be quite unkind for me to see someone sinking in a quagmire of sin without offering help. Yet, I must also comprehend how to assist as my sympathy can lead to a dependence on me and not on God.  I need to be so connected with the Holy Spirit that I must see the manner in which He is working in another's life and make way for Him to do so, for He knows best.

God is not kind, tolerant or patient with sin, but He is merciful to the sinner.  As carriers of the Holy Spirit we are empowered to overcome evil and love our enemies.  We have been given the eyes of Jesus through the Holy Spirit to see from His perspective.  Now look, what do you see?  Are you seeing God's Kindness working through your life to lead others to repentance?