Monday 11 January 2016

God's Faithfulness

By Margaret D. Mitchell
"God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ Our Lord."  -1 Corinthians 1:9
Recently, I’ve watched firey sunrises blaze up over mountaintops, burning off the low haze that tries to settle in on the placid river below my glass chapel in rural Tennessee.
Yes, a glass chapel that is pitched on a craggy riverbank, surrounded by decking and trees that stand around and hang over what I have lovingly dubbed The Son Room.
"But Christ is faithful as the Son over God's house. And we are his house, if indeed we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope in which we glory."  -Hebrews 3:6
God led me to a cabin in the woods on the river’s edge to come away and finish my book and watch—in the stillness of the early mornings—His faithfulness shine upon me and His creations on earth.
And I sit silently. And I whisper praises.
To Him.
Of gratitude.
And birds sing in the glory of His new day—rejoicing over His fire of light, His strength of mountains, His peaceful waters, amid His provision. They are assured.
And I take it in. And I am thankful. For Him.
And I am assured, even more, that God is faithful in the simple and in the important, that…
·         Every morning brings an invitation for joy and new mercies.
·         No matter how small or large my faith, His faithfulness is certain.
·         He patiently and faithfully endures with me, even when I know I don’t.
·         His faithfulness never tires.
·         I can do nothing to earn it.
·         I can extend my faith to believe Him at His word to produce through me what He said He would by His grace.
·         I can trust Him consistently…in all things as I persist and as I rest. In all things.
And the sun rises and sets on another day of His glory. And I know that I am His beloved and that He is mine and that we will finish this assignment together because He is the author and the finisher of my faith (Heb. 12:2). Amen.
God’s Promises
In addition to salvation through Jesus, what has God promised you? What assignment is He helping you fulfill?
Hebrews 10:23 assures us that “…He who promised is faithful,” regardless of whether we are.
Do you realize that the fulfillment of God’s promise to you has an appointed time, that even if you waffle in your faith along your journey or you feel impatient at times, God will still faithfully lead you to receive the deliverance of His promise to you? You don’t have to fear that you will miss it. You don’t have to try to force it or forge out ahead unbridled or give up because you know you are not perfect. No, just follow The Holy Spirit’s promptings, and He will bring it to pass. He may lead you to speed up or slow down or to simply wait at times. But He is always on time.
And He is faithful. In all things. All things, even when we are not.
Just trust Him. Simply trust and obey and you will see the fulfillment of His promises.
Pray…
Dear Lord, Thank You that Your mercies are new every morning. Thank You that You took my sorrow at the cross and that You continue to faithfully turn my mourning into joy. Thank You that You will use everything I endure for good. Thank You for the reminder that You endured much more than I ever will, for which I am grateful. And thank You that your faithfulness meets my faith as I believe You at Your Word to fulfill all of Your promises in my life, according to Your righteousness. You are God, and I am not. I repent of all rebellion and arrogance. And I choose to yield my will to Yours, trusting in Your timing and strategies for Your purposes in my life and in others’ lives. Please open the eyes of my heart and mind to see life from Your perspective and to know You more and more along the way. I invite You to deliver me where You desire I be in this season and forevermore. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Saturday 9 January 2016

How to Retain Your Blessing


“And now, O ye priests, this commandment is for you. If ye will not hear, and if ye will not lay it to heart, to give glory unto my name, saith the LORD of hosts, I will even send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings…”- Malachi 2:1-2

“And now, O ye priests…” According to Revelation 1:6, God has made us kings and priests, so this passage refers to every believer, not only to pastors or preachers. “… Now, O ye priests, this commandment is for you. If ye will not hear, and if ye will not lay it to heart…” It's one thing to hear, it's another thing to lay it to heart. You may forget what you hear but you can't forget what you lay to heart. God is telling us here that thanksgiving is a thing we must lay to heart; we must impress it upon our hearts.

When you lay something to heart it means you have made a decision to do it, your circumstances notwithstanding. Perhaps, the reason you are not consistent in some pursuits of your life is because you have not decided. The strength to carry out any duty or assignment is decision based.

God said, “…If ye will not lay it to heart, to give glory unto my name, saith the LORD of hosts, I will even send a curse upon you…” When you don't glorify God what looks like glory around you turns into shame. The absence of thanksgiving attracts curses. So, thanksgiving sustains blessings, it protects and shields your blessing from corruption.

We don't only thank God for what He has done we are also thank Him to retain what He has done. We thank Him to fulfill Eccl 3:14, “Whatsoever the Lord doeth it shall be forever.” Your blessings will endure only as long as your thanksgiving remains.

Thanksgiving will never leave you where it met you. Paul and Silas were in prison but as soon as they began to sing praises and give thanks to God, their chains gave way (Acts 16:25-26). No matter the pit you are in, when you start thanking God you start going up. Start thanking God in your low estate; you will soon end up in your high estate. I see you going up today!

Meditate On These: - Psalm 100:1-4

Micah's prophecies

 Micah's prophecies as seen in the above-shared verses, have not yet been fulfilled but will come to happen when Christ comes on earth a...