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Perform My Good Word Toward You!
Recently Elohim has blessed me with reading two very different but similar areas of the Bible one right after the other. Take a few minutes and read Psalm 73 then Jeremiah 29:4-23.
Reprimanded by God
My Christian life thus far has not been filled with blessing as most people describe blessings. I have been stripped of every ounce of financial security, every reliance to my profession, every reliance to people, a church body to hang with, and most of my friends. I was in Babylon (a place of punishment and growth). I felt as if I was being punished for becoming righteous while others were prospering in their wickedness. Elohim kept reminding me it is not about them, it is about me! Just as Asaph is reminded in the Sanctuary of God, I am reminded in my deep place with Elohim, all men are reprimanded by God (Proverbs 3:12; Hebrews 12:6; Revelation 3:19) but some do not listen and harden their hearts to His Words. We are all to heed the call to be holy just as God is holy (1 Peter 1:15-16) individually and corporately. We become holy by allowing Elohim to reprimand us into holiness.
The Sin in and of the Body of Christ
In both Psalm and Jeremiah we will read of the progression of sin in Israel until Elohim removed the right for His people to live in the Holy Land. These are God’s chosen people who were becoming wicked rather than holy but, not only were they becoming wicked, they were condoning it too! I have to say, I did not go through all of these “70 years” of trial to condone wickedness from someone who professes to be Christian. Asaph learned the wicked would get there payment individually and Jeremiah learned corporately the wicked would be punished as well. There is sin in the Body of Christ that will be dealt with individually and there is corporate sin to be dealt with as well and God will do both but we a not to condone it from anyone in the Body of Christ.
Wickedness doesn’t just wake up one day and engulf the Body of Christ. It is brought in by an apostate or an imposter. They are allowed within the Body because the leaders/followers are afraid to stand strong for the Body of Christ. Our righteous anger doesn’t exist. We do not hate what God hates. The world has creeped into our holiness and we have redefined holy. We say it is acceptance rather than salvation. We say it is love rather than discipline. We have defined it as tolerance not hope. We have restated God’s good Words toward us and they sound nothing like the Words in the Scriptures because they are empty. They do nothing for the human race except condone sin. We know sin leads to death (James 1:15) but that seems fine to us rather than doling out correction causing them to go to God for guidance.
His Good Words will not Come Back Empty
Today, due to Elohim’s guidance, I am on the turn from the discipline of God because I have endured and overcome the trials set before me to make me holy. Romans 8:28 is a reminder for us of God’s Words working out for the good to THOSE WHO LOVE GOD AND ARE THE CALLED! Proverbs 16:4 tells us Elohim has made everything for Himself and He also makes those who are wicked, yes, He even makes the wicked for doom! Everything we see happening today is predestined to happen. Every person on this earth at this moment is predestined to be here, whether holy or wicked. The sins of the person and the sins of the corporate will get worse and it is up to us individually and corporately to make sure we learn the skills from Elohim to overcome during this time. His Words are what helps us overcome. His Words are what gives us the skills to endure and overcome and plan for the future. His good Words will never come back empty!
Know What His Good Word Is!
These skills for overcoming are all about knowing what Elohim’s good Words are unfortunately the world has redefined good but as Christians we need to know God has defined good as being and doing righteous. His good Words are His righteous Words. His righteous Words sometimes hurt our soul but they are meant to bring our soul in line with His Spirit. His good Word is like a sword to the wicked but His good Word is as a warm cozy blanket to the righteous. His good Word leads us to Salvation. His good Words teach us to love! His good Words give us hope for eternity. His Words are not empty. They are not subject to mood, time, situation or people. They are what they are and they are not changing just because we do not understand them. What God has said will happen WILL happen. He will perform His Word toward you! Are you listening?
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Diligence is a Man’s Possession
Do you work hard for everything? Nothing comes to me easily as I am sure the same is for most women. I have worked hard and long for the possessions I have. Nothing has been handed to me on a silver platter. I was not born to a rich family nor did I marry into one. Today, some folks may think they are entitled to riches and deserving of poverty because of who they are or where they live. Neither one of them are important because each one of them can change at the drop of a hat. The only possession we should treasure is diligence but some of us tend to use it only when we feel like it as if it is a book to be pulled off the shelf.
Whoever thinks life is easy is a lazy man!
If diligence is a book we leave on the shelf collecting dust we have deliberately given someone else a part of our life. Think of it this way. Knowledge and understanding are not things we can rely on other people for. We must learn for ourselves and get understanding on our own to improve our own life skills. Each act or discipline we learn contributes to knowledge and understanding therefore the less we do the less we know. Proverbs 12:27a says the lazy man does not roast what he took in hunting. This Scripture refers to more than just hunting meat. Elohim is saying the lazy man is the one who does just what is expected of him and even less. Those of us who think life is hard and complicated and convoluted are the ones who work hard to overcome each and every obstacle but those who think life is easy are the ones who start a job and never finish it because it got too hard. It is easy to hunt and walk away from the kill while others pick up the kill, haul it to the butcher then go pick up the prepared packages and cook it for you. A lazy man makes life easy for himself at the expense of his life skills but a diligent man takes possession of his diligence to gain knowledge and understanding.
Take Possession of Diligence
What causes us to be lazy? Think hard because it could be many things, or a combination: pride, jealousy, co-dependence, fear or habit. The list is endless for reasons and boundless in excuses. When we take possession of our diligence we are agreeing to work for what we want and improve our life. Proverbs 12:27b tells us diligence is a man PRECIOUS POSSESSION! Acting with all diligence does not always mean instant success each time but it does supply instant knowledge. Diligence doesn’t always continue in the direction started since correction IS heeded. Diligence sometimes resigns due to an understanding gained. Diligence may never results in physical possessions but always results in knowledge, understanding and wisdom that will ultimately result in knowing what we possess does not possess us. Diligence does not protect us from life it simply protects us from losing everything!
To Diligence Everything is Untouchable
When we take possession of diligence we see physical possessions as something corruptible. It’s the skills we’ve learned that are incorruptible therefore they become everything to us. We use those life skills to gain more life skills. When we get lazy and stop learning we forgo the skills to care for ourselves therefore we cannot take care of our loved ones. When calamity happens we blame others and never take responsibility for the calamity or even our own laziness. It is the fool who says, “I am lazy!” but never changes it. The only control we have in life is the ability to let our family know we care about them by using all diligence to meet the needs they have whether it is money, food, or love and encouragement.
Pay the Price for Diligence
Nothing in life comes without a cost; either we pay cold hard cash for it or calories. When we are diligent to make our family matter we do what is right for them to keep them safe from harm. The price for diligence is our own wants. The price for diligence is our won bad habits and the price for diligence is our own lame excuses for our lack of success in caring for our loved ones. When we pay the price there will always be a reward. The price is doing what Scripture so thoroughly teaches us to do. There is no other Book that can completely teach us how to live. As we get into the will of God we improve our skills to diligently overcome the issues of life. Each time we overcome a reward is credited to us toward life on the New Earth (Revelation 1, 2, 3). Heaven is not our permanent home, the new earth is (Revelation 21 & 22). Acting with all diligence teaches us to overcome knowing we will have rewards given to us when Jesus comes.
The proof of this is just a few verses away. Proverbs 13:4 The soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing; But the soul of the diligent shall be made rich. Take possession of diligence on earth to gain your rewards for eternity!
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We are Ensnared by the Words of Our Mouth!
Three ways to overcome this!
I wonder if this has ever happened to you? Have you said something then regretted it when you actually had a chance to ponder it? These words weren’t vulgar nor deceptive just unwise words, unthought-out words. Words we will now have to stand by although we really don’t want too. Maybe they were haughty words said to make you look tough and unmoving as a result someone now has the impression you are standoffish. There are many things we can say leaving people with a different impression of than we actually wanted to portray. In this day and age words mean very little but to a Christian they are extremely important. God spoke the world into being before it was!
We will speak our works into being before they ever are. We speak ourselves into being before people know us. The writer of Proverbs tells us we need to guard our heart because out of it springs the issues of life (Proverbs 4:23) and out of our heart come the words to reveal our life too. Fortunately Solomon gives us the way out, the way to be an overcomer of this issue in life. First we should keep God’s Words in the midst of our heart, second put away our deceitful mouth and perverse lips and third ponder the direction our feet are going (Proverbs 4:21-27).
His Word in the Midst of our Heart
The Words of God will never come out of our mouth if they are not in midst of our heart. We will always speak like the world. The Bible tells us the Holy Spirit will speak for us when we are in trouble (Matthew 10:20) but if we don’t know Him He cannot send words of wisdom or words to give life from us. We need to read the Scriptures with the intention of keeping it in our heart so we can speak life and not death (Proverbs 18:21) to those we are speaking too and to ourselves. God is not just worried about the folks around us He is also worried about us. When God’s words are in the midst of our heart we not only say them but we ponder them. We ponder the truth of them and the validity of them. Eventually we believe them and we live them and the issues of our life are now the issues in others lives. When we have God’s words in the midst of our hearts it gets easier to put away deceit and vulgarity.
Put away our Deceitful Mouth and Perverse Lips
Solomon didn’t just think a deceitful tongue is bad but perverse lips too. The language of the people we are around today is very curse and full of lies. I admit I was similar when I was unsaved and for some time after being saved I continued to speak like the world. I would shoot my mouth off before my brain was loaded inevitably hurting someone and becoming filled with guilt. It is hurtful and shows I care nothing about what people have to hear when I talk to them. I am worried more about grieving the Holy Spirit than I am grieving people or myself because I know His Words. When we know His Words we are held responsible for how we have portrayed them. I have to talk with myself constantly about this particular thing. Guarding our heart against this is much easier when you know what God expects from us. He expects us to put it away especially if we know our feet are headed to do God’s works.
Ponder the Direction of Your Feet
When we know God has a plan for us (Jeremiah 29:11) and we have been predestined to walk in it (Ephesians 2:10) we can ponder the direction of our feet. When we begin to look at this seriously with wisdom we begin to understand doing the will of God has consequences in the world and we need to be ready to accept them and be overcomers during the process. Elohim will equip us to do His works but we have to be able to pull all the pieces together and go in the direction we find. Pondering the direction we walk is essential to knowing what God really wants from us. When I guard my heart in the direction of my feet I am much more diligent in making the works of God happen.
His plan includes our Heart
The three ways to guard our heart and avoid being ensnared by the words of our mouth will definitely help us to be who God has created us to be. This process is cyclical. We have to do it over and over again to get it right. Put God’s words in your heart, put away deceit and vulgarity, look where you are going, get the Words, put away garbage, watch where you are walking – again – get the Word, put away, watch where you are going. It keeps going like the pink Energizer bunny but each time we are successful at accomplishing results we are given strength we did not have before and are less ensnared by the words of our mouths. We not only will say what we mean we will make our yes’s mean yes and our no’s mean no (Matthew 5:37). This is super freeing! This week free yourself from doing something or saying something unwise by putting god’s words in your ear and putting away the words that kill and the path of your feet will be directed.
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Stand in the Spirit by His Women!
Has the Spirit ever impressed something on you so much you cannot but do it! What about if it is information that is needed to drive you forward in your mission? What if it is something big? What if it makes your heart explode for people? I tell you I cannot but warn woman about what the Spirit is telling me. The Scripture we will discuss together is about perilous times. It is about the state of all mankind but what is important is what is going to happen to women during this perilous time. Let’s read together 2 Timothy 3.
A Warning of Perilous Times for Women
I cannot warn you enough about these perilous times. They are happening now. From verse 1-9 we are told of the kind of people who will fill the churches. Paul lists all the characteristics of mankind in this perilous time and we read it thinking surely these people are heathens, the people who do not know God. Then we read verse 5 and are stunned to find out these people profess to be Christians. They have a form of Godliness but deny it’s power – these heathens are Christians! Are you warned yet? That’s not all! These heathen Christians (HC) are creeping into our homes and leading silly or gullible women away captive. I hate to say this but I am seeing this today! Women are being held captive by HC’s all the time. One of the main characteristics of these silly women is that they learn and learn and learn but can never come to the truth. Why? They are laden down with sin and led away by various lusts. I am sick to death to know the women I know and the ones I don’t know yet will be led away by these HC’s. How do I know this? I’m already seeing it! There is good news though – their folly will be manifested to all unfortunately it will be too late for some because they will have already been deceived and hurt beyond measure. Now that you know this information, I implore you to take steps to make sure none of this happens to our women. Paul (as does God) gives us a way out, an escape, if you are already caught, or a preventative measure so as to never get caught.
Heathen Christians Persecute Christians
Paul uses himself as an example of being delivered by the Lord from persecution (10-13). He tells us we will suffer persecution from our fellow HC’s. These evil men and imposters will get worse and continue deceiving and being deceived. As a result the persecution will get worse for those who love God and want to mature in the things of God. The escape begins in verse 14. Continue learning and be assured of the things you have already learned (and believed) because you have learned them from a reliable source, if indeed you have learned from the Scriptures and Godly teachers. From your immature Christianity until now you have been learning the Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for Salvation through your faith in Jesus the Christ. Paul is saying we aught to be going from milk to meat using the Scriptures as our number one learning source to gain wisdom, and because we have faith in Jesus we know the Scriptures to be true. He again tells us how important Scripture is to those of us who belong in the Kingdom of God. Verse 16-17 are the way out, All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. The way through persecution is the Words of God (see Our Weapons for War). The escape from silliness or gullibility is the Words of God (See Who Will Teach Me to be Mature).
Be Spirit Minded for Your own Safety
Can Paul be any clearer? Can I be any clearer? Can God be any clearer? Perilous times are coming for those who love Elohim and the way to be equipped to deal with those times is the knowledge of Scripture. Scripture teaches us skills the human race wants to divest us of. Our skills for life in this world will come from someone, wouldn’t you rather they come from Elohim than man. How will we stand by our faith if we do not know the Man we have our faith in? How will we sing Psalms of worship if we don’t know the God we are worshipping? How will we feel the Spirit in us if we quench Him with our ignorance? Perilous times do not have to be perilous for those who believe! Please women, be proactive, be vigilant, be wise, be Spirit minded for your own safety and those who already are proactive, vigilant, wise and walking in the Spirit pray for those who are not. It is time for women to stand together because this will happen to us and we will have no one to turn to but each other. Knowing this get yourself ready to stand in the Spirit with power alongside His women!
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Cry out to Him and See!
There is nothing like a death in the family to make us evaluate (or me anyway) the things we are doing. We watch as people walk through the room and how they react. We react with curiosity about how they have impacted the lives of those they knew. We evaluate how they have impacted our life. The only real way we can know what they have done for others is to listen to stories and listen intently to how people felt about that person. This is a skill that we must learn to utilize as we get older because we learn much about ourselves and about others. We can know someone all of our life and still not know the impact that person has had on others outside of our own relationship with them.
This begs me to ask of myself, “How have I had an impact on those in my life?” Have I created an atmosphere of love or contention? Have I taught my loved ones that I am determined or lazy? BUT the biggest question is, “Have I shown (not told) them that I love Jesus?” Will that be the first thing people say or will they have to find out from the pastor during my service. I have no other desire for you to know anything other than my love for Jesus and how I work that out in my life. What I want you to see is I love Jesus, I love my family, I love my friends and anyone whom I can touch through my teaching of Jesus Christ and my writings about how we can learn from Him.I want you to see my passion for the Word when I teach you what Jesus has been teaching me. I want you to see my determined devotion to Him while I help you learn what I have learned. I want you to see my steadfastness in doing what Jesus has asked me to do. In this you will find out that I have dedicated my life to knowing Jesus by studying His word so I can be of use to the women in the area in which Jesus has placed me. I cry out to God daily for them and I ask Him to position me to be of the most use to them.
How can we go forward when we feel like we are not doing enough? Jeremiah 33:3 says “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’” Cry out to Jesus and ask Him daily what He has planned for you. He will reveal in you just as He will reveal in me just exactly what He wants us to learn and how He wants us to use that knowledge. Then we must do it!
