| ............ | A Word In Due Season APRIL 2018 4/1/18 From: Mary Padgett Ministries, Inc. A Word In Due Season KNOWING THE WAY Scripture: John 14:5 "How can we know the way?" Thomas asked Jesus, “How can we know the way?” Remember Thomas? He is the disciple who based his faith on the visible and tangible. When the other disciples told him that they had seen the Lord after His resurrection, Thomas said, "I'm not going to believe unless I can see and touch the nail prints in His hands and put my hand in His side." Jesus was so patient and understanding as He allowed Thomas to do just that (John 20:25-29). Then Jesus told Thomas, "You believed because you have seen, blessed are those who have not seen, yet believe." Jesus had already encountered this attitude in Thomas towards faith in the unseen when Jesus explained to the disciples that He was going away to prepare a place for them. Jesus plainly told them, "You know where I'm going, and you know the way." Still Thomas asked, "We don't know where You are going, so how can we know the way?" Thomas wanted to know the place and see the way, just as he did with the nail pierced hands. He wanted something tangible and visible to hold on to. This was Thomas' nature and faith did not come easy for him. He wanted a detailed map, but Jesus told him, "God's presence is where I am going and where I will be." In verse six, Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes to the Father but by Me." Jesus was saying, "Believe in Me. I am your way into the presence of God. I am the road that will take you there." In other words, the name of the street is called Jesus, and you must enter God's presence by that road. Acts 4:12 says, "There is no other Name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." God hears us when we come to Him in Jesus' Name. Jesus said, "I am the Truth." There is no other way to come to God except by the words that He has spoken. Then Jesus said, "I am the life. My life's blood I shed for you and my resurrection will enable you to enter the presence of God." If you have needs today, you must reach out by faith into the unseen and hold on to the things that are not tangible. You are not allowed the comfort of touching the nail-scarred hands or seeing the invisible. Yet, Jesus promised that you will be blessed if you believe in what you cannot see. Faith pleases God and He rewards those who believe in Him. I encourage you to simply trust in Jesus, for He alone is The Way, The Truth, and The Life. +++ 4/3/18 LUXURIES OF LIFE Scripture: Proverbs 22:2 "The rich and the poor meet together: the Lord is the maker of them all." Luxury is relative, meaning that it is related to the matters at hand. The personal things that I would consider a luxury are not to even be compared to the real luxuries that I enjoy every day of my life. Life is like looking at a coin. We see one side and may never be exposed to other side of the coin. It is when you go to the poverty-stricken areas of our nation or to a foreign mission field that you come to understand what real luxury is all about. The things that you have consider to be luxuries no longer matter because you see the other side of the coin of life and what others are doing without. When you see the women of other nations standing on the banks of the river and using a rock to pound their clothes against a larger rock, your washing machine becomes a luxury. When you see their clothes spread out on their rooftops, you also view your automatic clothes dryer as a luxury. When you realize that people get their drinking water just a little ways down the stream from where they washed their clothes and bathed their bodies, you thank God that you have pure water to drink and it becomes a luxury of life. When you see their children stripped bare so that their clothes can be washed, you stop complaining that you have nothing to wear when your closets are full. When you witness the hungry starving children going through the trash in search of a morsel of stale bread, you learn to appreciate your bountiful supply of food. When you see the houses that are made of cardboard or pieces of metal from a car, you see your own home as luxurious regardless of its lack. Even those who ddare fortunate enough to have a real house with water and electricity suffer because their utilities are rationed every day. We do not recognize the seemingly small things in our lives as luxuries because we are accustomed to them. We have plenty of food and water at the present time. Yet, if we did not have them, they would soon become the luxuries that we would desire the most and our definition of luxury would quickly change. We need to remember that we could easily be the ones washing our clothes on the riverbank and drying them on the rooftops if it were not for God's grace. I think that God would be very pleased if we started looking at our lives in a different way. We need to view every blessing that God gives to us as a luxury and thank Him everyday for every provision. God has given us the greatest luxuries of life; our eyesight, our hearing, mobility in our bodies, and the capacity to love, think, and feel. Finally, let us understand that even life itself is a luxury, for every breath that we breathe comes from God Almighty, who is the Lord and the Maker of us all. +++ 4/4/18 FENCED-IN Scripture: Job 19:8 "He has fenced up my way that I cannot pass." Job was challenged by many trials and temptations. When he explained his situation, he said that it was as though adversity surrounded him on all sides like a fence. Job had lost his wealth, his health, his children, his prestige in the community, the loyalty and honor of his friends, and the devotion of his wife. He had nothing left but his relationship with God and he mentioned that there were even doubts about that. He said that God had overthrown him, set darkness in his path, and stripped him of his glory (Verses 6-9). Job's losses had come suddenly and without warning and there was nothing that he could do about his extreme situation. Satan had been allowed to attack Job’s body and vex his soul. Job knew that he could not pass from his dilemma except at the mercy of God. There is a time in our walk with God that we face similar circumstances. They may not be as severe as Job's testing but it is a place of frustration because it seems that the season has no value. It is a time of waiting because the gates are closed and the doors will not open. We are not allowed to go in and out by our own choosing. We cannot seem to do anything and we cannot change anything. It is a season when God limits us to His design and tells us to "Be still." It is very difficult to be still when we do not know or understand what is happening. Yet, it is in these moments of isolation that God molds us into the vessels that fit His purposes. He uses this time to remove things from our lives, physically, emotionally, and spiritually, which are not pleasing to Him and are a hindrance to His work. For the moment, these losses bring confusion and grief, but when the process is completed, there is great joy. A fence has two purposes. It keeps things within its borders while at the same time it keeps intrusions out. Both of these purposes are meant for your protection. Like Job, you may feel, at times, that God has overthrown you and set darkness in your path because, from your viewpoint, everything seems to be confusing and unclear. Yet when God is in control, you do not have to know what is happening; you just need to know the One who is making it happen. You must understand that if God is not allowing you to escape the fenced-in place and pass through to the other side, there is a valid reason for it. He is working something greater in you than you can imagine or protecting you from something that you are not aware of. For as long as your shut-in season last, you must rest in faith, knowing that God's fence is there for you and not against you. It is God's sovereign design for you at this season of your life. So trust in Him with all of your heart. He will keep you safe and allow you to pass through the gate at His timing. +++ 4/5/18 WELL DONE Scripture: Matthew 25:21 "His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant." In this story, the lord of the servant did not demean his servant because he had been given so little. Instead, the lord commended his servant for being faithful over the 'few things" that had been entrusted into his care. It is easy to relate to this story when we look at those about us who have been given great gifts. We may feel very humble and count ourselves as insignificant when we compare ourselves to them. Yet, God has created us in His image, and because He is faithful, He expects us to be faithful whether we have been endowed with little or with much. God never asks us to go beyond the abilities that He has placed in our lives or to do less than what He has entrusted us to do. Few talents and small abilities do not negate our responsibility to be faithful in His kingdom. We are accountable for every word that we say and deed that we do and for those that we fail to say and do. However, the devil does not want you to be faithful in God's kingdom so he stays very busy trying to convince you that you cannot do what God has asked you to do. The devil makes you fearful and encourages you to hide the gifts that God has given you. He tells you that no one will listen to you. Yet just a few seemingly insignificant words of witness spoken from your lips at the right time could save a soul that is headed for an eternal Hell. Your words of comfort and encouragement could be the message that draws someone out of the valley of discouragement to the mountaintop of joy. So, you must learn to be faithful over the few words that God has given you to say. Little will be much when God anoints it with His Holy Spirit. When the devil is successfully able to keep you from doing God's will in your personal life, he succeeds in hindering the entire kingdom of God. He intrudes upon your territory just like he did with Israel. Every battle Israel fought was over boundaries. The enemy continually challenged God's Word concerning the Promised Land. If you are finding yourself in a busy but unfruitful place, reposition yourself and enforce your boundaries. Seek to develop every talent and gift and determine to be in the flow with the heart of God by committing to obey His Word at any cost. At the end of life's journey, wouldn't you rather hear God say, "Well done thou good and faithful servant" than for Him to ask, "The thing I gave you to do, did you do it?" +++ 4/6/18 SEARCH ME Scripture: Psalms 139:23 "Search me, O God." This Psalm (139) speaks of the greatness of God and tells us that He is omniscient. He knows all about our ups and downs, our thoughts and ways, and even all of the paths that we will take. There is not one word that comes from our tongue that God does not know about and there is nothing in our lives that can be hidden from Him. God is not only omniscient but also omnipresent. There is no place that we can go to escape His presence. Verse seven says, "Where shall I go from your Spirit?" In other words, wherever we are ... God is! David said, "This knowledge is too wonderful for me, I can't attain unto it." He then concludes this Psalm in verse twenty-three and twenty-four by submitting himself totally to God and asking God to do several things. David said, "Search me." In the original Hebrew language, this word "search" means to examine intimately. It is to look deep into ones most private and personal nature. One minister gives a brief description of "intimacy" as "in-to-me-see." Intimacy with God means that we allow Him to look at everything within our heart, even though He already knows everything about us. As we open ourselves to Him, His light shines upon us and exposes all of the darkness within us. David also said, "Know my heart and my thoughts." This word "know" in the Hebrew means to "ascertain by seeing." After God has searched us, He then examines and studies our heart more closely. He shares His truth and understanding and allows us to see ourselves as we really are. God reveals our true thoughts and motives to us and deals with our doubts and anxieties. He then shows us how we can change and encourages us to be transformed by the renewing of our minds through His Word (Romans 12:2). David went on to say, "Try me and see if there is any wicked way in me." This word "try" means to examine through a process of proving, testing, and tempting. When we make this request, we are boldly accepting the challenge to be purified by the fires of adversity. As we are tested and brought through the fires, the Holy Spirit reveals any spiritual weaknesses within our hearts. Only God can do this work, for Jeremiah 17:9-10 tells us that "the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked." David ended by saying, "Lead me." Doing God's will begins in our thoughts and hearts. God holds us in His power but He does not force us to go His way. Instead, He instructs us, grows us, and fashions our inner being. He then proves us through trials and testing. It is only after we have become intimate with God and allowed Him to search us, to know our heart and thoughts, and to prove us that we are truly ready to follow where He leads. +++ 4/9/18 RESPONSE TO A HOLY GOD Scripture: Isaiah 6:5 " ... my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of host." Isaiah had a vision of the Lord sitting upon His throne. He saw the angels surrounding the throne and heard them crying, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of host: the whole earth is full of His glory." As he witnessed this awesome sight, Isaiah realized his own shortcomings and said, "Woe, is me! For I am undone or ruined because I am a man of unclean lips." The holiness of God forced him to acknowledge and confess his own sin. God then touched Isaiah's life by purging his lips with a hot coal from the altar and sent him forth to minister to the people. Like Isaiah, we find ourselves lacking when confronted by the presence of a Holy God. Romans 3:10 tells us that no one is righteous, not even one person. When we see God in His majesty and grandeur, we realize that our own righteousness is as filthy rags before Him. We stand in awe as we come to know that even our thoughts are not close to being equal with God. Isaiah 55:9 says, "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are His ways higher than our ways, and His thoughts higher than our thoughts." Likewise, our prayers, in all of their verbal grandeur, are not sufficient enough to reach out and obtain all that God wishes to give to us because we cannot imagine His bountiful supply. God tells us to ask largely. Yet, when we think we have, He still declares that He is able to do more than we have asked or even imagined (Ephesians 3:20). Without God we can do nothing, for our strength is nothing without the working of His mighty power. We cannot grasp the graciousness of God or comprehend the multitude of His tender mercies. Neither can we measure His love, which has no boundaries. God and everything about Him far exceeds our finite mind. Just one small glimpse of God's glory shows us that He is limitless and beyond our knowledge. The light of His presence reveals our darkness. Like Isaiah, we can only say, "Woe, is me! For I am undone or ruined because I am a man of unclean lips." And like the angels who surrounded God's throne, we can only declare, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts: the whole earth is full of His glory." +++ 4/10/18 MINISTERS & WITNESSES Scripture: Acts 26:16 "I have appeared unto you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness." Paul experienced a tremendous conversion on the road to Damascus. At midday, a light from heaven shone around Paul. This light was brighter than the sun, and in the midst of this great light, Jesus spoke to Paul and explained the purpose of His appearance. The Lord told Paul that He appeared to him so that Paul could become a minister and a witness. A witness simply tells all the truth that he knows about a person or situation and God used Paul to do just that. Paul wrote about three-fourths of the New Testament and preached an uncompromising message about Jesus. Paul was not only a witness, but he was also a minister. In I Corinthians 2:4 he said, "My preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power." Paul witnessed about the love, mercy, forgiveness, and power of God and also demonstrated it through ministry. As a minister, Paul assisted and served those whom God sent him to. The word "minister" translated in the Greek means to be an "under-oarsman." A minister is one who stays in the boat, tugs at the oar, and brings the vessel through the rough and stormy sea to a safe harbor. Ministers do not stop with just the verbal witnessing of what God has done in their lives. They try to assist others through the storms and difficulties of life as well. They tug at the oars, continually praying and encouraging, until they see the person reach a safe harbor. God depends upon us to be His witnesses and His ministers. He uses us to be His voice, His hands, and His feet in the earth. We do not have to be ordained or hold an office in the church. God calls us and gives us the opportunity to simply help our brothers and sisters in the Lord. When one is low in the faith, God gives us a Word in season to lift them up. He allows us to share His love, peace, and joy through cards, email, telephone calls, prayer, and financial help. Opportunity is all around us. We just have to be sensitive and obedient to share. Our words and our life should continually minister grace to those about us (Ephesians 4:29). We should always be seeking to edify and build up those in need. Many people who seem to be strong on the outside are really the ones hurting the worst on the inside. As a witness and a minister of the Lord, our purpose is to love all people and help them make it to the safe shore. +++ 4/11/18 RUN YOUR RACE WITH PATIENCE Scripture: Hebrews 12:1 "Let us run with patience the race that is set before us." The scriptures compare our life to a footrace. In order to run this race successfully, we must lay aside every weight and sin that would hinder us. And more importantly, we are to keep our eyes on Jesus who completed His race by enduring the cross and the shame it produced. We are to be encouraged by the witnesses that surround us and we are to run the race that is set before us with patience. We can relate to laying aside the weights, receiving encouragement from those about us, and focusing on the goal. But how do we run with patience? Running in itself suggests an absence of patience because we are trying desperately to reach the intended goal before our opponents. Notice the scripture says to not only run the race with patience but to run the race that is set before us. We must realize that we all have individual races and we are not competing against each other, but against our adversary, the devil. We may not have to face the same obstacles and hurdles as someone else. We may not have to believe for God to roll back the sea, calm the storm, rescue us from the lion's den, or deliver us from a fiery furnace or the belly of the whale. In more specific terms, we may not even have to face cancer, divorce, or severe financial problems as others have, but we all have to face situations where we must allow patience to be perfected in our lives. When we face tribulations, we learn to abide in Jesus. As we begin to trust in Him, the Spirit of the Lord begins to grow and develop the precious fruit of patience in our lives (Romans 5:3). In Luke 21:19, Jesus said, "In patience, you will possess your souls." Possessing your soul means that you remain in control, and even in the most intense situations, you determine the attitudes of your heart and mind, the strength of your will, and the display of your emotions. When you possess your soul with patience, you do not allow the enemy to distract you from the race that is set before you and you refuse to compare your race with the race of another lest you become weary. Instead, you keep your eyes on Jesus who completed His race. As you consider His sacrifice, you begin to understand God's will and purposes for your own life. When you focus on these goals that are set before you, you will inherit the promise (Hebrews 6:12). The race belongs to you when you rest in faith and exercise patience. The secret is to take one step at a time, one breath at a time, one hurdle at a time, and then allow Jesus to do the rest. +++ 4/12/18 HEARING JOY Scripture: Psalms 51:8 "Make me to hear joy and gladness." Joy is necessary for our spiritual and natural well-being because it is the joy of the Lord that gives us supernatural strength. Joy enables us to make it through the most difficult trials and gives us a resistance against temptations. James 1:2 tells us that we are to count it all joy when we enter into a place of temptation because God is going to use it for His glory. Temptations try our faith, but when we are able to maintain our joy in the midst of it all, God is able to complete a work within our heart and do greater things than we can ever imagine. David said, "Make me to hear joy and gladness." He was in a very discouraging place when he said these words to the Lord, for Nathan, the prophet, had just exposed David's sin with Bathsheba. David loved God with all of his heart, but when his sins were exposed, he was forced to admit and face his own faults. With grief in his heart, he confessed his sins, pleaded for forgiveness, and asked that the joy of the Lord be restored in his life. He knew that God was merciful and that God's joy was there and still available to him. But David needed God to open his ears for him and help him hear the joy that surrounded him. Many situations come into our lives to steal our joy. Like David, it is hard to find joy when you know that you have sins and faults in your own life that you need to deal with. It is also hard to hear the sounds of joy when you have lost a loved one to death or when you are in a broken relationship. It seems that joy is silent when you are stressed financially or going through difficult trials. It is also hard to hear joy when your body is filled with disease and your health is failing. Yet, it is the strength that joy provides that will sustain you during these adverse situations. Jesus said, " I have spoken to you that My joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full" (John 15:11). He spoke eternal words to us so that we could have joy. We desperately need the strength of these words that bring His supernatural joy. It is one thing for joy to be present and available and it is another thing for us to be able to hear it and receive it. We must ask God, as David did, to make us able to hear the sounds of joy and gladness that will take us through the difficult times and places. +++ 4/13/18 GOD'S FRIEND Scripture: James 2:23 " ... Abraham was called the friend of God." What an enormous statement and an honor to be called "God's friend." The friendship between Abraham and God did not just happen on its own. It was developed over a period of time as they shared many experiences and as they learned to trust one another. God called Abraham out from his own country and away from his family to become the Father of many nations. When Abraham obeyed the call, God faithfully blessed him and delivered him from every threatening situation. In the test and trials that Abraham faced as he made his journey, he learned that he could trust God and rely upon God's faithfulness. And through those same tests and trials, God found that He could trust Abraham. Abraham was a man who was willing to make every sacrifice, even if it meant offering his only son, Isaac, as a burnt offering. He knew the nature of God and was assured that this special Friend would never let him down. Abraham believed that God would keep His promise to bless his seed, so he placed Isaac in God's hands and trusted God to spare him. Abraham had so much confidence in God that in the midst of this contrary situation, he told Isaac, "God will provide Himself a lamb." Even as Abraham bound Isaac to the altar and raised his own hand to slay him, Abraham knew that his Friend named God would not fail. II Chronicles 19:7 spoke of Abraham as being God's friend forever. It was not just a passing relationship. It was destined for eternity. Scriptures are given for our examples. If Abraham and God could share this kind of friendship, we should be able to experience the same, for God is no respecter of persons. This thought alone should revolutionize our lives. Like any other friendship, however, if we want to be friends with God, we have to be a friend to God. When we reach for His hand, it's always there. He expects no less from us. True friendship does not shrink from responsibility. It shares the good and the bad. God is not just someone to call on every time that we get in trouble or need help. He desires personal fellowship. He seeks to love and be loved, to trust and be trusted. Our trust level should be so high that we would follow God anywhere and our love should be so strong that we would do anything that He asked of us. God wants us to be His friend and He wants to be a friend to us. He wants to hear us calling His name out loud. As friends, He wants to talk with us and share His thoughts, and He wants us to talk to Him and share our thoughts. The Almighty God offers Himself to us on this intimate level. He chooses to be our friend, but it is up to us to respond to His invitation. +++ 4/16/18 LIVING AN ABUNDANT LIFE Scripture: John 10:10 "The thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy: I come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." This scripture paints the picture of the constant conflict of human life. There are two opposing forces; one good and the other one evil. Ephesians chapter six tells us that we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the evil forces that invade our lives. These forces are principalities, powers, rulers of darkness, and spiritual wickedness in high places. They seek to steal, kill, and destroy. On the good side, however, Jesus came to Earth to make us more than conquerors over evil and to give us an abundant life. He was manifested as the Son of God and His mission was to destroy all the works of the evil one (I John 3:8). God so loved you and me that He gave His only begotten Son so that we might have life, not just eternal life in Heaven, but also abundant life here on Earth. The Father watched in horror as they crucified Jesus, but Jesus' death was the price that was required to purchase our redemption and provide us with an abundant life. Because of His sacrifice and victorious resurrection, the provisions for an abundant life are available to us. Jesus taught us to pray for our daily needs to be met. He paid a great price so that we may come boldly to the throne of God in the time of trouble. Jeremiah 33:3 says, "Call unto me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things which you know not." The answers to our prayers are not based upon our sacrifices and our works, nor upon our lack. They are based upon God's promises of provision and are met as we approach Him and believe for the abundant life that He has promised. God said, "You call, I will answer." God promised to answer in a great and mighty way. He said that He would do things that we had not even thought of, for His ways are so much higher than our ways and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. As we live life on a daily basis, we must continually remember the words that Jesus spoke to us. As we recognize the evil ploy of the devil and his intent to destroy everything good in our lives, we must look to Jesus and base our faith on the honesty of God's Word so that we can obtain and live an abundant life. +++ 4/17/18 HUMILITY PRECEDES HONOR Scripture: I Peter 5:6 "Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time." Humility before God is a simple principle that must come about within your heart before God's honor will rest upon your life. Humbling yourself means that you come to an understanding of your low estate without God in your life. Humility is acknowledging that God is smarter than you are and recognizing that "without Him you can do nothing" (John 15:5). I Peter 5:5 says, "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble." Look at the contrast between Jesus and Satan. God highly exalted Jesus and gave Him a name above every name (Philippians 2:8-9). This honor came about only after Jesus humbled Himself. In the beginning, Jesus was equal with God, but He submitted Himself to the will of God, became flesh, and was obedient to the death of the cross. Even though Jesus wanted that cup of suffering to pass from Him and prayed three times to that end, He still humbled Himself and submitted to God's will. Jesus said, "Nevertheless, not My will but Thine be done." Satan, on the other hand, sought to exalt himself and was brought down to Hell. Isaiah 14:12-16 gives us the account of his downfall. Five times, Lucifer declared, "I will." Each declaration was a refusal to submit to God's will and a statement of his own self-exaltation. He sought to increase himself and to become equal with God. His final statement was, "I will be like the Most High." Satan could not be content with God's plan for his life, even though it was a place of greatness and high position. When Satan was first created, he was a beautiful and perfect angel, the anointed cherub, that walked and personally ministered before God, but because of his pride, he lost it all (Ezekiel 28). We certainly are not on the same level as either one of the above examples, yet God expects no less from us. In every instance in our life, God wants us to submit to His perfect will. He is weary of hearing us ask Him to bless our choices as we try to walk in His permissive will. He desires that we rearrange our schedules and priorities around His purposes for our life. He wants us to "trust in Him with all of our heart and not lean upon our own understanding" (Proverbs 3:5). The Lord longs for us to be content with His plan and to hear us say, "Not my will, but Your will be done in my life." In due time, as we humble ourselves in this manner, God promises to exalt us. +++ 4/18/18 ISSUES OF THE HEART Scripture: Jeremiah 17:9 "The heart is deceitful above all things." There are many deceptions in life that we must watch for and be aware of. Circumstances will lie to us, symptoms in our bodies will alarm us, and people will consciously or unconsciously deceive us. Yet, the greatest deception that we will ever encounter is that of our own heart, for God said through the prophet that the heart is deceitful above all things. Jeremiah declared that the heart was not only deceitful above all things, but that it was also desperately wicked. He then asked the question, "Who can know it?" It is a sobering thought to know that our heart is desperately wicked and that we cannot truly know it or discern its motives. We want to think that we are in control and have it all together. We want to believe that we are right and are doing right. Yet, experience has taught us that our lust will draw us down a path of darkness that we never intended to go down. Then our desire to gratify ourselves will cause us to justify the path that we are traveling and we will believe every lie that supports our feelings. The sad truth is that this road of deception leads to heartache and pain, and if unchecked, it will eventually lead to death. James 1:14-15 tells us, "Every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust is conceived, it brings forth sin, and sin, when it is finished brings forth death." Briefly said, lust leads to temptation, temptation leads to sin, and sin leads to death. The enticement to sin is a deceitful and subtle trick of the devil. Lust that leads to sin may seem inconsequential for a moment, but sin is like conception. Once sin is conceived, there will be results. At the beginning the fruit may be hidden, but eventually the results will be evident and final. If our heart is deceitful and we cannot know it, who can? And, if we cannot trust ourselves, whom can we trust? The answer is simple. God alone has all knowledge and is trust worthy. We can trust the Lord when we cannot trust ourselves or anyone else. We must give ourselves totally to Him and not lean upon our own understanding, for He has all of the answers and knows our lives from the beginning to the end. God's plans are good and we must obey His Word even though we do not understand the whole matter. If we yield ourselves to this mindset and allow God full control of our lives, He will open our eyes and spare us from falling into self-deception. As the prophet said, the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked, but if we turn to the Lord, He will lead us away from temptation so that He can deliver us from evil. Yielding ourselves to God in this manner should be a part of our daily prayer if we want to live in truth and victory. +++ 4/19/18 THE LORD'S GOODNESS Scripture: Psalms 107:15 "Oh that men would praise the Lord for His goodness, for His wonderful works to the children of men!" God is so good and His works are wonderful, yet we rarely stop to consider all that He does for us. He hides us under the shelter of His wings like a mighty eagle that protects her young. He is our shield in the time of battle and He is our hedge against problems. He walks with us in the midst of the fire and He keeps us safe in the flood. He calms the raging storms and leads us through the dry barren desert. He stands beside us when the lions roar and also helps us to conquer every giant that mocks us. He is our daily provision and our hope for the future. He is our Shepherd who leads us through the dark valley and our intercessor who continually sits at the right hand of God. He is our Savior and our best friend. How could we ask for anything more? As I read the many prayer requests that come through this ministry, I realize how thankful we need to be on a daily basis because God is sparing many of us from some of the heartache and pain that others are facing at the moment. Yet, I remember a season when I was pressed beyond measure on every side just as others are experiencing at this time. In that year, my husband passed away after a long battle with cancer, my brother died, and my home was flooded with over two feet of water from a tropical storm. My heart was broken because of the loss of my loved ones, and in the midst of my grief, I was forced to handle financial situations and make decisions that I had never had to face alone. It was a terrible season of hard work, financial loss, grief, and sorrow. But in every situation, God's grace proved sufficient, and my experiences became a training ground for me to learn how to love and encourage others who would later face the same challenges. We are reminded of these seasons of heartache and pain, from time to time, and may even wonder how we made it through the various trials. Yet, how often do we give thanks to the Lord that we are not experiencing similar circumstances at the present time? We should give thanks every day of our life, for each day God protects us in some way that we do not realize. He spares us from sickness or some unseen situation that He knows we are unable to handle because He has promised that He would never put more upon us than we could bear. He allows only a portion of pain for a given season so as not to overwhelm our spirits. If we could see all that the Lord had spared us from, we would be as passionate as the psalmist. We would agree with his declaration of desire. We would become one of those people who would "praise the Lord for His goodness and for His wonderful works to the children of men!" +++ 4/20/18 KEEPING YOUR HEART AND MIND Scripture: Philippians 4:7 "And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and mind through Christ Jesus." God has a remedy for frustrating times and days filled with confusion. His Word says that He will give us a peace that goes beyond our understanding and this peace will keep our mind and emotions stable even in the midst of our troubled world. Yet, there are things that we must do to achieve this blessed state of peace. Paul gives us three instructions that will help us to receive and maintain peace in our personal lives. First, Paul said, "Rejoice in the Lord always ... then again rejoice" (verse 4). Rejoicing, singing, and praising God, in the midst of difficult situations releases tension and brings peace to you. As you rejoice in the Lord, faith builds in your heart, and that faith strengthens your inner man. Many times in the Psalms, David spoke of being in distress and in fearful situations. He expressed how he was hated and rejected by individual men and surrounded by nations that were trying to destroy him. He had lost his confidence in men and leaders. Yet, regardless of the current situation, David declared, "This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it" (Psalm 118:24). He was determined to praise the Lord in the midst of all of the controversy and confusion that surrounded him. Another thing that is vital to peace is prayer. Paul said, "Pray and be careful about nothing" (verse 6). Paul instructed us not to be anxious about anything, but to pray, ask God to supply our needs, and be thankful. Jesus also told us not to take anxious thoughts about our personal needs, but to seek His kingdom first (Matthew 6:25-34). This does not mean that we are not to make plans, for faith is not the absence of planning for the future. We are just not to be anxious or over burdened about life because we have a heavenly Father who is concerned for us. He is the same heavenly Father who feeds the birds and clothes the lilies of the field. He has creative resources and can care for you sufficiently, so just tell Him your needs. Third, Paul said, "Think on the things that are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, of a good report, virtuous, and worthy of praise" (verse 8). You must train yourself to think along these lines and guard your mind by disallowing negative thoughts to intrude and build strongholds. When you allow your mind to meditate on a word or a thought, you will eventually receive it into your spirit. After it is settled in your spirit, you will eventually give place to it and act upon it. It is like a seed that grows and plants its roots deep. Negative thoughts must be weeded out immediately before they take hold. When you keep your mind on God and His Word, He will keep you in perfect peace (Isaiah 26:3). So rejoice in the Lord, pray, and think on good things. As you do, you will have the peace that passes all understanding, and that peace will keep your mind and your heart in this troubled world. +++ 4/23/18 A PRESENT HELP IN TROUBLE Scripture: Psalms 46:1 "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." We often speak of the spiritual armor that God has provided for us and the seasons of spiritual warfare that we must face. This scripture, however, gives us another concept of victory in battle. It is a picture of a successful defense rather than a victorious campaign. It is a place that we can run to and find refuge and renewed strength. This place is God's presence, for His presence brings power and shields us from our enemy. As Psalms 91 declares, we have nothing to fear because God will cover us with His feathers and hide us under His wings. My family recently went on an outing to the beach. A storm had passed through the area just the day before and had left the sand unstable. We parked our vehicle on the beach just as we had done for years without incident. Suddenly, we discovered that the van was sinking. We tried frantically to remedy the situation but all was in vain, as it sunk deeper and deeper into the sand. There was nothing we could do and natural help seemed too far away. This scripture came to my mind in the midst of this dilemma and I reminded God that He said that He would be a "very present help in trouble." Others were praying also. Time was of the essence and there was no room for delay. We were in trouble and needed God to show Himself strong right then and right there. Just before the body of the van went into the watery sand, a group of teenagers came to our rescue and pulled us out of the mire with their vehicle and a chain. God delivered us and made sure His promise to us that He was indeed a very present help in the time of trouble. You may have a battle today that is totally out of your hands. The enemy may have you up against the wall and it may seem that there is no way out. You may have no strength left in your being to maintain the warfare. Your hopes may be dashed and your future may seem dim as you see your situation sinking into the sand. These are the times that you need to run to God and hide in His presence. Let Him be your refuge and allow Him to renew your strength. He is not a God that is going to be. He is a God that is. God is God all by Himself and He can take care of any situation. There is nothing too difficult for Him. Trust God for He is with you now and He is a present help in the time of trouble. +++ 4/24/18 GIVING YOUR FUTURE TO GOD Scripture: Luke 5:9 (NIV) "Peter and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken." Jesus told Peter to launch out into the water and let down his nets, but Peter was skeptical because he had fished all night in those same waters and had caught nothing. Yet, he obeyed the words of Jesus and caught so many fish that his boat began to sink. Jesus performed a special miracle for Peter in the field that Peter was familiar with. There was no doubt in Peter's mind that this was a supernatural act because of the many years of his own fishing experience. He did not even try to take the glory for it by telling a "big fish story" to all of his buddies. Instead, he was astonished and stood there in wonder and amazement. This miracle brought Peter to repentance and he confessed his own sinful nature. When he realized that he was standing in the presence of righteousness, he fell at Jesus' feet and worshipped Him. After this, Jesus spoke to Peter and said, "Fear not; from now on you shall catch men." He was telling Peter that just as Peter had caught a multitude of fish in the natural realm, that it was also possible in the spiritual realm. Jesus challenged Peter to bring men into the kingdom of God and Peter responded by forsaking all that he had in order to follow Jesus. He laid down his life's work and his future source of income. He left it all in the Lord's hands so that he could do the Lord's work. Peter could have made many excuses and said, "I don't think that I'm very qualified. I haven't been to great schools and I haven't been trained for the ministry." In fact, Acts 4:13 tells us what the educated people thought about Peter and John. It says, "Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men ..." Those qualifications of being unlearned and ignorant are not very impressive. But, the scripture goes on to say, "these same people marveled, and they took knowledge of Peter and John, because they had been with Jesus." The presence of the Lord in the lives of Peter and John overrode all of their inadequacies. God wants to move in your life in supernatural ways and as He ministers to you, you will know that it could only be God that brought the blessing or the deliverance. He will cause you to stand there in wonder and amazement, knowing that without Him you could have never completed the task with your own skills. The Lord's awesome presence will be the secret that will give you the boldness that you need to accomplish His will. When He deals with you to do something for Him, whether it is to thrust out a little from the shore or go out into the deep, just trust Him and submit to His Words. God is not foolish. If He speaks, He surely has a plan for that Word to be fulfilled. It will demand faith on your part just as it took faith for Peter and John to launch out into the deep water again. God's call may not be easy. It will take deliberate action on your part like it did for Peter and John to put the heavy nets back into the water. Their efforts showed Jesus that they believed His promise. They eventually forsook all to follow Jesus and became His disciples. The Lord's plan for their lives was far more astonishing than it was that day on the lake when they had the miracle catch of fish. They became fishers of men. Likewise, God has a plan and a hope for you, and if you give your future to Him, you will be astonished at what He will do with your life. +++ 4/25/18 UNIQUELY MADE Scripture: Psalms 139:14 "I will praise Thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made." David praised God and acknowledged that man was an awesome creation of God. God very carefully put every one of us together as He desired while we were still in our mother's womb. Each person has more than 50,000 genes that influence their intelligence, personality, physical and mental talents, and behavior. And each gene differs in a number of ways when compared to the genes of another person. Our voices are so uniquely different that we can recognize the voices of our family members, friends, and famous people in the midst of a million of other voices. And regardless of how good a voice impersonator may be, they are not completely convincing to those who are truly knowledgeable of the person they are impersonating. Our fingerprints and hair strands can also be used to positively identify one person from another. God created us with a brain that is far greater than any computer and He has also given us the ability to be able to love, experience emotions, and commune spiritually with Him. Consider this reference in the Dake's Reference Bible - Concordance: "The body is wonderfully made. It consists of various chemicals - iron, sugar, salt, carbon, iodine, phosphorus, lime, calcium, and others - about 98 cents worth. The body has 263 bones; 600 muscles; 970 miles of blood vessels; 400 cups on the tongue for taste; 20,000 hairs in the ears to tune in to all sounds; 40 pound jaw pressure; 10,000,000 nerves and branches; 3,500 sweat tubes to each square inch of skin or 40 miles long; 20,000,000 mouths that suck food as it goes through the intestines; 600,000,000 air cells to the lungs that inhale 2,400 gallons of air daily; and a telephone system that relates to the brain instantly any known sound, taste, sight, touch, or smell. The heart beats 4,200 times an hour and pumps 12 tons of blood daily." When we think about these facts, we realize that we truly are fearfully and wonderfully made and also blessed beyond our comprehension. We serve an awesome God and He not only formed us, but continues to watch over the being that He created. Jesus said, "The very hairs of our head are numbered" (Matthew 10:30). In other words, God is so concerned and involved with our personal life that each time we lose a hair, He is on the scene, calculating how many hairs we have left. We are blessed that this God who created us is unique in Himself and that He has fearfully and wonderfully created each of us in His own unique image. +++ 4/26/18 KNOWING HIM AND BEING PERSUADED Scripture: II Timothy 1:12 "For I know Whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day." Shortly before the Apostle Paul was martyred, he wrote these words to Timothy, his son in the faith. He wanted Timothy to understand that to know God is to love God and to trust Him with every detail of your life. When you choose God, you choose a life of commitment and fulfillment. When you walk with Him, it leaves no room for fear and intimidation. You place your very life in His hands and come to the same conclusion that Job did, "Though He slay me, yet I will trust Him." You stake your faith in God's wisdom and you rely upon Him to keep you in all situations. Even when you sense that bad things are about to happen, you trust God to cause everything to work together for your good. True knowledge of God comes by a relationship that is bound together by times of communion and experiences that are shared. When you watch God intervene in your life and see Him push back your own personal sea of difficulty, like He did the Red Sea for the Israelites, you become acquainted with His power and His tremendous faithfulness. You begin to be persuaded that even though you cannot see it, God is at work for you in the darkness of the hour that you are facing. When you have been nourished daily by supernatural manna or have actually watched God multiply your natural food when things were scarce, you become persuaded that He will continue to take care of all of your needs according to His riches in Christ Jesus. When God walks with you in the midst of the fire or keeps you safe in the lion's den, you accept it as an indication that He will be there beside you in the next danger that you encounter. In the midst of a raging storm, Jesus asked His disciples "Where is your faith?" He wanted to know who and what they believed in. Was their faith in the circumstances of the fierce hour that they were facing or was their faith in the Son of the Living God who was right there in the boat with them? Were they persuaded that the storm would take them or were they persuaded that Jesus would keep them in this moment of present danger? The Lord has not changed. He is still very interested and moved by the persuasion of our heart. He is touched when He knows that He is the one in whom we believe. And He honors our faith as we believe that He will keep those things which we have given and committed to Him. +++ 4/27/18 THE JUST LIVE BY FAITH Scriptures: Habakkuk 2:4 "The just shall live by his faith." Romans 1:17 "The just shall live by faith." Galatians 3:11 "The just shall live by faith." Hebrews 10:38 "The just shall live by faith." Faith is not something that we try to obtain so that we can use it every once in awhile. Instead, it is a lifestyle of trust that we develop in God, and it comes by hearing His Word (Romans 10:17). When God first speaks a Word to us, we may not have the faith to reach out and obtain the promise, but He will address each doubt that we have. As He confirms His Word, faith will begin to rise in our hearts until we are able to possess the promise. A personal experience that my late husband and I had some years ago may explain this concept. We were at a used car lot just looking at the cars. We desperately needed a better car than the one we had but we had no intention of buying another one right away. The salesman asked us if we had found one that we liked, and we jokingly said, “Yes,” and then pointed to the car that we thought must belong to the owner of the business. We knew it was totally out of our price range, but the salesman practically forced us to test drive it. We told him up front that we were not able to buy right then, but he said he could make us a good deal and that he just wanted to talk to us about it. We also told him that we had no money to put towards the down payment, but he said that he could fix that. We thought our prospects were impossible, but he was persistent. Little by little, the salesman was addressing each doubt that we had concerning buying the car. Line upon line, he was feeding our faith and showing us a way where there seemed to be no way. When we told him we did not think it would be wise for us to trade cars because of the higher payment, he offered us more money for our old car than it was worth. Things were looking pretty good, but then he decided to test drive our car. We thought he would give up at this point because our car failed to start. Our faith began to fall as we thought on this negative circumstance. We knew that we had to have a good trade-in value in order to afford the new car. To our surprise, however, he offered us the same deal. And since our car would not start, he allowed us to take the new car home and come back the next day to finish the papers. We had no faith at the beginning, but the salesman's words caused faith to begin to form in our hearts. He had not only initiated the faith in our hearts but had kept feeding our faith with his words until he completed the transaction. So it is with God. He plants a seed of faith in our heart and initiates the process in order to fulfill His plan. He then causes our faith to grow by continually watering it with His Word. Each scripture that comes to us quickens our heart and confirms His promise. Negative circumstances may try to sway us from God's truth and attempt to steal the blessing that He intends for us. But, if God’s Word is in our heart, faith will intervene and cast out all doubt and fear. Our trust in God and His Word will cause us to go from faith to faith and from glory to glory. And as we live by faith in Him, we will obtain His promise and blessing. +++ 4/30/18 FIVE LOAVES AND TWO FISH Scripture: Matthew 14:19 "Jesus ... took the five loaves, and the two fish, and looking up to Heaven, He blessed, and broke, and gave the loaves to His disciples, and the disciples gave them to the multitude." Jesus and His disciples faced an impossible situation. They had a big need and almost nothing available to meet that need. Five thousand men, plus women and children, had followed them into a deserted place. Now, this vast multitude of people was tired and hungry and the only provisions that were available to meet their need were five loaves of bread and two fish. A mother had prepared this lunch for her young son. This meager supply would not have been enough for Jesus and His twelve disciples much less the multitude that was before them, but God is a miracle worker and He never fails. Jesus took the loaves and fish into His own hands, looked to His Father in Heaven as He blessed them, broke them, and gave them to disciples to distribute to the people. All were fed in abundance and there were even baskets of leftovers that remained. I know God's provision and multiplication all too well. Many years ago my husband was out of work and finances really became very lean, but we never shared our personal needs with others. We simply believed God to meet them and He was always faithful. We had finished our last meal and had in fact divided one potato and a few vegetables between my husband, our three children, and myself. The surprising thing was that this meager provision was enough for all of us and the children never realized our lack. We had no idea what was going to happen next, but we were called to minister in a small church that evening. At the end of the service, the minister apologized for the small offering of seventeen dollars that had been received. We were not even expecting a gift, and in the eyes of the congregation, we probably did not look like we needed an offering. Besides that, we were usually the ones that helped to meet the needs of others in the congregation. Yet this small offering was a godsend to us and we were thrilled because we did not even have lunch money for our children's school the next day. Our pastor had no idea of our need, but this small gift helped us make it through the next few days until work came in. The church had sown a small seed into our lives. Yet, their small seed was our big miracle and the answer to our prayer of faith. Sometimes the gifts that we hold in our hands seem so small compared to the need that is present. It is almost as though we have five loaves and two fish, which needs to be spread in five thousand directions. We must understand that it does not matter how small our gift is, it matters what we do with it. God can take the little that we hold in our hands and cause it to become a blessing to a multitude of people. No gift is too small for Him to use. When we give all that we have and all that we are to Jesus, He will hold our gift in His hands and present it to the Father. The Lord Himself will then bless what we have offered to Him and before presenting it to the people, He will break it like He did the loaves and the fish. He will bring us to nothing so that God might be glorified in our lives. In this place of brokenness and humility, He will multiply our gifts and use our lives among the people. Mother Theresa said, "We must do little things with great love." We must be willing to give whatever we have because our smallest offering of five loaves and two fish may become the miracle that someone else needs to sustain their life for a season. +++ Copyright © 2018 Mary Padgett Ministries. All Rights Reserved www.widsonline.com |
.............................. | ||