May23

............	A Word In Due Season May 2023 5/1/23 CUMBERED WITH MUCH SERVING Scripture: Luke 10:40 "Martha was cumbered about much serving." Multitudes followed Jesus and sat for hours and days at His feet in order to be able to hear His counsel and uncommon wisdom. Yet, when Jesus came to Mary and Martha's home, Martha was so cumbered down with the cares of this life that she allowed them to steal her opportunity to enjoy a time of intimate fellowship with the Lord. She was so distracted by the preparations of the food that she had no time for the true Bread of Life. And she was so worried about the beverages that were needed that she could not stop and be refreshed with the true Living Water. Her troubled heart would not permit her to lay everything aside and rest for a few moments in the presence of Jesus. No one was forcing Martha to serve with such zeal and sacrifice. This was her personal choice. She felt that she had to be busy about "much serving" and she tried to inflict this same spirit of obligation upon her sister, Mary. Martha was so busy that when Jesus spoke to her, He had to call her name twice to get her attention. Jesus said, "Martha, Martha, you are troubled and careful about many things." Jesus then defended Mary, because she had chosen to sit at His feet and listen to His words. He spoke to Martha and said, "Mary has chosen the good part, and it will not be taken away from her." Jesus was not concerned about the food preparation, for He had taken care of these matters before. If necessary, He could turn the water into wine and multiply the food to feed thousands. Many times, our lives become hectic. And like Martha, our troubled hearts cannot hear from God because we are taking care of too many things and allowing circumstances to dictate our lives. We are often so busy serving the Lord that we cannot find time to worship Him. There is always one more thing to do before we can stop and sit at Jesus' feet. We allow other things to be preeminent in our lives, and in so doing, we rob ourselves from hearing the Lord's voice and experiencing His presence. Intimacy with Jesus does not happen by accident. It is a deliberate choice that we make. Jesus knocks on the door of our heart and waits for us to respond to His invitation. We can either choose the good part, which is to sit and linger in His presence, or we can allow ourselves to be overburdened with much serving or the obligations of life. It is a personal and simple choice. If we want to hear from Jesus, we must not allow the intimate moment of His presence to pass us by. +++ 5/2/23 GOD'S VOICE IN DIFFICULT TIMES Scripture: Isaiah 30:20-21 "And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction ... your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, This is the way, walk in it." No one wants to eat the bread of adversity or drink the waters of affliction. Yet, there are seasons in our lives when this seems to be the only diet that is offered to us. Adversity and afflictions come to us for many reasons. It could be due to our spiritual walk, as we may have strayed from God's will and forsaken His covering. Another reason could be because of our geographical location, like the natural disasters that are happening all over the world. Adversities and afflictions could be a trial to test our faith so that we can be promoted to a new level. It may also be an attack from evil forces or simply be that we have ignored and neglected the laws of nature and caused our own selves to be physically ill. Nevertheless, at some point in our lives, we can be sure that we will have hard circumstances to face or barren places to endure. The encouraging thing is that the Prophet Isaiah does not leave us to settle with the bread of adversity and the water of affliction. He puts a silver lining behind this dark cloud by giving us an encouraging promise to hold on to when we are in the middle of challenges that are designed to either discourage or destroy us. Isaiah says that the Lord will speak a word in our ears and let us know what we are to do and which way we are to turn. It is a comfort to know that we are never without instructions when we trust in the Lord. Isaiah said that God will be specific and tell us whether to go to the left or to the right. We have nothing to fear when times are uncertain, for God will make our directions very clear. We must be sensitive and listen to His still quiet voice. There are times that we wander around in a wilderness of despair and cannot find help because we will not stop and listen to any of God's instructions. We are tired of the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, but we are too busy struggling with them to follow God out of our dilemma. We must understand that even though everything may have been lost in the fire or swept away in the flood, God is still God. He has prepared a new place for us and is guiding us down a new path, but we cannot go there if we do not obey His voice. Things simply cannot and will not change until we follow God's instructions. So let us determine to be sensitive and listen to God's voice in difficult times and trust Him enough to go to the right or left at His command. +++ 5/3/23 GOOD THINGS FROM GOD Scripture: Psalms 84:11 "For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly." Responsible fathers and mothers put away intended gifts and postpone special privileges for their children until the appropriate season. So, it is with our Heavenly Father. There are blessings available for each of us, but our wise Father withholds them until we are ready to receive them. He is very generous with His gifts but looks for a heart that is pure and one that He can trust to act with integrity. He also searches for a heart that is sensitive to His wishes and has a desire to meet the needs of others. When the Lord finds a heart that mirrors His attributes and one whose greatest desire is to serve Him and to bless His people, He shares Himself with that individual and withholds no good thing from them. The Lord is our Shepherd, and a good shepherd provides everything that his sheep need. A shepherd does not withhold provisions or leave the sheep unprotected. He is with them always and they have nothing to fear, for he will lay down his own life for his sheep. He is their constant companion and is there daily to lead them to green pastures and beside still waters. He sees to every detail and allows no lack to enter their life. He is sensitive to their hurts and pains and when they are injured, He treats their wounds and pours oil on their bruises. When the storm threatens or danger presents itself, he calms their spirits with soft words and gently sings over them. This is a picture of our loving Lord who is always there to meet our needs more abundantly than we could ask or think. His provisions are never meager to those whom He can trust. He will do all that He can do physically and spiritually to enhance their life for His glory. Yet, in our struggle for the things that we need, we fail to walk uprightly, and our life and focus is found lacking because we have strayed away from the Good Shepherd. We may not be involved in deliberate and outright sin, but we either neglect or leave our first love. God’s Word teaches us to seek first the Kingdom of God, then all things will be added to us. Instead of loving the Lord God with all our heart and seeking His Kingdom first, we allow other things to crowd out our communion with the Lord. We must look at our lives and become more determined to follow the Lord, our Shepherd, and not allow anything to hinder our relationship with Him. When the Lord sees us following Him and walking in His footsteps, He will not withhold good things from us. +++ 5/4/23 SUPPORT THOSE WHO ARE WEARY Scripture: Exodus 17:12 (NRS) "Moses’ hands grew weary; So, they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held up his hands; one on one side, and the other on the other side; so that his hands were steady." While Joshua and the army of Israel fought against the armies of Amalek, Moses stood at the top of the hill with the rod of God in His hand. Aaron and Hur stood by his side. As the battle raged, Moses lifted the rod that was in his hands as God had instructed him to do. When Moses lifted the rod up, Joshua and the armies of Israel prevailed in battle, but when he lowered his hands, the Amalekites prevailed. After a length of time, Moses finally became weary and could no longer hold the rod up. Israel was destined for defeat, but Aaron and Hur got a stone for Moses to sit upon and they stood on each side of him and held his hands up. Because of their effort and support, Joshua and the people of God prevailed and defeated the army of Amalek. God calls each of us to act in the same way toward our brothers and sisters in Christ. When we see that they are in a battle with the enemy, we must stand by their side and support them. We do not have to engage ourselves in their actual battle, but we can intercede in prayer, give encouraging words, send a card of comfort, cook a meal, or do something to let them know that we care. It may also be that we need to restore them in love if they have been overcome in sin. In Galatians 6:2, the Apostle Paul tells us to bear or carry one another's burdens. It is in sharing each other's troubles and problems that we fulfill the command of the Lord. There are all kinds of battles that rage against believers, and there are needs that surround us every day. All that we must do is open our eyes and see them or allow our ears to be attentive to their cries. Yet, we often walk in denial and try to ignore the obvious, because acknowledgement requires some sort of personal response and self-sacrifice. Yet, meeting another person's need could be the one thing that brings victory to our own lives. Job's captivity turned when he prayed for his friends who had judged him harshly. Isaiah 58:7-9 says that when we take care of the needs of others, our own light will break forth and health will come to our own bodies. It is as we sow blessings that we reap and as we give that we receive. Luke 6:38 says that whatever we share, it will be given back to us in a good measure, pressed down, and shaken together. When we discern that our brother or sister is weary in their battle, we must be the one to hold them up. Our one soft word or our one kind deed may be the very thing that gives them the strength and help they need to overcome and defeat their enemy. +++ 5/5/23 THE REST OF FAITH Scripture: Hebrews 4:3 "For we which have believed do enter into rest ... the works were finished from the foundation of the world." Where there is faith, there is rest. Faith does not come by sight or the reasoning of the mind but when we hear God's voice, and we receive His Words as truth. When God speaks His will into our life, truth comes into our hearts, and it gives us an assurance that brings rest. Faith brings an end to all anxiety and fear. Even in adversity, rest will be written with indelible ink within our soul if we believe God’s Word of promise. Doubts will flee and struggles will cease. Even those around us will marvel as they witness the peace that prevails in our spirit and the rest that surrounds our soul. The devil will challenge our faith, but when we have heard from God, there will remain a knowing within our spirit that cannot be shaken. Nothing and no one can pry God's Words from our heart or destroy the faith that we have in His promise. His Word is our foundation, and our heart will be fixed like the men of the scriptures who did great things based on just a Word from God. Noah built an ark and escaped the flood. Moses led millions of people into a desert and leaned upon God for every provision for forty years. David challenged Goliath, the giant, and defeated him with a simple sling and a stone. Abraham left his family and country to search for a city whose builder and maker was God. Sarah received strength to conceive in her old age and gave birth to Isaac. And Isaac sowed seed in the time of famine and reaped a harvest that was a hundred-fold. These people of God just believed what God said, obeyed His voice, and then rested in His promise. God never failed them. God does not want us to be anxious in our faith or struggle to believe. He wants us to enter in to rest and follow the example that He has set. Verse four tells us that "God rested on the seventh day from all His works." In the six days of creation, He spoke everything into existence and created life. God did all that He planned to do, then on the seventh day He entered a place of rest. He ceased from His labors and believed that the sun, moon, and stars would function just as He commanded them to do. He was at peace knowing that the herbs, trees, and every green thing would seed itself and bring forth fruit in obedience to His Word. God had faith that the creatures would multiply and replenish the Earth just as He had spoken. He was not anxious about His creation or its future. God left His creation to obey His Words, and then He rested. Faith causes us to act in season. It will make us calm in the storm, bold as a lion in adversity, strong for battle, and patient when we need to wait. This is the rest of faith. It meets every challenge with a dignity and a peace that possesses our soul. Faith hopes when there is no hope and believes when there is no way possible. We enter God’s rest when we believe, and that true faith in Him brings a peace that passes all understanding. +++ 5/8/23 DECISION TO CHANGE Scripture: Luke 15:17 "And when he came to himself ..." The prodigal son reached the very bottom of his circumstances and found himself sitting in the pen with the pigs. He was so hungry that he desired their food. It was then that he came to his senses. When he came to himself, he saw the results of his own choices and decided that he had been in this mess long enough. This wakeup call caused him to change his thinking and he decided to go back to his father's house where he belonged. Regardless of the humiliation that he would face and the unrighteous judgment that he would receive from others, he chose to seek the mercy of his father. He hoped to enjoy the benefits of his father’s forgiveness and faithfulness. His intentions were to repent, ask for forgiveness, and become a hired servant in his father's house. This was the best that he hoped to receive, but his father welcomed him with open arms and restored their relationship. The ways of the prodigal son are not foreign to us, for we have all failed and come short of the glory of God. We want to think that we are spiritual enough to be beyond that, but the truth is that the desires of our heart and the lust of our flesh lead us astray, if not for long seasons at least for brief moments. The prophet Jeremiah said, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and is desperately wicked; who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17:9). There have been times that I have asked my own self, "Can I get any more confused about the desires of my heart than I am right now?" My desire was to walk wisely in the things of the Lord, but the foolishness of my heart was pulling me in the other direction. Like The Apostle Paul, there was a war going on in my spirit. The things I wanted to do I did not do and the things I did not want to do, I did (Romans 7:19). The Lord searches our hearts, and He knows the secrets that lie in every chamber. We cannot hide anything from Him, for His Spirit not only discerns our thoughts but also the intents of our heart. We may put up a good front, but the Holy Spirit knows if our hearts are in the right place or if we are like the prodigal son and are sitting in a spiritual pigpen, estranged from our Heavenly Father. King Solomon said, "He that trust in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walks wisely, he shall be delivered" (Proverbs 28:26). If we want to walk wisely, we cannot allow ourselves to trust in our own hearts or follow our own desires. Like the prodigal son, we must come to ourselves, decide to change, find our way back to our Heavenly Father, and ask Him to help us walk down the narrow paths that He has ordained for us. When He sees us turn from our own ways, He will welcome our submission to Him and celebrate our choice to fulfill His will. +++ 5/9/23 REAPING JOY Scripture: Psalms 126:5 "Those that sow in tears shall reap in joy." God's laws do not change, and for every principle that He has established, He has set in motion rewards and consequences. For the law of sowing, He guarantees a harvest. This principle is true in the spiritual as well as the natural realm. You will reap whatever you sow, and it will always be of the same kind or manner. In the natural realm, if you sow corn, you will reap corn and if you sow beans, you will reap beans. It is a simple process, and the law works each time without fail. You cannot sow corn with the hopes of gathering beans. It does not work that way, for the law has been established by Almighty God who created the corn and the beans and commanded them to bring forth after their own kind. Nature functions by God's Word and cannot go against His commands. In the spiritual realm, it is the same. If you sow good, you will reap good and if you sow evil, you will reap evil, but be sure that every seed you sow will produce a harvest of the same kind. Every prayer that you have spoken in faith into the ears of God will receive an answer. His Word says, "Whatever you shall ask in prayer, believing, you shall receive" (Matthew 21:22). Every gift that you have given in the Name of the Lord will come back to you, for Jesus said, "Give and it shall be given unto you good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over shall men give unto your bosom. For with the same measure that you give, it shall be measured to you again" (Luke 6:38). Every burden that you carry for someone else will generate spiritual strength in your own life and every tear that you sow will reap a harvest of joy. What mighty promises these are to encourage us to pray and share with others, and what a comfort and sweet assurance to our hearts to know that when our tears are falling like rain, we are sowing seeds for a harvest of joy. We may think that holding back our tears in our distress and discouragement displays strength. It takes much more strength and energy to cry. If you have ever grieved over a personal loss or shed tears of sorrow because of the pain in your soul, you know how weak it left you. Tears completely drain your body's strength and leave your soul and spirit spent. Yet there will be a harvest from those tears, and you can rest assured that when you have nothing left within, God will begin to use those tears to bring something beautiful into your life. The Lord is a keeper of His promises and watches over His Word to perform it. Just like the flowers that come forth after the spring rains, God creates new life within you, waters it with your tears, and He causes a harvest to spring up within your soul and spirit. You can be sure that the Word that God has spoken is true and where you have sown tears, you will reap joy. +++ 5/10/23 SHOW ME YOUR GLORY Scripture: Exodus 33:18 "And Moses said, I beseech You, show me Your glory." When Moses asked God to allow him to see His glory, God showed Himself to Moses. God did not show Moses the glorious universe that He had created. He did not point to all of the galaxies with its multitude of stars and planets. Nor did God show Moses the beautiful mountains, valleys, rivers, or oceans that He had called into existence with just a few words. God hid Moses in the cleft of the rock and covered him with His hand. Then the Almighty God allowed Moses a brief glimpse of His backside as He passed by. Later, Exodus 34:6-7 tells us that the Lord passed by before Moses and proclaimed, "The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth. Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin..." These attributes were the glory of God. Sometimes we do not realize it, but we are right in the midst of God's glory. We may not actually see a supernatural manifestation or a beautiful cloud swirling about us, but we experience His gracious actions toward us. His glory is manifested to us in the way of undeserved mercy, grace, longsuffering, goodness, truth, and forgiveness. We may look for a sighting or something spectacular, but instead God surrounds us with His glorious love and holiness. What more could we ask for? God has never hidden me in the cleft of the rock and allowed me the honor of seeing His backside as He passed by like He did with Moses. I have never seen the visible manifestation of God and yet I have experienced the glories of His mercy when I deserved judgment and cruel punishment. God has shown me the glory of His longsuffering as He tenderly dealt with me to change my heart and to redirect my paths when I was going astray. I also have seen the glories of His goodness toward me when He abundantly provided for my needs spiritually, physically, financially, and emotionally. I have witnessed the glory of His spirit of truth, which has never failed. God’s glory has never been absent from my life, for even though I could not touch Him or see Him, I have felt and known that His presence was near. I have never heard the audible voice of God but I have experienced the glory of His still small voice speaking a Word in due season to my heart. As we think about these seven simple words that Moses spoke, let us make them a daily profound petition to God for our personal life. Let us pray to our Father, God, "I ask You, show me Your glory." +++ 5/11/23 FAITH AND PATIENCE Scripture: Hebrews 6:12 "Be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises." God's work at Calvary is complete, unmovable, and eternal. Our Christian life is based upon our acceptance of this finished work and our own personal faith in the promises of God. God's promises are sure, for He is not a man that lies with His lips or repents and changes the decisions of His heart. God's Words are facts that have been established from the foundations of time. They stand steadfast and remain true in all circumstances and at all times. Whatever God says will come to pass, for His Words never return to Him void but will accomplish what they were sent forth to do. The only variable in the situation is our faith and our patience towards what God has spoken because it takes both faith and patience to receive His promises We have heard of the patience of Job, but we must remember that Job also had great faith. He had enough faith to place his life in God's hands and declare, "Though He slay me, I will still trust Him" (Job 13:15). That is unconditional faith that is not based on God's performance. Faith does not say, "Give me the answer, then I will believe." Faith says, "I believe and trust God regardless of what happens." Job had enough patience to make it through the trial that God selected for him to endure, for God Himself spoke to Satan and said, "Have you considered my servant Job?" He brought Job to Satan's attention and then allowed Satan to take Job through an enormous test. Passing this test was not easy for Job, yet Job's faith and patience prevailed, and he received more at the end of his ordeal than he had and lost at the beginning. When difficult pressures come our way, we may wonder about the status of God's promises, and our own personal faith may waver. It may seem that life itself is just one painful problem after another. Like the account with Job, the current trial that we are going through may not end before another one begins. If we experience disappointments and failures during the challenge, we may want to give up because our faith may not have enough patience to endure the process. Yet, it is only as we follow the example of Job and the other mighty saints of the scriptures that we will inherit the promises God has left to us. We must not be slothful but exhibit the same kind of faith and patience they had. God has faith in us, and we can be confident that He will not allow anything to come against us that is greater than we can bear. Faith and patience are our banners of victory and as we stand steadfast, we will inherit God's promises. +++ 5/12/23 JESUS WEPT Scripture: John 11:35 "Jesus wept." These two words give us a picture of the love and compassion of our wonderful Lord as He stood at the tomb of Lazarus who had been dead for four days. Jesus, the Son of God, wept. The Word of God who was made flesh wept for His friend whose earthly body now had no life. The Light of the World wept in the darkness that surrounded the situation. The Bread of Life shed tears for those who stood around the tomb declaring that they wished that Jesus had come earlier so that Lazarus could have been healed. Jesus is the resurrection and the life, and this Life of God groaned within Himself as He experienced the sorrow that sickness and death brought. Jesus was deeply moved emotionally, yet at the end of the matter, He spoke resurrection life, light, and healing into the dead body of Lazarus. Jesus then called Lazarus to come forth from the tomb and commanded that he be loosed from the bondage of the grave clothes. Before Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead He spoke to the Father and said, "Father, I thank You that You have heard Me, and I know that You hear me always." This same Jesus is sitting at the right hand of the Father interceding for you and for me. He is there continually, and His Word, His Life, and His Light are waiting to raise you from the sorrow and grief that you are enduring. There is no storm in your life that Jesus cannot speak peace to and cause it to cease. There are no waves that He cannot calm with one word from His lips. There is no water that is so deep that He cannot walk upon it to rescue you. There is no meal so scarce that He cannot multiply to feed you. There is no valley so long and so deep that He cannot shepherd you through it. There is no desert so dry that He cannot be a well that springs up within you to quench your thirst. There is no journey so long that He will not stay with you until the end. Jesus is there in every situation to meet every need that you have. He is waiting to raise you from the death of your situation into new life. He wants to dispel the darkness with His light and stands ready to command that you be free from things that hold you in bondage. There is nothing too great for Him, not even death that has laid in a tomb for four days. His Spirit of Life exceeds all. His love is boundless and His mercy is new every morning. Remember that God hears Jesus always and that Jesus is interceding for you. Jesus weeps for you because He is touched with the feelings of your infirmities, so go to the Lord in prayer and agree with Him on your own behalf. Then listen and obey as you hear His voice call you forth into new life. +++ 5/15/23 RENEWING THE INNER MAN Scripture: II Corinthians 4:16 (Amplified) "Though our outer man is progressively decaying and wasting away, yet our inner self is being progressively renewed day after day." The Apostle Paul reminded us that our outer man, which is our physical body, is progressively decaying and wasting away. We do not like to think about those words, but the older we get, the more we come to understand that our bodies are not capable of lasting forever. Even though we may go to great lengths to maintain them and try to extend their lives, we know that we cannot stop the aging process. From the moment we exit our mother’s womb, we are headed towards death, and like Paul said, our natural bodies will progressively get older and weaker. Our spiritual man, as believers, is just the opposite. Paul said that our spiritual man is progressively renewed day by day. From the time that we experience the new birth, our inner man is headed towards eternal life. And much like our outward bodies that must be cared for, our spiritual inner man must be nourished and exercised. If we neglect to nourish our inner being, we will experience leanness within our souls, just as a physical body becomes malnourished when it is without food and care. In the natural realm, we strengthen our bodies by eating the proper food, drinking plenty of water, exercising, and getting sufficient rest. We do not work on just a couple of our muscles and let the others go, we work our entire body so that our strength is not warped and out of balance. The entire body must be fit for us to be in good health and to be able to function properly. In the spiritual realm, the same process must occur for our spirit man to be renewed. The process of nourishing and strengthening of our inner man is a work of the Holy Spirit, but the Holy Spirit can only work with the materials that we give to Him. We must eat of the bread of life daily, feasting on God's Word. Without applying ourselves to the diligent study of the Word, the Holy Spirit is unable to teach us or transform us into the image of God's dear Son. Just like natural food, we cannot live off someone else's nourishment. We must take God's nourishment in for ourselves and drink of the living water, refreshing ourselves from the wells of salvation. We must build up our own self on our most Holy faith by praying in the Spirit (Jude 20). And we must always stay within the boundaries that God has set so that His love can reach and bless us (Jude 21). These are just a few of the things that will start us on the road to a renewal in our spirit. As we do these things, God will reveal other things for us to do, and we will find that our inner self is being progressively renewed day by day. +++ 5/16/23 WORRY OR WORSHIP Scripture: Psalms 95:6 "O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our Maker." There is a battle that rages within us when troubles arise in our life. It is a battle between our flesh and our spirit. The battle demands that we either choose to worry about our problems or worship God right in the midst them. It is a hard place, but our right choice brings great rewards. We see the leper in Matthew 8:2 who had no hope of being healed, yet he worshiped Jesus as he made his request for healing. His worship ushered in the healing he needed, and his leprosy was cleansed and cured. There is another story where it seemed that it was too late for any kind of help, as death was in control. The daughter of a certain ruler had died, but the ruler continued to worship Jesus right in the midst of his daughter's death and she was raised up to live again. Worship is very powerful. Even devils were dispelled when worship prevailed in the hearts of those who came to Jesus for help (Matthew 15:22-28 and Mark 5:2-13). We acknowledge several things when we worship God in the middle of adverse circumstances. First, our worship declares that God is our first love and that He is more important than our immediate needs. Our worship tells God that we trust Him and that we love Him regardless of what happens. Second, as we worship, we do not lean upon our own understanding. Even though we are at the end of our own resources and ability, we recognize God as the One who is more than enough. We see Him bigger than our problem. Finally, our worship announces that we are releasing all our doubts and fears to God as we humbly submit our situation to Him. As we cast every care upon God, we make Him the Lord of our life. In the day that Lucifer fell, He attempted to exalt himself. He said, "I will ascend into Heaven, exalt my throne above the stars of God, and be like the Most High God" (Isaiah 14:13-14). Lucifer intends for all that is evil to be exalted in our lives today. This includes worry. He desires that we choose to walk with him and serve him, so he plants seeds of doubt in our hearts and tormenting thoughts in our minds. His goal is to cause us to worry about the enormous situations that he has created for us. He wants us to bow down to him through worry rather than bow down before God in worship and trust. Satan knows that if the fear he attempted to plant in our minds can take root, it will drive out the faith that is in our hearts. If he can cause fear and doubt to prevail in our lives, he will then be exalted above our faith in God, and Jesus will no longer be Lord. When we see these patterns working in our lives, we must remember to give God first place by exalting Him above the situation. Instead of worrying, we must simply show our trust by bowing down and worshipping the Lord our God, our Maker. +++ 5/17/23 EVERYTHING BEAUTIFUL Scripture: Ecclesiastes 3:11 "He has made everything beautiful in His time." God orchestrates our lives and fashions it for His purposes. We do not always understand what God is doing, but we do know that His ways are higher than our ways and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. God's timing is also a great mystery in our lives. He ordains not only the seasons, but also the individual moments we experience. Everything is held in His hands. We often think that we are waiting upon God when He is waiting on us. He waits for us until we are prepared for the journey that is set before us. God is wise and will not send us into battle until we are ready, and He will not use us for His glorious purposes until the spiritual fruit is ripened in our lives. Each phase of our life is a preparation time for the next level. We must learn that when we are not doing exactly what we want to do or seemly not accomplishing very much we need to wait on the Lord. If we will use that waiting time wisely, we will be ready when God is ready. We should be encouraged as we look at the men in scriptures who experienced long waiting periods before God allowed them to complete their purposes. Moses was sent to the backside of the desert for forty long years before God spoke to him from a burning bush. Joseph endured the pits and prisons for sixteen years before his dreams and visions came to pass. King David waited patiently upon the timing of God for his kingdom to be established. In one of his psalms he declared, "My times are in your hands" (Psalms 31:15). The Apostle Paul spent eight years in the desert preparing for the ministry set before him. God, Himself, also waited four thousand years after the fall of man in the Garden of Eden before He sent His Son to redeem the world from sin. God may have wanted to do something earlier, but He waited until the fullness of time had come before He released Jesus to complete His divine purpose (Galatians 4:4). We must put our faith in God and forget about the timetable of our life, for God is aware of our limited life span. In His perfect way, He will put everything together at the right time. He will see to every detail and arrange every circumstance. He will even change the hearts of others who need to be involved in our dream. He will order every step of our way to bring to pass the things that He has planned. So, until our dreams actually come to pass, we must wait upon God and realize that wherever we are and whatever we are doing right now, we are on the way to where we are going. We must not try to push or rush God because He will get us there at our appointed time. He has a special timing for every event in our life and as long as we wait for Him, He will make everything beautiful in His time. +++ 5/18/23 THE BREAD OF LIFE Scripture: John 6:35 "And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to Me shall never hunger and he that believeth on Me shall never thirst." This is a beautiful promise for our lives, but it demands an act of obedience on our part; that is, we must come to Jesus for spiritual nourishment and water. We may look many directions for fulfillment, but Jesus is the only one who is truly able to satisfy our hunger and quench our thirst because our real needs are not physical or material. They are spiritual. Jesus told us not to take thought about what we were going to eat, drink, or wear, but instead to seek the Kingdom of God first and then all these things would be added to us (Matthew 6:32-33). A spirit of deception will attempt to lure us into believing otherwise. Yet, even when we have obtained everything that life has to offer, our inner man will cry out within us for something more fulfilling, for only Jesus can satisfy our souls. When the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for forty years, they always had daily provision of food. It was called manna and it came down from Heaven every morning, except for the double portion that came so that they could rest on the Sabbath. The manna was fresh each day, and it sustained their physical lives. It was all they needed for nourishment and strength. We must have food and water each day to function and maintain our lives. Nourishment is necessary and it is something that we pursue with passion. If we fail to eat or drink, then our physical bodies will cry out and remind us that something is missing. Even an infant feels the pangs of hunger and thirst even though it does not understand that it cannot live on yesterday's nourishment. The same is true with our spirit. There is a spiritual hunger and thirst within us that cannot be denied. Our spirit needs fresh bread and living water from Heaven every day. It cannot live on yesterday's nourishment or past experiences. Jesus spoke of the manna in the wilderness, and He then declared that He was the bread which came down from Heaven (John 6:49-51). He is all that we need, but we must come to Him to gather this precious manna every day. We must study His Word, pray, worship, and fellowship in His presence. He promises to be there for us every time that we need Him. Jesus will never leave us or forsake us. He will be the bread and water that will nourish and restore our soul. His presence will fill the void and empty places of our heart and His Spirit will settle our minds to know His will. His provision will wipe away every lack and His strength will swallow up our greatest weaknesses. He is our fresh manna and our living water. When we come to Jesus, we can depend upon Him to satisfy our hunger and quench our thirst. +++ 5/19/23 ESTABLISHED WITH GRACE Scripture: Hebrews 13:9 "Be not carried away with divers and strange doctrines. For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace." There are many religions and many doctrines that we will hear about while we are traveling the pathway to eternity. Some of them will be good and true, but others will be wrapped up in deceit. God never intended for religion to be difficult, but unfortunately there is a devil that works subtly behind the scenes to corrupt the simplicity that is in Christ (II Corinthians 11:3). The devil successfully beguiled Eve in the Garden of Eden and he works just as hard to get us to believe his lies. The writer of Hebrews warns us not to be carried away or follow the strange doctrines that the devil creates, for there is no room for error in our convictions. Instead, we must understand the truth and establish what we believe. It is amazing that people can read the same scriptures and come to different conclusions. For example, when Jesus healed the blind man in John 9:6-11 several things occurred. Jesus spat on the ground, made clay with the spittle, anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay, and then told him to go wash in the pool of Siloam. The man was healed and received his sight, but which of these things, if any, brought about his healing? One religion would say that it was the spit from the mouth of Jesus. While another would declare that healing came from the clay that was mixed with the spittle. Another group would hold to the doctrine that healing came when Jesus, Himself, touched and anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay. Others would say that healing came when the Son of the Living God spoke the Word of healing. The last group would declare that it was none of the above, but that healing came from the water that the blind man washed in at the pool of Siloam. Each group would declare their own doctrine and attempt to convince others to believe and follow them. At the end, true doctrine might step in and say that this healing was based on faith, obedience, and the sovereign actions of Almighty God. Strange doctrines are in the world today, but we do not have to fear them if our hearts are established in grace. When we know the truth, the truth will set us free. With every word that comes our way, we can measure it with the Word of God and determine its value and its truth. Jesus assured us that as His sheep, we would recognize His voice and we would not follow another. Let us be careful to listen to the Lord's voice, establish our hearts in truth, and not depart from the simplicity of the gospel of Christ Jesus. +++ 5/22/23 FOCUSED AND FIT FOR THE KINGDOM Luke 9:62 "Jesus said to him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the Kingdom of God." Jesus spoke to a man to come and follow Him. This was a lifetime opportunity, but the man requested that he first be released to go and bid his family goodbye. Jesus dealt with this natural mindset by telling the man not to look back at his old life. This seems like a harsh instruction, but Jesus knew that the man would be returning to relatives who may ridicule and scorn his decision, whose influence could cloud his faith with doubt and instill fear within his heart. They may have tempted him to give up such a ridiculous idea or questioned where his life's support would come from, pointing out that Jesus Himself said that He had no place to lay His own head. We want God to enlarge our borders, take us to higher levels, and open new doors. Yet, we tend to respond in fear when those things begin to occur because they can create challenges. The new territories offer us problems to solve and an unfamiliar protocol to follow, which requires greater physical and mental strength on our part. It may also require a financial investment or risk. The unknown is all too taxing because our past failures remind us that we could end up in defeat again. So, it is often tempting to look at the safety and luxuries that we possess in the present rather than to press towards the future with its risks and rewards. Yet as we look at the scriptures, we realize that the men who were able to achieve their goals and fulfill their callings were determined and focused. Regardless of the obstacles they faced, they never looked back. The Apostle Paul focused on the prize of the high calling of Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:14). He was beaten, stoned, imprisoned, and left for dead, but he allowed nothing to stop him. He continued to press towards the mark. Abraham was called to leave his country and family to go to a land that God would show him (Genesis 12:1). He had no map to the blessing or written contract from God, but he stayed focused on the words that God had spoken, which gave him direction and instilled faith in his heart. Joshua and Caleb did not look at the size of the giants in the land but focused on the size of the grapes. They were of another spirit and followed God fully (Numbers 14:24) until they reached the Promised Land. Daniel did not consider the lions that were in the den. He believed that God would deliver him and focused his attention on the angels of the Lord who shut the mouths of the lions (Daniel 6:22). And Jesus focused upon God's will by setting His face to go to Jerusalem (Luke 9:51). These examples are not just intriguing stories for us to enjoy. They are given by inspiration of the Holy Spirit to encourage us to also keep our focus upon the Lord and His high calling for our lives. The Lord speaks to all of us to come and follow Him. Yet, He wants us to know that when we put our hands to the plow, we must never allow ourselves to look back or be distracted by the good or bad that we have left behind. Jesus was not giving instructions that He was not willing to follow for Himself. He willingly gave up all that He was and put His hand to the plow to complete the Father's will. He stayed focused all the way to Calvary and died on our behalf. His victory is now our strength. Now we must endeavor to remain focused on Him so that we can become fit for the Kingdom of God. +++ 5/23/23 HIS WITNESSES Scripture: Acts 1:8 "You shall receive power after the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and you shall be witnesses unto me ..." Many times, we become burdened with a false sense of responsibility concerning situations and problems in the lives of those around us. As we see their hurts and pains, we become deeply involved in their crisis. In the midst of their adversity and stress, we sometimes experience a "Messiah Syndrome," forgetting that we are but frail humans ourselves. Because we want to help those who are hurting, we forget that we are not their savior and that their deliverance is not held in our hands. We try to act as god in their life rather than merely interceding in prayer and being the witness that we are called to be. Eventually after much anxiety and wasted effort on our part, we come to this startling realization: I did not suffer shame - therefore, I cannot deliver. I did not bear the stripes on my back - therefore, I cannot heal. I did not sweat drops of blood - therefore, I cannot relieve anxiety. I did not wear a crown of thorns on my brow - therefore, I cannot give peace. I did not die on a cross - therefore, I cannot redeem the ones I love. I did not rise from the dead - I am not God. Jesus was the one who suffered these pains for humanity, and He is the Messiah who is anointed by God. Only He can set the captive free, for all power is held in His hands. He understands the needs of those who suffer pain, and He is touched by their feelings and weaknesses. He loves them and is just as concerned for them as we are, and He is waiting to help. As the Lord's witness, our purpose is to simply point those who are hurting to Him. We must put them in His awesome hands and trust Him for their deliverance. Hebrews 4:14-15 says, "Jesus, the Son of God, is our great High Priest who has gone to Heaven itself to help us; therefore, let us never stop trusting Him. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses because He had the same temptations that we experience, but He never once gave way to them and sinned. So let us come boldly to the very throne of God and stay there to receive His mercy and to find His grace to help us in our times of need." Jesus is the answer. We are simply His witnesses. +++ 5/24/23 HE HEALS THE BROKEN HEARTED Scripture: Psalms 147:3 "He heals the broken in heart, and binds up their wounds." There is a saying that declares, "sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me." I have to say that the writer of those words must have had a different kind of heart than most of us possess. For words truly can bruise the tender soul with deeper wounds than the assault that comes against the flesh with sticks and stones. Our flesh heals much easier and quicker than our spirits, for once the flesh is healed, the injury is usually forgotten and left in the past. We do not recall the thorns in our flesh, the bruises on our body, or other physical injuries that we have sustained. Mothers even forget the pains of birthing a child. We treat our wounds and nurture them back to health and go on with life. They teach us to be careful, but once they are healed, we never cry again because of their pain. The heart and soul of man is much different. Within the heart there is an everlasting fountain of grief and sadness for those who have been wounded in their spirits. In a moment, one word or situation can bring the past injuries into the present and re-create the pain of the things that we thought we had buried within our spirits. We thought we had hidden our grief and pain in the deepest chamber of our heart and locked the door, but the feeling is just as fresh, and the hurt is just as deep as it was in the past. It is amazing how this can happen so suddenly. Without warning and unannounced, these wounds are resurrected and take us by surprise. Our heart aches, our tears flow, and no one understands our grief or why we cannot let it go. King David experienced this and spoke out concerning his own broken heart saying, "I looked for someone to take pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none" (Psalms 69:20). Your physical body cannot function well with a heart that is not working right, and when it is not well, your whole body suffers. Your breath is short, your strength fades, and other parts of your body fail. The same is true with your spiritual heart, for when your spirit is injured, your entire being suffers the loss. There is only one person who is able to come to your rescue, heal your spirit, and mend your broken heart. That person is the Lord, Himself. Jesus is not only there for those whose bodies are wracked with pain but has promised to be near to those whose hearts are broken (Psalms 34:18). Look to Him, for He is the only one who can see your real pain and deal with the true issues. The Lord understands the tenderness of your soul and knows how your heart aches. He takes pity and will comfort you in your pain, for He loves you with an everlasting love. Trust in the Lord. Put your heart in His hands and allow Him to heal and bind up your wounds. +++ 5/25/23 BEHAVE VALIANTLY Scripture: I Chronicles 19:13 "Let us behave ourselves valiantly." King David sent Joab to fight against Ammon and Syria. When Joab saw that the battle was set against him, he very quickly divided his army between his brother and himself. He reasoned with his brother to behave valiantly and to work together against the enemy. Joab told his brother, "If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you come help me. And if Ammon is too strong for you, then I will help you." When these two forces joined together, they became stronger and they were able to win the battle and cause their enemies to flee before them. Just as Joab and his brother fought valiantly for each other, you and I need to be allies in the spirit and fight for one another, for none of us are able to stand alone in our battle against the enemy. The devil makes himself strong and "roams about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour" (I Peter 5:8). Our job is to be continually vigilant, watching for his attacks. When we see that the enemy has become too strong for our brothers in Christ, we need to come to their rescue, pray for them, counsel with them, and either render supply or find help for them in their time of need. We should also be ready to receive help from our spiritual brothers in Christ when they come to our aid because we all have the same Father and the same enemy. Paul told us to bear one another's burdens (Galatians 6:1-2). James told us to pray for one another that we may be healed (James 5:16). We have a responsibility to stand and fight for each other, and not work against each other. Even when our Christian brother is taken in a fault, we are to restore him in a spirit of humility and meekness lest we be tempted in the same manner. When we restore our brother, we fulfill the law of Christ, which is to love our brothers as Christ loved the church. However, too often, we shun and criticize our spiritual brothers when they are under attack and like the lyrics of the song, "we shoot our wounded." In Matthew 18:19, Jesus said, "If two of you agree on earth as touching anything that you ask, it shall be done for you of my Father which is in Heaven." He promised to be in our midst even if there were just two or three gathered in His Name. What a powerful promise that is. Deuteronomy 32:30 says, "One will chase a thousand, and two will put ten thousand to flight." This scripture declares that our strength and power in the spirit does not just double when we get into unity with other believers but grows to the tenth power. Determine to take God at His Word and then act valiantly. When you see your brother's need run to his side and help rescue him from the enemy. +++ 5/26/23 NO COMPLAINTS Scripture: Philippians 2:14 "Do all things without complaining or arguing." Does this scripture really mean that we are to do everything without complaining and have a good attitude in every situation? That sounds a bit hard. Our first thought is that the Apostle Paul, who wrote these words of instructions did not understand all the hardships that we would have to face. He must not have known that we would have people on the job, our families, and others in our social life to contend with. He must not have realized that we would have assignments that we did not want to do. The trash would have to be taken out and the lawn kept. There would be meals to cook and dishes and clothes to wash every day. Paul should have made allowances for some of the complaints that we would want to voice. We fail to consider that Paul went through worse tribulation and persecution than we will ever experience, and he remained without complaint. These few words, "Do all things without complaining or arguing", lay a lot of responsibility upon us, yet they are not meant to be burdensome. Instead, they are meant to be for our good. The Apostle Paul spoke these words knowing quite well that God was working in us to do His will and His good pleasure (verse 13). When God speaks, He wants His believers to simply obey His Words. Verse fourteen through fifteen tells us the reason we are to obey without complaining. It is because our very actions speak of Jesus to a world that Paul described as crooked and perverse. When we live without murmuring and refuse to engage in disputes, we become blameless and harmless before them and without rebuke. They can find no legitimate cause in their refusal to hear our message concerning the gospel. One minister suggested that the way to break the habit of murmuring was to write each complaint on paper. Then, when we saw all of our complaints written out, we would realize how much we complained and understand how trivial our thoughts really are. Without a doubt, we must work to control our tongue and keep our attitude intact so that our labor in the sharing the gospel is not in vain (Verse 16). When we do all things with joy, our witness will be a shining light. We will be like stars in the universe to all those around us and they will respond to us as we hold forth the Word of Life. +++ 5/29/23 GOD'S MEMORIAL DAY Scripture: Exodus 12:14 "And this day shall be unto you for a Memorial." This scripture is in reference to the institution of the Passover, which began when Moses was leading the people out of Egypt. This event was a shadow or an illustration of the redemptive work that Jesus was to accomplish for us on the cross. At this first Passover, Israel was instructed to take a lamb without spot or blemish, kill it, and apply the blood to the doorpost of their homes. God told them that when He saw the blood, He would pass over them and not kill the firstborn of that house. He promised that death would have no dominion over them if they would simply apply the blood of the slain lamb. God grants us a Memorial Day such as this. Jesus is our lamb without spot and blemish. When John the Baptist saw Jesus, he said, "Behold the Lamb of God, which takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). Jesus was slain on the cross of Calvary for our sins and because of His sacrifice, we have a promise of eternal life, and death no longer has dominion over us. However, just like the first Passover, God's work is not complete until we personally apply the blood of Jesus to our lives by receiving Jesus as our Savior and Lord. God gave such simple instructions to His people. They only had to take the lamb, kill it, and apply the blood. Yet, many people in Egypt did not respond to these instructions and faced the judgment of their choice. You also have a choice. Eternal salvation is just as simple, for God has made a way for you by sacrificing His own Son, Jesus. Please respond to His great invitation, for the steps to salvation are as simple as ABC. A) Acknowledge your sin, for all have sinned. (Romans 3:23) B) Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. (Acts 16:31) C) Confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, and you will be saved. (Romans 10:9) Today we celebrate Memorial Day in America in honor of those who have given their lives for this country. So when you see the red stripes on our great American flag think about those who have fought and have paid the ultimate price with their blood for your own personal freedom. Most of all remember the great sacrifice that Jesus made for your eternal freedom and the crimson blood that He shed for the remission of your sins. +++ 5/30/23 HARVEST TIME Scripture: John 4:35 "Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest." Jesus said, "Lift up your eyes and look." Many people are asleep and do not see that things are changing very rapidly around them. Those who are awake and aware walk around in awe because of what surrounds them. There is a new awareness of the glory of God. It is as though there is a new sound in Heaven, one that we have never heard before. It is telling us to press the limits and to go where we have never gone before and to do what we have never done. It encourages us to enlarge our borders, expand our horizons, and get ready for the day of the greatest harvest of souls that we have ever seen. Yet, Jesus tells us that even though the harvest or the mission field is truly great, the laborers are few, and He instructs us to pray for more laborers to be sent into the fields (Luke 10:2). Jesus' Words are a personal mandate for each of us, for we all have been called and chosen for such a time as this. This is our day, and this is our hour. God has ordained and anointed us at this time in history to minister to the hurting souls that are being held in bondage. In the beginning, God spoke all things into existence and commanded everything to multiply. All of creation obeyed His voice because of the power of His Words. God’ very breath brought light and life. The same is happening now in the spirit. The fruit of God’s fields are multiplying and becoming ripe because of His command. He is depending upon us to reap the harvest by sharing His light and life with the world around us. God is releasing a fresh awareness, but we must respond. We cannot just look at the fields. Instead, we must share and minister to those in need. Like gathering a tender crop, our words must not be loud and empty, but full of love, grace, and truth. If Jesus is living within us, His essence should emerge when we talk, and His witness should show forth in every area of our lives. Everything about Him should be portrayed through our image because we are an epistle that is known and read of all men (II Corinthians 3:2). In this dark hour, the world is looking for people who are walking in the supernatural peace of God; a peace that is only birthed by the presence of God. The more we see the day of the Lord approaching, the greater our influence will be. We must submit to God and allow the power of His voice to speak into our lives. We must yield to God and allow His Spirit to change us for His glory so that we can see His fields and become laborers in His harvest. +++ 5/31/23 NO SIN TOO GREAT Scripture: Psalms 103:3 (Living Bible) "He forgives all my sins." God is faithful and continually surrounds us with His loving kindness and tender mercies. He extends His love and compassion to us even though we do not deserve it. He knows our shortcomings and there is no sin so great that He will not forgive except that of total blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. Whenever and whatever we confess, He promises to forgive and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. This is the good news of the gospel because our lives are marred with sin every day. Even the Apostle Paul was engaged in the battle for righteousness. Although he had been converted, he declared that he could not make himself do right. He wanted to do good, but he just could not. And when he tried not to do wrong, he did it anyway (Romans 7:19). He counted himself as a total failure as far as his sinful nature was concerned, yet he knew that God's grace was sufficient for him. We may think that the forgiveness and redemption of our sins and the sins of those about us is hopeless. Yet our sins will never be greater than the blood of Jesus, for His blood is able to wash away every stain and make us whiter than snow. We can look through the scriptures and find forgiveness on every level. After the Apostle Peter declared the awesome revelation that Jesus was the Messiah, he cursed and even denied that he knew Jesus, but Jesus forgave him and caused him to be a great apostle. The woman at the well was living with a man that she was not married to, but when she encountered the forgiveness of Jesus, she became a witness to the entire city. Another woman was caught in the act of adultery, yet instead of condemning her, Jesus forgave her and rescued her from her accusers. King David found forgiveness not only for his sin of passion and adultery with Bathsheba but also for the premeditated murder of her husband, Uriah. The Apostle Paul did many things contrary to the Name of Jesus, and showed no mercy when he persecuted the church. Yet Jesus met him on the road to Damascus, forgave him, changed his life, and called him to the ministry. Even in Jesus' most difficult hour, He extended forgiveness not only to the thief who hung on the cross beside Him, but also to the multitudes who had crucified Him without cause. This is the wonderful Savior that we serve. Jesus looks beyond our sins and who we are and He continues to be who He is. He is faithful and forgiving and does not turn us away when we fail. He looks at us through His eyes of love and remembers that He was wounded for our transgressions and bruised for our iniquities. He paid a great price for our forgiveness. He is our Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, and He always forgives all of our sins. +++ Copyright © 2023 Mary Padgett Ministries. All Rights Reserved www.widsonline.com			..............................