God's Guidance John 16:13

When the Spirit of Truth is come, He will guide you unto all truth.

Jesus is with His disciples. He is about to go to the cross. He is trying to prepare them for the days and events that were ahead of them. He told them in verse 4 that He was going to tell them things that they were not going to understand but when they happened they would remember the words that He told them and they would find great comfort in them.

When the Spirit is come, Jesus said, He will guide you unto all truth. The purpose of the Holy Spirit is to guide us to the truth that is in the Lord Jesus. The Holy Spirit takes the Word of God and writes it in our hearts and He helps us remember those words and He helps us walk according to those words. It is impossible to be a Christian without the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts and in our lives. It is impossible to be obedient to the Word of God without the work of the Holy Spirit in us.

The Holy Spirit works with us to get us to obey God's Word in our hearts. As we are obedient to His Word, we come to learn that these words are life and they are truth. Truth is a person. Jesus said, " I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. No man comes to the Father but by Me." Jesus is our truth and He is our way. The Holy Spirit works to help us know the Lord as He has revealed Himself to us in His Word. Faith is believing that God is everything that He says He is and that He will do everything that He says He will do.

As you and I surrender our hearts to the Lord and we begin to make decisions that bring honor and glory to Him, we begin to learn what the truth is when it comes to life as God would have us live it. God is the Supreme designer of life. He knows what we need to have life and have it more abundantly. The desire of God's heart is that you and I have that life and live it to the fullest. The purpose of the Holy Spirit is to lead and guide us to that life, which comes when we begin to accept the truth found in His Word.

We need to let God have His way in our hearts and in our lives. We need to be determined to stand for God and to walk with Him no matter what. We need to learn to lean on the Holy Spirit and then make the decision to obey God's Word as the Holy Spirit gives us instruction and direction. Jesus said that the Holy Spirit would "guide us into all truth."

Guidance requires that we follow. If you and I are ever going to come to know the Lord in all of His fullness and all of His glory, we have to learn to follow His leadership and His guidance. God can lead but it is only when we are guided that His truth becomes evident and beneficial in our lives and in the lives of all those who are around us.

Hope of Glory Colossians 1:27

To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: whom we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.



The things of God are a mystery. Salvation itself is a mystery. We want to think that we are good people and since God is a God of love, then somehow God will accept us and we will be able to live with Him in heaven. A lot of people will fail to get into heaven because they have adopted this philosophy. God, Paul tells us, has "made known the riches of His glory of this great mystery." The answer to it all is Christ in us.

Jesus left the throne of Glory and came to be born of a virgin in obscurity so that He could go to the cross and through the empty tomb get ready to come back to earth in victory and power to claim His bride, which is the church, the people of faith. Jesus indwells the heart of the individual who repents of his sin and opens his or her heart to the Lord by faith in His saving work on the cross. This is our hope of glory; this is our only hope.

Paul tells us that this is the message that he preaches. He warns every man and teaches every man in all wisdom, so that anyone may be presented perfect in Christ Jesus. Paul does not say that we are to be presented perfect in our own selves because that is impossible. There is nothing that we can do in and of our own selves that will make us perfect or even acceptable before the Lord. It is only what Christ did on the cross that can make any difference in our hearts and in our lives.

As we as God's children look to His Word and rely on the power of prayer, we will find His indwelling presence to be all that we need to allow Him to make our lives everything that He wants them to be. More than presented perfect in heaven, He will make our lives "perfect" in this world as well. We have to remember that His definition of "perfect" may well be a lot different than our definition and His timing may well be so different from ours but God promises to bless us in this life. Then when we will stand before Him in eternity, we will be perfect in His eyes because we have placed our lives in His hand and our hearts in His precious Son, who gave His life a ransom for each of us.

God is indeed a great and wonderful God and He loves each of us more than we could begin to imagine. His love for us ought to be enough to cause us to live for Him without exception and without excuse and when we do, God will delight Himself in us because Christ lives in us, which is the hope of glory and the key to understanding the mystery of His plan and purpose for our lives.

Underachievers or Overcomers Revelation 3:21

21"To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. 22"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." '



Jesus gives even the most unpleasing church a glorious promise. Christ loves us all. He died for us all. He died for the good, the bad and the ugly. His promises are not out of reach for anyone. His salvation is available to all who would come to Him as He knocks at their hearts door and open that door and allow Him to come in and provide for them.

Our obedience is all that the Lord of Glory is looking for. Obedience begins at the cross and His sin sacrifice on our behalf. Obedience is required to open that door. Jesus pleads with us to come to Him. His Word tells us that we need Him. His Spirit convicts us of our lost condition because of the sin that is in our lives. Jesus has come to seek and to save them that are lost. He came for the church at Laodicea just as He did for the church at Philadelphia.

He says to those who overcome, I will grant to sit with Me on My throne. Jesus is not asking us to do anything that He Himself did not first do. He tells us that I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. When Jesus asks us to overcome, He is not instructing us to overcome just because He did, but rather because He knows the benefits that were His as He overcame the lust of the flesh and the lure of the world. He knew the benefits of living His life as the Word of God instructed Him to do. He knows the benefits that are ours if we too will overcome the lust of the flesh and the lure of the world in our own lives.

The throne that Jesus grants us to sit at is the throne that God Himself has given to His Son. Jesus' promise is that we will share in His glory and His honor and as joint heirs with Him, everything that God has reserved for Him in heaven, He has reserved for us as well. All we need to do is persevere and overcome temptation in our lives and make decisions that bring honor and glory to Him who has overcome and sits on the throne in heaven.

"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." What else is there to say? We have a choice. We can listen to the Word of God and the promises that are there and we can do one of two things. We can choose to follow their instruction and live our lives according to its instruction or we can do as the Laodicean church was doing and revel in our own luxuries and our own abilities and wake up one day and find our lives empty or as Jesus warns, "and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked."

Just give me Jesus.

Stand With God Ezra 8:23

So we fasted and we sought God for this and He answered our prayer.




Ezra was a man who trusted the Lord with all that he had. This guy walked with God and here is one of the prize passages that illustrate this for us. Ezra is preparing a return trip to Jerusalem. He is going to be leading a group of men from Babylon to Jerusalem. Not only will they be traveling through very rough territory, they are carrying with them a sizeable amount of gold and sliver, which today would total in the millions of dollars. They would be easy prey for thieves and robbers on this difficult journey.

Ezra wanted to ask the king for an army guard to help protect them on this difficult journey. However, in verse 22 we read that Ezra had told the king that "the gracious hand of God is on everyone who looks to Him and His great anger is against all who forsake Him." Ezra hated to ask for help when his testimony was that God was able to protect His own.

So, Ezra fasted and prayed to the Lord for this and God answered his prayer.

There are two thoughts that stand out in this passage. First of all, when we give something to God, we need to leave it there. Ezra had told the king of God's power and His provisions. He shared with the king God's all-sufficiency and here we find Ezra's faith being put to the test. It would not have been out of line at all for Ezra to request an armed escort from the king. The king had given him all these riches to present at the Temple. In all probability, the king expected to send a military escort for their protection.

However, Ezra did not want to take the chance that God's name and character might be blemished by his faithlessness. Ezra did something that we need to take notice of; he and his people fasted and they prayed to God. God does not want us to walk through this life alone. He wants to go before us and He wants to take away the stumbling stones that litter the paths that we walk. He not only can provide for us, He stands ready to provide for us.

All we have to do is do what Ezra did; first of all, we need to trust God. Second, we have to look to God as a first response as opposed to our last resort. Prayer and fasting are available to us for a reason. They work! The Bible tells us that God heard Ezra's prayer and He answered their prayer. He gave Ezra the peace that He needed to begin this dangerous journey.

In verse 31 we read that "the hand of the Lord was upon us and He protected us from the hand of the enemies and the bandits along the way and we arrived in Jerusalem."

God will protect you as you seek to stand upon His Word. No matter what the circumstances may be, stand with God and He will stand with you!

Please Pray Acts 3:26

Unto you first, having raised up His Son Jesus, sent Him to bless you in turning away every one of you from his iniquities.



Pentecost has just take place. Peter and John went up to the temple to pray as they were accustomed to doing. When they got there they met a man begging for money and Peter told him to rise up and walk and he did. Peter used this occasion to preach to the crowd about Jesus, whom the Jews had crucified only a few short weeks earlier.

He concludes his message with our scripture text for today. God raised up His Son Jesus to bless us. The whole purpose of His coming is to bless us. How are we to be blessed? Peter tells us in verse 19; we are to repent and be converted that our sins may be blotted out. Jesus gave His life on the cross to pay the penalty for your sin and mine. He died in our place. Jesus died in our place so that you and I might be able to live with Him in heaven but He also died in our place so that you and I might be able to live with Him on this earth. Jesus does not want us to die for Him; He wants us to live for Him and that is why He came. That is why God raise Him from the dead so that He might bless us and that blessing us, we might be a blessing to others.

Repentance is where God's blessings begin but that is not where they end. Look closely at our text. Peter tells us that God raised Jesus from the dead to bless us "in turning us away from our sin." Here is the key to God's blessings. God's blessings come when you and I are willing to turn from our sinful ways and turn to him and His ways for our lives. This is the founding principle of the Bible. Faith is seen in obedience to God's Word. Faith is taking God at His Word in every aspect of our lives. Faith is no compromise and no excuse; faith is believing that God is everything that He says He is and that He will do everything that He says He will do. Period. Faith is living our lives one decision at a time knowing that God's Word and His Way is the way for us to go.

When you and I are willing to turn from our iniquities and turn to the Lord, we will be blessed. God will bless us. He will fight our battles and He will bless us exceedingly abundantly more than we can ask or hope for. Peter tells us that this is why God raised Jesus from the dead.

Jesus is risen and we need to remind ourselves that because He lives we too can live today and forever. When temptation rears its ugly head, just remember that God has raised Jesus up to bless you and the only way He can do that is for you to remain faithful to Him and to remain faithful to His Word and not let sin have an occasion to rob you of God's blessing for your life! When temptation comes, please pray!

When You Pray Matthew 6:5

5"And when you pray,"



Five times Jesus uses the phrase 5"And when you pray" to teach His disciples about the practice and privilege of prayer. Jesus did not command us to pray in this statement; He is not telling us that we ought to pray. He is going to give us instructions as to how to pray.

The issue here is not "will we pray" but rather "when we pray." There is never any thought given to the possibility that a Child of God or a follower of Christ would NOT pray.

Jesus tells us, "And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men." when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. 7"And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8"Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. 9"In this manner (when you pray), therefore, pray:"

As Christians praying is not intended to be an option. It is a part of our newfound existence. It is as important to our spiritual strength as breathing, eating or drinking is to our physical strength. It is inconceivable that we would ever meet someone and fall in love with that person and then never speak to them or have any communication with them. That relationship would die quicker than it started.

Our spiritual lives are no different. God desires a relationship with us. That relationship involves us listening and learning from His Word and then we are to pray for strength and guidance to walk in the Light that Jesus has come to give to us.

Jesus expects His children to pray. Period. Write it down big and bold, prayer is an essential part of a Child of God's existence. It is unnatural for a Child of God not to pray just as it would be for a baby not to cry. Jesus does not tell us, "If you pray do not be like the hypocrites." He says, "When you pray do not be like the hypocrites."

Is prayer a priority in your life? Do you talk to God on a number of occasions during the day? Do you ask Him for guidance and strength and peace and comfort? Do you remember to pray for those you love and those around you that need the touch of God's hand in and on their lives?

There is plenty to pray about! You are making decisions, one after the other and you need help making the right decisions. Jesus understood that and that is why He is telling us "how we ought to pray" WHEN we pray. May your prayer time become personal and intimate with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and may He bless you as you look to Him moment by moment, in every decision you make, every day of your life!

Advocates I John 2:1

We have an advocate with the Father.


Jesus Christ has done something for us that is almost inconceivable. Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sin. He was raised from the dead so that He could sit at the right hand of His heavenly Father as an advocate for you and me before God.

Jesus is our advocate before God's throne. There is nothing that comes before Him that He cannot take care of. Nothing.

We also have an advocate in the Holy Spirit as well. The Holy Spirit "ever lives to make intercession for us." (Hebrews 7:25) The Greek word for "Advocate" and "Comforter" are the same word, which means, "One called along side to help."

Jesus intercedes on our behalf in heaven while the Holy Spirit intercedes on our behalf in our hearts. As Jesus speaks to the Father for us, the Holy Spirit speaks to us leading us and guiding us in the way that God would have us go. So, with Jesus in heaven and the Holy Spirit in us, we have all the strength and help that we need to be all that God would have us be if we would just listen and do what God would have us do.

There is no better place to be in all the world than to be in the palm of God's hand as Jesus intercedes for us and the Holy Spirit intercedes with us so that God can do for us all that He wants to do in us and with us and for us! Glory to God! Amen!!!

Sweet Sleep Proverbs 3:24

When you lie down you shall not be afraid. Yes, you shall lie down and your sleep shall be sweet.



The only thing that will defeat fear is faith. When we place our faith in the Lord Jesus, we will be able to lie down and not be afraid and God promises that our sleep will be sweet. There is no security that is any sweeter than the security that is ours in the Lord Jesus. The problem that a lot of us have is we go to bed trying to find the solution to our problems on our own. We want to be masters of our own destiny. We want to be in charge and we want to know exactly what is going to happen, how it is going to happen and when. We do not like surprises and we do not like not knowing how things are going to work themselves out.

When we go to bed trying to work out our own situations, we may find rest difficult. It is difficult to try to go to sleep when our lives are in disarray. However, when we leave our lives to the Lord, He is able to give us rest and take care of the circumstances that surround our lives. God is able to still the storms and calm the waves that can come up around us.

There is no peace that is any better than the peace that is ours in the Lord Jesus. When we leave our lives to His leadership and we learn to walk with Him, we will find that our fears will begin to disappear and our sleep will be sweeter.

I remember when I got saved, I realized that I was lost and that was the worst feeling that I have ever known. I remember as a 10 year old boy I cried myself to sleep one night because I knew I was lost and I needed and wanted to be saved. This took place for several nights and then on Thursday night, I remember laying down and I asked the Lord to forgive me of my sin and to come into my heart and it was as if God reached down and picked me up and pulled me close to his bosom and all I remember was going to sleep in His arms. I have never gone to sleep since then not knowing that He is mine and that I am His!

There is no sleep any sweeter than the sleep that is ours because we have surrendered our lives to Jesus and we have made Him Lord and Master of our lives!

God's Plan and Purpose Romans 8:28

We know that all things work together for good to them that love the Lord, to them who are called according to His purpose.



If we live long enough, we will all face disappointment and difficulty. I do not know anyone who likes to go through the valley or face the storms that life seems to throw at us from time to time. Accidents are going to happen. Life will have its pitfalls. One of the aspects of life is death. The ratio of death to life is still one to one. Everyone that has been born will die until the rapture takes place. Grandparents will die. Moms and dads will die. Teenagers will die and yes, even infants will die. There are parents who will stand over their children's caskets.

Where is God when these things happen? The answer is simple. God is still on His throne and He is still in charge and our responsibility is to trust Him and look to Him for strength to make it past the moment to live another day. You and I cannot control what happens to us in a lot of cases, but we can control how we respond to what happens. I am convinced that this is where God wants us to shine the brightest. When you and I look to the Lord in the midst of our greatest need, we will find Him and His presence and His power will be more than enough to take us from where we are to the place that he wants us to be.

Story is told of a man who was a passenger on an ocean going ship and the ship took on water and sank. This man survived the shipwreck alone and washed up on an uninhabited island. The man built a hut from limbs and leaves. He put everything that he has in the hut and while he was out looking for food to eat, the hut caught on fire and burned up. The man felt as if God had turned His back on him and that his life was not worth the living. His tragedy was more than he thought he could bear.

After sitting by the smoldering embers left by the fire for an hour or so, this man heard a whistle and ran to the edge of the island and there he saw a ship trying to dock near the island. When the man got on board the ship, the captain told him that they had seen his smoke signal and they came to his rescue.

God knows our loss and He is aware of our circumstances and His promise is that He will give us victory and work things out for good id we will lean on Him and allow him to do what only He can do. Remember, the question is never "can we trust God"; the question is always, "Will we trust God."

Trust God no matter what and He will give you victory over the difficult events that you will face in your life. To God be the glory for the great things that He is doing and will continue to do for those who love Him and trust Him with their lives!

Brownies Proverbs 20:9

9 Who can say, "I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin"?


As Christians we don't like sin but we don't mind temptation! Who among us can say, "I am pure from my sin?" We try to rationalize and excuse our sin when we know deep down in our hearts, this is not at all what we need or even really want in our lives.

One of the best illustrations of flirting with sin that I have ever heard comes from James Dobson's daughter, Danae. I listened to Focus on the Family's broadcast today and heard Danae and her dada talk about a recent book that she had written. She told of one of the stories in her book for teen girls.

She told a story of a father who raised his children not to go to R rated movies because they needed to keep their minds pure and not put bad things into their minds. The kids were in their mid teens and a very popular movie came out and all their friends were going to go to the movie. They wanted to go. The movie had an R rating. They knew their dad's rule and so they began to build a case to present to their father about going.

They interviewed friends at church that had seen the movie. They found out that there was some cursing in it but not that much. There was some violence in it but nothing that they had not seen on television at home. There was a steamy scene but no nudity or sex; the sex was mostly hinted to and left to the imagination. The movie was not that bad. They wrote down all the bad things and all the good things about the movie that they could gather and then they went to their dad with their request, "Please dad just this once, can we go see this movie; all of our friends are going and it is not that bad."

The dad listened to their request and their argument and asked to think about it overnight. The teens were elated! They had presented their case and they knew that their dad would grant their wish. The next day the dad called a family meeting to announce his decision.

"I have thought about your request. I will let you make the final decision on whether or not you go to this movie. I made you some brownies. If you decide to eat these brownies you can go to the movie." Wow! That is easy enough; we love brownies!

The dad said before you eat these brownies, let me tell you how I made them. I carefully whipped the ingredients together. I have added nuts and some extra chocolate; I know how much you like chocolate. I have added some powered sugar to make the brownies look better and be a little sweeterbut I have to tell you there is a little dog poop in there. Not much, but it is mixed in there so that you will not know it.

I cooked the brownies at 350 degrees so the heat will have killed anything in the brownies that would hurt you. There is nothing to worry about ok, who wants a brownie?

Sin is subtle. It is well hidden. It won't hurt us. It is surrounded by so much wonderful stuff. Who wants to take the first bite?

Watch and Pray Luke 21:36

36"Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man."



Jesus warns His disciples to watch and pray. We are to be careful about what we do. We are to watch and make sure that we live our lives, as we ought to live them. We are to guard ourselves against the things of the world. We are to watch and guard ourselves against temptation and sin. We are to make sure that our relationship with the Lord remains what it ought to be. We are to watch and look for opportunities to do the things we are supposed to do. We are to look for opportunities to do good to those around us.

Watching and praying always seem to go together. Watching leads us to prayer! The more we see the more we realize our need for God's guidance and His help! It is not enough to simply watch. There is only so much we can do as individuals to overcome temptation and sin. Prayer allows God to strengthen us and lead us away from sin and death to righteousness and life. Prayer allows us to maintain our relationship with the Lord.

When we make prayer a priority in this life, God is able to mold us for service in the life to come. Prayer is such a wonderful privilege that we ought all take hold of and never let go. We all need to be watching always and we need to be praying always so that we will escape all the things concerning judgment that will come to pass as we all stand before the Lord one day.

Watch and Pray!

Don't Be Weighed Down Luke 21:34

34"But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly.




Jesus cautions His disciples to "take heed to yourselves". He will tell them in verse 35 to "watch and pray." It is imperative that we watch or take a good look at where we are and where we are headed when it comes to living our lives. Temptation can strike at any moment. We have to be aware of our surroundings and aware of the circumstances that can get us off track.

Not only do we have to be aware of temptations that come upon us, we must also be aware of our own sinful nature that will lead us to sin as well. Jesus mentions "carousing and drunkenness and cares of this life." It is so easy for things to come between us and our relationship with the Lord. We understand the carousing and the drunkenness but the "cares of life" are with us at every step we take.

It is so easy for our hearts to get weighed down. It is so easy for us to let our priorities get out of place and since it is a gradual process in a lot of cases, our hearts can get heavy and we fail to realize it until it is too late! Notice this is the general thrust of this passage. Jesus' word of warning to us is to not let that day come upon us unexpectedly.

The whole purpose of our lives is to prepare us for eternity. For when this day of death and judgment comes upon us unexpectedly it finds us unprepared for it. There is one reason that this happens. We want to look at life and take care of the cares of the world. We want to be successful. We want to find happiness. We want to take care of the here and now and we fail to take care of the hereafter!

Prayer keeps our feet planted so that our hearts do not get weighed down with the cares of life. Prayer helps us keep our priorities where they should be focused and when our eyes are focused on Jesus, He is able to take care of our hearts and our lives go as He would have them go!

Thoroughly Furnished II Timothy 3:16

All scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness; that the man of God may be thoroughly furnished unto all good works.



The Bible not only contains a number of promises from God to us, the Word of God itself is a promise from God to us. All scripture is given by inspiration of God to us. The Bible is not the work of men but solely the work of God to us and for us. The Bible is given to us so that we can know who God is and what He wants to do in and with our lives.

The Bible is profitable to us in a number of ways. First of all, it is profitable for doctrine or teaching. When we take the Bible and let it direct our paths, then we are going to find life and find it more abundantly. It is impossible to get where we need to be when we are headed in the wrong direction. The Bible leads us and guides us in the right direction. When we are headed in the right direction, we will find God's blessings and then we will avoid a lot of the pitfalls that the world can throw at us.

The Bible is profitable for reproof and correction. The Bible helps us to examine ourselves and see the error of our ways because it sets a standard in front of us in the person of Jesus that is consistent and steadfast. He is our rock and our fortress and He will never fail us and we can trust in Him and we can aspire to be like Him. The Bible has a correcting aspect to it for one reason; God wants to move us from where we are to the place that He wants us to be. He wants to turn us around and head us in the right direction and it is all for our benefit! The benefit that God gets from it all is blessing us.

The Bible is profitable for instruction in righteousness. God wants us to be able to stand before Him justified and to do that He sent His Son to pay the penalty for our sin. All we need to do is to accept that free pardon for our sin and ask Jesus to forgive our sin and come into our heart and be our Savior and Lord. When we have done that, the Word of God directs us and teaches us who God is and what He has promised to do for us so that our faith might be made perfect in our lives. As we exercise that faith in the decisions that we make, our righteousness is perfected and God is able to be God in our lives and He is glorified in us and others are able to see Him through us.

The goal that God has set forth for us in His Word is that the man of God may be thoroughly furnished unto all good works. God wants us to prosper and to benefit from His blessings. He wants our lives to be filled to overflowing, full of His grace and His glory. He wants every moment that we live to be its absolute best. When we take His Word and His instruction to heart, He takes our heart and makes something wonderful out of it and He gives us life and the good works that He promises us are His and not ours and that makes life really worth the living!

Ask God to speak to you today and give you the strength to take His Word and make it a lamp unto your feet, a light unto your path so you may be able to walk where He would have you walk!

I Will Bless Them Numbers 6:27

And they shall put My name upon the children of Israel and I will bless them.



God told Moses to speak to Aaron and to his sons with reference to blessing the children of Israel. He was to say to the children of Israel, "The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face to shine on you and be gracious unto you. The Lord lift up His countenance unto you and give you peace and they shall put My name upon the children of Israel and I will bless them."

The desire of God's heart is to bless His children exceedingly abundantly more than they could ask or hope for. Everything that God does He has done so that He might prove His love for us. His desire is to protect us and provide for us. God wants our lives to be filled with all the goodness that He has at His disposal. He wants to bless and keep us. He wants to be gracious to us. He wants to give us peace and joy. So, why is there so much trouble in our world and in our lives today?

The Bible tells us that God causes to rain to fall on the just and the unjust. He allows trials and tribulation to come on us all. His plan is that his children will find comfort and strength in Him in spite of those trials. I heard a parent of a child with cancer at St Jude hospital in Memphis, say something that stuck with me. He said of all that he and his family had been through, "We do not know what God's purpose has been in all of this but we have seen His blessings."

And they shall put My name upon My children and I will bless them. When you and I take on Christ's name we are His and He is ours. He promises that He will be with us and that He will bless us. God wants us to live for Him so that He can do for us all the things that we cannot do for ourselves. He will do His part. In fact, I can tell you that He has done more than His part in my life. God has protected me even when I was headed wide open in the wrong direction. God has blessed me even though I refused to follow His instruction and direction for my life.

God was patient and let me run and run and run doing things my way until I came to the place where I finally realized that it was what God did for me that made my life worth living. My obedience to Him simply says to God, "I trust You and Your provisions for my life." I have taken His name and He has blessed me and continues to bless me because I am His and He is mine.

My prayer for you today is that "The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face to shine on you and be gracious unto you. The Lord lift up His countenance unto you and give you peace and they shall put My name upon the children of Israel and I will bless them."

The Perfect Way Psalm 101:6

My eyes shall be on the faithful of the land that they may dwell with Me, those that walk in a perfect way.



Do you want God's eyes on you? There is first of all the reality that His eyes are on us whether we want them to be or not! However, when His eyes see our faithfulness to His Word and His way for our lives, His hand goes with us as well. As we dwell with the Lord, He becomes our protector and our provider. There is no better place for us to be than to be dwelling with the Lord; not in this life nor in the life to come.

This is a conditional statement or promise. God's eyes are on those who are faithful. Lets expand that statement a little bit. God's eyes are on those who believe that He is everything that He says He is and that He will do everything that He says He will do. When we live our lives according to the Words and the promises of the Lord, God sees that commitment on our part and He responds and rewards us accordingly. God tells us that, "we may dwell with Him."

In the New Testament we learn that when we turn our hearts over to the Lord, the Holy Spirit takes up residence in our hearts and He dwells with us. God dwells with us because of our faith in Him! Our faith in Him allows us to "walk in a perfect way."

God's Word does not say that we become perfect when we place our faith in the Lord it says that we begin to walk in the perfect way and there is a big difference in the two statements. I can be as imperfect as a person could be and am but I can also walk in the perfect way. The key to this statement is really very important for us to understand.

As I walk in the Lord and in the light of His Word, I am in the best possible place that I can be at that moment in my life. It is while I am walking in the way of the Word that God is able to lead me from where I am to the place that He would have me be. This place is the perfect way for me at that moment in my life. The challenge for us all is to see how much of our lives we can spend in that perfect way!

That is why it is so important for us to make decisions on a daily basis that reflect God's glory and are based on His precious Word. God is able to dwell with us and He is able to provide for us and protect us and make us what we cannot make ourselves. God's provisions are sure and they are more than satisfying! Lets ask God to help us walk in that perfect way today and every day for the rest of our lives!

Continue in Prayer Colossians 4:2

2Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving;



The Apostle Paul knew the value of prayer. He knew how important it was to be thankful to God for all that we are and all that we have. Prayer needs to include thanksgiving because when we take the time to thank God for all that He has done in our lives, we come to realize that He is still at work in our lives today. This sets the tone for the whole prayer!

There is nothing that is any more powerful than prayer. Prayer can move mountains! Jesus told His disciples, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. (Matthew 17) When it comes to the power in our prayers, it is not the strength of the person praying that has great power, but rather the One to whom the prayers are directed that provides for the power.

God wants us to pray. He wants us to pray constantly and earnestly. Earnest prayers are sincere but they are more than that. To be earnest is to be intent or serious about who were are praying to and what we are praying for. We need to come to God in prayer expecting an answer. When you and I pray, we need to be reminded that God hears our prayer and He answers our prayers. He may not answer our prayers in the way we want Him to and He almost never answers our prayer when we want Him to do so.

We can know that He hears our prayers and He will answer them in His time and in His provisions. We need to learn to get in the habit of "continuously coming to Him in prayer" and leaving the results up to God! He will not disappoint!

One final thought; be thankful at the beginning of your prayer and then be thankful at the end of your prayer! Thanksgiving is a great way to begin a prayer and is certainly the best way to end a prayer! When we are reminded of all that God has done for us, it makes it so much easier to look forward to all that God is going to do for us!

Remembering who God is and what He has promised to do for us is the foundation for our faith. When we take the time to be thankful, we are in effect strengthening our faith, which is the essential ingredient in our prayer life in the first place! So prayer strengthens our faith which strengthens our prayers!

Amazing!

In One Accord Acts 1:14

14These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.



Jesus has ascended into heaven. He left the disciples the Great Commission to go into the entire world and baptize and teach all men the things Jesus had taught them. Jesus instructed them to go to Jerusalem and wait there for the coming of the Holy Spirit. They have gone to Jerusalem just as He had told them to do and they are patiently waiting for the coming of the Comforter. The Bible tells us, "14These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers."

This group did more than pray; they were in one accord and they were united together and they continued in prayer. This group worshipped God together. They prayed together. They waited together in anticipation for God to do something. I heard a preacher say onetime, when a group of Christians are together praying and their hearts and minds are all in one accord, there is tremendous potential for the Holy Spirit to come in great power and do something mightily!

This is certainly what happened on the Day of Pentecost as the early church was born and I believe it can happen in our churches today if we will just do as the early Christians did in this passage and we come together in one accord and with one spirit with a common commitment to carry out the Great Commission.

Jesus will bless us with His power and His presence and His provisions when we come together as His church and we seek to be all that He would have us be! Jesus' promise to us all is that He will build His church and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it. This is what I want in my church and my prayer is that this is what you will want in your church and together we will stand in one mighty chorus and cry out to the Lord and praise Him for who He is and for all that He has done and all that He is going to do in our lives and in the lives of our church.

When the church of Jesus Christ is willing to come to Him in one accord and with thanksgiving and supplication, I can promise you God will come down and He will fill our hearts with His presence and His power and great and wonderful things will start to happen all around us!

I am ready; what about you?

When You Pray Matthew 6:5

5"And when you pray,"


Five times Jesus uses the phrase 5"And when you pray" to teach His disciples about the practice and privilege of prayer. Jesus did not command us to pray in this statement; He is not telling us that we ought to pray. He is going to give us instructions as to how to pray.

The issue here is not "will we pray" but rather "when we pray." There is never any thought given to the possibility that a Child of God or a follower of Christ would NOT pray. Praying is a part of our spiritual existence. It is as important to our spiritual strength as breathing, eating or drinking is to our physical strength.

It is inconceivable that we would ever meet someone and fall in love with that person and then never speak to them or have any communication with them. That relationship would die quicker than it started. Our spiritual lives are no different. God desires a relationship with us. That relationship involves us listening and learning from His Word and then we are to pray for strength and guidance to walk in the Light that Jesus has come to give to us.

Jesus expects His children to pray. Period. Write it down big and bold, prayer is an essential part of a Child of God's existence. It is unnatural for a Child of God not to pray just as it would be for a baby not to cry. Jesus does not tell us, "If you pray do not be like the hypocrites." He says, "When you pray do not be like the hypocrites."

Is prayer a priority in your life? Do you talk to God on a number of occasions during the day? Do you ask Him for guidance and strength and peace and comfort? Do you remember to pray for those you love and those around you that need the touch of God's hand in and on their lives?

There is plenty to pray about! You are making decisions, one after the other and you need help making the right decisions. Jesus understood that and that is why He is telling us "how we ought to pray" WHEN we pray. May your prayer time become personal and intimate with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and may He bless you as you look to Him moment by moment, in every decision you make, every day of your life!

God Keeps His Promises Nehemiah 1:5

I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven. 5And I said: "I pray, Lord God of heaven, O great and awesome God, You who keep Your covenant and mercy with those who love You and observe Your commandments.



Israel has been in exile and Nehemiah spoke to some Israelites who had been to Jerusalem and he asked these men about the people who were still there and the condition of Jerusalem. 3They told him, "The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire." This broke Nehemiah's heart and he began praying.

Nehemiah's prayer acknowledges God's desire to keep His promises and give His mercy to those who love Him and keep His commandments. In II Peter 3 we read, "9The Lord is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." God's desire is that all men experience His goodness and His mercy. However, He keeps His promises for those who follow His Word. God grants mercy to those who follow His instruction.

God loves us all but His mercy and His grace are certainly with those who love Him and those who are called by His Name. We can be sure that God will always do more than His part in providing for His own. We need to make sure that we do our part in being the children that God wants us to be. This process begins and is rooted in our devotional to Christ and the foundation of that devotion is anchored by prayer.

Nehemiah was moved by the conditions that His fellow brothers and sisters found themselves in and the condition of Jerusalem. What did he do? He prayed. We need to be sensitive to our own spiritual needs and we need to secure them in prayer. We also need to be sensitive to the needs of those around us and we need to secure them in prayer as well. I am so glad that God hears our prayers and He promises to us as we commit ourselves to keeping His commandments!

The Promises of God II Chronicles 6:14

"Lord God of Israel, there is no God in heaven or on earth like You, who keep Your covenant and mercy with Your servants who walk before You with all their hearts.



Solomon has built a magnificent Temple where the presence of the Lord might have a permanent dwelling place in Israel. Up to this point, the tabernacle has covered the Arc of the Covenant, which was moveable and temporary. When David's throne was established, he built a palace to live in. David wanted to build a house for God to live in as well. God told David that he was not to build this house but his son Solomon would indeed be the one to build this Temple.

Years have passed. David has died. Solomon is king. Solomon knows about this precious promise from God. He begins the task of building the Temple and after several years, the task is finally completed and Solomon gathers all Israel to the dedication service for the Temple. Solomon begins his prayer, "Lord God of Israel, there is no God in heaven or on earth like You, who keep Your covenant and mercy with Your servants who walk before You with all their hearts."

David goes to pray, "15"You have kept what You promised Your servant David my father; You have both spoken with Your mouth and fulfilled it with Your hand, as it is this day. 16"Therefore, Lord God of Israel, now keep what You promised Your servant David my father, saying, 'You shall not fail to have a man sit before Me on the throne of Israel, only if your sons take heed to their way, that they walk in My law as you have walked before Me'."

There are two key statements in this magnificent prayer. First of all, Solomon declares, there is no God like You, not in heaven or on earth, nowhere! How does Solomon know that this is true? Solomon knows that this is true because of what God has done and the promises He has made and kept in the building of the Temple. It was not Solomon's will to build the Temple. It was God's. Solomon did not provide the means and materials to build this Temple, God did and Solomon was wise enough to recognize that fact. This is why he is so overwhelmed at the completion of this monumental task!

There is a second aspect to Solomon's prayer that is worth our attention and it is this, "You keep Your covenant and mercy (Your promises) with Your servants who walk before You with all their hearts." God promises to be with those who walk with Him! Obedience is the key to victory in our hearts and in our lives!

One of the benefits of prayer is to thank God for what He has already done and to acknowledge God's power and provisions in our lives. The other is similar to it, and that is to ask God for the strength that we need to walk in His precepts and stand in His promises so that we can experience His provisions! This is what moved Solomon in such a way and it is what will move each of us if we will just do as Solomon did, and stand on the promises of God!

No One Like You God I Chronicles 17:20

"20O Lord, there is no One like You-there is no other God!"


Nathan the Prophet went to David and told him that God had promised to make his son an heir to the throne of Israel.

David was overwhelmed with God's promise. David worshipped the Lord and thanked Him for all that He had already done for his family and for the people of Israel and now for he thanked God what He was going to do! David prayed, "O Lord, you have given me these wonderful promises just because you want to be kind to me, because of your own great heart. 20O Lord, there is no one like You-there is no other God!"

We have a wonderful God who loves us and has promised to do so much for us if we would just surrender our hearts to Him and walk with Him. We cannot begin to imagine the wonderful things that God has planned for us if we would just follow Him and allow Him to shower us with His protection and His provisions.

The primary reason that we need to hear God's Word and then heed its commandments is so that we will be in the right place to receive His provisions. It only makes sense if we expect to find God's blessings, we need to go where He tells us to go and do what He tells us to do if for nothing else, than to know where His blessings are going to be located!

If God tells me to go to Memphis on Tuesday and I go to Atlanta or Nashville or New Orleans, is it fair for me to get mad at God when I find that His protection or His provisions are not with me? God can of coarse shower me anywhere He wants to do so, but if we learn to go where He tells us to go and do what He tells us to do, we might be surprised to discover that our obedience places us in the proper place to receive His provisions.

David realized the power of that truth and He prayed, 20O Lord, there is no one like You-there is no other God! May this be our prayer today as we turn and walk with Him!

God Is Standing For Me I Samuel 7:5

5Then Samuel told them, "Come to Mizpah, all of you, and I will pray to the Lord for you."



Israel had been defeated and the Philistines had taken the Arc of the Covenant captive and the Israelites felt as if God had forsaken them. The Arc of the Covenant was in captivity for 20 years. Samuel called the people of Israel together and told them, "If you are really serious about wanting to return to the Lord, get rid of your foreign gods and your Ashtaroth idols. Determine to obey only the Lord; then he will rescue you from the Philistines." The people came to Samuel and repented and stood before the Lord for His deliverance. 5Then Samuel told them, "Come to Mizpah, all of you, and I will pray to the Lord for you."

While the people were gathered together, the Philistines heard of the gathering and came to attack them. The Israelis were badly frightened when they learned that the Philistines were approaching. 8"Plead with God to save us!" they begged Samuel."

Samuel prayed and offered a sacrifice to God and the Bible tells us that God intervened and confused the Philistine army and the Israelites were able to defeat them and the Philistines were subdued and didn't invade Israel again at that time because the Lord was against them throughout the remainder of Samuel's lifetime.

God is still the same God today that He was back in the Old Testament. He knows what we are facing and He holds the solution in His hand. He is not taken by surprise nor is He ever confused searching for a solution to our situation. What God is looking for is a life that is willing to surrender itself to Him so that He can fight our battles and the whole world know that He is in charge and on our side!

When the enemy realizes that we are in God's hands and that He is fighting our battles, they will leave us alone! When we step away from God's guiding and guarding hand, we had better watch out but as long as we are His, we can know that He is ours and He will deliver us in every situation that we will ever face.

We need to do as the Israelites did; we need to acknowledge our need, come to God in prayer and then when His hand of deliverance comes, we need to continue to stand with Him! When we stand with God, He is more than willing to stand with us and even for us! I am so glad He does!