137. WHEN GOD SPEAKS. FAITH, CONFESSION, COMMITMENT Mark11:22-23.

Jesus taught us that when we speak His Word in Faith, we will have whatever we say. That’s a powerful Faith, which requires a wholehearted commitment to God and ALL He stands for: Before you go any further, think about the depth of your commitment to God, that is the key that will open the heart of God when you speak God’s living Word over your situation. It’s like flipping a switch, His power is activated and His promises start coming to pass in your life through Faith, Confession and Commitment. So every morning,Comet each day by speaking the following Scriptures over your life. (1.) Psalm118:24“Confession: “This is the day the Lord has made, so let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Faith: Lord thank you for the gift of this day. I will celebrate your goodness and enjoy every moment of it. (2) Lamentations: 3:22-23) Confession:. “His compassion fails not. They are new every morning: Great is your faithfulness.” Faith: Lord to day I will seek to honour you in all that I do, And if I fail and fall short, I will still walk in your mercy and grace. (3) Isaiah 50:4. Confession; ”The Lord has given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him who is weary.” Faith: Lord that I will know what to say, because you have instructed me and given me the tongue of the learned (4) Judges 4:14 “ Confession: “This is the day in which The Lord has delivered (your enemy) into your hands has not The Lord gone out before you.”Faith: Lord regardless of what comes my way today, you will defend and vindicate me. So this day I will walk in your joy, favour, mercy, Blessings guidance and protection. When you confess words of Faith over your life, based on the Scriptures, (see Mark 11:23) Jesus taught that you will “have whatever (you) say.” So be very careful what you say, I believe we should always bracket our requests with “Thy will be done” remembering that for all circumstances and conditions God knows what we don’t know, and can do what we can’t do. So once again, trust and obey seems to be the order of the day David refers to God’s blessings as ‘benefits’ And says in (Psalm 68:19) that God “Daily loads us up with benefits” the word loads means truckloads! God is willing, wanting and waiting to give you benefits to-day. , that’s why the psalmist writes in (psalm 102:2-6 8, 10-14, 17) “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with loving kindness and tender mercies, who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like eagle’s. The Lord executes righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed...The Lord is merciful and gracious slow to anger and abounding in mercy… He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities. For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy towards those who fear Him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. As a father pities his children, so the Father pities those who fear him, For He knows our frame, He remembers that we are dust...But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him, and His righteousness to His children’s children”, You activate the power of God’s Word when you speak it over your life and that of your family. Why is that? Because there is nothing or nobody greater than the Word of God. Nowhere was His Word demonstrated more powerfully than in His work of creation (see Genesis 1.) and when your faith, confession, commitment and God’s power get together great things happen. We know and believe there’s nothing wrong with the power-source, so if there’s a discrepancy, it must be with our faith, confession or commitment. Even then our God is helping us out via (James 4:2) “ You don’t get, because you don’t ask, and when you do ask you don’t have right motives” Faith requires confidence in whom you are believing, also knowledge, Trust and acceptance of His Word. That means:--He will do for you what is in your best interest. Not necessarily what you are asking for. In the garden of Gethsemane when Jesus asked His Father to remove the cup of His forthcoming passion and death, The Father didn’t do it, Why? Because it wouldn’t have served the purpose of our Salvation. Jesus had to die that terrible death and glorious Resurrection not just to fulfil the Scriptures, but to regain our relationship and status with God thus qualifying us to be citizens of Heaven and live with Him forever. Know and remember this:- God never does anything to hurt you, Whatever he does is for your benefit, yes it may cause you a bit of pain, discontent or discomfort for a short time, but that will pass, and you will see in the pursuing joy and happiness why that discomfort etc. was necessary. It’s a bit like a child having an injection and following it up with a sweet. Not nice but necessary. Thank you for reading my thoughts on:- “Faith, Confession and Commitment.” Once again three in one, all three are necessary. It’s interesting to note why Miracles are so prevalent in poorer countries, I believe it’s because they have no money, little or no medical help and limited education. So they rely on God, there is nobody else, thus their Faith, confession and commitment to God grows. And they learn to love, trust and understand this God who is so good to them, He fulfils their needs. God Bless. Phaline. ----------------------------------

136: BRING OTHERS TO JESUS Acts 8:6

An American football team was coached by a man named Vince Lombard, he led the ‘Green Bay Packers’ to victory after victory, but one day they lost to a team they should have easily defeated. Though disappointed, Lombard gathered his team together. Then putting his hand in to the bag he was carrying and with his inimitable smile, brought out a football and said, “Gentlemen, this is a football.” So what was he really saying to his team? “Get back to basics.” The captain of (our) Salvation is Jesus and before He went back to heaven He gave us the game plan. (Acts1:8) “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and in Samaria and to the ends of the earth.” Now, since a person’s last words are some of the most important ones they want to leave with us, they lead us to ask this question. To whom was Jesus speaking? “You and I” You shall… be witness to me.” There are people around today who will never go to church. Their only chance of hearing the gospel is through you or me. Through what our lips declare and what our lives demonstrates. So, what is this power Jesus spoke of? The Greek word for “power’ is Dynamos, from which we get the words dynamite or dynamic.(huge) Dynamite is a huge explosive force, which when properly harnessed or exploded can remove any obstacle that stands in its way,. You may say “I don’t have that power, I have never been to Bible College, and I don’t feel qualified to share the gospel so dynamically” Remember this , God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called by filling them with HIS Spirit and power (Dynamos). To day you and I , are being called to minister God’s “Dynamos.” to His Careless, Disobedient, Broken and Hurting world. Are you a Serious Christian? Do you truly belong to God and believe that He loves us so deeply that He sent His only Son Jesus to die for your sins and rose from the dead three days later; thus giving you entrance into eternal life and His everlasting Kingdom? Is Jesus and His will the base-line of your every conviction and conversation? Is your faith in God the most precious possession you haves So precious in fact, that you can’t help speaking about various aspects of your relationship with Him to everyone you meet, not only about it, but how they too can have this relationship with Jesus? Do all the people you know, know that you are a Follower of Jesus Christ and why? Do people know they can come to you in times of trouble or heartache, not just for sympathy and consolation but in and for true confidence and trustworthy advice? Are you approachable, and a reliable prayer? A real Christian will develop and maintain these qualities because they are visible signs that we love God and our neighbour; And isn’t that what Jesus told the Young man who asked the question “What should I do to gain eternal life?” To day, the church of Jesus Christ (as I see it) has only two options; evangelise or fossilise. When the church (that’s us) fails to share its faith with those outsiders, it either ends up in a holding pattern or in death throes. Sounds dramatic, but read on; The New Testament church’s growth is described in these words from (Acts 2:47) “The Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.” Not only did they influence every level of society, but their enemies said of them (Acts 17:6) “These who have turned the world upside down have come here too..” Here’s a question, If your church closed it’s doors tomorrow, would anyone other than your congregation notice the difference? Think about this; Why don’t we share the Gospel more readily? 1. Lack of opportunity:Answer: Make the opportunity, change the topic of conversation. 2. I’m too shy; Answer, Get over it, say a prayer and ask for Holy Spirit help. 3. Afraid I will be ridiculed or laughed at. Answer, Try another question like- “What will happen to you when you die? Or have you ever thought about Heaven and Hell? Start a discussion, even if people don’t appear to want to talk about it, it will start them thinking. Think now about those early believers, their assignment seemed geographically impossible; How were they to reach people in far off places? They had no air travel, radio, television, printing presses, internet, or any of our other modern technologies at their disposal for communicating the gospel. It seemed legally impossible. Because, the Government authorities forbade them to speak in Jesus’ name. And it also appeared socially impossible; After all, who would really listen to a bunch of Galilean fisherman devoid of culture and class? Yet they were witnesses through the power of the Holy Spirit and people did listen to them. They did so much with so little, How? Because they understood, accepted, relied on and used the Holy Spirit Power which Jesus had promised them; You too have this same Holy Spirit Power if you trust God and allow His Spirit to speak and act through you. .Surely we can do more than we are doing to get the Name, Character and Power of God in to this beautiful country of ours. Please pray about this, asking God to give us not just the ability, but the willingness to step out and use the Holy Spirit Power that He has given us to accomplish His Will. It is reckoned that if just 10 percent of the members of the average church to-day got serious about evangelism, their church attendance would double in just one year. By the way the word translated “witness” is the same word from which we get our English word “Martyr”. I thought I’d drop that in, so You can measure your own faith and see how much you really do love The Lord. In the light of recent happenings, not only in America, England, Europe and the Middle east but even down here in the South Pacific, the situation is getting very serious Jesus warned us it would, and said “Don’t go into battle without counting and understanding the cost. Those early believers reached the world for Christ knowing it could cost them their lives, but they were willing to get off the fence and devote their lives to His cause by following Christ’s call; Are we ready to do the same? This is the time to make your decision, not when the enemy is knocking at your door. Thank you for reading my thoughts on “Bringing others to Christ.” I know it isn’t easy and sometimes you have to bare your own soul in the process, but, I believe with The Spirit’s Power, our efforts will not go unrewarded. JESUS is the best and most precious gift you can give to anyone and they will thank you for it through all eternity. Remember Jesus died for you, because He loved you and He rose again three days later. then went to Heaven to make a place for us to be with Him forever. Trust His promise, “I will NEVER leave you or forsake you”. God Bless. Phaline.

135. IS ANXIETY YOUR PROBLEM? 1 Peter 5:7

Anxiety is excessive concern and if left unchecked, robs you of your confidence, joy, peace, humour and perspective. Anxiety comes from obsessing over something; trying to figure out what happened, needing to understand what people are thinking or trying to decide what to do. In (Proverbs 3:5-6) we read “Trust in The Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” Trust requires living with unanswered questions, accepting that God knows what you don’t. You and I will never have perfect knowledge or have all the answers to every question. Well not in this world anyway! Even Paul acknowledged this when he wrote 1Corenthians 13:9 “we know in part.” The cure for Anxiety may involve the help of a Doctor or medical professional, but it begins with understanding 1. that God knows all things, 2. that He is never surprised, and 3. that He is never without a solution. So here are your options, Carry the burden yourself or cast them on The Lord. When reading (1 Peter 5:7) Note the word ALL that means: ALL your cares, ALL your worries, ALL your anxieties and All your concerns once and for all cast on Him, for He cares about you with the deepest affection and watches over you every moment of the day. Learning to live this way takes patience and practise, so don’t expect an overnight miracle. The secret is giving your Anxiety to God one more time than you take it back. Learn to catch yourself in the act. When anxiety comes, say “Lord this is not my problem, it’s yours, so I’m turning it over to you.” Just try it for a month and see what happens. Hannah Whitehall Smith told a story that took place a hundred years ago, yet it’s as relevant today as tomorrows news. A farmer in a horse and cart noticed a man walking along the road with a heavy sack on his back, so he offered him a ride. The stranger accepted and climbed aboard. But as they proceeded the farmer noticed the stranger was still bent down under the load of his sack, and said to him “Why don’t you put the sack down?” to which the stranger replied, “That would be to much to ask, I am grateful that you’re carrying me, I can’t expect you to carry the sack too. That’s what we do when we accept God’s offer of Salvation but insist on carrying all our own burdens. (Psalm 55:22) says “Cast all your burdens on The Lord (release them) and He will sustain and uphold you.” God wont begin working on your problem, until you turn it over to Him. He gets involved when He gets invited. We often wait till we are falling apart, then wonder why He hasn’t helped. In (James 4:2) we read, ”You don’t get because you don’t ask” Have you asked God for help? Have you placed the problem in His hands, confident that He will work it out for your good, patiently waiting for Him to come through with the solution? This doesn’t mean that you sit around passively doing nothing. You need to do what you believe is right and have peace about doing so. Learn the difference between your part and God’s part and stop frustrating yourself by trying to do what God only can do. It’s good to have a goal for the future, and a plan for achieving it. But it’s not good to project into the future and then worry about all that can go wrong. That’s anxiety and should have no place in the mind of a redeemed child of God. If any part of your plans are wrong God will change situations or circumstances as need be. Just trust Him. (Matthew 6:31-34) reads “Do not worry or be anxious about anything saying ‘What will we eat? or what will we drink? or what will we wear? ’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek after these things; Your Heavenly Father knows that you need them. But, seek first The Kingdom of Heaven and His righteousness and all these things will be added to you. So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough troubles of its own.” Those Scriptures can be reduced to one line; ‘Live trusting God each day to take care of you, and stop projecting in to the future. Each morning God gave the Israelites a one-day supply of food. If they tried to gather more, it rotted; God’s message was simple. “Each day I will guide and provide for you.” Anxiety can consume you. So when you feel anxious, stand on this Scripture;(Lamentations 3:22-23) “It is because of the Lord’s loving kindness that we are not consumed, because His (tender) compassion never fails it is new every morning, great and beyond measure is your faithfulness.” When you start worrying about the future, recall some of the things that God has all ready brought you through. Situations when and where you never thought you would survive, But He caused you to thrive? Nothing can separate you from His love, see (Romans 8:38-39) But your anxieties can rob you of the security which His love brings. One writer said I was the kind of person who wanted to understand everything because it made me feel I was in control. I was not good at “Not knowing” my mind went on and on all day with thoughts like, Why did I act like that? I wonder what so-and-so is thinking about my decision to buy a new car? Why hasn’t God answered my prayer yet for a promotion at work? I wonder if I am doing something wrong or have enough faith? The “Whys” in my mind seemed to never cease, and that made me miserable. My mind was becoming a home for all sorts of uninvited guests (tormenting thoughts) simply because I never said “No” to them. I wondered, reasoned, fretted, worried and imagined, to the point where it left me completely exhausted. God actually showed me that I was addicted to reasoning everything out, and I had to give it up. It didn’t happen overnight but each time I started my mental gymnastics, I said out loud “I will not try to figure this out.” And gradually I was able to trust God with my life” To day, right now, God wants to be your Guide, your adviser, your provider and your protector; In fact your all in all. So stand on His Word which His Prophets have given us like this one from (Isaiah 25:4) “You are a strength to the needy in his distress.” Don’t live with anxiety, it’s not good for your Soul or your Body: And it will keep you from trusting in God who has done so much for you. Thank you for reading these thoughts on dispensing with Anxiety. It’s a tool Satan will use to make you not only distrust God, but People too. You will end up being a very lonely, isolated, friendless person whom he (Satan) can manipulate to his advantage. Don’t let that happen. Deal with it NOW. God Bless. Phaline