Abundant: plentiful, sufficiently enough, overflowing

I have been on a journey with Jesus, on this journey there have been times when I have wanted to quit, thinking I could not go on, things never appear to get any better. Knowing that the enemy is always attempting to tempt me to give up, and in doing that I would become useless to the kingdom of God. Yet, each time the enemy would strike the Holy Spirit would rise up within me to remind me of all His many promises, and encourage me to keep moving forward. Well lately I have said "Lord I don't see the abundant life in me!" So we went on a journey to allow His word to once more reveal Himself to me and allow His word to show me who I am in Him. Not who I think I am, not who the enemy says I am, and not who others say I am. I am a child of the King, I am more than a conqueror, I am a branch attached to the vine and abiding in Him, therefore my life is not based on anything other than Him. So here is the journey we took together, as He enlightened me through His word. May it help one of you.

John 10:10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill and to destroy.  I have come that they may have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

Who is the thief? The devil, he desires that we remain dead, empty, of no kingdom use. For the unbeliever he spreads his lies, "you have time", "it is not real", "you are good enough".

For the believer he speaks deception: "it is impossible", "no one really cares","you are not good enough","give up, quit, where is God?"

The enemy brings in fear which is the strangler of faith, he will attempt to kill the anointing God has placed in us by speaking doubt, which is unbelief, he will attempt to destroy our ministry by causing us to give up and quit.

I see that, I understand that,  yet right now I cry out "where is this abundant life?" each day, each week I struggle just to keep my head above the persistent waves.

So I must look at what is this life we have been promised. Our eternal life is not somewhere far in the future it is right now, the very moment we accepted the invitation of Jesus Christ for salvation my eternal life began. I like the NLT version it says "a rich and satisfying life". Too many thing "Money" when they think "Abundant"  yet I learned years ago, that has nothing to do with "Money". So I asked "Lord what does the abundant life look like? The scripture below was the first one to come to my mind:

Philippians 4:11-13 Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content.  I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Right now I am seeing John 10:10 in the spiritual with kingdom purpose. Though the enemy can attack us physically, and at times he will, his goal is to affect our inner man. Remember in the book of Job; the devil attacked Job in every area for one purpose to get Job to "curse God". He continues to do that today. Yet Christ Jesus our Lord came to bring life, to free us from the yoke of bondage to sin, to reconcile us to God the Father.

Life is the opposite of something that is dead.

Ephesians 2:1 And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins

Though our bodies were alive, before Christ we were spiritually dead His Holy Spirit brought life to our dead spirit, regenerating us. Now what was once dead to the things of God are made alive.

At times in my inner man I can say "My cup runneth over" I am so full of God's word, of God's presence and of God's blessings I don't know how I could take in anymore. Then He empties me and once more I become hungry for His word, for His presence and for His blessings. Yet whether I am full or empty I must be as Paul and be content. How can I be content when I am empty, you may ask? I can be content because I know that He is filling me again, that more of self will be gone, and I will be used by Him for His kingdom purposes.

Still asking the Lord, but Lord what does a person walking in the abundant life look like? Immediately His Holy Spirit brought a post my friend made this morning on Facebook.

John 15:5,8 I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. 8. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be my disciples. 

So here is what I have found: No matter what the circumstances of life might bring my way. My life in Christ Jesus my Lord is greater and more abundant than what may be happening around me. Contentment is not found in my circumstances it is found in His presence. Remaining in (abiding in) Jesus Christ keeps me attached to the Vine and in the care and presence of the watchful eye of the Vinedresser, God the Father. Our abundant life becomes visible to all around us by His fruit that we bear. And He desires we bear much fruit.

The end!!

WE MUST EXAMINE OUR HEARTS TO SEE WHERE WE STAND WITH JESUS

Sometimes as I read news articles and read comments other people write and some posts people place on Facebook. I think Lord can they not see You? So many people all around the world say "I am a Christian, I believe", yet do they live it, are they sold out to Jesus. I remember when I first became a Christian, I thought I was sold out to Jesus yet when the trials of life came I learned I wasn't. So I began my journey of running as far from God as I could get, yet I could not hide. He kept pursuing me until I turned from the direction I was running and ran back to Him, and because of knowing what I ran to (the world) I can now say NEVER AGAIN! So I understand Christians can get caught up with the world, it takes time to mature in the Lord and I still have not reached maturity. How do I know you ask? Because life and people can still upset me, but I am still growing even in these areas (smiling).

So why this blog on this subject? Because I believe we are living in the latter days, and I see the falling away of the church, the deceptions of the enemy that come to distract the true believer and to convince those who think they are saved, yet not, that they are okay.

This blog is not to point out all that is going on around us but to ask and examine what is going on in us.

Psalm 26:2 Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; Try my mind and my heart.

When we pray this verse over our lives we are asking the Holy Spirit to reveal the truth of who we are to us. To convict us of our sins.

Talking about taking the communion meal Paul writes: 1 Corinthians 11:28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.

Galatians 6:4 But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone,  and not in another

It is a good thing for us to ask the Lord to examine our heart intent and to reveal our heart intent to us and at the same time it is a hard thing. We are in that moment laying ourselves before the Lord removing our masks, that we may put on before family and friends. We are placing ourselves on His altar and asking the Lord consume what is not of You and purify what is of You.

Hebrews 12:29 For our God is a consuming fire.

Reading God's word is a mirror that God uses to show both who He is and who we are. Sometimes we may say "Lord I need a revelation." Yet what we actually need is a fresh revelation and a greater revelation of Him and of His word. What I mean by these two things is at times when life is coming at us we will forget in the dark what we learned in the light and we need to be reminded again of the revelation we already had. A greater revelation will bring a complete revelation. Example: when Lazarus died his sisters had a revelation of one day their brother would be resurrected from the dead and when Jesus raised Lazarus that day they had a greater revelation of Jesus when He said "I am the resurrection and the life". At times I will be reading the scriptures of something I thought I knew and then suddenly as if a light bulb went on, I had a greater revelation of what that scripture meant.

Then there is prayer. How would describe your prayer life? Prayers are not just for certain people in the church, but are for everyone. Our Lord doesn't just want to hear from us when we are desperate and He is our last resort. He wants to spend time with us, listening to us as we pour out our heart, as we seek Him for direction. Too often we pray and then jump up and start doing whatever, yet God still wants more of our time He wants to speak to us through His Holy Spirit. But one thing we must guard against is hearing something said that does not line up with His word and believing we got a word from God. If you believe God has given you a word and it lines up with His written word then write it down, for God will keep His word, His promise to you, in His timing not ours.

Oh and fellowship, so many lack fellowship. To understand biblical fellowship we must first understand what it is not.

2 Corinthians 6:14-16 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial (Satan)? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God....

God and believers can not align themselves with religions that do not believe in God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. We can not come into agreement with them because they worship a false god and the scriptures show us over and over again that the children of God can become caught in the snare of the devil through these cult religions. The scriptures teach us that our God is a jealous God He will not share the worship that belongs only to Him with any other god.  In the eyes of God there is no "coexist".We cannot have biblical fellowship with unbelievers, yes we are to love them and always be kind to them desiring they come to Jesus. But they cannot be our best friends and our constant companions.

1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be deceived" Evil company corrupts good habits."

So what is fellowship? It is the assembling together of believers who believe who Jesus is and what He has accomplished for us. We have a common goal lead the lost to Jesus Christ, serve with Him in His kingdom encouraging and inspiring one another in our Christian walk. We may differ on many other things but believing and walking in the love of God transcends the denomination barriers. Many who proclaim to be a Christian yet do not go to church nor appear to have any desire to go to church. Oh I have heard it said, "I have nothing to wear, it is my only day off, there are hypocrites in the church, I don't like the music too old or too new,  don't like the preaching too much about sin or too little about sin, and some don't go because they have a religious spirit and think they know more than the pastors and are more knowledgeable than the other members of the body, so they sit in their comfortable chairs and thank God they are not like the others." Hogwash!! People just plain do not have a desire to go and will blame everything and everyone but themselves. A true believer will have a desire to be with other believers to worship together, to pray together and to encourage one another. Even in the years I spent running away from God I would think and even said "Oh to sit in God's house again." But I would not go because I preferred my sin more than I preferred my God.

In Joshua chapter 14 we are given an account of a man named Caleb over and over it says "I have wholly followed the LORD my God". This means he had given all of himself to God. I have had to ask myself "Lord have I given all I have of me to you?" Jesus tells us that the greatest commandment is "to love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind and all your strength". This means we are to wholly follow the Lord our God.

The bible is His inspired word, written for every believer. I worded it that way because without the help of the Holy Spirit one cannot truly receive an understanding of His word. In fact the scriptures say it is foolishness to the natural man. One can memorize scripture and even acquire head knowledge but that is all it is. His word becomes alive in us when we begin to apply His word into our lives. This word is the standard of God that as a Christian we are to live by and not to deviate from, by compromising His standard with the world's standard. I know from  experience that not compromising my convictions concerning His word will even make other Christians turn against you. So be prepared.

So what about those who say "I am a Christian" yet nothing in their lifestyle or words reflect Jesus Christ? Then I say examine your heart, I had to, ask God to show you have you just not grown, have you backslide from Him, has your heart become so hardened that Holy Spirit has quit drawing with conviction, or did you just have an emotional experience with no conversion? That is between you and God I cannot judge your heart nor can I condemn you. I can observe one's life and recognize fruit. Here are two of the saddest scriptures I know:

Matthew 21: 22-23 Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I  never knew you, depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'

It is one thing to know of Jesus and quiet another for Him to know us.

In Judges 16:20 the last part records that Samson says this: "But he did not know that the LORD had departed from him."

Every person must examine where they are with the Lord. He is all about relationship not religion, He desires that you walk very close to Him, attached to Him through salvation and abiding in Him every moment every day, that we will bear His fruit that will be seen to all we meet.

Some may say that I am a fanatic about Jesus and a bible thumper  but one thing is for sure they know whom I believe in and where I stand on His word.

WHERE DO YOU STAND?

Sometimes as I read news articles and read comments other people write and some posts people place on Facebook. I think Lord can they not see You? So many people all around the world say "I am a Christian, I believe", yet do they live it, are they sold out to Jesus. I remember when I first became a Christian, I thought I was sold out to Jesus yet when the trials of life came I learned I wasn't. So I began my journey of running as far from God as I could get, yet I could not hide. He kept pursuing me until I turned from the direction I was running and ran back to Him, and because of knowing what I ran to (the world) I can now say NEVER AGAIN! So I understand Christians can get caught up with the world, it takes time to mature in the Lord and I still have not reached maturity. How do I know you ask? Because life and people can still upset me, but I am still growing even in these areas (smiling).

So why this blog on this subject? Because I believe we are living in the latter days, and I see the falling away of the church, the deceptions of the enemy that come to distract the true believer and to convince those who think the are saved, yet not, that they are okay.

This blog is not to point out all that is going on around us but to ask and examine what is going on in us.

Psalm 26:2 Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; Try my mind and my heart.

When we pray this verse over our lives we are asking the Holy Spirit to reveal the truth of who we are to us. To convict us of our sins.

Talking about taking the communion meal Paul writes: 1 Corinthians 11:28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.

Galatians 6:4 But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone,  and not in another

It is a good thing for us to ask the Lord to examine our heart intent and to reveal our heart intent to us and at the same time it is a hard thing. We are in that moment laying ourselves before the Lord removing our masks, that we may put on before family and friends. We are placing ourselves on His altar and asking the Lord consume what is not of You and purify what is of You.

Hebrews 12:29 For our God is a consuming fire.

Reading God's word is a mirror that God uses to show both who He is and who we are. Sometimes we may say "Lord I need a revelation." Yet what we actually need is a fresh revelation and a greater revelation of Him and of His word. What I mean by these two things is at times when life is coming at us we will forget in the dark what we learned in the light and we need to be reminded again of the revelation we already had. A greater revelation will bring a complete revelation. Example: when Lazarus died his sisters had a revelation of one day their brother would be resurrected from the dead and when Jesus raised Lazarus that day they had a greater revelation of Jesus when He said "I am the resurrection and the life". At times I will be reading the scriptures of something I thought I knew and then suddenly as if a light bulb went on, I had a greater revelation of what that scripture meant.

Then there is prayer. How would describe your prayer life? Prayers are not just for certain people in the church, but are for everyone. Our Lord doesn't just want to hear from us when we are desperate and He is our last resort. He wants to spend time with us, listening to us as we pour out our heart, as we seek Him for direction. Too often we pray and then jump up and start doing whatever, yet God still wants more of our time He wants to speak to us through His Holy Spirit. But one thing we must guard against is hearing something said that does not line up with His word and believing we got a word from God. If you believe God has given you a word and it lines up with His written word then write it down, for God will keep His word, His promise to you, in His timing not ours.

Oh and fellowship, so many lack fellowship. To understand biblical fellowship we must first understand what is not.

2 Corinthians 6:14-16 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial (Satan)? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God....

God and believers can not align themselves with religions that do not believe in God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. We can not come into agreement with them because they worship a false god and the scriptures show us over and over again that the children of God can become caught in the snare of the devil through these cult religions. The scriptures teach us that our God is a jealous God He will not share the worship that belongs only to Him with any other god.  In the eyes of God there is no "coexist". We cannot have biblical fellowship with unbelievers, yes we are to love them and always kind to them desiring they come to Jesus. But they cannot be our best friends and our constant companions.

1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be deceived" Evil company corrupts good habits."

So what is fellowship? It is the assembling together of believers who believe who Jesus is and what He has accomplished for us. We have a common goal lead the lost to Jesus Christ, serve with Him in His kingdom encouraging and inspiring one another in our Christian walk. We may differ on many other things but believing and walking in the love of God transcends the denominational barriers and enable us to be in unity one with another. Many who proclaim to be a Christian and yet do not go to church nor appear to have any desire to go to church have a lot of excuses. Oh I have heard it said, "I have nothing to wear, it is my only day off, there are hypocrites in the church, I don't like the music too old or too new,  don't like the preaching too much about sin or too little about sin." Hogwash!! People just plain do not have a desire to go and will blame everything and everyone but themselves. A true believer will have a desire to be with other believers to worship together, to pray together and to encourage one another. Even in the years I spent running away from God I would think and even said "Oh to sit in God's house again." But I would not go because I preferred my sin more than I preferred my God.

In Joshua chapter 14 we are given an account of a man named Caleb over and over it says "I have wholly followed the LORD my God". This means he had given all of himself to God. I have had to ask myself "Lord have I given all I have of me to you?" Jesus tells us that the greatest commandment is "to love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind and all your strength". This means we are to wholly follow the Lord our God.

The bible is His inspired word, written for every believer. I worded it that way because without the help of the Holy Spirit one cannot truly receive an understanding of His word. In fact the scriptures say it is foolishness to the natural man. One can memorize scripture and even acquire head knowledge but that is all it is. His word becomes alive in us when we begin to apply His word into our lives. This word is the standard of God that as a Christian we are to live by and not to deviate from, by compromising His standard with the world's standard. I know from  experience that not compromising my convictions concerning His word will even make other Christians turn against you. So be prepared.

So what about those who say "I am a Christian" yet nothing in their lifestyle or words reflect Jesus Christ? Then I say examine your heart, I had to, ask God to show you have you just not grown, have you backslide from Him, has your heart become so hardened that Holy Spirit has quit drawing with conviction, or did you just have an emotional experience with no conversion? That is between you and God I cannot judge your heart nor can I condemn you. I can observe one's life and recognize fruit. Here are two of the saddest scriptures I know:

Matthew 21: 22-23 Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I  never knew you, depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'

It is one thing to know of Jesus and quiet another for Him to know us.

In Judges 16:20 the last part records that Samson says this: "But he did not know that the LORD had departed from him."

Every person must examine where they are with the Lord. He is all about relationship not religion, He desires that you walk very close to Him, attached to Him through salvation and abiding in Him every moment every day, that you/me will bear His fruit that will be seen to all we meet.

Some may say that I am a fanatic about Jesus and a bible thumper but one thing is for sure they know whom I believe in and where I stand on His word.

KEEP MOVING FORWARD

It has been awhile since I have posted on my blog, in fact this is my first post of 2016. As I was approaching the new year I kept hearing within me the words "Keep moving forward". I believe that is a God given word for me as I continue in my daily walk with my Lord Jesus Christ.

Many have labeled the difficult times in our lives with words and phrases like this: storms, valleys, storm is raging, valley is deep, I'm in a dark place, can't see the light at the end of the tunnel. But in fact the meaning is the same: life and circumstances have become so difficult we don't think we can bear anymore. For me in these times I find myself saying Jesus get me out of here.

Over the years God has often spoken very clearly to me during these turbulent times; I have heard Him say "I am looking for a people who will worship Me, serve Me, praise Me, give, the same in the valley as they do on the mountain top, You need to see it from My perspective I see the whole picture, here in the storm is where you become closer to Me, seek Me as your Provider, I am your Husband." Each time a word came it would lift me up and He would place me in that moment on the mountain top that I might find rest, be refreshed and comforted so that I could continue Moving Forward on our journey together; always preparing us for the next valley/storm. Will 2016 be different from the other years? There will always be storms and valleys in this life that will never change, but my response in that storm/valley is what God is changing in me. I heard the term recently "Embrace the Suffering with Joy" at the time I really liked the sound of it, (yet wondered if it would be possible) remembering my Joy is in Christ Jesus my Lord not in my circumstances and pain,  everything is only temporary including happiness. That which I hold on to is eternal my hope, my joy, my faith in Christ, my redemption, my heavenly home. Holding on to these keeps me moving forward, enables me to ride out the storm, enjoy the valley, and see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Colossians 1:24 I now rejoice in my sufferings for you and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, the church. (Paul understood suffering and welcomed it. To suffer as Jesus did for the church Paul was willing to suffer)

James 1:2 My brethren, (that's us) count it all joy when you fall into various trials,

Isaiah 43:2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you.

Any time we find ourselves in a valley/storm, it is never meant to bring us harm instead it is to strengthen our faith and draw us nearer to Jesus. So hold on to Jesus He will take you to the other side. 

WHEN THE DARKNESS IS ALL AROUND US

It has been awhile since I have written in my blog, but this morning I thought I would try to get my thoughts organized. We all look around us and see the evil that is being spread throughout the world, wars, beheadings of Christians and even Muslims by ISIS, we see terror all around us and threats of terror. But then here in the United States, we continue to see how the people and government are falling away from the Word of God. This just didn't begin yesterday or even the past few years, it began in the 1960's. First of all came the removal of prayer and then the teaching of the Bible from our public schools, then came the passing of the law that gave women a right to abort their unborn babies. Colleges began to hire liberal professors that would promote the liberal ideology into the minds of our nations youth. Remember the how during the Vietnam war Americans began to burn their draft cards, burn the American flag, fled to Canada to avoid being called to war. A new slogan came in "Make love not war" and women were burning their bras, and love feast were occurring; many times in open places, pot smoking and drug abuse began to spread openly. A deterioration of moral and family values began.  Though I might not have exact dates and time frame I believe that we see the start began when God was removed from our young people through our schools. Everything I mentioned above was a byproduct of the result of removing God and the youth began to act as if there was no God. They had no Standard to judge themselves by; that Standard that we have is the Word of God, therefore they lived life as if there was no tomorrow, no respect for those in authority and no love for our country.

Lets fast forward to 2015, and these same young people are now holding positions of authority, some are even in government positions, some have become lawyers, judges, business owners. Some have not remained with the mindset they had as a youth and some have continued that same path they were on in the 60's and 70's. Homosexuality is not a new thing, why we saw it in the scriptures in Genesis with Sodom and Gomorrah (just a side note history tells us that it was the judges 4 to be exact in the cities of the plain that legalized homosexuality) because it has always been a part of the world's perversion of a man and woman's relationship; God even gives us instructions in His law on sexual morality:

Leviticus 18:22-23 You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination. Nor shall you mate with any animal, to defile yourself with it. Nor shall any woman stand before an animal to mate with it. It is a perversion.

In my lifetime and I am 67 years old, there was never any pride in anyone who practiced homosexuality, they kept it a secret because even to them it was a shame. Years later they began to come our of their closet (as the say) and open declare "I am gay", many in Hollywood revealed their secret and now in this year "Gay Pride" is promoted and encouraged. And now our judges on the Supreme Court of the United States of America have legalized gay marriage, and have attacked our religious freedom by declaring it doesn't matter what we believe; pastors, clergy and court officials must perform these wedding ceremonies.  In many states marijuana is being legalized and I am certain before too much longer it will be legal in all 50 states. 

 

 

We see a falling away from the word of God that our nation was founded on. Lifting up of self, lifting up pride, lifting up pleasure, lifting up sin and tearing down the word of God. So now that I have made all of us depressed, lets look at how we are to behave during this time.

John 14:1 Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.

John 15:4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in Me you can do nothing.

John 15:10 If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love.(He tells us in verse 12 that His commandment is to love one another)

Colossians 3:1-2 If then you were raised with Christ seek those things which are above where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.

Matthew 5:14-16 You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

The only way to disperse darkness is to bring in the light. Jesus when He gave us His Holy Spirit gave us His light to be seen in us and through us. He has told us to remain or abide in Him that we can bear His fruit, He has told us that abiding in Him means we keep His commandments which He also tells us is to love one another. He has told us not to be troubled or afraid when we see the darkness that abides in the world, but to keep our focus on Him and not on the world. But for the most part does the church look like the light to those who do not know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior?( I want to point out right here there are many morally good people who know of Jesus but are not known by Jesus because they have no real relationship with Jesus.) Many times the world sees us as finger pointers and name callers, and sin pronounce-rs. I have been given this a lot of thought, and though we are never to compromise the word of God, we are not the Holy Spirit and we cannot convict a lost person of their sin. What we are to do is just share the good news of Jesus Christ, why He came and what He has accomplished for us, share some testimony of how He came and changed us, we were all lost and dying, we were without hope, we were just as much a sinner as anyone else, but thank God that is in the past, we are found, we are alive, we have hope, we are now His saints. The greatest gift ever given was Jesus Christ, and the greatest act of love was given on a cross as Jesus Christ took the wrath of sin on Himself. So wouldn't showing our love for another be to tell them about just how much Jesus loves them just as they are?

Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Now if we through the light of Christ have lead someone to the cross, the Holy Spirit will lay the conviction for repentance on their lives and will lead them through the cross. I have in this blog been speaking of those who are not believers and followers of Jesus Christ I have not addressed the issue of Christians who have falling away from the biblical truth of the word. 

So how do we respond to the darkness we see all around us? By being the true light of Christ and when we walk in the darkness will have to flee.

 

AN APPETITE FOR CHANGE

I haven't written in awhile, but today has been one of those days when the Lord has been speaking to me this whole day, and it helps me to put it in writing.

My heart has been burdened with the need for revival, so let me share with all of you what I have been learning. The word Revive means to bring back to life or consciousness, to restore, or to give new health, strength or spirit to.

Psalm 85:6 Will You not revive us again, that Your people may rejoice in You?

Revival begins with a hunger after God, a hunger for His righteousness, a hunger for His word, a hunger for prayer and His presence. Before we were saved we had an appetite or hunger for the things that would satisfy our bodies and souls. A hunger like Esau had for food to fill his empty belly a hunger he was willing to sell his birthright for. Then in the day of Jesus the rich young ruler, had a hunger for possessions he desired to fill his belly up with the riches of the world, then in the early church we see that Ananias and his wife Sapphira lied to the Holy Spirit because they had a hunger for recognition, then we go on to see the sorcerer desired to buy the power of the Holy Spirit because he had a hunger for power. Our flesh is always saying "feed me" with things that satisfy our flesh. But our spirit is saying "feed me" with the things that satisfy my spirit.

As we dig deeper into God's word, as we go deeper in prayer and worship, our spirit man will begin to be filled with the things of God and not the things of self and we will find ourselves growing in the Lord. But the flesh is warring against our spirit because our flesh desires for its appetites to be fed, so we find ourselves surrendering more to the Father's will and resisting the appetites of the flesh. Unfortunately, too often Christians don't resist the appetites of the flesh and will fall into the trap of the enemy, his temptation to rely on the wrong source of food. Then we find ourselves in need of revival.

The Holy Spirit will begin to bring a strong hunger for the things of God, this hunger will cause us to press in and press through in prayer. Yet, along with this hunger will come an all out involvement in spiritual warfare and a burden for prayer.

Psalm 27:8 When You said, Seek My face. My heart said to You, Your face, LORD, I will seek.

The other day someone spoke this word "You have no need to speak to the mountain, because you are going to climb to the top". Many will immediately think of the scripture that says if we have the faith of a mustard seed we can say speak to the mountain and it will be moved into the sea. But that is not what this word is saying, because the Holy Spirit began to bring back scriptures and previous messages from my pastors. One of which was titled "The Climb" in this message it was about Caleb when they entered the promise land, he said "give me the mountain". In this message we were told that God was calling us to higher ground. In another message we were told how hard the climb would be and all the obstacles that would be in our way as we climbed but it would be worth the climb when we reached the top. Too many of us, get weary and give up, we think we will never be able to reach the top and we become to weary to battle the warfare that is attacking us.

Galatians 6:9 And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.

In order to answer the calling of God to move to higher ground, we must change our appetites, here lies the secret of revival. In order to be like Caleb we have to take the mountain by force, and when the lies of the enemy attacks our strength, our tenacity we just keep moving forward and upward one step at a time, because we are growing and maturing in the Lord and His kingdom, His righteousness will be what we hunger for and our fleshly appetites will become less and less.

Praise God!! If all who reads this begins to change their appetites, we will see revival break out everywhere within the body of Christ. Jesus said the world will know we are His disciples by our love for one another. Is the church showing the world love for each other, if we cannot love the brethren how can we love the lost? Change our appetite and hunger and thirst after His righteousness and allow the love of Jesus Christ within us to come through us as we love ALL.

If looking for a bible study check out www.lindagroberts.com

LESSONS FROM A CHILD

On January 4, 2015 I read of a plane crash in Kentucky with one survivor, a young girl of only 7 years of age. It is reading of this child's survival, that the Lord began to teach and review lessons I had learned over the past year. This is why I am writing this because this little girl was an example for every church and every Christian, she both encouraged me and she inspired me. So here is her story and my lessons.

Her father's private plane left Florida to head back home to Indiana, on board was her father, her mother, her 10 year old sister, and her 14 year old cousin. Then tragedy struck the plane went down in a wooded secluded area in Kentucky. The young girl was clothed only in shorts and t-shirt, was barefoot when she climbed out of an upside down plane to find her whole family had died from the crash. Many 7 year olds would have caved in and later died of exposure to the cold Kentucky air. Yet, not this one, suffering with broken bones and cuts and bruises, she made a make shift torch from the fire to the planes wing, as set out in the cold and dark to find a house with a light on, and find the help she needed. When I read her story, I saw such a determination in this child, that she did not let grief stop her, she did not let pain stop her, she did not let cold stop her, she did not let the darkness stop her, nor did she let the unknown stop her. She walked barefoot through a rough wooded terrine did not know where she was nor did she know where she was going, one thing she knew she had the hope of finding a light on, she walked 3/4 of a mile emerged from the woods to find a light on at a house. So what did this teach us?

This little girl had more determination to continue steadfast, moving forward than most Christians do today. Her goal was to find help, and she would not allow herself to be moved by what was happening around her, she pressed forward to find the light which would be her help. It is said that if she had walked in any other direction she would have walked farther to find a house. I do not know why tragedy struck this family, but I do know this God said "This child will not die today" and Jesus led her in the right direction to find help. That leads me to the next lesson she taught me:

I truly believe that God's grace alone spared her life and I believe He has great plans for this little girl, I believe He led her all the way through the woods in the direction she needed to go to find help. I also believe that God is a miracle working God and could have picked her up and placed her at the door of the house, yet He didn't. He was with her yet she still had to walk the path, and though she walked it suffering, He never left her. As Christians sometimes we think that just because we are walking the path God has placed us on, the path should be free of suffering, and yet, it isn't. Lesson for me is this: Just because I am in the will of God does not mean I am free of storms and life events that will bring suffering my way. That brings me to the next lesson this child taught me:

When her father taught her survival training, he never said to himself, "On January 3,2015 we are going to be in a plane crash and die, and she will have to know how to survive." Yet, the reality is that is actually what he prepared her for. Every test we take as a Christian God has already prepared us to take, His tests are not to bring us harm, they are to help us to walk and grow closer to Jesus, His desire is for us to pass the test. So embrace the test it is for our good. Next lesson for the body of Christ to learn:

The scriptures tell us we are the light set on a hill, that when the light of Christ is in us, His light will draw men to Him. The little girl was looking for a light because it was dark, can you imagine her sigh of relief when she came through the woods and saw a light at the house in front of her. She followed the light to the door where she knocked and help waited on the other side. Church we are to be the light that when the hurt, the lost, the desperate, the forgotten see us they know they have found a safe haven. The church is about healing, fellowship, loving, restoring one another and lifting up our Savior Jesus Christ, through worship of Him and Him alone.

What I learned and wrote above was not anything new, I have been learning these things for more than a year, but what she did for me was set an example that says "Remain steadfast, keep moving forward, hold on to the hope of the gospel." She encouraged me with her determination and caused me to examine my heart and my life. I hope this too will encourage all who read it.

Colossians 1:23 if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.     

FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION

Ever had a storm come up very suddenly and you find yourself unprepared for the storm? Yes, me too!! You know those times when it is pouring down rain and you just remembered you left your umbrella in the car! There are storms that arise because of our own misguided actions, then there are the storms that the enemy will bring into our lives; when we did not expect it. Yet, through all of these storms a testing of our faith will occur.

Battling storms will require us to remain steadfast, planted on a firm foundation, or as an old fisherman's quote "Better make sure you batten down the hatches." Storms are never pleasant, and often bring us feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, and despair. There have been times when I really felt like I would drown if Jesus did not reach down and pull me to safety. At times when I felt this way the enemy would be shouting into my ear "Give up, Nothing will change, You don't matter to anyone, Lay down and die!" Even typing these words fills me with pain, remembering the times when Satan spoke these words into my mind, then I for a brief moment believed his lies and wept desiring death rather than the storm.

Looking at the word: Matthew 14:22-33 Jesus had just finished feeding 5,000 and as He sent the people away He told His disciples to get in the boat and go to the other side. Then He went up on the mountain to be by Himself and pray, here He looks out and sees the boat in the middle of the sea.

Matthew 14:24 But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary.

Matthew 14:31-33 And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him (Peter), and said to him, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?" And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. Then those who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, "Truly, You are the Son of God."

Our Christian life is a walk of faith, yet, when we find ourselves in the storms of life, we often find ourselves doubting where God is. Faith will grow, as we are stretched beyond where we were to the next level, and in that stretch will come a test that will at times appear like storms.

Remember Abraham, God had promised him a son, a son that would be born in his old age to him and his wife Sarah. We know that after Issac was born time past and God instructed Abraham to take his son, his promised son and offer him as a sacrifice. We can read that Genesis 22:1-18, we know that this is a picture of the time when God, Himself, will give His Son Jesus Christ as our sacrifice, in fact the ram caught in the bush is a picture of Jesus as our sacrifice, our substitute. But lets look at the following scriptures:

Hebrews 11:17-19 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Issac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of who it was said; "In Issac your seed shall be called." concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.

You see from the time Abraham was 75 years of age until his extremely old age, God was preparing him for this test. Our walk with Jesus through each valley, to the top of the mountain has been to prepare us for the testing of our faith, no matter how it may come. Each time God reveals a deeper revelation to us and we begin to walk in that deeper revelation a test will come. Yet God never wants us to fail, He always prepares us for what is coming, and He sustains us in the middle of it. The incarnation of Jesus Christ was the fourth man in the furnace with the three Hebrew men in Daniel chapter 3. When they came out they did not even have the stench of smoke on their clothing.

I am writing this because too often I have felt like a failure, even when I saw the test coming I viewed it as a storm and reacted to the drama verses responding in peace and faith. I am sure we can all agree we have been there more times than we would like to remember. But God will not allow us to be failures, we have been built to outlast the storm, and to pass the test. And as I have learned, we get the privilege of taking the test over and over until we pass it.

Just a reminder seeking an on-line bible study that you can work on from home? Check out www.lindgroberts.com. This takes you to the front page and on the left are different studies, the one we are working on now is "Are You Willing?" and we are looking at Abraham.

JESUS IS OUR HEALER, THAT HAS NOT CHANGED

When I think about miracles and why the church of today is not experiencing a great movement of miracles of healing and deliverance; I remember what the word of God tells us.

1. God is still God He does not change

2. Jesus is still Jesus He does not change

3. Holy Spirit is still His Holy Spirit He does not change.

So I have to ask what has changed? The answer is simple, the Church, the Bride of Christ we have changed.

No longer do most of the modern day churches preach and teach on the miracles of Christ Jesus given to the church by His Holy Spirit. People have begun to see this as a thing of the past and not part of the present. The enemy has deceived the church and lulled us into sleep. Even now people are being healed of cancer, heart disease, and many more as the church prays for them. Yet, within the walls of the church people are being prayed over and leave the same as they walked in. So let us see why:

In Matthew 13:53-58 we are told that Jesus went into His own town among His own people and He was unable to do many mighty works. What in the world could stop the Son of God from healing, delivering and casting out demons. Look at verse 58 Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief. Unbelief not only in individuals but with the church can stop the mighty works of God. In this case a whole town except for a few were unable to be touched by Jesus because of the unbelief within the people.

Mark 5:35-43 Here we have an account of Jairus and his daughter. While Jairus was getting Jesus to bring Him to his home word came that his daughter had died. In verse 36 Jesus spoke these words to Jairus "Do not be afraid only believe." When they reached the home in verse 40 listen to what was said "And they ridiculed Him. But when He had put them all outside, He took the father and the mother of the child, and whose who were with Him, (Peter, James and John) and He entered where the child was lying." In the next verse we see He took her by the hand spoke to her and she awoke from the dead. What we see here is that before Jesus spoke life back into this child He removed unbelief from the house.

Go with me to Acts 9:36-41 A lady of faith by the name of Dorcas had died, she had ministered as a seamstress to the widows and was loved by all. Peter comes and look what he does in verse 40 "But Peter put them all out, and knelt down and prayed. And turning to the body he said Tabitha, arise. And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter she sat up" Notice once again those who may have been of unbelief were put out of the room. then Peter prayed and she rose from the dead.

Continue with me to Acts 19: 11-12 Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the disease left them and the evil spirits went out of them  Can we go a little farther?

Acts 5:15-16 so that they brought the sick out into the streets and laid them on beds and couches, that at least the shadow of Peter passing by might fall on some of them. Also a multitude gathered from the surrounding cities to Jerusalem, bringing sick people and those who were tormented by unclean spirits and they were all healed.

 

Remember it is the anointing in the lives of Paul and Peter that brought the healing, not by their name or by their power, but by the name and the power of Jesus Christ.

 

2 Kings 13:21 So it was, as they were burying a man, that suddenly they spied a band of raiders, and they put the man in the tomb of Elisha (a prophet of God) and when the man was let down and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet.

In 1 Corinthians 12:4-11 we are given a list of the Gifts of the Spirit, these are gifts that are only given to the believer at the moving of the Holy Spirit. Among these gifts is one by the name of "Healing".

No one person has the power to heal, that is given only unto Jesus our Lord and Savior. So how can someone have the gift of healing? It is the anointing of the Holy Spirit in and on that person. The anointing was so strong on Elisha that even after his death as soon as a dead man touched him life was restored. Sure there are many who fake healing, many who lift up their own name and declare themselves to be a healer, but they will receive their reward. Let us always understand that no healing can come unless the power of Jesus Christ touches the one in need of healing. Yet, unbelief will hinder what God desires to do in someone's life. Let our unbelief never be a stumbling block for someone else.

 I believe that hurting hearts need healing more than anything. If the physical ailment is healed and the heart remains damaged, then the healing is not complete. Jesus desires to touch our hearts and heal our hurt, whether it is someone that has hurt us or the church has hurt us, until we deal with the hurt and forgive the offender then we will be always carrying that hurt into the next relationship and into the next church. It is baggage that needs to laid at the foot of the cross.

Psalm 147:3 He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.

Just some thoughts I have been pondering lately. Looking for a bible study check out www.lindagroberts.com

Be blessed.

WHAT WILL THEY REMEMBER ABOUT US

We all desire to leave a legacy behind, something that our family and our friends will remember about us when we are gone. Yet, what will they remember? I look at my own children and wonder will they remember how much I love them, how much I love Jesus, or will they remember all of my mistakes, the times when I lost my temper, or taught them the wrong things? I look at my sister and see how for years now, her memory has been slipping away to Alzheimer disease, and so desperately I try to look beyond this a see who she used to be. I remember laughing, trips, sharing the word of God with one another, in fact she is the very one who lead me to Jesus Christ, for that one thing is enough to always be grateful. She has always supported me and loved me and yes corrected me.

These things have been on my mind as I have been reflecting on the lesson for the children in the morning. It is found in Acts 9:36-43 it is the account of a lady, much loved and appreciated, by the name of Dorcas who found herself sick and died. Look at her legacy:

Acts 9:36b,39-41 This woman was full of good works and charitable deeds which she did. 39. Then Peter arose and went with them. When he had come, they brought him to the upper room. And all the widows stood by him weeping, showing the tunics and garments which Dorcas had made while she was with them. But Peter put them all out, and knelt down and prayed. And turning to the body he said, Tabitha, arise, And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter she sat up. Then he gave her his hand and lifted her up; and when he had called the saints and widows, he presented her alive.

God had placed in Dorcas' life the ability to sew, then He gifted her to be a server one who would use her God given skills and ability to bless others. These people whom she had cared for the widows, loved and respected her, they were grieving that she was no longer with them. Then God heard their cries, He heard Peter's prayer, and He responded and He raised Dorcas from death. What a legacy she had left for others to see, and now see how God received the glory and reading on in verse 42 many believed and were saved when they heard how God raised Dorcas up from the dead,

Ephesians 2:10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them

 

 

I remember Queen Esther and how her legacy was to save the nation of Israel. So many more mentioned over and over again in the scriptures whose legacy continues even today. 

 

 

Esther 4:14b and 16b Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this? 16b and if I perish, I perish!

 

 

The words spoken to her about her purpose in the kingdom and her response back to it, is the step of faith that saved a nation.

We are all created to be what Jesus has called us to be, we all have been given abilities, gifts and callings on our lives that we may do the good works that He has prepared for us. So what Legacy are we leaving for the next generation to see in us?

Perhaps, as humans we focus too much on we think people should be doing, what we think people should be like, look like and act like, instead we need to be focusing on who Jesus has said they are, what He says they need to be doing!!

For my sister, her legacy to me is very personal, she shared her faith and I received salvation, I choose to remember her love for Jesus, for her family, for our mother and for me.

But what my own family sees in me, I pray they see Jesus Christ living in me and through me. My legacy for the next generation is still in the process. So I pray that I will be who Jesus has called me to be and that I will share my faith with others. Desiring to please God the Father more than myself, using the abilities, gifts and callings He has placed on my life to glorify Him and to help others.

Just some thoughts this morning.

SATAN YOU CAN'T HAVE MY VICTORY

Approximately two years ago during a study on the fear of God by Francis Chan, God revealed to me that I had an unhealthy fear of Him when I was a child. God only revealed this much to me at that time and I immediately stored it somewhere in my subconscious. Then last Wednesday July16,2014 after listening to a message on "balance", God took me back to that unhealthy fear, so let me take you back with me.

I was not raised in church and my earliest memories of church came at the age of 8, these memories were shadowed by the fact that my father was dying and when I was 9 my father died. It was here at this moment fear of God came on me, it was such a fear of Him and the power He had over life and death (let me say right here, no one ever talked to me about death, about what happens when someone dies) this power that God has was what I perceived in me. So after the funeral, I announced to my mother "I will not go back to church again". Unfortunately she also chose not to go back to church. When I was 12 my cousin invited me to a revival at her church, so I said I would go. At the close of the service they asked that if anyone would like to share some testimony to come on up. So being the shy 12 year old that I was, I got in line to speak. When I reached the pulpit here is what I said "I hate God, He killed my daddy and I am afraid He is going to kill me" Wonder how that went over? It would be 15 more years before I would meet God's grace and embrace His love that was extended to me through the cross. It was here that balance would come, the unhealthy fear that had tormented me for 18 years and had pushed me away from God, now became a healthy fear that pulled me to Him. Again God was only revealing a little at a time. Because He was preparing me for Sunday's message.

Sunday morning July 20,2014 our message continued on Victory and how God will take us back to our greatest defeat to move us forward from it. As I sat there listening, my life past before my eyes, I saw what I had written above, and I went on to see that when I was 38 and my marriage was falling apart just like the child of 9 I declared from my mouth "I hate God, I will not go back to church, God has forsaken me". As I sat there I realized that God was taking me back to show me the moment of my first defeat at 9, and how even after I was saved, active in church and bible study, that defeat was repeated when my world fell apart again. It would be 12 more years before I would find myself in the arms of a forgiving Father. As I sat there and listened to the message, I heard the voice of God speak into my spirit "I have taken you back to your defeat to show you, that will not happen to you again, because now your faith is as strong as a mountain." Well, praise God lesson learned. But God was not finished yet.

Monday July 21,2014

Reading in 1John 5:4-5 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world---our faith. Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

and then to Revelation 12:11 And they overcame him (the accuser mentioned in verse 10) by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.

It seems that through out my life Satan has attempted to destroy me by destroying my faith. I remember when I came back to Jesus I prayed "Lord, let my life be a testimony that will bring You glory" and then I wondered why so much has happened that would shake my faith. God has shown me, that I have sought Him throughout these last 16 years more than any other time in my life. Because I have sought after Him, though my faith has been tested, though my faith has been shaken, though I have wept, shouted and wanted to give up. My faith in my Lord, my God has remained and has grown. Victory is mine because I have overcome the wicked one, by the blood of the Lamb and by my testimony. I know that I will continue to be tested and tempted and have moments of a shaking of my faith, but when God spoke to me Sunday morning His promise; then I knew that my faith has been settled and though everything around me fall and crumble my faith will remain because the one who gave me His promise is faithful to keep His promise.

I have pursued and I have waited to hear the voice of my God speak to me that I now have the victory I had so longed for.  Never again will I turn away from pursuing my Lord. Just so you know 3 days after I wrote this and spoke this, I received a phone call that took away more of my income ( a storm to test my faith). Ha! Satan you can't have my VICTORY!!!

If you are in search of an on-line bible study check out www.lindagroberts.com a lot of different studies on the website, look to the left and choose one you may like, the current one is The Thread of Hope.

JUST STOP AND WAIT

For the past few days, I have felt like I was standing still, not going anywhere. It sometimes would be called a "dry place" a place where I don't know what God desires for me to do next, a place where Jesus has said "wait", just "rest" here awhile. I have been on quiet a journey; a journey of mountain tops, and low valleys, a journey that has made me laugh with the joy of the Lord and a place that has made me weep in despair. Lets just say that waiting and resting are not easy for me. Yet, as I have been writing this and reading His word, there is no doubt that is exactly what He wants me to do. We all need to have the times of waiting and resting to prepare us for the next phase of our journey. Hear the word I read this morning:

To set the stage this is the passage of the experience of the "Transfiguration on the Mount" found in Luke 9:28-36 I am only going to write a portion of this.

Luke 9:33-36 Then it happened, as they were parting from Him, that Peter said to Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah---not knowing what he was saying. While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were fearful as they entered the cloud. And a voice came out of the cloud, saying This is My beloved Son, Hear Him! When the voice had ceased, Jesus was found alone. But they kept quiet and told no one in those days any of the things they had seen.

Peter knew he needed to do something with what he saw and heard, and on his own he decided building three tabernacles to honor them would be a good thing to do. How often do we decide what is the best thing that needs to be done to give God the glory, and yet it is not what God wants us to be doing. Oh it may not be a bad thing, yet the purpose that God has for us is not being fulfilled when we on our own decide how we are to bring Him glory. immediately after Peter said this the Glory of God appeared in the Cloud and God the Father said "Hear Him!" You see everything that Jesus did was only as God the Father revealed it to Him.

John 6:19-20 Then Jesus answered and said to them, Most assuredly, I say to you the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner. For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.

Many times Jesus had to withdraw and be by Himself, just He and God, a place to rest, a place to be in the presence of His Father. Yet, we or maybe just me, seem to think we do not need this place of rest, and we do. When God spoke "Hear Him" it also spoke to me, it is saying do not move, do not attempt to fulfill a purpose I haven't given you. Wait on the instructions that Jesus is to give me, before I move one more step.

Sometimes, God says it is time to stop doing something He had previously instructed us to do, times when He begins to prune some things from our life so that we can grow more. Then at times He will say keep doing what you are doing, be diligent to continue with the last thing I have given you to do. Consider Noah he was diligent to complete the task he had been given for 120 years.

For me personally, I believe I am in the place where my Lord is saying: "Sit here awhile, don't run ahead of Me, what I have for you to do is far better than what you can accomplish without Me." So I will sit, and wait, and listen and I will be prepared for when He speaks "I Move".

Hope my daily walk with God helps someone in their daily walk.

Be blessed and may God be glorified in all you do.

TRUSTING IN JESUS, EVERY MOMENT, WITH EVERY DECISION

A decision has been reached!! I am officially moving on Saturday May 31. It has been a long two months, yet God's grace has been all sufficient. A small house came available for me, that was just the right price, no damage deposit, the landlord would mow the yard, and would keep the utilities in his name so it would save me transfer fees. But the house just didn't measure up to my standards, hmmmm. Everyone I sought advise from, except my daughter Amy, said don't do it if you don't think you will like it and be happy there. I sought the Lord and over and over in my spirit all I heard was Proverbs 3:5-6. Then I got the word that the landlord's wife would want a damage deposit, and the door just slammed shut, and I said thank you Jesus.

Then a few days later the woman called apologized and said she would not charge me a damage deposit. Door opened and I said get thee behind me Satan. This door was closed. (laughing now)

The Holy Spirit kept saying Proverbs 3:5-6 over and over to me. Then on Sunday our message was from 1Kings 22:1-19, it was about King Ahab and how he only wanted to seek the advise from those who would answer with the words he wanted to hear. When a man of God spoke the truth to him, it angered him because the truth was not what he wanted to hear. Immediately I was quickened in my spirit, that the truth was I desired for people to tell me what I wanted to hear about the house. Only Amy spoke the truth to me, and I did not like it.

I asked the Lord to show me what I was to learn in Proverbs 3:5-6 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.

Here is what I saw in these verses: Would I trust in Jesus or would I seek my own understanding instead of allowing His wisdom to penetrate and give me the understanding I needed for this next step of my journey. You see in the natural we look at all around us and we think that is not His best for me, but just as there are times when we can be right in the center of God's will and it may not appear to others or even to ourselves that we are where we are suppose to be, consider Joseph and the years he spent in slavery and in prison it didn't appear that he was in God's will, yet he was. Sometimes I will go back and read some notes from previous sermons and read this: "The transition from one place to another will cause us to carry a heavy load and place us in a valley of decision." Another piece of the puzzle for the journey I am on. Here is what the Lord showed me:

My valley of decision was more than whether or not I rented this little house, it was whether I trusted Jesus, that He had His best for me, though it may not appear the be the best by my standards it didn't mean that it wasn't exactly where I needed to be. I recalled this scripture:

Revelation 3:8.......See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it;........

That verse became a reality for me when the door was open, then it was shut, and praise God He opened it again. So I considered where I was to live, where God wanted to place me and I said yes I want to rent this little house.

Looking for an online bible study check out www.lindagroberts.com 

JUST A LITTLE TESTIMONY

April 5,2014

Been reflecting back and seeing the movement of God, as He has been changing me and shaping me for His glory.

So I will begin with a word that was spoken at church approximately a year ago. In the message my pastor said "Everyone wants to see the glory of God, yet do you know what you are asking for?" I thought not really but I am fixing to find out. He went on to say "When God reveals His glory, He will reveal more of you, and He will reveal more of Himself". So I began to pray; regularly, Lord I want to see Your glory, reveal more of me and reveal more of You. Little by little He would do just that. Then approximately nine weeks ago our church began a series entitled: "From Death to Life". It has turned into a life changing series for me, and a series where God revealed His glory to me, I would see more that was in me that needed to die and to be buried, and He began to allow me the privilege of experiencing Him in a fresh and new way.

Most who know me, understand that I love the Lord very much, and know that I desire to walk in a close relationship with Him. But I still have life struggles, and everyday I struggle with just living, making an income, paying bills, etc. There are times when I think "I'm not going to make it" "It is never going to get better". As I was sharing this one evening with my pastors, my pastor looked at me an said "You are looking at your job as your provider and not Jesus". Needless to say, a little self-righteous indignation rose up inside me, and I thought (but didn't say) "I know that Jesus is my Provider". But at the same time The Holy Spirit said "He is right". I went home that night and asked for forgiveness, repented by aligning my mind with the Word, I began to study the covenant relationship I have with Jesus Christ. And I began to ask Him to let me experience Him as my Provider. Let me say that God honors your prayers, when you pray from your heart and desire to understand yourself and Him, as you journey through this life to fulfill the destiny He has for you.

Three weeks later, came a shift in my life. To get out from under a particular struggle I had with paying the rent where I was living, meant I had to break my lease and move. I began to realize that was what I needed to do because God had said in my heart "You will have victory in this, but you must obey what I say" So I spoke to the office, turned in my notice, and began to pack. Yet, I had no place to go. My church is located at the entrance to the community of Clinton and for several years I had been praying for the community. Several months ago the Lord had spoke to my spirit and said "I am placing you in the community you have been praying for". But at that time I believed it would be at a later date. To be completely honest, I have no desire to live in Clinton. I am definitely a city girl (laughing). But if God says that is where He is putting me then I am willing to go.

But there was and is no where to go. I have a budget that I must stay within and nothing at this time is available, where I am lead to go. Other possibilities have been offered, yet they are not in my price range, or not in the area I believe God says to go to. So my furniture is in storage, and I came to stay with my daughter and her family, until God opens the right door. Instinct says run out and find a place any place, just some place to have yourself and your belongings together. Yet, I have determined to not settle for my less out of fear and stay ready to receive God's best for me.

My biggest concern with staying with my daughter was that I would be in her and her family's way, that I would interfere with their life and they would interfere with mine. It has been six days, and all is well. Praying God's peace with me and them. I think for me it has been the biggest adjustment, I have lived alone for years, no noise at the house, stuff done the way I wanted it and when I wanted it. Now here I am with my daughter and her husband three kids and a dog they had a cat but he must be gone because I haven't seen or heard him. I must remember to ask what happened to the cat. Definitely different from what I am used to.

So that brings me to something else I have been praying, (I really didn't have a clear understanding of). One Sunday my pastor said "Keeping Jesus in our focus will cause us to be creative and stop reacting to life and life will begin to respond to us" I had the reacting part down pat, I knew exactly what that meant, since I did it a lot. So I began to speak and to pray "Lord teach me not to react to everything that comes my way and let life begin to respond to me". Then about a week into this I realized I didn't have a clear understanding of what it meant to have life respond to you. So I approached my pastor and asked him what did that mean, after all I was praying it. To simply put it "When I am faced with a situation either I can react to the situation or I can allow the peace of God to be released in me and the situation, and then I will see it from a different perspective and not react." Now those are not his exact words but that is how I received it to my understanding.

So where am I in this journey "From Death to Life"? Jesus is allowing me the privilege and the opportunity of experiencing Him as my Provider and my Provision. He is teaching me to listen and obey His voice. I have had several opportunities to react, yet I have chosen His peace and joy. You see God is moving me, yet the enemy has sent several distractions to me to get me off course and get my focus off of Jesus, yet I recognized his tactics. I am praying that while I am staying with my daughter that the light of Jesus will be seen in me and that I will not be the reason for another mother-in-law joke with my son-in-law. I hope that I will be a help and not a bother to my daughter. And I hope to enjoy my children and grandchildren during my stay.

What is this new life, this resurrected life look like? Let's just say that the resurrected life indwells me and has since I was born again. The anointing power that raised Jesus from the dead is in me. And as I live this life in Christ I walk in that power. This enables me to live in such a way, that Jesus is seen in me and not Linda seen, it allows my circumstances not to hold me as a hostage, binding me to them. It releases freedom in Jesus and then the chains fall off. I may still face many battles in this life, yet the battles are already won, all I have to do is keep Jesus as my focus and walk in His peace, lifting Him up, continue the upward call on my life. I have the victory already the biggest lie the enemy can convince us of is that he still has power over us. Wherever He places me the anointing of the Holy Spirit will penetrate the atmosphere and both myself and others around me will be changed not by me but by the presence of Jesus Christ in the room. A lot more to share on this subject but will wait until the bible study. This is just an update of where I am in my walk with Jesus.

Remaining steadfast on this journey.

Check out the on-line bible study and begin the journey From Death to Life at www.lindagroberts.com

JESUS IS ENOUGH

I am sitting here looking around at the boxes I have packed (to move) seeing my home is disarray and thinking Lord what is happening? I have moved many times, but each time I have had a place to move to, a home waiting on me to fix up, put my stuff where I want it, enjoy my new surroundings. Yet, this time it is different, I have no home to go to, no place to arrange my beloved stuff, no place that I can enjoy and know I am home.

What has brought me to this moment in time? I had begun to pray "Lord forgive me if I have not really seen You as my provider and my provision, my desire Lord is experience you as my provider and my provision." Three weeks later I find myself about to be homeless.

It is one thing to know that Jesus is enough, that Jesus is your provider, your provision, your protector and it is another to experience Him as these things. I had experienced Jesus as my protector on many occasions and now I am about to experience Him as my provider, my provision. All of this is to increase my faith and to prepare me for the destiny He has planned for me.

The word tells us that we walk by faith and not by sight, do you believe that? I do, yet if I can see where I am going is it faith? When the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant went to cross the Jordon River when did the sea part, before or after they got wet? When Noah built the Ark, there was no water, never had rained, he had no idea what a flood was, but by faith he obeyed God and the Word that was spoken to him and he and his family were saved. The word tells us that without faith we cannot please God. So if I desire to please God I ask for my faith to be increased. Asking this will place you in positions that exercise your faith. In other words, your faith will be stretched, think of how you work out and stretch your muscles, to increase my faith it has to be worked and used in many different situations, situations that will require my faith to be activated.

So now I am being stretched, Jesus is showing me who He is and allowing me the privilege of experiencing Him. That is if I don't waiver, don't give up though times may be hard I will see the reality of my faith. For I also know that the word says I am not abandoned nor forsaken, that I am loved and secure in Him, His word is real and His word is true. I am not a victim I am victorious.

So you don't get to feeling sorrow for me, until God opens a door of His choosing I will be staying at my daughter's home, I have said I don't know who I feel sorry for;

me or her, and then decided it would be her husband. (smiling)

God has His best for me and I will not settle for less out of desperation, and fear. My faith in who He is will encourage me and sustain me during this time. All of this has come about from a series of messages my church is doing entitled "From Death to Life" last week I began to do a bible study based on these messages as the Lord directs me in this. Hope you can join me for this life changing study at www.lindagroberts.com

Be blessed and remain steadfast

MY VIEW FROM THE GRAVE

Are you wondering about the title? Well I would like for you to come with me on a journey I have been on for a few weeks, a journey that will move me upward in the call of God on my life. It is the journey of sanctification. Sanctification is a life time process that transforms us from who we were to who He desires for us to be.

At the time of salvation a transformation from the old man to the new man takes place. Death to the old will bring a resurrection of the new. God brings the death and the resurrection, yet we are to bury the old and keep it buried. 

Romans 6:4-12 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 5. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection. 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts.

The problem most Christians find is that they continue to allow the old man (old nature) to rise up out of the grave and have rule in their lives. The dying process is a daily process not a once in a lifetime, or once a week or once a month.

Luke 9:23-24 Then He said to them all, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me 24 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.

This self-denial is what we call “crucifying self, or dying to self” it is surrendering our will, our wants, our desires, our ways to His will, His wants, His desires, and His ways.

Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ, it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life I now live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

There comes a time when God will speak to us the need to let go of old ways, old thinking and even old teachings, even ministries we are involved in,  these may not be bad things yet they are ways, thinking and teachings that may be hindering us from moving forward to the next level in our walk with Him. Our walk or I like to use the term journey is always moving forward and upward, as Paul says in Philippians.

Philippians 3:14 I press toward the goal for the prize the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

When God reveals an area that needs to be buried and placed in the grave, we are to respond in obedience and place it in the grave. In the grave is where you will find the place of surrender, yet, not without a struggle. As God began to reveal to me that I had a stronghold, a mindset that I needed to let go of, first of all I entered into denial, I just couldn’t believe I actually had that way of thinking it was a thinking that has held me in bondage for years, throughout the years He has revealed little by little of a mindset that was not allowing me victory; a victory I so desired. When I agreed with my Lord that this was an area that needed to change and to be placed in the grave now that was me acting in obedience. Now here you find me in the grave and suddenly I find myself in a battle to get out of the grave. Spiritual warfare now begins, the enemy will begin to send thoughts to give you a counter offer; for me the thought he kept sending was: “you would be better off continuing to do what and how you have been doing things, because the other way is too uncertain.” It is the uncertainty that will get you every time. Uncertainty brings fear, and we know that fear is the opposite of faith, it also brings doubt, doubting that you are really hearing God correctly. My pastor had a message the other Wednesday night and in the message he said “Some would rather stay in their suffering because at least they understood their suffering.” That would be me; though I was suffering greatly, continuing to do things as I had been was better than the uncertain future. So here I am in the grave engaged in warfare, now comes the wrestling. I begin to wrestle with myself and to wrestle with God, wrestling with myself was exhausting, it was wanting to do as God directed and at the same time wanting to hang on to the last bit of control. Wrestling with God is that time of saying “Help me let go, help me to obey and surrender completely, I don’t want to and I want to, bless me God because I need you.”

So it was God was asking me to do something that I really didn’t want to do. Something that took humility, something that left me without a crutch, something that I believed if He asked me to do would be the very thing I needed to do that would help me in the journey and out of my suffering. So I did it, and I saw the last shovel of dirt poured over my grave. I felt immediate rest and peace; the burden of the decision was done. Then in two days the thing I was supposed to do and did was destroyed. It looked like I had heard wrong, but I knew that I hadn’t.

So now you find in the grave in a time of reflecting, this is the time of resting in the position I am in and allowing the Holy Spirit to feed me with previous messages from the word and remembering scriptures and people that we were given examples of; that I would need to continue remaining at rest and peace. I began to remember these words: “Obedience is the key that unlocks your destiny, obedience is the key to doing the Father’s will, obedience to the Father puts us in the position to fight the giant (like David), obedience unlocks and keeps us.” And these words: “Between the dream and the destiny there is always development (character development). Walking in covenant does not always look like we are blessed and does not eliminate suffering, is not passive and it requires perseverance.” (Joseph) So here I am realizing that when God asked me to do what He did,was Him wanting obedience from me, Him desiring me to be surrendered to His will, His way. It was not about changing the circumstance it was about changing me in the circumstance.

So here I lay, 6ft under, dirt piled over me, my circumstance hasn’t changed, in fact you might look and say it has gotten worse (imagine that). Do you realize that when you are in this yielded, surrendered position you have only one view to look at, and that is looking UP. I look up from where I lay and I have the hope and the assurance that what has died and what has been buried will one day arise in the resurrection power of Christ Jesus my Lord. So here has been my grave experience, here is the place I find myself, allowing the Holy Spirit to make the necessary changes in me for the next phase of my journey. More to come.

Reminder to check out the bible study web site at www.lindagroberts.com