Wednesday, September 18, 2013

If My People...

"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14 (NIV)
It has been a year since I first began this blog.  I want to thank those of you who have been on this journey with me, and encourage you to keep praying and seeking God for an awakening of the Church--not just in America, but all over the world. One thing that completely surprised me is that God is able to take His message all over the world (without my help). The words that I thought were meant for the Church in America ended up being read in Russia, China, Afghanistan, Germany, Latvia, Netherlands, Brazil and many more countries all over the world. Our vision is so small and God's is so large--he takes our tiny offering of a few fish and loaves and makes a banquet of it. I thank Him for letting me be His messenger.
The biggest lessons I have learned on this journey are that God wants and expects us to live holy lives--it's not optional, that it only takes a handful of people humbly seeking God to spark a fire, that God uses ordinary people--do not think because no one knows your name that you can't make a difference--God knows your name and that is what counts. Nothing is too hard for God--He is a covenant-keeping Father, and if we keep our part of the covenant (to humble ourselves and pray, and seek His face and turn from our wicked ways), He is bound to keep His word (to hear from heaven, forgive our sin and heal our land).
I leave you with these words from the book of James:
"The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops." James 5:16-18

Friday, September 6, 2013

What to Fear

"The LORD has given me a strong warning not to think like everyone else does. He said, “Don’t call everything a conspiracy, like they do, and don’t live in dread of what frightens them. Make the LORD of Heaven’s Armies holy in your life. He is the one you should fear. He is the one who should make you tremble. He will keep you safe." Isaiah 8:11-14 (NLT)

In these days, we can find much to fear--an increasingly unstable world, chemical and nuclear weapons in the hands of evil men, uncertain financial markets, the threat of terrorism. The world is looking for whatever will bring them peace. Will we react as the world does or will we take these words of Isaiah to heart. Don't think like the rest of the world thinks--don't fear what the rest of the world fears. Make God holy in your life--fear Him and He will keep you safe.

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

The Proper Perspective

"Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood since the earth was founded? He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in. He brings princes to naught and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing. No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown, no sooner do they take root in the ground, than he blows on them and they wither, and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff."

“To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing...

"Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom." Isaiah 40:21-27, 28 (NIV)

Sunday, September 1, 2013

Rejected?

"For the LORD has rejected his people, the descendants of Jacob, because they have filled their land with practices from the East and with sorcerers, as the Philistines do. They have made alliances with pagans. Israel is full of silver and gold; there is no end to its treasures. Their land is full of warhorses; there is no end to its chariots. Their land is full of idols; the people worship things they have made with their own hands. So now they will be humbled, and all will be brought low—do not forgive them. Crawl into caves in the rocks. Hide in the dust from the terror of the LORD and the glory of his majesty. Human pride will be brought down, and human arrogance will be humbled. Only the LORD will be exalted on that day of judgment. For the LORD of Heaven’s Armies has a day of reckoning. He will punish the proud and mighty and bring down everything that is exalted. Isaiah 2:6-12 (NLT)

Has God rejected America? We once called ourselves "One Nation Under God". He rejected Israel for the very things we see in our country today. We are rich and powerful, we have made alliances with pagan nations and even allow practices from the east (yoga, for example) in our churches! Greed, prestige, and entertainment are just a few of the gods we worship. Will God not judge us by the same standards He applied to His own people?