Love you all, praying for you!
I just love God’s Word – not just LOGOS from the Bible – but Rhema from the Holy Spirit – He literally leads us to what we need from His Word by His Spirit. And I love that He doesn’t just come when we’re in trouble – He pre-instructs us so we don’t get into trouble in the first place. He gives His instruction – so we can avoid trouble - so we don’t need His deliverance – so we can walk in His favor and His blessing. But He always gives us what we need, whether instruction or deliverance. Instruction is an invitation. Praying that you would see it and accept it – always! God instructing me recently. Psalms 94:18-19 When I said, “My foot is slipping,” your love, O LORD supported me. When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul. Can you imagine that – exchanging anxiety for joy? First - The God you serve can take you from Anxiety to Joy. That’s quite a reversal. He doesn’t have anxiety for you – He has joy for you! Progression is so interesting to me. You never do something – you do somethings – what you do isn’t in isolation – it’s always on a path – to somewhere. And it always starts with your words. What path are you on? Look at the progression from the first verse to the second. First, He said “My foot is slipping” and by the very next verse he was already in full-blown anxiety. What started as a thought – un-submitted to the truth of Christ – became a series of thoughts – because of a series of words! That path of that word, that statement – ended in more of the same which ended in full-blown anxiety. The interesting thing – was that first statement wasn’t even true! Most statements along that path are not… When I said, “My foot is slipping,” Why did you say that? It only accelerates you on that path. Look what Abraham did… Romans 4:19 – Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead – since he was about a hundred years old – and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what He had promised. This is why “it was credited to him as righteousness. Look at the secret there! Rather than saying “My foot is slipping, - The Bible says Abraham faced the fact that his body was as good as dead - but he didn’t say it – he didn’t give words to it! That would have weakened him in his faith. The Bible says – without weakening in his faith. Abraham wasn’t saying – “my foot is slipping” It says – “he gave glory to God, being fully persuaded. Abraham didn’t say “my foot is slipping, he gave glory to God – for the miracle that he hadn’t even seen yet! When He was almost 100 years old! And because that’s what He said – rather than the other… it made him more fully persuaded. When you praise God for doing something that hasn’t happened yet, that makes you fully persuaded. Not when you say ‘my foot is slipping.” Cause guess what – if you say that… you’re foot will be slipping, and by the next verse you too, will be in full-blown anxiety! Notice that sentence isn’t isn’t even true. When you slip – does not mean “I’m slipping.” Slipping happens in a second, then you fall or recover. You don’t continue slipping, you slipped and fell – then you would say “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up!” or you slipped but didn’t fall – but you wouldn’t say “I’m slipping.” “I’m slipping – really means you’re losing hope, losing faith, losing your focus, losing ground to the enemy, that’s why your foot is slipping. You’re seeing and saying the wrong thing! Your faith is slipping. It’s an eye and mouth thing. If you are tempted to think you might slip – don’t say it! Abraham didn’t, He praised the God who keeps him from slipping – and when He gave glory to God for keeping him from slipping – he became even more fully persuaded that God had the power to do what He do… (He always does.) So what brought the victory? Love and Compassion, Kindness and Comfort. Look at verse 18 When I said, “My foot is slipping,” (OK, he’s already heading down the wrong path) - your love, O LORD supported me. What does that mean? Your love – that word is chesed <kheh’-sed> it means kindness, reproof, beauty, favor, merciful kindness. Chesed means God’s loving-kindness, but the second word of that definition – means to reprove (to convince of a fault – in other words to reveal the miss that resulted in this… the miss that made the mess. God’s loving-kindness includes reproof! He gives you correction where you need it. Your loving correction (telling me - “don’t say that”) supported me. Support – uphold, sustain – to keep from fainting or sinking, “or slipping”) So God’s loving correction had him change what He was saying – so he was kept firm. But I love this! Even if you didn’t hear the correction part of His kindness – and you ended up in full-blown anxiety, cause you said the wrong things, and now your neck-deep in it. God’s word says – God changes – He exchanges – anxiety to joy! You’ll notice – anxiety doesn’t change to Joy unless and until you say something different. You either speak anxiety or you speak God’s promise that leads to joy. Abraham recognized the obvious but he didn’t speak it – He spoke God’s glory – He praised him for doing what He promised – before he even saw him do it! That’s how he didn’t weaken in his faith. How do you weaken in your faith? – it’s not the size of the mountain you face. Nothing could be bigger than a 100 year old man – and a 90 year old woman trying to have a kid! It’s not facing the fact that your body is as good as dead – it’s putting words to it – that weakens your faith – only your words can weaken your faith. But if you speak God’s promise in the face of the facts – You will become fully convinced that God will do what He promised. Don’t look at the size of the mountain or the size of the storm – Lift your eyes up! See it and Say it. See the God who Delivers – and Say the deliverance you will see! I love that last verse – it’s for those who haven’t done a good job – they already went down the path to anxiety – but God says His comfort His consolation – brought joy to my soul. Comfort – to strengthen, to invigorate, enliven (bring back to life, to cheer, to strengthen the mind when depressed. God comforts the anxious – through the Comforter that He sent – the Holy Spirit – who fills our mind and our mouth with His Words. First, words – directly from the Father – in the language we do not understand – and then He fills our language – which we do understand – to speak the words that give glory to the one who is faithful to His promises. This is how we - like Abraham – will not weaken in our faith – but give glory to God – to be strengthened in our faith! And the anxiety that once was – becomes joy in His promise – and in His presence. Praying for you that you will know that every word isn’t a word - but a pattern – a path. Praying that every word you speak will be giving glory to God. Praying that you will know ‘my feet are slipping” is a lie, That you will will learn to face facts without giving words to them. That you will know that the facts that surround you are temporary – but HIS power is eternal, and HIS promise is a guarantee. Praying that you will give glory to God in the face of any facts – that you will PRAISE him for doing it – before you even see it… That you will always strengthen in your faith, never weaken, that you will SEE HIM, and SAY HIM! Love you all, dad
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Love you all, praying for you!
God is so good. He has good for you! But you have to walk in His will – to see His good. Today is a travel day. Have you ever been on a Road Trip? They are full of opportunities, and some pitfalls if you’re not careful and prayerful. In a way they are a microcosm of life. God has taught us many things through road trips – and has given us some wonderful blessings, and even some habits have grown through the years. First, we always start with prayer. We ask God for His protection, for Him to set his angels around the car, to help us arrive safely. But just like everything in life that God has for us – nothing is without purpose. God has a purpose for every road trip. My purpose is to get there as quickly as possible, with the least amount of stops, in the least amount of time. Wouldn’t it be awesome if there were a NASCAR gas station – You pull in and Jimmy Johnson’s pit crew is just waiting for your family van – gas fill – new tires – windshield clean – trash emptied, new big gulp and skittles – out the door – 3.7 seconds! I’d pay extra for that! But that’s just me. God's not like that. He sees a much bigger picture - His purpose is far broader than mine. Over the years with babies, and five of six kids being daughters – pit stops were a necessary adventure, sometimes not even for gas stations, sometimes a shopping trip, or a half-price book store. You’re killing me! This time, it’s just April and me. But there are some habits God has given us – that I hope you will prayerfully consider making a part of your travel tradition as well. That prayer at the beginning of each trip, not only do we pray for safety – we have always asked God (April and I) since even before we got married - every road trip - we have always asked God to help us be better friends – by the time we get there. He has never not answered that prayer. We now pray that we will be better friends with Him – too. There’s another thing we always do. We give God the first fruits. The first part of every trip – we always start with His Word – It’s usually a PRISM Topic - Like Speak Life, or Kindness, or the PRISM Topic Packet – Basics. There is something about giving God first place – that always brings a return and a blessing – that sets the atmosphere of the trip – and completely changes the course, the experience and the results. Have you ever asked God - "God, what is Your purpose for us - for this trip?" God said if we ask, He will answer. (This even applies daily - every time you drive to work! - you can change the atmosphere, even the course of history - through prayer alone!) The purpose of Road Trips - is not just getting to your destination. What does God want to increase in your heart, your spirit and your habits – before you get there? Before the kids get lost in their iphones and Netflix. Is there something that God wants you to grow in – as a family? Maybe grow in Prayer - See the PRISM Topic – Prayer – What if you reserved just a few minutes of the trip – to agree in prayer as a family. The Holy Spirit will lead you – you may never know until eternity – the effect of this small step of obedience. What about taking a portion of the trip to listen? To each other. There are some great question books – that encourage listening. One of the greatest needs of every person – is to be heard. For someone to care enough about them – to listen. Does God want you to use a portion of the trip for education? Don’t get carried away – it’s probably not time for War and Peace or the complete unabridged account of World War II. But for a few minutes of the trip, does God want you to learn something new about world history, American History, or Art or Science? Everything new - learned about the world we live in – points to the wonder and faithfulness of God. What about just 5 minutes of classical music? Your kids might actually benefit from music beyond, Khalid, Beyonce, Taylor Swift or Lil Nas. One Thing we always encourage – when it comes to music consumption. Is Worship a priority? Music creates the environment, it shapes the atmosphere. But worship – brings the presence God, it can usher in the Holy Spirit in power – that will fundamentally alter any road trip. An interesting thing about road trips – that are so indicative of life. The real question of road trips - just like life. Who’s driving? That makes all the difference. Some years ago Carrie Underwood released a hit single – called “Jesus take the wheel!” It's relevance to road trips may be far surpassed by it's application to life. Isn't it interesting – the power that the driver holds. They determine where we are going, how fast we get there, they determine when we stop, they determine the speed at which we travel – they determine if we cruise past the traffic jam, or get stuck in the slow lane, and also - if we end up in a ditch. They can also even control the temperature, the radio, and the volume, as well as if we all get car sick – and this is really for life, not just road trips. Most people are like that girl in the Carrie Underwood song. She had a lot on her mind, she didn’t pay attention she was going way to fast. Before she knew it she was spinning on a thin black sheet of glass. Why is it when it comes to life - We all just wanna drive ourselves. We in life, like road trips, often don’t understand God’s purpose, cause we didn't ask. And we only think of letting Jesus take the wheel – when we lose control. But the truth is we never had control, we just thought we did – black ice or not. The truth is if Jesus were driving from the beginning – we never would have hit the ice, or the traffic, or the ditch that we find ourselves in - again. Praying for you – that if you are on a road trip – you would always ask Him to be better friends and better friends with Him by the time you get there. He will answer... praying that Prayer and Praise – and His Word – would be the first fruits of every trip you take. Praying that you will ask God during PiVAT before dinner to reveal HIS Purpose for this trip. That PRISM will set the atmosphere and the tone. Praying that you would grow in the important things – listening, praise, prayer and truth. That nothing would bother you, not slowing traffic, or higher gas prices, or even extra stops. That your mind would be set on Him, and your words would always be His Words, that you would walk in every last thing that He has purposed for you in this trip – always looking for those God-ordained appointments along the way – the waitress at the restaurant, the person the gas station, or even the one back home or far away that the Holy Spirit prompts you to call and pray for. And as you’ve probably figured out by now – your life – is just one big road trip. Love you all, dad Love you all, praying for you!
God showed me something recently. I love it when God changes your perspective – lets you see something in a new way – especially from an eternal view, not just a limited view. Proverbs 90:3 - You turn men back to dust saying, “Return to dust, O sons of men,” for a thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by. Wow. The older I get the faster the days pass. Have you noticed that? Have you ever asked yourself - Where did the day go? By the time you get up, spend time with the LORD, go to work, come home, eat dinner, get the kids a bath and bedtime – wow – a day can evaporate quickly. And then His Word reminds us that God’s sight is different than my sight. His perspective is different than mine. I will return to dust eventually – there is no way to avoid it. Unless Jesus returns during my lifetime – I will return to the dust from which I came. So will you. So what do I do while I’m here – in each day that passes so quickly? God reminded me of the truth that He shared in Jeremiah 29:11 - For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. He has plans for you now – and plans for your future. My whole life – since I was young – I have desired to walk in the plans God has for me. I just trust Him, and I’m growing to trust him more. He’s been faithful all these years. Every need in my entire lifetime He has met – and there have been some big ones. Every danger, He saved me, every struggle He delivered me - my whole life! But then He tells me that my entire life, your entire lifetime (not grade school, or high school, or college days, or newlywed, or starting a family, or in the growing years, the soccer mom years, and then the graduations come and you can’t believe it, and then they start getting married and then the grandchildren come, and then you get older and you see God provide for your grandchildren getting married and having kids… Your entire life – those times when you faced the impossible: from illness that God healed, financial provision that He provided, relationships that He mended, the impossible that He did for you time and time again!) Your entire life. Here’s what God says – it’s like a day in his sight. One day is like a thousand years in his sight. A thousand years? My life is only 100 years (if God wills it to be) but a thousand years! That’s ten of me! That’s me, my son, his son, and seven grandsons, great grandsons, and great-great grandsons after that. Their entire life – like mine – God being faithful every day, every year – to 10 generations of obeyers just like me. All of that – like one day in God’s sight! My mind is having a hard time grasping that. That means if 1000 years is as one day, then one year is like 365,000 years - to God. 365,000 years? And the sum total of recorded human history is about 6000 years. And one year of our days – is like 365,000 thousand years to God, and 365,000 years is like one year to Him. And eternity is years without end? God said - not only will He be faithful to me, but He will be faithful to ten generations of my family – should He tarry – like it was just one day. And then He showed me something else. If I have a purpose for you in your life (one tenth of one day – in my sight) that I have you here on earth I also have a purpose for you in all of eternity. Just like I fulfill my purpose for you here on earth – so will I fulfill your purpose there. Your whole life on earth is like a few moments to Him – And He will be faithful in every one! He has a purpose for it which He said He will fulfill. He will show you his provision - every year, every month, every week, every day. To you and generations after you. He will never forget you, or not provide for you – He loves you! 365,000 years like one year to God! So what problem am I facing right now? A job? Money to pay the rent? The car that we need? Is this even the smallest strain for him? Not in the least, not even a blip on the radar, like couch change to God… every financial need of your entire life! And here is the rest of His truth. If I have a purpose for you in your life here – I also have a purpose for you for all of eternity, and I will fulfill it! Psalms 138:8 - The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever. He will fulfill the purpose He has for you, not just in this life, but for all of eternity. Praying for you – that you will see your life the way God sees it, that you will trust him to fulfill your purpose, not just down here, but also up there. That you will trust him to provide for your every need for your entire life – the entire breath that you live on this earth, and it’s only a breath. God is thinking of not just your life – but His purpose for you in eternity. Praying that you will obey down here. Obedience is of utmost importance! What you do here – affects what happens up there. Look at Jesus – His life down here had a huge impact up there! Philippians 2:8-9 - And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-- even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him a name that is above every name. Obedience is so, so, important! Your obedience here, affects your life up there. No, you won’t be exalted to the highest place, that place is already taken! His obedience brought your salvation. But your obedience down here will definitely affect you up there. Your praise here will affect you up there! What you give down here, impacts you up there, the souls you win down here, impacts you up there, the cup of water you give in His name down here, impacts you up there. Jesus only did what His Father said to do. Praying that you will walk like Jesus down here – so you can be exalted up there. That PiVAT before dinner, PRISM throughout the day – would be so “new nature” to you – that obedience becomes all you know – just like Jesus. That your Daily Call – will help you overcome with your testimony – and help them too. So God can fulfill His purpose for you here – because you’re walking in the plans He has for you! He will fulfill his purpose for you here – and will have you walk in the things that impact His purpose for you up there. You can trust Him – his love for you never ends! Love you all, dad Love you all, praying for you!
Praise God He is always revealing what will make you successful. Everything He reveals is for your good! He reveals Himself, His Nature, His promise, His love, and His specific steps for you to walk in life and victory and the good that He delights to give you! Praying that you will always choose His Presence, and His Word, the place where He gives you rest, the place where His love for you overflows, and His heart is made known to you – for you and for others – with specific things He wants for you to walk in! What an incredible blessing! And then – I’m praying that you will do those things! God showed me something recently in PRISM – that I've not really done. Psalms 89:15 – Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence. The priority of His presence is so very important! Its where the light comes from – not just who He is, and how much He loves you, but the light that lights your way – that makes your path clear - that makes your next steps that He told you - plain to see, and easy to do. Just do it! Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you. Who have learned… How do you learn something? You don’t learn anything without first having a heart to learn. #1) You first recognize something worth learning – that you haven’t learned yet. #2) You decide, you commit yourself to learn it – you weigh the benefit that it offers, and recognize that benefit outweighs inertia, and you decide to begin the learning process. #3) You see it done, you get an idea of what it looks like – from those who have done it. #4) You do it! First you do it - the first time, then you do it again, and again. You cannot learn by hearing only, you learn by doing. Blessed are those who recognized, committed to learn, and actually learned it. Those who have learned means those who give careful attention to, who have been instructed in it, who have learned (who are skillful, well versed, well acquainted with, experienced in it, who know within) Blessed (How straight, right, prosperous and happy) – blessed - are those who have learned (who are skilled and know within through sufficient practice, through frequent and customary action – they’ve learned it.) Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you. What does acclaim mean? The King James version of that verse: Psalms 89:15 – Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound, they shall walk O LORD, in the light of thy countenance. Acclaim – is to know the joyful sound. Know – Yada (Yaw-daw) to know in every sense, give careful and full observation and attention to, be fully instructed in, and participate in, skillful understanding – who know the joyful sound. Joyful sound - truah <ter-oo-aw> clamor, acclamation of Joy, loud noise of rejoicing. From rua (roo-ah) which means to mar, to split the ears, to shout for joy! Make a joyful noise, shout in triumph! Like what they did on the seventh day around Jericho – they gave a mighty shout of victory! – and the un-scaleable walls of Jericho came crashing to the ground. Acclaim – ad-clamo – to cry out, clamor, a shout of joy, acclamation (applause). Acclamation: a shout of applause from a multitude. Clamor: A great outcry, noise, exclamation, vociferation – (a violent outcry – a vehement utterance of voice!) Clamor – made by a loud voice – continued or repeated, or by a multitude of voices. A loud and continuous noise. God said, this is a learned thing. It doesn’t come naturally. Blessed are those who have learned – that shout of victory – that continuous loud noise – that vehement utterance of voice! You have to learn this clamor of victory, this joyful shout. You do it once, then you do it again, and then again. Then when you have learned it, you can do it all the time. Those who learn this shout of victory – who have learned to acclaim Him – God said they are blessed! He has a blessing for them. They walk in the light of His face, His countenance, His presence, He shines on them! The shout brings the light. The shout brings the blessing. Like the eruption that explodes from a stadium full of soccer fans when their team scores the goal that wins the world cup – but better than that! This is the joyful sound of the King – our Savior who saves us, and delivers us, and keeps us and defends us. – who gives us victory on every side! This is the shout of David, as He danced before the LORD. This is the shout of the children of God and they saw the mighty walls of Jericho fall. This is the shout of Gideon’s 300 men who saw God completely rout an enemy of tens of thousands – like locusts covering the ground - unable to even be counted! God said there is a blessing for those who have learned to acclaim Him. This acclamation brings the light of His presence, the light of His face. This really challenged me. How often have I shouted – the shout of praise, the shout of joy, the shout of victory? That’s not really my style. But He didn’t ask me what my style was. He said – blessed are those who have learned to acclaim me. Do you shout for joy in His presence. How often do you shout your praise, not just say it or sing it? It’s uncomfortable, if you're not used to it, if you're not skilled in it. God told me to start small. You may not be comfortable in the middle of church yet, maybe your church doesn’t really do that kind of stuff. It was awkward for the people of David’s day also. Even his own wife criticized him for it. But God was honored by it, and God blessed David because of it. Those who learn the shout of praise, the shout of victory, the shout of the LORD. God says they will be blessed – and the light of His presence will shine on them. Praying that you will start small. Go into your closet first, or your basement, or in your car – get used to that shout of praise! - when no one is looking. Get good at it. Learn His shout of praise - and God will bring you together in His time with others who know the power and the blessing of this shout of the LORD. He will bring you to the multitude who will Shout His Praise together. This is where the rubber meets the road. Some things that God says in His word, I’m comfortable with, like work hard, read the Bible, be thankful. I’ll obey them – because I’m used to them. They make sense, and they aren’t embarrassing. But what happens when the Holy Spirit leads me to do something that I’m not as comfortable with, that I don’t know anyone who does this, that’s a little awkward at first, that I haven’t learned yet? PiVAT before dinner is full of those things, so is PRISM. Even your Daily Call was uncomfortable at the start. But what a blessing that testimony is! God said it, but now you know it - you've learned it! Obedience is like that. Sometimes uncomfortable, most new things are. God will always stretch you. Praying that you will take Him at His Word – that whatever He tells you – you will recognize, and do, so you learn the things He is leading you to – to bring about in your life, and blessing and the good that He has for you! Praying that you will know this shout of praise, praying that you will unleash your voice with the shout of praise! the shout of victory, the shout of the LORD that brings His blessing and His light! Love you all, dad Love you all, praying for you!
God showed me something recently. Psalms 91:1 - He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High, will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. One thing that is so incredibly amazing to me about God. He doesn’t play favorites. Humans do, God does not. He who dwells. Anyone can experience the rest He gives, but not really anyone – really its any-who. Anyone who… dwells in the shelter of the Most High. A recent Daily Huddle – Where You Live At? Spoke of those who make their home in His presence. Who always go out from and come back to His Presence. This is what this verse is talking about – the secret of your success. If you dwell in the shelter of the Most High, if you make His presence your home, you will rest in His shadow. Quite a shadow! Have you ever been in school where the big kid starts to tease the little kid – when suddenly they see a shadow – and to their horror – they slowly turn around behind them where the Principal is standing with his arms crossed and a frown on his face. The bullying stops. When you dwell in the shelter of the Most High, your enemy, the devil, cannot bully you. He can’t make you discouraged, he can’t tempt you, he can’t accuse you, he can’t distract you, or make you feel condemnation – He’s afraid of God’s shadow. He stays away. So when you dwell in the shelter of the Most High, not only are you hidden in His shadow, you also rest in His presence. It’s not that you take your ease, that’s complacence, but you are at ease, at rest – the absence of striving, or concern of danger. It’s where you learn to rest in His power, not yours. Do you need peace? do you tend to worry, or strive to fix things that aren’t working well, or provide for yourself? Dwell in His presence – you’ll rest in His shadow. It’s funny when you live in the rest God gives, when you rest in him, you work better, when you are at rest in Him, people respond better – because you respond better. Nothing rattles you, you don’t fear anything, not failure, or lack - so you don’t give off the vibe of fear, but peace… at rest. When you are not striving and not worrying and not exhausted, you do everything better. People are drawn to you. When you dwell in His presence, you rest in His shadow. You’re rested, not stressed and exhausted; refreshed, not tired; renewed, not worn out, you function better, think better, respond better, you feel better, you perform better. When you rest in Him, He works through you. To dwell in His presence means you make His presence your first priority. Time in Worship and Praise, Time in His WORD, and Knowing His Will for you in this hour, so you can do it with joy! In PiVAT before dinner – God will surely reveal his will for you when you ask. In PRISM throughout the day – you will dwell in His presence, and the mind of Christ will take over your mind, He will confirm His will for you, and you will be at rest. Come back to PRISM all day today – What is your Meditate on the Word? What PRISM Topic does God want you to soak in today? Praying that you will Dwell in the shelter of His Presence, so you rest in His shadow. This will increase your effectiveness, it will stir your faith, it will keep you in the center of his will – where your joy remains! Living in His presence will bring fruit from your life. Abundance! The Good that He has for you. Bethel has a song – I will rest – in your promises – my confidence – is in your faithfulness. His love is waiting for you this morning (his loving-kindness), and His faithfulness is waiting for you tonight. (His steady firmness and security) Praying that you will Dwell so you can Rest! So every Good Thing that God has for you will pour out on you – and bless others around you! Love you all! dad Love you all, praying for you!
Do you know how much God loves you? There’s no way that you could ever know. But He shows you and shows you in so many ways. Do you know that every time God reveals truth to you – that affects your life – that helps you grow, that changes you more and more into His image – that’s Him demonstrating how much He loves you. What in incredible God! His love for you is because He made you, formed you, He just loves you. Not for what you do, or how you treat Him, or how you treat others. He just loves you for you. He knows what you are right now. But He loves you and He knows where He is taking you. Not so He loves you more. He loves you now, right where - and the way - you are. But He loves you enough to take you to new and better places, of thinking, of saying, of acting and doing – so your life is full of His love and His love for others. He is so faithful. He only has good for you. Praying that you will obey every little step He reveals. God keeps working on me – Praise God. Proverbs 14:1 – The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down. When God gives instruction to someone – learn from it. Whether you are a woman or not, His truth applies to you. Other than specific husband or wife or pastor or whatever – role responsibilities – everything God says – has powerful application in your own life! This verse is about building. Build Well. You are either building or tearing down - building or neglecting. You build first with your words, and then you build with your hands. What do you build? What are you building? Some things in your life are already built. Some things in your life, have yet to be built. And some things in your life may need to be re-built – built all over again. So of those things in your life that you are building - it takes diligence. And for those things already built – they require maintenance. So what are the buildings in your life? Either already built or in progress? Buildings in your life might be in several areas. Relationships – Assignments – and Objects. Buildings in your life – what God has called you to build - need to first, be built, then maintained. If neglected they will need to be re-built, built all over again. What are some of these buildings? Relationships: First with God, then your spouse, then your children, then family, then friendships and outreach. Assignments: These too, need to be built, or are built and need to be maintained. Your job, your career, the ministry that God calls you to serve in – whether vocational, bi-vocational, or volunteer. These are assignments that must be built, then maintained. And also – Objects in your life that need to be built, and then maintained. You either built a house, or you buy one - and maintain it. Cars that you drive, or other things in your possession – physical objects - that God has called you to steward, so they reflect Him. Finances… The diligence of building takes consistent, extreme effort daily over a period of time. It’s daily effort – until the building is complete. If you’re building a house – you have to come and put in the time and effort every day. Show up once a week, and the house will never get built! The diligence of maintaining a building (something already built) is consistency in scheduled effort. It’s not your full time job for the next 9 months – but it’s doing the maintenance work at the scheduled times. The diligence is in the consistency at the set time; once a week, or once a month. Before you got married, you had to build this thing. You needed to convince that young lady to marry you. It’s extreme effort, daily, constantly. But once you finally convinced her, and you’re married, and the kids come, and there are jobs to go to, and bills to pay, and meals to make, and bedtimes to keep. That building of your marriage requires maintenance. Scheduled times in which you bring your full attention to each other, so the building that’s already built, not only doesn’t fall into dis-repair, but keeps growing, keeps getting better, over time. It’s not the extreme effort but the consistent effort and the consistent priority that enhances the building over time. Same with physical property. House building and house maintaining, cars, or finances. First you build – with extreme daily effort, then you maintain with scheduled effort. You build with your words, then with your hands. And you can’t build or maintain any buildings in your life – without understanding the how to, and the timing. Ask God to help you. He gave you every building in your life, things that He wants you to build, or things that He’s helped you build – that He now wants you to maintain. He knows how to do it better than you. And If you ask Him – He will tell you how and when. Priorities - may be the biggest challenge in life. Doing the best thing, the best way, at the best time; putting in the work - when and how God tells you. So what is God telling you to build right now? In what are you in a season of building? A relationship? A career? A ministry? an object (maybe even a house)? Your finances? Your prayer life? Are you putting in the time required? Are you consistently putting in the effort so it can be built well, and finished in the time that God wants it to be finished? Next, what has God already built in your life, that requires maintaining? Enhancing over time? And what times each week or each day – has God called you to commit to maintaining and enhancing this? Praying that you will seek him on building and maintaining. What to build, and how, and how long. What to maintain and how, and when. Praying that PiVAT before dinner is your non-negotiable, life-long habit. It will help you build well, and maintain well – in God’s timing and on His schedule for you. But also praying that you would be faithful in PiVAT Weekly. Sometimes what you are building daily – is easier than what you are maintaining. Just put your head down and work is sometimes easier than recognizing how to maintain and enhance over time. Every good thing that God has for you – will be built and then maintained. If you know His building schedule and His maintenance schedule, you will build things that last - that bring joy to you and great glory to Him. Praying that you will be faithful with a Daily Call – It’s God’s command in Hebrews 3:13 – and while it isn’t building or maintaining per se, it gives you encouragement and motivation in the building, and your testimony helps you overcome the enemy who doesn’t want you building, or maintaining, but wants you tearing things down. Praying that you will seek God with all your heart. That He will show you what to build, and when to maintain the buildings He has created for your life. That your relationship with Him would be above everything else. And that you will be fully and humbly submitted to His pace, His plans, and His timing - so what He tells you to build, you do diligently, what He tells you to maintain, you will do regularly, and what He tells you to rebuild, you will do hopefully and faithfully. Praying that in every hour that He chooses - you build buildings for eternity – that you spend time as He directs - on the most important things – at the right time. Love you all, dad Love you all, praying for you!
Well, that didn’t go well! Have you ever thought that? A conversation, or a meeting, or a project or something you hoped would be effective, really wasn’t – the whole thing just crashed and burned, and it got worse from there. Pretty much – a complete disaster... What do you do then? A recent Daily Huddle – Opportunity Knocks - We shared several “Look To’s.” Look to Listen, Look to Praise, Look to Encourage, Look to Overlook, and Look to Serve. Recently – I had a couple of conversations that didn’t really go well. Not what I intended or hoped for. I didn’t really do a good job, even though I meant to. Unfortunately intention isn’t the same as implementation. Someone once said – I measure others by what they said, but I measure myself by what I intended. Don’t we all? As I considered what I could have done better… I could have listened better, I could have overlooked better, I could have encouraged better. Wow. Maybe I should review a few of these Daily Huddles… is that kinda like the painter – whose own house has peeling paint? Embarrassing, but it is what it is. So now what? In asking God, I felt He had a few gentle reminders. “I got this. Even your mistakes.” Sometimes you’ve heard what you should do, what you could do, but doing it is a little different. So where to from here? #1) Always choose humility – you’re not always right, prefer others - over yourself. #2) Ask Forgiveness where you need to. If nothing else, for your mistakes – theirs are not your responsibility – it doesn’t matter... address yours! #3) Seek to understand, rather than being understood. #4) Seek Godly counsel. An outside perspective may help from a humble obeyer who gives Godly counsel. And #5) Let it go. Sometimes – it’s time to just let God handle it. It doesn’t help to always second guess. What God intends for good, the devil intends for evil, and what the devil intends for evil, God can turn it to good. Praise God! He wins! His power so far surpasses that of the enemy it’s not even close. Love covers over a multitude of wrongs – even yours. Isaiah 54:10 - Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,” says the LORD, who has compassion on you. (Interesting – there’s no disclaimer to that. Not “If you are perfect, if you do everything exactly right and righteously, then… no weapon formed against you will prosper…” No, if that were the case, any weapon formed could kick my butt. His mercy and compassion covers even your screw-ups. What a humbling thing… But Isaiah 54:14 leaves a good reminder. In righteousness you will be established: So from where you are right now – be righteous. Presence, Word and Praise, start there. Ask God to forgive you for any mistakes, and ask Him help you! Then ask others for the same – as He leads. I’m learning to ask to “Look to Listen.” To ask Him to help me - to Look to encourage; to ask Him to help me to “Look To Overlook – offense.” Wow that’s so much easier to share in a Daily Huddle – than to do it in real life. Sometimes it’s good to Ask God – to help you, and review for yourself before a conversation or situation occurs – what God said you should do, and therefore what you are going to do! When our kids were younger – we trained before the moment, not just in the moment. When we took six kids – six and under - to a restaurant – we knew this could be a recipe for disaster! To ensure we didn’t have a mass meltdown, we encouraged them in the car beforehand what they would do. How are we going to obey mommy and daddy today? “First Time – with a happy heart!” Yes! And why do we obey. “To get the blessings!” Yes, I know that you will obey and we will be thankful, and have self-control and what voices will we use? “Inside voices!” So lets just practice… what are our outside voices? “OUTSIDE VOICES” Oh my goodness that’s such a good job… and what are our inside voices ‘inside voices.” Oh such a good job! Alright we are ready - everybody grab someone’s hand, and we are ready to go inside… That’s pretty much what happened before we went out somewhere. Sometimes I need to give myself these same quick reminders also. So I use my inside voice. Praise God that no matter where you are right now, God forgives, He heals, He repairs, and He restores. Just pursue righteousness. Ask Him to Help you. Leave it to God, and take the next step from here. And the first step is always humility. And pray for me! I love that T-shirt - Y’all Need Jesus! That’s me – like, every day. But His love for you is forever. His compassion is extended to you every day. He will make sure that all the weapons formed against you will never prosper. Ask you seek His will and His way, He works everything out for your good. First He’ll work on you, then the situations around you. Praise God He’s faithful! We just keep looking to Him! Love you all, dad Love you all, praying for you!
How are you doing? “Oh, we’re hanging in there…” Have you ever had someone say that to you? “We’re keepin’ our head above water.” God showed me something recently. Psalms 92:12 – The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon; planted in the house of the LORD, they will flourish in the courts of our God. They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green, proclaiming, “The LORD is upright; he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him.” God’s plans for you have never been to exist, to survive – His plans for you are to thrive! Are you thriving? Those who thrive are not affected by the situation around them, or the enemies that surround them. God has ordained you to flourish – in good times, and dry times! Who flourishes? The righteous. The righteous is another one of those two sided coins. First you have to be made righteous. Only the blood of Jesus can do that. If you have received him as your Savior, then you have been made righteous. It’s a position you have in Christ. But then, you have to walk righteous, live righteous. That happens two ways – input, and output. Input - what you feed your spirit and your mind; what you fill your heart with. To be made righteous means you can live righteous - those are the righteous who flourish. They thrive. Have you ever seen Palm trees? Often there is desert all around them, but they are tall, and lush and green. And they always grow near a river, or an oasis. The river makes them thrive. Plant yourself near the Holy Spirit – and you will thrive like the palm tree. While everything else shrivels up, you will thrive. Have you ever seen a cedar of Lebanon, they are not like a Redwood of California. They are a more spreading tree, but they are completely unusual, distinct from their surroundings - tree. They grow in barren wilderness – just shrubs around them, but you will see a grove of these Cedars of Lebanon. Massive trees. God says they are planted in the house of the LORD. Cedars were the wood that Solomon used to build the temple. They flourish in the Courts of our God. The Righteous who flourish are those near the river, and in the courts of the LORD. They pray in the Spirit, so they walk in the Spirit. They thrive in the Spirit, in the presence of the Lord. Psalm 100:4 - Enter His gates with thanksgiving and into his courts with praise, give thanks to him and praise his name. But you’ll notice – they also activate their mouth. Your mouth thrives before you thrive. What are you proclaiming? The LORD is my rock! That’s what thrivers do… That’s the truth of God’s Word. Praying that you will not just be those who have been made righteous, but that you will flourish in the courts of the LORD, by the power of the Spirit. How do you do this? #1) Pray in the Spirit so you walk in the Spirit – that’s how you are like the Palm Tree planted by the river - that river of the Holy Spirit. #2) Enter His presence, His courts with thanksgiving and praise. Make His Presence (the atmosphere of worship and His WORD) – your priority. Live there and you’ll thrive there. And #3) Say! Thriving begins with your mouth. What you say you believe, and what you say comes to be. Declare His goodness, His promise, and your obedience. Commit yourself with your mouth. Pray in the Spirit, Stay in His Presence, and Say with your mouth what He says and what you will do! So when the Holy Spirit moves – you move – just like the pillar of cloud and fire in the wilderness. God wants to lead you to flourish! He made you righteous, but he wants you to walk in it! Walking in it requires proximity and obedience. Praying that you will flourish in good times and dry times. Your PiVAT before dinner every day brings Holy Spirit direction, your PRISM in His presence and praise, gives you wisdom, and understanding, and the mind of Christ that transforms you, and impacts others. Your Daily Call accelerates you in the overcoming of your testimony, and challenges others to thrive just like you! God doesn’t want you to exist or survive, you were created in Christ – made righteous - to thrive. Stay in that River, and stay in His courts, and speak with your mouth. You will be planted, established, immovable, and as you thrive – you will bring refreshing to many. So the next time someone asks you “How are you doing?” Just know this is God’s built in opportunity. They are literally asking you? Do you have a testimony for me? Do you have any hope for me? Is there really a God who loves me, and has good for me? When you thrive, you can’t wait for that invitation. How are you doing? Better then ever! Phenomenal! God has been on a roll, and when you follow up that short and simple testimony of praise, with a simple question for them and their life, God will give open doors for you to bring refreshing – that always comes from those who thrive! The ones not just made righteous, but who live in the Spirit, in His presence, who live in the righteousness that makes them thrive! Can’t wait to see all the trees that God will plant and water – through you! Love you all, dad Love you all, praying for you!
God is still teaching me things. Praise God. This sounds a little funny, but it was a huge lesson for me. God showed me something this morning that changed my life. Something that I had never done before, but I will do from now on. What? I said it will sound a little funny. But this morning while I was shaving God showed me a better way to shave. Someone might wonder why this even merits mentioning, but it reminded me that God cares about our patterns, our habits, our disciplines. Even shaving or getting dressed, you probably do the same thing every day, I have - for years! For God to show me a different and better way to do something, that saves time and increases effectiveness – isn’t that just like God. Praise God – we are not too old to learn anything new. And, if we are willing to change – God will add wisdom, knowledge, and practical help to our everyday life! Nothing is too little for Him. He knows the number of hairs on your head! And they change hourly! He cares about the little things - about you! He cares about your habits – because your habits are the disciplines that make you. If He cares about shaving, or getting dressed in the morning – how much more will He show you how to walk in faith, in patience, in victory, in hope, in love, and in His success for you. Praying that you will know this great love that He has for you, and His care for you - even in the smallest things. When you love somebody – you care about everything about them. That’s the love that God has for you! God told me something this morning. Opportunity Knocks. Yesterday’s Daily Huddle was “Look to Listen” – He has worthy things to say – look to listen – to His Word, to the Holy Spirit, to other people – seek Godly counsel, and from unexpected sources. Every day - we can look to listen – the wise add to their learning. But this morning God reminded me of several other opportunities. Several things we should “look to…” Ephesians 5:15-16 - Be very careful, then, how you live – not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. This was the first verse God showed me when told me to do PiVAT before dinner every day. This is why God first showed me the importance of PiVAT – to obey with time. So I can truly present my body as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God which is my reasonable act of worship – Romans 12:1. Part of making the most of every opportunity is looking for them. Just living your life in the awareness that God has things for you, to impact the needs around you, yours and others.’ God showed me five things you should Look To! #1) Look to Listen – To the Holy Spirit, The Word of God, Others, and unexpected sources. If you look to listen – you will be practicing humility – taking the the low place, considering others more important than yourself, and what they have to say, more important than what you have to say. Humility, taking the low place – so God can exalt you in due time. Look to listen. #2) Look to Praise! David said – seven times a day I will praise you for your righteous laws (your righteous judgments, your right decisions in my life). God inhabit the praise of His people. A man after God’s own heart – will praise. Look to praise – and you will shape your heart like David, - to be a man or woman after God’s own heart. #3) Look to Encourage – God says Heb 3:13 – Exhort one another daily. Hebrews 10:24 - And let us consider how to provoke one another to love (obedience) and good deeds. If you get a chance – go back and review the Daily Huddle – Double Down – by helping others discover their testimony it will encourage them to keep obeying – that’s where God's blessing can flow into their life. Look to encourage others to the obedience that brings God’s favor on their life – to walk in all the good that God has for them! Your Daily Call is a built in opportunity to do this! #4) Look to Overlook – Every thing that happens, every time someone says something that is a slight against you, rude or inconsiderate, intentional or unintentional – Look to Overlook it! Look for opportunities to think the best, not the worst. Proverbs 19:11 - A man’s wisdom gives him patience, it is to his honor to overlook an offense. When you look to overlook, rather than take offense, it will prove wisdom in you. And finally #5) Look to Serve – whether holding a door open for someone – maybe a young mom with small children, or helping an old lady with her groceries, or return their cart at the grocery store. If it’s something bigger like helping someone move, or cutting their lawn – ask God for His perfect will and timing. Be sure you are obeying what God told you to do today, don’t let good things distract you from what God told you to do today - but as you are walking in his plans for you today - Look for opportunities to serve and ask God, He will reveal these opportunities to you. Praying that you will make the most of every opportunity by first looking for them – this is walking in humility, this is demonstrating the love of Jesus – it takes your focus off of you, and puts it on God, and others. Praying that you will Look To Listen, Look to Praise, Look to Encourage, Look to Overlook, and Look to Serve, that humility will be the hallmark of your life, just like it was for Jesus. Praying that you will know His will for you today, His plans for you - and that you will be fully joyful in doing them! He has good for you today! and He wants to show His goodness to others through you! Love you all, dad Love you all, praying for you!
God reminded me of something recently. Are you listening? Proverbs 8:6 – Listen for I have worthy things to say; I open my lips to speak what is right. As so often is the case, God’s truth has both surface and deeper meaning. In Chapter 8, wisdom is speaking. Wisdom comes from God, it comes from His mouth. The Spirit of Wisdom, with God at the beginning, is the Spirit of God. Wisdom speaks – are you listening? For me I find I listen far better, when I set my mind to listen. When I remind myself – to ‘look to listen.’ God is always speaking – even His creation is ever-speaking the praises of the Almighty. Praying today that you will look to listen. That it will be on your mind – to hear what God will say to you. How does wisdom speak? 1) Through the Word – not only the book of wisdom, the book of Proverbs, but the entire Word of God is His wisdom for you. Praying that PRISM will be a huge part of your day – that you will keep coming back to it. Walk in the Word, and you will walk in wisdom. And wisdom will establish you, it will protect you, and it will give you joy, and your Heavenly Father joy – to see you walking in it. 2) Through the Holy Spirit in your Spirit. Do you ever ask the Holy Spirit during the day – if He wants to say something? If He is trying to tell you something? If you’ve missed anything? I Samuel 3:10...“Speak Lord, for your servant hears you.” What Samuel did, will fully bless you as well. Let Him know, you’re still listening.. that anything He says, you will do it! Ask Him to help you hear to His voice, and do exactly, completely and quickly, what He says. Did you do PiVAT before dinner last night? It will change your life. It’s listening practice. If you didn’t, just take 5 minutes and do it right now! Don’t let this opportunity slip away. And be sure you do PiVAT before dinner tonight. It’s the key to walking in the goodness and the fullness that He has for you. Don’t miss your Daily Call! It’s listening practice. You get to hear what God speaks to another obeyer! Often it will confirm what He has spoken to you, and your testimony that you overcome with - will be in your own ears. You will even hear yourself again speak what God told you. 3) God speaks through Godly counselors – Proverbs 15:22 - Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisors – they succeed. Whose Counsel will you seek today? Ask God, and He will tell you. If you don’t need anything specific, ask a friend who is an obeyer (they give the best counsel) if they see anything that you are missing, if there is anything that the Holy Spirit would have them share with you. Actively seek out listening opportunities. 4) Unexpected sources - Sometimes God speaks through things, people or ways you would not expect; Nebuchadnezzars, Caiaphases, even donkey’s. If you look to listen, you will notice the different ways God is speaking to you, instructing you, confirming His truth, and direction, and His goodness to you! Praying that you will look to listen today. God has worthy things to say - to you!. Praying that you will seek him, humble yourself, that you will see others as more important than you. Praying that you set your heart to listen, and practice listening today to others. If nothing else, it will help you hear their heart so you can love people. And It will grow your discernment if you ask the Holy Spirit to distinguish it. You don’t know where wisdom will speak. Learn to listen. Wisdom speaks, but also, wisdom listens. The wise listen and add to their learning! Praying that you will look to listen - to His Word, the Holy Spirit, Seeking Godly counsel and any way that He speaks. He loves you! He has worthy things to say. Things that will establish your thoughts and your actions in the Good that He has for you. Love you all, dad |
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