Love you all, praying for you,
I just love God’s Word, it gives detailed instructions, and quick reminders. Most other books capture a moment in time or a span of time, even fiction is the story from the author in that season of their life. But this Book is different. God says its living, and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, it separates bone and marrow, exposing even the motives and intents of the heart. I pray that your love for God’s Word is growing. Have you ever watched your children or grandchildren as they taste new foods? Some are a natural. Ice Cream for example is an instant hit. “More” is the first thing out of their mouth, even when they have only a three or four word vocabulary. Other foods are an acquired taste. God’s Word is both, some is like Ice Cream, others parts are harder to understand, it takes some further digging, and some parts are downright uncomfortable - as they shed light on personal failures, or areas in need of improvement. Just a challenge this morning about first fruits and downpours. Praying that you will give God and His Word the first fruits of your day. That your PRISM journey today – those five things you can do in God’s Word – keeps you coming back all day long. Praying also that you would give the firstfruits of your day, even transitions, or transportation – to His Word – it’ll change you! Every time you get in the car – praying that you will give God the firstfruits of the drive, whether a two hour trip – or 20-30 minute commute… If you have someone with you, they can read, or if you have an Audio Bible – that “Read the Word” time, is time you spend anyway. Nothing makes it more productive, than God’s Word. In fact He will prepare your heart and mind to be infinitely more effective in your next appointment or meeting. God’s timing is perfect, He’s the God of perfect timing. He’ll give you what you need to know to make you more successful in your next meeting. Praying that His Word is transforming your mind, and injecting wisdom in you for every conversation! The other thing God was reminding me this morning. Downpours. Have you ever just needed some rain? The grass is dry, the crops need it, and while a drizzle is great, sometimes a downpour is needed. This weekend, what if you read through just one book of the Bible? Not 150 chapters of Psalms, or Jeremiah, but maybe one shorter book like Ruth, or Esther, II Timothy, or 1 Peter... But this weekend is so busy! Yes, they usually are, but you’d be amazed at the time you could find, if you just looked. Maybe drive time, maybe a 10 minute shower instead of 25 minutes, maybe not that hour and a half lunch, or the second full movie of the weekend. Maybe tape the game for the first half, and fast forward through the commercials to be fully current on the live broadcast by the end of the game… The difference between a downpour in God’s Word, versus a natural rain downpour… In the latter the ground gets saturated, and the rest becomes runoff… but that is never the case with God’s Word. Everything gets deposited in you! God says His Word never returns void. There’s always a return on your investment. So praying that you will stay in PiVAT all day long, that you will ask God what Book He might want you to read through this weekend, and where you could give Him the first fruits of your time. Like an acquired taste, it can become permanent. Praying that God’s Wisdom becomes permanent in you. So every relationship and every conversation in your life reflects the love and wisdom and glory of Him. Love you all, dad
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Love you all, praying for you,
Have you ever known somebody that talked too much? Is that someone you? or sometimes you? I just love God’s Word – it is so very practical, it tells you the truth. Sometimes – it’s time to speak up, but sometimes, it’s time to shut-up. So are there things to shut up about? And are there things that you can’t say enough? Definitely. God says to set your mind on things above. What are those things? The things that God says, and the things that God does, how His Kingdom operates, not how the world’s kingdoms operate. How do you set your mind? With your words. Your words direct your mind. It’s hard to think about one thing, when you are saying something else. So what words are too much? Doubt and fear, grumbling and complaining, pride and ego, slander and accusation, reasons to delay obedience, faulty logic and rationalization. These are all things beneath, not things above, things of the earth, not the things of heaven. I John 2:16 – For everything in the world – the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life – comes not from the Father but from the world. So if your words direct your thoughts, what should you say and what should you not. God’s Word first warns us of saying too much. God says – avoid a man who talks too much, (so definitely – don’t let that be you). When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise. A man of knowledge uses words with restraint, and a man of understanding is even tempered. Even a fool is though wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he hold his tongue. He who answers before listening, that is his folly and shame. Do you see a man who speaks in haste? There is more hope for a fool than for him. Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few. Praying that you will review the PRISM Topic – Shut Up - God’s Word on not talking too much. But what does God say we should say? Are there some things that you can never say enough? Definitely. Praise and Thanksgiving. I will bless the LORD at all times, His praise will continually be in my mouth. David was saying – my mouth – by an act of my own will, will be in perpetual motion for good. It’s how I fill my heart and put a reign on my behavior. David was always Praising, Giving Thanks, and telling himself that He was going to obey what God said. These words – you can never say enough. In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. Praise and Thanksgiving are intended to be the perpetual motion of your mouth. It changes you, it changes the atmosphere around you, it draws others to you, and it enters you into the presence of God. Your words are the most powerful tool you have. Praying that you will learn to shut up – about some things, and you will never stop talking about other things. The things that God has instructed for your mouth and your heart – so they keep coming out. Praying that you will Praise today, like He’s worth it. That you will remember every good thing He has done for you – and it’s unanimous. That you would give thanks with all your heart for who He is and what He has done, and that your mouth will direct your steps to fully obey the plans He has for you today, for your good! Love you all, dad Love you all, praying for you,
What is your greatest choice? First there is the greatest choice of your life, and then there is the greatest choice you face every day. First, the most important choice you face in your lifetime. What will you do with Jesus? He said, I am the way the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father except through me. That means if you want to spend eternity in Heaven, with the Father in Heaven, you have to come through Jesus, He is the only way. The Bible says believe on the LORD, Jesus Christ and you will be saved. It says, If you confess with your mouth Jesus is LORD, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved? From what? Eternal separation from God, and the control of sin in your life. Forever in Heaven, rather than forever separate from God, is simply A: Admit you are a sinner, that your sin separates you from a Holy God, B: Believe in that Jesus’ death in your place covers your sin and restores you into right relationship with God, and C: Confess Him as LORD, that means commit your life to obeying Him as LORD, rather than doing your own thing. You can’t do it on your own, that’s why He gives you grace for it. Then receive His free gift of the Holy Spirit, the power to choose right, when the old you doesn’t want to. Just Ask Him, and He will fill you with the Holy Spirit (Luke 11:13). That is the greatest choice you will ever make. Actually He chose you, you just need to receive what He has given you. So you can walk in freedom, and joy, health and strength, so you can fulfill the purpose for which you were created, both here on earth, and forever in eternity, forever with him – where he has prepared a place that you could never even imagine, for those who love him, and obey His Word. Without that greatest choice, no other choice matters. But once that choice is made, here’s the greatest choice you face each day. Your words. Your words determine your life, they create the atmosphere you live in, your words will catapult you, or set your ceiling. They determine what you believe, what you think, what you feel, and what you will do, the actions you take. They determine how far you go and who will go with you. They determine how others feel about themselves when they are around you. Words of faith, humility, obedience, truth, kindness, compassion, success, determination - your Words make your life. God said by your words you will be condemned or justified, that means proven right. They fill your heart, they establish your success, and determine your destiny. No matter how much potential you have, you can never rise above your words. So how do you get better at your greatest choice. Make His Words your words. PRISM – those five things you can do every day in God’s Word will establish your words according to His Word. So you know and believe and do what God says is best, that bring results every time. His Word will tell you what to say, so your words establish your life and destiny and eternity in the plans He has for you. Praying that you will review the PRISM Topic – Speak Life, the PRISM Topic – Say, And the PRISM Topics – Starter Verses, and Stretch Verses. For the greatest choice to be your choice, you can’t wait and hope your words are his Words, you have to plant the seed of His Word, so the harvest that comes – becomes your greatest choice. Not hope His Word comes out, but to fill your heart with His Word, so His truth, and love and life are the only things that come out. Praying that your greatest choice today, your words, will establish you in His love and His good, and draw others to the love and the good that He has for them! Love you all, dad Love you all, praying for you,
I just love God's Word. It says some crazy stuff sometimes. Things that are so unnatural, and unnaturally understood, because spiritual always supercedes the natural. It is beyond what the human intellect can imagine - just like heaven and the things of the eternal reign of the Almighty God. God tells us things in His Word that bring insight into heaven and eternity, and how His Kingdom operates, that alter our perspective now, so we can alter our behavior here. He tells us things that are important, lasting versus temporary, eternal versus temporal. Some years ago God revealed a verse that I had never seen before - Revelation 5:6-10, especially verse 8. Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. He went and took the scroll from the right hand of Him who sat on the throne. And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls of incense, which are the prayers of God's people. And they sang a new song, saying: "You are worthy to take the scroll and to open it's seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation. You have made them to be kings and priests unto our God, and they will reign on the earth. This passage is about the Lamb of God who was slain, Jesus Christ, who gave His life willingly to pay the penalty of our sins, and to purchase us back to God. All these things will happen, when God wraps up the story already written for human history, and sets it into motion at His appointed time. Those things are yet to come, but what are we to do now? #1) Put your faith in the LORD, Jesus Christ, believe that He paid the price for your sin, and commit your life fully to Him. and #2) - Pray. Pray the prayers that God wants you to pray. Just ask Him. He will tell you. Don't just pray for what you want - ask Him what He wants you to pray - prayers that He wants to preserve in those bowls for the appointed time. Review the Prayer Packet of PRISM Topics. Revelation 5:8 gives us an insight into an eternal truth! Your prayers are not wasted, they mean something, they are important, they are remembered, God will use them at the last day. He hears you, He hasn't forgotten, He will forever destroy the works of the devil, and remove the wicked, while those who have been made righteous by His Son Jesus Christ, will rule and reign with Him forever. Who would trade a Hall of Fame NFL career, just to be the best player in the 2nd grade? It would be foolish. But that is what people do when they live their life for the mere 70 years of breath that they get in this body, and ignore the body and the life that will last for all of eternity. It's not how you live down here, it's what you will live like up there that is infinitely more important. Praying that you will live your life with eternity in view, not just what you can see and feel down here. And praying that your prayers - which are never forgotten, but stored up to be answered fully, those prayers that He directs, would be a priority. That you would remember, you are not praying for nothing, God is not ignoring the prayers that He has put in your heart and on your tongue to pray... they have eternal purpose. He will bring to pass everything He promised. Praying that you will pray - like you are filling the bowls. Praying His will, by His Spirit, so His purpose will prevail, in your generation, and for all of eternity. Love you all, dad Love you all, praying for you,
For the last two years, over seven hundred and thirty days in a row, I have shared this Daily Huddle every day for initially my family, and then a growing number of others. I have never mentioned politics or elections, but today is different. One week from today the United States of America will have an election to decide the course of not just the next four years, but perhaps the next fifty. If we are to give unto Caesar – what does that require of us? #1) Taxes #2) Honor #3) Vote. Why is there such disagreement in America, even among those who profess God? If the millions of self called Christians would be in agreement – the righteous would rule, and the people would rejoice. This election as many in this current age, is wrought with division and contention. Why? Because people do not know the truth? They believe a lie. After this critical election, will the Constitution of the United States of America stand to protect the life, liberty and freedom of it’s people? Or will it be changed in favor of some over others? Will it protect the freedom of speech of all of its citizens? Or only those who agree with those in power? Will it protect the right of assembly guaranteed to all of its citizens, those who wish to worship, or only those who assemble for reasons that those in power – agree with? Will it protect the life of all of its citizens, or will those who have no voice be required to sacrifice their life, for the preference and convenience of others - in the name of moral good? What Candidate does God want in this election? Or doesn’t He care. If He has chosen one – would it be the one that most people would think? Will you vote for the candidate of God’s choosing, or will you vote for the other one? Will you even know? The greatest need in America right now… is truth. What does God say about governments, and rulers, those in authority, and those who are not? What is our responsibility when it comes to civil authority, and civic duty? God’s Word never mentions the United States of America by Name. But God does instruct his people about governments and governmental authority. Romans 13:1 – Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you. For he is God’s servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God’s servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also because of conscience. God’s purpose for governmental authority is to commend those who do good, and punish those who do evil, or they will continue to do so, not to call good, evil, and evil, good. Any government official who refuses to punish evil doers but instead makes excuses for them, has betrayed the purpose of their divinely appointed existence. I Peter 2:13 – Submit yourselves for the LORD’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people. Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves. Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.” In our country, we are missing truth, we are missing respect, and we are missing kindness. Those who disrespect authority, are disrespecting God. His Word is clear, they will reap what they sow. The Pharisees came to Jesus to try to harm him. Should we pay tax to Caesar or not? If he said yes, he would lose followers, if he said no, he would be arrested by the Romans. “Why are you trying to trick me? Bring me a denarius… whose picture is on it?” “Caesar’s” “Then render unto Caesar the things that are Ceasar’s, and render unto God the things that are Gods. What is happening in America today? God says Thou shalt not kill – and we kill. Things God hates we do constantly in this nation. Proverbs 6:16 – There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him; haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies, and a person who stirs up dissension among brothers. That is our nation today, we are a nation at unrest, those who stir up conflict, who disrespect authority, and who tear things down, rather than build them up. Those in authority who do not condemn them, condone them. We have an industry called “news” which is based on slander, and false accusation - that which God despises. For four years an elected President has been prosecuted without evidence by those who concealed exculpatory evidence which proved his innocence, they knew what they were doing, but they did it anyway. Not only disrespecting those that God has placed in authority, but spreading false accusation which God despises. Jesus said, a house divided against itself cannot stand, Abraham Lincoln said the same thing. Benjamin Franklin said “Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters.” John Adams said. "Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other." James Madison said – “A well instructed people alone can be permanently a free people. (If they are influenced by lies, that freedom will end.) That’s where due diligence in the pursuit of truth, not the mere believing of lies and slander are so critical to this nation’s existence, and our responsibility as citizens and children of God. Regarding the preservation of America, Abraham Lincoln spoke the truth – “At what point shall we expect the approach of danger? By what means shall we fortify against it? Shall we expect some transatlantic military giant, to step the Ocean, and crush us at a blow? Never! All the armies of Europe, Asia and Africa combined, with all the treasure of the earth (our own excepted) in their military chest; with a Buonaparte for a commander, could not by force, take a drink from the Ohio, or make a track on the Blue Ridge, in a trial of a thousand years. At what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer, if it ever reach us, it must spring up from amongst us. It cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide." What is at stake in this election is life and death, freedom, or the surrender of it. Socialism in all of human history has resulted in atheism, the persecution of Christians, and the incarceration and eventual murder of it’s own people. No matter what name it comes under the result is the same in all of human history, no exceptions. In our nation, one party has removed God from their platform, it berates those who hold to their Bibles and their guns, it supports the death of the innocent, and the destruction of cities and property under false pretense of morality. They slander at every turn, they bring false accusation, they speak against those in authority, they rebel against the authority that God has established, they limit the free speech of all who have other perspectives, and the assembly of worshippers. They call Israel an occupier of the land God said is rightfully theirs. They want to neuter the balance of power in America by increasing the Judicial branch, and giving statehood to territories which support socialism, censorship, and large government, they call those who promote God’s Word as dangerous and unpatriotic. You can vote for them… or you can vote for the other party and candidate who has moved the Embassy to Israel’s Capital of Jerusalem, his policies have produced the greatest economic growth, and employment of every demographic of Americans in US History. He has weathered slander, corruption and false accusation, He has helped minorities as no President before him ever has since Abraham Lincoln. He is for liberty and freedom for all Americans, not just some. He has stood up to unfair contracts obligating America to what is not required of other nations, He protects free speech at home, and promotes religious freedoms abroad. This President is the most hated in American History – with the possible exception of Abraham Lincoln. Why would that be? Like Doeg the Edomite, who served with Saul, and tried to sabotage the next administration. Proverbs 29:2 - God says when the righteous rule the people rejoice, when the wicked rule, the people groan. Psalms 112:10 – Speaks of the actions of the wicked when the righteous are promoted… The wicked man will see and be vexed, he will gnash his teeth and waste away; the longings of the wicked will come to nothing. It’s why the wicked meltdown when the righteous rule. Isaiah 5:20 - God says woe to those who call good evil, and evil good, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter… who acquit the guilty for a bribe, but deny justice to the innocent. Exodus 23:2 – “Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong. When you give testimony in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice by siding with the crowd, and do not show favoritism to a poor person in a lawsuit. Leviticus 19:15 – Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the rich and powerful, but judge your neighbor fairly. Isaiah 10:1 – Woe to those who make unjust laws, to those who issue oppressive degrees… Be very careful where you stand. And be sure that you take a stand. If God has taken a stand, should not you? Today we have polls and prognosticators predicting election results. But has God said anything? Amos 3:7 – Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets. So has God spoken anything regarding this leader or nation – which is so prominent in the earth? (If you are interested, send me your email address with your name, and I will forward several prophetic words that may surprise you that you can search out by the Holy Spirit). I will simply tell you now. I am voting for this President for 5 Simple reasons. #1 He stands with Israel (so God stands with Him) #2 He stands for Life #3 He limits government regulation and taxes, which increases jobs and personal income. #4 His policies have helped minorities more than any President in my lifetime. #5 He promotes Religious freedom worldwide. And Finally, I believe God has chosen Him at this time to enable a move of God throughout the world. He’s not who I would expect God to use, but God can use Nebuchadnezzar's and Cyrus’s as well as David’s and Solomon's. Man looks on the outward appearance but the LORD looks on the heart. This president’s election and re-election will again shock the world. God said it is God alone who makes nations rise and fall, who raises up leaders and removes others. I believe this President has a respect for God – by his Words and public confession, and his government policy actions, prove it. For you - my prayer is that you will search out this matter, that if God has put this President in place for such a time as this… that you will stand with God. The most important thing in America that you can give to Caesar is your vote. We don’t have Ceasar’s in America, we only have who we put there. We get what we deserve. Praying that you will dedicate each day from now til the election to pray for God’s choice for those who will govern. Those who will honor God, not just seek power, those whose hearts are open to Him. Praying that you will vote, pray and encourage others to do so. Every prayer is important just like every vote. May God bring the righteous to rule, so the people can rejoice, even if the wicked are vexed. May he remove the wicked from power – those who call good evil and evil good. May God bless this nation whose founding was by His Providence, whose founding fathers by large majority believed in Him, based this government on God’s Word and His Principles, and credited it’s existence to Divine Providence. May God preserve this nation, so it’s people can be free, and so the good news of Jesus Christ and the eternal life He gives - can be shared with every person in every nation. Praying that you will Vote, Pray, Honor, and Seek Peace… Love you all, dad Love you all, praying for you,
I just love God’s Word, it makes you think, it challenges you, it is the ultimate decider of good and bad, right and wrong, wisdom and foolishness, truth and lie. It gives wisdom for living, wisdom for thinking, wisdom for speaking, wisdom for believing. Proverbs 25:2 – It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, to search out a matter is the glory of kings. Two things are hidden and two people hide things. God conceals things that are meant for us to discover. Like playing hide and seek with your Daddy, who hides where you can find him, or Mom and Dad who hide Easter eggs where their toddlers can discover them. God hides things to teach us to search for them. It is the glory of God – what is glory? Weightiness, that which makes one impressive, admirable, respectable, that which brings honor, that which indicates quality and excellence, that which is the reason for the highest level of reputation. It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, it’s part of what makes Him Holy and Righteous and Honorable and Loving. Things He has hidden are for us to discover if we seek Him first, and His truth next. The best fruit is not laying on the ground, nor in reach of any passerby. The best fruit is up in the tree, yet to be discovered… it requires some climbing. The devil also conceals things... so we don't discover; he always hides truth, not for us to find It, but to prevent us from finding it. He is the father of lies, a liar from the beginning, always hiding, and deceiving, twisting, and lying. God says when the devil lies, he speaks his native language. He will always deceive, pervert and hide truth, so you believe a lie, so your life can be cursed instead of blessed. God’s glory is to conceal a matter, your glory is to search it out. Climb a little, be diligent in your due diligence in discovery. Not being naïve, easily swayed by every wind of doctrine that drifts by. So if your glory is to search it out… How glorious are you? How diligent are you to discover who God is, and be with Him, so He can reveal those things He has hidden? How diligent are you to know Him through His Word, so the words of the enemy have no grip on you, so you can see through them like you see yourself in the mirror? How diligent are you to search out the truth that the devil has hidden – when everyone around you believes the lies? First - PRISM – those five things you can do in God’s Word every day – is the key, the starting point - to seeking God so you can know truth. It’s the foundation of searching things out. Because it is the framework by which you can sift through and discern between truth and lie. Second, your commitment search out truth beyond just the information that is disseminated around you. Not every textbook tells the truth, just like not every newspaper article tells the truth. Sources of information can inform you or deform you - it's up to you to seek God on which sources to choose - what you allow to influence you. There are matters that God hides and there are matters the devil hides. The devil will hide truth be promoting false, God will never do that. He does leave some things unspoken here, but spoken there, to teach us to search out and connect the dots. It's the effort to do this that grows us, and draws us to Him. Because God is truth, so the pursuit of truth is the pursuit of Him. God said there is nothing hidden that will not be revealed. God will however, if people refuse to believe the truth, He will let them believe a lie. Romans 1:21 - For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God, nor gave thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and their foolish hearts were darkened. Ephesians 4:17 - So I tell you this, and insist on it in the LORD, that you must no longer walk as the other nations walk in the futility of their minds. Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him. That's why God says it's important to search out a matter, so you do not become hardened by untruth. For you to have weightiness, honor, the reputation that God wants for His children, God says – it is your glory to search out a matter. Whether things of the Spirit, the things of heaven and eternity, or the things of this world that we live in that God says we are to be “in” but not “of.” Praying that you will understand and pursue both the glory of God and the things He has hidden for you to discover. That you will pursue truth in the sea of lies of the culture you live in. Praying that God will increase His glory in you, and the glory and weightiness of you – as you fulfill your God given responsibility to search out a matter, to seek the truth, so you can think and speak and act accordingly. That you can influence others to walk in truth, so lies and deception have no impact and no hold over you. Praying that God’s glory will be revealed to you – in ways that not everyone can see, because you climb the tree. Praying that God will bring honor to you, because your diligence in searching it out by His Spirit becomes diligence in discernment. Not only like Stephen, who saw things as they are in Heaven, but also like the men of Issachar who understood the times, and knew what the people of God should do. Praying that PiVAT has you obeying, that PRISM has you knowing and believing and discerning, that your Daily Call has you overcoming, and that your glory is increasing because you are discovering more and more – of the glory of the One and Only, True and Loving, Faithful, Just, and Merciful God. Love you all, dad Love you all, praying for you,
I just love God’s Word. It’s like sun glasses or night vision goggles. It places everything you see or think - into a new perspective. Psalms 7:1 – O LORD, I run to you, I take refuge in you. Save and deliver me from all who pursue me. There are two that pursue you – that’s it. Any others are just recruits. God pursues you, He will never leave you or forsake you, and His Holy Spirit is always trying to draw you to God's heart, and His will for you – which are always and only good! There is another who also pursues you. The devil wants to keep you from God’s good, to make you think and speak and act different and opposite from what God thinks, and says and has planned for your good. Refuge is a place you go to for safety. O LORD, My God, I take refuge in you. It’s interesting – most people do that when they are in trouble, when they’ve exhausted all other options. But David always does it first. I love the word ‘first.’ It really means two things – it indicates place or position and it indicates process or procedure. First can be a place, or position, or accomplishment – you won, you are in first place. There is no one who out-performed you in this game or contest of all those who participated. Separately, first is that which initiates everything else, that which precedes everything else. O LORD, I run to you, I take refuge in you. What do you do - before or without - running to him first, or taking refuge in Him first? Anything you do, without going to Him first, is either outside of His will, or at best – less than His best. Even if it was the exact same thing that you were about to do, because He put it in your heart or mind to do it… by running to Him first, it makes it that much better. Because it’s in the correct or proper order, it enriches it, confirms it, solidifies it. What a blessing! Things done in order, keep you from doing the wrong thing, or make sure you do it in the way that brings the most benefit. Try making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich without the right order. The bread has to come first, or all you have is a sticky mess with a piece of bread on top. O LORD I take refuge in you. Anytime you do something, I’m praying that you will run to Him first, take refuge in Him first. What are you doing, and what are you taking refuge in first? Your idea or ability, a mere assumption that if you think it will work, that it will? What are you thinking of doing? It might not be dangerous, but what if you took refuge in Him first. Maybe not in His protection, maybe you are just taking refuge in His wisdom. That in itself could be the best protection. O LORD I run to you, I take refuge in you. I pray at the beginning of every day, in the evening, as you are finishing one day strong… that you will ask Him first, regarding the coming day. That PIVAT before dinner – that runs to Him first, and gets His plans for you, His timing and His order – His first things first - will be your first thing. As the week is beginning, every Sunday, that you would take refuge in Him first. That PiVAT Weekly conversation with Him... that planning session with Him where you listen and He speaks. That strategy meeting where you get the strategy that He has designed for your success this week. Praying that everything that He wants you to do – you will know it, because you took refuge in Him first – you started with Him, it was your first step, and everything else followed – according to His will and His plan, his miraculous design for your good - His favorable and beneficial will and instruction for you – to give you His best, and to give His best to those around you – through you. Praying that you would always make Him your refuge first, like David. So you would always understand and live in the best that He has for you. Love you all, dad Love you all, praying for you,
Have you ever faced a big decision, or a controversial decision? Have you ever been in a situation where everyone had an opinion, and they’re all different, or a situation where everyone took sides? How do you know what’s right when opinions are as many as people, or when everyone is picking one side or the other? Sometimes one side is right and the other is wrong. Sometimes neither are fully right, and the times where opinions are as plentiful and different as the people that have them… Wisdom cuts to the chase. It cuts through the mess and confusion, it distinguishes between one and the other, or any or many other. First you must know… there are two wisdoms. The wisdom which is from God, true wisdom, and the wisdom that comes from this world. The way that seems right and the way that is right. I Corinthians 3:19 – For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness.” Proverbs 14:8 – The wisdom of the prudent is to discern his way, but the folly of fools deceives them. God says clearly – No wisdom, no understanding, and no counsel can prevail against the LORD - Proverbs 21:30. What God says… is wisdom, if He didn’t say it… it’s not. How important is wisdom to you? How important is it to you to grow in wisdom? God says above all else get wisdom. Proverbs 4:7 – Getting wisdom is the wisest thing you can do! And whatever else you do, develop good judgment. God says the house of the wise is filled with rare and beautiful treasures. God says better to be wise than rich or powerful, the wise can take a city from the strong. So where does wisdom come from? It comes from the God of all wisdom. It comes from His Word. Hebrews 4:12 - The Word of God is alive and active (powerful). Sharper than any two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It discerns the innermost thoughts and intentions of the heart. That means not only does it make obvious the right decision between two choices, or many choices, it even goes deeper to the motive, and hidden heart intention. Are you facing a decision between two polar opposites, or as many options as people with opinions? Get wisdom! Wisdom simplifies, it distinguishes between the two, and it also sifts between the many. How do you get wisdom? Ask for It – and God promises He will give it to you – without finding fault with you, or holding your past mistakes against you. And second - pursue it daily. It’s the times when you are not facing a pressing decision, that you can ‘bank’ wisdom for the future. No investment in God’s Word will ever not produce a profit, for now and the future. Praying that PRISM is not only your priority, but it becomes a love, not just a habit, a can’t live without it. His Word is wisdom, it will separate you, it will establish you. His Word cuts between soul and spirit, essential and superficial. Without discernment, you will make mistakes and the cost can be irreversible. Discernment is a gift from God, it comes only from his Word and His Spirit. Praying that God’s Word in you will make you so sharp, that you will never be deceived, that you will have insight, that view from the inside, the only God can give. So you can clearly see, when others are foggy. So you can know what truth is, and what is a lie – and the lies that worldly wisdom produces. That you would be protected from deception, that you would be able to see what others cannot. So you can love them with God’s love, and turn them from error. So your choices are God’s choices, and your path is established by Him. Love you all, dad Love you all, praying for you,
I just love God’s Word – it tells you. It tells you where you are – the fulcrum. It tells you how you got here, it tells you where you can go from here – it can get better, or it can get worse. It tells you how to do it, it tells you God loves you – it tells you the other guy doesn’t – it tells you truth and life and hope, how to succeed and how to fail. And it tells you the love of God who only has good things for you. Have you ever noticed that over time the devil always tries to change your view of God... your Heavenly Father who loves you. Like the little boy who can’t wait for Daddy to come home - because Daddy always hugs him and plays with him, verses the little boy who is dreading it. Why, because he spent all day disobeying what Mommy said, and those words are still ringing in His ears – "Just wait til your Father gets home! I’m so thankful for God’s Word - a true view, not a distorted view of Him. I love how simple it is. God’s Word is simple, it’s just not easy. Some say it's because we aren’t wired for it. That’s false, we are wired for the things of God, it’s just that Adam and Eve’s sin screwed up the wiring. It’s not that it replace it – God wired us for Him, we are - it’s just that sin shorted the wire. I love pictures that simply illustrate things of life. Like a guy standing on the edge of a cliff – don’t do it, no, you can’t fly. Gravity’s a you know what. One of the best pictures of life – a see-saw, a teeter totter. And you every day, sometimes moment by moment are at the fulcrum, that upside down “V” that indicates the center. The point of perfect balance, which is really the point of choice. It’s not a movie, it’s a picture, a decision moment. Some people talk about the valley of indecision, that’s really a misnomer – a mis-naming, a mistaken identity. Indecision isn’t a valley – it’s a point. That point can be faced again, and again, but indecision doesn’t last, it passes quickly. Delayed decision isn’t indecision – you made the decision to delay, to not choose, so you just face the same decision again and again until it's window of opportunity is past, and you don't get to choose anymore - someone else makes the choice for you, or removes it from you. Most delayed decisions are due to fear. You fear the consequence - either the cost of doing what is right if some people might not like you, or the cost of what you think you’ll miss out on that you assume is something good, when it might not be. Granted, sometimes the time to choose is not yet. Don’t let the fear of a wrong choice make you choose delay. Any time you choose delay of the right choice, it means you are missing out on the benefit of the choice you should have made. Neither let an aversion to indecision push you into a premature one. Some things that you should do, or need to do, that are best for you, the best timing isn't there yet. A couple more things need to fall into place first. So how do you know? I just love God’s Word – it reveals not only what to do, it reveals the timing. And His Word is Rhema - what the Holy Spirit directly speaks into your spirit, and Logos what the Holy Spirit reveals about how God's written Word applies to you in this situation. Really, PiVAT and PRISM... What is the Bible about? Some say it’s the love letter from God to you – that’s true. Some say it’s the history book of all of humankind – that’s true. Some say it’s the prediction of the future – that’s true. Some view it as the instruction book of all true success – that’s true. But I think perhaps the best capture of the Bible (God’s Word) in a sentence? God’s Way verses man’s way. What’s right, and what seems right. Just like the fulcrum of that see-saw – if you choose right or left, gravity now works for you or against you – depending on what you choose. Praying that you will review – the Relationship Topic – God’s Way and man’s way. Robert Frost alluded to it in his famous poem – The Road Not Taken… Two roads diverged in a wood, and I – I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. He’s talking about the fulcrum of life – those decision points, and the life altering choices and the results that follow. So how do you get good at those choices that make all the difference? First learn to choose, not delay, and second, choose the right, even in the little choices. God’s way and man’s way applies to every hour. One way is always sin (falling short, missing out) and the other way (God's Way) is always blessing – which leads to more blessing. Before you get to that crucial place where two roads diverge, it’s important to create momentum in your choosing. You do it with time – That’s PIVAT before dinner, learning to hear God’s voice, and choose His plans for you - at the time He chooses. The more you choose His Way, and His Plan, the easier all decisions become. You just get used to obeying, and you walk in the peace and blessing that His way bring, so your future choices become choices between better and better, rather than worse and less worse. Praying that your PRISM time in His Word is the next most important choice you make, because if you learn to think like Him, you’ll learn to act like Him. His Plans, and His Ways – guarantee success at ever fulcrum decision you make. Praying that you will rejoice in His Good, that you will choose it every time, that you won’t be fooled by wrong choices, or independent choices, (that’s always your way instead of His). Praying that you will always view the decision fulcrum where you are, as a blessing, not a risk, as the opportunity for good that it really is, not as a possibility of wrong. Praying that you will always choose His Way over yours, so you get the best He has for you, not just the best you can come up with. He’s about to delight you! He loves you that much. Love you all, dad Love you all, praying for you,
Have you ever been surprisingly wrong? Zealously incorrect? Vehemently mistaken? Proverbs 19:2 – Even zeal is no good without knowledge, and he who hurries his footsteps misses the mark. Have you ever discovered that something you were most insistent about was incorrect, not what you thought? I remember an experience when I was younger that changed me permanently. I don’t remember all the details, but the feelings have never left me. I had a younger brother who at the discovery of an infraction of some kind, perhaps it was something missing, seemed the likely suspect. Convinced that he was guilty, I confronted him with all of the moral superiority I could muster. He folded like a book, got all flustered, got red in the face, started laughing, and I knew I had caught him! And then, to my complete shock, it was later discovered that he was not the one who did it. I had never been so unsettled in all my life. It so threw me, I couldn’t get my mind around it. I was so sure he was guilty, he acted guilty, he proved it by his reaction. No... he didn’t act guilty, he acted nervous because of the attention I brought to bear on him, but he wasn’t guilty – later evidence proved that conclusively. I just couldn’t believe I could have been that wrong on that. But I was. Have you ever missed something? Or stood firm, on the wrong thing? What are you zealous about? What are you convinced of? I’m not talking about God, or God’s Word, I’m talking about opinion or preference versus principle. Well intended belief which lacks fact or evidence. Maybe – the belief that - if I do this, or in this way, God will do that, and do it that way, the way I want Him to. Or maybe, I’m right and they’re wrong. We’re not talking about 'not standing for something'. The quote has some truth to it… 'If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.' This is about those things that are not fully conclusive at this time, or even more – not to the level of moral, ethical, or successful significance that we assume them to be. Romans 14:1 – Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters. One man’s faith allows him to eat everything, but another man, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him. Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand. The passage goes on, but it instructs clearly. Don’t make molehills into mountains. Don’t confuse preference and principle. So how do you guard yourself from being convincingly incorrect? vehemently mistaken, zealously ignorant? First, it starts with humility, (Obey God, no matter what, and prefer others over yourself.) Second, choose to believe the best – even if they are wrong, you’ve been mistaken yourself… Love covers over a multitude of wrongs. And Third, let God handle it. He will bring everything to light in His time, and most of the time, it’s not who’s the most right that matters, it’s how we love one another that most demonstrates who we belong to. Praying that God may even lead you to use the PiVAT Decision Tool – to check yourself on some things you do or believe - by sifting the decision. Should I continue to believe or do this? Paul spent his life hunting down Christians and putting them in jail, until a light from Heaven knocked him off of his horse? Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? Who are you Lord? I am Jesus of Nazareth whom you are persecuting. Sometimes we have to become blind before we can see. Paul was convinced he was doing the right thing, he thought he was defending God, as if God needed defended, only to find out that he was opposing him. Praying that your zeal and beliefs and actions will always be humble, prayerful, loving, and flexible on all things which are flexible, and only firm on those things which God has made unchangeable. Praying that God will grant you the ability to discern the difference, the intellectual honesty to evaluate yourself, and the humility to not judge others, but to love them. Prayer is the key. If you ask God, He will lead you by His Spirit into all truth, He will even show you things to come. Love you all, dad |
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