Isa 1:19-20 NLT - [19] If you will only obey me and let me help you, then you will have plenty to eat. [20] But if you keep turning away and refusing to listen, you will be destroyed by your enemies. I, the LORD, have spoken!”

I’ve been around for awhile now and have seen just about everything there is to see.  I have seen those who have walked with the Lord for a lifetime and I have seen those who come in for that quick fix and seem to never get on top of it.  This principle that Isaiah is bringing forth is so true – obedience to God and His ways brings God’s blessings and abundance in our lives.  It breaks my heart to see young people (or any person) throw their life away for some temporary pleasure that comes their way.  It grieves my heart to see people walk in their sinful ways.  The results might not be immediate but they will come sooner or later.  Whether it be a blatant sin or a subtle sin – it will always come to fruition down the road.  On the other hand – those who allow God to bless their lives and walk in obedience become people who receive the blessings of the Lord.  I enjoy the blessings so much more than the alternative.  Obey.  Obey. Obey.  It is God’s way.  It is the road to much blessing from the Lord in each and every life.

Psa 86:11-13 NLT – [11] Teach me your ways, O LORD, that I may live according to your truth! Grant me purity of heart, that I may honor you. [12] With all my heart I will praise you, O Lord my God. I will give glory to your name forever, [13] for your love for me is very great. You have rescued me from the depths of death !

I’m in a very interesting but good place right now whereas God really has my attention.  I feel like a new Christian who is soaking everything about God in like a sponge.  I want to hear from God and what He is saying.  I want to go deeper with Him.  I feel as if some shackles have been removed from my eyes and God is doing a new thing inside of me.  This prayer from the heart of David comes to God with that type of hunger as he wants to be taught from God and wants to live for God in an honoring way.  Everyone has their journey and everyone has their testimony.  Like David, I know that I have been rescued from the depths of death.  God has delivered me and is continuing to deliver me.  He has given me a new lease on life and is helping me to see things like I’ve never seen them before.  I am so blessed and in so much awe this morning.  I am so thankful for God’s goodness and mercy in my life.

Psalm 86:1-7 (NLT) ^86:1 Bend down, O LORD, and hear my prayer; answer me, for I need your help. ² Protect me, for I am devoted to you. Save me, for I serve you and trust you. You are my God. ³ Be merciful to me, O Lord, for I am calling on you constantly. ⁴ Give me happiness, O Lord, for I give myself to you. ⁵ O Lord, you are so good, so ready to forgive, so full of unfailing love for all who ask for your help. ⁶ Listen closely to my prayer, O LORD; hear my urgent cry. ⁷ I will call to you whenever I’m in trouble, and you will answer me.

I love the closeness that we can have with God and how easily He is to connect too.  David’s prayer is the prayer that I pray often over my life also… save me, answer me, I need your help, etc.  Some people pray in the morning and never talk to God the rest of the day.  I talk to Him all day long – before meals, important decisions, for guidance and strength, when I’m down and even when I’m up.  He is so much a part of my thinking.  I am so blessed to have God in my life and I love walking with Him on a day by day basis.  I feel like David “I am calling on you constantly.”  God is good to everyone and He never fails us.  He is filled with unfailing love for those who come to Him.  I am a blessed man today!

2 Timothy 4:1-2 (NLT) ^4:1 I solemnly urge you in the presence of God and Christ Jesus…² Preach the word of God. Be prepared, whether the time is favorable or not. Patiently correct, rebuke, and encourage your people with good teaching.

2 Timothy 4:5 (NLT) But you should keep a clear mind in every situation. Don’t be afraid of suffering for the Lord. Work at telling others the Good News, and fully carry out the ministry God has given you.

2 Timothy 4:7-8 (NLT) ^4:7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. ⁸ And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing.

There are certain challenges and responsibilities that are given to leaders within this passage – especially to pastors.  Every Christian wages a battle every day.  We can never let down our guard or compromise – ever.  There will be days filled with God’s glory in our lives and then there will be days that we feel like you are in a battle zone.  We must maintain a sense of alertness and preparedness 24/7.  Ministry is always to be at the front of our lives – even when it is not so popular with others.  We are running a race.  We must keep our eyes on the goal and not be pulled by other things along the way.  God is waiting for us at the finish line with a prize that will be worth the race and the difficulties.  We must run in such a way to finish well.

2 Kings 12:13-15 (NLT) ^12:13 The money brought to the Temple was not used for making silver bowls, lamp snuffers, basins, trumpets, or other articles of gold or silver for the Temple of the LORD. ¹⁴ It was paid to the workmen, who used it for the Temple repairs. ¹⁵ No accounting of this money was required from the construction supervisors, because they were honest and trustworthy men.

The very fact that it is mentioned that these men were honest and trustworthy men reveals to us that there we’re men that weren’t honest and trustworthy – even with the Lord’s money.  It’s sad, even today that there are people who think what is yours is theirs.  There are men who try to skim off the top and steal from their employers feeling it is “due” to them.  These sins though will eventually be found out and will be brought before the judgment of God.  God is looking for those who will honor Him with their whole being – who will be known as honest and trustworthy men.  We must pray for those qualities to be found in each of us and that we can stand before God with a clean conscience and heart.

2 Chronicles 20:15-25 (ESV) ^20:15 And he said, “Listen, all Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem and King Jehoshaphat: Thus says the LORD to you, ‘Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed at this great horde, for the battle is not yours but God’s. ¹⁶ Tomorrow go down against them. Behold, they will come up by the ascent of Ziz. You will find them at the end of the valley, east of the wilderness of Jeruel. ¹⁷ You will not need to fight in this battle. Stand firm, hold your position, and see the salvation of the LORD on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem.’ Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed. Tomorrow go out against them, and the LORD will be with you.” ¹⁸ Then Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the LORD, worshiping the LORD. ¹⁹ And the Levites, of the Kohathites and the Korahites, stood up to praise the LORD, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice. ²⁰ And they rose early in the morning and went out into the wilderness of Tekoa. And when they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem! Believe in the LORD your God, and you will be established; believe his prophets, and you will succeed.” ²¹ And when he had taken counsel with the people, he appointed those who were to sing to the LORD and praise him in holy attire, as they went before the army, and say, “Give thanks to the LORD, for his steadfast love endures forever.” ²² And when they began to sing and praise, the LORD set an ambush against the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah, so that they were routed. ²³ For the men of Ammon and Moab rose against the inhabitants of Mount Seir, devoting them to destruction, and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, they all helped to destroy one another. ²⁴ When Judah came to the watchtower of the wilderness, they looked toward the horde, and behold, there were dead bodies lying on the ground; none had escaped. ²⁵ When Jehoshaphat and his people came to take their spoil, they found among them, in great numbers, goods, clothing, and precious things, which they took for themselves until they could carry no more. They were three days in taking the spoil, it was so much.

One would not normally equate singing and being at war on the same page but that’s exactly what we have here.  Jehoshaphat was facing a huge battle for he and the people of Judah.  He began to cry out to God – knowing that there was no other place to go.  God’s answer – “this isn’t your battle.  Just relax and let God take care of it.”  In fact – instead of warriors going out to battle Jehoshaphat was instructed to send out choir of worshippers instead.  As they sang – the enemy annihilated itself and the people of Judah won the victory.  You might be facing an uphill battle in your life today.  You might be facing insurmountable circumstances.  Know this – God sees and God understands what you’re going through.  His instruction to the people of Judah is the same for us – just sing and worship God.  Sing of God’s goodness and God’s steadfastness.  Sing of what He has done in the past.  Just sing.  Be a worshipper today of the God is in charge and tells us to sing during the battle.  Trust God in your desperate time to come through for you today.  He always has and He always will.

Colossians 4:5-6 (ESV) ^4:5 Conduct yourselves wisely toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. ⁶ Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.

I was sitting with my dad the other day at the hospital that he was in for his broken vertebrate.  We talked about a lot of things in regards to life.  But what I enjoyed the most was when we talked about the sovereignty of God and how God works in our life and lifetime to bring us to the place that God wants us to be.  None of us just “arrive.”  We must go through the training of how think and act and how to relate to one another.  Our speech is something also that God is refining and bringing under His Lordship.  To be honest – this has been a more difficult part of growing up for me as I have been known to say things at times that we’re no in line with the way that God would want me to speak.  I am better – much better now.  These two verse cut deep into all of us.  They are a barometer of what is taking place in our lives.  What takes place on the outside is a direct barometer of what is taking place on the inside.  I pray that all of us would take a look at our outside living to see how the inside is responding to the heart of God.

Colossians 2:6-7 (MSG) ^2:6 My counsel for you is simple and straightforward: Just go ahead with what you’ve been given. You received Christ Jesus, the Master; now live him. ⁷ You’re deeply rooted in him. You’re well constructed upon him. You know your way around the faith. Now do what you’ve been taught. School’s out; quit studying the subject and start living it! And let your living spill over into thanksgiving.

Some people never grow up in the ways of the Lord.  I watch their lives and wonder when they will finally “get it.” Yes, they have their moments of victory but it seems that the ways of the world just keep popping up in their walk and lifestyle.  They will go strongly with the Lord for a while and then will fall into some old habit or sin bringing themselves down again.  Paul’s admonition here is that its time to get with it.  It’s time to really live the life that God has for you.  You’ve been trained and instructed in the ways of the Lord – but it is now time to live it out.  It’s time to grow up and be the Christian God wants you to be.

Colossians 1:18-22 (NLT) ^1:18 Christ is also the head of the church, which is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in everything. ¹⁹ For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, ²⁰ and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross. ²¹ This includes you who were once far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. ²² Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault.

We don’t’ worship some faceless god who makes a lot of promises that can’t be delivered.  We serve the King of Kings who has sacrificed his life that we might life.  We worship a God who is able to step in our lives and actually make a difference.  He did every thing possible that we would make our way to Him and find true peace for our souls.  As I ponder what Christ has done for me on the cross – I am overwhelmed at the mercy and grace of God in my life.  I don’t deserve to be here today.  I don’t deserve to be blessed in the way that I’ve been blessed.  I now stand before Him today blameless, without a single fault because of the shed blood of Christ on the cross.  He has redeemed me and has taken away all of my sins.  I have a purpose and a meaning for my life and for my ministry.  I have the joy of being part of my family’s life – seeing them grow and mature in the Lord and seeing them face difficulties and battles and wining them decisively through the power of the Lord.  I have the joy of seeing miracle after miracle and victory after victory.  This truly is the day of the Lord today.  We are so blessed.

Ecclesiastes 11:1 (NIV) Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again.

Ecclesiastes 11:4 (NIV) Whoever watches the wind will not plant; whoever looks at the clouds will not reap.

In many parts of the world flooding takes places every spring.  For some, that is the time of planting seed.  It’s a dilemma.  Do I take what I have in my hand and throw it on the water or do I keep it for my daily needs right now.  But the only way that seed will get dispersed is to throw it on the water. As the water recedes it will deposit the seed in the ground bringing a great harvest. It is the way of faith.  On the other hand, the farmer has to decide every day whether he is going to plant his seed or not in his field.  If he’s always watching the weather – he will make many excuses and will never end up working his soil.  He must diligently get up every day and work his fields in order for a crop to spring forth later.  It is the way of faith.  You and I make choices every day that have far reaching effects in our lives and that of others.  My decisions are not about just now but they are for the future also.  How are you dispersing your seed right now?  Are you being generous or are you being stingy.  This present economy doesn’t dictate my giving habits.  All the more right now – I should be planting seeds knowing that it will bring a harvest later.  It also is the way of faith.