God And The Promise Of Riches

“My God shall provide all your needs according to His riches in Glory by Christ Jesus.”

God has blessed me with the ability to share Christmas poetry with over 160 people. I also was blessed to share Christmas gifts with a friend of mine's children and grandchildren. It was such a blessing and opportunity to share. It was so worth doing.

I had a trial come about over this and how God provides. With this giving I used up all my funds. I thought that God would provide for all this giving. Yet it didn't happen. I also thought God would provide for every good work. I trusted Christ for this promise. I went to God and asked why He had not provided.

God lead me to a greater Truth. If God always provided for all needs at all times, what about those in prison and those faced with starvation. Our culture is so focused on money that we think this is how God always blesses us. I think of Paul in prison. If God always provides, He would have to apologize to Paul. God declares food and raiment therewith to be content. Truly God has blessed me with my true needs being met. What about those believers in prison, hungry, and persecuted? What is God's true riches in Glory by Christ Jesus?

“Being content with such things as you have, for He has said I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

The answer to the hardship is God's Glory is found as Christ being with us in every trial, every hardship. This is truly the blessing God will always provided.

A side Truth is that when I was pondering the answer to this trial. I thought of this promise.

“My Brethren, count it all joy when you face divers (trials) temptations., Knowing this that the trying of your faith works patience, but let patience have her perfect work that you may be perfect and entire wanting nothing. If any of you lack wisdom let him ask of God that giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not and it shall be given him.”

Truly the promise is when trials are happening, we need to find God's wisdom for this trial and gives us a deeper understanding how God works.

Hope Maketh Not Ashamed

I've been thinking about the time between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. One is the Jewish New Year and the other is The Day of Atonement. Jewish legend says that during this period God looks down on the Earth and considers the Jewish people. I was thinking this would be a good time for the Rapture to take place. The Bible clearly says we are not to know the hour or the day, but the times and the seasons. As I focused on the Rapture coming, God then blessed with a desire for Christ's return and a greater assurance of my faith. After Rosh Hashanah came I was a little anxious. Could I possible be left behind? God led me to various Scriptures for assurance. Then God gave me a promise that was God's answer to the question, why should I let you into Heaven? The answer is the promise, God loved me and gave His beloved Son for me. I've God's Word on it. Oh, what Great joy. Oh, what Great love. Oh, what Great assurance. What a great Promise.

My Goals

It's good to have goals to shoot for in life. We are made internally to work towards to these goals. I have spiritual goals for my life. They are: Glorify God and enjoy Him forevermore, touch lives, keep myself unspotted from the world. My new goal I received from a message my Pastor on a Sunday night service. It is the highest goal We can seek. To live a life worthy of the Gospel. God has also been showing me the constant need to ask for wisdom. We never arrive at wisdom, but need to be hungering and thirsting after that wisdom. The promise is if we ask for wisdom, without wavering, we will walk in this. Another way is to walk in the Spirit and to be filled with the Spirit. Truly we can learn to be seeking day and night.

Psalm 1
"Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord and in His law doth he meditate day and night and he shall be like a tree planted by rivers of water and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper."

Take Me To The Father

After hearing a fresh presentation of the Prodigal Son story, I learned that in a Jewish family when the prodigal son left and squandered his money that in order to keep the family intact, it was the older brothers role to seek out and find the younger brother. It was his job to bring the erring brother to the Father. In this story we find the self righteous older brother was not even happy to hear that his younger brother was returned to the family. An interesting insight that this fresh telling of this story is that Jesus is our true older brother and truly He seeks to find and save the lost. This unique picture of Jesus coming to find me inspired me that it is truly through Jesus that I am brought to God the Father. I called on Jesus with a renewed understanding that Jesus will take me to the Father. After this Jesus revealed His love toward me as the work of God's love would be Jesus being my advocate to come to the Father. How can Jesus do this? It is by the love that He showed on the Cross that makes it possible to bring us to the Father. Truly think about His love, think about His mercy, think about His love that will see us through. Another insight in coming to Jesus that I am both like the sinning prodigal son and also the self righteous older brother. Truly in this story God the Father wants both to come into a loving family relationship with Him.

Worship and Money

I have been pondering for sometimes now, how to not to love money. For this is the root of all sins. The Bible declares we must love God and yet despise the love of money. Recently I have gone to my Pastor to learn the stewardship principle. The first thing I needed to do was to track what I was spending on. I discovered that I was throwing money at things that had no value. Pop, eating out excessively, and gas. It was very eye opening as to my lack of control. As I looked at this for over a week, I realized I was not seeking to do good works God had prepared for me to do because of this abuse. Then God gave me a thought. How do I not worship money? The answer was to decide to worship God with all the money I had and not just Tithing. This thought liberated me. I made the decision (a realistic decision) to limit myself two bought drinks at quick stop stores and only one eat out one meal a day. I now take with me canned fish to stop paying for snacks. For the first time in my life financial freedom is in sight. PTL

The Truth Shall Set You Free

You shall know the Truth and the Truth shall set you free. Truly I have all of God's promises to receive and apply faith to. Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises that by these we might be made partakers of the divine nature. The first stronghold braking truth is to dwell on the fact that Christ died for you and was buried and rose again according to the Scripture. As this is applied we receive the second Truth. We trust Christ, His love, His Word, and His Cross. A third Truth is, "In everything give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus." Faith is received as we recognize His provision as a gift. As a gift we say thanks in everything. The fourth Truth is to "Count it all joy when you fall into divers temptation." The fifth Truth is, "Come unto Me all you that are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of Me for I am meek and lowly in heart and I will give you rest. For my burden is light and my yoke is easy." Will you receive these truths and rest your faith. To know Truth is to walk in the Spirit and to be filled with His Spirit. You shall know the Truth and the Truth shall set you free.

Joy of Confession

What a blessing to confess our sins and find God's forgiveness. As we confess the sins we know, we are cleansed of the sins we don't know. I've discovered that there are two distinct types of sins we can confess and find freedom. There are the sins we recognize as sins. Did you know you can be forgiven for being a Pharisee? God can bless with forgiveness for both. I've discovered this truth. What freedom? God through Jesus rebuked the Pharisees for judging and believing their own self-righteousness. It's hard to believe that God can forgive something so rebuked by Jesus. What freedom as we confess both types of sins. I wrote a poem as a burn on myself. It goes something like this:

Oh, I am a Pharisee and I'm okay.
I teach the law and judge all day.
My righteousness exceeds the common folk.
Oh, I am a Pharisee and I'm okay.

It ends with:
I am a Pharisee and I'm not okay.

Isn't God's forgiveness so great. Truly Jesus' yoke is easy and His burden is light.