Author: Travis Manhart

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His Workmanship “The Gift of His Presence”

Ephesians 3:16-19 

That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in (His) love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height (of His love) — to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

There have always been only two kinds of riches; what can be found here in the world and what the Father offers. At times one has both, yet there are few that can handle the world’s wealth and keep their passion for God. Not impossible by any means, yet sadly it is just not seen. Why, because we tend to value our outward comfort over “the inner man.” Yet it is the state of the inner man that determines our quality of life, not wealth. There are plenty of rich people in the world that are miserable, there’s no shortage of them. The “state of desperation or need,” which wealth so falsely hides, hinders one’s growth. Need/desperation fosters greatly the inner man as he or she presses into God. Taking away desperation or need diminishes one’s hunger for Christ. It’s true what Jeremiah said about the state of man’s heart.

Jeremiah 17:9.  

“The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked;

Who can know it?”

At face value this is a hard verse to agree with, yet as one travels life with Christ one gets to know his or her own heart and finds it true. I’ve prayed for years against the attitude in my heart that when things go well I lessen my grip on the Lord, and when trials come it’s like, “I’m back God, help me now…. please.” This yo-yo effect of our Christianity is pathetic. Whether things are going well or not I am ALWAYS in need of Him. He is LIFE, I represent the carnal man, sin, and death and without Him I am lost and so much of a lesser person.

A simple example. I like my work shirts freshly ironed, so every morning I plug the iron in and while I’m stretching it’s getting hot. I then pick the shirt for the day and iron it. Once done, I unplug it. If I see a missed wrinkle I need to plug it in again, because there is no “life or use” of the iron without it being plugged in. We are at best nice looking irons, but absolutely helpless when it comes to ironing out our own wrinkles; we absolutely need Him.

Also, and not to toot my own horn, but there are landscapers and there are landscapers. I will get called on an appointment to see a client’s yard. The prior company may have landscaped for a living, but they were not landscapers. There is no design, plant choices are mundane and there absolutely is no invitation to come out to enjoy the yard.

So then maybe we can “do life,” as those landscapers can “do landscape,” but it is a far cry from what the AUTHOR OF LIFE can do in us and through us. He is the BEST in the business at giving us new hearts, and granting us life.

Now back to our main verse. If one was to step back and really examine this verse it is the quintessential essence of a successful, fulfilling Christian life. Noticed I said “ fulfilling” not happy. Happy reminds me of the man who built his house upon the sand. He was very happy when he was all done, especially seeing his neighbor struggling with building his house on rock. However that changed one day as the rain continued and the river rose until it reached his beloved “happy home” and then things were not so happy. He probably had to eat some humble pie as he hiked up the rock to ask his neighbor for shelter from the storm. Happy is a temporal state, it’s not permanent.

My dad divorced my mom because “he was not happy.” I liken happiness to the emotional opioid we all seek, but we are mistaken. We are really seeking meaning, purpose and fulfillment and we confuse happiness with that. Internally we want to know that what we do matters, that who we are as individuals makes a positive difference. Especially for those closest to us. Those who seek just to fulfill themselves are the most shallow and the most miserable. The more we focus on just ourselves and our issues the more “me” looks messed up. Just look at the Kardashians. Yet interesting enough our issues tend to work themselves out as “we love God and love our neighbor.” Imagine that, that loving God and loving our neighbor, the first two commands that Jesus gave us are the keys to a fulfilling life. We are at our best when we “exercise our will” according to Christ’s words; we become conduits and beneficiaries of God’s Grace which is what we were designed for.

These verses give us the “richness” that our souls need, our daily manna. To be able to have something substantial within that not only benefits us but to give and share that will genuinely strengthen and give hope to others is great. To know that you absolutely have the answer to any problem is a great confidence builder. That with The Lord in one’s life things will work out, not easy because it is through the struggle that the Lord builds His foundation in us, but victory is sure to come. To be able to bring a testimony of hope and promise of God’s deliverance to others, there is no better gift to give to a struggling heart.

 Jeremiah 29:11

For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. 

Read more: https://www.whatchristianswanttoknow.com/the-promises-of-god-10-powerful-bible-verses-1/#

Let’s go to our study verse and break it down.

that He would grant you, – First, recognize who is the source. We initially come to Christ because of a crisis. The crisis lessens, things get better and we go back to the business of doing our own thing, the very things we did that got us into the crisis to begin with; manning our own ship, calling our own shots. Proverbs 3 says

Proverbs 3:5-8

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own

understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and depart from evil.

It will be health to your flesh, And strength to your bones (this is my absolute favorite verse to go to for all of life). 

Question, do you believe this and do you believe God answers prayers? I do. Trust is pivotal to seeing God work and learning how to pray so that God will answer is critical. My early prayers were focused on me, to make me look good, to make me happy, to have things, to have a great job that paid well etc. Later the prayers changed to “God change me to make You look good and to make You happy with my life, and thank you for providing for my needs.” There was about 8 years of hard trails and struggles between those two prayers but God eventually got His way, and I’m so glad He did.

according to the riches of His glory, The really cool thing about God is everything He gives ALWAYS comes from His riches in glory. He is never scrapping the bottom or giving from leftovers. He can never be outsourced, outdone, or come up short. His amounts are just right even if they “feel” short. Once we lose our love for the world and understand that all that the world has to offer are idols and false promises of contentment, that it is solely God’s love for you that brings life and lasting peace you will be surprised by how little else you need. Content in Christ there’s not much more we need and there’s much we can put up with when internally we’re sound. 

Our main problem is we live life from the outside. We want the nice things, prestigious job, nice home, because we falsely believe that will make us happy; but when you feel good on the inside because of your relationship to Christ then all those other things matter little. Other than needing the basics in life, our desire becomes sanctification, to grow in Christ. My absolute greatest desire is to be pleasing to Him. No other passion or motive even comes close. It is to my glory and honor (and yours as well) to be His son by Grace (or His daughter). To earnestly seek His will above all else is to live the life of a wealthy man or woman internally. The inner man or woman is full and overflowing, something so foreign to the carnal man that there is no meeting half way, the carnal man/woman must die.

Luke 6:38

“Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”

Romans 7:18

“For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find.”

Continuing;

to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, Why are we so lacking in this? We fall at the least temptations, become trapped in carnal vices and then wonder where is God? God also wonders were have you been? Obviously not drinking from His wells that He freely gives. Strengthen; to be fortified or infused with supernatural strength that’s founded on truth.  The picture that comes to mind is that of a hotel which represents our heart and the Holy Spirit going into each room and removing, self, pride, idols, etc., touching and bringing His life to all parts of the room, making that room holy. Then He goes to the next and the next, as long as we give Him permission. He will not force Himself, though at times I wish He would. This is what the Bible calls sanctification and why is this important? Because without holiness we cannot please God. Sanctification means we are now focused on Him, seeking His will for us. Our attention is no longer on this world or our wants, but on His will and the Life to come. When that happens it’s one of the biggest victories we can have. Amen

***that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith;

Faith is the currency of Heaven, victories are won through faith, Goliath was slayed because of David’s faith in God. Faith is the Heavenly Armor we wear, the power of God against any and all Goliath’s that oppose us. It is the end of fear, insecurity, and the beginning of unstoppable power and victory. It’s the Godly force that brings light to the darkness, fear to every demon and the unarguable answer to every lie. Faith is the key to Heaven riches, the Sword of the Spirit that brings every force to its knees, the key to Heavens riches. To live by faith is to master life itself and to step into to the realm of the Spirit. To bring Heaven to earth, day by day. So help me God, Amen. 

“that you, being rooted and grounded in (His) love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height (of His love).”

As a tree grows, sending it’s roots deep into the earth we to grow in Christ and become strong in the love of our Father. As we “root” into Him via faith and His Word we bare fruits of righteousness. Ultimately….

— to know (experience, engage in, be part of, share) the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God (from now unto eternity, forever filled to overflowing in and with His love).”

Father God, 

As we walk this life may Your desire for us become paramount in us, to daily walk in humility and in harmony with your Spirit. We are in weak tents of flesh that challenge us and seek to hinder us in You but it is these very tents like the winds contrary to the eagle that make the eagle to soar upward. Make us masters at subduing our flesh and using these very cross winds to bring You glory because of the unsurpassable blessing of knowing You.

Amen and Amen

Move forward in His Grace – Arthur

Arthur Navarrette
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My Journey – An anchor of Hope

Christmas is the only time I switch my writing focus from landscaping to more of a personal note. The silent struggle of who we are and what we do to gain significance is not spoken of in our culture. If we talk about it, we talk to a counselor, a pastor or a close friend. Developing a positive identity (not an ego) is something we all wrestle with. Maturity helps with this as well as the experiences we go through, however issues can compound this. We all have our own journey, but I’m going to share mine with you. I appreciate that faith is a personal journey that we each take, and mine is no exception. I am going to be very honest about my life. My hope is that by being open, it helps you with yours, because our faith is tied to our identity and significance.

My journey started with tragedy at the age of eight. It is from this tragedy that I mark my life. I felt like a forest that had been ravaged by fire, taking lives and destroying property. However, as in nature, it eventually rains and in time new life emerges. That’s my life in a nutshell. I come from a family of 3 boys. One day we were playing around an abandoned home which, unbeknownst to us, had a well. I stepped on the lid of the well, which was unsecured, and the lid gave way under my weight. Fortunately, I caught myself. My two brothers were with me. Rick was seven and Bobby was five. Before I continued the climb, I warned Rick not to step on the lid and I told Bobby to go home because it was too dangerous for him. Bobby didn’t go home.

That night at dinner time, we always ate as a family, but Bobby wasn’t there. It never occurred to my 8-year-old mind until then that Bobby had followed us, stepped on the lid, and fallen in. The firemen came to drain the well and confirmed to my parents that my brother had drowned. By then it had been 3 hours, and my little brother was in heaven. The hours that followed were so horrendous that I could not even process it. We were all in absolute shock. I had never heard my parents nor my grandparents (we were living with them) cry as they did. I can’t recall what Rick and I did, probably just went to our bedroom and eventually fell asleep. The only thing that I can recall is my mom blaming me for Bobby’s death. It took a while for the gravity of that accusation to hit me and when it did, I didn’t know how to deal with it. Her statement was said in absolute grief, but I feel as though I have attended hundreds of funerals, and the sense of death has never really left me. Through school and sports, I could block it out, until something triggered it. We would drive by a cemetery, or I would see a hearse or an ambulance, and the heavy guilt would come rushing in. I could not control It. It literally stopped me, and I needed to be alone. My mom would take us to “see Bobby” at his grave, which strangely helped. After the crying, we would always pray and thank God that Bobby was with Him. My mom prayed because dad never came, at least not with us. In my mind the same thought would reoccur, “if only I had checked to see if he obeyed me, none of this pain would have happened.” Heaven was my only consolation that Bobby was not dead, that he was waiting for us and having a great time while waiting. Had it not been for that truth,  I’m not sure how I would have dealt with the guilt. It became my anchor of hope.

As I matured, I excelled in school, won many awards for scholastic achievements, even became Student Body President of my High School. I was voted “Teachers Choice” three out of four years and “Most Likely to Succeed” for all four years. Yet with all this, the guilt that I lived with made any joy short lived. The guilt was like a cancer that ate away at all the good things that came my way because of my achievements. Much of my early adult life was like this, and becoming a dad of two girls was bittersweet. The thought of something similar happening to them made me hypervigilant; always looking for the “camouflaged wells” that they could fall into. I became a Christian as a teenager, so by the time we had the girls I had some knowledge of the scriptures. I heard the teaching of forgiveness many times but could never get free of the guilt. I knew I was born again. I knew God had forgiven me and that He did not hold me responsible for Bobby’s death, but I could not forgive myself. I didn’t know how. I sensed His presence with me, which was a huge comfort, but this incident was so deep inside of me I wasn’t sure if even God could reach it. Lisa and I got married young and were too young to have the responsibility of being parents. Our insecurities got the better of us, so we argued a lot. In the back of my mind, I questioned whether I could do this. Could I raise these two girls, be a husband, and work my way up the ladder all the while dealing with bosses that acted like ex-drill sergeants? The guilt inside me made everything so much more difficult because there was no rest, and no escape. Everywhere I turned there was tension, stress, and problems demanding my attention. The promise of God’s peace eluded me. This went on for several very long years. One of the more difficult days I recall was an experience I had at church camp. I remember going off into the woods with just me and my Bible. As I read, God’s presence met me. I recalled the joy and the sense of wholeness, as in coming home to a place where I belonged. I decided to return to thereading of the scriptures, and He met me again. My time with God became my only retreat where I found peace, strength, encouragement, and a hope for a better future. I stayed steadfast to this time with Him, even reading in freezing temperatures as I ate my lunch outside. For that half hour, my Bible, my blanket and His presence were all I focused on. It was like He stopped His day just to be with me. Weekends, I spent an hour, getting up before the family. It was the one joy that I could count on. I began to change as His presence grew within me.

I began to excel again, yet there were a few times the girls had near death experiences that set me back. Jessica (my youngest) almost drowned and I lost it, scolding 8-year-old Amber for not watching her better. Lisa had to come and settle me down, and later I needed to ask Amber for forgiveness. As I continued in His Word, I continued to get stronger and could better deal with work stress and life in general. I left the corporate world and started my own landscape maintenance company. I would call on apartment complexes large and small. It seemed that every one of them had a female manager. I needed to give them a bid and then after getting the contract, I reported to them.  Flirtation  became expected, so I learned how to navigate without being insulting. I was friendly but kept the conversation professional. I felt like Joseph, and these women were like Potiphar’s wife (a story in the Bible). Aside from that, the stress of running a business was overwhelming. Yet even that was slowly being conquered by knowing and believing God’s promises. Regardless of the chaos of the day, my lunch time was when I got recharged and took a break from the daily fight. Our marriage got better as Lisa realized that running a business was a team effort, I needed her help. Finally, as I got closer to 40 yrs. of age, I became strong enough to face the two biggest monsters in my life – fear of not getting jobs (at this point we were mostly a landscape company) and the inability to forgive myself. I told the Lord that I was fed up with not fully trusting Him and allowing fear to control me, that I was going to trust Him period. Proverbs 3:4-5 became my stake in the ground, and the armor I wore when fear came calling. I also went back in my mind and remembered that confused, fear-filled little boy and I forgave him. He did nothing wrong; he was just being an adventuresome little boy with no concept of danger, especially death. Death had never been part of his world, so he had no reference to it.

I’m Forgiven, (Ephesians 2:4&5) “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ” (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places.

This verse was my ticket to freedom, I believed it, and for the first time I felt whole. The heavy burden that I had carried for so many years was gone. I could breathe. It was an incredible feeling. God finally went deep enough inside me that His Grace reached the hidden fears of insecurity and unforgivable shame in me. I came home that day feeling like Superman. I was bullet proof. The internal battles were now finally conquered. From now on the battles were going to be coming from the outside, and I was ready for them… People will say “Oh I know that God loves me,” but their life does not show His love. They are easily offended, lack grace and kindness, especially in the rough spots of life. Anybody can be nice when life is going their way. However, in the hard times, how are we? Are we hard to get along with, do we blame others for our problems, do we have a temper, or do we demonstrate joy and peace and give grace to others when they fall short? Also God’s love doesn’t prevent hard times from coming; not at all. However, His love gives us the hope, confidence and strength to go through the hard times (Psalm 23). Stress, pain, and heartache are sure to come, but He’s there. Much like crutches help us when we break a leg. A broken heart still hurts, but because of His love, there is healing. How would we ever know the love of God if our struggles didn’t force us to Him? Left to our own, we would indulge ourselves. That is just the reality of our who we are. Struggles prove that indulgences are not the answer, and getting what we want does not prevent hardship, or really make us happy. True life is much deeper than that.  We need a God that can forgive, heal, grant wisdom and give us comfort, especially in difficult times. It’s the hardships that cause us to discover Him. They are necessary to tear our hearts away from this materialistic and superficial world and discover God’s world. There’s a great saying that goes, “a great relationship is made up of two great forgivers.” This is true on a human level, but it is true on a heavenly level as well. I can forgive because I have been forgiven. Because of the clean slate that has been offered to me, by the only One that had an absolute right to condemn me, who am I to not forgive others? My hope for us all is that we take our pain, fears, Insecurities to the God who Is big enough to deal with them. He is your biggest fan, your closest friend and gives the best hugs ever!

To learn more please go to our website and click on My Journey 2. Thank you and Merry Christmas.

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“Who I am” – Redeemed (Part III)

Ephesians 1:6-9

“In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself,”

So far in this series we have learned that we are forgiven. I illustrated this through the story of my own life. Although WE ARE FORGIVEN, it may take a while to forgive yourself, but when God Almighty looks at us He sees His kids. We are being formed (growing) into His image, and it can definitely be very hard while we are learning to live out our new identity. However He REJOICES in our the baby steps as any good father rejoices in the development of their child. Secondly, we learned that we are CALLED in the sense of being ACCEPTED. We made the team, we’ve been hired, we made the grade, we are in, etc. There are many ways to say the same thing. Paul says it like this, “we have been accepted (received) in the beloved (Jesus).”  Nor for anything we have done, he did it all. The Perfect became took on our sin to make the us perfect (Born Again). He did it all, we only accepted His invitation and in so doing we put our trust in HIS ABILITY to save us. Now it is our pleasure to learn of Him.

This Heavenly Romance is what John says in John 3:16 “….For whomsoever would believe in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ would not perish but have everlasting life.”

Also, 

“In Him we have redemption through His blood (redemption literally means to buy back). We were once His at Creation, but we gave our “pink slip” away at the beginning over to the enemy, and again every time we disobey.

How do we stop this and really begin to live a life of victory? Defeating our sin nature? The next verses are super insightful.

Joshua 1:8-9

This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

This is how we strengthen our spirit man/woman and stop living defeated lives, and missing out on the joy, peace and love The Lord wants for us. If we do this we will begin to understand what redemption means and more importantly we will begin to live it. The Holy Spirit uses the scriptures to help us mature and in so doing our joy and success with be evident to those that know us, but most importantly to us. 

Let me go into a little more detail. Redemption, apolutrosis in the Greek is a key word in Christian theology. Without redemption we have nothing. Our whole salvation pivots on this truth. It has two significant meanings; deliverance from sin & freedom from captivity. In other words, I no longer have to sin because I am no longer a slave to my sinful nature, which up to this point controls me. I don’t have to lose my tempter, fear or feel insecure, lust or seek fulfillment via other means other than Christ. All these other things enslave us. We can literally be a free man or woman when we say yes to the Holy Spirit and allow Him to lead us.

In the age when slavery was common, you had no rights, and your master could sell you at any time. If you had a family your slave-master could sell them too. If your master was cruel and had you do things against your conscience, you had no choice. You had to go along with the plan or risk of being beaten, or worse, killed. In essence you were no better than a donkey, ox or a beast of burden. You were nothing but a commodity that could be replaced.

If your master decided to sell you and a good and kind master bought you, you legally no longer belonged to the cruel master. You were purchased and had been REDEEMED. You now took your orders from the kind master. One day you are harvesting in your new master’s field and your old master sees you and orders you to work in his field. He could threaten you, he could curse you, but he cannot make you work for him. You are no longer his, he has no power over you. You “may feel” obligated because he was your master for so many years, but that is where the truth of your new status must govern your mind and heart. You legally have a new identity and no matter how hard your old master yells, shouts, curses or tempts you, he knows that to be true.

In James we have this TRUTH.

James 4:7

Therefore submit to God (your new Master). Resist the devil (the old master) and he will flee from you.

This is such an important truth. However, if we as believer do not know this truth our enemy is not going to tell us. One of the main problems with us Christians is that so very few of us know the truth. We go to church once a week and think that makes us Christian. That is no more true than a gymnast going to the gym for and hour each week and thinking that he or she will be ready for the Olympics. Easy physical transformation is not going to happen, and same applies to our spiritual transformation. Without a frequent intake of God’s Word and prayer and a growing reliance on the aid of the Holy Spirit, we will not stand. The Christian life is so much more than just being a nice person. It involves living a holy life. That is something we are not able to do. We become too easily entangled in the cares, temptations, self indulgences, and values of this world. Without the aid of the Holy Spirit holiness is not attainable, yet holiness is what is required.

1 Peter 1:14-16

As obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”

And why? Because it is only holiness that free us. 

It is for FREEDOM that Christ has set us free, and that FREEDOM is found in knowing and living in a Holy relationship with Him – there is no true freedom apart from this, period. It requires effort, “all hands on deck,” there is Divine work that needs to be done on the inside of me, so….

Galatians 5:1

Stand fast (stand firm, resist, be strong) therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage (do not become slaves to principal elements of our flesh). 

Romans 7:14

“I know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.”

Romans 3:23-26

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, (fallen short of the perfection of God).”

Romans 7:24-25

O wretched (afflicted, miserable) man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!

So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin.

Understanding this battle makes it is easier to understand our need for salvation and our need to be in relationship with Him. There’s an invitation that is presented to us in James 4:8,

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded (“rhuomai” is the word for draw, meaning to pull something or someone close to you). 

Romans 8:13-17

For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are Sons and Daughters of God. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba (Papa), Father.” The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together (Amen!).

This now becomes my NEW IDENTITY, and this is how we need to think. The Christian walk is not hard, it’s IMPOSSIBLE!  Without the Holy Spirit and God’s Word it becomes a religious walk of do’s and dont’s. It is the Holy Spirit that takes God’s Word and applies it to our heart and mind, setting us free. Through it we are encouraged, made wise in the things of God and live a life of truth. All that we will ever need comes from a routine time of prayer and reading and or hearing the Word. Hope and patience become our friends and sanctification (being cleansed unto holiness) is the path we walk.

Having said that I am very aware that the Christian life can be frustrating. At times it feels like it takes forever to change. I’m sure being a doctor is not easy either. It takes many many years of study, then more years of residency before you can actually practice, and more years if you specialize. However in the end, you become a doctor. We are becoming doctors of the soul. We bring truth and hope to the souls that have been weighed down and sickened by sin. To hear that life can be better, brings hope, and hope with practical support brings encouragement and healing. May God grant us the ability to walk in Christ’s footsteps. Amen.

Father God,

Thank you for this study. Help the clarity of what our purpose is ( to be vessels of Your Holy Presence ) and of what Your purpose is, our Strong Redeemer and Savior and joined with prayer and the study of Your Word is an undefeated force. Let us rejoice in the victory of knowing You. Amen.

Go in Grace, Grow In Faith – Arthur

Arthur Navarrette
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Who I Am

2 Corinthians 5:17

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

2 Corinthians 5:20-21

Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God.  For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (so very few of us believe and practice this truth).

This next story is very personal.  Everything that is shared is precious but the thing that moved mountains of insecurity from me (and built fortresses in their place) was learning about my true identity.  We all grow up with insecurities, many of us still struggle with them.  I believe the root for our insecurity comes from the fall of man.  We were designed with an innate need to be in relationship with the Lord.  When sin entered we became separated from God’s presence, became spiritually empty, and void of His presence.  This is a huge deficit because we are at the core, spiritual beings. We can have everything we want and still feel empty.

Most of our study will be in Ephesians but the first Truth we need to receive is forgiveness.  Great gifts of mercy and love amount to little if we have guilt in our inner being.  We never really truly “accept” the merciful gifts because our guilt continues to play the same old tape, “ if people only knew…”

I lived with guilt from the age of 8 to 45.  From 40 to 45 I slowly got better, until 45 when I truly became free.

I’ve shared my story how at 8 years of age my brothers and I were playing around an abandoned home that had an unknown well.  I stepped on the lid of the well, which was unsecured, so the lid gave way under my weight.  Fortunately or unfortunately I caught myself.  I told Rick, two years younger than me, to not step on it and then I told Bobby (5 yrs. old) that it was too dangerous for him and to go home; I then preceded to climb.

Bobby didn’t go home, instead he followed us and he didn’t hear me warn Rick.  He stepped on the lid, fell, and drowned.  I didn’t hear anything that would have caused me to turn around, and all I remember is getting off the roof and seeing the lid somewhat misplaced.  It never occurred to my 8 year old mind that Bobby had fallen in.  At dinner time Bobby wasn’t there.  That was the first time it occurred to me that Bobby could have fallen into the well.  By then it had been 3 hours and Bobby now was in heaven.  The hours that followed were so horrendous that I could not even process it.  We were all in shock.  I had never heard my parents nor my grandparents (we were living with them) cry as they did.  I can’t recall what exactly what Rick and I did.  Eventually we just went to our bedroom and eventually fell asleep.

I can recall my mom blaming me for Bobby’s death.  It took a while for the gravity of that statement to hit me and when it did I didn’t know how to deal with it.  Because of that statement I feel as though I have attended hundreds of funerals, and the sense of death has never really left me.  Through school and sports I could block the feeling out, but something could always trigger it.

We would drive by a cemetery, I would see a hearse, hear of a death and then my mom would take us to “see Bobby” (his grave) which helped a little.  After the crying we would always pray and thank God that Bobby was with Him.  My mom prayed, but dad never came, at least not with us.

In my mind the same thought would reoccur, “if only I had checked to see if he obeyed me none of this pain would have happened.”  Heaven was my only consolation, that Bobby was not dead, that he was waiting for us and having a great time while waiting.  Had it not been for that truth, I’m not sure how I would have dealt with the guilt.

As I matured I excelled in school, won many awards for scholastic achievements, even became Student Body President of my High School.  I was voted Teachers Choice three out of four years and for four years, most likely to succeed.  Yet with all this, the guilt that I lived with made the joy short lived.  The guilt was like a cancer that ate away at all my achievements and the good things that came my way because of them.  Much of my early adult life was like this, and becoming a dad of two girls was happy sad.

The thought of something similar happening to them made me hyper vigilant, always looking for the “camouflaged wells” that they could fall into.

I came to Christ as a teenager, so by the time we had the girls I had some knowledge of the scriptures.  I heard the teaching of forgiveness many times but could never get free of guilt.  I knew I was born again, that God had forgiven me for all my sins, but I could not forgive myself.  I didn’t know how. I sensed His presence, which was a huge comfort, but this incident was so deep inside of me I wasn’t sure if even God could reach it.

More Problems

As a young husband (23 yrs. old) with multiple fronts to deal with this issue got buried but would resurface.  It was something that I had no control over.  Work was tough, and marriage was tough. We argued a lot; our insecurities got the better of us.  In the back of my mind I questioned whether I could do this; raise these girls, be a husband, work my way up the ladder while dealing with bosses that reminded me of drill sergeants.  At times it felt as though the guilt became heavier, especially after our arguments. There was no rest, no escape, everywhere I turned there was tension, temptation, stress, or problems demanding solutions. The promise of God’s peace alluded me.  This went on for several years.

As a teenager I recalled going off into the woods at church camp, just me and my Bible and finding God’s peace.  I often returned to that and He met me.  My time with Him became my only retreat were I found peace, strength, encouragement and the hope of a better future.  I stayed steadfast to this time with Him, even reading in freezing temperatures as I ate my lunch outside.  It became my mini vacation, that half hour with my Bible, my blanket and His presence.  It was liked He stopped His day just to be with me.  Weekends I spent an hour, getting up before the family.  It was the one joy that I could count on.

I began to change.  With God in my court the burdens of life, though tough, were becoming doable.  I began to excel again, yet there were a few times the girls had near death experiences that set me back.  Jessica almost drowned and I lost it, scolding Amber for not watching her better.  Amber was 8.  Lisa had to come and settle me down and later I had to ask Amber for forgiveness.  As I continued in His Word I continued to get stronger and could deal better with my drill sergeant bosses and the with temptations.

From secretaries to apartment managers I seemed to be every woman’s target.  In starting my own landscape maintenance company I called on apartment complexes.  It didn’t matter what size, it seemed that everyone of them had a female manager and they were who I needed to see to give a bid, and who I reported to once we got the contract.  Flirtation was expected but I learned how to navigate without being insulting.  I was friendly but kept the conversation professional.  I felt like Joseph and these women were like Potipher’s wife.

Aside from that the overall work stress that was eating alive but I was slowly being conquered by God’s Word.

Some History

Prior to starting my own business I had three bosses in the course of 14 years.  Eventually my last boss fired me, which I had seen coming.  His concept of growing plants was completely different than mine.  I believed in pruning the plants to shape them, he believed in letting nature shape the plants which was something I could not do.  I had developed a reputation as a quality oriented grower and I was not going to let my boss change that even if it meant losing the job.  With a good reputation I could always get another one.  It never occurred to me that I would end up starting my own business.  I may have thought twice about my reputation.

New World

Starting a business from nothing was a whole new world that I knew nothing about.  I had to learn quick, our house payment was coming due and the girls were growing so our grocery bills were increasing.  My guilt once again became buried, which in a sense was good.  I knocked on doors, homes, and businesses with poor landscapes, sending out a professional looking letter introducing myself to property managers, following up with phone calls etc.. Hustling jobs, getting known and billing were things I had never done before and they became the new challenges I faced daily.

My lunch time was when I got recharged and took a break from the daily fight.  Our marriage got a little better as Lisa realized this was a team effort, and I needed her help.

Finally, as I got closer to 40, I became strong enough to face the two biggest monsters in my life; fear of not getting jobs and the inability to forgive myself.  I told the Lord (as mentioned in the last Vida) that I was going to trust Him and to bring me work and stop allowing fear to control me.  Proverbs 3:4-5 became my stake in the ground, and the armor I wore when fear came calling.  I went back and remembered that confused fear filled little boy and I forgave him.  He did nothing wrong!  He was just being an adventuresome little boy with no concept of danger or death.

I’m Forgiven ( Ephesians 2:4&5)

“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.”

For the first time I felt whole.  The heavy burden that I had carried for so many years was gone.  I could breath.  It was an incredible feeling!  God finally went deep enough inside me that His Grace reached the hidden fears of insecurity and unforgiveness.  I came home that day feeling like Superman.  I was bullet proof.  The internal battles were now finally conquered, from now on the battles were going to be coming from the outside, and I was ready for them….

The Lesson

People will say “Oh I know that God loves me,” but their life does not show His love.  They are easily offended, lack grace and kindness, especially in the rough spots of life.  Anybody can be nice when life is going their way.  However in the hard times, how are we?  Are we hard to get along with, do we blame others for our problems, do we have a temper or do we demonstrate joy, peace, and a sense of calmness overall?

His love and knowing Him doesn’t prevent hard times from coming.  His love gives us the confidence we need to go through the hard times.  Stress or pain, or heartache is sure to come.  He is there.  Much like crutches help us when we break a leg.  A broken heart still hurts, but because of His love there is healing on its way.  How would we ever know the love of God if our struggles didn’t force us to Him?

Left to ourselves we would indulge ourselves.  That is just the reality of our flesh.  Struggles prove that indulgences are not the answer.  Indulgence does not prevent hardship, and at times they may even cause them.  We need a God that can forgive, heal, grant wisdom, and give comfort in those difficult times.  His presence (The Holy Spirit) is the best hug you will ever feel.

Hardships that cause us to discover Him.  They are absolutely necessary to tear our hearts away from this world and discover His.

If we truly are in relationship with God and experiencing His Love, then it is absolutely impossible to remain the same.  We will be changing, for God’s Love is a positive forward moving force that changes us.

Also we do not “know” God’s love until we experience it for ourselves.  People can tell you their story, as I told you mine, or the pastor can teach on it, but until it’s your story it’s impossible to really know.  People will say that I am such a nice guy and they think that is my personality.  That is so far from the truth.  I am this way because His Love was shed abroad in my heart (Romans 5:5) and it changed me and it continues to change me.

His love gives us a second, third, fourth chance on life.  His love puts kindness and concern in my heart towards others.  To live as such is how it must have been before sin entered.  The separation that sin has caused has been the single greatest cancer on man.  But it has been conquered via the Cross and we have been reunited to our Father, Amen!

There’s a great saving that says, “ a great relationship is made up of two great forgivers.”  That is true on a human level, but it is absolutely true on a heavenly level.  I can forgive because I have been forgiven.  Because of the clean slate that has been offered to me, by the only One that had an absolute right to condemn me, who I’m I to not forgive my fellow man?

Father,

Thank you for this study.  I pray that by sharing our struggles that others who are struggling can see Your faithfulness to me.  For without Your Holy Spirit guiding and helping me I surely would have stumbled.  So thank you for your ever present help in time of need. As your Word says, “ Resist the Devil and He will flee.”  And we resist by quoting the Word to His lies, as you did in your wilderness temptations.  Thank you for this example that we too can follow. In Jesus name Amen.

Move Forward In His Grace – Arthur

 

 

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Power of Faith Part IV

Faith Truimphs inTrouble
Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out ( shed abroad KJV) in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
I grew up with the KJV, so shed abroad is what I best relate to. The word picture of shed abroad reminds me of rain falling on parched ground, and as it falls, it not only soaks in but travels over the ground down the slopes filling up all the depressions and low areas of the terrain. It doesn’t take long for the whole area to be completely soaked. The rain changes hard dry ground into piliable soft ground. Add irrigation and you now have land that can be worked with. That is how I would describe God’s Love. His love begins to change the selfish composition of my heart  into a heart that wants to be with Him. I begin to care for people outside my circle.
As we grow in our faith the reality of His love grows in us. We begin to sense His presence more, our soul starts to feel like well irrigated land. On  the days that I “feel” more parched than irrigated, my “roots”( faith) must dig deeper in His Word in search of His promises, which represents “His water.” My desperation is that which actually grows my faith and that is exactly what plants do; they search for water in times of lack. With my landscapes I instruct my clients once the plants are established to hold back a day of water in the weekly cycle. By making them search for water it makes them stronger plants. In God’s economy no trial is wasted if it causes us to seek Him.
 Like people, plants get comfortable when the water is right at their doorstep (root tips). As an example, trees that are planted next to or in lawns in variably have shallower roots. The tree has no need to go much deeper. Yet with the first major storm these trees are the first to fall, especially as they mature and become top heavy.  In our times of storm  we MUST spend more time in prayer and in the Word and connect with other brothers and sisters. These three methods are not options if we want to conquer our fear and anxiety, if not, we will be conquered by them. As Paul says…
 Romans 8:37-39
Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
And Paul brings out a truth that we might overlook. Since nothing can separate us from God actually loving us or us enjoying His love then despite our loses, pain, difficulty or struggles Paul considers us victors. Do we believe this, or do we have to get the perfect job, or have vigor and health or have the perfect marriage or kids or earn a six digit income. Is that not how we define being a victor? I believe it is, so why was Paul persuaded? Out of anyone he could have had the right to be downcast and discouraged. He went through so many painful experiences. Yet he believed that despite it all he and we can too be more than conquerors.
 A conqueror lives to one day be conquered, it is true of all the kingdoms of ancient times. However, in Christ that does NOT have to be true. Yet despite this awesome truth I know people that instead of digging deeper to grow their faith they have made a career out of worry. As in the parable of the sower where the seed was thrown among the weeds, we do the same. Eventually the cares of this world will choke out our faith. Martha, Mary’s sister is another example. She cared more about preparing a nice supper than preparing her heart for Jesus. I’m sure she received her identity and self worth from being a good cook and hostess.  However Jesus presence represented a new truth, a much higher identity by which to define oneself by. Listen to Jesus’s words after Martha complained about Mary not helping her ( she reached her breaking point) Martha said paraphrased, “Lord do you not care that I alone am working and Mary my sister does not help ( translated, Lord do you not care about me?) “ Martha, Martha you are troubled and busy with so many things, but ONLY ONE THING IS NEEDFUL and Mary has CHOSEN the better part.” By what or from what do we derive our self esteem? Have we chosen the better part, are we living for Jesus?
The cares and worry of this temporal life if allowed can and do strangle our faith, destroying the intimacy that we should be having with Jesus. This only compounds our struggles, making our life that much more difficult. And if our worrying just affected us then it’s just our issue, but our worry and anxiety become a burden to others. Our kids, our spouse, our work associates, etc., and this worry affects everything that we are invested in. Instead of demonstrating a life of trust, joy and victory, our faith becomes a sham. I hate to say that, but it’s true. What good is our faith if it doesn’t set us free? By our own hands we tear down anything we are trying to build and make what our kids are learning in church null and void. Is that really the example we want to be, the legacy we want to leave?
Oftentimes this epistemic lack of trust in God comes back to our growing up years. If we didn’t feel loved, then we didn’t feel valued. We grew up feeling more like a bother than a treasure. This negative effect is especially true when dad’s are MIA. When we as dads put more emphasis on our careers than our family, it is done at a price. It is to the determent of the family. Putting ourselves first puts the family on shakey ground. If not realized and a course correction taken divorce is not far. And the break up of the family contributes greatly to the ills that plague our society. And these ills just repeat themself generation after generation. I’ve learned that being present, even if one works a lot of hours as I do, the kids understand. When I’m home, I’m home, I’m present. Kids understand that we work to live, not live for work. It’s a completely different feel and they can sense when dad’s career is first and they are second. The same is true with mom’s. Here’s what the scriptures say and it happens early on.
*Proverbs 22:6
Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.
Proverbs 22:11
He who loves purity of heart and has grace on his lips,The king will be his friend.
And how will the child learn to love purity of heart and speak with grace and kindness unless the child is taught and these values instilled within him or her.
As parents we are suppose to raise our children to know the Lord and somewhere in their teen years they take ownership of their faith. If that does not happen then it means that the bridge to faith was never completed. As a young teenager I heard the Gospel and I was able to believe that God loved me mainly because I knew that my dad and mom loved me.  So my parents laid the bridge for me to believe, even though my dad was not a believer (only went to church on Christmas and Easter). When we feel unloved we go searching, and in a searching state we try different things to find meaning and identity and in veritably wrong choices are made. Multiple relationships, addictive substances or behaviors that are risky and careless as well as just poor decisions are made. The whole porn industry has young men and women who represent this.
For those of us that miss these painful traps are normal course is to get married and have kids. With more responsibilities, increased stress from work, life becomes stressful and for some overwhelming. Our connection to God can still be in question or the extra stress can cause us to start seeking Him via attending church. However, if we cannot get control of the  stress and worry it will affect our life and the life we have with others. Early in business I worried excessively, my stomach was always in knots. It was hard to be present with the family. I finally told the Lord that I was tired of this and that I was either going to trust Him or walk from the Christian faith. I was tired of being fake. I dove into His Word and memorized all the scriptures that dealt with trust and read all the stories that dealt with how God saved David, Joshua, Daniel and Moses. This became my focus and as I did that I began to come home. Our foundation ( God and I) was being laid ( nice and thick), the business was no longer going to controll me. I learned that God was my business partner and together we would do this. It’s now been thirty years and He’s the best business partner anyone could have.
If as parents and even grandparents, if we overdo anything, we need to overdo loving God and our fellow man which our families are first in line. We need to show His love through us, be it hugs, holding hands or just spending time together. These ways communicate value and care and that they are special. As Jesus did for us, and in so doing gave us a life of direction and purpose. If this is not your story then please consider seriously His Words and accept His invitation.
Matthew 11:28-30
Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
When  the family is young is when a foundation of love must be laid. Love is welcomed at any age, but in the forming of a child’s self image it must be present. Just as in baking, all the ingredients must be present to get the cake to rise. Parenting can be a daunting task, especially if you have multiple kids and your job is stressful. That’s when this verse becomes a crutch we can rest on. We come to Him in prayer, through Bible study and church attendance and allow Him to equip us and then work through us with our family, work and associates. When we are right with Him we can handle so much more, because He’s in it with us.
Therefore as our children mature and  become self conscious of their strengths, their weaknesses, their looks, etc., especially in relationship to others their ability to accept themselves without feeling inferior or superior, has everything to do with the the building blocks of truth we have instilled within them. Most importantly, how we ourselves have lived out our values through the challenges, struggles and victories of life is so important for them to see. Our actions must model the truths we are teaching. As the saying goes, more is caught than taught. How cool it would be to hear our family say, yes my parents taught me this but I learned it by watching them live it out.
Father God,
Thank you for this practical study on parenting. As You parent us we are to model that with our kids and grand kids. It’s not that hard if we make our relationship to You our priority.  Thank you for your love and kindness, let us become expressions of You. Amen
Move Foward in His Grace – Arthur
Arthur Navarrette

 

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Power of Faith Part III 

Faith Triumphs inTrouble
Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
“And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.”
Last Vida we discussed how trials as opposed to an easy life makes us real, reveals to us our weaknesses and needs as well as allows us to hone  our strengths. No one likes trials but they are the best thing for us. They help us to take our eyes off ourselves giving us compassion for others and teach us to appreciate and respect life, to not take life for granted. Perseverance, the ability to endure, to hang in there, maintain hope and trust in a Sovereign God is part of the lesson. I can describe perserverance with two words, Rocky Balboa. In the Rocky movies Slyvester Stallone had to endure, persevere, keep fighting under great pressure and he did, and he won. He fought for a perishing crown, we fight for an eternal crown.
The Christian life is very similar to what is portrayed in the Rocky movies. The training, the discipline, the dedication are all necessary to succeed. For us our dedication must be to the Truth, and the study that goes with it. I fear that in our microwave, have it your own way, me generation that we don’t have the “stomach” or the heart for the hard work and sacrifice that becoming a strong believer requires. If our faith requires too much sacrifice, too much pain, if God doesn’t act like we think He should, we walk away. We profess we love Him, but then when struggles come or life gets ugly we become disillusioned with the Christian life. What we don’t understand is life can get ugly on either side of faith. Whether we believe in a Savior or not, life can be tough. A divorce happens, our job is a struggle, our child gets injured, or an accident takes a love one’s life we become discouraged ( and rightly so) and at times we blame God. We believe God did not live up to His end of the deal. It’s so very unfortunate that this view of God developed. Ask yourself, if God did nothing else but save our soul from hell, would that be enough? Use to be that was the end goal, our salvation. As our society became more materialistic we wanted God to provide some of the perks of this life forgetting that friendship with the world is death to our faith.
The early church considered it an honor  to suffer for Christ. Yet many today fall away when hardship comes into their lives. How did we get from it’s an honor to suffer for Christ to God owes me? That He has to provide me with a decent life? That’s not what I read when I study the lives of the apostles, especially Paul’s or in the Fox’s Book of Marty’s that chronicles believers lives that suffered and died for their faith. When did we become so soft? We’ve become the generation of privilege. Others fought for the freedoms we enjoy today without us understanding or experiencing the suffering that was required.
In sports this is not the case, you must earn your place.The saying “no pain no gain” is real and any good althete understands this. There are several references in scripture paralleling the effort required in sports to the Christian walk. And even more discipline is needed in the Christian walk, for as a believer we must take hold of our thoughts, our emotions and actions and take them captive to Christ, “on or off the field”. We can’t just do the right thing in public, but in private as well. We have to do the right thing when we don’t feel like it. It’s work and when one comes to Christ it’s important that, that is understood. Saying the sinners prayer is only the entrance point, just like signing up for the  military. Putting your name on the sheet, though a very noble step, is only the beginning.
Romans 12:1-2
Living Sacrifices to God
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
We are compromised human beings ever since sin entered. I can only imagine how our character was prior to sin. To not have a sin nature to content with seemingly would be wonderful. It was how God planned it, yet God has not left us to contend with our sin nature alone. It is by the mercies of God, His good favor towards us through Christ that we are able to present ourselves as a living sacrifice and the amazing thing is He receives us as holy and acceptable. And because of such amazing Grace Paul says it is but our reasonable service. If we could just grasp this, then we would not desire to be part of this world, rather we would earnestly seek to be transformed into His image. We would want this rather than flirting along the edges between righteousness ( God’s way) and sin (my way).
 And the renewing of our mind, is a literal process of rethinking life God’s way. In light of my relationship to Him, especially as my walk matures through the study of His Word, I process thoughts, feelings, and actions differently, and the knowledge that  Eternity awaits me becomes my true north.  Paul would call this the helmet of our salvation in Ephesians 5, that encompasses all my thoughts.
Romans 12:9-13
Behave Like a Christian
Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality.
Romans 12:17-21
Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. Therefore
“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
If he is thirsty, give him a drink;
For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.”
And do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
“character; and character, hope.”
As the character of Christ becomes mine, hope follows. Hope is a huge part of Godly character. Hope says I won’t give up, because He won’t give up and God cannot be defeated. God is able and Hope is a part of Agape love.
1 Corinthians 13:6-7
“Love ( Agape, God’s Love) does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
In God’s economy you cannot have Agape Love ( God’s Love) without having hope as well. For he or she who carry’s God’s Love within them also knows the sense of hope God’s Love brings. To have  God’s Love within is to have hope for ourselves, to have hope for our love ones, and to have hope for a situation that God is able. And Hope is not some fanciful wish on a star attitude, it simply sees the situation for what it is, for all the bad that it is ( or is not) and knows that God is still able to redeem good from it. This is our message for those in need, turn to the Lord and seek Him. What is impossible for us is possible for Him.
If you are a believer, understand His claims and begin praying His promises back to Him. This will build your faith and give you the strength to go the distance. People still need to make the choice to choose Him, but we pray for God’s intervention in their life. And just like diamonds have taken years and years to form so to it can take years for a heart to change.  Our lives can become very muddled, for we live in a broken world with broken people. Members of our family, our neighbors, friends and co workers, people whose lives touch our lives, and as a result we experience grief and pain. If they would just repent and turn to the Lord they would not need to be experiencing the emptiness they are going through. I’ve had this thought so many times.
I am sure we all know someone who life could be much better if they would just take time to understand Christ’s claims. We have daughters, sons, moms, dads, coworkers and friends that are good people, good people that are lost and in need of the Savior’s Love. It is so painful to watch them make their mistakes all because they are trying to fill the emptiness inside. Many times they are completely unaware of their motives. However God can use our life to help them, to be His arms, be His voice as we encourage repentance and a return to Biblical faith.
Now is the best time to repent, whether we be back sliden or have never believed. Especially in light of all these random killings, we need to take our Christian faith very seriously. We do not know who we could help or touch just by sharing Christ love.
Romans 8:28 ,
And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose ( it is hard to imagine how God can use these mass shootings for good, however in darkness the light shines the brightest).
 If as a society we realize that we have strayed so very far from God and as a nation would but repent and come back to Him, He can heal our land, our marriages and our families bringing our wayward sons and daughters back home to Him.
Our future is being written by the decisions we are making today; what decisions are you making, are they bringing you closer to the Lord or farther, and there is no decision that is neutral.
Finally hear God’s words to Joshua for they apply to us as well.
Joshua 1:7-9
Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go. This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
Father God,
Make us strong in You, walls of unbreakable faith that are kind and caring but uncompromising in the Faith. Let our lives shine as a beacon of hope and healing. Give us the wisdom we need to confound the enemy, and take our spouses, son’s and daughters back from him. Thank you and Amen
Move Forward In His Grace – Arthur
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Power of Faith Part II

Faith Triumphs inTrouble
Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
“…into this grace in which we stand,”
To stand is so important. How many women hate themselves the day after because they gave into the pressure of the boyfriend, or the man who can no longer look his wife in the eyes because he compromised their marriage vows, or the young person who feels crabby because he or she gave into peer pressure. We do these things because of our insecurity and fear. We worry that they, or he, or she may leave us if we don’t go along with them. However, afterwards our self esteem is even lower. The ability to stand for our convictions and the strength to endure the consequences is so critical to our self esteem and to a successful future.
 The most important person we have to live with is the Lord. If I can’t live with Him because I continually say yes to my lusts or to the peer pressure, then in spite of His Grace an empty and frustrated soul awaits me. I will not be happy with myself or with life in general and further wrong decisions are easily made in this state. And these wrong decisions can turn low self esteem into self hatred that eventually bleeds into every part of our life. Self hatred can become as an oppressive weight that we drag around wherever we go. It’s like a heavy darkness we wake to. Its just not worth it, it is much better to stay on course with The Lord and though it can be difficult, the fruit of being faithful produces great rewards. A positive and can do self image with gratitude towards the Lord is only one benefit and it becomes easier as we mature in our faith – promise.
And remember No, is a beautiful word when it is said in order to please
The Lord. By saying no we maintain our fellowship, our “spiritual umbilical cord to LIFE,” which we all so desperately need. No one person or thing or action is ever worth severing that. Christ Jesus is the perfect lover of our soul and the perfect fit for every occasion. It’s His Grace given to us which makes life worth living, Amen?
“and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.“
I grew up with a saying that said “don’t be so heavenly minded that you are of no earthly good.” I understood what my dad was trying to say because I knew my dad’s experiences grewing up. He saw a lot of hypocrisy in the church which he equated to a walk of faith. We will always have the “pretend” Christians and to the unbeliever they represent Christianity, which is very unfortunate. However the divide between real and fake  is found in this verse. How often when I am struggling with life I draw strength from the return of Christ; be that I see Him or He sees me, I know my end and I rejoice in it. This renewed perspective gives me the strength to see my trials through. To see His Glory will be unimaginable, but also to see His Glory in me as He continues to sanctify my soul bringing me closer to Him is something that we can rejoice in.
How about you, I hope you can say the same and if not then let this be an early indication  of something not quite right. As believers we should always rejoice in the return of Christ, nothing should be of a greater want or value. Pray that your faith grows as you make effort to meditate on God’s Word. Some of my favorite chapters are Psalm 37, Proverbs 3, Joshua 1, Psalms 119, 55, and 51, Romans chapters 6- 8 and the book of Ephesians and Philippians. These books and chapters have become faith builders and points of strength in my life as I look back and remember the difficulties I was going through. Please give  thought to what we’ve said and be willing to make a course correction if needed. Your life could depend on it.  Now for our next supporting verses.
Proverbs 15:13
A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance, But by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.
Proverbs 17:22
A merry heart does good, like medicine, But a broken spirit dries the bones.
A merry heart comes from God’s love abiding in our heart, and it is powerful and life changing. It comes as we continually sit before Him allowing Him to change, mold and take away all that displeases Him in us.  Talking about being real, there is nothing hid from His view. But we are safe with Him, sometimes given the heartache and the pain it doesn’t feel like that, but I’m sure having cancer removed from your body doesn’t feel good either, but it has to be done. It’s no different with the Lord, the only difference is it is for eternity. Now our next verse.
“And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.”
Nothing makes our faith more real or reveals the lack of it than times of trail. As the saying goes, “it’s where the rubber meets the road.” We either have traction or we slip and slide over the pavement of life. Tribulations or trials as we call them, can be numerous and varied. They can be work or family related, or internal – fears, insecurities, lusts etc. They can physical in nature, sicknesses, disabilities or just age related be it us or people we love, and they can be financial etc. And it always seems like when it rains it pours. Health, finances, and work issues can come up all at once, or health remains a concern, work improves then family concerns come up. And then there are those people who always appear to have the “perfect” life. Their kids are succeeding in their careers, and or school, their health is good and financially they have the means and time to take vacations.
And is this not the life we all seek, but is it the life that grows our faith? Is this “perfect” life the life that causes us to really seek the Lord, to study the scriptures, putting the importance of our faith in the forefront of our life? I think not, desperation and need causes this, an easy life doesn’t. I am not speaking of constant problems for the scriptures promise that a righteous life has its inherit blessings, but I am referring to a life that is not plateaued. King David’s life had plateaued, all his enemies were conquered or not a current threat. He was older and settled as King and all was very, very good, and then he saw Bathsheba bathing on her roof top. He knew that she was wife to one of his mighty men and granddaughter to one of his closest advisors. Yet that didn’t stop him and that one break in his armor cost him untold heartache. It was not worth it.
In sailing terms I would liken an plateaued emotional state to the sailing challenges around the equator, or called the droldrums. It is the worse place to sail, everything with respect to weather is too unpredictable. From many, many  days of no wind to a sudden storm and then light winds that come and go making tacking very difficult.
However north or south of the equator the weather comes to life. We have highs and lows producing different velocities of steady winds causing us to respond in like fashion. These variances when sailing cause us to put our body, mind and soul to the test. In like fashion the storms in life challenge us putting our faith to the test as well as causing us to appreciate the sunny days. Without these changes and challenges we become very shallow believers because we don’t need the Lord, we can handle life ourselves. Our Bible begins to collect dust as we go days, weeks, even months without reading while in through the backdoor creeps in worldliness. Our Bathsheba’s be they sexual or any of a multitude of lusts and desires. Maybe we want a bigger nicer home, or a nicer car which in themselves are not wrong, but what is the motive for doing it? To make us feel better about ourselves? I thought that was God’s job and seriously how long do think that good feeling will last? And because of these decisions are we now financially tight and need to cut back on our tithing?And does our church attendance begin to falter as the importance of attending church lessens?
Soon, and before we know it we look more like the world than sons and daughters of Christ and find ourselves being rebuked by God Himself,
Revelation 3:15-19
“I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. Because you say, I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked ( that’s God’s perspective) ….. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.
I was nineteen years old when I first heard this verse and it cut me to the heart. I knew that I was walking the fence and I was faced with a decision, yield to the conviction and love of God or severe our ties and go 100% percent into the world. God was too real to me to deny Him, so I cut my ties with the worldwhich meant saying good bye to my high school best friend who over the years became more and more worldly. It was really tough, I really liked Peter but God was more important.
 So on the eve of needing to talk to him he approached me first and basically said he had noticed a change in me and that I was no longer any more fun and he needed to put his energy into other guys he knew that would party and do all the things that goes along with that. It was tough to lose him in one sense since we had been friends since our freshman year in High School, but I was glad that I no longer had to be ashamed of my actions that were beginning to take a toll on my self esteem. It’s no fun being fake, there is no strength in that; being authentic and true to your values is were strength of soul comes from. It felt good again to be able to look at myself in the mirror and be pleased with who I saw, and knowing that I would only become stronger.
How about you, hopefully you have a similar story, if not change is as real and present as the time it takes your knees to hit the floor. God hears, God cares and with God, All Things are Possible. Amen
Philippians 4:13
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man ( or woman) of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped in this grace in which we stand,”
Trust this study blessed you as it has me. It is wonderful to hear my Father’s words as He combines thoughts and expression, much like sending a PDF through email to my mind. I feel so honored and it’s not unique to me. As you read the scriptures take time to take notes, write down what the Spirit is impressing you with. You will be blessed, guaranteed.
Dear Father,
Thank you for this study and for the Truth that is shared. Help us to do our part and place ourselves before you with a quiet and humble heart eager to learn. Make us good students of the truth, and then to share that truth by how we live life. Let our lives be Your witness and then words as needed. Thank you and Amen.
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“The Power of Faith”

Romans 5:1-5

Faith Triumphs inTrouble
Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
“having been justified by faith,” to fully appreciate these five words one has to have a decent grasp of the Old Testament. Prior to Christ death there were a multitude of different sacrifices that were required and the one for personal sin, as opposed to national sin, required a male lamb one year old without blemish or defects to be offered yearly. Even at that it was not deemed as forgiveness, as in wiping the slate clean. The original language speaks to “covering over” one’s sin as in putting a sheet over a pile of dirty clothes. The dirty clothes were still there but the sheet hid them from view and spiritually speaking the sacrifice alllowed the relationship between God and man to continue.
 God honored our obedience; following through with the required sacrifices because we desired to be right with God. The sacrifice reminded us that an innocent animal had to die to take our place; that sin had a terrible cost to it. According to scripture theses sins where held as it where in “custody” until the Cross and then these, plus the present and future sins to be committed where all placed upon Christ at the Cross. An amazing  truth that speaks to the omniscient and eternal love of the Father for us and separates Christianity from all other religions. Other beliefs have an inherent sense that it’s up to me to earn my salvation. I must do enough good works to outweigh my bad ones and unfortunately that is not known until I die. If I believed that, my view of God would change. Instead of a loving Father that has cleared the way for me to come to Him, and WANTS me to come to Him, He would be more of a critic noting every time I did something wrong and balancing it against the good that I have done. That’s a scary and insecure relationship to have with the most powerful being in the universe, I for one would not want that. To die hoping that you did enough good seems very fearful and furthermore it’s a little late at that point.
The sacrificial system of the Old Testament gave man a way to maintain his/her relationship with the Lord, the opportunity to prove his or her faith.
The problem became when people used the sacrificial system to justify their sin, or as the Pharisees used it as a means to feel superior to everyone – for they followed it to the letter and even invented more laws and rules of behavior. Neither of these beliefs were the purpose for the law and Christ, God Incranate, came to change these beliefs. There were also those who used the law to “justify” purposeful sins, which means their hearts had become so calloused that they could watch the slaughter of an innocent animal on their behalf and go out and sin again. A classic verse of this is in Proverbs 7:13-19
“So she caught him and kissed him;With an impudent face she said to him: I have peace offerings with me;Today I have paid my vows.
So I came out to meet you, Diligently to seek your face,
And I have found you.I have spread my bed with tapestry,
Colored coverings of Egyptian linen.I have perfumed my bed
With myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.Come, let us take our fill of love until morning;Let us delight ourselves with love. For my husband is not at home; He has gone on a long journey;”
You can see that as long as the adulterous woman maintained her sacrifices she felt justified (“just as if she never sinned” is a good way to understand justified). There was no remorse or repentance, only a desire to continue in her sinful ways. Sadly the human soul has not changed much.
Where does the need to justify our sin come from as opposed to confess and repent. There seems to be an innate need in us to believe that we are basically good. The only problem with this is we all grade on a curve that favors us. That’s like trying to draw a straight line with a crooked ruler. No matter how hard you try, the line will never be straight. The true measuring line is Christ himself, sinless, and that’s our problem. If we measure ourselves by ourselves we will walk away feeling pretty good about ourselves, but if we measure ourselves by His sinless life we have no choice but to repent or turn our backs on Him.  To truly repent means to turn around, change course, have a change of heart and then confess our sin and surrender our self willed life to His authority ( not ours). This  requires humility and brokenness which is very hard for the human soul. What does the Bible teach?
James 4:10
Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.
John 3:19-21
And this is the condemnation ( the judgement), that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”
Romans 6:16-18
Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.
Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen
These are not pleasant scriptures to read, especially if you are struggling with giving your life fully to Christ. And if you have given yourself fully to Christ, then the clarity and truth of these scriptures are easily agreed to.
  “ I once was lost and now I have been saved, hallelujah, and the grace of the Lord Jesus continues to move me on. Though I stumble  His forgiveness and kindness is ever present and His Love a constant refuge in the storm. Amen”
As Peter said after Jesus asked if they, the disciples, would also leave as some of the people did after hearing a difficult teaching. Peter replied
John 6:68-69
But Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You alone have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
*Do you believe this? The Incarnate Christ is not a created being as some religions teach, he was not conceived as man is conceived. Scripture teaches that the Holy Spirit overshadowed Mary and she conceived. Also scripture teaches that He always was, He has no beginning and He has no end. He is the second person of The Trinity, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit and it was God the Son who took on flesh and lived among us. His death and life was prophesied in Isaiah 52:11-13 & 53. There are no better chapters that prophesy of Christ death and crucifixion.
John 14:25-27  The Gift of His Peace
“These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid ( in these verses we see the workings of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit together on behalf of man).
John 1:14
And the Word ( referring to Jesus) became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
Our understanding of Christ is critical and it is not up to us to define Him, He defines himself. It is up to us to believe, and once believing Jesus promises us the Holy Spirit as a down payment of our professed faith. In John 14:23-24
“Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me.”
The Holy Spirit comes and dwells or abides in us, provided we walk in obedience. It is a great and beautiful mystery
John 14:8-11
Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us.”
Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves (referring to all His miracles).
Sometimes you want to say to the disciples, what is your problem, why are you so slow to believe? I get it, I have felt that way about them as well
but at the same time I can understand the disciples. Jesus is claiming to be God, and in the Old Testament for a man to actually see God, let alone live with Him day in and day out, meant death. Moses upon receiving the Ten Commandments was only allowed to see God’s back, not his face. So now in the New Testament we have Jesus claiming to be God  and the disciplines are not only living with Him but they even get in arguments in front of Him. To them Jesus is much more human than God like, however there is no disputing that the miracles Jesus did are God like in nature. Yet healing was also done by the prophets. Elijah even raised a woman’s son from the dead.
Great things were done in the Old Testament via the prophets, however no prophet ever walked on water, nor raised someone from the dead after being dead 3 days ( Lazarus) or did a prophet raise themselves from the grave which was Jesus last and final miracle that once and for all established His Divinity. After this there was no need for any further evidence; those who would believe, believed, and those who did not, will not and it is the same today. However people today will say I didn’t see His miracles, so how can I believe? We also have not seen President Lincoln or witnessed the Civil War but we believe he lived and that the Civil War occurred. There is always enough evidence for Biblical faith, it just comes down to our willingness to believe it and our willingness to change.
Do we want to change, do we want a relationship with Jesus? Then we must surrender our will and stop being a disciple of this world and follow Jesus.
“…we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand,”
This is our final verse. Think about the truth of this verse, could anything else be more important? We make many things important in our life, yet there is absolutely nothing more important than having peace ( or unity) with The Lord. The Christian life has a door called Grace, and a key called faith. Faith opens the door of Grace. With the key of faith we pass from one life into another. The scenery looks the same, but the way we move, process and interact with it changes, especially as we mature and get closer to the Throne of Grace. And how do we get closer, our faith must grow. How does faith establish itself, root itself and become a current or force within us? It is through hearing, taking in, adopting, instituting and practicing the truths of scripture. The teaching of scripture is digestible to the man or woman whose been born of the Spirit, whose person has kneeled to the authority of Christ in his or her life. This scriptural food nourishes and matures us into men and women of God.
When we chose to skip our  Bible study because we are too busy, that is the worse decision we can make. For daily we are in a spiritual battle and he who wants to destroy our soul will MAKE SURE that we are always too busy. A better decision is to chose to become less busy so as to maintain your Bible study and then seek the Lords help, for things do come up. I have Proverbs and Psalms on my phone, so if I am in line or at a stop light I can meditate on a verse. I only need a few minutes.
Also as we mature in our faith our values start changing and the things we thought were so important begin to lose thier value. We see through them.  So much of the stuff we seek comes from a misdirected hungry soul that when it (we) truly find Christ as our real, true and lastly fulfillment those other things, and even toxic relationships we maintain (because of our insecurity) we find that we have the strength to let them go. Slowly everything begins to take their proper priority in our life. Know that our flesh continually is wanting to build idols in us. Telling us if we only had this or that, or were in this relationship or had that position at work we would finally be happy and for a limited time it is true.
However the true happiness that we seek is something that is hard for us to articulate.  We want to feel as though we are home, at peace, content, in love with life with life loving us back, secure, with a very positive self image etc. That will never happen if we keep looking to people or things.  The sense of belonging can only come from a Being who is fully complete in Himself; who is the Author and Creator of Life, having eternal love, peace, joy, assurance etc., within Himself that He freely gives. Their is no human being like this. So when we attribute these qualities or seek these qualities from another person or thing we have just made and idol for ourself and done a great injustice to another human being who will absolutely fail us.
 With Christ our life becomes ordered with Christ being first and foremost. Past regrets and mistakes because of wrong decisions begin to take a back seat. Even things that we use to think we could not live without we find we can live without them. We start making sound decisions based on God’s Word, and we begin to feel good about ourselves. Our security stops becoming defined by our wallet, our beauty, title or possessions etc., and we start becoming very liberated and become totally content just being God’s son or daughter by Grace – no other title do we need. We become most at peace as the scriptures and our relationship to Christ takes front and center of our life.
Dear Father,
Thank you for this study, help us to sense the truth of the scriptures and rightly understand Christ as the second person of the Trinity. To the extent we understand is to the extend that we comprehend what a great love and  price you paid to redeem us from sin. Open our eyes Father. Amen
Grow in His Grace – Arthur
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“ Fortitude for the Soul” ( Part III )

1 Samuel 30:3-6
So David and his men came to the city, and there it was, burned with fire; and their wives, their sons, and their daughters had been taken captive. Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voices and wept, until they had no more power to weep. And David’s two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite, had been taken captive. Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.
This is such a good story with so many learning points. Unless you have been through something similar you can have no idea of the depth of David’s emotions, as well as his men. These emotions come at the worse of life, your child drowns or gets hit by a car, your spouse serves you divorce papers, your boss comes in and says thank you but you are no longer needed. The doctor comes in and says you have two months to live, or your husband or child. Your spouse or adult child is killed in battle or captured and becomes a prisoner of war. These events are real and they happen and they represent the ugly side of life.
My wife recently went to the hospital with scepsis ammonia and stayed for 2 1/2 days until she was released to go home. Which I learned could kill you. We had no idea of how serious it was, we both just thought that she just had a bad case of the flu. However in those few days a man and a child died from their sickness. And as awful as that is, we can make it worse by how we react. We can chose to blame God and or hate God, as my dad did when my brother drown, or we can turn to God as David did. How we react to grief, to paralyzing fear, to tragedy or the like will determine the way forward. Our reaction and or response sets the stage for whether these events will take us out or bring us into deeper faith with God. David chose wisely, he chose God.
Lets see if we can learn from David. What does David mean that he strengthened himself in the Lord? This to me is David’s turning point. Imagine coming home and seeing fire trucks around your home but in essence they were just keeping the fire from spreading, your house was but ashes and rumble. Adding to that no one knows the whereabouts of your family, did they escape, are they out on an errand and to make matters even worse your spouses cell phone is dead. Is it simply dead, or does it not exist? Imagine the rush of distressing thoughts, the overwhelming sense of fear and panic, it’s even hard to breathe. Need to think, control my thoughts, what’s my next step? Will you in this moment give into fear and grief and be angry at God, or will you kneel down, quiet your spirit and pray?
All these thoughts I’m sure went through David’s mind, yet after a long cry he took control of his emotions, and from the deepest part of his being emerged one dominant and overruling emotion, that God was faithful and trustworthy therefore his next step was to seek Him. With God, he could turn this mess around. Would I do that, would you respond as such, and remember David was young, somewhere between 21 yrs. to 23 yrs. old.
Therefore to “strengthen yourself” in the Lord is to come to a central, determined decision that rules over all other emotions, shutting the door on thoughts of overwhelming fear, doubt and blame. These emotions, especially in times as these are of no value. They are just like Job’s comforters. Who instead of trying to comfort and encourage Job tried to convince him that he was at fault for his dilemma. That’s the last thing anyone needs.
I have come to learn that suffering is a masterful tool in the hand of God. Though not a popular one, in His hands it purges the soul from the love of money, the love of self, the love for the things of this world and the love of false idols that prior to suffering we had have. I liken suffering to drowning. In those moments money, fame, a big house, ego and the like, matter not. Only that which will save my life has all my attention. Hopefully it is the Lord, however in these moments our true God (or god)is revealed and we learn very quickly His (or its) ability to save. As believers what is needed is a single focus on Him, who alone can work good from my mess. I never understood the benefit of suffering in my early years, but as I have matured and experienced several very painful events in my life the value of suffering has become most evident – nothing matters but Christ himself. And if suffering has its full work, then Christ is all that matters from henceforth. It becomes very hard to put anything else in His place.
Knowing Him intimately becomes our goal, not wealth, position or fame etc. In relationship with Him is where our security comes from. During my hardships nothing else gave me cause to get out of bed, or brought me the comfort and hope that things would get better. I have seen the same benefit in others, those who are undergoing great trial but continue to press into the Lord. Therefore suffering becomes a welcomed friend as God uses the pain to build a larger place for Himself in our hearts. A painful friend, it hurts, sometimes beyond belief, but as God has His way from it, hope, courage, and most importantly a faith that cannot be shaken arises. Jesus calls this tried faith and hence those that possess it as precious.
Peter 1:7: “that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
However if we get mad at God, a how dare He attitude or question Him by saying if He is truly God I should not be suffering, then this immaturity blocks the benefit that suffering can bring and we drag everyone who interacts with us through the mud of self pity. Unfortunately this
makes for a very long and joyless season in the chapter of one’s life.
God’s end goal via trials is no better said than these verses,
Isaiah 43:18-19
“Do not remember the former things,Nor consider the things of old.
Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness, And rivers in the desert.
Wilderness and desert represent our souls. In respect to righteousnesss,
we have nothing but barrenness to offer, and our good deeds is a far cry from righteousness. We give to Him the barrenness of our souls and through trials and in relationship with Him He seeks to bring life to our soul. Rivers of righteousness and roads in the desert for us and others to drink from and travel on and be refreshed and find direction for our life.
Next question, where did such a young man find the where withal too stand so tall? We know very little about David’s early life, but there is an insightful verse in Psalms 86:15 – 17
“But you, Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness. 16Turn to me and have mercy on me;show your strength in behalf of your servant;save me, because I serve you just as my mother did.”
Can a mother make a King? Can a father or grandparents make kings and queens, you bet. It takes time and commitment, but more than that it takes an exemplary life. A life that shows forth the life of Faith. Kings and Queens, princes and princesses that live as such rule over all peasant and beggarly emotions and see that their thoughts and words honor our Heavenly Father. A “ruler” by definition lives a new way, exalting faith and trust in the Lord and leads by example living a life that fosters peace, hope and love, characteristics of our Heavenly Father.
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***So now we understand that David didn’t just become a valiant warrior, the foundation for that was being formed in him from a child. We also know that Jesse, David’s father, was also a Godly man. So how do we do this, raise Godly children or instruct someone in a life of godliness?
Isaiah 28:10
For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept,
Line upon line, line upon line,Here a little, there a little.”
For us to be able to teach like this, “precept upon precept” it must be who we are. We WILL teach and we WILL be an influence on others, the question is what kind of influence will we be? How will we affect our kids, our grandkids, our co workers? To fulfill these instruction of precept upon precept it must come from the natural outflow of who we are. Our speech and our actions are a reflection of the man or woman on the inside. They are a constant dialogue, a very natural revealing of  the truth that we live by. A pastor once said we should always be a witness of Christ, and at times you use words. In other words are daily actions become our “words” and our verbal communication either support or contradict our actions. So we are being a witness, do we know to what?
 If it’s materialism that we value then coveting things will be what we will communicate. Even if we don’t say a word, our actions and decisions frame out our values. If we derive our self esteem from work, or by climbing the cooperate ladder the question is, at whose expense? Is it at the expense of the family? If so then the family will learn that dad, and or mom values work first and the family second. If it is a relationship with Christ that we value first and foremost then the family and co workers will know that though work is important you do not live for work, you work to live and the family is the reason for why you work. There’s a huge difference when you are on the receiving end of Godly based priorities. And this kind of example/teaching goes deep into the heart of a child, for it is being taught day by day, word by word, action upon action as his or her identity is being formed.
 Godly convictions formed as such becomes the foundation for the child’s life and their self esteem. It becomes the light by which they navigate life and the many choices that life will present. It gives them guidance and direction and builds fortitude and fortitude (the ability to stand by your convictions) is like steel to the soul, and we sorely need men and women, children and young adults alike to have and live in such a way; that the virtues of Christ shine forth. The old adage, “more is caught than taught” is so true. Therefore raising children with Godly convictions and being an example as such comes back to the daily convictions that we live by.
Continuing with David,… desperate times call for decisive action.
1 Samuel 30:6
Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him,”
1 Samuel 30:7-8
Then David said to Abiathar the priest, Ahimelech’s son, “Please bring the ephod here to me.” And Abiathar brought the ephod to David. So David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?”
And He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all (such encouraging words from the Lord gave David the confidence to get going and the ability to motivate the men to pursue the invaders. In our lives the voice of the Lord, be it The Word of God, a message from the pulprit, a friends counsel, or the Lord directly is a life changer).
The Ephod was normally worn only by the High Priest. It is somewhat related to a vest except it is open down the sides and made of linen.There are other references to David wearing the Ephod.  However it was not customary for anyone but the High Priest to wear it. Here we see David taking quick action. The situation was desperate and he needed to know what to. It’s interesting he didn’t go through Abiathar the priest for God’s guidance, he went directly to The Lord himself. Some might consider that David is overstepping his reach and according to the law he may have been, however God did not only not say anything but He answered his prayer. Sometimes situations in life get messy and the proper protocol cannot be followed. I am so glad that God sees the heart that directs the action and not just the action. This response from David also shows the relationship David had with the Lord. David was intimate with God, he knew God and was confident in seeking Him as such.
Back in the seventies we had the Jesus movement and I was 14years old and right in the middle of it. The Jesus movement started at the church we were attending with the pastor being the principal guidance of it. Hippies would come into our church with their long hair, beards, dregs, barefoot and the women the same. As a group they were not showered and sat on the carpet –  right in front which no one had done before. They were a shock to the conservative members of this foursquare church. I’m sure pastor Chuck took some heat for this and lost some tithing members. However he wasn’t and couldn’t compromise what he had come to believe, that God loved these young people who society viewed as outcast and druggies.
The church continued to grow under the teaching of God’s Word which pastor Chuck systemically followed 3x’s a week. Within a couple years the hippies were still coming, but now they were clean and in casual, but nice dress. As the Word of God changed and bought respect and dignity to their soul, the outward followed. Many became pastors, some to this day continue to teach sizable congregations. Pastor Greg Lori and Raul Ruiz in Southern Cal. being a few that I can recall. These lost souls became the foundation of the Jesus movement as David’s men, renegades and outcast, became the foundation of David’s army, David’s mighty men. God’s ability to change a soul is limitless, the only limitation is what the soul allows God to be; an acquaintance, a good friend or Savior and Lord. The outcome is vastly different.
Because of David’s relationship with the Lord he was able to rally the men and get them moving forward; out of their personal tragedy into a single goal they could give their life for, getting their families back. Again David was only 22 or 23 years of age.
***1 Samuel 30:10-12 ( God is guiding)
But David pursued, he and four hundred men; for two hundred stayed behind, who were so weary that they could not cross the Brook Besor.
Then they found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David; and they gave him bread and he ate, and they let him drink water. And they gave him a piece of a cake of figs and two clusters of raisins. So when he had eaten, his strength came back to him; for he had eaten no bread nor drunk water for three days and three nights.
God is guiding David. It’s wilderness, wide open space, the Amalekites could have gone anywhere, north, south, east or west. How was David to know?
1 Samuel 30:13
Then David said to him, “To whom do you belong, and where are you from?”
And he said, “I am a young man from Egypt, servant of an Amalekite; and my master left me behind, because three days ago I fell sick.
1 Samuel 30:14-17
We made an invasion of the southern area of the Cherethites, in the territory which belongs to Judah, and of the southern area of Caleb; and we burned Ziklag with fire.”
And David said to him, “Can you take me down to this troop?”
Were God directs, God provides and we see this clearly here. There is nothing coincidental about David and his men coming upon this servant. God guides so seamlessly that it almost seems that God is not involved at all, it just happens. But when it just happens that’s God’s signature, that He’s present. The Lord is the match maker of so called circumstances. Train your soul to see His hand. I’ve prayed asking Him to make my soul sensitive to His presence, and it’s a great prayer. It’s reminds me of John’s comment. After Jesus was crucified the disciples went back to fishing until Jesus appeared..
John 21:6 &7
And He said to them (Jesus) , “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast, and now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish.
Therefore that disciple (John) whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment (for he had removed it), and plunged into the sea ( Jesus loved them all but he had the most intimate relationship with John. We should all desire to be like John).
I believe David was developing this kind of intimacy and it would become invaluable to David.
“So he said ( the servant), “Swear to me by God that you will neither kill me nor deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will take you down to this troop.” And when he had brought him down, there they were, spread out over all the land, eating and drinking and dancing, because of all the great spoil which they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah. Then David attacked them (with only 400 men) from twilight until the evening of the next day. Not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men who rode on camels and fled.”
God kept His Word to David. Though he and his 400 hundred men had to fight like heck, they won against tremendous odds. It was definitely God.
Allowing God to guide you often means you are over your head and your in too deep, and there’s no return. God loves this, at times He engineers these situations so we stop relying on ourselves and fully and completely have to trust Him. I’ve become very use to being stressed, it’s actually a weird feeling when I’m not. My constant answer to this is to keep pressing into The Lord, like Jacob did with the angel. He wrestled all night long and in the morning when the angel wanted to leave, Jacob clinged to the angel and would not let him go until the angel blessed him. He left that wrestling match defeated in one sense because he could no longer walk without limping, the angel had crippled him, but he won in another sense because he finally knew who he was. The angel changed his name from Jacob ( heel catcher or conniver) to Israel ( called by God). Through his struggle he gained the biggest victory he could have ever received.  His new identity was priceless, he finally knew who he was and this is absolutely true with us as well. Once in his ho eland his next action was it built an altar to God to worship Him. Only a changed man or woman would do this. When we come to the end of ourselves that’s where we find God, and it’s there we come to understand that being His child by Grace is the absolute best place to be. Amen?
Father God,
Thank you for this devotional, though lengthy, it is the absolute truth of how we are wired and the freedom that awaits us if we commit to you our training. Thank you for David’s life. Help us to daily press into You. Become our joy and our life, and let your presence overshadow us and bring clarity, peace and assurance to all our circumstances. Thank you and Amen.
Go in His Grace – Arthur
Arthur Navarrette
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“Fortitude For The Soul” (Part II )

Welcome to part II in this series. I have heard many a good message but it was absent of encouraging believers to read and study God’s Word for themselves. Without that instruction/ encouragement the message in my opinion falls short. Preaching is only once a week, two if you attend a midweek Bible study, but it cannot and should not replace a daily reading of God’s Word. There is something meaningful and empowering when we give our time to prayer and study of God’s Word. It’s one on one with the Lord and it brings lasting change. And it is through that, coupled with preaching and fellowship the Christian character is formed in us ( “as iron sharpens iron so one man sharpens the countenance of his friend” Prov. 27:17 ).
A very important part of our maturing is simply finding joy in the Lord. Just knowing Him should be more than enough to “float our boat.” The structure that God has set up should be more than enough. If not, then it is only because we are still needing to mature in our relationship with the Lord, and that’s okay, as long as our goal and PRAYER is to mature. We see Habakkuk finding joy in the Lord despite extreme circumstances along with Isaiah, and King David who had everything but his joy and pleasure was in knowing the Lord, and Paul who had nothing, felt he was rich “lacked nothing” found the same internal joy and strength. These are the writers of the verses we will be studying in this series, however there are many more that have found their joy in just Christ alone. And to be clear I am not down playing the effective and meaningful relationships we can have and NEED in the Christian body, we are not “Lone Rangers” and he had Tonto. We look to Christ first for our needs and then allow Him to bring the brother or sister that maybe has just gone through something similar to help and encourage us, or just the right message we hear in church or on the radio.
Let’s start with Habakkuk.
Habakkuk 3:18-19
Yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
God, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet like hinds feet,
he makes me tread on my high places.
“Yet I will rejoice in the Lord;”
The word “Yet” is an interesting word. It is a transition word between what was just said to what the next statement will be and normally the two statements are contrary or opposed to each other. In context the prior verses to 18 &19 speak of famine and devastation, all the affects of war which was coming to Israel for their idolatry.
The Habakkuk 3:17
“Though the fig tree may not blossom,
Nor fruit be on the vines;
Though the labor of the olive may fail,
And the fields yield no food;
Though the flock may be cut off from the fold,
And there be no herd in the stalls…, Yet I will rejoice…”
You could argue that given his response Habakkuk fell off his camel and hit his head. Who rejoices in times like these?
 What he is depicting in vs. 17 is the coming invasion of the Babylonians who are going to decimate the land. When God first told Habakkuk of this invasion Habakkuk shuttered.
Habakkuk 3:16
When I heard, my body trembled;
My lips quivered at the voice;
Rottenness entered my bones;
And I trembled in myself,
That I might rest ( be dead prior) in the day of trouble.
When he comes up to the people,
He will invade them with his troops.
However in chapter two a most precious verse is recorded, as if God was preparing him to be able to receive such news.
Habakkuk 2:4
“Behold the proud, His soul is not upright (or right) in him;
But the just (us) shall live by his faith. Woe to the Wicked
Therefore upon receiving this revelation from the Lord Habakkuk was able to pen 3:17, just the exact opposite of what one would expect. The words“yet I will” represents a choice, a decision he made, a decision we have to make as well when faced with bad news. In layman’s terms the underlining question is, who is bigger, the problem that faces us, be it our health or the health of a love one, finances, struggles in our marriage or with our kids, or it could be work related or The Lord?
Next, I think we all agree that God is bigger than any problem. And though we acknowledge this we struggle with our emotions; stress, worry, fear, anxiety, temptation, depression etc. We desperately need to grow our faith to defeat these common struggles. Immersing ourselves in His Word, in prayer and memorizing specific promises that address our concerns and praying these promises back to Him builds solid faith. The Sovereign Lord who loves us will take these acts of obedience and will grow our faith through them. Also we must continue to seek Him. At times after the problems have been resolved we become lackadaisical in seeking Him. I recognized that in myself and repented of it. God is not our genie who comes running only when we need Him, He’s our Lord and Savior and deserves our best. He will give us the strength we need to live life victoriously, to live as His sons and daughters which is His ultimate desire and mindset for us. It needs to become ours as well.
Next let’s make sure we understand Faith. It has been widely misapplied and hence ineffective. To understand Faith one must understand it from a Father son/daughter relationship. As a father, and now a grandfather helping to raise one of our granddaughters, I allow measured struggles in Shawnee’s life. She may want my help but I will say, “Shawnee you can do this, grandpa has to make dinner and then when she completes it and learns that struggle is not to be feared, I tell her what a good job she did. Struggle develops life skills and teaches her lessons that she cannot learn any other way. Humility, appreciation, respect, empathy etc., cannot be learned on the easy road, and these lessons are critical to living successfully.
God is no different, just many more times wiser. He is not the cause of our trails, many times it’s us that causes them, but in searching for the solution our faith grows. If we chose to do it our way then we are no different than the nation Israel who spent forty years going around the same mountain for lack of faith. I know many believers who are just like this, saved by Grace but outside side of that walk in their own will.
Faith offers no worldly guarantees, no fancy house or promise of a great career. For example, just because we claim and believe God for something does not mean we will get it. Trusting God means we let Him decide. We give Him permission to work in us understanding that which is important to Him is that the nature of Christ be formed in us. Also we live in a world were people have free choice and their free choice can affect us, at times adversely. Yet no adversity is able to DERAIL God’s plans for you and me. Do you believe this? If so then your trials can never defeat you, in fact the hardship becomes the means that solid faith is forged in us. Romans 8:28
“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”
Also in Jeremiah 29:11-14 we have this great promise from the Lord. It was given to Jeremiah for Jeremiah to speak to the Israelites that were captives of Babylon.
“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart ( they went into 70 years of captivity because of their idol worship, however after their release the nation of Israel never again returned to the worship of idols).”
They must have felt that God had abandoned them, their punishment was severe, yet this was the purging they needed. Disciple hurts, it smarts, but afterwards it’s meant to bring healing. If we humble ourselves and receive the disciple and harden not our hearts, benefit will come. Faith also does not guarantee an outcome other than the outcome will be woven into the fabric of my soul for good – provided that we continue to turn to Him. Most of the painful events in my life have become the foundation and the bedrock that my faith has been built on and continues to be built upon. Believers that do not understand the purpose of these hardships are the first to become offended and fall away.
Especially considering our current culture. It has developed into a downward spiral that everything is about me. We are even cheered on by others who live as such, “You go girl,” has become a popular statement that underscores this. Christianity teaches just the opposite, that we are to love our God and our neighbor as ourself and hence crashes right into the “me culture” belief; or better said, the me culture and so called “believers” who practice this crash right into the hands of a loving God that seeks to save us from ourselves. Self centeredness consumes the soul and strangely enough breeds self contempt. When it’s all about me we become like a sagnet pond, no fresh water is coming in and no old water is being flushed out. The water just sits, sag-nets, and becomes putrid such are we when we become self indulgent (selfies are a good example of this). We were not designed to be self absorbed, we were designed to give and to be given to. We are at our best when we are doing just that. To grow in Christ’s nature and share His love with others is the best life we can live for. His life in us fills all the voids. To live for a cause bigger than ourselves makes us better, it puts our personal problems into proper focus. When it’s all about me the problems seem endless.
Unfortunately the “me culture” has become the idol of our age. Yet God is nonrelenting in His pursuit for His kids. He seeks to free us from the bondage to self so we can become wholly His, our TRUE FREEDOM. It is a painful process of crushing our self will, our carnal nature, and causing us to want His will in and for our life. Few make it through, but those that do experience such a sense of freedom and closeness to God.
The church of Satan ( yes there are those who worship the devil) has as one of its core beliefs, “do what you want.” If nothing I have said thus far  moves you, this statement should. We want nothing to do with that way of life.
The life of Faith does not give us all the answers that’s true, but it points us to the One that does. We confidently know that whatever the future holds we will not go the journey alone and because of His promised presence we will be fine.
Deuteronomy 31:8
And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.”
Hebrews 13:5
Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you ( He and He alone is our great reward).
Lastly the life of Faith is not like buying a car or a home where there are warranties. There is no warranty that says this life will be safe, or easy, or prosperous etc. Faith does not promise that, nor does it seek to find contentment in the values and comforts of this life. It seeks a new life, life  were its contentment comes from God and from God alone. This process of “God alone” takes time and much wrestling against our own carnal nature. And there is no deal that can be made with the flesh, either it dies or my relationship  with Christ dies, there is no inbetween. You might disagree, however Revelation 3:15-17 is rather direct.
“I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. Because you say, I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not see that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.
So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.”
There is always our view of our walk with God and then there’s God’s view. This is a tough tough verse, but it’s what turned me around as a young adult. However to realize why God is so tough is helpful.
Revelation 3:19-20
As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.
In work I always like to have backup plans, however with The Lord there is no need; God will never fail us. It does take time and maturity to live this confidently, but as one begins to loosen their attachments and securities to this life, becoming more intimate with the Lord, we find that our faith becomes ever more tangible and solid. The worldly goals and ambitions that we trust in become more fleeting and unstable. Soon there is nothing more solid or more permanent than faith, for it rests 100% on God. Everything else is changeable, it rests in the realm of man and anything can happen.
Isaiah 58:11
And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.
Psalms 16: 5&11
The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot. Thou wilt show me the path of life: in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures forevermore.
And Joshua 1:8-9  a very strong promise and unfortunately this is were we fall short, and hence making these great promises marginal at best in our life.
This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shall meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make — thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success (as God defines success).
Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.
God’s promises are precious and unbreakable, and they are true whether current circumstances prove it to be or not. It’s the distance that faith is willing to travel to receive the promise that determines the outcome. Jacob wrestled with the Angel of The Lord all night and would not let him go till he received a blessing.  As gold that is tried in the fire, Faith does not become pure until all the dross (my ego)  is burnt away and the Goldsmith (Jesus) can see His reflection on us.
In trying times when God appears to be silent may the Cross say all that we need to hear. At times I hear comments from believers that they can’t hear Him, He’s so silent. The Cross alone shouts of His love for each of us. We need to be still and ponder the Act of the Cross until we know His love for us. I have been a follower of Christ now for many years now and it is so much more easier for me now as there is nothing left in me to fight His will or to question His care. All of me, or as much as I am aware of, is willingly surrendered over to His love and will for my life. Isaiah 58 is a great chapter, but verses 11 &14 condenses what I am saying,
The Lord will guide you continually,And satisfy your soul in drought,
And strengthen your bones;You shall be like a watered garden,
And like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.
And
Then you shall delight yourself in the Lord; And I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the earth, And feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father.The mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
Only the life that is filled with the Holy Spirit, so tested and submitted to the Him will experience and live this life, but it is available to all of us. Consider Joshua’s words as he speaks to the nation of Israel….,
Joshua 24:14-15
“Now therefore, fear the Lord, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the Lord! And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
Our god’s are ourselves, our wealth, our jobs, our homes, our kids, cars, fame, title, the opposite sex, these and more represent the gods of our culture. Just as Habakkuk made a choice to delight in the Lord, as Joshua proclaimed his decision to serve Yahweh, and King David to seek after Jehovah, so we too must take a stand by the lives we live and by the values we maintain and thereby declare our position in this world.
“A man or woman who stands for nothing, FALLS for everything,” may God forbid that this would be true of any of us.
Father,
Thank you for this insightful study, may these words be used by your Spirit to make in roads into our hearts, mind and will. Make us completely yours Lord.
Thank you and Amen,
Move Forward in His Grace – Arthur