Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark
Psalm 18:28 states, "For You will light my lamp; The Lord my God will enlighten my darkness."
What jumped out to me in this verse is that, as Christians, we all have a "lamp" & we all have "darkness." What is our lamp? God's Word teaches us in Psalm 119:105 that "Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." So if our lamp is the Word of God, then what is our darkness?
In the original Hebrew "darkness" could mean "misery, destruction, death, ignorance, sorrow, or wickedness." In other words, if there is sorrow in your life... this could be your darkness. If there is ignorance of something in your life (maybe you don't understand WHY God has you where you're at or maybe you are unsure what He wants you to do in your life... ignorance)... this could be your darkness. If there is misery, death, destruction, or wickedness in your life... this could be your darkness.
Understand that DARKNESS ISN'T ALWAYS A BAD THING. We also need to remember that darkness only seems dark to us... NOT TO GOD. Psalm 139:12 states, "Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, But the night shines as the day; the darkness and the light are both alike to You." In other words God understands and SEES. The darkness in your life is as light as day to Him. He sees the full picture! This encourages me to SEEK the LIGHT without giving up! For He promises us in His Word that He "will light my lamp" & "will enlighten my darkness." This suggests that our darkness won't be dark to us forever. So, how will he "enlighten" us? Well, you know the answer... it is His Word. If we will diligently seek Him in His Word (our lamp), then the Spirit of God will open our eyes and give us light to see & understand His plan in His perfect time. According to 2 Corinthians 4:6 we can rest in the fact that through our darkness, the light of Christ will shine brightly and God will be glorified if we can trust in Him through the darkness. It states, "For it is God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ."
May we all hold tightly to this verse as we press on to see our Light face to face!
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Don’t Be Afraid
Isaiah 41:10 states, "Don't be afraid, for I am with you. Don't be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand."
This verse came to life almost a week ago when I watched my daughter who just turned 5 play her very first t-ball game. My heart didn't beat very fast the 1st time she was up to bat and was tagged out (because she forgot to run to 1st base). BUT... after she was tagged out she came over to mommy and looked as if she wanted to cry and go hide somewhere far away! My heart melted and I immediately started to give her a pep talk and try to hammer into her brain to DROP THE BAT AND RUN to 1st base AS SOON as she hit the ball next time! I tried to give her a boost of confidence so she would not be discouraged or afraid... I knew she could do it! As she fought back the tears, she went back to her team to finish the game. The time came when it was her turn to bat again. As I was trying to video tape, my heart was beating as fast as ever because I wanted her to have the victory this time. So she hit the ball and started to run... but when she got about half way she started running toward a white hat instead of the white base! I pretty much dropped the camera and started running towards her to point her in the correct direction! Thankfully she figured it out right before I got there and just BARELY made it to the base (the other team was having some issues too thankfully)!!!! Mommy was THRILLED and she was beaming after she made it across home plate!
Why do I share this silly story? Maybe there are moments that we want to just cry and go hide somewhere far away. I know I've experienced such times. Today the Lord wants to remind us "Don't be afraid, for I am with you. Don't be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand." The most awesome thing about this promise for us is that GOD IS ABLE to help us and hold us up! I was incapable of giving my daughter the victory I wanted her to have, but I desired to give it to her more than words could express. God is our Father and loves us soooooooooooooooooo much more than I love my daughter. This amazes me EVERY time I meditate on it. For those of us that need a boost of confidence this week, memorize this verse and believe it with all your heart! Then watch God's victorious right hand at work in your life as you take courage and persevere!
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Draw Near to God
This thanksgiving I am thankful for the reality of Hebrews 10:21-22. It states, “And having an high priest over the house of God; Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.”(KJV)
For those of us that might be new to the Scriptures, let me point out that this “high priest over the house of God” is none other than Jesus Christ. He offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for our sins so that we could be made clean once and for all. Because of His sacrifice, we have the ability to “draw near” to God. These words in the original Greek mean “to approach, come near, VISIT, worship, or go to.”
We all have the ability to be thankful for this amazing opportunity we have to “draw near” to God BECAUSE of Jesus. How many times throughout the year do we MISS hearing God’s voice or experiencing ALL God has for us because we forget this truth? I am sure that I have not taken these verses to heart many a time.
The challenge for all of us is to PRACTICE this verse and take it to heart! Do we APPROACH God with a “true heart in full assurance of faith?” Do our prayers ever become just a part of the Christian routine? Prayer is a good routine to have... don’t get me wrong! BUT... I know that sometimes my heart is more sincere than other times when I pray. I know that I don’t have “full assurance” EVERY time I say a prayer. We need to remember that Satan does NOT want us to experience this verse. He does everything he can to make us forget the power that we have through Jesus. Let us all be reminded this thanksgiving to be thankful for the POWER we have through the eternal Spirit! Let us not only be thankful for it, but let us all USE it! Have full assurance fellow servants! Boldly enter the throne room with confidence and have a VISIT with God!
Isaiah 52:6 states, “But I will reveal my name to my people, and they will come to know its power. Then at last they will recognize that it is I who speaks to them.” (NLT)
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Dying to Self
My wonderful sister came into town and gave me something to chew on this past weekend. I thought it was worth sharing with the team! The truth she shared with me was that dying to self does NOT produce loneliness. The verse to meditate on with this comes from John 12:24 which states, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain." Jesus was speaking to Andrew and Philip trying to explain that it was time for Him to die. He wanted them (and all of us) to realize the importance of dying to self. He was going to die to self in the most literal way SO THAT He would not remain alone in heaven with God, but so that we ALL could enjoy fellowship with Him forever and ever! Because of His decision to OBEY His Father and DIE to self, He produced the BIGGEST harvest ever... all those that are and will be saved! There will be true joy and fellowship in heaven because of this.
So, what are we to do? Realize that every time we "die to self," we are actually choosing fellowship opposed to loneliness. It's kind of strange, but it is so true! Dads, maybe this means letting go of the project to spend some quality time with your kids. Wives, maybe this means having a gentle and quiet spirit and allowing your husband to make the decision. Singles, maybe this means signing up to help with VBS or trying out Love Out Loud one Saturday instead of doing what YOU usually want to do. The challenge for all of us is to continually choose to die to self by putting others first. This means in every decision and every circumstance that happens on a daily basis. In so doing, we will produce a harvest... some two-fold, some 10-fold, some 100-fold... and we will NOT be lonely people!
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Encouragement and Victory
Is there ever a day that goes by that you feel DISCOURAGED, DEFEATED, or UNSUCCESSFUL? Maybe you've tried really hard to make something work, and it wouldn't. Maybe you just felt that you didn't do all that God wanted you to do one day, week, or even a whole month. Could it be that you feel that you are doing your best on Sunday's in the classroom and you just don't see much fruit? Maybe it doesn't seem that God is answering your prayers. Whatever it might be, know that we all experience these feelings, BUT we don't HAVE to stay there. We need to consistently work at renewing our mind so that we can bring God the most glory. How do we begin to feel ENCOURAGED, VICTORIOUS, and SUCCESSFUL so that we can be effective Christians 24/7? Let's look at what God tells us in His living Word....
1. ENCOURAGEMENT comes when we spend time with God. Philippians 4:8 states, "Finally, brethren whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praise worthy--meditate on these things." I have found that if I am feeling
discouraged, I quickly become encouraged when I spend some time in prayer and/or in God's Word. My attitude and my perspective shifts from thinking about self to thinking about others and all that God has done for me.
2. VICTORY is from Christ alone and comes by our faith in Him. 1 Corinthians 15:57 states, "But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 John 5:4-5 state, "For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world--our faith. Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?"
3. SUCCESS comes from meditating in God's Word day and night. Joshua 1:8-9 state, "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." If we are doing what God has called us to do, then we are accomplishing our aim and purpose as Christians. How can we know if we are doing what He has called us to do if we are not meditating in His Word? Abide in Him and He will abide in us. Seek Him and we will find Him. Let us not try to find SUCCESS in our own strength. May we daily seek His face so that we will be able to hear His voice. The sheep KNOW His voice.
Let us be encouraged! Let us find our victory in Christ today! Let us seek the Lord so that in His strength and wisdom we will be successful! Amen.
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Facing Our Goliaths
As I listened to the children reading the story of Goliath this past week, one verse seemed to jump off the page. 1 Samuel 17:8 states, "Then he stood and cried out to the armies of Israel, and said to them, 'Why have you come out to line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and you the servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me.'"
Most of us are very familiar with the story of David and Goliath, but to recap...David arrives at the war zone as the troops are leaving for battle. They have had a "pep talk" from Saul whom promised great reward to anyone who defeats Goliath. In 1 Samuel 17:20, we see the troops head out with a battle cry. Four verses later, "all the men fled from him (Goliath) and were dreadfully afraid."
This made me think of how we prepare for our Goliaths. Perhaps there is great similarity. I know there is in my life. Maybe your Goliath is bringing your Bible to work, witnessing to someone, writing a letter to an unsaved friend or family member, ending a destructive relationship, or loving your spouse unconditionally. Whatever the case, how many of us charge out to face our Goliath only to fail miserably?
Check out what we can learn from David... Note that Goliath's taunt in verse 8 states that the Israelites are "servants of Saul." This statement by the enemy fits in nicely with the prize package that is offered by Saul...but remember the enemy is the prince of lies. David knows the truth...he and all the Israelites should focus on the fact that they are servants of the "armies of the living God" (verse 26).
Who are we serving? If our focus is ourselves, our church or some tangible prize, we will probably experience more failures than successes against Goliath...just as the Israelites were failing. Let's draw near to Him, become servants to the most high God and let HIM make us VICTORIOUS!!!!