Be Still!

 Be Still!

The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace. Exodus 14:14 KJV

Context:

The background to today's extract is a promise that God made to Abraham more than 500 years before this extract. Abraham received the promise of a land flowing with milk and honey, and he settled in the land as a stranger. His own children also settled in the land, but at a time, famine came and his grandson Jacob had to leave with his family to settle in Egypt. There they were for more than 400 years, in slavery and servitude. It is easy to think that because God has promised you something, it has to be smooth. It seems that from God's perspective, you appreciate what you get more when you have to be tried and tested for it. It seems that God would try my heart to see if he can commit such mighty blessings into my hands. What is that promise that you are certain God has made to you? He is able to bring it to pass, but can he trust your heart? Can he trust mine? 

Israel had slaved in Egypt for more than 400 years, but God had sent a Moses to deliver them from Egypt and take them to the land of promise. God led them out, yet the army of Egypt followed them. There they were, no experience of war at all, with the Red Sea in front and the Egyptian army coming after them. How could they avoid either of them? Going forward was into the sea and certain death, going backwards was falling into the hands of the Egyptians who had just lost family members. The fact that God leads me out does not guarantee that I will not face trials. Thr certainty of God's presence also means the certainty of tests. What I do is then defined by my understanding of who God is, and the Word he had spoken to me. 

Message and Response:

Just as God did for Israel here, so does he do for all who He sends out. He is not defined by the tests in front of me, but by the power that is able to conquer all. My victory is not in the ability to understand what I am going through, but to simply obey the instructions I receive from God. Imagine: army behind and sea ahead, and all that God can say is: hold your peace. Be still. In a world that is defined by activity, labour and exertion, this message seems to be out of time. 

How do I hold my peace when life is threatening to capsize my boat? How do I remain calm in a storm, or relax when the winds are contrary? Let's turn this around and ask: if I fret, what outcome can I change? If I worry, what difference can I make to the final outcome? If I complain and grumble about my lot, how does that in any way change the direction of my life? That is the biggest lesson of my life: I am indeed safe when I am in God's hands, no matter where or how he leads me. I am limited in knowledge, power and wisdom, and I need the help, direction and wisdom of the One who is limitless to keep me focused. 

It is clear that life is a battle. God does not indicate otherwise anywhere in His Word. He refers to himself as the Man of War, asks me to stand with the full armour of God in place, and Paul further emphasies this by charging me to fight the good fight of faith. There is just this one point that must be made: the battle to be fought is not mine to sort out. It is God's to fight, but it is mine to stand in that certain victory and uphold it. That is the thrust of today's extract: I can do nothing about the tests that will come, but I can determine the outcome by completely trusting in the ability of God to make it end well. Holding my peace is not being careless, but completely depending on God to help me. If I can help myself, I don't need God. If I will depend on God, I cannot seek glory for myself. I cannot sit on the throne of my heart and still expect God to be in charge. I must let him have his way, taking charge of all that is ahead. He is God; he has not lost any war yet, and he will not lose any. His time of favour is here. 

Witnesses!

Witnesses!

But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. Acts 1:8 KJV

Context:

Jesus had fulfilled the purpose for which he was sent as man to earth. He had died and resurrected, sealing our salvation from sin and securing eternal life for us. Here he was, speaking to the disciples for the last time while on earth, laying down the specific assignment that disciples must be engaged in. He does not leave us without guidance as to what he expects from us; we are not called into uncertainty or indecision, but he has made it very clear what he wants from us. Do I know why I have been saved and spared? Have I taken time to sit before God to ask for clear direction on his purpose and plan for my life in these end times? 

The assignment is such that flesh and blood cannot successfully carry it out. I need the help of the One who owns and commissions the assignment in order to successfully carry it out. The world will emphasise on strength, knowledge, ability, connection and influence, but when it comes to the things of the Spirit, you need another kind of supply if you are to succeed. The world has tools for the work it inspires, and in the same way, the Spirit has tools for the work that it inspires. You cannot interchange the tools; these are parallel lines that can never meet, no matter how long you draw them or how hard you pull them. What work am I engaged in or pursuing at the moment? Do I even know the tools I need for the assignment I am on at the moment? 

Message and Response:

The one and only important tool for the work birthed by the Holy Spirit is the Spirit Himself and all he represents. As ordinary as it may sound, for all who have experienced the Presence of the Holy Spirit, you know that there is nothing you can achieve without his help. The work of the Spirit is so complex that it can defeat man's best intentions. How can I seek the Holy Spirit, and then try to finish his work by my own strength and wisdom? How do I begin an assignment from the Holy Spirit, and then try to finish it in my own way? That is why Jesus asked the disciples to wait in Jerusalem. They were not to try and start anything until the power of the Holy Spirit came. 

It is that power that is the source of all possibilities for a disciple. That statement makes it clear that it is only a disciple who can draw on that power. It does not matter how good it looks on you, or what people around you say: if you are not a child of God, what you have is not the Holy Spirit. Yes, miracles can still happen; after all, what makes miracles possible is not me, but the power of God. God will honour his name, but the vessel may be dumped at the end of it all. I need the presence and power of the Holy Spirit, if I am to achieve the work that has been laid out for me. 

That presence and power are not for me to glory in, but to do the work that has been assigned. What is that work: to be a witness. A witness does not have to argue his or her position, but to simply state the things that have been seen, felt, touched, tasted or smelt. When my account is straight, it does not matter how much the opposing counsel tries to trip me up. I am a witness, called to testify of the great things that I have experienced on a personal level as a disciple of Jesus. 

Power will not come without the Holy Spirit. The power is not for personal glory, but for the work that is birthed and sustained by the Holy Spirit. The work must start where I am right now. I am to be a witness for Jesus in the place I have been planted now. I am not a witness to the drama of the world but the truths of Jesus as laid out in the Word. I cannot be a witness to anything that is contrary to the Word of God. Is my life aligned with the Word of God? Can God trust me with his Spirit and the power he gives? I must remember that with great power comes great responsibility too. God will always demand an account for whatever it is that he has given me. If he calls me as his witness, it means he has an obligation to show me the truth. As his witness, I am speaking of my personal encounter, not what I heard another person say. Do I have that personal encounter? If I do not, I have nothing to witness about. 

And the journey will start where I am now, but it will spread beyond where I am right now. Where is my Jerusalem now? Do I want to impact the world, yet have no good reputation in my present location? Am I all about a good impression outside, yet have no personal encounter to speak about as a witness? God will start with where I am now, but he will not keep me on the same spot. I may remain in the same location, but He will never leave me the same way, as long as I depend on the Holy Spirit for the work that is ahead. Who is inspiring my present assignment, and who is the focus for that which is ahead? May the Holy Spirit be my constant companion and help, as I look ahead to the great and mighty things that are ahead. His time I'd favour is here. 

The Greatest Commandment!

The Greatest Commandment!

Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

Matthew 22:37‭-‬39 KJV

Context:

Throughout the earthly life of Jesus, you would always find men who wanted to trip him up so he could say something they found offensive, and which they could use as grounds of charges against him. Today's extract follows the same pattern. Truth is very expensive and at the same time also quite scarce. It is not popular or widely accepted, and anyone who would seek, find and hold on to it must be willing to pay the price for it. Why do I seek Jesus: for the optics (how) it looks, or for the true life he offers? 

The Saducees had just been put in their place. The Pharisees felt it was their time to shine. A lawyer from the sect asked a question, wanting to know which of all the law, was the greatest commandment. At the time the law was given, God never did say that one was the greatest. He laid down the law for his people, defining terms and conditions for engagement with him, as well as man's relationship with other men also. What lessons does the response of Jesus hold for me today? 

Message and Response:

1. Love is a Command: if Jesus' response to the question on the greatest commandment is love, it means that love is a command. Like all commands, it does not give me room to choose which part I like or am comfortable with, but it demands total obedience from me. From God's perspective, partial obedience is the same as outright disobedience, so I must audit my heart and be sure I am aligned with God's command.

2. Love is a Choice: as much as God lays it down as a command, it is still first and foremost a matter of choice for me. God does not go against the exercise of my free will. If I will love, it is because I have come to understand what it entails, what it will demand from me. The opposite is also true: if I cannot love, it is because I have not experienced the genuine thing yet. 

3. Love makes contact: love does not exist in a vacuum; it has to be felt for it to be true. I cannot claim to love God or people, yet there is no outward proof of that contact or connection with God or people. Can I claim to love God, yet there is no desire to do the things that glorify him? Can I claim to love people, yet nobody can point to any contact or personal connection? What kind of love exists from afar, with no direct impact on the life of the recipient of love? 

For us, a life was given as proof of God's love. Even when we reject him, he does not withhold his love from us until we do not have time to respond to the love anymore. It is also from what I have received and responded to that I can share with other people. I cannot give what I do not have, and I cannot draw out of an account into which I have not made any deposit. 

4. Love is complete: if it is not the whole, I must not bother giving it. If it does not demand all of my heart, I must not waste my time with half-hearted devotion. My greatest response to God's love is to give him ALL my heart, soul and mind. He is God, so I cannot get away with less than my all. He sees my heart, so there is no room for hypocrisy, deceit or eye-service. He knows; that understanding must keep me sane, humble and ever-dependent on God for his help. 

5. Love is connected to the divine and the earthly: it is when the divine is healthy that the earthly can be impacted. I take from that which God has birthed in me and use it to impact the lives of the people around me. That is why today's extract cannot be complete without the impact on man: first the God-connection, then the man-connection. The order is important; I cannot take the earthly first, because it is the divine that controls the earthly. 

When the divine is settled and in place, earthly Impact is non-negotiable. No wonder these are the greatest commandments: Love for God and love for man. No earthly law can make it an offence. Man can resist it but it cannot kill that which he does not understand. All I can do is have it and show it and let God do his utmost and mighty with the life that is surrendered to him. His time of favour is here. 

Seed of Discipline!

Seed of Discipline!

No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

Hebrews 12:11 NIV

Context:

The writer of Hebrews addresses different parts of the Christian walk. This chapter starts with a lesson on the value of walking with God and being open to his dealings as a child of his. There is a grave danger that is brewing these days, and it is the risk of raising pampered, entitled and self-centred children. We have moved from the days when it was okay to scold or correct a child, to times where we just keep quiet and pray that the child knows and does what is right. How do I know truth if it is not shown or taught to me? 

Discipline is now being presented as a negative word. We want to find more acceptable terms for it, but if it is to serve the purpose for which it was instituted by God, it must work as God intends. Why does God speak a lot about discipline from his own perspective? What value does it hold for me as a child of God? 

Message and Response:

At the heart of discipline is a heart of love. As an earthly parent, I show that I love my child when I am quick and willing to correct wrong behaviour. If I keep quiet and refuse or neglect to correct bad behaviour, I am saying it is okay for the child to engage in that bad behaviour. I cannot then wait until the child is older to complain that the child is rebellious and disobedient. The same applies to God: he cannot afford to keep quiet when we do wrong, because it is his name that we bear that is at stake here. 

Discipline is also a seed. It is planted towards an expected harvest of a life of impact. At the time it is planted, it is not pleasant. No child loves it at the time, and most children may actively resist it. But the benefits are seen in the lives of all who were impacted by it in a good way. You cannot be looking for a good harvest in a place where you have not sown anything good. If I will harvest righteousness, I must have sown the type of fruit that will guarantee that harvest. What am I sowing at the moment?

And I must allow the process of time to perfect its work in me. The benefits of discipline may not be seen in the immediate, which is why we do not do it once and then stop. It is a continuous process, a life long commitment. As an earthly parent never stops wishing his or her child well, so does God not stop doing all he can to ensure that we end well.

For me as a child of God, I do not become perfect overnight. I submit to the pain and the process, as God's nature of peace and righteousness is birthed and sustained in me. I do not learn all of God at once; in fact, an entire lifetime is not enough to know all about God, and that is why I must allow God to deal with whatever it is in me that will not lead to his full expression in me.

Training takes time and effort, but the benefits and blessings attached to it make the process and sacrifice worth it. God does not place a burden on a man he has not trained, and he makes no demand on a man who has not submitted to the process. If I submit to God, I am saying to him that I will submit to his discipline. If I surrender my life to God, I am saying that I will embrace whatever lessons he wants me to learn, so that I can partake of his divine nature. That must be the default setting for every one who claims to be a child of God. God has to run the rule over my life so I can be all he has created, gifted and planted me to be. Would i let him? Would you? His time of favour is here. 

New Order!

New Order!

And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

Revelation 21:4 KJV

Context:

The apostle John had been given the grace to see insights into the future, and he was asked to write the things he saw. Today's extract speaks to the end of all things, when all that we see and know now will change. All the familiar, regular, usual and the predictable will all give way to the new eternal. John testified that he saw a new heaven and a new earth, with the first heaven and the first earth passing away. That is proof that nothing of the earth was built to outlast the earth. There is nothing I lay hold of on earth that I can take to heaven; they all will be used on and for the earth and will perish with the earth. 

God says all of these to me so I can order my priorities aright. I cannot keep my heart on the earth's resources and still be focused on eternity. The earth's resources are good, as they are required for living on earth, but they must not take the place of God in my heart. I must use the resources, bless the earth with the gifts I have been given, but I must spend them in the service of the earth, and for the glory of the One who owns and gives them as he pleases. If he does not give me something, it does not make me any less than the one who has it. At some point, all of us would have to leave the earth and answer to God for all the resources he has given us. What would my account of the things he has given me look like? 

Message and Response:

Is my heart free from the pull and attraction of the earth's resources? Have I set my heart on them so much that I cannot hear God speak about my pursuits and priorities? What lies ahead is not the normal or the usual, and I need to prepare for it. God promises that a time is coming when He will wipe away all tears. Whether it is that I will have no capacity to produce tears, or that my new position will generate so much joy that tears will not be necessary, God's promise is one of indescribable joy. It is the joy of the Holy Spirit when he is in a life. 

Of course, when God's eternal life promised here is in operation, there can be no death, sorrow, crying or pain. When these no longer exist, where then is the basis for tears? God cannot be in a life and there will still be a fear of death. The two cannot co-exist together in the same heart. Sin led to the breach of the first perfect life, where even nakedness was not an issue because God's nature of holiness provided all the cover needed. Sin broke that hedge, but Jesus' death and resurrection assures us of the restoration of that same cover. If I will look forward to that cover, I must be found in Jesus. It is his life that guarantees the cover, not my possessions, power, position or political influence. 

The qualification for entering into the new heaven and the new earth is just what it is: holiness, which is God's nature. I cannot deceive this God with mere mouth confession; it has to be the sincere conversion and daily walk with God. Everything I know about this present earthly phase is only good down here. As I live my life down here, I am preparing for the life to come. At some point in the future, everything I see now will be termed as the former things, because they will all pass away, either by death or total destruction by fire. 

With that understanding, what kind of person then must I be, if not one who is standing guard, aware of and alert to everything that is happening around me. I cannot sleep off or become insensitive to God's warnings about the world I live in. Just as the world and its desire are passing away, so must their attraction and pull pass away in my heart. I must set my heart on the things that glorify and promote God, and I must seek to make God known. God is calling out to all of us, asking that we tune our hearts to him. His gift of life is available to all men, but it is a gift that is time-based. I can only take advantage of the gift while I am still alive. Once death comes, it is too late to change my mind. Am I sure that I am a candidate for the new heaven and the new earth? My eternity hangs on the answer. His time of favour is here. 

Planted and Pointed!

Planted and Pointed! 

When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?

Psalms 8:3‭-‬4 NIV

Context:

David is credited with the words of this psalm, and when you consider his relationship with God, the words of this psalm will not be a surprise. How can a man speak so eloquently about a God he has no relationship with? How do you extol the virtues of a God you know nothing about, or be able to know your limits around a God you do not acknowledge as such? It is easy to speak about God publicly, as so many people can, but it is a different thing for your heart to bear witness to a personal relationship with this God. Which one do I have: just a mouth profession alone or in addition, a heart confirmation, a life affirmation and an eye on eternity? 

David took a good look, or maybe two, at God and the wonders of his hands, as well as the place of man in all of creation, and he just had to wonder why man plays a critical and fundamental role in everything. Man sits at the heart of all that is called earth, and there are even borders beyond the planet earth that man is also seeking to conquer. All the advancements in science, technology and space exploration all point to the amazing mind that is man's, which is not really a surprise considering he is made in the image of the amazing God. That is the thrust of today's extract. 

Message and Response:

As I take a careful look at all of creation, what do I see: my special place in all these, or God's mighty hand in all these? It matters what I see, because my response and reaction will be based on my reality. Men have gone to the extreme of worshipping the things their hands have made, forgetting that the created WILL ALWAYS be inferior to the Creator. We seem to place more emphasis on what our hands can achieve for us, forgetting that it is only by God that our hands can even try to achieve anything. The psalmist knew the origins of all things, which is why he could say: your heavens, the work of your fingers, the things you have set in place. There was no doubt as to the source; do I share the same mind as David here? 

God created all things; this is the start of all good things. Until I come to this reality, I am only wasting my time pursuing any other reality. The world has its own version of things; the Word of God has its own version of things. Have I taken time to consider all that my eyes see, so I can come to the same conclusion as David here? And when I have considered all that my eyes see, there is only obr conclusion: God is God over all. If there is any other conclusion different from this, then it means I do not yet know the God that David talks about here. 

It is not a wonder then that David could speak about man this way. When God created man, he called the whole heaven to bear witness to the greatness that was about to unfold. He made man in his own image, after his likeness, and gave him dominion and authority over all that had been made. Take a look at even the simplest of things around you, maybe the flowers. We do not know how the beautiful flowers come to be, yet, at the snip of a knife, they are cut down and begin to wither. The lush green grass looks healthy, yet at the start of autumn or winter, all the green disappears. If God could still clothe such objects with so much beauty, imagine what it is for those whom he breathed upon and gave a measure of himself. That is the value of man, and let no other person like yourself tell you otherwise. 

It is not man's opinion that should drive my focus, but the view of the God who made, formed and placed me where I would be pointedly efficient for him. The value of my life is best seen when I live for the pleasure of the one who created me. I have listened long enough to people who cannot guarantee the next minute, instead of seeking the pleasure and purpose of the one who is eternal. As long as I have life, I can still make amends. As long as I still breathe, it is not too late to make changes. I am planted and pointed by the one who made me and my life's pursuit must be to discover the reason and the environment for the fulfillment of God's purpose for my life. God will always play his part; I owe it to God to cooperate with him so his will can be established in me. God is too busy to create idle lives, or lives for which he has no use, but he will not go against the exercise of my own freewill. If I choose him, he will make my life a blessing; if I reject him, I cannot blame him for how my life turns out. His time of favour is here. 

Wait!

Wait!

Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord. Psalm 27:14 KJV

Context:

David, the man after God's heart, is credited with writing the words of this psalm. David knew God intimately, and that is why his words spoke very personally about who God was to him. It is my personal experience of God that will lead to a public walk with Him. I cannot give what I do not have, and I cannot call on resources I have not spent time cultivating and storing up. That is why it is very important to first cultivate the inner man of the heart, because the heart is the place of cultivation, preparation and manifestation. Whatever it is that God will do, the heart is his canvas. How's your heart?

It is the heart that must decide on the things it considers important and of eternal value. It is the heart that must choose its focus: worship, daily devotion and service are first settled in the heart. Dwelling in God's presence is a decision of the heart. Seeking God the way he wants to be sought is a decision of the heart. Deceit and hypocrisy are also decisions of the heart. God will not force himself on me, or compel me to choose him; that decision must flow out of a heart that knows and appreciates all it has received. 

Message and Response:

In the midst of all the drama going on in the world, today's extract is quite instructive. What lessons would God have me learn:

1. WAIT ON: it is tough to hear the word wait, when all that makes sense is haste and hurry. The world around us is not slowing down, and the world measures success by visible, tangible metrics. It peaches the value of the physical, because it is the only language it understands. For the man who wants to wait for the Lord, you cannot afford to be distracted by the world's definitions and standards. When God says wait, it is because he is the one who gives speed and accuracy, which will count. Joseph went from prison to the palace in the space of 24 hours. Simon the reed became Peter the rock, along with other disciples after waiting for enduement of power by the Holy Spirit. Waiting from God's perspective never ends in shame or regret. Is there anything God has asked you to wait for? Wait! 

And it is a picture of a waiter, waiting on the customer's instructions, so he can immediately attend. I am at the beck and call of the master, whose word must be my command. I have no other place to be, because it is the master's patronage and commendation that will move me on to the next level. My reward and wages are tied to the recommendation of the one I serve. If he says I have done well, it does not matter what anyone else says. If he does not approve of me, it also does not matter what anybody says. I must therefore live for the commendation of the only one whose view counts. All other views are just distractions. 

2. THE LORD: this is equally important, as it also matters who it is you are waiting for. Who asked you to wait? Was it really God? The one who does not have God must fight for himself. You have to be sure; it cannot be an assumption that it was God, or an uncertainty about the one directing your life. You have to be sure. Whatever this Lord ordains, he is able to sustain. If he did not birth it, he is not under any obligation to preserve it. Can I say, with every sense of certainty, that the Lord is the author and sustainer of my present life's pursuits and priorities? If he is not, it is not too late to get it right. 

3. BE OF GOOD COURAGE: Oh, things that will shake your faith will come, if they have not yet come. Tests are a part of my growth and maturity, and I cannot shortchange the process. As one test ends, another is loading. How do I claim maturity for the next level, if I am not fully prepared for that new level? The world itself has tests and exams for people; imagine then how it also applies to all who want to walk with God. However, before the tests come, God charges me to be of good courage. He speaks to my heart, because he knows that if he is able to capture the heart, storms, winds and waves have no impact. Courage does not mean the absence of things that could lead to fear, but it is the decision to focus on the God who rules and reigns over the things that could lead to fear. 

When the points above are aligned, then there is strength for my heart. My heart is at peace, because I have sorted out its allegiance and focus. Waiting is easy once my heart is settled on the eternal. I am not bothered about the things I do not have. I am not distracted by another person's story, but encouraged to seek God for who he is. I am not fussy about another man's hustle, because now I know that waiting on God gives me haste and access which no man can give me. Lord, teach me to wait on you, in line with your will. Help me to look away from the deceit of hurry, haste and hustle, and to hope in you alone. I know that no one who puts his trust in you is ever put to shame. His time of favour is here.