Keep at it!

Keep at it!

James 5:7-8 NIV

Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.

There's a disease going on around now, and it is called the NOW syndrome. We want to be very successful NOW; we all want to be prosperous NOW; we want everything NOW. We now find suddenly successful people who have not matured enough to handle the obvious pressures that money, success, fame, position or power bring. We find people who are distracted by these things, seeking to get a part of the wealth and success and doing anything imaginable, sometimes abominable, such as offering bodies that do not belong to them in the first place. No wonder our world is currently directionless, and in the grip of a grab-it-now culture; a culture that celebrates acquiring things without really asking how these things are obtained. Today's extract seeks to get our minds in the right direction. 

The seed is one of the most mysterious of God's creation. It is small, and some are almost insignificant and minute, yet it is the start of a process, a procedure and the beginning of a miracle. No one can trace the origin of the seed, but all plants and trees can all be traced to a seed. The farmer takes this small seed and after carefully ploughing the ground and making it fit to receive, puts the seed in the ground. He nurtures the seed and the environment around the seed, ensuring that the seed has everything it needs to grow well. It is not a short process, but it is a lesson in preparation, patience and consistency. You never lose attention; the weeds do not sleep and the farmer cannot sleep either. That is the lesson we can adapt to our walk as Christians. We are like seed that the Lord has planted in our world. He has given us everything we need to grow and to nurture the world we have been put in. 

The process is not short; it takes time and as we cooperate with God, He takes us to the place He has prepared for us. We must trust His nurturing, preparation and planning because ultimately, it is His seed, not ours. As we run this race therefore, let us remember our origins and our purpose. We do not own ourselves, we are God's. The purpose is not ours to determine, it is God's. We were not put here to pursue our own good, but to pursue God's purpose, and only as we do this do we manifest the glory of God and bring the joy of harvest to His heart. He is coming soon, and his reward is not for wealthy or connected people, it is for as many as have found His purpose for their lives and are actively pursuing it, no matter the standard the world judges them by: rich or poor. Find your purpose and pursue it. God's time of favour is here.

Real Strength!

Real Strength!

Philippians 4:12-13 NIV

I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

This is not one of the most popular messages in the Bible, but for the sake of balanced teaching, it will be good to learn a few lessons from the life of Paul, which will aid our walk with God and our understanding of His purpose. Paul was never a man to settle for the mediocre or the ordinary; whatever he was asked to do, he did it fervently, either initially out of misdirected zeal or ignorance, and later out of directed focus and spiritual energy. He was hardworking, he was diligent, he was a tentmaker. Even while preaching the gospel in faraway lands, he kept on working, supplying his needs through the skills of his hands. You would then wonder why he could talk about going hungry, or being in want. It just did not gel with the picture we have of a fervent, hardworking man. If there is anything this life has taught me, it is that all the circumstances that would come my way must have one end-purpose in view: the glory of God. 

All that I seek, pursue or labour for must bring glory to God. All that He allows or permits is for His glory, not my own lifting. It therefore means that even in lack or in need or in abundance, God is always at work, seeking to show off His glory in any life that is totally surrendered to him. He determines the course of the journey and the events along the way, and any lessons learnt is a message to the world that God is at work. Atimes, God speaks loudest in lack, and atimes, you hear Him clearly in the midst of plenty. Ultimately, what is important is what God says about what He has allowed, so that the lessons He desires to teach are learnt, and the lives that require to be impacted are impacted. If I understand that my life is not my own, then all that God brings my way is acceptable to me, and I work with Him to bring his message of hope, life and live to a sick and dying world. It is hard to hear this in the midst of all the 'prosperity' that we hear about in the church these days.

God is a God of riches and wealth but H1e is also a God of accountability. He does not give His resources to people who will waste them, because He has a world He needs to reach. There are times He will take you through lack so you can understand the world He is sending you to, and there are times He will take you through a season of harvest so you can touch the world with His blessings. After all, it is His world, His assignment, His mission field, His missionaries, His resources, His message, and His direction. We are just vessels that will give account of all that has been entrusted into our hands. As we go out today, let us remember that God always has a message for someone out there in the world. How He seeks to preach that message is His prerogative; all we can do is to be available. God is looking for lives surrendered to His leading and direction. Can He count on you? God's time of favour is here.

Helped!

Helped!

Deuteronomy 31:8 KJV

[8] And the LORD, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.

It may be convenient to point out all the faults of Moses, now that we know how the story ended. This was a man who has nationalistic zeal, and had the best interest of his nation and people at heart. He first tried to do things his own way, and then had to go on exile when his efforts backfired spectacularly. He then had a period of 'silence and preparation', having to learn patience and endurance, but the God who forgives and restores never forgot about him. When the time was right, He came looking for Moses again, and restored him to service. The past may be powerful, but it is nothing compared with what lies in the future. The past may be very messy, but in the hand of the Most High God, that big mess can become a bright message that will speak into eternity. As at the time Moses was speaking the words in the verse above, God had used him mightily for some spectacular miracles.

It matters in whose hands you are. It matters who is backing you up. It is important to keep taking stock of where I am, so I know if I am on the right path, and if I need adjustments in any area. God is faithful to His Word, and if He promises to be with me to the end, His nature makes it impossible for Him to lie. His Word has never be found to be false, because the premise on which His Word stands is also His person. How can God be found to be true if His Word cannot be trusted? He does not send out without the necessary backing and provisions that are appropriate for the vision that He has birthed. When you want to set out on a project, be sure of the inspiration behind that project. Make sure that the project is such that God can bless, so that you do not get to the middle of the ocean and find out you have no life jacket in the face of the storm. 

I also note that for Moses, even though he made a mistake that cost him entry into the land of promise, God did not suspend His plan for Israel. He had been preparing another man and when the time was right, Joshua stepped in. Of course, the people had seen both the wonders of God, as well as His punishments, but the word for today reminds us to never forget who God is, as well as what His expectations are from us. He is faithful; He will play His part, and because He cannot fail, His purpose cannot be thwarted. My role here is to trust Him completely; not the halfhearted devotion that we seem to have mastered these days, but total commitment to God. As we know, being lukewarm has no reward from God. He has gone ahead of us, He is with us, and He will not fail us. What else can go wrong when the past, present and future are all working together for my good? God's time of favour is here. 

Do Right!

Do Right!

Leviticus 19:18 KJV

Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the Lord.

Let us break these words down: 'Thou shalt Not avenge'. There is really no other way to make this clearer or lay out its impact more pronounced than to establish the identity of the one making the statement. For every instruction God gives, there are blessings for obedience and punishment for disobedience. God never wastes words so you can rest assured that every word spoken by Him has the backing of His name,  and He will make sure that His words all come to pass. So, what is the warning here?: Do Not Avenge. If we search our hearts sincerely, have we not been a bit happy and 'justified" when people who did something bad to us met with a bad incident sometime later? 

We did not pray that they should go through such terrible experiences, but we also did not pray that they shouldn't either. We need to keep God's searchlight over our hearts constantly so he can keep cleansing us of evil thoughts. God judges our intentions and motives and he cannot be deceived by the external. You may say you do not avenge evil done towards you by others but what about bearing grudges? Do you know that there is a silent poison that seeks to pollute the church today and it is this silent malice or the superiority complex.  Someone does something to us, and rather than call the person in order to understand the motives or intentions behind their actions, we presume we know why and we react accordingly. 

We seek to play God in their lives, nterpreting other people's intentions and motives, forgetting that this is God's prerogative. God goes a step further to underline the importance of NOT bearing grudges in Matthew 5:23-24 KJV, where He says: 'Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift'. 

When next you think that God appreciates your fat tithes, you will do well to remember that God accepted Abel first, before accepting his offering. He rejected Cain first, before rejecting his offering. Your life and eternity are much more important than what you own or hold now. Get your priorities right. God's time of favour is here.

Wait!

Wait!

Isaiah 40:31 AMP

[31] But those who wait for the Lord [who expect, look for, and hope in Him] Will gain new strength and renew their power; They will lift up their wings [and rise up close to God] like eagles [rising toward the sun]; They will run and not become weary, They will walk and not grow tired.

In a world that teaches haste, without the very important lesson on direction, today's verse is really relevant to this present generation. We have been taught to just keep moving, and so people just have plenty of motion and not much impact. We are raising a restless and stressed generation; people who just cannot sit still, and we usually defer to the general excuse of 'attention span'. Whilst this may be true, it does not diminish the importance of waiting on God. Why is waiting so important? A definition of waiting is to 'stay where one is or delay action until a particular time or event'. It is not as if you are clueless about what to do, or are lazy and lackadaisical; it is that you need to get definite guidance on what to do, when to do and how to do it. That definition makes it clear that there is an action or a decision to be taken or made, but there is a delay to that action or decision, as there is a higher power to consult. 

This is where God comes into the picture. The idea of waiting for the Lord is not popular. It may appear that God cannot be rushed, and you cannot push Him to act in a certain way or at a certain time. That is actually very true, but His idea of time is nothing like our own idea. We are the ones who count time by seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months and years, but God is not bound by those human schemes. When it is His time to act, it does not matter what else is happening in or  around me; He will do whatever He wants to do, and whatever pleases Him. It does appear that I have not been given a choice in this matter; but it is the waiting that is my own contribution to that which God wants to do. Waiting on God when others are in a hurry will require faith and trust in God's ability to lead and direct. Waiting on God means being in His presence and being patient to hear clearly before you start to run.

So, when I begin to move, I have a clear idea of who is behind my commission, who is supplying the inspiration and guidance, and who is providing all the necessary things required for the vision He has birthed. It does not matter the speed with which I start; God wants me to surrender to Him so He can take me to the place He has prepared for me. If it is walking, I walk daily in line with His will. If it is running, I run the race that has been set before me, looking unto Jesus as the author and finisher of our faith. If it is soaring, I rely on the winds of the Spirit to keep me where I should be. At whatever stage I am, I know that God is able to keep me centred in His purpose and busy under His command. Of course, if He leads and I follow carefully, impact is not negotiable. The one who God helps will be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. Do you know this God? Does He also know you as His own? God's time of favour is here.

Priorities!

Priorities!

Matthew 6:33 KJV

[33] But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

Jesus was teaching His disciples about the principles and practices of His kingdom. He had touched on different life issues, and had laid down the new ways of doing things. From the regime of the old covenant, a new way of working was now in force. Of course, the old covenant only had rules and regulations; it could not provide the help needed to align with the rules. In addition, it has to be noted that the messages in the Sermon that Jesus preached here are for disciples, not the crowd that is usually attracted to whatever is current or popular at the time. In this new covenant, the focus is on the help and guidance now made abundantly available in and through the presence of Christ in the life of the man who allows Him in. As it was in the days when Jesus preached this message, so is it now in our days when we need to respond to the demands of Christ laid out in the verse above.

There is always the issue of oppourtunity cost when it comes to following Jesus. You willl have to give up something in order to take hold of that which Jesus promises here. What do I need to give up? It is whatever takes the priority in my life apart from God. This may even be legitimate concerns, such as making a living or being present for family, but think about this: is there anything too big to give up for God if He asks for it? If I were given the option to choose between the eternal and the earthly, which one would I take? Clearly, the world system has its own priorities, and it will place a demand on all who are its subjects. The same principle applies to the spiritual and all who are subject to its authority too. There is no middle ground here; you do not get to play both sides here, and you also do not get to stay neutral or indifferent. You have to pick a side, and live with the consequences. 

The counsel in the verse above is to be taken as critical. God does not force Himself on anyone, and He will never go against the  exercise of my freewill. The kingdom of God has to be my first priority. This means that I recognise, respect and submit to the authority of that kingdom. I take time to study the demands of that kingdom, and I am careful to align with the demands. The righteousness of God is the demand; the righteousness of God is the standard. God will not compromise or lower His standard for anyone, no matter how special the person may be. When I align with God's standard, He promises to take care of my needs too. When I take care of God's business, He will also take care of my own business. There is no point pursuing my own agenda; God knows what I need and when I need it, so I am in good hands. Whatever the need, do God's own first, and watch God do wonders. God's time of favour is here. 

As He Said!

As He Said!

Genesis 21:1-2 NIV

Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised. Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him.

Let us consider the history behind the words of the verse above. God had opened his mouth many years before this story and had made promises to Abraham and Sarah about children. Years rolled by, and it appeared to both of them as if the person who promised had forgotten, or had lost the power to fulfil his words. Just as we do today, we hear from God but because of delays, pressures, issues and people's views, we begin to doubt the full authenticity of what we heard. We begin to subject the awesome God to rational and logical processes, thinking that God can be fitted into our narrow, myopic and limited views. We want to define Him based on our present experiences. The story of this couple keeps telling us that God cannot be boxed into a corner, and He does not really care to satisfy our curiosity. He has bigger plans than our human minds can ever fathom. 

The beautiful words we focus on today are: 'as he had said'; 'as he had promised'; and 'at the time God promised him'. These refer to power, ability, capacity and capability. If there is anything we must trust as human beings, it is the words spoken by the Word himself. As He speaks, He is speaking himself and placing his reputation, name, life and nature on the line, and because He is a jealous God, He will guard his name against all scandals. He has no nature of deceit or double-speak, and he always watches over his words to bring them to fulfilment. There is something amazing about God's timing. When you have waited patiently, you realize that He stepped in at just the right time you needed him most, not when your own calculation demanded it. We are the ones who have a biological clock for things to happen; we are the ones who want to define and determine a 'shelf-life' for events and milestones in our lives.  

We are the ones who seek to elevate budgetting and forecasting over God's timely and adequate provision. We may trust in hard evidence that is tangible, but whilst it is very important to plan, we must never forget that nothing beats God's timing and nothing can be better than having God step into your situation at the 'right' time. The word of  encouragement for this season we are in is this:  Wait for God's appointed time. It is critical to get a Word from God's mouth today and stake your life on it. God already stakes his life and reputation on his Word and you can rest assured that he knows what He is doing. At his own 'set time', He will turn things around for good. After all, it is to His glory that He is found to be faithful and also very dependable. Wait for Him, wait on Him, wait with patience as God declares His nature and power through you. God’s time of favour is here.