STAY Connected!!!

Saturday, June 30th> 2 Corinthians 11:14; John 16: 12-15 How will staying connected to the Spirit of Truth and using our hearing aid of salvation expose the enemy's plot to stop our purpose? Before we get to that question, I really feel led to WARN the children of God to be SOBER concerning from whom they receive revelation from God. That Scripture in 2 Corinthians reminds us that there are people who CLAIM to be God's servants, but are actually carrying out the work of the enemy. This means that there are individuals who are crafty enough to say just the right things to deceive the people of God. They are being elevated to apostles, and are operating in the fivefold ministry as we speak. I am by NO means trying to create paranoid Christians, looking for a demon beneath every church pew(although we should know they're there). But what I AM saying is that we MUST be mature enough to observe and judge the FRUIT of those who speak on behalf of God and His kingdom. Having said that, we've been given the Holy Spirit Himself, Who has the power to lead us into ALL truth-- truth about ourselves, where we are in our walk, and which area we need to be transformed in order to position ourselves to be all that God is calling us to be. So as long as we're HEARING His voice clearly, there is no possibility of confusion, strife, division, or falling away. God has a way of confirming to us that we're hearing from Him. The fruit of our obedience to what we hear will also be evident in our walk. Remember? Our MILESTONES will be visible as an encouragement to those not quite there yet, and will bring glory to the Father. It's really in our best interest to stay connected.

Whose Sound Will Win?

Tuesday, June 19th> Matthew 13: 1-23 In a world where the enemy's kingdom is displayed with sights and sounds, what is it about HEARING the things of God that keeps us victorious? Look around you: what do you hear the most? Loud, crazy sounds from the world to make us think they're having so much fun. Yet the more outrageous they get, the more frustrated believers seem to become. Why does what they do upset us so much, anyway? Is it because deep down inside the world has succeeded in getting us to envy what they have? If we're not careful, the sounds of the world will drown out the still small Voice we should be listening to. We'll respond to "Buy, buy, buy if you want to be happy" rather than "Be content in whatever state you find yourself in". We'll agree with "If it feels good, do it" instead of "Walk in the Spirit so you won't please the flesh". Every sound from the world will oppose the Voice of God... If you let it. But if you endure, the victory has no limits. The choice is yours.

Stick to the Word!

Thursday, June 14th> Matthew 4: 1-11 How does Jesus' experience in the wilderness serve as a warning about who and what we listen to? I just love the way our God is a God of another chance! Everything we failed in, He redid and succeeded. Rewind to the garden: Eve encounters the devil in serpent form. I don't know about anyone else, but the fact that she didn't find it strange for a snake to be speaking doesn't sit that well with me. Anyway, she goes right on and hears it out. When what it tells her doesn't line up with the Word, she has yet another opportunity to get herself away from this talking creature. Yet, she doesn't take it. Result: she falls into agreement without being forced to, and gives up eternal fellowship with God Himself for temporary power. Fast-forward to the wilderness. Same evil presence, different form. I'd like to think this time he presents himself to the Son of Man as an angel of light-- as smooth and persuasive as he can be. But this time, he overplays his hand when he assumes he actually has something Jesus thinks is worth taking in exchange for the glory of His Father. Unlike Eve, Jesus knows the treasure of being and staying in God's perfect will no matter what the cost. Furthermore, He IS God's Word in flesh. There was no way satan could get Him to fall out of agreement with His own Self. So, as an example to us, Jesus modeled what we should do every time the enemy tries to tempt us with what's already ours. HE SPOKE THE WORD. He stuck to TRUTH, countering every attempt the enemy made to sway Him from God's will. Saints, our model has been established for us. Every time we're tempted to deviate from the PLAN, here's our standard response: "It Is Written!" We have a choice: we can repeat Adam and Eve's mistake, or we can celebrate Jesus' victory by defeating the enemy just the way He did. Let's stick to the Word.

Selective Hearing

Monday, June 11th> 2 Timothy 4: 1-5 What is a very dangerous indication of our immaturity when it comes to our hearing? When we deliberately have SELECTIVE hearing, we stunt our own growth. God's Word is spirit, and it is life. That means He is able to make it APPLY to our lives no matter what situation we're walking in. So if we're going through a hard time financially, but God has our pastors teaching on forgiveness and love, we have a choice: we can decide we're just going to stay home and listen to the pastors on tv (no offense) who are ministering on how you can get your financial breakthrough. Or, we can humble ourselves and remember that God is a God of ORDER. He WANTS to bless us financially, but if there's bitterness and unforgiveness rooted in us, He cannot get His blessings TO us. Do you get the picture? We show how immature we are when we CHOOSE which parts of God's Word we're going to apply. We must understand that with God, it's ALL or NOTHING. We can't be miracle- or breakthrough- minded, only wanting God to change our situation, but reject His call to change. It's time to GROW up! Receive and be willing to APPLY the area that may not feel so good. THEN we can turn cartwheels when He rewards our obedience with blessing, miracles and breakthrough. Can you hear HIM now? Good.

Ready... Set... CHANGE!!!

Tuesday, June 12th> Romans chapter 12 In what way does the habit of not allowing the Holy Spirit to renew our hearing prevent us from forming vital relationships within the body?  All believers have some sort of hurtful past that God used to draw us to Him.  Whether it was a broken marriage, death of a cherished loved one, or abuse in one form or another, we all have what you might call a "rap sheet" of pain.  So when we move into our new life, it's a necessity that we allow the Holy Spirit to strip away the old way of hearing what people say to us. The enemy has a very effective strategy for creating strife between believers that MUST be exposed.  As our pastors have already ministered, we had "feelers" to detect any wrong intentions towards us as a defense mechanism.  But now that we are part of the Body of Christ, that old system only causes confusion and stagnation in the kingdom.  News flash, people of God: PUT DOWN YOUR DEFENSES!  GET RID OF YOUR WEAPONS!  We are all now on the SAME SIDE!  Our weapons of war are NOT carnal, and if used, they only work to STRENGTHEN the enemy.  Our fight is NOT against one another. Only when we get this revelation and allow the Holy Spirit to change the way we hear will we truly be able to become THE BODY.  Brain cells will align to function correctly; the circulatory system will do its part.  The immune system will defend from OUTSIDE forces rather than against itself.  And God's kingdom will truly advance in these last days.  Aren't you READY to move forward?  Then let's go!!!

Let's GROW!!!

Saturday, June 9th> Ephesians 5: 1-10 In what ways do we experience milestones in our walk as we allow ourselves to discover God's will for our lives? Just as with natural development, a child of God is BOUND to grow if he or she follows the guidelines that guarantee growth. The more we commit ourselves to consuming the proper nourishment (the Word) and our supplements and vitamins (God's Presence and companionship), the more we will see milestones in our faith. We must keep our eyes on no-one else but Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith. We cannot afford to let anyone else be our Role Model, for no-one else became human and succeeded in living on this earth without sinning. We will gradually leave behind the childish games of living for self, gratifying only the flesh. As we focus only on pleasing our Father, the things of this world will begin to lose their grip on our hearts. And most of all, as we receive the reward of gaining even more closeness with the One with Whom we will spend eternity, we will begin to set spiritual goals rather than physical ones, and not allow the enemy of our souls to deter us. We CANNOT fail, because -- last time I checked-- the victory's already been won. Let's GROW!!!