Therefore, “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7
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Habakkuk tells us, “For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry,” (2:3). Shortly after that in the next verse, he says, “The just shall live by his faith,” (2:4b). Every word of God for good or for bad, for happy or for sad, for those who believe or for those who don’t believe, it will come to pass! Our heavenly Father knows what He is doing. We may not always understand the pause in the plan, but wait. We may not fully comprehend how this is working out for our good, but wait. In the waiting, our faith is becoming more active and alive. In our waiting, faith is speaking on our behalf that we trust God and His perfect plan for our lives.
The Bible reminds us:
“But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” – Isaiah 40:31
“Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.” – Psalm 37:7
“I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.” – Psalm 27:13, 14
So this is my declaration for today: “Therefore I will look unto the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me.” – Micah 7:7
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“From the first day of the seventh month began they to offer burnt offerings unto the LORD. But the foundation of the temple of the LORD was not yet laid.” Ezra 3:6
Our drive to have everything perfect often gets in the way of progress. Sometimes certain things just need to be left alone so that other, more important things can be done right now. Continuing to put it off will only be more of a hindrance. As they say, there is no time like the present. And this is how the returning captives from Babylon felt. They had been out of proper worship of God for quite some time. Things were not as they should be, but they were moving in the right direction. Offerings were being restored. People’s hearts were being moved to draw closer to God. The spiritual hunger was there and now was the time to do what needed to be done even if other things were not in their proper place yet.
Worship can’t wait. Drawing closer to God can’t wait. Getting hearts realigned with God can’t wait. Restoring fellowship and bringing back the service of the LORD could not wait for the foundation of the temple to be laid. It was vital for them to eventually get the building back in shape the way it needed to be, but it was even more important to deal with their hearts first. The foundation of the physical building can be laid later, but the foundation of the spiritual building needs to be laid immediately. The Apostle Paul taught us, “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16). This takes precedence over all else.
We all have a mountain of things to face each day and/or an extensive to-do list. And they are real things that need to be done – eventually. But what comes first? Or, should I say, who comes first? There is no substitute for showing God He has priority in your worship, in your life, and in your heart:
“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” – Matthew 6:33
“In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” – Proverbs 3:6
“Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the Lord, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.” – Hosea 10:12, emphasis added
“Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.” – Hebrews 12:1, emphasis added
“Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.” – Psalm 46:10
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“The anointing is me is not as strong as another.”
“I can’t do this.”
“I don’t have enough to work with.”
“I am too small.”
“I don’t have someone supporting me like that.”
Have you ever struggled with the idea of you don’t have enough in you to make a difference or a positive impact? Do you feel God pulling you into an area of faith but the fear that your “little bit of stuff” is not enough and it’s holding you back?
Many people struggle with thoughts such as these. If it’s not big, it won’t work. But God never called us into big things. But, what He did do was call us to step out in faith believing in Him, in where He wants to take us.
There is to be no inferiority complex among God’s people. We are not depending on what we bring to the table. Our dependence is upon Him and what He does with what we bring. God is the one that establishes the work of our hands (Psalms 90:17). God is the one who gives the increase off of what we do (1 Corinthians 3:7). Therefore, it doesn’t matter what we think of the size of what we bring because God is the one working behind the scenes; God is the one who works in it to outsize all.
All He asks of us is to step out in faith and work with what He gave us.
“For who hath despised the day of small things?” (Zechariah 4:10). Every great tree that stands tall in the forest started from a small thing; from a seed. Your “small thing” is the seed of your gift that God is waiting for you to plant so that He can cause it to grow. An unplanted seed will not flourish and neither will your gift.
Don’t shun it because you think it’s not big enough. Don’t toss it to the side because you think it’s not good enough and doesn’t matter. It’s not about what you bring; it’s all about what He does with what you bring.
Luke 16:10 tells us, “He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much . . .” God wants to see what you do with the “least” before He turns it into “much.” Won’t you plant your little seed today?
Little stuff matters. If you don’t think so, take encouragement from these little critters:
“There be four things which are little upon the earth, but they are exceeding wise:
The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer,
The conies are but a feeble folk, yet make they their houses in the rocks;
The locusts have not king, yet go they forth all of them by bands;
The spider taketh hold with her hands, and is in kings’ palaces,” (Proverbs 30:24-28).
You see, it’s not about size or strength, but the wisdom God gives to those who render their little bit of stuff to Him in service. Size doesn’t matter to God because He is the God of increase. What matters most with God is our faithfulness in rendering what we do have to Him and trusting Him to let it grow.
“Little things make big things happen” (John Wooden).
Especially, when God is in it. So, don’t cast it off. Work it!
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God wants to hear our prayers. He invites us to pour our cares and troubles out to Him. Even when life seems overwhelming to us, it’s never overwhelming to God. He is just one prayer away!
“I cried unto the Lord with my voice; with my voice unto the Lord did I make my supplication.
I poured out my complaint before him; I shewed before him my trouble.
When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then thou knewest my path. In the way wherein I walked have they privily laid a snare for me.” Psalm 142:1-3
This is where our focus lies today. Not in ourselves. Not in our abilities. Not in other people. God is my Strength, my Source, my Healer, my Redeemer. Go forth in His power today! “The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.” Psalm 28:7
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Sour thoughts. Ill feelings. Have you ever struggled with these? There are days when they seem to invade your thinking. Although you don’t want them there, they seem to come unannounced. Not asking for your permission to be there, they come and tread upon the courts of your mind, disrupting your beautiful day.
When they step into your territory, what do you do? Do you let them walk around freely, unhindered? Or do you dismiss them and show them the way out?
Meandering about means they have a chance to muddy up the places marked with their footprints. In their meandering, they can bring confusion, bitterness, hurt, and pain. They can bring wrong assumptions that leave much devastation in their wake. Continuing their journey in your space unleashed can quickly tear apart what took years of love and hard work to build.
But giving them the boot frees you from these radicals that just want to stir up strife in our homes and in our lives. And the process the Apostle Paul gave us to do just that in and of itself, is not that complicated.
His advice: “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things” (Philippians 4:8).
When it is peace that we want and not things that cause bitterness and strife, we have the choice to replace those sour thoughts with something lovely and beautiful. We can make the decision within ourselves to not settle for something that puts in us and draws out of us things we do not want.
Take up these things of virtue and praise, and clothe your day in them. Choose to be purposefully mindful of that which is good, making that which is bad and sour flee before you.
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“His lord said unto him, well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord,” Matthew 25:21
There is something to be said about a job well done. That oh-so-satisfying feeling when one has worked hard to see the fruition of a purpose being fulfilled and then steps back and announces, “Ah, it was hard but well worth it.” One of my pet peeves is asking someone to perform a task for me and the job ends up only halfway done, with half-way effort. It’s a very frustrating experience because I could have just done the job myself the right way but that defeats the purpose of delegating a duty in the first place.
With that realization, I wonder how God must feel about the duties He has delegated to us? In our daily walk have we dealt with our Christianity with that same half-way done effort or have we really gone for the gusto? Have we really expressed ourselves as being faithful, manifesting all God is or has done in our lives?
Through that short stint of questioning the reality of it all hits me. No! The truth is, many of us are like the seed in the parable of the sower. The cares of this world have encroached upon us, choking the spiritual vitality right out of us, leaving us with only half-hearted energy to do a halfway job for God. Each of our lives is destined with purpose. Each has been endowed with something wonderful and unique to contribute to this world. God has chosen us to stand as ambassadors, to show this lost world how to be found and how to live in this world while having a flourishing relationship with Him. Unfortunately, that cannot be accomplished if we are not as diligent in the care of the work of the Lord as He is to us.
How will that great thing God put in you ever develop as an outgrowth of your faith if you are not faithful to it; if you are not faithful to Him? For if one is faithful to Him, then are they faithful to all He has instilled in them. How many wouldn’t like to hear, “Well done,” coming from the mouth of our Lord? Sometimes we work hard in this life, doing all we know how to do to stay above water, then after all the heartache, sweat, and tears, a voice speaks and confirms that it was not in vain. “Well done.”
In order to receive that proclamation of good work, one has to be faithful. The word “faithful” was used twice in this one verse alone. First, it described the servant. Then it was used again to describe his work ethic. The servant was one who the master could count on because of his character, and also because of the way he handled the affairs of business. Does that word describe us in either or both of those ways? One without the other just won’t do. James 2:17 tells us, “Even so faith, if it has not works, is dead, being alone.” What goes on on the inside of the believer should show up on the outside. There should be some type of manifestation branching out of our faithfulness.
Everyone in Christ is called to a life of devotion to God, giving Him priority, as characterized by faithfulness, and having that reach out in our daily affairs. We are called to be that reliable, trustworthy person whom God doesn’t mind acknowledging as, “Well done,” and handing him or her more talents to care for.
A life of faithfulness will get you there. Take God off the back burner of your life and give Him precedence over all. Rewards will come, but devotion comes first. The harvest will come but only after the seeds have been planted. The position of fulfilling purpose and accomplishing good works will always start with a position of faithfulness.
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“I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.” – Matthew 28:20
Father God, thank You that You have not left us alone. Thank You that you are always by our side. Thank You that Your power and anointing are persistently working on our behalf. Through the confusion and chaos of the days, it’s easy to become discouraged by what we see before us, yet Your promises are never failing. When life tries to sidetrack us, You are He that holds our hand through it all letting us know that You are in the midst of it with us. Thank You for Your abiding presence and help with this day and every day. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
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Word For Life Says... 