Praying To See More Clearly

This is from Streams in the Desert:

The Answer is God 

"For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect?" (Rom. 3:3).

" I think that I can trace every scrap of sorrow in my life to simple unbelief. How could I be anything but quite happy if I believed always that all the past is forgiven, and all the present furnished with power, and all the future bright with hope because of the same abiding facts which do not change with my mood, do not stumble because I totter and stagger at the promise through unbelief, but stand firm and clear with their peaks of pearl cleaving the air of Eternity, and the bases of their hills rooted unfathomably in the Rock of God. Mont Blanc does not become a phantom or a mist because a climber grows dizzy on its side." --James Smetham


Is it any wonder that, when we stagger at any promise of God through unbelief, we do not receive it? Not that faith merits an answer, or in any way earns it, or works it out; but God has made believing a condition of receiving, and the Giver has a sovereign right to choose His own terms of gift. 
--Rev. Samuel Hart


Unbelief says, "How can such and such things be?" It is full of "hows"; but faith has one great answer to the ten thousand "hows," and that answer is GOD ! --C. H. M.

No praying man or woman accomplishes so much with so little expenditure of time as when he or she is praying.


If there should arise, it has been said--and the words are surely true to the thought of our Lord Jesus Christ in all His teaching on prayer--if there should arise ONE UTTERLY BELIEVING MAN, the history of the world might be changed.

Will YOU not be that one in the providence and guidance of God our Father? --A. E. McAdam


Prayer without faith degenerates into objectless routine, or soulless hypocrisy. Prayer with faith brings Omnipotence to back our petitions. Better not pray unless and until your whole being responds to the efficacy of your supplication. When the true prayer is breathed, earth and heaven, the past and the future, say Amen. And Christ prayed such prayers. --P. C. M.

Nothing lies beyond the reach of prayer except

that which lies outside the will of God.

"Had we the faith to see God in everything as it meets us day by day, every chapter of life’s history would be a new story of the romance of heavenly love in its magical power to transform darkness into light, difficulty into triumph, sorrow into joy, and the earthly into the heavenly."  A. B. Simpson

These quotes really lifted me up.  I was reminded of God's omnipotence and the fact that His Spirit lives in me giving me great power if I'm willing to give Him control.  If when I stagger in disbelief, His Spirit does not falter nor fall.  But do I really believe?

I was reading my bible and my eyes were getting blurry - I just couldn't seem to read because the letters were melting into one another.  I was reading about the power of the Holy Spirit.  He was there in the beginning - Genesis 1:2 - "the Spirit of God" hovered over the face of the waters".   The Spirit of God has been with Abraham, Moses, Elijah, Elisha, ... Peter, Paul and all the apostles.  When the Spirit of God was with these people, nothing was impossible.  Do I believe that?

I read the story of when the king of Aram was coming to kill Elisha.  He and his army had infiltrated Dothan where Elisha and his servant were staying.  Elisha's servant was terribly afraid and didn't see any way out of the mess. He knew they were surrounded by the enemy.  Then Elisha prayed that God would open the eyes of his servant so that he could see the unseen warriors sent by God.

Seeing the unseen


2 Kings 6

When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” the servant asked. 



“Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 


And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, LORD, so that he may see.” Then the LORD opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. 

As the enemy came down toward him, Elisha prayed to the LORD, “Strike this army with blindness.” So he struck them with blindness, as Elisha had asked. 


Elisha told them, “This is not the road and this is not the city. Follow me, and I will lead you to the man you are looking for.” And he led them to Samaria. 

After they entered the city, Elisha said, “LORD, open the eyes of these men so they can see.” Then the LORD opened their eyes and they looked, and there they were, inside Samaria. 

When the king of Israel saw them, he asked Elisha, “Shall I kill them, my father? Shall I kill them?” 

“Do not kill them,” he answered. “Would you kill those you have captured with your own sword or bow? Set food and water before them so that they may eat and drink and then go back to their master.”  So he prepared a great feast for them, and after they had finished eating and drinking, he sent them away, and they returned to their master. So the bands from Aram stopped raiding Israel’s territory. 

The servant's eyes were opened and then he could see that those with him and Elisha were greater than those with the Enemy. Can't you just imagine?  The servant looked out the window and all of a sudden, he sees thousands of warrior angels ready to protect them.   God does that for me, too.  I may not be able to see the hedge of protection that God provides, but I know it's there always!  If I could just hold on to that thought.  With the Power of God on my side, what can man do to me?  What then shall I fear?

As I continued to read about how God gave Elisha victory over his enemy, I realized that there I sat, struggling to read the blurry words on the page - wanting desperately to see so that I could put those powerful words in my heart, was I not believing that God could help me?  Why in the world was I not asking God to help me see the words clearly?

So...  I stopped and I prayed.  Please Lord, You know how precious Your Word is to me.  I want to be able to read this passage clearly so that I can soak up the great truths of Your protection, Your provision and Your faithfulness.  I love this story of Elisha and the servant.  I can almost see the mountain side covered with Your mighty warriors!  I believe You sent Your warrior angels to protect Elisha.  And I believe You do that for me every day, too.  So I'm asking that You help me see the words on this page clearly, no more blurry lines, no more tired eyes from straining to make out a word.  Lord, I believe You want me to read Your word and I believe You have the power to help me see clearly so that I can read what You have provided for me.

I raised my head, afraid to look at the page of my bible.  Honestly, I guess I didn't believe that God would help me see the page better.  Finally, I got up my courage and looked down.  It wasn't drastic, but the words weren't so blurry any more.  Okay.  It's better.  I think it really is.  Maybe a little...

But then my eye was drawn to the back inside flap of my bible cover.  I saw a plastic sheet.  I looked closer and then remembering what it was, I reached for it and drew it out.  Then I laughed out loud.

God does have a sense of humor.  It was a plastic magnifying sheet that I had forgotten was even in my bible.  God answered my prayer!  I put the sheet over the page I was reading and the words were magnified.  I was able to read every word clearly.  Thank You, Father!  You are the greatest!

Maybe I shouldn't have prayed just for clear words.
Maybe I should have prayed for my vision to be 20/20! 

The answer might not have been exactly what I expected.  But God answered and He made it possible for me to read His Word easily - no more blurs. 

LORD God, Creator of the Universe, All Powerful, All Knowing and Loving Father, I am thrilled at how You answer even my prayers spoken with little faith!  Thank You for showing Yourself to me in little and big ways.  I try to be strong in my faith, but sometimes I forget You move mountains!  You created with great intricacy and detailed design the whole Universe.  Why do I doubt that You will make a way for me to read Your Word?  Once again, You've given me just what I asked for.  Wow!  What if I really believed Your promises?  I love You and I'm so thankful that You loved me enough to send Your Son to save me.  Thank You so much!  And Father, please help my unbelief. In Jesus' Name.  Amen.

--

Coram Deo

IN THE BEGINNING

Genesis 1 - In the Beginning God created heaven and earth. He separated the light from the darkness and He called the light - Day and the darkness - night. He created Day and Night in very beginning of Creation.

And for those doubters whom He knew would come later, He described what a Day was - "Evening and morning was the first Day.

Each Day of Creation He reiterated - evening and morning was the second day, the third day, the fourth day, the fifth day and the six Day. 6 Days of Creation. One day was evening and morning - not millions of years.

And everything produced after its own kind. Read Genesis 1. Man did not evolve from something - God created Man, full grown. The changes that take place in man never make him anything less or more than "man".

After the end of each Day of Creation, God looked at what He had done and each Day, He said it was good. And on the 6th Day, after He had created man and breathed into his nostrils the Breathe of Life, God said "it was VERY good."

As a believer, I trust that my God is unlimited in what He can do. I do not doubt Genesis 1. I've entertained the idea that He could have used evolution in His plan to create, but I don't buy that any more. It really doesn't make sense. There's too many things in creation that could not evolve without having to die before getting the "end result" of a new thing.

If I don't trust God's Word to true, it leaves the door open for me to not "believe" anything in the Bible that I don't want to be true. When I don't believe the Bible is the infallible Word of God, I can pick and choose what goes into "my own personal bible". If I doubt one thing, how do I trust any of it?

I believe the Bible is the inerrant Word of God and He speaks to us thru this amazing, sometimes incomprehensible Gift.

How do we get billions of years out of Genesis 1? We limit God's Power because we can't comprehend it. Instead of giving Him all the glory and adoration He deserves, some find it easier to believe that everything that exists just happened. Both scenarios, God creating everything in 6 days and Evolution taking billions of years - both are very hard to believe (for a non-believer) but for those who profess the Name of Jesus, we believe in our amazing Creator who continues to sustain the Universe by His word.

Genesis 1 - In the Beginning God created heaven and earth. He separated the light from the darkness and He called the light - Day and the darkness - night. He created Day and Night in very beginning of Creation.

And for those doubters whom He knew would come later, He described what a Day was - "Evening and morning was the first Day.

Each Day of Creation He reiterated - evening and morning was the second day, the third day, the fourth day, the fifth day and the six Day. 6 Days of Creation. One day was evening and morning - not millions of years.

And everything produced after its own kind. Read Genesis 1. Man did not evolve from something - God created Man, full grown. The changes that take place in man never make him anything less or more than "man".

After the end of each Day of Creation, God looked at what He had done and each Day, He said it was good. And on the 6th Day, after He had created man and breathed into his nostrils the Breathe of Life, God said "it was VERY good."

As a believer, I trust that my God is unlimited in what He can do. I do not doubt Genesis 1. I've entertained the idea that He could have used evolution in His plan to create, but I don't buy that any more. It really doesn't make sense. There's too many things in creation that could not evolve without having to die before getting the "end result" of a new thing.

If I don't trust God's Word to true, it leaves the door open for me to not "believe" anything in the Bible that I don't want to be true. When I don't believe the Bible is the infallible Word of God, I can pick and choose what goes into "my own personal bible". If I doubt one thing, how do I trust any of it?

I believe the Bible is the inerrant Word of God and He speaks to us thru this amazing, sometimes incomprehensible Gift.

How do we get billions of years out of Genesis 1? We limit God's Power because we can't comprehend it. Instead of giving Him all the glory and adoration He deserves, some find it easier to believe that everything that exists just happened. Both scenarios, God creating everything in 6 days and Evolution taking billions of years - both are very hard to believe (for a non-believer) but for those who profess the Name of Jesus, we believe in our amazing Creator who continues to sustain the Universe by His word.

-----------------------
Note:  This is my testimony, what I've come to believe with all my heart thru reading the Bible and studying.  I don't claim to be a Bible scholar.  I don't know Greek or Hebrew or Latin... But I know that when I open the Bible to hear from God, He uses this Book to instruct me, to guide me, to remind me of how much I'm loved.  Each time I study the Word, He gives me what I need for that day or moment.  The Word of God is not just a book of History.  It's living -

Hebrews 4:12 NKJV
12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

In the Beginning

IN THE BEGINNING

Genesis 1 - In the Beginning God created heaven and earth. He separated the light from the darkness and He called the light - Day and the darkness - night. He created Day and Night in very beginning of Creation.

And for those doubters whom He knew would come later, He described what a Day was - "Evening and morning was the first Day.

Each Day of Creation He reiterated - evening and morning was the second day, the third day, the fourth day, the fifth day and the six Day. 6 Days of Creation. One day was evening and morning - not millions of years.

And everything produced after its own kind. Read Genesis 1. Man did not evolve from something - God created Man, full grown. The changes that take place in man never make him anything less or more than "man".

After the end of each Day of Creation, God looked at what He had done and each Day, He said it was good. And on the 6th Day, after He had created man and breathed into his nostrils the Breathe of Life, God said "it was VERY good."

As a believer, I trust that my God is unlimited in what He can do. I do not doubt Genesis 1. I've entertained the idea that He could have used evolution in His plan to create, but I don't buy that any more. It really doesn't make sense. There's too many things in creation that could not evolve without having to die before getting the "end result" of a new thing.

If I don't trust God's Word to true, it leaves the door open for me to not "believe" anything in the Bible that I don't want to be true. When I don't believe the Bible is the infallible Word of God, I can pick and choose what goes into "my own personal bible". If I doubt one thing, how do I trust any of it?

I believe the Bible is the inerrant Word of God and He speaks to us thru this amazing, sometimes incomprehensible Gift.

How do we get billions of years out of Genesis 1? We limit God's Power because we can't comprehend it. Instead of giving Him all the glory and adoration He deserves, some find it easier to believe that everything that exists just happened. Both scenarios, God creating everything in 6 days and Evolution taking billions of years - both are very hard to believe (for a non-believer) but for those who profess the Name of Jesus, we believe in our amazing Creator who continues to sustain the Universe by His word.

Genesis 1 - In the Beginning God created heaven and earth. He separated the light from the darkness and He called the light - Day and the darkness - night. He created Day and Night in very beginning of Creation.

And for those doubters whom He knew would come later, He described what a Day was - "Evening and morning was the first Day.

Each Day of Creation He reiterated - evening and morning was the second day, the third day, the fourth day, the fifth day and the six Day. 6 Days of Creation. One day was evening and morning - not millions of years.

And everything produced after its own kind. Read Genesis 1. Man did not evolve from something - God created Man, full grown. The changes that take place in man never make him anything less or more than "man".

After the end of each Day of Creation, God looked at what He had done and each Day, He said it was good. And on the 6th Day, after He had created man and breathed into his nostrils the Breathe of Life, God said "it was VERY good."

As a believer, I trust that my God is unlimited in what He can do. I do not doubt Genesis 1. I've entertained the idea that He could have used evolution in His plan to create, but I don't buy that any more. It really doesn't make sense. There's too many things in creation that could not evolve without having to die before getting the "end result" of a new thing.

If I don't trust God's Word to true, it leaves the door open for me to not "believe" anything in the Bible that I don't want to be true. When I don't believe the Bible is the infallible Word of God, I can pick and choose what goes into "my own personal bible". If I doubt one thing, how do I trust any of it?

I believe the Bible is the inerrant Word of God and He speaks to us thru this amazing, sometimes incomprehensible Gift.

How do we get billions of years out of Genesis 1? We limit God's Power because we can't comprehend it. Instead of giving Him all the glory and adoration He deserves, some find it easier to believe that everything that exists just happened. Both scenarios, God creating everything in 6 days and Evolution taking billions of years - both are very hard to believe (for a non-believer) but for those who profess the Name of Jesus, we believe in our amazing Creator who continues to sustain the Universe by His word.

-----------------------
Note:  This is my testimony, what I've come to believe with all my heart thru reading the Bible and studying.  I don't claim to be a Bible scholar.  I don't know Greek or Hebrew or Latin... But I know that when I open the Bible to hear from God, He uses this Book to instruct me, to guide me, to remind me of how much I'm loved.  Each time I study the Word, He gives me what I need for that day or moment.  The Word of God is not just a book of History.  It's living -

Hebrews 4:12 NKJV
12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is adiscerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Pennies from heaven

Last Thursday, I found a penny in the parking lot at Walmart.  It was laying at the corner of my car in a spot where I had to walk right by it, to get to my door.  Big deal, right?  It's not unusual to find coins on a parking lot.  

What made this different?

That morning, as I drove to Walmart before I going to work, I had prayed, thanking God for all He has done for me – His Provision, Protection, Salvation, Rescuing, Comforting, His carrying me thru tough times...and I thanked Him especially for putting pennies in uncommon places, as a reminder to me that I can trust Him.  I told God that I knew some people might think I’m crazy for thinking the pennies I find are from Him, but I know they are.  Too many times I’ve found a penny at just the right moment, when I really needed to be reminded that He is with me.

When I found that penny Thursday morning, just after my prayer of gratitude, I knew, once again, He was very clearly showing me how much I’m loved and that He sees me, and He cares about what concerns me.  Wow!  What did I ever do to deserve that? Not one thing. It's just that I am His daughter and He loves me.

When I got to  work, I was so excited, I needed to tell someone, so I picked my friend, Tina.  She gets the penny thing because God uses pennies for her, too.  We celebrated His goodness and then tried to go back to work.

Well, yesterday, Thursday February 1st, I had an issue on one my files and was feeling a little frustrated.  So, I stopped, and picked up this little paperback devotional book that Tina had shared with me.  I flipped it open randomly,  and it opened to a devotional about Growing Gratitude.  I read the first paragraph –

Would you like to cultivate a greater sense of gratitude?  George Herbert, a seventeenth-century British poet, encourages readers toward that goal in his poem “Gratefulness”.

“Thou that hast given so much to me, give one thing more: a grateful heart.”

I immediately, stopped and thought about how much God has always blessed me. In that moment, I sat at my desk, 68 years old, feeling healthy and strong.  My mind is clear, I really have no aches or pains,  and I am physically and mentally able to work every day.  I realized what a blessing my good health has been, because not everyone is given that particular blessing.  

I showed Tina the quote from George Herbert and thanked her for leaving that little booklet for me to pick up.  

Fast forward an hour … I went to the restroom, and as I started to enter one of the stalls, there on the floor were 3 pennies and a dime.

I couldn’t believe it!  I had just acknowledge how much God  has blessed me, and then He gave me a little hug – three hugs actually,  and I didn’t know what the dime was about, but hey, I’ll take anything He gives me.

I rushed back to Tina and dragged her into the restroom to see my "message from God".  We looked at the coins on the floor and laughed, but then, here is the best part!  Tina told me that after I had shared my Walmart penny story, she was driving to work and praying.  As she talked to God, she said, "Lord, You gave Carol that penny to let her know You heard her prayer.  Would You give me a dime?”   Oh my goodness!

The dime was for my friend, Tina.  We could hardly contain ourselves!

What I have taken away from these two penny stories is God wants me to have a heart of Gratitude.  He wants me to acknowledge what all He does for me every day.  Not because he needs to hear it, but because I need to remember that all good things come from Him.  And practicing Gratitude is an act of worship.  

I may be on my deathbed tomorrow, but today, I’m healthy.  Thank You, Father!  Each moment is a gift from Him.  He puts up with my ignoring Him and my  taking everything He gives me without ever saying, thank You, Father, I know that was You!  Thank You!”  How long does it take to acknowledge how good He is in every circumstance we face?  He bails us out of life struggles, and we don’t even realize it is Him. Or maybe, He reminds us with a penny on the floor, that He is always with us and faithful, so faithful.

One of my favorite verses (I have many) reminds me  that I have a loving Father who stoops down to help me walk, He picks me up when I fall.  He never makes me feel unloved even when I don’t act very lovable. As a mom, I understand that kind of patience and love for my children, but His love is so much deeper than even that love I feel for my family.  

 Hosea 11:3 New Living Translation (NLT)

“When Israel was a child, I loved him,
    and I called my son out of Egypt.
² But the more I called to him,
    the farther he moved from me,
offering sacrifices to the images of Baal
    and burning incense to idols.
³ I myself taught Israel how to walk,
    leading him along by the hand.
But he doesn’t know or even care
    that it was I who took care of him.
⁴ I led Israel along
    with my ropes of kindness and love.
I lifted the yoke from his neck,
    and I myself stooped to feed him.

What a beautiful picture of a Father with his willful, selfish children.  Amazing love, we can't even begin to comprehend.

  I want to have a grateful heart so that I never forget that it was and is God who carries me thru the good times, and the not so good times.  And although it is much easier to see the "good things" as blessings,  He tells us to be thankful in ALL things.  I don't want anyone who is struggling with health issues, or family problems, to think, even for a moment, that God isn't blessing them, just as He is blessing me.  Sometimes the greatest blessings are life struggles that draw us closer to Him, or become a tool that we can use to testify to others about His faithfulness.  I have seen the most powerful witnesses for Christ in  my dear friends who are struggling with health issues.  Their faith strengthens my faith.  Some of our most godly forefathers were blessed with terrible struggles - they testified until the end of their lives.  And we remember their faithfulness thru those struggles.  They knew Jesus, and they trusted His love thru every lash, every stoning, even until death. God loved those people and He loves us. If He allows a struggle in our lives, as He did with our forefathers, and He most certainly will at one point or another, we can trust that He has purpose for that struggle that will outweigh the pain, the moment you step into His Presence.  We have no idea what He has planned for us, but He shows us His great love every day, if we just look for it. We can trust that Love, and know that love will carry us thru any struggle.

In all things, give thanks.

"Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness." Colossians 2:7

"And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful." Colossians 3:15

"Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.” Colossians 4:2

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” James 1:17

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God." Philippians 4:6

"Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.” Psalm 103:1-5

"Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." 1 Thessalonians 5:18

"Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!” Psalm 107:1

"Giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,” Ephesians 5:20

Coram Deo

It's so amazing to me how I can read the same passage from the Bible a hundred times and then one day, I read it again, and God just makes a fresh message pop out at me - always just what I needed.

The foolish man –

Have you ever seen someone you love running blindly towards a cliff?  You can clearly see what is coming if they don’t change direction, but they are oblivious to the danger.  Or maybe they do see the path ahead but believe that they will be able to fly right over the abyss, magically?

So many times, I have tried to warn others of that camouflaged cliff, but to no avail.  It is easy to convince ourselves that our situation will be different.  We want what we want and our human desire blinds us to the danger that will come when we do things our way instead of God's way.  We believe the Enemy's lie which unfortunately, many times, our friends and family encourage us to believe.  Our loved ones see us in pain and want to help us, they want to fix it, the human way.  God love them all!  They really do have the best intentions, but when friends offer solutions that God does not, we simply must choose to listen to Him alone. 

Why don’t we just trust God to show us how to find joy, even in those times when things are not exactly what we had hoped?  

When bad things happen, when life seems so unfair, human nature attacks us with a vengeance.  Self-preservation, my right to be right, my desire to be happy – people will encourage us in these pursuits which do not always match God’s plan for us.  Let me tell you, human nature is dangerous enemy, especially when it comes from people who care about us.

Matthew 7:24-27English Standard Version (ESV)

Build Your House on the Rock

²⁴ “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. ²⁵ And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. ²⁶ And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. ²⁷ And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”

I was listening to an audio Bible reading of Matthew this morning.  I heard the beatitudes – a list of blessings that come to us when we walk in the light.  Jesus told his disciples that they were to be salt and light and to let their good deeds shine for all to see, for the praise of the Father.

He then went on to teach them how it looks to be salt and light. 

Not only are we not to murder – we are not to be angry with someone.

We are not to call anyone a fool or an idiot.  We are not curse someone.  When I heard that again, I immediately thought of how many times I have heard someone call down a curse in the name of God on someone who has made them angry or treated them harshly.  Jesus said if we do that, we are in danger of hell fire.  That is not something to take lightly.

He said not only are we not to commit adultery, we are not to even look upon another person with lust in our hearts.  If the only way you can keep from lusting is to pluck your eye out, Jesus says that is better to lose an eye  than to be thrown in to hell for lusting! If we took this literally, there would be lots of people with the eyes plucked out!

Divorce – not okay with Jesus.  I can try to justify with human reasoning why it's okay for me,  but He clearly tells us that the only reason to divorce is for adultery.  If I am trying to walk in the light, I can’t leave my spouse because we don’t get along, or because I’m just not in love any more.  Jesus said except for unfaithfulness, if we divorce, and find someone else, we are committing adultery.  That is horrifying.

Jesus also said not to take revenge when you have been wronged.  In fact, he even went so far as to say we are to love our enemies.  When people see us being kind to our enemies, those who have persecuted or harmed us in some way, they can see we are truly children of our Father in heaven – that’s what Jesus said.

Give to those in need – and don’t expect gold stars for doing something good for someone in need. Your Father sees and He will reward you.  His reward is far better than earthly praise.  And earthly praise can sometimes be a tool the Enemy uses to make us feel prideful.  Oops!!!  The good things we do can end up causing us to think more highly of ourselves than we should.  Got to watch that!

Jesus continues with His message – calling us to be more than we think we can be.  The expectations are so high and we can begin to fill hopeless.  But isn’t that why Jesus came to earth, because we can't do it on our own? He came and took our punishment, He covers our failures with His righteousness. Thru His death, burial and resurrection, He gives us new life in the spirit - providing us with strength thru His Holy Spirit.  He offers mercy and grace we fall.  

As I listened to the book of Matthew, I felt like a failure.  Everything Jesus said I should do, I have not done consistently.  Everything He said don’t do, well…  Thank God for His grace and mercy.  I felt like Paul when he spoke to the Romans –

Romans 7:15-20 New Living Translation (NLT)

¹⁵ I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate. ¹⁶ But if I know that what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good. ¹⁷ So I am not the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.

¹⁸ And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature.^[a] I want to do what is right, but I can’t. ¹⁹ I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. ²⁰ But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.

Paul understood exactly what I am feeling.  But he didn’t throw his hands in the air and say, “oh well, I might as well just sin all I want, because I can’t follow the rules that Jesus has set out for me.  It’s impossible.”  No, Paul had the answer.

Romans 8 is the answer.

What I learned this morning is that every temptation or struggle that God allows in my life can remind me of my sinful nature as a human being.  When my marriage is not doing so great, and I start thinking how much better my life would be if only… My human nature will dwell on every fault and every failure of my spouse.  and guess who will be cheering me on? The Enemy – who sometimes will take the form of a good friend who encourages me to do things I shouldn’t do.  Jesus tells me do not divorce.  My friend says I deserve better.  Who am I going to listen to?

In Matthew 7, I listened to the story of the wise man and the foolish man.  Every kid who has sat in Sunday School knows the song – The wise man built his house upon the rock, but the foolish man built his house upon the sand.  Didn’t we all just anticipate that big SPLASH! When the foolish man’s house failed?

When you read the explanation for this passage. Jesus said that anyone who hears His teaching and doesn’t obey is like the foolish man – building his house upon sand.  When the rains come, and they will come, our house will fall if we are not walking in obedience to His commands.  This is not a threat. It is a warning.  Jesus loves us and wants so much for our lives to be full and fruitful.  His commands give life and keep us from a world of hurt and pain.  His commands are for our good, not just for now, but eternally.

There are so many times when I just do not know how God puts up with me.  I get up in the morning wanting to be His ambassador, to shine for His glory, and then some little temptation or trial comes along, and I forget to call on Him.  I struggle to find the answers to the problem, and I come up with human reasoning.  When I use my human heart, I can justify every bad decision. But my human solution  to the struggle leads to bigger problems – maybe not today or tomorrow, but down the road.  My house goes “SPLASH!” because I built it on a humanistic foundation made of sand.

I want to be the wise man and the only way I can do that is through obedience to the One who loves me and wants me to have the best possible life.  That life will be full of struggles and temptations and thru His strength, my faith will get stronger as I see how He brings me through every circumstance.  My character will reflect Jesus to those around me.  And hopefully, someone who struggles can see that I  struggled, too, but Jesus got me thru it, every time. I pray that they will see the hope I have is not for temporary happiness in this life, but for eternal joy in Heaven with my Savior.

My life is not supposed to look like everyone else’s life. I am not supposed to blend in; I am supposed to be set apart, holy.   When troubles come and I keep my eyes on Jesus, my response may seem crazy to the world, but when I come thru, still standing, maybe those around me will see His strength working in me.  Maybe they will see my joy, even in the worst of times if I keep trusting in Him instead of my own strength and wisdom.

https://youtu.be/QPpUqVmPZYY - I will lift my eyes - Alisa Turner

Trust and Obey – it’s that simple and that hard.  For me, I will keep trusting and doing my best to obey the One who knows what lays ahead, and has carefully prepared the way for me.  If I will just listen to Him and obey and remember, in the end, this world is not my home.  I don't want to live just for today - I want to live with Eternity in my heart.

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