1Sa 14:6 "Let's go across to the outpost of those pagans," Jonathan said to his armor bearer. "Perhaps the LORD will help us, for nothing can hinder the LORD. He can win a battle whether He has many warriors or only a few!"

Who knows what God can do? And the only way you are going to find out is do as Jonathan told his armor bearer, Try. The greatest failure in life is someone who never tries. Life is only a great adventure if you do something with your life. Especially if you try doing something for Christ.

Matthew 28:19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. (20) Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

Now here is a big adventure! Whether you go across the street or around the world. The great commission is an everyday adventure. It is, as Forrest Gump says, like a huge box of chocolates. Everyday opportunities to share the gospel, help build or encourage a brother or sister, be obedient to Gods Word rise up before us. We have to take a chance and try. Opportunities are only opportunities if we take advantage of them. I think of men and women of God who, without respect to their own lives, are living the greatest adventures of their lives. Everyday a new door of opportunity will open, everyday a new adventure, everyday a decision has to be made. Go through the open door or sit and watch others go through.

1Corinthians 16:12 Now about our brother Apollos—I urged him to visit you with the other believers, but he was not willing to go right now. He will see you later when he has the opportunity.

I don't know why Paul wanted Apollos to visit Corinth. He did urge him to go , but Apollos was not willing at the time to go. He was willing to go when he had the opportunity. So many times we will wait until it is convenient for us to do something. God never said His timing was convenient, He said go. If we wait until we think we are ready to do something, we will still be waiting when Jesus returns. Opportunities never cease to open up but we can never respond if we don't want to. All of that is up to us.

Acts 16:9 That night Paul had a vision: A man from Macedonia in northern Greece was standing there, pleading with him, "Come over to Macedonia and help us!"(10) So we decided to leave for Macedonia at once, having concluded that God was calling us to preach the Good News there.

1Corinthians 16:8 In the meantime, I will be staying here at Ephesus until the Festival of Pentecost. (9) There is a wide-open door for a great work here, although many oppose me.

Do you see opportunity like Paul did? Whether Macedonia, Ephesus, Philippi, it did not matter to Paul. He chose to go Gods way and in Gods timing. It did not matter to him how much or how little opposition there was, Paul seized the opportunity. Webster describes adventure as, To risk, or hazard; to put in the power of unforeseen events; as, to adventure one's life. Paul saw his life in Christ this way. Paul never knew exactly what was waiting for him behind any door. Lions, tigers and bears or green grass and clover. Most of the time it was the lions, tigers, bears, stocks and whips, but it brought souls into the kingdom of God.

Mat 10:39 If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for Me, you will find it.

This is adventure. You can not have an adventurous life if you don't live it. But Christ says the way to real life is to give your life to Him so you can find it. We have to look to find. In Matthew 7:7, Jesus said Keep on seeking, and you will find. In other words keep on trying and you will succeed. Quit seeking, quit trying and loose life. Keep seeking, keep trying, find life. No matter the circumstances, no matter the trials keep going until God says stop.

1Peter 1:5 And through your faith, God is protecting you by His power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see. (6) So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. (7) These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world. (8) You love Him even though you have never seen Him. Though you do not see Him now, you trust Him; and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy. (9) The reward for trusting Him will be the salvation of your souls.

Isaiah 64:4 For since the world began, no ear has heard, and no eye has seen a God like You, who works for those who wait for Him!

We take for granted the fact that Jesus loves us. We don't take advantage of it, maybe, but He is the best friend you have ever had or will have in your life. As we look at our lives we can probably count on one hand the number of true friends we have had. Friends that would have your back, friends that would be there when you needed help moving. Friends that would put up with you no matter what kind of mood you were in or how much you were feeling sorry for yourself. But Jesus is there all of the time. He is there when you get up in the morning and He's there when you go to bed at night. He always wants to be close to you.

Proverbs 18:24 There are "friends" who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother.

There really are friends that destroy. (Psalm 41:9) Even my best friend, the one I trusted completely, the one who shared my food, has turned against me. Most of us have had friends like this and it almost destroyed our lives but thank God for what a true friend He is. (Psalm 65:4) What joy for those You choose to bring near, those who live in Your holy courts. What festivities await us inside Your holy Temple. What Joy! What a joy it is to know God chose you and me as a close friend. Someone not just to hang with, a friend not just to be there when you need one. But a friend, a real friend, that sticks closer than a brother. I never had a brother. I had one sister that I always fought with, never got along with or any other kind of close relationship, I thought anyway. But when she got married and moved out, I realized just how much she meant to my life. I missed her, I wanted to be around her and be in her life. She got me out of trouble more times than I could ever know. She was my hero. And since we have gotten older and miles apart, that relationship has dwindled to an occasional phone call or a hello on Facebook. Is this what happens to our relationship with Jesus?

James 4:8 Come close to God, and God will come close to you.

Here is what God desires. Closeness! Closeness to the maker and creator of all things. Closeness to the one who gave His life on Calvary. Get an idea of that. The one who hung the sun, the moon and the stars, the one set the planets in order, the one who formed man out of dust and breathed life into him, wants to be close to you. (Genesis 5:22) After the birth of Methuselah, Enoch lived in close fellowship with God for another 300 years, and he had other sons and daughters. (23) Enoch lived 365 years, (24) walking in close fellowship with God. Then one day he disappeared, because God took him. God took him where? To be closer to Him. This is the kind of relationship God wants with all of us. This is how close He desires to be with you and with me. I know, someday, we will all be in heaven and get to be close with Him. Why wait? He wants you close now. Just as close as Enoch was. Just as close as Elijah was, or David. Why don't we want that closeness? (Matthew 23:37) "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones God's messengers! How often I have wanted to gather your children together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn't let Me. He is constantly wanting to get close to you. He tries and tries and tries, but we say no. Why? Are we so vain not to get close or are we afraid to get close because of past human relationships and being hurt. We all should know and understand He will not hurt you. Listening to an old, great song right now. “He touched me”. Oh how He wants to touch us and tell us how much He truly loves us. And Oh how much He wants to hear it from you.

I do not know where you are in your walk with God, nor do I want to. You need to know where you are in your walk with Him. You need Jesus. Jesus wants to give you rest. The only true rest is in Christ. The only true peace is in Christ. The only true life is in Christ. (John 17:21) I pray that they will all be one, just as You and I are one, as You are in Me, Father, and I am in You. And may they be in Us so that the world will believe You sent Me. (22) "I have given them the glory You gave Me, so they may be one as We are one. (23) I am in them and You are in Me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that You sent Me and that You love them as much as You love Me. (24) Father, I want these whom You have given Me to be with Me where I am. Then they can see all the glory You gave Me because You loved Me even before the world began! This is what Jesus prayed for You! ONE! He wants us One. He wants us to love him as much as He loves us and us to love each other the same way. And He will do anything in His power to accomplish this. The question is, will you put forth the effort to have this oneness, this unity, with Him?

John 6:16-17 That evening Jesus' disciples went down to the shore to wait for Him. (17) But as darkness fell and Jesus still hadn't come back, they got into the boat and headed across the lake toward Capernaum.

Here is something that bothers me about the word of God. It exposes the truth about all of us. We look at these two scriptures and think, are the disciples nuts! But God always has these little situations in here for us to ponder because he wants us to take a look at ourselves deeper than we, as a human being, can. We look at the disciples and think how could they walk away from the Lord just because it gets dark and they want to get home. They ditched Jesus! Just like you would have ditched the geek you didn't want to be around. They were being unreasonably rude to our Lord! Right? They were being just like you and me. How many times have you or I gotten tired of waiting for Jesus and just got in our own little spiritual boat and left Jesus behind? When you look at the next verse it says a storm comes up and they are working so very hard rowing and rowing trying to get where they were going. Isn't this what happens to us? We work ourselves to death trying to do our own thing and getting no where fast. Psalm 62:1 tells us to wait quietly before God, for my victory comes from Him. Psalm 37:7 tells us to be still in the presence of the LORD, and wait patiently for Him to act. Isaiah 40:31 says this, 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. So why do we get in a hurry?

Psalm 139:14 I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

Jeremiah 1:5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee

Now if you will look at these two scriptures very carefully you will see a lot. God formed us in our mothers womb and we are fearfully and wonderfully made. Correct? Then we come out of that womb, and no matter how great our parents raised us, we are sinners and sinners hate to wait. Now when we get born again we still have that old sin nature that hates to wait. Not everyone, but almost everyone I know, hates to wait. We know what Psalms says and we know what Isaiah says and we know what Jesus says, but that does not matter when we have to wait longer than, we think, we should have to wait. I mean don't we know better than God? Job 42:1 Then Job replied to the LORD: (2) "I know that You can do anything, and no one can stop You. (30 You asked, 'Who is this that questions My wisdom with such ignorance?' It is I and I was talking about things I knew nothing about, things far too wonderful for me. (4) You said, 'Listen and I will speak! I have some questions for you, and you must answer them.'(5) I had only heard about You before, but now I have seen You with my own eyes. (6) I take back everything I said, and I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance." Job learned to wait. Job also learned, very well, no matter what, God is right and His timing is always right no matter what we think.

When you look at the rest of the story about the impatience of the Jesus crew you witness the loving grace of our Lord. Jesus came strolling out to the boat and when the guys saw Him they were scared. Now I don't think they were afraid of a ghost, my own opinion anyway, I think they were afraid they were in big trouble for leaving Jesus behind and setting out on their own little journey. But what did Jesus say, John 6:20 but He called out to them, "Don't be afraid. I am here! " Look at that! Isn't our Lord great. He says to the boys, it's OK, The I Am is here. I forgive you for leaving me behind and if you want me to I'll get in the boat now. John 6:21 Then they were eager to let Him in the boat, and immediately they arrived at their destination! Do you see that? They were eager! They weren't in trouble! They were forgiven and when they allowed Jesus in the boat what happened? They didn't even have to row the boat anymore and immediately they were where they wanted to go. Isn't Jesus just the best? Forgiven, not forsaken! Arrived safe and sound in Gods time and Gods way. So do you think they learned their lesson? Of course not! John 21:3 Simon Peter said, "I'm going fishing." "We'll come, too," they all said. So they went out in the boat, but they caught nothing all night. Even after the resurrection, Jesus patiently came to them. He didn't walk out to them, he built a fire and cooked them breakfast. Gods grace is always patient, loving and kind. But it would still be a lot easier on Him if we would learn to wait.

Acts 18:9 One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision and told him, "Don't be afraid! Speak out! Don't be silent! (10) For I am with you, and no one will attack and harm you, for many people in this city belong to Me."

Everyone needs encouragement. Even Gods most awesome servants. 1Th 2:2 You know how badly we had been treated at Philippi just before we came to you and how much we suffered there. Yet our God gave us the courage to declare His Good News to you boldly, in spite of great opposition. How about, especially, Gods most awesome servants. When you make the decision to go all the way and pour out your life for Gods service, it isn't all goo goo's and ga ga's of blessings, honor and glorious revival. Usually, and I say that so you will listen, all hell breaks loose in your life and the enemy has a field day attempting to destroy your faith. Usually! (2Corinthians 4:8) We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. (9) We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. Doesn't this just make you want to jump right into ministry? (2Corinthians 7:5) When we arrived in Macedonia, there was no rest for us. We faced conflict from every direction, with battles on the outside and fear on the inside. Aren't these great word's for people who aspire for greatness in the Kingdom of God. Actually, yes they are!

Job 31:21 "If I raised my hand against an orphan, knowing the judges would take my side, (22) then let my shoulder be wrenched out of place! Let my arm be torn from its socket! (23) That would be better than facing God's judgment. For if the majesty of God opposes me, what hope is there?

I would rather face the Devil in opposition any day than to be opposed by God. At least when you face Satan's host you know you have the victory, even over death. But I do not have the courage, after knowing the truth of Gods Word, to face The Great I Am in any manner of opposition. A prophet of God by the name of Balaam tried and first God used a donkey to stop him. But Balaam, being the jackass that he was, still went ahead and attempted to anyway. But he kept meeting God. Four time King Balak tried to get him to curse the nation of Israel and four times Balaam, who could only speak what God told him, tried but failed.

In Numbers 24 Balaam finally realizes the LORD was determined to bless Israel and if God blesses something no one, principality,power or dominion, can curse it. (Galatians 3:13) But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When He was hung on the cross, He took upon Himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree." (14) Through Christ Jesus, God has blessed the Gentiles with the same blessing He promised to Abraham, so that we who are believers might receive the promised Holy Spirit through faith. These words truly bring hope to every man, woman and child of God. No matter what the enemy of your soul does, he can not curse you. He can only make you think you are. (Ephesians 1:2) Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. (3) Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ. Do you see that? Grace and peace are yours. He has blessed us with “all” spiritual blessings and sets our lives in heavenly places. No matter what, we are the most blessed people on the face of the earth. Living and or dying for Christ brings on Gods blessing. Paul said to die is gain but to live is Christ. What have we got to loose.

All of the people who allow God to do and fulfill His will in their lives may not have it easy here on earth. But Oh the blessings, Oh the blessings of knowing you are living in His will and doing what you can to live your life fully for Him can not be described. Painful? Yes, sometimes very painful. Agonizing? Yes! Blessed? Double yes! I am listening to Ron Kenoly sing “ I bow my knee before your throne, I know my life is not my own”. What a great song that's so full of truth. To bow ones knee to the King of Glory and say, not my will but yours be done, to bring glory honor and praise to the God of heaven and earth. To seek the giver and not he gift, to live to bring pleasure to Jesus the Crowned King of Glory! This is why Peter, James, John, Paul and all of the other Apostles lived and died for Jesus. Men like John Mark, Timothy and Titus took up their mantel when it was time. Now it is our turn, Can you pick up where the last one left off? Can you carry the cross of victory until it is time for your journey home? This is the question to us all, including me.....

1Kings 19:4 Then he went on alone into the wilderness, traveling all day. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. "I have had enough, LORD," he said. "Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors who have already died."

Have you ever lost hope? Everything in life, seemingly, closes in and culminates into one huge pressure of pain, despair and loathing. When your whole body feels as though you are under 200 feet of water, without air, and that pressure comes from within and from without. This was how Elijah felt at this moment of his life. He found the one and only bit of shade in the desert of his life, sat down under it and asked God to just let him die.

(Jeremiah 20:14) Yet I curse the day I was born! May no one celebrate the day of my birth.

(Jonah 4:8) And as the sun grew hot, God arranged for a scorching east wind to blow on Jonah. The sun beat down on his head until he grew faint and wished to die. "Death is certainly better than living like this!" he exclaimed.

Here are two more dark examples of life in the fast lane of serving God. Two men, just like Elijah, who grew bitter in their hearts because they didn't get God. Jeremiah just wanted to see Judah saved. He preached exactly what God told him too and all it got him was the prison cesspool. Jonah didn't want to see Nineveh saved but they repented and turned to God. Elijah's great victory at Mount Carmel was overcast with threats of death from one woman, Jezebel. All seemingly hopeless, helpless and lost. But God! But God! But God has a plan that is always greater in scope than we could ever imagine. Look at what God told Jonah. (Jonah 4:9) Then God said to Jonah, "Is it right for you to be angry because the plant died?" "Yes," Jonah retorted, "even angry enough to die!" (10) Then the LORD said, "You feel sorry about the plant, though you did nothing to put it there. It came quickly and died quickly. (11) But Nineveh has more than 120,000 people living in spiritual darkness, not to mention all the animals. Shouldn't I feel sorry for such a great city?" Do you think Jonah should have listened to God, gotten up and gone back into Nineveh and preached or was Jonah right in staying there swimming in his pool of self pity because God didn't do what Jonah wanted him to do? The book stops there and says nothing more about Jonah. Elijah left the cave and did what he was told. Later on he is replace by Elisha and taken up into heaven in a chariot of fire. Jeremiah is taken out of the prison cesspool, taken out of Jerusalem later on and never looses his properties or took any monetary losses when Jerusalem fell because they wouldn”t listen.

Mat 12:39 But Jesus replied, "Only an evil, adulterous generation would demand a miraculous sign; but the only sign I will give them is the sign of the prophet Jonah. (40) For as Jonah was in the belly of the great fish for three days and three nights, so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights.

Can you imagine where you would be today if Jesus would have told everyone to look for the sign of Jonah lying under that gourd plant and not getting up instead of the sign of Jonah coming out of that big fish. What if Jesus said I don't care what happens to the world I just want to die I'm so depressed and down about no one caring about me. They can just all go to Hell, I just want to stay in my tomb and feel sorry for myself. Do you think Jesus had something to be depressed about? But no! (Hebrews 12:2) Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. Jesus came up out of that grave with joy because of what was accomplished through His suffering and shame. Life can take a lot of swings at you and when it hits it can be painful. You can either lay there and mope or get up. You can make a lot of things your withered gourd plant and let it keep you down. But just as God talked about the bigger picture to Jonah let Him talk to you. Don't finish your book under the shade of a dead bush.

1John 5:21 Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God's place in your hearts.

One of the hardest things in our lives to do is to not replace God. I have, in the past and in the present, replaced Him with just about everything you could imagine. In the King James and several other translations of this scripture, it says, little children keep yourself from idols. Here we have classic God. We will always be little children in Gods eyes. Little children are a great example of us. Little children, when they are first born, rely and truly need their parents. Especially mom! They have a need that has to be fulfilled. The need to be fed, changed, held and loved. Then in a few months they begin to walk, talk, feed themselves liberally and want their own way. When they get a booboo they come running and want Mommy or Daddy to fix it and make it all better. But then, when it is better they run back and do their own little thing. Soon parents are replaced with Sponge Bob and Patrick, Phineas and Ferbe, Miley Cyrus and American Idol. But Mom And Dad are still there to take care of the booboo's. Then one day they want to get out on their own. Take the challenge of life in their own hands. But Mom and Dad are still there when they get hurt. In life it is hard to understand these things until you experience them yourself, because children grow up, become parents and the cycle continues. But in Gods eyes we are always little children trying to replace Him and we can't.

Psalm 46:10 "Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world."

God wants us to know Him as the #1 Dad but He also wants us to know Him as LORD. He says,”know I am God!” (Psalm 11:4) But the LORD is in His holy Temple; the LORD still rules from heaven. He watches everyone closely, examining every person on earth. Do you see this? He still rules, He watches “everyone” closely and He examines every person on earth. Our own parents, even if you had the strictest parents on earth, could not do this. But Our Lord knows every intent and desire of our heart. He knows the number of hairs we have and he knows when we loose one. So why is it God calls us children? Because we won't sit still long enough to get to know Him. We are like 5 year old's on a long trip, are we there yet, are we there yet. We can't stand waiting. Do you know what? God doesn't like waiting either but He is always waiting for us. He is waiting for us constantly for one thing or another. But mostly He waits for us to respond quietly to Him and say, yes Father, not my will but yours be done. Do you know why it only took Jesus 331/2 years to accomplish His Fathers will? Because He simply made His Father Lord and did what His Father wanted Him to do without coaxing, prodding, turning Him around in the right direction and disciplining His life because He wouldn't. Jesus spent hours alone with His Dad, being still, listening and waiting on Him so He could walk in the path Father wanted Him to go.

Matthew 11:28 Then Jesus said, "Come to Me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. (29) Take My yoke upon you. Let Me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. (30) For My yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light."

Are you tired of trying to figure out Gods plan for your life? Go to Him and sit down, have a few words with Him and just tell Him. But don't just jump up after 5 minutes of you telling Him, sit there until He talks to you. If you get nothing else out of this time with God than rest, it has accomplished something. But if you spend more than a few minutes a day with Father God, you can find out a whole lot about His plan and purpose for your life. Or you can be a typical human child, grow up and get out on your own, then call on the Father just to get you out of trouble. (Isaiah 55:6) Seek the LORD while you can find Him. Call on Him now while He is near. (1Chronicals 16:11) Search for the LORD and for His strength; continually seek Him. Put these two scriptures to work in your heart now and allow Father God to speak to you. You will know when it is God, because you will know His voice. But if you do nothing neither will He.

Psalm 34:6 In my desperation I prayed, and the LORD listened; He saved me from all my troubles.

I am sitting here in my recliner, at home alone, listening to Mercy Me sing their song “ I can only imagine”. Maybe it is because of turning 60 or maybe it is because of the circumstances that are in my life right now, I don't know. But life seems so very long and extremely dreary to me right now. The Word of my God assures me of so many things that we are to receive by faith and there comes a point of time in our lives, especially lately, where you, or is it just me, would really appreciate it if God would just kick it into high gear and do something. I don't care which, what or how, just do something spectacular for all to see and be glorified in it throughout the world. Times are very desperate right now and we are seeing first hand with our own little eyes some of the harder words our Jesus told us were going to happen.

(Matthew 24:6-13) And you will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don't panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won't follow immediately. (7) Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world. (8) But all this is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come. (9) "Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because you are My followers. (10) And many will turn away from Me and betray and hate each other. (11) And many false prophets will appear and will deceive many people. (12) Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold. (13) But the one who endures to the end will be saved.

Do you see that? Verse 14? Sin will be rampant, and the love of many will grow cold. I know, wars and rumors of wars, nation against nation, people arrested and persecuted, killed but why would so many brothers and sisters turn cold in such desperate times as these? Doesn't desperation drive us to Christ? Isn't that what the Psalmist said, In my desperation I prayed, and the Lord heard me and delivered me out of all my troubles.

(Luke 18:8) I tell you, He will grant justice to them quickly! But when the Son of Man returns, how many will He find on the earth who have faith?"

Is this what our problem is? Jesus is looking all around the world trying to find FAITH? I don't think our faith stops Him. I think our unbelief stops Him. Wait a minute, isn't faith and belief the same thing? No! Jesus said if you have faith as small as a grain of mustard seed we could speak to a mountain and it would be removed. But we don't believe it or there would be a whole lot of earth shaking going on. We speak to much without power. Power comes by believing.

(John 12:37) But despite all the miraculous signs Jesus had done, most of the people still did not believe in Him.

(Mark 9:23-24) "What do you mean, 'If I can'?" Jesus asked. "Anything is possible if a person believes." (24) The father instantly cried out, "I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!"

Look at those scriptures. Miracles didn't make people believe and the dad of the epileptic boy cried out help my unbelief even when I do believe. Did Jesus do everything He could to build faith or do we just grow cold in unbelief? Did Jesus heal the epileptic boy? Yes! Why? Because the dad admitted lack of belief! Lord I believe help me to believe more! Do you think dad believed more after the son was healed? I would like to think he did, but it doesn't say. It just says Jesus helped the boy up and he stood up. Nothing more said, nothing more done, just simply got up and left. No big deal, except, the disciples saying why couldn't we do it? Jesus said, pray and fast more. Pay the price. Why are people cold and falling away, they don't want to pay the price. Belief and continued growth costs. And with all the world, especially the free world, has to offer, they say Oh well, it didn't work, I guess it isn't real, so they quit. Cold Stone Ice cream cold. Sin on a cone. Death on a stick cold.

So this is why I cry out in desperation for God to do something awesome to show people all He is! Will He do it? I don't know. Do I believe enough? I believe He is able, I believe that all right. But do I believe He will? You and I have got to not only believe he is able, that's faith, but believe God is doing it, that is belief! So Lord help my unbelief so I can see the desires of my heart. So I do not loose any more friends to the cold cruel world.

Psalm 16 (The Message) 1-2 Keep me safe, O God, I've run for dear life to you. I say to God, "Be my Lord!" Without you, nothing makes sense.

Has your life ever gotten to the point where nothing seems to make any sense? I mean, everything, that is happening in your life just seems to be going to hell in a hand basket. Children, job or lack there of, sickness that won't go away, problem after problem after problem, insurmountable odds that are seemingly against you! And all that you want to do is scream! That is when you need to sit down, get alone with God and simply say “ Be my Lord”. “My Lord”, aren't those wonderful words? My Lord. Jesus is my Lord! Say it. Mean it. Believe it. Jesus is my Lord.....

There is no other name in heaven or on earth that can save you. There is no other name, like the name of Jesus, that can touch the hearts of sinner and saint. The name that is above all names. The name that every knee shall bow down to and every tongue shall confess that he, alone, is truly Lord. And when we call out that name, Jesus, the very angels of heaven wait for Him to say go, rescue my saint! For even the angels love Him and serve Him and they are at His beckon call to rescue us from all the hell on earth. Nothing makes sense at times except this one thing, Jesus is, was and always will be Lord.

Hebrews 6:13 (The Message) 13-18When God made his promise to Abraham, he backed it to the hilt, putting his own reputation on the line. He said, "I promise that I'll bless you with everything I have,bless and bless and bless!" Abraham stuck it out and got everything that had been promised to him. When people make promises, they guarantee them by appeal to some authority above them so that if there is any question that they'll make good on the promise, the authority will back them up. When God wanted to guarantee his promises, he gave his word, a rock-solid guarantee,God can't break his word. And because his word cannot change, the promise is likewise unchangeable.

His promises will keep us safe. Look at the way the Message bible puts it, He puts His reputation on the line, He promised! In the New living Testament they put it this way in verse (13); For example, there was God's promise to Abraham. Since there was no one greater to swear by, God took an oath in His own name. 2Corinthians 13:1  as the Scriptures say, "The facts of every case must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses"). Well here we have a case. If you believe in the trinity, we can believe this promise that He will keep His promises because the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are all in agreement! Now all we have to do is come into agreement with them. Or you can call God a liar. 1John 5:7 So we have these three witnesses in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit, and these three are one. And we have three witnesses on earth, (8) the Spirit, the water, and the blood and all three agree. (9) Since we believe human testimony, surely we can believe the greater testimony that comes from God. And God has testified about His Son. (10) All who believe in the Son of God know in their hearts that this testimony is true. Those who don't believe this are actually calling God a liar because they don't believe what God has testified about His Son. So, are you tough enough to call God a liar today or not? It sounds silly, but that is what we are doing when we don't believe Him. Jesus Christ is real or He isn't, which is He to you? Allow God to make sense of your life!

John 14:27 "I am leaving you with a gift, peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don't be troubled or afraid.

Everyone wants peace, the only thing holding them back is they do not want to do what is necessary to get real peace. Jesus tells us in Luke 12, do you think I have come to bring peace? You are wrong, I came to bring division. What do you mean Jesus, telling us you are leaving us with a gift of peace of mind and heart then you tell us you came to bring division. Sounds like one of those contradictions everyone talks about, right? It is not a contradiction it is stone cold fact. In Isaiah 26:3 Gods word tells us He will keep in perfect peace all who trust in Him, all whose thoughts are fixed on Him! Look at those words very carefully. Does the whole world trust Him? No! Is every heart and mind being fixed or set on Him? No! So the only way to attain real peace is to trust Jesus and no matter what, Keep your eyes on Him.

Philippians 4:6 Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done. (7) Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Do you ever find it hard to pray? I know I do sometimes and usually it is because I set my mind on problems that I am praying for and not on the one I am praying to. God is our solution to everything. We need to tell The Father, in Jesus name, and begin to thank Him for all of the great things He has done. This is so simple that everyone should be doing it all the time but instead we worry. It seems the simpler it is the harder we make it. The first part of verse 6 tells us not to worry about anything. Is this some kind of fairy tale or is it Gods truth? Isn't worry the opposite of peace? Psalm 16:6 gives us confidence in our prayer life when David talks to God in a very simple manner. He says, Dad, bend down here and listen to me please,because I know you will answer me. This is my translation of what he said but still it is very basic. We talk to God He listens and answers. David knew He would answer him and we need to know that too! It is called confidence, trust, certainty. It is called faith! It is trusting your Father to answer when you pray and receiving the answer that God gives you with praise and thanksgiving even though it isn't the answer you want. Then that peace of God that exceeds anything we can understand floods your life with the warmth of His sweet Holy Spirit who guards your heart and mind keeping you in peace.

Psalm 34:14 Turn away from evil and do good. Search for peace, and work to maintain it.

Christ did come to bring division. There are the one's who have peace and the ones who don't. The first step in having peace is to make peace with God by believing in your heart that Jesus is Lord. The next step is to keep your mind fixed on Him. This is the hard part, this is where the division comes in from all different directions. Your flesh creeps up, Satan jumps in with his digs, the whole world collapses at one time, you know what I mean. Life can get to you. Paul and Silas in prison, Daniel in the lions den, Joshua and his army marching around the walls of Jericho, these are all examples of keeping your mind on God. Paul said fix your thoughts on what is true, honorable,  right, pure, lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me, everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.(Philippians 4: 8-9) It is a fight to maintain peace. The Psalmist says to search for it and work to maintain it. I would be willing to work for this kind of peace. There are no marches, no banners to fly, no picket signs, no works like we saw back in the 60's and 70's. Only trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for everything. His peace, His peace is His gift to us. We just have to unwrap it and put it on.

Luke 12:28 And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, He will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? (29) "And don't be concerned about what to eat and what to drink. Don't worry about such things. (30) These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers all over the world, but your Father already knows your needs. (31) Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and He will give you everything you need. (32) "So don't be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom. (33) "Sell your possessions and give to those in need. This will store up treasure for you in heaven! And the purses of heaven never get old or develop holes. Your treasure will be safe; no thief can steal it and no moth can destroy it. (34) Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.

1 Peter 5:7 (NKJ) casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.

Do I want to be my own lord? Most of us do, we just don't want to admit it because we are Christians. Most of us want God to do what we want. Aren't you glad He puts up with us? But Jeremiah was given the challenge of telling Israel the problem of making themselves lord. If you would read Jeremiah 18, he gives it his best, but their answer was typical. They, simply put, told him to bug off. They said they were going to continue to live the way they wanted to and they didn't care what God said. So, God said OK. But when you loose everything and there is nothing but desolation, that desolation is going to be a monument to your stupidity. Pretty strong words but He is a pretty strong God. We think they are bad but how many monuments have we erected to our own stupidity? I know of several in my life that God had to cover with the blood of Jesus.

1Pe 5:10 In His kindness God called you to share in His eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, He will restore, support, and strengthen you, and He will place you on a firm foundation.

We suffer so many times for the stupid things we do in our lives. But, through Gods kindness, we have been given the opportunity to share in His glory. Yes we are going to go through a lot of things, but it is His glory he wants to share with us through Christ Jesus. We have more going for us than any person on the face of the earth, yet we still allow our stupidity to build monuments. Peter tells us, in 1 Peter chapter 4, to be happy when when we suffer for being a Christian. Then in verse 15 he tells us, look stupid, you are not suffering for Christ when you murder( get angry), get caught stealing, causing trouble or getting into other peoples business. That isn't suffering, that is being stupid. Now I know I am not being politically correct saying the word stupid. But in the famous words of Forrest Gump, stupid is as stupid does. Suffering does come so many times because we try taking on the lordship of our lives and being the lord of others. But thank God for His grace and mercy! When we finally get tired of being lord and we give it back to Him, he restores us, supports us and He strengthens us through the gentle Lordship that He sets in our lives through His firm foundation. You can push against the truth all that you want. But in the end you will say these words right along with Peter:

1Pe 5:11 All power to Him forever! Amen.

Continue being your own lord, continue building your own monuments. If you want to, go ahead and suffer beyond your limits and continue living your own way. Someday you will awaken out of your stupor and allow Him to truly be Lord, then you will never go through any more than God has equipped you for. Three books were written in the old testament by King Solomon. Solomon started out great but didn't allow God Lordship of his entire life. The wisest man in the then known world did some pretty stupid things that we will not get into. He was equipped through a prayer he made to God for wisdom to lead Israel. God granted him that wisdom and he used it to build the nation and the kingdom of God, but his personal life didn't look so good. When he wrote the last chapter of Ecclesiastes he said these great words that we hear a lot:

Ecclesiastes 12:8(kj) Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher; all is vanity.

He said the teacher was considered wise and he taught the people everything he knew. But he didn't teach himself or listen to himself very well which made all of his teaching vane. Pro 1:33 But all who listen to me will live in peace, untroubled by fear of harm." Yes, Solomon wrote this and taught it. Pro 2:8 He guards the paths of the just and protects those who are faithful to Him. And yes, he wrote this too, but in the end his life was vanity. He married so many wives and had so many concubines he had to keep a record book just to keep up with them. But the thing that he neglected the most was raising a son to take his place. When his son took over, the kingdom was split up and everything was downhill from then on because Solomons son, Rehoboam, would not relinquish his lordship, and allow The LORD to be Lord. Look at your life well and understand everything you do in yourself is vanity and everything you do in Christ brings him and you glory. Do not allow your last words to be, vanity, vanity all is vanity. Gather up your pride, cast it all on Him and allow Christ to have His Lordship in your life, knowing, He cares for you.

Revelation 5:5 But one of the twenty-four elders said to me, "Stop weeping! Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the heir to David's throne, has won the victory. He is worthy to open the scroll and its seven seals."

Look at this, a rebuke in heaven! One of the 24 elders said to John, I mean the “Apostle” John! Quit your crying! What? Getting rebuked in heaven, one of the greatest men of God that ever walked the face of this earth! Yup. Even John, standing in heaven, surrounded by Angels, Elders, Living beings with 6 wings, looking at the throne of God, didn't get it! Standing there,weeping in heaven, not understanding, saying within himself, what are we going to do now? He had just witnessed the Living beings crying Holy,Holy, Holy is The Lord God Almighty. He had just observed the 24 Elders fall down and lay their crowns at His throne and say You are worthy to receive glory honor and power. But John just didn't get it even in heaven. The elder said, Look! One of the things you do when you cry is close your eyes. When you do open them they are blurred with tears so you can not focus, then those tears have to be wiped away to be able to see reality. The Elder tells John to look, not at the problem, but at the answer. The Lion of the tribe of Judah, the heir to Davids throne, has won the victory. He is worthy and He can open the seals on that scroll!

In Daniel chapter 12, Daniel is receiving a word from God concerning the end times. Daniel asks in verse 8, when will all of this end. This is what gets us to weeping and crying all the time. When is it ever going to end? When are the trials going stop Lord? When Lord, when? In John 20 Mary is crying her eyes out when all of a sudden there, right before her is the Lord himself. He says, why are you crying. She was crying because they had taken away the body of her Lord. But the moment Jesus said Mary, she looked, she opened her eyes and she saw the truth. Jesus was alive! The Lord is saying your name today and telling you to look. Our Lord is not dead, He is alive! He is the Lion of the tribe of Judah and is sitting at the right hand of God making intersession for the saints (Romans 8:34). The trials and temptations will cease when we get to heaven and until then we have to keep our focus on Jesus who will take care of all our needs (Philippians 4:19) and will not allow you to go through anything you can not go through (1 Corinthians 10:13). So “stop weeping”! Open your eyes to see Jesus! He really is there.

Psalm 34:6(KJ) This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.

Here is a type of crying that Father loves to hear. When we cry out to Him in our weakness and we need Him. Joel 3:10 tells us , let the weak say I am strong and Ephesians 6:10 says be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might. It is OK to be weak. It is OK to cry real tears. But it is even better in those times to cry out in prayer to your Dad who wants to show off to His child how strong He really is. Dad is always there for you. And he puts your tears in a bottle and in a book (Psalm 56:8). So don't be so macho, man or woman of God. Yes women can be just as stubborn as men. Let it out to Father and look to the “Lion of Judah” for your strength while crying out with a loud voice.

Psalm 27:14 Wait patiently for the LORD. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the LORD.

This is the toughest thing for everyone. Waiting patiently for Father to fix it. My own belief is shattered sometimes because He doesn't hurry up for my sake. His word doesn't say anything about Him doing anything in our time. Our patience is not in waiting it is in trusting Him while we are waiting. We keep wanting to take our eyes off of Father and put them back on the circumstance so then He has to work harder in our lives to get our eyes back and centered on Him. It just adds more time to the wait. The psalmist gives us some very valuable words for our lives in Psalm 37:34 . Put your hope in the LORD. Travel steadily along His path. He will honor you by giving you the land. You will see the wicked destroyed. A great part of our life and time would be truly blessed if we would do what this says, put your hope in the LORD and travel steadily along His path. When the path gets bumpy and hard keep on trusting Him, keep on looking at Him and stay close so you don't get lost. And simply remember He has won the victory for your life.

Ecclesiastes 12:13 That's the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey His commands, for this is everyone's duty.

How many church services have you heard the words “in conclusion” and the preacher keeps on preaching for another 20 minutes? Solomon didn't do that here. He simply said, fear God and obey His commands. Simple and to the point, yes, but he did have one more verse after that where he gives us the reason to fear God and keep His commands. God is the judge. He is the judge, jury and executioner. He, not Santa Clause, knows every secret thing you do. He really does know when you've been bad or good. That should make you nervous, but thank GOD for His grace and mercy through Jesus Christ!

Isaiah 29:13 And so the Lord says, "These people say they are Mine. They honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. And their worship of Me is nothing but man-made rules learned by rote.

How many times have you said “Praise the Lord” just out of habit and because you know you should. But in your heart you really weren't saying the same thing. I am guilty of this just as bad as anyone else. We go to church and sing a few songs, clap our hands, say our words to satisfy the moment but our heart was a thousand miles in the other direction. We judge the Pharisees and Sadducee of Jesus time on earth but do we do the same? Do we fall into Jesus' words from Mark 7:6 when he said this generation? Was he just speaking about then? The prophet Hosea spoke these words in Hosea 4:6, “my people are being destroyed because they don't know me. Then Paul in Romans 1:28, Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, He abandoned them to foolish thinking. Is this what we want for this generation? Or will our generation be one that is bowing their knees in humility and reverence of our Lord Jesus?

Ephesians 3:14 When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, (15) the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. (16) I pray that from His glorious, unlimited resources He will empower you with inner strength through His Spirit. (17) Then Christ will make His home in your hearts as you trust in Him. Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong. (18) And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is. (19) May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. (20) Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

Paul finishes this chapter with these great words in verse 21, Glory to Him in the church and in Christ Jesus “through all generations” forever and ever! AMEN! This is what God wants for every generation of His church. He wants His church full of the most awesome, spirit filled people on the planet earth, worshiping and praising Him in Spirit and in truth (John 4:23). But will we, like Paul, fall to our knees and pray? Is this generation capable of this great feat of humility? Can this generation of saints pray, as Paul did, for Christ to be formed in the hearts of people so they can get to know and comprehend just how high, how deep and how wide Gods love is for His people and also for the world? Will this generation be able to pass on to the next generation the fullness of life and power that comes only from God? Will the next generation be able to look back on us and say “ Glory to God” who has worked a mighty work through us, who was able to accomplish infinitely more than what we could ask or think? Would Solomon be able to say, we reached his final conclusion in our lives of “fear God and obey His commands”? Will this generation succeed in worshiping in Spirit and in truth? These are a lot of questions to answer and the only one who can answer is you. I can only answer for me. You have to answer for yourself. It is your life, your decision, your chance at fulfilling Gods will for your life. Remember Solomon started Ecclesiastes 12:13 with the words, That's the whole story. You will only get the whole story when you stand before Jesus. What will He have to say?

Mat 23:12 But those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.

Look at this scripture. Here is something classic in the word of God. Humble yourself or be humbled, what a choice! Humility is a choice each one of us has to make everyday. To be humble is not a very natural state of existence for a human being in today's world. The world stresses achievement by any means. Push, pull, shove, bribe or even kill the opponent but Jesus said the only thing a born again believer is to strive for is that straight gate that enters heaven (Luke 13:24). So how do we handle living in this world of strife and strive for heaven? The same way we do everything in life.

James 4:7

KJ                                                                NLT

Submit yourselves therefore to God.                Humble yourselves before God

Resist the devil, and he will flee                      Resist the devil, and he will flee

from you.                                                        from you.

Look at that! Two words that work well together with everything except you. OK maybe it's just me then because everyone else is perfect, right? Submit and Humble. Two of the nastiest words in the world, but you are not of this world. “Are you?” If you are then let me recommend another verse of scripture that might help you.

2Corinthians 6:17 Therefore, come out from among unbelievers, and separate yourselves from them, says the LORD. Don't touch their filthy things, and I will welcome you.(18) And I will be your Father, and you will be My sons and daughters, says the LORD Almighty. "

Rom 12:2 Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

So now what do you think Christian? Gods word is tough some times isn't it. That is why the writer of Hebrews says it is sharper than a two edged sword. Ouch! The word divides us from the world and makes us into the image of Christ who humbled himself, who was considered equal to God (Philippians 2), and offered himself freely for the punishment of our sins. Our humility started on the cross. So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time He will lift you up in honor(1 Peter 5). Humility only comes from you submitting to the will of God in Christ Jesus. Just remember the very first scripture we started with. Humble yourself so God doesn't have to do it for you!

Romans 12:1 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all He has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice, the kind He will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship Him.

Let this word be for you today as much as it is for myself. Put your life in His hands and watch Him move in that life.

Colossians 2:8 Don't let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. (9) For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body. (10) So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.

Rom 8:17 And since we are His children, we are His heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God's glory. But if we are to share His glory, we must also share His suffering.

Maybe in our lives we should read this scripture when we first get saved. But then we might have quit the first day and not read the rest of Gods promises to us. No one likes the suffering part, not even Jesus enjoyed it that much or He would have just said give me the cross not if there is any other way Father. Jesus went through hell, literally, for His ministry on earth, so it probably ought to catch our attention for our lives.

Gen 15:6 And Abram believed the LORD, and the LORD counted him as righteous because of his faith.

God had this scripture written down for our sakes. Remember we are heirs of Abraham's promise in Genesis 12:2&3. But the reason he received this promise was his simple faith in the LORD that God had put there to be used and he used it. We have to believe God exactly like Abraham to receive the fruit of our faith. Abraham didn't have to believe God and there were definitely times when it was hard to believe, but he did and God counted it as righteousness for him. He really showed his faith in God when God told him to offer Isaac, his son of promise, as a sacrifice.

Heb 11:17 It was by faith that Abraham offered Isaac as a sacrifice when God was testing him. Abraham, who had received God's promises, was ready to sacrifice his only son, Isaac, (18) even though God had told him, "Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted." (19) Abraham reasoned that if Isaac died, God was able to bring him back to life again.

Do you see that? Abraham believed, If God had too, he would raise Isaac from the dead. This is faith! But you can also be like others in the Word of God who counted their heritage and faith as nothing. Esau sold his birthright for a bowl of soup (Genesis 25). King Saul sold out for pride (1Samuel 15). King Ahab sold out for grapes (1Kings 21). Judas sold out for 30 pieces of silver (Matthew 26).

Mat 10:22 And all nations will hate you because you are My followers. But everyone who endures to the end will be saved.

Everyone on the face of this earth lives in the valley of decision. We have to decide which way our lives should go. God spoke clearly to Joshua in Joshua chapter 1 to read, meditate on and live His word. God also, sternly, commanded Joshua to be strong and courageous, but He did it with a promise that He would continually be with Him. The book of Proverbs reassures us in chapter 8:21 Those who love me inherit wealth. I will fill their treasuries. Now if this isn't a great promise what is. God with us, we love Him, we inherit His wealth! Great isn't it? So why do so many walk in their own path? It is a hard decision when you try looking at everything in the natural instead of the supernatural. In the book of Isaiah chapter 57 God admonishes us to make a good decision based on faith not on feelings. In verse 13 He tells us “ whoever trusts in Me will inherit the land and possess My holy mountain”. And then He tells us in verse 20 those who still reject Me are like the restless sea, which is never still but continually churns up mud and dirt. If you are to ever have peace in Christ you have to trust Him and His promise's to you. James and Peter both learned this in the New Testament when they both wrote down basically the same words, humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time He will lift you up in honor. Keep looking to God no matter how difficult the decision is to make with the reassurance in your heart everything will be good in His time.

Galatians 3:29 And now that you belong to Christ, you are the true children of Abraham. You are his heirs, and God's promise to Abraham belongs to you.

In Galatians chapter 3 everything leads up to Paul's words in the last part of verse 29. He tells us one of the most important promises that comes with our salvation. By being Gods child and His heir, the promise that God gave to Abraham belongs to us. This promise and all of Gods Promises to His children are not to be taken lightly. All of His promises are to be held close to our hearts and are to be believed deeply and sincerely with everything that is within us.

Look at the promise God made Abraham In Genesis 12:2-3.

(2) I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. (3) I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you."

What a promise! This is only a small part of what God promises His heirs. Look at more in Isaiah 54:17

17 But in that coming day no weapon turned against you will succeed. You will silence every voice raised up to accuse you. These benefits are enjoyed by the servants of the LORD; their vindication will come from Me. I, the LORD, have spoken!

And if you read all of Psalms 103 you can see more and more of the benefits of being Gods child. Isaiah said these benefits are to be “enjoyed”! God said it, we have to believe it. But does this mean everything is going to be easy? No, it means when weapons are formed against you they will not prosper but you will. It means sickness will come, but it is still by His stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53:5). It means you are going to die someday and you are going to be set free from this old body(1Corinthians 15). Age will creep up on you but as you wait upon the LORD He will renew your strength (Isaiah 40:31). So if nothing is coming against you, check your life because your enemy does not like you.

1Pe 5:6 So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time He will lift you up in honor. 7 Give all your worries and cares to God, for He cares about you. 8 Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.

Gods Son had to go to the cross. We need to realize His enemy is our enemy. He tried to stop Jesus, he is going to try his best to get you to stop too! Check your life constantly. If you have nothing coming against you, see where your heart is with your Dad, your Father God, maybe you need to get closer to Him. Stay alert and don't get tired of the battle. Trust every promise your Father has given you. And never give up.

Gal 4:7 Now you are no longer a slave but God's own child. And since you are His child, God has made you His heir.

 

If you are a Born again believer in Jesus Christ and you think you are a nobody, think again! You are a Child of God! If you are taking that lightly then understand this. You are an heir of the richest person in the universe (Haggai 2:8). You are an heir of the one who kicks back and makes the earth His footstool (Matthew 5: 35). This is your Dad or if you are real close he is your Daddy!

As heirs we have a heritage that is supernatural. In John 3:3-8 we listen to Jesus, talking to Nicodemus, explaining to him about being born again. If you read very close you will see even Jesus had a hard time explaining the supernatural experience of new life in Him. Look at the last part of verse 8 when Jesus says you can't explain how people are born of the Spirit. The closest explanation I have found was what Paul said in Galatians 4:6 , And because we are His children, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, "Abba, Father." God puts the Spirit of His Son in our hearts. Born of the Spirit! New heart, new heritage!

A heritage is something possessed as a result of their natural situation or birth. But ours is a supernatural situation and a supernatural birth. This supernatural faith/grace event happens when you begin to put your trust and your life into Gods hand (Psalm 31:5&15). When you entrust your spirit, your life, and your future, to God, your heritage begins to explode into action. Some changes come right away, some changes are slow to come. When we try to take back what is rightfully Gods, our lives, it only slows things down. It is the fathers right to give and take away not the child's. If you give your life to Christ, trust Him! What He has for you is greater than anything your old heritage could ever bring you.

Jeremiah 1:11 Then the LORD said to me, "Look, Jeremiah! What do you see?"

When you look at your life what do you see? Do you see failure, discontent, hard times and blisters? Or do you see victory, prosperity, and joy in the Lord because of the wonderful work Christ is doing in your life. Do you look at your circumstances and wonder what am I going to do? Or do you look at an opportunity for God to show His power in your life. Every one of us look at things differently, but everyone of us should strive in our lives to see like God see's.

1Co 13:12 Now we see things imperfectly.

We look at things like you would see them in a house of mirrors. All of the distortions confuse our hearts and minds into thinking they are real. The only way we will see clearly is to get through whatever you are going through. The end of whatever it is will reveal the truth. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely. This is what Paul is trying to get through to us. We live too much for the “NOW”. This is why everything gets distorted. Jesus did tell us not to worry about tomorrow but when you look at our lives everything has something to do with the future. What you do today effects your future. What you believe, how you react, where you go, what words we speak effect our whole life. Not just the “NOW”. If it was simple every person on earth would be saved and living the white picket fence life. But that just isn't the way it is. Today is important to God, but your future is even more important. You and I have to cling to the truth of Gods word.

2Kings 6:16 "Don't be afraid!" Elisha told him. "For there are more on our side than on theirs!" (17) Then Elisha prayed, "O LORD, open his eyes and let him see!" The LORD opened the young man's eyes, and when he looked up, he saw that the hillside around Elisha was filled with horses and chariots of fire. (18) As the Aramean army advanced toward him, Elisha prayed, "O LORD, please make them blind." So the LORD struck them with blindness as Elisha had asked.

God wants our eyes open and the enemies eyes blinded. Don't be afraid. Just as Elisha could see clearly what God had waiting for the enemy He wants us to see too. It is great if you can't see to have a man or woman of God praying for your eyes to be opened. God gives a remedy for it in Revelation chapter 3. He will sell you eye salve. It can not be purchased at Walgreen or Walmart and you can only receive it by faith. Just like everything else with God , faith is the only thing that works. Apply the salve, open your eyes, and witness everything God has for your life now and when you get to the future you can look back and enjoy knowing you made it with eyes wide open and willing for the next challenge waiting for your life.