Forgiveness Leads To Answered Prayers

Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.

Mark 11:24-25

The key to prayer isn’t the words you speak or how long you are in conversation with God; the faith you have in the Lord you serve and over the situation you face determines whether or not your prayer reaches the ears of the almighty or stops at your ceiling… Mark reminds us that just as much as we desire we must believe… “…when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them…” This passage taken from the gospel of Mark speaks to the heart of a Christian; in that, we may go to God in prayer, but we must have faith and not doubt… In the verses before these scriptures, Jesus has made is entry into Jerusalem and while in Bethany went up to a fig tree that had no fruit(when Jesus arrived, the tree wasn’t prepared but that’s for a later day and time), in front of His disciples Jesus cursed the fig tree and when the men returned they found that the tree had withered (died)… The disciples were amazed, but Jesus goes on to tell them that we (as believers) have the ability to do miraculous things (move mountains),but we must have faith in God and not waver about His abilities… Whatever you ask of God believe that He not only hears you, but will respond to your prayer… 

The bible declares in the book of Acts that we are to come BOLDLY to the throne of Grace. We have to have an attitude that God is not only in charge, but that He will fulfill the desires and needs of our heart. Notice the scripture tells us that whatever we desire, when we pray we must believe. So many go to God in prayer, but in our heart we do not believe that He holds the world in his hands, often we go to Him in prayer and if things aren’t changed right away we doubt His supremacy, we call on the Lord, but don’t not have the Faith of one who knows the miracles and blessings that God can and does perform. It is not enough to go to the Lord and lay your burdens down, if you do not believe that he is going to pick them up and carry them for you. The bible declares “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that comes to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” Faith is essential to life and liberty… To believe something, means you accept it as truth, I don’t know about you, but I believe that Jesus died on the cross, I believe that He paid sins penalty, and I accept as truth the message Jesus gave to his disciples after His resurrection when he said, “ALL POWER IN HEAVEN AND ON EARTH HAS BEEN GIVEN ME!” Faith requires trusting God and also extending helping hands to your adversaries… 

Notice what Mark says,“And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any:” We must be willing to go before the Lord and admit our faults, but more importantly forgive those who have wronged us (faith comes in trusting God to deliver and also trusting God to mend). So many of us carry the offense of another on our shoulders or in our hearts and because of that there is no room for God to work in our lives. We hold on to pain, we hold on to hurt, and wonder why God has not moved in our lives. In short, don’t carry grudges because all they do is occupy your thoughts and take up residence where God would like to be… We must understand that people will always upset you, people will always offend you, and people will always hurt you. Remember God said whatever is loosed on earth will be loosed in heaven, and whatever is bound on earth will be bound in heaven, so forgive and forget, so God can do the same for you on earth, but more importantly when you go from labor to reward! God will open doors in you life that you never thought possible, but you must be willing to close the doors of malice, resentment and anger first; this requires faith that believes and never doubts…

ALL FOR HIS GLORY!

Put On The WHOLE Armour

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.  Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

Ephesians 6:10-11

There are two things that are certain as we journey through life, the first is that we all shall physically die and the second is that we cannot stand against the devil alone… When we come to know and accept these things, we learn that physical death as well as the devils attacks can all be overcome by Jesus Christ… Paul has written this letter to the church of Ephesus and in the preceding chapters has given them instruction on how to live. He has taught them how to bring honor and also how to obey the word and will of God.At this point in his letter, Paul is concluding by reminding them that they must be strong in the Lord and the power of His might. Notice the way in which this letter is formed, we are reminded how to live (being a child of God), but the most important point comes at the end and that is that we must put on His armor… The church of Ephesus had endured hardships (just like you and I); it had gone through ridicule and demise. I believe that we can draw a direct parallel to our lives and know that these same situations have been presented to us. 

As we continue on this Christian journey the road becomes steeper and harder to climb, Paul wants us to be refocused and have a renewed Faith in the power and strength of God. The same God that delivered you before is the same God that will deliver you now… Paul says, “be strong in the Lord,” stop trying to handle every situation on your own, stop trying to figure everything out and live according to your own agenda… Paul is saying that we must live by Faith; we must humble ourselves before the Lord and trust that He will move at His appointed time… Often times we pray about situations and then go out trying to resolve them… Paul is telling the church to ignite their faith in Christ by seeking His might… We must understand that we are nothing and powerless as a people, but as Paul stated in his letter to the church of Philippi “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me…” Know where your strength comes from, know who has all power in palm of His hand and take your situations BOLDLY before His throne, lay them before the Lord and leave them their… The bible tells me that Hezekiah was faced with adversity; however, notice what he did… Isaiah 37:14 says, “And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it: and Hezekiah went up unto the house of the LORD, and spread it before the LORD.”We must understand that hard times are necessary; we must realize that pain is essential in growth, and tribulations are vital in experiencing God’s sovereignty! 

Paul says we must put on the whole armor of God to stand against the attacks of the devil. So many of us have fallen in to the devils traps because we omit the words “WHOLE ARMOUR,”we believe that we can go into battle with 50%or 75% coverage. We always leave a little room for our own thoughts and priorities and surely we fall short because we haven’t heeded the scriptures… Paul is telling us this morning that if we want to experience God’s power, if we want to see His strength, if we want God to unveil is Lordship; then we must accept our circumstances and simply prepare ourselves for war! Notice Paul says that we are to put on the whole armor of God that we may stand… Again you will not be able to stand without God’s armor; you must be fully immersed in His word, you must let you faith be your guide, you must sacrifice your own desires if you want to win this battle or as Paul says “finish this race…” The bible says that the devil is like a roaring lion, seeking whom He may devour… When you wake up in the morning, the devil is sitting right there at your door, maybe even by your bed waiting for you to seek your own direction… Today, let us remember to be strong In The Lord, let us remember to do everything in the power of His might and tell the devil “get thee behind me…”

ALL FOR HIS GLORY!

Promotions Come From Above

For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south.  But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another.

Psalm 75:6-7

Isn’t it ironic that so many people get upset and question God when things are going negatively in their lives…? So many people want to go to their pastors or friends for a (n) answer to their troubles or to simply encourage them to keep the faith when storms come their way… It never ceases to amaze me at how many people will look at the negatives in this world in use that for the basis of their argument against the realness of God; however, how often do we apply this same measure when we are blessed or things are going well… When the storm passes and the rainbow shines, how much praise do we lift up to the Most High? See today’s focus verse teaches us that all promotions, all blessings come from the works of God and not your own hands… James 1:17 says, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” Understanding this fact leads us to a question that we all must answer, how often do we take credit for a level of success in our lives? How often do we thank our boss for recognizing the work we have done or contributed to the excelling of a company? The psalmist reminds us of who is in charge and has the final say to our everyday situations. 

Understand that nothing can be done without the approval of God, remember Job was successful, but was stricken when God allowed the devil to wreak havoc upon him, remember Jonah was fleeing and God caused a storm to rise upon him and humble him to the point where he could be used. Job received far more than he had before and Jonah went on to preach and get a city to repent from danger. Job later says do we take good from God and not evil? We have to come to the conclusion that God holds our fate and has promised to provide all that we need. So, when you are low on funds and receive that bonus, thank God. When you are worried out of you mind about your job in this economy and your Boss assures you of your safety, praise God. God is the judge, He will humble whoever needs to be humbled; likewise, He will lift up whoever deserves to be lifted! Notice that the psalmist speaks of the promotion not coming from the east, west or south… He doesn’t say “north” for a reason in this passage, when we speak of going north on a route we equate that with going up and the psalmist wants us to know that the blessings don’t come from below us (south) or around us (east and west) but from above (north) through God’s grace and mercy…God is a just God and will take care of any and every situation… When you receive the breakthrough you have looked for, remember who gave it to you… When you receive praise for God works, remember “to God be the glory…” 

A lot of times we take the credit when we find favor in anything that we do or are apart of, at the same token, we blame God when things don’t turn out the way we imagined or wanted them too… The psalmist wants us to acknowledge God in all that we do and all the blessings that come our way… Don’t live a double life; humble yourself before the Lord before He humbles you… That’s why the psalmist says He putteth down one and setteth up another… When we go on our ego trip, God will bring you back down to reality real fast. A friend of mine wants told me that we must remain humble as we climb the ladder of success and not become arrogant or prideful; because the same ladder we climb up is the one that we will surely use to come back down… In other words, don’t humiliate yourself by thinking you have “made” it and are better than everyone else, because when God humbles you (and He will) you will need a friend to lean on… Keep everything in your life in the proper context, know that God doesn’t make mistakes when you are humbled, but also have faith in knowing that your breakthrough is on the horizon… I believe Paul (who was humbled and exalted by the Lord) said it best in his letter to the Church of Rome, “know that ALL things work together for the good of those who LOVE the LORD!” If you love God, understand that His blessings come in many ways, even in ways you would least expect; like on your job!

ALL FOR HIS GLORY!

He Can Still Reach The Loss

But if you return to me and obey my commands, then even if your exiled people are at the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen as a dwelling for my Name.

Nehemiah 1:9

The bible declares in Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God…” The sooner we come to the realization that we need Christ in our lives, the sooner we can begin to live and live more abundantly… The people of God have been uprooted, scattered throughout the land; however, Nehemiah comes and reminds them that no matter how bad things appear, God can still hear and heal “…if you return to me and obey my commands…” Disobedience led to the alteration of God’s children’s lives and this defiant attitude will lead to our demise as well… Notice the call Nehemiah puts forth in our scripture reading today; if you want prosperity, if you want peace, if you want health, if you want joy, you must obey… When you obey God, “…then, even if your exiled people are at the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there…” Your call is to walk according to the will of God, not worry or chase souls… This passage taken from the book of Nehemiah reminds us of the importance of staying focused on our Christian journey… God spoke to Joshua when Moses had passed and told him “not to turn to left or the right…” Isaiah spoke of the path of righteousness in the 30th chapter of his prophetic book and said that we aren’t to “go to the left or the right…” 

The children of God had lost their way and were in great suffering; however, God speaks through Nehemiah and reminds them that His grace still abounds when we have turned away, His mercy is everlasting even when we have strayed and that if we return unto Him and obey His commands He will hear our cry and gather us unto Him… This speaks to the love and desire God has for you to be more and do exceedingly and abundantly above all you can comprehend… He desires for you to “Be Blessed,” He desires for you to reap the harvest and lay up a crown of righteousness… Know that God still sits high and looks low, He is still our all and all and in due time He will snatch you out of the very depths that THINK they have your fate in their hands… 2 Chronicles 7:14 says it best, “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from there wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and forgive their sins and will heal there land…” This passage has a two-tiered meaning, not only must we remain focused, but we must understand that the decisions that we make don’t only affect us, but they affect our children, our spouse and various other people who we encounter… Stop trying to figure out this world on you own, stop trying to handle every situation within your own might, put your hand in the hand of Jesus and He will right the vision and make it plain… It is through our own feeble thinking that we make situations worse; we build greater obstacles and find ourselves in harder trials… 

The word of God through Nehemiah says “if you return and obey… even the exiled at the farthest horizon I will gather…” It starts with you, if you have a child that has gone astray, a marriage that is falling apart, a friend that you have lost; return unto the Lord, obey His commands and walk according to His will… God is trying to instill in you this very valid and strong point; don’t try to fix things that are out of your control! If you have a relationship that has fallen apart, return unto the Lord… Jesus said, “If I be lifted up, I’ll draw all men unto me…” Return unto the Lord, obey His commands… Don’t worry, don’t fret, because when you submit yourself unto the Lord, He takes the burdens of your life and answers your prayers… The parable of the prodigal son showcases the power of prayer and faith, the father had to let his son go, throughout the sons riotous living the father let go and let God… In the end, the son returned and through the prayers of his father was saved… Letting go isn’t a sign of weakness, but faith… As long as God is first in your life, everything (in due time) will fall into place… We all have fallen short of His glory, but through His son we all have a chance of Eternal Life… The same chance is afforded to all, so return unto Him and let Jesus gather the lost sheep!

ALL FOR HIS GLORY!

God Will Supply All Your Needs

But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Now unto God and our Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Philippians 4:19-20

Through the hardships of life, Paul learned invaluable lessons… When no one was there for him, he learned who was always by his side… When he was cast down and stoned, Paul came to know who lifted him up and healed his body… Through all the toils and snares, the ups and downs, the trials and tribulations; there was one constant in his life… This is the reason why he states 9 verses early, “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” Paul had grown in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior and his faith would not allow him to become disheartened or sadden by the frailties of life… This passage we focus on today speaks of the faith that we must have knowing that God not only can but that He “…shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory…” Hebrews declares that faith is the substance of things hoped for, evidence of things not seen… Paul explains to us that we are called to walk by faith; this means that we are too trust the Lord in all our affairs of life… One of the biggest challenges that face the Christian today is trusting in the Lord when we are called to move from our realm of comfort… 

If we believe that God will never fail us, than we should have faith to give to others and let go of things in order to help others while we ourselves solely depend on the Lord… One of the greatest things I was ever told was that sometimes God takes things out of our hands so that something else can be placed in them… If we believe that, than we trust that all of our needs will be meet when we walk in obedience to His word and have faith through all the circumstances we face in life… At the pinnacle of our Christian journey we must display the Faith that we have in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ… We must have faith in God, knowing that He will supply all our needs according to His riches in Glory… Paul thanks the church for their diligent service and also reminds them that God has seen there sacrifice and will take care of them… God has all that you stand in need of, call on him, ask him, seek him, and allow him to do great and wonderful things on His timetable… This is one of the biggest stumbling blocks in faith… We pray to God, we believe that He has heard us, but when He doesn’t answer when and/or how we want Him to than we become frustrated and take action ourselves… Paul wants you to remember your faith opens the door to God’s faithfulness… He will supply your needs “…according to His riches…” He won’t do it according to your standards; He will do it according to what He knows you need… This is why faith is a must in pleasing God! 

Yea you might be struggling right now, yea you might have unpaid bills right now, yea you might be between a rock and a hard place, but just know that when you put God first, when you focus your eyes upon the Lord and seek His kingdom, everything will be added unto you… Paul says “But My God…” Before this verse Paul spoke of the limitless giving the church performed, he spoke of the undying love that the church displayed by not worrying about today’s obstacles but instead focusing on God’s will… Malachi said that we should “test the Lord in giving”and that when we do “He will open a window in heaven and pour you out a blessing that you will not have room enough to receive it…” Test the Lord today by giving and relying on His Grace, test the Lord today by giving and relying on his Mercy today, test the Lord and watch Him supply all your needs when you put Him first… The church of Philippi gave all they had to Paul (the Ministry of God’s word) and never focused on there own circumstances, how often do we withhold from God because of a bill or a purchase that we want to make? How often do we let worldly circumstances take precedent over God’s will? Paul says to the church of Philippi earlier in the chapter that the gifts you sent to me in my time of need weren’t for me, but so that you’re giving may be credited to your account… We all have a (n) account in heaven, one that can never be overdrawn, and one that will never leave us with a notice saying “insufficient funds…”

ALL FOR HIS GLORY!

Spread The Word; Break The Chains

The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound.

Isaiah 61:1

Isaiah was called by God to go and prophesy to the children of the Lord, He was called to go to a rebellious people and declare the things that God revealed to him… What I find so fascinating about this scripture is the boldness that Isaiah has to go forward and speak the word of the Lord… Understand today that we are all called to set the captives free; however it is through the spirit of God that we obtain the might, authority and direction in order to fulfill this task and the destiny that God has called us to… Isaiah 6: 5-8 teaches us about where we were and how the spirit’s presences changes and transforms situations… 5 "Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seenthe King, the LORD Almighty." 6 Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7 With it he touched my mouth and said, "See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for."8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us? "And I said, "Here am I. Send me!"Isaiah wasn’t always about the work of the Lord, when He saw the glory of the Lord he cried out woe is me, I am undone, I am not worthy to behold this wonder; however when He was touched by the live coal the Lord asked who shall I send and Isaiah replied “Here I am. Send me… 

We too are not worthy of the glory of the Lord, we are not worthy of the offering that Christ poured out on the cross; however we have received a golden opportunity to walk in the will of the Lord and are promised Eternal Life when we obey His calling... Isaiah’s confidence is found in knowing that God has cleansed him and prepared for this task… Remember where you were before God gave you that second chance; when you realize that you were filthy and deep in sin you better appreciate the avenue that God has paved for you and therefore can be bold in the midst of a troubled world and society… Understand that Isaiah wasn’t ready for his calling until he was touched by the live coal; remember that Peter stood up in the book of Acts on the day of Pentecost after the tongues of fire came down from heaven… When “The Spirit of the Lord is upon you”things don’t remain the same, your direction of walk changes, your approach to life is altered and you have the might to overcome and deliver those around you… When you are in the spirit you don’t just sit by the wayside, the spirit will lead you to action, it will lead you to taking up your cross and will cause you to utter the words that Jeremiah uttered in the 20 chapter of his prophetic book, verse 9 tells us that he couldn’t keep the word to himself, it was just like fire shut up in his bones… 

The spirit won’t allow you to remain still; it won’t allow you to keep the status quo… Many people proclaim just as Isaiah, “that the spirit of the Lord is upon them”; many say that they are anointed and I will not dispute any of that, but notice what follows Isaiah’s proclamation. When you are anointed by God, first you know what it is that He has called you to do (preach good tidings) and furthermore; you are taking action in and towards your calling. You can be anointed and that may be true, but your anointing is of no use if you are not putting it to use and that means walking in the will of God! The bible teaches that we all have spiritual gifts; however, know that this doesn’t mean that we are all called to preach the word of God… The body is composed of many members, each one being critical to the entire makeup of the body… You are a critical piece to the body of Christ, no matter what the position is that you are called to, no matter what the direction that God has called you to go, know that when you walk in the will of God you along with everyone else in the body benefit… Do what God has called you to do; whatever ministry He has placed in you will bare fruit of His anointing upon your life… When you walk in His will you will set captives free, you will bind up the brokenhearted and you will open prison doors… There is somebody that you will encounter today that is waiting for you to display your boldness in the Spirit of God… Allow God to use you in the way he deems fit; lives will be changed and situations altered…

ALL FOR HIS GLORY!

I Know My Redeemer Lives

For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth.

Job 19:25

This passage taken from the book of Job speaks to the faith that a Christian must display not only in the good times, but in times of adversity… So often we praise God when things go well and we feel happy, but as a child of God we must understand that persecution is a part of growth, trials bring about maturity and obstacles develop your endurance on this course of life… The devil is seeking whom he may devour and he wants to devour the one who has chose the will and path of God (he isn’t concerned about those of the world because they aren’t following the will of the most high)! Remember that Jesus was on this earth for 30 whole years, but you never hear about the devil tempting Him until He was baptized and preparing to begin His ministry! Job was a man of faith and this passage speaks to that aspect of His life when everything around him seemed to fail… 

Remember the circumstances that Job faced in his life; he had everything a man could want (good health, a loving and strong-bonded family, and wealth of cattle). Job was considered by many as a (n) ideal man who had accomplished all that he could and achieved success at every level and avenue of his life. In the blink of an eye,by God’s permission; everything was taken away from him. His children died, his cattle was stolen and his health was hampered. The closest person to him left in his life was his wife and she told him to curse God and die. How do we react when things in our lives take a turn for the worst, the one we trust betrays us (Job’s wife and friends) and we find ourselves between a rock and a hard place, on an island of misfortune by ourselves…? Some of us are living the life of Job right now, we have seen beautiful days and reached heights of success that we never thought possible, but know we have witnessed the storms come knocking and our foundation be engulfed by turmoil… How you deal with and handle hardships, displays your measure of faith as a child of God! 

Today we find Job here declaring to us something that we should too be able to say. I know my redeemer liveth, people have a false since that being a Christian means you won’t have bad days, trials and tribulations, or sleepless nights, but on the contrary this walk is for those who can endure, and Jesus told his disciples that they hated him first. To say I know my redeemer liveth means that you can see the sunlight behind the rain, you can lift your head up in times of despair and you can maintain your faith in times of tribulation… Job not only knows that his redeemer liveth, but knows He shall return… “He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth”, our father has gone to prepare a place for us, we shall have a mansion with our names on it, Jesus shall return on a cloud and the dead in Christ shall rise and we all will meet Him in the air… You will make it through this storm, you will survive and in the end you will win… Jesus made it known that you would struggle, you would have dark days, and definitely you will deal with sleepless nights. But our hope is built on nothing less, than Jesus blood and righteousness. We believe that the suffering of this present time will not equal our reward in heaven, so we await Jesus return with great anticipation. We live just as Job and say “THOUGH HE SLAY ME, YET WILL I TRUST HIM!”

ALL FOR HIS GLORY!