Written some 700 years before He was a twinkle in His mother’s eye, the birth and death of the Savior of the world was prophesied.
Category: Promises
Stay Focused
“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 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 has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:1-2
God knows you’re not perfect. He knew that when He sent His Son to the cross, and Christ knew that when He died for you. Don’t let the enemy keep you focused on your past sins. Repent and keep moving forward.
Then determine to focus on Christ and keep putting your faith in Him every day, in every circumstance. He will work out the rest!
In His Good Grace,
Bountifully, Abundantly, Eternally Good
I will exalt you, my God the King;
I will praise your name for ever and ever.
Every day I will praise you
and extol your name for ever and ever.
Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise;
his greatness no one can fathom.
One generation commends your works to another;
they tell of your mighty acts.
They speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty—
and I will meditate on your wonderful works.
They tell of the power of your awesome works—
and I will proclaim your great deeds.
They celebrate your abundant goodness
and joyfully sing of your righteousness.
The Lord is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and rich in love.
The Lord is good to all;
he has compassion on all he has made.
All your works praise you, Lord;
your faithful people extol you.
They tell of the glory of your kingdom
and speak of your might,
so that all people may know of your mighty acts
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures through all generations.
The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises
and faithful in all he does.
The Lord upholds all who fall
and lifts up all who are bowed down.
The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food at the proper time.
You open your hand
and satisfy the desires of every living thing.
The Lord is righteous in all his ways
and faithful in all he does.
The Lord is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
He fulfills the desires of those who fear him;
he hears their cry and saves them.
The Lord watches over all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.
My mouth will speak in praise of the Lord.
Let every creature praise his holy name
for ever and ever.
Psalm 145
Trials and Triumphs
A 12-year-old boy kills his sister and later finds the forgiveness and love of a great and merciful God.
An angry man, disillusioned by a God who would allow untimely deaths in his family, is later visited by the presence of God, washed in His peace and finds the love of God is all he needs.
A woman turns to the gay community and lifestyle and later allows the truth of God to dispel the lies as He heals her heart and she finds a new life in Him.
A Christian woman struggles with resentment toward God as she watches her believing mother deteriorate from Alzheimer’s disease, but would in time come to understand that the reason was full of God’s grace.
And my own story of growing up with parents suffering from mental illness and substance abuse, then turning to anything and everything in the world to deaden the pain and try to find love, and later finding real love and the forgiveness of Christ in a tiny church filled with the Spirit of God.
These are just a few of the testimonies of God’s faithfulness, grace and forgiveness in the lives of ordinary people who were touched by an extraordinary God in the book Trials and Triumphs, Hope Beyond Circumstances, Forty Life-Changing Testimonies.
I am so blessed to be a part of this project, one of the forty people who tell their stories of grace–either how they came to Christ, or how they held onto Him in difficult circumstances. Each fascinating account is authored by the person who experienced it. Every story is unique, but each one points to the same God, the same Lord Who is willing to forgive and give strength and courage to anyone who genuinely seeks Him.
Any believer can watch the news or look at their own family members, friends, co-workers, and on and on can see that the world needs a Savior. People are starving for the love and forgiveness that we know only God can give through His Son, Jesus Christ.
But the enemy of God is hard at work lying, deceiving and bringing destruction on anyone who believes those lies.
Revelation 12:11-12 tells us that “They overcame him (satan) by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony;”
People can dispute a lot of things about God, but no one can dispute what God has done in our own lives. All of us who know Christ as our Lord and Savior have a testimony, the story of who we were before we put our faith in Christ, and how He’s changed our hearts and lives since. Stories of how He’s loved us, intervened for us in miraculous ways, provided for us and protected us, and another page to our story is written every day.
That, God’s Word says, is how the enemy will be defeated in the lives of those family members and friends and co-workers. As we tell the truth of God’s love, just as someone, somewhere told us, by the faith given by God and the blood of the Lamb, they will be snatched from the enemy’s mouth and set firmly in the hands of God.
Think of it: we have the privilege of joining with Christ to defeat the enemy that has lingered and lied and destroyed since the Garden of Eden by sharing our witness to those lost and dying in their sin.
Maybe you know someone right now who needs to hear these stories of faith. Maybe you need to be encouraged and comforted yourself as you face struggles of your own. I pray this book brings hope and magnifies the grace that is our God in the lives of many around the world.
If you’re so inclined, you can find it on Amazon at the link on the right.
Grace and Peace!
Why Pray?
“And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man. And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’
For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.’
And the Lord said, ‘Hear what the unrighteous judge says. And will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?’ Luke 18:1-8
This Thursday, May 1, is the National Day of Prayer, and our country and world are in desperate need of it. Prayer has taken a back seat in favor of entertainment, the pursuit of money, even religion. Our time with God has been neglected. How do I know? Because I look around at the state of things and I see the fruit of it.
I see morals being thrown out the window by the bucketful. I see people using one another for their own gain. I see adults’ behavior regressing into immaturity and downright childishness. I see the family unit disintegrating more and more. I see disrespect and even hatred on a whole new level. I see sin coming out of the darkness and living proudly in the light for all to see, and I see people afraid to stand up against it. I see the pain and suffering caused by rampant sin.
And more and more those who call themselves Christians are looking and walking and talking no differently than non-believers.
Yet I see Christians pointing an accusing finger at the world and talk about how awful it is and if they’d just straighten up and fly right everything would be okay. But God says that “if MY people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14
God doesn’t tell the world to change, He tells His own people that if we will repent, and if we will submit and turn from our old man and live righteously before Him, then God will our land. We are the example to the world. We are to be salt and light. And when we are right with God then we will be able to, by the grace of God and the blood of Christ, stand in the gap between God and unbelievers and pray that God will open their spiritual eyes and that they will be saved.
It starts with us.
I was saved, because of the persistent, year-long prayers of a Christian, when I was 25 years old. By that time I’d already formed a lot of erroneous beliefs. One was that abortion was acceptable since our laws give us a right to it, and the other was that God and satan were equal powers, the only difference being that one was a power for good and the other for evil.
But the moment I was saved and indwelt by the power of the Holy Spirit, my eyes were opened and those two beliefs were dispelled. I knew immediately that abortion was wrong and that God’s power over satan was infinite.
The only way to see our country and world transformed is to pray for them, one person at a time. To pray that God will soften hearts and open eyes, like He did mine, and that people will be saved.
A lot of us are weary, though. We’re weary of seeing sin gain the upper hand. We’re weary of trying and feeling like we’re moving two steps forward and one step back. We’re weary of praying and praying and praying and not seeing results. I get it. I’ve been there.
There are some things I’ve prayed years for and still have yet to see fruit. But that doesn’t mean nothing’s happening. God is making things happen behind the scenes that I’ll never see. He waits for circumstances, other people, our hearts and a multitude of other things to be just right before He can answer prayers.
Some He’ll answer quickly, and some take a lifetime. But His timing is always, always perfect. There are some answers where I’m beginning to see the bud develop, but it’s taken an excruciatingly long period of time. And there are some things I prayed a long time for, and now know those things will never happen. And in those instances hope can take a hard hit.
But God says don’t give up. Hope in Him.
In the Luke 18 parable, Jesus illustrated that if even an unrighteous person relents to someone’s pleas simply because they don’t give up, how much more will God, who is fully righteous and loving towards His children, give to them when they continue to seek Him?
Yes, you’re weary. And distracted. So am I.
So why pray? The bottom line is this: God wants to see our prayers answered. He wants to show us His will. He wants to broaden our dreams and give us victory in this life. And what’s more, He wants us to have the peace and courage and wisdom we need every day, and the only way to have those is through prayer. That’s why He tells us to pray and keep on praying. Some answers to prayer simply take a long time. And what if we give up before it’s time?
So let’s find a little corner and sit down at the feet of Jesus—the giver of strength and peace and wisdom–and pray, and gain our strength again.
Let’s stand in the gap for our family, our church, our friends, our neighborhood, our state, our country, our world.
Our children and grandchildren are growing up fast and the legacy we leave them in this world will depend on if we choose to pray or not. It’s a responsibility and privilege we can no longer take for granted.
Here is the link to the website for the National Day of Prayer. I hope you’ll choose to be one of those on the front lines of prayer for our nation and our world as the time draws closer to the Lord’s return.
And when He does, as Jesus asked, will He find faith? Will you and I be the ones He sees holding onto our faith in Him as we continue to seek Him in prayer?
Tomorrow we’ll talk about how to pray. Please pray for me as I seek the Lord for wisdom.
God bless you as you pray!