divine guidance

almost a week later & I'm finally getting around to post this.

Psalm 87 is truly a Messianic Psalm - a portion of scripture that points towards the coming King of KINGS. last saturday the Holy Spirit not only showed me that but revealed divine guidance in an area I had been laboring in prayer over. I love how my God fulfills his promises: ask & ye shall receive, seek & ye shall find, knock & it shall be opened unto you!

the 3 R's

Luke 15:11-32

(I will not type the whole passage but the synopsis is the prodigal son.)

several months ago the Holy Spirit had me read this passage at the beginning of a trial period in my faith. at that time I was shown something that would get me through the trial. it did, praise the Lord, along with other scripture texts. the trial was directed at my faith, & the devil used the “hath God said” tactic he so clearly overuses. hey, it worked on Eve. by the middle of June I was shown that my loving Savior was carrying me through the trial. I’ve always loved the poem “Footprints” but never expected to be in the poem. one finds they love their Savior all the more when shown that aspect of Him.

onto the topic… once the trial was completed, & yes I passed, I reread many of the passages read at the beginning. lo & behold the Holy Spirit showed me something between the lines! Amen!

in verses 13 & 14 we read that the younger son “wasted his substance” & “had spent all” on riotous living; i.e.: he spent it on pleasure & partying or things the world dupes people into believing will bring joy. but notice verses 22 & 23 where the father replaces all the things his younger son had wasted.

R #1: Replaced. I myself was that younger son. I chose to spend all I had spiritually accumulated on the things that the world duped me into. yes, I knew it would never bring me true joy yet I vexed myself daily in striving to attain what I could never achieve alone. it is only through God’s mercy & compassion that He is giving me another chance to replace what I lost. I truly do NOT want to get to Heaven empty handed! through His grace, it will not happen.

second, in verse 15 we look at how the younger son “went and joined himself to a citizen of that country.” oh the numerous times that I did that! it sickens me! James 4:4 says, “know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God?” I clearly CHOSE to hook-up with the world thus placing myself in the bull’s-eye of God’s Brillo pad (Hebrews 12:6).

R #2: Rejoined. verse 27 tells of the joy when a lost sheep is rejoined safe & sound into the fellowship of the Believers. I praise the Lord for the scourging, purging, rinsing & repeating until He decided I was fit for use. I am by no means finished but from now until death visits me, my Lord is showing me it is better “to be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.” Amen!

lastly, verse 17 tells how he caught a glimpse of himself in a mirror, “when he came to himself.” he finally saw how dirty & filthy he had become. for me it was realizing my hand had been caught in the proverbial cookie jar (see post #23 Journalizing). it wasn’t just on the outside but also on the inside. this caused him/me to seriously exam his/my heart & see that his/my only hope was truly in returning to the Father.

R #3 is Regenerated. verse 32 proclaims how the father lifted up his voice in praise as his son, “was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found.” July 26, 2010 is the date that the Holy Spirit opened my eyes to the fact that I was truly converted. not just outwardly as a show to men but inwardly to my Heavenly Father. of course I had to travel through the trial, endure hardship as a good soldier & yield to my Father’s will to find this out. my sole purpose on this earth is to carry out God’s plan for this life that HE designed long before I was in my mother’s womb (Jeremiah 5:5). ALL GLORY GOES TO GOD!

one thing I must mention: if you are a Believer & still in the hog pen of this world, PLEASE come back before its too late! not only does your Heavenly Father desire the fellowship you both once had but your brothers & sisters-in-the-Lord have been praying that you return. several were praying for me. we will not debate the attitude of the elder brother in the passage, but verse 26 says that a servant told him what the commotion was about! as a child of God we are all servants. please don’t let time run out! yield to the chastening!

mountain tops

Psalm 72:16, "And there shall be an handful of corn in the earth upon the top of the mountains; the fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon: and they of the city shall fourish like grass of the earth"

life is full of ups (mountains) and downs (valleys). how does one survive the valleys? by gaining sustenance upon the mountain tops. get all you can while on the mountain!

I am speaking spiritually, ie: God's Word. it is by being daily in the bible that you will gain the nourishment from your Heavenly Father for the valleys that He has prepared for you in life. as it is throught hose valleys you will grow.

I find it interesting that is says the "fruit shall shake". in order for fuit to shake it needs to be in a constant state of movement. for me it means spiritual fruit that the Father has planted & watered within a Christian upon the mountain tops. most valleys are dry so one needs an abundance of fruit for the duration. it is only through the valleys that the fruit of the Holy Spirit is tested. will they sustain the Pilgrim or shrivel on the vine?

lastly, "the city will flourish". how? by submitting to the Father's cultivation on the mountain top, the Spirit's guidance in the valley, & the Saviour's life lived through you on a daily basis. one can never slack while on the mounatin top! prepare for the coming battles in the valley ahead! only then will our living Saviour be able to flourish through day by day.

be doing

I Chronicles 22:16b, “Arise therefore, and be doing, and the LORD be with thee.”

two commands are presented in this verse; Arise and Be Doing.

if one is ever going to do anything for God they must arise. arise out of the slumber of life. arise out the mundane world. arise out of religion and its traditions. arise anew in Christ in order to be doing. be doing the work of the Father. be doing the life of Christ lived through you. be doing the will of God as told through His Holy Spirit and His Word. be doing what God has called you to do after you have arisen.

the last portion of the passage is implied. once you arise and begin doing, the LORD is with you. He is with you when you arise. He is with you when you begin doing. He is with you while you are doing. He is with you when it is time to lay down the doing & follow Him home.

today’s churches are full of people who have arisen but have never began the doing. little do they know that God Almighty is the same yesterday, today & forever. meaning He only calls you to the doing that He knows you can do through Him.

whatever is on life’s path has already been approved by Him for you. for me. therefore I must arise and be doing.

duh

if only life was this simple. truth is, it could be. you see this label should attached to every baby along with a copy of God's Word before they leave the hospital. that is life's instruction book.

too many times we forget to read the instructions and go off willy-nilly on our own. and we wonder why life is so hard. duh... we forgot to read the instructions!

this is becoming ever more prevelant in my life as I continue to follow my Lord. right now it is in the area of women. true last time I totally messed things up; but I've realized that if God is first BEFORE things start, then I'm headed in the right direction. hence reading the instruction book! I've already decided that should God choose to give me a wife it will only be because she is needed in my ministry and we can perform that ministry more completely together for our Lord. should she not be needed then I am willing to do the minstry alone.

right now, I am testing a certain female that I am interested in at church. the Father, through the Holy Spirit, impressed me to ask her out to soulwinning night... and SHE CAME TO IT. just so you know I'm kinda stoked about it. I will ask her again this Sunday night and it would be nice if she says yes. the Holy Spirit has mentioned to have no expectations just in case she refuses. the Lord MUST be first in this arena should it proceed any farther. if He is not, then any relationship will fail. by placing God first, and reading the instruction manual, it will allow God to have His will in this matter. God must get the glory for my life, including this.

the word is redeemed

I was wrong and I admit it. my post on 5/28 was half truth and half false as part of it was me listening to the devil. the section about being disqualified to serve God as a missionary is a lie the devil had me half-believing. if I had chosen to wait one more day, then I would have been able to refute the devil and his lie with a solid portion of scripture (beyond what I already was quoting - I Cor. 10:5).

here is how it went down... at the same time the Father ordered me to do something specific in regards to my call, the devil butted in and tried to mess things up. I'm learning the devil is having to come up with new game plans as the old ones don't work anymore. PRAISE GOD! what the Father was trying to get me to see is that currently I am unqualified, not disqualified, but He will train me to become qualified. every task He gives brings me one step closer to becoming qualified and one step closer to His plan. trust me, these lessons were never taught in Bible college!

this has taught me to be patient even if I don't understand. I admit it was a bitter pill to swallow what the devil was feeding me and posting didn't help. it only made me more tranparent. so now you know for sure I am by no means perfect. again I sincerely apologize to my readers and will make certain that all future posts get filtered through the Holy Spirit before posting.

this testing is more difficult than expected but I know He is right there beside me. one thing I am certain of is that I am able to see my Lord more clearer than ever before. testing is by far the best Spiritual eye-cleanser out there!

but by Grace

Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, writer of 13 books of the New Testament, and a former persecutor of Christians, was human. he had emotions, cares and most importantly the trait of sin. in Romans 8:24 we hear him crying out as a wretched man that he knows he is. but by Grace he didn’t stop there. he wrote in verse 25, "I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin."

Paul, being directed by the Holy Spirit, allowed us to see his real self. the Spirit within that warred against his flesh. the human that cried out in verse 24 was also the same that gave thanks to God for paying his pardon thus freeing his soul from death and hell. but he also told us his own mind served the law of God and his flesh the law of sin. it is comforting to know that Paul had the same battles I face in this day-to-day Christian life. those spiritual battles that are given to God as I cannot win alone.

but by Grace he didn’t stop there. in chapter 8 Paul writes of being led by the Holy Spirit. verse 14, "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God."

currently I am in 7:25. by Grace, 8:14 is approaching.

the moving cloud

I know. the blog posts are few and far between. but when you are in God's classroom, passing notes is strictly forbidden! the only chance I get is in between sessions.

Numbers 9:18 23 tells of how and when the Israelites followed God in the wilderness. Verse 18, "At the commandment of the Lord the children of Israel journeyed, and at the commandment of the Lord they pitched: as long as the cloud abode upon the tabernacle they rested in their tents." right now my tent is pitched and for a good reason. God is remolding this vessel though the vessel insists on creating new cracks. but every time a new crack is made He comes along and in love mends the vessel.

yesterday I had the opportunity to watch Him mend. and even though this vessel still has broken pieces, cracks and missing parts He still chose to use me. we as humans still use cups and dishes even when they are broken, chipped or even have cracks in them. how much more so does our Heavenly Father use us even though we are no better than our serving ware? as along as He knows the part that is usable is fully relying on Him and His Holy Spirit, then it is usable. I can only tell you of one instance yesterday.

some of the work at my part time job is to deliver documents to local downtown businesses. yesterday afternoon, with all the sunshine, I grabbed the documents, filled my shirt pocket with tracts and decided to walk while delivering both sets of documents. now the one set had a specific destination to the businesses but the other set had Divine destinations to specific individuals. so after delivery of the first set, I headed back to my job and found I had one more tract to hand out. it was then came across a friend I hadn't seen in a while. the Father gave me an opportunity to brag on Him AND give out the last tract.

will they read the tract? only God knows. but what I do know is that even while God has you pitched, even when He is remolding and reshaping the vessel, He can use you. if He can use someone like me, while reshaping this lump of clay, then I know He can use you. will you allow Him to use the usable part?

journey in Him

hello again. yes it's been awhile and trust me, God has been blessing in so many ways it is all too exciting to contain within this blog. church, family and work has all seen God's miraculous hand throughout. I am only privileged to be a vessel.

Exodus 40:36 & 37, “And when the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the children of Israel went onward in all their journeys: But if the cloud were not taken up, then they journeyed not till the day that it was taken up.” these verses are both loaded with so much good stuff that I need to back up, get the steam going, then explain.

chapters 36-39 tell of how the Lord used the wisehearted within Israel to construct the tabernacle in the wilderness. then men were filled with the Holy Spirit as they performed the set tasks given to them. the bible says they did “as the Lord commanded Moses.” Moses was the leader so God told the leader and he in turn passed the memo down to the workers. every little detail was carried out as God commanded. nothing was let half done or waiting for someone else to complete. even the priest's were clothed according as God commanded. on top of all this every item was anointed for the service of the Lord. the items were sanctified, or set apart, to the Lord. this included every ladle, pan, candlestick and even the altar. even Aaron and his sons were anointed as they were the priests using those items on a daily basis. God wanted to make sure they were set apart as well.

now here is the good part... God commanded Moses to construct the tabernacle. He gave Moses the plans to the minutest detail. God gave Moses able-bodied individuals to carry out those tasks. those individuals carried out God's plan. then God set apart certain men to perform within the tabernacle to continue the plan. only then did God rest within the tabernacle. only then did God Himself reside within the tabernacle that He Himself had commanded to be built.

once we get God's command, enable those God gives us to carry out the command, and then perform the command will He then continue to reside. but it doesn't stop there. if the cloud moves, then we move. if the cloud stops, we stop. being in God's will doesn't matter where the cloud leads or where the cloud travels, you need to follow. can you see through a cloud? no. can you see around a cloud? no. so the only choice is to stay behind the cloud and follow. too many times I want to look around. too many times I want to look through. I've found it very difficult to look through, around or past my Lord. but that is exactly where He wants me. dependant upon Him to lead and trusting in Him while I follow on life's journey. I can only journey in Him. not through or around. but in Him.

right now God is working in my life. I don't feel qualified to carry out the task He has asked me to perform. but I do know that He will be my strength to perform said task. does my imagination try to look around Him? yes. does it try to look through? still yes. but I know one thing is certain. He is taking me to the mission field. see I must journey behind the cloud through this task in order to get to the mission field. that is why I must journey in Him.

journalizing

I vividly remember a moment in time when I consciously made the decision to step into the abominable sin. little did I know that in order to fulfill my desires and flesh, I would be giving up a lifetime of serving Christ and living in God's will. every time I would set my heart on committing that sin, the Holy Spirit would convict but I chose to quench His voice. over time it became easier to ignore until that still, small voice was drowned out by my pride, the flesh and sinful desires.

it took me being hurt just a fraction of how God, His Son and the Holy Spirit had been hurt by my disobedience to wake me up to my current location of being away from Them. only then could I truly repent. as my soul was pierced with that knowledge, I knew that God was the only one who could remove me from my situation. it was as if He had caught me with my hand in the cookie jar. Busted!

though my sin has been paid for on the cross, it is a constant reminder of where one's flesh, and the need to satisfy it, can go apart from God. a very humble reminder of how the Saviour loves me and wants me to be as far away from it as possible.

found

II Peter 1:5-7
“And beside this, giving all diligence, add to you faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.”

these are the attributes every Christian should posses or be “found”. sadly they are not. God has given every child of His the Holy Spirit in which we are thus enabled to obtain these virtues. it can only be through His power. our human flesh is not only unabled to achieve alone but also cannot as the devil knows our weaknesses and is can easily stop us. Christ's blood covers not just our sins but gives each of us the strength to be accepted to the Father.

cross reference verses: Romans 5:3-5 and Galatians 5:22 & 23.

my eternal Priest

I am Baptist. like died-in-the-wool, born and raised, till death removes me from this earth Baptist. the main reason I am of the Baptist faith is that it is the only one that I am able with which to align my beliefs. I've tried several evangelical churches but none that stay entirely true to God's word. the topic of today's post is one many have fallen away from.

Hebrews 7:15 & 16 states, “And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec there ariseth another priest, Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life.” feel free to study this guy Melchisedec, or Melchizedek, as he was the recipient of Abraham's tithes. in Jewish tradition, sins of the people were absolved by the sacrifices made daily by the Levite priests aka commandment from Moses given by God. once Christ died on the cross, those sacrifices became null and void as He paid the once for all sacrifice for our sins. HALLELUJAH! hence He was the priest after the order of Melchisedec and not a Levite.

verse 27 states it quite clear, “Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people's: for this he did once, when he offered up himself.” because the payment on the cross was the final sacrifice, I no longer have to rely on an earthly priest to absolve my sins through an animal sacrifice. Jesus Christ is the Eternal High Priest so only He can absolve my sins, whether committed already or those to be. this cuts out any earthly priest and any earthly form of sin removal. no human can wash away my sins, see I John 1:7.

I thank God that I can go directly to Him and ask forgiveness for every sin that I commit. trust me, I sin daily and the Holy Spirit convicts daily which means confession is daily as well. though God already knows my heart, “He is faithful and just to forgive me and cleanse me from all unrighteousness” I John 1:9.