Wednesday, September 4, 2013

Wise and Blessed

Teach me to number my days aright, that I may gain a heart of wisdom… Satisfy me in the morning with your unfailing love, that I may sing for joy and be glad all my days. Psalm 90:12, 14


Brothers and Sisters,

I was thinking about desire to live a life that brings God glory. This would mean I would live victoriously in my circumstances, albeit great or small. I long for the Holy Spirit to fill me with power to the deepest part of me. (Romans 12:1-2) I refuse to let circumstances bully me by putting me in an arm-lock. I will not be dominated by the tactile, the world of feelings,  held captive by all that is ‘seen’ and ‘felt’! In Christ's strength I will choose to live by faith that I might be living proof my Father is continually faithful, His grace sufficient.

Psalm 84:5: Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee… not partially in ‘God’ and partially in myself or in something is temporal, earthy! The enemy can make me strong, strong in myself to move and think as the world does, to unknowingly operate by the world’s system of thinking, as I begin to rationalize and reason in the flesh. Too late I realize I have embraced the good, missing the best.

I long to ‘feel’ strong but God makes His servants weak that we might see our nothingness! This is a life-long lesson. When I fail and miss the way, I am to run to Him, not from Him! My natural inclination, like Adam and Eve, is to hide grasping a futile handful of leaves to cover my sin and shame. That is one of the worst things about sin, its power to rob us of fellowship with the One who knows all about our sin, despite our hiding in plain sight. We must learn to run to Him… His arms are open wide.

“Faith counts on the Word of God outside and apart from everything and everyone here. When you are in faith your life is centered in the Lord Jesus. The moment the heart is detained by anything here, faith is obstructed. If you walk in the Spirit you will be sensible of this in a moment; the effects and influences of the visible are counter to the invisible.” jbs

Eve lost faith when she saw the tree was good for food and pleasant to the eye. If she had kept faith with her focus on Jesus, dependent on Him, she would not have looked. It changed everything.

Once we fully accept His purpose for our lives His will becomes our will. How God will work to bring about His will for us and in us, ceases to be an issue.  His one great purpose is to conform us to the image of His Son, Yeshua. Even the mundane, the boring and the daily repetition of duties matters and is of eternal value to Him. He does not over look anything no matter how small. O to trust Him and find rest! We will sing his praise. Victory is a matter of receiving the daily bread of His provison, not working to produce our version of trust and rest.
Know His Word. Know His work. Know His voice. Know His touch.

Father God,
Redeemer of all my failings, and good intentions gone awry, I hunger to draw near to You. Give me a teachable spirit…  and teach me, that I may gain a heart of wisdom. What is it that You have given me to do daily in my work, that is of eternal value to You? Let me see through Your eyes and value what You value. Keeper of the stars, sustaining them by Your great power, lift me eyes to focus on You, even when I am hurting, for only You can redeem my messes and my brokenness and all the ways I fall short of Your glory. Forgive, cleanse, restore and purify me with the precious blood of the Lamb. You leave me in awe of who You are, I love You Lord and pray in Your name.

az