Divine Appointments

 

 

God is very involved in our life. We do not always recognize His participation, because we think we are the ones earning the blessings, which He freely showers on us each and every day.

Divine appointments and interventions occur moment by moment. His angels protect us and His Spirit directs us to safely progress from one event to the next.

We rarely give God the glory and we often take the credit for how smoothly our life is running. He not only introduces the events of our life, but He also coordinates the timing and circumstances surrounding them.

He leads us and other people involved with us to say and do the right thing at the exact time and way in which we or they needed His divine intervention the most.

If we practice sitting still and quiet in His presence (Psalm 46:10), we will know with more assurance that He is God; and we would see His involvement in our life, which would build our faith in His faithfulness, love and care for us (1 Kings 19:11-13).

During times of companionable silence, God communicates with us in His still, small voice that penetrates our awareness deep within us. Silence truly is golden and more productive than the stress of worldly demands, negative self-talk and destructive friendships and activities (Psalm 46:10).

Prayer:

Father God, we desire above all else to walk in Your Spirit and to do only those works which come from Your heart. Do not allow our thoughts, words and actions to grieve Your Spirit, but give us words of life that make a difference in another's life.

All of our good works are nothing more than dirty rags if they are not done by Your Spirit's direction (Isaiah 64:6). It is only what we accomplish by Your Spirit that lasts into eternity. Rise up in us and accomplish Your will in and through us (Acts 14:1). We give You all the credit for the fruit of our life and we praise You for your strength, which is our joy.

Thought for the Day:

The whisper of God teaches us to listen more, to limit our actions and to wait on Him rather than to race ahead of His Spirit's promptings; rather than jumping into stressful activities to which He is not calling us, we truly listen and do only those activities in which He call us to participate.

Freed from Bondage

 

If we are interested, God will teach us His ways and help us to walk on His paths (Psalm 25:4). He forgives us, defends us, provides for us and takes revenge for us on those who inflict harm on us in any way.

God takes the persecution of His Saints personally and He will avenge His own (Acts 9:4; Romans 12:19). It is easier for us to forgive others when we know that God will take them off our hook and put them firmly on His.

They will not escape their punishment from Him (Luke 17:2). Our forgiveness of them does not exonerate them from the wrong they perpetrated on us, but it frees us from being in bondage to them through our unforgiveness.

When we exact the revenge our self, it shows a lack of faith in God's protective care for us. We do not believe God cares or can make the person pay for what they did or said to us.

Attempting to vindicate our self leads us into trouble which often makes matters worse and leaves us more vulnerable than ever before (Deuteronomy 32:35-36; Romans 12:19; Hebrews 10:30).

When we view life from a temporal rather than an eternal viewpoint, we often think that God is taking too long to make things right.

We also overlook our call from God to function in the ministry of reconciliation (Ephesians 1:18), and that we are filled with God's Spirit and firmly established in our relationship with Jesus Christ.

God's Spirit gives us the advantage in life by providing us with power in spiritual warfare, which is where much of our abuse by others is initiated (Mark 3:14-15).

Prayer:

Father God, open the eyes of our understanding and enlighten us of Your exceeding power within us. Show us the glory of our inheritance with Your Saints (Ephesians 1:18-20). Open our eyes and spiritual ears and teach us to walk in Your Spirit. Teach us to draw our strength, wisdom and grace from Your Spirit who abides within us.

Thank You for removing us from the Kingdom of darkness and freeing us from Satan's bondage over our life through Christ in us. Reveal to us the extent of Your power within us and teach us how to use it for Your glory and to further Your Kingdom on the earth.

Thought for the Day:

Our lack of power in our Christian walk stems from the fact that we do not fully understand our identity in Christ and the power of His Spirit within us.

Fall on the Rock

Do you ever feel like a meteor fell out of the sky and landed right on top of you? Is there trouble at every turn and nothing ever works out as it is supposed to happen?

Jesus advises us to fall on the Rock, before the Rock has to fall on us (Matthew 21:44). This insinuates that we can prevent certain negative events from occurring if we trust in Christ alone.

In the center of God's will nothing will actually harm us and anything that rises up against us will not stand or prosper (Romans 8:31; Psalm 118:6). Outside of the will of God, Satan can attack us or cause us unpleasant experiences without God's protection.

When we step outside of God's will, He usually disciplines us in order to return us to the straight and narrow road of His choosing for our life. He does not discipline to harm us, but to keep us safe and to bless us.

As vigilant parents, we attempt to keep our children out of harm's way and walking in safety, security and blessings. God disciplines us for the same reasons - for our good and to give us a life of peace and joy.

He is not vindictive or harassing us or seeking to punish us, but is focused on our protection and rewards. As the Bible repeatedly illustrates to us, God never, ever sends judgment without first giving a warning.

If we obey right away, we avoid the need for discipline or reaping the negative results of what we sow. We do not sow to the wind and reap the whirlwind, but the calm surroundings of green pastures and still waters (Hosea 8:7; Psalm 23:1-2).

God always restores our soul to equilibrium after the world attempts to inflict us with trials and troubles (Psalm 23:3). He showers us with new mercies with each new dawn (Lamentations 3:22-23). Sorrow is fleeting, and joy always comes with the morning (Psalm 30:5).

Prayer:

Father God, remind us that if we insist on living life our own way, You will have no alternative but to reprimand us and allow us to reap the natural consequences of our disobedience. Only in the center of Your will do we find true joy and peace. Keep our feet from wandering off the straight and narrow road, which You prepared for us (Matthew 7:13-14).

Help us to totally surrender to You rather than to insist on living life our own way. Remind us that You have a perfect will for every member of Your Body, so that we will function together perfectly as we further Your Kingdom on the earth. Draw us ever closer to You and allow us to reap the fruit of our labors.

Thought for the Day:

God anoints our head with His peace and our cup overflows with abundance as He lavishness us with plentiful provision in the midst of our enemies. - Psalm 23:5