Times like these are days marked by uncertainty. There are pressing fears without and fears within. For the believer, there remains only one constant; it will be the insight you draw from the Word of God that keeps you; it will be this truth that gives you a bearing. When Jesus fed the multitude with one small boy’s offering, He makes a point giving insight into times like these. That day there was not enough money to feed such a crowd, yet the favor of God at Jesus’ blessing was all that was necessary to transform small things into great. The point is we are living in times when your resources will fail, and it will be more important than ever to understand His ability to take the small things and make great impact, not only in your life, but in the lives of many others. In times like these, in the coming days ahead, who are you going to trust? Jesus offers the favor and blessing of God that can unlock the wealth of His kingdom. Like that small boy, He desires to use you and that small gift you possess. What will you do? Times like these require decisive action. What about your gift? It’s greater only in His hand producing the blessing of God. Commit yourself by faith, seek the increase of His presence, and practice thanksgiving and praise for the provision He declares is your’s in Christ, for to those who trust in Him there is no want. Psalm 23 declares, amid troubled times there is a table of provision which He has prepared in the presence of your enemy. So go ahead and thank Him and be expectant in His praise because the table has been set; He is just waiting for you to come and dine in His sweet fellowship.
Tag: fears
The Burning Bush
Somewhere on the backside of your wilderness there is a place in God’s presence that will draw you in to captivate your heart and arrest your complete attention. Like Moses in Exodus 3, the burning bush reminds us God is never finished — though we may have long given up. I have recently been reminded that we are living in the last days. Things are out of control, and it seems men’s hearts are so hard. Even believers seem so fixed in just what they know; there is no desire to receive any more than just what they have. It would seem all is well, yet something turns sideways because all is not well, and men are racing over a cliff to destruction with no one to hold them back. It is all indicative of the last times. There seems to be resistance to the truth no matter how hard you try. We are living in days where the people of God often find themselves in a wilderness from wanting to follow God, but genuinely not knowing how. Have you found yourself in a wilderness like Moses running — running from your fear, from your people, from what would be the plan of God for your life — all because you tried to follow God and failed? In these days you had better find that burning bush on the back side of the wilderness you are living in. I believe these days are to be a season of rescue and recovery, but you need the burning bush. You need the Spirit of God to draw you in to look at Him spending time in His presence beholding what consumes, but does not burn up. It is marvelous as Moses said it was. It causes you to remove what is unholy because you got a word from God that says put that down and away from your life and come to me … here on holy ground. There you actually can hear God confirming to you His desire to save — it was His desire all along, and you thought He had forgotten and left you in the wilderness. But He has not forgotten you. You, like Moses, may have had the right idea, but failed to get in on the full plan of God. But now with the bush He includes you, telling you, “I see the affliction of men’s souls, and now I want to use you.” You see, we need the burning bush experience that lies in the wilderness of our struggle, because without it we lack awareness of God’s care or concern. We lack understanding of His plan to include us in the work to liberate men’s bondage. We are in the last days, and men are surely in bondage. If you fail to see that, you are proving you need a touch of the marvelous bush from which God speaks. Somewhere, there in your dry place, He is telling you to stand and see — looking for that bush that burns. It is Christ in you the hope of glory. It is not so far, though you may believe it cannot be found. God will use these very words you are reading now to stir your heart and bring you to find that place. It is a place of power and privilege; it is a place of revelation and inclusion. It is a place in these days you cannot afford to be without. From the bush, He calls us to identity as sons. He says, “Come, and I will send you.” God is saying to us — I will touch your lips and give you a voice so that your slowness of speech will be met with the confidence to declare freedom to every bound place, so the captive souls of men can be made free.
The Mountain of God’s Presence
There is a view behind my house, although it is hidden by the trees, that I’ve often wondered about. I had a sense it was a grand, glorious view, if but one could only rise above the obstacles that blocked the beauty of it. While recently looking at I map, I discovered something I had missed. A very short distance behind where I live was Mt. Sinai; it is one of four recorded summits in the area. My discovery brought so much excitement, I spent the best part of a day just trying to find a way to go up the mount. In my search, I began thinking of Mt. Sinai in the Exodus chapters 3 and 19; it was the place of God’s presence, and a place where he spoke promises. Then this thought occured to me, ‘Mount Sinai, the Mount of God had been there behind my house all along and I didn’t know it’. You know what I suspect? Mount Sinai is there shortly behind the place where you live and you failed to understand its significance. It is a place of glory; Jesus lives there in God’s presence making intercession for you, like Moses, to behold that glory so you might be His witness. He says to you pull off your shoes, for this mount is holy. It represents a place of consecration in your life laying aside some things. Like those trees, blocking the view of His glory, He says to you, ‘rise above to get a view of the mount; make the discovery that it is near to where you live–it is near to your struggle, near to your fears, near your failures, near to you bonds’ saying, ‘come to my glory and remove the obstructions. Come to the mount, it is a place where I reveal my name, my position, my Kingdom, and my Lordship to you.’ After the cross, Jesus resumed His rightful position and is now living at the right hand of God to pray for you to receive God’s power. We are told to come boldly before His throne of grace that we might find mercy and grace in our time of need. It is interesting to note, Moses brought God’s people to the foot of the mountain, but only Jesus fills full the word by bringing us up the mount to a high place with Him. And there near His footstool, He says ask what you will and I will make you to live for me and that more abundantly.
In Times Like These
Times like these are days marked by uncertainty. There are pressing fears without and fears within. For the believer, there remains only one constant; it will be the insight you draw from the Word of God that keeps you; it will be this truth that gives you a bearing. When Jesus fed the multitude with one small boy’s offering, He makes a point giving insight into times like these. That day, there was not enough money to feed such a crowd, yet the favor of God at Jesus’ blessing was all that was necessary to transform small things into great. The point is we are living in times when your resources will fail, and it will be more important than ever to understand His ability to take the small things and make great impact, not only in your life, but the lives of many others. In times like these, in the coming days ahead, who are you going to trust? Jesus offers the favor and blessing of God that can unlock the wealth of His kingdom. Like that small boy, He desires to use you and that small gift you possess. What will you do? Times like these require decisive action. What about your gift? It’s greater only in His hand producing the blessing of God–in times like these.
GraceLife 