Helen Keller

GOD’S TIMING IS PERFECT

“But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.” – 2 Peter 3:8-9 New Living Translation

      When we are waiting for something to take place, regardless of what it is, that thing can never happen quickly enough for us. When we are waiting for a promise of God to materialize, we have to take into account what both the Psalmist (in the footnotes) and Peter have said; basically, our timetable doesn’t line up at all with the Lord’s. At times there are certain events that must transpire before God’s plan is perfectly lined up for us.

     In the above verses Peter is specifically talking about the Day of the Lord, also known as Christ’s return. God loves each and every one of his creation so he wishes to allow enough time for everyone to repent of their sins. Everyone will not submit to God, but they will never be able to say they weren’t given ample time to decide.  

     Are you praying for the lost like you should? Are you praying for someone who just plain and simple irritates the tar out of you? God doesn’t wish that any would perish and neither should we. That can be very difficult, especially when certain people push every one of your buttons in an effort to drive you near the brink of insanity. Pray for an added measure of love, mercy, grace and forgiveness for these individuals knowing that God extended those things out to you when you were on the outside of the family of God looking in. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing!

Resource: The Life Application Study Bible. 

Psalm 90:4 New Living Translation – “For you, a thousand years are as a passing day, as brief as a few night hours.”

OUR SOULS WORTH – part 2

“Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?’” – Matthew 16:24-26 New Living Translation

     Here is another take on the worth of our soul: The natural inclination of man is to seek comfort, fame and/or power. With much of that comes wealth. These are all distractions that take our eyes off that which is the most important thing … eternity. It doesn’t seem all that important when we are young and have the world by the tail, but at some point that which seemed so important to us will suddenly not seem important at all. Perhaps it will be when our health begins to fail. Perhaps when the finances run dry. Maybe it will be when we feel we have run out of options. Until the eternal clock stops ticking a person can turn his or her life over to God. Turning to God is following him wherever he leads. The road may be rocky and the climb steep, but you are never alone.

     If you truly desire to be a disciple of Christ then you must leave every aspect of your old life on the alter and allow the Holy Spirit to begin to remove that which is contrary to the will of God for your life. Trust is the key word here. Trusting that what we’ve given up is worthless compared to that which God shall reveal to us.

     As we focus our gaze upon Christ instead of the mountains that surround us we will be able to overcome any obstacles in our path. Your soul is priceless to God, so much so that he sent his Son to pay the sacrificial price for our sin debt. Once his we can move forward to become all he knows we can be in him. Without God’s assistance our lives will amount to nothing of any eternal value. With God, there is nothing we cannot accomplish in his name. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing!

Resource: The Life Application Study Bible; The Reformation Study Bible.

MARTIN LUTHER QUOTE

"God writes the Gospel not in the Bible alone, 
but also on trees, and in the flowers 
and clouds and stars."

HERE TODAY, GONE TOMORROW

“Teach us to realize the brevity of life, so that we may grow in wisdom.” – Psalm 90:12 New Living Translation

     Psalm 90 is a prayer of Moses, making this the oldest Psalm in the Bible. It speaks of God’s eternal nature compared to the frailty of man. Our lives are but a wisp, a mere moment in time. We are here one day and gone the next. God was and is and always shall be. Time is inconsequential to him, for he isn’t bound by its constraints. This is evidenced by v. 4, which reveals to us that “a thousand years are as a passing day, as brief as a few night hours.” Time means nothing to God, yet it seems to hold such supreme importance to mortal man.

     We find ourselves constantly looking at our watches or cell phones for the time. Our lives are run by time. We must get up at a certain time, eat at a certain time, meet people at a certain time, return home at a certain time, get to bed by a certain time; time rules our lives and so it must for it adds order to our chaotic existence.

     The key to all this is that knowing we are but a single grain of sand of the beaches of eternity and knowing that our time is comparatively short, we must use our time wisely. But how can a person use it wisely without consulting the creator of time itself? I submit to you that we cannot. We must submit to his awesome greatness and seek to tap into the infinite wisdom of God to maximize our potential with the few scant years we have on earth. We must reach out in mercy and grace and be a blessing to all we encounter in the name of Christ. Be Christ to all that they may know there is a God in heaven who loves them and wishes to forgive them. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing!

Resource: The Life Application Study Bible

LET GOD LEAD YOU

“May the Lord lead your hearts into a full understanding and expression of the love of God and the patient endurance that comes from Christ.” – 2 Thessalonians 3:5 New Living Translation

     Life can be challenging to say the least, but if we allow the Lord to lead us thru the maze we should eventually realize the depth of his love for us.  There is no animosity or jealousy in God. He wants us to succeed and he knows how to bring that about. We need to let him reveal his love to us by focusing on how he orchestrates our lives. It can be difficult to ‘let go and let God’, as the saying goes, but it is where the peace of God can be cultivated.  Meditate on his word. Reflect on your life and how he has positively influenced it.

     In accepting God’s ability to cause or allow all things that transpire in ones life, we learn patience. He knows what he’s doing and will bring about his will for your life in his perfect time. I encounter so many people in this life who say, “Everything happens for a reason”. They may be Christians, they may not, but somehow they know in their heart of hearts that things will play out regardless of how they feel about it and when the dust settles if they’re still above ground and breathing it will be okay.

     We can’t conjure up lasting patience regarding a situation or peace even for a moment without the Lord. This life is constantly throwing us a curve to see what we’re made of. The question is will we fold like a cheap lawn chair or will we stand facing the wind of opposition, placing our shield of faith before us. God loves us, what more would we ever need in this life. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing!

Resource: The Life Application Study Bible; The Reformation Study Bible.

GOD WATCHES OVER US

“The Lord keeps you from all harm and watches over your life. The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever.” – Psalm 121:7-8 New Living Translation

     There isn’t a place that you could go that would be out of the watchful eye of our Lord. He knows where we are at all times, knows exactly what we are thinking, what we are saying and what we are doing prior to it taking place. That’s because God isn’t constrained by time and space. He is a spirit being. Now I realize that flies in the face of every reality we can see and know, but it's simple; you either believe God is who he says he is and can do what he says in his word he can do or you don’t.

     In the opening chapters of the Book of Job, God grants permission to Satan to put Job’s faith to the test; however, he was not allowed to take Job’s life. (Job 1 & 2) As it was with that scenario, so it is with us. God causes or allows all things, so it should be no surprise that he knows us that well. He allows trials to enter our lives to bolster our faith and aid in the spiritual maturation process. He doesn’t lay upon us more than he knows we can bear. He watches over our lives every moment of every day. He will do so until we are promoted to glory.

     This Psalm should give us a sense of assurance that nothing will take place in our lives that God doesn’t already know all about. God watches over us at all times so that we may have peace in our spirit and hope of an eternity with him. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing!

Resource: The Life Application Study Bible.