Trusting God 2

“Trust [rely on and have confidence] in the Lord and do good; Dwell in the land and feed [securely] on His faithfulness.”- Psalm 37:3 ^{Amplified Bible}

For this posting I have chosen this simple verse from the Psalms. The Psalmist is King David, who had a heart after God. ^[1] No doubt thru his own experiences, David asks his readers to place their full trust in God and not in men, who are perishing like the lilies of the field that is here today and gone tomorrow. All of mankind is fading from this earth beginning on the day of their birth and are limited in what they can do. The Lord’s riches, wisdom and strength are limitless. In God we can trust both for things temporal and eternal, of the body and the soul, now and forevermore.

                  David follows his pitch for trusting the Lord by saying that we should “do good”. Now since Jesus said in Mark 10:18 that no one is good except God the Father, this implies than men are inherently NOT good at their core. Hence our need for forgiveness, aka, redemption. However, since God is good and we are his children, we are to emulate his goodness as we become closer to his heart. Our fruit will reveal our faithfulness.

                  Our trust in God is largely, if not exclusively, based on his faithfulness to us. We love because he first loved us. ^[2]Everything that is good and loving and kind and compassionate emanates from Almighty God. Salvation is designed to lead us to behaving like our Heavenly Father.

                  The final statement, I believe, is referring not just to the land we dwell on this side of heaven, but also in the heavenly realm. As sheep in their pasture would peacefully feed, we are to feed without fear on the faithfulness and goodness of our God. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing.

In His Name & for His Glory,

RL Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

^[1] 1 Samuel 13:14 & Acts 13:22

^[2] 1 John 4:19

Trusting God 1

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”-Proverbs 3:5-6

                    Trust is an outcropping of our faith. The greater our faith in God is the more likely we are to trust him with our lives. There are some key words in these 2 verses that reveal how we should live this life. 

                  One’s heart is where their soul resides. Our trust in God must come from the deepest part of our soul. Man’s ability to understand is inferior to a God who dispenses wisdom freely. If we rely on our own understanding, we are shortchanging ourselves in a big way. If we trust God, we must let go of all that would encumber us and have the patience to allow his will to materialize before us.

                  To acknowledge God is to accept his existence as true. This is what we are to do with every fiber of our being in every aspect of our life. If we’re going to trust the Lord for all things, we certainly must accept that he is real. We must have no doubt. Doubt causes a lack of trust, which is exactly what we don’t want. Our faith and trust mustn’t be conditional, as in, if God does this or that then I will trust him. It doesn’t work that way. We must trust him FIRST, then have that faith bolstered by the answer we’ve sought.

                  Life is full of crooked paths. Without the guidance and direction of our spiritual GPS (the Holy Spirit), we will not end up where we were intended to go. Trust in God spills over into trust in the Spirit. The Lord will lead us where we are to go as long as we don’t go racing off ahead of him. We must fine tune our ability to discern that which is from the Lord and that which is not. These verses are the initial step in trusting God. They are elemental in nature and fairly easy to abide by. I refer to them as ‘the gospel in a nutshell’. These are the first two verses I ever memorized. Starting here provides a launching pad, allowing you to take off into new and exciting areas of your walk with Christ. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing.

In His Name & for His Glory,

RL Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

Taking a Look at Prayer 20

“You, therefore, pray like this: ‘Our Father in heaven! May your Name be kept holy. May your Kingdom come; your will be done on earth as in heaven. Give us the food we need today. Forgive us what we have done wrong, as we too have forgiven those who have wronged us. And do not lead us into hard testing but keep us safe from the Evil One. For kingship, power and glory are yours forever.’ Amen.’” – Matthew 6:9-13 ^{Complete Jewish Bible}

                  Here we have Jesus’ example of how to pray. It’s a model that may be recited verbatim if you so desire or can be treated as a sort of guide to follow. Let’s break it down.

                  First, it establishes that we have a Father who resides in heaven. This obviously would make us his children. Secondly, it states that we should keep his name holy even as he is holy by virtue of his stature as the eternal King and Lord, judge, and Savior. In our prayers we should acknowledge his holy nature. This is, in effect praising him for who he is. Next it asks that God’s Kingdom may come quickly according to his will, which has already been set since the foundations of the earth. His kingdom on earth will be established once all evil on the earth is destroyed. Even though God could eradicate all evil with the snap of a finger, wouldn’t it be interesting if he used believers to rise up with the purpose of destroying evil on the earth in his name?

                  Our need for sustenance is addressed in the direct request for the food needed for the day. This acknowledges that God is our provider and sustainer in this life. We may think we provide for our needs ourselves, but if you really think about it, God already knows what we need and meets that need each day.

Forgiveness is spoken of in verse 12. Verses 14 and 15* reveal the danger of not offering forgiveness to those who have committed sins against us. This falls under the category underlined in Matthew 7:12 where it says to ‘do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’ You forgive others because Christ forgave you … with no indecision, no remorse, and no hesitation. You forgive sins against you, or God will not forgive your sins. This doesn’t mean your salvation is revoked, but rather, your lack of forgiveness blocks your connection to God as a blockage in your throat would impede your ability to swallow something. It’s not forever … only until you see the error of your ways and repent. 

                  Verse 13 looks at temptation, which we all battle regularly throughout our life on this earth. This version that is shown at the top of the post refers to temptation as “hard testing”. Sometimes we are tested to see how much we have grown. God is monitoring the situation and gives us a way of escape when the time is right. All temptation comes from the enemy. God just allows some as a means of spiritual growth. So, we pray for protection from temptation and safety from the enemy of our soul. 

                  The latter half of verse 13 is not found in the oldest manuscripts, but the Complete Jewish Bible does have it shown. It is simply ending the model prayer by acknowledging once again that Almighty Jehovah God is the one true King of all creation, whose power and glory emanates from his majestic being. The ending is the classic use of the word “Amen” which means either “so be it” or “let it be so”. 

                  So, we start with the acknowledgement of who God is; we praise him for who he is and what he has done; we ask for our daily sustenance; we seek forgiveness, making sure we’ve forgiven others; we seek his help avoiding temptation and circle around to the finish by once again acknowledging his kingship, power, and majestic glory. May it be so. For those who are unsure how to pray or what to say, Jesus provided an outline or blueprint explaining just how to pray. Now go pray with a purpose. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing.

In His Name & for His Glory,

RL Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

*Matthew 6:14-15 - “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

 

NOTE:  This is the final posting regarding prayer. I hope you’ve enjoyed it.

Next we will deal with the topic of Trusting God.

Taking a Look at Prayer 19

“But truly God has listened; he has attended to the voice of my prayer.”- Psalm 66:19

                  I had, in a previous posting, referenced James 5:16 (“The prayers of a righteous man accomplish much”). I stated that we are righteous because God declares we are righteous. He knows our heart and our deep-seated motivation which enables us to live righteous, obedient lives in the name of Christ, our Savior. Christ’s death cleansed us, making us righteous in God’s sight. The fact that God listened to the Psalmist’s prayer shows that the requester had no iniquity in his heart. The same would apply to us today. This proves to the Lord that the Psalmist doesn’t love sin and therefore is in good standing with God.

                  It needs to be noted that prayer, or talking to God, isn’t simply for the things we may need or desire. It is very much about creating and establishing an intimate relationship with the Lord which is built on faith and trust in him. God knows the desires of our heart way before we even think to ask, however, he still loves to hear from us. It doesn’t matter whether we are asking for guidance and thanking him for something, because it creates a significant and lasting bond that draws you closer to your maker. Therefore, if we have established anything throughout this Prayer Project, it’s that God hears the righteous voice and honors their prayers to the extent of providing an answer. The caveat in this is that the answer may not be what we are looking for or expecting. Our trust in God must allow us to accept that God knows the future from the past and exactly what we need, not to mention when the best time is to provide that answer. Trust is the key to all of this. We must trust God and the fact that we are making a request of him does reveal some level of trust. Don’t just pray to God when you are in need, talk to him whenever you so desire. God is always there and is always listening. 

Don’t make the mistake of placing human characteristics on God. While scripture does this to illuminate God’s nature and behavior, he is not like us at all. Statements like ‘God’s eye is always on his child’ or ‘God’s holy hand smote his enemies’ are used to clarify the meaning of the text. We are asked to believe in an unseen God who loves us. He is trustworthy and will never let any of us who call on him down. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing.

In His Name & for His Glory,

RL Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

Taking a Look at Prayer 18

“… if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”- 

2 Chronicles 7:14

                     If there were ever a verse of scripture that was tailor-made for the United States, it’s this one. It is a promise that no matter how evil things become in our country, we have an option that can heal our land. Things are super evil at this time in America. It’s as if the Holy Spirit had left. Unbridled sin is rampant everywhere you look. From gender-bending to child porn to mass shootings, multitudes of our country’s inhabitants are heading to hell at warp speed. But there is hope … as long as the final trump has not sounded there is always hope.  

                  If we look at the verse closely, we see that this option God has presented to us is no small order. Humbling yourself before God can be a tremendous challenge for many folks. It goes against the grain for a lot of us. The world pushes a different agenda then the Lord. The enemy wants to enslave you with lies and deception that look like precious jewels. God, however, seeks to make you the best version of yourself, but you must participate in this transformation. As the verse declares, YOU must seek the face of God and pray. YOU must also make a 180, meaning you must turn and go in the opposite direction from your current position and continue in that direction … God’s direction for you.

                  God will hear the cries of those who have humbled themselves and sought his face.  Justice is coming for the evil doers of this world, but the Lord offers grace and mercy. What a gift he has provided for us. Eternal life with him. What could this world possibly offer that could compare with that?  Do you know someone who is lost? Are you lost yourself? Heed the voice of the Lord and submit to a love that is precious and never-ending.  If you are already saved, pray for those who are lost. Make it a matter of daily prayer that the Holy Spirit opens the eyes of the unsaved. It’s our duty and responsibility as ambassadors of Christ to do so. Until next time, walk with the king and be a blessing.

In His Name & for His Glory,

RL Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

Taking a Look at Prayer 17

“For there [is only] one God, and [only] one Mediator* between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus…”- 1 Timothy 2:5 _{Amplified Bible}

While some seem to think there are many ways to God, the fact remains that there is only ONE way to God and ONE who reconciles God with his creation. Jesus Christ, the Son of the Most High God, is the only way to heaven. It is thru his unselfish act of allowing himself to be beaten bloody and nailed to a wooden cross that we are reconciled. What does this have to do with prayer? Who do we pray to? Only to Jesus. We have a direct line of communication to the Father thru the Son. This was proven by the veil between the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place in the Temple being torn down the middle from the TOP TO THE BOTTOM. ^{[Matthew 27:51]} This was symbolic, meaning all now had access to God and the mediator between God and man was the lamb who was slain for the sins of the world. 

It is THAT mediator to whom we pray. We need not pray to anyone else, because it is only Jesus who now sits at the right hand of the Father interceding for the saints. ^{[Romans 8:34 NIV]} Consider if Christ were a bridge. There is a chasm that needs to be crossed. You speculate as to how many ways there might be to cross the chasm, but in reality, only one is available to us. The chasm is sin, and the bridge is Jesus Christ. He alone can bridge the gap caused by our sin. For he is the only one who willingly came and died for that sin. This is to whom we pray. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing.

In His Name & for His Glory,

Richard Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

Matthew 27:51 - “At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.”

Romans 8:34 - “Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died--more than that, who was raised to life--is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.”

*Mediator - One that reconciles differences between two parties.

A New Year's Message

            Jan 1st. New beginnings. A fresh start. Resolutions. Personal Assessments. How will you allow yourself to grow spiritually? Will this new year be the 'same old same old', or will you attempt to branch out into new areas of influence. Being a Christian involves constant change. Growth. Bolstering your faith. Remember, NOTHING is impossible for Almighty God; therefore, nothing is impossible for you. Stretch your faith. Expand your trust in the Lord. Look toward the future with confidence as you continue on your journey to be more like Christ in every aspect of your being. You will be challenged, but that's alright. That's healthy. You should never sit still, because when you sit still you are losing ground because others are passing you by. Pick up the gauntlet and continue on in the race. Never give up. Listen to His still small voice and act accordingly. Growth will come as you press forward. Press on even when the enemy comes against you. The Creator is far greater than His creation and the enemy of our soul is a created being just like us. Enjoy the holiday and remain focused on that which is most important. All praise to the One and only King of the universe, Almighty God, the great I AM THAT I AM. May this new year bring you peace, and prosperity even as your soul prospers. Amen ... may it be so. And may God's will manifest itself in your life this year. In Jesus name. Amen. Until next time, walk with the King & be a blessing.

In His Name & for His Glory,

RL Keller

Bread of Life Ministries