Shalom,

Today's "My Utmost For His Highest" by Oswald Chambers has a very vital message for born again believers!

Do You See Your Calling?

Separated unto the Gospel. — Romans 1:1

Our calling is not primarily to be holy men and women, but to be proclaimers of the Gospel of God. The one thing that is all important is that the Gospel of God should be realized as the abiding Reality. Reality is not human goodness, nor holiness, nor heaven, nor hell, but Redemption; and the need to perceive this is the most vital need of the Christian worker to-day. As workers we have to get used to the revelation that Redemption is the only Reality. Personal holiness is an effect, not a cause, and if we place our faith in human goodness, in the effect of Redemption, we shall go under when the test comes.

Paul did not say he separated himself, but — “when it pleased God who separated me….” Paul had not a hypersensitive interest in his own character. As long as our eyes are upon our own personal whiteness we shall never get near the reality of Redemption. Workers break down because their desire is for their own whiteness, and not for God. “Don’t ask me to come into contact with the rugged reality of Redemption on behalf of the filth of human life as it is; what I want is anything God can do for me to make me more desirable in my own eyes.” To talk in that way is a sign that the reality of the Gospel of God has not begun to touch me; there is no reckless abandon to God. God cannot deliver me while my interest is merely in my own character. Paul is unconscious of himself, he is recklessly abandoned, separated by God for one purpose — to proclaim the Gospel of God (cf. Romans 9:3).

I LOVE this statement from the first paragraph: "Personal holiness is an effect, NOT a cause"! I have underlined it above because it is SO powerful, and so powerfully CORRECT! So many believers that I have met over the years are striving, every day, to live life as a better example of JESUS! THIS TRUTH is saying that God is more concerned with our spreading the Gospel to save the lost than He is with making our behaviour acceptable! After all, Ephesians 5:26-27 tells us that JESUS will present us to HIMSELF without spot or wrinkle! It is HIS job to perfect us and OUR job to preach the Gospel! Now don't run off accusing me of saying something that I have not said! We are to BE HOLY, as HE is HOLY! But holy actually means: separated FROM the world and separated UNTO God! The most important commandment that JESUS gave to us was to love the LORD our God with all that is within us and to love our neighbor as ourselves (Luke 10:27). There IS no greater Gift that we can ever give another person than the Gift of the Gospel so that they, too, can have NEW LIFE! AMEN! Here is Hillsong with "No Reason To Hide":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

I LOVE this from Kenneth E. Hagin's "Health Food" devotional! 

Health Food Devotional

God Works From the Inside Out

For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.  (Philippians 2:13)

Healing begins in your spirit. Even physical healing for your body begins in your spirit. God doesn't start on the outside and work to the inside. No, He starts on the inside and works to the outside.

So don't look on the outside for physical healing. Look on the inside because that's where He'll begin working. And if you will look on the inside - if you will yield to that something on the inside of you and not pay so much attention to your outward symptoms - you'll eventually look around for those symptoms and find that they're gone.

Once when death had come to fasten its final throes upon me, I started laughing in my spirit. It bubbled up and started rolling out of my mouth. I was laughing in the face of death.

The devil said, "What are you laughing at?" 
I said, "I'm laughing at you. Because, you see, you're going to have to leave. I'm not dying now. God's not through with me. I want you to know that." And the devil left.

The Lord always begins working on the inside. You can know things on the inside that you don't see on the outside. You can know things in your spirit that your head can't comprehend. But because you know it in your spirit and believe it, you begin to say it. And because you say it, it will surely come to pass. 

Confession:  It is God who is at work within me, both to will and to do of His good pleasure. It is His will that I walk in health and be well. And He is working in my spirit, soul, and body.

AMEN! This is SO good! Many believers keep looking at their bodies to 'see' if they've received their healing, when we are instructed in Mark 11:22-24 to believe WHEN WE PRAY that we HAVE received!

22 So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God. 23 For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.24 Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.

AMEN! Meditate on these promises until they are so real to you that faith rises up so big and doubt flees! Here is Hillsong with "This Is Our God":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

In John 10:27 JESUS is telling us that HIS sheep hear His voice. We read Psalm 29 for our Spoken Word Bible Reading Plan for today, and it is all about God's voice! 

A Psalm of David.

1 Ascribe to the Lord, O sons of the mighty, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. 2 Give to the Lord the glory due to His name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness or in holy array. 3 The voice of the Lord is upon the waters; the God of glory thunders; the Lord is upon many (great) waters. 4 The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty. 5 The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; yes, the Lord breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon. 6 He makes them also to skip like a calf; Lebanon and Sirion (Mount Hermon) like a young, wild ox. 7 The voice of the Lord splits and flashes forth forked lightning. 8 The voice of the Lord makes the wilderness tremble; the Lord shakes the Wilderness of Kadesh. 9 The voice of the Lord makes the hinds bring forth their young, and His voice strips bare the forests, while in His temple everyone is saying, Glory! 10 The Lord sat as King over the deluge; the Lord [still] sits as King [and] forever! 11 The Lord will give [unyielding and impenetrable] strength to His people; the Lord will bless His people with peace.

"LORD" here is Jehovah, the Eternal, Self-existing One! This is the Covenant Name for our God. It is the Name that proceeds all of those Names that show us Who He is to us! Healer, Provider, Deliverer, and everything else that WE need HIM to be! And all that HE IS has a voice! HE SPEAKS! And when WE speak His Word, He confirms that Word with signs, wonders, miracles, deliverances and all of those mighty works that get the attention of those who need Him (Mark 16:20)! Do not hesitate to meditate on His Word every single day! The more of His Word that you KNOW (John 8:32), the more freedom YOU will walk in, and the better equipped you will be to help others get free and stay free! AMEN! Here is Hillsong UNITED with "Wonder":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today I want to share Kenneth and Gloria Copeland's "Faith To Faith" devotional. 

Don't Be Stony Ground

And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness; and have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word's sake, immediately they are offended. Mark 4:16-17

There seems to be an abundance of "stony ground" Christians these days. Initially, they get excited about the Word of God. They'll hear a message on prosperity, for instance, and they'll go home saying, "Hallelujah! I'm going to prosper in the Name of Jesus!" But then, somehow, things don't work out like they thought they should.

Their bank balance doesn't double overnight. They go through some disappointments. They suffer some criticism. Then, before you know it, their faith has withered away.

If you don't want that to happen to you, make up your mind right now that you're not going to let the rough times defeat you. Decide now that you're going to hang onto the Word even when the persecutions and afflictions come—because, I can guarantee you, they will come.

When you decide to walk by faith, you don't get rid of trials. You learn to overcome them.

When you let the Word of God get down into your heart, you're going to learn more about the devil than you ever wanted to know because he's going to do his best to see to it that the Word is unfruitful in you. He's going to be trying to mess you up every time you turn around. You'll have problems, but the difference is now you have the answer—the Word of God.

Thank God, however, through Christ Jesus you have the power to defeat Satan. When he brings problems and disappointments your way, you don't have to lie down and let them steam roll over you. Just keep fighting the good fight of faith until you win.

Sure you'll get knocked down sometimes. But when you do, get back up and say, "Look here, Devil, I'm not going to let you steal the Word out of my heart. It's in there and I'm meditating on it. I'm saying it with my mouth, and I'm acting on it until God's blessings overtake me. If you don't believe me, just hide and watch!"

If you'll take that attitude, no matter what that devil does, he'll never make a "stony ground" Christian out of you!

AMEN! Now I want to invite you to watch for today's sermon from The Spoken Word Church's Pastor Bill Novak to be added to our website at thespokenwordchurch.org. Pastor Novak spoke today about the "due season" of Galatians 6:9. This teaching will give you exactly what you need to stay the course in the time between the "Amen" of your prayer, when you have believed that you have received, to the manifestation! God's timing (the 'due season') is PERFECT! He is rarely early, but He is NEVER late! AMEN! Here is Hillsong with "Desert Song":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

I love Kenneth E. Hagin's "Faith Food" for today! 

Reality

"Thy word is true from the beginning" (Psalm 119:160). 
People often make a substitution for faith - they substitute mental assent or mental agreement. They mentally agree that God's Word is true, and they call that faith. But mentally agreeing with the Word isn't faith. 

You can mentally agree that the Bible is true, but it won't become real to you until you act on what it says. It's when you act on God's Word that it becomes a reality. 

For example, you can believe in the truth of the resurrection as a great doctrine (and in some circles that's all it is - a doctrine or a dogma), but it won't mean a thing in the world to you until you can say, "Jesus died for me! Jesus arose victorious over death, hell, and the grave - and He did that for me! Jesus arose victorious over Satan! Jesus conquered Satan for me! Therefore, Satan has no dominion over me! I'm free!" 

The resurrection won't mean anything in your life until you can say these very words. Then the resurrection truth in the Word of God will become something more than just a doctrine, a dogma, a creed, or a theory - it will become a reality! 

Confession: I am a doer of the Word. I act on what the Word says is mine. The Word is true. I know it's true. So I act like it's true, and the Word becomes a reality in my life. 

If you ever find yourself questioning the Word of God because your experience doesn't line up with the promise, then you are in the position of having agreed mentally (mental assent) with the Word, but you have not yet meditated on it to the point that this Word becomes so real to you that no one could convince you otherwise! That is what the instruction and exhortation of Joshua 1:8 is for! 

8 This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe and do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall deal wisely and have good success.

Make sure that YOU are not simply agreeing that the Word is true, but that you are thinking, pondering, asking, and acknowledging that it is true FOR YOU! THAT is when the power of the Word of God can set you free, and, if you continue in this Word, it will KEEP you free! AMEN! Here is Hillsong with "Lost Are Found":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today  I want to share with you from Joseph Prince's "Grace Inspirations" devotional:

BY JESUS’ STRIPES YOU ARE HEALED

Isaiah 53:5 …The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.

You know, one of the biggest outcries against Mel Gibson’s movie, The Passion Of The Christ, was that it was too violent, especially the part where Jesus was scourged.

Let me tell you this: It was not violent enough! The Bible says that at the cross, Jesus’ visage was marred beyond that of any man. (Isaiah 52:14) In the movie, even after all the beatings, the actor James Caviezel, who played Jesus, still looked quite handsome.

But the reality is that when Jesus hung on the cross, He had “no form or comeliness…there is no beauty that we should desire Him”. (Isaiah 53:2) He was beaten to a pulp until His face looked like jelly hanging out!

In the movie, when they scourged Him, only a small portion of His bones was exposed, so it was still quite tidy. But the messianic psalms say, “The plowers plowed on my back; they made their furrows long” (Psalm 129:3), and “I can count all My bones. They look and stare at Me”. (Psalm 22:17) All His bones were exposed!

My friend, He was thinking of you when the soldiers tied Him to the scourging post. As they raised their whips, He said, “Let it all come on Me!”

But what came on Him was not just the whip stripping the flesh off His bare back, but your sicknesses and diseases. Each time He was whipped, every form of sickness and disease, including arthritis, cancer, diabetes, bird flu and dengue fever, came upon Him. “The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.”

Today, healing is your right because Jesus has paid the price for your healing. So if the devil says, “You cannot be healed,” just declare, “Jesus has paid for my healing. Disease has no right to be in my body. I am healed in Jesus’ name!”

Every curse of sickness that was supposed to fall on you fell on Jesus instead. He bore every one of those stripes, so that you can walk in divine health all the days of your life. The price has been paid so that you can rise up and get out of your bed of affliction!

This is so perfectly said that I am not going to even comment on it except to say that JESUS does NOT want us to watch those scenes in complete sorrow for what He went through, but on complete and eternal gratitude that what He did was NOT in vain! BELIEVE and RECEIVE and it will be complete joy and delight to HIM! AMEN! Let's not allow the enemy to steal from JESUS the joy of our salvation, deliverance, healing, boldness and boasting of all that HE has done! Here is Hillsong with "Children of the Light":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Proverbs 3:11-12 says this to us:

11 My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, Nor detest His correction; 12 For whom the Lord loves He corrects, Just as a father the son in whom he delights. NKJV

This was Job's mindset at the very end of the Book of Job. All the while Job's family was shunning him and his three friends were insisting that he had sin in his life, Job maintained his own righteousness, wondering WHY God was doing all of this to him. Elihu spoke Truth to Job and his friends. THEN, GOD SPOKE!  There was no doubt at all Who it was Who was speaking directly to Job about his attitude. Now, here in the final chapter of the book, Job has repented (changed his thinking to agree with God)! Look at Job 42:1-6 to see what repentance sounds like!

1 Then Job said to the Lord, 2 I know that You can do all things, and that no thought or purpose of Yours can be restrained or thwarted. 3 [You said to me] Who is this that darkens and obscures counsel [by words] without knowledge? Therefore [I now see] I have [rashly] uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. 4 [I had virtually said to You what You have said to me:] Hear, I beseech You, and I will speak; I will demand of You, and You declare to me. 5 I had heard of You [only] by the hearing of the ear, but now my [spiritual] eye sees You. 6 Therefore I loathe [my words] and abhor myself and repent in dust and ashes.

We know that in our New Covenant we do not need to sit in dust and ashes. We simply confess (acknowledge and admit) when we miss it and the Blood of JESUS continually cleanses us from all sin because HE is "faithful and just" (1 John 1:9)! Please do not fall for the idea that we now never have to repent. Repentance is simply changing OUR thinking to agree with God! HE is ALWAYS right, so when we disagree, we must acknowledge that and then receive the freely-given forgiveness so that we do not miss one moment by being out of fellowship with HIM! AMEN! Here is Hillsong with "Splinters and Stones":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

I want to share "My Utmost For His Highest" by Oswald Chambers again today because it goes right along with yesterday's!

The Overmastering Direction

I have appeared unto thee for this purpose. — Acts 26:16

The vision Paul had on the road to Damascus was no passing emotion, but a vision that had very clear and emphatic directions for him, and he says — “I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision.”; Our Lord said, in effect, to Paul — “Your whole life is to be overmastered by Me; you are to have no end, no aim, and no purpose but Mine.” “I have chosen him.”

When we are born again we all have visions, if we are spiritual at all, of what Jesus wants us to be, and the great thing is to learn not to be disobedient to the vision, not to say that it cannot be attained. It is not sufficient to know that God has redeemed the world, and to know that the Holy Spirit can make all that Jesus did effectual in me; I must have the basis of a personal relationship to Him. Paul was not given a message or a doctrine to proclaim, he was brought into a vivid, personal, overmastering relationship to Jesus Christ. Verse 16 is immensely commanding — “to make thee a minister and a witness.” There is nothing there apart from the personal relationship. Paul was devoted to a Person not to a cause. He was absolutely Jesus Christ’s; he saw nothing else; he lived for nothing else. “For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.”

I LOVE this line: "Paul was devoted to a person not to a cause." Paul himself said as much when he said THIS in Philippians 3:10-11:

10 [For my determined purpose is] that I may know Him [that I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him, perceiving and recognizing and understanding the wonders of His Person more strongly and more clearly], and that I may in that same way come to know the power outflowing from His resurrection [which it exerts over believers], and that I may so share His sufferings as to be continually transformed [in spirit into His likeness even] to His death, [in the hope] 11 That if possible I may attain to the [spiritual and moral] resurrection [that lifts me] out from among the dead [even while in the body]. AMP

We will REALLY know that we have grown in the things of God when are no longer doing things that we think we must do, but we are doing what we do in response to His Word and to Holy Spirit within us because we hear His voice and recognize His plans and purposes for our lives. JESUS said that HIS sheep hear His voice! So, if we belong to Him, then we DO hear His voice. We simply have to develop confidence in that TRUTH by being a DOER of what we see and hear. The more that we do this, the bolder and more confident we will become! The ONLY way to hear Him more clearly is to PRACTICE! AMEN! Here is Hillsong with "Here Now":

Shalom  in Him!

Shalom,

Today's "My Utmost For His Highest" by Oswald Chambers is a great exhortation of what is MOST important in our relationship with our Father! 

Transformed By Insight

We all, with open face, beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image. — 2 Corinthians 3:18

The outstanding characteristic of a Christian is this unveiled frankness before God so that the life becomes a mirror for other lives. By being filled with the Spirit we are transformed, and by beholding we become mirrors. You always know when a man has been beholding the glory of the Lord, you feel in your inner spirit that he is the mirror of the Lord’s own character. Beware of anything which would sully that mirror in you; it is nearly always a good thing, the good that is not the best.

The golden rule for your life and mine is this concentrated keeping of the life open towards God. Let everything else — work, clothes, food, everything on earth — go by the board, saving that one thing. The rush of other things always tends to obscure this concentration on God. We have to maintain ourselves in the place of beholding, keeping the life absolutely spiritual all through. Let other things come and go as they may, let other people criticize as they will, but never allow anything to obscure the life that is hid with Christ in God. Never be hurried out of the relationship of abiding in Him. It is the one thing that is apt to fluctuate but it ought not to. The severest discipline of a Christian’s life is to learn how to keep “beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord.”

When JESUS said THIS in Mark 12:30-31, He was showing us the most important element of being in position to walk in the fullness of ALL that HE has provided for us as New Covenant believers!

30 And you shall love the Lord your God out of and with your whole heart and out of and with all your soul (your life) and out of and with all your mind (with your faculty of thought and your moral understanding) and out of and with all your strength. This is the first and principal commandment. 31 The second is like it and is this, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these.

This is exactly what Oswald Chambers was saying above! So many believers try to fill that void, that can only be filled by intimate fellowship with HIM, with good works. Those good works SHOULD be a part of our lives, but only in obedience to His instructions that come out of our fellowship with Him! When we concentrate on our intimacy with JESUS, everything else that has been a priority in our lives will take their proper place and we will be a much better person, son/daughter, husband/wife, father/mother, friend, employer/employee, minister of life! NOTHING will be as good as it can be in our lives without this! Let's make those adjustments now, as we start this new year, and reap the glorious results! AMEN! Here is Hillsong with "One Thing", a song that says: "Everything I have means nothing, Jesus if you're not my One thing":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

I love today's Bible Plan reading! In Psalm 22 we have the "The Psalm of the Cross" that many believe was what JESUS was speaking on the cross. As you read, you will see where that idea comes from! Verses 30-31 say THIS about US!

30 Posterity shall serve Him; they shall tell of the Lord to the next generation. 31 They shall come and shall declare His righteousness to a people yet to be born—that He has done it [that it is finished]!

Posterity refers to future generations of people. Every generation from the early church to our time have passed the Word of God and the Gospel of JESUS Christ to the next generations! No, not everyone in any generation preached the Gospel, but SOMEONE in every generation DID! They declared that HE was righteous to those not yet born at the time, and they proclaimed that HE said, "IT IS FINISHED!"  I love the song by Sarah Hart Pearsons from her album "Strength and Beauty in the Presence of the Healer" that states: It is finished! It is done! He has risen! We (I) have won! Then in Matthew 22 we see JESUS speaking in parables to the people, including the Pharisees. Verses 17-21 contain another of my favorite passages of Scripture! 

17 Tell us then what You think about this: Is it lawful to pay tribute [levied on individuals and to be paid yearly] to Caesar or not? 18 But Jesus, aware of their malicious plot, asked, Why do you put Me to the test and try to entrap Me, you pretenders (hypocrites)? 19 Show me the money used for the tribute. And they brought Him a denarius. 20 And Jesus said to them, Whose likeness and title are these? 21 They said, Caesar’s. Then He said to them, Pay therefore to Caesar the things that are due to Caesar, and pay to God the things that are due to God.

I LOVE that whenever they tried their schemes to trap JESUS, He would turn the tables on them, exposing and embarrassing them, but, most importantly, showing to the people the difference between TRUTH and error! How did they react? Verse 22:

22 When they heard it they were amazed and marveled; and they left Him and departed.

Then the Sadducees came with their own plans to trip JESUS up. Their question was the ridiculous question of the 7 brothers all having married the same woman, and then died childless. (Maybe this woman should have been investigated! Yikes!) As usual, JESUS exposed their error in thinking and left them speechless! But before JESUS finishes with this crowd, HE gives us this vital TRUTH! Verses 37-40:

37 And He replied to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind (intellect). 38 This is the great (most important, principal) and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as [you do] yourself. 40 These two commandments sum up and upon them depend all the Law and the Prophets.

AMEN! Finally, in Job 38-39 we see God Himself addressing Job about his wrong thinking and declaring HIS Truth! Read through these two chapters if you want to see what GOD has done! Now remind yourself, every day that THIS magnificent GOD we love and serve IS the ONE, TRUE GOD! Everything was made by Him (JESUS) and for Him! (John 1:3 and Colossians 1:16) AMEN! Here is the song mentioned above by Sarah Hart Pearsons! 

IT IS FINISHED

Grace says, "You are loved"

In response I say, "Thank You, thank You Lord"

This is sweet salvation, this is sweet salvation

Grace says, "You are healed"

In response I say, "Thank You, I receive"

This is sweet salvation, this is sweet salvation

I believe because You said it

But I trust because I  know You

It is finished, it is done

You have risen, I have won

It is finished, it is done

Now I'm singing hallelujah

Grace says, "You're redeemed"

In response I say, "Thank you I believe"

This is sweet salvation, this is sweet salvation

Grace says, "You are cleansed"

In response I say, "Thank you, I forgive"

This is sweet salvation, this is sweet salvation

grace says, "You are loved"

Grace says, "You are healed"

Graces says, "You're redeemed"

Grace says, "You are clean"

It is finished, it is done

Jesus said it, the work is done

It is finished, it is done

Now I'm singing hallelujah, hallelujah

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today's "My Utmost For His Highest" by Oswald Chambers reflects on something that was spoken of by our Pastor today at The Spoken Word Church this morning!

Recall What God Remembers

I remember…the kindness of thy youth. — Jeremiah 2:2

Am I as spontaneously kind to God as I used to be, or am I only expecting God to be kind to me? Am I full of the little things that cheer His heart over me, or am I whimpering because things are going hardly with me? There is no joy in the soul that has forgotten what God prizes. It is a great thing to think that Jesus Christ has need of me — “Give Me to drink.” How much kindness have I shown Him this past week? Have I been kind to His reputation in my life?

God is saying to His people — “You are not in love with Me now, but I remember the time when you were.” “I remember…the love of thine espousals.” Am I as full of the extravagance of love to Jesus Christ as I was in the beginning, when I went out of my way to prove my devotion to Him? Does He find me recalling the time when I did not care for anything but Himself? Am I there now, or have I become wise over loving Him? Am I so in love with Him that I take no account of where I go? Or am I watching for the respect due to me, weighing how much service I ought to give?

If, as I recall what God remembers about me, I find He is not what He used to be to me, let it produce shame and humiliation, because that shame will bring the godly sorrow that works repentance.

Pastor Bill Novak was teaching today about how to get, and keep, healing for our bodies, prosperity in our finances, right relationships in our families, favor in our careers and businesses and friendships. The principles necessary for success in any one area will work in every area of life! The key? Continual intimate fellowship with JESUS by His Spirit and His Word! There is NO other way to stay strong in the faith that is required to succeed! There are no shortcuts, but the journey is SO rewarding! When we begin and develop good and Godly habits, doing those good and Godly things with diligence and consistency, they will eventually become good and Godly STRONGHOLDS in our lives that will cause us to NOT be easily moved by the tricks, schemes, strategies, traps and tactics of the enemy, whose sole purpose is to try to get to God by hurting His people! Let's make it intensely difficult, even impossible, for satan to do this! AMEN! Here, to aid you in YOUR new and intense commitment, is Hillsong with "Oceans - Where Feet May Fail":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

We are reading Job in our Spoken Word Bible Reading Plan right now. We used to end the year with Job, but Pastor Bill Novak received instruction from the LORD to read it earlier in the year, which is more correct chronologically. I LOVE this change! It is a good time to study the difference that Job shows us between right and wrong thinking! Remember that what we think about is what we will eventually speak and act on. We have read so far that the enemy attacked Job to try to get him to curse God. He did not! Job's three 'friends' proceeded to accuse Job of some hidden sin that would cause God to do this to him. Job's attitude was one of self-righteousness. Look at Job 32:1-3:

1 So these three men ceased to answer Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes. 2 Then was kindled the wrath of Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite, of the kindred of Ram: against Job was his wrath kindled, because he justified himself rather than God. 3 Also against his three friends was his wrath kindled, because they had found no answer, and yet had condemned Job. KJV

Elihu had waited for these older men to speak. None of them had rightly spoken, including Job! Elihu proceeded to speak out what God had placed in him to say. Today we are reading Job 34-35. I love what he says in verses 5-8:

5 Look to the heavens and see; and behold the skies which are higher than you. 6 If you have sinned, how does that affect God? And if your transgressions are multiplied, what have you done to Him? 7 If you are righteous, what do you [by that] give God? Or what does He receive from your hand? 8 Your wickedness touches and affects a man such as you are, and your righteousness is for yourself, one of the human race [but it cannot touch God, Who is above such influence].

What he is saying here is that nothing that we do or say will EVER change God! He is unchangeable and immoveable! That should be good news to any of us who have missed it, sometimes many times, but will NEVER lose our relationship with God. We may get out of fellowship, but that is ALWAYS on us! He is never the one who walks away! When you realize that you have gotten yourself out of fellowship, then repent (change your thinking to agree with God and His Word) and then get yourself into His presence again! Remind yourself that God is ALWAYS right, so when we differ, WE are wrong! Humble yourself in His presence and ask HIM to reveal to you your error and show you how to make whatever adjustments are necessary! Right now is a very good time to evaluate your fellowship with the Lord. This year is going to be one of tremendous change and BLESSING. If we stay in right fellowship, we will NOT miss anything that God has planned and purposed for us! AMEN! Here is Hillsong with an older song called "God Is Great":

"God Is Great"

All creation cries to you

Worshipping in Spirit and in truth

Glory to the faithful one Jesus Christ God's son

All Creation gives you praise

You alone are truly great

You alone are God who reigns for eternity

God is great and His praise fills the earth fills the heavens

And Your name will be praised through all the world

God is great sing his praise all the earth all the heavens

'cause were living for the Glory of Your name the glory of your name

All to you Oh God we bring

Jesus teach us how to live

Let your fire burn in us

That all may hear and all may see

Holy is the Lord

The whole earth sings

The whole earth sings [x4]

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

We have been speaking lately about spending time in fellowship with the Father and time in His Word. Today's Psalm is another encouragement to do the same! Psalm 19:7-10:

7 The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the [whole] person; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. 8 The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure and bright, enlightening the eyes. 9 The [reverent] fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; the ordinances of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. 10 More to be desired are they than gold, even than much fine gold; they are sweeter also than honey and drippings from the honeycomb.

We have been teaching for the entire 36 years of The Spoken Word Church what the Word of God has to say about finances, and about every other subject! Verse 10 tells us the proper attitude to develop in order to be able to walk in all of the promises! First of all, and of utmost importance, we are to LOVE the Lord our God with everything that is within us! This CANNOT be done without first loving His Word! When we desire the Word of God, whether through the written Word in our Bibles, or the still small voice of Holy Spirit IN us, speaking that Word TO us, THEN we will know how to possess all that He has provided; and be able to use it to help set people free! AMEN! THEN, also, we can pray this prayer, from verse 14 and expect the answer!

14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my [firm, impenetrable] Rock and my Redeemer.

Here is Hillsong with "Glimmer in the Dust":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today's "My Utmost For His Highest" by Oswald Chambers is another good reminder! 

It Is The Lord!

Thomas answered and said unto Him, My Lord and my God. — John 20:28

“Give Me to drink.” How many of us are set upon Jesus Christ slaking our thirst when we ought to be satisfying Him? We should be pouring out now, spending to the last limit, not drawing on Him to satisfy us. “Ye shall be witnesses unto Me” — that means a life of unsullied, uncompromising, and unbribed devotion to the Lord Jesus, a satisfaction to Him wherever He places us.

Beware of anything that competes with loyalty to Jesus Christ. The greatest competitor of devotion to Jesus is service for Him. It is easier to serve than to be drunk to the dregs. The one aim of the call of God is the satisfaction of God, not a call to do something for Him. We are not sent to battle for God, but to be used by God in His battlings. Are we being more devoted to service than to Jesus Christ?

Over the years I have met SO many people, including pastors, who are SO busy FOR God that they have no time to actually spend WITH Him! JESUS said that we are to partake of His body and of His blood! That means to get ourselves in position to walk in ALL that  HE has provided for us, and we cannot do this without spending time in intimate fellowship WITH HIM! AMEN! If we will commit ourselves to be led by Holy Spirit and to spend time daily in His presence, receiving our 'marching orders', then we will NOT miss God! Instead, we will find His voice becoming clearer every day. Make the decision to instantly obey something that the LORD has told you to do. Now, go about your life, expecting Him to show Himself strong on your behalf! Expect Him in unexpected places and at unexpected times! AMEN! Here is Hillsong UNITED with "Shadow Step":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

We read Psalm 17 in today's Spoken Word Bible Reading Plan. The Word of God says that there are SO many voices in the world today. 1 Corinthians 14:10:

There are, it may be, so many kinds of voices in the world, and none of them is without signification.

In order to hear and see clearly enough what God is REALLY saying to us so that we can OBEY Him, we MUST learn Who to listen to, and HOW to listen properly! Proverbs 17:15 tells us this:

15 As for me, I will continue beholding Your face in righteousness (rightness, justice, and right standing with You); I shall be fully satisfied, when I awake [to find myself] beholding Your form [and having sweet communion with You].

No person has more invested in YOU for success than JESUS Himself! He WILL reveal Himself and His instruction to you WHEN you go after it with intensity, and WHEN you desire HIM with your whole heart! In sports vernacular, the ball is in YOUR court now so : GET IT DONE! Here is Hillsong with "We Are Running";

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today I want to share from Andrew Womack's devotional:

REVELATION KNOWLEDGE

Luke 2:26, "And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ."

Simeon didn't receive this knowledge through the normal method of learning. This knowledge was revealed to him directly from the Holy Spirit. This revelation knowledge which comes only from God is distinctly different than knowledge acquired through study. Man's knowledge is based on observation. It cannot give perfect instruction about the future. God's knowledge can. Through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit we can know things to come (John 16:13).

When dealing with God, revelation knowledge is essential. The Lord's ways are not always our ways (Isaiah 55:8). A fear of trusting the intuitive knowledge that God gives us will cause us to miss many blessings of God.

If he hadn't received it and anticipated its fulfillment, what a blessing he would have missed! He would not have been led into the temple at exactly the right moment to see the salvation of the Lord.

We need to ask for and expect to receive revelation knowledge from the Lord. God desires to impart it more than we desire to receive it. Great blessings await those who will not depend solely on their own understanding (Proverbs 3:5).

This is very good, as far as it goes, but this is NOT the only type of revelation knowledge that we need! When we study the Word of God (2 Timothy 2:15), and then meditate on it (Joshua 1:8), then Holy Spirit reveals to us supernaturally what that Word is actually saying, and show us how to act on the Word in ways that are unique to our individual lives, personalities, gifts, calling and anointing! Without that, no one could ever really KNOW the Word (1 Corinthians 2:14)! Both are vital to fulfilling our calling and being effective ministers of LIFE! AMEN! Here is Hillsong with "Let There Be Light":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

I found today's "My Utmost For His Highest" by Oswald Chambers to be a very good take on taking care of our soul (mind, emotions and will) so that we can make wise choices, every day!

Do You Walk In White?

Buried with Him…that…even so we also should walk in newness of life. — Romans 6:4

No one enters into the experience of entire sanctification without going through a “white funeral”* — the burial of the old life. If there has never been this crisis of death, sanctification is nothing more than a vision. There must be a “white funeral,” a death that has only one resurrection — a resurrection into the life of Jesus Christ. Nothing can upset such a life; it is one with God for one purpose, to be a witness to Him.

Have you come to your last days really? You have come to them often in sentiment, but have you come to them really?You cannot go to your funeral in excitement, or die in excitement. Death means you stop being. Do you agree with God that you stop being the striving, earnest kind of Christian you have been? We skirt the cemetery and all the time refuse to go to death. It is not striving to go to death, it is dying — “baptized into His death.”

Have you had your “white funeral,” or are you sacredly playing the fool with your soul? Is there a place in your life marked as the last day, a place to which the memory goes back with a chastened and extraordinarily grateful remembrance — “Yes, it was then, at that ‘white funeral,’ that I made an agreement with God”?

“This is the will of God, even your sanctification.” When you realize what the will of God is, you will enter into sanctification as naturally as can be. Are you willing to go through that “white funeral” now? Do you agree with Him that this is your last day on earth? The moment of agreement depends upon you.

* “white funeral”: phrase from Tennyson’s poem “To H.R.H. Princess Beatrice”; to Chambers, it meant a passage from one stage of life to another; leaving the past behind and moving into the future; he often used it to mean death to self and a complete surrender to God.

We ARE spirit beings, who have souls (mind, emotions and will) and live in physical bodies while here on earth. When we received JESUS as LORD and personal SAVIOR, our spirits, which were dead because of sin, were instantly made new, in the image of Almighty God! When we rise to meet JESUS in the air, at the Catching Away of the Church, our bodies will be changed instantly into a body such as JESUS now has in Heaven! In the meantime, in the NOW, we are to renew our minds DAILY so that we can think God's thoughts after Him! The above devotion addresses that! We MUST protect the words of our mouths, because we WILL have what WE speak! It doesn't do anyone any good to ask someone else to speak into your life, because only YOU have authority over your life. We WILL speak what we have been thinking about! SO, we must control what goes into our eyes and ears in order to control what we think about, because what we think about the most IS what we will eventually speak! I hope that you see by now that EVERYTHING that JESUS instructs us to do is extremely vital in order to walk in the abundance of LIFE that HE intends! John 10:10:

10 The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows).

That is HIS desire! Make it yours, too, and then DO the things He says to do so HE can confirm His Word in our lives! AMEN! Here is Hillsong with "Your Word":

Shalom in Him!

Shalom,

Today I want to share from Kenneth and Gloria Copeland's "Faith To Faith" devotional.

Under Your Feet

The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, Until I make thy foes thy footstool. Acts 2:34-35

Even though Satan lost all his authority on this earth the day Jesus rose from the dead, for the past 2,000 years he's been running around as a spiritual outlaw—continuing to kill, steal from and destroy all who will let him. But, you know, he's not going to be able to do that much longer. There's coming a day when he's going to be put out of business completely. There's coming a day when the evil he's done here on earth will be put totally underfoot by the power of God.

Most believers know that's true. They've shouted and rejoiced over it—but they haven't really understood how it's going to happen. They haven't realized that they are the foot that's going to trample down the works of the devil!

Jesus is the Head of the Church. You and I are the feet. We are the ones who are going to take His authority and power and stomp on sin and sickness and every other demonic thing in this earth. We are the ones God is going to use, as Acts 2:35 says, to make Jesus' enemies His footstool.

That's what Jesus was telling us when He said, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature...cast out devils...lay hands on the sick" (Mark 16:15-18). He was saying, "Go ye and be My foot." He was saying, "All power and authority has been given unto Me, both in heaven and in earth. Therefore, you take it and use it to put the devil under."

But instead of obeying Him, we've waited around wondering when God was going to do something about this mess here on earth. We've sat around wondering why it's taking so long for Jesus to come back.

We're the reason it's taking so long! Jesus is waiting on you and me. He's waiting on us to step out in His power, put the devil in his place, and win the world. He's waiting on us to drop our silly doctrinal differences and get busy doing what God said we would do.

The Bible says that one can put a thousand to flight and two can put 10,000 to flight. Every time we get together, we increase our strength astronomically. If we'd just get together and figure out who we are, if we'd realize that we're the feet of Jesus, we could kick Satan out of earth's affairs with ease.

Do you want to hasten Jesus' return? Then quit sitting around staring at the clouds! Start stomping around in the spirit. Start putting the works of the serpent under your feet and we can wrap this thing up and go home to glory real soon!

AMEN! JESUS already accomplished all that was needed to put US in control in our own lives, by HIS Word and HIS Spirit! So, let's GO! Here is HIllsong UNITED with "GO"!

Shalom in Him!