Living a 220 life

The rains will come

My beloved friends, as I was reading in my quiet time the other day the Lord greatly impressed on my heart that a couple verses and a devotion were specifically for someone reading this blog. I had an overwhelming sense that some of you are carrying some heavy burdens and walking through a spiritual desert right now. Well, my friends, the Lord acknowledges our deserts and our burdens and has a Word for us.

He says, “And it shall be that if you earnestly obey My commandments which I command you today, to love the Lord your God and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul, then I will give you the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the latter rain, that you may gather in your grain, your new wine, and your oil.” Deuteronomy 11:13-14

Friend, the Lord is telling you the desert doesn’t last forever! No, He tells us if we seek Him, if we serve Him, the rains will come. The burden you’re carrying now will not last forever. I know the burden feels like it’s too much; like you can’t take another step. You CAN! In Christ you can do all things, but only in Christ. The desert can be lonely. I know. I’m there now. The desert can feel like it’s going to swallow you whole. I know. I’m there now. But friends, our God loves us and will send the rain in its’ season.

The rain will come if and only if we seek Him and serve Him. Are you seeking the Lord or are you wallowing in your misery? One thing about the desert is this: the moment you sit down to feel sorry for yourself is the moment the desert wins and swallows you whole. Get up! Serve Him. Spend time with Him; seek His will for your service to Him. Where does He want you to get involved with the body of Christ?

The burden is heavy for you; I can sense that even as I write this. Friend, I know for sure the rains will come if you seek Him and serve Him. Let us all seek His will for us in service to Him and work diligently until the rains come. AMEN!

What do you fear?

As I was reading Deuteronomy in my quiet time the other day, I read something rather striking. In Deuteronomy 5 the Ten Commandments are reviewed and shortly after, beginning in verse 25, the people begin telling Moses they don’t want to talk with God out of fear. In verse 27 we read, “You go near and hear all that the Lord our God may say, and tell us all that the Lord our God says to you, and we will hear and do it.” First of all, I found it funny that they told Moses “You go near”. They feared talking with God would kill them so they told Moses, “I’m not doing it, YOU do it”.

The people of God had a true fear of God. At first I thought this was bad and that they would get in trouble for it, but then I read verse 28. The end of the verse is God talking about their fear when He says, “They are right in all that they have spoken.” God was pleased with their fear of Him. Then it dawned on me; because of their fear of God they claim in verse 27 “and we will hear and do it.” You see, they truely believed God is real, that He would kill them if they spoke to Him face to face, and that He would punish them if they were disobedient. Their fear moved them to obey all God commanded and this pleased the Lord.

Proverbs 1:7 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge”. My friends, do you fear the Lord? Does your life say you fear the Lord? Is your life filled with obedience to God’s Word or do you snicker at God’s commands as you live your life how you want to live it? If you’re living a life of sin you don’t have to remain there. The Lord simply wants you to fear Him, love Him, and obey Him. “But how do I learn to fear the Lord?” you ask. Simple:

Proverbs 2:1-5 explains, “if you receive my words, and treasure my commands within you, so that you incline your ear to wisdom, and apply your heart to understanding; yes, if you cry out for discernment, and lift up your voice for understanding, if you seek her as silver, and search for her as for hidden treasures; then you will understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God.”

Oh my beloved friends in the Lord, if you want to live an obedient life that is pleasing to your Savior you need to spend time with Him. Spend time seeking Him in His Word, in prayer, in fellowship, and in evangelism. As you begin seeking Him you will begin to fall passionately in love with Him and at the same time develop a healthy fear of the Lord as your Creator and God. So let me ask you, what do you fear? Does your life reveal a fear of the Lord? I pray that it soon will. AMEN!

Overcoming our failures

“So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?’ He said to Him, ‘Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.’ He said to him, ‘Feed My lambs.’” (John 21:15)

Remember, just before this, in John chapter 18, Peter is denying that he even knows Jesus. Peter hears the cock crow after his third denial of Jesus, he’s devastated at what he’s done, and he runs off into the sunset. We find Peter in John 21:3 saying, “I am going fishing.” To some of us who really enjoy fishing this may seem like a great idea; a hook, a bobber, and some quiet time out at the lake with God. Unfortunately, this was not Peter’s intent. No, in the original language Peter’s statement clearly implies that he intends to go back to his old life as a fisherman.

This seems to be the status quo when we fail in our Christian walk. When we feel like we’ve really blown it the tendency is to give up and go back to the life we were living before we met Jesus. Friends, if you’ve blown it and you’re currently ‘fishing’ there’s hope! Jesus has called you out of that life and into another; He doesn’t want you to go back no matter what!

Jesus comes walking up on the beach while Peter and the disciples are out fishing. They’ve spent all night out in the boat and have caught nothing. Jesus tells them to throw the net back out on the other side. When they do they catch more fish than they can handle. A few points exist in this interaction that need to be pointed out. First, the disciples caught nothing the whole night. It may seem like a good idea to go back to your old life but you’ll catch nothing. It’s not the same life you remember. Second, Jesus wishes to continue to bless you. The moment you begin to obey Him again you’ll find His blessing. Understand this, the disciples were still out in the boat, living their old life. It was their obedience to Jesus that changed it all. Third, Jesus is pursuing you. Jesus initiated the interaction with Peter. In fact, Jesus used the same miracle that He used when He first called Peter. (Luke 5:1-11) If you’re out on the lake, trust me, Jesus is on the shore calling out to you right now.

When Peter comes in from the boat and is talking with Jesus, the Lord asks him, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?” Several points exist here also and must be pointed out. First, Jesus is asking him if he loves Him more than these fish. In essence, Jesus is saying Peter do you love me enough to leave your old life behind? Going back and forth isn’t an option. The same question is posed to us, “Do you love me more than these?” Second, Jesus asks Peter three times if he loves Him. He doesn’t ask if he’s sorry, if he’s ready, if he likes ministry, what his theology is, or any other question we may think would be important for the upcoming leader of the church. No, Jesus asks if he loves Him. Friends, this is what it’s all about. If you want to be effective in ministry this is THE question to ask: Do I love Jesus so much that everything flows from my love of Him? Third, Jesus tells Peter to ‘feed My lambs’. Though we may feel like a complete failure Jesus see’s potential in us. He see’s our hearts and knows our desires. Friends, continue seeking after Him, loving Him, and obeying Him and Jesus will ask you to feed His lambs.

In conclusion, if you’ve messed up and feel like the biggest failure the world has ever known Jesus still loves you and wants to use you to advance His kingdom. Your responsibility in life isn’t to be perfect but to love Jesus with all your heart. Out of this love your actions will begin to change and match your heart but your sole focus in life should be loving Jesus. Friends, put down your nets and leave your old life behind. You’ve been called to be a fisher of men and your old life will no longer satisfy. No mistake you ever make can separate you from the perfect love of Jesus. AMEN!