Tempted, Tried, but Triumphant

The temptation to "give up" is one that everyone has experienced at some point. Perhaps it was while trying to tie a neck tie for the tenth time or in the middle of an argument with your spouse, or when you were trying to get your child to eat green veggies.....at any rate, the temptation to quit, is very real.

The Apostle Paul begins chapter 10 of I Corinthians, reminding the Church of their forefathers' journey through the wilderness. He states clearly that "they all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual water". And that with many, God was not pleased. 

---I want to pause here and say to the Bride/Church, we may be eating and drinking of the same spiritual food & water, but with many of us, God is not pleased. It was the lack of gratitude, the grumbling, & complaining that displeased God then, and when we display those same failures, He is grieved with us as well. But, I digress. What I want you to glean from this post, has to do with God's faithfulness to strengthen us through our trials and temptations.

The Corinthians were experiencing "growing pains". Paul's letters to the church there, were to instruct them in righteousness, to expand on what he had taught them, and to quell the divisions among them, and to ENCOURAGE them. I find the following verse extremely encouraging in these difficult days in which we are living.

"The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure." I Corinthians 10:13 NLT

One of satan's most successful ploys is to convince a person to give up on what they perceive to be an impossible outcome. This essentially causes one to dismiss the truth that faith sees the substance that the God of the impossible will bring about on their behalf, if they will believe.

Today, I ask you to take God at His word. When you feel like giving up on your dreams, read the Word & pray. When you feel like your prayers are going no where and you see no use in praying, read the Word & pray. Don't quit! Don't give up! Don't give in! Refuse to listen to the enemy. Speak out loud; "Though I am tempted to quit, God is faithful. Though I am weary with the trial, God is faithful to show me the way out of it. Though I feel like there is not an ounce of power left in me, God is faithful to strengthen me." 

When you fill your mind/heart with the Word of God, your faith will grow. When your faith begins to grow, you will experience His strength perfected (perfectly displayed) through your weakness.

Beloved, we are more than conquerors through Christ Jesus.

Perfect Psalm for Finding Perspective

 I believe this Psalm is a fitting set of affirmations for us, every day.... And especially during these perilous days in which we live.

I love the old KJV, but it's familiarity can cause one to read through it with little thought of its application. The following is from the amplified version. Take time to meditate on theses verses and you will experience a shift in your thoughts & behaviors.

"Blessed (happy, fortunate, prosperous, and enviable) is the man who walks and lives not in the counsel of the ungodly [following their advice, their plans and purposes], nor stands [submissive and inactive] in the path where sinners walk, nor sits down [to relax and rest] where the scornful [and the mockers] gather.

2 But his delight and desire are in the law of the Lord, and on His law (the precepts, the instructions, the teachings of God) he habitually meditates (ponders and studies) by day and by night.

3 And he shall be like a tree firmly planted [and tended] by the streams of water, ready to bring forth its fruit in its season; its leaf also shall not fade or wither; and everything he does shall prosper [and come to maturity].

4 Not so the wicked [those disobedient and living without God are not so]. But they are like the chaff [worthless, dead, without substance] which the wind drives away.

5 Therefore the wicked [those disobedient and living without God] shall not stand [justified] in the judgment, nor [b]sinners in the congregation of the righteous [those who are upright and in right standing with God].

6 For the Lord knows and is fully acquainted with the way of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly [those living outside God’s will] shall perish (end in ruin and come to nought)." Psalm 1:1-6 AMP

Have You ___________?

Thinking about what we are to be doing as we anticipate the coming of Christ......

1)Have you been born again? If your answer is "yes", then move ahead to next question. If you answered "no", I ask you to read the first set of scriptures & ask Jesus to forgive you of your sins (wrong doings).

2)Have you been baptized in the Holy Ghost with the evidence is speaking in tongues? If "yes" go to third question. If "no", read the next set of scriptures & ask God to fill you to overflowing with His spirit.

3) Have you testified, witnessed, or prophesied? If "yes" continue to move forward. If "no", read third set of verses & submit to the leading of the Holy Ghost.

4) Have you laid hands on the sick & prayed for their recovery? If you answered "yes", then you are doing the work of the Lord. If "no", please read the scriptures in Matthew 25 & pray for ministry opportunities to share God's love & prayers for healing.

5)Have you been faithful to serve God by serving others? If you answered "yes" then I commend you & encourage you to continue to work the works of Jesus. If you answered "no", then read the fifth set of verses, get off of the Internet, & get into your prayer closet.

My brothers & sisters, true salvation will lead into a life of serving God by serving others. If we are going to impact our world for the Kingdom of God, we must do it through serving humanity as Jesus did. He had compassion on the multitudes; the sick, poor, unstable, misguided, outcast, & etc. And, He spoke the truth in love.

Scripture references:

1) John 3:15 - 21 & 1John 1:6-9

2) Acts 2:1-4 & Mark 16:17

3) Acts 1:8, & Acts 19:1 - 6

4) Mark 16:18

5) Matthew 25: 21, 34 - 40

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Receiving Sight

Many prophesied 2020 to be a year of perfect vision. As jumbled as the year has been, it has certainly caused many to readjust their focus. Many have found "perfect vision" simply by setting their affections on Christ, seeking His face, and following His commands. Yet for all that have looked to Him on their own, there have been many that He has sought out for the express purpose of revealing the glory of God in the earth.

"Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." John 8:12 KJV

"And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth. And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind? Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him. I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world. When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and he anointed  the eyes of the blind man with the clay, And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing." John 9: 1-7 KJV

This was not the first blind man that Jesus healed. It was not the first miracle that His disciples had witnessed. It certainly wasn't the first time the Pharisees had sought to condemn Jesus for doing the works for which He had been sent. But it was the first instance of Jesus singling out the blind man without first being beckoned.

Jesus met the man at his point of need. The man needed a creative miracle, because he had been born blind. Adam was created from the dust of the earth, so how better to create the parts needed for this blind man to see; than to take the earth and moisten it water from the Source of living water, and apply it to the man's eyes.

Verse 25 lets us know that the blind man had no previous knowledge of Jesus. And verse 36 reveals how the blind man really came to know the Son of Man. And once he believed, he worshipped the Lord.

Within the content of the chapter, you read the questions posed by various people groups. The disciples began with, "who sinned, this man or his parents". They were referencing the Old Testament Law found in Exodus 34:7. Jesus replied that it was neither. He explained that the man was born blind to present the opportunity for God to be glorified. 

The Pharisees had questions and accusations. The parents simply said, "let him speak for himself". The blind man (now healed) simply asked who the Son of Man was. 

The blind man's obedience, (he went to the pool of Siloam & washed his eyes) was the catalyst for the completion of the miracle. And it was his worship (verse 38) that made him whole.

Beloved, Jesus will meet you at your point of need. He may do something that you may not expect. He may ask you to do something in order to complete the miracle. In all of this, He will work to reveal the glory of God. And it will be your worship and testimony that will reveal His glory to others. Sharing the Good News with others, is just that simple. Praise & glorify God for all that He has done for you.

I am believing to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living, in this year of our Lord, 2021.