DO IT AGAIN THE RIGHT WAY THIS TIME

Proclamation:

“Now Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai … to … spy out the region … when they returned to Joshua, they said, ‘Not all the army will have to go up against Ai …’ So about three thousand went up; but they were routed by the men of Ai. (Joshua 7:2-4)  Then The Lord said to Joshua, ‘Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.  Take the whole army with you, and go up and attack Ai.  For I have delivered into your hands the king of Ai, his people, his city and his land.’”  Joshua 8:1 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Joshua under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  The first time that Joshua led the Israelites against the army at Ai, The Lord God was not with them for they had sinned and broken their covenant with Him. (Joshua 7:11-12)  The first time, Joshua listened to his spies and did not speak to The Lord God.  The second time Joshua prayed, listened to God, and followed His plan when he attacked Ai.  The Lord God had to first encourage Joshua because the Israelites had been routed by Ai the first time they fought them.  This time, Joshua had renewed his commitment to The Lord God, and this time he was going to do it the right way, God’s way.

Application:

All too often we do things our way, without going to The Lord God in prayer first.  The Bible teaches us that we should pray about everything. (Matthew 21:22 and Luke 21:36)  We need to show our love for The Lord God with our life and our life style.  Jesus, The Christ, said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” (John 14:15)  And, if we love Him, then we should not be afraid to step out on faith and do what He says do. (1 John 4:18)  We should not let the fear of failure, or the fear of rejection, cause us to stop doing something God’s way.  Even if we failed the first time, let’s do it again but do it the right way this time.  Let’s do it God’s way.  Let’s not go into battle unprepared.  Let us pray first, then let us put on the whole armor of God. (Ephesians 6:10-18)  If we do it His way, the victory is ours. (1 Corinthians 15:57)

BELIEVE AND OBEY EVEN WHEN YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND

Proclamation:

“Now The Lord had said to Moses in Midian, ‘Go back to Egypt, for all those who wanted to kill you are dead.’  So Moses took his wife and sons, put them on a donkey and started back to Egypt.  And he took the staff of God in his hand.”  Exodus 4:19-20 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  After The Lord God told Moses that He was going to send him into Egypt to tell Pharaoh to let His people go, Moses came up with a number of excuses which he offered to God. (Exodus 3:11-15)  Then God gave him the plan, telling him what to do and what to say. (Exodus 3:16-22)  Moses still questioned The Lord God and He gave him several signs to show to the people so that they would believe that The God of their fathers had appeared to him and spoken to him. (Exodus 4:1-16) 

Applications:

Like Moses, sometimes we have our doubts about the things which The Lord God tells us to do.  At times we even question God’s instructions.  However, it is better for us to believe in Him, and in His Holy Word, and to obey Him even when we do not understand what He wants us to do or how it is all going to work.  It is our place to trust in The Lord.  We do not have the mental capacity to fully understand or comprehend all that He knows.  Additionally, He knows the future and what it holds for us.  He did not promise us that things would be easy, but He said that He would be with us and never leave or forsake us. (Hebrews 13:5)  So, let’s just do what The Lord says for us to do.

THE LORD GOD HEARS THE VOICE AND THE CRIES OF HIS PEOPLE

Proclamation:

“The Lord said, ‘I have indeed seen the misery of My people in Egypt.  I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering.’”  Exodus 3:7 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  After his father, Jacob, died and was buried in Canaan, Joseph returned to Egypt and lived to be 110 years old.  Near the end of his life he made his brothers swear to an oath not to bury him in Egypt but to carry his bones back to the land that God promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. (Genesis 50:22-26)  After Joseph died, a new king rose up in Egypt who did not know Joseph and who was worried about the numerous Israelites.  So he placed taskmasters over them and made their lives bitter. (Exodus 1:8-14)  However, the Israelites continued to increase in number and Pharaoh decreed that all male Israelite babies shall be killed at birth. (Exodus 1:15-22)  One Hebrew mother hid her son for as long as she could, then placed him in a basket and put it in the river.  The child was found by the daughter of Pharaoh, who felt sorry for the Hebrew boy and kept him as her own. (Exodus 2:1-10)  This boy, Moses, was raised in the palace of Pharaoh.  When he was grown, he killed an Egyptian who was beating a Hebrew male.  The next day, he stopped two Hebrews from fighting, and one of them asked him, “Are you thinking of killing me as you did the Egyptian?”  Then Moses became afraid and fled to Midian.  There he stayed, married, began a family, and became a shepherd. (Exodus 2:15-22)  It was there that Moses saw the burning bush which was not consumed and he heard the voice of The Lord God. (Exodus 3:1-10)  God told him that He had heard the cries of the Israelites (Exodus 2:23-24 and 3:7-8) and He was sending Moses to bring His people out of Egypt (Exodus 3:10) and into the land flowing with milk and honey. (Exodus 3:8)

Application:

Believers still suffer and go through trials and tribulations during this earthly journey.  It is comforting to know that The Lord God hears our prayers and cries.  When the time is right, according to His will, He will do something about our plight.  Things are allowed to happen to us for a reason.  Sometimes bad things happen to us to keep us humble, (2 Corinthians 12:7) sometimes they are to keep us focused on Him, (Matthew 14:25-31) and sometimes they are punishment for our behavior. (Numbers 14:26-31)  However, our trouble won’t last always. (Psalm 30:5)  He hears the prayers of the righteous and He sees our situation. (1 Peter 3:12)  We just need to keep the faith and obey His Holy Word, (Deuteronomy 7:9) and know that He hears us.

SHOW PEOPLE YOUR TRUE SELF AND SPEAK THE TRUTH

Proclamation:

“Then Joseph said to his brothers, ‘Come close to me.’  When they had done so, he said, ‘I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt.’”  Genesis 45:4 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  After Joseph had sold his brothers the grain they requested, he returned their money to them and sent them on their way home. (Genesis 42:25-26)  Because of the continued famine in their land they again ran out of food. (Genesis 43:1-2)  When they went back to Egypt to buy more grain, they took their youngest brother, Benjamin, with them as Joseph had requested. (Genesis 43:8-13)  After playing games with them for a while, Joseph revealed the truth to them that he was their brother. (Genesis 45:3-15)

Application:

All too often people put on a false face and pretend to be someone that they are not.  We should not try to “live a lie” in order to please or impress someone.  If they cannot accept us for the person that we are, then we are better off without them in our lives.  We need to be truthful to ourselves, and to others, for The Lord God detests liars. (Psalm 101:7)  As believers we are God’s representatives here on earth.  He is holy, so we should be holy. (1 Peter 1:16)  He is truthful, so we should be truthful. (Proverbs 12:17, Zechariah 8:16, and Ephesians 4:25)

FROM DOWN AND OUT TO LARGE AND IN CHARGE

Proclamation:

“You shall be in charge of my palace, and all people are to submit to your orders.  Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you.  So Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.’”  Genesis 41:40-41 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  Joseph’s brothers sold him to the Midianites who took him to Egypt and sold him to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard. (Genesis 37:36)  The Lord God was with Joseph and he did well and became the overseer of his master’s house. (Genesis 39:2-4)  Soon his master’s wife approached him and asked him to sleep with her and Joseph refused her several times. (Genesis 39:7-10)  Then it came to pass that she caught him by his coat and asked him again, and he left his garment in her hand and he fled.  However, she lied and said that he tried to force himself upon her but fled when she screamed. (Genesis 39:11-15)  When she told the story to her husband, he had Joseph put in prison, (Genesis 39:16-20) but The Lord God was with him and he found favor with the keeper of the prison. (Genesis 39:20-23)  The chief of the butlers and the chief of the bakers were also imprisoned with Joseph.  Both men had dreams which Joseph interpreted for them and things came to pass as he said. (Genesis 40:1-23)  Two years later Pharaoh had a dream which none of his wise men or magicians could interpret. (Genesis 41:1-8)  Then the chief butler remembered that Joseph had interpreted his dream correctly and he told this to Pharaoh. (Genesis 41:9-13)  Hearing this, Pharaoh sent for Joseph, told him the dream, and he said that God had showed him that there would be seven good years followed by seven years of famine. (Genesis 41:14-32)  Pharaoh then placed Joseph in charge of his house, people, and land, and made him second in command in all of Egypt. (Genesis 41:39-41)  Joseph had them gather up and store corn for seven years (Genesis 41:48-49) and he sold it to the people when the famine came. (Genesis 41:55-57)

Application:

Joseph went from the bottom of a pit, to being a slave, and to prison but rose up to be in charge of the country because The Lord God was with him. (Genesis 39:2 and 39:21) We need to learn to praise God in good times and bad times. (Philippians 4:12)  It is God who gives us the strength to make it through the storms of life. (Philippians 4:13)  It is His strength which manifests itself during our periods of weakness. (2 Corinthians 12:9)  We should really count all of our trials and tribulations as joy because they are opportunities for God to show up in our life. (James 1:2)  Remember to give God the credit.  “In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy paths.” (Proverbs 3:6)  Joseph made it clear that the dream interpretation was from God and not his own doing. (Genesis 41:16) 

IF IT IS THE LORD'S WILL WE WILL

Proclamation:

"Now listen, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.'  Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow.  What is your life?  You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.  Instead, you ought to say, 'If it is The Lord's will, we will live and do this or that.'  As it is, you boast and brag.  All such boasting is evil.  Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins."  James 4:13-17 (NIV)

Explanation:

James, the half-brother of Jesus, wrote these Holy Spirit inspired words to all believers to help them correct their speech and their behavior.  Here, he urges them to be careful regarding how they speak about what they will do in the future.  He encouraged them to say, "If it be The Lord's will, we will live and do this or that."

Application:
At the end of each calendar year, a lot of people seem to get caught up in saying what we will do in the upcoming year.  We seem to forget that we really do not have control over the future, or if we will live to see it.  We need to remember that only "if it is in The Good Lord's will ..." would be a better way to begin any statement regarding our future plans.  Additionally, we are about to celebrate the beginning of the “New Year”, a worldly celebration for which I could not find a Biblical reference.  The Bible says that every day is a day for continually giving thanks to God. (Ephesians 5:20, Colossians 3:17, and Hebrews 13:15)  We should praise Him and thank Him for every day, and every week, and every month, and for every year that we are blessed to be alive.  Only God can make a day, (Genesis 1:1-5 and Psalms 118:24), and only God can sustain us through a day. (Psalms 55:22)  Let us not get so caught up in the worldly celebrations, and our future plans, that we forget that only that which is in the will of The Lord God will occur, and we should praise and thank Him for what He has done, is doing, and will do for us.

GOD HAS A PLAN FOR EACH OF US

Proclamation:

"After Job had prayed for his friends, The Lord made him prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before ... The Lord blessed the latter part of Job's life more than the first." Job 42:10-12 (NIV)

Explanation:

These words were written by Job under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  Job, who was a rich and righteous man, (Job 1:1-3) lost everything that he had, (Job 1:13-19) including his health, (Job 2:7) but kept his faith in God. (Job 1:21-22)  Through all of his suffering, Job did not take his wife's advice to curse God and die. (Job 2:9)  He also would not agree with his three friends who said that he was being punished for his sins.  Job remained faithful and he passed his test.  After he prayed for his friends, God healed his body and restored his prosperity, giving him twice as much as he had beforehand.

Application:
Only God knows why we go through the situations that we go through.  There is a purpose for everything, even if we do not understand it while we are enduring it.  Our future holds something much better for us that anything we enjoyed in the past.  So don't be discouraged when you go through the storms of life, they are only tests and temporary situations.  God is sovereign and is in control of all things.  We just need to trust Him and keep the faith.  He will work everything out in our best interest, as only He can.  "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28)

NO WEAPON FORMED AGAINST US SHALL PROSPER

Proclamation:

“No weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you.  This is the heritage of the servants of The Lord, and this is their vindication from Me, declares The Lord.” Isaiah 54:17 (NIV)

Explanation:

This was written by the Prophet Isaiah, the greatest of all of the prophets, under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  According to Isaiah, The Lord God said I created the man who makes the weapons and I created the man who will use the weapon to wreak havoc in the lives of men. (Isaiah 54:16)  The Lord said that He will render all of the weapons which come up against them to be useless.  He also said that they would refute every charge brought up against them.  This will be the privilege of all who serve The Lord.

Application: 

The Lord will be our protection.  All of our enemies shall be put down and all of the devices that they planned to use against us shall fail.  The Lord has promised to protect us because we belong to Him.  Even those who speak evil against us will find that their words will not harm us as they intended, but will backfire and condemn themselves.  He will protect us from those who plan to do us wrong individually or collectively.

FOR THE GLORY OF GOD

Proclamation:

"His disciples asked Him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’  ‘Neither this man nor his parents sinned,’ said Jesus, ‘but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him." John 9:2-3 (NIV)

Explanation:

These words were written by the Apostle John to record the conversation which occurred just prior to Jesus giving sight to a man who was blind from birth.  Jesus explained the situation to His disciples by saying that some times things happen to people so that God can use the situation in order to show others what He can do and so He can be glorified.

Application:

Sometimes bad things happen to good people.  We don't understand it and we often ask why it happened.  Let us not be so quick to complain about our situation, whether our bad choices led us to it or if it was the result of something over which we had no control.  We should act in a Christ-like manner regardless of the situation.  God is still in control.  Whatever it is, it can still serve a purpose.  Our negative situations can be used by God for His glory, for our benefit, or for the benefit of others.  Remember the Bible story about Job.  He was a God-fearing good man who was wealthy and lost everything that he had when God let the devil test him. (Job 1:1-22)  In the end, Job was blessed with twice as much as he had. (Job 42:10 and 12)  As Christians "... we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28)  So let us live for the glory of God, no matter what happens.

GOD CAN USE US WHERE WE ARE

Proclamation:

"Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in life that The Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him. This is the rule I lay down in all the churches. ... Each one should remain in the situation which he was in when God called him."  1 Corinthians 7:17 and 20 (NIV)

Explanation:

The Apostle Paul began this chapter to the believers in Corinth with a discussion on being married versus being single.  However, he also discussed being circumcised versus uncircumcised and being a slave versus being free.  His point was, with respect to God's call on their life, they should stay in the situation that they were in when God called them, and focus on what God has for them to do and not focus on their situation.

Application:

God can use us, wherever we are in life, regardless of our status, station, or situation.  What is important to God is our focus being on Him and our behavior, not our employment status, marital status, our health status, or economic status.  God has a purpose for each of us, and it is important that we bloom where He has planted us. (2 Corinthians 5:5 and Philippians 2:13)  God has blessed us to be in whatever situation we find ourselves in, and He will work it for our good. (Roman 8:28)  We need to appreciate wherever we are planted and count it all as joy. (James 1:2)  Whatever we do, we should do it to the best of our ability. (Ecclesiastes 9:10)  For whatever it is that we do, it should be done to the glory of God, because it is for Him that we are working. (1 Corinthians 10:31 and Colossians 3:23)  

GOD HAS PLANS FOR YOU TO PROSPER

Proclamation:

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares The Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.  Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart." Jeremiah 29:11-13 (NIV)

Explanation:
These words are from the text of the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the surviving elders among the exiles, to the priests, to the prophets and to all the other people that King Nebuchadnezzar had carried off into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon.

Application:

These words can also be applied to us today.  The believers of today are suffering.  We may not have been taken into captivity but we are suffering.  God is aware of our current situations, trials, and troubles.  He knows that our problems are only temporary and that joy and happiness will be ours soon. (Psalm 30:5)  God knows all and He knows what plans He has each one of us.  He knows why we are going through the storms in our lives.  These storms will pass and their dark clouds will reveal a silver lining followed by a beautiful rainbow.  His plans are for us to prosper and to have a better future.  Soon we will be much better off.  No man has seen the wondrous things which God has in store for us. (1 Corinthians 2:9-10)  So, keep the faith, keep your hope in The Lord, things will get better and "we will understand it better by and by".

IF IT IS THE WILL OF THE LORD WE WILL

Proclamation:

“Now listen, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.'  Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow.  What is your life?  You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.  Instead, you ought to say, 'If it is The Lord's will, we will live and do this or that.’”  James 4:13-15 (NIV)

Explanation:
James, the half brother of Jesus, wrote these Holy Spirit inspired words to the believers to help them correct their speech and their behavior.  Here, he urges them to be careful regarding how they speak about what they will do in the future.  He encouraged them to say, "If it be The Lord's will, we will live and do this or that."  He told them that they do not know what will happen in the future.  They cannot be sure that that they will even be alive at that future time.

Application:
At the end of each calendar year, we seem to get caught up in saying what we will do in the upcoming year.  We seem to forget that we really do not have control over the future, or if we will live to see it.  We need to remember that only "if it is in The Good Lord's will ..." would be a better way to begin any statement regarding our future plans.  The Bible says that every day always is a day for continually giving thanks to God. (Ephesians 5:20, Colossians 3:17, and Hebrews 13:15)  We should praise Him and thank Him for every day, and every week, and every month, and for every year that we are blessed to be alive.  Only God can make a day, (Genesis 1:1-5 and Psalms 118:24), and only God can sustain us through a day. (Psalms 55:22)  Let us not get so caught up in our future plans that we forget that only that which is in the will of The Lord God will occur.  Only He knows the future and what it holds for us.  We should praise and thank God daily for what He has done, is doing, and will do for us.

 

All Things Will Work Out For Good For Believers

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose."  Romans 8:28 (NIV)

In his letter to the believers in Rome, the Apostle Paul told them that The Lord God would work everything out for the benefit of those who loved Him, according to His purpose and plan for their life.

Nothing in this world happens by chance.  All things occur according to the permissive will of God, both the good things (James 1:17), and the bad things. (Job 1:9-12)  God has a purpose for everything. (Ecclesiastes 3:1)  He permits some things to occur as trials or tests of our faith. (1 Peter 1:7)  When bad things happen, we should have the attitude of Job and say The Lord has given and The Lord has taken away, blessed be the name of The Lord. (Job 1:21)  The Apostle Paul also had the right attitude when he said that he had learned to be content in whatever situation that he is in, good or bad. (Philippians 4:11-12)  When thing seem to be going bad, we need to remember that God is still in control.  God is omniscient, omnipotent, and omni-present. (Matthew 28:18, 1 John 3:20, and Proverbs 15:3)  It has been said that life is a series of storms, we are either in one, just coming out of one, or heading into one.  But we know that He controls the storms, literally and figuratively. (Mark 4:39)  We should learn to count every storm as joy because it is all part of the will of God. (James 1:2-3)  The Lord God will use the storms that we go through for our good. (Romans 8:28)  The things that seem to be meant for bad or evil, He can use them for our good. (Genesis 50:20)  We will be blessed for persevering and keeping the faith through the storms of life. (James 1:12)  

Don't Let Past Sins Stand In Your Way

"At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is The Son of God.  All those who heard him were astonished and asked, 'Isn't he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name?  And hasn't he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?"  Acts 9:21-22 (NIV)

When he received his sight, after being struck down and blinded on the road to Damascus, Saul, who would later be known as the Apostle Paul, changed from persecutor of Christians to preacher for Christ.  He never denied his past actions, in fact he began one of his letters to the believers reminding them of his past sins. (Galatians 1:13)  He even claimed to be the chief among the sinners. (1 Timothy 1:15)   Then he told them that God changed him. (Galatians 1:15-16)

The Lord God turned life of the Apostle Paul completely around and took him from being a well known persecutor, to being a prolific preacher, writer of the biblical epistles, and founder of churches.  He did not let his past sins stand in the way of being used by The Lord.  Some people think that they are too bad for God to want them, or to use them.  Jesus came into this world for the purpose of saving lost sinners. (Romans 5:8)  We all have a past life of sin (Romans 3:23), but thanks be to God, believers have a future gift of eternal life. (Romans 6:23)  Don't let your past sins stand in your way, or hold you back.  God loves you. (John 3:16)  God has plans for you. (Jeremiah 29:11-12)  People will remind you of you past sins when they cannot handle you present situation, and when your future is brighter than theirs.

Some People Will Not Like Us Doing God's Work

"Then the peoples around them set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building.  They hired counselors to work against them and frustrate their plans during the entire reign of Cyrus king of Persia and down to the reign of Darius king of Persia."  Ezra 4:4-5 (NIV)

The prophet Ezra recorded that as the people began to rebuild the temple, their enemies and detractors began to actively attempt to discourage them, tried to strike fear in their hearts, and even hired counselors to work against them and to frustrate them.

We need to understand and expect that when we are doing The Lord's work, we will have opposition, detractors, and those who will actively work against us to frustrate and block our efforts.  The will of God is going to happen, all they can do, at best, is delay our victory.  We will have our troubles, but we have been assured that we will have the victory because The Lord has already overcome the world.  (John 16:33, 1 John 4:4, & 1 John 5:4)  Keep on working for The Lord, regardless of what happens.

Be Joyful In Good Times And In Bad Times

"When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider: God has made the one as well as the other.  Therefore, a man cannot discover anything about his future."  Ecclesiastes 7:14 (NIV)

The wise King Solomon said that one should enjoy the good times and the bad times because God ordained both of them.  Since no one knows what the future holds, one should enjoy the present.

This same philosophy was echoed by the Apostle James, the half brother of Jesus, when he said count it all as joy. (James 1:2)  Both good and bad things will happen to us during our lives, all we can control is how we respond to them.  We know that because of Jesus, the Christ, we will win in the end, so why should we get upset over or angry about anything.  In the best of times, and in the worst of times, be joyful because God is in control.

Things Are Not Always As We Expect Them To Be

"I have seen something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all.  Moreover, no man knows when his hour will come..."  Ecclesiastes 9:11-12 (NIV)

Solomon, said that good outcomes cannot be guaranteed by being swift, strong, wise, brilliant, or learned.  Time catches up with all men, and no man knows the day or the hour when his time will end.

Being a believer in Jesus Christ does not guarantee that one will experience only good things in life.  Time will bring to us unforeseen circumstances even when we thought that we were prepared.  Every man that is born of woman will live only a few days and those days will be full of trouble." (Job 14:1)  Believers will suffer and will not always experience the good of life. (Philippians 1:29 & 1 Peter 1:6)  Unless we are alive at the time of the rapture, we will experience physical death (Hebrews 9:27), and no man knows when he is going to die. (Ecclesiastes 8:7 & 9:12)  However, it will be granted to the believers to enjoy everlasting life. (John 3:16)

Man Plans But God Prevails

"Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise.  Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is The Lord's purpose that prevails."  Proverbs 19:20-21 (NIV)

This proverb is a moral statement or illustration of Solomon which makes the point that integrity is better than wealth and wisdom is gained by listening to wise council.  Man's plans should always consider God's purpose.  Human preparation is always subject to God's will. (Proverbs 16:1)

Most of us want what we want, and we go after it.  Our poorly thought out plans do not take into account the advice of others or the previous instruction of our teachers.  Our plans, spoken or silent, do not consider the will of God.  We should listen to wise council and pray, before we plan and act.  Plans that leave God out probably will not succeed.  The best plans of man are those which demonstrate our love for our fellow man and those which give God glory.  If our plans are for our own benefit, pleasure, or personal gain, then they are based upon worldly pursuits.  "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these other things will be added unto you."  (Matthew 6:33)  We were all put here for a purpose, let's pray and make sure that our plans and actions are to accomplish God's purpose for our lives.

Only What We Do For Christ Will Count #2

"I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow.  So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.  The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor.  For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building."  1 Corinthians 3:6-9 (NIV)

The Apostle Paul told the Christians at Corinth that leaders like he and Apollos were not important, they were both just servants of God.  And just like all Christians, they had a job to do, working for The Lord, and they would be rewarded by Him according to how well they did their job. 

Today we should understand that our positions and what we do here on earth is not about us.  All that matters and what is important is what we do for Christ.  Our individual efforts are just a very small part of His overall plan for things.  We each have a job to do as part of His kingdom building plan.  We each need to make sure that we are doing what He has called us to do, because in the end, only what we do for Christ will count when we have to give an account on judgement day.

Are You One Of God's Chosen People?

"So too, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace." Romans 11:5 (NIV)

When the Apostle Paul was questioned as to whether God had rejected Israel because they had turned away from Him, Paul reminded them of what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah, how he appealed to God against Israel: "Lord, they have killed your prophets and torn down your altars; I am the only one left, and they are trying to kill me. (1 Kings 18:22) God told him that He had seven thousand believers who had not bowed down to Baal. He had a remnant of believers then in Elijah's day, and He had a remnant of believers in Paul's day.

Today, in spite of the sad state of things in this world, and in spite of all the non-believers there are, as evil as man is, God still has a remnant of believers alive today to spread His word and do His work. By the grace of God, we can be part of the remnant of believers that are working for God today, if we choose to believe.