Suddenly Moments

What do you do when you are having a bad day? Do you ever just worship God? Give thanks, glory or praise? Understandably being the humans that we are—this is not always our default reaction.

But I want to challenge you to step out of your normal default box and into the realm of suddenly moments—that result in God shaking our life to its very core and bringing about change.

I heard an amazing message—totally worth repeating—on Acts 16. Follow along with me as I reiterate what was happening and how God—our Knight in shining armor suddenly comes to save the day.

Paul and Silas, in the will of God—directed by Him—went to Macedonia. As they were lingering in Philippi, they met a God-fearing woman named Lydia who on hearing the Word of the Lord believed with all her heart, as a result she and her household were baptized and insisted the men stay at their home. At this point all is going well, Paul’s preaching—God’s moving and they are invited to stay and be cared for, in a rather nice place. Acts 16:6-15

One day on the way to prayer a demon possessed psychic, slave girl, started following them around, drawing attention to them by yelling out “These men are working for the Most High God. They’re laying out the road of salvation for you!”

Paul, not wanting to be in agreement with her or to be identified as being with her, ignored her for a few days then finally when too annoyed he cast the demon out of her. The slave girl was suddenly free and her owners very upset—their lucrative little business had come to an end. Consequently, Paul and Silas were dragged into the market place—they were lied about and accused, causing the crowd to turn into an angry gang. Their clothes were torn off and they were ordered to be severely beaten and thrown into prison, under high security wearing leg irons.  Acts 16:16-24

Paul and Silas—bloody and beaten, sit chained in prison. Would you say they were having a bad day? Absolutely!

What did they do? Did they accuse God of unfaithfulness by whining and complaining?

No—just the opposite! Paul and Silas were found praying and worshipping.

What would you do?

I love how Paul and Silas handled the situation! Their default heart and soul reaction was to pray and worship God—in doing so they were giving thanks.

I pray our default heart reaction would be to silence the mouth of the accuser and give thanks by worshipping God.

How? Why? Because the truth is—He is always good. We must train our heart and soul to worship and give thanks according to truth—not circumstance.

This is when the suddenly moments of God’s faithfulness rule our life.

What happens next in Acts 16:25-26 is the cry of our heart.

But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed.

Suddenly there was a great earthquake! Paul and Silas’ worship caused God to shake the very foundations and set the prisoners free—the scripture says immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed.

Not just our own freedom from the prisons we find ourselves in—occurs when we worship, but freedom for others as well.

I don’t know about you but I need and want God to suddenly shake the foundation of various situations in my life and in the life of those I love and care about.

This Word from the book of Acts has brought fresh understanding to the scripture in 2 Thessalonians 5:18

“In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

Please be encouraged to grab ahold of and own this concept. Worship God, giving Him thanks in every situation—lifting our eyes from life and circumstances to the God of the impossible—the One who can suddenly shake any situation and change the landscape of impossible surroundings.

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Skillful Living 101—18 Our Strong Tower

A life that is lived skillfully would most definitely be a life lived in God’s presence.

Proverbs 18:10, describes God as a strong tower where the righteous run in and are safe. I love how compassionate and loving God is, that He provides a place where we can find refuge and peace. This refuge is not just any old place—no, our place of security is in the very presence of God.

One way to understanding God’s presence is to see it as a shelter, a fortress and a hiding place. A dwelling—where our life is hidden in God, not that we necessarily hide from life, but an actual place where we live life.

Colossians 2:3 says

Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

Proverbs—the book of skillful living, is all about setting our mind on things above and not on the things of the earth. Living a life hidden with Christ in God, helps us to rise above earthy circumstances—rise above trivial—setting our heart and soul on the most important—the things of God.

A good way to remain diligent in living skillfully—thus setting our mind on things above is to make living in God’s presence our daily objective. In doing so we must grab a hold of His Word—making it our source of nourishment.

In Proverbs 18, we find a myriad of good advice and nourishment. Granted the whole chapter is beneficial but we will look at six main points, found in verses 10, 15, 19, 21, 22 and 24.

Verse 10—“The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.”

• The righteous make God their refuge
• God is our help

Verse 15—“The heart of the prudent acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.”

• A sensible person esteems knowledge
• To set our mind on things above, we must pursue biblical knowledge
• The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge

Verse 19—“A brother offended is harder to win than a strong city, and contentions are like the bars of a castle.”

• An offended person, whether they be right or wrong, is harder to talk to, and work things out with, than a fortified city
• It’s better to pray and wait—rather than argue with an offended person
• Remember offence is a choice—we must keep our heart free of offence

Verse 21—“Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.”

• Our words will bring life our death to those on whom they fall
• If we love gossip and slander, we will reap its rewards
• We need to make habit of speaking life into people and situations
• Controlling our tongue is a heart issue

Verse 22—“He who finds a wife finds a good thing, and obtains favor from the Lord.”

• A spouse is a blessing from the Lord
•  We have to be good stewards of God’s blessings

Verse 23—“A man who has friends must himself be friendly, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.”

• First be a friend
• Faithfulness is priceless

Skillful Living Tools

• Make it your daily objective to live in God’s presence
• Learn to know God’s presence as a shelter, refuge, a fortress and a hiding place
• Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth
• Grab a hold of God’s Word—making it your source of nourishment.
• To set our mind on things above, we must pursue biblical knowledge
• It’s better to pray and wait— rather than argue with an offended person
• Death and life are in the power of the tongue
• Make habit of speaking life into people and situations
• Treat your spouse good—they are a blessing from God
• A faithful friend is priceless

Please be encouraged to seek God as your strong tower and place of refuge—here your heart can settle and be at peace.

Read and apply all of Proverbs 18 and please share with those who need to live skillfully!

Check out the Skillful Living Tool Box (updated weekly) at the top of this page!

 

 

Skillful Living 101—9 Wisdom’s Invitation

You are cordially invited

Wisdom has skillfully constructed her home and set an elaborate table. Serving a delightful well calculated cuisine—delicious, nourishing and satisfying; most importantly this menu is abundantly available to all who will listen.

Following is your personal invitation from Proverbs 9:4-8:

“Are you confused about life, don’t know what’s going on? Come with me, oh come, have dinner with me! I’ve prepared a wonderful spread—fresh-baked bread, roast lamb, carefully selected wines. Leave your impoverished confusion and live! Walk up the street to a life with meaning.” (The Message)

Once again Proverbs summons us to take a hold of wisdom. Sometimes it’s easy to tune the invitation out, thinking “I’m okay, I have an ample amount of wisdom” But 1 Corinthians 1:25 says, “The foolishness of God is wiser than men” Take the very wisest of all human beings and compare them to God. If God were foolish, His foolishness would be even wiser than the wisest of all men.

We will never be above accepting wisdom’s invitation; it will do us well to embrace all the wisdom God has to offer.

For example—we need wisdom to digest Proverbs 9:7-9.  In our human intelligent, if we consider ourselves wise, than we may feel as if we can’t be taught. Proverbs 9:7-9 says, an unwise person will not accept instruction, but instruct a wise person and they will be wiser still. Teach or rebuke a righteous person and they will increase in learning. Verse 8 goes as far as to say “Do not correct a scoffer, lest he hate you; Rebuke a wise man, and he will love you”

Amongst the array of delicacies at wisdom’s banqueting table, we find the capacity to live a humble lifestyle. A humble person welcomes instruction, is teachable and accepts rebuke and correction—no matter their age or position in life.

In Proverbs 9:10-12, the invitation is extended once again to fear the Lord. Why? Because…

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding”

Wisdom’s invitation to fear the lord will keep us from folly. In verse 13-18 of Proverbs 9, the voice of folly sends out an invitation as well. Wooing the unassuming, impersonating the voice of wisdom—saying, “’Whoever is simple, let him turn in here.’ And as for him who lacks understanding, she says to him, ‘Stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.’ But he does not know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of hell”

God in His kindness has extended His invitation to embrace wisdom. Be encouraged to accept.

Skillful Living Tools:

• Tune your heart to hear and embrace wisdom’s invitation
• Be wise and accept instruction, teaching and rebuke
• Live humbly
• Fear the Lord
• Resist folly

Check out the Skillful Living Tool Box (updated weekly) at the top of this page!

Be Prepared for the Accuser’s Voice

When accusations come our way, and guaranteed they will come. We have to be prepared.

Not too long ago I had a situation where I was caught off guard.

The accuser’s voice came from someone I trusted. Unfortunately it took me a couple of days to realize exactly what was happening.

The discouraging thing about the whole situation was that I had heard these words before—they were the lies I believed about myself before I learned to distinguish God’s voice from the accuser’s voice.

I have to admit I should not have listened, let alone allow the words to penetrate my heart. After I removed the fiery dart of accusation, it became clear to me what actually transpired

Because the words were painfully spoken by someone I cared about, I immediately agreed with them and let them marinate inside my head. Saying to myself “It’s true, I haven’t changed at all.”

What I should have done was automatically aligned the words to the Word of God. This is how we should always handle these situations.

When I finally asked God about it, He did not agree with me or the devil—big surprise right? He told me that my first clue to the authenticity of the words should have been how painful they were. Even in correction God’s words may be direct, hard to swallow and full of conviction but His words offer life and a hand to change. The words of the accuser are poisonous and debilitating, offering no hope, just condemnation, shame and heaviness—never to be agreed with.

As elementary as this may sound, the revelation was very freeing. Sometimes because of relationship or someone’s position, we can take in and believe what they say about us. Lesson learned; never agree with familiar words of the enemy, no matter who speaks them.

The first thing we should always do is take everything to God and let Him judge and weigh it for us

The voice of the accuser approaches us in many different forms. Sometimes it’s as blatant as the situation I just described, most of the time it’s a sneaky whisper, disguised by Satan, to sound as an original thought from God, or our own heart and mind. His intentions are to implant lies about God, our self and everyone else.

I recently talked to someone who gave me a long list of lies they believed about them self. I was shocked and mad that Satan had so stealthily implanted these thoughts into my friends mind—worse my friend believed every word! But this is how Satan works, deviously planting one big lie mixed with a little truth and WHAM! We buy it.

I understand this is not fresh information, but somehow the devil does find a way to blindside us. This is why being prepared is not an option! I know that if my friend continued believing those lies about herself, she would have begun to believe lies about God. The cunning devil would have been able to convince her that God wasn’t big enough to help her.

Accusations in all forms are lethal. It is Satan’s job to steal, kill and destroy. He accuses God constantly. The devil’s ultimate plan is to steal our faith in God.

Be watchful and ready!

Following are a few ways to be prepared:

• The mind has to be renewed by the Spirit of God daily

Ephesians 4:17 “You should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind” Verses 22-23, “Put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind.”

Romans 12:2 “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”

• Take every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ

2 Corinthians 10:5 “Casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.”

• Wash your mind with the Word of God

Ephesians 5:25-26 “Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word.”

• Take up the shield of faith

Ephesians 6:16 “Above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.”

Please be encouraged to prepare your mind for the accusations of the enemy! The victory is already yours—grab it!

Ephesians 6:13-18, “Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each others spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.”

Skillful Living 101—8 Wisdom’s Excellence

The Excellence of Wisdom

Wisdom, insight and understanding sound their request. Let all who have a heart to hear—pay attention to the excellence of wisdom.

What is the excellence of wisdom? Nothing less than Christ.

As we read Proverbs 8, it’s as Christ Himself is calling to the very core of our being, saying listen—my words are plain, give ear to understanding, use good judgment, do not be foolish, but embrace Me—behold wisdom and live.

Wisdom’s value is priceless, of more worth than gold, silver and precious jewels.

What do you desire most? Proverbs 8:11 shamelessly states, nothing we desire can compare with wisdom. That’s a huge declaration, one to ponder.

Take that which is of greatest desire to you, feel its worth—and know that the scripture says wisdom is of greater value.

Be stirred to make an exchange with God—that which you desire, for that which God desires for you—Christ the excellence of wisdom and the fruit of His righteousness.

Proverbs 8:17-18 coincides with Matthew 6:33, they pronounce;

“I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently will find me. Riches and honor are with me, enduring riches and righteousness.”

“Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” Matthew 6:33

It really is simple, but most difficult for our flesh; seek Him first and He adds all things, according to His will, to you. Our human mind wants to reason how can this simple daily choice of seeking God first help me?

Listen…wisdom is calling…instructing us to choose to seek Him first.
Hear with faith…tune your spiritual ears.

Proverbs 8:19 articulates that the profit of choosing Him first is superior over any other choice.

“My fruit is better than gold, yes, than fine gold, and my revenue than choice silver.”

Verse 34 offers a nugget of truth on seeking Him—that will change your life.  It says, watch daily at His gates and wait at His door post.

Watch for the Lord—wait for Him, He will come. Jesus is the wisdom of God, He fills every need—every day!

If you want blessings, favor and life from the Lord, simply keep His ways, hear His instruction and make your heart His home.

Proverbs 8:33-36 “Now therefore, listen to me, my children, for blessed are those who keep my ways. Hear instruction and be wise, and do not disdain it. Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors. For whoever finds me finds life, and obtains favor from the Lord; but he who sins against me wrongs his own soul; all those who hate me love death.”

Be encouraged to read Proverbs 8 with the perspective of wisdom being Christ—it will bless you!

Check out the skillful Living Tool Box (updated weekly) at the top of this page.

Skillful Living Tools:

• Ask for the revelation of Christ as the wisdom of God
• Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness
• Keep His ways
• Listen to instruction and be wise
• Watch and wait for the Lord