Our joy, prayers, and thankfulness, should not fluctuate with our circumstances or feelings. Paul was not teaching, in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, that we should thank God for everything that happens to us, but in everything we should give thanks. Evil does not come from God, therefore, we should not thank him for it. However, when evil strikes, we can still be thankful for God’s presence and for the good that he will accomplish through the distress. I know good will accomplish something good through our lives.
Weeping, I write…but Joy comes!
Oh God, draw near to us as we draw near to you. We give our sorrow, hurt, and sadness to you. In exchange, PLEASE give us joy, healing, and peace. PLEASE! We will not crumble because of the acts of evil, but rather we will pray that You will deliver us from evil. We know you hate evil, so please have compassion to forgive us when we sin—reunite us back to you again. We will pay for our wrongdoing, and we pray that your grace and mercy will settle the account with those who have wronged us. Wash us, so that we are clean again. Let your mercy be new each day.
I know your grace and mercy are with us. In our weakness, make your strength perfect O Lord! For I am weak, but You have all power and strength. Arise, our King! Arouse your Holy Spirit within us! I can feel your strength rising in me. I can feel my tears drying upon my face. Now, I can feel the heaviness being made light! I can feel your presence O Lord! Please be near us today dear God! Have us to know that you are here! Have mercy on us Lord. May You be glorified! Oh my God, you never leave us, do you? You never will! I love you Dear God! Thanks for not forgetting about us, no matter where we may be this morning.
The Power of Intercession!
Last night, the Holy Spirit had me to pray fervently for the lost! I knew of no one specific in need of prayer last night. So I prayed what was weighing heavy on my heart; those with addictions, the hopeless, the prostitutes, the thieves, the robbers, the liars, the lonely, those who have lost their desire to live. I prayed for them as if I were praying for a loved one! Intercessory prayer is simply praying for others. I cried out for God to, please have mercy on them! I pleaded with God to save them! I reminded The Lord that He created them and that He loves them! The Holy Spirit helped me pray for them! I prayed until the heaviness lifted from my heart. I believe someone needed prayer last night!
At 3:00AM, I awakened and the Lord had me to read Exodus 32. In this chapter, Moses was up on Mount Sinai receiving the Ten Commandments while the people at the foot of the mountain turned toward worshipping idol gods. God got so mad at them that he was going to destroy them all for He had just told the people to worship no other gods but Him. I read the chapter and my eyes got bright with glee! My Lord! Here’s an excerpt from Exodus 32 in the NIV bible…
7 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt, have become corrupt. 8 They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf. They have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it and have said, ‘These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.’
9 “I have seen these people,” the Lord said to Moses, “and they are a stiff-necked people. 10 Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.”
11 But Moses sought the favor of the Lord his God. “Lord,” he said, “why should your anger burn against your people, whom you brought out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand? 12 Why should the Egyptians say, ‘It was with evil intent that he brought them out, to kill them in the mountains and to wipe them off the face of the earth’? Turn from your fierce anger; relent and do not bring disaster on your people. 13 Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, to whom you swore by your own self: ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and I will give your descendants all this land I promised them, and it will be their inheritance forever.’” 14 Then the Lord relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.
Intercessory prayer has power! Moses was able to change God’s behavior so that he would not bring disaster to them as He had planned. I believe my prayers last night, saved someone from destruction too. I thank God for helping me to understand my experience from reading Exodus 32. Pray for someone today! There is power in intercessory prayer!
God hates sin…Isaiah 61:8
In this verse The Lord tells us that he loves justice and hates robbery and wrong doings. Justice makes right the wrong done and it makes wrong-doers accountable for their wrong. The Lord hates robbery and sin. The Lord is letting us know, yet again, that he hates it when his people suffer because of others wrong doing…the stuff that people do to you that is unfair. God will settle it with these workers of evil and at the same time reward those who suffered. I pray that God will bring justice to the injustice in our lives today (on our jobs, in our homes, in our relationships, in our courts) . I thank God for sharing this with us today. He yet gives us hope and comfort. Amen!
Care for others…
In Matthew 25: 35-40, Jesus says, “For when I was hungry you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers, you did it into me.” Jesus expects us to be concerned about and care for those overlooked or ignored. How about it?
Have the Holy Spirit…Have Jesus!
The Holy Spirit is the very presence of God within us. By faith, we can make use of the Holy Spirit’s power EACH day! Wow! The Holy Spirit will be with us forever…He
- lives with us and in us
- teaches us as we study the Bible, and He puts truth in our mind and heart
- reminds us of Jesus words in the Bible so we can live by them
- convicts us of sin so that we know our wrong and calls us to repent of our sin
- shows us the right way to live according to Jesus
- guides us into the truth about Christ and helps us to know right from wrong
- gives insight into future events, what our mission is and how to prepare for it. God knows what will happen and because He will be with us through it all, we need not fear
- brings glory to Christ by our lives. All praise and honor will go to The Lord!
To have the Holy Spirit is to have Jesus! John 14:18 Every day, all the time! For always! Having the Holy Spirit in our lives is having Peace. Not the peace the world knows as the absence of conflict, God’s Peace is confident assurance in any circumstance. We have no need to fear the present or the future. Sin, fear, uncertainty, doubt, and many other forces are at war within us. However, the Peace of God in our hearts will restrain these forces and offer comfort in place of conflict! Accept the Peace of God by accepting the Holy Spirit; having Jesus.
How to help others receive Christ:
- Admit they need Christ (I am a sinner); I am guilty of doing wrong and I believe Jesus can forgive me of the wrong that I have done
- Be willing to turn from sin (I don’t want to sin anymore, repent); please forgive me Lord of my sin. I need your help to keep me from sinning.
- Believe that Jesus died for you on the cross and rose from the grave; I know that Jesus paid the price for my wrong.
- Through prayer, invite Jesus to come in and control your life through the Holy Spirit (receive Him as Lord and Savior). Please come into my life and take control. Fill me with your Holy Spirit, which will teach me the truth, guide me, and protect me.
Worship Him…Revelations 7:11
As the angels in heaven standing around the throne, fell down on their faces and worshipped God saying, “Amen! PRAISE and GLORY and WISDOM and THANKS and HONOR and POWER and STRENGTH be to our God forever and ever. Amen!” So too, must I worship Him. Show respect and love for God today by praying and believing in Him, loving one another, being kind and caring, helping those in need, and telling people about God’s great love for us by giving of His Son Jesus to us.
Family…
A personal message to my family today…
I am here for you. Each of you is a precious gift from God to me. I value and care for you under all circumstances. Today, I thank God for my family. I love you, and I am here for you.
Even when Jesus was dying on the cross, He was concerned about his family. He instructed John, his friend, to care for his mother. We should value and care for our family too. Nothing excuses us from caring for our families. Show your family that you love them today. I will.
John 19:25-27
Do what God says, not what we feel…
God shared with me that there is freedom and liberty from the things that hold us in bondage when we do what his Word says and not what we feel. Want to get over the struggles–do what God says. And remember, that does not mean that He is not working to bring justice in life…ours as well as others.
Brenda Messervy 