God's Plan For Us

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.
When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned,
Nor shall the flame scorch you. Isaiah 43:2 (NKJV)

I pray brothers and sisters that your life is going just as the Lord has planned AND that you are free of any trials or perils. But perhaps you are experiencing the drowning, crushing, burning power of a trial right now. Perhaps you are just overcoming one or for whatever circumstances you know of one coming. If so, then you need to know, first of all, that this is part of life.

I recently was told a story about a young girl whose mother had just passed. It was unexpected, unplanned, and devastating to say the least. Where was the hope for this little girl? Where was God for her? What great sin had she committed to be punished by God like this? She had not!

No matter who you are, or where you come from, or what decisions you make in life, you will face illness and pain and loss. No human lives forever and no one is perfect. Sickness and mistakes are part of the human experience. Embedded in the promise of this text is the reality of suffering: when you pass through the waters, when you walk through the fire. God’s children are not exempted from tragedy.

This is not bleak, this is God's plan for us. But there is hope friends. When you do face life’s difficulties, here is the promise for every child of God: He will be with you, the trials will not overcome you, and you will not be harmed.

For this reason, you need not fear no matter what obstacle or heartache you may be facing. “Fear not,” God says, “for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name, you are mine” (43:1). He knows exactly what is going with your situation and has already dedicated himself to YOUR salvation; you belong to his heart, and therefore will not let anything or anyone harm you.

If you have given yourself to Christ then you have been redeemed by God and he will not let anything happen to you that is not for your good (Romans 8:28). No difficulty will drown you, no trial will overwhelm you, no sorrow will destroy you. It is this knowledge that we take into our darkest times.

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Remember Your Creator

Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth, before the difficult days come, and the years draw near when you say, "I have no pleasure in them" – Ecclesiastes 12:1 (NKJV)

It is inevitable, young person, that you will eventually come to a time—perhaps even years—when you are not even able to enjoy the pleasures of this life anymore. As unthinkable as it may seem right now, you will not always be strong, free of pain, able to eat anything you want (that day is actually coming soon!), or even perhaps able to get out of bed.

Why does Solomon remind us of this fact? Is he just trying to burst our bubble or make us depressed? No. He is writing this admonition so that we will begin now to pour our hearts and lives into pleasures that even old age cannot take away.

Remember now your Creator! Don’t wait until every distraction is taken away from you and God is the only person left to talk to. Serve him now, even in the middle of a thousand immediate pleasures that may be tempting you away from him. Because even now he is greater than any of these pleasures.

The truth is that, in your Creator, there are “pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11). He is not reprimanding us for enjoying the earthly pleasures of eating, music, painlessness, or sunsets — your Creator is the one who made these things also. But he is warning us against seeking these niceties as an end in themselves, while we are still able to enjoy them, and forgetting about the greater pleasures that never go away or diminish.

In the presence of God is fullness of joy. Don’t allow yourself to be satisfied with anything less than full joy.

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Dare To Be a Disciple?

And Joseph came in to them in the morning and looked at them, and saw that they were sad. Genesis 40:6 (NKJV)

Let's think about this: how unlikely was it that Joseph would notice the sadness of his cellmates? He had plenty of problems himself, without taking on any more. His brothers had sold him into slavery and then his boss had fired and imprisoned him on false charges. Yet, Joseph noticed and cared about others.

Brothers and sisters, there is hope and the quickest way out of a dark pit of discouragement is to think of and serve others. The surest way to deepen your dark times is to draw into, and think more about, yourself. Joseph is perhaps the best example in the Old Testament of a selfless, servant-spirited saint and it is no coincidence that, in every situation in which he found himself, he continually rose above his trial and glorified God.

The old saying of walking a mile in someone else's shoes most certainly applies. How often on social media do we see a heartwarming video of someone overcoming a deficit or tribulation? People post or comment on how "lucky" they are to not be in the same situation. So let us be thankful for what we have including our dark and difficult times. The Lord is teaching us something even though we might not see it right away. Reach out a hand to your neighbor; help a stranger; forgive a debt or friend.

Are you going through difficult times? Have others wronged you? What has been your response? Do you think of others and how to help them, or only about yourself and your own problems? Look around you: there is a world of opportunities to help, and they are all open doors that lead out of your darkness. Helping others through the darkness will bring you to the light as the Lord intended.

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We All Have a Lesson To Learn From Noah

By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household... – Hebrews 11:7 (NKJV)

We all have a lesson to learn from Noah, whether we are fathers, husbands, brothers, or sons. Noah trusted God, believed his warnings, and obeyed his commands… as a result, he was able to save his entire family from the destruction of the worldwide flood that came as promised.

Notice that Noah was warned by God, but he was warned about things that he, himself, had not yet witnessed — he was warned “of things not seen as yet.” This is where faith comes in. When we are able to trust what God has told us in his Word—even when it contradicts what everyone around us is proclaiming or what our own experience has been thus far — it is then that we are able to truly walk by faith.

What about you? When you look at the many instructions and warnings in God’s Word, do you believe him and act accordingly or do you ignore his Word and keep on walking in your own way? Husbands, are you loving your wives sacrificially? Fathers, are you nurturing your children in the Lord? Children (of any age), are you honoring your parents?

Those who listen to God’s Word and obey it by faith prepare for the destruction and judgment that are coming upon this world. As a result, those around them are positively affected, being influenced by the faith that they see.

May you, like Noah, be moved by a healthy fear of God to a determined, faithful preparation of your own life and your own house, in obedience to his Word.

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How often have you neglected the place of blessing?

He should have fed them also with the finest of the wheat; And with honey from the rock I would have satisfied you – Psalm 81:16 (NKJV)

There are great lessons to be learned even from the failures of God’s people recorded in the Scriptures. God says if his people had obeyed his voice he would have subdued their enemies and fed them with honey out of the rock. But they rebelled and walked in their own counsels.

How sad that a people who that could have enjoyed the richest of blessings from their gracious God were instead given up to their own desires and suffered the consequences of their disobedience.

How often have you neglected the place of blessing? There is counsel and comfort in God’s Word but you have spent little time reading it. There are rich mercies to be found at the throne of grace but you have neglected prayer. There are joys and blessings to be found in God’s house but you have been attracted by the empty promises of the world.

Churches sometimes mourn the loss of spiritual fervor enjoyed in former days. But instead of being brought to repentance for sin and neglect, the excuse is made that we live in difficult times. The lack of power in preaching is a concern but still messages to make people feel good take precedence over sound biblical exposition.

The next time you are facing temptation to sin or to squander God’s blessings, remember this: God is willing and able to bless his people. Today, heed his call to return. Call upon him, knowing he is willing to hear and ready to bless.

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Give Thanks

Giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ – Ephesians 5:20 (NKJV)

We are here admonished to give thanks for all things. We know we should give thanks for our daily provisions and for the mercy of God in saving us; but sometimes we don’t take the time or make the effort to truly thank him, or to consider all the things for which we should be grateful.

The apostle Paul frequently expressed his thanks to God for the faith, love and work seen in the churches where he had labored. He acknowledged that these godly fruits were because of God’s blessings on them and therefore gave thanks to God. He constantly expressed thankfulness for his godly fellow laborers, but consistently expressed thankfulness to God for even their faithfulness (Romans 1:8; 1 Corinthians 1:4; 1Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Thessalonians 1:3).

Astonishingly, Paul also expressed appreciation for tribulations (Romans 5:3), and even acknowledged that he took pleasure in “infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake” because God’s strength is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:10). If God’s sufficiency is displayed in my insufficiency, Paul said, then I am thankful for each opportunity for his strength to be shown in my weakness.

And above all, the apostle gave thanks for the Savior. He wrote, “Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift” (2 Corinthians 9:15). Words are inadequate to describe the glory of our Savior Jesus Christ, but we should continually give thanks for him and his love for us.

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God's Plan of Salvation

So often we present salvation as something very complex, but God never intended it to be that way. God's plan of salvation is simple enough for everyone to understand. It is as easy as ABC.

Admit
Admit that you are a sinner an in need of salvation.    Each of us has a problem called sin.    The Bible says in Romans 3:23 that “all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God.”   Sin is a refusal to acknowledge God's authority over our lives, and the Bible says that “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).

Believe
Believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that He is the only way to obtain salvation—to get to heaven.  Although we have done nothing to deserve His love and salvation, God wants to save us. John 3:16 tells us that “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”  Jesus said,   “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).

Confess
The Bible teaches that “if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.  For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation”   (Romans 10:9-10).

Please Pray

“Lord Jesus, I am a sinner in desperate need of a Savior.  I cannot save myself, and I believe that You died upon the cross for me.  I believe that You shed Your precious blood on the cross for the forgiveness of my sin.   I accept You now as my Savior, my Lord, my God, and my Friend. Come into my heart, Lord Jesus, and set me free from my sin. And because You are my Savior, I will not die an eternal death, but I now have everlasting life in You.  Thank you, Jesus for saving me today!”

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Men of Faith

"By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household..." – Hebrews 11:7 (NKJV)

We all have a lesson to learn from Noah, whether we are fathers, husbands, brothers, or sons. Noah trusted God, believed his warnings, and obeyed his commands… as a result, he was able to save his entire family from the destruction of the worldwide flood that came as promised.

Notice that Noah was warned by God, but he was warned about things that he, himself, had not yet witnessed — he was warned “of things not seen as yet.” This is where faith comes in. When we are able to trust what God has told us in his Word—even when it contradicts what everyone around us is proclaiming or what our own experience has been thus far — it is then that we are able to truly walk by faith.

What about you? When you look at the many instructions and warnings in God’s Word, do you believe him and act accordingly or do you ignore his Word and keep on walking in your own way? Husbands, are you loving your wives sacrificially? Fathers, are you nurturing your children in the Lord? Children (of any age), are you honoring your parents?

Those who listen to God’s Word and obey it by faith prepare for the destruction and judgment that are coming upon this world. As a result, those around them are positively affected, being influenced by the faith that they see.

May you, like Noah, be moved by a healthy fear of God to a determined, faithful preparation of your own life and your own house, in obedience to his Word.

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Death and Dying

Whether…the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come -- all are yours – 1 Corinthians 3:22 (NKJV)

What a strange thing to say. How can Paul claim with a straight face that everything—even death—has been given to God’s people and belongs to them?

It certainly does not feel as though the world belongs to us, that our present life is completely under our control, or that the future is ours for the taking. Least of all, death does not ever feel to be mastered or owned or tamed; more than anything else, death reminds us of just how frail we are and what little power we have over our surroundings.

And yet Paul claims that they are all yours, if you are Christ’s (3:23). Even death has been made a servant to the people of God. How can this be?

The truth is that we, in ourselves, do not have autonomous control over our life or our death; but the truth is also that Christ has—through his death and resurrection—brought even our greatest enemies into subjection and made them to serve us for our good.

Death, for instance, has been subdued; instead of acting as the jaws of fate to consume us, it has now become the door of salvation to renew us. Whereas death was once to be greatly feared, as the result of sin entering into the world, it is now made an occasion for rejoicing, as the vehicle that brings us into the presence and likeness of Christ.

Life, through Christ, is yours, dear believer. And, yes, even death is yours, to serve you for your good and for God’s glory. Rejoice today, then, in the possessions that are yours in Christ.

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