Food For Growth Archives

August 3, 2020July 26, 2020

Fulfill Your Promise

“¹⁵And the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven ¹⁶and said, ‘By myself I have sworn, declares the Lord, because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, ¹⁷I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies, ¹⁸and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.’ ¹⁹So Abraham returned to his young men, and they arose and went together to Beersheba. And Abraham lived at Beersheba.” ~ Genesis 22:15-19

This promise was already promised to Abraham before Isaac was born. A lot of the time we assume that when God promises something to us that we don’t have to do anything to get it. We don’t have do anything to fulfill it, but in actuality, God has promised every one of us something, but only few of us actually see the actual promise fulfilled.

Why? It’s not because God is unwilling to fulfill His promise, but because we are unwilling to give up something. We are holding back something from God. We are placing something above God. If we hold on to other things that separate us from God, we will lose out on our promise. If we put something, even something good, above God, we will lose out on our promise.

For instance, if we are blessed with the gift of music, but we only use this gift to make us famous, or we use it for anything else than to glorify God, we will lose out on our promise. If we have been blessed with athletics, but put sports above spending time with God, we will lose out on our promise.

These things in themselves are not bad, but the way we use them will determine whether we will lose out on our promise or not.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Fulfill Your Promise.

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Find Your Identity

“¹⁸For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ ¹⁹The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds.” ~ Matthew 11:18-19

Isn’t that the world? No matter what you do, the world is going to find fault with it. With John, he didn’t drink or eat, and they said he was demonized. Jesus came eating and drinking, and they said he was a gluttonous drunk. The world is not your friend. It will never be there to lift you up but to only accuse you and watch you fall.

We can’t find our identity in the world, because the world will never accept us no matter how much we change for them. But instead, we need to find our identity in Christ Jesus, for it is Him that we are molded after. We have to find our identity in the one who lifts up, instead of puts down. The one who rejoices in our successes, instead of condemns. The one who picks us up when we have fallen, instead of the one who kicks us when we’re down.

We cling to the world because we desire confirmation from those we can see. From those that seem to have it all together. From those who we look up to. In doing so, we forget that we are not a part of the world. We are not of the world. So, the world will never accept us. We have to seek acceptance from only one, Jesus. For it is better to be an enemy of the world, than an enemy of God. Why be afraid of offending he who can only kill the body, when we should be afraid of offending he who can kill the body and then the soul in the eternal flames of Hell. Find your identity in He who does not change. So that you may change for the better.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Find Your Identity.

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Draw Near

“And through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of His cross.” ~ Colossians 1:20

During this Passion Week, we remember the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross for all of us. We were once separated from God, by sin, but Jesus made a way for us through the shedding of His blood. We were destined for an eternal death with no peace, no rest, no hope, no God, but Jesus got off of His throne, set down His Godliness, and came to Earth as man.

I urge each of us this week to draw near to God. Don’t allow the things of this world to make Jesus’ sacrifice worthless to you. Don’t allow the temporary things of this world to draw you away from the eternal presence of God Almighty.

Jesus felt so strongly about us being separated from Him that He was whipped and beaten until He was unrecognizable. Jesus looked down upon us and saw that we couldn’t bear the punishment that we deserved, so He bore it for us. Don’t allow the things of this world to cause you to miss out on receiving your free gift of salvation. Your debt has been paid in full, don’t try to change that. Don’t stay stranded at sea, when God promised to pull you to shore.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Draw Near.

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Bless

³⁰As soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, when Jacob had scarcely gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, Esau his brother came in from his hunting. ³¹He also prepared delicious food and brought it to his father. And he said to his father, “Let my father arise and eat of his son’s game, that you may bless me.” ³²His father Isaac said to him, “Who are you?” He answered, “I am your son, your firstborn, Esau.” ³³Then Isaac trembled very violently and said, “Who was it then that hunted game and brought it to me, and I ate it all before you came, and I have blessed him? Yes, and he shall be blessed.” ³⁴As soon as Esau heard the words of his father, he cried out with an exceedingly great and bitter cry and said to his father, “Bless me, even me also, O my father!” ³⁵But he said, “Your brother came deceitfully, and he has taken away your blessing.” ³⁶Esau said, “Is he not rightly named Jacob? For he has cheated me these two times. He took away my birthright, and behold, now he has taken away my blessing.” Then he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?” ³⁷Isaac answered and said to Esau, “Behold, I have made him lord over you, and all his brothers I have given to him for servants, and with grain and wine I have sustained him. What then can I do for you, my son?” ³⁸Esau said to his father, “Have you but one blessing, my father? Bless me, even me also, O my father.” And Esau lifted up his voice and wept. ~ Genesis 27:30-38

The blessing of children was very important, so important that Esau wept when his brother got his blessing. Keep in mind that Esau is not a child, he is not a teenager, he is not a young adult. Esau is a grown man, and he wept when he did not receive his blessing. They knew the power of the tongue was great and mighty. They knew that life and death were in the tongue and they used their words very carefully.

When they blessed their children, they had no doubt in their mind that that child would be blessed according to the blessing that was spoken over them. They held to it. But today, in our culture words mean nothing to us. We say whatever we want, not realizing that even though we can’t see our words there is much power in them. We should bless our children daily. We should have faith in that blessing and as children we should receive it.

God spoke many blessings over anyone who would just accept His Son and receive the blessing, but the sad truth is many of us who are saved don’t hold to the blessings that were given. We don’t receive them. We don’t accept them. These blessing came from God Almighty, yet we don’t fully believe they will come to fruition. Imagine if we did. Imagine if we all fully accepted and held onto the blessing in the Bible. Imagine the amount of blessings that Heaven would pour down upon us.

Three things to take from this:

Stop using your words lightly.
Bless your children.
Hold onto the blessings that have been given to you.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Bless.

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Lead Your Family

“²³For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, His body, and is Himself its Savior.” ~ Ephesians 5:23

Husbands are placed as the head of their wives and their home, as Christ is the head of the Church. As a man, it’s your duty to lead your family in the ways of Jesus. That’s what it means to be the head of your wife, not that you become a dictator, but that you lead by example. You live a Godly life so that she can follow. If the head is Godly, then the rest of the body will follow. So, take up your mantel men and lead your household in righteousness. Turn the other cheek, study the Word, worship, pray, so that your family may follow you as you follow Christ Jesus.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Lead Your Family.

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Obey To Trust

“⁸Lord, we show our trust in you by obeying your laws; our heart’s desire is to glorify your name.” ~ Isaiah 26:8

Isaiah equates trust to obedience. If God is good, then wouldn’t His laws be good? Wouldn’t they be for more than just keeping us from having fun? God tells us in Jeremiah 29, that His desire for us is good. He wants us to prosper and to have a fulfilling life. God has a plan for each and every one of us. So why don’t we trust Him enough to obey Him?

As a child, I often heard the words, “If you won’t listen, you’ll feel.” In other words, if you aren’t going to trust that I know better, that I know that what you want to do will lead you into harm’s way, and you refuse to listen and heed my warning, then you will feel the pain I am trying to keep you from. Like children, we lack trust because of the over-inquisitive curiosity that is in us. We can’t help but think that the grass is greener on the other side. That somehow, those things that we see others doing is better than the promises God has for us.

We lack trust in God. See, the law wasn’t created to stop us from having fun. The law was created so that we may have life and have life more abundantly. See God knew how each action would affect us and where it would lead us to, so He created boundaries for us so that we didn’t swim too far out into unchartered waters where we can drown, be attacked, or get lost. These boundaries aren’t just so that He can control us; these boundaries are our protection so that we don’t have to go through unnecessary pain and suffering.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Obey To Trust.

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Be The Ax In His Hand

“¹⁵But can the ax boast greater power than the person who uses it? Is the saw greater than the person who saws? Can a rod strike unless a hand moves it? Can a wooden cane walk by itself?” ~ Isaiah 10:15 ^NLT

We are God’s vessels. It’s not by our own power, strength, smarts, or skill that we succeed in life, but it is by the grace of God that anyone receives anything good. For all good gifts come down from the Father of Lights. So, praise the LORD for He is good. He gives to all of humanity, including the wicked. We are nothing without God, just as an ax is nothing without the one who wields it.

So, allow God to use you. Allow Him to take you into your Promised Land. Allow Him to show you all that you are capable of achieving through Him. God wants to take you to the next level; all you have to do is allow Him to do so. Don’t fight God; put your trust in Him. Don’t let fear, pride, anger, or anything stop you from the plan that God has for your life. For no matter how much wisdom we have, nothing we plan for ourselves could ever match what God has in store for those who listen to His voice and follow the path He created just for each of us.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Be The Ax In His Hand.

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Conduct The Cross-Examination

“¹⁷The first to speak in court sounds right— until the cross-examination begins.” ~ Proverbs 18:17

Don’t just believe everything that is taught simply because it is the first explanation you hear. Don’t just take people’s word for it, do as the Bereans did, and go and search the Scriptures daily to see if what you are being taught is Scriptural. The Bible promises that the Holy Spirit will guide us and teach us, so, give Him opportunity to do so.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Conduct The Cross-Examination.

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Seek After The Power

“And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.” ~ Acts 2:1^KJV

The disciples had been praying earnestly for ten days, and when Pentecost came they were all together, in accord, in one place. They were unified. There was no division between them. And as they waited, the Holy Spirit infilled them. They began speaking in tongues, Peter preached a fiery message, and 3,000 got saved. They were filled with the power of the Holy Spirit.

How many of us can say that their household comes together and prays earnestly? Or comes together and is unified? Or that they come together and wait for the Spirit to come? We pray for miracles, signs, healings, etc. but we don’t do the beginning. We aren’t empowered. Yes, while we are saved, we have the Holy Spirit, but we don’t have the power. The power has to be sought after, waited for, and we have to be in unity to get it.

When we do these things, we will see miracles happening before our very eyes. We will see the healing of the sick, the oppressed finding peace, the depressed finding joy, and the lost being saved. We will be able to preach through the Power of The Holy Spirit and it will quicken the hearts of all who hear the message.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Seek After The Power.

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Time To Go

“17And when they Him they worshiped Him, but some doubted. 18And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’” ~ Matthew 28:17-20

When Jesus appeared to His disciples, He gave them one simple command, Go. He broke that one simple command up into two actions, baptize and teach. Why was this Jesus’ last command to His disciples? Jesus had just died and then resurrected three days later overcoming every sin, bringing healing, peace, and much more to whomever would accept it. That was Jesus’ one mission, save the world. He did His part. He taught, He died, He overcame, He rose again. Now it was time for Him to return to Heaven. The only logical thing for Him to do now, was to pass the mantel to His disciples.
He sent them out to all the nations so that all people may be saved. He told them to baptize and then teach them to observe all the commands. Our first and foremost mission is to get them saved. We can’t try to change who they are before they are saved. They have to first be saved and then they will change.

Our first job should be to show them the love of Jesus. Show them that the only way to have eternal life, is through Jesus. Then we show them how to change. Often times we get caught up in changing them, before getting them saved. But change only comes through salvation. It only comes through the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ. So first lead them to Christ, and then correct them.
As Christians that is our main underlying mission. Save souls. The mantel has been passed to us, are we going to put it down and keep the joy, peace, healing, and eternal life to ourselves? Or are we going to let our light shine bright so that we may lead many to Christ. This is the will of God, that none should perish, but all come to acceptance. What are we doing in order to fulfill the ultimate underlying will of God?

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Go.

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Category: Food For Growth

Fulfill Your Promise

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