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Pray Even In Babylon

1 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with some of the vessels of the house of God. And he brought them to the land of Shinar, to the house of his god, and placed the vessels in the treasury of his god. 3 Then the king commanded Ashpenaz, his chief eunuch, to bring some of the people of Israel, both of the royal family and of the nobility, 4 youths without blemish, of good appearance and skillful in all wisdom, endowed with knowledge, understanding learning, and competent to stand in the king’s palace, and to teach them the literature and language of the Chaldeans. ~ Daniel 1:1-4

The enemy always tries to take us back to the land that the LORD has rescued us from. The LORD called Abram out of Ur of The Chaldeans. And now, several generations later, the people of Israel gave into temptation, and the LORD handed them over into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar. He then goes on to not only take vessels from the Temple and put it in the temple of his gods, but he took the young men of Israel who were wise, well-educated, good-looking, and understand learning. He took the best of the best back to his land to reteach them and indoctrinate them.

He took them back to the land that God had called them out of. He not only took them back but tried to re-education them. He taught them the language and the literature of the Chaldeans. The literature isn’t just funny stories; the literature would be filled with their religious beliefs and rituals. The same religious beliefs God called Abram out of, yet Nebuchadnezzar dragged them back into it.

Even when we think that we’ve overcome something, if we slip in one area and refuse to repent and turn away, then the Devil will have a foothold in our life and will pry open enough room so that he can drag us back into our past. He will try to re-educate our religious beliefs, our very language. Our language is the way we communicate; it’s our impact on the world. If the Devil can change our language, then he will change our actions, and we will fall back into our old habits.

But don’t be discouraged. Even though Daniel was taken as a slave back to the sinful land his ancestors were called out of, he wasn’t overcome by sin. He overcame sin. Even if you have given in to sin and you have been dragged back into the generational curses of your past and/or ancestors, if you turn to God, you will overcome. You could be thrown in the fiery furnace like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and God will be with you. You could be thrown into the lion’s den like Daniel, and God will be with you.

Don’t let the past have any say in who you are today. Instead, call upon the name of Jesus, repent, turn from your sins, and you will be saved. You may not be pulled out of Babylon the moment you repent, but you will overcome Babylon the moment you repent because Jesus has overcome your past for you. All you have to do is follow Him.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Pray Even In Babylon.

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Turn Your Tears to Joy

6 And her rival used to provoke her grievously to irritate her, because the Lord had closed her womb. 7 So it went on year by year. As often as she went up to the house of the Lord, she used to provoke her. Therefore Hannah wept and would not eat. ~ 1 Samuel 1:6-7

Hannah would cry because of the torment she received, but she never lost hope. Instead, she took that sadness and pain and turned it into fuel. She didn’t let it silence her, nor did she let it define her. She knew the loving God whom she served. So she prayed desperately for a child, and God answered her prayers.

For a season, her womb was closed, and she was tormented. But, the next season, she had a son who would grow up to be one of the greatest Judges and Seers Israel ever had, Samuel.

Sometimes our lives look bleak and hopeless. But as Paul said,

8 We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;

2 Corinthians 4:8-9

In life, sorrow will come; pain is inevitable. Tormentors and mockers will try to bring you down, but when you build your life on that great and mighty Rock, nothing can move you. Trust in the LORD, and He will give you strength.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Turn Your Tears to Joy.

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Find Your Redemption

14 Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a redeemer, and may his name be renowned in Israel!” ~ Ruth 4:14

Naomi felt hopeless. Her husband had died. Both of her sons had died. Her two daughters-in-law were foreigners. She felt alone as if God Himself had forgotten her. This is how we feel sometimes. Everything around us seems to be going wrong. We lose our job, our home, a loved one, a friend. It feels like our entire world is coming down, crashing around us, but if we hold on. If we just keep going. If we look to God for help, we will find our redemption.

When Naomi was at her lowest point, she remembered who she was and where she was from, so she returned to her home. She returned to her people. She returned to her God. And when she returned, she found her hope. She found her redemption. God hadn’t forgotten Naomi, neither has He forgotten you.

God is like the father going to the foot of the road every day, hoping that His child, who is far off, will return home. He is like a shepherd whose sheep ran off and got lost, so He goes out in search of His sheep no matter how far or how long it takes Him. He’s like the father who sees that His child has to walk through fire, so He runs to their rescue, picks them up in His arms, and shields them from the flames. Our God never forgets us. No matter where we are, no matter how alone we feel, God has a plan for our lives. All we have to do is seek Him, and we will find our hope. We will find His plan. And we will find redemption.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Find Your Redemption.

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Keep Your House Full

14 Now the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and a harmful spirit from the Lord tormented him. ~ 1 Samuel 16:14

When the LORD rejected Saul, the Spirit of the LORD left him, and a harmful spirit filled him instead. Saul did not do all that the LORD had commanded him to do. He heard the words of the LORD. He was anointed by the LORD. He was king of the people of the LORD, yet when he refused to obey the words of the LORD, it was as if he gave the Spirit of the LORD an eviction notice. And because the Spirit of the LORD departed from him, another spirit, not of God, took up residence in him.

Our body is a house that must remain full. This is why Jesus tells us we cannot serve two masters and that we must abide in His love. If we obey Him, we will abide in His love, but when we live in disobedience, we are evicting Him from our life. When we evict the LORD, then we welcome unclean spirits into our lives. We welcome sin, torment, stress, pain, anger, evil and wickedness of all kinds.

When the LORD left Saul, he was never the same. Fear, anger, regret, and envy overcame him. What do we allow to overcome us by disobeying the LORD? Sin is crouching at the door, just waiting for the opportunity to move in and take control of our lives. We have to stay on guard. We have to obey the commands of the LORD. We have to seek righteousness, holiness, and goodness. Because what we seek, we will find. Most of all, we have to seek the LORD so that our house is never empty.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Keep Your House Full.

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Seek Confirmation

36 Then Gideon said to God, “If you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said, 37 behold, I am laying a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece alone, and it is dry on all the ground, then I shall know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said.” 38 And it was so. When he rose early next morning and squeezed the fleece, he wrung enough dew from the fleece to fill a bowl with water. 39 Then Gideon said to God, “Let not your anger burn against me; let me speak just once more. Please let me test just once more with the fleece. Please let it be dry on the fleece only, and on all the ground let there be dew.” 40 And God did so that night; and it was dry on the fleece only, and on all the ground there was dew. ~ Judges 6:36-40

Gideon didn’t feel worthy, so he not only asked for a specific sign from the LORD, but he asked for a confirmation of his sign. The task set before Gideon felt like too much for him to handle, so he begged the LORD to confirm the sign he had just received. God wasn’t annoyed by this, nor did He leave Gideon there and move on. God honored Gideon’s request and sent Gideon both the sign and the confirmation.

Sometimes our call, our destiny, seems too unrealistic and large for us, so we doubt that we heard God right. Then we begin to doubt our own Salvation and faith when we question if it’s really God. But God tells us, through the Apostle John, that we must test the spirits. God wants us to test every word we receive so that we can learn the difference between His voice and the voice of the enemy. It isn’t a sin, and it doesn’t make us a ‘bad Christian’ to ask questions and seek confirmation. This is how we grow. Don’t let fear keep you from your call or from confirming your call when you doubt. Ask the LORD for a confirmation, and He will give it.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Seek Confirmation.

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Let God Pull the Greatness Out of You

14 And the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?” 15 And he said to him, “Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.” 16 And the Lord said to him, “But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.” ~ Judges 6:14-16

Gideon was a man not from a well-known or powerful family or tribe. He wasn’t the descendant of a king or great warrior. Gideon wasn’t even a regular man. He was from the weakest clan in Manasseh, and he was the least in his father’s house. Gideon seemed to have nothing going for him, yet God saw greatness in him. He called him even if no one else thought he was worth it, and God used him to do great things.

God took Gideon, a nobody, and made him a somebody. And He was able to use him from where he was. God didn’t tell Gideon to go change and make himself better first. He didn’t say to go train first. He didn’t tell Gideon to go strengthen himself first. When God called Gideon, he was ready. God never calls us to do more than we can. He never gives us a larger burden than we can handle. God gives us as much as we can hold on our shoulders because He is with us. We aren’t carrying this burden alone. Our God is helping us carry our burden.

Even when no one else sees it, or even when we don’t see it in ourselves, as long as we trust in the LORD, God can use us to do great things. Gideon didn’t feel ready, he didn’t even feel worthy, but the LORD saw greatness in him. And because Gideon was obedient and trusted the LORD, God pulled that greatness out of him, and then everyone saw the greatness that was inside of Gideon.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Let God Pull the Greatness Out of You.

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A Heart of Stone

27 Then Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron and said to them, “This time I have sinned; the Lord is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. 28 Plead with the Lord, for there has been enough of God’s thunder and hail. I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer.” 34 But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet again and hardened his heart, he and his servants. ~ Exodus 9:27-28, 34

Whenever the plague became too unmanageable for Pharaoh, he relented and agreed to God’s request. But as soon as the LORD relented and removed the plague from him and his kingdom, Pharaoh fell into his old ways again. God did wonder after wonder in the land of Egypt, yet as soon as every wonder was complete, Pharaoh forgot the power he had just witnessed. His heart was stubborn. He had a heart of stone instead of a heart of flesh. Everything he said he would do he went back on as soon as the pain eased. As soon as the suffering ended.

This is the same with us today. We forget the power of God so quickly. We forget the goodness and grace of God so fast. During times of trial and tribulation, we seek God. When things go wrong, we are in church every Sunday, but as soon as we are rescued from our tribulation, we stop going to church. We stop praying. We stop seeking. Our hearts are stubborn as stone. We forget too quickly who God is and all that He has done for us.

LORD God, please replace our heart of stone with a heart of flesh. Please envelope us in Your everlasting love that we might not forget who You are and all that You have done for us. Help us not to just come to You in the bad but help us to seek You in every season of our lives. Teach us to pray and seek You daily that our hearts may never be hardened against You. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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The Dangers of Growing Cold

20 And she said, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And he awoke from his sleep and said, “I will go out as at other times and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had left him. ~ Judges 16:20

Samson had grown so spiritually cold that he couldn’t feel when the Spirit of the LORD left him. Samson had become spiritually asleep. He was the Judge at the time. The leader of the people of Israel, and yet, even he succumbed to the distractions of this world. And when the Philistines came, he could no longer defend himself. Samson had become just as weak as everyone else. He had become human.

This still happens to us today. We allow the distractions of this world to slowly wean us off of God so that we don’t even realize that we are no longer abiding in His love. They distract us with our jobs, family, friends, past, television, riots and chaos, depression and grief, and every kind of temptation known to man. The world keeps us so busy that we forget to make time for God, and we stray from His protecting presence. Then when the world attacks, we are like a sitting duck. We have nothing to protect us.

But just as God redeemed Samson when he humbled himself and called out to Him, so will He redeem us when we humble ourselves and call out to Him. Our God didn’t die on the cross and rise again just to leave us in chains and slaves to sin. No matter what we’ve done or how far we’ve run, God will always come running to our rescue when we bend our knees and call on His name.

LORD God, please awaken the sleeping spirit within us. Let us hear Your voice and feel Your Holy presence once again. Help us to be aware of the distractions of the world surrounding us, that we might not fall into any trap set before us. Guide us on our journey back to You, LORD God. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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What You Seek You Will Find

2 And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. 3 And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” 4 When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” ~ Exodus 3:2-4

It wasn’t until Moses sought out to know why the bush was not burned that God actually called out to him. If Moses had just kept walking, he would’ve missed out on his call. But because he drew near to God, even though he didn’t know it, God drew near to him. All it took was Moses seeking out the Truth for him to indirectly seek out and find God.

So, many of us miss out on our call because we don’t seek out the Truth; we seek out our truth. Whatever we seek, we will find. When we seek evil, we will find evil. When we seek good, we will find good. When we seek our version of the truth, we will find false truth. When we seek the Truth, we find the Truth. We find God.

LORD God, help us to seek the Truth. Your Truth and not our own. Help us to never seek out what is false simply because it’s easier or because it’s what our flesh desires. Guide us on the path You have laid out for us, that we might abide in Your perfect love. That we might receive every good and perfect gift, You have in store for us. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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The Spirit of Division

24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. ~ Mark 3:24-25

A Spirit of Division has engulfed the Church. We are divided on almost everything from politics to race. And now, we are becoming divided on core Christian beliefs that never used to be questioned, but have now been deemed offensive, intolerant, hateful, and harmful. Why do we think that is? Our enemy knows that if he can bind the Church, then he can freely plunder the nation.

So, if he can get the Church distracted from being one in Christ Jesus and praying for our nation, then he can easily bind us up. When we are divided, we are giving the enemy okay to come into our nation and bind us up. We have to see past the divisive tactics of the enemy so that we can pray for the soul of our country. Because if we aren’t careful, when we are tied up, we could fall spiritually asleep and never finish the race set before us. So much is at stake, we have to overcome this Spirit of Division and come together in one accord as they were in the Upper Room on Pentecost, because that’s the only way we will see mountains begin to move and the soul of the country begin to be restored.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Rebuke the Spirit of Division.

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