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God Revealed

Ivey Rorie On February 16, 2015 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Ephesians 1: 16 -17

[I] do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him.

This is what I pray over you every day because I can’t think of anything better than for you to have God’s wisdom and revelation of Him. I suppose that is what Paul was feeling when he penned this prayer for the people in Ephesus. I sense him reaching into his innermost being in order to pull out the biggest blessing he could for them. I also ask God to give you revelation on the Word of the Day that I didn’t even have when I wrote it because revelation of Him and His Word are keys that will not only release blessing in our lives but will also free us from any ties that would bind us. It is the revelation of how His word relates your life that brings life and freedom. It is not academic knowledge about God which will change your life but rather that revealed knowledge and wisdom that comes straight from the Father and which is personal to your unique situation.

What would it mean to your life if every day you walked in the revelation and the wisdom of God? I believe this is exactly what the Lord had in mind for us. That is a significant factor that separated Jesus from everyone else who has walked the planet. He was constantly plugged in to the Father. I think it is possible for us to live in this kind of light because I think it was God who inspired this prayer for the Ephesians. God has given us a mind and intellect but I don’t think it was so that we could stand in the glory of our reasoning. I believe He gave us minds created in His image so that we could connect with Him. The scripture tells us that we have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2: 16). That is a great gift but as we study the life of Christ we realize that Jesus did not excel in the strength of his mind alone but rather in his ability to connect with the Father. Because of that interconnectedness, Jesus was able to live in the revelation knowledge of the Father, he was given the words to say to fit the moment and he had the wisdom of the ages to guide him

This is his gift to you. This is what Paul understood, that Jesus’ victory claimed this standing for you. Not only are you entitled to walk in constant revelation of the Father, but also this is what God wants to share with you. This is part of the intimacy that He longs for you to partake of. So today as you engage in all of the activities of life, keep in mind that God’s wisdom and a revelation of who He is goes with you. Plug into that ageless wisdom and allow God to direct your path.

Hearty Seeking

Ivey Rorie On February 13, 2015 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

1 Chronicles 22: 19

Now set your heart and your soul to seek the Lord your God.

If you want to know the secret to living victoriously in Christ I believe this is it. I remember how dramatically my life changed when I resolutely and determinedly sought God. Now I have entered a new phase of seeking where all of me is more fully engaged in seeking Him.

It is interesting to me that the scripture says to set our hearts and souls to seeking God. I spent many, many years seeking Him with my mind. That was not a completely empty pursuit but it sure was not fulfilling. I loved God and sought His wisdom but when I began to pursue Him with all of me, life changed.

For me the big difference was getting out of my intellect and into my heart. I found this difficult because I interfaced with the world through intellect and reasoning. I didn’t “feel” my way through life. I listened to people talk about connecting with God in their hearts and honestly, I couldn’t even feel my heart when I meditated. It was pretty humbling. And I don’t claim to have laid hold of the prize yet but I do know that an intellectual relationship with God is not what He sent His son to the cross for. Intellectual relationships are what we have with professors and with books. It is not the basis for a relationship with our resurrected Lord, he who gave his life for us. We are intended to be as close to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit as we are to our spouses and children. It really is a matter of the heart. How satisfied would your spouse be if your relationship was solely intellectual? Boring!

Here is a bit of good news though. Father says that if we will seek Him, He will be found by us (2 Chronicles 15: 2). But what does this really mean, to seek Him with our heart and soul? It seems that we must not only abandon the pursuit of our minds but that we must also turn our perspective in so that we connect first with our own hearts and souls. Then as an exercise of our inner person we engage the Father. When we were born again the Father, Son and Holy Spirit came to live inside of us. They have taken up residence in us. Therefore, if we wish to find the Father we need not search the heavens or the air about us. We need only turn our attention inward. Unfortunately, many of us have divorced ourselves from an internal life. We were either deceived about the primacy of the intellect or we closed off our hearts because we had not the strength to endure. Often it might have been a bit of both. But we are not cowards. There is nothing in our hearts that Jesus can’t handle. In fact, he has already healed all of our wounds. He is the salve that coats and heals. Therefore, we needn’t be afraid any longer. Our Lord is bigger than our fear, bigger than any past injuries. No matter how badly we may have been injured nor how long we have made it a practice to cordon off our hearts, he is greater than those obstacles. He can restore to us a tender heart which is our divine right and our divine construction. We were made to be tender and when we really understand who we are in Christ we will also appreciate that there is no weakness in tenderness. A tender and compassionate heart is what gave Jesus the strength to go to the cross.

If we want to live in Christian victory; if we want to have all that Jesus came to give us; then we must live our lives integrated with him. We must set our hearts and souls to seeking him and he will be found by us. We must have an impressionable and open heart in order to succeed. Jesus is our perfect way and He has provided for us strength and security. Fear not! Seek the Lord with all that you are and you will find great joy and victory in him.

Prayers for the Needy

Ivey Rorie On February 12, 2015 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Philippians 4: 19

And my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

Paul wrote to the Philippians assuring them that because they were meeting his needs God would take care of their needs. That is a good perspective from which to view our needs and our prayers. God meets our needs when we meet the needs of others. Still I suspect most of us spend a good bit of time praying about our needs. I noticed in the Lord’s Prayer that Jesus gave “needs” one line; “Give us this day our daily bread” (Matthew 6: 11). When Jesus went up on the mountain to pray, what do you suppose he prayed about? I suspect he didn’t spend much time praying about the things he needed. I imagine he prayed for people and for his calling.

I think what God is showing me is that we need spend very little time praying about our physical needs. In fact, I am beginning to think we need not spend much time at all praying about any of our perceived needs for two reasons. First, Jesus said, “Ask and it shall be given to you” (Matthew 7: 7). So ask and be done.

Secondly, I don’t think we really know what we need. Sometimes we pray (ask) for something that we want but don’t need. In fact, sometimes the thing we are praying for would destroy us if we received it. Take for example the Israelites who prayed and prayed for a king. God told them, “No” at first time saying that He would be their king. He told them that their desire would only lead them to ruin. They kept on and on until finally he relented (read this story in 1 Samuel 8). And if you know the story of Saul, the first ever king of Israel, you know that God spoke to them truthfully.

I think our prayer time is better spent asking God what we need. In other words, I think we should pray about ourselves rather than for ourselves. We need God’s revelation on what we need and it may well be something that He wants to do in our hearts. At least that is what I am finding. If we back up a little bit from Matthew 7: 7 where Jesus said, “Ask and it shall be given to you,” and go to the end of Chapter 6 we find something interesting. Bear in mind that this is all one teaching. When Jesus spoke this it wasn’t divided into chapters so just a few moments before He said, “Ask and receive” he said, “Do not be anxious then, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘With what shall we clothe ourselves?’ For all these things the Gentiles eagerly seek; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6: 33).

I believe this is what was happening in Philippi. The people had finally turned their hearts from seeking after their own needs and desires to seeking the kingdom. When they got back into a spiritual state, reconnected with the Holy Spirit within them they sent a gift to Paul for his support and maintenance. Then Paul said that their gift to Him would insure that their needs were met. You see, the Holy Spirit will speak to us about what we need in our lives. He will even lead our prayers. He will also direct our actions so that what we need will be provided for us. The Philippians didn’t send their gift to Paul in order to get their needs met, they were just connecting with God in their hearts. They were seeking the kingdom and the Holy Spirit led them to send a gift to Paul. In that act, their needs were met, as well as Paul’s. So, we need to seek God in our hearts and allow the Holy Spirit to lead our actions. When we do we will not need to pray unceasingly for our needs and wants. They will become a by-product of what God is doing in our spirits. It seems then that the key to the kingdom is what we have all been told time and time again. Seek the Lord, our God and He will take care of everything else.

Labor to Believe

Ivey Rorie On February 11, 2015 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

John 6: 29

Jesus answered and said, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.”

We looked yesterday at entering into the rest of God. We found that the effort we are to expend is in entering into this rest. Today we see Jesus saying that the “works” that so many of us get bound up in are misplaced effort. Jesus said that the work that we are supposed to do is to believe in Jesus whom God has sent. So, are the verses from yesterday and today saying the same thing? Yes, I think so, are at least they are nuances of the same thing.

I so very vividly remember how badly I managed my work when I was practicing law. I worked myself half to death, literally. I tried to keep God in the frame all day but I was so out of balance that I couldn’t hear Him no matter how He tried to get my attention. Now, I am attempting not to do the same thing again. There is always enough work to do. If you have a work mentality you will find plenty to do but Dad is showing me that He is unwilling for me to go back into that crazy lifestyle. He has even told me that He will not give me more of the ministry tasks He has in mind for me if I cannot keep my life in balance. So this is an interesting season in my life. There is a lot on my plate but Dad will not have me sacrifice my workouts or even my playtime in order to work. There must be balance. So, He is teaching me to labor to enter into His rest, to use my effort to believe in Christ within me who has the power to accomplish all that needs doing. My relationship with the father is much more important to Him than the “work” I do for Him.

Many ministers have lost their way working for the Lord. All of us, regardless of our occupation, must put and keep Jesus first in our lives. Then He will empower us from the inside to do all that we must do. The Holy Spirit is the power of God. We need to learn how to release that power into the world and into our workspace so that we can keep our priorities in line and not burn ourselves out. You can live till 120 years or more but not if you are burning your candle down too low now. I do not advocate laziness, not by any means. I am just learning that God is our strength and He can be the performance engine in us. This is a high challenge but for those who are ready there is a deep well here, a big revelation.

I would love to hear your stories of how you are allowing God to work through you and I am sure that besides myself, others can benefit from your experience. Click on the link below and go to our blog site and tell us how you are allowing this to work in your life.

Restful Labor

Ivey Rorie On February 10, 2015 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Hebrews 4: 10 – 11

For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His, Let us therefore be diligent to enter than rest, lest anyone fall through following the same example of disobedience.

Okay, so what is going on here? The writer of Hebrews is saying that the person who has entered into God’s rest has rested from his works just like God who has also rested from His works. Then verse 11 says that we should be diligent to enter into this rest lest we fall into disobedience. There is an epiphany. If we do not enter into rest we are in disobedience? Not only that, but the effort expended is not in doing the works but in entering the rest.

That is so counter-cultural that it barely even makes sense. Many years ago I heard Kenneth Hagin speak on living a fasted life. It was an impactful message, but then weren’t all of Hagin’s messages? Anyway, his point was that every day is the Sabbath and every day is the day of the fast. He was teaching that we don’t live to God on certain special days but rather every day. We must learn how to live in God and let the Lord Jesus live through us on a daily rather than on a Sunday basis. Everyday can be, and should be, a day of rest wherein we allow God to do the works.

From Matthew 19: 26 we learn that with God all things are possible. The key words there are “with God.” Why, then, do we still labor with the works rather than to enter His rest. There is a revelation in here to be found. We are to be diligent in laboring to enter into His rest. That sounds silly. Labor to rest? But the author knew that we would have to work to wrap our heads around this one. So, I have begun my day with my “To Do” list and plotted out my time from the time of arising until 5:00 pm. Then I will figure out what I can accomplish in the evening hours, shall I run errands or do I need to sit and read a piece of fiction or maybe even play a game? Really?? As it turns out, I forgot to schedule in any bathroom breaks.

What am I saying? I certainly am not against having a good schedule to work from. I absolutely think it necessary that I have a work plan otherwise I will not get done what I wish and I will end up spending time on things that I shouldn’t. However, I am the fool spoken of in the Psalms if I do not begin my day with my Father asking Him to be Lord over my day. It would be foolish for me to plow ahead in the power of my strength. I have done that before. It doesn’t work. No, this time I am going to labor to enter into His rest and let Him be the power and the strength in my day. That is what Jesus prayed afterall, “Thine is the…power” (Matthew 6: 13). Jesus even told us that the works that he is renowned for were not even his own work product. He said that it was the Father who lives within him that does the works (John 14: 10). Query: if Jesus didn’t try to walk in his own power, if he didn’t attempt to accomplish his To Do list in his strength, what in the world makes me think I can do mine?

We are a nation of “doers” but God has called us to be believers rather than doers. There is the rub. We have mighty things to do in the name of the Almighty but it is only with His almighty strength working through us that we attain the prize. Our father is not impressed with how hard we work for Him but rather how diligent we are at resting in the power of His might. He doesn’t want us to burn out. He has already provided the power and the wisdom. Our job is simply to direct His power. We allow Him to flow out of us. Then all things become possible to us.

Endeavor to enter into His rest.

And the Victor is…?

Ivey Rorie On February 9, 2015 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

1 John 4: 18

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.

When we receive a full revelation of love we will no longer have fear. We will also find that anger, resentment and other powerful negative emotions disappear because the truth is that those negative emotions are based in fear. We are afraid of losing face, afraid of someone taking advantage of us and so on but when love becomes perfected in us, we will have no consideration for those things. Trust will prevail, an unyielding trust in God’s willingness and ability to take care of us.

We often find it difficult to live in this unbridled trust. Too many of us hear judgment and recrimination in our imaginations of facing the Lord but that is only because our revelation is still being exposed. We fear punishment for our shortcomings because we have not fully embraced the truth of who God is and what Jesus has done for us. Perfect love casts out fear because when we allow that perfect one to explode within us then we see only grace and beauty. Even when we botch things, His face shines on us as a proud parent who thinks we are awesome despite our mistakes. He takes us gently in His hands to teach us so that we don’t err again but this isn’t out of anger but rather out of love. He wants to save us from making the same mistakes over and over again. Then as we learn to trust Him we get better at hearing His instruction before we act and then we don’t have to make as many mistakes in the first place. He leads us so that we place our feet on the right path rather than rambling around in the brambles.

We need not fear punishment. We need fear no thing because our God is not a God of fear. The author of fear lives in hell and he is a defeated foe. All fear belongs to him but Jesus has already cleaned his clock so we need not have any part of him, including his infamous weapon of fear. Love conquers fear. Always has, always will. That is what today’s verse is really saying. With God alive inside of us we do not have to endure the enemy’s tortures. So, focus on the love. Meditate on love. Look up love scriptures. You will find that love is your strength and the mightiest weapon of all.

Empowered To Love

Ivey Rorie On February 6, 2015 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

1 John 4: 19

We love because He first loved us.

Do you ever wonder why more of us Christians don’t exhibit the kind of love that we read about in the Bible? It is not because we are bad people. There are people who truly love God and who are trying to live the life that they think God has called them to and yet they remain judgmental, critical and don’t really express love … and, to some degree, this describes most of us. Why do we find it so difficult to live in love and to accept one another in the spirit of Christ within us?

The answer is actually pretty simple. We have not yet realized His great love for us. I am an observer of people and I and a seeker of truth and for many years I have watched Christians and tried to figure out why there is so much disparity in our Christian experience. God loves us all the same, doesn’t He? Christ died for each one of us as if we were the only person in the world. So why do some people have a closer relationship with Him than others? Why do some exhibit so much more of His grace than do others? The answer seems to be that some have a much fuller revelation of His love for them. When you embrace that kind of love, then everything becomes safe. You no longer have to be guarded. God has validated you and spoken into your heart, “I love you just as you are and you are beautiful in my sight.”

You see, I think far too many of us have our eyes on ourselves instead of on Him. We look in the mirror and see all of our faults and mistakes. If we could, instead, turn our eyes upon Him and focus on how much He loves us our lives would be transformed. When a person discovers that God loves them through and through with a love that is beyond human comprehension then we begin to relax and receive the grace that He has afforded us. We no longer have to prove ourselves. We no longer have to promote and elevate ourselves. We can actually enter into a childlike acceptance of His love and then of ourselves. When you believe, truly believe that God loves you then it is easy to devote yourself to Him and to a relationship with Him. When you do so, then He finally is able to release Himself to you. You become a receiver. The next thing that happens is that you become gracious and kind to others. No longer do you have to scrap for respect and honor; God the Father pours it out on you. You become a giver of the grace that He shows you. I’m telling you, those who are immersed in and persuaded of God’s abounding love towards them are able to give from the depths of their heart. As a matter of fact, they pour themselves out like water. They amaze me in their kindness and oh, I pray that more of us can come to a full realization of the love of God.

No matter how many times I tell you that Jesus would have gone to the cross even if you were the only person on earth; no matter how many times any of us are told of the great love the Father has for us, it is all an insubstantial drop in the bucket compared to His great love. Only when we encounter the Father personally and allow Him to minister that message directly to our hearts will we come to understand the depth and breadth of His devotion to us. The good news is that we can be facilitators of such a revelation. God is awaiting us right now. Any moment that we turn open hearts and upturned faces to Him He greets us with outstretched arms. The power is in our hands. We can know the love of God but we must initiate that encounter. We must open the door and let Him in. He will never invade your space. His covenant is too important. He will not violate our free will, so He is waiting for us to call to Him. Just simply tell Him that you want Him to reveal the depth of His love for you and then let your heart be open to His ministrations. He will fill us all. This I know. There is nothing more sure than God’s great love towards us and there is nothing more predictable than that few of us have fully embraced this revelation. Let’s all go into the deep water and allow Dad to fill us to overflowing with His goodness and His love. Knowing that God loves us enables us to love others and that is something we can all live with.

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