Changed Heart?

On November 19, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 77: 10       TPT

Lord, what wounds me most is that it’s somehow my fault that you’ve changed your heart toward me and I no longer see the years of the Mighty One and your right hand of power.

Yesterday we saw the angst of Asaph. He groaned at the mere thought of the Lord because He felt that he had lost favor with God. What he felt was real chagrin. It pained him to think about where he stood with God and this verse explains why that thought pained him so. In his heart of hearts, he suspected that God’s coldness towards him was his own fault. I think we can all relate.

There are times when we feel very close to God and times we don’t. There are times I know He is with me in a very real sense and other times when it seems He is in heaven looking down on me. I would much rather have Him with me as I know you would too.

If you once enjoyed the power of God in your life, then the absence of it makes life mundane. If you have ever tasted the glory of God, then an existence without it loses its luster. Worst of all, deep down, we know that something in our lives has changed which is impeding those moves of God and even, as in Asaph’s case, God’s very presence. Knowing this truth grieves the heart but, it also empowers us because it means that we have power to affect change and I like that. If I am the problem, then I can seriously impact the outcome. I can change me and the best part of that is that God will help me. He is always waiting to bring us back into closer fellowship. Ain’t that great?

Asaph made an important declaration above and he made it to the right person. He shared his heart and misgivings with God. Once you get to the point where you can share your heart with God, the problem is all but rectified. Expressing those tender emotions, doubts, fear, and even thoughts is the gateway to resolution. Once you get that out, especially when articulated directly to Yahweh, He can move in and begin to help you. “Dad, I might not be where I want to be but I know you are the one who can help me.” With that, the hard work is done. Really!!

If you are not enjoying all the presence of God you wish to, then tell Him your thoughts and desires. Invite Him to help you grow closer to Him. Then listen to the quiet thoughts of your heart. You are going to be so surprised and how quickly He responds and some of the lovely thoughts He has.

And, have fun drawing closer, and closer to Him.

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Angst

On November 18, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 77: 3 – 9           NIV

I remembered you, God, and I groaned;
I meditated, and my spirit grew faint.
You kept my eyes from closing;
I was too troubled to speak.
I thought about the former days,
the years of long ago;
I remembered my songs in the night.
My heart meditated and my spirit asked:
“Will the Lord reject forever?
Will he never show his favor again?
Has his unfailing love vanished forever?
Has his promise failed for all time?
Has God forgotten to be merciful?
Has he in anger withheld his compassion?”

Asaph penned this psalm several thousand years ago, yet he captures the torment of our souls today. This is what I might call an “everyperson” passage, meaning most of us, throughout history, have felt this same anguish. Why is God not listening to me? Why are my prayers unanswered? Where is the fulfillment of God’s promise? Is God angry with me and in His anger has He turned His face from me? Where is God’s unfailing love?

When Asaph’s mind turned to thoughts of God, his spirit seized within his breast. His meditations on God made his spirit faint within him. How can this be? He was so troubled, so worried that sleep evaded him. This version says he was so distressed that he couldn’t even speak. The Passion Translation breaks it down a bit further. So heavy was the suffering that he couldn’t even pray.

Have you ever been there? Have you ever been so stressed, so exhausted and worried that words eluded you? Was there not enough breath in your lungs to utter even a simple prayer? It’s actually true that when people are stressed, they tend to breath shallowly and actually deprive their bodies of necessary oxygen making it tedious even to speak.

Today’s passage read from the Passion Translation is very insightful too, “My mind wandered, thinking of days gone by – the years long since passed. Then I remembered the worship songs I used to sing in the night seasons, and my heart began to fill again with thoughts of you. So my spirit went out once more in search of you. Would you really walk off and leave me forever, my Lord God? Won’t you show me your kind favor, delighting in me again? Has your well of sweet mercy dried up? Will your promises never come true? Have you somehow forgotten to show me love? Are you so angry that you’ve closed your heart of compassion toward me?” How does that translation make your heart feel? It is interesting to note that this passage ends with “Selah” which means to pause in the Lord’s presence and consider what has just been sung. Stop and think on this for a moment. The message is not only in the words but in the meditation the words foster. The real message is delivered, not to your ears, but to your heart.

Tomorrow we will see what answers Asaph found for himself. Stay tuned! (Or read ahead).

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Destructions

On November 15, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 107: 20

He sent His word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.

This is the verse from Wednesday. I brought it back because I want to discuss the last word in the verse: destructions. The other critical word is the possessive pronoun right before it. I want to talk about “our” destructions.

It is first important to notice that God has delivered us from our destructions. Remember that this is a verse on healing. It is not much of a logic leap to conclude that some of our health issues are related to destructive (destructions) things we do. The other side of that coin is that there are positive, supportive things that we don’t do. We can let our hearts be at ease, though, knowing that the healing Father prepared for us heals and restores our bodies even from the wrongful things we have done to it.

One of the ways God heals our bodies is in bringing wisdom and revelation to a person, a revelation which is the source of their cure. Perhaps there is some food or habit that is causing sickness. Or, perhaps there is something we can do like exercise or a fast which will correct the malady. Our Father will speak into our lives and tell us what we need in order to enjoy the kind of health we desire.

The truth is most of us make ourselves sick. It’s true, unfortunate, but true. Look at the average diet. We eat artificial sweeteners, drink sodas, eat way too many carbohydrates and not enough vegetables. Then we sit too much neglecting the body’s need for exercise. We were made to move so a sedentary lifestyle works against our body’s natural health protocol. We are too busy to be healthy, rarely having quiet time. As a result of all of these ways we are out of sync with a health regimen it is hardly a surprise that we develop physical dis-ease.

Our response is rarely to look in the mirror to ask that person what we can do to improve our health, much less to look into the face of God and ask Him. He’s only the creator, after all, what would He know about it. Our first response is to run to the doctor expecting her or him to “fix” us. Don’t get me wrong here. I thank God for health professionals. I firmly believe that medical science is one of the methods He uses to get healing to us. My beef is that we fail to look into any of the other ways God heals. We don’t ask ourselves, or Him, the questions the answer to which may heal us.

The number one method I would prescribe for your healing is to get with God and have some good quality time. What am I doing, Lord, that may be contributing to this sickness? What can I do to improve my health? Are there some things in my life which need adjustment? Do I have toxic emotions causing malady in my body? Father, what can I do, should I do to contribute to the healing in my body?

If the body of God doesn’t talk to God, and hear Him, how much of a body are we actually? If we do not take our problems to Him in a conversation rather than simply submitting a list of requests, then do we really believe we are His children? I hope you will ponder these questions. I am always open to hearing your thoughts. Reply to this email if you receive it that way or post your comment on our website or Facebook page.

Give yourself a chance to heal by involving Yahweh in the process. Good old fashion prayer is always applicable, and I invite you to leave your prayer request on our website too. We have a team of pray-ers. Don’t, however, neglect having your pastor anoint you with oil and pray for you. Don’t delay in going to the doctor. Mostly, though, do not fail to talk with the Father about your situation. Expect Him to impart wisdom to you. And, I shouldn’t leave out, pay attention to your dreams as you seek Him about your health. He may well speak to your heart and mind while you sleep.

In Jesus’ name, be healed!

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Healing Thoughts

On November 14, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

1 John 3:21-22

Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; and whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight.

One of the challenges to receiving our healing is our own hearts. Sometimes our own heart condemns us so that we are unable to accept the healing that God freely offers. Worst of all, these condemning thoughts and beliefs are often buried deeply enough that, lest we take some serious time surveying our beliefs, we likely do not realize the rubbish our hearts are holding on to. The damning beliefs are not in the thoughts of our minds, but rather the beliefs of our hearts. Therefore, a person may take account of their thoughts and pass their check-up. It’s only when we go deeper into the firmly held beliefs of our hearts that we find the truth. The thoughts that we have secreted away in our hearts are the ones that affect our health, for good or ill.

The two ramifications of this kind of heart disease is that, first, we make ourselves sick with our toxic emotions. We have nasty junk that is buried in the fertile fiber of our hearts. It is like planting a cancer cell in nice, rich, moist loam. It takes root and begins to grow and spread. It may take a year, two or twenty but eventually those unhealed emotions make our bodies sick. The body will fight it off as long as it can, but those noxious seeds will eventually bear fruit, bad fruit.

The second result, as today’s scripture makes clear, is that we cannot receive our prayer answers. Our hearts will not allow us to receive the goodness that God is sending to us. No matter how often you pray or who prays for you, your heart could block the reception. It’s just like an American football receiver who doesn’t make the catch because a defender has batted the ball away from his hands.

Two of the worst culprits are unforgiveness and unworthiness. It you believe, not in your mind, but down in your heart, that you are unworthy of God’s grace, then your heart will condemn you and you will not be able to receive God’s goodness. His healing will be blocked by your own heart and feelings of unworthiness.

The same is true if you are living with unforgiveness in your heart. Frankly, there are people who don’t deserve your forgiveness. They don’t deserve grace or mercy, but this Word of the Day isn’t written for them. It is written for you. I want you to forgive them so you can get well. I want you to forgive them so that you don’t make yourself sick.

Emotional healing is often the way to physical healing and emotional healing is part of the health package that God sent Jesus to deliver to us. Jesus can heal those emotions as easily as he can heal a body. God made your spirit and soul, not just your body. He sees the scar tissue and injuries on your spirit even if you can’t. There are actual scars there and He wants to heal them for you.

You’ll have to take some time with God and that is why some people don’t heal. People are in such a hurry these days, so busy that they don’t have time to spend in quiet contemplation with God. I mean, it may take a whole half hour. It may even take longer. What is it worth to you to be whole? The other obstacle is that people are afraid of their emotions. They are afraid of emotional hurt. I get it, emotional hurt is painful. However, if you deal with emotional injuries, the pain is short term, surprisingly short, in fact. Suppressing emotions is what becomes not only chronically painful but causes sickness in our bodies. Many people would rather bury their hurtful emotions allowing the pain to continue for a long time than to face them and be done with them once and for all. Don’t be like those naïve people. Allow the master to touch your emotions and deep-seated beliefs. Be healed in your emotions; be healed in your body.

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Healed

On November 13, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 107: 20

He sent His word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.

There is so much nuance and richness in this verse that it is a bit like eating a very rich food. Let’s begin with “word”. To get the richness from this verse, you need to connect this verse to John 1: 1 & 14, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” God sent Jesus to us as the great healer. He is the divine physician and heals all who come to him, but how does he heal?

This may be where we trip up at times because, though we accept Jesus as the healer, we don’t understand how he heals. We, therefore, cannot come to him in the fullness of his office of healer. Some of us believe in divine healing. This is when a prayer of faith is offered and renders one completely healed. One prayer, perhaps with the laying on of hands and even anointing with oil as seen in James 5: 14, will “restore the one who is sick,” (James 5: 15). We see this many times in the Bible, especially in Jesus’ ministry. This type of healing still works today, and people are getting healed by the prayer offered in faith all over the world. That is not God’s only method of healing, though, and not the only method Jesus brought with him. However, this first avenue of healing ministry should not be ignored. Read James 5, verses 14 through 16 and do what it says. Seek out someone to pray for you, “for tremendous power is released through the passionate, heartfelt prayer of a godly believer!” (V. 6 TPT).

When the scripture says God sent His word and healed them, it has a double meaning. Jesus is the Word and Jesus’ healing ministry is what I discussed in the paragraph above. There is, however, Jesus as the living Word. Soaking in the Word of God has healing virtue. Not only is our faith fed by ingesting the verses on healing, but the whole of the Word has healing power in it. Living in the Word; reading it, meditating on in and thinking about it brings creative, healing power to every cell of your body. Because God is the creator and Jesus the healer, every moment spent consuming the Word brings creation and healing energy to your body. The Word has power to heal every situation, every hurt, every sickness. So, meditate on the Word and let its restorative quality saturate your body.

Tomorrow, I will share some other ways God heals.

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The Real

On November 12, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Joshua 24: 15

If it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.

Truth be told, you are going to serve some God. It might be the money God, the workaholic God, or recreation God. You may serve manna but there are so many things which capture our devotion. An idol is anything you put before God. What do you think about? What are you passionate about? It is great to be passionate about life, but it is easy to let those things supplant God.

We may not build an idol to the things that we serve but if you look around, I think you will find that sometimes we do. We just don’t acknowledge it; don’t recognize it. Most of us don’t bow down to a shrine and worship it but watch us on game day. We’ve got on our team colors, drinking from our logo cup and are glued to our televisions.  We are very invested emotionally in the outcome of the game and hang on every minute.

Other people put their jobs or careers on the throne of their lives. Truly, it can be anything. We just have to take a step back to make sure we aren’t making those things more important in our lives than our Heavenly Father. This verse warns us that we may become as the people of the world if we aren’t mindful. We could be serving the gods of the Amorites, or whatever “ite” is out there if we don’t decide to make Yahweh the highest priority of our life.

It’s easy to slip into life according to the world but take a bit of time to realign yourself just like you have to occasionally realign the tires on your car. This isn’t a reason for guilt, just an opportunity for a check-up to see if anything has pushed its way into God’s space. Living to God is what satisfies our souls and spirits. All the other things are fun, but just substitutes. Cling to the Real.

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Judgment Rendered

On November 11, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 76: 8 – 9            GW

From heaven you announced a verdict. The earth was fearful and silent when you rose to judge, O God, when you rose to save every oppressed person on earth. Selah.

There is so much confusion surrounding God’s judgment. Well, today you can bask in the good news because when God arose to render His judgment, it was to save every person on earth. Selah!

If you say anything about God’s judgment, most people are as described in this verse, fearful. When God arose to give His judgment, the world held its breath. There was complete silence in fearful anticipation of His wrath. It seems generations of people have misunderstood God. He is always good. He is benevolent and kind. Therefore, when He stood to give His judgment it was so that He could save every person on earth. He was compelled by love and compassion, not anger.

We think God is angry because of our own guilt feelings. We transfer our feelings of unworthiness onto Him so that, in our eyes, the only logical response a Holy God can have is vengeance and wrathful indignation. That, however, is a human perspective born of brokenness and guilt. God’s perspective is completely different. He looks through the eyes of love. He is motivated towards actions which help us. We know we don’t deserve His goodness, so we don’t look for it. Further, we recharacterize His kindness into something which is coherent with our feelings about ourselves. None the less, God is good. He is nothing but good. He is only good and every act of His is good and for our well-being. That is why he pronounced judgment, so that He could be good to us, so that he could save us.

If you will always look at God through this lens, you will see Him clearly and come to know Him as He is.

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