hear it – Praying Pint

66. He will be with you; He will not leave you or forsake you.

Joshua 1:5 No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

Exodus 3:12     He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you:

Deuteronomy 31:8     It is the LORD who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”

Matthew 28:20     teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Acts 18:9-10     And the Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent,  for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people.”

2 Timothy 4:17     But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it.

Has life ever pounced on you to the point where you felt lost, out of control, overwhelmed, worried, and possibly even afraid? Scripture seems to tell us to expect things to happen but do not fear when they do. “Do not fear or be dismayed”. “Do not be afraid”. “Do not be frightened”. His word tells us that when we face, whatever it is, we are to be strong and courageous and know that God is with us. Note it does not say to go in our own power and strength but to go in the power and might of God. To go in His power and might mean by faith, trust, reliance, hope, and obedience.

Many times our troubles seem to get the best of us because, I assume, we doubt God is able, willing, or wanting to lead us out. I wonder why we get this way when it says “for I am with you always to the end of the age”, “God is with you wherever you go”, “He will not leave you or forsake you”.

Trust, reliance, faith, hope, and obedience all grow when they are tested. Sometimes this testing seems more than we can bear or longer than we can endure and for sure that is true if we go it alone. Yet with God, all things are possible and all trials and troubles can be overcome in and through Jesus Christ our Lord and savior.

60. I did not speak in secret

Deuteronomy 30:11 “For this commandment that I command you today is not too hard for you, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend to heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it.

“See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil. If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you today, by loving the Lord your God, by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his rules, then you shall live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. But if your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, I declare to you today, that you shall surely perish. You shall not live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to enter and possess. I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”

Isaiah 45:19    I did not speak in secret, in a land of darkness; I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, ‘Seek me in vain.’ I the LORD speak the truth; I declare what is right.

Romans 16:25-26     Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages  but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith—

Colossians 1:26-27     the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints.  To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

Can His word be so close to our heart and so familiar to our soul that it can not be understood or not be put into practice? NO! I wonder how it is possible to spend day after day, and week after week, and possibly month after month without more than a glance at His word when we know of the blessings and curses that come from either obedience or neglect. Have we watered down His word so much that following it only requires a showing up in Church a few times per month and speaking to God is dialed back to only when something troubling is happening.

His word would tell us that we can comprehend it, we can understand it, it is revealed to us, it is not far off, and it is brought to the very door of our heart, mind, and soul. However, it does no good in the heart, soul, and mind of anyone who does not cherish it or read it, or seek it, or desire it, or want to obey it. Neglects and complacency are not excuses, they are a choice.

How Awesome is this place!

Genesis 28:10 Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran. And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! And behold, the Lord stood above it and said, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”

Genesis 32:1-2     Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him.  And when Jacob saw them he said, “This is God’s camp!” So he called the name of that place Mahanaim.

2 Chronicles 16:9     For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him. You have done foolishly in this, for from now on you will have wars.”

Isaiah 41:10    fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

John 1:51    And he said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

2 Timothy 4:16-17     At my first defense no one came to stand by me, but all deserted me. May it not be charged against them!  But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth.

Hebrews 1:14    Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?

“How awesome is this place!” We don’t have to think very hard to understand what Jacob thought of his interaction with this dream. He certainly had to be a foundation of belief in God and that God can speak to people through dreams. He had to be receptive which means he had made a choice to want to hear from God. He chose in his heart and mind and soul to be ready and want to be in the presence of God. When he woke up he was afraid but he had presence of mind to know that this was special and from God. “How awesome is this place!”

A heart, mind, and soul committed to God, seeking, God, desiring God, and wanting to honor, glorify, serve, follow and obey God will hear the whispers of God, see the confirm hand of God in the affairs of their life, and yes may even have dreams authored by God. The promise of the Holy Spirit indwelling was given to all who repent and fully trust in the redemptive work of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit was promised by Christ and was given to lead, direct, rebuke, make known, give wisdom and understanding, confirm, convict our heart in righteous living through His word.

We need to be mindful of our life and how it is being lived out. Is the word of God constantly present in our heart and mind? Are we so busy and void of His word in our daily lives that we quench even the slightest spark of the Holy Spirit working in our life not to mention the fire expected. Are we so complacent we fail to see the Awesome! works of God each day? Are we so busy that we neglect to meditate on the events of each day in light of His word? Are we in a place of comfort and ease that we fail to see need of God in our daily life?

God is Awesome! Every minute with Him is Awesome! Every purpose and plan of His is Awesome! Every bit of wisdom and understanding given to us is Awesome! His steadfast love for us is Awesome! His redemption, salvation, and forgiveness of sin through Christ is Awesome! His quiet whispers of leading is Awesome!. His Word is Awesome! His promise of eternity is Awesome! His power is Awesome! His peace, joy, rest, strength and courage is Awesome! God is Awesome!!!!!

Keep your ears, eyes, heart, and mind open to see the Awesome power of God every minute of every day. Never be so busy that you miss seeing God at work in your everyday lives.

“Maybe the reason most of us feel like we can’t hear from God and see His awesome work is we’re too busy talking! It’s so tempting to ask God to say what we want Him to say instead of just focusing on what He’s already said and how it applies in our lives. The next time you want to hear God’s voice, start by cracking open God’s Word,” Perry

I saw a bumper sticker that read; If you want to hear from God, read His word. If you want to hear speak audibly, read out loud.

Living for God is intentional

Genesis 6:11 Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight, and the earth was filled with violence. And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.

Genesis 7:1 Then the LORD said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and all your household, for I have seen that you are righteous before me in this generation.

Genesis 13:13 Now the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the LORD.

Ezekiel 8:17 Then he said to me, “Have you seen this, O son of man? Is it too light a thing for the house of Judah to commit the abominations that they commit here, that they should fill the land with violence and provoke me still further to anger?

Hosea 4:1-2 Hear the word of the LORD, O children of Israel, for the LORD has a controversy with the inhabitants of the land. There is no faithfulness or steadfast love, and no knowledge of God in the land; there is swearing, lying, murder, stealing, and committing adultery; they break all bounds, and bloodshed follows bloodshed.

Psalms 11:5 The LORD tests the righteous, but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence.

Romans 2:13 For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified.

Deuteronomy 6:3 Hear therefore, O Israel, and be careful to do them, that it may go well with you, and that you may multiply greatly, as the LORD, the God of your fathers, has promised you, in a land flowing with milk and honey.

2 Chronicles 34:27 because your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before God when you heard his words against this place and its inhabitants, and you have humbled yourself before me and have torn your clothes and wept before me, I also have heard you, declares the LORD.

Deuteronomy 30:12-14 It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend to heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it.

James 2:21-25 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.

Luke 1:6 And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord.

One would think that the more wrong a person sees being done that they would become more and more concerned about doing what is right. Yet it seems as though the more we see and hear of wrong it just sets a new norm and dilutes and clouds and blinds us to what is right.

In the early 80’s I can remember an older pastor friend telling me that something troubled him. He said that he had realized that the church (christians) always seemed to be 10 to 15 years behind what the culture was adopting. What was not acceptable became questionable which became acceptable over time.

As a culture walks blindly further and further away from God, it seems to drag, pull and entice the church (individual christians) along the same path. The path of what a life of humble service, heart honoring, mind and soul following, and heart deep obeying God, is over grown with false truth, false hope, and false behaviors.

What must happen to capture the hearts of individuals to keep pure to the truth of God’s word. The serpent said it cleverly “did not God say…” using enough of God’s word to make sense of a lie and entice Adam and Eve to sin. There are plenty in this world who can twist the word of God into lies and leave many questioning what is true and honorable in the sight of God.

How do we stay unpolluted from a culture that is running at warp speed away from God? Reading His word with a heart like David when he said

“Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.”

With so much technology and immediate sharing of thoughts and ideas through media outlets, it is no wonder confusion to what is pure, holy, right and true happens. One would think the easiest way to stop this downward spiral would be to get back to a simpler life without all of the technology. History would tell us this is not true, for the heart of man seems to have always been set on satisfying self and denying God.

One would think that seclusion away from interference and influence of others who do not know God might help. We only have to look at Adam and Eve, Cain and Able, and the 40 years of God’s people in the wilderness to know that the heart of mankind, when yielded to, will choose to follow what is right in their own mind and for their own satisfaction whether for good or evil.

Choice has been given to each human. This choice allows them determine to follow their sinful nature or to humbly submit to honoring, serving, following and obeying God.

Spend time in His word – live for Him – seek Him – desire Him – love Him -learn from Him – honor Him – follow Him – obey Him – listen to Him – worship Him – glorify Him – want to be lead by Him – Grow in knowledge and understanding of Him.

Living for self is natural. Living for God is intentional.