Followed Me fully

Psalms 90:16  Let your work be shown to your servants, and your glorious power to their children. Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands!

Psalms 44:1    O God, we have heard with our ears, our fathers have told us, what deeds you performed in their days, in the days of old:

Numbers 14:22     none of the men who have seen my glory and my signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not obeyed my voice,  shall see the land that I swore to give to their fathers. And none of those who despised me shall see it.  But my servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has followed me fully, I will bring into the land into which he went, and his descendants shall possess it.

Habakkuk 3:2     O LORD, I have heard the report of you, and your work, O LORD, do I fear. In the midst of the years revive it; in the midst of the years make it known; in wrath remember mercy.

Joshua 4:22     then you shall let your children know, ‘Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground.’  For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we passed over,  so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, that you may fear the LORD your God forever.”

Joshua 23:14     “And now I am about to go the way of all the earth, and you know in your hearts and souls, all of you, that not one word has failed of all the good things that the LORD your God promised concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one of them has failed.

Psalms 68:28     Summon your power, O God, the power, O God, by which you have worked for us.

Psalms 27:4     One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple.

Psalms 110:3     Your people will offer themselves freely on the day of your power, in holy garments; from the womb of the morning, the dew of your youth will be yours.

Psalms 118:25     Save us, we pray, O LORD! O LORD, we pray, give us success!

Job 22:28    You will decide on a matter, and it will be established for you, and light will shine on your ways.

Proverbs 16:3    Commit your work to the LORD, and your plans will be established.

1 Corinthians 3:7     So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.

Isaiah 26:12     O LORD, you will ordain peace for us, for you have indeed done for us all our works.

2 Thessalonians 2:16     Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace,  comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.

2 Thessalonians 3:1    Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed ahead and be honored, as happened among you,
But only God who gives growth.  We wonder why some or all of what we do seems purposeless and without life meaning and satisfaction.  It is time to learn from Him and seek him like given in this scripture “One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life,”  Everyday the choice we get to make concerning serving Him is given to us.  We get this choice and should we make the right choice we find peace, hope, love, power, courage, strength, comfort, joy and life with fulfilling purpose.  If we make the choice to follow self and the world we void all of this.  We may find these in short term bursts but they do not last and they certainly do not fulfill.  Do you want to see growth in what your purpose is this side of eternity?  Seek and desire God.  Choose to honor, serve, follow and obey Him.  How can we lose sight of what Jesus Christ freely did to redeem us from a path to eternal hell?  He allowed Himself to be beaten, whipped, nailed to the cross, mocked, spit upon and stabbed with a spear.  He could have stopped any of this happening at just a single word.  He chose to redeem.  He chose to call to Himself a people who come to Him with desire to humbly serve Him.  What manner of people ought we to be in light of the great sacrifice paid?  How should we live?  Seek and desire Jesus Christ in and through your life.  Be kind, generous, loving, giving, humble, hopeful, joyful, and never forgetting the redeeming price that was paid for your salvation.  Follow Him fully.

They know

“But the LORD of hosts is exalted in justice, and the Holy God shows himself holy in righteousness.”

“the LORD of hosts is his name; and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer, the God of the whole earth he is called.”

Psalms 83:18  that they may know that you alone, whose name is the LORD, are the Most High over all the earth.

Psalms 9:16    The LORD has made himself known; he has executed judgment; the wicked are snared in the work of their own hands.  

1 Kings 18:37    Answer me, O LORD, answer me, that this people may know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back.”

2 Kings 19:19    So now, O LORD our God, save us, please, from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, O LORD, are God alone.”

Jeremiah 16:21    “Therefore, behold, I will make them know, this once I will make them know my power and my might, and they shall know that my name is the LORD.”

Ezekiel 30:19     Thus I will execute judgments on Egypt. Then they will know that I am the LORD.”

Ezekiel 38:23    So I will show my greatness and my holiness and make myself known in the eyes of many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD.

Isaiah 42:8    I am the LORD; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols.

Daniel 4:25     that you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. You shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and you shall be wet with the dew of heaven, and seven periods of time shall pass over you, till you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will.

“I am the Lord”, “I will make Myself known”, “I will show My greatness and holiness”, “I will execute judgment”, “I will make them know My power and might,” are all actions God has taken to turn the hearts of man from themselves to Him alone.  When God is our refuge, strength, and hope we rely on His holiness, greatness, power, might, grace, mercy and love.  The safest place of refuge is in Him alone.  The safest path to be on is the one on which He is leading you.  The strongest you will ever be is when you rely on His strength.  The most courageous actions you will ever take are those directed and guided by Him.  When we rely on, cling to, and trust in Him we find peace that passes all understanding, strength we did not have, hope beyond our circumstances, light in the darkness, and wisdom beyond our understanding.

My Father’s house

Zechariah 14:21  And every pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be holy to the LORD of hosts, so that all who sacrifice may come and take of them and boil the meat of the sacrifice in them. And there shall no longer be a trader in the house of the LORD of hosts on that day.

Matthew 21:12   And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons.  He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers.”

John 2:15     And making a whip of cords, he drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and oxen. And he poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables.  And he told those who sold the pigeons, “Take these things away; do not make my Father’s house a house of trade.”

Isaiah 4:3    And he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy, everyone who has been recorded for life in Jerusalem,

Isaiah 35:8    And a highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Way of Holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it. It shall belong to those who walk on the way; even if they are fools, they shall not go astray.

Ezekiel 44:9    “Thus says the Lord GOD: No foreigner, uncircumcised in heart and flesh, of all the foreigners who are among the people of Israel, shall enter my sanctuary.

Joel 3:17    “So you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who dwells in Zion, my holy mountain. And Jerusalem shall be holy, and strangers shall never again pass through it.

1 Corinthians 6:9    Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality,  nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.  And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

Ephesians 2:19    So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,  built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone,  in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord.  In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

1 Peter 4:17    For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?

We know from scripture why the temple was built, what it’s purpose was, and how people were to revere God. Over time man turned what was intended to be Holy into something it was not intended for.  Outward appearances of obeying through performance of acts deemed to be in line with God’s expectations.  We see it became a house of trade where people were making money selling animals for sacrifice.  Christ walked into the temple and drove out these merchants and buyers.  Their heart was not inline with obedience to God but rather to a system of false seeking of God for forgiveness.  The old form of temple worship is gone and God replaced it with Jesus Christ the corner stone.  “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone,  in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord.”  True worship begins with the heart, mind and soul in absolute reverence to God.  We must be mindful of “drifting away” as those in history have done.  Man seems to keep lowering expectations of what it means to serve God.  There are many things in life, just as there was in the past, that water down and dilute what it means to serve God which always results in drifting away from God, but still thinking you are alright.   Humbly serving, honoring, following, obeying God should always be growing.  Anything less is drifting away – Having a form of Godliness but lacking the heart, mind, and soul commitment.  We all do well to ask God to search our heart and lead us down paths that honor Him.

Commit to Know Him

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the LORD, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the LORD, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.”

Psalms 57:2  I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me.

Psalms 136:2  Give thanks to the God of gods, for his steadfast love endures forever.  Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for his steadfast love endures forever;

Isaiah 57:15     For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite.

Psalms 138:8    The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands.

Philippians 1:6   And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

Philippians 2:12    Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling,

Hebrews 13:20  Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant,  equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.

We can cry out to God, but do we? We can claim His promise of having a plan and purpose for our life,  plan of welfare and hope, but do we believe it?  He will be found if we seek Him, but do we seek?  His word says that He will equip us with everything good so that we may do His will.  Do you wonder how He equips us to do His will?  If we seek Him with all our heart He will be found.  This seeking begins with believing in Him, His promises, and desiring to want to know Him and choosing to humbly serve Him above self, to honor, follow and obey Him above all else.  All of this requires us to spend time in His word, thinking about it and what it is saying to our heart mind and soul, seeking to and wanting to be led by Him in ways that honor and glorify Him.  This desire is from the moment we wake until the moment we lay down.  We keep our eyes focused on Him with our heart and mind open and with our ears open to hear His quiet small voice speaking to and leading us.  Spend time in His word and praying to Him.  How sad will it be if at the end of your life when entering eternity you hear “Depart from Me for I never knew you”

Walking Blameless

“Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God.”

“When Abram was ninety-nine years old the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless,”

“there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord.”

“And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.”

“ They shall teach my people the difference between the holy and the common,”

Malachi 2:7   True instruction was in his mouth, and no wrong was found on his lips. He walked with me in peace and uprightness, and he turned many from iniquity. For the lips of a priest should guard knowledge, and people should seek instruction from his mouth, for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts.   But you have turned aside from the way. You have caused many to stumble by your instruction. You have corrupted the covenant of Levi, says the LORD of hosts,  and so I make you despised and abased before all the people, inasmuch as you do not keep my ways but show partiality in your instruction.”

Hosea 4:6    My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from being a priest to me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.

Jeremiah 23:22    But if they had stood in my council, then they would have proclaimed my words to my people, and they would have turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their deeds.

Acts 26:18    to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

James 5:19  My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back,  let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.

Psalms 37:30    The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks justice.

2 Timothy 2:15  Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.  But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness,

Titus 1:7-9   He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.

What does it mean to walk blameless before God?  How do you know if you are? How do you know if you are a worker who has no need to be ashamed?  How do you know if you speak wisdom?  What is a persons life like if they have wondered from the truth?  What does it mean to stand in the council of God?  What is proper instruction?   These questions come to mind when reading these scriptures today.  The answers to these are as many as the stars in the sky.  However the foundation for answering them is found first in believing in God, having reverence for Him, knowing you are a sinner and in need of redemption, looking to and trusting in the redemptive work of Jesus Christ, repenting and truing away from sin, and choosing to humbly serve, honor, follow and obey God.  Staying in His word will continue to refine the answers asked above.

Awesome Power and Might

“Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.”

Psalms 65:5  By awesome deeds you answer us with righteousness, O God of our salvation, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas; the one who by his strength established the mountains, being girded with might; who stills the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, the tumult of the peoples, so that those who dwell at the ends of the earth are in awe at your signs. You make the going out of the morning and the evening to shout for joy.

Psalms 45:4    In your majesty ride out victoriously for the cause of truth and meekness and righteousness; let your right hand teach you awesome deeds!

Psalms 47:2  For the LORD, the Most High, is to be feared, a great king over all the earth.  He subdued peoples under us, and nations under our feet.

Psalms 66:3     Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies come cringing to you.

Psalms 76:3  There he broke the flashing arrows, the shield, the sword, and the weapons of war. Selah  Glorious are you, more majestic than the mountains full of prey.  The stouthearted were stripped of their spoil; they sank into sleep; all the men of war were unable to use their hands.  At your rebuke, O God of Jacob, both rider and horse lay stunned.  But you, you are to be feared! Who can stand before you when once your anger is roused?  From the heavens you uttered judgment; the earth feared and was still,  when God arose to establish judgment, to save all the humble of the earth.

Deuteronomy 4:34   Or has any god ever attempted to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, and by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by great deeds of terror, all of which the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes?

Deuteronomy 10:21   He is your praise. He is your God, who has done for you these great and terrifying things that your eyes have seen.

Isaiah 37:36   And the angel of the LORD went out and struck down 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians. And when people arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies.

Revelation 15:3  And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, “Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations!  Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

Revelation 15:3  And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, “Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations!  Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

Isaiah 45:22    “Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.

Matthew 28:19  Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Psalms 22:27    All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the LORD, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you.

God’s mighty and awesome deeds from history have been shared with us in scripture.  These awesome and mighty deeds include, creation, flood, protection, victory from enemies, signs and wonders, splitting of the Red Sea, water from a rock, fire from the sky, manna and quail, judgements on people, death of enemies, dead back to life, blind were given sight, deaf were able to hear, mute were able to speak, women without child were given children, virgin birth, seas calmed, feeding of 5,000, Jesus Christ birth-death-resurrection, and promises of eternity with Him for those who believe in, rely on, cling to and trust in Him.  There are hundreds of more examples recorded of His might acts.  Life has a way of blinding us from seeing and believing these acts of power, might, and love.  Life gets in the way and we explain away His awesome power and love with words of “I sure was lucky,” “what a coincidence,” “that was weird,” “I wish somebody could explain this to me,” “I see it but don’t believe it,” somebody was watching over them,” “such is fate,” and many more.   When our heart, mind and soul are more focused on this life rather than on God we see things in a different light – through a different lens.  God is not in focus and many of His acts are missed and we fail to recognize them.  It is impossible to honor and praise God when we neglect to commit our life to Him, spend time with His word, and give Him all our heart, mind, and soul.  Do you want to see these acts of power, might and love?  Change the way you do life.  Focus your heart, mind, and soul on Him.  Desire to humbly serve, honor, follow, and obey Him.  And as the old hymn says “the things of earth with grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.

 

Reverence & Respect – King of Glory

 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.”

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”

“While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.”

Psalms 24:10  Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, he is the King of glory!

Isaiah 6:3-5  And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!”  And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke.  And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!”

John 12:40    “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them.

John 14:9   Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?

Psalms 2:10  Now therefore, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth.  O kings, Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.  Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

Luke 9:26   For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.

Titus 2:11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,

2Peter 1:3  His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.

Who is this King of glory – The Lord Of Hosts. Look at what Isaiah said after a vision of the Lord of hosts: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips”.  Isaiah had a starting point “Fear of God”.  I know “fear” can be misunderstood so I have copied this for a reference to help understand the meaning intended: “The Hebrew verb yare can mean “to fear, to respect, to reverence” and the Hebrew noun yirah “usually refers to the fear of God and is viewed as a positive quality. This fear acknowledges God’s good intentions (Ex. 20:20). … This fear is produced by God’s Word (Ps. 119:38; Prov. 2:5) and makes a person receptive to wisdom and knowledge (Prov. 1:7; 9:10)” (Warren Baker and Eugene Carpenter, The Complete Word Study Dictionary: Old Testament, 2003, pp. 470-471”.  Isaiah began with a reverence and respect of God and who He is.  Without this reverence and respect for God, His word will be meaningless, His promises empty, His salvation rejected, and His purpose seems foolish.  Without this reverence and respect our heart is hardened and though we may read or hear the word of God it will have no place to root in our heart.  Proverbs says the beginning of all wisdom is fear (reverence and respect) of the Lord.  The verses today speak of those who have this reverence and respect of God and those who do not.  Hold tight to this reverence and respect.  With this as a firm anchor in your life His word will have great impact and purpose in your life.

I will

“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.”

Joe 2:18  Then the LORD became jealous for his land and had pity on his people. The LORD answered and said to his people, “Behold, I am sending to you grain, wine, and oil, and you will be satisfied; and I will no more make you a reproach among the nations. “I will remove the northerner far from you, and drive him into a parched and desolate land, his vanguard into the eastern sea, and his rear guard into the western sea; the stench and foul smell of him will rise, for he has done great things. “Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice, for the LORD has done great things! Fear not, you beasts of the field, for the pastures of the wilderness are green; the tree bears its fruit; the fig tree and vine give their full yield. “Be glad, O children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God, for he has given the early rain for your vindication; he has poured down for you abundant rain, the early and the latter rain, as before. “The threshing floors shall be full of grain; the vats shall overflow with wine and oil. I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter, my great army, which I sent among you. “You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, who has dealt wondrously with you. And my people shall never again be put to shame.  You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the LORD your God and there is none else. And my people shall never again be put to shame.

Psalms 46:5
God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns.

Isaiah 12:6
Shout, and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.”

Leviticus 26:11-12
I will make my dwelling among you, and my soul shall not abhor you. And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people.

Deuteronomy 23:14
Because the LORD your God walks in the midst of your camp, to deliver you and to give up your enemies before you, therefore your camp must be holy, so that he may not see anything indecent among you and turn away from you.

Matthew 6:24
“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.

“I will be among you,” “I will help you”, “I am jealous for you,” “I will deliver you,” I will walk among you,” and “I will restore you.” These are all promises of God.  Do you ever think God doesn’t care or seems distant? He is ever present and is very near.  There are many things that can separates us from understanding His presence, love, mercy and grace. Scripture states “if we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us,” “if we knock He will open the door,” and “if we seek we will find Him”.  When things around us are going well do we seek Him, or draw near to Him?  More than likely it is when the things around us are falling apart, or facing a trial, or something has happened we don’t understand, or when we have tried to handle it on our own and failed.  This is when we start seeking, knocking and trying to find God in the chaos.  What would it feel like to be friends with someone who never has anything to do with you until the day they are in trouble?  Time and time again never wanting anything to do with you until you are their last resort.  The point I am trying to make is that this type of behavior is one sided and is not a relationship. God wants to be the Lord of our life – all of it – all of the time.  He has done great things and had them recorded so that we might know of His power, might, strength, love, mercy, and grace.  He is worthy of our praise, honor, glory, and humble service.  Do you want to know Him more – read His word with desire.  Do you want to see His hand at work in all of your life – Seek Him.  Do you want to have peace, joy, love, rest, and hope – choose to serve Him sincerely every moment of every day.