Anything but Routine

Today’s blog post is contributed by David Trotta:

And wherever he came, in villages, cities, or countryside, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and implored him that they might touch even the fringe of his garment. And as many as touched it were made well. (Mark 6:56)

As we have discussed before, we are a temple of the Holy Spirit, meaning wherever we go, He goes with us.  That means at work, in the gym, at the supermarket, or visiting the doctor’s office.

When we are in church, we expect God to show up.  We expect His presence to invade our place of worship and for supernatural things to happen, such as healings, repentance, spiritual breakthroughs, and much more.  We anticipate God using our spiritual gifts to build up others in our church.

Yet when we step out of church, we often don’t expect God to move in the same way He does in church.  But nothing could be further from the truth!

God often does His best work outside the four walls of church.  Look at Jesus.  He did many of His greatest miracles in the marketplace where ordinary people were.

Just like with Jesus, spiritual gifts can flow through us anywhere, anytime.

The next time you are in any one of the many places you visit throughout the week, quiet your inner man and listen for the still small voice of God.  He may have a gift for the person standing next to you and He wants you to deliver it.

When we change our thinking in this area, even trips to the supermarket will become anything but routine.

A Message For All People

“Then he said: ‘The God of our ancestors has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and to hear words from his mouth.

 You will be his witness to all people of what you have seen and heard.”

Acts 22:14-15

In the Book of Acts Chapter 22 and verses 2-21 Paul shares his testimony.

He does so clearly, accurately and without embellishment or dilution.

This is how our testimony should be given as well.

Interestingly enough, it wasn’t until Paul repeated the words of the Lord when He was commissioned by Him that the unruly crowd, which had settled to hear him became agitated again.

Jesus had said to Paul: “Go, I will send you far away to the Gentiles.”

Hearing those words, the crowd shouted for Paul to be killed.

Their traditions and their religion was being challenged!

They did not share the relationship with the Lord that Paul did.

For the most part it was tradition, handed down by man that was held in highest esteem by the Jewish leaders.

They were now opposing what God was doing.

We must be careful to cultivate a relationship with the Lord and not a religion.

One brings life but the other death.

Be Still and Know the Truth

“After receiving the commander’s permission, Paul stood on the steps and motioned to the crowd. When they were all silent he said to them...”

Acts 21:40

Truth is seldom discovered in the midst of an uproar.

When there are many loid voices clamoring and shouting opposing views and opinions at each other it is very difficult to discover the truth in the midst of such discord.

And it certainly cannot be assumed that the truth resides just with those who are greater in number or who shout the loudest.

That can be a very wrong (and sometimes even dangerous) assumption!

As Paul was being beaten and a mob was attempting to kill him these words were recorded in Acts 21:34:

“Some in the crowd shouted one thing and some another, and since the commander could not get at the truth because of the uproar, he ordered that Paul be taken into the barracks.”

This commander rightly realized that, right or wrong, Paul was the lightening rod in the mob violence attempting to have its’ way so he had Paul removed to a safer place.

Sometimes we are desperate for the truth and yet it is concealed from us while our lives are in the midst of ‘uproar’.

Only later do we ‘discover’ the truth in the quietness of our prayer time.

Don’t make the rash decision that truth lies with the majority, the most passionate or with those willing to do outrageous things in behalf of their opinion.

God often comes to us ‘afterward’ in the quietness of the alone moments with Him to reveal His truth to us.

Verse 40 says: “When they were all silent he said to them...”

Paul spoke the truth when the mob was silenced.

Kind of reminds me of the verse that declares:

“Be still and know that I am God.”

Be still and know the truth!

In God’s Hands

“I will turn my hand against you;

    I will thoroughly purge away your dross

    and remove all your impurities.

I will restore your leaders as in days of old,

    your rulers as at the beginning.

Afterward you will be called

    the City of Righteousness,

    the Faithful City.”

Isaiah 1:25-26

As you read the verses above there is an understanding that when God does a transforming and redeeming work in your life it is a complete work.

Imagine, for just a moment, what the ‘afterwards’ picture would look like if that refining work were taken out of the hands of God and left up to you and me.

What a picture that would be!

Fortunately, when we surrender our lives to Him the work is not left to our hands.

As a matter of fact that same chapter of Isaiah describes vividly what happens when we are left in charge:

“See how the faithful city has become a prostitute!

She once was full of justice; righteousness used to dwell in her—but now murderers!

Your silver has become dross, your choice wine is diluted with water.

 Your rulers are rebels, partners with thieves; they all love bribes

    and chase after gifts.

They do not defend the cause of the fatherless;

    the widow’s case does not come before them.”

How much better to leave your nation, your city and your own life in the hands of God rather than the hands of men!

 

Let God Be Your Contingency Plan!

“And now, compelled by the Spirit,

I am going to Jerusalem,

not knowing what will happen to me there.”

Acts 20:22

Paul was compelled by the Holy Spirit to go to Jerusalem not knowing what awaited him there.

We also may, at times, be compelled by the Holy Spirit to a certain thing but not be supplied with all of the answers.

We struggle with that sometimes.

We like all of our ‘ducks in a row’ before we venture out into the unknown.

But we are called to a walk of faith.

Faith sometimes calls us out into deep water and does so without supplying a life preserver.

In the business world contingency plans are put in place in the event of any catastrophes like fires, cyber-attacks, flooding or tornadoes.

It is expected that the leaders of that business have considered all of the likely possibilities and put plans in place to address those possibilities and minimize risk or damage to the business.

We are not called to be foolish but we are called to trust God when He calls us out on the water.

Let God be your safety net.

Let God be your contingency plan!

Paul knew this even when he knew little else of why the Holy Spirit was compelling him to go to Jerusalem.

Constant Companions

Today’s blog post is contributed by David Trotta:

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. (Psalm 23:6)

Did you ever see the character from the Li’l Abner comic strip who always had a rain cloud following him wherever he went?  It’s easy to laugh at a cartoon depiction like that, but in reality, many Christians go through life thinking a dark cloud is following them.

We focus on our difficulties and hardships instead of the promises of God.

One such promise is David’s declaration in Psalm 23 that God’s goodness and mercy shall follow us all the days of our lives.  They are our constant companions.

God promises to never leave us or forsake us and neither does His goodness and mercy.  In the midst of painful and challenging seasons, our lives are wrapped in God’s goodness and mercy.

During those times, it may be hard to see His fingerprints, but rest assured, His hand is all over us.

The next time you are tempted to focus on the circumstances of life, take a look over your shoulder.  If you look long enough, you are sure to see God’s goodness and mercy following you.

They are your constant companions.  That’s God’s promise.

Multiplying Opportunities

“ Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up, “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?”

John 15:8-9

Do you believe in the power and authority of God to be manifested in the earth?

Wait, wait – because, while what you say is important, what you do is even more evident of your level of belief.

We can say we believe a lot of things but how we live our lives truly reveals our heart convictions.

Our ability to see the power and authority of God and believe it will be as He said before it manifests is one key that releases the resources of heaven in this world.

In the familiar passage above Jesus saw and believed what Andrew did not.

In seeing and believing, Jesus released the resources of heaven and the supernatural provision was supplied.

It didn’t take more than half a year’s wages as Philip had spoken just a verse earlier.

Jesus modeled for them – and for us – what can happen when we trust and believe in the power and authority of a heavenly Father who loves us and cares for us in the most practical ways.

Jesus did not send them away as some had suggested.

He met the need and in so doing brought glory to the Father.

How many opportunities might there be today in each of our lives to bring glory to God if we believe God’s power and authority is available to us to meet the needs of a hurting people?

Like the loaves and fishes, I think those opportunities would multiply as we believe!

Two Eyes, Two Ears, One Mouth, One Nose

“But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

I Samuel 16:7

“Two eyes, two ears, one mouth, one nose;

Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes!”

So goes the chorus of a song you may have song as a child.

But those eyes and ears – they can get you into so much trouble.

What we see and hear can greatly undermine our faith if we allow it.

When we do not filter our vision and hearing through the Word of God and only hear mans’ voice and see with our natural eyes we can be assured trouble lies ahead for our faith.

So let’s fortify our hearing and our ‘seeing’ in order to gain Gods’ perspective on the circumstances and events of life.

Samuel the Prophet was ready to anoint the tall, dark and handsome son of Jesse until He heard God speak.

Samuel had to tune his hearing to God’s voice and had to look beyond natural attributes to see what God son in the shepherd son David.

Don’t miss Gods’ best for your life by leaning on natural sight and hearing everyone else but God.

The things you hear and the things you see can undermine your faith.

So train your hearing to listen for God’s voice.

It is often not the loudest one in the room.

Ask God to help you see with the eyes of the Holy Spirit and not simply with natural sight.

As you do these things expect your faith to increase!

Faith Worth Guarding

“But Peter declared,

"Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you."

And all the other disciples said the same.”

Matthew 26:35

Those are some pretty emphatic words spoken by Peter along with the 11 other apostles shouting “AMEN!”

Peter had grown so much in the time he had walked with Jesus.

His mustard seed faith was nurtured and increasing.

But Jesus warned him there would be stumbling blocks ahead.

That warning is what prompted Peter bold but wrong declaration.

It was an experience a few hours later that brought Peter’s denial.

His faith was being tested by his momentary experience.

Our experiences have a way of doing that.

Especially when we allow those experiences to override our faith.

Peter was zealous for the things of God but even his zeal failed him at the critical moment of testing he faced.

He had made wonderful progress but failed to guard that progress when others’ questioned his association with Jesus.

Are you guarding your progress in your walk with the Lord?

Day-by-day and moment-by-moment we each face opportunities to grow or to not grow.

Sometimes these opportunities are as obvious as they were for Peter.

But more often than not the experiences that can undermine our faith are far more subtle.

Time eating away our day so that we have no alone time with the Lord.

Pressures at work that turn our focus on the problem and away from the Lord.

101 distractions competing for our attention!

Guard your heart, guard the work of God in your life, guard your faith that it fail not in moments of testing.

A Very High Bar Indeed

“Jesus looked at them and said,

“With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Matthew 19:26

How high is the bar you set for yourself?

If you use the Word of God as your guide you can set a bar of impossibilities.

What I mean by that is when you partner with God to bring heaven to earth, when you determine that His will is to be done on the earth as it is in heaven and that He doesn’t just desire that you talk about heaven coming to earth but actively work with Him to accomplish that then He will make the impossible possible.

And He will do it through you!

Sometimes we find that hard to believe, let alone act upon it.

But God’s plans for earth have always included man.

So as you go through life today, whether you believe today to be exceptional or ordinary, don’t set the bar an inch of the ground.

Instead ask God to use you to accomplish what you could not accomplish without Him.

Ask God to set the bar for you and partner with Him to accomplish all that He has for you today.

Not tomorrow, next week or next year – but today.

Then prepare yourself to accomplish the impossible!

Do you have a prevention plan?

Today’s blog post is contributed by David Trotta:

At my workplace, whenever we have a system failure, the first thing we do after service has been restored is to put a preventative plan in place to keep the issue from reoccurring.

That thought process is also good to apply to our spiritual life.  When we succumb to temptation in our life and sin, it is a good idea to immediately evaluate what occurred and put preventative steps in place. 

The bible offers some solid steps you and I can take to have victory over sin in our life:

Step 1 - Quickly confess your sin and receive God’s forgiveness and cleansing (1 John 1:9).

Step 2 - Acknowledge the Holy’s Spirit’s role as our helper and partner with him in putting to death our sinful nature (Romans 8:13, 26).  When it comes to living a holy life, there is no greater resource than God’s Spirit dwelling within us.

Step 3 - Meditate on scripture until it is deeply rooted or “hidden” in your heart (Psalm 119:11), because what’s in our hearts will determine the course of our life (Proverbs 4:23).

Sin that goes unchecked in our life is bound to repeat itself, but having a preventative plan in place to quickly address those times we fail will lead to a life of freedom and victory, one where God’s character is routinely on display for others to see.

Good, Good Father

“He who did not spare [even] His own Son, but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?”

Romans 8:32 Amplified

Here are some questions to ponder –

How much of a blessing does God want to pour out on you?

Is God miserly?

Do you see God like Ebenezer Scrooge?

If so, do you see Him as the ‘before’ or ‘after’ Scrooge?

I mean no disrespect at all too God, rather I want us to understand that how we view Him can very surely impact how we receive from Him.

We are not likely to ask, or expect, much of a stingy father.

But one whom we know loves us and wants to bless us abundantly?

 From that Father we will ask, expect and receive!

There is no shortage of promises and examples of Gods’ rich and abundant love for us and of His clear desire to bless His children.

You need not look any further than when He sent His Son!

Yeah, but!

This is where we like to insert the disclaimers, the ‘conditions’ and the ‘to do’s’

Don’t get me wrong, sometimes God will attach conditions but I think too often we more quickly gravitate to the conditions than we do to the grace and blessing of God.

It’s as if we don’t really enjoy the blessings because we are too busy waiting for God to drop the hammer on us!

But as the song writer so accurately said:

“You’re a good, good Father!”

Click on the link below and enjoy the song:

https://youtu.be/-_m5ZWchiZo

Helping Others Encounter Heaven.

“As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.”

He called out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?”

“Lord, I want to see,” he replied.

Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God.”

Luke 18:35-43

Are you the answer to someone else’s prayer?

Jesus was time and time again.

Certainly the blind beggar knew this to be true.

He was no longer blind after his encounter with Jesus.

Why?

Because Jesus had pulled down the resources of heaven and brought healing to him that day.

To live beyond natural limits what you need to do is let your life be the answer to this prayer:

“Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

When you do this others will encounter heaven.

Jesus was moved with compassion for this man whom others were trying to make quiet.

He was shouting his prayer request and Jesus drew from heaven’s resources to answer his prayer and to cause others to glorify God.

What a life worth living!

Imagine the encounters each of us will have when we learn to do as Jesus did!

Oh, and greater works too...

Then Step Back...

“I can do all this through Him who gives me strength.”

Philippians 4:13

Not only does Jesus Christ give me strength to do all things.

He provides all of the resources necessary to do all things according to His will.

Let that sink in...

Resources are defined as: a stock or supply of money, materials, staff, and other assets that can be drawn on by a person or organization in order to function effectively.

God’s desire is that we advance the Kingdom of God on the earth.

He has not asked us to do this without the help of heaven.

The  first and most important resource He has given us is His Holy Spirit.

The very Spirit of God taking up residence in each of us.

Beyond that, He has opened to us the resources of heaven that we might draw upon them what we need to advance His Kingdom around the world.

As we saw yesterday, Jesus demonstrated this over and over.

Coins in the mouths of fishes, loaves and fishes multiplied, and untold other miracles gave us a glimpse of those limitless resources at our disposal.

Jesus pulled them down from heaven by faith.

We can do the same!

Do you have an unmet need in advancing the Kingdom of God?

Ask God to increase your faith to believe and pull down from His storehouse what is needed.

Then step back...

No Overdrawn Accounts

“They feast on the abundance of your house;

    you give them drink from your river of delights.”

Psalm 36:8

Is there a place with unlimited resources?

Is there a place where no matter how much you withdraw there is never a deficit, never an overdrawn account?

Could there really be such a place?

Let me give you a hint –

“...Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

Heaven, where God is enthroned, is a place of unlimited resources.

Engage in the Fathers’ work and you can tap into that supply.

Praying for someone’s healing?

Tap into heavens resources where there is no sickness and no disease.

Jesus revealed what it was like to pull from heaven what was needed to see God’s will done on the earth.

Time and time again He withdrew from heaven’s accounts.

Once it was in multiplying a meal.

Another time it was at a wedding feast.

Many, many times it was bringing down from heaven the deliverance needed to set captives free.

Healing, deliverance, even taxes were met with heavens unlimited resources.

          Someone once said that when God gives vision, He sends provision.

I would challenge you today to stop and think how different ministry might be for each of us if you and I truly believed God can and will resource the work He has called you to do out of the unlimited resources of heaven.

Inspired!

Today’s blog post is contributed by David Trotta

All these [gifts, achievements, abilities] are inspired and brought to pass by one and the same [Holy] Spirit, Who apportions to each person individually [exactly] as He chooses. (I Corinthians 12:11)

Has anyone ever inspired you?  Maybe your pastor, your boss, or your spouse?  Someone who inspires you challenges you to maximize your talents and abilities.  They draw out the best in you.  They stir your heart in such a way that you want to reach higher.

The Holy Spirit is one such person.  He is a master at inspiration.  Scripture teaches that God has given each of us at least one spiritual gift.  Just as someone can draw out your natural talents and abilities, the Holy Spirit’s job is to impart and draw out your spiritual gifts.  He inspires us to step out and utilize the gifts God has given us.

How do I know what my spiritual gifts are you ask?  The first step is to spend time with the Holy Spirit.  You will never know what your spiritual gifts are unless you partner with the Holy Spirit in your day to day life.

Then, as you fellowship with the Holy Spirit, watch for situations when you feel inspired to act.  During those times, you may have a glimpse of what your spiritual gifts are.

When you recognize and follow God’s inspiration, others will see God supernaturally living His life through you.

“Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervor and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John.”

Acts18-24-25

Grace, patience and instruction!

Take a moment and read the last several verses of the chapter and you will find that this is how Aquila and Priscilla dealt with Apollos.  

He was a gifted orator and was passionate about sharing what he knew in scripture.

But his knowledge was limited.

Rather than publicly shaming him, ostracizing him or even taking him aside and ‘setting him straight’ they lovingly invited him into their home and shared of and all that had happened to fulfill scripture beyond his limited understanding.

Apollos was teachable, no doubt in part due to the grace extended through Aquila and Priscila.

Perhaps you know someone who doesn’t quite have it right.

There is no question as to their motivation and desire, they just don’t have the message correct.

How do you deal with them?

It could mean the difference between a fruitful ministry for them or an offense that keeps them from all God has for them.  

Make a good difference in someone’s life today by how you handle their deficiencies!

Son-Shiny Day

“The soothing tongue is a tree of life,

    but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit.”

Proverbs 15:4

One day this week as I left the house to drive my son to work the sky was gray, overcast and cloudy. As we approached his workplace about 7 miles away the sun was breaking through the clouds and as I looked up there were patches of blue sky evident.

The change was welcome.

How much more welcome is the change when we learn to pray or speak into someone’s life the blue skies and Sonshine rather than the ominous gray clouds.

After all, isn’t that how God most often speaks to us in His word?

He speaks to us as He sees us – through the filter of His Sons’ completed work – and not necessarily where we are at any given moment.

Let our faith in others be inspired and informed by that example.

It is easy to pick out another persons’ faults and point them out or even ‘pray them out’.

It’s a bit harder for us to see, by faith, a completed work God is doing in that person and speak it out to them or pray in that way for them.

We let our thoughts of them (and often even of ourselves) be ruled by the clouds and overcast skies in their life and not by the breaks of ‘Son light’ shining through.

Commit today to ask God to help you see, speak and pray for others as He sees them.

It may just break up some clouds in their life.

Hurry Up and Wait

“While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. So he reasoned in the synagogue with both Jews and God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there.”

Acts 17:16-17

Hurry Up and Wait!

Is your waiting time productive?

Paul was sent to Athens after Thessalonian Jews followed him to Berea agitating crowds and stirring them up against him.

He had left behind Silas and Timothy and so he waited for them in Athens.

What do you suppose Paul did while he waited?

Did he find a comfy hammock near the Acropolis and while away the hours?

Maybe he did the touristy things and hit a few souvenir shops while he waited.

Perhaps he sat by the pool and read or (in his case) wrote a good book.

Nope!

 Paul didn’t do any of these things.

No, his wait was remarkably busy and productive for the Kingdom of God.

Acts 17:16 starts out this way:

“While Paul was waiting for them in Athens...”

As you continue to read the rest of the chapter you will discover he was anything but sedentary.

There is something about knowing your purpose that will draw you into ‘gainful employment’ for the work of the Kingdom of God.

Maybe you find yourself waiting on God for something.

Are you waiting idly or are you fruitful in Kingdom work while you wait?  

In Whole, Not in Part

“Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: to an unknown god. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.”

Acts 17:22-23

Acts Chapter 17 tells of Paul’s time in the City of Athens and his preaching to a “well-educated” class of people.

As might be expected from his audience (“...not many wise...”) many sneered at Paul’s message while a few believed and received it.

Though Paul’s own background was much like many of theirs’ (he too was very well educated) he stayed true to the gospel message.

He adapted it to his audience without changing it or watering it down.

There can be a fine line in this area because we can easily move from adapting the message to changing it in order to seek to please men with it.

We seek to justify our actions by saying something like this to ourselves “But if I just don’t preach this part, I know many more will receive what I am saying!”

We must never modify the message to make it more palatable.

Our own sin and the cost of that sin should never be presented as something palatable!

We certainly can adapt ways of presenting it that makes it better understood by our 21^st century listeners.

Paul understood this.

The message of the cross was delivered faithfully.

But it was brought to them in a way they could understand.

Some chose to receive it but most did not.

Paul’s obligation then remains ours today – to faithfully deliver the whole message of the Gospel!

Spiritual Fruit Requires a Partnership

Today’s blog post is contributed by David Trotta:

But the fruit of the Spirit [the result of His presence within us] is love [unselfish concern for others], joy, [inner] peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law.  (Galatians 5:22-23)

One of the Holy Spirit’s primary objectives is to produce spiritual fruit in our lives.

As we’ve discussed before, God gave us the precious gift of His spirit, a gift so important that Jesus had to leave this world so that the Holy Spirit could come.

However, instead of partnering with the Holy Spirit and allowing Him to produce fruit in our lives, we try and go it alone, which produces something else in our lives – feelings of frustration and defeat.

We have the perfect dance partner, but we leave Him on the sidelines.  Or, we agree to dance, but we insist on leading instead of letting the Holy Spirit lead (which He is much better at doing).

The supernatural fruit of the Holy Spirit is the byproduct of us learning to utilize a partnership with Him.

Are you frustrated with how little the spiritual fruit described in the above verse is evident in your life?  If yes, I encourage you to try a different approach – stop trying!  Instead, partner with the Holy Spirit by utilizing the fruit-producing ability he already possesses.

Branches on a tree produce fruit with very little effort.  They just have to stay connected to the tree.

That’s all you have to do too.  Just stay connected in partnership with the Holy Spirit.