Imagine the loudest sporting event you’ve ever been to…the crowd is whipped up to a frenzy as the team is about to score the winning point…it’s absolutely deafening as the crowd hollers. That noise level is tame compared to the great sound that comes from around the Throne by the multitudes upon multitudes of saints shouting “Praise the Lord!” They are filling the entire heavens with His glory by their shouts of Hallelujah! And someday we’ll be joining them in that magnificent chorus…rooting on “The Winning Team!”
Month: October 2013
Amos 4:9 “…they will make gardens and eat their fruit.”
The last few days I have spent cleaning up the garden. After several mornings of below freezing temperatures, the poor thing looked rather tired. I always feel sad as I rake up old and dead plants, remembering how bountiful they once were…but it’s also a time of reflection. I ponder the different varieties I planted in the Spring…which ones did well, which didn’t…and which ones I’ll plant again next Spring. But as I sit here in the kitchen reflecting, with a big pot of vegetable soup simmering on the stove, I thank the Lord for the bountiful harvest He has given me…for all the lovely vegetables we’ve enjoyed eating over the Summer, and all the ones packed in the freezer for this Winter. I may plant the seed in the Spring…but it’s the Lord Who makes it sprout, grow, and provide a great harvest.
Proverbs 29:7 “The righteous care about justice for the poor, but the wicked have no such concern.”
We don’t have to be a wealthy philanthropist and humanitarian to accomplish God’s work down here on earth. It can be simply seeing a need and filling it…the poor and down-trodden are everywhere…the destitute and needy are among us all. The Lord plainly wants us to be their voice against injustice, and to “speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves.” (Proverbs 31:8-9)
I John 2: 3-4 ” We know that we have come to know Him if we obey His commands. The man who says, ‘I know Him,’ but does not do what He commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him.”
What is it to “know” the Lord? We will never fully understand God and all His glory until we are standing face to face with Him, but more importantly than our head knowledge of Him is our heart knowledge…in other words do we love as He loved…do we walk in His light…do we carry out His work daily with integrity and sincere motive?
Jeremiah 4: 3-4 “…Break up your unplowed ground and do not sow among thorns. Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, circumcise your hearts…”
If your Christian life seems to be unfruitful, the first question to ask yourself is…am I getting filled in order to be emptied? Getting into the Word daily is vitally important, as is seeking the Lord through prayer. If your life is dry and barren as a desert scene, it may be time to renew your commitment to the Lord…and then watch your desert flourish into an oasis for others.
Hebrews 4:13 “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.”
All that I’ve ever done will be stripped and exposed to plain view before the Lord someday, and I’ll have to give an explanation for each act. There’ll be no excuses, no whining, no blaming others for what I did…only total honesty before the Lord. Reality will suddenly take on a brand new face, as I stand before my Creator and see myself for what I truly am…a sinner.
Judges 7:2 “The Lord said to Gideon, ‘ You have too many men for Me to deliver Midian into their hands. In order that Israel may not boast against Me that her strength has saved her.’ “
The Lord’s power in us is dwelling in very fragile jars of clay…but that doesn’t stop those flimsy vessels from grandiose ideas of what they think they can do. Knowing this, the Lord wanted to made sure that Israel realized exactly by Who their victory would come. Thus God whittled Gideon’s troop size down to 300 from 32,000 fighting men to show precisely where their victory was coming from.
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