Author: kezha1

The people of Judah couldn’t help but be discouraged with the meager progress of rebuilding the Temple. Zerubbabel, governor of Jerusalem, along with a ragtag group of exiles had returned from Babylon to start the rebuilding…but it was slow going…and everyone was demoralized. So God first spoke to Zerubbabel, showing him that his sufficiency must rest in God and not in his finite and limited human abilities. “It’s not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord Almighty.” (Zechariah 4:6) In addition, God reassured Zerubbabel that he would not only complete laying the Temple foundation, but finish it. (Zechariah 4:9) God then reminds the people that they could not judge His work by human standards, for even though it may look like insignificant progress,(small things) the real power to complete this monumental task would come from Him and no one else.

Integrity is a learned behavior. It’s about making morally good decisions, even when no one is watching. Integrity starts with a right relationship with God as you allow Him to lead you on the good and wise path of life. However, when you choose a lifestyle of dishonesty, deception, and false intentions, you’ll find that it only leads to a ruined life and devastation.

In order to encourage the people towards repentance, Jeremiah was directed by God to write down more than 20 years of prophesy he had been given. But when Jeremiah’s scribe, Baruch, read it out loud to king Jehoiakim…rather than tearing his clothes in repentance….the king burned the scroll piece by piece in a shocking display of defiance, and total rejection of God’s Word. But undeterred, the Lord demanded Jeremiah to rewrite it…for His Word could not be invalidated by the destruction of a mere scroll…neither could it be silenced or erased by one man. That’s because God’s Word will ultimately prevail… regardless of human opposition… as it accomplishes His sovereign plan and purpose.

In this teaching of Jesus,(Luke 11:33-36) He was speaking of the light within us as the lamp of our soul…harkening back to Psalm 18:28 which says, ” You, O Lord, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness into light.” When we’re filled with His light, our soul will be filled with wisdom and happiness. So it should be our focus to seek out the “light” of spiritual perception. It says that our eyes are the window to our soul…radiating God’s light…and a mirror of God’s goodness & grace. This inner light then, becomes a beacon shining in the darkness…guiding others towards Him.

This so reminds me of the story in Luke 10:29 where after Jesus had said, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” A man wanted Him to give a comprehensive definition of just who constituted a neighbor. That’s because first-century Jews had various ideas about who was included in the category of neighbor…limiting the term to community, clan, or religious affiliation. And the same goes for today…it’s easy to love people within familiar groups. It’s a lot harder to move outside the comfortable confines of what we know and tell the world about Jesus. But just warming a pew every Sunday will never fulfill The Great Commission…for Jesus said “Go and make disciples of all nations…” (Matthew 28:19)

As Ephesians 4:24 tells us, righteousness and holiness go hand and hand, for we are to, “put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” And this righteousness of God comes to realization only through faith in Jesus Christ and His work. It can’t be achieved by any of our actions, but only through obedience to Christ. It tells us in the 23rd Psalm that “He leads me in paths of righteousness”…but we need to follow…which is what holiness is all about. You may know it as sanctification – the deliberate decision and process of becoming holy like God…a being set apart for His purpose. (Romans 6:19) And as we follow Him, God works on our character. (Romans 5:4) All the while as we deal with our conduct…bringing it into alignment with the Gospel. (Philippians 1:27)

Overthinking is the process of going over and over something in our mind…it’s the hamster wheel of anxiety that traps us in an excessive, repetitive cycle of “what if”, that can only feed our fears and worries. But this verse is very clear…we are to throw our burdens onto the Lord, for only He can sustain, protect, and support us through any difficult time. (Psalm 55:22) This starts first by surrendering all those worries and trusting the Lord to handle them. It then requires humility and reliance on our part…trusting God’s strength and wisdom as our deliverer. (Psalm 40:17) Now I admit, it’s hard to jump off that hamster wheel…but if we do, we can find peace, comfort, new found strength in Him.

This is a song of praise, deliverance, and hope…a victory song sung by Moses and the people of Israel as they celebrate a God-given rescue. A deliverance so certain and sure that fear melts into faith…and trust blots out anxiety. This great song of praise turns their weakness into strength and reminds them that, “The joy of the Lord is your strength.” (Nehemiah 8:10) And as this song continues and unfolds, so does the vivid realization that salvation comes only from the Lord and, “Blessed is the man who trusts in You.” (Psalm 84:12)

The old saying goes, “You will reap what you sow.” And here the Old Testament prophet, Hosea, was condemning Israel for this and their wickedness and dishonesty… calling instead, for mass repentance and reform. When we sow seeds of mercy, kindness, compassion, and forgiveness, we will receive a harvest of blessings from God. But first we must break up the hardened soil of the fallow ground of our hearts and minds by diligently seeking the Lord. But rather than cultivating a fruitful relationship with God, we can behave like the Israelites who instead planted, reaped, and ate evilness, deception, lies, and dependence on their own strength rather than God’s.

Think back to when you first met your spouse…you spent hours together talking and getting to know everything about each other. For it was your attraction to them that spurred your desire for a deeper relationship. The Apostle Paul’s most passionate longing…of not just a greater mental awareness, but of a deep personal union with Jesus Christ was summed up well in Philippians 3:10, when he wrote, “That I may know Him and the power of His Resurrection…” In John 10:14, Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd. I know My own and My own know Me.” This type of intimacy is much more than a mental grasp, it’s an intense personal understanding and commitment of our will. In the 11th Chapter of Daniel it highlights the contrast between those who were seduced by man’s flattery, deceit, and manipulation… leading many away from their faith in God, and those who knew God by their strong relationship and personal commitment… and stood firm. (Daniel 11:32)