God's Word--My Life Source for Living

I draw the life of God into me (into my spirit) through (or by) His Word. If I'm not exposed to the word of God, then I'm not exposed to the life of God. God's life is in His word. If I neglect the word, then I lose touch with the life of God. To be strong in my spirit, I must be filled with the word of God.

Satan's target for the believer is the word of God. He will do anything to keep the believer from the word of God, because he knows the word is the Believer's life source. Satan can steal, kill, and destroy the Believer by cutting off his life source. Satan knows that once the Believer stops consuming the word of God, it's but a matter of time before he will wither and die (spiritually, which then leads to physically). (Read John 15:1-8)

Jesus said in John 6:63. "it is the Spirit who gives life, the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are Spirit and they are Life." My greatest responsibility as a Believer is to keep a steady, continuous flow of the word of God coming into my spirit. When I look upon the word of God, I must realize that I'm breathing God's life into my spirit.

When I was born again (Dec 3, 1979), the Spirit of God came into my spirit, and recreated me. He made me brand new and Jesus' Spirit now lives within me. My spirit now craves the milk and the meat of the word of God, because that is what feeds my spirit and brings God's life to my spirit. Just as the physical man that does not eat food will wither and die, so is the same in my spirit, for without the word of God, it will wither and die.

The word of God is my life source. Prov 4:22 says, "for the word is life unto those that find them and health (and medicine) to all their flesh." God's word is my life source and I must consume it everyday to stay alive in my spirit. But it is the word of God that also keeps my flesh alive as well. When you starve your spirit of the word of God, it will wither, become weak, and eventually die and the body with a dead spirit is dead as well. As the condition of your spirit goes, so goes the body.

The priority of the Believer everyday is to breathe the life of God into himself/herself, so that he can live that life that God desires for him/her. God wants His life to be your life. He wants you to be just like Him, and He has made the way for that to happen. When you breathe God's life into your spirit you will be living your life from the life of God.

What will you look like if you continuously consume the word of God everyday? You'll look just like Jesus, the word made flesh (John 1:14), a living episitle read by all men ( 2 Cor 3: 2-3). You already know that your physical body needs a certain amount of food to survive, and you take care of that need. God is telling us today, that it is the spirit man that gives life to the body, therefore the spirit man must have priority in what you consume each and every day. You must feed the spirit man (the word of God) to live a God empowered life. This is the way God has made it for a man/woman to truly live life. By breathing God's life from consuming the word of God, the man in turn lives his life from the life of God that is now in his spirit, and the end result is that man/woman will look just like Jesus and the light of Jesus will draw men to the Father.

That is the plan of God for a man/woman, now go and breathe His life into yourself. Look at the word of God, consume it (by looking at it and meditating upon it), and live. Then know this, "that no weapon formed against you may prosper (Isa 54:17) and because you have chosen to consume the word of God everyday, no evil shall overtake you, nor any plague come near your dwelling (that's your physical house , the one with a roof on it, but it's also your physical body as well, that which houses your spirit) (Ps 91:9-10).

God has given man a choice on how to live his life. (Deut 30:19) God even tells us what the right choice is. He says, "choose life, that both you and your descendants may live." The way you choose life each day according to God's will, is by making a choice for for His word and consuming it and making sure to consume more of it than anything else you'll do that day. This is God's way to being able to live His life within you. The choice is yours and mine. I'm going to choose life, how about you?

Let me help you get started in consuming the Word. Start with these:

Deut 6:6-9, Joshua 1:8, 8:34-35, 23:6; 1 Sam 3: 1 & 21, Ps 12:6, 1 Kings 8:56, 2 Chron 6:4 & 14-15, Neh 8:18, Ps 1:2, Ps 40:8, Ps 18:30, Prov 30:5, Ps 119:89, Matt 4:4, John 4:50, John 5:24,
John 17:17, Rom 10:17, James 1:21

Now take a deep breath of the word, and breathe in God's life into your spirit and live!!

Believer's Repentance (say what?)

Repentance is a word that most people are familiar with, however, many people have the wrong understanding of what repentance means. Many people believe that repentance means "to be sorry for something", but that is not what repentance means at all. That feeling sorry for something is what leads you to repentance. Repentance means to make a complete change of direction. To stop doing one thing and start doing another. It's to turn completely from one course of action to another. Repentance is not a feeling, but a complete change of direction.

When most people think of repentance, they think about the sinner turning from his ungodly ways to God's ways and thank God that He has made a way for man to be born again so that he can live his life according to God's way. However, God has another use for repentance.

The Holy Spirit wants to speak to us today about the "Believer's Repentance". The term itself is hard to receive because it doesn't fit into our understanding of repentance, but there is a time and a need for a believer to repent and that is God's message for us today.

When must a Believer repent? You say," when he sins", but God does not require the believer to repent. God has declared His truth about this matter in 1 John 1:9. When the believer sins, the believer must confess his sin before God, and then the believer must receive his forgiveness from God by faith and be restored to his right place before God (or the direction he was heading before he sinned). The Believer has already turned away from death when he was born again, and has now been moving towards God and His ways. That sin (the Believer committed) has not taken the Believer off his course towards God, but it has parked him along the side of the divine highway in a broken down condition and that Believer needs to be fixed so that he can continue his journey with God, and that is done according to 1 John 1:7-9.

So the question is again, when must the Believer repent? The answer is when the Believer is believing something wrong about God and His Word, then there is need of repentance by the Believer so as to be able to receive the Truth of God's way and then turn and go that way.

The Word of God declares to us 1 John 4 about the spirit of error and the Spirit of Truth. The Believer can hear things taught about the Word that comes from the spirit of error (to clear up any confusion about the spirit of error, this is the spirit of the Believer's enemy- satan lying or distorting the Truth). The Believer receives this error as Truth and he sincerely believes it, but he is sincerely wrong in what he believes.

Jesus had much to say to those that had a zeal for God (Rom 10:1-3), but who understood wrongly about Him. Jesus said in Matt 22:29, "You are mistaken, not knowing the scriptures nor the power of God". He also said in Matt 15:6, "thus you have made the commandment (the Word) of God of no effect by your tradition".

So is it possible for the Believer to believe wrongly? Yes! A thousand times "Yes"! If this is true then there is need for the Believer to repent from the spirit of error and turn towards the Spirit of Truth and follow Him.

How do you know as a Believer that you are following the Spirit of Truth? Only one way! You must think just like Jesus thinks. Jesus is the Truth (John 14:6) and if the Believer will think like Jesus and do the things that Jesus did (and still does), then he is being led by the Spirit of Truth. The Holy Spirit said through the Apostle Paul in Phil 2:5, "Let (that means you permit it to be so) this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus". Then the scripture goes on and tells us how we should think if we are going to think like Jesus did (and still does).

The Believer is given many opportunities by the enemy (the spirit of error) to believe wrongly, because there are many voices in the land that speak wrongly about God and His ways. That is why the Believer must take everything he hears about God, then go to the Word and have the Holy Spirit confirm the Word that he has heard as either error or Truth (this is why I go to great effort to give you scripture references when I unwrap the truth that the Holy Spirit
has given me). We the Believers are responsible to seek after the Truth and then follow it by doing it, no matter how many might disagree with us or turn us away.

If you are believing something wrong about God today, the Holy Spirit will reveal the Truth to you (1 Cor 2:9-12, everybody knows verse 9 and uses it as an excuse for not knowing the Truth, but few read on and receive the Truth in verses 10-12). What are you going to do with that Truth? Repent or continue believing wrongly? The choice is yours, but know that God is calling you to the Truth. That's what I want, and that is why I am quick to repent when I've believed something wrongly, so that the Truth becomes my way of life and I pray that it becomes yours as well.

Read 2 Peter 3:14-18 to allow the Holy Spirit to seal this Truth into your heart. Be determined to know the Truth for Jesus said "it will make you free". (John 8:30-32)

Are You Willing to Fight? It's Worth It!

Walking by faith is a fight. God has declared, "the just shall live by faith". (Heb 10:38) God has called us to engage into a fight. Faith is a fight! It's the spirit realm fighting against the natural, physical realm. It's the fight between what God says in His Word and what the god of this world (satan) says to you by what you see, feel, touch, through your senses.If you are going to live by faith, you must know that you will be in a fight.

When everybody else is going downstream, and you're tempted to do the same because it looks easier and makes more sense, you will have to put your oars in the water and start rowing upstream against the forces of nature. This is the fight of faith. Pressing towards what is right and true. Always rowing against the current that wants to take you downstream away from the truth. No matter how weary your arms get from rowing, keep the oars in the water with some pressure on it. Keep pressing forward to your own hurt if you must to keep going upstream. This is living by faith. Many start out with enthusiasm and excitement but soon wear out and take their oars out of the water and begin drifting back to the world and it's ways.

Paul calls this fight of faith that we are in "a good fight". (1 Tim 1:18) It's good because we have a good God that enables us to fight the good fight (of faith). Make no mistake about it, to walk by faith is to engage into warfare where you are required to fight. But again, it's a good fight because our Commander Jesus has already won the victory over our enemy the the devil, but we are required to enforce that victory by holding onto the Truth of the Word of God and continuing upstream until we enter our final destination which is the promise of heaven, the Kingdom of God. As we enter this place we will have known that we have kept the faith which has honored our God. Finally there is laid up for us the crown of Righteousness which the Lord Jesus will give to us on that Day. (2 Tim 4:8) We will be glad we fought our way to the finish line and didn't give up.

Faith is a fight, but it's a good fight because we win, that's God's promise to us. So keep that oar in the water and keep the pressure on (the devil) and think victory because victory belongs to those that believe and just flat refuse to take their oars out of the water.

I'll see you at the finish line!!

Are You Walking On The Water Today?

To believe the word of God over what I see and feel is a "walking on the water experience." Peter stepped out of the boat by responding to the word of Jesus. (Matt 14:28-31) Jesus said to Peter, "Come", and on that word Peter stepped over the side of the boat and walked on the water just like Jesus. Peter had enough faith in what Jesus said to walk on the water until he took his eyes off Jesus and his mind off of what Jesus said, "Come", and instead he looked at something else. He looked at the boisterous waves and heard their roar. His mind was no longer thinking about the word from God, "Come", but it was now thinking about what he was hearing and seeing.

Peter now evaluated his situation by what the circumstances were declaring and they were saying, " you fool, you can't walk on me, because I can't hold you up. Man wasn't made to walk on water, it's impossible". And with that thought in Peter's mind, he now believed what the waves were saying instead of what God (Jesus) said. Peter lost sight of the word and believed the lie of the circumstances around him and he began to sink. That which he once believed could no longer hold him up, and what he now believes is stealing his faith and causing him to sink.

Peter's faith had turned to fear. Peter was still believing something but his believing is now motivated by fear (in the devil and what he said) instead of faith (in God and what He said). But the good news is, that in the midst of that fear and his sinking, Peter called out to Jesus and asked Him to save him. In the midst of that bad situation where Peter's faith was failing to keep him afloat and he was looking at sure death, Peter turned his mind back to Jesus. He got his focus off the circumstances and back on Jesus. As soon as he did that, faith arose in his heart and then he spoke with his mouth, "save me", and that is all Jesus needed to hear, for He reached out to Peter and pulled him up and saved him.

I personally believe that Jesus would of stood there and watched Peter drown if Peter would not of called out to Jesus to save him. ( I know that is not a comforting thought to some, but it sure helps answer the question, "why did God let that happen to me, or why did God let that happen to them). We must understand that God responds to faith, not needs. God will supply all your needs (Phil 4:19), but we first must come to Him in faith or simply said, we must believe Him.

So many of God's children just wait on God to do something and say things like, "can't He see this situation I'm in, why won't He do anything, doesn't He care that I'm dying?" None of these sayings are words of faith. Peter's words, "Lord save me," were words of faith. Jesus responded to that word by saving him. It works the same for you and me. We step out in faith believing what God has said in His word. We keep our eye on that word and allow that word to do whatever it says it will do. We don't look at anything else until that word produces the finished work (that what we are believing for). This is called walking by faith and not by sight.(2 Cor 5:7)


This is the way God always intended man/women to walk with Him. Man was made to believe and trust God for everything. When man (Adam) sinned he separated Himself from God and from this faith relationship. Now man instead of believing God, was now believing himself by what his senses were telling him. The good news is, Jesus made a way for man to get back into that faith relationship once again with God. Once we enter in through Jesus, we now must live our lives according to God's design and He said, " the just shall live by faith."


The chose is ours. God is not moved by our needs, He is moved by faith. Let's you and I believe Him today so that we can have these "water walking" experiences that His word promises to us. And if you are going to walk on the water, (on the issues of life) then you must always be mindful of this: "it is impossible for God to lie" (Heb 6:8, Titus 1:2, Numbers 23:19), therefore if He said it, that's just the way it is................Be Blessed (in your believing)

God Never Fails. Then Why Do I?

I just wanted to share what was on my mind and heart this morning as I was before the Lord. This is a little different from my usual posts. The following are my thoughts and God's responses to me through His Word.

Your (God's) Word never fails, but man fails with the word.

Your Word never fails, but I fail with it by not doing what it says.

The Word doesn't fail, I fail with the word.

2 Tim 2:5 says "if anyone competes in athletics, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules."

I must do it God's way to receive from God. His way is Faith. His way is His Word. I must believe Him to receive from Him. This is God's rule. I must play according to God's rule to obtain the prize (the promise). What is the prize? Whatever I'm believing Him for.

2 Tim 2:12 says " if we deny Him, He will also deny us."

How is it that we deny Him? By not doing what He says and how to do it. By not following the word and going some other direction. How does He deny us? By not responding to our prayers and needs. We say that God says "NO" when our prayers aren't answered, but this is nothing more than God denying us because we have chosen to follow another way other than His. ( this is God's way according to 2 Cor 1:20 "for all the promises of God in Him are Yes and in Him Amen- so be it) We refuse to play the game ( I'm not demeaning prayer by calling it a game, but God uses this analogy to get His point across to us) according to the rules. God never changes (the rules for faith) therefore we must change if we are going to receive from Him. If we deny the promise by not being a doer of the word, then God will deny the benefit of that promise.

2 Tim 2:13 says "if we are faithless, He remains faithful, He can not deny Himself." We can deny His word by not believing and doing it, but God will never deny His Word to us. He will always watch over His Word to perform it when faith is present according to His rules.

This has answered me many questions today. I pray it helps you as well.

Take Heed What You Hear

There is something speaking to you all the time. Every thought you have comes from hearing something. God has a voice, the devil has a voice, your body has a voice, your bank book has a voice, everything in and around you has a voice. It's all trying to tell you something.


Jesus has told the believer, "take heed what you will hear." (Mark 4:24) We hear every voice that is speaking to us, but we have a choice of what we will listen to. It's what you heed (pay attention to, give ear to) that will impact your life. It's what you permit yourself to listen to that will direct your life. If the devil is the father of all liars (and he is, Jn 8:44) and Jesus is the God/Man who has told you the truth which He heard from His Father (Jn 8:40); who then are you going to listen to? You'll hear both voices, but which one will you choose to listen to? Whatever you listen to, that is what you will follow and if you follow it long enough, you will believe what you are following. You'll either end up believing the lie of the devil or the Truth of the Son of Man, Jesus.


Now we come to the place of learning and understanding what part of you is doing the listening. It's your spirit that hears God and His Truth for He is Spirit and those that worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and in Truth. (Jn 4:23) But it is your body of flesh that hears the devil and his lies. Man was created by God as a three part being; spirit, soul, and body. Your soul (which is your mind, will and emotions) is neutral in hearing. Your mind will agree with either your spirit or your body. Which ever is the stronger of the two, the mind will agree with it. You must have this understanding to be able to make the choice on what you are going to listen to and heed. Here is why it is so important for you to develop your spirit man by feeding on the word of God daily so that your spirit man becomes stronger than body (flesh). Why? you say!


Here is a good example. One morning you wake up and your body says to you, "I'm sick". Now if your mind has not been renewed by the word of God, it will agree with your body and give your body all the reasons and facts why the body is sick. Then your body will say, "I feel sick, I look sick, I sound sick, I smell sick, therefore I must be sick. Then if you continue listening to this voice , you will eventually heed it and accept the fact that you are sick.


Now I want it perfectly understood that this sickness is real. It's a fact that your body is sick. We don't deny this fact, but rather look at the Truth. What does the Truth say? What is the Truth? John 17:17 says, "Your (God's ) word is Truth." Therefore whatever God says is "Truth". It's your spirit that will hear God's voice and if you have been feeding on the word of God daily, your mind will have been renewed to think like God thinks and it will agree with what your spirit is hearing from God. So, what is your spirit hearing from God? "I am the Lord God who heals you" (Ex 15:26), "I will take sickness away from the midst of you" (Ex 23:25-26), "it will be well with you" (Deut 11: 9 & 23), "I have healed you" (Ps 30:1-2), "I will strengthen you on your bed of sickness" (Ps 41:3), " I am the health of your countenance and your God" (Ps 43:5), "I heal all of your diseases" (Ps 103:3), " I sent My word and healed you" (Ps 107:20), " I (Jesus) took your infirmities and bore your sicknesses" (Matt 8:17), " by My (Jesus') stripes you were (past tense) healed" ( 1 Pet 2:24), okay, you get the point. There are hundreds of verses in the bible that speak to your overall wellness and healing.

If you are not feeding your spirit the word of God daily, then your spirit will be weak and will not be able to hear God's truth, because your body of flesh will be more alive than your spirit and your body will clearly hear the voice of your enemy, the devil, and he will say that you are sick and you will agree with him instead of agreeing with God. This is the reason God has told His children, "the just shall live by faith." God has told us that we must live our lives differently than those in the world. To live by faith, you must be able to hear the voice of God in the midst of your circumstances and this will only happen if your spirit is stronger than your body (flesh). Your mind will go either way depending on which is stronger. The good news here is that you are the one who has the choice in which will be stronger, spirit or body. You are the one who chooses what you will feed the most. You'll either consume what God is saying or you'll consume what the world is saying and the truth is, "you are what you eat".

I encourage you this day to begin strengthening your spirit man so that you can hear God when He speaks to you in the middle of that mess you find yourself in, so that you can heed His voice and follow the truth as your way of escape which will get you to the very place that God promised you He would, but the most important thing here is, you must be able to hear Him. Tune in God, tune out the devil. Live out the life God desires for you. What does that look like? It's all in His word. I highly recommend we get into that word and see what it says!

Is God Your Friend?

God is not only my God, He is my friend. Ps 54:4 out of the Living Bible says, "But God is my helper. He is a friend of mine". Can you say that about God? God said this about faithful Abraham, our father in the faith. James 2:23 says, "And Abraham was called the friend of God" and in 2 Chronicles 20:7 it says Abraham is God's friend forever. So how does God accomplish that, "forever"? Gal 3:29 tells us how. "And if you are Christ's (you're His IF you have been born again), then you are Abraham's seed and heirs according to the promise. The seed of Abraham (you and me) can be as much of a friend with God as Abraham was and still is. Isa 41:8 confirms it," the decendants of Abraham My friend". Yes, that means God is your friend, now the question is, "are you His friend?".

This is the relationship God desires with His man/woman. But this also is the relationship that man desires with his God. For the most part, man has never known God's desire to be a friend to him. Friends enjoy one another's company. They enjoy getting to know one another on a more intimate level. They go beyond the surface level communication and are willing to reveal their hearts to one another. A good example of this is found in Matt 7: 21-23. There are many people who claim to know God and they even do many things in His name, but in the end when they are standing before Jesus, He declares " I never knew you, depart from Me". This friendship thing takes on a more serious tone when you hear that. You see, you really dont know someone until you hang out with them. The longer you spend time together, the more you know about each other and the better friends you become. This is why God created man. To be His friend. There is no closer relationship with God then to be called His friend.

Being a friend of God is not a lack of respect for God, it's the highest honor that man can give to God; calling God his friend, and it's the highest place a man can be; being called God's friend. The term friend almost sounds to casual when you speak it concerning your relationship with God. But "friend" perfectly defines and reveals the very relationship that is most desired by God. (here would be a good place to grab your bible and hear what Jesus has to say about being friends with you in John 15: 12-15). Jesus said He wants to be your friend.

The problem is, there are very few men/women who will draw this close to God. Fear is what keeps them from this relationship with God. Afraid that they are not good enough to walk with God this way. The reason man thinks this way is because they lose sight of the blood of Jesus that cleanses us from all sin and enables us to have fellowship one with another (1 Jn 1:7).
Our adversary, the devil, gets us to get our eyes off Jesus and His blood, and he gets us to look at ourselves without the blood covering, and we don't look so good that way in our sight. And it's that image of ourselves that destroys the opportunity to draw near to God as His friend. We say, "why would God want to be a friend with the likes of someone like me?", then we answer our own question by saying, "He wouldn't". So we buy into the lie of the devil which seperates us from being friends with God. We must see ourselves as God sees us; knowing that we were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver and gold from our aimless conduct received by tradition from our fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as a lamb without blemish and without spot. (1 Pet 1:18-19)

We must understand that God looks at us through the blood of Jesus (now you must be born again for Him to look at you that way) and He sees us as righteous, with out blemish, and without spot, which enables us to come boldly to the throne of Grace where God resides, and sit with Him there, and enjoy Him as our friend. This is where God has wanted man since the beginning of time. The first Adam had this relationship with God, but lost it through sin. The second Adam (Jesus) came and got this relationship back for man once again. Jesus paid the price for our sin, and made the way back to God once again to allow man to be friends with God. God has already laid His life down for us. Our we willing to lay our lives down for Him? That's what friends do.

God is asking you and me today, "do you really want to be My friend?", or do we choose to be in that outer fringe of the Kingdom of God, the kid who sits in the very last seat of the row in his school room, or the man that comes to church and sits in the very last row hoping not to be noticed. This is not where friends of God sit. They sit where Mary sat (Luke 10:39) at the feet of Jesus (now that's up close where you and I belong) desiring to hear the word of God and then talk back and forth with God. God longs for us to be in this place with Him. I pray we long to be with Him just as much as He longs to be with us.

I encourage you this day to seek this relationship with God and be His friend so that He can be your friend as well. There is no better place to be. Friends with God. I'll see you there!!

The Window of God's Word

When I look through the window of God's word, it enables me to see things through God perspective, or another way to say it is that I'm seeing things the way God sees them.

The one major problem for man/woman when they see things as God sees them is that it makes no sense to them. A man must not only be able to see what God sees, but he must be able to think like He does as well. Rom 12:2 says (my paraphrase) we must not think like the world thinks, but we must think like God thinks if we are going to overcome in this world.

2 Cor 5:7 says that we walk by faith and not by sight. My paraphrase of this scripture is we walk and live on this earth by seeing what God sees, not by what we see. We live in our bodies which is a physical body that is moved by it's senses. Whatever I see is so. Whatever I feel is so. Whatever I hear is so. Whatever I smell is so. Whatever I taste is so. But man was never created to live his life according to his physical senses. Man was created to live his life in the Spirit realm where God and His Kingdom exist where whatever God said was so. However man sinned in the garden of Eden, and man was separated from God and no longer could live in the Spirit realm, but was forced to live by his physical senses in the physical realm. God was Lord over man in the Spirit realm, but when man fell into sin, man exalted himself to Lord over himself and now he would have to lead his own life, instead of following the God who desired to lead him.

But I have good news for you. God has made a way for man to get back to the Spirit realm and enter the relationship with God that He intended man to have from the beginning. Jesus went to the cross for you and me because of the Father's love for us and His desire to have His man back with Him once again. Jesus died on that cross and paid the price for our sin, and has made the way for man to return to his rightful place with God. This doesn't happen automatically for man. Man must make the decision for himself to accept what Jesus has done for him. If man will accept personally for himself what Jesus did on the cross, and believe in his heart that God the Father has raised God the Son from the dead, then this man will be saved and be restored to his rightful place with God (which was the original place man was at the beginning). Jesus says in John 3:3," unless a man is born again, He shall not SEE the Kingdom of God"

Your way back into God's presence where He has always wanted you to be is by being born again. Now be careful here and don't miss this. Being born again is not just mentally agreeing with God, it's more than that. Agreeing is only the first step, and it's the second step that makes the born again experience a reality in your life and that step is BELIEVING what you are agreeing with. You must believe God to be born again. If you look at God's word in Rom 10:9-10, agree with it, then do it by believing it then you are born again. How do you know if you believe it or not. You make a choice to believe it. You make the choice to look through the window of this word and believe what you see there or believe what God has said. You walk away from that scripture window saying with your mouth, "I'm born again, I'm a brand new creature in Christ (2 Cor 5:17). I've been made righteous by the blood of Jesus and I now stand in my rightful place with God." Now your spirit, the real you, is born again and brand new. Now if your flesh body happens to agree with your spirit that will be wonderful, however most likely it won't. Your body will still want to operate in the physical realm and it will look around and see that nothing has changed and the devil will come immediately to persuade you that what you see and feel is right, not what you are trying to believe. But if you will just move from there by believing God, by believing that you are born again because the word says so and that it has nothing to do with how you feel, it only depends on what God has said about. You are born again so go and act that way, and one day along the way, your physical body will begin to join up with your spirit man and agree with it. When this happens you'll know that your spirit has once again regained it's position of authority and now you are living by the Spirit and not according to senses. This is the place of victory.

Once your born again by an act of your faith, the only way you will get to that place where your spirit dominates your flesh is by looking into the word of God day and night. (do what
Prov 4:20-27 says). God will breathe His life into you through His word and you will be changed from glory to glory (2 Cor 3:18). You will begin to see things like God sees them because you are looking at things through the window of the word. And before long you'll be thinking just like God because your mind will of been renewed by the word of God.

This is the place God the Father has always intended His man to be in. He has the door wide open to you today, so come on in. Accept Jesus, believe that you are born again, act that way and live in that realm where God wants us to live, in the Spirit.

The world is falling apart around us, but the good news is, if we are born again, then even though we are in this world, we are not of it. We live in the Kingdom of God by living through His word. It's the only firm foundation for a man to stand on. As the song goes " all other ground is sinking sand". Get on the Rock (of Jesus) today and having done all to stand, just stand there as the world crumbles away.

Open the window of God's word today, look in there, and believe what you see there, instead of believing what you see all around you.

Why Is My Faith Not Working?

Love is the realm of faith. God inspired faith can not operate and function the way God has created it to outside of the realm of Love. (before you go on, I want you to really think about this first statement of truth until you hear what it is saying).

God created faith for man so that man/woman would be able to believe God. This is the relationship God desires with His man. A man/woman that will believe Him, then go and do what he/she believes. But this God created faith (the exact same faith God created the heavens and the earth with, the exact same faith that Jesus walked this earth with, this same faith was given to you and me when we born again)was made to operate in the realm of Love. It can only successfully operate in this realm, for this God created faith is powerless and useless outside of Love.

Here is the reason that there is so much failure in the body of Christ, the Church, when it comes to faith (believing God). The child of God tries to live by faith (because the word tells him to live this way), but he refuses to walk in Love, therefore his faith is in vain, for his faith can not work outside of Love. One small nugget of truth is found in Gal 5:6 that declares; "faith works by Love", therefore you could say, faith will not work outside of Love.

The Church (that's you and me, the believer) as a whole majors on believing God (faith). We want to know everything there is to know on how to believe God so that we can get our prayers answered, but we very rarely spend any time studying and thinking about the realm in which faith was created to work in. You must grasp this following truth and never let it get away from you;
"Faith was created to work in the realm of Love, Faith will not work outside of Love." I have never taken this truth to heart and have tried to use faith outside of Love and it has been powerless, bringing no results, then growing frustrated with God and His word and then saying something stupid like, "I did my part, but You (God) won't do Your part", and blaming God for my faith failure.

The first thing any believer must realize and establish in his heart is that God's Word is True. That must be settled in your heart or you will always be questioning the Word when you are being challenged and you don't see the results of what you are believing for. Settle it today if you have not done this; "God's Word is Truth" (Jn 17:17). It makes no difference what we think about it, the Word is True because God declared it (Numbers 23:19) and that's what makes it True. If God said, "faith works by Love", then that is the way it works, and it will work no other way. So instead of trying to walk in faith our way, we must do it His way to see faith work in our lives.

We must change our focus from "faith" to "Love". We must receive the commandment that Jesus gave us in John 13:34, 15:12 as a commandment (not as a suggestion or as an opinion) and do it as a commandment. This is the only way that we will walk in love by taking what Jesus said and receiving it as a commandment. We must learn everything there is to know about Love. A good place to start is 1 Cor 12:31- 1 Cor 13:8 (Amplified bible is the best translation of these verses if you have one). As we begin to learn about Love, the importance of it, and then walk in it, faith will then begin to operate on it's own. It won't be forced or used selfishly, but it will be this God created faith (real faith) because it is coming out of the realm of Love, therefore it will be powerful and mighty and will accomplish what we are believing for. (Matt 21:21-22) This is the very realm that Jesus Himself operated from. Jesus walked this earth as a man, and He walked in Love and was (and is) the most powerful man on the face of the earth. We can only do what Jesus did if we are willing to do what Jesus did, and that is to walk in Love.

If you are struggling with faith today, stop focusing on faith and turn your attention to Love. Strive (be deliberate) to master the Love walk, and your ability to believe God will follow you down that path of Love. Great Love produces great faith. LOVE, there is no other way for faith to produce what the believer is believing God for.

Because of what God has revealed to me about Love this day, I may spend the rest of my days on this earth focused on nothing other than "Love". You could spend a lifetime studying Love, and never learn it all (Eph 3:17-19), for God will show you something new about love everyday if you will allow Him to. This is the pathway I'm called to with the rest of my life and as I learn more about Love, then go and walk in it, my faith will grow and God's Truth which He declared, "all things are possible to him who believes"(Mark 9:23), will be a reality in my life.

Who would like to join me on this journey. There is plenty of room, for this is the road less traveled and it is narrow, but the Holy Spirit will guide us every step of the way and lead us to all Truth. This is God's designed way for His believing children. This is how Faith works, by LOVE and Love never fails (1 Cor 13:8).

A new commandment I (Jesus) give to you, that you love one another, as I have loved you, that you also love one another. (John 13:34)

And this is His commandment: that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as He has given us commandment. (1 John 3:23)

How Can I tell If I Really Believe God?

How do you know if you really believe God? You know in your heart without a doubt that what God says in His Word is yours. You know it's yours, so you act like it is, because you know something, you know it's yours.

King David believed he had a covenant of promise with Almighty God. He believed in that covenant to such a degree that when he saw Goliath the giant ( 1 Sam 17:26-50), he knew he would (this is the bottom line of faith, he knew he would) defeat him. David didn't hope that he would defeat him, he knew he would. Now this is the true believing that God requires of a man/woman who is in covenant relationship with Him. (If you have made Jesus the Lord and Savior of your life, you are in a covenant relationship with God through the blood of Jesus Christ).

This is real genuine believing; I believe the word to such a degree (with all my heart) that I know that what stands before me is already defeated. When I enter the battle with this mind set, knowing that my enemy is (already) defeated, I fight with the confidence as the one who knows he already has won the battle. I fight with a strength that only comes from knowing that my enemy is already defeated before I take the first step towards him.

My faith is established in the Word of God (my covenant with Him) so that I now already know the outcome before I even enter the battle. This is when I know that I really do believe God, because I'll step out in confidence and act on what I believe. If I stand before my enemy hoping that God will help me overcome it, then I can know for sure that I am not believing Him. If I am anxious and fretful, then I can know for sure that I don't believe God. It's when I stand before my giant and know that I will defeat him because of my covenant that I have with Almighty God, that's when I know that I'm believing.

If I see my enemy defeated before I enter the fight, I know I'm believing. If I hope to defeat my enemy, I'm not believing. If I'm only in hope, I'll be defeated by my enemy, and I'll blame God for not coming through for me. But God requires faith, not hope. Hope has no substance to it until faith is added (Heb 11:1). Hope is just that, "you hope God will", but faith says, "I know God will do what I hope He will do."

How do you get to that level of believing? First by knowledge of the of the Word of God. You must know what the Word says and what your covenant rights are between you and God. God's Word is God's will (He never changes)and faith begins where the will of God is known. Second, meditating that knowledge until you believe it. God told me years ago, "your ability to believe Me comes from Me" (Heb 12:2, 1 Cor 2:9-13). How do you know you believe it? When you've gone from just knowing what the Word says, and the hope that comes from knowing that Word, to the place of confident action (faith) knowing that the enemy that stands before you is already defeated, because your covenant with God says so. You know he is defeated, so you'll fight with a supernatural strength, God's strength, and you'll overcome just like God said you would.

2 Cor 2:14 says, "NOW (right now!!, before the fight) thanks be unto God who ALWAYS causes me to TRIUMPH in Christ." God says you always win if you'll believe Him (that's a big IF). No weapon formed against you shall prosper (Isa 54:17) if you know your covenant rights with God and believe them.

If you can stand before your enemy with a grin on your face ( you know that is what Goliath was really upset with David about. It wasn't David's smaller size and being a youth, it was that grin on his face. Now that is just something that God has let me see, I have no scripture to back that up, but God sure put a smile on my face by showing that to me) because you already know that he is defeated, you can know for sure that you really are believing God and what you are believing, it will come to pass!

Now build your foundation with God's Word. Read Gal 3:29, Heb 8:6, 2Pet 1:4&19

God's Test for Man

God has established a test for man/woman. This test has been put in place by God to determine if the man will obey his God or not. The test itself is very simple, but the sad truth is most men do not even know that the test exists, or if they do many are not willing to take it and the ones that do mostly fail. The test is easy, the taking of the test is not. This test is found in
Exodus 15:25-26. (read this before you go on).

The test is all about choices. God will observe the choices a man makes. How the man does on the test is strictly up to him (the man not God). This test is all about TRUST. Who is the man going to trust with his life? Himself or God? The choice is between man's way or God's way.

The questions for the test have been established by God. The first question is, " Will you diligently heed the voice of the Lord your God, or more easily said, when you stand before an issue of life, a trouble spot along your journey through life, will you look to Me (God) by looking at My Word first with all your heart for your answer, or will you look to yourself and the world you live in and obtain your answer from them?" God will observe you in the time of crisis. Who do you seek first? Who do you diligently run to first? To pass God's test you must choose Him first!

The second question is, "if you do the first question right and diligently seek God first, then number two is, will you go and do what He (God) says or will you choose another way?" God's way may look hard and unexplainable but that's only because it is unfamiliar. The world's way may make sense and be very explainable only because that is the familiar way. The test is, "will you go and do what God has said", for if you do this will be right in God's sight and very pleasing to Him, for God will see your heart, that you are truly trusting Him with your life and because you have chosen God over yourself He will reward you (Heb 11:6) by pouring out blessings upon you which in turn will be the direct response to the issue that stands before you.

In this particular verse in Ex 15:26, God's reward to the ones who pass the test is, " I am the Lord your God Who heals you". God Himself becomes your Healer because you passed His test. This is His promise to you, "I am whatever you need Me to be, if I have declared it in My Word, then I will watch over it and do it in your life because you have passed My (faith) test.

Now there is one more thing you must know about this test. God requires you to take the test more than once, and you'll have to pass it each time to receive His reward for your accomplishment. Each new issue of life comes with it's own test, but I will say this, it gets easier to pass every time you take it because your confidence and trust in God keeps growing. God keeps getting bigger in your sight and the issues of life keep getting smaller.

God wants you to pass His test. He has made it easy for us because He has made it an open book test, but the choice to open the book and look at it to find God's way out of the situation that stands before us is yours and mine. Then our next choice after we find out what God says about it is, "Will we do it? If we will, then God says, "He will".

That's the test in a nut shell. Are you willing to take the test? Are you willing to pass the test? Maybe this will encourage you from God's word in 2 Chronicles 16:9, "for the eyes of the Lord search back and forth across the whole earth looking for people whose hearts are loyal (seek Him first) toward Him, so that (here comes the reward) He can show His great power in helping them". Such a great promise from our God.

If you've never taken this test than do it. If you've taken this test and failed, take it again, as many times as it takes, pass it, and receive God's reward for doing it His way. Once you've passed this test, keep on taking it and pass it each time knowing that God is faithful to His Word and He will never let you down when you do it His way, that His promise to you.

Now go and read James 1:25 for a confirming word in what you have just read.

Be Blessed!!!

Count it All Joy. Are You Kidding Me?

Every issue of life, every situation I find myself in is an opportunity for me to know more about my God and His Word. When I'm confronted with a challenge and a mountain stands before me, my first thought must be, "what does God's word say about this?". When I look into the word and see what it says, I have just had the opportunity to know more about my God then I did before. God makes Himself known through His word and this is how I grow to know Him.

2 Sam 7:21 says, " for your words sake, and according to Your (God's) own heart, You have done all these great things, (why?) to make your servant know them (them what? Your words)". What great things was King David talking about? Every time David was in trouble or was being challenged, God delivered him. Every time God did this, it was a great thing in the sight of David and through every situation, David grew to know God more and more. He became more confident with God's word after each and every rescue and deliverance. So what did David discover and come to know through these different situations? 2 Sam 7:22 gives us the answer. David came to this conclusion, " Therefore You are great, O Lord God. For there is none like You, nor is there any other God besides You". David would of never known God this way for himself if he had not walked with God and His word through these different challenges and trials and let me say right here, you won't know Him either unless you do what David did.

It works the same for you and me. The great things of God in our lives is whatever God does in our lives according to what He has said in His word to us. If I find myself sick one day and my first thought is, " what does God's word say about sickness?", then I go and look at the word and it says, " by His stripes you (Terry)were healed", then I choose to believe that word and that God will watch over that word to perform it by healing my body. This manifestation of healing truly now becomes a great event of God in my life and I come through it knowing more about my God and trusting Him all the more.

I never really was able to understand James when he said in in James 1:2, "count it all joy when you fall into various trials." I would always look at the trial and become wearied by it and discouraged. I was not joyful but fretful. But now with this new found understanding of God and His ways, I now realize that when the trial appears, I can be joyful from the fact of knowing that whatever stands before me is an opportunity to know my God and His word in a whole new way. I'm going to learn more about my God through this trial, something I would never of learned if I was not in this situation. When this attitude of joy shows up as I face this trial, it drives the devil nuts, because he has come to steal, kill, and destroy and when he sees joy instead of pain and suffering, he knows he is defeated in my life (Phil 1:28). The devil was counting on me to be upset and hurting, but here I am joyful. The devil is no match for the man/woman who is filled with the joy of the Lord, for that joy is our strength (Nehemiah 8:10) and that Godly strength will whip the devil every time. Jesus already proved that and defeated Him. All we have to do is what Jesus did, hold fast to the Word to enforce the devil's defeat in our lives and make him a footstool for Jesus to put His feet on (Heb 10:12-13). Now that's a great picture isn't it?

So whatever you are facing today, count it all joy because if you choose to go to God's word and see what His way of escape is for you, and you go ahead and do what you found out, when you get to the other side of that problem, you'll know God a whole lot more then before you started.

I must admit, I actually feel joyful as I look at the mountain standing before me today. As soon as I quit writing, I'm looking into God's word for my way out and through it all I will know my God all the more. Now that thought alone is a good and joyful thought. I get the sense that the devil is getting nervous, he's never seen me quite this way and he knows he is about to get kicked out of my life. Oh Yeah, I'm feeling better already. It's time to look into that powerful word of God!!

Stop the Worry, Do it God's way

If you are at a place where you find yourself thinking and meditating about a problem that stands before you, then you must know that you are at a place that God does not want you to be at. As a matter of fact, God is displeased when we stand at this place of worry and concern, for your actions display to God that you have no confidence or faith in Him to take care of you and see you through to the other side of that problem.

If you are worrying about something, then realize that you have exalted yourself above God's throne. (I know that you didn't intend to do that, but never the less, you have exalted yourself above God and taken His rightful place). That which He is responsible for, you have taken upon yourself and God never intended for you to do that. Actually when you worry, you are in outright disobedience to God for He has said, "be anxious for nothing" (Phil 4:6). If you are anxious about the problem that stands before you, then you have turned away from what God has said for you to do which now makes you responsible for the answer and removal of the problem, and in this state of being or mind, you have every right to be anxious and worried.

But God has said in His word that when you find yourself at this anxious place then it's time for you to be a doer of the word and the word that He would have you do is found in 1 Pet 5:6-8. What this word is saying is that if you are worrying, you have exalted yourself to Lord over that situation and you have exalted your throne above God's. He declares that you must recognize that this is wrong, confess it before the Lord and repent by humbling yourself, bowing your knee to Jesus and exalting Him over your problem. The way you exalt Him is by doing verse 7, casting all your care (of that problem) over onto Him, then leaving it there. The way you leave it there is by doing verse 8, resist the devil when he tries to put the worries back on you. You must resist that temptation to take that worry back and hold fast believing that Jesus is holding onto that care and He will see you through because He cares for you.

This is called living by faith, not by how you feel or think about it. This is the way God designed man/woman to live. It is the highest level of life that man can experience. It's the life of faith. Trusting God and not leaning to your own understanding. It's doing it God's way and not your way.

So, are you worrying about something right now? Well, I was and that is why God spoke these words to me and I'm thankful He did. For I have done what He said to do and now I'm walking free from that care. (the care is still there, it hasn't gone anywhere, but I no longer have possession of that care, I gave it to Jesus, for He is my Faithful Lord and High Priest and He will watch over His word to perform it and bring it to it's desired end).

This is truly the intent of this blog site. My prayer is that you will have the opportunity to learn God's ways through my experiences with Him in hope that it will prepare you for those things down the road that we all will face, it's called "the issues of life". But the good news is, "God is able, therefore that makes me able if I'll put my trust in Him".

I pray you trust Him today with that care you have been holding onto. It's time to be free!!

The Benefit of Knowing Jesus

Every Christian believer eventually gets to that place in their spiritual growth to where they want to know how to tap into the power of God for their lives. 2 Pet 1:3-4 tells us how that happens. Before you continue on with this post, read this scripture and allow God to speak to your heart what He is saying to you about His divine power and how He has made it available to you, then what God has revealed to me might be more clearer to your understanding.

God's divine power is released to the believer through His word. (Now remember, Jesus is the Word made flesh, John 1:1&14. To know Jesus is to know the word. The more you know Him, the more He will reveal to you).

God's divine power covers any situation in life that a man/woman will encounter. There is nothing in life that a man faces that God doesn't have the answer for. But to know this divine power and how it works, you must first know Jesus. (I didn't say "know of Him or about Him", I said "you MUST KNOW HIM as your best friend". This knowing Jesus is a living relationship with Him. To know Him is to walk every step with Him. It's through this relationship that Jesus makes known His divine power that is available to all men/women who will believe Him.

But just knowing that divine power is available, will not benefit me. It's when that divine power is revealed to me and at work in my life that makes the difference. That divine power can only be at work in my life by my receiving it. The way I receive from it God is by FAITH. This is the only way that you can receive anything from God. You must believe Him to receive from Him. And the only way to believe Him is to believe what He says. To believe what He says you must believe His words. To believe His words, you must know His words, for faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God (Rom 10:17).

Now God has said, " My divine power has given unto you all things that pertain to life"(2Pet 1:3). That is His promise to man/woman. (Now this next thing that God has to say to us might be somewhat difficult for some to swallow. You may have to chew on this piece of meat for awhile before you swallow it.) If we are lacking anything that we need in life, understand this, it's not God's fault, it's ours. (Are you willing to accept that responsibility? You must if you are going to go God's way!). It's our lack of knowledge or the lack of doing what we know that creates needs and lack in our lives. God says, " My people perish for a LACK OF KNOWLEDGE" (Hosea 4:6). This scripture goes on to say " Because you (yes, that means you and me) have rejected knowledge, I (God) will reject you.........". Do you know God this way? The God who gives you a responsible part to play to walk in His blessings. Most of the church does not know God this way and that is why we see so much failure and people perishing, but God has revealed everything that a man needs to know how to live life successfully and fully, but He requires that man to seek Him and His ways. (Most don't!) How about you? Be one that does!

God would have you live long on the earth, but man shortens his life because of a lack of knowledge of God's word. You must understand this truth of God also, " God is not moved by our need, God is only moved by faith". God will move heaven and earth to get to the man/woman who is believing Him. The failure that is observed in the church today has nothing to do with God changing His ways and not doing something He once did. Better said, it's man not doing what Jesus did when He walked this earth as a man. Jesus believed the Father and He received from the Father. (Eph 1: 19-20). We must believe this way also if we are going to receive from the Father, and all things that pertain to life.

If you are in need today, sit down with Jesus and let Him reveal His source of supply to fulfill that need. The most important thing you'll do today will be getting to know Him, for if you do, all things are available to you. The more we know Him, the more that will be revealed to us. If you find yourself at that place not knowing what to do, then know this fact, everything you need to know is in Him (Jesus), and the more you know Him, the more you'll know what to do.

My plan today is to know Him more, how about you?

My Grace is Sufficient for You. Do You Believe Me?

Whatever God has given to me and you by His grace, can only be received by faith, it's not automatic. God has declared in Eph 2:8, "for by GRACE you have been saved (past tense, it's done, it's a finished work) through FAITH (that finished work of salvation is not yours until you personally receive it by faith, by believing God). The way you received salvation is the way you receive all things from God-----By Faith.

That's why God's grace IS sufficient to deliver you out of any situation you find yourself in. The Apostle Paul asked God three times for God to take some annoying thing away from him, but God said, " My grace IS sufficient for you". (2 Cor 12:8-9). Now, understand that God did not say "No" to Paul (that's what religion says that God said, but He didn't), He said, "My Grace is sufficient!!!"

(Now the following is how God spoke this to my spirit and He was speaking it as if He were speaking to Paul).

"I've (God) already given you (Paul) what you need. I've already destroyed the works of the devil and stripped him of his authority over you. He has no right to be doing what he is doing against you, unless you allow him to. You are asking Me to do something that I have given you the ability to do. I have already defeated your enemy, now you enforce what I have done by faith in My grace that I have given you. The grace I have given you is your Righteousness (your right standing with Me), therefore you have a right to My victory over the devil. My victory has now become your victory, but you will have to enforce that victory against him, and put him in his proper place and that place is under your feet. My grace is sufficient because My grace gives you access to My Name (Jesus) which is your authority over the devil. My grace gives you access to My Spirit and to My Word. What I have proclaimed in My word is yours, if you'll believe Me. Now, I expect you to walk in My grace that I have given you and take your stand against the devil and resist him and when you do, he will flee from you, because he has to for My victory over him has become your victory. (James 4:7). You prayed for My help and I have given it to you. I have proclaimed Truth to you, and I have said that when you know the truth, it's the doing of that truth that will set you free. Have I not declared to all men that, "the just SHALL live by faith" and that, " it is impossible for a man to please Me without faith", therefore go and take your stand of faith against this tormenting spirit (this pain in the neck--this was Paul's thorn) and he will flee from you. Don't wait any longer for Me to do it, for I am waiting on you to do it and when you do, I will be well pleased with you because I'll get to experience My victory over the devil all over again and that brings Me great pleasure. Yes My son, My grace is sufficient for anything that you will ever face, but My grace can only be received by faith. A man must believe Me first, then and only then will I extend My power to that man and enable him to do what he is praying for. Now you know My truth in this matter, now go walk in it, for My grace is sufficient for you."(end of God speaking to Paul)

Now I want you to note that you never again saw Paul begging God to do something for him in this type of situation. Paul walked in the victory Jesus gave to him and we need to take our stand as believers and walk in that same truth. Certainly Paul prayed to God many times for wisdom and guidance, but never again about something that was already accomplished and done at the cross. The devil is defeated, but you and I will have to enforce that defeat with the Name of Jesus. Let's you and me keep the devil under our feet where he belongs.

God is Good. Do You Believe That?

The Word (of God) itself might be unbelievable until you know the One who has declared it. Why do people stagger and draw back from the promises of God? Because they don't know the One who spoke it. They don't know His integrity. Oh, they may know of Him by what they have heard, but they don't know Him.

My faith can not rest on God's promisies first, but my faith must rest first upon God's character. You'll only know someone's character by being with them and watching how they respond to different situations. You watch how they react and as time goes on you begin to know them because they reveal their character to you. (who they really are). Faith must rest in confidence upon the one who made the promise. You must get to know Him, before you will trust Him.

If you are struggling with believing the Word, then put that thing you are trying to believe on the shelf for awhile and put your focus on God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Keep your eyes on God until you truly know Him, then you can move to His promises.

So, what do I need to know? Everything there is that makes God, God. Well, how long will that take? Forever. That is why He has given us eternity. It will take forever to know Him. Well, where do I start? There is one place you can start in knowing God, that will help you understand all the rest. It will take all the confusion out of it.

Start with this truth, that God is good. Now that may sound to simple to you but I want you to understand that the vast majority of people (including those in the church) question God's goodness. If you don't understand that God is good, then you'll falsely accuse Him of something bad that has happened to you. You'll never really get to know God unless you know first off that God is good. Jesus said in John 10:10, "the thief (the devil) does not come except to steal, and to kill, and destroy ( if anything has happened to you that falls into anyone of these areas, you must know that God is not the author of it). I (Jesus) have come that you might have life (not the curse) and have it more abundantly. God is good, you must settle that truth in your heart today.

No one is good except God (Mark 10:18). Taste and see that the Lord is good. (Ps34:8). The Lord is good (Ps 100:5, 135:3, Nahum 1:7) I will make My goodness pass before you (Ex33:19), how great is Your goodness (Ps31:19). The God that loves you and cares about you is a good God. Do you really know Him?

Your faith, your ability to believe, comes from knowing that God is good. Ps 27:13 says,
"I would have lost heart, unless I believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living". How can you put your trust in someone unless you know that they are out for your good.

Do you know this good God? God gets a bad rap many times. They blame Him for everything bad that happens. How in the world could you trust a God like that? You can't!! That's the point.

You must know God, before you'll be willing to believe what He says. The first thing God is saying to you today is , "I'M GOOD, and surely My goodness and mercy shall follow you all the days of your life."

If you believe God is good, you've taken a big step in knowing Him. And the more you know Him, the more you will be able to believe Him and that's when you start pleasing Him, for it is impossible to please God without faith (Heb 11:6).

Get to know Him! Now you know where to start. And by the way, you'll like the rest of the journey as well.................Be Blessed!!

Are You Deceived?

But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. (James 1:22) What is this great deception? You think that because you hear the word and agree with it, that this makes you a believer, but you are not. You are a knower, but not a believer. How do you know that you are a believer? When you willingly do what you know, that's when you believe it. And the more you do of what you know, the more you'll believe it.

Another sure way of knowing if you are a believer is by listening to the words that are coming out of your mouth, especially when you have not had time to think about what you are going to say, like when you react to something unplanned. Those words that come forth will tell on you, for out of the abundance of the (your)heart, the (your) mouth will speak. (Matt 12:34). You will say what you believe (especially when you haven't had time to process your thoughts). If what you are saying is not what you are hearing from the Word of God, then you don't believe it, but you'll be deceived into thinking that you do believe it because you agree with it. Believing is more active than that. Believing is doing and it's that doing that God responds to.
(Look at Genesis 22:1-19, James 2:14-26 especially verses 21-23, & Heb 11:17-19. These scriptures paint the real picture of believing. If you are not believing like this (by doing), then you are not believing, but only deceived into thinking that you are).

To Know Him Is To Be Known By Him

You must know Him (Jesus) before you'll know what the Word says. Oh, you can read it, but you won't know it. Understanding the word comes from knowing Him. He reveals Himself through the word, but you must know Him first, by receiving Him as your Lord and Savior, then walking with Him each and every day by looking into the word and seeing Him there. When the born again man looks into the word and sees something that the word is telling him to do, then goes and does it, this is when Jesus reveals Himself to you and when Jesus reveals Himself to you, that is when you begin know Him.

You may have thought that you knew your wife/husband before you married her/him, but you really didn't know her/him until you lived with her/him. You live with each other by communicating to one another. You use words to communicate. I've grown to know my wife over 39 years through her words and actions, and I've grown to know Jesus over the last 28 years plus exactly the same way. Each day I listen to His words and watch what He does, and each day I know Him better. There is One who sticks closer than a brother (Prov 18:24) and thank God, Jesus is His name.

If you really want to know Him, there is really only one way to do it. You must look into the Word of God (the BIBLE) and join Him there by doing what it says. As soon as you do it, Jesus shows up and reveals Himself to you, and the more of the word that you do, the more you will know Him. There is no better place for a man to be, knowing Jesus but better still, being known by Him.

Jesus said in Matt 7:21-23, " Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven, BUT he who does the will of My Father in heaven( what is the Father's will? To know His Son!). Many will say to Me on that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your Name? And then I will declare to them, I NEVER KNEW YOU, depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!" (or you who does anything apart from the Word and the God over that Word). To do the Word without knowing Jesus personally, is nothing more than religion. Religion doesn't save, Jesus does!!!

Knowing Jesus personally is the relationship God desires for you and all men/women He created. He wants to walk with you and talk with you. Why you ask? Because He wants to reveal Himself to you, by pouring His love upon you so that you can really know Him. When you really know Him, this is when all things are possible, because you can't really believe God until you know Him, and that is what God really wants out of this relationship, a man/woman that will believe Him, because when man believes Him, then God can do what's in His heart to do and that's to love His man.

2 Peter 1:3 says, (I'm saying this like God is speaking directly to you) " My divine power has (past tense) given unto you ALL things that pertain to life and godliness, THROUGH THE KNOWLEDGE OF ME."

Make it your goal to know Him more each and every day. That's His desire for you, make it your desire as well. If you don't know Him then let me intorduce Him to you. His name is Jesus and He is glad to meet you. Now get to know Him and you'll never be the same again. (I have truly preached myself happy in this one!)

"He who has My commandments (words) and keeps (does) them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him. (make Myself real to him so that you will know Me) John 14:21

God's Will Be Done #2

If you have not read my previous post on May 4, then I would recommend that you look at it first than come back and read this one.

1. Was it God's will for His people that He delivered out of Egypt to go into the Promise Land, or saying it another way, to enter the land of promise; or best said, to enter the promise of God. Was it God's will for His people to enter/receive His promise?
A. YES!! A thousand times YES.
B. Did His people go in to the Promise Land?
1) NO!!
C. Why Not?
1) Disobedience and unbelief.
God made His will perfectly clear to the people, but they chose their will over His.
D. Whose will was done? God's or the peoples?
1) The peoples
E. Who was responsible to put the will of God in action? God or the people?
1) The people
2) For God's will to be done in your life, you and me the believer, must activate it by
believing it. It's not a case of God not doing it, it's a case of us believing it.

2. Who finally got to go into the Promise Land?
A. Joshua and Caleb
B. Why these two?
1. Because they believed God and everyone else did not. Joshua and Caleb received what
they believed.
C. Was it God's will for all those millions of others to perish?
1. No, but they chose not to believe therefore they could not enter the Promise of God.
D. Did God love Joshua and Caleb more than all the others? Were they special? Did they have
an exclusive call on their life?
1. NO! They simply believed God. That's why God's will was done in their lives.

3. Why did the masses choose not to enter the Promise of God?
A. FEAR
B. Why did Joshua and Caleb enter into the Promise of God?
1) FAITH

4. Faith opened the door to the promise of the land or to God's promise.
Fear closed the door to the Promise of God.

5. Just because it's God's will for you to have something (salvation, healing, deliverance, restored
to normal, made whole), does not mean that you'll automatically have it. You must do your
part, just like God has done His part. Your part is to believe what God has done for you so that
God's will can be done in your life. God looks for the open door of your heart so that His will
be done on earth (in you) as it is in heaven. (Read the first part of 2 Chronicles 16:9).

6. It's a cop out to just say "God's will be done" and you don't even take the time to find out His
will, or when you know His will, refuse to believe Him. Then when you don't receive the
promise of help from Him, you turn your back on Him and grumble your displeasure.

7. Church, it is time for us to wake up and be the believers God intends for us to be. Let's you
and me decide to do it God's way, then we'll be blessed in all we do!!

Hear what God is saying:

The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give every man according to his ways, According to the fruit of his doings. . . ."Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed;Save me, and I shall be saved, For You are my praise(Jeremiah 17:9-10, 14).

How often they (God's people the Israelites--we are God's people as well) provoked Him (God) in the wilderness (that place of need), and grieved Him in the desert. (how do you provoke and grieve God? By not believing Him). Yes, again and again they tempted God. (how do you tempt God? By looking somewhere else other than God for your answer.) AND LIMITED THE HOLY ONE OF ISRAEL. (do you mean that we believers can limit God? you bet! How? by not believing Him!) They did not remember His power; the day He redeemed them from the enemy.
(Ps 78:40-42)

God's Will Be Done

If your will matches or is the same as God's will, then ask whatever you will and it will be done by God because it's His will also. Your will becomes God's will when you will what God wills. (Now you need to go back and read that again slowly and chew on it until you understand what the Spirit of God is saying. I spent several hours on this thought alone before the Spirit of the Lord would let me press on with what He had to say. So don't be in a hurry, capture the truth of that opening statement, because what God reveals in the rest of this message might rock your boat a bit and if it does just look out on the sea, you'll see Jesus walking by and He will steady your boat, then go back to these first two sentences to help you hear what God is saying.)

What then is God's will in every situation? His Word is His Will. Whatever His Word declares, that is His Will. How can man clearly see the Will of God. By looking at the Word of God. What does the Word look like? In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. (John 1:1&14). God's Word has a name. What is it? Jesus! Jesus is the Word of God made flesh or it's God's Word with God's flesh on it. Jesus said, " if you've seen Me, you've seen the Father" (John 14:8-9). So actually you're seeing Jesus by hearing what the Father has to say by His Words. You may be looking at the Word and seeing it, but actually you are hearing the Father's voice. Therefore we now understand that "faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God".
(Rom 10:17). So it's not "seeing is believing" but rather, "hearing is believing". Now, if you are looking at Jesus, you're looking at God the Father. Whatever you see Jesus do, or whatever you hear Jesus say, this is the perfect will of God. Jesus said, " Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He (the Father) does, the Son (Jesus) also does in like manner." (John 5:19)

Whatever you see Jesus do, you are seeing the will of the Father. Malachi 3:6 declares, " For I AM the Lord, I do not change", therefore be assured that God's Will for man never changes. Jesus said, " for I have come down from heaven, not to do My own Will, but the Will of Him (the Father) who sent Me. (John 6:38) Jesus told us to pray the following: "Our Father in heaven, hallowed by Your Name. Your Kingdom come, Your Will be done on earth as it is in heaven." (Matt 6:9-10) Jesus came to this earth to demonstrate the Will of the Father before us, then He laid down His life on our behalf so that we would be able to enter in and live out the perfect Will of God in our lives. Jesus made the way for you and me to be able to live our lives now, on this earth (as it is in heaven), in the perfect will of God. Jesus said, " I do not seek My own Will, but the Will of the Father who sent Me." ( John 5:30)

So what is God's will for you and me? Let me say it again, His Word is His Will for you. You must believe this for yourself, or you will believe something else that a man has written about God's Will and you'll accept that as Truth. So what then is God's Will for man in every situation and at all times? The Lord is not slack concerning His promise (His Will), not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance (2Pet 3:9). For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior (His Will), Who desires (Who Wills) all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth (1Tim 2:3-4) ( now that word "saved" is the greek word sozo and it means; to save, deliver, protect, heal, preserve, make whole, restore to normal) Would you agree with me that the above scriptures are the perfect Will of God for man? Now my question is, "are all men saved when they die?" NO! Why not? God's will be done, or man's will be done? Man is given the right by God to choose for himself what he will believe and what he will do. If man's will is the same as God's will, then man will receive God's Will if the man chooses to believe God and do what God says for his life.

We said the word saved also means healed (physical healing of the body). What is God's will for man concerning healing in every situation? " And Jesus went about all the cities and villages , teaching, preaching the Kingdom of God, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. (Matt 9:35) Jesus healed ALL who were sick, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet Isaiah saying; He (Jesus) Himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses (Matt 8:16-17) and by His (Jesus) stripes you were (past tense) healed (1 Pet 2:24). Great multitudes followed Him (Jesus), and He (Jesus) healed them ALL. (Matt 12:15) If Jesus is the will of the Father (and He is), then what is the Father's will for man concerning healing? God's Will for man is that they ALL be healed (but the same ALL would have to believe what God's Word says about healing). Are ALL men healed today? NO! Why not? Same reason why ALL men are not saved. Jesus said, " and ALL things whatever you ask in prayer, believing, YOU WILL RECEIVE. " (Matt 21:22) "IF you live in ME (Jesus) and My Words live in you, you will ask what you desire(what you will) and it shall be done for you. " (John 15:15)

God can, and He is willing, now man must choose if he will believe his God and do what his God says. Men/Women do not like hearing this, because they want to put all the responsibility on God, but God says, "I've done my part (Gen 2:2), now you must do yours." What is the part we must do? We must believe Him (Jesus- everything He says and does) whom He (the Father) sent. We must believe, that is what God requires and that is the part that is always missing. God always does His part (for He always does His Will), however man does not. The next time you see failure, or an unanswered prayer, don't blame God and accuse Him by saying, "it's not God's will", and then come up with some man made doctrine to excuse away the failure. God has made His Will perfectly clear, can you (and I) believe it? What we choose to believe will determine the outcome and our outcome will look just like the Will of God if we will believe Him.

If this sounds hard or harsh to you, I'm sorry, but it is the truth. Do you realize that Jesus would have never been risen from the dead unless He (Jesus) believed He would. He had to believe the Father just like you and I must. It was the Father's will to raise Jesus from the dead, but Jesus had to believe His Father's Will and His Word to bring it to pass. Eph 1:20 says that God extended the power to Jesus to raise Him from the dead because Jesus believed the Father would do it, and because Jesus believed, the Father did it!! The Father was able to do His will in Jesus' life because Jesus believed Him.

The Father is waiting on you and me to believe Him, just like Jesus did. If we will, God will perform His perfect Will in our lives. God longs for that child of His that will believe Him this way. But let a man ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord, he is a double-minded man, unstable in ALL his ways. (James 1:6-8)

It is hard for man/woman to accept his own responsibility in God's plan for man. God has revealed His Will to man. Now, IF our will becomes His will, " Then His Will be done". That is the only time you can ever say that and be right in God's eye. If you're going to say "God's will be done," at least know what God's will is. Now go and do what God has told us to do. "BELIEVE HIM"!!!!

Just How Spiritual Am I?

When a situation or an issue of life presents itself before me, God will observe me to see how I will respond to it. Spiritually or Naturally. Is my first move to try and figure it out or is my first move towards God by saying, " what does the Word declare about this situation?" Who do I depend on first? What I do first, is what I'm trusting in the most. You see, Jesus thinks different from me. He is always thinking according to the realm of the Spirit. He looks for spiritual answers to the problem, I do not at the beginning. I measure it from the natural standpoint, Jesus measures it spiritually, therefore I need to renew my mind with the word until I think like Jesus. If I'll think like Jesus, then I'll act like Jesus by doing what the Holy Spirit leads me to do in that situation that I find myself in. Yours and my answer to what we need resides in the Spirit realm, therefore start there. Start with God's report, not the doctor's report, lawyer's report, that bad report you just got on the telephone or any other kind of natural report (now I didn't say ignore it, I said don't start there). God's report is His word. Jesus said, " It is the Spirit that gives life, the flesh (the natural) profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life." (John 6:63) Don't look first into the natural realm for your answer, it will only distract you from God's source of supply that will resolve your every need or challenge that stands before you. The Spirit realm is a higher realm than this natural realm we live in. Life's issues require spiritual responses. God has the answer and the ability for anything that exists in the natural realm (and He desires to give both of these, answer/ability, to you and me), for everything that was made and exists, was created from the Spirit realm and therefore is subject to the Spirit realm. Natural things respond to spiritual forces or better said, natural things respond to the force of God's Word (Spirit). Why are we so easily defeated when we stand before the issues of life? Because we choose to first respond naturally instead of spiritually. If we will change our ways (or change our priorities) and respond spiritually, then we will see the same results and success Jesus had for He responded to everything by being led by the Spirit, then doing what the Spirit showed Him to do. Jesus bore witness to this when He said, " Most assuredly, I SAY TO YOU, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do, for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner." (John 5:19) Now you and I need to say the same thing Jesus did (if Jesus is living in your heart today as your Savior and Lord) and it will sound just like this. " I can do nothing of myself, but what I see Jesus do, for whatever Jesus does, I will do in like manner." Does this sound strange to you? If it does, reassure yourself by reading the words of Jesus in John 14:12. Now, how do you see the things that Jesus does? By looking into the spirit realm. How? By looking into the Word. Whatever you see Him do, the father is saying to you and me, " that's what I want you to do. That's how I want you to respond to the issues of life and be the overcomer that I've made you to be" ( 1 John 5:4-5 ). There is no other way for the child of God to walk successfully. Seek ye FIRST the kingdom of God. That's God's way. Lets you and I make it our way this day!! For this is the day the Lord has made for me and I'm going to rejoice in it, because I'm going to do things Jesus's way.

Missing in Action

Sorry I've been missing in action for the past month, but sometimes, God leads you out into the desert, a quite, still place for nothing more than to be still and know that He is God. I grew tired of writing the things God was showing me, because I felt like no one was reading them and if they did, it wasn't any benefit to them. I paid to much attention to what the devil was saying to me about these writings, and did not keep my focus on what God had called me to do. So my time away from this blog site has been good for me as God once again has cleared my vision and His purpose for this site. If you don't know it yet, we have a real enemy whose purpose is nothing more than to steal, kill, and destroy the believer. The devil can't destroy God (he tried, but that was the worst mistake he ever made-Isa 14:12-15 also read Ezekiel 28), but he can destroy God's children, and that is where he takes aim for his intent is to hurt God. BUT GOD, Who is faithful, will keep us and always show us the way out of from every fiery dart that the wicked one brings against us. It's called the shield of faith, and God will enable you to pick it up again and fight the good fight of faith. It's good to be away from that desert place!! Whatever God intends for you to hear, I will write it. Now it's time for me to press on, how about you?

The Strongest Power on the Face of the Earth Today

If love is not present, they will never see God in me or you. We might be able to operate in all the power gifts of the Spirit, but the God of all power and might is not truly revealed through these power gifts (read John 12:37 for proof of that), he is revealed through the strongest power on the face of the earth today which is "Love". The strongest power God reveals to man is His love. The man/woman who walks in this love is the strongest man on the face of the earth. The devil has no weapon against it. Love destroys the devil's work ( 1 John 3:8). Love defeated the devil at Calvary, and it's that same love that enforces that defeat of the devil today through the one who walks in this love.

It's God's greatest desire to reveal Himself through love, not His power gifts. Men are amazed at the power of God when it is on display through the power gifts such as healing, but men are moved in their hearts to faith when God's love is revealed before them. The power gifts entertain, but don't change men's hearts, where as love on display will penetrate a man's heart and cause that man to change his ways. There is no greater place to be with God then established in His love. God is unlimited with the man whose heart is filled with God's love. There is nothing that can overcome the man who is filled with God's love. The enemies of God must step aside when love is present. Love is what draws men to God, not the power gifts. Men will watch the power gifts in action, but they'll move on after the show is over. But when men see the love of God in action before them, they are drawn to it until they find the One who is producing that power of love, then they reach out and receive it for themselves and are born again. Now they themselves have become God's containers for His love to abide in and to be revealed through as God wills.

Love draws men to God. Love sends that man to other men so that other men can be drawn to God. No greater power on the face of the earth today than love. Walk in it and reveal God to all those you come into contact with. You wont have to say a thing, love will be talking through you, and you'll be preaching the true gospel of our loving God.

God's Storehouse. Do you shop there?

The WORD of God is the storehouse of God. Anything that I need or will ever need can be found in God's storehouse (His Word). The only way you can withdraw what you need from God's storehouse is by faith. You can know what is in God's storehouse and you can even have an inventory sheet of every item that God has in His storehouse, but just because you know what you need is in the storehouse, doesn't mean that you will get it. God has no lock on the door to His storehouse and it is accessible for whoever will come to get his need met. Though there be no lock on the door and it is accessible to whosoever, you can only go through the door of His storehouse to obtain what you need by one way and one way only and that is by faith. Most people know that God's storehouse exists, but they go to other storehouses to try and get their needs met. Even though the access into God's storehouse is free of charge (Rom 6:23) they choose to go to other storehouses and pay their way in and then pay for the things they need, while God all along will freely give to them what they need. The only requirement is for them to access His storehouse through the unlocked door but you can only walk through that unlocked door one way and that is by faith in Jesus. When you believe in Jesus, the Father says, " you now have access to My storehouse", but to get inside you still have to take action and go to the storehouse and open the unlocked door and go in and receive (take) what you need. But God only takes one kind of payment for His goods. God has a sign on His door to His storehouse that says, "all items are free" however payment is required to obtain these goods. Though the items are free, you can only receive them by believing that they are yours and that they belong to you. You put the things you need into your shopping cart by faith. You lay hold of what you need by faith and put it in your cart, then go to the checkout line. God only requires one form of payment. He only asks you one question which is, " Do you believe that item you have in your cart belongs to you?" Your response (not God's will -Mark 5:25-34) determines whether you get that item or not. If you say, "I believe this is mine and it belongs to me", then the Father will say to you, " according to your faith (according to what you can believe) this item is then yours. Freely you have received, now freely take it". Then you leave the store house with what you need, but the only way you keep the free item in your possession is by continually believing that it is yours until the very thing you had the need for is gone.

Now the Father says there is one group of people that really bothers (hurts) Him. It's some of His own children that disappoint Him most. These are they who know the storehouse exists and and they know where it's at. They even come to the storehouse and look into it through the windows. They see all the things that are in there, things that they need, but they won't enter into the storehouse through the unlocked door because they won't believe what God has said about His storehouse. So they continue to look into the storehouse, but they never go in and obtain what they need. (Don't forget what I said in the opening line. God's word is His storehouse)

Which person are you? Do you stand on the outside looking in, or do you go in and take what God is giving to you? The just shall live by faith (Heb 10:38). This is God's only requirement for you to get into the storehouse and receive what belongs to you. If you have just been standing there waiting on God to open the door then wait no longer for God says, " the door is already open to you if you'll come through it by faith.".

Here is what Jesus says to you in John 16:15. "All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you". What is God the Father declaring? Whatever Jesus possesses belongs to you as well, "if" Jesus is your Savior and the Lord of your life. If this is true in your life, then know one thing for sure, the door to God's storehouse is wide open to you, but you are the one who has to choose whether you'll go in or not. Jesus says the same thing to you that He said to Peter while Peter was just sitting in the boat wondering what he should do. Jesus said, "COME", then Peter stepped out of the boat onto the water. Will you? The Father says to you, " Come, the door is wide open, take what you need".

Now the next time you pick up the Word of God in your hand, realize you are holding the storehouse of God, then go inside and start shopping.

Do I Really Know Him?

You have to walk with Jesus to know Him. You can learn about Jesus by studying the bible and other books and know all about Him, but you'll never know Him until you walk with Him. How do you walk with Jesus? You walk by faith and not by sight. You live your life constantly aware of Jesus's presence and you talk with Him continuously as you go about your day. You are always asking Him, before you do it. You're always asking for wisdom and direction. What I see Jesus do in the Word, that is what I do, believing that Jesus will enable me to do it. I must believe He is right there with me at all times. Where ever I go, I must realize He is right there with me to show me what to do. It's only in this close relationship that I truly know Him. There is One that sticks closer than a brother, His name is Jesus. Jesus is looking for the one who will fellowship with Him in this manner. For it is to this one that Jesus will reveal Himself to, and this one will truly know Him.

It is the Father Who desires this relationship for a man/woman with His Son Jesus, because this is the only way the Father can fellowship with His man/woman. ( John 14:23 says "Jesus answered and said to him, if anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him and We will come to him and make Our home with him". Do you think you might know Jesus and the Father any better if they were living in your house with you?). God desires the man/woman to be one with Him so that the man/woman will go and do the things that Jesus desires to do. The Father is looking for that man/woman who desires this relationship with His Son. Are you that man or woman? If so, you are the most blessed man/woman on the face of the earth today. For blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord.

Come out from behind the desk of learning about Jesus, and come and walk with Him. For as you walk together you will really begin to know Him and that is what He has wanted all along and also that we would be well known by Him for He wants to know us as much as much as we want to know Him. This truly is the relationship the Father has called us to with His Son. No better relationship could we be found in.

He walks with me and He talks with me, therefore I know Him and I am forever grateful for it because this is the relationship I will spend eternity with. Know Him and be known by Him. There is no greater place to be.