The book of Psalms is replete with praise for God and in Psalm 150:6 (NKJV) we read, “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.” King David in Psalm 9:1 (NKJV) wrote, “I will praise You o Lord with my whole heart.” We could fill a book with reasons to praise God and David summed up the reasons with the following verse, “Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and His greatness is unsearchable (Psalm 145:3;
NKJV). We should be constantly praising God (Ps 34:1); with musical instruments (Ps 150), singing (Ps 47:6), lifting our hands (Ps 63:4), clapping (Ps 41:1), dancing (2 Sam 6:13-16) and shouting (Ezra 3:11). In Psalm 150 and throughout the Psalms the Hebrew word most used for praise paints a picture of wild, loud celebration! We are called to praise God whether we feel like it or not; our praise is a sacrifice offered to God (Heb 13:15).
King Jehoshaphat in the Old Testament was faced with a massive enemy army but God promised a victory and as the people of Israel sang praises to God, He destroyed their foes (2 Chron 20;1-22). We are directed to “Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise” (Ps 100:4; NKJV). This verse shows us that as we praise God, we can experience His very intimate presence (Ps 100:4) and in Psalm 22:3 (NKJV) David wrote, “But You are Holy, enthroned in the praises of Israel.” The word, “enthroned” carries the essence of God invading our presence, settling down with us in His glory and power as we praise Him. That presence can lift us from all depression, worry and concern (Isa 61:3). Wow! Let’s praise God all day long?
It was in Genesis 17:16 and 18:10 that God told Abraham that his wife, Sarah, would give birth to a son even though they were both very old. Genesis 21:5 tells us that Sarah was 90! About 25 years passed between the
promise and the birth of Isaac. That was a long wait! However, “Abraham’s faith did not weaken, even though, at about 100 years of age, he figured his body was as good as dead -- and so was Sarah’s womb. Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever He promises” (Rom 4:19-21; NLT). What amazing faith!
Verse 18 of Romans chapter 4 tells us that even though it looked hopeless Abraham still believed God’s promise. Now that is faith. He could see nothing to give him hope with his natural eyes but He trusted the Lord anyway. This lines up with 2 Cor 5:7, “we walk by faith, not by sight” (NKJV). How could he do this? He didn’t have Bible teachers to teach him about faith. I believe the answer is found in Romans 4:17, “Abraham believed in the God who brings the dead back to life and who creates new things out of nothing” (NLT). That is how God created the world, He made something out of nothing.
I encourage you today to have the faith of Abraham, don’t doubt God’s promise for whatever it is you are believing for, but let your faith grow stronger by feeding on the word of God (Rom 10:17) and meditating on the faith giants of the Bible (Hebrews chapter 11). Nothing is impossible for God (Luke 1:37).
In Ephesians 3:17 we are told to be, “rooted and grounded in love.” If, like a tree, our roots grow down into the love of God and spread then that unconditional love of God will permeate our whole being. However, in order for that love to grow and spread there are certain things that we have to do. Colossians 3:14 (AMP) tells us to “put on love and wrap yourself in (unselfish) love.” In other words, we have to be intentional and make a decision to
love.
Practically speaking, how do we “put on love?” The preceding verses of Colossians 3:12-13 answer that for us. Firstly, we need to be compassionate (see also Eph 5 :2), kind, patient, putting up with each other, even when someone annoys you! In addition, love is reflected in our words and tone of voice (which was dealt with in an earlier blog). It also means being forgiving. Forgiveness is a very important part of love; the flesh wants to harbor bitterness towards the person that hurts us but not so with love, “Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others” (Col 3:13; NLT). We are called to follow the example of Jesus (see also the Deacon Stephen; Acts &:54-60), who when He was dying said, “Father forgive them for they do not know what they do” (Luke 23:34; NKJV). Love also believes the best of others (1 Cor 13:7). Some people love to gossip and spread malicious rumors about others (Prov 26:22) but if we stay away from gossip, we can believe the best of people. None of us know what is going on in someone else’s life so we need to make allowances (Prov 14:10).
Let’s commit today that with God’s help we will “put on love” and freely extend forgiveness. We will have many opportunities to put this into practice!
“Eye has not seen, not ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him” (1 Cor 2:9; NKJV). Well, I am sure we would all say we love God and desire to be all God wants us to be and do all He has for us to do, yes? The apostle Paul exhorted us to “set your minds on things above, not on things on the earth “(Col 3:2; NKJV). In other words, in our lives, let’s have a heavenly perspective as to how we use our time and energy. I am always amazed and encouraged when I read how Jesus said we would not only do the things He did but even greater things (John 14:12). God has created each one of us for the good works He has prepared for us (Eph 2:10). What could be greater or more fulfilling than to be His ambassadors or witnesses (2 Cor 5:18-21), sharing our Christian life experiences with others. We are called to let our light shine to people around us (Matt 5:16) and share the gospel of Jesus with them (Mark 16:15).
The gospel in simplest terms is the account of Jesus, His life on this earth, how He died on a cross to win forgiveness for us all (1 Cor 15:3; Eph 1:7), rose from the dead and ascended back into heaven. If people believe in Him, (1 John 1:9), make up their mind to turn away from sin (Acts 2:38) ask His forgiveness and give Him control of their life they will be saved or made new (Rom 10:9-10) and can enter into an amazing relationship with Jesus! (1 John 3:1).
God gives us the power to witness (Acts 1:8) and the words to use (Luke 21:15). Let’s do it! The results are truly heartwarming.
Matthew 6:8 tells us that God knows our needs before we even pray but He still tells us to pray. The Bible also tells us in 1 John 5:14,15 that if we pray according to God’s will, He hears us and answers us (see also Prov 15:29). However, when we have been
praying and believing God for something for months and even years with no physical manifestation, we could be tempted to get discouraged. The devil may be whispering in your ear that it is not working, but Jesus tells us in in Luke 18:1 (AMP) “to pray and not give up and lose heart.” He goes on to tell the story of the desperate widow and the unjust judge who finally gave her justice. Jesus, however is NOT unjust, He is just and not only that but the unjust judge responded out of aggravation, whereas Jesus responds to us in love. As Luke 18:7 says, “will not (our just) God defend and avenge His elect (His chosen ones) who cry out to Him day and night?” (AMP).
I encourage you to keep praying, no matter how long it is taking for the answer to manifest (see also Matt 7:7 and 1 Thess 5:17), but pray in faith. Mark tells us that, “whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours” (Mk 11:24; ESV). So, believe you have the answer when you first pray (not when you can see it physically) and keep thanking God for the victory. Don’t let the devil discourage you with his lies, keep speaking the promises in God’s word that your prayer is based on in faith!