Life's Hills and Valleys

Happy New Year! I pray you are thankful for all God seen you through in 2011 and that you are excited about what He is going to do in 2012.

"...but the land which you pass over to possess is a land of hills and valleys, which drinks water from the rain of heaven, a land for which the Lord your God cares, the eyes of the Lord your God are always on it, from the beginning of the year to the very end of the year" (Deuteronomy 11:11-12).

We stand upon the verge of the unknown. There lies before us the new year and we are going forth to possess it.

Who can tell what we will find? What new experiences, what changes shall come, what new needs shall arise? But here is the cheering, comforting, gladdening message from our Heavenly PaPa God, "The Lord thy God cares for it. His eyes are upon it away to the ending of the year."

The land is a land of hills and valleys. It's not all smooth nor all downhill. If life were all one dead level, the dull sameness would oppress us. We want the hills and the valleys. The hill collects the rain for a hundred fruitful valleys.

So it is with us...it's the hill difficulty that drives us to the throne of grace and brings down the shower of blessing.

We cannot tell what loss, sorrow and trial are doing. Only trust. PaPa God comes near to take our hand and lead us on our way "today."

God promises...

Because of your unbelief, for assuredly I say to you, if you have faith of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, "Move from here to there," and it will move and nothing will be impossible for you (Matthew 17:20).

You have to think BIG! Don't let ego, fears or failures stop you from thinking big.

Now unto Him that is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us (Ephesians 3:20).

Most assuredly I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also, and greater works than these he will do, because I go My Father (John 14:12).

We have to start small (as a mustard seed). So often we focus on the size of our mountain, not the size of our God.

Unlock the promises of God in your life this New Year, He has so many for you. Go possess the land. It shall be a good and blessed year. God will bless you as you seek to know Him more fully this year.

"And those who know Your name will put their trust in You, for You, Lord God, have not forsaken those who seek You (Psalm 9:10)."

How can You Know Your Destiny?

How Can We Know Our Destiny?
The story of Esther

First we must recognize the gift that God has given us to use. “Hegai was very impressed with Esther and treated her kindly. He quickly ordered a special menu for her and provided her with beauty treatments. He also assigned her seven maids specially chosen from the king’s palace, and he moved her and her maids into the best place in the harem” (Esther 2:9) “And Esther won the favor of everyone who saw her” (Esther 2:15b). “And the king loved Esther more than any of the other young women. He was so delighted with her that he set the royal crown on her head and declared her queen instead of Vashti” (Esther 2:17)

Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.

What has God given you to use for good?

We must identify the needs that stir our heart. “When Queen Esther’s maids and eunuchs came and told her about Mordecai, she was deeply distressed” (Esther 4:4a).

What needs do you see around you that disturb you?

We must take the time to hear God’s call on our life. Mordecai sent this reply to Esther. Don’t think for a moment that because your in the palace you will escape when all other Jews are killed. If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?” (Esther 4:13-14).

Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: “Go and gather together all the Jews of Susa and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will do the same” (Esther 4:15-16a).

When will you take time to listen?

We must make a faith commitment. “And then, though it is against the law, I will go see the king. If I perish, I perish” (Esther 4:16b).

What faith commitments will you make?

Processing Your Destiny

God's destiny for your life is good, not disasterous.

For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans of peace and not of evil, plans to give you a future and a hope (Jeremiah 29:11)

See, I have set before you this day life and good, death and evil. In that I command you this day to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statutes and His judgments that you may live and multiply, and the Lord your God shall bless you in the land which you go to possess....I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing, therefore choose life, that both you and your desendants may live (Deuteronomy 30:15-20).

Will you follow God's plan or your plan in life? Life or death? Blessing or cursing?

How do you possess your destiny?

You must prepare a plan. Like the old saying goes, "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail."
Where there is no vision, the people perish; but he that keeps the law, happy is he (Proverbs 29:18).

You'll never experience your destiny if your stuck on the past ~ it's gone, move on!

What do you need to let go of? Don't allow that to become the focus of your life. Get ready to receive from God (Joshua 1:1-11).

When you make a plan, you usually achieve it. What would you like to see happen in your life, your marriage, your finances, your spirituality? Where would you like to see your life go?
Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed (Proverbs 16:3).

You must build your life completely on God's Word, not just the foundation.
Even strong young lions sometimes go hungry, but those who trust in the Lord will lack no good thing (Psalm 34:10)

You must courageously step out in faith. God will show up faithfully.
You will experience battles and blessings. The battles are to hel you grow in your character. Smith Wigglesworth said, "Great faith only comes through great trials."

No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live. For I will be with you as I was with Moses. I will never fail you or abandon you. Be strong and courageous...(Joshua 1:5-6).

What Jordon River/obstacle do you need to overcome? If God tells you to do something, step out in faith.

Have I not commanded you to do this? So be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go (Joshua 1:9).

Fear will stop you from starting, discouragment will keep you from going forward.

God keeps His promises. Step out in faith.

Waiting-A Difficult Life Lesson

When the world ~ or your own heart, tells you to run ahead, God may be telling you to "wait."

Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him. Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way...(Psalm 37:7)

This kind of waiting doesn't imply idleness or apathy, but a determined stillness. A quiet, expectant, steadfast, and diligent activity that takes place until we receive further instruction.

When we wait for God's clear direction, we keep in step with Him.

As we wait, we place complete trust in Him whether we see results or not. We don't become anxious because we know that God has a divine purpose for telling us to wait.

When we do wait for His clear direction, we are staying in step with Him. He uses the wait time to prepare us for His will, to strengthen our faith, and to shift our motives. Waiting is essential in living a Christian life, walking in obedience, and receiving His blessing.

The truths God teaches us are invaluable and practical because they affect our character development, choices and lifestyle. Their influence reaches way beyond our earthly lifetimes all the way to eternity.

Psalm 27:14 says; "Wait on the Lord, be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart, Wait, I say, on the Lord." This verse calls for an active choice to be at rest, resting in God and His timing. It's an internal stillness of spirit that stays with you throughout the day.

Waiting is really tough when a situation is stressful or a decision has to be made now. But remember, God has plans for us, and there are instances when He will stop us in our tracks until we do some "internal housecleaning."

The Lord has places to take us, and He knows what baggage needs to be left behind. He is the Master of time and sovereignly works all the specifics of His grand design for humanity. No amount of prayer and fasting will move His hand until He is ready.

Sometimes His delays are to increase our faith. If He instantaneously gave us everything we wanted, we would never learn to walk by faith. When we only have a promise from the Scriptures with no visible evidence to rely on, then our faith is put to the test. Will we believe Him or our circumstances?

When your eyes can't see the evidence, trust what you know is true. Just because we can't see anything happening doesn't mean the Lord is uninvolved (2 Chronicles 16:9).

He promises to hear and answer those who wait patiently for Him and establish their steps (Psalm 40:1), and increased strength (Isaiah 40:31). He promises to strengthen the one who remains still and quiet before Him, actively listening for His still small voice.

I don't know what you are waiting for, but I do know that if you believe what God tells you in His Word and patiently rest in His chioce and timing for your situation, you will experience a new spirit of joy and confidence.

Believe His promises, rest confidently in what He says. For His thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways His ways. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are His ways higher than your ways and His thoughts than your thoughts (Isaiah 55:8-9).

The Fragrance of Christ

I'm sure you have had a negative experience when sharing the good news of Christ. Some people just don't want to hear about Him. Even though your concern is for their eternal life, they usually think your shoving "religion" down their throats.

To help us understand why so many have a negative reaction to our faith, the apostle Paul uses the analogy of a Roman celebration of victory. In his day, when a general returned to Rome after conquering the enemy, he made a triumphal entry and led a parade through town. he rode in a golden chariot surrounded by his officers and followed by his troops. At the end of the procession were the chained captives.

During this pageantry, clouds of inscense floated among the participants and the assembled onlookers as pagan priests carried their censors. To the conquerors, this was the sweet aroma of victory. To the captives, it was the smell of death, for they would soon be killed by wild animals in the arena.

In the same way, we are a sweet fragrance of Christ to one another as we follow in His victory over sin and death. However, to those who don't know Him as Savior, we are reminded of the judgment they dread.

Even though some people will be repulsed by us and our message, we MUST continue to share our hope with gentleness and grace (1 Peter 3:15-16). Paul hated Christians at one time, yet he would be the first to affirm that the Lord can reach a hardened heart and change a captive into a victor!

Feedings In The Philippines

Jesus says; Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, yet your Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?...Therefore take no thought saying, what shall we eat? or, what shall we drink? or, wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek), for your Heavenly Father knows that you have need of all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself...(Matthew 6:25-34)

Material wealth gives a dangerous, false sense of security. The birds and lilies do not fret and worry, yet they have God's wealth in ways that man cannot duplicate. All of nature depends on God, and God never fails. Only mortal man depends on money, and money always fails.

God feeds the birds and clothes the lilies. He will feed and cloth us. He has great blessings for us if only we will yield to Him and live for the riches that last forever.
What a testimony it is to the world when we dare to practice "Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto us."

Yes, it is right to plan for the future and even save for the future (1 Tim. 5:8). But it is a sin to worry about the future and permit tomorrow to rob us of todays blessings.

He knows that we need certain things in order to live. In fact, He has given us "richly all things to enjoy" (1 Timothy 6:17)

Jesus says that worry is sin. We may dignify worry by calling it by some other name; concern, burden, a cross to bear~but the results are the same.

Materialism will enslave the heart, the mind and the will. We become shackled by the material things of life.
Most of these people don't have the material things we have, let alone enough food to eat. They truly trust and depend on God to provide their daily needs.

It is such a blessing to be used by our Heavenly Father to help and encourage those less fortunate than us no matter where we live or where we go.

Those we served at the feedings have victory over worry...they have faith, trusting God to meet their needs, knowing their Heavenly Father cares for His children and, putting His will first in their lives daily so that He will be glorified.

No matter our circumstances, we should always have the assurance that God has not left our side and that dwelling in Him we receive our strength. The goodness of the Lord reaches from everlasting to everlasting and when we find ourselves discouraged or disheartened, all we need to do is return again to the Lord to be refreshed and renewed by His Spirit. The Scripture says the Joy of the Lord is your strength.

Have faith in God the Father, put Him first, He will meet your needs.

Be Rooted In Love

I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge...that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:17-19)


There's nothing more fun in life than looking for the attention and personal love of the Father. He is waiting to show off His love and character to us in totally fresh and unique ways. He is such a genius, our God is! It would most likely bore Him to be anything but incredible and mysterious in all His ways.

I have been absolutely delighted in exploring the boundries of His love. I have not reached the edge of the width or the length, nor have I experienced the height or depth. Have faith and start looking for His love. If you have already found it, then there are still many more surprises ahead for you.

Just as love between a man and a woman will result in the conception and birth of a life, this love of God to you will spring forth life in you.

Experience His love today and forever.

Time For New Beginnings

"This is a time for reflection as well as celebration. As you look back on the past year and all that has taken place in your life...

* Remember each experience for the good that has come of it and for the knowledge you have gained.

* Remember the efforts you have made and the goals you have reached.

* Remember the love you have shared and the happiness you have brought.

* Remember the laughter, the joy, the hard work, and the tears.

And as you reflect on the past year, also be thinking of the new one to come. Because most importantly, this is a time of new beginnings and the celebration of life."

Recipe for a Happy New Year

Take twelve fine, full-grown months; see that these are thoroughly free from old memories of bitterness, rancor and hate, cleanse them completely from every clinging spite; pick off all specks of pettiness and littleness; in short, see that these months are freed from all the past—have them fresh and clean as when they first came from the great storehouse of Time. Cut these months into thirty or thirty-one equal parts. Do not attempt to make up the whole batch at one time (so many persons spoil the entire lot this way) but prepare one day at a time.

Into each day put equal parts of faith, patience, courage, work (some people omit this ingredient and so spoil the flavor of the rest), hope, fidelity, liberality, kindness, rest (leaving this out is like leaving the oil out of the salad dressing— don’t do it), prayer, meditation, and one well-selected resolution. Put in about one teaspoonful of good spirits, a dash of fun, a pinch of folly, a sprinkling of play, and a heaping cupful of good humor.

Under Pressure

We are pressed...but not...broken. - 2 Corinthians 4:8

Do you feel like you're in a tunnel with no way out? Rejoice, you're positioned for a miracle! Paul said, "We are pressed on every side by troubles, but not crushed and broken. We are perplexed...but we don't give up and quit. We are hunted down, but God never abandons us. We get knocked down, but we get up again and keep going" (2 Cor 4:8,9).

A certain amount of pressure is necessary to release our faith, and God knows exactly how much to apply. He allows us to get to where: (a) We've exhausted our own resources. (b) We're tired of Satan stealing what God says is ours. (c) The opinions of others no longer control us. It's the place Hannah found herself in when she prayed in the temple, "In distress of soul...and weeping bitterly" (1 Sam 1:10). She was under such pressure because of her childless state that when she began to unburden herself before God, the church hierarchy thought she was drunk. But when you're desperate, you're not overly concerned about blowing the minds of religious onlookers; your only concern is touching the heart of God.

With God there are no hopeless situations, just people who've grown hopeless about them. Real faith comes into its own when push collides with shove. After all, you don't need God to part the Red Sea when there are bridges all around, right? It's when there's nothing you can do to avoid the inevitable that you start trusting God to do the impossible! So the crisis you're experiencing today could be a blessing in disguise - an opportunity to experience a greater degree of His power at work in your life.
2 Sam 20:1 - 22:30, John 5:31-47, Ps 126, Pr 24:10

“If God brings you to it ~ You can get thru it!”