Seekfirstweb-Podcast: I will dwell in the house of the LORD for endless ...

Seekfirstweb-Podcast: I will dwell in the house of the LORD for endless ...: "'The LORD is my shepherd; there is nothing I lack. In green pastures he makes me lie down; to still waters he leads me; he restores my so..."

Trust in the Lord with all your heart

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart, on your own intelligence do not rely; In all your ways be mindful of him, and he will make straight your paths." (Proverbs 3: 5-6)

Why is it so difficult to trust in the Lord with all our heart when we see His providence everywhere and at all times?  This is a problem that baffles me.  I see God’s providence working in my life every day.  I recognize His providential actions thank the Lord for them.  Then the next moment, I am anxious and fearful of circumstances.  Peter was walking towards Jesus on the water.  He was doing very well until he took his gaze off Jesus and focused it on the raging storms.  Then he began to sink.  Whenever I take my eyes off Jesus and focus it on the prevailing circumstances, the result is fear, worry or doubt.

How can I have my gaze focused on Jesus at all times in every circumstance?  I believe the answer to this is constant prayer.  Prayer shows our dependence on God.  When we pray, we are saying:  “Lord help me in this situation.  I cannot make it without you.”  Proverbs 3: 5-6 says that if we make this a habit in all our ways, we are assured that the Lord will make straight our paths.  

The battle is not yours

"and he said: “Pay attention, all of Judah, inhabitants of Jerusalem, and King Jehoshaphat! The LORD says to you: Do not fear or be dismayed at the sight of this vast multitude, for the battle is not yours but God’s. You will not have to fight in this encounter. Take your places, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD; he will be with you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not fear or be dismayed. Tomorrow go out to meet them, and the LORD will be with you.”

What a sublime promise!  Each person is confronted with challenges in one or more of these areas:

Health

Family

Money

Job

Tools

Food

Future

They form constant source of worry.  What if we are to surrender each and all of the above to God and pray thus:  “Lord, you promise that the battle is not mine but yours.  I surrender the present health crisis to you to fight for me as your word promises.  Thank you Lord.”  Then after the prayer, you stand firm and watch to see the salvation of the Lord.  

Seekfirstweb-Podcast: Follow His ways exactly

Seekfirstweb-Podcast: Follow His ways exactly: "'And now, Israel, what does the LORD, your God, ask of you but to fear the LORD, your God, and follow his ways exactly, to love and serve t..."

Remain faithful with your whole heart

"When the time of David's death drew near, he gave these instructions to his son Solomon: "I am going the way of all mankind. Take courage and be a man. Keep the mandate of the LORD, your God, following his ways and observing his statutes, commands, ordinances, and decrees as they are written in the law of Moses, that you may succeed in whatever you do, wherever you turn, and the LORD may fulfill the promise he made on my behalf when he said, 'If your sons so conduct themselves that they remain faithful to me with their whole heart and with their whole soul, you shall always have someone of your line on the throne of Israel.' " (1 Kings 2: 1 - 4)

The above scripture reminds me of Joshua 1: 1 – 8.

"After Moses, the servant of the LORD, had died, the LORD said to Moses' aide Joshua, son of Nun: "My servant Moses is dead. So prepare to cross the Jordan here, with all the people into the land I will give the Israelites. As I promised Moses, I will deliver to you every place where you set foot. 1 Your domain is to be all the land of the Hittites, from the desert and from Lebanon east to the great river Euphrates and west to the Great Sea. No one can withstand you while you live. I will be with you as I was with Moses: I will not leave you nor forsake you. Be firm and steadfast, so that you may give this people possession of the land which I swore to their fathers I would give them. Above all, be firm and steadfast, taking care to observe the entire law which my servant Moses enjoined on you. Do not swerve from it either to the right or to the left, that you may succeed wherever you go. Keep this book of the law on your lips. Recite it by day and by night, that you may observe carefully all that is written in it; then you will successfully attain your goal. " (Joshua 1: 1 - 8)

The key to success is to listen to God and remain faithful to Him with one’s whole heart.

Man does not live by bread alone

“One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.”  (Matthew 4: 4)

First, consider the context of the above saying by Jesus.  He had just finished 40 days of fasting in the desert and was famished.  The devil came along and suggested that Jesus turned stones into bread.  Jesus answered him that man does not live by bread alone.  The word of God provides life to man.  Bread could be a synonym for life or money.   What is the one thing that we need for all our necessities as human being?  Faith in the word of God gives us access to everything we need in life.  Everything we need in life can be summarized as the 6 promises of God to man.  I call this the 6 P’s, viz:

1.       Pardon

2.       Peace

3.       Power

4.       Purpose

5.       Protection

6.       Provision

When one places his whole trust in God’s promises, he has access to all the above as and when needed. 

Seekfirstweb-Podcast: Be firm and steadfast

Seekfirstweb-Podcast: Be firm and steadfast: "'No one can withstand you while you live. I will be with you as I was with Moses: I will not leave you nor forsake you. Be firm and steadfas..."

The Lord is my portion

“Then the LORD said to Aaron, "You shall not have any heritage in the land of the Israelites nor hold any portion among them; I will be your portion and your heritage among them." (Numbers 18: 20)

This is one of the 51 Promised Land scriptures.  I will welcome the message with joy.   The Lord Himself is my portion and my heritage.  In the course of the USP, I have had to reflect on this scripture several times.  I have done this more in the past one year.  As I struggle to understand God’s plan for my life with regard to job and finance, my mind goes to the above scripture again and again

 All my life, I have had very little interest in money.  Reviewing my entire life with regard to money, I notice a pattern that is consistent through the years.  I always have just enough of what I need at the point of need.  I rarely have surplus to play with.  A lot of goods I purchased I made on faith.  It seems that the credit card system was created for me.  I purchase what I need believing that God will always provide for the payment in due time.  And so it has been for years.  God never fails!   I have a top credit score and I know it is God’s doing.

Seekfirstweb-Podcast: The Promised Land

Seekfirstweb-Podcast: The Promised Land: "'Be careful to observe all the commandments I enjoin on you today, that you may live and increase, and may enter in and possess the land wh..."

Seekfirstweb-Podcast: The Lord Himself will fight for you

Seekfirstweb-Podcast: The Lord Himself will fight for you: "'But Moses answered the people, 'Fear not! Stand your ground, and you will see the victory the LORD will win for you today. These Egyptians ..."

Hope

"We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. For those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, so that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those he predestined he also called; and those he called he also justified; and those he justified he also glorified." (Romans 8: 28 - 30)

“We can therefore hope in the glory of heaven promised by God to those who love him and do his will. In every circumstance, each one of us should hope, with the grace of God, to persevere "to the end" and to obtain the joy of heaven, as God's eternal reward for the good works accomplished with the grace of Christ. In hope, the Church prays for "all men to be saved." She longs to be united with Christ, her Bridegroom, in the glory of heaven:

Hope, O my soul, hope. You know neither the day nor the hour. Watch carefully, for everything passes quickly, even though your impatience makes doubtful what is certain, and turns a very short time into a long one. Dream that the more you struggle, the more you prove the love that you bear your God, and the more you will rejoice one day with your Beloved, in a happiness and rapture that can never end. “ (CCC 1821)

Key to success

" When the time of David's death drew near, he gave these instructions to his son Solomon: "I am going the way of all mankind. Take courage and be a man. Keep the mandate of the LORD, your God, following his ways and observing his statutes, commands, ordinances, and decrees as they are written in the law of Moses, that you may succeed in whatever you do, wherever you turn, and the LORD may fulfill the promise he made on my behalf when he said, 'If your sons so conduct themselves that they remain faithful to me with their whole heart and with their whole soul, you shall always have someone of your line on the throne of Israel.' “(1 Kings 2: 1 - 4)

At the end of David’s life, he gave the most important advice to his son and heir, Solomon.  He reveals to him the key to success:

·         Obey God in everything

·         Obey God at all times

If Solomon does this, then he will succeed in whatever he does and wherever he goes.

Where did David learn the secret from?

·         Word of God

·         Life experiences

David is highly qualified to give this advice because:

·         He lived to be 70 years.

·         He reigned for 40 years.

·         He experienced much success.

·         He failed and learned from his failure.

·         He was rooted in the word of God.

Jesus Christ revealed to the twelve apostles at a very important point in their mission key to success in evangelization:

·         Obedience to His instructions in everything

·         Life of evangelical simplicity

Christ made provisions in all the cities they are to visit.  What did he provide for them?

·         People to give them hospitality

He wanted them to depend on their host for all their material needs.  He wanted them to travel light so that they can prove God’s providence.  If they travel with heavy luggage, they would travel more slowly and there would be the irresistible temptation to look to their luggage for provision.

Are there parallels in the Journey?  Plenty.   The first three years of the Journey MIU provided hospitality and all the basic needs, viz:

·         Food, shelter, water, clothing

This is the 4-item plan.  It is Christ’s instruction at the beginning of the Journey.  Temptation to ask for more has been constant.  Today marks 5500^th day of the USP.  I affirm that Christ is faithful.  I commit to obey Him in everything and at all times so that I can succeed completely in this Journey.    I will use all the word of knowledge and word of wisdom that Christ taught me since the Desert Experience.

Seekfirstweb-Podcast: Continual Guidance

Seekfirstweb-Podcast: Continual Guidance: "“While from behind, a voice shall sound in your ears: 'This is the way; walk in it,' when you would turn to the right or to the left.” (Is..."

Seekfirstweb-Podcast: His own portion

Seekfirstweb-Podcast: His own portion: "'8 When the Most High assigned the nations their heritage, when he parceled out the descendants of Adam, He set up the boundaries of the peo..."

Seekfirstweb-Podcast: Choose life

Seekfirstweb-Podcast: Choose life: "' I call heaven and earth today to witness against you: I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Choose life , th..."

Given for the general good

“There are many different gifts, but it is always the same Spirit….. The particular manifestation of the Spirit granted to each one is to be used for the general good.  To one is given from the Spirit the gift of utterance expressing knowledge…. But at work in all there is one and the same Spirit, distinguishing them at will to each individual.”  (1 Corinthians 12: 4 – 11)

Every good gift and every talent is bestowed on us by the Holy Spirit.   It is possible to use our Spirit given gifts for the common good without being aware that we are doing so.  We become more effective when we identify our gifts, accept them gratefully and work to develop them.  Then we can use the gifts in a purposeful manner.  Since we receive the gifts from the Spirit, we ask the same Spirit to reveal to us what our gifts are.  Just as prayer demands effort, the task of uncovering our gifts could call for a sustained effort.  This is a task that is highly rewarding at the end.

Jesus is Lord !

“About the gifts of the Spirit, brothers, I want you to be quite certain.  You remember that, when you were pagans, you were irresistibly drawn to inarticulate hidden gods.  Because of that, I want to make it quite clear to you that no one who says ‘A curse on Jesus’ can be speaking in the Spirit of God, and nobody is able to say, ‘Jesus is Lord’ except in the Holy Spirit.”  (1 Corinthians 12: 1-3)

We see clearly from the above scripture a principle of discernment of spirits.  Where do you stand in relation to Jesus?  “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven,” says Jesus in Matthew 7:21.  In other to identify the good spirit with point blank certainty, we combine 1Corinthians 12: 1-3 and Matthew 7:21.

You acknowledge Jesus as Lord with your mouth.  You do the will of the Father as taught by Jesus, the Lord.  Scripture cannot contradict itself.

God's Greatest Gifts

“He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”  (Romans 8: 32)

“If we have received God’s greatest gifts, we may well trust him for the rest. “  (Pulpit Commentary)

God gave us the Holy Spirit.  He gave us the Eucharist.  We can confidently trust Him to provide us all our daily needs.

Keep way from sexual immorality

“Keep away from sexual immorality.  All other sins that someone may commit are done outside the body; but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.  Do you not realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you and whom you received from God?  You are not your own property, then; you have been bought at a price.  So use your body for the glory of God.”  (1 Corinthians 6: 18-20)

We are urged in the above scripture to keep away from sexual sins.  This warning is repeated in many places in the New Testament.  Considering the prevalence of sexual immorality in the society today and everywhere, it may come as a surprise to many that the word of God makes so much of what the word of man regards as next to nothing.  Why this apparent and total disconnect between the will of God and action of man in this one commandment?  The answer may well be found in 1 Corinthians 6: 18-20, the scripture under consideration.  The devil, the arch enemy of mankind who is also the father of lies scores his highest point in this one area of the Decalogue.  While the word of God urges man to reserve sex for marriage, the devil urges in the strongest terms immediate gratification.  The evil one then goes on to contradict every word of God with its lies, for example:  “You own your body.  Therefore you can use it the way you like.  There is nothing at all wrong with sexual pleasure.  See, everybody is doing it.  Get on with it.”

We know the importance of a biblical truth by the many times it is repeated in the Bible.  “Keep away from sexual immorality” is a truth that is repeated many times in the Bible.  The wages of every sin is death.  But sexual sin exacts its peculiar price.

Drunkards and Swindlers

“Do you not realize that people who do evil will never inherit the kingdom of God?  Make no mistake – the sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, misers, drunkards, slanderers and swindlers, none of these will inherit the kingdom of God.  Some of you used to be of that kind:  but you have been washed clean, you have been sanctified, and you have been justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and through the Spirit of our God.”  (1 Corinthians 6: 9-11)

The following class of people belongs to the people who do evil:  sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, self-indulgent, sodomites, misers, thieves, drunkards, slanderers and swindlers.  In Revelation 21:8, we see an almost similar list: 

“But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulphur, which is the second death.”  (Revelations 21:8)

For those who belong to Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit washes them clean, sanctifies and justifies them.