Author: angied

EPISODE 370 BEHIND THE MASK

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The title of today’s episode: BEHIND THE MASK

There are masks like the ones used to make movies and television shows. They make the actors look like someone else. There are the masks that people wear to a masquerade ball. Then there are the ones we put on every day if we aren’t careful. In the world we live in, we often wear many masks.

Prov 6:16-19 These six things doth the Lord hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him: 17 A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, 18 An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, 19 A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.

These six things the Lord hates. I am going to cover a couple of them today. It is the unintentional and the intentional masks. God hates a proud look. Pride is something that Lucifer developed before he was kicked out of heaven. His pride led to his downfall.

For a long time, I thought a proud look was someone who walked around with their nose in the air, like they were really important. That is one way to look at it. But the more I think about it, a proud look is the mask we try to hide behind.

The first mask I want to talk about is the unintentional mask. In a culture that doesn’t allow us to be vulnerable, it is hard sometimes to show people the real us in a world where if you show weakness, it could be what others would use to bring you down. To protect ourselves, we put on a mask and go out into the world. Pretending things are fine. When we may be crumbling inside. We may be going through horrible storms all the while wearing a fake smile.

This false face causes people to look at Christians as fake pretenders. Some Christians tell people that if they serve Jesus, everything will be sunshine and rainbows. Giving people a false sense of Christianity. Many times, we do not realize we are putting on this face. But is wearing this mask not a form of lying or deception?

When people in the world decide to turn to Jesus, based on observing the masked church. They will either buy into it all and create their own mask, or they will feel like a failure for letting their emotions and disappointments show.

They will not understand why their life is not a bed of roses. They will return to a life of sin because they cannot live up to the illusion. When they come under their first attack from satan, they will feel like they failed as a Christian because they struggle.

2 Cor 12:9-10 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

Learning to allow ourselves to be human is one of the hardest things. We need to understand that we are weak and only in Christ are we strong. We need to have confidence in our God. Being real for one another will help everyone to grow. What if showing that you struggled with something, you encouraged someone else that they are not alone in their struggles.

It is time for us to set aside our pride and focus on what matters. God needs us to just be real, true and authentic. That is the only way we are going to win the world to Christ.The second mask is the intentional mask. This is the false face that people put on to deceive others; the mask of deception. They want to make everyone think they are on fire, Christians. When they want to gain an advantage over others, to manipulate. They are the enemy of the cross. They can be false shepherds out to deceive the congregations by clothing themselves with good deeds. Their purpose is to sow discord among the people in order to tear down the work of the Lord. Satan has sent his children of darkness to deceive and destroy.

These people say all the right things and do all the right things. Only by the spirit of discernment can we see behind their mask. It is time you show the world the real you. God made you the way you are; you are special in his sight. Look to him and live for him, free from the mask.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 369 DON’T DIE TWICE

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The title of today’s episode: DON’T DIE TWICE

I have shared with you many times about how fear destroys faith. Fear is fuel for our enemy to turn up his pressure. He wants to keep us down by causing us to fear. As Christians, we are to walk by faith. If we allow fear to destroy our faith, how are we going to finish this race that is set before us? Fear is the opposite of faith.

We often hear people say that a liar shall have their place in the lake of fire. This is a serious thing. It is a reminder to pray every day to keep our failures and sins under the blood of Christ. After reading the following verse I am starting to think that walking in fear may be the sin of unbelief. Since fear is the opposite of faith.

David stood before Goliath in faith. He didn’t stand in fear. He faced the giant with the strength and heart of a warrior. Knowing that God would deliver Goliath into his hands. We, too, need to know that God will not allow us to be overtaken by our enemy.

Rev 21:6-8 And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. 7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. 8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.

It is appointed for man to die once and then the judgment. How we have lived the one life will determine if we suffer from a second death. Those who are not right upon physical death will end up in hell, which is the second death.

Most know that being a liar, murderer, whoremonger, sorcerer and idolater will send them to hell. But what surprised me in the list was fearful and unbelieving. Many people will end up in hell because they chose to live in their sins. They do not believe in Jesus and his work on the cross. We often even call them unbelievers. However, I had never noticed the word fearful in that verse before today. I guess always before, I had skimmed over it.

It makes me think if we fully trust God, we will not be shaken. Nothing will cause us to fear because he holds us in his hand. He will take care of us. We have no reason to fear. I don’t know too many, if any, that have arrived fully, at the point in which they always walk by faith and never by sight.

Learning to walk by faith is a lifelong pursuit. That is why our elders seem so strong in their faith. They have been living by faith for a long time. They have learned how to be overcomers. In verse six, when he said he was Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. That encompasses everything from start to finish.

The key to verse six is that next phrase, I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. If we are thirsty for the things of God. We will draw close to Him. We will spend time in pursuit of Him through prayer and worship. The closer we are to Jesus, the less we will fear man or satan. This is the place we need to be to avoid the lake of fire. We need to be close to Jesus.

The fountain of the water of life means eternal life for the believer; it is a sign of spiritual cleansing and ultimate satisfaction for our soul.

Matt 5:6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

Our faith walk boils down to how much we hunger to be in God’s presence. If we desire righteousness, we will be filled. If we have righteousness from the Lord, we will not fear the enemy. We will never have to suffer the second death. We will have life eternal.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 368

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The title of today’s episode: FAITH IS OUR DEFENSE

How often in life do our circumstances cause us to stumble because we do not trust? How many times do we fall because we look at circumstances instead of having faith? How many times do we let fear override what we know to be true? For example, if there is nothing we face that God cannot handle, why should we fear?

Often, we as humans allow the circumstances, to be bigger than God’s potential answer, to our problems. Our failures all boil down to a lack of trust and faith. When things are good it is easy to say we trust. But when things get tough, we often falter for lack of faith.

But when we get down to the place where there is nothing more we can do, then we are ready to trust God. Learning to trust, before we exhaust all other options, is what faith is all about. When we are to the point we trust God first, we have begun to walk by faith.

HAVING FAITH MEANS BEING FULLY PERSUADED THAT GOD IS ABLE AND WILL PERFORM WHAT HE HAS PROMISED.

Rom 4:20-22 He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; 21 And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. 22 And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.

Just as Abraham trusted God. He had promised him that he would be the father of many nations through Issac. A time later, God told him to take Isaac up to the mountain and sacrifice him. Many of us would fall into fear and question how God could ask us to sacrifice Isaac if he was to be the next link in the lineage. But Abraham obeyed God and believed that He would work it out.

—–

Eph 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to

quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

Shields were used in several ways. They could be put together with other

soldiers’ shields to create a wall of defense. They were used as protection for the

individual. Some shields were large enough for a man to stand behind.

Our faith is like a shield; it protects us from attacks by the enemy. But we can

combine our faith with that of fellow believers to create a wall of defense against the enemy. Through our faith, we can be a strength to one another.

Most of us, at some point, have lost faith. It may be a huge thing, or we may have

let a little doubt creep into our hearts. This happens when we let down our guard

or our shield and allow the enemy to place thoughts in our minds. Doubt is a liar, a tool of the enemy to make us question God’s motives and his promises.

When we let fear set in, we have dropped our shield. We are no longer protected from the darts of the enemy.

Never run into battle without all of your armor. We cannot give the enemy the opportunity to make us question or doubt. God will go before us and will fight for us, but we have to keep the faith. So stand strong, be encouraged and keep the faith.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 367 TEN BIBLICAL PRINCIPLES TO REMEMBER DURING DIFFICULT TIMES

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: TEN BIBLICAL PRINCIPLES TO REMEMBER DURING DIFFICULT TIMES

Today, I want to encourage you with a list of things to remember when going through troubles and trials. God will never leave us or forsake us. He is always in control, no matter how things look. Maybe he is waiting for us to relinquish our free will before he can move, so we need to check ourselves. God’s timing is perfect; he will always lift us up. Jesus is the foundation for our lives, and we can be sure he will work things out for our good. He will give us strength in our trials. He will fight our battles; we just have to remember to praise him.

GOD WILL NEVER LEAVE OR FORSAKE US

Heb 13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.
Many places in His word says that he will go with us. He will not forsake us. Having the assurance that He is always with us, even in the trials, is a guarantee that should give us peace.

Matt 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

He will go with us even to the end of the world. This should strengthen our courage to keep going when the trials are difficult.

GOD IS ALWAYS IN CONTROL

Isaiah 40:12 Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance?

If we would stop and think about how beyond boundaries, how big our God is that he measures out heaven with the span of his hand. He weighs the mountains in scales. He is in control of very complex things. He understands everything. We should trust that he knows how to fix our problems.

Matthew 19:26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.

With God, all things are possible. Even when our situations seem like they have no answer. When we feel like there is no way out. It is possible with God and he holds the answer to all the issues of our lives.

MAYBE HE IS WAITING FOR US TO RELINQUISH OUR FREE WILL

Gal 5:16-17 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. 17 For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

There are times when we face situations in life because we make wrong choices. God may lead us to make changes or different choices. We can pray and ask for him to fix our issues, but he will not override our free will. He is waiting for us to yield to his leading. Then he will step in and strengthen us and fix our issues. Walking in the Spirit means we have surrendered our free will.

HIS TIMING IS PERFECT

1 Kings 18:36 His work is perfect, For all His ways are just; A God of faithfulness and without injustice, Righteous and upright is He.

He is an on-time God. We can rely on him to be fair and just. He is faithful. We can count on him to work things out at the perfect time. Many examples in the Bible, situations seemed to be impossible, but God would always come through for his people. His timing is precise and perfect.

Eccl 3:1 To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

He holds the times and seasons in his hand. We can trust him.

HE WILL LIFT US UP

James 4:10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.

When we fall down, He will pick us up. When we get bogged down in the cares of this life, he will lift us out of our troubles.

Psalm 40:2-3 He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. 3 And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord.

We can trust God to save our souls. We trust his word that we will have a home in heaven. Then why can’t we trust him with our problems and issues? He reached down and pulled us up out of the pit and placed our feet on solid ground. We should remind ourselves that He will lift us up. He will take care of us.

HE WILL BE OUR SURE FOUNDATION

Jesus shared a parable about a wise man and a foolish man. A wise man will build on a solid foundation. Jesus is the foundation on which we build our lives. The wise man is anchored to the rock, so when the storms of life blow, he will not be moved.

The foolish man builds on sand, and when the storms come, his house falls. The lesson to take from this is to allow Jesus to be the foundation of our lives. It will not matter what kind of storm blows into our life, we will not be destroyed because we stand on a solid foundation.

WORKS THINGS OUT FOR OUR GOOD

Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

Many people cling to this verse in hard times. It is reassurance that God orchestrates our lives; he allows trials for our good. In difficult times, we grow stronger.

Jer 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

STRENGTH IN THE TRIALS

Isaiah 41:10 Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

God’s word says not to fear. Often, when trials and storms come, the enemy will attack us with fear. God doesn’t want us to fear but to have faith. His word tells us he will strengthen us.

GOD WILL FIGHT OUR BATTLES

2 CHR. 20:16-17 To morrow go ye down against them: behold, they come up by the cliff of Ziz; and ye shall find them at the end of the brook, before the wilderness of Jeruel.17 Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; to morrow go out against them: for the Lord will be with you.

This is my go to story to remind me that God is fighting for me. I love how this story reminds us to worship in our trials and let God fight for us. When Jehosophat and his army arrived at the battlefield, his enemies had destroyed each other. The only thing left for Jehosophat’s army to do was collect the spoils.

God will fight for us and leave us to collect the blessings from the battle.

10) PROMISES NEVER FAIL

NUM 23:19 God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

His promises are a guarantee. If he said it, he will do it. We can count on him to take care of us. He will do what he has promised.

I hope the next time you find yourself walking through the fire, you will find that God is in the fire with you. He has made us so many promises in his word. We can count on all of them.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 366 — REDEEMING THE TIME

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The title of today’s episode: REDEEMING THE TIME

When we think of redeeming, a gift card or coupon normally comes to mind. We trade them for something valuable to us. When we redeem the time God has given us we use every moment wisely. We must seize the opportunities to be a light and a witness to others. Life is too short to have regrets about not doing enough for God.

James 4:14 Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.

We have no guarantee of tomorrow. That is why we have to seize the opportunities given to us. As we look to God for guidance and direction, he will lead us to where we need to be in life. His plans are not always our plans; however, we need to be able to discern his plans and yield to them. He wants only what is best for us. He sees the big picture when we only see a puzzle piece.

Eph 5:15-17 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, 16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. 17 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.

The word circumspectly means mindful, careful, cautious, attentive, and not extravagant.

We are to walk carefully or wisely, not as fools. Making the most of our time because the days are evil. We do this by understanding the will of the Lord and not walking unwisely according to man’s ways.

The best way to know God’s will is to listen for that still, small voice. He says his sheep know his voice. We have to be led by the Spirit. Spending time with him is never wasted; it is the best way to redeem our time. The more time we spend with him, the more we will know his voice.

Col 4:5-6 Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time.

6 Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.

We are to use wisdom when speaking to people who do not know God. We have to show them God’s love through our actions and our words. Knowing how and what to say to people sometimes is difficult. We must always tell them the truth in love. Knowing God’s voice will help us to know how deep and far to go.

We are trading the temporary for the eternal. If we redeem our time, God will use it to build the eternal. We can be a part of people’s stories of how they came to know the greatest story ever told. The story of God’s redeeming grace.

Proverbs 13:20 – He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.

The wise redeem their time, but fools waste their resources. If we redeem our time, we will plan ahead. That is being wise. Look at the parable of the ten virgins; five were wise and five were foolish. Five of them redeemed their time and planned ahead, preparing to meet the bridegroom. They had their lamps filled with oil. The five foolish didn’t redeem their time and they were caught unprepared without oil in their lamps.

This is a parable about being filled with the spirit of God. They were all ten good moral people; they were virgins. But five of them were wise enough to have oil, which is a representation of God’s spirit or anointing. We have to be filled with his spirit and be prepared for the bridegroom’s return. This is what it means to redeem the time. We have to make sure we have walked wisely and mindfully of God’s ways, so that we are ready to meet him when He returns.

No one knows how long we have until Jesus comes and gets his bride. We do not know if we will even see sunrise. But God wants us to use the time we have to further his kingdom; nothing else matters.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 365 ARE YOU PLUMB?

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The title of today’s episode: ARE YOU PLUMB?

Tucked away in the Old Testament is a book called Amos. It is a small book and like so many in the Old Testament. But it carries a lot of truth. Amos, like so many of the prophets, was sent by God to call Israel to repentance. Anytime a group of people forgets who God is they find themselves in a mess. War, famine, and disease are all side effects of a broken society. When a society embraces God, it is prosperous. America almost went too far; we were close to being destroyed.

A few years ago, everywhere you went you would see two bible verse, 2 Cor 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

Psalm 33:12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.

They were both reminders that we needed to get our society back on track. As we watched America decline, some of us got the message God was sending. People paid attention to God’s leading and started to pray again in earnest. Prayer is turning around our country. We are not out of the woods yet, but we will see God’s power and glory. Revival is about to hit our land like a tsunami. God will not allow evil to win.

I was talking to a friend of mine about a situation with another friend. This person knows what they need to do. God has showed them, but they are not willing to be obedient, but they keep asking for prayer that God will change the circumstances. If we are not willing to do our part, we cannot expect God to do his. He will not override free will. We have to be strong enough to step out in faith and do what God has asked us.

We have to decide are we going to do what God asks, or are we going to walk in our free will and do our own thing? Israel would walk in God’s ways so far, then when the pressure of life lessened and they became prosperous, they would slowly turn their backs on God. They would turn to lesser gods.

As God gets us through the storm that we have facing us a nation and we get to the revival, we cannot allow the blessings to get us to the point of being complacent. We must continue to dig deep into the Word and to run after God with all of our hearts.

We do not want a repeat of what happened with the children of Israel. We do not need to turn back to bondage because things will look a little different. We do not need to return to the idols that were once at the forefront of our lives. Which brings me to the scripture I want to share with you.

Amos 7:7-9 Thus he shewed me: and, behold, the Lord stood upon a wall made by a plumbline, with a plumbline in his hand. 8 And the Lord said unto me, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A plumbline. Then said the Lord, Behold, I will set a plumbline in the midst of my people Israel: I will not again pass by them any more: 9 And the high places of Isaac shall be desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste; and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.

Just as God showed Amos, he was about to get out his plumbline and use it to check Israel, He is going to check the church of today. Before the final harvest can be gathered, the church has to be ready to receive and disciple them.

Many phrases in our culture speak of being right. When people speak of walking a fine line, it is the place where two contrasting opinions meet. It is another way of describing the plumb line. I used to watch my grandpa build cinderblock walls; he would stretch out a line between two points and would hang a plumb line on it. That let him know that the wall was not leaning one way or the other. A plumb line keeps things balanced.

God’s word is our plumbline; it is what we measure ourselves with to make sure we are not leaning on our own understanding or on man’s religion. God is going to separate his sheep from those that say they are his sheep. We can see it happening with some of the mega church pastors and churches already. Sad to say, many more are going to fall because they leaned on their own ideas, charisma, and abilities. They are master manipulators that the enemy has used to deceive many. God has called to them and tried to turn them around. Some have listened but others love their kingdom more than God’s and they will fall. Denominations are splitting over liberal ideas and the truth of God’s word.

Now is the time to check the plumb line and make sure what you are building is not leaning on anything but Jesus Christ. We cannot be guilty of fence sitting or ignoring sin because we don’t want to hurt someone’s feelings. It is better that they have hurt feelings than to end up in hell. We need to tell them the truth and do it in love, from a place of concern. We cannot go about it with a self-righteous and judgmental attitude and then say, “Well, at least I told them.” That is not the love of God. Even if we are loving toward them and show them concern, they still may turn away and reject our words. But if we do it from a place of God’s compassion, then we have done all we can do, except pray for them.

The word plumb means to examine minutely and critically, check the vertical as in a wall. To measure the depth of water.

A plumb bob is used by ships to check the depth of the water. This prevents the ship from scraping the bottom. The plumb line is used to check the to see that the wall is not leaning.

We use God’s word to check that we are growing deeper in the things of God. That we are not in shallow water to get stuck or damaged. We can use it to make sure that we are going up straight in understanding. That we are not leaning on our own understanding. Take God’s word and use it to make sure your life is plumb.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EP364 HOLY GROUND

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The title of today’s episode: HOLY GROUND

We may never stand in the desert in front of a burning bush, but can we stand on holy ground? God told Moses to take off his shoes; he was on holy ground. Is Holy Ground a place, or is it God’s presence? What did the taking off of the shoes represent? Holy Ground is about being in God’s presence. Holy ground can be anywhere. We could go to the same spot as the burning bush, and it would not be considered holy ground today. Why? Because God’s anointing is not there like it was when the bush was on fire.

God is everywhere, and some would argue that everywhere should be holy ground, but there are special places that God sends his anointing. Just like the tabernacle was just a tent until God’s presence came down and settled on it.

The Damascus Road was just a path that many travelled on daily. Until one day, a light came from heaven and Saul heard the voice of God. At that moment, that road was holy ground.

Exodus 3:4-5 And when the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. 5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.

God told Moses to take off his shoes, the place he was standing was holy ground. This was symbolic of all sorts of things. One thing God was saying that he needed to honor the place where he was standing, in the presence of God.

His shoes could have represented that old life, the places he had been. He went from the shoes of a shepherd to the shoes of a leader. God was getting ready to give him a new life. He was about to step into his calling. God wanted him to have respect for the place he was about to walk.

The priests of Egypt would remove their shoes as a sign that they were unworthy to stand in the presence of their gods. Moses, knowing their customs, understood that God was revealing to him that He was God. All over the world today, in mosques and synagogues, this practice is still done. The one entering the place where God is will remove their shoes as a sign of unworthiness to stand in the presence of unspotted holiness.

Moses also covered his face as a sign that he understood that he was unworthy to stand in the presence of God almighty.

Just as their custom to take off their shoes before entering someone’s home showed respect. Because the shoes carried the dirt and debris of where they had walked. We, too, have to remove where we have been when we come into God’s presence.

Joshua had an experience when the children of Israel was about to go against Jerico.

Acts 5:13-15 And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries? 14 And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the Lord am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my Lord unto his servant? 15 And the captain of the Lord’s host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so.

God was about to show up big for Joshua. He was getting ready to prove that he would deliver the enemy into his hand like he did Moses. He was reminding Joshua to be humble before the Lord and follow His instructions. This is when Joshua received specific instructions about how to take down Jericho. It was the strongest and most fortified city. By taking down Jericho first, the people in other cities knew they were no match for the God of the Israelites.

Holy Ground is when the glory of God miraculously comes down to give us a miracle. We are not to take it for granted that we can call on him anytime we choose. Worship will draw the presence of God to us. We must always respect the presence of God. Because in his presence, when you are fully engaged with God, you are standing on Holy Ground.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 363 PROMISE TO FULFILLMENT

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The title of today’s episode: PROMISE TO FULFILLMENT

There is often a testing period of time between a promise and the fulfillment. There are many examples in the Bible. Abraham and Sarah allowed the time between God’s promise of giving them Isaac and the fulfillment of that promise to get to them. They started to doubt God’s promise or his word, and they ended up with a lot of heartache. They did what we all like to do, they tried to make it happen themselves. God doesn’t need our help to fulfill his promises; he needs our trust. He is able to perform what he has said he will do.

The word promise is defined as a declaration or assurance that one will do a particular thing or that a particular thing will happen. Synonyms for the word promise: vow, word of honor, pledge, guarantee, covenant or oath.

The waiting period before fulfillment is the hardest time to walk through. During this time, the enemy will try to make us doubt God’s promise. He will make us question if we really heard from God. There is often pain in waiting. But we must push through and trust God. We have to remember that we have a guarantee; if God said it would happen, it will. He cannot lie.

Exodus 3:19-22 And I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no, not by a mighty hand. 20 And I will stretch out my hand, and smite Egypt with all my wonders which I will do in the midst thereof: and after that he will let you go. 21 And I will give this people favour in the sight of the Egyptians: and it shall come to pass, that, when ye go, ye shall not go empty. 22 But every woman shall borrow of her neighbour, and of her that sojourneth in her house, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: and ye shall put them upon your sons, and upon your daughters; and ye shall spoil the Egyptians.

God sent Moses to tell Pharaoh he needed to let the children of Israel go. God knew Pharaoh would refuse and that they would have to walk through a process of learning to trust God. Every time Moses went to Pharaoh, and he refused to let them go, God sent a plague.

The Pharaoh would grow angry and make things more difficult for the Israelites. They were constantly having the pressure turned up. Our enemy will often try to turn up the pressure. The more difficult the pressure, the closer we are to our breakthrough. I am sure the children of Israel felt like they were never going to be free.

At times, we feel like the pressure is going to crush us. We are squeezed so hard that we feel like we cannot breathe.

When the day finally came that they were free of the enemy, they didn’t leave Egypt without resources. They had everything they needed to create their future. They had walked through a lot of pressure and uncertainty between God’s speaking to Moses from a burning bush and the time the Red Sea parted, and they were truly free. The fulfillment was beyond anything they had ever imagined.

Heb 10: 22-23 Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)

We have to draw closer to God with a true heart. We cannot allow doubt to cause us to fall into fear. It is a process of learning to fully and completely trust God. His promises are true; we have to hold onto that assurance of faith. We cannot allow the time between the promise and the fulfillment to cause us to doubt God.

2 Cor. 1:20 For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.

Do not allow the enemy to cause you to give up when you find yourself in the waiting. We are often tested to see what we are made of and if we will trust even when it seems like the answer will never come.

Olives do not produce oil, unless they are squeezed. If the olives were like people, the crushing would be painful. The crushing brings forth the anointing. In our hardest times, the most painful things we walk through produce the oil of anointing. As we look back over the deepest, darkest valleys, it was those times that made us the strongest spiritually.

When you are in the times between the promise and the fulfillment, remember that every promise of God is true. We have strength through our Lord Jesus Christ to stand strong and wait for his promise. We cannot allow the enemy, our reasoning or anything to stand in the way of our belief that every promise of God is true.

Our country is in one of these times between promise and fulfillment. We have to not be shaken by how things appear. We have to stand strong in our faith and wait for the fulfillment of his promises that he will restore our country back to the foundation of our faith.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 362 DON’T FEAR THE STORM

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: DON’T FEAR THE STORM

Not every wind that blows through our lives like a storm is from the enemy. We tend to give him too much credit. Have you ever stopped to consider that maybe God allowed the storm to make you stronger. Strong winds will break off dead or weak branches. But the trees are spared. They will have a spurt of new growth once the branches that were a drain of strength are removed. It is for the good of the tree.

Things sometimes happen to give us freedom. God will remove people from our lives that are a drain on our spirit. He knows that it is time to move on from the job we have had for a long time. Even though we are comfortable. When we have done all, we can in a place or to help a person, He will move us on to a fresh place. Somewhere, we can be effective and help someone else.

After a storm, the air smells cleaner, and the ground has been cleansed with fresh water. Maybe the new place has someone who will never find Jesus unless we are there to encourage them in that direction. Maybe the new territory is to give us what we need to grow stronger. There could be someone there that will mentor us to grow stronger.

Life is full of seasons, just as the earth has spring, summer, fall, and winter. We will walk through many different seasons. We can be sure that God is with us and will empower us to do the right thing. We have to listen to his still, small voice that is our guide.

God allowed the storm on the day Peter walked on water. Jesus was trying to get the disciples out of their comfort zone. He was trying to teach them that his power was real. Because of Peter’s ability to push aside his fear, he walked on the water. The rest were too complacent or too afraid to try. They had to learn of God’s power in other ways.

Nahum 1:3: The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the LORD hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet.

When life’s storms blow into our lives, God will not waste them. He will use it to draw us closer to him. The whole purpose of our life’s journey is to learn how to love God and rely on him. To learn how to walk in his love and show others love.

We are safe in the hollow of his hand. He is our strong tower that we can run to when life gets rough. He is our hiding place, the secret place under his wings. He has promised to never leave us or forsake us. We can count on him to keep all of his promises.

Some storms are sent by our enemy to rip apart our lives. It pleases our enemy when he sees our lives falling apart. God will often send us warnings about people and situations long before the storm of attack hits us. Often, we can stop the enemy’s attack before it ever comes, or at the very least lessen the damage. By praying against his plans.

God has plans for us, too; his plans consist of good things. The enemy comes to kill, steal, and destroy. God comes to add to and multiply the good in our lives. If we are obedient to Him, he will see us through any storm the enemy can send our direction.

Things look scary in our world right now. We cannot fall into fear. The enemy will not prevail. God is watching over his people. He will never allow us to be overtaken; he will give us the strength to stand against our enemy. God is our fortress, our safe place to take shelter during the storms of life.

Until next time,

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EPISODE 361 OUR FOUNDATION

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: OUR FOUNDATION

How solid is your foundation? I have heard people stand and give a warning to others not to go around people who are sinners. Their reasoning, they may make you backslide. But that depends on your foundation. It is possible to be influenced by people good and bad. However, if we are standing on sandstone, it may crumble beneath our feet. If we are sure footed and standing on the solid rock, we will not be influenced by sinners.

Jesus spent a lot of time with sinners. Never once did they influence him to turn from his purpose. They were his purpose, to save, heal and set free those that were bound by sin, sickness and oppressive spirits. He knew his foundation was solid. The sinners would not cause him to stray.

Jesus our rock is still solid. We need to be sure we are on a solid foundation. Judas was not on solid ground. He was on sandstone. It is more solid than sinking sand, but not as hard as granite. He allowed a root of greed to get between him and his foundation.

It is all about the anchor. A house could be placed on top of the ground, but without being anchored to the earth, it is not stable. When people go to build a house, they will dig down into the ground and create a concrete foundation. This is the solid foundation, and it has anchor points all around.

There is a process called concrete lifting. Companies that do this type of work will dig down below the ground level and build up the foundation underneath a building. This keeps it from sinking and breaking.

There are times we are on shaky ground. We may have made a wrong choice or got complacent about our faith walk. It is not impossible to strengthen our spiritual house. We just need to come in and dig down deep, like the concrete lifting process. We need to return to our roots and pray for God to strengthen our foundation. Studying the word of God and applying what we have learned is a good start to firming up the foundation.

The truth of God is our foundation. It doesn’t matter how solid the rock is under our feet if we are not anchored to that rock. A house that is not anchored can be blown or washed away in a storm.

We have stability for our souls because Jesus is our anchor. He is the one who keeps us from being blown away by the lies of this world. He keeps us grounded and stable. If our foundation is solid, we will not be tossed to and fro by the winds of adversity and false teaching.

I Cor 15:57-58 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.

Being anchored says that we are steadfast in our faith. We will be unmoved when the enemy tries to move us. He will come at us in all sorts of ways. If he cannot confuse us with false doctrines and twisting of scripture, then he will come at us in other ways.

John 1:1-4 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

We can be sure of our foundation as long as we know the word of God. Because our bible is the foundation of understanding on which we build our lives.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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