Tag: #Jesus

EPISODE 345 HEAR MY HEART

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The title of today’s episode: HEAR MY HEART

There is a beautiful song by Sherri Easter, it is about dealing with feeling like the trials are going to overtake her. One portion says, “I’ll be quiet, so you can hear my heart.” Sitting alone in quiet meditating to God, we sometimes feel like it doesn’t accomplish anything. Revelation may not come before we end our quiet time. We lack direction and want answers. But God leads us to sit quietly in his presence.

As someone who is a multi-tasker sitting and doing nothing is difficult. God is teaching me that when we spend time listening for his still small voice, it is not time wasted. It is not sitting and doing nothing, but it is growing our connection to his Spirit.

The enemy will try to throw guilt into the mix. He will make you think about the large pile of laundry, the unpaid bills, the fact that there is a large list of things that need to be done. I am learning to give myself permission to let the laundry go for a few hours or until the next day. That will not change my future as much as listening for the voice of God.

It is in the quiet times with God that he may pour into us strength to face the next trial. We are building a connection with God that will empower us to reach the lost. We can crawl up into his lap and take a break from the troubles of life. When we don’t have words to say, we can let him listen to our hearts. He knows all about our concerns, stresses and cares. He has the answers to all of our questions.

A family member recently told me a story of their elderly aunt; she craved the company of family. Every time her nephew would stop by and visit, she would hide his jacket so he would come back soon. That started me to think about God wanting our company. Instead of hiding our jackets, maybe he will allow certain things to come into our lives to draw us to him.

Psalm 16:11 Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

How can he show us the path of life if we never spend time with him? We cannot follow him if we don’t hear his voice. He says his sheep hear his voice and a stranger they will not follow. He cannot lead us if we don’t spend enough time with him to know his voice.

Spending time with God will give us joy. The joy of the Lord is our strength.

Getting to know God is a process. We have to be willing to sacrifice what we want to do in order to spend time with him getting to know his voice.

Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

In order to put God in his proper place in our lives we have to be willing to spend time with him. I question myself when I have allowed life to crowd out my quiet time with God. Does that mean he is in his proper place? In order to not commit idolatry, we have to make sure God has the number one place in our lives.

God knows us better than we know ourselves. He understands our concerns and questions better than we could even imagine. Trying to put into words in a prayer sometimes how we feel may seem impossible to us. We end up frustrated, but God knows all about it. He will make the answers known at just the perfect time.

When we think about tests, flashbacks of high school often come to mind. When teachers tested us, it was to see what we had learned. God allows tests not so he can understand what we have learned, but to show us our strengths. We often do not know how strong our faith is in a certain area until we are tested. Then we understand and grow from the knowledge that the test reveals to us.

Faith was there all along, but we didn’t necessarily know it was there. Not until we had to dig deep and hold on to God when things spun out of control. Do not be discouraged if you are going through a time of trial. God is just revealing to you that he has placed something new in you. Something that he can grow in our quiet time with him.

Take some time to sit quietly and allow him to hear your heart.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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VIDEO LINK TO THE SONG HEAR MY HEART : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7mltTaIdUU

EPISODE 344 WHAT A FRIEND WE HAVE IN JESUS

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The title of today’s episode: What a friend we have in Jesus!

A friend is someone who will stand by you in the good and the bad of life. Especially, in the bad. Knowing that you have someone in your corner when many others walk away is a wonderful feeling. Jesus is our friend who will stand by us when everyone else walks away.

There are lyrics to an old hymn that goes, “What a friend we have in Jesus. All our sins and griefs to bear, what a privilege it is to carry everything to God in prayer.” Do we look at prayer as a privilege? Do we feel blessed that we can carry our burdens to God in prayer? What about the burdens of those around us?

I am reminded of a story in Luke; Jesus was in a house preaching. A large crowd was gathered there at the house. They were all pressed in and it was impossible to get from the back of the crowd to Jesus.

Luke 5:17-19 And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching, that there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, which were come out of every town of Galilee, and Judaea, and Jerusalem: and the power of the Lord was present to heal them. 18 And, behold, men brought in a bed a man which was taken with a palsy: and they sought means to bring him in, and to lay him before him. 19 And when they could not find by what way they might bring him in because of the multitude, they went upon the housetop, and let him down through the tiling with his couch into the midst before Jesus.

This man was very sick. These men were determined to get their friend to Jesus. They believed that He could heal him. Sometimes it takes determination to get a prayer answered. Sometimes it takes peeling back a few roof tiles to see things accomplished. How far are we willing to go to see someone get what they need from God?

Do we really pray when asked to do so, or do we say a couple of quick sentences in passing? Dear Lord, help so and so receive their healing. Amen.

There are times when it takes our faith to push a prayer through. There are times we have to take on their cause as if it were our own. If we were in the position of that man, needing healing and could not get to Jesus, wouldn’t we want someone to go the extra mile with us?

Luke 5:20-25 And when he saw their faith, he said unto him, Man, thy sins are forgiven thee. 21 And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, Who is this which speaketh blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone? 22 But when Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answering said unto them, What reason ye in your hearts? 23 Whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Rise up and walk? 24 But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power upon earth to forgive sins, (he said unto the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy couch, and go into thine house. 25 And immediately he rose up before them, and took up that whereon he lay, and departed to his own house, glorifying God.

When the Pharisees saw what had taken place, there was little that they could say, because the man was healed. Jesus honored the faith of that man’s friends. It was a good day for everyone but the self-righteous religious people.

We have to be willing to sacrifice and stand in the gap for those who cannot reach Jesus on their own. Today, there could be many reasons a person may not be able to reach Jesus. They could be too weak physically. They could be bound in a prison of guilt and drug or alcohol addiction. They may feel they are unworthy to pray. The enemy loves to tell people that they have gone too far for God to ever forgive them.

The reason is not as important as what we need to do to help. God will lead us to those we are supposed to help. We must be willing to peel back the roof if necessary and get them to Jesus. He has already done the hard part, he died for us all. They can be set free, as long as we are faithful and lead them to Jesus.

I am thankful for the friends that I have in my inner circle. I am thankful, for my wonderful family. But I am most thankful, that I know a man called Jesus, who will be with me to the end.

Thanks for watching,

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 343 GOD WILL MEET YOU

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: GOD WILL MEET YOU

Paul and Silas found themselves in prison. This wasn’t one of those white-collar country clubs, but more of a damp smelly dungeon type prison. They could have given up. They could have chosen to whine about their circumstances, but instead they sang praises to God. And at the midnight hour, which is the dawning of a new day, an earthquake shook the prison and opened the doors for all the prisoners.

We often go through things that help set others free from their prisons. When you have overcome something, you have power to help others overcome too. God didn’t care that they were in prison, he met them where they were and shined his light into the darkness. All too often, instead of us praising God in our prisons, we complain and beg for him to get us out. Sometimes we are there to learn a lesson. Other times we are there to show someone else that they can be set free.

The woman at the well came to gather water in the middle of the day. The other women gathered early in the morning when it was cooler. The other women shunned her and treated her badly. They didn’t like or trust her because she had been married four times and was currently living with a man. Jesus understood her more than anyone else. The others judged her for her choices. Jesus came and met her in her circumstances, and she became a follower of Christ. Jesus understood that she was not intentionally evil, but her choices were made out of her emptiness. Remember what I said yesterday, All excess comes from emptiness. She needed living water and God’s unconditional love. Jesus met her where she was at, she didn’t have to try to be perfect before God would help her, he lifted her out of her mess.

Gideon was about to fight in a great battle. He was nervous but God allowed him to hear what the enemy was saying. Even though Gideon was apprehensive about the fight, he trusted God. God told him to send everyone home but 300 men. To the natural mind this seemed crazy, they would be severely outnumbered. But God was about to meet them in their need and let them see that If God Be For Us, Who Can Stand Against Us. Gideon’s army with the help of Almighty God won the battle without even fighting. The enemy ran when they broke the clay pots and let their light shine.

Sometimes our earthen vessels have to get into a position of brokenness before our light can truly shine. It is not about who has it all together. It is not about who appears the most righteous or wears the nicest clothes. We do not want to be like the Pharisees and look the part on the outside, but inside we are dead and dark.

Our light shines best when we are just human beings trying to do the right thing. It is about His grace and Him meeting us in our circumstances. Whatever our situations of life we need to be like Apostle Paul.

Phil 4:12 I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.

Paul wrote to the Philippians to be content in whatever state they find themselves. We can have inner peace through Jesus, even when our situations seem helpless and hopeless. We can abound in our relationship with God, while we may have needs in the natural world.

No one could have been in worse shape than Lazarus. Jesus didn’t say, He is not dressed right, so I can’t help him. What will someone think if I help him? He didn’t say that Lazarus was attending that church down the road, they will have to pray for him. No, Jesus went to where he was, in the tomb. He met him where was at, in the middle of his horrible circumstances. He called his name and told him to arise and come out of the grave.

He is God when we are sick. He is still God when we need a job or financial blessing. He is still God when we walk the floors at night praying for our lost family, when it looks like they will never see. He is still God when we feel battle-weary and want to give up. It doesn’t matter the situations we find ourselves in, one thing you can be sure of is that Jesus will meet us in our circumstances and he will deliver us out of them all. Our job is to simply trust that he will do what he has promised. He will take care of us.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 342 SELFISHNESS IS NOT FRUIT

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: SELFISHNESS IS NOT FRUIT

I think you would be hard pressed to find any sin that is not rooted in selfishness. When we become self-centered, we can fall easily into things that are the opposite of self-control. The enemy will try to encourage us in our selfishness. When we are looking at ourselves and what we want, we take our eyes off of God. His will for our lives is unimportant at that point.

All excess is rooted in emptiness. When we live a sinful life, we are searching for something we are missing. We look for that fulfillment in many places other than God. He is the only one who can give us the fulfilment we seek. Not having any fruit in our lives will cause us to be excessive in our pursuit of the wrong things or rotten fruit. It may look good at first glance, but once you bite into it, you find out that it is rotten, moldy, and bitter. However, the fruit that God gives is pure and perfectly balanced. Selfishness is the opposite of self-control.

God’s word teaches us to be selfless and walk in love toward others. When we become filled with the Spirit of God, our lives will start to develop fruit. We will walk less in our self-centeredness and more in our love and compassion for others. It is impossible to be Jesus’ hands and feet in the earth while maintaining a self-centered attitude.

Gal 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

As children of the Most High God, learning how to allow God to create fruit in our lives is important. Our flesh is weak and wants the quick fix, what is comfortable and appealing in the moment. The growth process is anything but quick and comfortable. We have to learn to wait on God to do his work.

The process is a little easier because we know we can trust him with our lives. He knows what is best for us, and he has our best interests at heart. God sees who we need to be in the future and develops strength in areas we are going to walk.

Allowing Jesus to penetrate our hearts will prevent us from betraying him with selfish motives. Not everyone who attends church is on the right path. Some are there to network and grow their businesses. Others are there to deceive and manipulate people into bad relationships. Some are there for monetary gain in other ways.

We cannot fully trust people until they prove their fruit. Every one of us has a measure of discernment. Some develop their discernment, and others choose to ignore it because they do not want to think badly about someone. Learning to be led by God and listening to our discernment will keep us out of trouble.

The perfect example in the Word of God was Judas. God allowed him to walk with them. He was selfish and sold out Jesus for a little bit of silver. But until that point, he could have gone either way. He could have resisted temptation and done the right thing. But his selfish greed outweighed his need to do the right thing.

We often think about Judas’ actions as something that was meant to be, but if he had not betrayed Jesus, the Pharisees would have found another way. Jesus would still have chosen to die for mankind.

God knows something we have to learn. We must allow people to make their choices good or bad. We never know when God will change those people and cause them to develop fruit. Not everyone grows fruit at the same pace. In order for anyone to grow the fruit of the Spirit, they must first receive the Spirit of God. It is the Holy Ghost that causes us to develop fruit. The more we surrender to the leading of God’s Spirit, the more fruit will grow in our lives.

It is almost like self-control is needed to develop the other fruit. We have to control our impulses to do selfish things for ourselves at the expense of others. Having self-control will cause us to walk in love, joy, peace and grow in Christ.

Gal 5:16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

If we walk in the Spirit, we will not be selfish wanting to do what our flesh say, but we will have enough self-control to keep our focus on God. We will desire to do what God tells us to do, not what we desire.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 340 VICTIM OR VICTOR?

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The title of today’s episode: VICTIM OR VICTOR

Are you a victim or are you victorious? Even if you have been a victim, you don’t have to stay a victim. The enemy wants nothing more than to destroy us. But we can have victory through our faith in Jesus. We can pray all we want but if we don’t have faith to believe God for what we are asking it is just noise going into the air. The word says faith without works is dead. Before some of you get excited. Works only will not accomplish anything either. It is like running on a treadmill; it expels energy but will not get you anywhere. But us working with God and believing for him to do what we have asked can accomplish great things.

It is time we look at the situations of life through our faith. We cannot see the Goliath’s of life, through our natural eyes. We have to always see our giants in comparison to our God. We cannot compare them to our own fleshly weakness.

It is easy to get nervous and anxious about situations in life. When we walk in our flesh, we can become anxious. But when we walk by faith, we are strong and bold. The strength comes from the Lord.

Phil 4:6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

God doesn’t want us to be anxious about anything. The enemy loves to cause us to be anxious. Anxiety is one of his many tools. If we are anxious, we are not walking in faith. Our own emotions are in control of the situation. But when we pray, we can turn that anxiety over to Jesus and he will return to us the strength needed to walk by faith.

Phil 4:7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

God will take our anxiety and give us peace as long as we are willing to surrender it to him. But we cannot speak words out of our mouths about how anxious we are, or the enemy will have a stronghold.

Take some time and ask yourself if you are holding on to things that make you anxious. Maybe someone said something that made you feel inadequate. Maybe something happened to you that caused you to be afraid. It is not wrong to feel these feelings. We would not be human if we didn’t experience emotion. But it is what we choose to do with those emotions that makes us victims or victorious. If we walk by our flesh and pet those emotions and start feeling sorry for ourselves, we can end up in full-blown depression. But if we rise up against the emotions and ask God for help to overcome, we will be victorious.

How many times do we tell the stories of old: David and Goliath, the three Hebrew men in the fiery furnace, the parting of the Red Sea, and other miracles. Each situation came down to faith over fear.

Moses had faith that God would see him through, after he had a God encounter. No bush had ever burned like that before, but it took him experiencing the fire of God to increase his faith. He knew that God would not bring them halfway out of bondage. Moses trusted that God would do what he had promised.

But because of unbelief, those who were in bondage were never fully free. They were made to wander the desert for forty years. Only those born in the process got to see the promised land.

We are the same way, God finds us in bondage to sin. He starts the process of bringing us out. But our flesh will never get to the promised land. But only what is born in the process, our spirit man will ever cross over to the promised land. We will only cross over if we learn to walk by faith.

Faith is seeing with our spiritual eyes what we are asking God for, when in the flesh it has not shown up yet. But it is crucial to see it with our faith and know God will bring it to pass in the right season.

Many times, we ask God to open doors for us. We may be at the right door, but if we walk through too soon, we may not be ready for what we find behind the door. God, in his wisdom, knows just the right time to open the door.

Until the door opens, we have to have faith in the hallway. We have to continue to see with our spirit the things we have asked for that are behind the door. At just the right moment, God will take out his key and unlock that door. He will gently push it open, revealing what your belief and faith have built behind the door.

We have to know that God didn’t create us to be victims but to be victorious. Even when we have walked through seasons of being victims to the enemy. We will come out victorious, God is with us.

Be encouraged, keep walking by faith, do not be discouraged, God holds us in his arms. We are safe, forgiven, strengthened and empowered for what the new day will bring. We must remember that we always have the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 337 SPIRITUAL WARFARE – PRAYER AND FASTING

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: SPIRITUAL WARFARE – PRAYER AND FASTING

Prayer is our connection to God. Many do not believe that fasting is for the church of today. Many do not believe that having an active prayer life is necessary. Both are necessary.

Fasting is not just a process of doing without food. There is a movement in our society that fasting is healthy for our bodies. I do not deny going without food will have certain health benefits in the natural. But that is not the only thing fasting is when we think about it in the biblical sense. Jesus did not fast for forth days and nights while doing other things. It wasn’t to prove how long he could go without food. It wasn’t so he could go to the synagogue and brag about how many days he had fasted. He was alone with God in prayer, praying for strength to do what he had to do for mankind. He was praying for all of his followers, even us. When we fast and pray, we are telling God, drawing closer to you Lord is more important than even the food I eat.

Matt 17:15-21 Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water. 16 And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him. 17 Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me. 18 And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour. 19 Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out? 20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you. 21 Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.

Little prayer equals little power.

Many think that spiritual warfare is having to walk through a rough spot when the enemy is oppressing us. Sometimes circumstances in life can be difficult, simply because it is difficult. Other times it is an attack of the enemy. Only those on fire for God can discern the difference.

I understand why it is not taught from the pulpit as much as it should be, people are afraid. People want the feel-good messages about being overcomers and how we will have a home in heaven.

It is time for the church to wake up. It is not about what color the choir robes should be and if there is carpet or hardwood floors in the sanctuary. It is not about someone else getting to sing the opening hymn instead of you. It is not about someone looking at you disapprovingly when they don’t like something you did or said. We are at war. Our enemy is on his game. He has divided the body of Christ too long over ridiculous things. While we are being distracted, the enemy is plotting to destroy us.

The enemy is plotting with his minions to take us out. The church world is oblivious to the fact that we are at war. A large portion are asleep. It is time we wake up and get serious about our faith walk. God doesn’t want us to be lukewarm. It is time to catch on fire with the power and anointing of the Holy Ghost.

When we get our hearts in a position of desiring God’s will in our lives more than anything else. We will come through it stronger in the spirit. The enemy is a liar and tries to cause fear. We cannot allow his lies to cause us to fear.

Acts 19:13-17 Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth. 14 And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so. 15 And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye? 16 And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.

Stories like this are why people are afraid of the spirit realm. Because the spirits know if you have been on the mountain with Jesus, praying. Prayer equals power and anointing in the Holy Ghost.

17 And this was known to all the Jews and Greeks also dwelling at Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.

They tried to cast out devils, which was demons, but the demons said, Jesus we know and Paul we know, but who are you?

Why did this happen, it caused fear among the people? Because the name of the Lord was magnified. This was a healthy fear, a reverence of the Lord. The person oppressed by these spirits has been set free. The enemy has power. The same power that the early church had lives within us, if we are born of the Spirit. Why do we walk around defeated? Because we have not connected to the power source in prayer.

It is time for us to decide how serious we are about our faith walk. Are we going to be on fire for God? Are we going to continue to be lukewarm? I am going to tell you that being lukewarm is not a state we want to find ourselves in right now.

Rev 3:14-17 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; 15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. 16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. 17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:

We do not want God to find us in the state of being lukewarm. The lukewarm damage the body of Chirst. They are the bertha better than you’s that hurt those who are starting out and make them feel like giving up. The lukewarm are those that the world looks at and says, “I am as good as they are, if they are a Christian then I will make it to heaven too.” Being lukewarm shows the world weakness. We do not want God to spew us out of his mouth.

2 Tim 3:5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.

We cannot be lukewarm and have a form of godliness, but deny the power of God. We cannot be caught unaware of what is going on around us. So get on your knees and pray, not just say word, but pour all you have out to God. Ask for his help to walk out your faith.

Again, I encourage you to be vigilant and watch for the enemy’s attacks. Ask God for his direction, he will direct you how to fast and pray. We have to use common sense, I have heard of people that have never fasted even a day, taking on the task of fasting forty days and nights like Jesus did. God doesn’t require us to take on a task we are not ready for, that is why we have to hear his voice and be lead by his spirit. Maybe start with a meal or a day. Work, up to two or three days.

As we walk with the Lord and pray more, we will have more revelation about what God want’s us to do. Just don’t be caught in a state of being lukewarm. Now is the time to pray

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 335 BATTLE FOR HOLINESS

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: BATTLE FOR HOLINESS

The enemy will try to get us to fall into sin. He will lay every trap he can to trip us up. If he can cause us to sin, it opens the door for him to sneak past our armor. Then he can really cause us problems. The only way to make sure he doesn’t get a foothold is to be aware of what is happening in our lives. We need to pay attention and ask God to make us aware of anything that is in our lives that is an attack of satan.

Living a life of holiness will give us the strength to combat the enemy. But we cannot live this life fully on our own.

Matt 26:41 Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

This verse tells us that the weakness is in our flesh. That is why the word tells us to walk in the Spirit. We will not fall into sin as long as we stay in the spirit. I know that statement may sound simple, but as long as we are in these fleshly bodies it is anything but simple. That is why God is faithful to forgive when we repent and why he gives us his amazing grace.

We should all aspire to be able to say what Timothy said at the end of his life.

2 Tim 4:7-8 I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: 8 Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.

How do we fight a good fight of faith? As with every spiritual battle. First, we have to know that we have protection from the enemy.

Eph 6:10-13 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. 11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

This passage tells us to put on the whole armor of God. The complete covering of protection. This is the only way we will be able to stand against the enemy. Verse twelve tells us that this is not a physical battle. We wrestle with principalities, powers, darkness and evil in high places. If we keep on the whole armor of God, we will be able to withstand the enemy. This is the only way we will be able to take a spiritual stand against the enemy.

2 Cor 10:4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)

This verse tells us that the weapons of our warfare are not carnal. We have to fight this battle with spiritual weapons. We can pull down the strongholds of the enemy with God’s power.

We can win the battles one at a time, by the power of God that is within us. We can have victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. We cannot win if we do not look the Lord. The enemy is stronger than our flesh. But with the Holy Ghost on the inside of us, our flesh is reinforced and strong enough to stand against the enemy.

Learning to walk in the Spirit is a lifelong journey. Overcoming our flesh is one of the biggest challenges we have as Christians.

Gal 5:16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

As children of faith, we have to understand the weapons we have in our arsenal.

Eph 6:18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

Prayer is one of our most effective weapons against the enemy. We fight our battles on our knees. But also, we can do like Jesus did in the wilderness and use the word of God. It is our sword. To combat the enemy’s words in our minds. When he tells us lies, we need to say the scriptures that combat the lie.

Just as Jesus told satan to get behind him, we have the authority to resist him and tell him to leave.

But if we have sin in our lives, that leaves an opening for the enemy. This is why I called this episode the battle for holiness. The whole bible is about making the right choices and choosing to be holy. If we can walk in the spirit of holiness, we will not leave a foothold for the enemy.

Eph 4:23-27 And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; 24 And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. 25 Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. 26 Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: 27 Neither give place to the devil.

We renew our minds with the word of God. When we are saved, we put on the new man, one created in righteousness. This tells us to not give place to the devil. It is so important to cut off his attacks immediately. When those thoughts come into our minds, this is why we need to take them captive and cast them down.

Stay alert, looking for his attacks, stay strong by building up your faith through prayer. He may be roaming to find someone to devour, make sure it is not you.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 334 KEEP WATCH FOR THE ENEMY

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: KEEP WATCH FOR THE ENEMY

If we look at the world with natural eyes only, we miss a large part of what is going on around us. Every day, spiritual battles are being waged. People often do not even know when they have been oppressed by an evil spirit. The enemy will send many our way to distract, deceive, and destroy us.

We have to have godly wisdom and discernment. Camouflage is often worn by armies in order to blend in with their surroundings. Sometimes soldiers even put on face paint to blend into their surroundings.

Our enemy will often come to us disguised as a good person. Many people have been taken down by people that were possessed or oppressed by the spirit of Jezebel. Many people at church have been hurt by those whom they believed were good people. Only to find out they were soldiers in the enemy’s army, who were planted in the church by satan.

Look at when satan tempted Jesus, he first questioned his identity. The enemy will often make us question if we are truly a Christian, he will attack our belief in our salvation. He questioned Jesus’ sonship. He will use others to pick at little things that mean nothing, to plant a seed of doubt in our identity as a Christian.

If he cannot get us to question our identity. He will move on to his next tactic. The second temptation of Jesus. He tried to get Jesus to prove that God’s angels would protect him if he threw himself off the high pinnacle. Again, Jesus quoted Scriptures to him. I am sure everyone has had a random thought go through their head. Something that would cause harm. The enemy will keep those thoughts coming, if he can make you feel unworthy and like you will never measure up.

He offered Jesus power and status on the earth. A short cut to what Jesus would have after his mission on earth was complete. Satan will often offer people money, status, powers of influence, in exchange for their denying God. It is sad to say a lot of preachers have fallen into this category. This is only one reason we need to pray for those in the ministry, they are attacked in ways we cannot even imagine sometimes.

Satan attacked Jesus after he had reached a point of baptism and God declaring how pleased he was with Jesus. It was an act of God giving Jesus authority. According to Jewish tradition, when a son gets to be at a certain level of maturity and age the father will declare that he is pleased with his son and that he has authority to speak for the family. That is what happened when God’s voice came out of the clouds on the day Jesus was baptized.

We cannot be ignorant of the enemy’s tactics. There are too many lives hanging in the balance. We have to be wise enough to see through a person’s actions and recognize that they are actions of someone being lead by our enemy.

Many people avoid the subjects of spiritual warfare because they do not want to believe it exists. They are afraid they will have to confront the enemy. The lessons that we need to know today are not being taught in our churches. The enemy is real, witchcraft is real, demons and satanism is real. These things have power, but God has given us more power. If the power of the Holy Ghost lives within us, we have power over the powers of the enemy. We will be able to pray, and God will respond.

We have to be wise enough to know when the enemy is trying to tempt us. Jesus knew he was dealing with his enemy. Often, we do not recognize until it is too late that we are dealing with an attack from our enemy.

The only way we are ever going to know when the enemy is trying to cause us trouble is to have discernment. This only comes by building up our faith in prayer. We can ask God for discernment to know when things are not of God. He has promised he will be with us and will lead and guide us.

The hard part for us often is that we ignore that still small voice that is telling us that something is not right. The enemy with his camouflage will sneak up on us. Most people do not get bitten by the snakes they see. Most of the time it is the snake that is hidden in tall grass or under a rock that they don’t see, until it is too late.

Being vigilant to watch out for the enemy is very important when it comes to combat. If the enemy can’t sneak up on you the less likely you are to be hurt by his weapons. Stay strong, be spiritually awake and vigilant, we will win the battle if we faint not.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 333 ANTICIPATION

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: ANTICIPATION

The word anticipation means to be expectant, have hope, be ready for an event. Some synonyms include suspense, excitement, and hopefulness.

The church has much to be in anticipation about in our modern age. This is the best time in all of history to be alive. We wake each morning with the expectation that soon we are going to see the next great awakening. God is going to flood the earth with his spirit. We will see things that generations before us have only desired to see.

We should be hopeful, even though things may appear to be smothering and dark. The enemy is on the prowl to cause fear, anxiety and depression. He wants to paralyze the believers with these things. He is also using fatigue and illness like never before to distract the body of Christ.

But we have hope. Our hope is in Jesus. We can be excited and have anticipation about the good things to come on the other side of the darkness. I have often thought about the early church after the day of Pentecost. They added three thousand souls to the body of Christ in one day. What an amazing thing it will be to have a great revival and add several souls.

Once the gospel has been preached to all the world and everyone has had an opportunity to be saved. Then comes the end. Jesus will come and gather up his bride.

Most women can remember how excited they were on their wedding day. Many hours and some even months and years went into planning the perfect day. The morning, they were to walk down the aisle, the anticipation was almost unbearable.

The bride of Christ is in this waiting place a short time before the rapture. I understand that the word rapture is not in the bible. However, it says we will be caught up into the air with him. The anticipation is getting real.

Now is not the time to be distracted by the things of this life. We cannot allow life to overwhelm us. Often the way to manage large tasks is to break them down into smaller ones. We have a period of time before this revival sweeps the land. If the anticipation and pressure of the enemy gets overwhelming, we can break it down to one day at a time. We can concentrate on the tasks we have to get done for that day.

Anticipation is a theme of the Bible to live in hope and readiness of God fulfilling his promises. There are different places in the word that God’s people acted with anticipation and hope of God fulfilling his word.

Instead of the anxiety that the enemy tries to give us, we need to cast it down and accept God’s anticipation. He has amazing things for his body. We have that hope to cling to with fervent excitement and anticipation.

The things we focus on will shape the course of our lives. If we focus on the evening news and how bad they tell you things are, it is easy to get down and depressed. Negative thoughts and words can get us in a position of being paralyzed.

When our enemy is about to lose his grip, he will throw everything at us at once. We have to know how to navigate the storm. But the great thing about the enemy’s storm is that God is above it. We will be elevated above the storm, because our God will lift us up.

What do we do to prepare for the storm? The best thing we can do is pray and ask for God to give us wisdom to navigate the upcoming days. We will ride out the storm because we are sheltered under God’s wings. It comes back to us getting in the secret place of the Most High God.

Psalm 91:1-3 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. 3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.

If we dwell in the secret place of the Most High, we will be protected under his shadow. He is our fortress, which is a safe place that has been reinforced against the enemy. God will deliver us from the traps and snares of the enemy and from pestilences, which are diseases.

Psalm 91:4-8 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. 5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; 6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. 7 A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. 8 Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.

The key to being protected and covered is to get into the secret place with God. I read this out loud over my home almost every night.

Psalm 91:9-12 Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; 10 There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. 11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. 12 They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.

Because thou hast made the Lord thy habitation, no evil will befall thee. He has angels that watch over us and protect us. Think about hiding under God’s wings, the enemy will not be able to touch us. Because of this, we have no reason to fear.

In summary, it is good to anticipate our future; God will show up with his glory. The enemy will not win. Do not be discouraged, do not allow anxiety to overtake you. We are living in a great time to be alive, and we have to hold onto our hope and anticipation of what our God will do.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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EPISODE 332 HUMBLE AND JUST

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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

The title of today’s episode: HUMBLE AND JUST

There is a portion of our society that is all about gaining power and influence. They will lie, cheat, steal, and in some cases kill to get their way. The name of the game is elevation to more power. But their type of power is an illusion. Because it is all based on a lie. Truth is the only sure thing. We can rely on the truth.

Some of the greatest influences in my life have been people who had power and influence but didn’t wield it like a weapon. Most of them were humble, and only a few even realized that they had great power.

Prov. 11:1-3 A false balance is abomination to the Lord: but a just weight is his delight.

Think about the old scales that had two baskets or platforms. On one side, they put an exact weight, then in the other basket, they would put what they wanted to weigh. When the two baskets or platforms were balanced, you could say that the thing you were weighing was of a certain weight.

Often, dishonest merchants would have false weights in order to cheat their customers. People often do things dishonestly to as we would say, tip the scales in their favor. But the dishonest will not get away with their cheating forever; the truth will come out. They will be ruined; no one will want to buy from them once the truth is known.

However, if you are humble and honest, God will make things work out in your favor. You do not have to brag about yourself. God will do the bragging for you. He will lift you up and make you prosperous in every way.

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

James was repeating what Jesus said to his disciples.

Matt 23:11-12 But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.

Jesus was our example; he was the Lord of everything. He was God Almighty wrapped in flesh, but he never acted like he was anything more than a humble servant of God.

Jesus told his disciples that if they sought to be elevated, like people today want wealth and political power, then they would be humbled. But if they were humble, God will exalt them.

Micah 6:8 He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

We are to do that which is just and true. We are to love mercy, embrace it at every turn, when the opportunity arises. And walk humbly with our God. We do not have to walk this road or any road alone. He is there to help us and be our guide, but we have to humble ourselves and allow him to lead us.

Prov 11:2-3 When pride cometh, then cometh shame: but with the lowly is wisdom. 3 The integrity of the upright shall guide them: but the perverseness of transgressors shall destroy them.

Many times the word talks about pride. Pride goes before a fall. When we allow pride to enter our hearts, we will do anything to save face. These types of people do not want others to know they are not the person that they are perceived to be; they end up falling by trying to cover their pride.

Those who do not seek to be exalted have wisdom. They value other things over the pedestals in which people can elevate one another.

Proud and exalted people never slow down to notice those around them that are hurting and need a kind word or deed. The humble person notice others pain and are willing to do what they can to make life bearable.

To be exalted and prideful is a lie, because they pretend to be something they are not. Those that are humble, are full of truth because they do not pretend to be something they are not.

Even children can understand the difference between real and make-believe. But as adults, if we pretend too long, we believe our lies. This is why getting our identity from the Lord is so important. He will never lead us in the wrong direction, but will keep us grounded in truth.

That truth being that we can do nothing without God. We are nothing without God. If we keep the proper perspective on our focus on God, walking humbly will be possible. Because all things are possible with Jesus.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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