Category: Father God

You’re His Special Delight

Delighted In

“He also brought me out into a broad place;
He delivered me because He delighted in me.” 

Psalm 18:19

God doesn’t deliver us because He feels He has to, or should, but because He wants to.

Lord, thank You for taking delight in us. May we delight in You as well! And here’s a simple poem…

source – marciahinds.com

Always

I delight in you
in the dead of night
during your darkest day
I’m loving you, always.

I delight in you
when everything’s alright
in the midst of praise
I’m loving you, always.

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Please visit Deb Feller’s blog, “SIMPLE POEMS, SIMPLE FAITH”

http://iftodaywehear.wordpress.com/

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On Life Support

 untitled (2)“And I will give them singleness of heart and put a new spirit within them. I will take away their stony, stubborn heart and give them a tender, responsive heart, 20 so they will obey my decrees and regulations. Then they will truly be my people, and I will be their God. 21 But as for those who long for vile images and detestable idols, I will repay them fully for their sins. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!”

Ezekiel 11:19-21, NLT

This is one of those complex portions of God’s scripture where several ideas overlap. In our English translation, we read compound sentences and knotty syntax. But the thoughts are God’s, and therefore significant. Without these truths though, I believe that we can quickly slip into a ‘comatose’ condition.

First we must consider who is involved.

  1. God [speaking through the prophet] declares His intentions.
  2. His repentant people [Israel] are acted upon.
  3. But there is a third bunch, those unrepentant ones who have decided within themselves that they will stick with their idols.

God is very decisive by this point. The prophetic ministry was supposed to work, many prophets and teachers have been sent out. But with very limited success. If we pick one out, it would have to be Hosea; his ministry was dramatic– but ultimately fruitless. The only real successful prophet was Jonah– preaching to Ninevah, ironically a pagan people. But God’s own people are living in flagrant sin. They remain untouched. They’ve chosen to remain in their sinful condition.

A solid and clear promise has been given. An interior work has been promised by God, if they can only show a minute sense of life. The nation is on “life support.” The prophets attend to the needs before them. They are very far from the virile and robust nation– they are in the ICU and are showing only scanty signs of life.

This promise is that a special work will be done inside. They will become both tender and responsive again. A new receptivity and awareness will come into being. The ability to obey will ignite within. We call this “revival.” Revivalists throughout history have carried this to every generation.

As I scan over my Christian life of more than 30 years, I simply see my own “cycles” of sin and revival. I wish I could have been more consistent. But I cling to the faithfulness of God. He stays true even when I’m not. He has promised me. I’ll take Him at His word.

“And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.”

Philippians 1:6, NLT

God will do what He can, His efforts are heroic. He fully intends to change us— if we’re only willing.

“A revival is nothing else than a new beginning of obedience to God.” 

Charles Finney

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Just A Small Obedience

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Dear one, in spite of what you’ve heard, obedience is NOT a four letter word. (Some would suggest otherwise.) Pastors and teachers who are ‘old school’ remember when we heard much on obedience. But biblical obedience is not the same as legalism, and it is not the opposite of grace. It is however, an integral part of our daily walk with God. Obedience is essential if you’re going to follow Him.

“We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.“

2 Corinthians 10:5, NLT

We have done so much with so little that when we finally initiate some bit of obedience we go into shock. God seriously delights in us when we move toward it. I believe that he waits for it, and grieves when we disobey His Word. We do not nullify grace by requiring obedience, rather we fortify our faith when we obey.

Oh saint, the Lord can’t hardly wait to pour heaven over your soul, and your home. He is ready to lavish Himself on you.

I’ve been reading the book of Jeremiah the last few days. One of the things that is striking is God’s faithfulness to His people under the ‘old covenant.’ He remained faithful even when they walked in disobedience. Jeremiah insists that we serve a holy God who seeks an obedient people. How much more is He under the ‘new covenant’ which was brought about by the blood of Jesus?

We are standing in a blessed place. When we make the choice to obey, all of heaven stands up and takes notice. (Let us not sell obedience short.) You see, greatness in God’s kingdom is always measured in terms of obedience.

“Our Lord told His disciples that love and obedience were organically united. The final test of love is obedience.”   

A.W. Tozer

We show our love by obedience; that is the ‘acid test’ of authenticity. We might insist that there are other ways to prove we are real: worship, witnessing, tithing or even prayer. All of these are great, but none can be a substitute for ‘everyday’ obedience. Heaven is seeking disciples who are compliant. The other things are wonderful, no doubt about it. But just the willingness to obey opens up heaven.

“Lord Jesus, make me willing to be willing to obey you.”

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Listening In

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“That same day two of Jesus’ followers were walking to the village of Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem. 14 As they walked along they were talking about everything that had happened. 15 As they talked and discussed these things, Jesus himself suddenly came and began walking with them.”

Luke 24:13-14, NLT

“Then those who feared the Lord spoke with each other, and the Lord listened to what they said. In his presence, a scroll of remembrance was written to record the names of those who feared him and always thought about the honor of his name.”

Malachi 3:16

These verses compliment each other. The disciples were walking and talking, each situation creating a supernatural moment. We can involve the Holy Spirit of God listening to us conversing with each other; it seems He wants to be involved when we talk about Jesus with each other. In Malachi, we see a “scroll of remembrance” being written. And in Luke’s account, the resurrected Jesus shows up himself.

The disciples are not named in either account. It seems God enjoys reaching out to ‘no-namers’— the obscure and the anonymous. I suppose this might mean that we are all equally important or significant. But the Lord himself decides that. What we do and say really does matter in the ‘heavens.’ If and when we speak  of Him, it is noted and sometimes even focused upon by God. We are being, in a sense, ‘recorded.’

The mundane becomes special when He is the topic of conversation.

There are few casual words when He is the subject of discussion. When we speak of him truly, we should realize we are being recorded. In a sense, there is someone listening to what we say. And it matters.

Malachi tells us of ‘the fear of the Lord.’ I suppose this phrase means that we have an esteem or reverence of God’s place in our lives. But fear can also mean ‘awe’ at His presence. When we speak of Him perhaps we should tremble a bit, knowing that our Creator and Judge is incredibly present.

I suppose that this kind of ‘monitoring’ should make us hyper-aware of his presence. We can do nothing without his awareness. But we love anonymity, and the false idea we are not heard. Perhaps we believe that we are not significant enough to warrant such detection. But we are. What we say is being recorded in heaven.

I want to leave you with this idea.

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