Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Restoration

I read in Ezra this morning. What powerful moments there where when the Jews made the trip out of captivity to the time they offered sacrifices when they arrived, and when they finished laying the foundation of the temple. These people had learned lessons of the past, and had their hearts turned toward God. The old wept, and the young shouted for joy at the foundation being completed. Rebuilding/Restoration is a beautiful thing. Yes, it would have been better never to have had to rebuild. It would have been better if the Israelites would have stayed obedient to God. However, they did not. But God, who is full of grace and mercy takes our disobedience (sin) from us, as we humble ourselves before him and blesses the relationship between him and his people. There were no torn clothes, no sack clothe and ashes as they morned for what they and their fathers had done in the past. They new where they came from and they didn't just ignore the bad things of the past, but the time of mourning was over, and the time of celebration was here. It was time to get back to God. they made the sacrifices and worked on there relationship with God. One stone at a time was placed in it's spot. so that they could worship God the way they were commanded. After we accept Christ we are instantly restored, but still continue to improve the temple, to make it strong and beautiful. As we are restored and rebuilt in Christ, we remove the junk out of the way and place a solid foundation down. We should weep and be joyful as the Holy Spirit works in us. Don't stop building the temple. Don't stop at the foundation, but let Christ complete his edifying work in your life.

Friday, May 14, 2010

Ask Him

I read in 2 Kings this morning about Hezekiah. He is one of the few kings of Judah that was devoted to God, before they entered captivity in Babylon . When Hezekiah gets sick Isaiah comes and tells him that he will not recover but he will die from this illness. Isaiah leaves and Hezekiah prays to the Lord asking him to let him live. Isaiah gets a word from the Lord in the courtyard and turns around and tells the king he will live another 15 years. What just happened here?? Don't these words of the Lord conflict agaist each other? Can God not make up his mind? What changed? A prayer changed everything. Hezekiah reminded God (like he forgot or something) that he had lived his life for him. So why did Hezekiah telling God something he already knew change the outcome, and appear to show God changing his mind?? There seems to be an outcome that God has planned if we don't come to him, and an outcome that he has if we do. God is still in total control, because he knows if we will come to him or not before we know it. I think this is sounding really confusing, so I'm sorry. God has more than we can imagine for our lives, and I wonder how many times I could have come to him and great blessing would have been released, instead of suffering through something, or doing it the hard way. God like any good father wants to do things to bless his children. I believe he is eagar for our next break through into heaven. Don't be afraid to ask for something from God. His desire is to always do what is best for you.

Thursday, May 6, 2010

Because He Said So

Reading about Elisha this morning 2 Kings 5. This chapter is about Naaman, a man who had leprosy. This was a terrible disease of the time. He hears about Elisha from an Israelite slave woman that was taken captive. He travels to him and Elisha says go into the Jordan river and wash yourself 7 times and you will be healed. Naaman was furious. He could of washed in a river at home, because he thought they were better anyway. Little did he understand, that these were the words of the Lord. And when he speaks what is ordinary becomes extraordinary. Naaman had an idea of what he wanted to happen. He wanted Elisha to come to him and call upon God, and wave his hand over him and he would be healed. He put God in a box, and said you can only move in this way. However God will move in whatever way he chooses to move. We so often hear of something great that has happened and then think, If I do the same thing I will get the same result. That may be true most of the time in the natural, but in the supernatural, I think this is rare. The supernatural world of God is predictable only in the sense that if we listen to God we will succeed in the task he gives us. How that happens is completely unpredictable. God seems to have a lot of fun with this! The point is that we must listen to Him and follow his lead. If Elisha would have done it the way Naaman wanted him to he would not have been healed. fortunately Naaman was convinced that he should wash in the Jordan. He did and he was healed. When God speaks, what is natural becomes supernatural, and we should do it. because he said so...