Asking of You

I hope that all Christ followers would say they would do what God asks them to do. The question may be; how will we know what He is asking of us? You can begin by reading Scriptures that will encourage you as you listen for His answers. Consider the following passages, and what He is asking of you.

Psalm 138:8 The Lord will vindicate me; your love, Lord, endures forever—do not abandon the works of your hands.

Jeremiah 17:7-8 “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”

John 10:14-15, 27 “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me—  just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.

Ephesians 4:15-16 “Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

James 1:5-8  If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.  But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.  That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.  Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

Pray for ears to hear what He will show you. Ask for wisdom about following up (or not following up) with the things He shows you.

Amen?

In Control

Esther is a great God story. These might be her closing words of encouragement:

1.  For a period of time you may not understand God’s planning
and purpose for your life.
(She was orphaned, taken away from her family for the King,
and then became Queen of a country that was not her own.)

 2. When you realize God’s plan you’ll feel empowered.
(A “For such a time as this” moment.)

 3. Taking a risk is easier when you know God is in control.
(This comes through prayer, fasting, taking Godly advice,
and being led by the Spirit.)

Who is in control of your life?

Even if you do not understand, know that God will empower
you to do His will, and know that He is in control. Amen?

Wants Us to Be

We need to be where God wants us to be. We see in Esther what He requires:

¹⁰ Then Esther instructed him to say to Mordecai, ¹¹ “All the king’s officials and the people of the royal provinces know that for any man or woman who approaches the king in the inner court without being summoned the king has but one law: that they be put to death unless the king extends the gold scepter to them and spares their lives. But thirty days have passed since I was called to go to the king.”

¹² When Esther’s words were reported to Mordecai, ¹³ he sent back this answer: “Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. ¹⁴ For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?”

¹⁵ Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: ¹⁶ “Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my attendants will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish.” ¹⁷ So Mordecai went away and carried out all of Esther’s instructions. - Esther 4:10-17

To follow God's plan it requires:

1. Courage - She laid her life on the line.

2. Initiative - She had to go by herself.

3. Awareness (of God’s purpose) - "For such a time is this".

4. Prayer - She, her friends, and community prayed.

5. Planning - She spoke after she had the King's favor.

Follow the Lord's plan - be prepared. Amen?

Different

For the next couple of days we are going to look at one of the great heroines of the Bible. Her story starts in Esther 2:5-11;

"Now there was in the citadel of Susa a Jew of the tribe of Benjamin, named Mordecai son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, who had been carried into exile from Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, among those taken captive with Jehoiachin king of Judah. Mordecai had a cousin named Hadassah, whom he had brought up because she had neither father nor mother. This young woman, who was also known as Esther, had a lovely figure and was beautiful. Mordecai had taken her as his own daughter when her father and mother died.

 When the king’s order and edict had been proclaimed, many young women were brought to the citadel of Susa and put under the care of Hegai. Esther also was taken to the king’s palace and entrusted to Hegai, who had charge of the harem. She pleased him and won his favor. Immediately he provided her with her beauty treatments and special food. He assigned to her seven female attendants selected from the king’s palace and moved her and her attendants into the best place in the harem.

 Esther had not revealed her nationality and family background, because Mordecai had forbidden her to do so. Every day he walked back and forth near the courtyard of the harem to find out how Esther was and what was happening to her."

Esther was placed in a different family, culture, and country.

Have you allowed God to place you where He needs you?

May all Christ Followers be ready to be used by Him regardless how "different" it is for us. Amen?

Counting On

Matthew 22:34-40, John 13:34-35, and Matthew 28:18-20 are the life-blood in the life of a servant. They are called: The Great Commandment, The New Commandment, and The Great Commission. Our purpose as God’s body is to serve God in the way He has called us to serve Him. You have purpose in Christ; the church has a purpose in Christ.

We must strive to become more like Jesus in our attitudes and behaviors.

The mission has not changed. But the approach to accomplishing that objective has changed. You are not the same person you were 10, 20, or more years ago. Your town is not the same as it was 10, 20, or more years ago. Time marches on yet, God’s plans are timeless. His desire to fulfill His plan is the same now as it has been from the beginning. He has given you everything you need in His Word.

The Bible has instructed us to Gather as God’s people, to Grow in faith, love and service, and to Go into the world as His disciples.

God’s church must together strive, to know His purpose, so that we may be obedient to Him in fulfilling His call to serve Him, One another, and Our neighbors. You can make a difference, we must make a difference. God is counting on us to make a difference. Amen?

Glorify

Everyone likes hearing good news and having good things happen to them. We will praise God for the “big” things in our lives, but have you ever said, “Praise God for this moment!”? Thank Him for being able to wake up, get out of bed, enjoy His creation, and His people. We need to recognize and express our gratitude for being alive at this very time in history.

In what is known as the Lord’s Prayer it says, “Give us this day our daily bread” Most of us would say the most important part of this verse was the “bread”. We have to eat right? Some would say it is “give us”. We do need the Lord’s provision and help in meeting our daily needs, but I believe the most important part of this model prayer is “this day”. God will supply, and you’ll have bread again, but never this day to repeat. Do we live our lives with this type of mentality? We need to focus on what we have instead of what we don’t have, and give God the glory.

I’m afraid we don’t do a very good job at this. We worry about so many things that we can’t even focus on this moment. Instead we focus on money, our jobs, family, bills, and our stuff a lot more than about how we are going to glorify God each day.   

May we remember to praise Him more, and begin today! Amen?

Such a Time

Many people don’t seem to have a clear sense of purpose. They’re like boats without rudders. They drift from place to place, relationship to relationship. They not only do not chart a course, they don’t even stay anchored anywhere.

We have become the “whatever” generation - characterized by our lack of conviction, commitment, and purpose. It is not that we are so flexible – it’s that we are so ungrounded. We constantly shift because nothing much matters. The world offers many inadequate ways to cope with what troubles us, but they are merely diversions and distractions. The Bible is the only true source that can give us direction and purpose.

In the Bible, Esther lived up to her purpose in a very tough time (Esther 4:13-14). Are we living our lives for such a time as this?

Don’t let excuses get in the way of what God might want to accomplish through you. God had a purpose in mind when He chose Moses. Moses overcame his shaky start to become a mighty man of faith. (Exodus 4:1-13)

Remember all of us are on a Mission from God! Stay focused and He will show you your purpose. Amen?