Encouraging Yourself

David, the boy who took down Goliath, the man after God's own heart, the great king, knew discouragement. “My strength is dried up like a potsherd,” he cried, “and sticks to the roof of my mouth” (Psalm 22:15a). David developed a valuable trait. When there was no one to build his strength, David encouraged himself in the Lord. “You hear, O Lord,” he declared, “ the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry, defending the fatherless and oppressed, in order that man, who is of the earth, may terrify no more" (Psalm 10:17-18). As Saul sought to kill him, David was alone and hiding in fear. It was in this time of suffering that David learned to encourage himself. Work on developing this valuable trait, and you will discover that fear will not rule your life, and your faith in God's protection will flourish.

David had faith that God would give him the strength he needed for whatever he faced. “But you, O Lord, be not

far off; O my Strength, come quickly to help me” (Psalm 22:19). David discovered that sharing with others what God had done, not only encouraged others, but helped him. "I will declare your name to my brothers,” he promised. “In the congregation I will praise you” (Psalm 22:22). Praising God increased David’s belief in God’s promises and provision.

Encourage others, even when you least feel like it. “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise--the fruit of lips that confess his name” (Hebrews 13:15). It is only because of Jesus’ sacrifice that you can offer a sacrifice of personal praise. Take the opportunity today to give the Lord a sacrifice of praise. Share His joy when you feel sad. Share His faithfulness when you feel deserted. It is not about feelings. It is about God's truth no matter how you feel. The Lord will honor your surrender by encouraging you!

Sunrise Tomorrow

In 1932 William C. Poole a wrote beautiful hymn. I can't remember all the words, but I remember my grandfather singing it when I was a child. I loved him dearly and when he passed in 1962, I remember that this song helped me to understand that he had gone home.

When I shall come to the end of my way
When I shall rest at the close of the day
When welcome home I shall hear Jesus say

Oh that will be sunrise for me.

Sunrise tomorrow
Sunrise tomorrow
Sunrise in glory is waiting for me
Sunrise tomorrow
Sunrise tomorrow
Sunrise with Jesus for eternity.

When life is over and daylight has passed
In heaven's harbor my anchor is cast
When I see Jesus my Savior at last
Oh that will be sunrise for me.

Sunrise tomorrow
Sunrise tomorrow
Sunrise in glory is waiting for me
Sunrise tomorrow
Sunrise tomorrow
Sunrise with Jesus for eternity.

The day my grandfather passed he asked me to sing with him. I was twelve and too busy playing with my friend. I didn't have time to sing with him at a singing in the afternoon. One day I'll sing with my grandfather, Big Tom, again, and it will be everything I missed when he was here on earth.

Jesus says, "Welcome home". He waits with arms wide open. And in that moment my homecoming will be more than any pen could describe.

Lift My Eyes

"I lift up my eyes to the mountains—where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth" (Psalms 121:1-2).

I will raise my eyes from this world's strife, pain, and struggles to the mountains of the Lord. I will lift my eyes from the pain and ugliness, and lift my eyes to His help. In times of weakness and doubt, I will lift my eyes to the Maker of heaven and earth.

I must see past what is before me. I must see past what my physical eyes only see, to the distant view of His promise. I must train my eyes to see His mountains ahead, until they become focused and sure in my sight....until the promise of the highest summit is rock-solid in my heart.

From the mountain height comes the refreshment of His living waters. They flow to refresh the parched earth. Just as the thirsty soil looks to the mountains for its fulfillment, so my thirsty soul looks to His mountain heights. I await His living water as one who longs for His next breath. For all that I need I will raise my eyes to Him who made heaven and who made earth.

Prayer

Prayer is your one-on-one time with the Lord. It is a privilege that imparts a close relationship, and brings you into the very presence of a faithful God. (Hebrews 4:16).  Prayer is God's gift to your struggling spirit. Without it, you have no strength, no guidance, no purpose, no peace, and no victory. With it all things are possible.

You have a calling on your life. Prayer not only reveals your calling, but it is also your direct line to the Holy Spirit and His power. Whatever your calling, you are called to witness the love of God. The Holy Spirit must pour Himself into you in order for you to spiritually impart Him to others. As you are emptied, you must continually be refilled. Without prayer and the power of the Holy Spirit you will burn out.

We often pray for God to change circumstances. We pray for change. Sometimes there is a change in circumstance, but often there isn't. C.S. Lewis discovered a precious truth with the impending death

of his wife. When an agnostic colleague asked him why he bothered to pray when it was obvious that God was not changing the circumstance of his wife's cancer, C.S. Lewis said, “I don't pray in order to change God. I pray because God changes me.” And that is the beauty and gift of prayer. As we draw closer to God in prayer, we find ourselves changing in not only attitudes, but in our actions.

Don’t become discouraged in prayer. Paul writes, “We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will” (Romans 8:26a-27).

Just allow Him to search your heart, and He will pray for you.

ASK

‎"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God" (Philippians 4:6, NIV).

Don't beg. Ask in faith believing He will supply all that is needed. Trust His love for you. Trust His faithfulness to you. Bring to Him your needs knowing that to lay them on the altar means immediate help in your time of need.

His desire is to supply what you need, but you must ask, believing that He will supply what is best for you. Faith is the key that unlocks the door, but it is only found in intimate contact with Him.

"This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him" (1 John 5:14-15, NIV).

A New Look at the Prayer of Jabez

Some of us have studied the prayer of Jabez. Many of us have it highlighted in our Bibles, and have prayed for the Lord to guide us, to enlarge our boundaries, to bless us, and to keep us safe from the terror of pain. It reminds us even though pain may have defined our past, that now in Jesus Christ it no longer defines us. We trust and believe in a Savior who carries us through the storms of life and sets our feet on a solid rock above the waves that lash out to destroy.

Today I would like to challenge you to consider two different versions of 1 Chronicles 4:9-10: the New International Version and the New Kings James Version. Especially look at verse 10, and the last request in Jabez's prayer.

“Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, 'Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.' And God granted his request” (NIV).

“And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, 'Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!' So God granted him what he requested” (NKJ).

Do you see the change in focus in the different versions? One asks that “I will be free of pain”, and the other asks that “I might not cause pain”. The focus shifts from the “I” of my own self-consideration, to a concern that I might not hurt another person.

Both focuses are right. Both are correct, and both are naturally born from this prayer. Prayer may begin with the concerns that I have in my own life, but should always move to concern for the needs of others. If we desire the Lord to truly guide us and enlarge our areas of influence, we must learn to focus on others instead of ourselves. It is in giving ourselves away that we find healing, and freedom from pain in our own lives. We should always ask if our actions and words bring healing or cause pain.

What does the prayer of Jabez say to you in light of these two versions? Perhaps you might look at another version and find another perspective. Explore where your focus really rests in your own life, and be sure that everything you do and say takes in consideration the pain that another might experience. What God gives in return is the first part of Jabez's prayer! I find that I am blessed if the “concern” of my prayer has been for others. Discover your own “concern”. Allow the Holy Spirit to speak to you through this incredible prayer!

Live Me

"The world has heard about me," He whispers to me. "What it needs is to know me. My children speak about me and try to share me with others, but they are surprised that their words have little impact. They are only words about me. They are not my words living through you.

"The world needs to see me in your life. It doesn't need to hear about my power, but it needs to experience it through you. It doesn't need to hear about my peace, but it needs to see it alive in your life. It needs to see your calm and faith, no matter what the circumstances. It doesn't need to hear about my joy, but it needs to see joy spring up from depths of sure faith in my faithfulness to you. It doesn't need to just hear of my love, but it needs to experience my love through you.

"Live me, and the world will see me in you. They may accept or reject me, but they will have experienced my power in you. It is not your place to save. It is your place to live what I have done in your life. Be my vessel, and I will do the work."

"The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it" (1 Thessalonians 5:24).

A Foot and Heart Change

Will you come with me into the Upper Room? It is the night before Christ’s crucifixion. Jesus picks up a basin of water, a towel, and pitcher. Kneeling before a disciple he washes the dirt of travel from his feet. Peter watches apprehensively as Jesus moves closer. Finally Jesus kneels before him. Unable to handle the scene before his eyes Peter jerks away (John 13:1-7).


“You shall never wash my feet!” he cries.

"Unless I wash you, Peter, you will have no part of me" (John 13:8).


What would elicit should a response in Peter? Peter is well aware that he is only a servant, and does not believe it is appropriate for Jesus to wash his feet. For Jesus to serve him in such a lowly way creates feelings of unworthiness in him. It is also hard for Peter to visualize Jesus as a servant, because he has only known Him as Master. Yielding to Jesus the servant is harder than yielding to Jesus the leader. Jesus, as leader, bears the weight of accountability. Jesus, as servant, asks, “Peter, I give my life for you, and now I wish you to give your life away for my sake.” The ball is now in Peter’s court, and Jesus asks him if he is willing to be accountable. It is time to see if Peter is ready or not to accept the responsibility of the call upon his life.

Just like Peter, we all deal with a sense of unworthiness, and at the same time, a sense of pride. A lot of Christians try to get rid of their sense of unworthiness without going the way of the cross. Without allowing Jesus to wash their feet and without a complete heart change of attitude, a Christian remains stuck in his own unworthiness. At the same time, if he is a person who is concerned what others think of him, then his outward appearance is his greatest concern. The humility he might actually believe he has found in Jesus might be nothing more than pride. When faced with the true humility of the Master standing right before him asking to wash his feet, his own shallowness brings shame and he says, "oh, no, I am unworthy.”

Jesus asks to wash Peter’s feet. Peter can no longer control with his mind his love for the Master. This is the time that it must become a heart issue. When Jesus kneels before Peter, the humanness of Peter’s mind must yield to the calling of Jesus’ heart. If I am really a Christian who wishes to know the Lord intimately, I don’t want pride to be a part of my life. I really want to experience the humility of heart that Jesus expects. As humans we find it hard to absolutely surrender. We just don’t want to make the sacrifice. What we might not understand is that the sacrifice which is the hardest is the one that brings the greatest blessing.


Jesus kneels before you and before me. With basin and towel ready, he says, "Unless I wash your feet, you can have no part of me". Do we allow Him to have His way in our lives? I pray that we all discover the path of surrender. Because it is at that moment of surrender, we discover who we really are.

Healing in Him

James 5:16 declares, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.”

There is a saying that confession is good for the soul. Surely that comes from James 5:16. Confession is good for the soul because it releases the spiritual guilt of sin to Christ. It also releases the emotional and mental guilt of sin to the person to whom you confess. When such a hard burden is released, then healing becomes possible. Righteousness is the gift of the Lord, and prayer does accomplish much. It accomplishes miracles in the name of God.

III John 2 reads, “Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers.” Realize you are special to Jesus Christ. He calls you, “Beloved!” He died for you so you might discover wholeness in Him. For your body, mind, and spirit.

He wishes you to prosper and to be in good health. He does not wish you to suffer, and have illness. His blood flowed so that you might be healed. His blood flowed so that you might receive continually through faith.

What does He wish for you to receive? His truth, and His truth applied. To receive continually through faith, you must grow spiritually. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. As you grow (prosper) spiritually and then apply the lesson, might faith for the healing of body, mind, and spirit be easier? Might the truth of the message be more real because you have put down a foundation in Him?

My mind, body, and spirit all answer “YES” My heart rejoices because I realize that I have learned another lesson in this walk with the Lord. He trains me in the way that I should go so that when I am finished on that last day, I will be refined as gold. His sanctifying refinement liberates me to believe in what human eyes say is not true. His report is always good.

Seek Him and find the lesson. Learn that God can turn a sacrifice of praise (Hebrews 13:15) into a time of spiritual, physical, and emotional victory. Even though the battle wages, it still has been won through faith! You are an over-comer in Christ!

My Accountability

If I blame another person for something, I judge. If I refuse to take responsibility for my own action, I evade conviction, and refuse my own accountability. I must never try to place blame on another person.

Jesus Christ took my sins to the cross. When I place blame on another, aren't I placing blame on Him? If what has happened is a result of my own sin, I must face my own fault or weakness, and look to change the motive of my heart. My heart needs to be broken just as His was broken for me.

If a problem has been caused by another person, then I will not blame and will not allow myself to attribute any judgment. I will allow God to take care of that, and will forgive as He has forgiven me.