Keep Your Eyes On Him

     "We no longer believe just because of what you said, now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world (John 4:42)."      God sent His one and only Son to earth so that we might have an intimate relationship with Him. Jesus did not die so that you could have religion. He died so that you might come to know Him intimately. He died for you to be reconciled to the Father. He died for every sin you have ever committed or ever will commit. He did what you could never do on your own. He took your place~He took the punishment that you deserved. Jesus did this out of His great love. He seeks you. He pursues you. He calls you and makes you His own. The one thing He asks you to do is to come to Him, follow Him and accept His gift of grace.       Many people think that because they go to church, do good works, "believe" in God, serve others or read the Bible that they are going to heaven. While the...

     "Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed His love among us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and His love is made complete in us (1 John 4:7-12)."      God doesn't just love, He is  love. Whoever is in Him will have this same love for others. It is an agape love~an act of the will and involves faithfulness and commitment. It is a love that perseveres even when you are treated wrongly. It is a love that continues to love regardless of if another person loves you. Agape love is not an emotional...

     "Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly (Philippians 1:12-14)."      Paul's situation was not good. He was in a prison in Rome. He could have complained and asked the question, 'Is this fair?' but instead of complaining he in essence asked the question, 'Is this prison I am in accomplishing something for God?' Our perspective is extremely important as we go through adversity-and we will all go through adversity in our lives. The key when going through difficult seasons is remembering who is in control-God. He is in control at all times and He wants to work in and through you in the midst of your pain. Your suffering is never wasted in t...

     "To the Lord your God belong the heavens, even the highest heavens, the earth and everything in it. Yet the Lord set His affection on your forefathers and loved them, and He chose you , their descendants, above all the nations as it is today. Circumcise your hearts, therefore, and do not be stiff-necked any longer. For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes (Deuteronomy 10:14-17)."      Think about those verses for a moment...The King of Glory, the One who made the heavens, the earth and everything in it set His affection on you . He seeks after you; He pursues you; He draws you to Himself. This is all out of His great love. He loves though we don't deserve it. Apart from Christ, we are all wretched. There is none who are righteous-not one (Romans 3:10). And yet, God invades our darkness and calls us into His marvelous light. It is simply amazing to me, that...

     "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in Me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as You are in Me, and I am in You. May they also be in us so that the world may know that You have sent Me. I have given them the glory that You gave Me, that they may be one as we are one. I in them and You in Me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that You sent Me and have loved them even as You have loved Me (John 17:20-23)."      Here in these verses, Jesus is praying for all who will believe; All of those who will call on the name of Jesus. This prayer is full of love and intimacy. It is not enough to just know about  God. Many people know about Him. They go to church, sing the songs, do good works and read the Bible from time to time, but they don't have a relationship with the Father. Aside from doing all of the  things previously mentioned, their life looks no differ...

     "See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession You gave us as an inheritance. O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on You (2 Chronicles 20:11-12)."      Jehoshaphat and his men were facing much opposition. They knew in their own strength, with their resources, they could never defeat the army that was coming against them. They were troubled and in distress and they did not have the answer. Humanly speaking they faced an impossible situation. They may have felt as though all hope was lost. But there is a shift, instead of focusing on the obstacles, and trying to take matters into their own hands, they instead sought the Lord. They knew He alone had the answer.       What about you? Are you facing a situation that seems impossible? Have you exhausted all methods in trying to "fix" the situation? So...

     " We do not want you to be uninformed brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. (2 Corinthians 1:8-9)."      Paul and Timothy knew firsthand what suffering was. As you can see in the above verses, there were times that it seemed all hope was gone. At one point they even "despaired of life." Notice though, they did not lose their focus. Though the pain and the suffering were beyond what they thought they could handle, they relied on God-His power and strength to get them through the difficult times. What a great example for you and me today. Throughout life, in the good times and bad, as a follower of Christ, you have a hope that is not dependent on your circumstances or people, but on the Lor...

     "When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, He went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves, but He entered the Most Holy Place once for all by His own blood , having obtained eternal redemption (Hebrews 9:11:12)."      Jesus Christ shed His blood so that you and I could have peace with the Father. He made a way where there was otherwise no way. "Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness (Hebrews 9:21)." Before Jesus came, under the Old Covenant, people sacrificed goats and calves to atone for their sin and to be reconciled to God. Blood symbolizes cleansing; blood is life. So when an animal was sacrificed, it's blood was shed which represented new life for another and their sins were forgiven. When Christ came, the curtain of the temple was torn from top to bottom. This curt...

     "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose. For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brothers  (Romans 8:28-29)."      We love to quote Romans 8:28, especially when we go through trying times, but often we leave out verse 29 which is vitally important. Gods purpose is not to make our lives easy and trouble-free, His purpose is to make us more like His Son and for us to make Him known. Granted, God loves blessing His children and graciously provides more than we could ever ask or imagine, however, we need to remember to stay focused on the Giver, not the gift. Jesus is the One who satisfies,  who heals, who forgives, who loves, and gives new life. Our relationship with Jesus should take precedence over everyone and everything in our lives.       The...

     "Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead. I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:12-14)."      My friend, the day that you chose to follow Christ marked the day your life was forever changed. He put His Spirit in you-His seal of ownership-and gave you a new heart. It was the moment the transformation within you began. Your old life passed, and new life begun! Praise the Lord! You.will.never.ever.be.the.same. There is a distinction (or should be) in the life of every follower of Christ, and that is, you no longer live for yourself. You live for the Lord Jesus. In doing so, you lay down your life-your desires and your wants...

     "It is written: I believed; therefore I have spoken. With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak, because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in His presence. All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause God thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God. Therefore we do not lose heart . Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day (2 Corinthians 4:16)."      Praise God in Christ, this life is not the end. As a matter of fact, the time spent here on earth is nothing in comparison with eternity. It is hard for us to wrap our minds around the thought of living forever and ever, but we will, because God promises this. He promises that for those who long for His appearing, there is a crown of righteousness that God Himself will award to us on that day (2 Timo...

     "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore, put on the full armor of Gd, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand (Ephesians 6:10-13)."      The moment you become a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, the battle begins. You see, there was not a battle before because you were under the influence of the evil one, giving in to fleshly lusts and cravings. You were in the grip of the enemy. The day you become saved, you were filled with the Holy Spirit. He began to transform you, changing your desires and changing your thoughts, making you like Christ. satan does not lik...

     "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, He restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me (Psalm 23:1-4)."      There will be days the battle is fierce. The enemy is throwing endless fiery darts at you. Darkness is all around. You cannot see a way out nor do you see an end to your pain. You feel as though no one understands. You may be suffering silently, patiently waiting to see the trial end. It. is. hard.       From a human perspective, the situation is nothing short of impossible. If you choose to stay in the flesh and focus on your problem, it will only get bigger and in turn causing you to feel defeated and overwhelmed. But if you look at the problem through the eyes...

     "Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope come from Him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; He is my fortress, I will not be shaken. My salvation and my honor depend on God, He is my mighty rock, my refuge. Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to Him, for God is our refuge (Psalm 62:5-8)."      You may find yourself in a desperate situation. One where humanly speaking, there is no way. It will take nothing short of a miracle. It will take God to act on your behalf and answer your plea. A plea you may have had for days, months or even years. Yet, you are still waiting, still hoping, still longing to see the deliverance that only God can do. What if in your desperation, God is showing you that He is enough? What if in your desperation, He is teaching you to seek Him and not what He can do or how He can provide? As David, led by the Spirit said, " find rest O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from Him. He alone is my rock ...

    "Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved (Matthew 24:12-13)."      We are living in dark times where it looks like evil is winning. People everywhere are following their own ungodly desires. Many are turning away from the faith to follow a man-made religion that is worthless. Others are lovers of themselves and care about only what they can get. Still others are still trying to earn their salvation by what they do. The world is under the influence of the evil one and friend, if you aren't careful, you could be deceived as well. satan is the master of deception. The thing about deception is you don't realize it is happening. It is sort of a slow fade where something that was once black and white has now become grey.             "The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is (Jeremiah 17:9...

     "Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come upon us, yet we have not sought the favor of the Lord our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to Your truth. The Lord did not hesitate to bring the disaster upon us, for the Lord our God is righteous in everything that He does; yet we have not obeyed Him (Daniel 9:13-14)."      God is a God of love this is true, but we must never forget that God is also righteous, holy and just. Because of this, no one who continues to live in sin and rebel against Him will be able to escape His wrath. People may think they are getting away with sin because they have not yet seen God's judgment. "But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentanc...

     "The Word of the Lord came to me, saying, 'Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart. I appointed you as a prophet to the nations' (Jeremiah 1:4-5)."      "Know that the Lord is God. it is He who made us, and we are His; we are His people, the sheep of His pasture (Psalm 100:3)."      I don't know what place you are in your life. You may be struggling with insecurity~maybe because of something that happened in your past or maybe you are in an unhealthy relationship or maybe from ridicule or rejection from a loved one. Wherever you are, know this my friend, that you are precious and dearly loved by God. He created you and in Christ Jesus you have purpose. You are accepted, you are cherished and you are beautiful. There is only one "you," and you were not an accident. God knew you before the foundation of the earth. He knows every detail about you. Even the hairs on your head are numbered. "Are ...

     "Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, who lives in you (Romans 8:5-11)."      All who are in Christ Jesus have His Spirit living within us. ...

"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world (Psalm 19:1-4)."      There is no where you can go, that you cannot look around you and see God's handiwork. The beauty of His creation is in the sky, the people and in all of nature. "For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; He is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the nations are idols, but the Lord made the heavens. Splendor and majesty are before Him; strength and joy in His dwelling place (1 Chronicles 16:25-27)."       There is no one like Him. He stands alone and is on His throne. Everything in the earth, the atmosphere and all of heaven belongs to Him. He spoke, and it came to be. He saw everything He had made and it wasn...