Archive | August 2014

Promise: Ask And It Will Be Given

Aug31

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone?  Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he?  If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him! — Matthew 7:7-11

Well God keeps His promises. He is so amazing. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this before but I have really never searched for a job in my entire life. Don’t misunderstand me, I have worked most of my life but God has been so gracious to open doors of opportunity before I even begin the search.

New testimony August 29, 2014. Since I’ve been home (the end of May), from caring for my parents, I have not gotten a job. The good Lord has supplied all our needs with half the income for over 2 years. The other issue is that we only have one car so I need employment I can walk to. I have applied at one place but nothing has come of that yet. We are beginning to feel the need for a little more income in our household. Well this particular morning I went before the Lord God and asked for Him to help bring income into our home. I asked that He would get me a job if that was His desire. I knew that I would have to leave it to Him. I didn’t see any leads or how He would manage but I trusted that He could and would.

That very afternoon after I prayed I received a call from my best friend’s son asking if I would be interested in working at the Bible bookstore he works at. Wow! God is amazing. So I immediately got online and filled out an application, told him I had done it and he said he would be getting back to me early next week.

Also need to let you know that my friend suggested me to her son 2 days prior to his call to me. If I had received that call before the prayer, I would not have thought it to be a divine intervention. God’s timing is perfect. He can be trusted.

God keeps His promises. Sometimes very quickly. You can ask and receive because He does love you, cares for you and wants His best purpose for you.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Power of Prayer

Aug30

The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, And rescues them. — Psalm 34:7

Have you ever  awoken at an odd hour and not been able to get back to sleep? You have this unexplained feeling that you’ve been awaken for a purpose? Yesterday morning I woke around 4 a.m. and tossed and turned for about thirty minutes when I finally gave in and got up. That feeling of purpose was there so I began to pray for my husband, still in bed sleeping away, and my children. I wondered if something was going on with my daughter, as I’ve said before, since she is having her baby next week. I took each of my kids and their significant others to the Lord in prayer.

Well unbeknownst to me my son was in a car accident. On his way to work he fell asleep at the wheel. He woke up in time to see himself headed to the back of a van, slammed on his brakes and veered to the right just catching the passenger side rear bumper of the van. He was banged up a bit but is doing fine. His car actually looks in pretty good shape too. The van driver was fine.

Talking with my son at 7:30, when he called me from the Emergency Room, he told me that he was thankful for the van being in his way or he would have entered a busy intersection and who knows what would have happened. We have a lot to be thankful for.

I don’t know about you but when God calls us in the middle of the night or in the early morning we need to listen and pray, pray hard. We may not know what we are praying for but the power of pray can call down angels from heaven to encamp around those who fear the Lord. I do not regret the lost sleep nor the time spent in prayer. When I think that my prayer could have been the difference between life and death for someone it is all worth it.

Prayer is powerful. God is more powerful. Take any time you are awake in the quiet of the night or day and talk to God. You could be making a difference in someones life just by praying.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Promise: Mercy and Righteousness

Aug29

But the lovingkindness of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him, And His righteousness to children’s children, — Psalm 103:17

What a great promise to cling to and remember. God’s lovingkindness (mercy) is forever. When we received His mercy through the cross it extended down through generation after generation to us and it will never end. It is hard to fathom the depth of this mercy we receive for all who reverence God.

And if His mercy weren’t enough but His righteousness is to thousands who love Him and keep His commandments. Passed on to children’s children. His righteousness will not go away. Our God is righteous and nothing can change that.

Share your righteous God who keeps His covenant and shows mercy from everlasting to everlasting to your children so they may pass it to their children who pass it to their children for a thousand generations. We are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. His righteousness is ever progressing.

Praise You, Lord God for your lovingkindess and righteousness! The promise that is everlasting.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Promise: You Are Mine

Aug28

But now, thus says the Lord, your Creator, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel, “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine! — Isaiah 43:1

The Lord, our Creator who formed us says, “you are Mine”! As I read this verse I thought of my daughter who is about to deliver my first grandchild. When our granddaughter arrives my daughter will call her by name. This is a name that her and her husband picked out especially for her. Every time they call her name it acknowledges that they know her and she belongs to them.

My kids will protect her and when she fears I can imagine them saying, “Do not fear”. They would give their lives to redeem her. But as much as they would want to they will never be able to redeem her from her sins. Only Jesus can do that. Even though they will love their daughter with all they are, they will never be able to love her as God loves her.

No greater redemption or love will be yours except through Jesus Christ. So when you read the promise “you are Mine”, know it holds so many more promises for you. Every promise is yours that is written in the Word of God because “you are Mine”!!!!

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Promise: Eternal Life

Aug27

God cannot lie — Titus 1-2
This is the promise which He Himself made to us: eternal life. — John 2:25

Another wonderful promise from God, the God who cannot lie. He has promised eternal life. But who is eternal life promised to?

Well John writes, “For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.” (John 6:40) And “so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life.” (John 3:15)

Eternal life is available to everyone who believes in Jesus. Jesus the Son of God. Jesus who paid the ransom for our sin. Jesus the Savior of all who believe. Jesus the guarantor of eternal life.

If you are not assured of eternal life talk to someone who knows Jesus so they can help you know for sure. If you are assured of eternal life show your gratitude to God, the One who promised eternal life to you and share this wonderful promise with someone who needs eternal life.

Thank you Lord God for the promise of eternal life through belief in Jesus Christ.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Promise: You are His Child

Aug26

which God, who cannot lie — Titus 1:2
For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. — Galatians 3:26
But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, — John 1:12

God cannot lie so we are children of God, if through faith in Christ Jesus, we believe in His name. God cannot lie which means we can trust these Words of His. We are His children and this being so we receive every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.

The blessing of being holy and blameless before Him. Having His grace bestowed upon us through Jesus Christ and redemption through His blood. The forgiveness of our trespasses and having made known to us the mystery of His will. Because we are children we receive an inheritance and are sealed in Him (Jesus Christ) with the Holy Spirit of promise.

Those are promises to hang on to, rely on, trust in. If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who died on the cross for you so that you can be holy and blameless before God, then you have all these promises bestowed on you. You need not be discouraged. You have hope in these promises. Hang on to them and trust in the One who promises them to you. You can do great and mighty things through Christ when you hang on to His promises.

Go in peace and trust in the everlasting God Almighty and His perfect promises.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon
Bold text found in Ephesians 1:3-14

He Cannot Lie

Aug25

“God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? — Numbers 23:19

in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago, — Titus 1:2

God cannot lie. He is God, not man. Man’s nature is to lie. God’s nature is opposite. GOD CANNOT LIE! It is not in His nature. So what does that mean to us?

— He will never promise us something and not deliver.
— What He says is the truth.
— He can be trusted.

If you believe in God then you will trust Him.If you trust Him, you will trust His Word. His Word is the Bible. Read and trust. His promises are waiting there for you to discover and find comfort in them, to trust in them. Don’t wait. There is probably a promise waiting for you right now that will help you with what you are going through right now. His Word is truth, not a lie.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Are You Prepared?

Aug24

Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I. Send me!” — Isaiah 6:8

Are you prepared to go? If not, why not?

Then He *said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. — Matthew 9:37

There will come a time when the harvest will be over.  “Harvest is past, summer is ended, And we are not saved.” — Jeremiah 8:20

The world needs salvation.

How can you prepare to go? Open the Bible. Read. Pray for understanding and wisdom. Pray for a heart that sees the lost. Pray for a mouth that speaks truth. Pray for a willing heart.

What you put in your mind and heart from Bible study and prayer will come out for the betterment of mankind and the glory of God. Fill your mind and heart with the love of God. Walk with Jesus and let Him transform you into a willing soul ready to go.

 

Continually seeking Him, 

Sharon

When God Moves

Aug24

Have you been there? When you know something is coming but you’re not quite sure yet what it is? When you are on the brink of something great that God has been preparing you for? When the floodgates of opportunity open up for you? When you’ve been walking in the desert waiting, knowing that at any moment you are about to step into the promised land?

Well, I’ll have to tell you that my life has been a whirlwind of God’s movement since Thursday.

If you recall my devotional on Friday, August 22, you will know that God blessed my obedience with six beautiful ladies coming to my house and enjoying a time of fellowship and introduction to my best friend, Jesus Christ.

Nothing, I mean nothing happens by accident. In God’s perfect plan, He knows all that is going on. Another blessing from my wonderful Father came my way when a free admission ticket dropped into my lap for Women of Faith. I was looking forward to going on Saturday.

God also knew that I would be offered a chance to go to the Friday night program. This of course wasn’t offered to me until 45 minutes before I was to be picked up. Since this was Friday and I had worked all week to make my house presentable for Thursday night fellowship I had decided to take Friday as a “lazy “day. I did laundry, which means all my clothes were dirty, so I lounged around in my PJs all day. When I received the phone call I had not seen soap, water, shampoo or a hairbrush all day. Exactly — 45 minutes to get ready, and do I even have any clean and dry clothes to wear?

I debated whether I really wanted to go. I went ahead and started getting ready, asking God whether I should go or not. I was like the verse in James that says, “like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind”. When I was ready I still have not made a decision until I read a verse from my phone. “Exalt the Lord our God and worship at his holy mountain, for the Lord God is holy”. (Psalm 99:9) I had my answer and off I went for a wonderful evening of worship.

Then comes Saturday. The conference was entitled “From Survival to Revival”. Let me begin by saying that two sessions were entitled Renew and Restore, which are two of the keywords in my mission statement. I am currently doing a Bible study and one week was on recharging, another topic of one of the sessions.  And then there was the final session on Revive. I believe I was there to be revived by God so I could be ready for the mission He is about to unfold through me.

Christine Caine, one of the speakers, spoke out of Joshua chapter 1 where God told Joshua to cross over into the promised land. The promise. Loud and clear I heard, through Christine, that God has prepared me and am I ready to cross over to what He has promised.

God gave to me a promised vision many years ago but He has been at work in me preparing me to cross over to that promise. Am I ready? Yes, although I am afraid, not of where or what God will do through me, but of my failure to lean on, trust in, surrender all to Him. I will move forward with my Lord because I know He loves me and He has promised to be with me always. So my weekend has been a whirlwind that has blessed, challenged and humbled this servant of the Most High God.

Was all this just coincidence? I don’t think so. I hope this testimony encourages you to be ready to be used by God. Sit at the Saviors feet and learn. Love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. Trust him with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. God has great plans for you and it is an exciting journey.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

 

Hope To Be

Aug23

All I am
And hope to be
I’ve found in Jesus
Who died for me.

I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. — Galatians 2:20

For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. — Philippians 1:21

 

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon