Tag Archive | God

Not My Fault

Jul29

Yet you said, ‘I am innocent; Surely His anger is turned away from me.’ Behold, I will enter into judgment with you Because you say, ‘I have not sinned.’ Jeremiah 2:35 NASB

Isn’t that our first inclination, to put blame elsewhere? God’s judgement upon the world is not “my fault”. And yet the decline in morality, salvation, growing churches, is not because of disobedient believers, is it?

Let us lie down in our shame, and let our humiliation cover us; for we have sinned against the Lord our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even to this day. And we have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God.” Jeremiah 3:25 NASB

Did God not instruct all believers to go make disciples?

Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Matthew 28:19‭-‬20 NASB

Could it be our disobedience to God that we see the world in mass chaos?

“For My people are foolish, They know Me not; They are stupid children And have no understanding. They are shrewd to do evil, But to do good they do not know.”
Jeremiah 4:22 NASB

Where does your mind wander when you look at the turmoil around you? Does your mind turn toward your own self preservation so that you will do whatever it takes, including evil, ungodly action for yourself? Or is your spirit stirred within you to turn toward God where you will find true preservation?

What is the solution?

Wash your heart from evil, O Jerusalem, That you may be saved. How long will your wicked thoughts Lodge within you? Jeremiah 4:14 NASB

My soul, my soul! I am in anguish! Oh, my heart! My heart is pounding in me; I cannot be silent, Because you have heard, O my soul, The sound of the trumpet, The alarm of war. Jeremiah 4:19 NASB

Are you listening?

O Lord , do not Your eyes look for truth? You have smitten them, But they did not weaken; You have consumed them, But they refused to take correction. They have made their faces harder than rock; They have refused to repent.
Jeremiah 5:3 NASB

Are you ready to turn back to God and follow Him in obedience?

🌹Repentance is necessary for restoration.

Continually Seeking Him,

Sharon

Words Of My Mouth

Jul22

Who gave Jacob up for spoil, and Israel to plunderers? Was it not the Lord, against whom we have sinned, And in whose ways they were not willing to walk, And whose law they did not obey? So He poured out on him the heat of His anger And the fierceness of battle; And it set him aflame all around, Yet he did not recognize it; And it burned him, but he paid no attention.
Isaiah 42:24‭-‬25 NASB

Because lawlessness is increased,  most people’s love will grow cold. Matthew 24:12

God does not take lawlessness lightly. He has called His saints to be holy. He has called His saints to be upright, obeying the law. He has called us to be light to the darkness of the world. He has called us to freedom in Him.

For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.  Galatians 5:13

My heart is so heavily burdened with the response of “God’s people” to the events happening in the world today. We are so self focused, worried about ourselves and the injustices we see all around us. Making known our own opinions about what is right in our own eyes. Taking our freedom of speech so far as to bring dishonor to God’s name.

I believe God is using the events of today to call His people back to Him. To repent of our sin, the greatest of which is:

But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Revelation 2:4

🌹Repent. Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. Allow the Holy Spirit to guide your words to bring life to the unsaved and glory to God.

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer. Psalm 19:14

Continually Seeking Him,

Sharon

Life Walk

Jul20

Though all the peoples walk
Each in the name of his god,
As for us, we will walk In the name of the Lord our God forever and ever. Micah 4:5 NASB

Everyone has a god. There is something in everyone’s life that they hold dear, above anything or anyone.

To name a few: a spouse, a career, money, electronics, success, children, alcohol, drugs, food, tradition, self. The list can go on.

Most of these things are not bad in themselves unless it consumes you, your time, and all your attention. What are you controlled by, can’t live without, focus most of your attention on each day?

There is only one God who stands the test of time. He is a forever God. To walk with the forever God requires something from you.

Love Him with everything you got. Abide in Him and He will abide in you. Walk with Him, seeking His will every minute of everyday. Listen and obey. You will not be disappointed.

🌹Make God your priority – seek, know, walk with Him right into eternity.

Continually Seeking Him,

Sharon

Sovereignty of God

Jun30

The Lord of hosts has sworn saying, “Surely, just as I have intended so it has happened, and just as I have planned so it will stand, This is the plan devised against the whole earth; and this is the hand that is stretched out against all the nations. For the Lord of hosts has planned, and who can frustrate it? And as for His stretched-out hand, who can turn it back?”
Isaiah 14:24‭, ‬26‭-‬27 NASB

God has a plan. He is always at work fulfilling His plan. From the creation of the Universe even up to today, God is working out His plan.

We can willingly be a part of that plan or we can rebel against that plan but His plan will come to completion either way.

My hope is that you look to Jesus, our hope for eternity, and walk according to His plan.

What is His plan? It is written out in His holy word. Read it and allow the Holy Spirit to reveal.

🌹Start by seeking Him daily through His word, asking through prayer for understanding, wisdom, the revealing of His word. Ask for a heart, a soul, a mind that will love Him in it’s entirety. Then watch as the Father transforms your willing heart into the image of His Son, Jesus Christ.

Continually Seeking Him,

Sharon

Focus of Worship

Jun24

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a standard; and it shall come about, that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, he will live.” And Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on the standard; and it came about, that if a serpent bit any man, when he looked to the bronze serpent, he lived.
Numbers 21:8‭-‬9 NASB

Our God is good. He will discipline but with every act of discipline He provides a solution. It requires an action on our part.

It was sin that brought about the serpents. It was the bronze serpent, looking at it, that brought about salvation from immediate death.

The serpent then became an idol. “It is the serpent who saved” instead of “God is our salvation”.

He removed the high places and broke down the sacred pillars and cut down the Asherah. He also broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the sons of Israel burned incense to it; and it was called Nehushtan.
2 Kings 18:4 NASB

King Hezekiah broke in pieces the bronze serpent because it had become the focus of worship. It had become their “salvation”.

It is Jesus upon the cross that is our salvation from sin and death, not just the cross. Looking to the cross cannot be replaced with Jesus and a personal relationship with Him.

The cross is significant but the One who hung on the cross is the One to be worshiped.

🌹 What is your salvation based upon? Who or what do you look to, trust, for security, peace, your salvation?

Continually Seeking Him,

Sharon

Have You Been There?

Jan13

Coming before the Lord with a heart so heavily burdened?

Believing you have been called for “such a time as this”? (Esther 4:14)

Questioning the calling because things aren’t going according to your plan?

But because you made the right choice to go before the Lord, you find encouragement and affirmation?

The battle belongs to the Lord and His will be done. During my quiet time this morning, the thought came to mind that I need to put on the armor of God. My additional “going deeper” passages for the day included Ephesians 6:11:

Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.

His Word still speaks today to burdened hearts. Seek Him. I now face this day without the burden, encouraged, and knowing without a doubt I am right where God has placed me for such a time as this.

Be blessed. Seek Jesus!

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Focus + Perspective = Praise

Jan7

Genesis 13

Abram trusted God.

How would you have handled the situation of quarreling when the means of taking care of your possessions comes in direct conflict with another taking care of their possessions?

Abram and Lot ran into this. The land could not sustain them both and their possessions. Quarreling ensued. Abram being the older and leader could have taken what he wanted but instead gave Lot the choice to choose land that he wanted. Lot chose the best of the land – plenty of water and fields to eat from.

Abram resided in the land of Canaan. There he built an altar to the Lord. Abram chose to end the quarreling that would bring bitterness and dissension between Lot and himself. Then he chose to build that altar. Where was Abram’s focus? God!

FOCUS on God gives a whole new

PERSPECTIVE: godly; looking through God’s eyes.

I suppose with the right FOCUS and a godly PERSPECTIVE praise comes easy. To our God, Jesus Christ be the glory!

But I enter your house by the abundance of Your faithful love; I bow down toward Your holy temple in reverential awe of You. – Psalm 5:7

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Morning Perspective

Jan6

Give ear to my words, O Lord,
Consider my groaning.
2 Heed the sound of my cry for help, my King and my God,
For to You I pray.
3 In the morning, O Lord, You will hear my voice;
In the morning I will order my prayer to You and eagerly watch. – Psalm 5:1-3

Ever wonder or even tried talking to God through prayer in the morning and then eagerly watch for the movement of God in your day?

If you want to see God and His glory you ought to try. Walking daily with Him, beginning with conversation, brings about a whole new perspective on your day.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

Fruit of Repentance

Jan3

Therefore bear fruit in keeping with repentance – Matthew 3:8

So what does it mean to “bear fruit”?

for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light 9 (for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth), – Ephesians 5:8-9

Is your “Christian” walk consistent with goodness, righteousness and truth? If this fruit is not evident in your life then now is the time to evaluate your walk and kneel before God in true repentance.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon

New Year 2017

Jan2

Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings. – Genesis 3:7

The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them. – Genesis 3:21

Adam and Eve at the realization of their nakedness, due to sin (disobedience to God), clothed themselves in fig leaves. The leaves would not have lasted long, since removing them from the vine would cause them to wilt, turn brown and deteriorate. The uselessness of our trying to cover up our sin.

But God . . . clothed Adam and Eve in animal skins. (God’s ways are always better). I thank Dr. Steve Thompson for pointing out last Wednesday night, that God sacrificed the first animal. The skins that Adam and Eve were clothed in came from an animal sacrificed because of sin. God sacrificed an animal in the Garden and also sacrificed His Son for the sins of all mankind.

From beginning to end God demonstrates his love for his creation — man and woman.

How about making 2017 the year you turn from sin to God? He made the provision through His Son, Jesus Christ. Today! Pray – asking forgiveness for your sin and your need for a Savior. Believe – Jesus died for you, was buried and arose from the dead three days later. Confess – Jesus as Lord! Live – as if He is your Lord.

May God bless your 2017 as you live for Him.

Continually seeking Him,

Sharon