Can you stand to be blessed?

Can you stand to be blessed?

1 Kings chapter 18 v.20-40, chapter 19, Hebrews chapter 10 v.32, 2 Corinthians chapter 12 v.5-10

Can you stand to be blessed? This was a question posed to the congregation at church tonight. Really think about the question; “Can you stand to be blessed?” Blessings don’t come free of charge, they come with a great responsibility. God blesses us, so that we may be a blessing to someone else. That our testimony, our struggle can be a blessing to someone else. Can you stand to be blessed? After God uses you, there is always going to be a test. Always. You will be tested in that which you teach, or you will teach that which you were tested. I have experienced both.
Elijah was a blessed man, so blessed that he never died, but was caught up in a chariot and carried off to heaven. But Elijah was tested. After showing the people of Israel that there is only one God, and turning them from Baal, therefore being a blessing unto them, Elijah was tested. From this blessing, there was a bounty put on his head by Jezebel, who wanted him dead. Elijah was so afraid that he journeyed into the wilderness to escape Jezebel, and it was there in the wilderness, under a broom tree, that he asked to die. At that moment, Elijah was weak. See, life is full of moments. And at times, we all get weak, weary, tired, and heavy laden. It is in those moments that show the true measure of a person, it is those moments that become your testimony. You will be tested in that which you teach, or you will teach that which you were tested. Can you stand to be blessed?
There is a great struggle after you have been illuminated, revelation comes at a great price. Are you willing to pay it? There will be a trial of your faith, attacks on your family, attacks on your finances, attacks on your former life, and your future life. See, those who are blessed, have somewhere greater to go, greater things to do and become. But you will always face temptation, to do the things you used to do, go the places you used to go. Temptation is when you are lured back to something that God has already delivered you from. Remember, temptation is temporary. The next time you have a conversation with yourself, ask “Can I stand to be blessed?” I pray that you can.

Let it marinate,

Mike D.

Making the Shift

Life is about maintaining a balance, and understanding that this too shall pass. Whether you're up or down, no situation is going to remain the same.

1. You have to see the big picture of a better future.
2. Re-adjust your goals to the things that bring you fulfillment.
3. Think about legacy and succession, not just success. (Thinking about the what, and not the who.
4. You have to have someplace better to go.
5. Have someone to go with.
6. Have something else meaningful to do.
7. Work on how you want to be remembered.
8. Separate who you are, from what you do.

If you want to see increase in something in your life, here are a few pointers.

1. Focus on it. (Whatever you focus on becomes stronger and expands.)
2. Action(Increase comes by action)
3. Consistency(Practice makes bigger and better)
4. Faithfulness(Be faithful with small things, money, and stewardship)
5. Patience(Growth takes time)
6. Prayer(Prayer brings us into favor with God and man)

He who knows, does. He who understands, teaches.

Let it marinate.

M.D.

Leaving for closure

Leaving for Closure



-Then spake Elisha unto the woman, whose son he had restored to life, saying, “Arise, and go thou and thine household, and sojourn wheresoever thou canst sojourn: for the Lord hath called for a famine; and it shall also come upon the land seven years.” 2Kings 8:1

This verse, and the entire passage (verses 1 through 6), remind me of today’s times. Although we have food here in America, we have a financial and moral famine. We tend to get caught up in worldly ways, and the hustle and bustle of life, enslaving ourselves into chasing after wealth and “stuff” to occupy our time and attention, you know, business as usual. And for a lot of us, business as usual doesn’t include much time for God. We need to build a space for God, not only in our schedules, but in our hearts. This is not a time for business as usual, this is a time for obedience. To be obedient requires patience, and patience requires effort. The scripture 2Kings 8:1-6, is about obedience, patience, and change.

See, the word arise means to change your position. That could be your job, where you live, where you worship, or what you do. To change your position means you have to learn how to say goodbye to some things. Saying goodbye is a hard thing to do, especially to the people and things that you love, but some places that God has taken you, or is taking you, you can’t carry everybody and everything with you.

The woman Elisha spoke to journeyed with her household to the land of the Philistines for seven years. She left everything she had. Her house, her land, her friends and family. It takes patience to live in a foreign land for 7 years, but her obedience and patience paid off. When she returned, the King declared that all that was hers be restored, her house her land, and the revenue that her land had provided from the day that she left, until the day of her return.

By being obedient and changing her position, she moved to a higher level. A lot of us are trying to move to higher levels, but we are going about it the wrong way. Be obedient my friends, change your position.

Let it marinate.

MD

An army of One

An army of one

 

One is not too small a number to make a difference, to make a difference in your own life, the life of someone else, or to change the world.  There’s an old adage that says, “There’s strength in numbers.” I beg to differ.  There isn’t strength in numbers; there is strength in unity.  Look at the words unit and unity. There is only a one letter difference, but what a difference that one letter makes.  A leader can have soldiers follow him to battle, but until they understand the “y”, they are just individual units, moving to and fro, here and yonder.  The best example of this (that I can think of at the moment) is in the movie 300.  The villagers that asked to fight with Leonitis were many in number, but they lacked unity, so when they were mobilized, death came quickly upon them.  They thrashed about wildly with no focus, no cohesion.  Leonitis and his men understood the “y.” Although there were only 300 Spartans, they were destroying the tens of thousands of Persians whom they were up against.  They were indivisible.  They moved and they fought as one.  Joan of Arc was one person that moved and inspired many. A flock of sheep led by a lion, can defeat a pride of lions led by a sheep.  It was one little boy with 2 pieces of fish and 5 pieces of bread, that met one man, who happened to be Jesus, and ended up feeding a multitude. 

It is not always easy being an army of one.  As an army of one, you will feel overwhelmed at times.  You will feel the pressures and the strain of life, and if you feel that you are never overwhelmed, it is because your vision is too small.  See, Jesus had 70 disciples, 12 apostles, and only 3 in his inner circle (Peter, James, and John).  There were certain places that the other apostles couldn’t go, times where Jesus only called on those three (the transfiguration, prayer in Gethsemane).  Everyone has an inner circle that they lean on during the tough times, when they need someone to talk to, or a shoulder to cry on, but sometimes there are places in life where your inner circle cannot go.  When Jesus and his inner circle went to Gethsemane, he asked only that they stay awake with him as he went to pray.  Three times he went off to pray alone, only to come back to find his inner circle sleeping.  At times, our inner circle falls asleep on us.  See, it’s easy to sleep at night when it’s not you that’s having the problems, the issues, the strain, and the pressure.  There are going to be times in life where we have to go off and pray by ourselves, because no one can pray for us the way we can pray for ourselves.  An army of one.  Some of the deepest conversations that you will ever have in your life are soliloquies to yourself.  The toughest, most important questions you will ever ask will be the questions you ask yourself; who am I?  Why am I here?  Where am I going?  What do I need to change?  When should I begin?

 

 

Let it marinate.

 

Mike D.