DOUBTING GOD

Do you ever doubt God?  His interest in you personally?  His very existence?  Do you ever wonder if the bible really IS a book, written by people specifically inspired by an unseen being known as GOD?

One more question.  Would it shock you to know that I sometimes question all of this too?

Faith is a very interesting state of being.  If it were easy, it would never to be need be exercised.  If it were never exercised it, like actual human muscles, would lose strength!  So I am pleased and happy to have my faith tested, exercised and strengthened on a regular basis.

I worry a bit about those who are afraid of faith being tested.  I am concerned over those who are afraid of God being questioned.  

As if Gods feelings will be hurt and He’ll just curl up and cry because someone is uncertain of His powerful presence.  I decided a long time ago that a God who would tell Moses to tell Pharoah, at that time the most powerful human in all the world, that His Name is simply and straightforwardly ‘I AM’ probably doesn’t have any ego problem I need to compensate for.

I am far less interested in writing a set of rah – rah go GOD blogs, and far more interested in getting people to think, question and come to strong, firm conclusions others cannot easily talk them out of.

I trust God that much.  I trust that anyone who genuinely pursues knowledge of the Almighty will be confronted by it.  I trust that anyone seeking wisdom with a humble heart will discover wisdom that causes their heart to soar beyond any boundary they’ve ever considered existed.

I trust Him to keep His word.

Deuteronomy 4:29 But from there you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul.

Jeremiah 29:13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.

Matthew 7:8  For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.

Hebrews 11:6  But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

Diligence is more than a quick glance or one fast perusal.  Diligently seek Him honestly with your heart and soul and He promises you will find Him and receive reward as a result.  

His promise.  I trust Him to keep it.

I understand that the argument is that anyone can say that about any religion.  But only the One True God will keep a Word that has been written down, can’t be changed, and the reward is BOTH now and later.  Not just later, maybe, sometime in the future.  And not just some otherworldly reward.  REWARD NOW.  Tangible.  Obvious.  

He is a very individual God, so the reward may be one thing for one person and something else for someone else.  But it will be evident.  Evidenced in changed hearts, changed lives and in many other ways unlimited by human ability to conceive or explain them.

It is my strong and ever strengthening faith in God as Creator, Master, Savior, Deliverer and all that 'I AM' encompasses that keeps me preaching His truth and sharing His message of Salvation through Christ in spite of running across a few apparent evidences to the contrary.  

I don’t take them as isolated incidences and build unbelief based on them.  I don’t offer “explanations” for them.  I don’t pretend to know or understand everything in this vast universe.

Neither have I taken a few evidences of His existence and built belief based on those.  I have weighed the evidence of all I have been exposed to.  His Word, what I’ve experienced personally, what I have witnessed firsthand in the lives of other people and all the evidences presented. 

There are a few things on the “negative” side.  There are a great many things on the positive side.  That tipped the scales for me.  

Go ahead.  LOOK for evidence of the Almighty God, weigh that evidence for yourself.  I trust Him that you are in for a pleasant, Holy Spirit surprise.  I trust Him, because I’ve seen what He can and will do for those who seek Him.

I have come to know that I can trust Him.  Not that I will never have a difficult time in life.  Not that there will never be consequence because of my own bad choices.  Not that I will selfishly get everything I ever demand of Him.  

Trust happens when you KNOW someone.  Seek.  You may be surprised by what you find.

Need help getting started?  Turn the Tide Ministries is available to help you!  Fill out the prayer request at the top left, and tell us you would like the free study guide to SEEKING GOD.  We will email you the Study Guide and add you to our prayer list.

 

What an air freshener teachers about faith

Trusting our own senses doesn't always make sense.  As the Febreeze commercial demonstrates Oh so well, our senses can easily be fooled!  So what are we supposed to do?  Remove the blindfold and take a listen to this encouraging word from the Word of God found in Psalm 4.

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ON WINGS LIKE EAGLES

MOUNT UP ON WINGS AS EAGLES!

James 1:2-4  My brethren, count it all JOY when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.  But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be prefect and complete, lacking nothing!

When I read a verse of scripture like James wrote here, I find there are several questions I need to ask and have answered before the application to my life and my situations reveals itself.  Usually, by working my way backwards, from the end to the beginning reveals the greatest truths.

In this case, before I can grab hold of and reap the benefit of being able to “count it all joy”, there must be a testing of my faith, but that testing is supposed to produce a fruit – patience.  And that fruit has to be allowed to work in me, so that I will be brought to the place where I am complete, whole, without lack, which will then enable me to count it all joy even when my situation isn’t joyful.

Then, like Joseph was able at the time he was sold into slavery and later cast into prison, I will have what I need in order to hold on in trusting faith to the truth God has revealed to me, never wavering from it, through whatever trials and tribulations come my way, continuing to not only think right thoughts, but to behave in a righteous manner that glorifies and honors God my Lord and Savior.

To even begin to step in that direction, I need a greater understanding of patience.  If I brush it off too quickly, if I don’t dig into the full meaning and grab hold of it in all it’s depth and width and height and fullness, I will lack, I will not be complete and perfect, and I will not have what I need to hold fast during the testing times of my faith.  When a hard trial comes, I will fold and give in, and then in anger turn to the Lord and ask that ever haunting question “Why, God? Why?”

Patience.  It means to endure or to wait.  But it means more.  It means having the capacity to endure waiting, delay or provocation without becoming angry or upset.  That was what set Joseph apart and that is what allowed his faith to not just pass the testing, but to shine to the end that others saw the light shining from Joseph and were drawn to him.  Were inspired to trust him and to put him in positions of trust.  He didn’t just “endure” his time as a slave in Potiphars house.  

In rejecting what others would excuse as his “right” to be angry about what his brothers had done, he choose to allow patience to have its perfect way in him.  Without a bad attitude, he was able to serve Potiphar well, with all his attention and good intentions, which resulted in his being made the head of Potiphars household affairs. 

When cast into prison, having already taken the steps that moved him forward in developing his capacity to patiently endure without anger, he continued to grow in patient endurance, which enabled him to make the best of his horrible situation.  The keeper of the prison noticed the difference in Josephs attitude which made a difference in Josephs behavior and the conversations Joseph engaged in.  This is what led the jailer to put Joseph in a position of leadership.  This is what set Joseph apart.  It wasn’t some mystical, magical trick or special anointing God had given only to Joseph.  It was Joseph following the principles of Gods Word which is TRUTH, and those principles bringing forth exactly what was promised by God – patience.  Trust.  Faith that God was working all things together for good even when the things themselves were not good.

These exact same principles work for us when we follow them.  Capacity to patiently endure without mistreating others, mistrusting God or falling into a pit of despair and self pity is no more mystical than letting the Holy Spirit lead and guide you so fruit will be produced in your life.  Fruit that blesses you, honors God and draws others near to ask “How can I get some of what you have?”  That’s when opportunity presents itself to you, for you to witness Christ, to share the gospel, to tell others of the love and grace and mercy of God.  God is no respecter of persons, but He does respect obedience to His principles and commands and obedience results in JOY, no matter what the situation is.

My brothers and sisters in Christ, count it all JOY when you fall into various troubling times, and practice patience, that your capacity will be increased, that your influence for Christ will be widened and that your own FAITH will be found true when tested.  Understanding this gives whole new meaning to one of the verses oft quoted:

Isaiah 40:31

But those who wait (patiently endure without getting angry or upset) on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.

May the Lord our God bless you this week with opportunity to increase your capacity to wait patiently on Him, and may the blessings of peace and joy be yours as you endure this test of your faith, in Jesus name, AMEN!

Broadway Joe

BEING  "CENTER  STAGE"  ISN'T
ALWAYS  AS  GREAT  AS  WE  THINK  IT  WILL  BE!

Broadway made him famous, but the coat they chose to shine the spotlight on has very little to do with who he truly was or the impact of his life on believers who know his true story.  Faith and absolute trust in the True and Living God is the real legacy Joseph left for all of us who read his story and find understanding of how it relates to our own lives.  It is an extraordinary example of hope and assurance of Gods trustworthiness.  In the book of Genesis we discover this youngest son of Jacob -  patriarch of the Jewish people and father of each of the twelve tribes of Israel.  God gave young Joseph a dream of His plan for Joseph.  All of 17 years young and the spoiled baby of the family, in his immaturity Joseph excitedly shares the dream with his father and brothers.  

Instead of being excited with or for him, the jealousy his brothers already feel for him as their fathers favorite is intensified and in new anger they plot against Joseph.  When Jacob sends Joseph to check on the brothers who are out in the fields with the families flocks, they seize him with the intention of killing him. 

The eldest, Reuben, whether for love of his father Jacob who pampered and adored Joseph or perhaps a sense of responsibility as the first born son, convinces them not to kill Joseph, but throw him in a deep hole instead.  Reuben intends to rescue Joseph and deliver him safely home when the brothers’ anger dies down.  He never has the chance to do so, since Judah comes up with the bright idea of selling Joseph to some passing merchants, resulting in Joseph being brought to Egypt where he is sold as a slave to an Egyptian named Potiphar.  Joseph had to endure some very trying times, and overcome a multitude of temptations.  Before we start to think that disobedience was the cause, take a look at Matthew 8: 23-27.  Jesus boards a boat to cross the Sea of Galilee and a storm came up.  No surprise to the Lord and it wasn't about obedience or disobedience.  It was about FAITH and TRUST in the Lord!  Sometimes obeying God puts us right in the middle of turmoil!  Adversity can strengthen us or weaken us.  The same situation will make one man while breaking another.  The difference is in our own hearts.  If we whine and fuss we'll whither.  If we continue in faith toward God we'll grow and strengthen.  It really is that simple.

In fleeing from one of the temptations put before him, sexual sin,  Joseph ended up being thrown in prison.  It would be 13 years before Joseph was delivered by God from this pit of constant despair and eventually elevated to the position of power and authority the dream of his youth had indicated was to be Josephs lot in life.  Once having attained this position he could accomplish Gods will, save Israel during the time of great famine that was coming.  But this was not the promised land God had sent Abraham to inhabit, this was not the homeland of Gods chosen people.

 

Yet they stayed, and stayed far too long it seems, as they grew comfortable in the land of Goshen, until eventually the warm welcome they had once enjoyed came to an end!  Joseph seemed to know this was not where the Israelites were to stay, for he begged on his deathbed that his bones be brought with them when they finally left Egypt. (Genesis 50:25)  They didn’t leave soon enough though, and found themselves in the same position Joseph was in when he first entered Egypt – they were made slaves!  And mistreated slaves they remained until God sent them a deliverer.  Their story shadows our own story.  We, too, are born into a world where we are slaves.  Slaves to sin the Apostle Paul calls it.  And God sent a man to deliver us if we will but hear Him and believe Him.

  

Let’s just stop right there and not hurry through the story, which you should read in its entirety in Genesis 37-Genesis 50.  That’s what usually happens.  We read a story in the bible and we just read along to the end and get left with the impression that the passage of time was of no consequence, just a moment or two really, so of course those people in the bible could endure.  Somehow it was different for them than it is for us, right?  WRONG!  By recognizing that the people in the bible were real people with real thoughts, feelings, hopes, desires, hurts and pains and sin nature as ourselves, we can actually gain a perspective that develops greater understanding of our own struggles and how to overcome them. 

The summary of the story is this.  Joseph was sold into slavery – can you even begin to imagine his thoughts?  His prayers and pleas to God?  "Lord", he might have cried, "what happened to the dream you gave me?  Was that a lie?  Did I just think it was you?  Was I wrong?  Did I do something to make you angry at me?"  Aren’t those exactly the kinds of questions we would ask if we had a dream of being great and then found ourselves not elevated, but cast down, gone from being  free to being someone’s slave?  We might even think there was no point even trying anymore, obviously God had forsaken us.  We are quick, too quick, to allow circumstance to dictate our thoughts, feeling and actions, rather than trusting, believing and holding steadfast to the word God gives us.  

This then is the very first thing that this story of Joseph has to teach us.  God is faithful,  and can be trusted.  Rather than trust what our eyes see or what our circumstances may try to dictate to us, we ought to believe and hold fast to the truth that God has revealed in His word to us.  According to IIPeter 1:19, we have a 'more sure word of prophesy'.  We will have trials and tribulations in this world, but take heart, Jesus told us, for He has overcome the world and thank you Paul the Apostle for these words of encouragement.  I CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST WHO STRENGTHENS ME!  During those very long and miserable 13 years that Joseph was in prison for a crime he never committed, contemplate how he must have felt.  Abandoned by God?  Surely!  And he could have given in to feelings like that.  BUT HE DIDN’T.  

The reason he didn't is that he had heard all the stories about God from his father Jacob. He  believed that God was faithful, truthful and able. So his actions were based on that faith and not on his circumstances or his surroundings.  They most definitely were not based on the actions or words of others, either.  Joseph behaved the same way in prison, in the very midst of trial and tribulation, as he had behaved when he was free in his fathers household.  As he behaved when sold into slavery and he began to serve Potiphar.  He continued to act in faith.  That doesn't mean he didn't have feelings.  He did!  He prayed and cried out to God for help and relief and asked God to deliver him.  He did not, however, let feelings of despair dictate his actions toward others.  Those actions are what led to Potiphar trusting him with his household, that led to the jailer trusting him in the prison and eventually led to Pharoah - supreme ruler of all Egypt, to trust Joseph with his whole kingdom.

Jesus rebuked his disciples on that boat in the Sea of Galilee.  "Why are you fearful.  O ye of little faith?"  Over and over, He lovingly tells us "fear not, for I am with you.  I will never leave you nor forsake you."  Every adverse situation is nothing less than a wonderful opportunity to exercise our faith and see it strengthened!  Understanding this truth and with trust and faith toward God inspired Apostle James to encourage others 

James 1:2-4  My brethren, count it all JOY when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.  But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be prefect and complete, lacking nothing!

Wrangling with faith

Have you ever noticed that in one situation you encounter, FAITH just seems to rise up from your heart and you suffer barely a moment of concern?   Then another situation appears, and FAITH seems to have deserted you entirely?

Why does this happen?  How do we overcome the barriers to unleashing our faith?

Walk with me through a little exercise that may not only help us understand this but may even lead us to the answer of how to overcome these seeming barriers to unleashing faith in every situation we encounter!

The original bathroom - YECH!!

Recently we were blessed to purchase a home.  When we first walked through the house, it looked like this: 

Knowing this wasn't acceptable, we set about doing what it took to change this room so it would meet our needs and be pleasant to be in.  Now, it looks like this:

New bathroom

Amazingly enough, we have completely forgotten what the room used to look like because we no longer see it the old way on a regular basis.  We see this new room, so when we imagine our bathroom, the new room is what we see in our minds eye.  FAITH works like that.  If you have been praying, reading your bible, spending time with likeminded believers and receiving constant reminders of Gods love, Gods grace and all the reasons you have faith in the Lord to begin with, when you are confronted with a situation, faith rises up in what seems almost a natural manner, since it has been constantly in the forefront of your thinking.  The old way of fear is replaced by the new way of faith.   So why is it that the next situation we encounter, faith seems but a distant memory?  The question to ask ourselves at that point is, what have we been keeping constantly in our hearts?  What thoughts are we harboring?  Is there unforgiveness or bitterness we've allowed to overshadow the trust in God we held?  Are we reading His word as a constant reminder of WHO He is and how much He loves and cares for us?  Usually when faith seems distant, we find that it isn't faith, but we who have grown distant.  Distant from the daily bread we truly cannot survive without.

This happens because everyday we go about our lives, listening to music or news casts or watching TV programs or being bombarded at work and other places with a constant stream of negatives and worldly viewpoints that begin to replace the picture we hold in our hearts of our place in the world, our place as a beloved child of God Almighty.  The truth actually begins to dim in our hearts, without the constant reminder of it through daily reading of Gods word, daily prayer and time with our God, and fellowship with others who believe and trust in the Lord.

This is why we read (eat) our Bible (bread of life) on a daily basis.  This is why we encourage others and list reading schedules and give away bibles and constantly go on about putting Gods Word into our heads and our hearts.  Without it, we FORGET.  When we forget, our faith falters.  We are less certain that God, who met our need last time, will indeed meet it this time. 

If you've been following us, you know that for the last 2 years, we've been harping on DAILY READING OF GODS WORD.  Now you know why.  Reading the bible reminds us of who we are - Ambassadors for Christ.  Otherwise, we forget.  We get caught up by the ways of the world, and then we struggle with things God didn't intend us to struggle with, like faith and trust in Him.  He never changes.  But we do.  In order to stay on a path of righteousness, we need daily reminder of what the path looks like, and where it is taking us.

So we encourage you to read, daily.  Our reading schedule is designed to follow our eating pattern, since Gods word is our daily bread.  A chapter in the morning, one in the afternoon, and one in the evening.  A well fed spirit will not find itself short on faith.  I can promise you that.  More importantly, God promises!

Psalms 34:8  Oh taste and see that the Lord is good!  Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!  

As you journey down this road of faith, we would be blessed if you shared your travel adventures with us!  How has reading Gods word changed your life?  What ways has reading strengthened you and helped you through difficult times?  Click on comments below, and encourage others with your testimony!

We're praying for you!  Prayer requests are at the top left.  Prayer changes things - let us pray for your specific needs!

Our own Sons and Daughters

Any Christian parent who has experienced the loss of a son or daughter, not to the finality of death, but to the lost ways of the world whether it be lifestyle choices, drugs or a general rejection of the Lord God that builds a chasm that seems uncross-able relates intimately to the Prodigal Son story in the Bible.  You are not alone.  You are not the only one.

Sculpted by tiny hands and precious to the heart!
Mother and Child

We have such a child.

11 long years have passed.  11 years of tears and arguments and pain and a ripping open of the wound over and over and over again.  11 years of crying out to the Lord - in passionate plea and heart broken despair and screaming hope.

Last night my baby boy called.  To tell us he is doing well.  He has been completely drug free for 40 days.  He has gained 35 pounds.  To tell us that he loves us.  And we got to tell him how much we love him.

My prayers don't stop.  Neither should yours.  The journey has been long and it has been hard.  The world cannot keep our children unless we give up.  Never give up.  Never give in.  Our God is faithful and trustworthy and delivers His children from the darkest of nights, the deepest of pits and from the most hopeless of situations. He bursts forth in shining light according to His perfect timing. Which we may seldom understand but can always trust in.

When you put your trust in the Creator of Heaven and earth, your trust is in His ETERNAL promises, not just those on this earth at this time.  Therefore, our Hope in Him is never misplaced.  If we don't see the answer here and now, we will see it There and Then.

Psalm 147 from this very mornings reading brings hope and peace to our hearts, now and for Eternity.

Thank you Lord!

Trusting God when all the evidence is to the contrary

Can we always trust what our senses indicate?

Born into this world with several ways to relate, interact and experience life, we learn to rely on what we see, what we hear, what we smell, what we touch and what we taste.  What we trust is built on what we experience through these senses until a pattern develops and our thoughts and feelings begin to follow that pattern.  Sin having entered the world in the Garden of Eden and having successfully severed the spiritual sense we were originally created with (See Genesis 1:26), we learn to rely on the five senses we have left to operate with.  If you've wondered why at times it can be such a struggle to TRUST GOD, now you know.

That sixth sense having been severed from all mankind when an act of sin was committed by Adam and Eve is why Jesus had to sacrifice Himself as the unblemished Lamb.  To reconnect with our Creator required we have this sense of spirit.  This sense is regained when we are born again (John 3:1-3 & Col 1:27), but unlike the other senses, patterns in our thoughts and feelings were not established from birth and haven't developed the needed paths to follow for it to become our normal reaction to the things around us.

Trust is defined by the dictionary as reliance in the integrity, strength, ability of a person or thing; to have confidence in; a confident expectation of something; HOPE.

Now, right here I could easily go into great and lengthy detail about the psychological factors and the scientific evidences and even the Scriptural references of why we should trust God.  Those of you who follow our Sunday Sermons know two things. 

1.  We focus on practical application  

2.  We keep it short and readable.  

We'll do that here.  So why SHOULD we TRUST GOD when all the evidence of our senses indicate we should do the exact opposite?  When our circumstances are hard, or painful, or shameful, or hurtful, or overwhelming and overwhelmingly negative?  Why should we trust and have HOPE that God will work all things together for good for US?!?!?

Simply because our trust and hope isn't built on us, on what our senses tell us, on what the situations and circumstances look like to us.  And this is why it is so vital that we read our Bible every single day of our lives.  Remember the testimony from last week?  Trust comes when we are certain of the integrity and ability of someone outside ourselves.  We may not trust ourselves, what we see, hear, smell, taste or touch, but if we have digested the Word of God then we have a sure knowing that He, GOD, IS TRUSTWORTHY.  And we'll know what His promises to us are because we've read them and remember what we read. Daily we will be reminded what so easily we forget.  We will have an inkling of His integrity. And His word instructs us, so we'll always know just what to do. 

Our trust is built on that 7th sense - His Spirit that lives in us since we were born again!  Our trust must NEVER be about what we want or think is best or selfishly desire.  When we have digested His word and are born again of His Spirit, our trust and hope is built on the truth that HE WILL ALWAYS GIVE US WHAT IS RIGHT AND BEST FOR US, within the realm of understanding that this world is temporary, these bodies are born to decay, but we have Eternal Life through Christ Jesus who died for us and lives evermore making intercession for us. We often talk of Heaven, how wonderful it will be!  Do we believe what we speak of?  (Well, that is a subject for another day.)

I know I have seen amazing things transpire because I held on to who I know God is and let go of the faulty information my senses were feeding me.  I might easily forget, especially right in the midst of troubles, why God is so trustworthy, unless I read about Him and His promises on a daily basis to remind me, over and over that He is Faithful who has promised.  

We encourage you to join us in daily reading the words of life that will absolutely transform your life as you digest them.  Morning, noon and night.  As often as we feed our physical bodies, so we feed our spirit. One Psalm or Proverb each morning.  One chapter from the Old Testament for wisdom. Then one chapter from the New Testament each evening.  We'd love to hear how you progress in this Great Adventure so please be sure to stay in touch!  

Getting started and staying the course until a habit is formed can be difficult.  DON'T GIVE UP!  We're praying for you, and would be honored to pray specifically for your needs.   Drop us a line and let us know how we can pray for you!

IMAGINATION

About 8 years ago I received a postcard in the mail, eye catching picture similar to the one I've shared here, with the caption boldly splashed across the top:

IMAGINE WHAT GOD COULD DO...

The possibilities seemed endless and breathtaking!  Imagine what God could do!  On the other side it advertised some Christian gathering and the theme of course was just that - Imagine what God could do and expanded that a bit with the word  "if".

IF you attended this conference...imagine what God could do in your life!

IF you gave an offering...imagine what God could do for you in return!

IF you just fell in line with the belief system and theology and behavior and dress and if you just fell in step with this ministry and it's teachings...imagine what God would be willing to do for you.

Flash forward about 8 years.  I don't remember much about the ad on the other side, but every time I open my refrigerator and without my even really being aware, I'm "seeing" that picture and those words.  Even the time we've been in the RV traveling it was taped to the fridge, it had so captured my imagination!  Then this week it hit me!  IMAGINE WHAT GOD COULD DO???  Nothing is impossible with God!  There is NOTHING God is not capable of doing nor is there anything He withholds from His children.  And praise God, it most certainly isn't dependent on ME what God could do or we would be in some serious trouble.  And we are in serious trouble, when we've come to the place where, even subtly, we think of God in terms of our control or subject to our actions.

Everything that every human being does is in RESPONSE to the Almighty God, Creator and Master of all heaven, all earth and everything in it.  This prevailing, subtle, sneaky and extremely DANGEROUS idea that God moves, works, thinks, feels or acts in response to us is the devils most clever lie EVER since the Garden of Eden!  In II Timothy specifically the end of chapter 2 and into chapter 3, Paul is warning against just this kind of captivity of lies an deceits that man is of the utmost importance and the universe behaves in response to man.  You should read all of this book for a full picture, but let's take a look at a piece of it.

II Timothy 2: 26, 3: 1-9  ...and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.  But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come:  For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power and from such people turn away!  For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.  Now as Jannes and Jambres resisted Moses, so do these also resist the truth; men of corrupt minds disapproved concerning the faith; but they will progress no further, for their folly will be manifest to all, as theirs also was.

Paul goes on to instruct Timothy not only how to avoid this foolish behavior but to follow righteous behavior leading to true godliness.  Please bear with me while I repeat myself for instructions sake.  Everything a human being does is in response to the Almighty Father in Heaven.  Whether that response is acceptance or rejection, WE DO THE RESPONDING.  We are instructed to pray, yet Jesus clearly tells us God already knows what our needs are  (Matthew 6: 8).  We believe Christ died for us and receive the gift of salvation according to Gods plan (Ephesians 1:4), not ours. God already has everything in place and IF we respond according to His instructions we receive the blessing.    The land of Canaan already belonged to the Israelites, God had already declared He had given it to them.  They needed to respond to Gods gift in order to receive it.  It is subtle, but important.  It is a heart matter, that the very thought pattern, to be righteous, must be "God has provided, so I will ask and receive" and not "I will ask so God will provide".

So it struck me hard the other day, when I passed by the fridge and glanced at the familiar postcard that we have it wrong!  It isn't and can not be  IMAGINE WHAT GOD COULD DO...for there is nothing impossible with God, but really ought to be IMAGINE WHAT WE COULD EXPERIENCE if we trusted and believed GOD and responded accordingly and obediently.  We would experience the JOY of the Lord that is our strength, the power of the Holy Spirit in our situations, the PEACE of God that passes all understanding and the FELLOWSHIP with our Heavenly Father that knows no bounds!

II Timothy 3:16-17  All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness; that the man of God may be complete, thoruroughly equipped for every good work.

IMAGINE WHAT YOU COULD EXPERIENCE IF YOU TRULY TRUSTED

 AND BELIEVED GOD TO THE END THAT YOU OBEY HIM IN ALL THINGS!

Turn the Tide Ministries is dedicated to changing lives one at a time for the increase of Gods Kingdom and the Glory of God the Father.  Starting with our own lives and moving outward, we obey our Lord as surrendered living epistles of His great and glorious grace.  Join us every Sunday for practical applications to your everyday lives of Gods rich and wonderful WORD OF TRUTH to His children until He comes to gather us HOME.