Wonderful Jesus!

Tag: Prayer

• Don’t Count Yourself Out!

  Posted at 3:38 am by wonderfuljesus8, on February 21, 2020

  “2 Chronicles 32:8 -With him is an arm of flesh; but with us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people were strengthened by the words of Hezekiah king of Judah. NKJV

  As I mentioned in my previous post, a lot is going on in this battle. I have already mentioned that Hezekiah was a righteous king, doing all that he could to restore the statutes of the Lord in Israel. He tore down everything that was contrary to the Lord, and rebuilt all that was destroyed in an attempt to stomp Him out.

  I like what verse 1 in this chapter of the Bible let’s us know. “After these deeds of faithfulness, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and entered Judah…” I wrote about this in my last post, but here we see in the word that the attack came after his righteous stand. Just like it does with us today! And at first he compromises with the enemy to try and get him to back off from the battle, but verse two lets us know that Sennacherib had come with a purpose to make war against Jerusalem.

  Each telling of the battle has some really interesting points, but tonight I want to deal with what happened after the compromise. According to verses 3-8, Hezekiah came up with a plan. That plan was not to give in and let Sennacherib totally destroy all that he had accomplished, but to prepare for battle!

  First, Hezekiah realizes that the Assyrians came to battle and he consults with his leaders and commanders. Can I stop for a moment and say that Hezekiah was wise enough to know that he didn’t know everything, or that he could accomplish far more with his team alongside him? Too many leaders in the church and in the world have a complex about what greatness looks like. For some reason they feel that because they are the leader, they know better than anybody else what to do. They need to go back to the school of feet washing so that they can understand that in His kingdom we are to be servants first. I have known a lot of bad leaders and only a few really good leaders. I tip my hat to them! Can I also point out that he recognized that the Assyrians came to battle. It’s time we recognize that every time the devil shows up, he comes prepared to do so battle. So we need to make sure that we are prepared, also.

  Together they decided three things: to shut off the water supply, to rebuild the walls, and to rebuild and equip their forces. There were springs near Jerusalem and a brook that ran nearby. All of this was stopped up to keep the Assyrians from having an ample water supply. They rebuilt the walls, and even built an extra wall outside of that one. Archaeologists have discovered a portion of wall that they think is from this time frame that was strong enough to withstand the battering rams and enclosed a reservoir of water. And lastly, they made weapons and shields to fight the battle.

  But the most important thing that happened was that Hezekiah took courage and talked to his military commanders. He encouraged them to be strong and courageous; to not be afraid, nor to be discouraged. Then he reminds them that the One who was with them, was greater than the one coming against them, and that He would be with them.

  Now how does this help us in the battles of life? After you compromise with the devil, the enemy wants you to think that it’s over for you. You gave up on God, or trusted in your flesh, or your money, or whatever, and now you are on your own. But Hezekiah realized that he was about to face a serious battle and he needed help from God! And so will you!

  One thing that you can do to get ready for war is to get over yourself. You messed up, now get up, repent and prepare for battle!

  Then, you shut off anything that will aid the enemy’s attack on you. That could be an ungodly relationship, or unforgiveness, or idolatry, hatred or selfish ambitions, or drunkenness to name a few. Just shut the door to those things, that the enemy will not have a place to get comfortable and habitat in your life.

  Rebuild the walls. Fix whatever is broken. Get things in order. Repent and recommit your life to Jesus. Get re-established in your church. Let go of ungodly soul ties. Restore godly relationships! Move in the direction that encourages a healthy life in Christ!

  Lastly, get those weapons ready! You have weapons of warfare that are mighty in God (2 Corinthians 4:10)! Those weapons include praise, the name of Jesus, the Blood of the Lamb, the living word of God, and prayer. You will not win this in the flesh. That’s what Hezekiah said that Sennacherib had, the arm of the flesh, but he and Judah had the Lord! So do you!! So see yourself as a winner, and not as a loser.

  And after you have done all of that, you stand! Stand knowing that greater is He that is in you than He that is in the world! (1 John 4:4) Stand knowing that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it. (Philippians 1:6). Stand because the word said, and having done all, you stand! (Ephesians 6:13). Don’t let the devil ever convince you that it is impossible to regain your place with God. In some cases, things could actually get better because you could actually be more committed than you were before having gone through a bad experience. Keep your head up and don’t count yourself out! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Battle plans, Believers, Christian, Victorious Living | 2 Comments | Tagged Believer, Christian, encouragement, Faith, God, hard times, Hezekiah, Judah, Prayer, Sennacherib, Spiritual warfare, Victorious Living, victory

• The Shout of Victory!

  Posted at 7:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on February 11, 2020

  Joshua 6:16 – And the seventh time it happened, when the priests blew the trumpets, that Joshua said to the people: “Shout, for the Lord has given you the city!

  You would be hard pressed today to find someone who has not heard of the battle of Jericho. Songs and movies have been made about this great victory; but just in case you are one of the few who have not heard, I will give you an abbreviated account.

  The children of Israel had arrived at the Jordan. It was time to go across into the land of Canaan to take possession of their promised land, their inheritance. Joshua sent two spies to check out the land, and while they were doing reconnaissance they met Rahab. She hides the spies, lies to her countrymen, then makes a deal for her life and the lives of her family members (chapter 2).

  Then the children of Israel arrives at the Jordan and again God parts the waters as He did with the Red Sea. Do you think the people of Canaan was oblivious to this parting of the river? I don’t think so! I think this only heightened their fear of Joshua and the children of Israel. Sometimes when we are in a battle, all we see is the obvious; but we have to realize that God is strategically handle the situation on our behalf. The Canaanites were already afraid of the God who parted the Red Sea and now He is parting the Jordan! This was no coincidence!

  After they cross over the Jordan, the manna ceased. The interesting thing to note about the manna is that God had miraculously supplied manna for them while in the wilderness, but in the promised land, provision was waiting and they had no more need of manna. Some say they no longer needed a miracle so it stopped! I think that the possessing of the land was quite miraculous and the miracles didn’t stop, they took on another form!

  The city of Jericho was on lockdown! There was no natural way to get inside the city without assistance. Archaeologists have proven that the city was surrounded by two walls and that houses were built in the walls. They also discovered that the Canaanites could have lasted for years under siege because they had a great water supply and had stored up many provisions. This was probably known to the spies and told to Joshua, Joshua didn’t know how he was going to win this battle, he just knew that he would!

  God gave Joshua some unusual instructions for attacking Jericho! Joshua was told that they were to march around the city once for six days. When they marched, the procession was to be led by the men of war, followed by seven priests playing seven trumpets in front of the ark (continuously), and behind the ark bearing priests there were to be more men of war. Not a sound was to be made otherwise! Then they returned to the camp. I can just imagine the look on the faces of the people of Canaan. They had to be wondering what in the world were the children of Israel doing? What kind of battle strategy was this? Why do they keep blowing that horn? And the sounds of the feet marching was probably magnified to them inciting fear beyond reason! What were they waiting for? What did they hope to accomplish with all of this marching? Simple instructions and frightening at the same time.

  However, on the seventh day the instructions changed. They were to march around the city seven times and when they heard the sound of the trumpet, all the people were to shout with a great shout, then the walls would fall flat! Can I just stop here to say that I wonder what Joshua was feeling at these instructions? Joshua, a mighty warrior, who have fought several battles with the Lord, is being told that his strategy for his first major war as leader of Israel is to march around the city?! Whatever he was feeling, he obeyed God! That’s a lesson all by itself!

  I remember reading a testimony of a person who was told by God to hit someone with a banana and they would be healed. Of course, the person thought that this was pretty ridiculous and couldn’t possibly be from God. Later that day, I think he was at a conference, the speaker said something like, “If God tells you to get a banana and hit someone with it, you need to obey God!” He instantly knew he was being rebuked, but moved to obey God and saw a miracle! Joshua needed no such confirmation! He trusted that this strategy would get the job done! There is no record of a discourse like Moses had with God at the burning bush when he said he couldn’t speak! No, Joshua simply obeyed God and the walls came tumbling down!

  Battles are tough! But they don’t always have to be. One word from God can turn your entire situation around. That’s why I love reading about the battles in the Old Testament. They help me to understand that God’s instructions are as unique as the situations. He is no cookie cutter God and what He told Bertha to do to win her battle, may not be what He tells you! Some battles are won with much fasting and prayer! Some are won with speaking the word! But some are won with a shout! Joshua understood that his sure victory was in hearing from God! And that’s the lesson I take from this battle! If you are facing a battle or in the midst of a battle, your victory will depend on your battle plan! Make sure it’s the one the Lord is backing! Shout,for He has given you the city! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Battle plans, Believers, Christian, Victorious Living | 1 Comment | Tagged encouragemnt, Joshua, miraculous, Prayer, provision, testimony, trust in God, Victorious Living, victory

• The Battle For Family!

  Posted at 5:58 pm by wonderfuljesus8, on February 8, 2020

  Genesis 14:14 – “Now when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his three hundred and eighteen trained servants who were born in his own house, and went in pursuit as far as Dan.” NKJV

  Family creates an interesting dynamic to the lives of believers. Some of our family members keep us on our knees praying, confessing, and believing God for their deliverance. If it wasn’t for the fact that we know worry is a sin, some of us would live in the place of worry. But this is nothing new! And there is some great news ahead!

  Abram had been given a directive from God to leave his country, his family, and his heritage to go to a place chosen by God (Genesis 12). And he did! Kinda sorta! He took his nephew, Lot, with him. It wasn’t that Lot was some little kid that needed Abram to raise him, but when Terah left Ur, he had taken Lot, so maybe Abram felt responsible for Lot. Whatever the reason, whatever the case, they are together.

  Both men are prosperous. Verse 2, of chapter 13 lets us know that Abram was very rich in livestock, silver and gold. And we find that Lot is prosperous when the herdsmen of Abram and Lot begin arguing over the water and the land. Not only do they have to share with each other this land and water, but we are told that they have to share with the Canaanites and the Perizzites as well.

  This causes them to have to separate from each other. Lot was given a choice by Abram in verse 9, “Is not the whole land before you? Please separate from me. If you take the left, then I will go to the right; or, if you go to the right, then I will go to the left.” Lot chooses to go to Sodom. Some translations of the Bible states that Lot moved near Sodom, while others refer to him moving into Sodom. Which ever way it really was, he eventually ended up living in Sodom.

  In chapter 14, a battle is gearing up, and Sodom and Gomorrah joins with three other kings to fight, five agains four. During the battle, Sodom and Gomorrah are overtaken, along with Lot and his goods. Someone escapes and tells Abram, and he gears up for battle. If you have not read this in its entirety, you should do so, because I can only give highlights. In our key verse, Abram, with his trained men, go in pursuit of Lot to recover him and his goods.

  It doesn’t matter to Abram that Lot made his own choice to live in Sodom. It doesn’t matter to Abram that five kings lost to four. It doesn’t even matter to Abram that in helping Lot, he will end up helping Sodom and Gomorrah, whom I am sure he understood the nature of their lives. No! The only thing that mattered to Abram was that his beloved nephew was in trouble and needed his help!

  I’ve lived long enough to know that we all have that family member that can get into some situations. Not always of their own making, it just seems that trouble follows him or her. But family is family! And if you are a believer, your heart for your family is to see every one of them delivered from the enemy, as Abram felt. Abram pursued those kings, rescued Lot and his positions, and all the prisoners and possessions. In other words, they went into that battle and recovered all, returning quite victorious!

  I am from a large family. I had seven sisters and two brothers. All with families of their own. So we have seen some things. I also married into a good sized family. My husband had five siblings. So our families combined with siblings, with nieces, nephews and cousins are quite extensive. We’ve fought many battles over the year. We’ve lost some (seemingly in the natural), we’ve won all (in the spirit), and we find that we have become trained warriors. There is no sitting back on our family members saying that they got themselves into that, or it’s their lifestyle, or we are tired of them. We fight for our family!

  My mother died from lupus while in her forties, leaving all of us very young. Many years later when my sister was in her forties, they diagnosed her with lupus. She called me and told me about it, saying that she was going die in her forties like mama. Something rose up on the inside of me, we know it was the Holy Ghost, and I decreed the devil is a liar! I prayed for her on that phone and continued to pray until I felt the victory. She went back to the doctor and they couldn’t find it! Glory!!! She’s in her sixties. Another time, she was about to lose her job (not sure why she keeps coming to mind) because a patient lied on her. I want you to know we got to praying and she never did lose that job! Years later, she is still on it!! God is such a good God! We’ve gone to battle against sickness and diseases, financial attacks, legal battles, setups, and put downs, and we find that there is nothing God won’t do!

  I have friends, church members, acquaintances, with similar victories. As a believer, I have noticed that when the devil really gets messy, he starts attacking our family members when he wants to get at us. But we have to have the same mind Abram had, “not my family” knowing that God will go with us! Abram had no fear of losing his life or the battle. God had made a promise to him about inheriting the land of Canaan. He couldn’t inherit it if he was dead. So he went out sure of his victory. God has made us similar promises. Promises of victory! Promises that greater is He that is with us, then he that is in the world! A promise that we are more than a conqueror! A promise of household salvation! A promise of generational blessings!

  Don’t you quit on your family! Even if you believe or know you are the only one praying, the only one standing on the promises, the only one who believes! God cares about your family, because He loves them more than you do! I believe this is the first physical battle mentioned in the Bible and it’s about family! What does that say? God is aware that family can get into some altercations, but He is for you and your family! Don’t accept drug addiction, alcohol addiction, unemployment, sickness and disease, and no other lying attack the devil comes up with! This is your family! Fight, for you are inked in as the winner! Wonderful Jesus!!

  Posted in Battle plans, Believers, Christian, Spiritual warfare, Victorious Living | 4 Comments | Tagged Abraham, Believer, Christian, consequences, encouragement, Family, Genesis 14:14, hard times, Prayer, Spiritual warfare, Victorious Living, victory

• Serious Business!

  Posted at 1:00 pm by wonderfuljesus8, on January 14, 2020

  Ezra 8:22-23 -For I was ashamed to request troops and horsemen from the king to protect us from the enemy along the way, because we had told the king, “The hand of our God is favorable toward all those who seek Him, but His power and His anger are against all those who abandon (turn away from) Him.” So we fasted and sought [help from] our God concerning this [matter], and He heard our plea.” AMP

  At the beginning of the year, many churches take time to do extended fasting. Our church is right there with them. On yesterday, I had to preach on fasting and prayer, and as I sought the Lord, His word to me was that fasting is “serious business!” Now technically, we all know that already, but in reality we may not fast and pray as if it is serious business.

  Ezra understood the power of fasting and prayer. He was leading a group of Israelites from Babylon back to Jerusalem. The king had given him much favor and many possessions for his travel and the work in Jerusalem. He had also given him the artifacts that Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple. So Ezra had a lot of people in his care and much wealth.

  When it was time to leave, Ezra said that he was embarrassed to ask the king for an escort to protect them from bandits along the way. After all, he had told the king that His God knows how to look after His people! That’s why he said that he felt as if he couldn’t ask the king’s help in getting safely to Jerusalem. So he did what he knew to do, he called a fast and they prayed. And God heard.

  This was serious business. After his testimony to the goodness of God, he needed to act on his faith and trust that God would be faithful! I am pretty sure that no one was sneaking off to get food to eat or to socialize during this time. Every one knew the seriousness of the hour and everyone got involved in the fast!

  This reminds me of Nineveh. In the book of Jonah, Jonah was upset that God asked him to go warn the city of Nineveh that He would destroy them in 40 days. So he took off and ended up in the belly of a great fish. (I believe it was last summer that I learned of a whale shark that grows to the size of school bus and doesn’t eat meat. I wondered if that was the offspring of Jonah’s whale). Anyway, when Jonah was free again, he went to Nineveh as instructed. As soon as the people heard the proclamation, they began fasting. And when the king heard, he decreed that not only were the people to fast, but the animals and children as well. These people were not the children of God, but the king thought that if they fasted and repented that maybe God wouldn’t destroy them. That got God’s attention and He abandoned His plans to destroy the city.

  What do you do when you are in a tight place? Do you automatically think it’s time to fast? A lot of the time I do, but sometimes it doesn’t cross my mind. I just react in my flesh. I whine, I complain, and I even become frustrated having to fight discouragement. One would think that if I know the solution that works that I would always apply it. But I don’t! How about you? Do you automatically fast and pray when difficulty arises? Do you think of God coming through or how you can figure this out? Do you cry out to God with your whole heart knowing that the answer you need is in Him? Well, I can assure you that I have missed it to! If the ungodly can fast and pray and see God move, surely His children can!

  This year I plan to do so much better in trusting Him. I plan to spend much more time fasting and praying this year than I have in quite some time. Not only for the difficult times or when I have to preach, but for situations that wont’ change but need to change. For attitudes and thinking that cause His heart to hurt. For people I know who need to be saved, or healed, or set free. Yep, this year will find me seeking God as if I know that things are serious and fasting and praying is serious business! I invite you to do the same. Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Attitude, Believers, Christian, Ezra 8:22-23, Fasting, Victorious Living | 0 Comments | Tagged Attitude, Christian, Ezra, Ezra 8:22-23, Faith, Fasting, Jonah, Nineveh, Prayer

• Mustard Seed Faith! Repost and Revised!

  Posted at 3:56 am by wonderfuljesus8, on December 14, 2019

  With all of the end of the year things going on, I thought I would repost a blog I enjoyed writing in my early days when no one was reading my blog! LOL! Hope you enjoy this blog!

  What did Jesus mean about mustard seed faith? While I cannot say with certainty what He meant, I can say with certainty, what He didn’t mean. Traditionally, we have been taught that mustard seed faith was having just “a little faith, the size of a mustard seed” to move a great big mountain. Well, I don’t think so!

  Matthew 17:20-“So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, “move from here to there’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.”NKJV

  In the Young’s Literal Translation, this verse reads, “And Jesus said to them, ‘Through your want of faith; for verily I say to you, if ye may have faith as a grain of mustard, ye shall say to this mount, remove hence to yonder place, and it shall remove, and nothing shall be impossible to you.”

  As I have already mentioned, Jesus is not talking about the size of the seed. In both of the above versions, size isn’t even mentioned  But we have taught faithfully that Jesus is talking about the size of the seed comparing it to the size of our faith. Let’s look at what Jesus thinks about “small” faith:

  Matthew 6:30-Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” (This doesn’t read as a compliment!)

  Matthew 8:26- But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea and there was a great calm.” (In this verse they were both fearful and had little faith, no wonder they couldn’t rebuke the storm!)

  Matthew 14:31- “And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” ” (Peter walked on water, but “little faith” caused him to doubt and sink). How can little faith move a mountain when it couldn’t handle a storm or keep Peter on the surface of the water?

  Matthew 16:8-But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, “O you of little faith, why do you reason among yourselves because you have brought no bread?” (Again, little faith is not being applauded as a wonderful thing by Jesus.) Just the opposite!

  These four scriptures of truth, spoken directly by Jesus, confirms that the size of the mustard seed is not what Jesus was referring to in mountain moving faith. Many Christians have been disappointed in the results of their “little faith” not producing mountain moving results. I believe it is time to get rid of this myth in the Body of Christ and that is why it was my first post and I have chosen to repost it! I thought it was a very valid point and yet it had gone unseen!

  Think about the times you have been disappointed in not seeing faith produce for you what the word promised when you knew that you didn’t have great faith, but you had a little? Well, that’s because little faith didn’t produce anything for the people in Jesus’s day and it won’t produce anything today! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Believers, Christian, Faith, God’s Blessings, Matthew 17:20 | 0 Comments | Tagged Believer, encouragement, Faith, Jesus, Matthew 17:20, Prayer, testimony

• Does He Have Your Heart?

  Posted at 11:30 am by wonderfuljesus8, on August 14, 2019

  Deuteronomy 6:5- “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart…”

  This morning I saw a man wearing a tee shirt with the scripture from Isaiah 54:17 that no weapon formed against us shall prosper. That was on his front, and of course it’s a favorite scripture of mine so I secretly cheered! But as he passed me, on his back was “God’s got my back!”

  The very next thing in my spirit was, “But does He have your heart?”

  It is interesting how the Lord can get our attention from simple interactions in this life. That stayed with me and of course, I wanted to share it. If the Lord asks a question, it’s best to see if you can answer it. Was the question about the young man, about me, about people in general.

  Moses, speaking to the children of Israel, declared that we are to love the Lord our God with all of our heart. Can I be honest with you here? I love God dearly, but does He truly have all of my heart? Today I am wondering! Why would Moses even say this? Is it even possible to love the Lord with all of my heart?

  Someone stopped Jesus and asked Him, testing Him, “which is the great commandment in the law?” Jesus replied, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart…” In both the Old and the New Testaments we are told to love the Lord our God with all of our hearts! What does that even look like? Can I just say that I am not completely sure, because I am not going to say that I am there! But oh how I want to be!

  Now any reader of the Word of God can tell you that we are not to compare ourselves to one another, so I won’t. But I will use Jesus as an example.

  What did this undivided heart of love look like in Jesus’ life? Well…

  *Jesus absolutely enjoyed the Presence of God. He prayed so much that His disciples asked Him to teach them to pray. Not how to perform miracles, not how to teach the word, but how to pray! I know a heart totally bent towards loving Him is a heart that is in communion with Him through prayer continuously!

  *Jesus fully obeyed the Father! He said whatever God told Him to do He did it! As a matter of fact, one soldier said to Him, I am also a man under authority! He recognized that Jesus lived a submitted life to the Father! Obeying Him is a given, but a heart that is totally His, not only obeys, but does so joyfully!

  *Jesus wasn’t interested in fitting in with the social scene or religious groups of His day! If anything, He was constantly challenging their thinking about everything as He shed Light on how God sees and operates! He never tried to fit in, He never whined about being different, and He never cared what they thought of Him. He loved God with all of His heart, and nothing else mattered more than that! He was sold out!

  *Jesus knew He was fully loved in return! He trusted in God’s love and operated from that love! And because of His undivided heart towards God, there was nothing that God wouldn’t do for Him!

  No one mattered more to Him than His Father! No one’s opinion mattered more to Him than His Father! No one’s will, not even His own, mattered more than the Father’s!

  When I compare my heart to Jesus’ heart, I truly fall short! But the good news is because I have Him as my example, all I have to do is follow Him! As I grow in my relationship with Him, I know that there is no greater place of joy than His Presence. When I spend time in prayer I feel a peace that nothing else can give me. I don’t always pray the same way at the same time, but there are times when I just want to talk with the Father! Not always easy to keep your prayer life from becoming rote and vain repetition, but so necessary for a vital life with Him!

  Learning to fully obey, the first time, is another area of challenge for us. We have to not only be committed to fully obeying the logos (written) word of God, but those promptings that say: forgive her, apologize to him, don’t open your mouth, give her this, go visit that sister, go to church, encourage that person….these words from Him have to also be obeyed.

  Not fitting in!! We are a peculiar people, so that should be no surprised. Not weird people, but different in all that we do! It’s sometimes hard for Christians to be different without being weird. It is also hard sometimes to not fit in. To be the only Christian, to be the only one standing up for Jesus! To be the only one not drinking, not cursing, not sleeping around, not cheating, etc. But when Elijah complained about being the only one, God told him that He had 7,000 prophets reserved to Himself! So you are not the only one! Maybe you need to be the one bold enough to stand out for Him so that others will follow!

  Lastly, understanding the love that He is giving us! Paul wrote that we should understand the height, depth, width and length of His love! He loves us as passionately as He wants us to love Him!

  Does He have my heart? Yes! Is it fully engaged? It’s the thing that I want more than anything else! And as I live my life, I live for it to be an expression of His love for me and my love for Him! So while He definitely has my back, more importantly, I give Him my heart and all that entails! Does He have your heart? Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Christian, Victorious Living | 0 Comments | Tagged Attitude, Jesus, love, Prayer

• This Life I Now Live!

  Posted at 12:01 pm by wonderfuljesus8, on July 12, 2019

  Galatians 2:20 – I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

  Living a life in the flesh by the faith of Jesus is my daily aim. Sometimes it doesn’t feel like it or even look like it, but it’s the life I choose. Everything Jesus did He did for our example and He did well. In the flesh without being fleshy. That’s the life I desire and there are a few things I can do to make it happen. Today my blog is to highlight a few things that demonstrate Him living in me and through me.

  First, I believe it’s a life of deep and intimate fellowship with the Father. Jesus was known to be a person of prayer. (Matthew 14:23). And when He prayed things happened because He didn’t just say a lot of religious words, for Him, it was a place of prayer. A time to commune with God. A place of prayer that ceases to be about needs, and fears, and desires, that centers on the majesty of the Father. A place where communion is so sweet that all you want is more of Him and to give Him more of you.

  Let me be perfectly honest! That isn’t the case always. I am a praying woman, but I don’t always lose myself in His Presence and have a time of worship where I know I have communed with the Father. I know my prayer life is good, but deep in my heart, I want it to be so much more. I have experienced that place of communion where I have known His presence to enter my room and surround me, but I have to admit, not nearly as frequently as I could. Notice I wrote could and not should, because this is not a place of obedience but a place of adoration! When I think of the faith of Jesus, I always start here. His life of faith that He lived was developed through a deep communion with the Father!

  Secondly, loving others! A prayer that I pray more than I care to admit is Lord, help me to love like You love. Living this life by His faith deeply centers around loving people like He loved. John 3:16 is such a challenge to the believer. To love like He loved, to give my life (not on the cross) but in prayer and service for the kingdom, making a difference, impacting others, showing them the Father because I love them, not because I want to be able to testify that I led someone to Christ or I blessed someone. Is it a testimony? Yes! But the testimony should not be the motivation, only love when reaching out to people. His motivation for the cross and everything He did was love!

  Lastly, (only because I don’t like long posts), a life free of sin. He said that the devil had nothing in Him. (John 14:30) That’s a powerful statement to know that the devil has never been able to infiltrate your life or your heart with sin. Yes He was born without sin, but when we are born again, we are free of sin. (Romans 6:18)

  Letting Jesus’ faith live through us is allowing Him to keep us from sin, having His heart and His attitude about sin. No sin can be ok in our lives. We can have no place for lying, no place for cheating, no place for sexual immorality, no place for worldly acceptance, and the list can go on. Jesus was born free of sin but He chose not to live in it and not to allow to give any place to the devil. And then He freed us and told us that we are no longer slaves to sin and to give no place to the devil. That’s His life! That’s to be my life!

  This life that I now live in the flesh, I still live in the flesh much too much. Work, pleasure, church, and the cares of this world are always vying for my time, but I press toward the mark of the high calling in Christ! (Philippians 3:14) Paul wrote, walk in the Spirit and we’ll not fulfill the lust of the flesh. (Galatians 5:16)

  Therefore, if this life I now live in the flesh, I’m to live by the faith of the Son of God I am going to have to be a person of communion with God. Jesus still wants to commune with the Father and since He is in me, it’s what I am to do. Since He is living in me, love should be my life’s motivation. Not just with the people I like and whom like me; but simply allowing Him to love through me. And lastly, a life free from the domination of sin and the devil. Jesus still has dominion over sin and has given it to me, to you! We can allow Him to live His life through us in such a way that we too can make the claim that Paul made. Father, help us to live by the faith of Your precious Son! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Faith, freedom, Galatians 2:20, Jesus, love, Prayer, Victorious Living | 0 Comments | Tagged Faith, freedom, Galatians 2:20, Jesus, love, Prayer

• Somebody Prayed

  Posted at 5:01 pm by wonderfuljesus8, on March 16, 2019

  Ephesians 1:16- “Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers”

  As I was reading in Ephesians a couple of nights ago, this verse seemed to leap off the page, and I knew I would blog about it this week.

  As I was preparing for my day, and thinking about this verse, a song from many years ago came to mind:

  “Somebody prayed for me! Had me on their mind! Took some time to pray for me! I’m so glad they prayed! I’m so glad they prayed! I’m so glad they prayed for me!”

  Everyone loves it when they hear the words, “You were on my mind today and I prayed for you!” I know, because I have said the words often enough and seen the response; and I have also been the hearer of those words and felt such a sense of encouragement to know that the Father laid me on someone’s heart and they prayed for me.

  Paul, to me, was such a powerful witness of the Lord Jesus! He walked in incredible wisdom, started churches, trained ministers, spread the gospel, and walked in the supernatural anointing of God, and yet, he took time to pray for others. Regularly!

  There was a time in my life when people would ask me to pray for them and I would respond to them that I would, and then I would forget. But one day the Holy Spirit convicted me and I learned to stop and pray immediately, just so I could say that I did. Some times, even now, I am able to only give a short prayer because of when I hear something, but my heart is always to pray!

  As I have matured in Christ, and have grown in leadership responsibilities in ministry, I find that people come to my heart, or situations come to my ears and I have a burden to pray. Those are times I pray longer and more consistently. And of course, to see those prayers answered and to see those victories won are a true blessing.

  But Paul didn’t wait for situations to come, for needs to be presented to him, for prayer requests. No! Paul said that his prayers were motivated because he heard of their faith in the Lord Jesus and their love for the saints and therefore, he continuously prayed for them.

  Now, I am not there! In my prayer time, I admit that different pastors, ministers, leaders, friends, family members, co-workers, etc.; come to my mind and I pray for them. But I can’t say with fidelity that they are always in my prayers.

  As I meditate on this scripture it causes me to realize that if this was true of Paul, and he was super busy with all that he writes about, then it can become true about me. I can get to the point where I pray for the members of our congregation all the time, where I pray for my colleagues all the time, where I pray for my students all the time, where I pray for pastors, ministers, and church leaders all the time. And I can’t remember the last time I prayed for my followers! Shame on me! But again, I’m not there, yet! Of course, I am not able to say about all these people on my list that I have heard great things about their faith in the Lord Jesus or their love for all the saints, but…!

  Do I have to pray for the same people all the time when I pray? Do you? No! But it’s a goal for my prayer life to take time to pray regularly for others as I pray regularly for myself and my family. In this life, we all have tribulations (Jesus said so) and I have lived long enough to know it’s true. Knowing this, I find the thought that someone else has determined to keep me lifted in their prayers on a regular basis is encouraging and comforting! So I am determined to be used of God to return that encouragement!

  When was the last time you stopped what you were doing and prayed for someone other than you and your family? When was the last time you prayed for your pastor, your church congregation, your co-workers, or even your neighbors? If you can’t say it’s happened in the last week, take some time today and pray for them! Then tomorrow you can walk up to someone and say, “I had you on my mind, so I took some time to pray for you,” and watch them be encouraged by it! Then, feel that sense of being an encouragement. It will keep you praying! I am going to go and follow my own advice! I’ll meet you in the throne room of heaven as we pray for one another! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Ephesians study, Prayer, Victorious Living | 2 Comments | Tagged Prayer, Victorious Living

• ALL NIGHT LONG

  Posted at 2:43 am by wonderfuljesus8, on August 20, 2018

  Luke 6:12 – Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.

  Jesus was a praying man. The scriptures let us know that He prayed so much, that He even went without sleep to commune with the Father.

  Now I don’t know about you, but I have never found this to be an appealing way to pray. I love spending time with the Lord at night, hence my blog posts are done before I retire; but staying up all night to pray has never truly been an interest of mine. I think the latest I have ever stayed up in prayer is until 2 in the morning. 

  This past Friday was our third annual all night of prayer for the women of our congregation. There were some friends amongst us, but mostly the women were of our congregation. We gathered at 8 pm and actually ended around 330 am on Saturday morning because of some obligations on Saturday. There were over 80 women in attendance with a few teenagers in the mix. 

  We always have an agenda that consists of times of sharing from God’s word, worship, and of course, prayer. But this year we really wanted the Holy Spirit to lead the prayer meeting. So we spent time in prayer and fasting during the week. And He did. 

  As our assistant pastor set the stage and the theme of the night, you could actually feel the excitement building in our midst. Our primary focus was to pray for our children, but she let it be known that we would flow with the Holy Spirit!

  Our worship leader began with an exhortation of lifting our voices in praise to our God. One scripture that she used that really blessed me was Psalm 115:17-18 in the Living Bible:

  “The dead cannot sing praises to Jehovah here on earth, but we can! We praise him forever! Hallelujah! Praise the Lord!”

  And did we praise Him! With much singing, playing of musical instruments and dancing before the King we gave praise. One sister danced so beautifully before the Lord that she ushered in a spirit of liberty. The atmosphere was set for faith filled praying!

  Immediately ministry began as people came to the altar to be free from the bondage’s that have been holding them back. And every time an exhortation was given, more prayer and ministry were released. We came to offer ourselves up as intercessors, but God met some of our personal needs in exchange.

  As we learned the things plaguing our children today, we cried out against those things keeping our children in bondage. We were united in our time and the night sped away as we sought the Father on behalf of our children. Not just our personal kids, but the children in our city also. There were so many wonderful exhortations that I cannot mention them all, but a great time was had by all! We even broke off into small groups and prayed for our personal needs and concerns.

  The night of prayer ended with communion and the lighting of candles. Now the communion was to serve as a reminder of the covenant we have in Jesus and a memorial unto Him. The candles were for unity sake, and it’s absolutely beautiful to see so many candles raised to the Lord on one accord. 

  As I mentioned, earlier, it was our third all night prayer and many felt it was the best one yet!

  Today in service we had several testimonies of healings that took place and of the impact of being in the prayer with so many women. I know that so much more happened that night in prayer and I eagerly await more fruit coming forth from it.

  All in all, as we took time out of our lives to meet with God all night long I can assure you that we were all glad that did. Wonderful Jesus!!

  Posted in Prayer | 0 Comments | Tagged Prayer, praying women

• Choosing to Live by Faith!

  Posted at 3:32 am by wonderfuljesus8, on August 9, 2018

  Habakkuk 2:4 – “Behold the proud, His soul is not upright in him; But the just shall live by his faith.”

  A lot is going on in the world today and things are getting crazier. Every day, all day, there is “breaking news” and we are becoming less and less concerned about the activities in the world in which we live because it is difficult to keep up with them. (At least I hope that is why we are becoming indifferent!)

  People are dying in the streets and there is little or no outcry about it! Politicians are only interested in keeping their seat and being the party in control. The Church wants to make sure it is not bothered and continue on as they are going. And citizens are so confused, hurt, and disillusioned that they no longer know what they believe or why they believe it. Things are a mess!!

  But Habakkuk wrote, “Behold the proud, his soul is not upright in him!” In other words, “Look at these people who think they are untouchable because of their riches, their positions, their connections and their influence, their soul (their heart, their thinking, their “vision” of all that is happening, is not right!) Their pride has gotten the best of them!

  In dealing with children in the classroom over the past few years, trying to help them work through conflict effectively, they seem to be more aware of the seemingly heartless times in which we live. So much so, they feel justified in their behavior because the “adults” on television, in the news, in their communities, and some times in their homes are living the same way. A life of pride where their soul is just not right!

  However, God encourages us on four different occasions in the Word, that the just shall live by their faith! 

  Living by faith is not an easy task. Nor is it popular! But God is not concerned with what is easy or what is popular. He is still saying today that those who know Him are to live differently than the world lives. We are to live by faith!

  I remember a few years ago the government made a distressing decision that negatively affected the Christian community. I was called by a dear friend and she asked me what were going to do. I told her that we would continue to do what we were doing and trust God with that other stuff. Although, there are still ramifications from that decision, I choose to walk by what I believe and not by what I hear, see, or feel. That’s the faith walk!

  Today, as I write this blog, I am sitting in airport waiting on my flight for home. My flight was actually scheduled for later on tonight, but as we were eating breakfast and making plans for our last day of vacation, we received an alert from the airline stating that our flights were canceled. 

  Mind you, that last night I specifically prayed that we would not have canceled flights or delayed flights. On the way here, our flight was delayed three times. I didn’t think to pray at that time about that although I prayed about every thing else. So lo and behold, our flight was not delayed, it was canceled. 

  Instead of fretting, we declared that all would be well. We actually ended up with an earlier flight, immediately. This was great because my husband had something come up unexpectedly that he needed to get back for. 

  My sister met us here and her flight was also canceled. She didn’t get on a flight immediately. She was actually told that all flights to her destination were sold out. But we prayed and decreed that she would get on a flight.

  After several nos and even being booked on a flight for tomorrow, we continued to believe God that she would get a flight out. And wouldn’t you know it!! She did! She left at the same time that we left and got home a little later than we did. And we all got home earlier than our original flights. Look at God!!

  So how are you living when curve balls are thrown at you in this life? Are you frustrated and angry? Whining and complaining? Defeated and disgusted? Or are you choosing every day to believe that God is looking out for you and He can be trusted?

  I get it! Living by faith isn’t easy, but it is a choice. I’m not successful in every situation at the living by faith mantra, but I am choosing more and more to make that the first way I look at a situation instead of the last.

  Every day! One day at a time! One situation at a time, we get to choose to live by faith and not like the world-thinking that we can handle things in our strength and in our own way, like the proud! Thinking that we have to accept every thing that is thrown our way because of the powers that be. We can continue to do that, or we can walk by faith trusting that God can change situations around in our favor, for our good! 

  Today, we chose right! We chose faith! And God worked things out for our good and His glory! And it goes to show that walking by faith can be more adventurous and worthwhile than just living life and getting by in life. Wonderful Jesus!!

  Posted in Faith, Prayer, testimony, Victorious Living | 0 Comments | Tagged Faith, Prayer, Victorious Living

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