He Is Patient With You

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise,

as some understand slowness.

He is patient with you,

not wanting anyone to perish,

but everyone to come to repentance.

2 Peter 3.9

I love a good brisket...juicy, tender, mouth watering...in fact, we just had some for Father's Day last weekend! Do you know how The Executive Chef (My Amazing Mother) cooked the brisket? She cooked it with patience. She did not throw it in the microwave. She wanted it to turn out for the best, so she was wise and displayed patience.

God wants us to turn out for the best...He has plans for us...He wants to unleash us for His service. But to do that, we must develop...So when we think God is taking His time to get us to be the people He wants us to be and to take us to the places where we can Serve Him most, we must not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day...

What we think is slow, God views as patience.

In Summary:

Better to be patient than powerful. ~Proverbs 16.32~

This vision is for a future time. It describes the end, and it will be fulfilled. If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently, for it will surely take place. It will not be delayed. ~ Habakkuk 2.3 ~

God Resides In Faith

"God resides in Faith... He "hides" in Faith."

Jentezen Franklin

In his sermon, "Destiny," which I mentioned in the last post, Jentezen Franklin talks about the fact that if we want to see God in our lives, then we must find Him where He resides. So many times we have probably thought, "God, where are you hiding?"

God is "hiding" in faith...God does not do comfortable. God does not do the "easy" life. If we want to know where God is, if we want to receive His power, then we must be stretched...we must take a step of courage and do something that requires faith...

...now I'm talking about stupidity, I'm not talking about doing something crazy, even The Bible says to count the cost (Luke 14.28), but the Lord tells us in Hebrews 11.6 the following:

"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him."

A few points to wrap up:

1. God wants us to be content (Philippians 4.11-13), but God does not want us to be comfortable (Hebrews 11.1)

2. To please God we must have faith and be Holy

3. Discerning God's Will:

• Are we living a chair-rocking, lazy-boy-lemonade-sipping-all is cozy life? Then we are probably not on an assignment from God.

• Are we being stretched in our faith to the point where we let loose and take a leap of faith, so much to the point that if God does not come through than we are through? Then I can almost guarantee we are on an assignment from God...

4. If Jesus was stretched out on a cross, then I want to stretch my faith. Through Christ, we have the power to face anything! (Phil 4.13)

God wants us where we trust Him most. He wants us to hold on to Him for dear life. If we want to see God then we must live a life of adventure and find Him residing in Faith! By finding God in Faith, we discover who He calls us to be!

"If you'll hold on to me for dear life," says God,

"I'll get you out of any trouble.

I'll give you the best of care

if you'll only get to know and trust me.

~ From Psalm 91.14-16 ~

Hear And Believe

"We must "hear The Word of God" and then we must "believe what we hear."

These are two points that Jentezen Franklin makes in his awesome Holy Spirit filled podcast about our 'Destiny.' In response to this, I would like to post Psalm 119.1-8 below in reference to our destiny with God.

Do you feel God pulling you in a certain direction but your mind has not caught up with your soul in order to know exactly what to do? Well stay on The Path God has put you on...be persistent...stay in constant communication with God and follow His directions...do your best to find Him...He will give you the ultimate prescription to life:

Psalm 119.1-8 MSG
1 You’re blessed when you stay on course, walking steadily on the road revealed by God.

2 You’re blessed when you follow his directions,
doing your best to find him.

3 That’s right—you don’t go off on your own;
you walk straight along the road he set.

4 You, God, prescribed the right way to live;
now you expect us to live it.

5 Oh, that my steps might be steady,
keeping to the course you set;

6 Then I’d never have any regrets
in comparing my life with your counsel.

7 I thank you for speaking straight from your heart;
I learn the pattern of your righteous ways.

8 I’m going to do what you tell me to do;
don’t ever walk off and leave me.

Hear what God says, and then believe what you hear.

Focus

Jesus replied, “If I want him to remain alive
until I return, what is that to you?

As for you, follow me.”

John 21:22

We must focus on God's calling for our life and not worry about comparing ourselves to others. God has a specific calling for you and for me. Go and complete down to the last detail what He has called you to do.

For example, here is how Jesus puts it in relation to The Calling God had for His Life:

Jesus said, "The food that keeps me going is that I do the will of the One who sent me, finishing the work he started. John 4.34

Are you hungry? Allow the food that keeps you going, to be the food of doing God's Will for your life, finishing the work He has started in you.

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to

live a life worthy
of the calling you have received.
Ephesians 4:1

Five Stones

Then David took his shepherd's staff, selected five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in the pocket of his shepherd's pack, and with his sling in his hand approached Goliath.

1 Samuel 17:40

In his "One Prayer" message, Jentezen Franklin spoke on the title "God Is Able." Cool thought about the David vs Goliath story. From the above Scripture, you can see how God provided David with FIVE smooth stones.

David only needed one.

God gave David Five Stones. Jesus gave 5000 people enough food to eat and even had 12 baskets of left overs from only FIVE loaves of barley and Two pieces of fish.

"And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus."

Philippians 4.19

"Go, and the LORD be with you."

The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear

will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine."

Saul said to David, "Go, and the LORD be with you."

1 Samuel 17:37

Remember God's past blessings to give you hope in His future Power!

The Principle of The Path

The wise see danger ahead and avoid it,

but fools keep going and get into trouble.
Proverbs 27:12

Albert Einstein once said, "Intellectuals solve problems; geniuses prevent them. Well that is what The Wisdom of Proverbs teaches us in Proverbs 27:12.

Andy Stanley talks about it in his podcast entitled, Destinations. In Destinations, Andy points out the amazing principle from Proverbs that he has coined, "The Principle of The Path."

One quote sums it up, in which Andy states,

"Direction, not intention, determines destination."

Where Are You Headed?
Look at your life, your relationships, your finances, your health, your decisions, etc. Look at where they are headed, not necessarily where they are. You may have the best of intentions, but it is your direction that will determine your destination. It's like heading down the interstate. If you want to go to Florida but you are headed to Detroit, even if you have the best intentions, you will still end up in Detroit because you are on the wrong path. Where are you headed?



The Path and The Second Law of Thermodynamics
The Lord tells us that the wise see danger and avoid it. This goes right in line with one of the laws that governs our universe, The Second Law of Thermodynamics. Here are a few examples of the law...

Ice Cream melts, iron rusts, apples turn brown, things get dirty, etc. Left alone, situations get worse. But through action things get better.

Well so many times we say the following:

"I know I'm headed down the wrong path, but things will get better."

" I know I need to save more money instead of spending so much, but things will get better."

" I know my relationships are moving farther apart, but things will get better."

" I know I am gaining weight, drinking too much, telling too many lies, but things will get better."

Saying things like that is like saying the ice cream will somehow spontaneously re-freeze on its own without any action on our part.

4 Words
Here are four words to think about that Stanley mentions in part of his series.

Action. Sacrifice. Embarrassment. Relief.

In order to see danger and avoid it, we must take ACTION. Action will require SACRIFICE, which may cause some EMBARRASSMENT. But in the end, we will be full of RELIEF.

Noah took action. It required Sacrifice. He was probably embarrassed to be building a boat when the weather was beautiful. But what a relief that He listened to God, saw danger, and avoided it.