As the people of God assemble today, may there be a sense of community and oneness as people of God look together unto that One from whom comes their strength. May they find strength in community and strength in their God. ”I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. 2 My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth.” (Ps.121:1-2, KJV)
We are built to anticipate. Each of us already has a pretty full plate of anticipation about the rest of the year. If we are honest, I believe we will admit that we are continually anticipating what is ahead whether we are anticipating good or bad, productive or nonproductive, desired or undesirable. It is quite difficult to anticipate the provision or intervention of God if we are not looking to God and His Word, if our anticipation capacity is already filled with the negative or the false. Ps.145:15 (NKJV) “The eyes of all look expectantly to You…” Ps.145:15 (NET) “Everything looks to you in ANTICIPATION…”
Kathy — We have to have our minds renewed to think like our Father. A renewed mind equips us to walk in dominion because we are enabled to discern both what’s going on and what to allow in earth that aligns with “as in heaven”. When Jesus taught the disciples to pray “Father, Your will be done on earth as in heaven”, who knew how much the answer to that prayer would extensively involve sons and daughters? We are all involved in this heaven-to-earth process, and our starting posture is looking to Him.
God’s Word, God’s promises, God’s covenant with His people have not become void or suspended or even diminished. “Incline your ear [submit and consent to the divine will] and come to Me; hear, and your soul will revive; and I will make an everlasting covenant or league with you, even the sure mercy (kindness, goodwill, and compassion) promised to David.” (Isa.55:3, Amp) Panic and/or despair are nothing but wasted thoughts and emotions. Those people who walk uprightly before their God will be kept in the shadow of the Almighty. “For the Lord God is a Sun and Shield; the Lord bestows [present] grace and favor and [future] glory (honor, splendor, and heavenly bliss)! No good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly.” (Ps.84:11, Amp) Jehovah (“self-Existent”) is still Jehovah and remains all that He has ever been and His Word is still good and cannot be changed. “God’s Law is more real and lasting than the stars in the sky and the ground at your feet. Long after stars burn out and earth wears out, God’s Law will be alive and working.” (Matt.5:18, Msg)
Kathy — If devils show up on our “radar” (awareness, discernment), we can take that as time for a throw down! Eph. 6:12, says “we wrestle NOT against flesh and blood” opponents, but it doesn’t just say, “We wrestle not”! In fact, it gives us a loud list of what we are wrestling: authorities and powers of darkness, master spirits who are world rulers of darkness and spirit forces of wickedness in the supernatural realm. Wrestling is about forcing an opponent to the ground. In spiritual battles, this will involve using un-carnal, God-sanctioned weapons. In wrestling, the right move is the right weapon. We have moves like effectual prayer or declaration or decree or unique obedience or gifts of the Spirit or laying on of hands, coming in the opposite spirit and corporate agreement. If the confrontation isn’t a quick “one shot, one kill” and it becomes a laborious, wearisome show-down, remember also that wrestling involves refusing to go down. Even if lion’s breath is in your face and melting your nose hairs, don’t go down in discouragement and despair. You are not wrestling to go down and end up as a lion’s lunch. Texans were inspired by their battle cry, “Remember the Alamo.” Sons of God can cry, “Remember Daniel’s Den!” That was an awesome as-it-is-in-heaven, throw-down moment of heaven coming to earth. When the wrestling match is won, we dispossess and displace the enemy, take back what they stole and bring heaven’s order into the chaos and dysfunction they caused.
The priorities we give ourselves to now are already having an impact upon our future. I have heard regrets expressed like, “If only we would have saved ‘X’ amount of money each month instead of buying that timeshare, we would have enough for this major home repair we have had to borrow money for.” “If we would have spent more time with our son while he was growing up, maybe he wouldn’t have ended up in so much trouble.” Each of us can picture those scenarios in our minds and just what they might entail and the “if” in each example rings significantly. Stewardship of our person and of the present and future events of our lives, community and nation will not only have a resulting impact upon us but also upon many others, including family. A great deal of confusing events are going on in our nation presently and they are impacting our lives and loudly screaming for our attention and energy and finance. And yet… stewardship matters.
A King has stewards so He will have someone to act through for the needs of those in His domain and the advancement of that domain (Lk.12:42-48). The King’s stewards consider present actions for future benefit of the King and His Kingdom as well as the efficient present function of that Kingdom. 1Pe.1:13, TPT — “So then, prepare your hearts and minds for action! Stay alert and fix your hope firmly on the marvelous grace that is coming to you. For when Jesus Christ is unveiled, a greater measure of grace will be released to you.” Lk.12:35-36, TPT — “Be prepared for action at a moment’s notice. 36 Be like the servants who anticipate their master’s return from a wedding celebration. They are ready to unlock and open the door for him at a moment’s notice.”
Voting is a privilege of citizenship and a basic act of Christian stewardship. You make the choice: do you want America or non-America? After November 3, 2020 it will be one or the other.
Kathy — With renewed minds we can think like our Father. Being transformed means we go through metamorphosis that changes our nature from the inside out to enable us for purpose. Walking in purpose we prove, or discern and allow what is God’s order and design. So, if a toxic atmosphere moves in like a fog, we can sense it and counter it. For example, if there is another shooting massacre, even while the media is just beginning their frenzy, we take a stand in our living room and declare, “No more.” We can be confident that agreement between heaven and earth in that moment will give God access to stop a domino effect before the power of the air can affect another crazed mind to stage a shooting. If toxic air moves in and touches our awareness, that tells us those spirits are close enough that we should touch back. There’s no reason to allow devils to freely do what they come to do. They may have squeezed in through a legal loophole, but their illegal agenda can’t stand in a face-off with sons/daughters of God legislating according to ‘as it is in heaven’!
As the people of God assemble today, may they be strengthened, encouraged, equipped and comforted by the gifts of Christ (Eph.4:11-12) and the gifts of the Holy Spirit (1Cor.14:3) for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.
Israel decided they were going back to Egypt because recollection of a physical past was all they had (Ex.16:3; Num.11:5). They couldn’t remember anything of a spiritual history because so many generations had wrestled through problems without spiritual wisdom or enablement. Start a spiritual history in your generation for the benefit of those to come. Ps.145:4, Amp — “One generation shall praise Your works to another, And shall declare Your mighty and remarkable acts.”
Kathy — We have to remember that we are not here to conform to the age we live in, nor to its rules of engagement, nor to its course and flow, nor to its fashion and norms, nor to its anxieties and fears, nor to any other toxic influence in it’s atmosphere. It is the will of our Father that we live and move and have our being in Him, not in the pollution of ungodly agendas, hellish propaganda or cycling stupidity. We were not born to be pawns of the “prince of power of the air.” So we must refuse to be conformed to this world, (Rom 12:2), and instead be transformed by the renewing of our mind, in order to prove what is that good and pleasing and perfect will of God. Most of my years, I thought of that scripture as a personal challenge about my life. I knew I should not conform and just go with the flow around me, even in Bible College. I knew my thinking had to be like my Father’s, but the pivotal word in the KJV for me was prove. I thought that scripture was saying I needed to prove that I could muster up and measure up to God’s will. However, when I searched the definitions of the words in that verse, I discovered that being renewed in mind and being transformed is more about equipping than measuring up. The word prove there is a Greek word that means “to discern, to examine, to allow”. So, let me paraphrase Rom 12:2, We are transformed from the inside out when our thinking and feelings and reasoning and understanding are developed and no longer molded by the common or typical. We can then discern that which is beneficial to and that which is agreeable with and that which is acceptable in God’s design and original intent. So that scripture is not about us proving we can merit our Father’s approval. It is about being transformed by a renewing of our mind so that we think and live like a mature son or daughter that understands they are already approved by Father as well as equipped to discern and examine what’s going on in this age. Then a mature son or daughter allows and approves what aligns with as it is in heaven and participates with heaven coming to earth!
Beside Still Waters With Marty Gabler
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