Friday, May 23 2008

David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them. "I cannot go in these," he said to Saul, "because I am not used to them." So he took them off. - 1 Samuel 17:39

David, the young shepherd boy, heard the challenge from the Philistines to send someone to fight Goliath. No one volunteered to fight except David. King Saul reluctantly agreed and offered David his armor. David put on the weighty equipment, but quickly concluded he could not fight in this heavy armor.

God equips each of us in such a way that is unique to our strengths and abilities. David was trained as a shepherd to use another weapon. For David, it was a slingshot. David showed great maturity in realizing he could not be effective with Saul's armor.

What are the gifts and talents God has given to you? Have you ever tried to accomplish a task with tools you were not trained to use? God allows each of us to develop skills that are unique to our life. He will not call you to use someone else's tools.

However, this is only half of the equation. These talents must be mixed with faith. Talent alone is not enough. Faith alone is not enough. It is only when the two are combined that God's power is released and manifested in the physical realm.

Mix your unique gifts with faith today; you will be surprised at the power of God that will be manifested.

Thursday, May 22 2008

Everyone will be salted with fire. - Mark 9:49

Jesus used parables to communicate principles of the Kingdom of God. He said each believer's life should have the same impact on his or her world as salt has on food. Salt gives food flavor and brings out the best, while at the same time it serves as a preservative.

What allows a Christian to become salty? Fire. God knows that each believer needs a degree of testing by fire in order for Christ's fragrance to be manifested. We cannot become salty without this deeper work of the Holy Spirit's fire in our lives. Fire purifies all that is not of Christ. It takes away all the impurities that prevent His nature from being revealed in us.

In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith-of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire-may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed (1 Peter 1:6-7).

Are you a salty Christian? If not, pray a prayer that the immature are unwilling to pray. Pray that God makes you a salty Christian. It will result in praise and glory at the throne of God.

Wednesday, May 21 2008

That all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in Me and I am in You. May they also be in Us so that the world may believe that You have sent Me. - John 17:21

What is the greatest power that allows the unsaved to make a decision for Jesus Christ? It isn't prayer, though this is important. It isn't good deeds, though deeds indicate a fruitful relationship with God. It isn't good behavior, though Christ commands us to be obedient as sons. The greatest power God's children have over darkness is unity. Jesus talked a great deal about His oneness with the Father and the importance of unity in the Body of Christ. It is the most difficult command Jesus gave to the Church, because it wars against the most evil aspect of our sin nature-independence.

In the last days we are seeing God's Spirit convict His children of the lack of unity among His Church. We are seeing God move between blacks and whites, ethnic groups, denominations, and parachurch groups. There is much work to be done. The walls of division and competition among His Body are a stench in God's nostrils. He sees the competition and the pride of ownership and weeps for the lost who cannot come to Him because they cannot see Him in His Body. When His Body is one, the unbelieving see that Jesus was sent by God. It is like a supernatural key that unlocks Heaven for the heathen soul. The key is in the hand of Christ's Church.

When there is unity, there is power. Scripture tells us five will chase 100, but 100 will chase 10,000 (see Lev. 26:8). There is a dynamic multiplication factor in unity of numbers. We are a hundred times more effective when we are a unified group. Imagine what God could do with a unified Church.

Jesus prayed that we all might be one, as the Father and He are one. He wanted the same love God has for Jesus to be in each of us. When this love is in us, we are drawn to each other with a common mission. The walls fall down. The independent spirit is broken. Competition is destroyed. Satan's accusations are thwarted. Our love for each other is manifest to the world around us. Lost souls begin to seek this love that is so foreign to them.

Have you contributed to an independent spirit within His Body? Are you seeking to break down walls of competition among Christians, churches, denominations, and ethnic groups? Until we walk in the spirit of unity, we will hinder those in whom God has reserved a place in Heaven. Pray for His Church to be unified.

Tuesday, May 20 2008

Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Romans 12:15 - 1 Kings 20:28

Saul was very angry; this refrain galled him. "They have credited David with tens of thousands," he thought, "but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?" (1 Samuel 18:8)

This statement caused something to snap in King Saul. From this point on, Saul was never the leader God intended him to be. He allowed insecurity to drive his every decision. Insecurity leads to the need to control people and circumstances. The need to control leads to anger once we realize we are unable to control the circumstance. King Saul could not accept, much less rejoice, over David's success. David's life would never be the same, because Saul sought to kill David every chance he had. Saul had a choice; he could have seen David as an up-and-coming general in his army who could have become an important part of his team and made the kingdom of Israel even stronger. Instead, he looked at him as a threat.

When you hear good news about fellow workers or associates, do you rejoice with them? If you find yourself comparing your life's circumstances to others and don't feel you measure up, recognize that this is one of satan's greatest ploys to destroy you.

Christ has given you all things in Him. He has a unique plan for you that cannot be compared to another. He alone is your security. Trust in the purposes He has for your life. And remember, "My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus" (Phil. 4:19 KJV).

Monday, May 19 2008

The man of God came up and told the king of Israel, "This is what the Lord says: 'Because the Arameans think the Lord is a god of the hills and not a god of the valleys, I will deliver this vast army into your hands, and you will know that I am the Lord'." - 1 Kings 20:28

Whenever we stand on the mountain, we are able to see clearly. It is the best vantage point to see what lies ahead. Wouldn't it be great to live on the mountain all the time in order to anticipate what is ahead? God allows us to experience the mountaintop at times. Joseph's first mountaintop experience was as a young man. He had the favor of his father, Jacob. He was given a fine coat and even had a dream about his future. As a young man, Joseph had a sense of destiny about his life. God often gives us a picture of our future so that we will remember this picture when we are being tested to trust Him in the valley. This picture usually does not reveal how God intends to bring about the visions for our life.

However, none of us really derive the character qualities God desires for our lives while we are on the mountain. It is in the valley where the fruit is planted and harvested. It cannot grow on the mountain; it must grow in the valley. God is a God of the mountain, but he is even more a God of the valley. In the valley, it is more difficult to see ahead; the clouds often cover the valley and limit our sight. Joseph was thrust into a deep valley that left him wondering if the God of his father had forsaken him. Jesus hoped that He might be able to avoid the valley that caused Him to sweat blood. There is a valley that each of us must enter, usually unwillingly, in order to experience the God of the valley-and to experience His faithfulness in the valley. Once we have spent time in this valley, we come out with something we would have never gained if we had not entered it. The valley brings much fruit into our lives so that we might plant seeds into the lives of others. God does not waste valley experiences. If we are faithful in the valley, we will enter a new dimension with God that we never thought possible. There is a harvest of wisdom and virtue that can only be grown in the valley.

Has God brought you into the valley? Know that the valley is a place of fruitfulness; it is a place of testing. It is where God brings what you know in your head into your heart. The only value of knowledge is when it becomes part of your heart. Look for God in the valley today.

Friday, May 16 2008

"For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father's family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?" (Est 4:14-15).

Esther was a Jewish orphan living in the land of Persia after her people were taken into captivity from Jerusalem. Raised by her cousin Mordecai, she lived during the time of King Xerxes who reigned over Persia that stretched from India to Ethiopia.

An edict was sent out to bring all the virgins to the king's palace from the surrounding regions to replace Queen Vashti who found disfavor with the king and was deposed. Esther was one of the young women taken and was ultimately selected to be the next queen.

Mordecai had a high ranking position in the government that allowed him to learn of a plot by Haman, an official of the king, to kill all of the Jews.

Now, the only way this edict would not be carried out was if Esther asked for an audience with the king to request that the plot be abandoned on her behalf. However, to request an audience before the king was a serious matter. If he refused to give her audience, the penalty was immediate death.

It was at this time she made her famous statement, "If I die, I die." Esther realized this could be the reason God created her - to save her people from destruction. However, out of concern for Esther, Mordecai explained the situation to her, "For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father's family will perish." Mordecai was giving her a choice. Either she will be used by God or someone else will be used to save their people

Everyday you are given a choice in workplace or school. Are we willing to be the person God uses to impact the future destiny of a people? Many of us are silent Christians simply letting the status quo reign while we sit quietly by watching. Who knows that you were created for such a time as this to be a catalyst to stand in the gap for some situation in your workplace or community. Be faithful to your calling!

Thursday, May 15 2008

..."having a form of godliness but denying its power" (2 Tim 3:5).

God never called you to live by good principles. He calls you to live in relationship with the living God, Jesus Christ. One of the weaknesses today is that many Christians are taught with principles without the relationship.

The western church is big on ten step programs, "how-to" methods and acrostics to illustrate memorable ideas. There is a place for establishing principles to change negative behavior. However, we are not called to have a relationship with principles, but a living God.

Living by principles is the equivalent to living by the law in the Old Testament. It is rooted in the Greek system of learning and is dependent upon our strength instead of being led and empowered by the Holy Spirit. Principle-based living is powerless living. This makes our Christian experience a religion instead of a relationship. "But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law" (Gal 5:18).

We read about principle-based followers in the book of Acts, "The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon's Colonnade. No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people" (Acts 5:12-14). There was a group of followers who liked being taught but never entered the game.

The prophet Jeremiah tells us about the nature of God and His desire for every believer.
This is what the LORD says: "Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight," declares the LORD. (Jeremiah 9:23-24).

Friend, have you been guilty of living a life based on principles instead of knowing the One who authored the principles? Invite Jesus to be Lord over your life and begin to spend time with Him every day. Ask the Holy Spirit to lead and guide you through every moment of your day.

Wednesday, May 14 2008

"Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men!" (Psalm 107:8)

In the Old Testament, we find an interesting story of how King Jehoshaphat took an uncommon approach when his enemies waged war against him. Instead of sending in his army first, he sent in the choir and musicians.

Imagine the scene: "All right, guys, here's the plan today. An army is out there, armed to the teeth. So, we are sending in the choir and the musicians." If we had been a choir member or musician, we might have wondered whether the king liked our music.
But God had directed Jehoshaphat in this unusual battle tactic. We read that Jehoshaphat appointed people to sing to the Lord, praise the beauty of holiness, and go out in front of the army saying, "Praise the Lord, for His mercy endures forever" (2 Chronicles 20:21).

So that is exactly what they did. The Bible tells us that when they began to sing and praise, God sent an ambush against the enemy, and they were destroyed. God's people were able to go into this situation giving thanks, because He was in control.

In approaching God to ask for new blessings, we should never forget to thank Him for the blessings He has already given. Have you recently come to God for help and He came through for you? Did you come back to say "thank you"?

If we would stop and think about how many of the prayers we have offered to God have been answered and how seldom we come back to God to thank Him, it just might amaze us. We should be just as deliberate in giving thanks to God as we are in asking for His help.

Tuesday, May 13 2008

"When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, 'Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.' " (Mark 8:34)

Sometimes, we will say, "We all have our crosses to bear. My cross is my supervisor at work," or "My cross is this health problem," or "My cross is this relative." Friends, we have lost the meaning of the cross!

If you were living in first-century Jerusalem and saw someone surrounded by Roman guards and carrying a cross down the street, there would be no question in your mind where that person was going. You would know that he was about to be taken outside of the city, laid on the cross, and crucified.

Someone carrying a cross was someone who was about to die. So when Jesus said, "Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me," His disciples would have understood what He meant.

Taking up the cross speaks of dying to ourselves and wanting God's will more than our own. It does not mean that your life is ruined when you decide to walk with God.

What it does mean is that you now will have life and have it more abundantly as Jesus promised, because you want God's will more than your own. Jesus said, "Whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it" (Mark 8:35).

Are you taking up the cross and following Jesus? Bearing the cross will affect and influence every aspect of your life. The result will be life as it was meant to be lived: in the perfect will of God.

Monday, May 12 2008

What kind of people does God want to use? We find the same pattern throughout Scripture: the people God used were faithful in what He had placed before them. The people that God used for big things were people who were faithful in the little things.

Perhaps you have considered dedicating your life to Christian service one day, maybe even in another country. That is a good and noble aspiration.

But how about just serving the Lord where you are right now? How about seizing the opportunities around you today?

When God used David to defeat Goliath, he was on an errand for his father, taking food to his brothers on the front lines. But as he was faithful in a little way, God gave him more.

We know that when God called Gideon to lead Israel, he was threshing wheat. When Elijah called Elisha into the Lord's service, he was plowing a field. When Jesus called Peter and John to become fishers of men, they were mending their nets.

Not one of them was sitting around, thinking, "I wonder if God will ever do anything in my life?" They were busy with the work at hand.

While we're looking for distant opportunities, we might miss the ones that are right in front of us. Are you serving the Lord right now with what He has called you to do? Be faithful in that. Do it well. Do it as unto the Lord.

It may seem like your efforts go unnoticed, but there is someone who sees. And He will reward you openly one day.

Friday, May 9 2008

"The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it" (1 Thess 5:24).

Coca-Cola is the number one "brand" in the world. Companies spend millions of dollars making their brands known in business. They want you to recognize their brand. When you think of their brand they hope you will have positive thoughts in hopes it will influence your next purchasing decision.

Every individual has a personal "brand" whether you want it or not. Cultures have a brand. Ethnic groups have a brand. Your brand is defined by your conduct. If you are always late, you'll soon develop a brand or reputation for being late. Others will even show up late because they know you will be late. If you are a person who exaggerates the truth, others will soon fail to take you serious.

However, the opposite can also be true. Your brand can be incredibly positive. By being a man or woman of your word, who is consistent in dealing fairly and honestly with others, your brand becomes known as someone who is faithful in all aspects of life.

One of God's most important characteristics is His faithfulness. Faithfulness means one is true to fulfilling their promises to others in the time which was committed. God is faithful to fulfill all His promises to His children.

Moses was also an example of faithfulness to his call. "Moses was faithful as a servant in all God's house, testifying to what would be said in the future. But Christ is faithful as a son over God's house" (Heb 3:5-6).

What is your brand among your peers? Is it a positive brand or does it need improvement? Allowing the Lord to make us more like Jesus is the only way our brand becomes trustworthy.

Ask the Lord today to make you a faithful brand in which others can trust.

Thursday, May 8 2008

"Epaphras, who Paul states to the Colossians 'is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus. . . . He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured'" (Colossians 4:12).

Many of us have been entrenched in the "secular versus sacred" model for so long that it can be difficult for us to view our work as a ministry and workplace believers as missionaries in the 9 to 5 Window. However, God tells us clearly that we are to glorify God in all that we do (see Col. 3:17, 24). Having people pray for us to fulfill our purpose and calling in our workplaces is consistent with the will of God for every individual.

While the idea of a workplace intercessor may be a new concept for us, we need to remember the examples we find in the New Testament of believers praying for one another such as Epaphras in the scripture above.

Colin Ferreira is a friend, a board member for our ministry, and an owner of an optical business in Trinidad. I first met Colin in 2001 when he invited me to speak at a Caribbean workplace conference that he was organizing. I have watched Colin develop into a Kingdom business leader.
Through a series of struggles common to most businesses, Colin began to recognize the need for more prayer coverage. One of the organizations for which he had been supplying financial and leadership support maintained a prayer ministry. Colin asked the minister who headed the organization to intercede for him and his company on an ongoing basis, and she gladly agreed.

The two met periodically to discuss prayer needs and critical issues developing within the organization, which the minister then addressed discreetly in her intercessory group meetings. Often, this woman would recognize specific problems during these prayer meetings and know how to pray for them effectively.

Is prayer a regular part of your time with God? Are you in relationship with others who are praying for you?

Wednesday, May 7 2008

"If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward" (1 Cor 3:14).

Have you ever had a job performance review? If you are in the workplace, you will likely have had one. Employers want to see if you have done what was desired of you and whether you have done it in the prescribed way that has produced results. If you do well, you will be affirmed and may even get a pay raise. If you fail to live up to expectations, you could even get fired.

The Bible has its own performance review. It is called the Judgment Seat, "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad" (2 Cor 5:10).

The generation that came out of Egypt with Moses is going to have a bad day at the Judgment Seat because we already know God's view on the matter. "That is why I was angry with that generation, and I said, 'Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known my ways'" (Heb 3:10).

The Bible says there is a way that seems right to a man, but the end is death (Prov. 14:12). There is a way that God wants you and me to operate on the earth. He has given us His Word - our instruction manual - in order to know His ways of doing things.

How well do you know the instruction manual? Have you read only a few parts here and there? Are you well versed on the intricacies of His ways so that you will be able to have a glorious "performance review" when the time comes?

Take time every day to get your instructions for His ways of living your life. Your reward will be great.

Tuesday, May 6 2008

"God blesses the people who patiently endure testing. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him." (James 1:12)

Why does God bring tests into our lives? Is it because He wants to give us a hard time or embarrass us? No. It is because God wants us to learn. He wants us to mature spiritually. God wants us to learn to trust Him, even when we don't understand Him. He wants us to be patient with Him, even when He doesn't work according to our schedules.

The Bible says, "For whom the Lord loves He chastens . . ." (Hebrews 12:6 nkjv). Although God will discipline you when necessary, the word chasten also means "to train." God wants to teach you. He wants you to grow. He loves you so much that He will bring a series of tests and lessons into your life to whip you into shape. Those very tests, those very difficulties, and those very obstacles all can be indications of God's love for you.

When you start to cross the line and do something you shouldn't, God's Holy Spirit will be there to convict you. When you try to do something that you know is wrong and God puts an obstacle in your path, it is because He loves you.

The times you should be concerned are when you can do things that you know are wrong and feel no remorse. But when you know something is wrong and struggle with it, that is a sign you are a child of God and He loves you enough to show you when you are going astray. Instead of seeing God's chastening as an intrusion in your life, welcome it. And be thankful He is looking out for you.

Monday, May 5 2008

"So I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities you did not build; and you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant" (Josh 24:13).

God called the people of Israel to leave Egypt and come out of slavery in order to enter their own Promised Land. It meant they had to change a way of life they had known their whole lives. Instead of being told what to do everyday by a taskmaster, they were now being led by the cloud of God that led them into the desert with the ultimate goal of entering their own Promised Land.

Every believer has a Promised Land in their lives. It is the place where you receive all God intended for you to receive. However, many of us are still living in Egypt where we sweat and toil in response to the taskmaster of production dictated by our workplaces and our lifestyles of busyness.

We will know when we are beginning to experience our Promised Land when we experience God?s rest at the same time we are fulfilling our work life call. We will begin to give testimony to what Joshua says in the above verse. We will begin to receive things we never built or planted. We begin to experience a level of rest in our working lives that is not characterized by sweat and toil. Things become easier because we are receiving them as a fruit of our call instead of a goal.
Provision began to follow obedience. Projects began to get done with little sweat. And God at His kairos time will bring the people to us to get things done. God will give us our Promised Land as we yield to Him.

Are you living in your Promised Land? If not, release the goals of your life to the Lord and simply be obedient to His voice. Ask Him for the steps you are to take to receive your Promised Land.

Friday, May 2 2008

"One of those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God" (Acts 16:14).

There was a business woman whom Paul encountered in Thyatira named Lydia. She was an early church entrepreneur dealing in purple cloth, the most expensive type in the 1st century Middle East. Most accounts believe this was Paul's first known convert. I find it interesting that his first known convert was a woman and an entrepreneur.

"We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul's message. When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home" (Acts 16:13-15a).

This encounter with Lydia and her women associates ultimately opened the way for ministry in that region. God often worked in and through women in the early church. Lydia was an influential businesswoman, and the gospel was affecting all strata of society, just as it does today.

Lydia was a maker of beautiful cloth mainly used by members of the royal families and Roman senators who were required to have a purple band around the edge of their togas, or robes. Purple cloth was both valuable and expensive in the culture of the first century. It was often worn as a sign of nobility or royalty. Lydia's ministry would be to the upper class business community.

Evidence of her conversion was immediate. She told the men if they considered her a believer in the Lord, she would like for them to come and stay at her house. Evidently she had plenty of room to accommodate the four of them; Paul, Silas, Timothy, and Luke was with them also. She continued to urge them and they accepted her invitation and stayed at her house.

Lydia's heart was like the good soil in the parable of the sower. When she heard the word of God, she received it with joy and obeyed the words of the apostle. Who are the "Lydias" God has placed in your circle of influence? Pray that you will be the instrument, like Paul, to bring the gospel to influential women entrepreneurs.

Thursday, May 1 2008

"God, who gets invited to dinner at your place? How do we get on your guest list? 'Walk straight, act right, and tell the truth. Don't hurt your friend, don't blame your neighbor; despise the despicable. Keep your word even when it costs you, make an honest living, and never take a bribe You'll never get blacklisted if you live like this.'" (Psalm 15 :1 THE MESSAGE).

Lack of integrity is nothing new. The Bible is full of examples. One of these involves Gehazi, the assistant to the most famous prophet of his day, Elisha. It's hard to imagine that anyone working with such an anointed man who saw firsthand the power of God would fail the integrity test. But he did.

When Elisha healed Naaman (a general in the army) from leprosy, he didn't expect to be compensated and he didn't ask for money. When Naaman insisted that Elisha take some form of payment, the prophet answered, "As surely as the Lord lives, whom I serve, I will not accept a thing" (2 Kings 5:16). Gehazi, however, did not agree with his employer. He saw this as a great opportunity for gain and took matters into his own hands. "Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said to himself, 'My master was too easy on Naaman, this Aramean, by not accepting from him what he brought. As surely as the Lord lives, I will run after him and get something from him'" (2 Kings 5:20).

As a result of his sin, God judged Gehazi. Elisha fired him and God struck him with leprosy, and his life was never the same. He was removed from serving one of God's most extraordinary prophets.

Each of us has the potential of being a Gehazi if we do not have a foundation built into our lives that makes us willing to receive only what God gives us through the fruit of our obedience.

Ask God to keep your motives pure in all you do.