Do you believe in God only when things are favorable in your life?

Do you believe in God only when you feel like you can hear Him and feel Him close?

Do you believe in God only when things make sense?

It’s time for the body of Christ to mature in our walk with God.  We can’t only love Him and serve Him when we understand, or when things are going well, or when we feel Him.

The greatest act of our love is to remain loyal to God in the season when we struggle to feel Him, hear Him, to understand, and when things are difficult.

It’s time to mature.

We must grow up.

How can we expect to always understand our eternal God?  How can we expect to always understand our God Who knows all from beginning to end?

We have no right to imagine that we will understand everything.  It’s complete arrogance.

How can we expect to have everything unfold within our timeline?  We are far from eternal…we are here for a moment and gone, but God is forever. 

How can we only love God when He’s making life easy for us?  Do you remember Jesus at all?  God sent His own Son to die for us…how can we expect everything to be easy for us? 

It’s time to develop stable loyalty to God.

Loyalty that lasts beyond understanding, beyond circumstance, beyond the good and bad and just remains.

Stable loyalty.

Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.  For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.  So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.  If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and He will give it to you.  He will not rebuke you for asking.  But when you ask Him, be sure that your faith is in God alone.  Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.  Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.  Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.  James 1:2-8

I have a word burning in my heart.  A word burning for the family.  For marriage. 

I see divorce ravaging the world around us all the time.  It’s so devastating.  It brings a heavy cost and burden to the children being raised within. 

I am calling out to God’s people to restore the commitment of marriage.  Keeping the covenant holy.  Being steadfast in our decision to spend our whole lives with a mate. 

Marriage is a mirror of what we will see in heaven. 

When our Bridegroom comes, and we are married to Him.

Will you be committed to Him?  How can we say we will if we fail to live out commitment now?

I stay committed and in love with my husband for the Lord. 

Yes, I love my husband, but more than that, I love God. 

I see in my marriage opportunities to honor God with my commitment every day. 

Within marriage I see the opportunity to learn humility.  Within marriage I see the opportunity to learn to forgive and be forgiven.  Within marriage I see the opportunity to assume the best of someone instead of believing for the worst.  Within marriage I see the opportunity to learn how to be loved, as well as learning to love another. 

Marriage is purposeful. 

The culture doesn’t decide the health of my marriage.  Culture doesn’t get to tell me what is toxic in my marriage and what is God. 

In moments of difficulty between us, I go to God alone to decide if it’s worth it to stay within this covenant.  God alone.  No man gets to decide for me.  Only God. 

Every time I’ve gone to Him with, even our most difficult challenges, He’s reminded me of what He plans to do with our marriage.  He reminds me of the promise He’s placed over our covenant. 

Staying married is a blessing to us…but staying married while walking in forgiveness, joy, and love…is a blessing to everyone around us.

We get to choose.  Choose joy.  Choose forgiveness.  Choose love.

Love keeps no record of wrongs…so how can we?

Can’t we lay pride aside long enough to forgive, receive joy overflowing, and allow our children and their children to experience the beauty of our loving marriage?

Love is patient, love is kind.  It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  Love never fails.  1 Corinthians 13:4-8a

Now is not a time to grow weary.  Now is not a time to relent in the fight.  Now is not the time to become lazy and distracted. 

Now is the time to walk steady.

There has been so much going on in our country, but with some great victories I know we all have a tendency to back off and return to complacency.  But this is the opposite of what we should do!

When we received mercy God instructed me to begin to pray even more diligently than I did before. 

We got the walls of Jericho to fall, now is the time to go in and slay the enemy within.

Do you hear what I’m saying?

The walls have fallen, but the enemy within must be slain.

We cannot back down.  We cannot become complacent and assume that others will fight all the battles for us.  We must charge the city and reclaim the land. 

This is a season of fighting. 

This is the time to war in the spirit.  Be in the secret place.  Hear from God and declare the victory!  Become bold in the presence of the enemy.  We are victorious!

Here’s what I know…we were made for this!  Each of us was created to live in this specific time and to participate in this spiritual war.

So, let’s walk steady.

Don’t relent.

Don’t back down.

Let’s take the land and turn things around for generations to come.

Then the Lord said to Joshua, “See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men.  March around the city once with all the armed men.  Do this for six days.  Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams’ horns in front of the ark.  On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets.  When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have the whole army give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the army will go up, everyone straight in.”  Joshua 6:2-5

There are seasons through which we live that feel never ending.  The length of these seasons can sometimes make us forget the good times.  The times of abundance.  The time of peace.  I know, from experience, that this is true.

There have been times during our current season that I have all but forgotten how far we’ve already come.  There have been times in the desert that all I could see before me and behind was dry, desolate desert and in those moments, it is difficult to remain hope filled. 

But hope springs eternal.

Just when we feel all might be lost, it springs up!  Hope!! 

Springs in the desert.  They are always there to be found. 

I have an encouragement for you today…

All seasons end. 

Seasons are just that, seasons.  They are made to be temporary.  They lead into the next season.  So, one thing we can be certain of, is that.  One season leads to another.  It’s all a sign of progress, if we will just keep moving forward.

Each season carries lessons to learn.  When we are willing to surrender to a season, it makes it far more tolerable. 

But my main encouragement for today is for when a season has ended…when a season ends, it’s over forever. 

Isn’t that a wonderful thing to remember while in a difficult season?!

Seasons are like contractions that a woman has during childbirth.  Each contraction serves it purpose in bringing forth the birth, but at the end of each one we can thank it for doing its good work and let it go…because we will never have that contraction again.

How do I know a season has ended?

Because it never comes again.

That’s my word…wipe your hands clean and know in your spirit that once a season ends, it’s over.  We shouldn’t drag it out by refusing to move forward.  We shouldn’t cling to it by acting as a victim. 

It’s time to wash our hands and let it go.

I feel it burning in my spirit that the greatest obstacle to forward motion is often our resistance to let go and trust God enough for us to move forward. 

Are you willing?  Will you choose to move forward? 

Thank God for the season that’s ending and embrace what He’s doing today!

“I will make a covenant of peace with my people and drive away the dangerous animals from the land.  Then they will be able to camp safely in the wildest places and sleep in the woods without fear.  I will bless my people and their homes around my holy hill.  And in the proper season I will send the showers they need.  There will be showers of blessing.  The orchards and fields of my people will yield bumper crops, and everyone will live in safety.  When I have broken their chains of slavery and rescued them from those who enslaved them, then they will know that I am the Lord.  They will no longer be prey for other nations, and wild animals will no longer devour them.  They will live in safety, and no one will frighten them.  And I will make their land famous for its crops, so my people will never again suffer from famines or the insults of foreign nations.  In this way, they will know that I, the Lord their God, am with them.  And they will know that they, the people of Israel, are my people, says the Sovereign Lord.  You are my flock, the sheep of my pasture.  You are my people, and I am your God.  I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!”  Ezekiel 34:25-31

As I contemplated my Savior today, all I could think was…come sit with Jesus. 

Sit with Jesus and suddenly you have peace.

Sit with Jesus and the world begins to fall into order.

Sit with Jesus and priorities fall into line.

Sit with Jesus and suddenly you know the truth.

Sit with Jesus and pause…stop scurrying through the day…find the rest He offers.  Take some deep breaths and quiet your insides.  Listen.  Can you hear it?

The soft and sweet sound of His voice speaking to your heart.  Close your eyes and truly see.  See the unseen. 

Sniff the air.  Doesn’t it suddenly smell sweet?  The aroma of heaven fills the room.

Sit with Jesus because He’s the One most worthy of your time.

Today, I pray you will choose Him.

Read this portion of Scripture and meditate on Him.

Blessed be the name of the Lord now and forever.  Everywhere- from east to west- praise the name of the Lord.  For the Lord is high above the nations; His glory is higher than the heavens.  Who can be compared with the Lord our God, Who is enthroned on high?  He stoops to look down on heaven and on earth.  He lifts the poor from the dust and the needy from the garbage dump.  He sets them among princes, even the princes of His own people!  He gives the childless woman a family, making her a happy mother.  Praise the Lord!  When the Israelites escaped from Egypt- when the family of Jacob left the foreign land- the land of Judah became God’s sanctuary, and Israel became His kingdom.  The Red Sea saw them coming and hurried out of their way!  The water of the Jordan River turned away.  The mountains skipped like rams, the hills like lambs!  What’s wrong, Red Sea, that made you hurry out of their way?  What happened, Jordan Rive, that you turned away?  Why, mountains, did you skip like rams?  Why hills, like lambs?  Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob.  He turned the rock into a pool of water; yes, a spring of water flowed from solid rock.  Psalm 113:1-9; 114:1-8

When we live a right life…when we fear the Lord and delight in His commands…not only are we blessed, but our children and an entire generation will also be blessed.

This is a wonderful example of the goodness of God. 

We should live each day expecting to be blessed by God.  This isn’t selfish, this is walking in the true riches of the kingdom.  When we’re blessed, others are too. 

After being a parent for many years, I realize only a fraction of how much God wants to bless His children.  I seek so many opportunities to bless my children and to extend grace and mercy toward them.  If I, as a human, desire this then how much more does our Father in heaven?

Even when I am dealing with a child who has pushed limits, scoffed at boundaries and caused their own set of problems…my heart as a parent is to bless. 

I don’t want to bless my children into dependency and laziness, but I want them to always feel the open arms of God extending toward them through my actions.

I seek to bless them within the heart of God.  In a way that honors Him and shows them that His mercies are new every day. 

That being said, I don’t think any of us should consider ourselves unworthy of being blessed. 

Instead, I pray all our eyes are opened to the extravagant blessings of God.

When we fear the Lord and love His commands, we can expect blessings. 

How joyful are those who fear the Lord and delight in obeying His commands.  Their children will be successful everywhere; an entire generation of godly people will be blessed.  They themselves will be wealthy, and their good deeds will last forever.  Psalm 112:1-3

Those who’ve been reading my devotionals for long, know that this is a portion of our family Psalm. 

This Psalm makes it clear that we position ourselves for blessings when we fear God and delight in His commands. 

I believe that we should expect to be blessed.  My kids come to me and expect blessings.  God is our Father; we should expect His blessings.  There’s nothing wrong with that.  It’s not ingratitude.  It’s from a position of complete humility and awe that I come to Him with expectation.

Come to the Father today.  Come with expectation.  Knowing that He loves you more than you’ll ever know. 

I sat to pray and was mulling over an ongoing situation that keeps popping up.  Someone’s journey that is almost daily a struggle.  Consistently bringing up opportunities for me to fret.  As I saw the storm, I once again desired to rise above…then I opened up my Bible reading for the day and this was what I saw…

Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.  Through their faith, the people in days of old earned a good reputation.  By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen.  Hebrews 11:1-3

As I read the first few words and was transported to a place where I have true faith.  I saw myself rise above the storm of that person’s today and I saw it calmed, and I saw Jesus sitting next to that person.  His hand resting on their shoulder.  His presence, like a cloud, filling all the space around that person.

Then I was still.  Peaceful again because of my perspective.

I will continue to direct you all to this reality because we need it more often than we think.  We can have a heavenly perspective all the time, if we choose to have it. 

I have stilled and quieted my soul…these words from Scripture constantly ring in my mind. 

Being still…being peaceful…being faithful is an active, everyday choice. 

It’s my choice.

Is it yours?

I’d rather be known for my peacefulness and faithfulness, than for always being in a tizzy.  Wouldn’t you?

By faith I walk into today and embrace everything God brings to me.  By faith I believe that the troubles of today won’t last forever.  By faith I believe that every person can be changed, regardless of age or current circumstance.  By faith I will take command over every fear and insecurity and know that God gives me everything I need. 

By faith we can stand in agreement with heaven.

By faith we can see into heaven and believe God.

Open the eyes of faith in each one of us God.  Open wide our eyes to see all that You are doing around us, within us, and through us.  Open our eyes.  Let us see what cannot be seen with earthly eyes.   Open the eyes of our hearts, so we can see You, God.

If everything we now see, came from that which could not be seen, then what can we not have faith for today?  Believing in that which we have not yet seen…that’s how I choose to live.

Believers can testify of the Lord by what comes from the overflow of our hearts.  We testify to God’s sovereignty by what we know in our bones is truth.  His word is written on our hearts, once we’re saved.  Our minds are held with truth…if we will only learn to listen. 

And the Holy Spirit also testifies that this is so.  For He says, “This is the new covenant I will make with My people on that day, says the Lord: I will put My laws in their hearts, and I will write them on minds.”  Then He says, “I will never again remember their sins and lawless deeds.”  Hebrews 10:15-17

I believe that we are far too easily influenced by the masses and the ways the world church tells us to live and behave.  Making concession for sins and allowing for people to walk in unfettered fear.  The spirit of fear is our enemy.  It comes from the enemy. 

I’ve always noticed there are certain things that the church pretends are acceptable sins…gossip, slander, mocking, fear, anxiety, etc. 

These things are no less sins than murder.  I have never seen God rate the wrong of sins in Scripture.  To Him, sin is sin.  Shouldn’t it be to us as well?

This leads us to walk out our salvation with fear and trembling…the fear of the Lord…far different from spirit of fear.  Fear of the Lord is like a strong reverence.  A realization of how great He is.

The thing that gives me confidence in approaching God, and knowing Him more, is the fact we read in the Scripture above…He will never again remember my sins and lawless deeds.

I can come before Him boldly and confidently because He doesn’t see me through the veil of my sins.  He sees me through the covering of Jesus.  The blood that washed me white. 

His Truth, the Truth, is written in our minds. 

Can you hear it?

Do you believe it?

Can you comprehend it?

We find rest when we are still and allow the truth God has laid on our hearts and within our minds to soak through our entire being. 

There is nothing to fear.  The spirit of fear is abolished when we soak in the Truth of heaven.

Today I encourage you to do just that.  Take some time and close your eyes and ask God to bring you into agreement with the Truth He has placed in your heart and on your mind.  Let it soak into your whole being.  See the world different.  Embrace Truth and walk in freedom.

Are you struggling with anything in your life?  Do you have troubles in a certain area that feel overwhelming and all-consuming?  Are you fighting in the spirit for someone and it seems hopeless? 

If you are then I have an encouragement for you today!

As I was discussing some challenges we are walking through with someone, I began to prophesy over myself.  Suddenly I was saying things that I’d not thought about before and I knew God was using the words He had put on my lips, to encourage and direct me.

What a striking moment.

Realizing I wasn’t speaking from my own intellect, rather the wisdom from heaven. 

It’s very humbling, for certain.

Here’s how it went.

I was telling the story of things a loved one is going through.  The person said something about how they wished the person could fight for justice in the situation. 

Suddenly I spoke…you know when I look at this situation from the earthly vantage point, it feels unjust and hopeless.  I only see the struggle.  But if I can look at it from the second heaven, I see the real battle.  The battle is over this person’s future.  Their calling.  From the second heaven I see the battle because that’s where the spiritual battles occur.  But if I can look at it from the vantage point of the third heaven, then I can see God has already won.  I can pray from victory, not for victory.  That’s where I choose to operate.

Wow.

I knew all this was true.  We read about different heavens in Scripture.  We read about people going to these heavenly places.  If they did it in Scripture, then we can do it now. 

God was encouraging me and telling me where I need reside during this battle.    

So, I have been, and it’s carried so much more peace.  When I feel hopelessness and frustration trying to grab a hold of me and pull me down to another perspective, I say, “NO!”  and I continue to focus on the victory.

God has already seen the victory.  He wrote about it in the story of this person’s life.  Who am I to disagree?

I encourage you to do the same if you have a battle in your life or the life of a loved one. 

I’ll see you there!

I must go on boasting.  Although there is nothing to be gained, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord.  I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven.  Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know- God knows.  And I know that this man- whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows- was caught up to paradise and heard inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell.  I will boast about a man like that, but I will not boast about myself, except about my weaknesses.  2 Corinthians 12:1-5

I wonder if you’ve seen Him. 

The Man in white.

I wonder if you know Him.

The One Who walks in glory.

He looks like a man, but glows with glory that can only come from God.

This Man Who is clearly more than a mere man.

Everywhere He walks, peace goes before Him and behind Him and all around Him.

Do you know this God Man?

Yeshua.

Saying His name feels like breathing.  It expels air and increases it all at once.  He is everything.

When I see Him, I feel complete.  Suddenly nothing is lacking.  All is full.  Satisfied.  Being with Him makes me want more of only Him.  It feels alive. 

His very presence brings a feeling of being at home. 

I am home when I am with Him. 

I see this Man in white walking down a narrow road.  I choose to follow.  I walk in His light.  Around Him there is no shadow. 

In Him is the fullness of grace.  Our salvation.  Our Savior.  The Great I Am.

So, Christ has now become the Hugh Priest over all the good things that have come.  He has entered that greater, more perfect Tabernacle in heaven, which was not made by human hands and is not part of this created world.  With His own blood- not the blood of goats and calves- He entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever.  Under the old system, the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer could cleanse people’s bodies from ceremonial impurity.  Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deed so that we can worship the living God.  For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered Himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins.  That is why He is the One Who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them.  For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under the first covenant.  Hebrews 9:11-15