Category: Strength for Today

John 4:23
“But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.”

For about a decade, I took a group of young people out every summer to represent a Bible college. The purpose of going out with this group was to recruit young people who were seeking to go to Bible college. We were scouts for the college, seeking young people who had a desire to serve the LORD full-time or who had a desire to learn more about the ministry so they could go back to their home church and help their pastor in the ministry.

Jesus made it clear that He was a scout. He did not come to Earth to seek His own will, but He came to Earth to seek His Father’s will. The will which the Father seeks is made clear in the verse above when Jesus says, “…for the Father seeketh such to worship him.” This is the type of Christian for which Jesus sought, and He still seeks that type of Christian today. What is this type of Christian for which the Father seeks?

First, He seeks the type of Christian who worships Him “in spirit.” What does this mean to worship God “in spirit”? It carries a couple of meanings. God is seeking the type of Christian who will serve Him by faith. When you worship God by faith, you are worshipping Him “in spirit.” God desires a Christian who is willing to walk by faith and not by sight. This is a true worshipper. True worship is not holding up your hands with a worship team as they sing, but true worship is someone who is willing to step out by faith and follow God’s will for their life. This will is not always going to be easy to follow, because this will oftentimes will require someone to live by faith and trust God. This is true worship!

Moreover, worshipping God “in spirit” is also have a good spirit while you serve the LORD. It is a great thing to live by faith, but having a good spirit while you live by faith is better. God seeks those Christians who have a good spirit about serving Him. They are not serving Him because “they have to,” but they are serving Him because it’s a privilege to do so and they are doing it with a good spirit. Friend, the true worshipper is one who lives by faith and doesn’t complain about having to do so. It’s a privilege to get to live by faith and serve the LORD.

Second, God seeks the type of Christian who worships Him “in truth.” This is the type of Christian who will not compromise what they believe for the sake of crowds. You will never please God by letting down your standards for the sake of a greater ministry. God seeks the Christian who will stand true to the Word of God without compromise. He seeks the one who will not change for the sake of one’s conscience or culture. He seeks the Christian who will serve Him whether it is popular or not; whether it is trendy or out-of-date; whether it is acceptable or unacceptable according to the day’s opinions.

Are you the type of Christian God seeks? The true worshipper will live by faith and have a good spirit about doing so, and they will never compromise for the sake of acceptance. I encourage you to be that type of Christian for which God seeks. If you will be this type of Christian, then you will be the type of Christian who pleases God.

Exodus 40:36-37
“And when the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the children of Israel went onward in all their journeys: But if the cloud were not taken up, then they journeyed not till the day that it was taken up.”

After the children of Israel built and erected the tabernacle according to the word of the LORD, a cloud with God’s presence covered it. That cloud was showing Israel that God was pleased with their obedience to His Word.

The Scriptures go further by telling us that the cloud also became the tool used to guide the children of Israel throughout the wilderness. The cloud also became a pillar of fire by night so they clearly see the LORD’s leading and have warmth at night from the cool of the desert. This was how the LORD led in their lives.

When it comes to the leading of the LORD, Christians seem to have little discernment. You often hear someone say, “I feel the LORD is leading me to…” They base the LORD’s leading off feelings instead of knowing that the LORD is leading. Going off feelings is very dangerous because you never know when those feelings are truly yours or if they are being influenced by outside situations. I believe this story shows some very clear signs about the leading of the LORD.

First, the leading of the LORD is oftentimes found in church. The cloud and the pillar of fire rested upon the tabernacle. The tabernacle was where Israel met for services. You will find it hard to find the LORD’s leading in your life when you are missing church. Moreover, this is why you shouldn’t miss church because you never know when the LORD is going to lead you in a church service. It would be terrible if you missed the LORD’s leading in your life because you frivolously miss church. If you want to find the LORD’s leading, then you need to be faithful to church.

Second, the leading of the LORD is found in the Scriptures. Inside the tabernacle were the tables of stone that had the writing of God upon them. We have the Word of God to read daily. You will find the LORD’s leading in your life inside the pages of the Word of God. You must be careful about missing one day of reading His Word. His voice of leading can be found as you read the pages of His Word, and one day of not reading the Scriptures could be the one day you miss His leading.

Third, the leading of the LORD will never disagree with His Word. Wherever the LORD led Israel, the tables of stone went as well. When the LORD leads in your life, you will find that it never disagrees with His Word. If what you feel is the leading of the LORD doesn’t agree with the Scriptures, then you can be sure that isn’t the LORD leading. The LORD’s leading will always agree with Scripture.

Finally, the leading of the LORD is found through patience. Israel could not move ahead of the cloud or lag behind. It took patience to follow His leading. You must continually keep your eye on the LORD and be patient as He leads in your life. Be careful not to become inpatient and move ahead or be lazy and lag behind. Moving at God’s pace always moves you at God’s speed.

The LORD’s leading in your life is clear if you will keep your eyes upon Him. Don’t let your feelings blur your vision of His leading, but keep your eyes on Him by following these four steps.

Luke 22:21
“But, behold, the hand of him that betrayeth me is with me on the table.”

One of the most amazing verses in the Scriptures is the verse above. Jesus is at the last supper with His disciples, and He prophesied that one of them was going to betray Him. Not only did He prophesy who was going to betray Him, but He identified that He knew who they were and that they were sitting with Him at the table. The disciples wanted to know who this person was so that they could take care of him, but Jesus would not let the conversation go any further.

The amazing thing about Jesus knowing who this person was is that He did not try to destroy the person, nor would He allow the others to hurt him. Jesus knew very well that if He identified that person that Peter most likely would respond in a negative manner as was seen when he cut off the ear of the centurion. Jesus was not interested in this person being destroyed, but I believe that Jesus was more interested in trying to help him get saved even if He was going to be hurt. Even when Judas Iscariot came and kissed Jesus on the cheek He said, “Friend, wherefore art thou come?” (Matthew 26:50) When Jesus had the power to hurt Judas, He was still trying to help him turn things around so that he would not destroy himself. It did not matter to Jesus that He would be hurt, He was more interested in trying to help someone else from being hurt by their own sin.

Let me turn this on you and ask, what would you do if you knew who was going to hurt you? Would you respond the same way that Jesus did? I know this is a rhetorical question, but it is deserving of asking. Would you try to stop the hurt from happening or would you let it happen for the sake of having an opportunity to help someone? The attitude of the Saviour was that He was willing to be hurt for the sake of helping others. Instead of being spiteful, He was being helpful.

The best way to answer the previous question is by asking, who has deeply hurt you in the past and how do you treat them? If someone in the past has hurt you and you have not forgiven them, then how do you think that you would not try to destroy someone who has not yet hurt you but is about to hurt you? If you can’t forgive someone who has deeply hurt you in the past, then you definitely would not try to help someone who you knew was going to hurt you in the future.

Friend, the Christian life is about helping others get closer to Christ. Instead of spending your life trying to destroy those who have hurt you, you need to spend your days trying to help restore their fellowship with Christ. I am not saying that the hurt from someone in the past isn’t great, but I am saying that you will never be used greatly until you acquire the attitude of Christ’s forgiveness. It is those who are willing to be hurt so that others can be helped whom God has the confidence in to use to help others in a great way. God knows that if you spend your life helping others, then you will be hurt; however, if you have Christ-like forgiveness you will forgive them so their fellowship with Christ will be restored.

Is there anyone that would cause anger to swell in your heart if they walked into your presence? Let this devotional encourage you to forgive them. Only those who are willing to be hurt and are willing to forgive will be used by Christ to help others in the greatest way.

Luke 13:19
“It is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and cast into his garden; and it grew, and waxed a great tree; and the fowls of the air lodged in the branches of it.”

We often hear about God being the God of the miraculous, but we sometimes fail to hear where the miraculous starts. When Jesus describes the kingdom of God, He says, “It is like a grain of mustard seed…” In other words, before the miraculous ever starts, there is a person who takes a small amount of faith and uses what they have, and He then takes that faith and blesses it. There are several things that God is teaching us about mustard seed faith.

First, mustard seed faith is worthless without God. The man may have taken his seed and cast it into his garden, but it was God Who grew that seed. It was the faith of that man to take his seed and cast it into his garden that got God’s attention to make it grow. Your faith will never grow without God. God is not impressed with what you know and what you can do, but He is interested in your reliance upon what He can do through you if you will have the faith to let Him grow your faith. Your faith will not grow without God. The size of your faith is not what matters, it’s the greatness of your God in Whom you put your faith that matters.

Second, mustard seed faith must be patient. Growing is never a quick process. God never said how quickly the mustard seed grew, all He said was that “it grew.” You must be patient with what God is doing through your faith because He never works off man’s timetable. God has a schedule for your faith to grow, and you must be patient with Him as He matures your faith into greatness.

Third, mustard seed faith grows from where it is. The mustard seed is a small seed, but it grew from a small seed into a great tree. You must take your faith from where you are and grow it. Stop worrying about your faith not being as big as another’s faith; instead, take the faith you have and work it. Your faith may be small, but take whatever faith you have and let God use it. You may not have the faith to get big answers to prayer, but exercise whatever faith you have and pray. All faith starts small, and you must grow it from where it is.

Fourth, mustard seed faith uses its strength to help others. The purpose of the mustard seed becoming a tree was so that the birds of the air had a place to nest. The purpose of your faith is not for your personal use, but it is to help others. God doesn’t grow your faith for your benefit, though it will benefit you, but He grows your faith to benefit others. Your faith will never grow into a great faith until you start using it to be a blessing and help to others.

Everyone has some amount of faith, but the key is taking whatever faith you have and using it. When God sees that you are using the faith that you do have, then He will increase it. Faith doesn’t grow when it is stagnant, but faith grows when it is being used. Whatever amount of faith you have, use it and watch God grow it into a great faith that helps others.

Exodus 18:21
“Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens:”

The pressure of leading the children of Israel had evolved into something that was greater than what Moses could handle. He would literally spend all day counseling, judging and advising the people and it was wearing him down. His father-in-law wisely advised him to train several men who could help him in counseling, judging and advising the people. There were five qualifications that he gave that would be wise for anyone to follow when choosing someone to advise them.

First, they must be an able person who has the ability to handle pressure. An advisor has to be able at times to say and do the hard things. If a person is not capable of handling pressure situations, then they have no business advising someone. There are going to be times when an advisor has to rebuke or make a decision that won’t be popular. If they are not able to make and enforce decisions that are unpopular, then they have no business leading and advising others.

Second, they must be a person who fears God. The fear of God moves people to do the right thing. A person who fears God is a person who respects the power of God. A true fear of God will cause anyone not to fear man more than God. It is so important that people who lead and advise others understand that their eyes must be kept upon God in order to keep favoritism from influencing their advice.

Third, they must be a person who follows and loves truth. This is important because people who follow truth will not allow personalities or institutions to influence their position or direction. The truth of God’s Word must always be the horizon from which they determine right and wrong. A godly advisor will keep and use God’s Word as their basis for all they do and advise.

Fourth, they must be a person who is not covetous. This is so important because covetous people will use others to build their own coffers. Covetous people are self-serving people, and their advice will be skewed by how it affects them and not by what God wants for a person. Covetous advice is self-serving advice. A covetous advisor will never advise someone to do something if it hurts or hinders what the advisor wants. This is why you need a person who is truly satisfied with what they have and with who they are in position and as a person.

Fifth, they must be a person who does not desire position. It is very interesting that the men whom Moses chose would be placed over different sized groups. Advisors cannot be position hungry. Position hungry people will advise by what will help them move up and not by what God wants for a person. You want someone advising you who is truly content with the position God has given them.

These things are important for you to use in choosing an advisor. Most of these things are a package deal. You will find that if a person has two of these qualifications, they will most likely have them all. Choosing advisors with these qualifications will help you to more easily find what God wants you to do. Be careful with choosing your advisors and make sure these five things are evident in their lives.

Luke 8:18
“Take heed therefore how ye hear: for whosoever hath, to him shall be given; and whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he seemeth to have.”

One would think that there is nothing that could hinder the effectiveness of God’s Word. The power of God’s Word is amazing when you consider Hebrews 4:12 when it says, “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” The power that is in God’s Word is so powerful that it is like dynamite, and yet God says that there are some things that hinder It’s effectiveness.

Jesus taught a parable to show what hinders the effectiveness of His Word. He talked about a person who went to sow seed, and the seed fell on different types of soil. The effectiveness of that seed was determined by the ground on which it fell. That seed is the Word of God and the ground upon which It falls is your heart. The effectiveness of God’s Word in your life will ultimately be determined by your heart.

The first thing that keeps God’s Word from being effective in one’s life is that they are not saved. I’m always amazed how people who didn’t understand God’s Word before they got saved immediately start understanding It after salvation. The reason is because they have the Holy Spirit inside to explain what God’s Word says. If you’re having difficulties understanding God’s Word, then you need to ask yourself if you’re truly saved. Salvation is the first step in allowing God’s Word to become effective in your life.

The second thing that keeps God’s Word from being effective in one’s life is not properly accepting the hardships of life. You must guard your heart from being hardened to God’s Word because of your trials. Everyone faces trials, but if trials cause you to become bitter, then God’s Word will not be able to do It’s work through you like God intended. Those who accept life’s trials as God’s tool to further His cause are those who find the help and strength they need from His Word.

The third thing that keeps God’s Word from being effective in one’s life are the “cares and riches and pleasures of this life.” In other words, when a person becomes wrapped up in worldly pleasures and possessions, it keeps God’s Word from being effective in their life. It is amazing how worldly pleasures and possessions will cause one not to enjoy reading the Word of God. The cares of this world have limited what God’s Word can do.

Friend, you ultimately determine how effective God’s Word is in your life. God’s Word can do a great work in your life if you will give your heart wholly to God. Don’t allow the pleasures of this world and the hardness of trials to keep God’s Word from working through your life. God’s Word is a powerful Book, and It will perform powerful works through the one who yields their body, soul and spirit to do whatever It commands. The person whose heart is tender and willing to do whatever God’s Word says is the person who will truly experience the effectiveness of God’s Word.

Proverbs 9:4
“Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither: as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him,”

Everyone starts out simple at some point in their life. Being simple is not an indictment against someone, it simply means that you are new at something and that you have plenty to learn. However, nobody stays simple. You will either turn into a fool or scorner, or you will be wise enough to control three areas of your life that will help lead you to understanding.

The first area you must control are your actions. Verse 6 says, “Forsake the foolish…” In other words, there must come a point in your life when you forsake foolish actions. I’ve often said that everyone needs to grow up. There are some things that you expect from youth that you don’t expect from adults. Let me simply say that adults need to stop acting like they are still teenagers. Foolish actions lead to foolish living. If an adult never puts away childish actions, then you can expect them to become a fool.

Furthermore, youth need to start growing up and stop acting foolishly. Just because you are a youth does not give you a license to act foolishly. If you want the respect of an adult, then act like one. Stop using your youth as an excuse to act foolishly. At some point you need to put away foolish actions so that those who are wise will want to be around you.

The second area you must control are your associations. Verse 6 continues to say, “…go in the way of understanding.” Your associations will influence what you become. If you want to become someone who is wise, then you need to spend time with wise people. This is why God says in the same verse, “Forsake the foolish, and live…” Your associations identify what you are becoming. If you don’t like what people say about you, then change your associations and be sure to associate with those who have a good reputation. If you need wisdom, then choose to associate with people who are wise in the areas where you are simple.

The third area you must control is your acceptance of instruction and rebuke. Verse 8 says, “Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee.” The person who won’t accept advice is the person who is headed down the road towards destruction. At some point you are going to have to stop getting upset with those who are trying to help you and start listening to them. Only the fool will act like they know everything. Learn to listen to the instruction of those who know what they are doing instead of giving your opinion.

Furthermore, you must readily take rebuke with a humble spirit. Rebuke is never an easy pill to swallow, but you must quietly and humbly take it so that you can learn from your mistakes. If rebuke causes you to get upset and shut off those who are trying to help, then you are headed down the road to foolishness. Everybody is going to make a mistake that must be rebuked, and what you do with rebuke reveals your heart.

These three areas will ultimately determine what becomes of the simple person. Likewise, these three areas will determine what becomes of a wise person. Guard these three areas in your life so that your life will enjoy the benefits of wisdom and understanding.

Genesis 49:22
“Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall:”

God commands the Christian to bear fruit. He says in John 15:16, “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain…” Bearing fruit is a natural process of anything that has life, and a Christian obtained life when they were born again.

The fruit bearing process is not easy. The Scriptures say, “Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall:” The “bough” is the main branch of a tree. Notice that his branches ran “over the wall.” In other words, Joseph grew, but his growth allowed him to help others. When his branches ran over the wall, those on the other side of the fence were blessed and helped because of his fruit. What is often not seen is what it took for Joseph to become the fruitful bough whose branches ran “over the wall.”

First, it takes battles to become fruitful. It says in verse 23 that he was “sorely grieved” and “shot at.” You will never be fruitful without hard times. Everyone wants the opportunity to be used by God, but it is in times of hardships that we become fruitful. Your branches grow when facing the battles of health, finances, family issues, job insecurity or whatever trial you may face. Joseph became the fruitful bough while a slave in Egypt and while sitting in the prison cell. Those who run from hardships never experience the blessings that come from helping others, because those hardships are what allow your fruitful branches to grow.

Second, it takes perseverance to be fruitful. Verse 24 says that his bow “abode in strength.” He continued on in spite of the battles he faced. You will never get to the point of fruitfulness if you don’t persevere and continue on. Many of the great ministries of the past did not happen over night, but they happened when men of God continued on for years doing what they were supposed to do day in and day out. You must be willing to persevere and continue on if you want to be the fruitful bough.

Third, it takes determination to be fruitful. Notice again that his bow “abode.” In other words, he didn’t change what he was doing to get fruit, but he stayed the course. His unwillingness to change the course is what allowed his branches to grow over the fence. Too many people change course because they want quick results, but you must be willing to persevere and keep doing what you are supposed to do to see fruit. Stop looking for another way and just keep doing what you’re supposed to do.

Fourth, it takes reliance to be fruitful. It says, “…his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God…” God is the One Who makes you fruitful. When you totally rely upon God in the battles to help you to continue on without changing, then He is the One Who blesses your efforts and gives you fruit. Reliance solely upon Christ and not man is what makes your branches to grow.

Friend, fruit bearing is not for the weak. You must face battles and decide to continue on without wavering if you want God to bless. Let me encourage you to be that fruitful bough “whose branches run over the wall.” These four actions will make this happen.