Psalm 85:5-7 GW “Blessed are those who find strength in you. Their hearts are on the road that leads to you. As they pass through a valley where balsam trees grow, they make it a place of springs. The early rains cover it with blessings. Their strength grows as they go along until each one of them appears in front of God in Zion.”

Where does our strength come from? It comes from the Lord. Regardless of what you carry on your journey or where the road takes you, there is strength in God. Everywhere you go, God is there. You can’t go so far from him that his light will not show you the way back. I love where it says, ‘As they pass through a valley where balsam trees grow, they make it a place of springs.’ I believe that wherever we go, we have the ability as children of God to turn it into a beautiful, refreshing place, we just need to keep our eyes on the road that leads to him.

How does our strength grow? Our strength is in Him and as we seek him, we draw our strength from him. It’s like plugging an appliance into an electrical socket. The appliance by itself is just a cool gadget, but without power connected to it, it is useless. We must plug into God, our strength so that we avoid being just a cool gadget, useless without the power it was made to be connected to. 

2 Samuel 22:17-20 is my prayer today; “He reached down from high above and took hold of me. He pulled me out of the raging water. He rescued me from my strong enemy and from those who hated me, because they were too strong for me. On the day when I faced disaster, they confronted me, but the Lord became my defense.  He brought me out to a wide-open place.” 31-37; “God’s way is perfect! The promise of the Lord has proven to be true. He is a shield to all those who take refuge in him. Who is God but the Lord? Who is a rock other than our God? God arms me with strength. His perfect way sets me free.  He makes my feet like those of a deer and gives me sure footing on high places. He trains my hands for battle so that my arms can bend an archer’s bow of bronze. You have given me the shield of your salvation. Your help makes me great. You make a wide path for me to walk on so that my feet do not slip. He rescued me because he was pleased with me.”

God’s not looking at every little thing you’ve ever done wrong. That is under the blood of Jesus, removed from his sight forever. He looks at you and sees the righteousness of Jesus. He is your strength. When you can’t take another step, when the pressure is on you to quit, when you feel all the promises of God are lost to you, He is your strength. Stop trying to do it on your own, you weren’t made for that. He is your strength. If God’s called you to do something, stop trying to do it alone. He is your strength. It’s time to call out to him, the hope of your salvation, your present help in time of trial. He is your strength. Your solid rock. The storms of this world make shake you, but God is your immovable source of strength. 

Psalm 91:14-16 MSG “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. Call me and I’ll answer, be at your side in bad times; I’ll rescue you, then throw you a party. I’ll give you a long life, give you a long drink of salvation!”

When I was very young, I had a recurring nightmare that there were alligators under my bed. I remember multiple times just laying in bed, too afraid to run in to tell mom and dad because I was sure that they would get me if I put one foot on the floor. I would cry out and daddy would come in, hold and assure me that there was nothing there, quiet my fears before going back to bed. When I saw this verse, I thought of how many times I’ve held on to God for dear life with the promise of rescue. When Walt was out of work in the early 80’s for almost 3 years, time and time again he showed us we could trust him. When Shannon ate ant poison at age 3, I remembered the promise in his Word that ‘if they eat any deadly thing it will not harm them’, I claimed that promise and she wasn’t even sick. 

So many stories of Gods faithfulness in our lives and he’s not finished, the story is still be written. No matter what you face today, God has you in his arms, you can cling to him. You’re never too old for the Fathers arms, ever! They are large enough to snuggle in, even as big as you are today.  Gators under the bed or images in your head, whatever you face, he wants to rescue you, be your father, kiss away your cares, give you peace.  He wants to be there for you, do you hear him calling to you?

“I’ll give you the best of care if you’ll only get to know and trust me.” You simply can’t trust who you don’t know. If I don’t know you and you say I can trust you, those are only words to me. But should I get to know you, know your character and you have a chance to prove yourself to me, than I can trust you. Thats what God longs for, relationship with you. Don’t fill your life with things and keep God in the distance just in case you need him. Fill your life with God and distance yourself from things. 

Psalm 143:8 NLT “Let me hear of your unfailing love each morning, for I am trusting you. Show me where to walk, for I give myself to you.”

I John 5:14-15 ^{14 “}Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. ¹⁵ And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.” The dictionary defines confidence as full trust; belief in the powers, trustworthiness, or reliability of a person or thing. The bible defines it as faith. So John is saying here that we are to have faith in who? in God. Have faith that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us and we know we have the things we are asking for. Wait, so as soon as I pray he hears me? Have faith in God. So than, why doesn’t it show up right away?

Daniel prayed for 21 days and the angel Gabriel showed up. You can read the story for yourself, but if memory serves me correctly, when was the angel sent? As soon as he prayed. Oh, why not, Daniel 10:12, “Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words.” He goes on to say that on his way to Daniel, he ran into some great conflict and needed assistance from the Angel Michael to get through and bring the answer. But did Daniel stop praying? No, he knew that God heard him. He kept doing what he knew to do until the answer arrived.

Prayer gets Gods attention because his ears are always open to our cries, but it’s our confidence in our God that brings the answer to our door. Mark 11:23-24, Jesus said this: ²³ I can guarantee this truth: This is what will be done for someone who doesn’t doubt but believes what he says will happen: He can say to this mountain, ‘Be uprooted and thrown into the sea,’ and it will be done for him. ²⁴ That’s why I tell you to have faith that you have already received whatever you pray for, and it will be yours.

So this morning I’m reminded of a few things as the Lord takes me down this path of greater understanding; I must have full confidence that God hears me when I pray. Without that, I will waver in my faith and won’t receive anything at all. I must believe that there are power in my words; just as God formed the worlds with his words, he also gave me creative ability with my words toward life or death, my choice. I cannot say one thing and ‘mean’ another, my words must be exact and precise in what it’s targeting just as a sword goes after and strikes with purpose. I must also know my enemy. He is very real and has an agenda, to steal, kill and destroy me, my confidence and undermine my faith in God. When I understand this and arm myself with the truth of Gods Word, NOTHING will be impossible for me.

With this knowledge and understanding of who I am in Christ Jesus and the power and authority he gave to me through his sacrifice, I know God heard me when I prayed. Every word I spoke in faith, God has purpose to use for his Kingdom. I have full trust in him to bring the answer at exactly the right moment that he will bring the greatest light and glory to Him. I stand armed with the Word of God that defeats my enemy and I know that NOTHING will by any means harm me. I stand under the shadow of my Fathers mighty wing so look out, devil. My worship alone should set you to running. My praise and my song should make you scream in terror. You’ve been defeated! I know who I am! Be afraid! Be very afraid! I’m not going to waste my time fretting and wondering, I know God heard me and it’s only a matter of time before YOU know it too.

John 10:10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

Have you ever been robbed? I’ve heard people tell how they had their car stollen from them. They came out of the store and searched the entire parking lot twice thinking perhaps they parked in the wrong place. What a horrible feeling of loss and what an ordeal to go through. You lose the sense of safety and confidence you’ve always had when something is taken from you. I experienced this as a child when my dad was killed. He was there in the morning when we left for school but when we returned home he was gone. I think everyone can relate somehow to that feeling of loss.

So often my focus is so on the first part of this verse that I forget the best part; Jesus came so I could have the most abundant kind of life. This brings me to another point that I saw so vividly as I lay awake for over an hour last night totally overwhelmed by a problem we’re facing; the devil wants to strip my peace to get me to speak my problem so he can steal my promise. Stop arguing with your thoughts, put them in their place, speak the Word to every situation you’re facing. There is nothing too difficult for your Father. He is well able to take care of this problem just like he did the last problem you had.

This morning, I was reminded that God created me with purpose and the closer I get to that, the more pressure is on me to give up and quit. “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.”(John 15:16) When you draw near to the enemy’s camp, you must be confident that He who is with you is well able to deliver your enemy into your hands. If you don’t have that confidence, you’re easy prey for the enemy to pick you off and trample your fruit. 

Father, I will not run in fear nor allow my enemy to chase after me. I will stand with ALL of my armor on and the Sword of the Spirit, your Word will be in my mouth to cut the lies of the enemy to shreds. I am more than a conquerer because of your blood and the victory you won for me. Your joy will be my strength so I laugh! I will laugh at the itsy bitsy teeny weenie unarmed devil who is poised under my boot where you placed him. I win, devil! I win because Jesus won and gave me the victory. Be afraid! Be very afraid! My fruit will remain and there’s nothing you can do about it.

Psalm 63:1-5 “O God, you are my God, and I long for you. My whole being desires you; like a dry, worn-out, and waterless land, my soul is thirsty for you. Let me see you in the sanctuary; let me see how mighty and glorious you are. Your constant love is better than life itself, and so I will praise you. I will give you thanks as long as I live; I will raise my hands to you in prayer. My soul will feast and be satisfied, and I will sing glad songs of praise to you.”

This morning, I wrote a similar song to the Lord as I penned my thoughts to the King. I believe that this is why God had such close relationship with David, calling him ‘the apple of His eye’. It’s the love songs, the pouring out of ones heart to someone, it creates strong bonds of relationship. Think of your closest friend who has seen you at your worst and best. The exchange of deepest dreams, the look of love, the understanding glance. If you’ve been friends for years, you just ‘know’ when something’s wrong, when their heart is heavy, when they just need a friend. Well, that’s who God longs to be to us, but unless we trust to share our deepest wounds and our greatest joys with him, we will never develop that ‘knowing’ trust I’m talking about. With each other, that kind of relationship can take a long time to develop, but with God, it takes a moment.

Start in the Psalms, read it out loud to the Lord just as David spoke them long ago, make it your own hearts cry. Weep before Him. Close your eyes and picture him wrapping you in his arms of love. Now rest in that place and know that his love for you is constant, never changing, always present, even when you don’t ‘feel’ he’s there. “for He, God Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. I will not, I will not, I will not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let you down relax My hold on you! Assuredly not!” Hebrews 13:5b Amp. There is nothing to get you through your day like an encounter with God. Regardless of how you feel in the natural, know that God has found you and will never let you go. Relax! He’s got this!

2 Kings 4:1-7 NLV Now the wife of the son of one of the men who tell what will happen in the future cried out to Elisha, “Your servant, my husband, is dead. You know that your servant honored the Lord with fear. But the man to whom he owed money has come to take my two children to make them serve him.” Elisha said to her, “What can I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in the house?” And she said, “Your woman servant has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.”  Then he said, “Go around and get jars from all your neighbors. Get empty jars, many of them.  Then go in and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour the oil into all these jars, and set aside each one that is full.”  So she went from him and shut the door behind her and her sons. They took the jars to her, and she poured.  When the jars were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another jar.” And he said to her, “There is not one jar left.” Then the oil stopped flowing.  She came and told the man of God. And he said, “Go and sell the oil and pay what you owe. You and your sons can live on the rest.”

There were a few things I saw in this story; A tragedy doesn’t mean it’s the end of your story. This woman lost her husband and source of support but we only heard of her because God did something for her to show us how much he loves the widows and orphans. Secondly, she sought an answer from the Lord. A prophet is a representative of the Lord, someone who speaks what the Lord says. This woman needed an immediate answer to a very immediate problem. She was about to lose her boys, her home, she had nothing. Notice when he prophet asked what she had in her house her first response was nothing. Being overwhelmed with whats in front of us can make us forget the little we do have. Lastly, she obeyed the instruction that the Lord gave her and not only paid her debt but lived off the rest.

Oh, may I add this part to the story? Don’t think because your husband isn’t dead that God doesn’t see, hear and rescue you. Over the past few years, Walt and I have done the Singles Ministry at our church and what an eye opener. So lets add abandonment to this as well. If you’ve been abandoned by your spouse, God sees your plight, he understands what you’re going through. What do you have in your house? When you offer up the offering of thanksgiving, it gets the attention of God and he quickly comes to you.  Psalm 34:15 says; “The eyes of the Lord are on those who do what is right and good. His ears are open to their cry.”  Psalm 69:30; “I will praise the name of God with a song, and will magnify Him with thanksgiving.”

Being thankful gets the attention of the Lord. Instead of focusing on all the bad, focus on the good. Instead of seeing the loss, focus on the gains. Hebrews 13:5 GNT says, “Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never leave you; I will never abandon you.” What a promise. He will never leave you or forsake you. So if you’ve been in the middle of what seems like an endless struggle over the promise God has given you, don’t think for a minute that He’s doesn’t have a plan for you. Right at this moment, the hand of the Lord is strong on your behalf. Obstacles are moving out of the way to open up the greatest blessing you’ve ever seen. Don’t be down-hearted or discouraged, keep your hope in the Lord and your eyes on the great deliverer. Whatever He tells you to do, do it. Even if others don’t understand or look at you like you’ve lost your mind. God uses the foolish things of this world to confound the wise.

Waiting. I’m not fond of that word at all! I dislike waiting on people, other cars, waiting in line (ARGH!), I know it’s a part of life but it doesn’t mean I like it. Bottom line, like most people now days, I want it and I want it now! Just recently, our built in microwave went dark. Yep, no screen to view, no buttons to push it’s just dead. I didn’t realize how much I used it until it was gone. I constantly look at the clock (even though there’s one on the stove), I use the night light in the morning so I don’t have to turn on the big overhead light and lets not forget warming up leftovers, or the last of the coffee in my cup that has gone lukewarm. 

This morning I was reading an article on Elijah List that caught my attention. It was entitled: Seeds For Becoming What You Are, by Dutch Sheets. I highly recommend you read it, unless you really don’t want to know why you’re not seeing fruit in your life.  I was blown away by the thing God showed him after he asked why it was working for him, why no fruit; “Because all truth comes to you in seed form.”

I was reading in Genesis and discovered that everything began as seed, even the Word of God was a seed planted to create and everything was made with seed to continue the process. A tree doesn’t produce fruit until it’s planted, then it needs time to grow,  the leaves come and eventually a flower, than the fruit.  As soon as the fruit appears I can’t eat it, it needs to mature and ripen before you can pick it and eat it. If I become impatient and try to eat the fruit before it ripens, I’ve wasted the fruit. 

So, where am I going with this? I have been impatiently waiting for a promise to manifest for quite some time. Each year that goes by and I don’t see fruit, I grow discouraged and wonder what’s taking so long. I know what I planted. I have faith that it is growing. I just want to see it NOW! Well guess what, just as the tree takes years to come to an age where it is fruit bearing, so does my faith. It requires that I read and study the Word of God, that is the fertilizer needed to help my tree to grow. As I wait, I do what my Father asks of me, going out into my community and being a light for the world to find their way back to God. I continue to study, spend time with God, check the tree for signs, focus on God who gives the fruit. 

I think most of us spend our lives wanting the fruit but not wanting to do what it takes to get it. We expect God to just give it to us without working for it. I know what you’re thinking; Ephesians 2:8-9 For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. I’m not talking about the gift of salvation; that’s the only thing we don’t have to work at. I’m talking about James 2:20-22: But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?

Abraham had communion with God, he knew God, he listened to God and he obeyed God. It was when Abraham walked out his faith in God that he became a man of faith. He had to ‘do’ consistently and wait patiently for the promise. I can’t just sit on my ‘word’ from the Lord, I must speak it, work it, do what he says and WAIT PATIENTLY FOR THE PROMISE!

Oh Lord (HUGE SIGH!), I really don’t do well with the waiting game. I would love for you to just hand me a tray of fruit so I can partake of it and live lavishly, me and my family and maybe a few of my friends. Thats just not going to happen, is it? For if I don’t wait upon you, I won’t have the strength to do what you have called me to do. If I don’t study, I won’t have the knowledge to live life to it’s fullest and be an overcomer. If I can’t wait patiently for the promise, exercising my faith in the process, than the fruit won’t be have nutritional value good to me or others. Than I would ask that you give me the grace to wait……patiently. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Zechariah 4:6-This is the Word of the Lord to (put your name here): “Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit!: says the Lord of hosts.

Once again as I sit in the presence of the Lord surrounded by so much of life, tempted to be discouraged and downhearted, overwhelmed by the large ominous black clouds gathering on the horizon, I’m reminded of HIS strength, HIS might and HIS glory.  Why is it so tempting to focus on the dark when the Light is in me to dispel the darkness. Psalm 42:5 NASB says: Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him for the help of His presence.

So many times without realizing it, we listen to the voice of the enemy in our heads as he subtly turns our focus from the presence of the Lord to the problems that we face. You may be a pastor, a missionary, an evangelist, teacher or just a lay person like myself but the tactics are the same, to change our focus and gain access to our hope by getting us to change our words. The obstacles you face today will be behind you tomorrow. There is NOTHING we cannot do with God on our side. It’s not by your own strength or power that you will get through this, it’s Gods. 

I got excited this morning when I saw my name in this verse: This is the Word of the Lord to Sandy! It’s not by your own might or power but by my Spirit, says the Lord. It’s the power of your Spirit, resting in your presence, surrounded by your glory, worshipping before you in humble adoration. I overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of my testimony, but I must tuck my life away in Him.  When it’s not I that lives but Christ that lives in me, I will truly be His and His alone. So Father, I rest in your presence, breathing in the sweet fragrance of your grace and goodness. You refresh me, energize me, renewing my peace and strength to face another day. You never meant for me to do this on my own, so I lay it all down. The light is so much brighter since my joy has returned to me.  You have taken my loss and turned it into gain as only you can do. Amazing Father. Faithful friend.

Colossians 3:15-16 ERV-“Let the peace that Christ gives control your thinking. It is for peace that you were chosen to be together in one body.  And always be thankful. Let the teaching of Christ live inside you richly. Use all wisdom to teach and counsel each other. Sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”

Have you ever been in a position where you felt that if one more thing went wrong you’d go under? Ever wonder where your next meal was coming from, how the gas in your tank would be enough to last till payday? Just when you thought you might just make it till payday, one of the kids gets sick and you have to take them to the emergency room and they want $75 for the copay and you don’t have it, nor do you have money to get any of the 6 prescriptions they hand you at the end. Thats when the first part of this scripture comes into play; “Let the peace that Christ gives control your thinking.” There’s nothing you can do about it but close your eyes and say, “Father, my provider, I know that you are faithful to take care of all this. There is nothing too difficult for you. I’m going to allow your peace to wash over me and keep my mind from all this turmoil. You have this, Father.”

Then the 2nd part of that verse must happen. Be thankful! ‘Say what? Whats there to be thankful for! I just told you I don’t have any money, my kids are sick and I don’t have enough gas to get to work! What’s THAT going to do for me?’ Well, I didn’t say it would make sense, he just said to do it.  Being thankful is more than words, but saying the words can change the heart. Don’t believe me? Let’s look at it this way; are things going to change because you’re ungrateful, angry, yelling and taking it out on everyone around you? So why not change the way you’ve always done it and give this a try.

Father, I thank you that I HAVE a job, a home and food on my table. Even when things are tight and I feel like I can’t hold my head above water, I can reach up and your hand holds me. It may look like I don’t have enough gas in my tank to get to work, but you can make sure it lasts me. It may look like I have no money for those prescriptions, but you can make them free. It may look like I don’t have enough food on my table, but you can show me how to make it stretch a few more days. Thank you. Your hand has always provided for me and you always will. I’m so thankful that I don’t have to live life alone; You are always with me. When I don’t know what to do, I lift up my head and there you are with the answer. Your peace overwhelms me. Your love sustains me. The very breath you breathe on me gives me new life, daily, every time I need it. I’m thankful! Thankful for your Word, the letters you left for me read that causes me to know you more. Thank you.

2 Timothy 3:1-5 MSG, ^“Don’t be naive. There are difficult times ahead. As the end approaches, people are going to be self-absorbed, money-hungry, self-promoting, stuck-up, profane, contemptuous of parents, crude, coarse, dog-eat-dog, unbending, slanderers, impulsively wild, savage, cynical, treacherous, ruthless, bloated windbags, addicted to lust, and allergic to God. They’ll make a show of religion, but behind the scenes they’re animals. Stay clear of these people.”

If this doesn’t describe the age we live in, I don’t know what does. Please don’t think this is just what the world looks like, I’ve seen these things in the church as well. Anytime we become focused on anything other than Jesus and his purpose for us on the earth, we can easily pick up the ways of the world we live in.  I am no exception to this. I must constantly ask the Lord to show me areas I need to correct so that I can stay on course.  He wants us to go into all the world and make disciples, not of ourselves but of God. To teach them to hear Gods voice, to be sensitive to others, to walk in love, to listen and obey. I’ve watched this happen in our own church as our pastors have mentored and trained students to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit. I’ve watched that process mold young lives into living flames of hungry fires, lapping up the dry things of our city and spreading the flame to other youth by going into the streets and parks and being Jesus. Praying, hugging, loving, touching, serving and restoring hope.

As the holidays approach, it’s a good time to think about what God would have us do this year. Do we give to our own who are already cared for and have what they need or do we find others who have little to nothing and pour out on them? Which action would make the most impact on whom? One single mom told me that each year, she takes her children to serve the needy in their community. Another takes her kids to wrap gifts for the less fortunate. Will you stay in your warm homes and give to your own children who have so much they don’t know what to do with them all or will you teach your children to love and give. Our children learn to be givers by example; to be thankful, to not gage happiness on what they possess but by what possesses them.  Use this season to teach the true meaning of Christmas, to give. Just as God loved us so much that he gave us his best gift, his son so that in him, many more children would be his. 

Don’t be surprised if your Christmas card from us reads; “Thank you for allowing us to give our best to those who have so little.  May your New Year be blessed!” The Gregory’s