Have you ever been in a position where you know you heard from God on something, but what He asked you to do was so crazy, you just had to be sure? So you asked God to give you a sign that it was His voice you heard (even though you knew it to begin with), just in case!

This morning I was reading Judges 6, the story of Gideon and how God used him to save the children of Israel from an oppressive enemy. This is all cataloged in the first 6 verses and it left the Israelites destitute, calling out for the Lord to deliver them.

Moving on to verses 7-10, God raises up a prophet who speaks a word to His people, because everyone knows that when people are desperate and refuse to hear Gods voice for themselves, He asks a prophet to speak for Him. The prophet reminded the people just who God is-their deliverer, and then tells them that they’ve not obeyed Gods commands.

Then the story gets really good and God sends the angel of the Lord and finds Gideon in a wine press, threshing wheat, hiding from the enemy so that his family can have food to eat. This proves to me that God hears the cries of His people and looks for ANYONE who will do His bidding. So after a great exchange of conversation, Gideon is given simple instructions to take an older bull and a young bull, tear down the altar of Baal, build an altar to God and sacrifice the young bull.

He was afraid to do it during the day, so he took 10 of his fathers men, and the bulls and did what God said at night. When the people in the village saw it in the morning, they traced it back to Gideon’s fathers house and confront them about it. Gideon’s dad gave such a great response that the men left without harming them.

Ok, I know this is long, but this is the part I wanted to talk about; the fleece. Beginning with verse 36-40; So Gideon said to God, “If You will save Israel by my hand as You have said—look, I shall put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor; if there is dew on the fleece only, and it is dry on all the ground, then I shall know that You will save Israel by my hand, as You have said.”  And it was so. When he rose early the next morning and squeezed the fleece together, he wrung the dew out of the fleece, a bowlful of water.  Then Gideon said to God, “Do not be angry with me, but let me speak just once more: Let me test, I pray, just once more with the fleece; let it now be dry only on the fleece, but on all the ground let there be dew.” And God did so that night. It was dry on the fleece only, but there was dew on all the ground.

Father, sometimes even when we know, we still ask. It’s like an insurance policy for us. You already said, “My sheep know my voice…”, and still we ask. How kind You are to always answer us, always respond to our need to be sure. You’re so faithful to keep Your Word and we truly trust in You. Like the man said to Jesus, “Lord I believe, help my unbelief.” It’s the fear of the unknown, what we can’t see, that’s what keeps us asking for a sign. Forgive my doubt. Keep me in perfect peace as I keep my eyes on You. It’s in Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

Have you ever allowed the noise around you to fade away and the still small voice of the mighty and powerful God to touch your ears? I recently sat by the water and the wind was blowing and seemed to extinguish the noises around me. Out of the wind, I clearly heard God speak to my spirit, “I’ve missed you! These quiet times together is what I love most.”

Now please note, God hasn’t been silent in my life. He’s always speaking to me, prompting me, bringing me peace. But the difference here was that I became still. I had put down my phone, no books, no bible, just the wind and the waves and the voice of my beloved Father.

We become extremely busy in this life. We work, we clean, we fix meals, we transport children, pick up groceries, chat with friends, watch tv, but where is the time to still our soul and hear God speak of His love to us? It’s what I call ‘me’ time. When my life has become it’s own entity and constantly begs for attention, that’s when I must put everything aside and get alone with God.

Exodus 33:11a, In this way the Lord spoke to Moses face to face like a man speaks with his friend.

There is no better friend then God. Do you know Him that way? Do you make time for Him? Do you ever just pour your love out to Him and bless His name, then sit still until His presence sweeps over you? Who is God to you? Is He merely a genie in a bottle? Do you only go to Him when you need something? My friend, if I personally came to you and asked if we could talk, would you make the time for me? Will you make time for God?

Father, I humbly come before You asking You to forgive me for being too wrapped up in my own agenda to be still before You. I forget sometimes that it’s about more then doing things for others or being obedient, it’s about spending quiet time with You. That’s when You show me great and mighty things I don’t know. That’s when You show me where to go and when to stay. So I wait on You. I will be still and know that You are God…….

I once heard someone make a derogatory statement toward an unkind person, saying, “Well isn’t she a piece of art!” Did you know that you are a work of art? You are! Created by the Master Builder, leaving out no detail, placing inside of you everything you’ll need to survive in this life. Know something else? He created you with purpose!

Ephesians 2:10 says, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” Let’s look at it from the Amplified translation, “For we are God’s [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live].

You may not feel like it, or have even experienced anything like that, but that is what He made you for; good works. Still not convinced? Read what Jesus said in Matthew 5:16, “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

Life wasn’t created for you, you were created for life. It’s all about being more mindful of what God wants from you, not what you can get from God. If you see someone struggling under a heavy load, go ask if you can help carry it with them. If you see someone in pain, offer to pray for them and do it right then. Care enough for others to make what they need a priority and let your light shine!

Father, there are times I feel my batteries are dead in my flashlight. It’s usually when I get so busy that I forget to plug myself into the Charger. You are the giver of life, the restorer of all that’s missing or broken. Breathe life on me again that I may do what You created me to do. I know that things shift. Doors close. Seasons end. But in You there is no darkness and You’ve promised to always go before me and direct my steps. Take me where I can be optimally used for Your Kingdom and bring glory to Your great name. It’s in Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

We’ve all entertained visitors, those we’ve invited and those who’ve just ‘stopped by’. Some we’ve welcomed and some we’ve not, yet we still invite them in and offer them something to drink and a place to sit. Even the most spontaneous person like myself has issue with people just dropping by. I like to know in advance so I can make sure the house is clean and ‘put together’.

Long ago in a very distant land, Moses was tending his father-in-laws sheep when he had an unexpected visitor. Seems God started a little bonfire in a bush just to get his attention, and when Moses stepped closer, the God spoke to him from the bush and said, “Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.”

Can you even imagine? God himself comes down to have a chat with Moses. To tell him of His plans and explains how He’s going to do it with 80 year old Moses who’s in retirement, enjoying his family and the peace and quiet of tending sheep. Ever wonder why God didn’t track down someone a bit younger? More qualified? Someone with more gumption?

Have you noticed how God had to talk Moses into doing what He asked? He did it not by focusing on what Moses felt unqualified to do, but by showing Moses that He was the great I Am. Exodus 3:14; And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”

Has God visited you and asked you to do something you’re not qualified to do? Has He knocked on your door and asked you to leave the comfort of your retirement, your cushy job, your familiarity, to step out and do something for HIM? What has He asked you to say? What has He asked you to do? It’s never too late to obey! Stop leaning on your own abilities and lean on His. He has a message He wants delivered and He wants to use you to do it. Don’t leave the door unanswered just because you’re not ready for guests. God wants you as you are, trusting in Him and not you.

Father, it’s You, so good to have you as a guest. Please make Yourself at home and tell me what’s on Your mind. What is it I can do for you? What message do You have for me to give? Years ago I gave You my heart, but now I give You my life. Do with me as You please. Make me pliable in Your hands. Make me sensitive to Your Spirit. Give me ears to hear and a heart to obey. It’s in Jesus’ name and for Your glory, Amen.

In Mark chapter 4:35-38, Jesus has been teaching awhile and announced they were going to the other side. They all got in boats and headed over and Jesus fell asleep in the stern of the boat. Suddenly a storm arose and the large waves began crashing over the sides, threatening to  sink the boat. Finally the disciples went and woke Jesus (the fixer), and cried out, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?”

Vs 39-40; Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?”

All of the sudden the thought came to me, why do we always cry out to Jesus when He’s given us power through our words to do what He did? From Romans 8:11 we read; If the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, the one who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also, through his Spirit that dwells in you.

Do you not see that? The Spirit that dwells in you, the Holy Spirit, He gives you power. You can operate in the earth just as Jesus did. I’m not being sacrilegious! I’m just repeating what the Word says. Don’t you think you’ve lived as a powerless Christian long enough? The Holy Spirit is just waiting on YOU to say the Word, He will back it up! Just as Jesus spoke to the fig tree and walked away, fully knowing that what He said would come to pass, YOU need to follow suit.

What do you need? Have faith in Gods Spirit that lives in you. You have access to everything you need, tap into the power and use it for His glory. Hebrews 11:6 tells us that without faith, we can’t please God, but He is the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. We want the good stuff, but don’t spend the time to have relationship with our Benefactor.

Father, I don’t want to live my life with no results when Your powerful Spirit was sent to live in me and lead me into all truth. I want to be an instrument of healing and provision. I want to see the dead come to life, the blind see, diseases leave. Be powerful in me today! Give me opportunities to do good and to trust You more. Thank You for giving me access to all the gifts provided. I will trust in You and Your Words I speak. Now unto You who is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Amen.

I believe the sweetest act and gift to God is surrender. That word ‘surrender’ means; to give oneself up, as into the power of another; submit or yield. Jesus set the example when He surrendered to the Father, gave himself, yielded to His power so that we would receive the ultimate gift, redemption.

God watches us struggle to have our own way, when his plans are so much better. We never ask, we just run ahead and quickly do it. Like willful children, our cry is, “I want, I want, I want!’, only to quickly cry out for help when we’ve buried ourself in debt or made a mess of our health. We use the Word as a magic wand, insisting that God help us out of our trouble when trouble could have been avoided if we’d have just surrendered.

This time of year, it’s easy to overspend on gifts we can’t afford, after all, didn’t God promise prosperity? Unfortunately, that’s not how God works. He’s not a big bail out or lottery ticket. I believe his words from Deuteronomy 28 were, if you obey, then you will have.

There was a young girl we all could learn from, her is name Mary. I’m sure the very idea of being pregnant, bringing shame on her family and Joseph weighed heavy on her mind, but her surrender brought us all the greatest gift, Jesus. The moment she said, “Let it be according to your Word” (Luke 1:38), she put herself in total agreement with Gods Word. Agreeing to do the difficult thing for the optimal result, even without knowing the outcome is truly surrender.

Thats what God wants for each of us, to come into total agreement. Thats what surrender is. It’s not, ‘fine, have it your way!’ It’s, ‘I’m yours Lord, do with me as you will’.  Then comes the continual act of surrender, putting the reins in His hands and letting Him take you where He needs you. I’d rather end up fulfilling His will then my own. My way leaves much to be desired but His brings the Holy Spirit and He leaves me pregnant with promise.

Father, I surrender to You. I don’t need to know what You have planned for me, I merely surrender. This journey I’m on is all about You, Your Kingdom coming to earth. My life is no longer mine. When I gave my heart to You, I surrendered every part of me. Forgive me for taking it back, for not trusting You all the time. I love You Lord! There’s no one who compares to You and Your great grace and mercy. May the promise in me come to fruition and bring glory to You. It’s in Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Au·thor·i·ty: the power to determine, adjudicate, or otherwise settle issues or disputes; jurisdiction; the right to control, command, or determine; a power or right delegated or given.

Matthew 10:1; Jesus summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness.

Matthew 28:18-20; And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

If your boss gave you authority to make purchases for the business, would you continue to ask him permission to buy items for the office? If you did, you don’t understand authority. I realize they may put a limit on the amount you can spend or a limit on the credit card you use, but I’m sure you get my point.

Jesus gave the disciples authority over unclean spirits, diseases and sickness, and that was before He died and redeemed us. We house the great Spirit of God in us. Why aren’t we using the authority over these things that attack our bodies and our families? Perhaps we lack understanding of the word.

Use your authority! Our authority lies in our words. Speak with authority! Then recognize who it is that is trying to keep the promise from manifesting. The bible says to resist him and he will flee. Ephesians 6 says that our warfare is in the spirit realm. Satan may try to keep back our blessing, but those who are persistent, who stand on the promises of God, who refuse to give up and quit but continually watch their words and speak only what God speaks, they are the ones who will obtain the prize.

Father, I thank You for the authority You’ve given me. Forgive me for being lazy and going after the ways of the world instead of using what is mine. I bind every disease in the lives of those reading this today. I take authority over sickness and disease (name your diagnosis). According to I Peter 2:24b, “By His stripes we WERE healed!” But even before Jesus bore our sins on the cross, He gave us authority over demons, disease and sickness. The power inside of me is greater than any form of sickness, disease or demonic power.

Since I’ve spoken Your Word in authority, I release my faith to accompany that Word and bring back to me everything I need right now, in Jesus’ name. I give You all glory and praise! You are mightier then any dart the enemy would try to throw at me. I thank You for the blood, one drop is enough to annihilate every unseen foe. While I’m at it, I take authority over debt-be gone in the name of Jesus! You are a ‘more than enough’ God, not a ‘barely enough’ God. I praise and thank You. May it be for Your glory as people begin to testify of what they’ve received today when they prayed this prayer. AMEN!

So what do you want for Christmas? A house? A new car? A vacation on a remote island? More money? A new job? All of these things sound nice, but they have an end date attached to them. The home will lose it’s charm, the car will soon become old, the vacation, well, those end way too fast. Money will exchange hands as it always does, and the new job will soon become tedious.

We’re never satisfied, always wanting, like food that tastes so good but doesn’t have any nutritional value in it so we’re left hungry for more. What will it take? This time last year, almost everyone wanted the latest IPhone, but now it’s obsolete and there’s new things.

Psalm 45:10-11 “Listen to me, O royal daughter; take to heart what I say. Forget your people and your family far away. For your royal husband delights in your beauty; honor him, for he is your lord.”

We can’t continually wish for something else when the one who values us and lavishes great gifts on us is really all we need. It’s not even our birthday, it’s His, so it’s time we seek the giver, not the gifts. Don’t focus on filling the space under the tree this year, focus on the One who made it all possible.

Lord, nothing in the earth can satisfy or bring me joy but you. I hear people say, “I want that for Christmas!” but I want you. In days or weeks, the newness of those things will wear off and they will be left wanting once again. Will Love win the affections of your people?

As Paul said, “If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.” So it would seem Lord, that the greatest gift I can give is Love. I will live to give love to those I meet. A smile, a kind word, compassion, a prayer, a dollar, a meal. A word of praise to the checkout clerk who looks stressed because her child is sick and she can’t pay her bills. I will look for ways to give, even if it costs me everything, because that is what it cost you. It’s in Jesus name I pray, Amen.

This morning I read about Abraham and saw how God took an average man, and persuaded him to leave everything familiar to him and trust in a God he’d never seen. We’d call that stupid, unwise or uncommon, but that my friend is faith! Although Abraham made mistakes along the way, he never allowed those mistakes to define him. From the moment he began his great journey with this unseen God who speaks, to the day he held in his arms the promise, he believed God.

Genesis 15 begins with a vision where God says to him, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.” When Abram reminds God that he has no son, no heir, God begins to deal with his self perception.

Genesis 15:5-6; Then He brought him outside and said, “Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.” And he believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.

  So what is it that you’ve been promised but haven’t seen? The same God who formed each star a named them all, is the same God YOU have been asked to trust in. But you can’t just trust Him when you see it, you must trust Him when you don’t. Each time you declare his faithfulness, you are putting another stone on your foundation of faith. Each time you declare Him mightier than the enemy your face, each battle you fight, each time you persevere in the face of opposition, you’re building your faith.

Then the next time you face that mountain, you can say, “Be removed from here!” and it will move! Our God is mightier then any mountain you can or cannot see. Those things you’ve been going through were not meant to defeat you-they were meant to strengthen your hope and trust in God. He is well able to deliver you from anything you face today.

Just as God made a covenant with Abraham, you stand in a long line of heirs that have received the same promise. That promise has never weakened or diminished in any way. God has promised to bless and multiply you just as He did Abraham, who may I add was a friend of Gods (James 2:23).

Father, I set myself to trust You. I know that everything You speak to me contains blessings just as You’ve promised. I will keep my eyes on You and trust in Your Word, for You will never leave me nor forsake me. My life was designed for Your purpose, may I never lose sight of that. Today as I go out in the world, I know that You are with me, that Your rod and staff comfort me and keep me safe. There is no weapon that’s formed against me that will win, for You are a faithful shield and my great reward. It’s in Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.