2Chronicles 22-36

God speaks to us in many ways. He speaks through His word; through other people; in dreams and visions; through creation. While not everyone who claims to have a message from God really does, God’s messages may come in unexpected ways. God had spoken to pagan kings in the past; don’t let your prejudice or false assumptions blind you to God’s message. It is important to see wise advice and weigh the advice we receive. Listen carefully to the advice you receive and use God’s word to: “test everything and hold on to the good.”(Thessalonians 5:21) Remember that God will never contradict himself; the voice we know as our conscience is God speaking to us when it agrees with his word and if it doesn’t; the advice is not from God.
There are times in our lives when we must correct a wrong or speak out for what is right. When such a situation arises, gather up your courage and act. Following God and exercising obedience does not always go well with other people. There will be times when someone you know, maybe someone you are in relationship with, commits sin as we all do. When you love someone, you have the courage to speak truth and encourage that person to ask God’s forgiveness; just as you should be willing to accept truth about your wrongdoings and ask for forgiveness yourself. Sometimes God brings you conflicting relationships to make each person more holy. Looking deeper into the conflict may reveal areas within yourself that you have yet to repent. Staying humble can help open your eyes to why you feel separated from God; God hates pride. When I have my heart set on accomplishing something, I’ve stopped at nothing and listened to no one to attain my goal and often times, when my motive was for personal gain and glory; I felt emptiness inside after the victory. In studying the Bible, I am awakened to my shortcomings and for the first time; I don’t want things my way. You don’t want what God does not want for you. Lives can be wasted in the pursuit of success, joy, relationship, financial “security”, power and control. The key is to stop the pursuit of worldly, passing pleasures and accept Christ in your heart now; experience heaven now; live in joy now; be generous with all you are now. We are eternal spirits but our time on earth is limited and how we obey and love God now is His test for us. What are we waiting for? The time is now.

Do you sometimes see someone who appears “lost” to you? You may walk away thinking, “I’m not touching that or going there”. God made all creation. Satan cannot create; he can only pervert creation, which he’s done a marvelous job of doing here on earth. Don’t underestimate people’s desire to be faithful to God. When challenged to do God’s work, they will often respond willingly and generously. It is important to avoid walking away when you may be called to help that person. God did not put us on this earth to live for ourselves, but to be in relationship with others and with Him. When you have been given the opportunity and responsibility to minister, don’t neglect your duty. Look for opportunities to serve others; in doing so, you are serving God. God will send you on your way to resume your responsibilities; be ready for action! The mission statement of the Rock Church in San Diego is to save, equip and send. I believe that God’s intent is within this mission. To save is only the first step; it is the acceptance to allow Jesus Christ in your heart as your savior and to believe that He is God in the flesh and that by his death and resurrection, He sent the Holy Spirit to live within you to carry out His will. Accepting Jesus as Lord isn’t a pass to be lazy and wait for God to change your life; God invites us to be in relationship with Him, as a partnership, you do your part and He does His. Use the beautiful mind, heart and body that God gave you, work hard and do all that you can to deal with your circumstances, but trust God for the outcome. After you surrender your will to His, getting equipped means doing your due diligence. Read and study God’s word to know Him; so that you are ready for Him to reveal your gifts and talents to you, and how He will use you to do His work. Being a student and following His lead consistently so that God can trust you as a reliable servant to carry out his plan. So many of us need to come down from our self-created and false thrones and say to ourselves; it’s not about me! Because it really isn’t. God created you in His image; it’s about Him. To send means that once you are ready, God encourages you: Let’s Go. If you trust Him and walk with Him, He will use you to fulfill His plan and in the process, you will have more pleasure than you’ve ever known because you are doing it your Creator’s Way; if God didn’t give you a talent to sing, do you think His purpose for you will involve signing? No. God uses what He gave you because He created you, so the key to true happiness is fulfilling God’s plan for you, not yours. Go your own way and watch your life go against the grain; I pray your eyes be opened to how God can use you.

To submit means to obey God first; yielding our bodies, minds, wills and emotions to him. His Holy Spirit must guide and renew every part of us and only then will we be able to temper our stubborn selfishness. This speaks directly to me because there is a fine line between persistence and stubbornness. Persistence is a virtue when you persist for Good and are following God’s lead; but stubbornness is dangerous because it carries selfish and prideful motives. Yielding my mind, will and emotions to God are the biggest challenges for me. To yield my body has been a conviction for quite some time; health, fitness and nutrition are passions. Being convicted of sexual purity, although a struggle, I surrender and commit to Him because I understand the body as a temple and desire complete purity. My mind has a tendency to over-analyze in my quests for control and this is a temptation that Satan often uses threaten my faith because he knows the power of my mind. Satan also knows the strength of my emotion, will and passion. God created all these things in me to be used for Him, as He did in you. Satan perverts these. He plants seeds of doubt and encourages pain and fear so that you will continue on a path of destruction; but he will trick you into thinking you are on a path to your happiness. With God there is no fear, doubt or confusion. When we experience such feelings, it is important to check yourself and ask the state of your relationship with God.

Hezekiah said, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged because of the king of Assyria and the vast army with him, for there is a greater power with us than with him. With him is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles.”(32:7) Hezekiah could see with eyes of faith. No matter the circumstance, when the Lord is on your side, you will have victory. “Victory is not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord Almighty.” (Zechariah 4:6) When you have no doubt where you stand with God, there is no fear and doubt. Satan can through his best weapons against you and he will be beaten by God’s strength.

A test can bring out someone’s true character. Hezekiah was faithful sometimes and when He asked God’s forgiveness and help, God was there for him. “In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. He prayed to the Lord, who answered him and gave him a miraculous sign. But Hezekiah’s heart was proud and he did not respond to the kindness shown him; therefore the Lord’s wrath was on him…God left him to test him and to everything that was in his heart.”(32:24-31) God tested Hezekiah to see what he was really like and to show him his own shortcomings and the attitude of his heart. God did not abandon him, tempt or trick him. The test was meant to strengthen his character and prepare him for the tasks ahead. When things are going well for us, it is easy to live for goodness. But when the going gets tuff and pressure, trouble or pain comes; do you give in or turn to God? Those who are consistently in touch with God don’t have to worry about what pressure may reveal about them. After the Lord healed Hezekiah, he developed excessive pride. He pointed to his own accomplishment rather than to God when asked about his healing. Pride is any attitude that elevates our abilities above God’s. Pride can cause you to congratulate yourself and look down on other people. God encourages healthy self-esteem and self-confidence, but objects to foolish attitudes of taking full credit for what he has done for you.

God does not take sin lightly and he wants us to respond to sin with true remorse as Josiah did. Josiah was so appalled at the people’s neglect of the law that he tore his clothing to express his grief; he was filled with “Godly Sorrow” and immediately went into action. It is human nature to treat sin lightly, to make excuses, blame someone else, or minimize the harm done. Do you pretend it’s not so bad, rationalize and excuse yourself from your mistakes? Responding with true remorse will give you favor with the Lord.

When everything in life seems stripped away from us, we have God- His word, His presence, and His promises. Hold fast to this foundation; it is the only constant that exists and it is no coincidence why that is the truth. God longs for us to come willingly and wholeheartedly to Him and to enjoy relationship with Him.