True Prosperity

2 Chron. 31:21 says, "And in every work that he (Hezekiah) began in the service of the house of God, in the law and in the commandment, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart. So he prospered."  Hezekiah was king in Jerusalem who re-instituted proper temple worship in Judah.  He succeeded Ahaz, who was a monster of iniquity.  Ahaz filled the temple with rubbish, sacrificed his own children, set up altars to false gods inside the temple and in every corner of Jerusalem, and literally boarded up the entrance of the temple so no one could worship the One True God.  Even though Israel was not under Hezekiah's rule, when the Passover drew near he sent runners throughout the territories so they might come to Jerusalem for the feast.  Since the days of Solomon there had been not been so much rejoicing in the land.

For King Hezekiah, there was no halfway in serving God: "...he did it with all his heart.  So he prospered."  There is a correlation between these statements, a principle to be applied to our lives.  When we think of prosperity, we tend to think financial wealth, success, or the obtainment of our goals.  The definition of the word "prospered" in the Strong's is "to push forward, break out, be profitable, (cause to, effect, make to, send) prosperous."  Because Hezekiah sought God with his whole heart, he progressed in a deeper walk with God.  He prospered in his relationship with the King of Kings.  Psalm 119:2 says, "Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, who seek Him with the whole heart!"  God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. 

If we are stunted in our spiritual growth or in a dry season, it quite possible we have neglected to seek God with our whole hearts.  Col. 3:23-24 says, "And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, [24] knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ."  Hezekiah did not cleanse the temple because he wanted to find favor with the priests and Levites, because he missed Jewish "traditional" worship, or because he wanted political influence over the other 10 tribes of Israel.  He served God for God's sake, not so he would receive blessings from Him.  It is easy to substitute serving people for serving God.  Our flesh can deceive us, thinking that  we please God by being busy with much serving.  We can neglect to be as Mary who chose to stop what she was doing, take a seat, and listen intently to Jesus when He spoke.

If Jesus should open His mouth to speak, would it not be fitting for us to drop all other things to listen to Him?  His food and drink was to do the will of Him who sent Him.  He understood that man does not live by bread alone but by every word which proceeds from the mouth of God.  I have been meditating upon this scripture for the last few days.  God has graciously given us our daily bread, and for this we should be thankful.  We must never forget it is in God which we live, move, and have our being.  Every time we draw breath it is a gift from God, generous provision from the Creator of all things.  Let us use our breath to glorify God and draw near to Him listening intently.  We will find Him when we seek Him with our whole hearts.  It is only then we will prosper. 

Second Mile People

Here is an excerpt from Isobel Kuhn's "Second Mile People (pages 37-39):"

"Oswald Chambers says, 'The people who influence us most are not those who buttonhole us and talk to us, tut those who live their lives like the stars in heaven and the lilies in the field, perfectly simply and unaffectedly.  Those are the lives that mould us.'  A great mistake is to think that a Spirit-filled man or woman must always be casting sermons at people.  Being 'filled with the Spirit' (which is a first qualification of Second Mile People) is merely a refusing of self and a taking by faith of the life of Christ as wrought in us by His Holy Spirit.

'Many who claim by faith this fullness, and who, up to the measure of their light, are yielded and obedient, are disappointed and perplexed because they are aware of no particular manifestation.  They expect a glowing sense of power...But let us take to heart what others have pointed out, that the Spirit's chief work is to make us HOLY.  The truest evidence is not gift but grace...The Spirit will divide the gifts.  One man may have a gift for preaching, another a gift for intercession, another a gift for personal dealing, and another by administration.  Still others may glorify their Lord by some kind of seeming drudgery, even as lowly as that of Brother Lawrence, who "practised the presence of God" in the monk's kitchen.

"A work of lowly love to do for Him on Whom I wait."  'But let it be said again, once you open your being to His fullness your life must be enriched; you will never be the same again"...We fall in defeat when we try to 'judge' the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives; ours is to yield to Him in joyous faith, and not worry as to the kind or value of the fruit He is producing."

How often should I forgive?

Forgiveness is something I have been thinking a lot about lately, especially how God forgives us.  When Peter asked Jesus, "How many times should I forgive my brother?  Up to seven times?"  I have read the rabbinic teaching of that time said it was good to forgive three times.  Jesus replies in Matthew 18:22,  "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven."  Peter no doubt thought forgiving someone seven times was very generous, but Jesus demonstrated grace and forgiveness beyond Peter's wildest expectations.  Jesus never told His disciples to do what He had not already done.  The fact is, He has forgiven me more times than seventy times seven.  God does not limit His forgiveness quota at 490 of course, for His capacity and desire to forgive is limitless.  The sins of the entire world were placed upon Christ on the cross, and His blood cleanses us from all sin.

A sister came up to me today at church and shared something God has recently taught her concerning forgiveness.  She said she has realized forgiveness is not a one-time thing.  Sometimes when we are hurt deeply it is very hard to forgive.  Even when we have made a conscious choice to forgive, old hurts have a way of being brought to remembrance.  We might say to God, "But I've already forgiven that person."  God's words to my sister in Christ were, "Forgive until it stops hurting."  Forgiveness is not a one-time thing or a seven time thing:  it is a continual process of forgiving which frees us from bitterness, resentment, hate, and suffering.  When we give the wrongs done to us to our Savior who is willing to free and deliver us from the solitary confinement of unforgiveness, He helps us.

As with forgiveness, repentance is often seen as a one-time thing.  Those who are mature in faith recognize their sin with more clarity than ever before.  When they read the scriptures and see Barabbas, they seem themselves.  When they read of people faltering in faith or the unbelief of the children of Israel wandering in the wilderness they will not mock or scorn, because their eyes are moist with the knowledge they are looking through a window to the deceit and wickedness of their own flesh.  If a person says he is without sin he deceives himself and calls God a liar.  Therefore, we ought to continually repent for our transgressions.  In the same way, we must forgive even the same wrong over and over and over again until we no longer feel the dull or sharp pain of that wrong against us, no matter how horrible it was and still is.  Regardless of how that wrong has forever changed our lives, Jesus has the power and strength to change our lives even more for the better.

When Jesus was crucified upon the cross He said, "Father forgive them, for they know not what they do."  We are the ones whom Christ pleaded be forgiven.  He knows "there is none good, no not one.  There is none who understands, there is none who seeks after God."  I am numbered among this group.  On my own I could never understand any spiritual truth, and in my flesh dwells no good thing.  But by His grace God has forgiven me and reconciled me to Himself, adopting me into the family of God as co-heir with Jesus Christ!  To whom much is given much is required, and Jesus has forgiven me much.  Let us do good and forgive for the glory of God.  Every time you forgive it will take you to a deeper level of forgiveness, like pulling a cabbage apart leaf by leaf.  There is healing and restoration waiting for us if we will be obedient to forgive and keep on forgiving!

God is For Us

"So all things are working for the Lord's Beloved;

Some things might be harmful, if alone they stood;

Some might seem to hinder, some might draw us backward;

But they work together, and they work for good.

All the thwarted longings, all the stern denials,

All the contradictions, hard to understand,

And the Force that holds them, speeds them and retards them,

Stops and starts and guides them, is our Father's hand."

- Anonymous (Ascent to the Tribes, pg. 65)

How good is it to know God is in control of all things!  He allows circumstances to occur which may not make sense to us, but we can know He works all things out for our good.  Following Jesus Christ is not like a natural chemical reaction which is predictable and exact.  For those who are born again through faith in Christ we have been freed from death row, having been incarcerated because of our sin.  Every Christian has been automatically drafted into a spiritual battlefield opposing Satan and the evil forces at work in this world.  We have been filled with the Holy Spirit within, but we continue to live in a body of flesh which tends toward sinful lusts and desires.  It's a normal repercussion of the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual stress of battle that we can at times feel beaten, depressed, confused, and frustrated.

I read an interesting passage in "Ascent to the Tribes" yesterday:  "Frustration is one of the hardest of missionary trials, and not always are we allowed to see, as in this instance, that is has worked for good.  Satan aims to quench ardor.  If we looked at what seems to be mere waste in our lives, he would be successful.  We must just remember the wise words of an old CIM missionary who once said, "Where there is building there must be rubbish."  Rubbish is waste.  Part of our work may include wasted footsteps because this is battle." (pg. 64)

We must allow faith in God's power to control seemingly impossible situations to take root in our hearts.  People sometimes lament over the course set before them by God, "How much time I have wasted!"  Or perhaps they beat themselves up because God has revealed Himself in a powerful way and they think, "I could have used that 10 years ago!"  We must recognize that God COULD have done anything He wanted, and He decided to bring you through 10 years of experience so you would be ready for the lesson.  Sometimes we insinuate that our way is more efficient than God's way.  Perhaps from our ignorant perspective we think we can improve God's efficiency, but we could not draw a breath without His sufficiency.  He knows what we need and when we need it.

If you have ever sewn, worked in construction, cooked something, or did anything which required work you know there will be waste.  Our bodies create waste as we sustain ourselves through eating, drinking, and respiration.  When I am working with insulation, I always bring extra material because I know there will be waste.  Sometimes the fiberglass needs to be dug out, the foam rubber left over has been cut in unusable shapes, and all the adhesive is not necessary and cannot be stored.  Spiritually we tend to focus on all the waste, and try to gather up or bemoan all of the useless scraps.  What God would have us do is look at the sanctifying work He is doing in our lives.  This is not to make us proud, but to invoke in us praise and worship of God for His wondrous works.  You believed at one time God would have you marry but it ended in divorce.  Divorce is bad, but can God use it for good?  Absolutely.  Perhaps you thought God would have you quit one career and start another, only to find yourself injured or out of work.  Can God use this for good?  Yes!  And He will!  He has promised to!

Romans 8:28-31 says, "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. [29] For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. [30] Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified. [31] What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?"  The things God allows to happen in our lives He is using to conform us into the image of Christ.  It is not for us, my friends, to dictate to God how He should be governing or growing us.  He is righteous, merciful, gracious, loving, just, and good.  He has given us exceedingly great and precious promises we can cling to as we go through the daily battles of this life.

If God is for us, who can be against us?  This does not mean we will not face opposition, but that no physical or spiritual power has the slightest effect upon God's plan for us.  We are likely more down on ourselves than God is, because God is not against His children.  He is for us, and not against us.  Whether you are on wings of eagles or laboring through the valley of the shadow of death, God is with you.  He is for us, and through Christ we will be victorious.