Wednesday, November 23, 2011

To Encourage the Discouraged

God has a wonderful plan and purpose for His sons and daughters. So many times, we are challenged by pits, stumbling blocks, and nets designed to hinder our destiny. But as long as we acknowledge that there is an Almighty God who cares about the very hairs on our heads, then we know He can see all of the mess around us. We are tried in our faith ever so much, but when we say yes to Him in our hearts, He is the great deliverer. He even delivers us from our own destruction--the things we do to ourselves. That is because He is so full of grace, mercy, love and compassion.

God nourishes until we are full and made fat. Oh, how wonderful when He has fed us from His holy table the sweet and agreeable promises of His word. He never leaves nor forsake us. He opens His hand to satisfy every living creature, which includes us, His most precious creation. He has made us a little lower than the angels who abide in His presence to praise Him eternally. All He ask of us is to love Him, and when we do, we are able to trust Him, obey Him and cast our cares upon Him. We can hold fast to the confidence that we gain from Him, so we can rest in Him.

To know the beauty of His presence in a deeper and greater dimension is available to us. He told John, who was in the spirit on the Lord's day (he was nearly in heaven), He said to come up hither. So now we know that no matter how high we get into His presence, there is ever so much more that we can reach for and move into. We can't allow the devil to deceive us into thinking he has captivated our physical, emotional and spiritual being. Our God has a manna that is not made with hands but comes from His excellent glory. It pours down upon us to satisfy our soul and spirit. And when it comes from His holy place, it leaves the residue of His exceeding joy and gladness. He says that if we lack joy and gladness, He will anoint us with it.

We must say what God says is true about us, not what the devil tries to make us say and believe. Many times we are the cause of missing out on the good things when we resign to refusing or accepting those good things. We are to desire the things that are good, beautiful, wonderful, satisfying, fulfilling, nurturing, cleansing, purifying, hopeful, peaceful and loving. I can't fix you, I can only point you to the One who can. He is God,  the only one who can do it so marvellously. His work was already finished on the cross of Jesus Christ. The blood was already shed for our deliverance. Jesus does not have to be recrucified for us to be well. We just have to let God have His way by reminding ourselves with the scriptures and opening our mouth to thank Him out loud (so the devil can hear it). If it is hard for you to praise God, read Psalms 23, Psalms 34 and Psalms 91 aloud. It can give you a jumpstart.

I lift up utterances to my Lord and Father and ask Him to wipe away every tear that falls from your eyes. They are infused with the pain, brokenness, fear, and anxiety that has been purged from your soul and spirit. I ask Him to cover your heart with His love and peace. He will pull you close to His bosom so you can rest in His arms to hear His heartbeat. The sound will cause you to know His love and care.

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