The Devil's Seeds of Doubt

Sometimes, God speaks to us through friends, through strangers, or through something we read or see. This week, I think he decided to speak to me through a devotional. Imagine that. ;)

This is from Pastor Bayless Conley's Answers for Each Day daily devotional series.

The Devil's Seeds of Doubt

As we saw yesterday, Satan will seek to attack when we are on the verge of a major breakthrough. I believe there are three distinct areas of attack in this battle. Today I want to cover the first with you. It is found in Matthew 4:3-4,

Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread." But He answered and said, "It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'"

The devil's first area of attack will be to try to get you to doubt your calling.

Notice that just prior to this encounter the voice of God the Father said to Jesus, "This is My beloved Son!" And that is the first thing the devil challenges, "Well, if you are the Son of God…."

He will do the same thing to you.

What is it that God has spoken to you about that He wants you to do with your life? Has He told you that He wants to use you to funnel vast resources into the gospel? Or maybe God said you are to be a teacher, or that you are going to impact the entertainment industry, or that you are going to be a prayer warrior and tip the spiritual scales in critical times.

Whatever it is, the devil will saddle up next to you and say, "Who do you think you are? What God has told you is just a pipe dream. It's just your own head speaking to you." He will try and get you to doubt what God has said to you and to doubt what God has called you to do.

When that happens, you need to go back to that word that God has spoken to you in order to keep your focus and direction right.

How Can I Help You? ~or~ Making Money Isn't About the Money

Through a series of unforseen events, I've found myself having to re-enter a career field I'd happily placed in the rear-view mirror three years ago. While I was good at it, one of the best if you believe people who give out awards for such things, I pretty much despised every single hour spent in the last job I had in that field. To say I was relieved when I left that field would be an understatement. In fact, I literally felt like a weight was taken off my shoulders, pressure taken off my chest and within a few weeks, I felt healthier, happier and more alive than I had in years. If that doesn't show you what power stress and negativity has on us, nothing will…

So, as you can imagine, I'm not overly excited to go back into that field. In fact, I almost feel the same way you would if you were about to put your hand onto a hot stove, after having been burned badly once before.

Regardless of my feelings on the matter, it is what it is and I have to do what I have to do to take care of my family.

1 Timothy 5:8 If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

Now, I may have just gone through a rather shameful crisis of faith, but at no point would I ever relish the idea of being an unbeliever, much less worse than one. And, regardless of that, God has wired me to take care of my family, so this is what I have to do.

In thinking about it last night, the idea struck me that no one who does a job strictly for the money derives any real pleasure from it. In fact, studies prove the opposite, regardless of what the world might tell us. Money cannot buy happiness, so working only for money is a sure path to unhappiness.

That was most likely the trouble with my last job in this field. I ended up disliking it so much, that it just became about the money and nothing else. Once that happened, the door closed and there was no hope of ever enjoying it again. Don't get me wrong, there were times when I did enjoy that field, and there was a reason I got into it in the first place that wasn't just about the money.

Back then, it was exciting. I never expected to arrive at a place where I was spiritually exhausted, emotionally calloused and mentally jaded.

But, thanks to adverse circumstances (and my own poor way of dealing with them) I ended up there.

Going forward, I want to strive to not focus on the money, but instead to strictly concern myself with helping people. The phrase "how can I help you?" is uttered billions of times a day, all over the world, but how many people truly mean it? Well, I want to be one of those few who do.

If I focus on that and strive to do nothing more than help people, the money will certainly come as a by-product.

On top of that (and the foundation of it at the same time), is the idea that we're all called to be servants. "How Can I Help?" should be the most uttered phrase in the Christian life. Therefore, if I strive to help people first and foremost, I'll honor God's wishes and God will honor that effort.

And, by focusing on what God wants, I won't have time to focus on what I don't want…

I pray that each and every one of you has a very blessed and Merry Christmas!

Father God,
Please place your hand of protection on each and every one that we all know this Holiday Season. Get us all safely through this hectic time, and please heap extra blessings on those who need them most. I would like to ask that you remind each and every one of us that celebrating your Son's birthday isn't about material gain or overeating or any of that, but about learning to serve one another as Jesus served all of us. Please don't let any of us forget that.

In Jesus' name I pray,
Amen

Diss(ed)connected?

If this blog is for nothing else, let it be for accountability. You have helped me remain accountable and for that, I'm forever grateful.

But, the one linchpin to that is I need to remain transparent with you. Well, in the interests of that, I need to get something off my chest. I've been very unhappy with God lately. I won't call it 'mad' as I think that's a bit too strong. I haven't turned my back on him, or written him off or anything so dramatic as all that, but I have slowly disconnected from Him.

Many of you may recall I posted a while back about a certain career problem I'm having. Well, since asking for prayers on it, the situation has gone from bad to worse. I kept taking for granted the fact that God would show up and fix it, but as far as I know, He has yet to do so. The problem has become a very significant financial strain on my family and at this point has undone about seven years of my hard work.

I didn't realize it was happening, but over the course of the last month or so, I've slowly been pulling further and further away from God. While doing some introspective thought recently, I came to the realization this was due to my unhappiness that God is allowing this business nightmare to continue.

Now, before you jump to the same conclusions I did about how I need to have faith and how God does things in His time, not ours, rest assured I've been there already. But, to deny the fact that I've disconnected, even when I know it shouldn't have, is hardly being transparent. So, I'm admitting my sin, right here and right now. I unplugged from God.

As things have slowly come to a head over the last few days, and I realized this was happening, I've decided the only acceptable course of action is to reconnect. So, please, help me remain accountable in reconnecting.

For those who like to leave comments here on the Proverbs blog, please do so every few days, asking me if I'm staying connected. If you're the email type, please shoot me an email every once in awhile and check up on me.

No one's faith should ever be so weak that watching evil prevail in the short term can sever their connection with God. Admittedly, that's exactly what's been happening to me.

Thankfully, God always knows how to bring us back. Today, I sat down to get caught up on my daily reading and this devotional was waiting for me:

By Janet Conley
How to Stay Connected

Yesterday we discovered the second key to effective prayer is to stay connected to God. The critical question is: How do we do that?

While there are many things we can do, I want to focus on two things. First of all, if you want to have a close relationship with God, it is important to realize just how much He desires to have a close relationship with you.

This is an amazing truth when you stop to think about it. He is Almighty God, and yet He wants to have a close relationship with you.

Romans 5:11 in the New Living Translation says, Now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.

Through Jesus, God made us to be His friends! So connecting with God starts with remembering He desires to be your closest friend.

Second, you need to practice His presence. Right now God is with you. He is everywhere you go. He is at your job; He is at your home; He is with you wherever you might be, even in the hardest time of your life.

The last part of Hebrews 13:5 says, For He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."

There was a monk in the seventeenth century named Brother Lawrence who wrote a book called The Practice of the Presence of God. In the monastery there were chimes that rang every hour, and Brother Lawrence would use that as a reminder to connect with God.

If you have a PDA or a wristwatch or a cell phone, you might consider setting it to go off throughout the day to remind you that God is with you. Each time it goes off, spend a few moments communing with Him. Practice His presence. That will help you stay connected to God.

Thanks for walking with me. I appreciate it more than you know and deserve it less than you might think. Pastor Perry Noble of NewSpring Church said in a recent sermon that we're not designed to shoulder our burdens alone and that we should take them to other Christ followers for help. On that note, thank you for helping me shoulder this one.

Wisdom, Wishes and Doubt...

James 1: 5-8
If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

Most scripture I read is either something I take to heart, that lightens my load and gives me peace or simply goes over my head due to the fact I'm certainly no bible scholar.

But, a very small percentage twist me a bit, like a sapling in a strong storm. The passage above is one of those. I often find myself asking for God's wisdom when I'm in doubt or faced with circumstances I don't know how to handle. I feel very confident that God will give me that wisdom, but the real twist hits when I come to the part where it says "you must believe and not doubt."

What if God simply doesn't want me to know something yet? What if He intends for me to endure a circumstance in order that a future glory might arise from the contemporary pain? What if He's simply disciplining me for doing something stupid?

I know most of those thoughts come from the cracks the evil one slips in through, as he's always prowling around, looking for a chink in the armor. But, I wonder if by letting those doubts in, I'm failing to embrace and employ the full power of the Holy Spirit that resides within me…

So, to add another blanket onto the bed of over thinking, I pray for wisdom to discern what God's will is in any particular circumstance. Surely he doesn't want me to be confused, helpless, blown and tossed by the wind.

No. Our Father wants the best for us. This I know is a fact. But, how do I overcome my unbelief? How do I always remain confident that He will show up, in even the darkest of circumstances?

Faith.

Maybe, I just need to add that to my request for wisdom, that no matter what, He will guide me where He wants me to be and regardless of my foresight into how I hope the future will go, His will is what's best.

What do you think? Are you ever confronted by doubt when asking God for something?

Paul's Love Transcends 2000 Years

Colossians 1:9-14   For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,  being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience,  and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.  For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,  in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

In Paul's letter to the church at Colossae, he was speaking to mostly converted gentiles who were being blown about in the spiritual winds, as the true teachings of Christ that was their foundation, was under attack by the heretical teachings of others (allegedly the precursors to the Gnostic beliefs) that sought to undermine the truth.

In reading the beginning of Paul's letter to them, I love how he starts by leaving no doubt whatsoever that he's not only praying for all within that church, but praying that they would climb the spiritual ladder and become more Christ-like and less worldly.

The closer we are to God, the harder it is for the enemy to distance us from him.

In his prayers, Paul asks God to fill them with knowledge of His will. He asks that they are able to bear fruit. He asks that they're strengthened so they have patience and endurance. And, he asks all these things because he knows they've been called to share in the inheritance Jesus died for.

While Paul penned this letter from a Roman prison nearly 2,000 years ago, it seems more than obvious these prayers apply to you and me, today, right now. Most of us attend or are members in churches that are made up primarily of gentiles, with a large contingent of new believers and those who are "born again." Most of us are under daily attack from worldly beliefs that seek to undermine our faith in Christ, just like those who lived in Colossae 1950 year ago. All of us need to remain focused that we are to bear fruit while remaining part of the vine. (John 15:4) 

So, today, I'd like to pray alongside Paul.

Father God,

You are the almighty God and your love for us exceeds any human ability to contain or restrain it. Today, we ask that you fill us all with the knowledge of your will, through the wisdom and understanding the spirit gives, so that we may live a life that is worthy and pleasing to you. Please nurture our hearts so that we may bear fruit in our homes, work places, communities and the world and do so with the strength that comes from patience and endurance as we know, without a doubt, that your Son has made a place for us in your Kingdom.

I ask all these things in Jesus' holy name,

Amen

5G?

Verizon just rolled out 4G cellular service. Now, Pastor James McDonald is calling for 5G service, from all of us, not a phone company or international media corporation. You and I are a far greater network than anything employing iPhones, Androids or Blackberries to spread the message.

Click here to read just what 5G service looks like.

No matter if you were baptized yesterday or 75 years ago, you need to be 5G. Just like cell phones that came in briefcases and pagers the size of a 'Droid, anything other than 5G is yesterday's news and just won't cut it today... or tomorrow.

To Fear or Fear Not?

Jeremiah 1:6-8

“Alas, Sovereign LORD,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.”

But the LORD said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the LORD.

The more things change, the more they stay the same. Thousands of years ago, when finding ways to speak to vast groups of people wasn't easy, God sent people out on his behalf. As we see in the verse above, the initial response to this leading was fear. "I don't know how…"

These days, with social media, blogs, etc., we have the ability to quickly and easily reach a multitude of folks, but all too often when God calls us to do just that, we respond with "I can't… I don't know how…"

But just like then, the answer remains the same. "Do not be afraid… for I am with you," declares the Lord.

Fear, like anything else, is best used in moderation. Fear can stop us from getting injured, prevent us from accidentally putting others in harm's way and save our lives. But, like anything else, too much fear is extremely harmful.

It stops us from reaching out to the lost, helping those in need, serving others and doing what God put us here to do.

The key there is to be able to discern when the fear is healthy or unhealthy, just enough or too much.

What I'm striving to do, is consider the outcome of the circumstance. If the possible outcome honors God and does his work, the fear is an obstacle I need to overcome. If the only outcomes are either selfish or hurtful, then obviously the fear is there to protect me.

Father God,

You gave us fear for self preservation, but all too often we misuse it and allow it to become a hindrance to what you put us here to do. Please grant us the wisdom to overcome fear, to not be afraid when you call us to something and to rest assured that you are always with us.

In Jesus' name I pray,

Amen