Author: Hal Hollister Ministry

“The Lord knows the thoughts of man, that they are futile.” Psalm 94:11

You might be well educated or possess a high IQ but this will never give you the ability to think like God.

You can read the Bible endlessly but this will just create a quandary.

Your cannot think like God because His thoughts come from a source out of your universe.

The thoughts of man originate in a mind that is grounded in self and the ways of the world. To be blunt, God calls your thoughts foolishness.

You cannot think for God but you can have the mind of Christ. This comes to you from the Holy Spirit. He is the life of Christ and dwells in all believers.

God speaks to those who live for Him above all else with a burning desire to do His will.

The mind of Christ is given to those who submit to the authority of the Holy Spirit.

Prayer invites the thoughts of God to those who learn to be still and listen for His voice.

Read the Word of God and ask God to imbed His curriculum into your heart. This gives God the ability to relate to you through His words.

God is holy and does not to waste His precious words on an unclean person.

Pray for Jesus to cover you with with His blood so He can speak into a pure and blameless vessel.

Seek the words of the Lord. They are pure and life changing and to be treasured above all else!

“You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Matthew 8:26

What would you do if you were stranded on a boat in a stormy sea? Panic or reach out for help?

Last night I was in a similar position in a dream from God. I was fearful and did not know what to do. I reached out to God and His arm stretched out to protect me. Then the dream was over.

We all get in circumstances where there is no way out. This causes anger, fear, and confusion.

The adversities of life are engineered by God. They are designed to perfect your faith and teach you how to walk with Jesus.

The only option for a believer is to reach out to God for help. Jesus told His disciples they were fearful and lacking faith when they were on the boat in a stormy sea.

Jesus was sleeping; the disciples were in a state of panic.

We are human beings unlike God and often become overcome by anxiety over difficult circumstances.

The word from God about dealing with adversity is “aplomb” which means you can have assurance and confidence in the promises of God.

The command is to reach out to Jesus by faith. Ask Him for wisdom for dealing with your predicament.

Walking with God in a whirling eddy is believing and living by faith in the promises of Jesus. It is not by might nor by power but by the Spirit of Christ.

Wait patiently on God and do not panic because your situation is in His powerful hands.

Most importantly, do not react to your feelings. This will only dig your hole deeper. Find your joy and peace in the sufficiency of Christ.

Paul and Silas were in jail and possibly facing death. They sang praises to God and waited upon Him by faith. God responded by sending an angel to break them out of jail.

God is not asleep. He may take some time or work in an unorthodox manner but He will deliver you. He is under the obligation of His word to rescue you.

“Christ is in you” Romans 8:10

The word of God today is juxtaposition which is defined as two things being merged close together creating a contrasting effect.

This is the dynamic union of Christ and a human being. The contrast is the glaring difference between light and darkness.

You see the frailty of your inner nature compared to the greatness and glory of God.

You experience the reality of the Living Jesus and not a figment of religion.

This synergy of man with God creates a new creature in Christ filled with the life of Jesus.

The reality of the light pierces your heart as God reveals your inner nature and convicts you of sin.

The light gives you insight into your motives and how they compare to the values of God.

God seals you with the Holy Spirit and gives you direct access to Jesus. This enables you to live in the light and provides a link to all the attributes of Christ.

Juxtaposition gives you the mind of Christ. You hear the voice of God.

The Holy Spirit gives you strength, wisdom, joy and guides your pathway.

The light reveals your vulnerabilities and the need for the sufficiency of Jesus. We live in the darkness of the world but we are not of the world.

We are a human vessel filled with Living Water and a powerful witness for the name of Jesus.

Juxtaposition creates a burning fire inside you to live and move and have your being in Christ.

“Not my will but yours be done.” Luke 22:42

Jesus made a commitment to God that you and I will never be able to duplicate. As human beings, we have to view abandonment as a process which has no ending on earth.

What does it really mean to abandon yourself to God?

It begins in the depth of your heart and not on the exterior surface of your life.

What happens in the heart will transcend onto the surface of your life. It can never be the opposite.

God does not want you to have an emotional relationship with Him. Your emotions will betray you and your faith will be up and down.

Jesus wants you to have a heart of obedience and submit to Him regardless of the cost or lack of understanding.

This is a transaction of exchanging your will and autonomy for the will of God. You agree to give up your rights to follow Jesus.

The transaction with God is not about your pathway or purpose in life. This is the business of God not yours. He will reveal your future in His perfect timing.

As a believer you don’t have the ability to discern your pathway with God through human logic or your own ideas. God does not want your help in shaping the direction of your life.

Be content to walk with God one day at a time. Ask Jesus for His wisdom for today. Jesus lives in the routine and sometimes boring moments of life. This is where He likes to reveal Himself to you.

Walking with God is always about today. Your future with God is in a dense fog.

Jesus is always searching your heart looking for abandonment and obedience.

What are you lacking today?

“And the government will be upon His shoulder.” Isaiah 9:6

The word from God today is “dabbling in Christ”. The definition of dabbling is a superficial or intermittent interest in something.

In the spiritual context, we go in and out of Christ. We go in because we want something and then we go out. At times we all suffer from this behavior. We go in with motives to take from God but fail to find out what God wants from us.

We go out because we are human beings designed to live for self and satisfy our needs.

God wants to give His life to you but He does not want you to go out. He wants you to stay connected to Him at all times.

The government of God is on the shoulders of Jesus. We have to live under His authority. You can accomplish this by inviting the Holy Spirit to have authority over your life. He is the life of Christ and lives in all believers. He desires to teach you the values of Jesus and guide you into a smooth pathway. The Spirit wants to help you make good decisions and fill you with wisdom, strength, and joy. He never sleeps.

If you live under the authority of the Holy Spirit you will not go out from Jesus and return to living for self.

God has given you the mind of Christ. This is how He keeps you on track with His will. The Spirit fills you with the thoughts and wisdom of God so you can navigate through all the moments of life pleasing God.

No one is perfect. So you will go out (or relapse) at times but God is waiting for you to come back under His covering.

I live so you can live. There is no one like Me!

“Pray without ceasing” 1 Thessalonians 5:17

Praying is coming into contact with the Living Christ. You cannot pray effectively without understanding the attitudes and mind of God about His priorities.

Jesus wants to guide your prayer life if you give Him the freedom. He will take you where He wants to go not where you want to go.

Prayer is listening and responding to God. Be still and let God orchestrate your prayer life.

Prayer begins with God.

God has several objectives in prayer.

He wants you to come to Jesus asking for His blood to cover you, forgive all your sins and restore you to Himself.

He wants to teach you the values of Christ and purify your motives.

He wants to convict and correct you.

He wants you to reach out to Jesus for your every need and walk by faith believing in His promises. He wants you to have a lifestyle built on faith.

He wants to heal your emotions and physical infirmities. Ask by faith and receive.

He wants you to make intercession for His purposes. This is allowing the Holy Spirit to bring the names of people or topics that are on His mind. God doesn’t need any help from you. Let Him set the agenda.

He wants you to pray with the power of the Holy Spirit to bring down strongholds.

He wants to speak prophesy to you about the future and make personal promises to you. He is omniscient and operates without a timeline.

He wants you to pray and bind the power of Satan from having any influence in your life.

Prayer is the most important work you will ever do for God. We want to accrue bonus points working for God but He wants you to do His work through prayer laboring for His purposes.

Prayer brings wisdom, order and joy into your day.

Prayer equips you to be a powerful witness for Jesus.

Prayer is a conversation with God which has no boundaries.

“For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight.” 1 Corinthians 3:19

The word from God today is solidarity which is defined as creating unity or oneness with Jesus.

We are an imperfect people attempting to interact with a perfect God.

God doesn’t think or act like you so this creates an insurmountable conflict which can only be overcome by Jesus.

Solidarity comes from submitting to the chain of command of God.

If you are a non believer your chain of command is your own moral compass, obeying the laws of the land and the governing authorities in your life. You basically report to yourself.

The chain of command changes when you become a believer. You are now reporting to Jesus through the Holy Spirit. He is the authority in your life. You are responsible to seek the will of God for your life above all else.

Solidarity comes with an open heart to God and a genuine commitment to walk with Him by faith. Your relationship with Jesus will be defined by your faith in His promises and how you live out a faith based life.

Furthermore, you live in a world which is not under the authority of God. The wisdom of the world is foolish in the eyes of God. So you have to be retrained in the ways of God and change your thinking patterns to conform to the mind of Christ.

God is holy and wants nothing to do with your inner nature to live for self and defy His ways. This is why you need a mediator to make you clean in the eyes of God and transform you into a new creature in Christ.

You can overcome this conflict by asking Jesus to cover you with His blood and forgive all your sins.

God knows you better than you know yourself. He sees into the depth of your personality and confronts you over your hidden sins. Be open to the conviction and correction of the Holy Spirit.

To create symmetry with Jesus you have to be obedient to His voice. This requires you to listen and comply with His instructions.

Solidarity is abandoning yourself to God and letting go of the world. Invite the Holy Spirit to have authority over your life and you will be in unity with the amazing Living Christ!

“The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak“ Matthew 26:41

The standards of Jesus come from heaven. They are perfect and never change.

We all become discouraged at times and feel helpless dealing with God.

We come to Jesus with joy and enthusiasm and then become disenchanted trying to obey His commands.

We fail Jesus because we are an imperfect people. We are naturally engineered to live for self and satisfy our fleshly desires.

We want to obey Jesus but fail Him time and time again. If you think you can keep the precepts of God and never fail Him you are living in fantasy.

We want security and discover Jesus wants unpredictability and a roller coaster lifestyle

We want intimacy with Jesus and at times He disappears.

We desire the favor of God and find out it comes and goes.

We want a smooth life and God brings storms.

How do you and I deal with discouragement?

We have to pick ourselves up off the ground and come humbly back to Jesus.

Come to Jesus with transparency. Don’t hide your feelings of anger, remorse, and disillusionment.

Ask Jesus to forgive you, restore you to Himself and cover you with His blood. He will never fail this request.

Ask Jesus to heal your inner emotions and fill you with the joy of the Lord.

Pray for the strength of God.

Pray for the perfect wisdom of God.

Pray for the peace of God.

Pray for God to help you walk in oneness with Him.

Pray God will give you the discipline to overcome your weaknesses.

Forgive God for the severe testing and nightmare of troubles.

Jesus died for your failures and lack of faith which is a characteristic of a Christ follower.

The miracle of the Cross is the resiliency of Christ to recover quickly from your difficulties. Reach out to Him. He will never fail you!

“That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You” John 17:21

The word from God today is compatibility with Christ which is defined as a state in which a believer and God are able to exist together without conflict.

This is living in a symbiotic relationship with the Living Christ. Jesus becomes alive in your life.

You recognize your inherent weaknesses and come to Jesus asking for His blood to cover you and remake you into His image. 

It is a relationship void of conflict where you agree to be submissive and obedient to God. 

The problems of life do not deter you from compatibility with Jesus. You walk by faith believing in the reality of the promises of God.

You build your life upon Jesus who has power and dominion over the heavens and earth and trust Him to deliver you from all adversity. 

Compatibility comes through submission, prayer, listening to the voice of God, and spending time in the Bible. 

The power of Christ is made perfect in your weakness. 

Compatibility is accepting the sufficiency of the grace of God regardless of your circumstances. 

Compatibility comes with giving praise and thanksgiving to God.

Compatibility is waking up each day seeking the will of God.

He lives so you can live!

The word from God today is propensity which is defined as an inclination or tendency to behave in a particular way.

We are motivated by our fleshly desires and our genetic disposition formed at birth. Very simply, we are a self driven people with an ego to satisfy our needs. Face the facts; this is who you are along with all humanity.

God wants to change the propensities in your life from the natural to the spiritual. He wants you to be driven by the Holy Spirit with motives built on the values of Christ.

The starting point is to be born again into the life of Christ. 

This alone will not change your natural propensities. You must have a genuine desire and sincere heart to seek the will of God above all else and live under the authority of the Holy Spirit. 

When you think about the will of God do not think about religion or doing works. Think about living by faith believing in the promises of God. Concentrate on listening to the voice of God and responding to Him with obedience. This delights the heart of God. 

Take time each day to pray, listen, and commit your works to God.

God desires to remake you filled with His propensities. You do not have to work for them. They will come through your faith and resting in God. This is the miracle of salvation. It is not by power nor by might but by the Spirit of Christ. 

The defining propensity of a Christ follower is to wake up each day with an attitude “Not my will but Yours be done.”