“For the Lord is righteous,
He loves righteousness;
His countenance beholds the upright.” Psalm 11:7

You have to make a choice today.

You cannot change the mind of Christ. He is shaking the earth with His wrath over the despicable ways of the world. Very few respect or fear Christ. And, religion doesn’t take God seriously.

God is on a mission and will not be deterred! He lives in heaven and His eyes see all things. You and I are under the microscope of His judgment and conviction.

God tests all those who call on the name of Christ. This is a time your true character will be revealed. God wants you to worship Him in Spirit and Truth. Come to know Christ for who He is and not what you can get out of Him.

If you choose to live for self and pursue evil intentions you will be punished by God.

The character of God is holiness and righteousness! He favors those who live by faith and seek His will for their life.

 

 

“There is a way that seems right to a man,
but its end is the way of death.” Proverbs 14:12

What’s the motive behind your ambitions? Is it success, wealth, security, or trying to gain recognition from God?

How can you make sure your ambitions are in oneness with God?

The answer is diligent prayer, openness to the Holy Spirit, and living in the Word of God. This is how you can have an honest and indepth relationship with Christ.

You will be surprised about the priorities of God in your life. God doesn’t dwell on the big things or reveal His plans for your life. He’s interested in your behavior and motives.

Examine your relationships, work habits, drinking and eating patterns, spending decisions, and your thoughts and words. How you spend your time? This is where you will find Christ!

Your living habits have to be synced with God before He will send you out to do His work.

The true disciple of God lives by, “For in Him we live and move and have our being.” Nothing else matters!

 

“I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church.” Colossians 1:24

This morning God said to me; “Why do My people try to impress Me through works when all I seek from them is to believe in Me?”

And….

“This judgment is eternal and will manifest itself in many different forms.”

“There is hope for those who profess My name and are willing to lay down their life for My sake.”

Some other thoughts today:

The laboring for Christ begins with prayer. Nothing else really matters. You are building a relationship with the Living Christ.

It is impertinence to think you can earn the respect of God through your own efforts.

Prayer changes lives and brings down strongholds.

The Holy Spirit knows the mind of Christ and prays through you with deep groans you cannot grasp.

Jesus prayed for the will of God and died on the Cross. This was the perfect sacrifice entitling all to the abundant and eternal life of Christ.

You will impress God by your faith not by works or religion.

The true believer worships God in Spirit and Truth.

You can please God by standing in the gap for those in bondage to sin. Intercession is the highest calling of God. It sets people free.

Prayer is respecting God for who He is and understanding you are hopeless without Him.

Prayer opens the door to the transfigured Christ!

 

“And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” 1 Peter 5:10

Those who live and suffer with Christ have a bright future ahead.

Christ Jesus will intercede in your life and restore you. He will make you strong, firm, and steadfast.

The Cross is about redemption and there is an upside for those who walk by faith believing in His promises.

The troubles of today will bring rewards to those whose priority is to know Christ. This is a promise from Christ who keeps His Word.

Resting in Christ is an action of faith. It is a resolute belief that “It is not by might nor by power but by My Spirit.”

Your purposeful faith will allow you to reap the benefits of Christ crucified!

 

 

Jesus said to him, “It is written again, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’” Matthew 4:7

You and I are living in a time of unprecedented turmoil. The temptation is to take actions believing God will support you.

You have to ask yourself if your decision making is reflective of the values of Christ? Or, are you doing something to ingratiate yourself?

God is punishing the world. You cannot escape this judgment!

God will bring an end to this adversity in His perfect timing. Your role is to be grounded in Christ and stand firm on His promises.

Jesus did not succumb to the temptation of Satan. He was grounded in the will of His Father.

There is a way that seems right to a man but its end is destruction.

God is cautioning all not to take perfunctory actions. Do not act in haste or think in superficial ways.

Commit your works to God and His thoughts will be established within you.

God is perfect. Wait upon the Lord!

 

“Preserve me, O God, for in You I put my trust.” Psalm 16:1

The word from the Lord today is “maelstrom”. This is a state of confused movement or violent turmoil.

The troubles today were created by God to serve His purposes. No one is immune from the judgment of God as evidenced by the happenings over the last few weeks.

It is time to return to Christ and worship Him in Spirit and Truth. This is the desire of the heart of God.

Ask Christ for forgiveness and to cover you with His blood.

Open your heart up to the conviction of the Holy Spirit. Don’t deceive yourself. All are filled with self driven desires and fleshly indulgences.

Pray you can know Christ and have an authentic relationship with Him.

Forget your religious pretenses and seek out God for who He is.

God desires to preserve you through this turmoil but this can only happen by making a commitment to live with Christ by faith.

Faith is seeking God out for your every need. Walk by faith not by sight! Nothing is impossible for Christ Jesus.

He lives so you can live!

 

“Count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.” James 1:2-4

In the middle of the night, God spoke this bible verse to me along with the title for this narrative.

God wants you and I to live in His joy through the trials of today.

God is testing our faith and this requires patience in Christ. You can find this by resting in Christ and letting go.

Patience is believing God can do for you what you can never do for yourself.

Your patience in Christ will be rewarded with the ability to be complete and lack nothing.

If you lack wisdom, pray to God and He will give to you without restraint or condemnation. He lives so you can live!

The secret of walking with Christ is to be steadfast in your faith without doubt. You cannot receive from God if your faith teeters back and forth. This grieves the Holy Spirit and deprives you of the life of Jesus—joy, patience, and strength.

The purpose of Christ is for you to walk by faith not by sight!

 

“But I say to you that Elijah has come already, and they did not know him but did to him whatever they wished. Likewise the Son of Man is also about to suffer at their hands.” Matthew 17:12

Jesus took three disciples up a high mountain. God transfigured Jesus with His glory. Elijah and Moses appeared and were talking with Jesus.

While Jesus was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!”

The disciples were terrified and fell on the ground. Jesus came and touched them and said arise and do not be afraid. When the disciples opened their eyes they saw only Jesus.

As they came down from the mountain Jesus told His disciples, “Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man is risen from the dead.”

This is another step in the unveiling of the suffering and death of Christ. The disciples saw the glory of God and witnessed a glimpse of heaven. They also began to understand the destiny of Jesus.

This miracle took place to build faith and confidence in the disciples and to demonstrate the greatness and glory of God. And, they heard the voice of God endorse the deity of Jesus and admonish them to listen to Him.

How does all this relate to the troubles of today? First of all, you have to experience the transfigured Christ. Until this happens, Christ will be intangible and impossible to understand.

Secondly, the life of a believer is similar to the life of Christ. You are baptized into the death and resurrection of Christ.

The transfigured Christ gives you hope and assurance for the future. Nothing can shake you or take you away from the presence of Christ!

Today, listen to Christ. He desires to speak to you!

 

“And Jesus answering said unto him, suffer it to be so now, for thus. It becomes us to fulfill all.” Matthew 3:15

This was the response from Jesus to John the Baptist when Jesus asked John to baptize Him.

John the Baptist did not consider himself worthy to baptize Jesus and responded to Jesus you should be baptizing me.

This act took place under the hand of God. It was a humble expression of God. Although Jesus was the Son of God, He was submitting to John, a prophet of God anointed by the Holy Spirit.

This baptism signaled the death of both John and Jesus. This was necessary so you and I could be restored to God and live in His righteousness.

God was pleased with this act and spoke, “This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased.”

This act of suffering was necessary for the glory of God to be manifested upon humanity.

This is what is taking place today. The baptism of Jesus is about suffering and death. The tribulation taking place today will lead to the glory of God touching both non believers and Christians.

This tribulation is necessary to reestablish the authority of Christ and to bring an end to the act of compromising the teachings of Jesus. You cannot take Jesus lightly!

The Cross is your only hope for knowing Christ. You have been baptized into the death and resurrected life of Christ.

Jesus loves you!

Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.” John 6:29

Jesus fed five thousand people with five loaves of bread and two fish. And, there was food left over.

Then Jesus departed to pray. After this, He walked on water to reach His disciples in their boat.

The crowd following Jesus realized He was on the other side of the lake and got into their boats to find Him.

When the crowd found Jesus, they asked Him when did you come here?

Jesus responded, “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled.

Jesus was confronting the people because their motives were unclean. They thought of Jesus as someone who could meet all their needs for food, healing, and protection. They were seeking the blessings of God not the source of the bread of life.

Jesus admonishes the people not to labor for food which perishes but for the food leading to eternal life. This food comes from the Son of God who is favored by His Father in heaven.

Then the people asked Jesus how do we do the works of God? Jesus responded, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”

What is your priority as a follower of Jesus? Is your primary motive to get something out of God? Or, do you sincerely want to know the Living Christ?

The tribulation taking place today is because we misinterpret the purposes of God!