Let God Show-Off For You (4)

Three Hebrew God-fearing men in Daniel 3 would not bow down to the pressures of King Neb that said, “You either bow or burn in my furnace.” Life can get interesting to say the least. Can you remember a time that you were in your own pressure cooker at work; your college life, a major setback, an Irma, where you almost drown in your pain?

Whoever said that we were exempt from pain and problems? These men told King Neb, you can turn up the fire all you want, but we will not bow down to your god. So the King turned up the heat seven times hotter.

To give you some points of reference, one can feel a burning feeling on their skin at 111 and will receive a first degree burn at 118 °F, second degree burn at 131 °F.  At 140 °F, the pain receptors overload and become numb.  At 162 °F, human tissue is destroyed on contact.  And, for an extreme point of reference, bodies are cremated between 1400 – 1800.  We see that the fire immediately killed the men who took  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to the door of the fire.  Because of the properties of fires below, we know that the fire was at least 1,000 °. Can you even imagine the heat from this fire?  I would bet you could feel the heat hundreds of feet away from the door. 

Are you feeling the heat in your situation? Notice their faith and determination of regardless if He delivers us or not, we still won’t bow.

Yes, The Lord did show up in the fiery furnace and not one hair was singed from their head, not even the smell of smoke on their clothes, they were determined, they were not going to wimp out. These men walked in the fire but did not walk away from their faith.

Friend, If you never faced a problem, how are you going to know just how GREAT your God is? Let God show-off for you in your dilemma, in your heated difficulty, in your darkness, in your despair, or your depression. This is the day that the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it. Allow God to Glow and Show-off for you and through you today.

Let God Show-Off for You (3)

In my devotion today I read, “Your way was through the sea, your path through the great waters; yet your footprints were unseen.” Ps 77:19 Have you ever questioned your GPS navigation along the way? I have, and I’ve also questioned the Lord in why this way?

Why would God lead Israel out of Egypt toward the way and the path of the Red Sea? Can you image the grumbling going on among Israel? Some must have been saying, “Why is Moses taking us in this direction? Doesn’t he realize that there’s no bridge to get us across the great waters of the Red Sea? What kind of leader is Moses anyway?

Is God leading you today right toward your own Red Sea? The reason we have THE WORD is to meditate on the great stories of Gods incredible power. That’s what builds our faith when we face our own situations. God enjoys “Showing-off” His mighty wonderful power in the midst of your impossible situations.

 YES, King Pharaoh determined Israel was trapped in the wilderness, and Israel’s God had made a huge miscalculation. Did God miss it this time? Was Gods GPS off, and was He wrong this time? That was the chatter among the Israelites.

“NO,” God is always on point, He’s always one, two, three steps ahead of the enemy. God knew exactly what He was doing. This was a divine set-up to destroy Israel’s enemy. With God’s nostrils, He blew a hole through the Red Sea and some commentators believe, five miles wide to get 2 to 3 million people across the great waters on DRY ground.

Don’t tell me God won’t show –off his power to show you “He’s Greater” than any force mounted against you. In the end, Israel’s enemy drowns in the Red Sea and Israel is on the other side dancing in a victory that there is “No other” like their Jehovah God. Trust Him, friend, “He is the way, the truth, and the life.” Even when you question what’s next?

Let God “Show-off” for YOU (2)

David learned early in life, battles and struggles are part of life. FOCUS on the Prize and not the pain or the problems. A wide receiver once said, “I know when I catch the football, there is going to be some pain, but I need to catch the ball because there’s going to be pain whether I catch it or drop it.”

David was in what seemed an impossible battle in fighting the giant Goliath. What GIANT are you up against today? You may be saying, “How am I going to pay my taxes or raise my teenager whose in rebellion, or my spouse has walked out on our relationship, or I was just laid off from my job, or the doctor just gave me a bad report.”

David would face pain in dealing with Goliath. Yes, he won the battle but His brothers thought he had no business in facing a giant. King Saul became so jealous when he defeated Goliath and started a plan to kill David from that day forward, Pain, Problems, “YES.”

Let God Show-off for you today, He never said this life would be all smooth sailing, but He did say, “In this world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer for I have overcome the world.” He’s got a Plan and a Prize. Go ahead, get your hands on the ball because there will be some pain regardless. But in the end, you’ll cross the Winning line because He’s calling the plays and fighting for you every step of the way.

Let God “Show-off” for YOU (1)

Gideon was in a difficult place when Israel was under attack from the Midianites. Gideon only had 32,000 soldiers, when the enemy had 135,000. God says to Gideon, “You have too many with you.” What could God have been thinking? He knew that when Israel won the battle, they would say, “Look what our hands have done.” Pride my friend is a dangerous sin that destroys men.

When God trimmed down Gideon’s army, he went from 32,000 men to 300 men. God says, “Now you're ready for the battle.” If you do the math, that’s 400 to 1. What do you do when the odds are against you? Let God show His hand, His might, His power, His anointing.

What are you up against today? Does it look as if you’re going under? Does it appear that you're going to lose this battle with your health, your job, your finances, your marriage, your kids, your home, your dream, your future? God specializes in taking the underdog and causing them to rise higher than the odds against them.

Think about David fighting a giant Goliath, Three Hebrew men against King Nebuchadnezzar's fiery furnace, Elisha surrounded by the Syrian Army, Our Lord Jesus and the Roman soldiers who placed Him on the cross. Add up all the moments that Gods sons and daughters were out-numbered and HE always steps in and SHOWS-OFF His mighty power.

Jesus gave His life so we might WIN regardless of the odds against us. Let him fight for you today. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. If God be for us who can be against us? (Romans 8:31)Israel won the battle because God is for His kids. Let Him, show-off, His power and might for you today.

Gideon's Divine Encounter

Will God answer with Signs for your “Next Step” in life? As a child of God, one of the sweetest words you’ll ever hear from the Lord is, “I am with you.” In Judges 6, in the midst of Israel’s disobedience, God turns them over to the Midianites.

But God tells Gideon in Judges 6:12 “I am with you.” He calls Gideon to lead Israel back from their waywardness of Baal into a dimension of the “Only One True God.” Israel’s heart had grown cold and was under the oppression of the Midianites for seven long years.

In the midst of chaos and confusion, God shows Gideon in his own time of worship to offer his father’s bull as a burnt offering, and tear down the god of Baal and build an altar to God. After confirmation from the Lord, Gideon takes ten men with him in the night and tears down Baal and builds an altar to God.

Again and again, God confirms to him, “I am with you.” Gideon would be used by God to see Israel delivered from the hand of the enemy.

There is nothing wrong in asking God to confirm to you, your Next Step. Is He working for you and with you doing His Will and Plan? Mark Batterson says, “Prayer is the difference between you fighting for God and God fighting for you.” Don’t underestimate your time of worship with Him, He is there and will direct and lead you in your Next Step in life.

Divine Encounters For Your Path

Elevation worship recorded a powerful song a year ago, “Do It Again.” Can God bring us divine encounters in our day? Is He the same yesterday, today, and forever?

He showed up on the backside of a desert to Moses in a burning bush and said, “Take your shoes off, for you are standing on Holy Ground.” Joshua has crossed the Jordon River with Gods supernatural hand holding back the waters as they walked across on dry ground. Now they’re on the edge of the first city in Canaan, Jericho. How would they move ahead? Could they win against such a mighty city Jericho with walls wide enough to drive a chariot?

Just prior to going ahead, Joshua encounters a man who stands before him with a drawn sword and Joshua asks, “Art thou for us, or for our adversaries? And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the Lord am I now come “Joshua 3:14

In Joshua's divine encounter we read, “And the captain of the LORD'S host said unto Joshua, “Take  your shoes off your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so

I believe this was the Lord himself who appeared to Joshua to tell him, this is not your battle but this one is mine. Too many times we forget we cannot do anything without His power and His touch. We desperately need the supernatural makings of His hand to go forward into His will and plan for our lives. Joshua would take Jericho because The Lord himself was leading the charge to take His people into His divine promises for their lives.

I don’t have the words to describe past encounters that I’ve had with the Lord instructing me about our steps in moving forward into His will and plan. But I do know that as He speaks, leads, and directs, He will crush every fear, doubt, feelings of inadequacy, disbelief, and build your faith, confidence and boldness to go in His promises with His powerful Hand that will rest on your life to see great miracles and do great exploits in His name.” Yes,” God still gives His people divine encounters today. Yes, He can do it again.

Speak Life In Your Next Step (3)

Are you facing your own Jordon?                 

The Promise Land represents where God is taking us in our dreams and hopes for life. The challenge each of us has, there is a Jordon River standing between us and the Promises of God. The BEST way to get there is through the supernatural power of God,

Joshua was ordained to go into the Promised Land, “But” there was a Jordon River standing in the way. What is standing in the way of you going into your land of Promise? Between the promise and the payoff is a process. Are you willing to go through the process to get there?

God would take Israel over into the land in His way, His timing, and His process through His Supernatural power. We should all ask God to place our feet where we're supposed to be. In our relationship with Him, in our job, marriage, location, ministry, finances, health, and dreams. "Not by our might nor by power but by His Spirit saith the Lord." Zech 4:6

God told Joshua to get the feet of the priest in the water and take “The ARK”. What was in the ARK? First, “The stone tablets, The 10 commandments.” God wrote with his own finger the way we are to live our lives. Second, “The manna.” A golden jar of manna was placed in the Ark again sustaining them for every step they would take living in the wilderness. The third item in the ark was, Aaron’s rod that budded”

This rod represented the presence and the supernatural power of God that opened the Red Sea. It turned the Nile River to blood; it brought judgment on Egypt’s false gods. The rod brought water out of the rock and so much more. All pieces of evidence that God was at work.

Then Joshua instructed the priest to stand in the Jordon River with the Ark of God. Joshua 3:13 “The Lord of all the earth will rest in the water.” God stood there with his hand and held the waters back. This was evidence that this was the ordained path of the Lord for Israel.

My prayer today is that The God of the earth would rest in my path and show His supernatural power as I walk in the path, plan, and purpose for my life. Take with you today His Word; Manna and Testimonies of what He has done in your life. “Eye hath not seen nor has ear heard, neither has it entered into the heart of man, the things God has prepared for them that love him. 1 Cor 2:9 In your next step, Gods power will bring so much more.